195. possit, subjunctive in a clause of characteristic with quam cui (§ 320, c; G. 298; H. 503, ii. 3). 196. ut, although. 197. excessere metum, have passed beyond all fear. — fingite, sup pose. 198. huic populo (§ 229; G. 345, R.1; H. 386, 2): her children almost made a nation by themselves. The children of Latona are derisively called a mob, turba. 200. qua... orba, how far is she removed from childlessness (lit. from a childless woman) by this? qua refers to turba, and is abl. of means with distat; the Latin relative cannot always be rendered by the relative in English. 201. sacri, vocative, addressed to her children, whom she calls holy enough and to spare. Haupt reads, "Ite, satis, properate, sacri est, laurum," etc. making sacri partitive genitive. Several other readings have been proposed. 202. ponite = deponite. - deponunt, i.e. the people lay aside their wreaths in honor of Latona, and worship her only in silence. 203. quodque licet: the antecedent is tacito. worship in silence, since that is all that is allowed them. 204. Cynthi, a hill on the island of Delos. 206. animosa, proud. 207. cessura, willing to yield. numen, they 208. an dea sim, dubitor, my divinity is called in question (lit. I am doubted whether I am a goddess); the personal use of the passive of dubito is rare. — cultis, worshipped (agreeing with aris). 210. facto, i.e. the exclusion from the altars. She adds insult to injury. 212. quod rēcidat, may it (i.e. the childlessness implied in orbam) fall back upon herself. The first syllable of rēcidat is treated as long to suit the metre. 213. paternam, like her father's; the tongue of Tantalus had betrayed the secrets of the gods. 215. poenae limits mora; longa agrees with querella, long complaint is but a hindrance of punishment. 216. Phoebe Diana; if it were the vocative of Phoebus, the e would be short. = of Thebes. - nubibus, abl., limits tecti. 217. Cadmeïda 221. Amphione, § 244, a; G. 395; H. 415, ii. 222. Tyrio suco: the famous purple dye obtained from a species of shell-fish. 224. qui... fuerat, who had once been the first burden of his mother, i.e. had been her first-born. 227. ei, monosyllabic interjection. 229. in latus, sideways. — armo, i.e. of the horse. 230. inane, void. 231. frena dabat, i.e. in order to flee.-imbris, objective genitive with praescius. 232. rector, skipper. 233. deducit, lets down, i.e. unfurls; he spreads all sail to reach a port before the storm. - qua, sc. parte. effluat, escape. 234. frena dabat: dantem, he gave loose rein; as he did so, etc., the repetition of a verbal idea in the form of a participle is very common. 237. pronus, leaning forward. — admissa, at full speed, agrees with crura, but refers to the horse in general. 241. nitidae: because the wrestlers anointed their bodies with oil. 245. incurvata, writhing. 246. suprema, for the last time. 247. exhalarunt: the heavy ending of the verse (spondaic line) seems intended to suggest the last slow breaths of the dying. 249. complexibus, in his embrace. 254. non belongs with simplex. —intonsum: the Grecian boys did not cut their hair until they arrived at manhood. 261. prōfectura (from proficio), fated to avail. 263. non omnes, not all the gods, but only Latona and her children, needed to be prayed to. 264. motus, affected. —jam non, no longer. 265. Arcitenens, the archer, Apollo. 269. potuisse, sc. superos hoc (see below) following mirantem. 271. nam: this explains why only Niobe is mentioned. 272. finierat ... dolorem: he had killed himself, and so ended at once his sorrow and his life. 273. Niobe Niobe: the first is nominative, the second ablative. 275. resupina, with head erect, i.e. tossed so far back as almost to have the face turned upwards. 276. invidiosa, an object of envy. 280. pascere, imperative passive in reflexive sense = glut thyself. 283. efferor, I am carried out to burial, i.e. I am more than killed. 286. contento, tight-strung. — arcu, i.e. of Diana. 289. toros, biers. demisso crine, in sign of mourning. 552,554.3,5 291. imposito fratri ore, with her lips pressed (in a kiss) upon her nally a part of Phrygia): this was identified with Niobe, and was probably a freak of nature, with perhaps some touches of the human hand. 651.2 XIV. THE ENCHANTMENTS OF MEDEA. VII. 1. Minyae, a mythical race of Greece, with whom the Argonauts appear to have been connected, and whose name they often bear. Pagasaea: the ship Argo, in which Jason and his companions sailed, was built in Pagasa, a city of Thessaly. 