Ecloga prima

Meliboeus
Tityre, tu patulae recubans sub tegmine fagi [1,1]
siluestrem tenui Musam meditaris auena;
nos patriae finis et dulcia linquimus arua.
nos patriam fugimus; tu, Tityre, lentus in umbra

Eclogue prima

Meliboeus.
You, Tityrus, 'neath a broad beech-canopy
Reclining, on the slender oat rehearse
Your silvan ditties: I from my sweet fields,
And home's familiar bounds, even now depart.
Exiled from home am I; while, Tityrus, you
Sit careless in the shade, and, at your call,

formosam resonare doces Amaryllida siluas. [1,5]

Tityrus
O Meliboee, deus nobis haec otia fecit.
namque erit ille mihi semper deus, illius aram
saepe tener nostris ab ouilibus imbuet agnus.
ille meas errare boues, ut cernis, et ipsum

"Fair Amaryllis" bid the woods resound.

Tityrus.
O Meliboeus, 'twas a god vouchsafed
This ease to us, for him a god will I
Deem ever, and from my folds a tender lamb
Oft with its life-blood shall his altar stain.
His gift it is that, as your eyes may see,
My kine may roam at large, and I myself

ludere quae uellem calamo permisit agresti. [1,10]

Meliboeus
Non equidem inuideo, miror magis; undique totis
usque adeo turbatur agris. en ipse capellas
protenus aeger ago; hanc etiam uix, Tityre, duco.
hic inter densas corylos modo namque gemellos,

Play on my shepherd's pipe what songs I will.

Meliboeus.
I grudge you not the boon, but marvel more,
Such wide confusion fills the country-side.
See, sick at heart I drive my she-goats on,
And this one, O my Tityrus, scarce can lead:
For 'mid the hazel-thicket here but now
She dropped her new-yeaned twins on the bare flint,

spem gregis, a, silice in nuda conixa reliquit. [1,15]
saepe malum hoc nobis, si mens non laeua fuisset,
de caelo tactas memini praedicere quercus.
sed tamen iste deus qui sit da, Tityre,nobis.


Tityrus
Urbem quam dicunt Romam, Meliboee, putaui

Hope of the flock- an ill, I mind me well,
Which many a time, but for my blinded sense,
The thunder-stricken oak foretold, oft too
From hollow trunk the raven's ominous cry.
But who this god of yours? Come, Tityrus, tell.

Tityrus.
The city, Meliboeus, they call Rome,
I, simpleton, deemed like this town of ours,

stultus ego huic nostrae similem, cui saepe solemus [1,20]

pastores ouium teneros depellere fetus.
sic canibus catulos similes, sic matribus haedos
noram, sic paruis componere magna solebam.
uerum haec tantum alias inter caput extulit urbes

Whereto we shepherds oft are wont to drive
The younglings of the flock: so too I knew
Whelps to resemble dogs, and kids their dams,
Comparing small with great; but this as far
Above all other cities rears her head

quantum lenta solent inter uiburna cupressi. [1,25]

Meliboeus
Et quae tanta fuit Romam tibi causa uidendi?

Tityrus
Libertas, quae sera tamen respexit inertem,
candidior postquam tondenti barba cadebat,
respexit tamen et longo post tempore uenit,

As cypress above pliant osier towers.

Meliboeus.
And what so potent cause took you to Rome?

Tityrus.
Freedom, which, though belated, cast at length
Her eyes upon the sluggard, when my beard
'Gan whiter fall beneath the barber's blade-
Cast eyes, I say, and, though long tarrying, came,

postquam nos Amaryllis habet, Galatea reliquit. [1,30]

namque - fatebor enim - dum me Galatea tenebat,
nec spes libertatis erat nec cura peculi.
quamuis multa meis exiret uictima saeptis
pinguis et ingratae premeretur caseus urbi,

Now when, from Galatea's yoke released,
I serve but Amaryllis: for I will own,
While Galatea reigned over me, I had
No hope of freedom, and no thought to save.
Though many a victim from my folds went forth,
Or rich cheese pressed for the unthankful town,

non umquam grauis aere domum mihi dextra redibat. [1,35]

Meliboeus
Mirabar quid maesta deos, Amarylli, uocares,
cui pendere sua patereris in arbore poma.
Tityrus hinc aberat. ipsae te, Tityre, pinus,
ipsi te fontes, ipsa haec arbusta uocabant.

Tityrus

Never with laden hands returned I home.

Meliboeus.
I used to wonder, Amaryllis, why
You cried to heaven so sadly, and for whom
You left the apples hanging on the trees;
'Twas Tityrus was away. Why, Tityrus,
The very pines, the very water-springs,
The very vineyards, cried aloud for you.

Tityrus.

Quid facerem? neque seruitio me exire licebat [1,40]

nec tam praesentis alibi cognoscere diuos.
hic illum uidi iuuenem, Meliboee, quot annis
bis senos cui nostra dies altaria fumant,
hic mihi responsum primus dedit ille petenti:

What could I do? how else from bonds be freed,
Or otherwhere find gods so nigh to aid?
There, Meliboeus, I saw that youth to whom
Yearly for twice six days my altars smoke.
There instant answer gave he to my suit,

'pascite ut ante boues, pueri, submittite tauros.' [1,45]

Meliboeus
Fortunate senex, ergo tua rura manebunt
et tibi magna satis, quamuis lapis omnia nudus
limosoque palus obducat pascua iunco.
non insueta grauis temptabunt pabula fetas

"Feed, as before, your kine, boys, rear your bulls."

Meliboeus.
So in old age, you happy man, your fields
Will still be yours, and ample for your need!
Though, with bare stones o'erspread, the pastures all
Be choked with rushy mire, your ewes with young
By no strange fodder will be tried, nor hurt

nec mala uicini pecoris contagia laedent. [1,50]

fortunate senex, hic inter flumina nota
et fontis sacros frigus captabis opacum;
hinc tibi, quae semper, uicino ab limite saepes
Hyblaeis apibus florem depasta salicti

Through taint contagious of a neighbouring flock.
Happy old man, who 'mid familiar streams
And hallowed springs, will court the cooling shade!
Here, as of old, your neighbour's bordering hedge,
That feasts with willow-flower the Hybla bees,

saepe leui somnum suadebit inire susurro; [1,55]
hinc alta sub rupe canet frondator ad auras,
nec tamen interea raucae, tua cura, palumbes
nec gemere aeria cessabit turtur ab ulmo.

Tytirus
Ante leues ergo pascentur in aethere cerui

Shall oft with gentle murmur lull to sleep, ,55}">}">
While the leaf-dresser beneath some tall rock
Uplifts his song, nor cease their cooings hoarse
The wood-pigeons that are your heart's delight,
Nor doves their moaning in the elm-tree top.

Tityrus.
Sooner shall light stags, therefore, feed in air,

et freta destituent nudos in litore pisces, [1,60]

ante pererratis amborum finibus exsul
aut Ararim Parthus bibet aut Germania Tigrim,
quam nostro illius labatur pectore uultus.

Meliboeus
At nos hinc alii sitientis ibimus Afros,

The seas their fish leave naked on the strand,
Germans and Parthians shift their natural bounds,
And these the Arar, those the Tigris drink,
Than from my heart his face and memory fade.

Meliboeus.
But we far hence, to burning Libya some,
Some to the Scythian steppes, or thy swift flood,

pars Scythiam et rapidum cretae ueniemus Oaxen [1,65]
et penitus toto diuisos orbe Britannos.
en umquam patrios longo post tempore finis
pauperis et tuguri congestum caespite culmen,
post aliquot, mea regna, uidens mirabor aristas?

Cretan Oaxes, now must wend our way,
Or Britain, from the whole world sundered far.
Ah! shall I ever in aftertime behold
My native bounds- see many a harvest hence
With ravished eyes the lowly turf-roofed cot
Where I was king? These fallows, trimmed so fair,

impius haec tam culta noualia miles habebit, [1,70]

barbarus has segetes. en quo discordia ciuis
produxit miseros; his nos conseuimus agros!
insere nunc, Meliboee, piros, pone ordine uites.
ite meae, felix quondam pecus, ite capellae.

Some brutal soldier will possess these fields
An alien master. Ah! to what a pass
Has civil discord brought our hapless folk!
For such as these, then, were our furrows sown!
Now, Meliboeus, graft your pears, now set
Your vines in order! Go, once happy flock,
My she-goats, go. Never again shall I,

non ego uos posthac uiridi proiectus in antro [1,75]
dumosa pendere procul de rupe uidebo;
carmina nulla canam; non me pascente, capellae,
florentem cytisum et salices carpetis amaras.

Tytirus
Hic tamen hanc mecum poteras requiescere noctem

Stretched in green cave, behold you from afar
Hang from the bushy rock; my songs are sung;
Never again will you, with me to tend,
On clover-flower, or bitter willows, browse.

Tityrus.
Yet here, this night, you might repose with me,

fronde super uiridi. sunt nobis mitia poma, [1,80]

castaneae molles et pressi copia lactis,
et iam summa procul uillarum culmina fumant
maioresque cadunt altis de montibus umbrae.

On green leaves pillowed: apples ripe have I,
Soft chestnuts, and of curdled milk enow.
And, see, the farm-roof chimneys smoke afar,
And from the hills the shadows lengthening fall!

=

Ecloga secunda.

Formosum pastor Corydon ardebat Alexin, [2,1]
delicias domini, nec quid speraret habebat.
tantum inter densas, umbrosa cacumina, fagos
adsidue ueniebat. ibi haec incondita solus

Eclogue II

The shepherd Corydon with love was fired
For fair Alexis, his own master's joy:
No room for hope had he, yet, none the less,
The thick-leaved shadowy-soaring beech-tree grove
Still would he haunt, and there alone, as thus,

montibus et siluis studio iactabat inani; [2,5]
'O crudelis Alexi, nihil mea carmina curas?
nil nostri miserere? mori me denique cogis?
nunc etiam pecudes umbras et frigora captant,
nunc uirides etiam occultant spineta lacertos,

To woods and hills pour forth his artless strains.
"Cruel Alexis, heed you naught my songs?
Have you no pity? you'll drive me to my death.
Now even the cattle court the cooling shade
And the green lizard hides him in the thorn:
Now for tired mowers, with the fierce heat spent,

Thestylis et rapido fessis messoribus aestu [2,10]

alia serpyllumque herbas contundit olentis.
at mecum raucis, tua dum uestigia lustro,
sole sub ardenti resonant arbusta cicadis.
nonne fuit satius tristis Amaryllidos iras

Pounds Thestilis her mess of savoury herbs,
Wild thyme and garlic. I, with none beside,
Save hoarse cicalas shrilling through the brake,
Still track your footprints 'neath the broiling sun.
Better have borne the petulant proud disdain

atque superba pati fastidia? nonne Menalcan, [2,15]
quamuis ille niger, quamuis tu candidus esses?
o formose puer, nimium ne crede colori;
alba ligustra cadunt, uaccinia nigra leguntur.
Despectus tibi sum nec qui sim quaeris, Alexi,

Of Amaryllis, or Menalcas wooed,
Albeit he was so dark, and you so fair!
Trust not too much to colour, beauteous boy;
White privets fall, dark hyacinths are culled.
You scorn me, Alexis, who or what I am
Care not to ask- how rich in flocks, or how

quam diues pecoris, niuei quam lactis abundans. [2,20]

mille meae Siculis errant in montibus agnae;
lac mihi non aestate nouum, non frigore defit.
canto quae solitus, si quando armenta uocabat,
Amphion Dircaeus in Actaeo Aracyntho.

