TRANSLATION AND TRANSLATIONS

10 The Burial of Pompey

ALL faint sad Cynthia glimmer'd through the cloud ;

But 'mid the grey surf darkly showed the trunk.

Round the dead chief enlacing arms he wound,

Balking the robber seas. Then, spent with toil,

Waited the waves, and, with the flood to aid,

Moved the load on ; and, dry land won at last,

Bending above and weeping o'er each wound,

Thus spake to heaven and the darkling stars.

' No pyre with heap of costly frankincense,

Fortune, asks now thy Pompey, from his limbs

To fume with Eastern odours to the sky :

That filial Rome should shoulder high its Sire,

Spoils of old triumphs lead the march of death,

Forums re-echo to the mournful chant,

And round the pyre unweapon'd armies go.

Grant Magnus but the coffin of a churl,

On thirsty flames to shoot the mangled corpse ;

Not wood nor grimy stoker let him lack.

Enough, ye powers, if no Cornelia here

With hair dishevell'd, arms about her lord,

Bid the torch touch, from the last rites debarred,

Unhappy wife, and still so near this shore.'

82

ii6 RETROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

sic fatus paruos iuuenis procul aspicit ignes

corpus uile suis, nullo custode, cremantis.

inde rapit flammas semiustaque robora membris

subducit. ' Quaecumque es,' ait ' neclecta nee ulli

cara tuo, sed Pompeio felicior umbra,

quod iam conpositum uiolat manus hospita bustum

da ueniam ; si quid sensus post fata relictumst,

cedis et ipsa rogo paterisque haec damna sepulcri,

teque pudet, sparsis Pompei manibus, uri.'

sic fatus plenusque sinus ardente fauilla

peruolat ad truncum qui, fluctu paene relatus,

litore pendebat. summas dimouit harenas

et collecta procul lacerae fragmenta carinae

exigua trepidus posuit scrobe. nobile corpus

robora nulla premit, nulla strue membra recumbunt;

admotus Magnum, non subditus, accipit ignis,

ille, sedens iuxta flammas, ' O maxime '

dixit

' ductor et Hesperii maiestas nominis una,

si tibi iactatu pelagi, si funere nullo

tristior iste rogus, manes animamque potentem

officiis auerte meis; iniuria fati

hoc fas esse iubet. ne ponti belua quidquam,

ne fera, ne uolucres, ne saeui Caesaris ira

audeat, exiguam, quantum potes, accipe flammam,

Romana succense manu. Fortuna recursus

si det in Hesperiam, non hac in sede quiescent

tarn sacri cineres ; sed te Cornelia, Magne,

accipiet nostroque sinu transfundet in urnam.

interea paruo signemus litora saxo,

ut nota sit busti, si quis placare peremptum

forte uolet, plenos et reddere mortis honores,

inueniat trunci cineres et norit harenas,

ad quas, Magne, tuum referat caput.'

LUCAN 117

So spake the warrior, when afar he spied A small death-fire, burning a friendless corse [limbs

Unwatch'd. Thence snatch'd he flame and from the

The charred logs drawing

' Poor unknown,' he said,

' Though slighted and forgot of all thy friends,

Yet happier thou than Pompey, pardon if

Thy order'd pile a stranger hand invade.

If death leaves aught of feeling, then unsought

Thou'lt quit the pyre and gladly bear this loss,

Ashamed to burn by Pompey's graveless corse.'

So said, his arms with burning faggots fill'd,

He flies back to the trunk, which on the marge

Swayed, all but now recover'd by the waves.

He parts the top sand, hastily from far

Gathers the breakage of a shatter'd hull

And in the slight trench lays it. But no wood

Upheld the noble limbs, no builded pyre,

And towards, not under Magnus drew the flames.

Then seated by the fire ' Great chief/ he cried,

' Honour supreme of all Hesperia's sons,

If more than tossing seas or dust denied

This pyre aggrieve thee, ghost and potent wraith

Turn thou from these poor ministries away.

'Tis Fate's wrongdoing makes them rightly done.

And that no sea-monster, no beast or bird,

No spite of cruel Caesar dare thee wrong,

Take all thou mayst, this fire ; a Roman hand

Enkindles thee. If to Hesperia's shores

My fortune grant return, these holy ashes

Shall bide no longer in this resting-place.

Cornelia, Magnus, shall receive thee home

And from my arms shall pour them in the urn.

With a small stone meanwhile I'll mark the shore,

To show the grave to whoso shall design

T'appease the slain, death's tribute rendering

Without abridgement, that his quest may find

The ashes of the trunk and know the strand

Whither with Magnus' head he must repair.'

ii8 RETROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

II Epitaphium Lucani

CORDVBA me genuit, rapuit Nero, proelia dixi

quae gessere pares hinc socer, inde gener.

continuo numquam derexi carmina ductu

quae tractim serpant ; plus mihi comma placet,

fulminis in morem quae sint miranda citentur,

haec uere sapiet dictio quae feriet.

12 PHAEDRUS i vii i sqq.

PERSONAM tragicam forte uulpes uiderat

<quam postquam hue illuc semel atque iterum uerterat,>

'O quanta species' inquit 'cerebrum non habet!'

13 PHAEDRUS iv xvi i sqq.

BARBAM capellae cum impetrassent ab loue,

hirci maerentes indignari coeperunt,

quod dignitatem feminae aequassent suam.

' Sinite

'

inquit

'

illas gloria uana frui

et usurpare uestri ornatum muneris,

pares dum non sint uestrae fortitudini.'

14 MARTIAL i 57

QVALEM, Flacce, uelim quaeris nolimue puellam?

nolo nimis facilem difficilemque nimis.

illud quod mediumst atque inter utrumque probamus;

nee uolo quod cruciat nee uolo quod satiat.

PHAEDRUS, MARTIAL 119

II Epitaph on Lucan

CORDOVA bore me, Nero slew. My lyre

The duel sang of son-in-law and sire.

Not mine the long-drawn period's delays

Of crawling verses, mine the short sharp phrase.

If thou wouldst shine, dart with the lightning's flight,

A style is striking, only if it smite.

12 Fox and Tragic Mask

A FOX once lighting on a tragic mask

This way and that way turned it, then exclaimed

'Oh what a fine face and no brains behind !'

13 She-goats and Beards

THE she-goats won a grant of beards from Jove.

Sore were the he-goats, murmuring loud that shes

Should reach the level of their dignity.

The God replied :

' Leave them for idle boast

The trappings and insignia of your state,

If rivals of your strength they may not be.'

