See vv. 41 foll. and notes. This confusion arises from the identification of the shepherd and the poet, spoken of in the Introduction to the Eclogues: but in the present case its very grossness has prevented its being observed by the editors, who suppose Tityrus, like Moeris in Ecl. 9, to be Virgil's 'villicus,' who goes to Rome to purchase his liberty of his master, and there hears from Octavianus that his master's property is safe—a cumbrous hypothesis, and not really reconcilable with the language of the Eclogue. The earlier commentators, such as La Cerda and Catrou, did not feel this difficulty, but they created one for themselves in the shape of an allegory, according to which Tityrus' two partners, v. 30, stand for Rome and Mantua respectively. Trapp, in rejecting the allegory, himself supposes that the change of partners is intended to intimate a change of parties, Virgil's abandonment of the cause of the republicans for that of the triumvirs.

The scenery, as in other Eclogues, is confused and conventional, the beeches (v. 1), caverns (v. 75), mountains (v. 83), and rocks (vv. 15. 47. 56. 76) belonging to Sicily, while the marshy river (v. 48) is from Mantua. See Introduction to the Eclogues, and Note on the Scenery about Mantua, p. 107. In other respects the poem appears to be original, only the names Tityrus, Galatea, and Amaryllis, being borrowed from Theocritus.

M. TITYRE, tu patulae recubans sub tegmine fagi
Silvestrem tenui Musam meditaris avena;
Nos patriae finis et dulcia linquimus arva:
Nos patriam fugimus; tu, Tityre, lentus in umbra
Formosam resonare doces Amaryllida silvas.

T. O Meliboee, deus nobis haec otia fecit.

1-5.] How is it that while I am wandering an outcast from my native fields, you are lying in the shade and singing like a happy shepherd of your mistress?'

1.] Tityrus (Tirupoç) is one of the Theocritean shepherds (Theocr. 3. 2 foll.). The word is apparently the Doric form of Zárvpos, being applied in the same way to designate a kind of tailed ape, and perhaps a goat. Another account, that it means a reed, was also received among the ancient critics (Schol. on Theocr. 1. c.), and is to some extent supported by the words TITÚρινος (αὐλός), τιτυριστής; but these may be explained by supposing that the name had come to have a conventional sense as a shepherd or rustic minstrel.

2.] Silvestrem,' 'pastoral:' as 'silvae' is used for pastoral poetry, 4. 3. Forbiger observes that the Italians pasture their cattle in summer among the woody slopes of the mountains. 'Silvestrem Musam' is from Lucr. 4. 589, "Fistula silvestrem ne cesset fundere Musam." "Tenui,' like "Agrestem tenui meditabor arundine Musam," 6. 8, where it is evident from the context that 'tenui' is meant to be in keeping with 'agrestem,' and to suggest the notion of simplicity and humility, at the same time

6

5

that it is a natural epithet of the reed, like
fragili cicuta,' 5. 85. Musam:' the Muse
had come to be used for the song personified
as early as Sophocles and Euripides. Me-
ditaris,' 'compose.' Comp. Hor. 1 S. 9. 2,
"Nescio quid meditans nugarum et totus
in illis." 'Avena,' not a straw (which
would be absurd), but a reed, or perhaps a
pipe of reeds, hollow like a straw.
'stipula,' of a reed, 3. 27, though the word
there is designedly contemptuous.

3.] Patrios finis," v. 68.

So

4.] He repeats the contrast in an inverse order, so that we shall perhaps do best to put with Jahn a semicolon after v. 2, a colon after v. 3. Fugimus, φεύγομεν, 'are banished from it.' 'Lentus' 6 securus.' Comp. Ovid, Her. 19. 81, "Certe ego tum ventos audirem lenta sonantes."

5.] "Resonent mihi Cynthia silvae," Prop. 1. 18. 31, probably in imitation of this passage.

6-10.] 'These rural liberties I owe to one whom I shall ever own as a god.'

6.] Meliboeus is explained by Servius, ὅτι μέλει αὐτῷ τῶν βοῶν, a plausible and indeed obvious etymology, but unsupported by analogy, which would rather point to peλ as the first part of the compound.

