by Virgil
Seek the bright meadows of Elysian day,
Till long, long years, when our allotted time
Hath run its orbit, wear the stains away,
And leave the ætherial sense, and spark sublime, 874
Cleansed from the dross of earth, and cankering rust of crime.
XCIX . “These, when a thousand rolling years are o’er,
Called by the God, to Lethe’s waves repair;
There, reft of memory, to yearn once more
For mortal bodies and the upper air.”
So spake Anchises, and the priestess fair
Leads, with his son, the murmuring shades among,
Where thickest crowd the multitude, and there
They mount a hillock, and survey the throng, 883
And scan the pale procession, as it winds along.
C . “Come, now, and hearken to the Dardan’s fame,
What noble grandsons shall Italia grace,
Proud spirits, heirs of our illustrious name,
And learn the fates and future of thy race.
See yon fair youth, now leaning — mark his face —
Upon a pointless spear, by lot decreed
To stand the nearest to the light in place,
He first shall rise, of mixt Italian breed, 892
Silvius, an Alban name, the youngest of thy seed.
CI . “Him, latest offspring of thy days’ decline,
Thy spouse Lavinia in the woods shall rear,
The kingly parent of a kingly line,
The lords of Alba Longa. Procas, dear
To Trojans, Capys, Numitor are here,
And he, whose surname shall revive thine own.
Silvius Æneas, like his great compeer
Alike for piety and arms well known, 901
If e’er, by Fate’s decree, he mount the Alban throne.
CII . “What youths! what strength! what promise of renown!
Behold the wreaths of civic oak they wear.
First founders these of many a glorious town,
Nomentum, Gabii and Fidenæ fair;
They on the mountain pinnacles shall rear
Collatia’s fortress, and Pometii found,
The camp of Inuus, which foemen fear,
Bola and Cora, names to be renowned, 910
Albeit inglorious now, for nameless is the ground.
CIII . “See Romulus, beside his grandsire’s shade,
Offspring of Mars and Ilia, and the line
Of old Assaracus. See there displayed,
The double crest upon his helm, the sign,
Stamped by his sire, to mark his birth divine.
Henceforth, beneath his auspices, shall rise
That Rome, whose glories through the world shall shine;
Far as wide earth’s remotest boundary lies, 919
Her empire shall extend her genius to the skies.
CIV . “Seven hills her single rampart shall embrace,
Seven citadels her girdling wall contain,
Thrice blest, beyond all cities, in a race
Of heroes, destined to adorn her reign.
So, with a hundred grandsons in her train,
Thrice blest, the Mother of the Gods, whose shrine
Is Berecynthus, rides the Phrygian plain,
Tower-crowned, the queen of an immortal line, 928
All habitants of heaven, and all of seed divine.
CV . “See now thy Romans; thither bend thine eyes,
And Cæsar and Iulus’ race behold,
Waiting their destined advent to the skies.
This, this is he — long promised, oft foretold —
Augustus Cæsar. He the Age of Gold,
God-born himself, in Latium shall restore,
And rule the land, that Saturn ruled of old,
And spread afar his empire and his power 937
To Garamantian tribes, and India’s distant shore.
CVI . “Beyond the planets his dominions lie,
Beyond the solar circuit of the year,
Where Atlas bears the starry-spangled sky.
E’en now the realms of Caspia shuddering hear
His coming, made by oracles too clear.
E’en now Mæotia trembles at his tread,
And Nile’s seven mouths are troubled, as in fear
She shrinks reluctant to the deep, such dread 946
Hath seized the wondering world, so far his fame hath spread.
CVII . “So much of earth not Hercules of yore
O’erpassed, though he the brass-hoofed hind laid low,
And forth from Erymanthus drove the boar,
And startled Lerna’s forest with his bow;
Nor he, the Wine-God, who in conquering show,
With vine-wreathed reins, and tigers to his car,
Rides down from Nysa to the plains below.
And doubt we then to celebrate so far 955
Our prowess, and shall fear Ausonian fields debar?
CVIII . “But see, who, crowned with olive wreath, doth bring
The sacred vessels? By his long, grey hair
And grizzled beard I know the Roman King,
Whom Fate from lowly Cures calls to bear
The mighty burden of an empire’s care,
In peace the fabric of our laws to frame.
Now, Tullus comes, new triumphs to prepare,
And wake the folk to arm from idlesse fame, 964
And Ancus courts e’en now the popular acclaim.
CIX . “Would’st thou behold the Tarquins? Yonder stands
Great Brutus, the Avenger, proud to tear
The people’s fasces from the tyrant’s hands.
First Consul, he the dreaded axe shall bear,
The patriot-father, who for freedom fair
Shall call his own rebellious sons to bleed.
O noble soul, but hapless! Howso’er
Succeeding ages shall record the deed. 973
’Tis country’s love prevails, and glory’s quenchless greed.
CX . “Lo, there the Drusi and the Decii stand,
And stern Torquatus with his axe, and lo!