In snow-white milk abounding: yet for me
Roam on Sicilian hills a thousand lambs;
Summer or winter, still my milk-pails brim.
I sing as erst Amphion of Circe sang,
What time he went to call his cattle home
On Attic Aracynthus. Nor am I

nec sum adeo informis; nuper me in litore uidi, [2,25]
cum placidum uentis staret mare. non ego Daphnin
iudice te metuam, si numquam fallit imago.
O tantum libeat mecum tibi sordida rura
atque humilis habitare casas et figere ceruos

So ill to look on: lately on the beach
I saw myself, when winds had stilled the sea,
And, if that mirror lie not, would not fear
Daphnis to challenge, though yourself were judge.
Ah! were you but content with me to dwell.
Some lowly cot in the rough fields our home,

haedorumque gregem uiridi compellere hibisco! [2,30]

mecum una in siluis imitabere Pana canendo.
Pan primum calamos cera coniungere pluris
instituit, Pan curat ouis ouiumque magistros;
nec te paeniteat calamo triuisse labellum.

Shoot down the stags, or with green osier-wand
Round up the straggling flock! There you with me
In silvan strains will learn to rival Pan.
Pan first with wax taught reed with reed to join;
For sheep alike and shepherd Pan hath care.
Nor with the reed's edge fear you to make rough
Your dainty lip; such arts as these to learn

haec eadem ut sciret, quid non faciebat Amyntas? [2,35]
est mihi disparibus septem compacta cicutis
fistula, Damoetas dono mihi quam dedit olim
et dixit moriens: 'te nunc habet ista secundum';
dixit Damoetas, inuidit stultus Amyntas.

What did Amyntas do?- what did he not?
A pipe have I, of hemlock-stalks compact
In lessening lengths, Damoetas' dying-gift:
'Mine once,' quoth he, 'now yours, as heir to own.'
Foolish Amyntas heard and envied me.

praeterea duo—nec tuta mihi ualle reperti— [2,40]

capreoli sparsis etiam nunc pellibus albo,
bina die siccant ouis ubera; quos tibi seruo.
iam pridem a me illos abducere Thestylis orat;
et faciet, quoniam sordent tibi munera nostra.

Ay, and two fawns, I risked my neck to find
In a steep glen, with coats white-dappled still,
From a sheep's udders suckled twice a day-
These still I keep for you; which Thestilis
Implores me oft to let her lead away;
And she shall have them, since my gifts you spurn.

Huc ades, o formose puer, tibi lilia plenis [2,45]
ecce ferunt Nymphae calathis; tibi candida Nais,
pallentis uiolas et summa papauera carpens,
narcissum et florem iungit bene olentis anethi;
tum casia atque aliis intexens suauibus herbis

Come hither, beauteous boy; for you the Nymphs
Bring baskets, see, with lilies brimmed; for you,
Plucking pale violets and poppy-heads,
Now the fair Naiad, of narcissus flower
And fragrant fennel, doth one posy twine-
With cassia then, and other scented herbs,

mollia luteola pingit uaccinia caltha. [2,50]

ipse ego cana legam tenera lanugine mala
castaneasque nuces, mea quas Amaryllis amabat;
addam cerea pruna — honos erit huic quoque pomo —
et uos, o lauri, carpam et te, proxime myrte,

Blends them, and sets the tender hyacinth off
With yellow marigold. I too will pick
Quinces all silvered-o'er with hoary down,
Chestnuts, which Amaryllis wont to love,
And waxen plums withal: this fruit no less
Shall have its meed of honour; and I will pluck
You too, ye laurels, and you, ye myrtles, near,

sic positae quoniam suauis miscetis odores. [2,55]
Rusticus es, Corydon; nec munera curat Alexis
nec, si muneribus certes, concedat Iollas.
heu heu, quid uolui misero mihi? floribus Austrum
perditus et liquidis inmissi fontibus apros.

For so your sweets ye mingle. Corydon,
You are a boor, nor heeds a whit your gifts
Alexis; no, nor would Iollas yield,
Should gifts decide the day. Alack! alack!
What misery have I brought upon my head!-
Loosed on the flowers Siroces to my bane,
And the wild boar upon my crystal springs!

Quem fugis, a, demens? habitarunt di quoque siluas [2,60]

Dardaniusque Paris. Pallas quas condidit arces
ipsa colat; nobis placeant ante omnia siluae.
torua leaena lupum sequitur, lupus ipse capellam,
florentem cytisum sequitur lasciua capella,

Whom do you fly, infatuate? gods ere now,
And Dardan Paris, have made the woods their home.
Let Pallas keep the towers her hand hath built,
Us before all things let the woods delight.
The grim-eyed lioness pursues the wolf,
The wolf the she-goat, the she-goat herself
In wanton sport the flowering cytisus,

te Corydon, o Alexi; trahit sua quemque uoluptas. [2,65]
Aspice, aratra iugo referunt suspensa iuuenci
et sol crescentis decedens duplicat umbras.
me tamen urit amor; quis enim modus adsit amori?
a, Corydon, Corydon, quae te dementia cepit!

And Corydon Alexis, each led on
By their own longing. See, the ox comes home
With plough up-tilted, and the shadows grow
To twice their length with the departing sun,
Yet me love burns, for who can limit love?
Ah! Corydon, Corydon, what hath crazed your wit?

semiputata tibi frondosa uitis in ulmo. [2,70]

quin tu aliquid saltem potius, quorum indiget usus,
uiminibus mollique paras detexere iunco?
inuenies alium, si te hic fastidit, Alexin.'

Your vine half-pruned hangs on the leafy elm;
Why haste you not to weave what need requires
Of pliant rush or osier? Scorned by this,
Elsewhere some new Alexis you will find."

Ecloga tertia.

Menalcas [3,1]
Dic mihi, Damoeta, cuium pecus? An Meliboei?

Damoetas
Non, uerum Aegonos; nuper mihi tradidit Aegon.

Menalcas
Infelix o semper, oues, pecus! ipse Neaeram
dum fouet ac ne me sibi praeferat illa ueretur,

Eclogue III

Menalcas
Who owns the flock, Damoetas? Meliboeus?

Damoetas
Nay, they are Aegon's sheep, of late by him
Committed to my care.

Menalcas.
O every way Unhappy sheep, unhappy flock! while he
Still courts Neaera, fearing lest her choice
Should fall on me, this hireling shepherd here

hic alienus ouis custos bis mulget in hora, [3,5]
et sucus pecori et lac subducitur agnis.

Damoetas
Parcius ista uiris tamen obicienda memento.
nouimus et qui te transuersa tuentibus hircis
et quo—sed faciles Nymphae risere—sacello.

Menalcas

Wrings hourly twice their udders, from the flock ]
Micon's young vines and trees with spiteful hook.

Damoetas.
Or here by these old beeches, when you broke
The bow and arrows of Damon; for you chafed
When first you saw them given to the boy,
Cross-grained Menalcas, ay, and had you not

et, si non aliqua nocuisses, mortuus esses. [3,15]

Menalcas
Quid domini faciant, audent cum talia fures?
non ego te uidi Damonos, pessime, caprum
excipere insidiis multum latrante Lycisca?
et cum clamarem 'quo nunc se proripit ille?

Done him some mischief, would have chafed to death.

Menalcas.
With thieves so daring, what can masters do?
Did I not see you, rogue, in ambush lie
For Damon's goat, while loud Lycisca barked?
And when I cried, "Where is he off to now?
Gather your flock together, Tityrus,"

Tityre, coge pecus', tu post carecta latebas. [3,20]

Damoetas
An mihi cantando uictus non redderet ille,
quem mea carminibus meruisset fistula caprum?
si nescis, meus ille caper fuit; et mihi Damon
ipse fatebatur sed reddere posse negabat.

Menalcas

You hid behind the sedges.

Damoetas.
Well, was he
Whom I had conquered still to keep the goat.
Which in the piping-match my pipe had won!
You may not know it, but the goat was mine.

Menalcas.

Cantando tu illum? aut umquam tibi fistula cera [3,25]
iuncta fuit? non tu in triuiis, indocte, solebas
stridenti miserum stipula disperdere carmen?

Damoetas
Vis ergo inter nos quid possit uterque uicissim
experiamur? ego hanc uitulam—ne forte recuses,

You out-pipe him? when had you ever pipe  
Wax-welded? in the cross-ways used you not
On grating straw some miserable tune
To mangle?

Damoetas.
Well, then, shall we try our skill
Each against each in turn? Lest you be loth,
I pledge this heifer; every day she comes   

bis uenit ad mulctram, binos alit ubere fetus— [3,30]

depono; tu dic mecum quo pignore certes.

Menalcas
De grege non ausim quicquam deponere tecum.
est mihi namque domi pater, est iniusta nouerca,
bisque die numerant ambo pecus, alter et haedos.

Twice to the milking-pail, and feeds withal
Two young ones at her udder: say you now
What you will stake upon the match with me.

Menalcas.
Naught from the flock I'll venture, for at home
I have a father and a step-dame harsh,
And twice a day both reckon up the flock,
And one withal the kids. But I will stake,
Seeing you are so mad, what you yourself

uerum, id quod multo tute ipse fatebere maius, [3,35]
insanire libet quoniam tibi, pocula ponam
fagina, caelatum diuini opus Alcimedontos,
lenta quibus torno facili superaddita uitis
diffusos hedera uestit pallente corymbos.

Will own more priceless far- two beechen cups
By the divine art of Alcimedon
Wrought and embossed, whereon a limber vine,
Wreathed round them by the graver's facile tool,
Twines over clustering ivy-berries pale.
Two figures, one Conon, in the midst he set,

in medio duo signa, Conon et—quis fuit alter, [3,40]

descripsit radio totum qui gentibus orbem,
tempora quae messor, quae curuus arator haberet?
necdum illis labra admoui, sed condita seruo.

Damoetas
Et nobis idem Alcimedon duo pocula fecit

And one- how call you him, who with his wand ]
Pliant acanthus, Orpheus in the midst,
The forests following in his wake; nor yet
Have I set lip to them, but lay them by.
Matched with a heifer, who would prate of cups?

Menalcas.
You shall not balk me now; where'er you bid,
I shall be with you; only let us have
For auditor- or see, to serve our turn,

audiat haec tantum uel qui uenit, ecce Palaemon. [3,50]

efficiam posthac ne quemquam uoce lacessas.

Damoetas
Quin age, si quid habes; in me mora non erit ulla
nec quemquam fugio. tantum, uicine Palaemon,
sensibus haec imis—res est non parua—reponas.

Palaemon

Yonder Palaemon comes! In singing-bouts ]
And now is burgeoning both field and tree;
Now is the forest green, and now the year
At fairest. Do you first, Damoetas, sing,
Then you, Menalcas, in alternate strain:
Alternate strains are to the Muses dear.