Namque erit ille mihi semper deus; illius aram
Saepe tener nostris ab ovilibus imbuet agnus.
Ille meas errare boves, ut cernis, et ipsum
Ludere, quae vellem, calamo permisit agresti.
M. Non equidem invideo; miror magis: undique totis
Usque adeo turbatur agris. En, ipse capellas
Protinus aeger ago; hanc etiam vix, Tityre, duco.
Hic inter densas corylos modo namque gemellos,
Spem gregis, ah! silice in nudâ connixa reliquit.
Saepe malum hoc nobis, si mens non laeva fuisset,
De caelo tactas memini praedicere quercus.

Perhaps the name was suggested by the geographical Meliboea, and adopted simply from its connexion with Bouc. Comp. Alphesiboeus. 'Otia,'' peace.' Comp. Hor. A. P. 199, "Apertis otia portis." The 'deus' is Octavius. This is probably mere hyperbole, though it heralds the adulation which treated a living emperor as a god. Ruaeus observes that Octavianus was not worshipped till 718.

7.] Eris mihi magnus Apollo," 3. 104. 'Shall be honoured by me as a god,' softening the expression of the preceding line. Serv. comp. Lucan's adulation of Nero (1. 63), "Sed mihi jam numen." Aram,' imit. fr. Theocr. Epig. 1. 5, Bwμòv d' aiμάξει κεραὸς τράγος οὗτος ὁ μαλλός.

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8.] Comp. Catull. 20. 12, cited on v. 34. 9.] Ille (mihi) permisit boves errare et ipsum ludere,' the infinitives standing in place of an accusative. This must not be confounded with our idiom, he permitted my cattle to feed at large and me to play,' where' cattle' and 'me' are datives. Errare' implies security, as in Hor. Epod. 2. 13 (quoted by Emmenessius), "Prospectat errantes greges." In E. 2. 21 it implies wealth.

10.] 'Ludere,' frequently used of poetry, 6. 1, Hor. 1 Od. 32. 2, half slightingly, as of a relaxation. Το παίζειν.

11-19.] 'Well, I do not grudge you your lot, but I wonder-such peace in the midst of such troubles. You see me wearily driving my flock-one of them has just dropped her young dead-not but that I might have foreseen this . . . But tell me about this god of yours.'

11.] Magis' used for' potius,' as in Lucr. 2. 428,869, Catull. 66 (68).30 (referred to by Keightley), where as here one assertion is rejected and another substituted; not this, but rather that.' 'Non equidem invideo,' KOUTOL TI plovéw, Theocr. 1. 62, which

6

however refers to giving a present.

10

15

12.] Turbatur,' 'the soldiers are spreading confusion.' Many MSS., including the Roman, have ' turbamur,' which was adopted by Heinsius; but this reading is condemned by Serv., and Quinctilian (1. 4. 28) gives turbatur.' 'Ipse' contrasted with 'undique totis agris.'

13.] Protinus,'' onwards;' the primary meaning of the word. 'Protinus' is the spelling of the Medicean, Rom., and Vatican MSS., adopted by Forb. 'Aeger' applies probably both to body and mind. 'Duco,' the rest he drove before him, this one he leads by a cord.

14.] Gemellos :' the birth of twins increases the disappointment. Emmen. quotes Theocr. 1. 25., 3. 34, where didvμarókog is the epithet of a goat. Such goats were especially valuable from their quantity of milk. Corulos' seems the older spelling, but corylos' is adopted by Forb. from Med. The use of 'namque' so late in the sentence is of course peculiar to poetry (comp. A. 5. 733), though it is placed second in a sentence by Livy and later prose writers, unlike 'nam,' which in prose always comes first.

15.] 'Silice in nuda' probably means the road paved with silex,' as Keightley observes. 'Connixa' is put for enixa,' for the sake of the metre, though it has a rhetorical force of its own, expressing the difficulty of the labour. Spem gregis,' "spemque gregemque simul," G. 3. 473; "spem gentis," G. 4. 162. Taubmann. The kids, being dropped on the bare road, not on grass ground, would naturally die soon after birth.

16.] From the parallel passage, A. 2. 54 (note), it would seem that 'non' goes with 'laeva,' not with 'fuisset.' Laevus,' Gr. oratóg, in the sense of 'folly.' 17.] 'De caelo tangi' is a phrase for to be

[Saepe sinistra cava praedixit ab ilice cornix.]
Sed tamen, iste deus qui sit, da, Tityre, nobis.

