(ii.) Observe carefully all phrases that will require special care in translating—e.g. bene gerendae rei—inter primipili centuriones—perfunctus militia—operae pretium—ad id locorum.

You will now have a sufficient general idea of the form and general sense of the passage, and may begin to translate sentence by sentence.

I. Hannibali alia in his locis bene gerendae rei fortuna oblata est.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

oblata, cf. ob-lation = an offering and of-fer.

(ii.) Translation.—

oblata est shows that the subject must be fortuna, with which alia must agree, and gerendae rei is dependent genitive. So you may at once translate literally Another fortune (chance) of carrying-on the matter well in these parts was offered to Hannibal. But you must not be satisfied with this, for though literally correct it is neither good History nor good English. So render: In this district Hannibal had another chance presented to him of achieving a success.

Here notice especially the use of the word res,12 a remarkable example of the tendency of Roman writers to employ the ordinary and simple vocabulary wherever possible instead of inventing a new word. As a writer well says, ‘Res is, so to say, a blank cheque, to be filled up from the context to the requisite amount of meaning.’ Cf. ‘Consilium erat quo fortuna rem daret, eo inclinare vires,’ where res = victory.

II. M. Centenius fuit cognomine Paenula, insignis inter primipili centuriones et magnitudine corporis et animo.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

primipili = the chief centurion of the triarii (the third, veteran line of the legion), the primipilus, or primus pilus. So Livy vii. 41, ‘primus centurio erat, quem nunc (centurionem) primi pili appellant.’

cognomine, i.e. co-nomen, a name added to the nomen, a title, epithet, e.g.:

Publius = the distinctive praenomen.
Scipio = nomen, designating his gens.
Africanus = cognomen.

(ii.) Translation.—The form of this sentence is quite simple. The subject is M. Centenius, with which insignis agrees. There was a certain M. Centenius, by surname Penula, distinguished among the first-rank (or chief) centurions (of the Triarii) both for his great bodily size and courage.

III. Is perfunctus militia, per P. Cornelium Sullam praetorem in senatum introductus, petit a Patribus, uti sibi quinque milia militum darentur.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

perfunctus, cf. function, and notice force of per = discharge completely.

(ii.) Translation.—The principal verb is clearly petit, and is is the only possible subject (= Centenius), with which introductus agrees. There is one subordinate clause, introduced by ut, telling us the object of his request.

Translate, first literally, He having discharged completely his military service, being introduced into the Senate by P. C. Sulla, the Praetor, asks the Fathers that 5000 soldiers should be given him. Now improve this: get rid at all costs of the having and being, which are not English, and change the asks into the past tense of narration. Thus:—

After he had completed his term of service, and had been introduced to the Senate by P. Corn. Sulla, the Praetor, he petitioned the Fathers that 5000 soldiers should be given him.

IV. Se peritum et hostis et regionum, brevi operae pretium facturum: et, quibus artibus ad id locorum nostri et duces et exercitus capti forent, iis adversus inventorem usurum.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

peritum, cf. ex-peri-enced. √par-, per-, pierce, go through; so, ex-per-ior, per-iculum, in sense of a trial.

operae pretium = lit. ‘what will pay for the trouble,’ i.e. worth while, i.e. worth the time (or labour) spent upon it.

artibus—ars. √ar = fit, join = skill in joining something, skill in producing; so, artist, artisan, artifice, etc.

ad id locorum13 = to that point of time. The ideas of place and time readily interchange; so, in loco = at the right place or time.

(ii.) Translation.—The form of the sentence shows that it is reported speech, and not the actual words of the speaker Centenius, who is still the principal subject, and dixit, understood, the principal verb, and se peritum . . . usurum the object of dixit. You should now be able to translate without any difficulty, and the logical common-sense rules for the conversion of Or. Recta into Or. Obliqua explain the mood of the verb capti forent in the subordinate clause introduced by quibus.