Damoetas.

Ab Ioue principium Musae, Iouis omnia plena; [3,60]

ille colit terras, illi mea carmina curae.

Menalcas
Et me Phoebus amat; Phoebo sua semper apud me
munera sunt, lauri et suaue rubens hyacinthus.

Damoetas
Malo me Galatea petit, lasciua puella,

"From Jove the Muse began; Jove filleth all, }">

Damoetas.
"What words to me, and uttered O how oft,
Hath Galatea spoke! waft some of them,
Ye winds, I pray you, for the gods to hear."

Menalcas.
"It profiteth me naught, Amyntas mine,
That in your very heart you spurn me not,

si, dum tu sectaris apros, ego retia seruo? [3,75]

Damoetas
Phyllida mitte mihi; meus est natalis, Iolla,
cum faciam uitula pro frugibus, ipse uenito.

Menalcas
Phyllida amo ante alias; nam me discedere fleuit
et longum 'formose, uale, uale,' inquit, Iolla.
Damoetas

If, while you hunt the boar, I guard the nets."

Damoetas.
"Prithee, Iollas, for my birthday guest
Send me your Phyllis; when for the young crops
I slay my heifer, you yourself shall come."

Menalcas.
"I am all hers; she wept to see me go,
And, lingering on the word, 'farewell' she said,
'My beautiful Iollas, fare you well.'"

Damoetas.

Triste lupus stabulis, maturis frugibus imbres, [3,80]

arboribus uenti, nobis Amaryllidos irae.

Menalcas
Dulce satis umor, depulsis arbutus haedis,
lenta salix feto pecori, mihi solus Amyntas.

Damoetas
Pollio amat nostram, quamuis est rustica, Musam;

"Fell as the wolf is to the folded flock, ]
Thy songs, O Maevius, ay, and therewithal
Yoke foxes to his car, and he-goats milk."

Damoetas.
"You, picking flowers and strawberries that grow
So near the ground, fly hence, boys, get you gone!
There's a cold adder lurking in the grass."

 Menalcas.
"Forbear, my sheep, to tread too near the brink;
Yon bank is ill to trust to; even now

creditur; ipse aries etiam nunc uellera siccat. [3,95]

Damoetas
Tityre, pascentis a flumine reice capellas;
ipse, ubi tempus erit, omnis in fonte lauabo.

Menalcas
Cogite oues, pueri; si lac praeceperit aestus,
ut nuper, frustra pressabimus ubera palmis.

Damoetas

The ram himself, see, dries his dripping fleece!"

Damoetas.
"Back with the she-goats, Tityrus, grazing there
So near the river! I, when time shall serve,
Will take them all, and wash them in the pool."

 Menalcas.
"Boys, get your sheep together; if the heat,
As late it did, forestall us with the milk,
Vainly the dried-up udders shall we wring."

Damoetas.
"How lean my bull amid the fattening vetch!

Heu heu, quam pingui macer est mihi taurus in eruo! [3,100]

idem amor exitium pecori pecorisque magistro.

Menalcas
His certe—neque amor causa est—uix ossibus haerent;
nescio quis teneros oculus mihi fascinat agnos.

Damoetas
Dic quibus in terris—et eris mihi magnus Apollo—

Alack! alack! for herdsman and for herd!
It is the self-same love that wastes us both."

Menalcas.
"These truly- nor is even love the cause-
Scarce have the flesh to keep their bones together
Some evil eye my lambkins hath bewitched."

Damoetas.
"Say in what clime- and you shall be withal
My great Apollo- the whole breadth of heaven

tris pateat caeli spatium non amplius ulnas. [3,105]

Menalcas
Dic quibus in terris inscripti nomina regum
nascantur flores, et Phyllida solus habeto.

Palaemon
Non nostrum inter uos tantas componere lites:
et uitula tu dignus et hic et quisquis amores

Opens no wider than three ells to view."

Menalcas.
"Say in what country grow such flowers as bear
The names of kings upon their petals writ,
And you shall have fair Phyllis for your own."

Palaemon.
Not mine betwixt such rivals to decide:
You well deserve the heifer, so does he,
With all who either fear the sweets of love,

aut metuet dulcis aut experietur amaros. [3,110]

claudite iam riuos, pueri; sat prata biberunt.

Or taste its bitterness. Now, boys, shut off ,1}">
A somewhat loftier task! Not all men love
Coppice or lowly tamarisk: sing we woods,
Woods worthy of a Consul let them be.
Now the last age by Cumae's Sibyl sung
Has come and gone, and the majestic roll

magnus ab integro saeclorum nascitur ordo. [4,5]
iam redit et Virgo, redeunt Saturnia regna,
iam noua progenies caelo demittitur alto.
tu modo nascenti puero, quo ferrea primum
desinet ac toto surget gens aurea mundo,

Of circling centuries begins anew:
Justice returns, returns old Saturn's reign,
With a new breed of men sent down from heaven.
Only do thou, at the boy's birth in whom
The iron shall cease, the golden race arise,
Befriend him, chaste Lucina; 'tis thine own

casta faue Lucina; tuus iam regnat Apollo. [4,10]

Teque adeo decus hoc aeui, te consule, inibit,
Pollio, et incipient magni procedere menses;
te duce, si qua manent sceleris uestigia nostri,
inrita perpetua soluent formidine terras.

Apollo reigns. And in thy consulate,
This glorious age, O Pollio, shall begin,
And the months enter on their mighty march.
Under thy guidance, whatso tracks remain
Of our old wickedness, once done away,
Shall free the earth from never-ceasing fear.

ille deum uitam accipiet diuisque uidebit [4,15]
permixtos heroas et ipse uidebitur illis
pacatumque reget patriis uirtutibus orbem.
At tibi prima, puer, nullo munuscula cultu
errantis hederas passim cum baccare tellus

He shall receive the life of gods, and see
Heroes with gods commingling, and himself
Be seen of them, and with his father's worth
Reign o'er a world at peace. For thee, O boy,
First shall the earth, untilled, pour freely forth
Her childish gifts, the gadding ivy-spray
With foxglove and Egyptian bean-flower mixed,

mixtaque ridenti colocasia fundet acantho. [4,20]

ipsae lacte domum referent distenta capellae
ubera nec magnos metuent armenta leones;
ipsa tibi blandos fundent cunabula flores.
occidet et serpens et fallax herba ueneni

And laughing-eyed acanthus. Of themselves,
Untended, will the she-goats then bring home
Their udders swollen with milk, while flocks afield
Shall of the monstrous lion have no fear.
Thy very cradle shall pour forth for thee
Caressing flowers. The serpent too shall die,
Die shall the treacherous poison-plant, and far

occidet; Assyrium uulgo nascetur amomum. [4,25]
At simul heroum laudes et facta parentis
iam legere et quae sit poteris cognoscere uirtus,
molli paulatim flauescet campus arista
incultisque rubens pendebit sentibus uua

And wide Assyrian spices spring. But soon
As thou hast skill to read of heroes' fame,
And of thy father's deeds, and inly learn
What virtue is, the plain by slow degrees
With waving corn-crops shall to golden grow,
From the wild briar shall hang the blushing grape,

et durae quercus sudabunt roscida mella. [4,30]

Pauca tamen suberunt priscae uestigia fraudis,
quae temptare Thetin ratibus, quae cingere muris
oppida, quae iubeant telluri infindere sulcos.
alter erit tum Tiphys et altera quae uehat Argo

And stubborn oaks sweat honey-dew. Nathless
Yet shall there lurk within of ancient wrong
Some traces, bidding tempt the deep with ships,
Gird towns with walls, with furrows cleave the earth.
Therewith a second Tiphys shall there be,
Her hero-freight a second Argo bear;

delectos heroas; erunt etiam altera bella [4,35]
atque iterum ad Troiam magnus mittetur Achilles.
Hinc, ubi iam firmata uirum te fecerit aetas,
cedet et ipse mari uector nec nautica pinus
mutabit merces; omnis feret omnia tellus.

New wars too shall arise, and once again
Some great Achilles to some Troy be sent.
Then, when the mellowing years have made thee man,
No more shall mariner sail, nor pine-tree bark
Ply traffic on the sea, but every land
Shall all things bear alike: the glebe no more

non rastros patietur humus, non uinea falcem, [4,40]

robustus quoque iam tauris iuga soluet arator;
nec uarios discet mentiri lana colores,
ipse sed in pratis aries iam suaue rubenti
murice, iam croceo mutabit uellera luto,

Shall feel the harrow's grip, nor vine the hook;
The sturdy ploughman shall loose yoke from steer,
Nor wool with varying colours learn to lie;
But in the meadows shall the ram himself,
Now with soft flush of purple, now with tint
Of yellow saffron, teach his fleece to shine.

sponte sua sandyx pascentis uestiet agnos. [4,45]
'Talia saecla' suis dixerunt 'currite' fusis
concordes stabili fatorum numine Parcae.
Adgredere o magnos—aderit iam tempus—honores,
cara deum suboles, magnum Iouis incrementum.

While clothed in natural scarlet graze the lambs.
"Such still, such ages weave ye, as ye run,"
Sang to their spindles the consenting Fates
By Destiny's unalterable decree.
Assume thy greatness, for the time draws nigh,
Dear child of gods, great progeny of Jove!

aspice conuexo nutantem pondere mundum, [4,50]

terrasque tractusque maris caelumque profundum;
aspice, uenturo laetantur ut omnia saeclo.
O mihi tum longae maneat pars ultima uitae,
spiritus et quantum sat erit tua dicere facta:

See how it totters- the world's orbed might,
Earth, and wide ocean, and the vault profound,
All, see, enraptured of the coming time!
Ah! might such length of days to me be given,
And breath suffice me to rehearse thy deeds,

non me carminibus uincat nec Thracius Orpheus [4,55]
nec Linus, huic mater quamuis atque huic pater adsit,
Orphei Calliopea, Lino formosus Apollo.
Pan etiam, Arcadia mecum si iudice certet,
Pan etiam Arcadia dicat se iudice uictum.

Nor Thracian Orpheus should out-sing me then,
Nor Linus, though his mother this, and that
His sire should aid- Orpheus Calliope,
And Linus fair Apollo. Nay, though Pan,
With Arcady for judge, my claim contest,
With Arcady for judge great Pan himself
Should own him foiled, and from the field retire.

Incipe, parue puer, risu cognoscere matrem; [4,60]

matri longa decem tulerunt fastidia menses.
incipe, parue puer. qui non risere parenti,
nec deus hunc mensa dea nec dignata cubili est.

Begin to greet thy mother with a smile,
O baby-boy! ten months of weariness
For thee she bore: O baby-boy, begin!
For him, on whom his parents have not smiled,
Gods deem not worthy of their board or bed.

Ecloga quinta.

Menalcas [5,1]
Cur non, Mopse, boni quoniam conuenimus ambo
tu calamos inflare leuis, ego dicere uersus,
hic corylis mixtas inter consedimus ulmos?

Mopsus.
Tu maior; tibi me est aequom parere, Menalca,

Eclogue V MENALCAS, MOPSUS]

Menalcas.
Why, Mopsus, being both together met,  
You skilled to breathe upon the slender reeds,
I to sing ditties, do we not sit down
Here where the elm-trees and the hazels blend?