14 TJie Golden Mean

WHAT lass, asks Flaccus, would I make my joy?

Not the too easy, not the over-coy.

The mean it is, the half-way I approve.

For me no worrying, and no wearying love.

120 RETROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

15 MARTIAL ix 7

DlCERE de Libycis reduci tibi, gentibus, Afer,

continuis uolui quinque diebus 'Haue;'

'Non uacat' aut 'Dormit' dictumst bis terque reuerso.

iam satis est; non uis, Afer, hauere. uale.

16 PLATO, Anthologia Palatina VII 669

'Aerrepa? el

ovpavos a>9 7To\Xo?9 6^ifia(Ttv e/9

17 PLATO, Anthologia Palatina VII 670

vvv e avwv a<i7ret<?o-7re3O9 ev

MARTIAL, PLATO 121

15 Goodbye^ Patron!

SINCE home from tribes of Africa, Afer, you've found

your way,

For five successive days I've sought 'Good morrow,

friend' to say.

Twice, thrice I hie me back: 'Asleep' or 'Busy' still

they cry.

Afer, enough! You will not take 'Good morrow.' So

'Good bye.'

16 Stella and the Stars

(i) STAR-GAZING, Stella ? Oh, were I yon skies,

To look upon thee with a myriad eyes !

(ii) Stellas Stella meus tu suspicis. o, ego caelum

fiam utinam, multis ut tuear te oculis.

17 Stella Morning and Evening Star

STELLA prius uiuis tu Lucifer, Hesperus idem

mortuus infernos fulgis apud populos.

PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

18* SPENSER, Faerie Queene IV xi

FIRST came great Neptune with his threeforkt mace,

That rules the Seas, and makes them rise or fall ;

His dewy lockes did drop with brine apace

Under his Diademe imperiall :

And by his side his Queene with Coronall,

Faire Amphitrite, most divinely faire,

Whose yvorie shoulders weren covered all,

As with a robe, with her own silver haire,

And deckt with pearles, which th' Indian seas for her

prepaire.

These marched farre afore the other crew ;

And all the way before them, as they went,

Triton his trompet shrill before them blew,

For goodly triumph and great jollyment,

That made the rocks to roare as they were rent.

And after them the royall issue came,

Which of them sprung by lineall descent :

First, the Sea-gods, which to themselves doe

clame

The powere to rule the billowes and the waves to

tame.

19 MlLTON, Paradise Lost II

' WHENCE, and what art thou, execrable shape,

That dar'st, though grim and terrible, advance

Thy miscreated front athwart my way

To yonder gates ? Through them I mean to pass,

That be assured, without leave ask'd of thee :

Retire, or taste thy folly, and learn by proof,

Hell-born, not to contend with spirits of heaven.'

PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

18

PRIMVS ades, Neptune pater, cui uertice crinis

imbribus adsiduis et salso rore fluentes

regius ornat apex ; turn dextra tricuspide telo

instruitur, quo fretus agis per caerula regnum

componique iubes positosque resurgere fluctus.

ad latus it coniunx, nitida redimita corona,

(nee decor est ulli diuinior) Amphitrite,

cui coma fusa umeros argentea uestit eburnos

et, quos Inda suae cultus dant aequora, gemmae,

hi primi, quibus ipse uiae praenuntia Triton

signa dat, arguta resonat dum litora concha,

laetitiam magnam indicens amplosque triumphos ;

saxa boant tanto, ceu sint discissa, fragore.

hos procul ordo alter sed sanguine cretus eodem

insequitur ; diuum ante alios genus omne marinum,

ius quibus imperitare undis fluctusque domare.

19

' VNDE quid es, species te quae taeterrima nobis

obuia fers saeuoque tamen terrore tremenda

obiectas nostro deformia corpora cursu ?

tune illas prohibes portas transire ? per illas,

crede, ibo, ueniam nee tu posceris eundi.

cede loco, uel disce dolens quae poena furendi

et quid sit superis, Erebo sate, tendere contra.'

124 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

To whom the goblin full of wrath replied :

' Art thou that traitor-angel, art thou he,

Who first broke peace in heaven, and faith till then

Unbroken ; and in proud rebellious arms

Drew after him the third part of heaven's sons

Conjured against the Highest ; for which both thou

And they, outcast from God, are here condemn'd

To waste eternal days in woe and pain ?

And reckon'st thou thyself with spirits of heaven,

Hell-doom'd, and breath'st defiance here and scorn,

Where I reign king and, to engage thee more,

Thy king and lord ? Back to thy punishment,

False fugitive, and to thy speed add wings,

Lest with a whip of scorpions I pursue

Thy lingering, or with one stroke of this dart

Strange horror seize thee, and pangs unfelt before.'

20* MILTON, Paradise Lost IV

So threaten'd he : but Satan to no threats

Gave heed, but, waxing more in rage, replied :

' Then, when I am thy captive, talk of chains,

Proud limitary cherub ! but ere then

Far heavier load thyself expect to feel

From my prevailing arm, though heaven's King

Ride on thy wings, and thou with thy compeers,

Used to the yoke, draw'st his triumphant wheels

In progress through the road of heaven star-paved.'

While thus he spake, the angelic squadron bright

Turn'd fiery red, sharp'ning in mooned horns

Their phalanx, and began to hem him round

With ported spears, as thick as when a field

Of Ceres, ripe for harvest, waving bends

LATIN HEXAMETER VERSE 125

plena sub haec irae uoces dedit umbra minaces :

' Perfidus ergo ille es qui foedera primus Olympi

ausus es inruptamque prius confundere pacem,

quo duce coniurata minis ac marte rebelli

tertia pars superum summi louis arma lacessit ?

pro quibus hie inuisa deis uestra exulat aetas,

damnati misero per saecula longa dolori.

tene etiam superis, Erebo deuote, cateruis,

adnumeras, spargisque minas flatusque superbos

hie quoque, nostra ubi regna et, plus tua quo furat ira,

ius datur imperiumque tui ? quin perfide retro

in poenam is fugitiue fugaeque adcingeris alas,

ne tibi forte moras castigem instemque flagellis

uipereis, nostri aut uno te uolnere teli

percutiat nouus Horror inexpertique dolores.'

20

Sic ait ore minans ; sed nee cura ulla minarum

Encelado, contraque iris ardentior infit.