Camilius brings in triumph to his land
The Roman standards, rescued from the foe.
See, too, yon pair, well-matched in equal show
Of radiant arms, and, while obscured in night,
Firm knit in friendly fellowship; but oh!
How dire the feud, what hosts shall arm for fight, 982
What streams of carnage flow, if e’er they reach the light!
CXI . “Here from Monoecus and the Alps descends
The father; there, with Easterns in array,
The daughter’s husband. O my sons! be friends;
Cease from the strife; forbear the unnatural fray,
Nor turn Rome’s prowess to her own decay;
And thou, the foremost of our blood, be first
To fling the arms of civic strife away,
And cease for lawless victories to thirst, 991
Thou of Olympian birth, and sheath the sword, accurst.
CXII . “See who from Corinth doth his march pursue,
Decked with the spoils of many a Grecian foe.
His car shall climb the Capitol. See, too,
The man who lofty Argos shall o’erthrow,
And lay the walls of Agamemnon low,
And great Æacides himself destroy,
Sprung from Achilles, to requite the woe
Wrought on old Ilion, and avenge with joy 1000
Minerva’s outraged fane, and slaughtered sires of Troy.
CXIII . “Shalt thou, great Cato, unextolled remain?
Cossus? the Gracchi? or the Scipios, ye
Twin thunderbolts of battle, and the bane
Of Libya? Who would fail to tell of thee,
Fabricius, potent in thy poverty?
Or thee, Serranus, scattering the seed?
O spare my breath, ye Fabii; thou art he
Cal
led Maximus, their Greatest thou indeed, 1009
Sole saviour, whose delay averts the hour of need.
CXIV . “Others, no doubt, from breathing bronze shall draw
More softness, and a living face devise
From marble, plead their causes at the law
More deftly, trace the motions of the skies
With learned rod, and tell the stars that rise.
Thou, Roman, rule, and o’er the world proclaim
The ways of peace. Be these thy victories,
To spare the vanquished and the proud to tame. 1018
These are imperial arts, and worthy of thy name.”
CXV . He paused; and while they pondered in amaze,
“Behold,” he cried “Marcellus, see him stride,
Proud of the spoils that tell a nation’s praise.
See how he towers, with all a conqueror’s pride.
His arm shall stem the tumult and the tide
Of foreign hordes, and save the land from stain.
’Tis he shall crush the rebel Gaul, and ride
Through Punic ranks, and in Quirinus’ fane 1027
Hang up the thrice-won spoils, in triumph for the slain.”
CXVI . Then thus Æneas spoke, for, passing by,
He saw a comely youth, in bright array
Of glittering arms; yet downcast was his eye,
Joyless and damp his face; “O father, say,
Who companies the hero on his way?
His son? or scion of his stock renowned?
What peerless excellence his looks display!
What stir, what whispers in the crowd around! 1036
But gloomy Night’s sad shades his youthful brows surround.”
CXVII . Weeping, the Sire: “Seek not, my son, to weigh
Thy children’s mighty sorrow. Him shall Fate
Just show to earth, but suffer not to stay.
Too potent Heaven had deemed the Roman state,
Were gifts like this as permanent as great.
Ah! what laments, what groanings of the brave
Shall fill the field of Mars! What funeral state
Shall Tiber see, as past the recent grave 1045
Slowly and sad he winds his melancholy wave!
CXVIII . “No Trojan youth of such illustrious worth
Shall raise the hopes of Latin sires so high.
Ne’er shall the land of Romulus henceforth
Look on a fosterling with prouder eye.
O filial love! O faith of days gone by!
O hand unconquered! None had hoped to bide
Unscathed his onset, nor his arm defy,
When, foot to foot, the murderous sword he plied, 1054
Or dug with iron heel his foaming charger’s side.
CXIX . “Ah! child of tears! can’st thou again be free
And burst Fate’s cruel bondage, Rome shall know
Her own Marcellus, reappeared in thee.
Go, fill your hands with lilies; let me strow
The purple blossoms where he lies below.
These gifts, at least, in sorrow will I lay,
To grace my kinsman’s spirit, thus — but oh!
Alas, how vainly! — to the thankless clay 1063
These unavailing dues, these empty offerings pay.”
CXX . Twain are the gates of Sleep; one framed, ’tis said,
Of horn, which easy exit doth invite
For real shades to issue from the dead.
One with the gleam of polished ivory bright,
Whence only lying visions leave the night.
Through this Anchises, talking by the way,
Sends forth the son and Sibyl to the light.
Back hastes Æneas to his friends, and they 1072
Straight to Caieta steer, and anchor in her bay.