T. Urbem, quam dicunt Romam, Meliboee, putavi
Stultus ego huic nostrae similem, quo saepe solemus
Pastores ovium teneros depellere fetus.

Sic canibus catulos similis, sic matribus haedos Noram, sic parvis conponere magna solebam. Verum haec tantum alias inter caput extulit urbes, Quantum lenta solent inter viburna cupressi. M. Et quae tanta fuit Romam tibi caussa videndi ? T. Libertas; quae sera, tamen respexit inertem, struck by lightning, Livy 25. 7, &c. The striking of a thing or person by lightning was an omen of evil: see Cic. De Div. 1. 10-12. Hence the practice of enclosing the 'bidental.' Pomponius says on the authority of the lost works of ancient Grammarians, that the blasting of fruit-bearing trees was ominous, that of the olive being supposed to forebode barrenness, that of the oak banishment. If this could be established, it would fix the 'malum hoc' to be Meliboeus' exile, not the loss of the goat's twins. 18.] This line is condemned as spurious by the silence of the most ancient MSS., and by the critics ancient and modern, and is retained here merely for the convenience of keeping the old numeration. It is made up from 9. 15.

19.] 'Da' for dic,' as 'accipe' for 'audi.' "Da.. ... quae ventrem placaverit esca,' Hor. 2 S. 8. 5. Iste,'' tuus.' Several MSS. have 'quis' for 'qui.' The difference between the two is not easy to ascertain, the common distinction being that quis' asks the name, 'qui,' like 'qualis,' Tolos, the nature, while Wagner contends that in Virgil at least 'quis' is generally used in direct questions, 'qui' in indirect. No precise rule is laid down by Madvig (Lat. Gr. § 88, obs. 1). Zumpt makes it a question of euphony, and Drakenborch thinks they are used indiscriminately. Nothing can be settled from the present passage, as Tityrus does not reply directly to the question.

20-26.] Why, I used to think Rome differed from Mantua only as a dog does from a puppy, but I found it was much more like the difference between a cypress and an osier.' Tityrus begins 'ab ovo,' in rustic fashion. This seems to have misled Apronianus, who thought Virgil's deity might be not Octavianus, but Rome.

22.] 'Depellere,' or, in the full expression, 'depellere a lacte,' is 'to wean,' 3. 82., 7. 15, G. 3. 187, &c. and some take it

20

25

so here, reading 'quoi' for 'quo,' or even rendering 'quo,' 'for' instead of 'to which.' But the sense requires something equivalent to going to the city. Pellere,' for driving a flock, is found in 'compellere,' 2. 30, &c. The 'de' need not be explained by supposing that Andes was on a hill, which was not the case: it denotes the destination, as in 'deducere,'' demittere navis (in portum),' &c. It may have been the custom in Columella's time to sell lambs very young, and it may be the custom now to sell them so young that they are obliged to be carried to the butcher: but these observations, though valuable as illustrations of the text, must not be allowed to override it. Keightley thinks Virgil may have misapprehended the technical sense of the word, not being a practical man: and it might also be suggested that he may have wished to combine the notions of weaning' and 'taking to market.'

24.] It may be questioned whether 'parvis conponere magna' means 'to compare cities with dogs and goats,' i. e. to argue from the latter to the former, or to compare the larger member of a class with the smaller : but the latter is more natural, and recommended by 'solebam.' 'Sic' then becomes emphatic; 'such were the comparisons I made.' Hdt. 2. 10 has σμikρà μɛɣáλoli συμβαλέειν, Thuc. 4. 36, μικρὸν μεγάλῳ eixaoal. "Si parva licet componere magnis," G. 4. 176, of the bees and the Cyclopes.

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25.] Extulit ' seems to have a present force, ='elatum gerit.' Comp. A. 2. 257., 10. 262, notes.

26.] Keightley remarks that the cypress is not indigenous to Italy (Pliny 16. 33), and therefore that this allusion to it is unnatural in the mouth of a shepherd. Tityrus means to say in effect that he found the difference, one not of degree, but of kind.