'

Capto, claustrorum qui iactas munera, capto

uincla crepa ; prius at multo grauiora reuictum

spera te nostrae sensurum pondera dextrae,

regem ipsum superum quamuis tua uexerit ala

tuque tuique simul passi iuga nota trahatis

per cliuum aetherium substrata per astra triumphos.

at superum haec fanti nitidum rubor igneus agmen

mutat, et extenuans lunata cornua fronte

paulatim elatis hinc atque hinc circuit hastis.

non tarn densa Ceres messi matura per agros

126 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

Her bearded grove of ears, which way the wind

Sways them ; the careful ploughman doubting stands,

Lest on the threshing-floor his hopeful sheaves

Prove chaff. On the other side, Satan, alarm'd,

Collecting all his might, dilated stood,

Like Teneriff or Atlas, unremoved :

His stature reached the sky, and on his crest

Sat horror plumed, nor wanted in his grasp

What seemed both spear and shield.

21 WILLIAM BLAKE

O SONS of Trojan Brutus, clothed in war,

Whose voices are the thunder of the field,

Rolling dark clouds o'er France, muffling the sun

In sickly darkness like a dim eclipse,

Threatening as the red brow of storms, as fire

Burning up nations in your wrath and fury I

Your ancestors came from the fires of Troy,

(Like lions roused by lightning from their dens,

Whose eyes do glare against the stormy fires),

Heated with war, filled with the blood of Greeks,

With helmets hewn, and shields covered with gore,

In navies black, broken with wind and tide :

They landed in firm array upon the rocks

Of Albion ; they kissed the rocky shore ;

' Be thou our mother and our nurse,' they said ;

' Our children's mother, and thou shalt be our grave,

The sepulchre of ancient Troy, from whence

Shall rise cities, and thrones, and arms, and awful

powers.'

LATIN HEXAMETER VERSE 127

fluctuat incerta quo flectunt flamina silua,

hirta comis ; haeret curis suspensus arator,

ne sibi culmorum spes area prodat inanis.

at contra trepidi et collecto robore uasti

Enceladi adsurgens et nota maior imago,

qualis Atlas uel quale Aetnes immobile saxum

uertice tangebat caelum : formidinis alis

horret apex : hastae et clipei uibrat manus umbram.

21

TROIVGENAE Bruti suboles indutaque martem

pectora, quis campo, aeratis legionibus horror,

uox tonat, et Gallis uoluentes nubila terris

obscura sol ipse fugit ferrugine languens,

frons atrae quis rubra hiemis leuiora minatur,

quorum exest late populos, ut flammeus ardor,

ira furens : uestros Troianus sedibus ignis

mouit auos, qualis antro exciuere leones

fulmina, fulmineis accensos lumina flammis.

bello illi ardentes, impleti sanguine Graium,

abscisi cristas, ingesto in scuta cruore,

classibus hue atris, quas fregerat aestus et auster,

adpellunt, scopulosque acie tenuere Britannos

egressi firma, et durae dant oscula terrae,

' Tu nutrix, tu mater eris,' sic ore locuti,

' nobis tu genetrix natorum, eademque sepulcrum,

Ilion antiquam quae condes, unde resurgant

urbesque regesque atque arma horrendaque uirtus.'

128 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

22 T. G. HAKE, Ortrud's Vision

UPON the battle's fevered eve

I lay within my tent and slept :

Strange visions did my spirit grieve

And wings and voices round me swept.

'Osric, this fight is not for thee :

Th*e goo*d, th*e fai*thful*follo*w me.'

I started up, I called my squires :

We rode away with echoing tramp

Where through the night shone ruddy fires

From out the holy Christian camp.

We passed within the sacred bourn,

Our mail aflame with lights of morn.

Scarce the sky broke when heathen foes

Came down the distant hills and seemed

To pour from night ; they still arose ;

On all the plain their armour gleamed.

Then swept o'er all a rushing blight

And they were hidden from our sight.

23* H. H. MILMAN

EVEN as a flower,

Poppy or hyacinth, on its broken stem,

Languidly raises its encumbered head,

And turns it to the gentle evening sun,

So feebly rose, so turned that boy his face

Unto the well-known voice : twice raised his head,

Twice it fell back in powerless heaviness ;

Even at that moment from the dark wood came

His chariot coursers, heavily behind

Dragging the vacant car. Caswallon knew

And he leaped up ; the boy his bloodless lips

LATIN HEXAMETER VERSE 129

22

FESSO suspenses intra tentoria somnos

crastinapugnadabat; mira aegram insomnia mentem

sollicitant sonitu uocum alarumque tremore,

perque auris uox uisa rapi 'Non haec tibi, Theseu,

pugna datur : mea signa pii sanctique secuntur.'

exilui stratis, sociam ad noua iussa cateruam

uoce uoco, resonosque procul tulit ungula cursus,

per tenebras qua Graia pio castra igne rubebant :

inuectis uallo tela incendebat Eous.

uix caelum redit et colles procul inpius hostis

descendit serie, ceu nox effunderet arma,

innumera, totumque aequor tenuere corusci.

dein ruit atra lues prospectumque abstulit omnem.

23

QVALES narcissi laesoue papauera collo

uertice se tollunt aegro solemque requirunt

uespere iam mollem, talem puer artubus aegris

se leuat, ad notas et flectit lumina uoces ;

bis caput attollit contra, bis languida rursus

reccidit in colla inualidum. turn denique currum,

rectore ilium orbum, multa cum mole trahentes,

egrediuntur equi nemoris caligine. sensit

exsiluitque pater, labra ille exsanguia contra

p. 9

130 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

With a long effort opened.

' Was it well,

Father, at this my first, my earliest fight,

To mock me with a baffled hope of fame ?

Well was it, to defraud me of my right

To noble death ?

' and speaking thus he died.

Awhile above him leaned the father, then

Leaped up, within the chariot placed the corpse,

And with his lash fierce rent the steeds : swift on

As with their master's ire instinct they flew,

Making a wide road thro' the hurtling fray.

24 JAMES THOMSON, Spring

BUT should you lure

From his dark haunt, beneath the tangled roots

Of pendent trees, the monarch of the brook,

Behoves you then to ply your finest art.

Long time he, following cautious, scans the fly,

And oft attempts to seize it, but as oft

The dimpled water speaks his jealous fear.

At last, while haply o'er the shaded sun

Passes a cloud, he desperate takes the death,

With sullen plunge. At once he darts along,

Deep-struck, and runs out all the lengthened line;

Then seeks the farthest ooze, the sheltering weed,

The cavern'd bank, his old secure abode ;

And flies aloft, and flounces round the pool,

Indignant of the guile. With yielding hand,

That feels him still, yet to his furious course

Gives way, you, now retiring, following now

Across the stream, exhaust his idle rage ;

Till floating broad upon his breathless side

And to his fate abandon'd, to the shore

You gaily drag your unresisting prize.