Literally: Centenius said that he, experienced in both the enemy and the districts, would soon make it worth (their) while: and that he would use against their inventor those arts by which up to that time both our leaders and our armies had been overcome. Notice that the long relative clause quibus artibus . . . forent is in Latin placed before the antecedent iis.

You will readily see that this must be improved in several points. Thus:—

(a) Use Oratio Recta—more graphic and better suited to our idiom.

(b) arts. Change this to some more suitable military term—e.g. tactics.

He was well acquainted (he said) both with the enemy and the country, and would shortly make it worth their while, and would employ against their originator those very tactics by which both our leaders and our armies had up to that time been baffled.

V. Id non promissum magis stolide, quam stolide creditum: tamquam eaedem militares et imperatoriae artes essent!

(i.) Vocabulary.—

stolide, cf. stolid = dull, foolish.

(ii.) Translation.—The finite copula est is, as often, omitted; the two principal verbs are promissum (est) and creditum (est) linked by the comparative particles magis—quam, and the subject is id; tamquam—essent! is a subordinate clause modifying the two principal verbs, and expressing contemptuous wonder.

Cf. ‘tamquam clausa sit Asia, sic nihil perfertur ad nos.’

You can now translate

Literally: That was promised not more foolishly than it was foolishly believed, just as if the arts of a soldier and of a general were the same.

Here you can make several improvements; avoid the repetition of foolishly, and use a better term than arts, and perhaps break up the sentence into two short ones. Thus:—

The folly of the promise was not greater than that of the credit it received. Just as though the qualities of a soldier and of a general were the same!

VI. Data pro quinque octo milia militum; pars dimidia cives, pars socii.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

dimidia √med-, mid- = middle, so dimidius = dis + medius.

(ii.) Translation.—This sentence is very simple: notice that here, too, sunt and erant are omitted.

Eight thousand soldiers were given him instead of five: half were citizens, half allies.

VII. Et ipse aliquantum voluntariorum in itinere ex agris concivit, ac prope duplicate exercitu, in Lucanos pervenit, ubi Hannibal, nequiquam secutus Claudium, substiterat.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

aliquantum = considerable, used in the neuter as a noun, with a partitive genitive voluntariorum. Cf. use of satis, parum, etc.

concivit = raised, lit. roused, stirred up. Cf. ci-eo, and our ex-cite, in-cite.

substiterat = had halted. si-st-o is only a form of sto strengthened by reduplication (cf. ἵστημι) with a causal force. Cf. restitit, p. 27, sentence iv.

(ii.) Translation.—The principal subject is clearly ipse; there are two principal verbs, concivit and pervenit, coupled by ac, and one subordinate clause, ubi . . . substiterat, introduced by ubi, and modifying pervenit.

The sense is so clear that you may translate at once into good English:—

Moreover he himself raised a considerable number of volunteers in the country during his march; and so, with his numbers nearly doubled, he reached Lucania, where Hannibal, after his fruitless chase of Claudius, had halted.

The following version was shown up by a boy of fifteen in a recent scholarship examination:

‘Hannibal in carrying on his successful campaign met with some different luck in this district. Marcus Centenius, whose cognomen was Penula, was famous among the centurions of the first rank for his huge limbs and great courage. This man, after having accomplished his years of military training, on being introduced into the Senate by the Prætor P. Cornelius Sulla, requested the Patricians to give him 5000 soldiers. He said that he was well acquainted both with the enemy’s tactics and the district round about, and in a short time would convert the engagement into a prize for the State: moreover, he added, I will employ the same tactics against the enemy as those by which our generals and troops have been captured in these parts. This was faithfully believed as it was faithfully promised: the tactics of the soldiers and of the commanders were so much alike! He received 8000 men instead of 5000: half of them were Roman citizens, half allies: moreover he himself got some volunteers while on the march in the country districts and so almost doubled his army: he thus reached the territory of the Lucani, where Hannibal after a fruitless pursuit after Claudius, had taken up his position.’