3. Phineus, a blind king of Thrace, endowed with the gift of prophecy; he had been tormented by the harpies, - filthy birds with faces of maidens, who seized and defiled the food upon his table, — and is therefore said to have been dragging out his old age in want (inopem senectam). He was freed from them by Zethus and Calaïs (two of the Argonauts), winged sons of Boreas (Aquilo), who drove them away, and pursued them through the air as far as the islands of the Strophades, where they were afterwards found by Æneas. 6. Phasidos: the Phasis was a river of Colchis. 7. regem, Æetes, king of Colchis, in whose possession the golden fleece was. Phrixea: Phrixos and Helle, children of Athamas (king of Orchomenos) and Nephele, fleeing from their stepmother Ino, were carried over the sea on the back of a golden-fleeced ram. Helle fell into the sea and gave her name to the Hellespont. Phrixos reached Colchis, where he sacrificed the ram to Zeus (Jupiter). The golden fleece of the ram was kept in a sacred grove and guarded by a sleepless dragon. Jason was sent by his unjust uncle Pelias to seize the golden fleece, and was accompanied by many Grecian heroes. = dreadful 8. vox, answer; numeris is abl. of cause with horrenda on account of the number of toils imposed. In reality there were but three of these, to plough with the fire-breathing oxen; to sow the dragon's teeth, and fight with the armed men who sprang from the soil; after which he was to get the fleece, guarded by the sleepless dragon. 9. Aeetiăs, a feminine patronymic: the daughter of Æetes was the famous enchantress Medea. 12. nescio quis deus, some god (§ 334, e; G. 467, R.1; H. 529, 5, 3). — mirum, sc. est, which is, however, generally omitted with mirum and in many other half-exclamatory expressions. 13. quod relates to hoc and huic. 14. jussa, i.e. the tasks imposed upon Jason. 15. modo denique, only just now. 20. mens, reason. 22. alieni orbis (poss. gen.), in another world. 23. quod ames (§ 317; G. 630; H. 497, i.), something to love. vivat ille, whether he live, etc. 24. in dis est, depends upon the gods. 26. tangat: § 268; G. 259; H. 484, v. 557 28. ore, beauty of countenance. 30. suae segetis, of his own planting, limiting hostibus (dat.). 31. praeda, predicate. 36. terrigenas feros, the fierce sons of earth, i.e. the warriors sprung from the earth at the sowing of the dragon's teeth. 37. ista, i.e. meliora. - precan la, facienda: not mere prayers (such as di meliora velint), but deeds are necessary if Jason is to be saved. 38. prodamne: Medea suddenly changes her tone and tries to overcome her love. If she helped Jason to obtain the fleece, she would betray (prodam) her father's power, for it had been foretold that Æetes would be powerful as long as he kept the fleece. 39. ope nostra, by my aid. – nescio quis advena: Jason might be a mere worthless adventurer. 40. per me, construed with sospes. 41. poenae: as a traitress, she would naturally expect punishment. 43. non in sense qualifies timeam; such are his features, etc., that I have no cause to fear. 46. ante, beforehand. 47. quin, why not? she is deriding her own fears. -tuta, neuter plural acc., object of times. — accingere, imperative passive, in the reflexive sense, gird yourself. 49. Pelasgas, Grecian. 50. servatrix, i.c. of Jason. — matrum, i.e. of the Argonauts; it limits turbā. 54. stant mecum, are with me, on my side. 56. magna, explained by the following words. having saved the youth. -servatae pubis, of 58. cultus: Colchis appears to have been then, as now, an uncivilized region. 60. Aesoniden, Jason, son of Æson: this is in sense the antecedent of quem, attracted into the relative clause. Observe the different idiom of English. We should say "for whom I would exchange," etc.conjuge, abl. of cause with felix. - quo 61. ferar, sc. sermonibus, I shall be called. The final syllable is lengthened in the thesis before the cæsura. 62. nescio qui montes, the Symplegades, the cliffs between which vessels must pass, but which closed upon and crushed them. The Argo, by watching its opportunity, had passed through with only the loss of its rudder, after which the rocks had become immovable. — incurrere, run against the voyager. |