LATIN HEXAMETER VERSE 131

soluit in has tardo nisus conamine uoces :

' Tune rudem, genitor, bellorum et martis in ipsis

primitiis uanae poteras spe ludere famae ?

ius poteras auferre meum fatique decori

mercedem merito?' sic fantem uita reliquit.

paulisper supra pendet pater : inde resurgit

curruque exanimum nati dat corpus et ipse

uerberibus ferus instat equis et tergora foedat.

prosiluit currus, uelut ira arderet erili,

perque acies populatur iter martemque sonantem.

24

SIN ipsum amnicolum tu regem adlexeris ima

obscuri de sede lacus ubi plurima pendet

arbor et alternis nectit radicibus umbram,

turn uero summas decet exercere magistrae

artis opes, mu-ltum ille dolos speculatur et escam

pone sequens, oculos dum muscae inludit imago ;

saepe instat morsu iam iam rapturus ; at ipsa

lene tremens dubios testabitur unda timores.

quod si fors obducta dies Phoebusque uaganti

palluerit nimbo, pereundi certus in hamum

proruit infelix ; imo sedet intus in ore

cuspis ; in immensum fugit ille atque improbus una

quicquid adest lini haurit agens ; saepe ultima limi,

saepe cauas ripae latebras uluaeque remotae

ima petit, quae prisca salus adsuetaque sedes ;

altius inde uolare ferox et per uada summa

feruidus hue illuc saltu trepidare, grauatus

multa dolos. tu cede manu sed cede sequaci,

transque celer ripas insta gressumue reflecte ;

iamque ubi consumptis furiis et anhelus et exspes

lata natans auris nudarit terga, potito

laetus eris facilemque trahes ad litora praedam.

92

132 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

25 DRYDEN, Cymon and Iphigenia

SCARCE the third glass of measured hours was run

When like a fiery meteor sunk the sun,

The promise of a storm ; the shifting gales

Forsake by fits, and fill, the flagging sails ;

Hoarse murmurs of the main from far were heard,

And night came on, not by degrees prepared,

But all at once ; at once the winds arise,

The thunders roll, the forky lightning flies.

In vain the master issues out commands,

In vain the trembling sailors ply their hands ;

The tempest unforeseen prevents their care,

And from the first they labour in despair.

The giddy ship, betwixt the winds and tides

Forced back and forwards, in a circle rides

Stunned with the different blows ; then shoots amain,

Till counterbuffed she stops, and sleeps again.

26 POLLOK, Course of Time, vn

NATURE stood still. The seas and rivers stood,

And all the winds, and every living thing.

The cataract, that like a giant wroth,

Rushed down impetuously, as seized at once

By sudden frost with all his hoary locks,

Stood still : and beasts of every kind stood still.

A deep and dreadful silence reigned alone !

Hope died in every breast, and on all men

Came fear and trembling. None to his neighbour

spoke,

Husband thought not of wife, nor of her child

The mother, nor friend of friend, nor foe of foe.

In horrible suspense all mortals stood ;

And, as they stood and listened, chariots were heard

Rolling in heaven. Revealed in flaming fire,

The angel of God appeared in stature vast,

Blazing ; and, lifting up his hand on high,

By Him that lives for ever, swore that Time

Should be no more.

LATIN HEXAMETER VERSE 133

25

TERTIA demensos uix hauserat hora liquores,

ac subit oceanum rutili fax ignea Phoebi,

argumentum hiemis; uaria uice mobilis aura

deserit inpleuitque sinus ; turn murmura longe

audiri et raucis misceri uocibus aequor.

nox praeceps, non ilia gradus lenita per aequos,

cuncta simul condit; surgunt subito agmine uenti ;

ingeminant tonitrus : flammae exsiluere trisulcae.

nequiquam dux ore tonans sua iussa frequentat ;

nequiquam nautae circum trepidare trementisque

exercere manus : curarn inprouisa procella

praeuenit, et uano iam turn spes nulla labori.

turbine caeca ratis freta uentosque inter in orbem

ultro agitur citroque et crebro uerbere torpet ;

inde, per abruptum ruit ut iam gurgite, pontum

fert iterum aduersoque iterum sopitur ab ictu.

26

OMNIA constiterant, maria et uaga flumina et omnes

uentorum cursus et quicquid uescitur auris.

nee non, terrigenum qualis uis effera fratrum

qui modo praecipitabat iter, uelut horrida canos

incursu subito glaciassent frigora crines,

constiterat torrens ; steterat genus omne ferarum.

una alta atque horrenda quies dominatur in orbe.

omnibus e tacito periit spes pectore, et omnia

quassat membra pauor. nullis uox mutua ; nusquam

nee nuptae iam cura uiro nee matribus ipse

prolis amor ; ueterem nemo respexit amicum,

nemo hostem : populis mortalibus ingruit horror,

uenturique timor. stantes signumque manentes

desuper aetherias uolui audiuere quadrigas.

nuntius, ecce, deum flammis et mole tremenda

fulsit ; et, elata sublime ad sidera dextra,

adiurat Patris caput immortale, futurum

hinc aeuo finem.

134 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

27 SHAKESPEARE, King Henry V., i ii

THEREFORE doth heaven divide

The state of man in divers functions,

Setting endeavour in continual motion ;

To which is fixed, as an aim or butt,

Obedience: for so work the honey-bees,

Creatures that by a rule in nature teach

The act of order to a peopled kingdom.

They have a king and officers of sorts ;

Where some, like magistrates, correct at home,

Others, like merchants, venture trade abroad,

Others, like soldiers, armed in their stings,

Make boot upon the summer's velvet buds,

Which pillage they with merry march bring home

To the tent-royal of their emperor ;

Who, busied in his majesty, surveys

The singing masons building roofs of gold,

The civil citizens kneading up the honey,

The poor mechanic porters crowding in

Their heavy burdens at his narrow gate,

The sad-eyed justice, with his surly hum,

Delivering o'er to executors pale

The lazy yawning drone.