This version is neither bad nor good. The style is, on the whole fair, knowledge of vocabulary very fair, and the rendering generally accurate. It will, however, be of use to you as an object lesson: so notice carefully the following points:—

I. Style.

Sentence IV.—

(i.) The Oratio Obliqua of the original he renders partly as Reported Speech and partly as Oratio Recta. This is, of course, to be avoided. Contrast the rendering given under Sentence IV.

Sentence III.—

(ii.) Is perfunctus . . . darentur. He uses too many participles. Contrast version under Sentence III.

Sentences VI., VII.—

(iii.) He translates data pro quinque . . . substiterat by one long sentence, instead of breaking it up into two at least.

II. Vocabulary.

Sentence IV.—

Se peritum . . . usurum. He confuses pretium with praemium, operae with rei publicae (?). He should have been familiar with the phrase operae pretium.

inventorem he renders by enemy; perhaps a careless mistake, as if the word were inimicum (which after all does not = hostem).

Sentence V.—

stolide he renders by faithfully. A moment’s thought given to the English word stolid should have put him on the right track.

Sentence VII.—

concivit he renders by got, vague and inappropriate. He fails to bring out the root-meaning of cieo = to stir up.

III. Construction.

Sentence I.—

This is very bad. Analysis would at once have shown him that the logical order of the sentence was

Alia fortuna bene gerendae rei oblata est Hannibali in his locis,

though he might not see that in his locis must be closely connected with oblata est.

Sentence IV.—

brevi operae pretium facturum. Very bad: due probably to not carefully weighing the meaning of each word.

You will now see that a strict attention to analysis and to the root-meanings of words really familiar would have enabled this candidate to send up a good version.

Demonstration IV.

PART II.

Rashness justly punished.

Haud dubia res est, quippe inter Hannibalem ducem et centurionem; exercitusque, alterum vincendo veteranum, alterum novum totum, magna ex parte etiam tumultuarium et semiermem. |I| Ut conspecta inter se agmina sunt, et neutra pars detrectavit pugnam, extemplo instructae acies. |II| Pugnatum tamen, ut in nulla pari re, duas amplius horas, concitata et, donec dux stetisset, Romana acie. |III| Postquam is non pro vetere fama solum, sed etiam metu futuri dedecoris, si sua temeritate contractae cladi superesset, obiectans se hostium telis cecidit, fusa extemplo est Romana acies. |IV| Sed adeo ne fugae quidem iter patuit omnibus viis ab equite insessis, ut ex tanta multitudine vix mille evaserint, ceteri passim alii alia peste absumpti sint. |V|

Livy.

Rashness justly punished.

Haud dubia res est, [quippe inter Hannibalem ducem et centurionem; exercitusque, alterum vincendo veteranum, alterum novum totum, magna ex parte etiam tumultuarium et semiermem.] I [Ut conspecta inter se agmina sunt, et neutra pars detrectavit pugnam], extemplo instructae acies. II Pugnatum tamen, ut in nulla pari re, duas amplius horas, concitata et, [donec dux stetisset], Romana acie. III {Postquam is non pro vetere fama solum, sed etiam metu futuri dedecoris, [si sua temeritate contractae cladi superesset], obiectans se hostium telis cecidit}, fusa extemplo est Romana acies. IV Sed adeo ne fugae quidem iter patuit omnibus viis ab equite insessis, [ut ex tanta multitudine vix mille evaserint, ceteri passim alii alia peste absumpti sint]. V

Livy.

Demonstration IV.

Livy, xxv. 19.

Read through the Passage carefully.—The context will be familiar to you, as this piece is a continuation of Demonstration III; but, none the less, read the passage through very carefully. Notice, for example, the use of quippe, the various uses and meanings of ut, alterum . . . alterum, alii alia.

You can now begin to translate.

