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Fronde fuper viridi, funt nobis mitia poma,
Caftaneae molles, et preffi copia, lactis.
Et jam fumma procul villarum culmina fumant,
Majorefque cadunt altis de montibus umbrae.
X 3
NOTES.

Poteris.] Fierius found poteras in the Roman and Medicean manufcripts. Burman contends for this reading, which is alfo approved by Heinfius, and feveral other editors. La Cerda, Ruaeus, and many others read poteris, which is allowed alfo by Arufianus.

81. Mitia poma.] Matura, fays Servius, quae non remordent cum mor Hentur. But the Poet may mean mild, in oppofition to thofe forts, which are very harth, and scarce fit to be eaten. Or perhaps mild ap ples may be ufed for fuch as are made mild by culture, to diftinguish them from wildings or crabs.

82. Caftaneae molles.] Servius interprets molles, maturae again; but I do not know, that cheftnuts are foft, when they are ripe. Some will have molles to mean new and fresh; others think the Poet means a particular fort of cheftnuts, which is diftinguifhed by this epithet from the Caftanea hirfută. They are faid, by Palladius, to lofe the roughnefs of their hufk, by being ingrafted on an almond;

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Mirari fructus laevia poma fui,”

Perhaps we are to understand by Caftaneae molles, roafted chestnuts; for the Ancients were acquainted with this way of preparing them,

upon green leaves; we have mild apples, foft chestnuts, and Plenty of new cheefer And already the chimnies of the vil lages fmoak afar off, and greater fhadows fall from the mountains.

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as we find in Pliny, Torrere has in ibis gratius

Preffi copia lattis.] Servius und derftands this to mean cheese; Emulti et in cafeum coacti. Others think it means only curdled milk. I believe it fignifies curd, from which the milk has been fqueezed out, in order to make cheese. We find in the third Georgick, that the fhepi herds ufed to carry the curd, as foort as it was preffed, into the towns; or elfe falt it, and fo lay it by for cheefe againft winter ;

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Quod furgente die mulferé, horifque diurnis,

Nocte premunt; quod jam tene"bris et fole cadente,

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Sub lucem exportans calathis adi

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Aut parco fale contingunt, hyoppida paftor; "emique reponunt. It was therefore analogous to what we call new cheese.

83. Et jam fumma pracul, &c.] This defcription of an evening in the country is very natural, and full of paftoral fimplicity. The fmoak ing of the cottage chimnies thews, that the labourers have left off their work, and are preparing their suppers. The lengthening of the fha dows, that fall from the neighbouring hills is entirely rural, and defcribes an artless manner of meat furing time, fuitable to the innocence of paftoral poetry. ECLOGA

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ECLOGA SECUNDA.

The Shepherd Corydon burned

for the beautiful Alexis,

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-Moles Hyg

2450

T

F

ALEXIS.

J

ORMOSUM paftor Corydon ardebat
Alexim,

ANO TE S

Formofum paftor, &c.] In this Eclogue the Poet defcribes the paf fion of a fhepherd for a beautiful boy, with whom he is greatly in love. The inclinations to this unnatural vice were long before Virgil's time spread over great part of the world, and may be looked upon as one of the greatest abominations of the Heathen, there being feveral inftances of the wrath of God being peculiarly inflicted on fuch as were addicted to it. However, it would be as unjust to cenfure Virgil particularly for having mentioned this crime without a mark of deteftation, is to condemn him for his idolatry, than which nothing is more abominable in the fight of God. It

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would be very easy to excuse our Poet, by fhewing the frequent mention of this vice by many of the moft efteémed Greek and Roman writers, whofe very deities were fuppofed to be guilty of it but I do not chufe to ftain these papers, with the repetition of fuch horrid impurities, and could rather wifh it was poffible to bury them in oblivion. Some indeed have ventured to affirm, that this whole Eclogue is nothing but a warm defcription of a pure friendship: but I fear an im

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Delicias domini: nec, quid fperaret, habebat. A O

NOTES.

Corydon.] The Commentators are unanimous almoft, in fuppofing that Virgil means himself under the feigned name of Corydon. They feem perfuaded, that he was always thinking of himself; and continually defcribing his own business, and his own follies in thefe Bucolicks. In fhort, they make a meer Proteus of him, varying his fhape in almoft every Eclogue. In the firft he was Tityrus, old, poor, and a fervant; but here, under the name of Corydon, he is young, handfome, and rich. There he cultivated only a few barren acres, half covered with ftones and rufhes, on the banks of Mincius: here he is poffeffed of fine paftures, and has a thousand lambs feeding on the mountains of Sicily. Thefe are fuch inconfiftencies, that I wonder any one can imagine, that Virgil is both Tityrus and Corydon. For my own part, I believe he is neither at leaft, not Corydon, there being fome room to imagine, that he might mean himself under the name of Tityrus, a fhepherd near Mantua, and an adorer of Auguftus. It feems moft próbable, that the perfon of Corydon is as fictitious as the name. Ardebat.] This verb is ufed alfo by Horace in an active sense;

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the delight of his lord ; and bad no room for bope.