28 MARK AKENSIDE

ASK the crowd

Which flies impatient from the village walk,

To climb the neighbouring cliffs, when far below

The cruel winds have hurled upon the coast

Some helpless bark ; while sacred Pity melts

The general eye, or Terror's icy hand

LATIN HEXAMETER VERSE 135

27

HOC tibi consilio diuersa in munia didi

res hominum uoluit caelestum aeterna potestas,

nee requiem dat conandi finemque petentis

imperio parere iubet. quo saecula pacto

melliferarum apium uitamque operasque fatigant,

quarum exempla sequi populos Natura frequentes

iusque suum moresque monet cognoscere certos.

sunt reges illis uariique ex ordine honores :

hie commissa domi castigat praetor ; at ille

externas sequitur merces ; hie spicula miles

attulit et gemmas ueris praedatur opimi,

mox repetit passu praetoria regis ouanti.

ipse sui plenus regnique in munere totus

conspicit hie fabros struere aurea tecta canoros,

hie tractare suos subigendo mella Quirites,

hie gerulos uersare ingloria munera uiles

angustasque graui stipari pondere portas,

tristem illic quaesitorem cum murmure saeuo

carnifici pigros pallenti tradere fucos.

28

QVIDVE quod, abreptam si quando ad litora nauim

insani miseram tulit inclementia Cauri,

rustica turba ruit pagumque ac nota uiarum

linquit et aeria repetit spectacula rupe ?

uisum omnes miserantur atrox ; pia cura dolorque

eliciunt fletum aut gelidae formidinis ictu

136 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

Smites their distorted lips and horrent hair,

While every mother closer to her breast

Catches her child, and, pointing where the waves

Foam through the shatter'd vessel, shrieks aloud,

As one poor wretch, that spreads his piteous arms

For succour, swallow'd by the roaring surge,

As now another, dashed against the rock,

Drops lifeless down. O ! deemest thou indeed

No kind endearment here by Nature given

To mutual terror and compassion's tears ?

29 BYRON, The Curse of Minerva

LONG had I mused, and measured every trace

The wreck of Greece recorded of her race,

When, lo ! a giant form before me strode,

And Pallas hail'd me in her own abode.

Yes, 'twas Minerva's self, but, ah ! how changed

Since o'er the Dardan field in arms she ranged !

Not such as erst, by her divine command,

Her form appear'd from Phidias' plastic hand ;

Gone were the terrors of her awful brow,

Her idle Aegis bore no gorgon now ;

Her helm was deep indented, and her lance

Seem'd weak and shaftless, e'en to mortal glance ;

The olive branch, which still she deigned to clasp,

Shrunk from her touch and wither'd in her grasp :

And, ah ! though still the brightest of the sky,

Celestial tears bedimm'd her large blue eye ;

Round the rent casque her owlet circled slow,

And mourn'd his mistress with a shriek of woe.

LATIN HEXAMETER VERSE 137

detorti riguere artus horrentque capilli.

turn puerum arreptum gremio interiore fouere

aspicias matrem et digito dum monstrat ubi aequor

per tabulas spumans agitur laceramque carinam,

horrendo clamore sequi quern forte natantum,

auxilia orantem et tendentem bracchia frustra,

deuorat unda fremens, seu cautis alter ad ipsas

concidit adflictus uitamque reliquit in undis.

nil tu dulce, nihil Naturae hie munere blandi

rere datum lacrimisque piis socioque timori ?

29

lAMQVE diu tacitus mecum uestigia lustro

antiqui quaecumque iacens das, Graecia, saecli

cum subito ante/oculos ingens procedere imago

inque sua uisast Pallas me adfarier aede ;

Pallas enim fuit, at specie quam distat ab ilia

quae per Dardanios saeuibat cuspide campos !

non aderat facies iussu quam numinis olim

Phidiacae finxere manus, omnesque tremenda

deciderant de fronte minae. non Gorgona praefert

aegis iners ; alte galea hiscit saucia, et hastae,

heu, homini quoque uisa minor mensura caducae;

quamque manu nee turn contingere fugit oliuam,

ipsa perhorrescit tactus languetque tenendo ;

luminaque, a, toto uel sic clarissima caelo,

caerula caelestes turbarant lumina guttae.

turn galeam circa laceram pia noctua lente

fertur, erae deflens misero stridore dolores.

138 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

30 TENNYSON, A Dream of Fair Women

BUT she, with sick and scornful looks averse,

To her full height her stately stature draws ;

' My youth,' she said,

' was blasted with a curse :

This woman was the cause.

I was cut off from hope in that sad place

Which yet to name my spirit loathes and fears :

My father held his hand upon his face ;

I, blinded with my tears,

Still strove to speak : my voice was thick with sighs

As in a dream. Dimly I could descry

The stern black-bearded kings with wolfish eyes

Waiting to see me die.

The high masts flicker'd as they lay afloat ;

The crowds, the temples, waver'd, and the shore ;

The bright death quiver'd at the victim's throat;

Touch'd; and I knew no more.'

31 D. G. ROSSETTI

REND, rend thine hair, Cassandra : he will go.

Yea, rend thy garments, wring thine hands, and cry

From Troy still towered to the unreddened sky.

See, all but she that bore thee mock thy woe :

He most whom that fair woman arms, with show

Of wrath on her bent brows : for in this place

This hour thou bad'st all men in Helen's face

The ravished ravishing prize of Death to know.

What eyes, what ears hath sweet Andromache,

Save for her Hector's form and step; as tear

On tear make salt the warm last kiss he gave ?

He goes. Cassandra's words beat heavily

Like crows above his crest, and at his ear

Ring hollow in the shield that shall not save.

LATIN HEXAMETER VERSE 139

30

ASPICERE ilia odit uoltuque auersa superbo

corpora consurgit celsa atque his ora resoluit.

'Me iuuenem (causam ista dedit) fera perdit Erinys;

me locus ille inuisus atrox, quern dicere tristis

horret adhuc refugitque animus, damnauerat Oreo,

ora manu pater abscondit. lacrimis ego caeca

multa tamen conor fari ; suspiria uocem

spissa grauant, uani simulamina languida somni.

incertis fluitans oculis toruae ora coronae

nigrantisque genas procerum et fera lumina cerno,

in caedes intenta meas ; tremere aequore malos

cerno altos litusque frequens et templa deorum

hostia. resplendet tremulum sub gutture ferrum

iamque ferit. moriens secum hausit cetera sensus.'

31

SCINDE comas Cassandra furens; abit Hector in

arma;

scinde sinus pectusque feri ; pete uocibus astra,

turrigerae flammis nondum ilia rubentia Troiae.

ecce, tuos genetrix non ridet sola dolores ;

ridet at ante alios, torua cui nubila fronte

induit arma fatens Helene formosa dolorem.

hie modo namque, hie tu faciem canis omnibus illam

rapta eadem et raptura agnoscant praemia Mortis.