I. Haud dubia res est, quippe inter Hannibalem ducem et centurionem; exercitusque, alterum vincendo veteranum, alterum novum totum, magna ex parte etiam tumultuarium et semiermem.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

quippe = qui + pe. pe = a form of que (cf. nempe = nam-pe = indeed) = since of course.

alterum (comparative of al-ius), cf. alter, alternate, either, other.

In distributive clauses, alter—alter = the one, the other.

tumultuarium (cf. tumultus), used of troops brought hurriedly together; so, disorderly.

(ii.) Translation.—This sentence is quite simple, consisting of one main statement, Haud dubia res est, and an explanatory subordinate statement of fact introduced by quippe. Notice that the influence of inter extends over the whole of the subordinate clause.

Literally: ‘The affair was not doubtful, since, of course, it was between Hannibal as general and a centurion, and between armies, the one grown old in victory, the other wholly new, and for the most part also hurriedly raised and half-armed.’

There are several points in which this rendering must be improved. Thus:—

(a) Affair for res is too vague. You will remember what was said about res in Sentence I. of Part I. pp. 33, 34.

(b) You must try to express more strongly the contrast in generalship between Hannibal and a mere centurion. Thus:—

‘The result was not doubtful, considering that the contest was between a general such as Hannibal and a (mere) centurion; and between two armies, the one grown old in victory, the other consisting entirely of raw recruits, and for the most part undrilled and half-armed.’

II. Ut conspecta inter se agmina sunt, et neutra pars detrectavit pugnam, extemplo instructae acies.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

neuter = ne + uter (uter = eu-ter or quo-ter-us = comparative in form of quis), neither of two.

detrectavit = declined (de + traho, draw-off).

extemplo = immediately. Ex + templum (dimin. tempulum).

templum √tem = cut; cf. τέμνω = prop. a section. So

(ii.) Translation.—This sentence again is quite simple (in form very similar to Sentence I.), consisting of one main statement, extemplo instructae acies, and an introductory subordinate statement of time introduced by ut = when.

‘When the armies came in sight of each other, and neither side declined battle, the ranks were at once drawn up in fighting order.’

14III. Pugnatum tamen, ut in nulla pari re, duas amplius horas, concitata et, donec dux stetisset, Romana acie.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

concitata = stirred-up, roused. con + ci-eo; cf. ex-cite, incite, cĭ-tus = put in motion, swift, &c.

(ii.) Translation.—This sentence is not quite so simple and needs care. Notice—

(a) Pugnatum (est). The Impersonal Pass. serves as the principal subject and predicate.

(b) ut in nulla pari re. ut is here not a conjunction but a relative adverb of manner, referring the assertion pugnatum duas amplius horas to the particular circumstance—i.e. of a battle fought under very unequal conditions. This use of ut = considering occurs frequently—e.g. consultissimus vir ut in illa quisquam esse aetate poterat (Livy). Cf. also p. 124, l. 19.

(c) concitata Romana acie is clearly ablative absolute. To make quite sure that you understand the logical connection of the thought conveyed by this sentence, you may consult the detailed analysis on page 47.

In spite of its being such an unequal match, the battle was maintained for more than two hours; the Roman army (as well as [et] the enemy’s) being roused (to great exertions) so long as their leader survived.

IV. Postquam is non pro vetere fama solum, sed etiam metu futuri dedecoris, si sua temeritate contractae cladi superesset, obiectans se hostium telis cecidit, fusa extemplo est Romana acies.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

dedecoris = of dis-grace, for de in composition = separation, and so removal of the fundamental idea. Cf. un-, dis-, e.g. dis-par = un-equal.

contractae = brought on, caused. con + traho = bring about, cause.

(ii.) Translation.—The meaning of this sentence should be quite plain to you if you notice carefully that

(a) the principal verb is fusa est, and the principal subject Romana acies, and

(b) that Postquam . . . cecidit is a subordinate clause of time modifying the action of the principal verb fusa est.