Mopsus.
You are the elder, 'tis for me to bide
Your choice, Menalcas, whether now we seek

siue sub incertas Zephyris motantibus umbras, [5,5]
siue antro potius succecimus. Aspice ut antrum
siluestris raris sparsit labrusca racemis.

Menalcas
Montibus in nostris solus tibi certat Amyntas.

Mopsus.
Quid, si idem certet Phoebum superare canendo?

Yon shade that quivers to the changeful breeze,
Or the cave's shelter. Look you how the cave
Is with the wild vine's clusters over-laced!

Menalcas.
None but Amyntas on these hills of ours
Can vie with you.

Mopsus.
What if he also strive  To out-sing Phoebus?

Menalcas.

Incipe, Mopse, prior, si quos aut Phyllidis ignis [5,10]

aut Alconis habes laudes aut iurgia Codri;
incipe; pascentis seruabit Tityrus haedos. }">
Mopsus.
Immo haec in uiridi nuper quae cortice fagi
carmina descripsi et modulans alterna notaui,

Menalcas.

Do you first begin, Good Mopsus, whether minded to sing aught
Of Phyllis and her loves, or Alcon's praise,
Or to fling taunts at Codrus. Come, begin,
While Tityrus watches o'er the grazing kids. Mopsus.
Nay, then, I will essay what late I carved
On a green beech-tree's rind, playing by turns,
And marking down the notes; then afterward

experiar: tu deinde iubeto certet Amyntas. [5,15]

Menalcas
Lenta salix quantum pallenti cedit oliuae,
puniceis humilis quantum saliunca rosetis,
iudicio nostro tantum tibi cedit Amyntas.
Sed tu desine plura, puer; successimus antro.
Mopsus

Bid you Amyntas match them if he can.

Menalcas.
As limber willow to pale olive yields,
As lowly Celtic nard to rose-buds bright,
So, to my mind, Amyntas yields to you.
But hold awhile, for to the cave we come. Mopsus.

Exstinctum Nymphae crudeli funere Daphnim [5,20]

flebant (uos coryli testes et flumina Nymphis),
cum complexa sui corpus miserabile nati
atque deos atque astra uocat crudelia mater.
Non ulli pastos illis egere diebus

"For Daphnis cruelly slain wept all the Nymphs-
Ye hazels, bear them witness, and ye streams-
When she, his mother, clasping in her arms
The hapless body of the son she bare,
To gods and stars unpitying, poured her plaint.
Then, Daphnis, to the cooling streams were none

frigida, Daphni, boues ad flumina: nulla neque amnem [5,25]
libauit quadrupes, nec graminis attigit herbam.
Daphni, tuom Poenos etiam ingemuisse leones
interitum montesque feri siluaque loquontur.
Daphnis et Armenias curru subiungere tigris

That drove the pastured oxen, then no beast
Drank of the river, or would the grass-blade touch.
Nay, the wild rocks and woods then voiced the roar
Of Afric lions mourning for thy death.
Daphnis, 'twas thou bad'st yoke to Bacchus' car

instituit; Daphnis thiasos inducere Bacchi, [5,30]

et foliis lentas intexere mollibus hastas.
Vitis ut arboribus decori est, ut uitibus uuae,
ut gregibus tauri, segetes ut pinguibus aruis,
tu decus omne tuis. Postquam te fata tulerunt,

Armenian tigresses, lead on the pomp
Of revellers, and with tender foliage wreathe
The bending spear-wands. As to trees the vine
Is crown of glory, as to vines the grape,
Bulls to the herd, to fruitful fields the corn,
So the one glory of thine own art thou.
When the Fates took thee hence, then Pales' self,

ipsa Pales agros atque ipse reliquit Apollo. [5,35]
Grandia saepe quibus mandauimus hordea sulcis,
infelix lolium et steriles nascuntur auenae;
pro molli uiola, pro purpureo narcisso
carduos et spinis surgit paliurus acutis.

And even Apollo, left the country lone.
Where the plump barley-grain so oft we sowed,
There but wild oats and barren darnel spring;
For tender violet and narcissus bright
Thistle and prickly thorn uprear their heads.
Now, O ye shepherds, strew the ground with leaves,

Spargite humum foliis, inducite fontibus umbras, [5,40]

pastores (mandat fieri sibi talia Daphnis),
et tumulum facite, et tumulo superaddite carmen:
Daphnis ego in siluis hinc usque ad sidera notus
formosi pecoris custos formosior ipse.
Menalcas

And o'er the fountains draw a shady veil-
So Daphnis to his memory bids be done-
And rear a tomb, and write thereon this verse:
'I, Daphnis in the woods, from hence in fame
Am to the stars exalted, guardian once
Of a fair flock, myself more fair than they.'" Menalcas.

Tale tuom carmen nobis, diuine poeta, [5,45]
quale sopor fessis in gramine, quale per aestum
dulcis aquae saliente sitim restinguere riuo.
Nec calamis solum aequiperas, sed uoc magistrum;
fortunate puer, tu nunc eris alter ab illo.

So is thy song to me, poet divine,
As slumber on the grass to weary limbs,
Or to slake thirst from some sweet-bubbling rill
In summer's heat. Nor on the reeds alone,
But with thy voice art thou, thrice happy boy,
Ranked with thy master, second but to him.

Nos tamen haec quocumque modo tibi nostra uicissim [5,50]

dicemus, Daphnimque tuom tollemus ad astra;
Daphnim ad astra feremus: amauit nos quoque Daphnis.

Mopsus
An quicquam nobis tali sit munere maius?
Et puer ipse fuit cantari dignus, et ista

Yet will I, too, in turn, as best I may,
Sing thee a song, and to the stars uplift
Thy Daphnis- Daphnis to the stars extol,
For me too Daphnis loved.

Mopsus.
Than such a boon
What dearer could I deem? the boy himself
Was worthy to be sung, and many a time

iam pridem Stimichon laudauit carmina nobis. [5,55]

Menalcas
Candidus insuetum miratur limen Olympi
sub pedibus uidet nubes et sidera Daphnis.
Ergo alacris siluas et cetera rura uoluptas
Panaque pastoresque tenet Dryadasque puellas.

Hath Stimichon to me your singing praised.

 
Menalcas.

"In dazzling sheen with unaccustomed eyes
Daphnis stands rapt before Olympus' gate,
And sees beneath his feet the clouds and stars.
Wherefore the woods and fields, Pan, shepherd-folk,
And Dryad-maidens, thrill with eager joy;

Nec lupus insidias pecori, nec retia ceruis [5,60]

ulla dolum meditantur: amat bonus otia Daphnis.
Ipsi laetitia uoces ad sidera iactant
intonsi montes; ipsae iam carmina rupes,
ipsa sonant arbusta: "Deus, deus ille, Menalca!"

Nor wolf with treacherous wile assails the flock,
Nor nets the stag: kind Daphnis loveth peace.
The unshorn mountains to the stars up-toss
Voices of gladness; ay, the very rocks,
The very thickets, shout and sing, 'A god,
A god is he, Menalcas "Be thou kind,

Sis bonus o felixque tuis! En quattuor aras: [5,65]
ecce duas tibi, Daphni, duas altaria Phoebo.
Pocula bina nouo spumantia lacte quotannis,
craterasque duo statuam tibi pinguis oliui,
et multo in primis hilarans conuiuia Baccho,

Propitious to thine own. Lo! altars four,
Twain to thee, Daphnis, and to Phoebus twain
For sacrifice, we build; and I for thee
Two beakers yearly of fresh milk afoam,
And of rich olive-oil two bowls, will set;
And of the wine-god's bounty above all,
If cold, before the hearth, or in the shade

ante focum, si frigus erit, si messis, in umbra, [5,70]

uina nouom fundam calathis Ariusia nectar.
Cantabunt mihi Damoetas et Lyctius Aegon;
saltantis Satyros imitabitur Alphesiboeus.
Haec tibi semper erunt, et cum sollemnia uota

At harvest-time, to glad the festal hour,
From flasks of Ariusian grape will pour
Sweet nectar. Therewithal at my behest
Shall Lyctian Aegon and Damoetas sing,
And Alphesiboeus emulate in dance
The dancing Satyrs. This, thy service due,
Shalt thou lack never, both when we pay the Nymphs

reddemus Nymphis, et cum lustrabimus agros. [5,75]
Dum iuga montis aper, fluuios dum piscis amabit,
dumque thymo pascentur apes, dum rore cicadae,
semper honos nomenque tuom laudesque manebunt.
Vt Baccho Cererique, tibi sic uota quotannis

Our yearly vows, and when with lustral rites
The fields we hallow. Long as the wild boar
Shall love the mountain-heights, and fish the streams,
While bees on thyme and crickets feed on dew,
Thy name, thy praise, thine honour, shall endure.
Even as to Bacchus and to Ceres, so
To thee the swain his yearly vows shall make;

agricolae facient: damnabis tu quoque uotis. [5,80]

Mopsus.
Quae tibi, quae tali reddam pro carmine dona?
Nam neque me tantum uenientes sibilus Austri
nec percussa iuuant fluctu tam litora, nec quae
saxosas inter decurrunt flumina uallis.

And thou thereof, like them, shalt quittance claim."

Mopsus.
How, how repay thee for a song so rare?
For not the whispering south-wind on its way
So much delights me, nor wave-smitten beach,
Nor streams that race adown their bouldered beds.

Menalcas

Hac te nos fragili donabimus ante cicuta: [5,85]
haec nos "Formosum Corydon ardebat Alexim",
haec eadem docuit "Cuium pecus? an Meliboei?"

Mopsus
At tu sume pedum, quod, me cum saepe rogaret,
non tulit Antigenes (et erat tum dignus amari),

Menalcas

First this frail hemlock-stalk to you I give,
Which taught me "Corydon with love was fired
For fair Alexis," ay, and this beside,
"Who owns the flock?- Meliboeus?"

Mopsus.
But take you
This shepherd's crook, which, howso hard he begged,
Antigenes, then worthy to be loved,
Prevailed not to obtain- with brass, you see,

formosum paribus nodis atque aere, Menalca. [5,90]

And equal knots, Menalcas, fashioned fair!

Ecloga sexta.

Prima Syracosio dignata est ludere uersu [6,1]
nostra, neque erubuit siluas habitare, Thalia.
Cum canerem reges et proelia, Cynthius aurem
uellit, et admonuit: "Pastorem, Tityre, pinguis

Eclogue VI TO VARUS]

First my Thalia stooped in sportive mood  
To Syracusan strains, nor blushed within
The woods to house her. When I sought to tell
Of battles and of kings, the Cynthian god
Plucked at mine ear and warned me: "Tityrus,
Beseems a shepherd-wight to feed fat sheep,

pascere oportet ouis, deductum dicere carmen." [6,5]
Nunc ego (namque super tibi erunt, qui dicere laudes,
Vare, tuas cupiant, et tristia condere bella)
agrestem tenui meditabor harundine musam.
Non iniussa cano. Si quis tamen haec quoque, si quis

But sing a slender song.  