It is allowed by the Criticks to be the strongest word that can be used, to exprefs the most extreme paffion. Therefore it does not feem to fuit with the purity of a difinterested friendship.

Alexim.] The Commentators are not fo well agreed about the perfon of Alexis, as they are about that of Corydon. Servius feems to think it was Auguftus, "Caefar Alexis in "perfona inducitur." Surely nothing can be more abfurd, than to imagine that Virgil, who in the first Eclogue had erected altars to Auguftus, fhould now degrade him to a Thepherd's boy; delicias Domini, and afterwards O formofe puer. Would the Poet have dared to call Auguftus a boy, the very term of reproach ufed by his enemies, which Servius himself tells us was forbidden by a decrce of the Senate, as we have feen already in the note on ver. 43. of the first Eclogue? Not much lefs ridiculous is the imagination of Joannes Lodovicus Vives, that Alexis is Gallus, whom at the fame time he allows to have been appointed by Auguftus, to command over armies and provinces. Virgil would not have treated fo great a perfon with fuch familiarity. In the tenth Eclogue indeed, where he celebrates an amour of Gallus, he reprefents him under the character of a fhepherd; but not without making an apology for that liberty.

Non fola comptos ar fit adulteri ́ ́
Crines, et aurum veftibus illitum
"Mirata, regalefque cultus,...
Et comites, Helene La"
❝ caena.

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He only came frequently among Tantum inter denfas, umbrofa cacumina, fagos the thick beeches with fhady Affidue veniebat: ibi haec incondita folus tops; and there in folitude ut

tered thefe incoherent words in Montibus, et fylvis ftudio jactabat inani.

wain to the mountains and woods.

NOTES.

Et formofus oves ad flumina pa
"vit Adonis."

Servius mentions feveral other opinions concerning the real perfon of Alexis. He mentions one Alexander, a fervant of Pollio. It is pretended, that Virgil, being invited to dine with his mafter, took notice of his extraordinary beauty, and fell in love with him; upon which Pollio made a prefent of him to the Poet. Others think he was Caefar's boy, and that his master delighted in hearing him praised. Servius mentions another opinion, that the name of Pollio's boy, who was given to Virgil, was Corydon. He concludes with faying, that Alexis was a proud boy, but greatly in favour with Pollio, to whom Viril made his court by praifing his beloved flave. Apuleius alfo affirms that Alexis was a feigned name for a boy belonging to Pollio; but Martial feems to have taken him for a favourite of Mecaeras ;

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Sint Maecenates, non deerunt, "Flacce, Marones, Virgiliumque tibi vel tua rura "dabunt. "Jugera perdiderat miferae vicina Cremonae,

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"Flebat et abductas Tityrus aeger oves.

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"Rifit Tufcus eques, paupertatem que malignam Reppulit, et celeri juffit abire ❝ fuga.

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"Quae poterant ipfum follicitare

66

Jovem. "Excidit attonito pinguis Galatea 66 poetae,

"Theftylis et rubras meffibus "ufta genas: "Protinus Italiam concepit, et arma "virumque

Qui modo vix culicem fleverat ore rudi."

And in another epigram, we find

Et Maecenati Maro cum canta-
<< ret Alexim,
"Nota tamen Marfi fufca Me-
"laenis erat."

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6. O crudelis Alexi, &c.] Corydon expatiates on the cruelty of Alexis, and reprefents the violence of his own paffion, by telling him, that even in the heat of the day, when all animals feek to repofe themfelves, and the weary reapers retire under the fhade to eat their dinners, he alone neglects his eafe, purfuing the steps of his beloved.

7. Coges.] La Cerda reads cogis in the prefent tenfe, which he thinks more expreffive than the future : but the beft authority feems to be for coges, as Pierius found it in the - Roman manufcript. The fame reading is admitted alfo by Heinfius, Ruaeus, and others.

8. Nunc etiam pecudes umbras et frigora captant.] In the warmer

O cruel Alexis, have you no regard for my fong? have you no compaion for me? will you at length compel me to die? Even now the sheep enjoy the cool fhade: even now the bufbes 10 conceal the green lizards and Theftylis pounds garlick and wild thyme,

climates, the fhepherds are obliged. to fhelter their flocks from the heat in the middle of the day, under rocks or fpreading trees. This is confequently the most convenient time. for them to refresh themfelves with food and reft. See the note on ver.

331. of the third Georgick.

The

9. Virides. ... lacertos.] green lizard is very common in Italy, and is faid to be found alfo in Ireland. It is larger than our common eft or swift. This animal is mentioned by Theocritus, in his

alucia, as marking the time of noon by fleeping in the hedges;

Πᾶ δὴ τὸ μεσαμέριον πόδας ἕλκεις Ανίκα δὴ καὶ σαῦρος ἐφ ̓ αιμασιαῖσι

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