Andromachae pietas uoltu mente auribus haeret

incessu in formaque uiri : rigat oscula labris

quae suprema tulit lacrimis tepor alter amaris.

Hector, abis; simul it cristae grauis insuper ictu

coruus ut incumbens Cassandrae clamor ; ad auris

aera cauum regemunt et fatis peruius umbo.

HO PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

32 D. G. ROSSETTI

(CASSANDRA loquitur?)

' O HECTOR, gone, gone, gone ! O Hector, thee

Two chariots wait, in Troy long bless'd and curs'd ;

And Grecian spear and Phrygian sand athirst

Crave from thy veins the blood of victory.

Lo! long upon our hearth the brand had we,

Lit for the roof-tree's ruin : and to-day

The ground-stone quits the wall, the wind hath

way,

And higher and higher the wings of fire are free.

O Paris, Paris ! O thou burning brand,

Thou beacon of the sea whence Venus rose,

Lighting thy race to shipwreck ! Even that hand

Wherewith she took thine apple let her close

Within thy curls at last, and while Troy glows

Lift thee her trophy to the sea and land.'

33 C. BEST

LOOK how the pale Queen of the silent night

Doth cause the Ocean to attend upon her,

And he, as long as she is in his sight,

With his full tide is ready her to honour ;

But when the silver waggon of the Moon

Is mounted up so high he cannot follow,

The Sea calls home his crystal waves to moan,

And with low ebb doth manifest his sorrow.

So you, that are the sovereign of my heart,

Have all my joys attending on your will,

My joys, low ebbing when you do depart ;

When you return, their tide my heart doth fill.

So as you come, and as you do depart,

Joys ebb and flow within my tender heart.

LATIN ELEGIAC VERSE 141

32

' HECTOR, abis !

'

ter uoce refert ' sub moenibus, Hector,

stant bini, Troiaeque timor tutelaque, currus ;

hastaque te Graia et Phrygiae sitit aestus harenae,

aque tuis poscunt uictricia praemia uenis.

ecce, diu nostrique Lares nosterque fouebat

ipse focus summis fata atque incendia tectis.

nunc subducta domost imi mora fundamenti,

uentorum immissast rabies, atque altior et iam

altior excussas surgit Volcanus in alas,

o Pari, fax ustura, tuae o lux edita gentis

naufragiis medioque micans letale Caphereus

quo Venus orta mari, dextrae Cythereidos illi,

qua tua mala capit, iam sit mora nulla; capillos

iam subeat sinito molles Troiaque flagrante

efferat ilia suum terris te undisque tropaeum.

33

ASPICIS ut noctis pallens regina silentis

Oceanum famulum carpere cogat iter ?

qui, sibi dum uisus non deserit ilia sequacis,

plenus in officium fluctibus ire solet ;

at currus quotiens argenteus ille Dianae

surgere iam uetitum fugit in alta procum,

ipse domum uitreos uocat ad lamenta liquores,

testatus luctus rore iacente suos.

baud aliter, nostro quae regnas pectore, uirgo,

arbitrio uersas gaudia nostra tuo.

te nam decedente iacent quae gaudia, rursus

te reduce in sensus nant reparata meos.

gaudia sic abituque tuo redituque uicissim

undant per tenerum lapsa relapsa iecur.

142 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

34 THOMAS WATSON

PHCEBUS delights to view his laurel tree,

The poplar pleaseth Hercules alone ;

Melissa mother is and fautrix of the bee,

Pallas will wear the olive branch or none.

Of shepherds and their flocks Pales is queen,

And Ceres ripes the corn was lately green.

To Chloris every flower belongs of right,

The Dryad nymphs of woods make chief account.

But what is Love's delight ? to hurt each where

He cares not whom with darts of deep desire,

With watchful jealousy, with hope, with fear,

With nipping cold, and secret flames of fire.

O happy hour, wherein I did forego

This little god, so great a cause of woe.

35 SHAKESPEARE, Love's Labour's Lost, iv iii

DID not the heavenly rhetoric of thine eye,

'Gainst whom the world cannot hold argument,

Persuade my heart to this false perjury ?

Vows for thee broke deserve not punishment.

A woman I forswore ; but I will prove,

Thou being a goddess, I forswore not thee:

My vow was earthly, thou a heavenly love ;

Thy grace being gain'd cures all disgrace in me.

Vows are but breath, and breath a vapour is :

Then thou, fair sun, which on my earth dost shine,

Exhalest this vapour-vow ; in thee it is :

If broken then, it is no fault of mine :

If by me broke, what fool is not so wise

To lose an oath to win a paradise ?

LATIN ELEGIAC VERSE 143

34

GRATIOR ante aliam Phoebo sua laurea siluam

cernitur; Alcidae populus una placet,

melliferis apibus genetrix fautrixque Melissa ;

unica Palladias uincit oliua comas,

si Cereri uisum, uiridis modo flauet arista ;

agnoscunt dominam pastor ouesque Palem.

cunctorum ius, Chlori, tibi tutelaque riorum ;

at Dryasin nymphis maxima cura nemus.

quid tibi, Amor, placet ? ut cunctis discrimine nullo

transfodias altis corda cupidinibus ;

ut uigiles curae, spes ut suspensa timorque,

frigus ut et miseros intimus ignis edat.

o semper mihi laeta dies quae prima pusillo

numine sed magno dat caruisse malo !

35

Lvx mea, dia tuis uis est rationis ocellis,

humanum nequeat quam superasse genus,

ilia meae suasit periuria perfida menti ;

sed graue nil ob te foedera rupta merent.

femineast uiolata fides : tu femina nulla's

nullaque te laedit femina laesa deam.

mortali pepigi, potior caelestis amore :

iam leuat omne meum dedecus iste decor,

quid nisi uerba fides ? quid uerba nisi halitus ? ergo,

fouit ubi terram sol tuus, alma, meam,

diffugit exhalata fides, manifestaque culpast

haec tua, nee nobis sed tibi laesa fides ;

seu mihi laesa tamen, nonne haec amentia prudens,

si fallas, diuis ut potiare, deos ?

144 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

36* SHAKESPEARE, Love's Labours Lost, iv Hi

So sweet a kiss the golden sun gives not

To those fresh morning drops upon the rose,

As thy eyebeams, when their fresh rays have smote

The night of dew that on my cheeks down flows:

Nor shines the silver moon one half so bright

Through the transparent bosom of the deep,

As doth thy face through tears of mine give light:

Thou shinest in every tear that I do weep;

No drop but as a coach doth carry thee,

So ridest thou triumphing in my woe :

Do but behold the tears that swell in me,

And they thy glory through my grief will show :

But do not love thyself; then thou wilt keep

My tears for glasses, and still make me weep.