"Now, Varus, I-   
For lack there will not who would laud thy deeds,
And treat of dolorous wars- will rather tune
To the slim oaten reed my silvan lay.
I sing but as vouchsafed me; yet even this
If, if but one with ravished eyes should read,

captus amore leget, te nostrae, Vare, myricae, [6,10]

te nemus omne canet; nec Phoebo gratior ulla est
quam sibi quae Vari praescripsit pagina nomen.
Pergite, Pierides. Chromis et Mnasylus in antro
Silenum pueri somno uidere iacentem,

Of thee, O Varus, shall our tamarisks
And all the woodland ring; nor can there be
A page more dear to Phoebus, than the page
Where, foremost writ, the name of Varus stands.
Speed ye, Pierian Maids! Within a cave
Young Chromis and Mnasyllos chanced to see
Silenus sleeping, flushed, as was his wont,

inflatum hesterno uenas, ut semper, Iaccho; [6,15]
serta procul tantum capiti delapsa iacebant,
et grauis attrita pendebat cantharus ansa.
Adgressi (nam saepe senex spe carminis ambo
luserat) iniciunt ipsis ex uincula sertis.

With wine of yesterday. Not far aloof,
Slipped from his head, the garlands lay, and there
By its worn handle hung a ponderous cup.
Approaching- for the old man many a time
Had balked them both of a long hoped-for song-
Garlands to fetters turned, they bind him fast.
Then Aegle, fairest of the Naiad-band,

Addit se sociam timidisque superuenit Aegle. [6,20]

Aegle, Naiadum pulcherrima, iamque uidenti
sanguineis frontem moris et tempora pingit.
Ille dolum ridens: "Quo uincula nectitis?" inquit.
"Soluite me, pueri; satis est potuisse uideri.

Aegle came up to the half-frightened boys,
Came, and, as now with open eyes he lay,
With juice of blood-red mulberries smeared him o'er,
Both brow and temples. Laughing at their guile,
And crying, "Why tie the fetters? loose me, boys;
Enough for you to think you had the power;

Carmina quae uoltis cognoscite; carmina uobis, [6,25]
huic aliud mercedis erit." Simul incipit ipse.
Tum uero in numerum Faunosque ferasque uideres
ludere, tum rigidas motare cacumina quercus.
Nec tantum Phoebo gaudet Parnasia rupes,

Now list the songs you wish for- songs for you,
Another meed for her" -forthwith began.
Then might you see the wild things of the wood,
With Fauns in sportive frolic beat the time,
And stubborn oaks their branchy summits bow.
Not Phoebus doth the rude Parnassian crag

nec tantum Rhodope miratur et Ismarus Orphea. [6,30]

Namque canebat uti magnum per inane coacta
semina terrarumque animaeque marisque fuissent
et liquidi simul ignis; ut his exordia primis
omnia, et ipse tener mundi concreuerit orbis;

So ravish, nor Orpheus so entrance the heights
Of Rhodope or Ismarus: for he sang
How through the mighty void the seeds were driven
Of earth, air, ocean, and of liquid fire,
How all that is from these beginnings grew,
And the young world itself took solid shape,

tum durare solum et discludere Nerea ponto [6,35]
coeperit, et rerum paulatim sumere formas;
iamque nouom terrae stupeant lucescere solem,
altius atque cadant submotis nubibus imbres,
incipiant siluae cum primum surgere, cumque

Then 'gan its crust to harden, and in the deep
Shut Nereus off, and mould the forms of things
Little by little; and how the earth amazed
Beheld the new sun shining, and the showers
Fall, as the clouds soared higher, what time the woods
'Gan first to rise, and living things to roam

rara per ignaros errent animalia montis. [6,40]

Hinc lapides Pyrrhae iactos, Saturnia regna,
Caucasiasque refert uolucris, furtumque Promethei.
His adiungit Hylan nautae quo fonte relictum
clamassent, ut litus Hyla, Hyla, omne sonaret;

Scattered among the hills that knew them not.
Then sang he of the stones by Pyrrha cast,
Of Saturn's reign, and of Prometheus' theft,
And the Caucasian birds, and told withal
Nigh to what fountain by his comrades left
The mariners cried on Hylas till the shore
"Then Re-echoed "Hylas, Hylas! soothed
Pasiphae with the love of her white bull-

et fortunatam, si numquam armenta fuissent, [6,45]
Pasiphaen niuei solatur amore iuuenci.
A! uirgo infelix, quae te dementia cepit!
Proetides implerunt falsis mugitibus agros;
at non tam turpis pecudum tamen ulla secuta

Happy if cattle-kind had never been!-
O ill-starred maid, what frenzy caught thy soul
The daughters too of Proetus filled the fields
With their feigned lowings, yet no one of them
Of such unhallowed union e'er was fain
As with a beast to mate, though many a time
On her smooth forehead she had sought for horns,

concubitus, quamuis collo timuisset aratrum, [6,50]

et saepe in leui quaesisset cornua fronte.
A! uirgo infelix, tu nunc in montibus erras:
ille, latus niueum molli fultus hyacintho,
ilice sub nigra pallentis ruminat herbas,

And for her neck had feared the galling plough.
O ill-starred maid! thou roamest now the hills,
While on soft hyacinths he, his snowy side
Reposing, under some dark ilex now
Chews the pale herbage, or some heifer tracks

aut aliquam in magno sequitur grege. "Claudite Nymphae, [6,55]
Dictaeae Nymphae, nemorum iam claudite saltus,
si qua forte ferant oculis sese obuia nostris
errabunda bouis uestigia: forsitan illum
aut herba captum uiridi aut armenta secutum

Amid the crowding herd. Now close, ye Nymphs,
Ye Nymphs of Dicte, close the forest-glades,
If haply there may chance upon mine eyes
The white bull's wandering foot-prints: him belike
Following the herd, or by green pasture lured,

perducant aliquae stabula ad Cortynia uaccae." [6,60]

Tum canit Hesperidum miratam mala puellam;
tum Phaethontiadas musco circundat amarae
corticis, atque solo proceras erigit alnos.
Tum canit, errantem Permessi ad flumina Gallum

Some kine may guide to the Gortynian stalls.
Then sings he of the maid so wonder-struck
With the apples of the Hesperids, and then
With moss-bound, bitter bark rings round the forms
Of Phaethon's fair sisters, from the ground
Up-towering into poplars. Next he sings
Of Gallus wandering by Permessus' stream,
And by a sister of the Muses led

Aonas in montis ut duxerit una sororum, [6,65]
utque uiro Phoebi chorus adsurrexerit omnis;
ut Linus haec illi diuino carmine pastor,
floribus atque apio crinis ornatus amaro,
dixerit: "Hos tibi dant calamos, en accipe, Musae,

To the Aonian mountains, and how all
The choir of Phoebus rose to greet him; how
The shepherd Linus, singer of songs divine,
Brow-bound with flowers and bitter parsley, spake:
"These reeds the Muses give thee, take them thou,

Ascraeo quos ante seni; quibus ille solebat [6,70]

cantando rigidas deducere montibus ornos.
His tibi Grynei nemoris dicatur origo,
ne quis sit lucus quo se plus iactet Apollo."
Quid loquar aut Scyllam Nisi, quam fama secuta est

Erst to the aged bard of Ascra given,
Wherewith in singing he was wont to draw
Time-rooted ash-trees from the mountain heights.
With these the birth of the Grynean grove
Be voiced by thee, that of no grove beside
Apollo more may boast him." Wherefore speak
Of Scylla, child of Nisus, who, 'tis said,

candida succinctam latrantibus inguina monstris [6,75]
Dulichias uexasse rates, et gurgite in alto,
a, timidos nautas canibus lacerasse marinis,
aut ut mutatos Terei narrauerit artus,
quas illi Philomela dapes, quae dona pararit,

Her fair white loins with barking monsters girt
Vexed the Dulichian ships, and, in the deep
Swift-eddying whirlpool, with her sea-dogs tore
The trembling mariners? or how he told
Of the changed limbs of Tereus- what a feast,
What gifts, to him by Philomel were given;

quo cursu deserta petiuerit, et quibus ante [6,80]

infelix sua tecta super uolitauerit alis?
Omnia, quae Phoebo quondam meditante beatus
audiit Eurotas iussitque ediscere laurus,
ille canit (pulsae referunt ad sidera ualles),

How swift she sought the desert, with what wings
Hovered in anguish o'er her ancient home?
All that, of old, Eurotas, happy stream,
Heard, as Apollo mused upon the lyre,
And bade his laurels learn, Silenus sang;
Till from Olympus, loth at his approach,

cogere donec ouis stabulis numerumque referre [6,85]
iussit et inuito processit Vesper Olympo.

Vesper, advancing, bade the shepherds tell ,5}">
Hither had strayed, while from the frost I fend
My tender myrtles, the he-goat himself,
Lord of the flock; when Daphnis I espy!
Soon as he saw me, "Hither haste," he cried,
"O Meliboeus! goat and kids are safe;
And, if you have an idle hour to spare,

et, si quid cessare potes, requiesce sub umbra. [7,10]

Huc ipsi potum uenient per prata iuuenci;
hic uiridis tenera praetexit harundine ripas
Mincius, eque sacra resonant examina quercu."
Quid facerem? Neque ego Alcippen, nec Phyllida habebam,

Rest here beneath the shade. Hither the steers
Will through the meadows, of their own free will,
Untended come to drink. Here Mincius hath
With tender rushes rimmed his verdant banks,
And from yon sacred oak with busy hum
The bees are swarming." What was I to do?
No Phyllis or Alcippe left at home

depulsos a lacte domi quae clauderet agnos, [7,15]
et certamen erat, Corydon cum Thyrdide, magnum.
Posthabui tamen illorum mea seria ludo.
Alternis igitur contendere uersibus ambo
coepere; alternos Musae meminisse uolebant.

Had I, to shelter my new-weaned lambs,
And no slight matter was a singing-bout
'Twixt Corydon and Thyrsis. Howsoe'er,
I let my business wait upon their sport.
So they began to sing, voice answering voice
In strains alternate- for alternate strains
The Muses then were minded to recall-

Hos Corydon, illos referebat in ordine Thyrsis. [7,20]

Coridon
Nymphae, noster amor, Libethrides, aut mihi carmen,
quale meo Codro, concedite (proxima Phoebi
uersibus ille facit), aut, si non possumus omnes,
hic arguta sacra pendebit fistula pinu.

First Corydon, then Thyrsis in reply.

Coridon.

"Libethrian Nymphs, who are my heart's delight,
Grant me, as doth my Codrus, so to sing-
Next to Apollo he- or if to this
We may not all attain, my tuneful pipe
Here on this sacred pine shall silent hang." Thyrsis.

Thyrsis

Pastores, hedera nascentem ornate poetam, [7,25]
Arcades, inuidia rumpantur ut ilia Codro;
aut, si ultra placitum laudarit, baccare frontem
cingite, ne uati noceat mala lingua futuro.

Coridon
Saetosi caput hoc apri tibi, Delia, paruos

Thyrsis

"Arcadian shepherds, wreathe with ivy-spray
Your budding poet, so that Codrus burst
With envy: if he praise beyond my due,
Then bind my brow with foxglove, lest his tongue
With evil omen blight the coming bard."