It would perhaps be well to translate at first literally:—

After that he, not only out of regard for (pro) his old fame, but also from fear of future disgrace, if he should survive a disaster brought about by his own rashness, exposing himself to the weapons of the enemy fell, the Roman army was at once routed.

You will see that this rendering, though verbally correct, is not English, and must be considerably altered before it can be called a good translation. Thus:—

(a) It is too long. You can remedy this by taking postquam . . . cecidit as one complete sentence, and fusa . . . acies as another.

(b) Exposing himself. Better exposed himself to . . . and. Notice here the strictly accurate use of the Pres. participle in Latin.

(c) ‘future’ may be omitted, as tautological15 in English. Cf. our inexact idiom ‘he promised to come’ (Lat. ‘that he would come’).

At last, both for the sake of his old renown and from the fear of disgrace should he survive a disaster brought on by his own rashness, he threw himself among the enemy’s darts and was slain. The Roman army was routed in a moment. —Church and B.

V. Sed adeo ne fugae quidem iter patuit omnibus viis ab equite insessis, ut ex tanta multitudine vix mille evaserint, ceteri passim alii alia peste absumpti sint.

(i.) Vocabulary.—

pătuit = was open. Cf. păte-facio = to make open; păt-ulus = open, spread out; păt-era = a broad, flat dish. English, patent.

insessis = occupied; in + sed-eo = sit upon—so, occupy.

passim = hither and thither, far and wide, formed from passus (pando), expand.

(ii.) Translation.—This sentence resembles in form Sentence IV., with one principal verb patuit, and a principal subject iter, and a subordinate clause of result, ut . . . absumpti sint, modifying the action of the principal verb patuit. You may conveniently break up this sentence into two, by beginning a new sentence with Ceteri. Thus:—

So completely closed against them was every chance of escape, all the roads being beset by cavalry, that out of so numerous a host hardly a thousand escaped. The rest perished as they fled, some by one death and some by another.

Before laying aside these two passages, you should pay attention to the following points:—

(i.) Vocabulary.—Besides carefully noticing new words, try to form groups of cognates (i.e. related words). One of the best ways to enlarge your vocabulary is to group together words of common origin, and to add to each, where you can, derivative and cognate English words. To take a few examples from this passage:—

Word.	Meaning.	English Derivative.
ALIUS	= another (of many).
ali-enus	= that belong to another	alien, alienate.
ali-quot	= some, several	aliquot (parts).
al-ter	= other of two	alter, alternate.
ali-bi	= elsewhere	alibi.
etc.
SENATUS	= the Council of the Elders	Senate.
sen-ex	= old
sen-ior	= older	senior, sire, sir.
sen-ile	= belonging to old people	sen-ile.
sen-ectus	= old age.
etc.
ITER = (i-tiner)	= a going	itin-erant.
amb-it-io	= a going round, canvassing	ambition.
comes (cum + eo)	= a comrade.	a Count (Fr. Comte).
in-it-ium	= a going in, a beginning	initial.
sed-it-io	= a going apart, sedition	sedition.
etc.

(ii.) Useful Phrases for Latin Prose.—You should try gradually to put together your own phrase-book. You will find this much more useful to you than any ready-made collection. A good and simple plan is to have a special note-book for this purpose. Mark in the text as you read useful phrases, and in your note-book write the Latin on the right-hand page and a good idiomatic rendering on the left. For example, from this passage you might collect the following:—

English.	Latin.
A chance of achieving a success.	fortuna bene gerendae rei.
After completing his term of service.	perfunctus militia.
Would make it worth their while.	operae pretium facturum.
Up to that time.	ad id locorum.
The result was not doubtful.	haud dubia res est.
Though the fight was so unequal.	ut in nulla pari re.
Some by one death and some by another.	alii alia peste.