O queen of queens, how far dost thou excel

No thought can think, nor tongue of mortal tell.

37 TENNYSON, In Memoriam, xi

A. CALM is the morn without a sound,

Calm as to suit a calmer grief,

And only thro' the faded leaf

The chestnut pattering to the ground :

aj. Calm and deep peace on this high wold,

And on these dews that drench the furze,

And all the silvery gossamers

That twinkle into green and gold :

aj. Calm and still light on yon great plain

That sweeps with all its autumn bowers,

And crowded farms and lessening towers,

To mingle with the bounding main :

LATIN ELEGIAC VERSE 145

36

NON tarn blanda nouo sol aureus oscula rori

mane tulit, summae cum maduere rosae,

quam nouus ille tui nobis fert luminis ictus,

rore mihi totae cum maduere genae.

ac nimio lucest argentea luna minore,

oceani liquidos cum subit ilia sinus,

quam tua de nostris lucent quae fletibus ora,

lacrima dum uoltus fert sibi quaeque tuos,

nullaque nostra tuo non seruit gutta triumpho,

curribus ut, lacrimis uecta puella meis !

inspice tu nostro tumuit qui lumine flatus ;

translucebit ab hoc iste dolore decor,

te sed ames nolim, mihi ne lacrimetur in horas,

pro speculo cum sis fletibus usa meis.

quantum alias uincas, diua diuinior omni,

nulla potest hominum linguaue mensue sequi.

37

A. MATVTINA quies ; nusquam uox ulla sonusue ;

(haec luctus nostri sed magis alta quies) :

sola per arentis, umbracula pallida, frondes

depluit in taciturn nux tacitura solum.

alt hie immota quies collis fouet alta supini,

roribus a uitreis qua maduere rubi,

et per araneolas, argentea fila, coruscas

aureus ex uiridi fulsit abitque color,

a-j. par requies latis tranquillaque lumina campis,

qua pandit uarias pomifer annus opes,

uillisque ilia frequens procul et decrescere uisis

turribus extremo iam coit ora mari.

P. 10

146 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

,. Calm and deep peace in this wide air,

These leaves that redden to the fall ;

And in my heart, if calm at all,

If any calm, a calm despair :

as . Calm on the seas, and silver sleep,

And waves that sway themselves in rest,

And dead calm in that noble breast

Which heaves but with the heaving deep.

The stanzas of this highly elaborated poem have been lettered

to show their correspondence.

38 DRYDEN, The Ladies' Song

A CHOIR of bright beauties in spring did appear

To choose a May-lady to govern the year ;

All the nymphs were in white, and the shepherds in

green ;

The garland was given, and Phyllis was queen :

But Phyllis refused it, and, sighing, did say,

'

I'll not wear a garland while Pan is away.

While Pan and fair Syrinx are fled from our shore,

The Graces are banish'd, and Love is no more ;

The soft God of Pleasure, that warm'd our desires,

Has broken his bow and extinguish'd his fires ;

And vows that himself and his mother will mourn

Till Pan and fair Syrinx in triumph return.

Forbear your addresses and court us no more,

For we will perform what the Deity swore ;

But if you dare think of deserving our charms,

Away with your sheep-hooks, and take to your arms ;

Then laurels and myrtles your brows shall adorn,

When Pan and his son and fair Syrinx return.'

LATIN ELEGIAC VERSE 147

#1. hie caeli per uasta quies immota; quieuit

autumni tenui silua rubore memor :

pectore at in nostro si quid requietis inhaeret,

si qua quies, hausto parta dolore quies.

a2 . par requies strati splendorque argenteus alti

seque uelut somnus lene mouentis aquae :

at summa, Marcelle, tibi iacuere quiete

non nisi cum moto pectora mota mari.

38

FORMOSAE coeunt lecturae uere puellae

auspice qua felix, qua bonus annus eat;

pastores uiridis, uestis tegit alba puellas ;

impositast fronti, Phylli, corona tuae.

Phylli, datam renuis suspiratoque dolore

' Pane '

refers '

profugo nulla corona placet,

ut Pan, ut nostris Syrinx procul exulat oris,

Gratia pulsa omnis deperiitque Venus ;

quique tener nostros puer incendebat amores,

fert arcus fractos et sine luce faces ;

nee sibi nee matri iurat iam defore luctum,

ni Pan, ni Syrinx in sua iura redit.

uos remouete preces, uos blandimenta petentum :

per nos iurati sint rata uerba dei.

sin cui cura meum tibi ut emerearis amorem,

pone pedum, forti tela resume manu.

tempora turn cinges lauru myrtoque, redibunt

cum Pan et Syrinx cumque parente puer.'

10 2

148 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

39 SHERIDAN, School for Scandal

HERE'S to the maiden of bashful fifteen,

Here's to the widow of fifty;

Here's to the flaunting extravagant quean,

And here's to the housewife that's thrifty.

Let the toast pass, drink to the lass;

I'll warrant she'll prove an excuse for a glass.

Here's to the charmer whose dimples we prize,

Now to the maid who has none, sir;

Here's to the girl with a pair of blue eyes,

And here's to the nymph with but one, sir.

Let the toast pass, etc.

Here's to the maid with a bosom of snow,

Now to her that is brown as a berry ;

Here's to the wife with a face full of woe,

And now to the damsel that's merry.

Let the toast pass, etc.

For let 'em be clumsy or let 'em be slim,

Young or ancient, I care not a feather ;

So fill a pint bumper quite up to the brim,

And let us e'en toast 'em together.

Let the toast pass, drink to the lass;

I'll warrant she'll prove an excuse for the glass.

40 WALTER SCOTT

' A WEARY lot is thine, fair maid, A weary lot is thine,

To cull the thorn thy brows to braid

And press the rue for wine.

A lightsome eye, a soldier's mien,

A feather of the blue,

A doublet of the Lincoln green

No more of me you knew,

My Love !

No more of me you knew.