Corydon.
"This bristling boar's head, Delian Maid, to thee,

et ramosa Micon uiuacis cornua cerui. [7,30]

Si proprium hoc fuerit, leui de marmore tota
puniceo stabis suras euincta coturno.

Thyrsis
Sinum lactis et haec te liba, Priape, quotannis
exspectare sat est: custos es pauperis horti.

With branching antlers of a sprightly stag,
Young Micon offers: if his luck but hold,
Full-length in polished marble, ankle-bound
With purple buskin, shall thy statue stand."

Thyrsis.

"A bowl of milk, Priapus, and these cakes,
Yearly, it is enough for thee to claim;
Thou art the guardian of a poor man's plot.

Nunc te marmoreum pro tempore fecimus; at tu, [7,35]
si fetura gregem suppleuerit, aureus esto.

Coridon
Nerine Galatea, thymo mihi dulcior Hyblae,
candidior cycnis, hedera formosior alba,
cum primum pasti repetent praesepia tauri,

Wrought for a while in marble, if the flock
At lambing time be filled, stand there in gold."

Corydon.

"Daughter of Nereus, Galatea mine,
Sweeter than Hybla-thyme, more white than swans,
Fairer than ivy pale, soon as the steers
Shall from their pasture to the stalls repair,

si qua tui Corydonis habet te cura, uenito. [7,40]

Thyrsis
Immo ego Sardoniis uidear tibi amarior herbis
horridior rusco, proiecta uilior alga,
si mihi non haec lux toto iam longior anno est.
Ite domum pasti, si quis pudor, ite, iuuenci.

If aught for Corydon thou carest, come."

Thyrsis.

"Now may I seem more bitter to your taste
Than herb Sardinian, rougher than the broom,
More worthless than strewn sea-weed, if to-day
Hath not a year out-lasted! Fie for shame!
Go home, my cattle, from your grazing go!"

Corydon
Muscosi fontes, et somno mollior herba, [7,45]
et quae uos rara uiridis tegit arbutus umbra,
solstitium pecori defendite: iam uenit aestas
torrida, iam lento turgent in palmite gemmae.

 
Thyrsis
Hic focus et taedae pingues, hic plurimus ignis

Corydon.
"Ye mossy springs, and grass more soft than sleep,
And arbute green with thin shade sheltering you,
Ward off the solstice from my flock, for now
Comes on the burning summer, now the buds
Upon the limber vine-shoot 'gin to swell."

Thyrsis.
"Here is a hearth, and resinous logs, here fire

semper, et adsidua postes fuligine nigri; [7,50]

hic tantum Boreae curamus frigora, quantum
aut numerum lupus aut torrentia flumina ripas.

Corydon
Stant et iuniperi et castaneae hirsutae;
strata iacent passim sua quaeque sub arbore poma;

Unstinted, and doors black with ceaseless smoke.
Here heed we Boreas' icy breath as much
As the wolf heeds the number of the flock,
Or furious rivers their restraining banks."

Corydon.
"The junipers and prickly chestnuts stand,
And 'neath each tree lie strewn their several fruits,
Now the whole world is smiling, but if fair

omnia nunc rident: at, si formosus Alexis [7,55]
montibus his abeat, uideas et flumina sicca.

Thyrsis
Aret ager; uitio moriens sitit aeris herba;
Liber pampineas inuidit collibus umbras:
Phyllidis aduentu nostrae nemus omne uirebit,

Alexis from these hill-slopes should away,
Even the rivers you would ; see run dry."

Thyrsis.
"The field is parched, the grass-blades thirst to death
In the faint air; Liber hath grudged the hills
His vine's o'er-shadowing: should my Phyllis come,
Green will be all the grove, and Jupiter

Iuppiter et laeto descendet plurimus imbri. [7,60]

Coridon
Populus Alcidae gratissima, uitis Iaccho,
formosae myrtus Veneri, sua laurea Phoebo,
Phyllis amat corylos; illas dum Phyllis amabit,
nec myrtus uincet corylos, nec laurea Phoebi.

Thyrsis  

Descend in floods of fertilizing rain."

Corydon.
"The poplar doth Alcides hold most dear,
The vine Iacchus, Phoebus his own bays,
And Venus fair the myrtle: therewithal
Phyllis doth hazels love, and while she loves,
Myrtle nor bay the hazel shall out-vie."

Thyrsis.
"Ash in the forest is most beautiful,

Fraxinus in siluis pulcherrima, pinus in hortis, [7,65]
populus in fluuiis, abies in montibus altis:
saepius at si me, Lycida formose, reuisas,
fraxinus in siluis cedat tibi, pinus in hortis.

Meliboeus
Haec memini, et uictum frustra contendere Thyrsim.  

Pine in the garden, poplar by the stream,
Fir on the mountain-height; but if more oft
Thou'ldst come to me, fair Lycidas, to thee
Both forest-ash, and garden-pine should bow."

Meliboeus.
These I remember, and how Thyrsis strove
For victory in vain. From that time forth

Ex illo Corydon Corydon est tempore nobis. [7,70]

Is Corydon still Corydon with us.

Ecloga octaua.

Pastorum musam Damonis et Alphesiboei, [8,1]
immemor herbarum quos est mirata iuuenca
certantis, quorum stupefactae carmine lynces,
et mutata suos requierunt flumina cursus,

Eclogue VIII TO POLLIO, DAMON, ALPHESIBOEUS]]

]Of Damon and Alphesiboeus now,  
Those shepherd-singers at whose rival strains
The heifer wondering forgot to graze,
The lynx stood awe-struck, and the flowing streams,
Unwonted loiterers, stayed their course to hear-
How Damon and Alphesiboeus sang

Damonis musam dicemus et Alphesiboei. [8,5]
Tu mihi seu magni superas iam saxa Timaui,
siue oram Illyrici legis aequoris, en erit umquam
ille dies, mihi cum liceat tua dicere facta?
En erit, ut liceat totum mihi ferre per orbem

Their pastoral ditties, will I tell the tale. 
Thou, whether broad Timavus' rocky banks
Thou now art passing, or dost skirt the shore
Of the Illyrian main,- will ever dawn
That day when I thy deeds may celebrate,
Ever that day when through the whole wide world
I may renown thy verse- that verse alone

sola Sophocleo tua carmina digna coturno? [8,10]

A te principium; tibi desinet: accipe iussis
carmina coepta tuis, atque hanc sine tempora circum
inter uictricis hederam tibi serpere laurus.
Frigida uix caelo noctis decesserat umbra,  

Of Sophoclean buskin worthy found?
With thee began, to thee shall end, the strain.
Take thou these songs that owe their birth to thee,
And deign around thy temples to let creep
This ivy-chaplet 'twixt the conquering bays.
Scarce had night's chilly shade forsook the sky
What time to nibbling sheep the dewy grass

cum ros in tenera pecori gratissimus herba, [8,15]
incumbens tereti Damon sic coepit oliuae:
"Nascere, praeque diem ueniens age, Lucifer, almum,
coniugis indigno Nysae deceptus amore
dum queror, et diuos, quamquam nil testibus illis  

Tastes sweetest, when, on his smooth shepherd-staff
Of olive leaning, Damon thus began. Damon.
"Rise, Lucifer, and, heralding the light,
Bring in the genial day, while I make moan
Fooled by vain passion for a faithless bride,
For Nysa, and with this my dying breath
Call on the gods, though little it bestead-

profeci, extrema moriens tamen adloquor hora. [8,20]

Incipe Maenalios mecum, mea tibia, uersus.
Maenalus argutumque nemus pinosque loquentis
semper habet; semper pastorum ille audit amores
Panaque, qui primus calamos non passus inertis.  

The gods who heard her vows and heeded not.
"Begin, my flute, with me Maenalian lays.
Ever hath Maenalus his murmuring groves
And whispering pines, and ever hears the songs
Of love-lorn shepherds, and of Pan, who first
Brooked not the tuneful reed should idle lie.

Incipe Maenalios mecum, mea tibia, uersus. [8,25]
Mopso Nysa datur: quid non speremus amantes?
Iungentur iam grypes equis, aeuoque sequenti
cum canibus timidi ueniet ad pocula dammae.
28 Incipe Maenalios mecum, mea tibia, uersus. a
Mopse, nouas incide faces: tibi ducitur uxor;  

"Begin, my flute, with me Maenalian lays.
Nysa to Mopsus given! what may not then
We lovers look for? soon shall we see mate
Griffins with mares, and in the coming age
Shy deer and hounds together come to drink.
"Begin, my flute, with me Maenalian lays.
Now, Mopsus, cut new torches, for they bring

sparge, marite, nuces: tibi deserit Hesperus Oetam. [8,30]

Incipe Maenalios mecum, mea tibia, uersus.
O digno coniuncta uiro, dum despicis omnis,
dumque tibi est odio mea fistula dumque capellae
hirsutumque supercilium promissaque barba,  

Your bride along; now, bridegroom, scatter nuts:
Forsaking Oeta mounts the evening star!
"Begin, my flute, with me Maenalian lays.
O worthy of thy mate, while all men else
Thou scornest, and with loathing dost behold
My shepherd's pipe, my goats, my shaggy brow,
And untrimmed beard, nor deem'st that any god

nec curare deum credis mortalia quemquam! [8,35]
Incipe Maenalios mecum, mea tibia, uersus.
Saepibus in nostris paruam te roscida mala
(dux ego uester eram) uidi cum matre legentem;
alter ab undecimo tum me iam acceperat annus;  

For mortal doings hath regard or care.
"Begin, my flute, with me Maenalian lays.
Once with your mother, in our orchard-garth,
A little maid I saw you- I your guide-
Plucking the dewy apples. My twelfth year
I scarce had entered, and could barely reach
The brittle boughs. I looked, and I was lost;

iam fragilis poteram a terra contingere ramos: [8,40]

ut uidi, ut perii, ut me malus abstulit error!
Incipe Maenalios mecum, mea tibia, uersus.
Nunc scio quid sit Amor: duris in cautibus illum
aut Tmaros aut Rhodope aut extremi Garamantes

A sudden frenzy swept my wits away.
"Begin, my flute, with me Maenalian lays.
Now know I what Love is: 'mid savage rocks
Tmaros or Rhodope brought forth the boy,
Or Garamantes in earth's utmost bounds-

nec generis nostri puerum nec sanguinis edunt. [8,45]
Incipe Maenalios mecum, mea tibia, uersus.
Saeuos Amor docuit natorum sanguine matrem
commaculare manus; crudelis tu quoque, mater:
crudelis mater magis, an puer improbus ille?