(iii.) HANNIBAL.—Read some good short estimate of Hannibal as a patriot, statesman, and soldier—such as may be found in Mommsen’s or Ihne’s History of Rome. If you have time, you will find much to interest you in the Hannibal (‘Heroes of the Nations’) by O’Connor Morris.

Demonstration IV.

Sentence	Kind of Sentence	Con­nective	Subject		Predicate		Object
			Simple	Enlarged	Simple	Enlarged	Simple	Enlarged
Sentence III.
Pugnatum tamen, ut in nulla pari re, duas amplius horas; concitata et, donec dux stetisset, Romana acie.	Complex	tamen	(THE BATTLE)	—	PUGNA­TUM (EST)	1. duas amplius horas (time) 2. ut in nulla pari re (manner) 3. concitata . . . Romana acie (manner)	—	—
Sentence IV.
A. Postquam is non pro vetere fama solum, sed etiam metu futuri dedecoris, si sua temeritate contractae cladi superesset, obiectans se hostium telis cecidit, fusa extemplo est Romana acies.	Complex	Post­quam	ACIES	Romana	FUSA EST	1. extemplo (time) 2. Postquam is . . . cecidit (time)	—	—
A1. Postquam is . . . cecidit	Subor­dinate adv. to FUSA EST in A	Post­quam	is	non pro vetere . . . OBIEC­TANS telis	cecidit	—	—	—
A2. si sua . . . superesset	Subor­dinate adv. to OBIEC­TANS in A1	si	(he)	—	superesset	—	cladi	sua temeri­tate con­trac­tae

Demonstration V.

The Happy Life.

Vergil.

The Happy Life.

Vergil.

Demonstration V.

Vergil, Georg. ii. 490-499.

Read the Passage carefully.—Notice as you read the many allusions and key-words in the passage, e.g. Acherontis, Pana, Silvanum, Nymphas, Dacus ab Istro, res Romanae, rerum causas, and populi fasces. These, taken in connection with the main predicates felix, fortunatus, non flexit, neque doluit, aut invidit, will readily suggest to you the main thought of the passage:—

Happy is Nature’s bard who knows and fears not: happy he too who knows the gods of the country. He is not distressed by ambition, nor wars, nor pain, nor envy.

I. Felix, qui potuit rerum cognoscere causas,
Atque metus omnes et inexorabile fatum
Subiecit pedibus, strepitumque Acherontis avari!

(i.) Vocabulary.—

inexorabile = relentless; lit. that cannot be moved by entreaty. in (not) + ex (easily) + orabilis (entreated).

For oro cf. ōs = mouth; orator = speaker; oratio = speech.

fatum = fate, i.e. of death, as the common lot of all men, the decree of nature.

fatum = that which is said, espec. prophetically. √fa, φα. Cf. for (fā-ri), speak; fā-ma, report; fā-bula, a story; in-fans, that cannot speak; fā-cundus, eloquent.

strepitum = roar; lit. a wild, confused noise, din of any kind; cf. obstreperous.

Acherontis = Acheron = (a) a river in the Lower World; (b) the Lower World itself. Perh. Acheron = ὁ ἄχεα ῥέων = the stream of woe; cf. Κωκυτός = Cocytus, river of wailing.

(ii.) Translation.— You cannot be in doubt about the principal subject and predicate. Felix is the only word outside the subordinate clause from qui . . . avari. The sense, too, of these lines is clear, so you may translate at once; but you must take special care to use dignified and appropriate language:—

Happy the man who has availed to know the causes of things, and so trampled under foot all fears and fate’s relentless decree, and the roar of insatiate Acheron.

II. Fortunatus et ille, deos qui novit agrestes,
 Panaque, Silvanumque senem, Nymphasque sorores!

(i.) Vocabulary.—

agrestes = of the country; cf. ager (ἀγρός), agrarius, agrarian; peragro (per + ager), travel over. Perhaps to be traced to the same root as ag-o = drive, ager and ἀγρός being so named a pecore agendo (cf. Germ. trift = pasturage, treiben = drive).

