who delights in cruel fport to fubject to her brazen yokes perfons and tempers ill-fuited to each other. As for myself, the flave-born Myrtale, more untractable than the Adriatic fea, that forms the Calabrian gulfs, intangled me in a pleafing chain, at the very time a more eligible love courted my embraces. O DE XXXIV In a pretended recantation be abfolutely overthrows the arguments in favour of the providence of the Gods. I Was an unfrequent and remifs worshipper of the Gods, while I profefs'd the errors of a fenfeless philofophy; but now I am obliged to fet fail back again, and to renew the courfe that I had deferted: For Jupiter, who ufually cleaves the clouds with his gleaming lightning, lately drove his thundering horfes and rapid chariot thro' the clear ferene: at which the fluggish earth, and the wand'ring rivers ; at which Styx, and the horrid feat of detefted Tanarus, and the utmost boundary of Atlas was fhaken. The Deity is able to make an exchange between the highest and lowest, and diminishes the exalted, by bringing to light the obfcure: rapacious fortune, with a thrill whizzing, hath borne off the plume from one head, and delights in having placed, not fix'd, it on another. ODE XXXV. To FORTUNE. He prays for the commonwealth, Auguftus, and the Ro man armies. Goddefs, who prefideft over beautiful Antium ; thou that art ready to exalt mortal iman from the most abject state; or to convert fuperb triumphs into *It was the opinion of the Epicureans, that thunder was caused by the collifion of one cloud against another. But Horace hearing thunder in a cloudless sky gives up their doctrine funerals. Te pauper ambit folicita prece Te Dacus afper, te profugi Scythæ, Injuriofo ne pede proruas Stantem columnam; neu populos frequens Ad arma ceffantes, ad arma Concitet, imperiumque frangat. Te femper anteit (a) fæva neceffitas,,. Uncus abeft, liquidumque plumbum. Te Spes, & albo rara Fides colit Vefte domos inimica (b) linquis.. At vulgus infidum, & meretrix retro Ferre jugum pariter dolofi. Serves iturum Cæfarem in ultimos Orbis Britannos, & juvenum recens 30 Examen Eois timendum Partibus, Oceanoque rubro. Eheu! cicatricum & fceleris pudet, Fratrumque. quid nos dura refugimus Liquimus? unde manum juventus Metu Deorum continuit? quibus (a) Serva neceffitas. (c) Defingas recufum. (b) Inimica vertis. Bentl. 35 40 CAR. funerals. Thee, the poor countryman follicits with his anxious vows; and whofoever ploughs the Carpathian fea with the Bythinian veffel, importunes thee as mistress of the fea. Thee, the rough Dacians; thee, the wandering Scythians, and cities, and nations, the warlike Latium alfo, and the mothers of barbarian kings, and tyrants clad in purple, are in dread of. Spurn not with deftructive foot, that column which now stands firm, nor let popular tumults rouse those who now reft quiet to arms,-to arms-and break the empire. Inexorable neceffity always marches before you, holding in her brazen hand huge * spikes and wedges, nor is the tormenting hook absent, or the melted lead. Thee, hope reverences and fidelity rare, robed in a white garment; nor does the defert thee, howfoever in wrath thou change thy robe and abandon the houses of the powerful. But the faithlefs croud of companions, and the perjur'd harlot draws, back friends, treacherous in their promises to bear equally the burden of adverfity; when cafks are exhaufled very dregs and all fly off. Preferve thou, Cafar, who is meditating an expedition against the Britons, the fartheft people in the world, and alfo the new levy of youths to be dreaded by the eastern regions, and the Red-fea. Alas! I am afhamed of the wounds and wickedness of the public, and brethren flain by brethren. What have we, a hardened age, abhorred? What have we in our impiety left unviolated? From what has our youth restrained their hands out of reverence to the Gods? what altars have they spared? O may you forge a-new our blunted fwords on a different anvil against the Meffageta and Arabians. *These were feveral inftruments of punishment and death, which which were sculptured in the temple of Fortune at Antium. ODE CARMEN XXXVI. Plotio Numida fauftum ex Hifpania reditum gratulatur. E T thure & fidibus juvat Placare, & vituli fanguine debito Cuftodes Numidæ Deos: Qui nunc Hefperia fofpes ab ultima, Caris multa fodalibus, Nulli plura tamen dividit ofcula, Quam dulci Lamiæ, memor Actæ non alio rege puertiæ, Mutatæque fimul toga. Creffa ne careat pulchra dies nota: Neu promptæ modus amphora, Neu morem in Salium fit requies pedum. Neu multi Damalis meri Baffum Threicia vincat amyftide: Neu defint epulis rofæ, Neu vivax apium, neu breve lilium. Omnes in Damalin, putres Deponent oculos: nec Damalis novo Divelletur adultero, Lafcivis ederis ambitiofior. CARMEN XXXVII. AD SODALES. Ob Cleopatra mortem lætandum esse. NUNC eft bibendum, nunc pede libero Pulfanda tellus: nunc Saliaribus Ornare pulvinar Deorum Tempus erat dapibus, fodales. ODE XXXVI. He congratulates Plotius Numida upon his happy return T * from Spain. HIS is a joyful occafion to facrifice with incenfe and mufic, and the votive blood of a heifer to the Gods, the guardians of Numida; who, now returning in fafety from the extremeft part of Spain, imparts many embraces to his beloved companions, but to none more than his dear Lamia, mindful of his childhood spent under one and the fame governor, and of the gown, which they changed at the fame time. Let not this joyful day be without a † Cretan mark of diftinction; let us not fpare the jar at hand; nor, Sa, lian like, let there be any ceffation of feet; nor let the toping Damalis conquer Baffus in the Thracian || Amyftis; nor let there be rofes wanting to the banquet, nor the ever-green parfley, nor fhort-liv'd lily. All the company will fix their diffolving eyes on Damalis; but the, more luxuriant than the wanton ivy, will not be separated from her new lover. That they ought to make a rejoicing on account of Cleo patra's death. NOW Ow, my companions, is the time to carouse, now to beat the ground with a light foot; now is the time that was to deck the couch of the Gods At the beginning of the Seventeenth year, the Roman youth changed the Prætexta, or boy's gown, for the toga virilis, or man's gown. + The Cretans mark'd their lucky days with white, and the`reverse with black. Salii: priests of Mars, who made dancing a principal part of their religious worship. Amyftis, a large Thracian cup, which to exhaust at a breath as efteem'd a piece of drunken bravery." with " |