No kin of ours, nor of our blood begot.
"Begin, my flute, with me Maenalian lays.
Fierce Love it was once steeled a mother's heart
With her own offspring's blood her hands to imbrue:
Mother, thou too wert cruel; say wert thou

Improbus ille puer; crudelis tu quoque, mater. [8,50]

Incipe Maenalios mecum, mea tibia, uersus.
Nunc et ouis ultro fugiat lupus; aurea durae
mala ferant quercus, narcisso floreat alnus,
pinguia corticibus sudent electra myricae,

More cruel, mother, or more ruthless he?
Ruthless the boy, thou, mother, cruel too.
"Begin, my flute, with me Maenalian lays.
Now let the wolf turn tail and fly the sheep,
Tough oaks bear golden apples, alder-trees
Bloom with narcissus-flower, the tamarisk
Sweat with rich amber, and the screech-owl vie

certent et cycnis ululae, sit Tityrus Orpheus, [8,55]
Orpheus in siluis, inter delphinas Arion.
Incipe Maenalios mecum, mea tibia, uersus.
Omnia uel medium fiat mare. Viuite, siluae:
praeceps aerii specula de montis in undas

In singing with the swan: let Tityrus
Be Orpheus, Orpheus in the forest-glade,
Arion 'mid his dolphins on the deep.
"Begin, my flute, with me Maenalian lays.
Yea, be the whole earth to mid-ocean turned!
Farewell, ye woodlands I from the tall peak
Of yon aerial rock will headlong plunge
Into the billows: this my latest gift,

deferar; extremum hoc munus morientis habeto. [8,60]

Desine Maenalios, iam desine, tibia, uersus."
Haec Damon. Vos, quae responderit Alphesiboeus,
ducite, Pierides: non omnia possumus omnes.
"Effer aquam, et molli cinge haec altaria uitta,

From dying lips bequeathed thee, see thou keep.
Cease now, my flute, now cease Maenalian lays."
Thus Damon: but do ye, Pierian Maids-
We cannot all do all things- tell me how
Alphesiboeus to his strain replied. Alphesiboeus.
"Bring water, and with soft wool-fillet bind
These altars round about, and burn thereon

uerbenasque adole pinguis et mascula tura, [8,65]
coniugis ut magicis sanos auertere sacris
experiar sensus: nihil hic nisi carmina desunt.
Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim.
Carmina uel caelo possunt deducere lunam;

Rich vervain and male frankincense, that I
May strive with magic spells to turn astray
My lover's saner senses, whereunto
There lacketh nothing save the power of song.
"Draw from the town, my songs, draw Daphnis home.
Songs can the very moon draw down from heaven
Circe with singing changed from human form

caminibus Circe socios mutauit Vlixi; [8,70]

frigidus in pratis cantando rumpitur anguis.
Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim.
Terna tibi haec primum triplici diuersa colore
licia circumdo, terque haec altaria circum

The comrades of Ulysses, and by song
Is the cold meadow-snake, asunder burst.
"Draw from the town, my songs, draw Daphnis home.
These triple threads of threefold colour first
I twine about thee, and three times withal
Around these altars do thine image bear:

effigiem duco: numero deus impare gaudet. [8,75]
Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim.
Necte tribus nodis ternos, Amarylli, colores;
necte, Amarylli, modo et "Veneris" dic "uincula necto".
Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim.

Uneven numbers are the god's delight.
"Draw from the town, my songs, draw Daphnis home.
Now, Amaryllis, ply in triple knots
The threefold colours; ply them fast, and say
This is the chain of Venus that I ply.
"Draw from the town, my songs, draw Daphnis home.
As by the kindling of the self-same fire

Limus ut hic durescit, et haec ut cera liquescit [8,80]

uno eodemque igni, sic nostro Daphnis amore.
Sparge molam et fragilis incende bitumine laurus.
Daphnis me malus urit; ego hanc in Daphnide laurum.
Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim.

Harder this clay, this wax the softer grows,
So by my love may Daphnis; sprinkle meal,
And with bitumen burn the brittle bays.
Me Daphnis with his cruelty doth burn,
I to melt cruel Daphnis burn this bay.
"Draw from the town, my songs, draw Daphnis home.

Talis amor Daphnim, qualis cum fessa iuuencum [8,85]
per nemora atque altos quaerendo bucula lucos,
propter aquae riuom, uiridi procumbit in ulua
perdita, nec serae meminit decedere nocti,
talis amor teneat, nec sit mihi cura mederi.

As when some heifer, seeking for her steer
Through woodland and deep grove, sinks wearied out
On the green sedge beside a stream, love-lorn,
Nor marks the gathering night that calls her home-
As pines that heifer, with such love as hers
May Daphnis pine, and I not care to heal.

Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim. [8,90]

Has olim exuuias mihi perfidus ille reliquit,
pignora cara sui; quae nunc ego limine in ipso,
terra, tibi mando: debent haec pignora Daphnim.
Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim.

"Draw from the town, my songs, draw Daphnis home.
These relics once, dear pledges of himself,
The traitor left me, which, O earth, to thee
Here on this very threshold I commit-
Pledges that bind him to redeem the debt.
"Draw from the town, my songs, draw Daphnis home.

Has herbas atque haec Ponto mihi lecta uenena [8,95]
ipse dedit Moeris (nascuntur pluruma Ponto);
his ego saepe lupum fieri et se condere siluis
Moerim, saepe animas imis excire sepulcris,
atque satas alio uidi traducere messis.

These herbs of bane to me did Moeris give,
In Pontus culled, where baneful herbs abound.
With these full oft have I seen Moeris change
To a wolf's form, and hide him in the woods,
Oft summon spirits from the tomb's recess,
And to new fields transport the standing corn.

Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim. [8,100]

Fer cineres, Amarylli, foras, riuoque fluenti
transque caput iace, nec respexeris. His ego Daphnim
adgrediar; nihil ille deos, nil carmina curat.
Ducite ab urbe domum, mea carmina, ducite Daphnim.

"Draw from the town, my songs, draw Daphnis home. ]
Have caught the altar with a flickering flame,
While I delay to fetch them: may the sign
Prove lucky! something it must mean, for sure,
And Hylax on the threshold 'gins to bark!
May we believe it, or are lovers still
By their own fancies fooled?
Give o'er, my songs,
Daphnis is coming from the town, give o'er."

Ecloga nona.

Lycidas [9,1]
Quo te, Moeri, pedes? An, quo uia ducit, in urbem?

Moeris
O Lycida, uiui peruenimus, aduena nostri
(quod nunquam ueriti sumus) ut possessor agelli
diceret: "Haec mea sunt; ueteres migrate coloni."

Eclogue IX LYCIDAS, MOERIS]

Lycidas.
Say whither, Moeris?- Make you for the town,

Or on what errand bent?

Moeris.

O Lycidas,
We have lived to see, what never yet we feared,
An interloper own our little farm,
And say, "Be off, you former husbandmen!
These fields are mine." Now, cowed and out of heart,

Nunc uicti, tristes, quoniam fors omnia uersat, [9,5]
hos illi (quod nec uertat bene!) mittimus haedos.

Lycidas
Certe equidem audieram, qua se subducere colles
incipiunt mollique iugum demittere cliuo,
usque ad aquam et ueteres, iam fracta cacumina, fagos,

Since Fortune turns the whole world upside down,
We are taking him- ill luck go with the same!-'
These kids you see.

Lycidas.
But surely I had heard
That where the hills first draw from off the plain,
And the high ridge with gentle slope descends,
Down to the brook-side and the broken crests
Of yonder veteran beeches, all the land

omnia carminibus uestrum seruasse Menalcan. [9,10]

Moeris
Audieras, et fama fuit; sed carmina tantum
nostra ualent, Lycida, tela inter Martia, quantum
Chaonias dicunt aquila ueniente columbas.
Quod nisi me quacumque nouas incidere litis

Was by the songs of your Menalcas saved.

Moeris.
Heard it you had, and so the rumour ran,
But 'mid the clash of arms, my Lycidas,
Our songs avail no more than, as 'tis said,
Doves of Dodona when an eagle comes.
Nay, had I not, from hollow ilex-bole

ante sinistra caua monuisset ab ilice cornix, [9,15]
nec tuos hic Moeris nec uiueret ipse Menalcas.

Lycidas
Heu! Cadit in quemquam tantum scelus? Heu! Tua nobis
paene simul tecum solacia rapta, Menalca?
Quis caneret Nymphas? Quis humum florentibus herbis

Warned by a raven on the left, cut short
The rising feud, nor I, your Moeris here,
No, nor Menalcas, were alive to-day.

Lycidas.
Alack! could any of so foul a crime
Be guilty? Ah! how nearly, thyself,
Reft was the solace that we had in thee,
Menalcas! Who then of the Nymphs had sung,

spargeret, aut uiridi fontis induceret umbra? [9,20]

uel quae sublegi tacitus tibi carmina nuper,
cum te ad delicias ferres Amaryllida nostras?
"Tityre, dum redeo (breuis est uia) pasce capellas;
et potum pastas age, Tityre, et inter agendum

Or who with flowering herbs bestrewn the ground,
And o'er the fountains drawn a leafy veil?-
Who sung the stave I filched from you that day
To Amaryllis wending, our hearts' joy?-
"While I am gone, 'tis but a little way,
Feed, Tityrus, my goats, and, having fed,
Drive to the drinking-pool, and, as you drive,

occursare capro (cornu ferit ille) caueto." [9,25]

Moeris
Immo haec quae Varo, necdum perfecta, canebat:
"Vare, tuom nomen, superet modo Mantua nobis,
Mantua uae miserae nimium uicina Cremonae,
cantantes sublime ferent ad sidera cycni."

Beware the he-goat; with his horn he butts."

Moeris.
Ay, or to Varus that half-finished lay,
"Varus, thy name, so still our Mantua live-
Mantua to poor Cremona all too near-
Shall singing swans bear upward to the stars." Lycidas.

Lycidas

Sic tua Cyrneas fugiant examina taxos, [9,30]

sic cytiso pastae distendant ubera uaccae,
incipe, si quid habes. Et me fecere poetam
Pierides; sunt et mihi carmina; me quoque dicunt
uatem pastores: sed non ego credulus illis;

Lycidas.

So may your swarms Cyrnean yew-trees shun,
Your kine with cytisus their udders swell,
Begin, if aught you have. The Muses made
Me too a singer; I too have sung; the swains
Call me a poet, but I believe them not:
For naught of mine, or worthy Varius yet

nam neque adhuc Vario uideor nec dicere Cinna [9,35]
digna, sed argutos inter strepere anser olores.

Moeris
Id quidem ago et tacitus, Lycida, mecum ipse uoluto,
si ualeam meminisse; neque est ignobile carmen:
"Huc ades, o Galarea: quis est nam ludus in undis?

Or Cinna deem I, but account myself
A cackling goose among melodious swans.

Moeris.
'Twas in my thought to do so, Lycidas;
Even now was I revolving silently
If this I could recall- no paltry song:
"Come, Galatea, what pleasure is 't to play
Amid the waves? Here glows the Spring, here earth

Hic uer purpureum, uarios hic flumina circum [9,40]

fundit humus flores; hic candida populus antro
imminet et lentae texunt umbracula uites.
Huc ades; insani feriant sine litora fluctus."

Lycidas
Quid, quae te pura solum sub nocte canentem

Beside the streams pours forth a thousand flowers;
Here the white poplar bends above the cave,
And the lithe vine weaves shadowy covert: come,
Leave the mad waves to beat upon the shore."

Lycidas.
What of the strain I heard you singing once
On a clear night alone? the notes I still

audieram? Numeros memini, si uerba tenerem: [9,45]
"Daphni, quid antiquos signorum suspicis ortus?
Ecce Dionaei processit Caesaris astrum,
astrum quo segetes gauderent frugibus et quo
duceret apricis in collibus uua colorem.