Silvanum = Silvanus = Latin god of fields and woods (silva), sylvan.

(ii.) Translation.—This sentence closely resembles in form Sentence I, Ille Fortunatus being the principal subject and predicate.

He too is blest who knows the gods of the country, Pan, and old Silvanus, and the sisterhood of the Nymphs.

III. Illum non populi fasces, non purpura regum
   Flexit, et infidos agitans discordia fratres;
   Aut coniurato descendens Dacus ab Histro,
   Non res Romanae, perituraque regna;

(i.) Vocabulary.—

fasces = fasces, i.e. honours; populi, i.e. conferred by the people.

purpura, i.e. the purple robe worn by kings and magistrates.

Cf. 16‘Purpura Pompeium summi velabit honoris.’

Ov. Ex Ponto IV. iv. 25.

agitans = driving, i.e. moving, impelling.

discordia = discord. Notice force of dis- = separation, negation; cf. dis-crimen, dis-par.

coniurato = united by oath, sworn confederate.

Dacus, the Dacians, akin to the Thracians, N. of Danube, conquered by Trajan. Cf. modern Roumanians.

Histro = the Lower Danube.

(ii.) Translation.—You will see there is only one principal verb, flexit (or flexerunt), with several principal subjects, fasces, purpura, discordia, res Romanae, perituraque regna, and no subordinate clauses. You may therefore translate at once:—

N.B.—(b) is superior to (a) in—

(1) the use of Passive for Active;

(2) the predicative use of agitans, infidos, coniurato.

IV.      neque ille
  Aut doluit miserans inopem, aut invidit habenti.

(i.) Vocabulary.—You will probably know the meanings of the words in this sentence. Thus the meaning of—

doluit	is suggested by	dolor.
miserans	„„	miser.   Cf. miser-able.
inopem	„„	in + ops.   Cf. op-ulent.
invidit	„„	invidia.   Cf. envy.

(ii.) Translation.—You have here two principal verbs, doluit, invidit, joined by aut, and a principal subject ille.

Notice that inopem must be the object of the participle miserans, and that habenti is used as a noun.

He never felt the pang of pity for the poor, or of envy for the rich.

Copy of a rendering shown up by a boy of fifteen in a recent scholarship examination:—

‘Happy is the man who is able to discern the reason of things, and controls under his feet all changes and inexorable destiny, and the groaning of greedy Acheron! |I| Blessed also is he who knows the rustic gods, Pan and old Silvanus, and those sisters, the nymphs! |II| He is not moved by the people’s axes, nor by the regal purple, nor by discord that rouses brothers to distrust each other. He is not moved by Dacus, coming down from the sacred Danube, nor by the affairs of Rome, and the realms about to perish. |III| He neither grieves for nor pities the helpless, nor does he envy the rich.’ |IV|

The above version is fair, but notice the following points:—

Sentence I.—

is able . . . and controls. The connection in thought is not shown: ‘He is happy because he knows and ∴ fears not.’

groaning—i.e. gemitum; strepitum = roar, din.

Sentence III.—

by the people’s axes. This suggests quite a wrong idea; contrast the version, ‘by the honours that the people confer.’

sacred. This is quite wrong. con-iurato = allied by oath.

the affairs of Rome. A very weak, and inadequate rendering.

Sentence IV.—

grieves for nor pities. This quite obscures the point. Vergil says that a country life, with its absence of poverty, so commonly met with in a town, saves a man from the necessity of feeling a pang of pity for the poor.

Before you put aside this passage, try to avail yourself of some of the following suggestions. Thus:—

I. For the Poet Vergil17 (70 B.C.-19 B.C.).—The chief facts of his life and the subject of his great poems are clearly and shortly given in the Student’s Companion to Latin Authors (a useful and convenient book of reference).

II. For the Georgics, Poems on Husbandry. (The passage for translation is taken from Georgic II. lines 490-499.) See—