27.] And what took you to Rome?' 28-36.] 'I went to buy my freedom, for

Candidior postquam tondenti barba cadebat;
Respexit tamen, et longo post tempore venit,
Postquam nos Amaryllis habet, Galatea reliquit.
Namque, fatebor enim, dum me Galatea tenebat,
Nec spes libertatis erat, nec cura peculi.
Quamvis multa meis exiret victima saeptis,
Pinguis et ingratae premeretur caseus urbi,

Non umquam gravis aere domum mihi dextra redibat.

M. Mirabar, quid maesta deos, Amarylli, vocares,
Cui pendere sua patereris in arbore poma:
Tityrus hinc aberat. Ipsae te, Tityre, pinus,
Ipsi te fontes, ipsa haec arbusta vocabant.

T. Quid facerem ? neque servitio me exire licebat,

Nec tam praesentis alibi cognoscere divos.
Hic illum vidi iuvenem, Meliboee, quot annis
Bis senos cui nostra dies altaria fumant.
Hic mihi responsum primus dedit ille petenti :
Pascite, ut ante, boves, pueri; submittite tauros.

Tityrus blames the unthrift of Galatea and
his own recklessness, which made him take
no sufficient pains about making money by
his produce, though he took it from time to
time to Mantua. There is no reason to
suppose that he squandered his earnings
directly on Galatea, which would only com-
plicate the passage, being not quite con-
sistent with the blame thrown on the
town, v. 35.

37-40.] I remember well how you were missed, both by Amaryllis and by the property under your charge, though I did not then know you were away.'

38.] Amaryllis, in her sorrow, had forgotten her careful habits. She left the fruit hanging for Tityrus, as if no hand but his ought to gather it. 'Sua' is well illustrated by Forb. from 7. 54, "Strata jacent passim sua quaque sub arbore poma;" G. 2. 82, "Miratur . . ... non sua poma;" and A. 6. 206," Quod non sua seminat arbor."

39.] 'Aberat:' the short syllable lengthened by the stress which the pause in the sense gives, as in 3. 97, &c.

Ipsae ' no one, except perhaps Voss, who expresses himself inconsistently, seems to have perceived the meaning of this and the following line, which is not, according to one of Voss's explanations, that Amaryllis made all nature echo with her cries (in which case the enumeration of the different objects would be jejune), nor yet simply according to the common view that all nature sympathized with her, as in 5. 62 mountains, rocks, and trees rejoice in Daphnis' apotheosis, or as in 10. 13, laurels, tamarisks, and the pine-crowned Maenalus weep for Gallus, an image which would be too great for the present occasion; but that the various parts of nature called him back, because all suffered from his absence, pines (comp. 7. 65), springs (comp. 2. 59., 5. 40), and orchards, all depending on his care. Thus there is a playfulness in the passage, which Virgil

40

45

doubtless meant as a piece of rustic banter.

41-46.] I could not help leaving them both; my only chance was by getting to Rome. And there it was that I saw my deity, a glorious youth to whom I pay divine honours. From his lips I received a firm assurance of security.'

41.] Alio modo,' or something equivalent, is to be supplied from 'alibi' in the next verse.

42.] Virgil seems to be trying to blend the two ideas of the slaves' master and Octavianus with each other. 'Præsens' applied to a god means not so much propitious as powerful to aid; the power of a heathen god being connected with his presence. Hence the word is applied to a powerful remedy, G. 2. 127.

43.] There is no getting over the confusion between the slave going to buy his freedom of his master and the ejected freeholder going to beg restitution of Octavianus. V. 46 is quite inapplicable to the case of the slave. Octavianus is called 'juvenis again G. 1. 500, as also by Hor. I Od. 2. 41. Juv. 5. 45 gives the same appellation to Aeneas.

44.] Bis senos dies,' i. e. twelve days in the year. The critics say that Octavianus was to be worshipped among the lares (Hor. 4 Od. 5. 34, "et Laribus tuum miscet numen"); but Cato de R. R. 148 says that the 'Lar familiaris' is to be worshipped on all the Kalends, Nones, and Ides, which would make thirty-six days in all.

45.] Responsum dedit:' as a god to those who consult his oracle. 'Primus' denotes the anxiety with which the response was sought; it does not imply that any one else could have given it. Comp. A. 7. 117, "Ea vox audita laborum Prima tulit finem." 'It was here that he gave me my first assurance.'

46.] Pueri' is the common phrase for slaves, like Taïç in Greek, and 'child' in old English. But observe how the allegory is