Remember, could I but recall the words.
"Why, Daphnis, upward gazing, do you mark
The ancient risings of the Signs? for look
Where Dionean Caesar's star comes forth
In heaven, to gladden all the fields with corn,
And to the grape upon the sunny slopes
Her colour bring! Now, the pears;

Insere, Daphni, piros: carpent tua poma nepotes." [9,50]

Moeris
Omnia fert aetas, animum quoque; saepe ego longos
cantando puerum memini me condere soles:
nunc oblita mihi tot carmina, uox quoque Moerim
iam fugit ipsa: lupi Moerim uidere priores.

So shall your children's children pluck their fruit.

Moeris

Time carries all things, even our wits, away.
Oft, as a boy, I sang the sun to rest,
But all those songs are from my memory fled,
And even his voice is failing Moeris now;
The wolves eyed Moeris first: but at your wish

Sed tamen ista satis referet tibi saepe Menalcas. [9,55]

Lycidas
Causando nostros in longum ducis amores.
Et nunc omne tibi stratum silet aequor, et omnes,
aspice, uentosi ceciderunt murmuris aurae.
Hinc adeo media est nobis uia; namque sepulcrum

Menalcas will repeat them oft enow.

Lycidas.
Your pleas but linger out my heart's desire:
Now all the deep is into silence hushed,
And all the murmuring breezes sunk to sleep.
We are half-way thither, for Bianor's tomb

incipit apparere Bianoris. Hic, ubi densas [9,60]

agricolae stringunt frondis, hic, Moeri, canamus:
hic haedos depone, tamen ueniemus in urbem.
Aut, si nox pluuiam ne colligat ante ueremur,
cantantes licet usque (minus uia laedit) eamus:

Begins to show: here, Moeris, where the hinds
Are lopping the thick leafage, let us sing.
Set down the kids, yet shall we reach the town;
Or, if we fear the night may gather rain
Ere we arrive, then singing let us go,
Our way to lighten; and, that we may thus

cantantes ut eamus, ego hoc te fasce leuabo. [9,65]

Moeris
Desine plura, puer, et quod nunc instat agamus.
Carmina tum melius, cum uenerit ipse, canemus.

Go singing, I will case you of this load.

Moeris.
Cease, boy, and get we to the work in hand:
We shall sing better when himself is come.

Ecloga decima.

Extremum hunc, Arethusa, mihi concede laborem: [10,1]
pauca meo Gallo, sed quae legat ipsa Lycoris,
carmina sunt dicenda: neget quis carmina Gallo?
Sic tibi, cum fluctus subterlabere Sicanos,

Eclogue X GALLUS]

This now, the very latest of my toils,
Vouchsafe me, Arethusa! needs must I
Sing a brief song to Gallus- brief, but yet
Such as Lycoris' self may fitly read.
Who would not sing for Gallus? So, when thou
Beneath Sicanian billows glidest on,

Doris amara suam non intermisceat undam; [10,5]
incipe; sollicitos Galli dicamus amores,
dum tenera attondent simae uirgulta capellae.
Non canimus surdis: respondent omnia siluae.
Quae nemora aut qui uos saltus habuere, puellae

May Doris blend no bitter wave with thine,
Begin! The love of Gallus be our theme,
And the shrewd pangs he suffered, while, hard by,
The flat-nosed she-goats browse the tender brush.
We sing not to deaf ears; no word of ours
But the woods echo it. What groves or lawns
Held you, ye Dryad-maidens, when for love-
Love all unworthy of a loss so dear-

Naides, indigno cum Gallus amore peribat? [10,10]

Nam neque Parnasi uobis iuga, nam neque Pindi
ulla moram fecere, neque Aonie Aganippe.
Illum etiam lauri, etiam fleuere myricae;
pinifer illum etiam sola sub rupe iacentem

Gallus lay dying? for neither did the slopes
Of Pindus or Parnassus stay you then,
No, nor Aonian Aganippe. Him
Even the laurels and the tamarisks wept;
For him, outstretched beneath a lonely rock,

Maenalus et gelidi fleuerunt saxa Lycaei. [10,15]
Stant et oues circum (nostri nec paenitet illas,
nec te paeniteat pecoris, diuine poeta:
et formosus ouis ad flumina pauit Adonis);
uenit et upilio; tardi uenere subulci;

Wept pine-clad Maenalus, and the flinty crags
Of cold Lycaeus. The sheep too stood around-
Of us they feel no shame, poet divine;
Nor of the flock be thou ashamed: even fair
Adonis by the rivers fed his sheep-
Came shepherd too, and swine-herd footing slow,

uuidus hiberna uenit de glande Menalcas. [10,20]

Omnes "Vnde amor iste" rogant "tibi?" Venit Apollo:
"Galle, quid insanis?" inquit; "tua cura Lycoris
perque niues alium perque horrida castra secuta est."
Venit et agresti capitis Siluanus honore,

And, from the winter-acorns dripping-wet Menalcas
All with one accord exclaim:
"From whence this love of thine?" Apollo came;
"Gallus, art mad?" he cried, "thy bosom's care
Another love is following."Therewithal
Silvanus came, with rural honours crowned;
The flowering fennels and tall lilies shook

florentis ferulas et grandia lilia quassans. [10,25]
Pan deus Arcadiae uenit, quem uidimus ipsi
sanguineis ebuli bacis minioque rubentem:
"Ecquis erit modus?" inquit "Amor non talia curat,
nec lacrimis crudelis Amor nec gramina riuis

Before him. Yea, and our own eyes beheld
Pan, god of Arcady, with blood-red juice
Of the elder-berry, and with vermilion, dyed.
"Wilt ever make an end?" quoth he, "behold
Love recks not aught of it: his heart no more
With tears is sated than with streams the grass,

nec cytiso saturantur apes nec fronde capellae." [10,30]

Tristis at ille: "Tamen cantabitis, Arcades, inquit,
montibus haec uestris, soli cantare periti
Arcades. O mihi tum quam molliter ossa quiescant,
uestra meos olim si fistula dicat amores!

Bees with the cytisus, or goats with leaves."
"Yet will ye sing, Arcadians, of my woes
Upon your mountains," sadly he replied-
"Arcadians, that alone have skill to sing.
O then how softly would my ashes rest,
If of my love, one day, your flutes should tell!

Atque utinam ex uobis unus uestrisque fuissem [10,35]
aut custos gregis aut maturae uinitor uuae!
Certe siue mihi Phyllis siue esset Amyntas,
seu quicumque furor (quid tum, si fuscus Amyntas?
et nigrae uiolae sunt et uaccinia nigra),

And would that I, of your own fellowship,
Or dresser of the ripening grape had been,
Or guardian of the flock! for surely then,
Let Phyllis, or Amyntas, or who else,
Bewitch me- what if swart Amyntas be?
Dark is the violet, dark the hyacinth-
Among the willows, 'neath the limber vine,

mecum inter salices lenta sub uite iaceret: [10,40]

serta mihi Phyllis legeret, cantaret Amyntas.
"Hic gelidi fontes, hic mollia prata, Lycori;
hic nemus; hic ipso tecum consumerer aeuo.
Nunc insanus amor duri me Martis in armis

Reclining would my love have lain with me,
Phyllis plucked garlands, or Amyntas sung.
Here are cool springs, soft mead and grove, Lycoris;
Here might our lives with time have worn away.
But me mad love of the stern war-god holds

tela inter media atque aduersos detinet hostis. [10,45]
Tu procul a patria (nec sit mihi credere tantum)
Alpinas, a, dura, niues et frigora Rheni
me sine sola uides. A, te ne frigora laedant!
a, tibi ne teneras glacies secet aspera plantas!

Armed amid weapons and opposing foes.
Whilst thou- Ah! might I but believe it not!-
Alone without me, and from home afar,
Look'st upon Alpine snows and frozen Rhine.
Ah! may the frost not hurt thee, may the sharp
And jagged ice not wound thy tender feet!
I will depart, re-tune the songs I framed

Ibo et Chalcidico quae sunt mihi condita uersu [10,50]

carmina pastoris Siculi modulabor auena.
Certum est in siluis inter spelaea ferarum
malle pati tenerisque meos incidere Amores
arboribus: crescent illae, crescetis, Amores.

In verse Chalcidian to the oaten reed
Of the Sicilian swain. Resolved am I
In the woods, rather, with wild beasts to couch,
And bear my doom, and character my love
Upon the tender tree-trunks: they will grow,
And you, my love, grow with them. And meanwhile

Interea mixtis lustrabo Maenala Nymphis, [10,55]
aut acris uenabor apros; non me ulla uetabunt
frigora Parthenios canibus circumdare saltus.
Iam mihi per rupes uideor lucosque sonantis
ire; libet Partho torquere Cydonia cornu

I with the Nymphs will haunt Mount Maenalus,
Or hunt the keen wild boar. No frost so cold
But I will hem with hounds thy forest-glades,
Parthenius.
Even now, methinks, I range
O'er rocks, through echoing groves, and joy to launch
Cydonian arrows from a Parthian bow.-

spicula; tamquam haec sit nostri medicina furoris, [10,60]

aut deus ille malis hominum mitescere discat!
Iam neque Hamadryades rursus nec carmina nobis
ipsa placent; ipsae rursus concedite, siluae.
Non illum nostri possunt mutare labores,

As if my madness could find healing thus,
Or that god soften at a mortal's grief!
Now neither Hamadryads, no, nor songs
Delight me more: ye woods, away with you!
No pangs of ours can change him; not though we

nec si frigoribus mediis Hebrumque bibamus, [10,65]
Sithoniasque niues hiemis subeamus aquosae,
nec si, cum moriens alta liber aret in ulmo,
Aethiopum uersemus ouis sub sidere Cancri.
Omnia uincit Amor: et nos cedamus Amori."

In the mid-frost should drink of Hebrus' stream,
And in wet winters face Sithonian snows,
Or, when the bark of the tall elm-tree bole
Of drought is dying, should, under Cancer's Sign,
In Aethiopian deserts drive our flocks.
Love conquers all things; yield we too to love!"
These songs, Pierian Maids, shall it suffice

Haec sat erit, diuae, uestrum cecinisse poetam, [10,70]

dum sedet et gracili fiscellam texit hibisco,
Pierides: uos haec facietis maxima Gallo,
Gallo, cuius amor tantum mihi crescit in horas,
quantum uere nouo uiridis se subicit alnus.

Your poet to have sung, the while he sat,
And of slim mallow wove a basket fine:
To Gallus ye will magnify their worth,
Gallus, for whom my love grows hour by hour,
As the green alder shoots in early Spring.
Come, let us rise: the shade is wont to be

Surgamus: solet esse grauis cantantibus umbra, [10,75]
iuniperi grauis umbra; nocent et frugibus umbrae.
Ite domum saturae, uenit Hesperus, ite, capellae.

Baneful to singers; baneful is the shade
Cast by the juniper, crops sicken too
In shade. Now homeward, having fed your fill-
Eve's star is rising-go, my she-goats, go.

THE END