LATIN ELEGIAC VERSE 149

39

Hoc bene te, ternis pudibunda puellula lustris,

hoc bene uos orbae quis numerata decem.

haec sibi damnoso uadens muliercula cultu,

lanificae poscunt haec sibi pocla probae.

uos illam, socii, uos hanc bene dicite cuncti ;

digna erit haec uestro, digna erit ilia mero.

nunc bene uos, gratis rident quibus ora lacunis,

nunc bene uos dico quis gelasinus abest.

hoc tibi, caeruleis geminum cui lumen ocellis,

hoc ego propino, lusca puella, tibi.

uindicat hos cyathos candenti pectore uirgo,

hos quae castaneas aequat adusta nuces.

his bibitur curas prodens matrona latentis,

his lepidos uoltu fassa puella iocos.

uasta sit an gracilis, nullo discrimine ponam,

nee sit anus faciam sitne tenella pili.

quare agite, o socii, baccho cumulate trientes

et ' Bene femineum ' uox sonet una '

genus.'

uos simul his illis age propinate puellis ;

quaelibet est uestro, sat scio, digna mero.

40

' SORS te dura manet, mea lux, cui nexa capillos

spina premit, uinum dat tibi ruta suum.

aduena ego ignotus ; sed blandis fulgor ocellis,

mars sed in incessu mars et in ore fuit ;

cernere loricae sed erat cristaeque colores :

nee sciri de me plus, mea uita, dedi.

150 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

The morn is merry June, I trow,

The rose is budding fain ;

But she shall bloom in winter's snow

Ere we two meet again.'

He turned his charger as he spake

Upon the river shore,

He gave the bridle-reins a shake,

Said ' Adieu for evermore

My Love !

And adieu for evermore.'

41 THOMAS HOOD

THE stars are with the voyager

Wherever he may sail ;

The moon is constant to her time ;

The sun will never fail,

But follow, follow round the world,

The green earth and the sea;

So love is with the voyager

Wherever he may be,

So love is with the lover's heart,

Wherever he may be.

Wherever he may be, the stars

Must daily lose their light ;

The moon will veil her in the shade;

The sun will set at night.

The sun may set, but constant love

Will shine when he's away,

So that dull night is never night,

And day is brighter day.

LATIN ELEGIAC VERSE 151

aspicis hac uerni rident qui luce lepores ?

aspicis exserto flore nitere rosas ?

hae prius hibernis discent florere pruinis

quam mihi te rursus, me tibi reddat amor.'

flectit ecum leuibus fluuiali in litore frenis

atque ait ' Aeternum tu, mea uita, uale! '

41

QVISQVIS es et quocumque loco das uela profundo,

non derunt cursu sidera certa tuo ;

foedera praestabit iusto sua tempore luna,

solis et baud umquam destituere fide;

sol tibi certus iter toto non deseret orbe,

per mare caeruleum, laeta per arua comes,

haud aliter quocumque loco comitabere amore ;

fouerit haud aliter pectus amantis amor,

quo sis cumque loco, parentia sidera fatis

nullo non languent luminis orba die ;

ipse caput caecis obnubit luna tenebris ;

sol abit occidui mersus in alta freti.

sol abit occiduus: fidi lux restat amoris;

aureus adfulgens, sol licet absit, amor

nocte uetat noctem pigris torpere tenebris

inlustratque diem candidiore die.

152 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

42 BYRON, Hebrew Melodies

THE Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold,

And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold ;

And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the

sea,

When the blue wave rolls nightly on deep Galilee.

Like the leaves of the forest when summer is green,

That host with their banners at sunset were seen ;

Like the leaves of the forest when autumn hath

blown,

That host on the morrow lay withered and strown.

For the angel of death spread his wings on the blast,

And breathed in the face of the foe as he pass'd;

And the eyes of the sleepers wax'd deadly and chill,

And their hearts but once heaved, and for ever grew

still !

And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide,.

But through it there roll'd not the breath of his pride:

And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf,

And cold as the spray of the rock-beating surf,

And there lay the rider distorted and pale,

With the dew on his brow and the rust on his mail ;

And the tents were all silent, the banners alone,

The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown.

And the widows of Asshur are loud in their wail,

And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal ;

And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword,

Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord.

LATIN ELEGIAC VERSE 153

42

DEVOLAT Assyrius, ferrugine clarus et auro,

deuolat in plenum qualis ouile lupus,

fulgor is hastarum, qualis stellata profundi

caeruleis Lari nox referitur aquis.

frons uiret ut siluis, uernum spirantibus auris,

picta mouet primo uespere signa manus :

frons cadit ut siluis, autumni flamine tactis,

strata iacet primo pallida mane manus.

ales enim uentis Mors est adlapsa leuisque

hostica ab adflatu strinxerat ora suo.

sopitis oculi letali frigore pressi ;

cor semel exsiluit deriguitque semel.

stratus humi sonipes patula sic nare; sed ignis

per naris nusquam uoluitur ille feras.

canet anhelantis iam frigens spuma per herbas,

cautibus hiberni spumat ut ira freti.

stratus eques pariter: distorto pallor in orest ;

fronte super rores; inquinat arma situs,

signiferis sine signa; silent tentoria ; surdas

nemo tubas inflat, spicula nemo leuat.

personat Assyrius uiduarum planctibus aether;

flent Beli fractos ipsa sacella deos;

barbara et occumbens ferri sine uerbere uirtus

more niuis nostri tabet ad ora louis.

154 PROSPECTIVE TRANSLATIONS

43* BYRON, The Giaour

As rising on its purple wing

The insect-queen of Eastern spring

O'er emerald meadows of Kashmeer

Invites the young pursuer near,

And leads him on from flower to flower

A weary chase and wasted hour,

Then leaves him, as it soars on high,

With panting heart and tearful eye :

So beauty lures the full-grown child

With hue as bright and wing as wild;

A chase of idle hopes and fears,

Begun in folly, closed in tears.

44* EMILY BRONTE

THE moon is full this winter night;

The stars are clear, though few;

And every window glistens bright

With leaves of frozen dew.

The sweet moon through your lattice gleams

And lights your room like day ;

And there you pass in happy dreams

The peaceful hours away !

While I, with effort hardly quelling

The anguish in my breast,

Wander about the silent dwelling,

And cannot think of rest.

LATIN ELEGIAC VERSE 155

43

QvALIS, papilio cum uere superbus Eoo

surgit in aerias Lyda per arua fugas,

per uirides puerum uocat alae purpura campos;

ille cupit uisum subsequiturque puer;

feruidus inde uagam per florem ex flore uolucrem

urguet; anhelanti fit labor, hora perit ;

mox sua uota rapi sublimia uidit; at illi

lumina flent, trepidant corde micante sinus:

sic Venere inlicitur matura puertia; praedae

par utrique color nesciaque ala capi ;

incipit insipiens, absistit flebilis inter

uentosas illam spesque metusque sequi.

44

Nox est; luna nitet brumales plena per auras;