BOOK SEVEN
ARGUMENT
Passing Caieta and Circeii, Æneas sails up the Tiber (1-45). Virgil pauses to enumerate the old rulers of Latium and to describe the state of the country at the coming of Æneas. Latinus is King. Oracles have foretold that by marriage with an alien his only daughter is to become the mother of an imperial line. Fresh signs and wonders enforce the prophecy (46-126). The Trojans eat their tables (127-171). An embassage is sent to the Latin capital, and after conference Latinus offers peace to the Trojans and to Æneas his daughter’s hand (172-342). Juno, the evil genius of Troy, again intervenes and summons to her aid the demon Alecto (343-410), who excites first Amata then Turnus against the proposed peace, and finally (411-576) provokes a pitched battle between Trojans and Latins (577-648). Alecto is scornfully dismissed by Juno, who causes war to be formally declared (649-747). The war-fever in Italy. Catalogue of the leaders and nations that gather to destroy Æneas, chief among them being Turnus and Camilla (748-981).
I . Thou too, Caieta, dying, to our shore,
Æneas’ nurse, hast given a deathless fame,
E’en now thine honour guards it, as of yore,
Still doth thy tomb in great Hesperia frame
Glory — if that be glory — for thy name.
Here good Æneas paid his dues aright,
And raised a mound, and now, as evening came,
Sails forth; the faint winds whisper to the night; 1
Clear shines the Moon, and tips the trembling waves with light.
II . They skirt the coast, where Circe, maiden bright,
The Sun’s rich daughter, wakes with melodies
The groves that none may enter. There each night,
As nimbly through the slender warp she plies
The whistling shuttle, through her chambers rise
The flames of odorous cedar. Thence the roar
Of lions, raging at their chains, the cries
Of bears close-caged, and many a bristly boar, 10
The yells of monstrous wolves at midnight fill the shore.
III . All these with potent herbs the cruel queen
Had stripped of man’s similitude, to wear
A brutal figure, and a bestial mien.
But kindly Neptune, with protecting care,
And loth to see the pious Trojans bear
A doom so vile, such prodigies as these,
Lest, borne perchance into the bay, they near
The baneful shore, fills out with favouring breeze 19
The sails, and speeds their flight across the boiling seas.
IV . Now blushed the deep beneath the dawning ray,
And in her rosy chariot borne on high,
Aurora, bright with saffron, brought the day.
Down drop the winds, the Zephyrs cease to sigh,
And not a breath is stirring in the sky,
And not a ripple on the marble seas,
As heavily the toiling oars they ply.
When near him from the deep Æneas sees 28
A mighty grove outspread, a forest thick with trees.
V . And in the midst of that delightful grove
Fair-flowing Tiber, eddying swift and strong,
Breaks to the main. Around them and above,
Gay-plumaged fowl, that to the stream belong,
And love the channel and the banks to throng,
Now skim the flood, now fly from bough to bough,
And charm the air with their melodious song.
Shoreward Æneas bids them turn the prow, 37
And up the shady stream with joyous hearts they row.
VI . Say, Erato, how Latium fared of yore,
What deeds were wrought, what rulers lived and died,
When strangers landed on Ausonia’s shore,
And trace the rising of the war’s dark tide.
Fierce feuds I sing — O Goddess, be my guide, —
Tyrrhenian hosts, the battle’s armed array,
Proud kings who fought and perished in their pride,
And all Hesperia gathered to the fray, 46
A larger theme unfolds, and loftier is the lay.
VII . Long had Latinus
ruled the peaceful state.
A nymph, Marica, of Laurentian breed,
Bore him to Faunus, who, as tales relate,
Derived through Picus his Saturnian seed.
No son was left Latinus to succeed,
His boy had died ere manhood; one alone
Remained, a daughter, so the Fates decreed,
To mind his palace and to heir his throne 55
Ripe now for marriage rites, to nuptial age full-grown.
VIII . Full many a prince from Latium far and wide,
And all Ausonia had essayed in vain
To win the fair Lavinia for his bride.
Her suitor now, the comeliest of the train,
Was Turnus, sprung from an illustrious strain.
Fair seemed his suit, for kindly was the maid,
And dearly the queen loved him, and was fain
His hopes to further, but the Fates gainsayed, 64
And boding signs from Heaven the purposed match delayed.
IX . Deep in the inmost palace, long rever’d,
There stood an ancient laurel. ’Twas the same
That sire Latinus, when the walls he reared,
Found there, and vowed to Phoebus, and the name
“Laurentines” thence his settlers taught to claim.
Here suddenly — behold a wondrous thing! —
Borne with loud buzzing through the air, down came
A swarm of bees. Around the top they cling, 73
And from a leafy branch in linked clusters swing.
X . “Behold, from yon same quarter,” cried a seer,
“A stranger! see their swarming hosts conspire
To lord it o’er Laurentum; see them near.”
He spake, but lo! while, standing by her sire,
The chaste Lavinia feeds the sacred fire,
The flames, O horror! on her locks lay hold:
Her beauteous head-dress and her rich attire,
Her hair, her coronal of gems and gold 82
Blaze, and the crackling flames her regal robe enfold.
XI . Wrapt, so it seemed, in clouds of smoke, but bright
With yellow flames, through all the house she fled,
Scattering a shower of sparkles. Sore affright
And wonder seized them, as the seer with dread