to thee, the earth shall pour out its first gifts, without culti vation; and the creeping ivy, Blataria and Cyamus nelumbo, mixed with the smiling acanthus, will every where be found. The goats, of their own accord, shall return home with their udders distended with milk, nor shall the herds fear the great lions. The very cradle shall pour forth pleasing flowers to thee, and the serpent shall perish, and the deceitful herb of poison shall perish: the Assyrian amomum shall be common. But as soon as thou shalt be able to read the praises of heroes, and the deeds of thy parents, and to know what virtue is ; then by degrees, the field shall become yellow with the rich hue of ripening harvest; the blushing grape shall hang upon uncultivated thorns, and the hardy oaks shall sweat dewy honey. Yet some traces of ancient fraud will remain, which may tempt men to venture on the sea in ships, which may induce them to girt towns with walls, and cause them to plough furrows in the earth. Then there shall be another Tiphys, and another Argo, which may carry chosen heroes; even there will be other wars, and a great Achilles will be sent again to Troy. Henceforth, when established age shall have made thee a man, even the mariner himself shall withdraw from the sea; nor shall the naval pine exchange merchandise; every land shall bear every thing. The ground shall not be subject to the harrows, nor the vine-yard to the pruning-hook now also the stout ploughman shall unloosen the yokes from his bullocks; nor shall the wool learn to counterfeit various colours; but the ram himself, in the meadows, shall change his fleece; now, to the delightful Tyrian dye, now, to the saffron hue. Minium shall clothe the feeding lambs, without the aid of art. The Parcæ, agreeing in the fixed

:

decrce of fate, shall to their spindles say, run you, ye ages, after the same manner.

O dear offspring of the Gods, great increase of Jupiter! attempt thou the greatest honours, soon, the time will be at hand; behold the world tottering with its globose weight, comprehending the earth, the vast seas, and the vaulted heaven; behold how all things rejoice at this approaching age. O may the best part of so long a life remain to me, and enough of animation to declare thy deeds! not any one shall conquer me in poetry, not Thracian Orpheus, nor Linus, although Calliopea, the mother of Orpheus, were present, and the beautiful Apollo, the father of Limus. If even Pan should contend with me, and Arcadia, umpire, Pan should own himself conquered, even in Arcadian judgment. tender infant, begin to know thy mother by her smile: ten months has she borne long uneasiness for thee. Begin, O tender infant; for he on whom his parents have not smiled, a god has not honoured with a table, nor a goddess with a bed.

ECLOGUE V.

MENALCAS, MOPSUS.

Me. SINCE we are met together, Mopsus, both skilful, thou, in playing on the slender reeds, I, in reciting verses; why may we not sit together here among the elms, mixed with hazles?

Mo. Thou art the eldest, it is right that I obey thee, Menalcas. Whether under the playful zephyrs chequered shade, or seated in the cave. See how the wild vine of the woods scatters its thin clusters over the cave.

Me. In our mountains, Amyntas alone can contend with thee.

Mo. What if he should try to excel Apollo in singing?

Me. Mopsus, begin first : if thou knowest any thing about the flames of Phyllis, or the praises of Alcon, or the quarrel of Codrus. Begin; the feeding goats Tityrus will take care of.

Mo. Nay, I will rather try these verses, which I have lately written upon the green bark of the beech, and sung and played alternately; then challenge Amyntas to contend with

me.

Me. As much as the pliant willow yields to the pale olive, as much as the humble saliunca, to red roses, so much Amyntas yields to thee in our opinion.

Mo. But, my lad, cease to use more words; we have arrived at the cave. The Nymphs bewailed Daphnis, gone by a cruel death: ye hazles and rivers, bear witness to the Nymphs, when the mother embraced the miserable body of her son, and calls both the Gods and the stars cruel. O Daphnis, none drove the fed cattle to the cool stream, in those days; nor did the horse drink at the stream, nor touch a blade of grass. O Daphnis, the sterile mountains and the woods declare, that even the Lybian lions mourned thy death. Daphnis taught Daphnis taught

how to yoke Arminian tigers to a chariot. to lead up dances to Bacchus, and to twine the slender spears with soft foliage. As the vine is an ornament to trees, as grapes to vines, as bulls tɔ herds, as corn to rich fields, so wert

thou full of honour to thy friends; after fate took thee away, Pales herself, and Apollo forsook the fields. Often in those furrows where we have sown fine barley, noxious darnel, and the wild oat, have prevailed. Instead of the soft violet, instead of the purple daffodil, the thistle, and the paliurus rises with sharp thorns. Shepherds, strew the ground with leaves, and make a shade for your fountains: Daphnis orders such things to be done for him; and make a monument to him, and put this verse upon it :-I Daphnis, celebrated from these woods even unto the stars, the shepherd of a beautiful flock, myself more beautiful.

Me. O divine poet, thy song is to us, as sound sleep on the grass to the weary, such as the ripling stream of sweet water to the thirsty. Nor doest thou equal thy master only upon the pipe, but with thy voice. O happy youth, now thou shalt be next to him. Yet will we sing these our verses to thee, in turn, and lift up thy Daphnis to the stars; I will raise Daphnis to the stars; Daphnis loved me also.

Mo. Can any thing be greater to me than such an obligation? the youth himself was worthy to be celebrated; even some time since,Stimichon praised those verses to us.

Me. Now resplendent Daphnis admires the entrance of Olympus, and sees the clouds and the stars under his feet. Therefore joyful pleasure possesses the woods, and all the country; and Pan, and the Shepherds, and the Dryad nymphs. No longer does the wolf lie in wait for the sheep, nor are nets spread to ensnare the stags; good Daphnis loves peace. The unshorn hills themselves lift up their voices to the stars with joy; already the rocks are softened with songs; the vineyards themselves resound;

Menalcas, he is a God, a God! O mayst thou be good and gracious to thine: behold four altars; two to thee, Daphnis, and two to Phoebus. I will offer two bowls of frothed new milk, annually; and two jars of fat olives to thee. In the first place, I will cheer the feast with plenty of wine, before the fire, if it be winter, and if summer, in the shade. I will pour out of the vessel, Ariusian wines, and new nectar. Damoetas, and Lyctian Ægon shall sing to me. Alphesibous shall imitate the dancing Satyrs. These sacred rites shall be ever thine, both when we return the solemn vows to the nymphs, and when we make a lustration of the fields. As long as the wild boar shall love the tops of the mountains; as long as fish shall like the rivers; as long as bees shall feed upon the wild thyme; as long as the Cicadae, on the dew, honours with thy name, and praises shall endure. The husbandman shall make vows to thee annually, as to Bacchus and Ceres; thou also shalt judge them by their

Vows.

Mo. What, what gift can I give to thee for such a song! for, neither the whispers of the rising south, nor the dashing wave upon the shore, nor rivers running among stony vallies, impart so much delight.

Me. I will give thee, first of all, this brittle pipe. This pipe taught me to sing, formosum Corydon ardebat Alexin: the same also, to sing, cujum pecus? an Meliboei?

Mo. But, Menaleas, take thou this crook, beautiful with equidistant joints, and ornamented with brass, which Antigenes has not obtained, though he often asked it of me, and yet he was worthy to be loved.