P. VIRGILII MARONIS BUCOLICA LONDON PRINTED BY T. BENSLEY, BOLT COURT. PUBLISHED BY ROBERT JENNINGS, No. 2, POULTRY, M.DCCC.X. P. VIRGILII MARONIS BUCOLICA. ECLOGA I. TITYRU S. a MELIBOEUS, TITYRUS. M.TITYRE, tu patulae recubans sub tegmine fagi Sylvestrem tenui musam meditaris avena : b a Meliboeus and Tityrus are two shepherds, but whether under these names any real persons are represented, is not known. After the battle of Philippi, when Brutus and Cassius were overthrown by Augustus Caesar and Mark Antony, Augustus, on his return to Italy, rewarded his soldiers by dividing certain lands among them belonging to several cities, among which were Cremona and Mantua. This eclogue describes the unhappy state of those who were thus deprived of their possessions, in the person of Melibocus; and Tityrus represents one who was so fortunate as to have his farm restored to him by the favour of Augustus, and employs his pastoral eloquence to praise him as a deity for his munifiThese lands were divided among the soldiers in the year Consequently this eclogue may be supposed to be written in that year, or soon after. cence. 713, A.V.C. The musical instruments used by shepherds were at first made B |