suo gravidae visceribusque suis.Officium commune Ceres et Terra tuentur;
Haec praebet causam frugibus, illa locum.
Consortes operum, per quas correcta vetustas, 675
Quernaque glans victa est utiliore cibo,
Frugibus immensis avidos satiate colonos,
Ut capiant cultus praemia digna sui.
Vos date perpetuos teneris sementibus auctus,
Nec nova per gelidas herba sit usta nives. 680
Quum serimus, coelum ventis aperite serenis;
Quum latet, aetheria spargite semen aqua;
Neve graves cultis Cerealia dona, cavete,
Agmine laesuro depopulentur aves.
Vos quoque subjectis, formicae, parcite granis: 685
Post messem praedae copia major erit.
Interea crescat scabrae robiginis expers,
Nec vitio coeli palleat aegra seges,
Et neque deficiat macie, neque pinguior sequo
Divitiis pereat luxuriosa suis; 690
Et careant loliis oculos vitiantibus agri;
Nec sterilis culto surgat avena solo.
Triticeos fetus, passuraque farra bis ignem,
Hordeaque ingenti fenore reddat ager.
Hoc ego pro vobis, hoc vos optate coloni, 695
Efficiatque ratas utraque diva preces.
Bella diu tenuere viros: erat aptior ensis
Vomere: cedebat taurus arator equo.
Sarcula cessabant, versique in pila ligones,
Factaque de rastri pondere cassis erat. 700
Gratia dîs domuique tuae! religata catenis
Jampridem nostro sub pede bella jacent.
Sub juga bos veniat, sub terras semen aratas.
Pax Cererem nutrit: pacis alumna Ceres.
At quae venturas praecedet sexta Kalendas, 705
Hac sunt Ledaeis templa dicata deis.
Fratribus illa deis fratres de gente deorum
Circa Juturnae composuere lacus.
Ipsum nos carmen deducit Pacis ad aram.
Haec erit a mensis fine secunda dies. 710
Frondibus Actiacis comptos redimita capillos
Pax ades, et toto mitis in orbe mane.
Dum desunt hostes, desit quoque causa triumphi.
Tu ducibus bello gloria major eris.
Sola gerat miles, qnibus arma coërceat, arma, 715
Canteturque fera, nil nisi pompa, tuba,
Horreat aeneadas et primus et ultimus orbis:
Si qua parum Romam terra timebit, amet.
Tura, sacerdotes, pacalibus addite flammis,
Albaque percussa victima fronte cadat: 720
Utque domus, quae praestat eam, cum pace perennet,
Ad pia propensos vota rogate deos.
Sed jam prima mei pars est exacta laboris,
Cumque suo finem mense libellus habe.
1. Tempora in Virgil. (Ecl. iii. 42. Geor. i. 257,) is the seasons, here it denotes the festivals and other remarkable days of the year.– Latium, adj. Latin, Latius annus is the solar year.
2. Lapsa ortaque signa. The subject of the poem is the Roman festivals, and the rising and setting of the constellations. See Introduction, § 1.
3. Caesar Germ, son of Drusus Claudius Nero, and nephew of Tiberius, by whom he was adopted at the desire of Augustus. See Tacit. Annal II. 73. Suet. Calig. 1-4.—Pacato vultu, etc. as if he were a deity.
5. Heinsius and Burmann, following some of the best MSS. read officii … In tibi devoto munere, which gives a good sense. Lenz, Mitscherlich and Krebs, prefer the present reading.
7, 8. See Introd. § 4.
9. Vobis, your family, i.e. the Claudii, or rather the Julii, into which he had been adopted.
10. Pater, Tiberius; avus, Augustus, who had adopted Tiberius.
11. Germanicus and his brother, the poet says, will perform actions and receive honors similar to those of Augustus and Tiberius. Drusus was the son of Tiberius; and therefore, only the adoptive brother of Germanicus. —Pictos. the Fasti, were like all other books, adorned with various colours.
13. Aras. The altars dedicated by Augustus, perhaps the altars raised to him, Hor. Ep. II. 1. 15. The following line shows the former sense to be preferable.
15-20. All the terms annue, etc. used here, are such as would be addressed to a deity.—Laudes, praiseworthy deeds.—Tuorum, like vobis, v. 9.—Pagina for liber.—Movetur scil; with awe. He personifies the book.—Clario Deo. There was a celebrated oracle of the Clarian Apollo, near Colophon, in Asia Minor, which Germanicus himself once consulted. Tac. Annal. xii. 22.
21, 22. Germanicus had pleaded causes publicly with success, Suet. Cal. 4. Dion. 56. 26.
23-25. He had written Greek comedies, Suet, ut sup. He also made a version of Aratus which is still extant,
26. Totus annus, i. e. the whole poem on the year.
27. Tempora, the parts of the year, i. e. months and days.—Cond. urb. Romulus.
28. See Introd. § 2.
33, 34. That is ten lunar months.
35, 35. This is putting the effect for the cause, the mourning was for ten months, because that was the length of the original year.—Tristia signa, the signs of grief, such as avoiding society, wearing mourning, &c.
37. Trabeati, Romulus wore the trabea. Liv. I. 8.
38. Populis, i. e. civibus.—Annua jura daret, i.e. regulated the year, v. 27.
40. Princeps head or origin. Venus was the mother of aeneas, Mars the father of Romulus.
41. See the beginning of Books III and IV.
42. Quinctilis, Sextilis, September, &c.
43. Nec avitas, see below II. 19. et seq.
45-62. See Introd. § 3.
50. Qui jam, &c. a half holiday, the latter part of the day might be devoted to business.
52. Honoratus, as bearing office. It was applied with peculiar propriety to the Praetor whose edicts were called the Jus honorarium.
53. The Dies comitiales on which cum populo licebat agi, i. e. laws might be proposed, &c.—Septis the wooden palings, within which the people were assembled in the Campus Martius, to pass laws.
54.
