THE METAMORPHOSES OF PUBLIUS OVIDIUS NASO
THE METAMORPHOSES OF PUBLIUS OVIDIUS NASO
THE METAMORPHOSES OF PUBLIUS OVIDIUS NASO
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298 P. OVIDII N ASONIS LIBER IV.<br />
IIIic immeritam maternoe pendere linguae<br />
Andromedam poeuas injustus jusserat Ammon.<br />
Q,uam simul ad duras religatam brach'a cautes<br />
Vidit Abantiades ; nisi quod levis aura capillos<br />
Moverat, et trepido manabant lumina fletu;<br />
Marmoreum ratus esset opus. Trahit inscius ignes;<br />
Et stupet; et, visas correptus imagine formas,<br />
Pene suas quatere est oblitus in aere pennas.<br />
Ut stetit, O, dixit, non istis digna catenis,<br />
Sed quibus inter se cupidi junguntur amantes:<br />
Pande requirenti nomen terraeque tuumque ;<br />
Et cur vincla geras. Primo silet ilia, nee audet<br />
Adspcctare virum virgo; manibusque modestos<br />
Celasset vultus, si non religata fuisset.<br />
Lumina, quod potuit, lacrymis implevit obortis.<br />
Saepius instanti, sua ne delicta fateri<br />
Nolle videretur, nomen terreeque suumque,<br />
Quantaque maternas fuerit fiducia formae,<br />
Indicat; et, nondum memoratis omnibus, unda<br />
8. MaterntB lingua!. Cnssiope, the mo<br />
ther of Andromeda, had boasted that she<br />
was fairer than the Nereids; wherefore,<br />
they sent a sea-monster to ravage the coast<br />
of Ethiopia.<br />
9. Amman. A name of Jupiter, who was<br />
worshipped in Libya under this appellation,<br />
which signifies sandy. While traversing<br />
these sandy deserts, Bacchus and liis army<br />
suffered much from thirst, when Jupiier<br />
appeared in the form of a ram, nnd showed<br />
them a fountain of water. Hence, Bac<br />
chus built a temple in the place to his fa<br />
ther, whom he designated Jupiier Ammon,<br />
and placed in the temple the image of that<br />
god with the head of a ram. The ruins of<br />
the temple are still seen in the Oasis of<br />
Siwah.<br />
No more the Augur stands in snowy shroud,<br />
To \vntch each ni tin vt in and roiling cloud;<br />
Nor superstition ill dim twt ight weaves<br />
.Her wizard song among Dodona'9 leaves;<br />
Phcebus is dumb, and votaries crowd no<br />
more<br />
The Delphian mountain nnd the Deliaa shore;<br />
Aud lone, and still, tl e Lib in Ammon stands,<br />
His utterance stifled by the desert sands.<br />
N. C. BROOKS.<br />
10. Quam vidit. Perseus sow Androm<br />
eda bound to a rock.<br />
He saw upon the golden sand<br />
Of thi1 sea-shore, a rnniden stand,<br />
Before whose feet the expiring; wavta<br />
Flung their last tribute with a sigh—<br />
As, in the Kast, exhausted slaves<br />
Lay down the tar-brought gift, and die.— MOOKE.<br />
With agoniz ng nir,<br />
In all the desolation of despair,<br />
She fitood; her lianda to heaven uplift and claspt.<br />
MONTGOMERY.<br />
NOTJE.<br />
10<br />
15<br />
18. Fande mitu re<br />
quirenti nomenque<br />
tuum, terreeque, et<br />
OA cur geras vincla<br />
25<br />
13. Marmoreum opus: n work of mar<br />
ble ; a statue.<br />
18. Nomen terras: the name of your<br />
country.<br />
20. Adspectare. I have substituted this<br />
word for appellare, which is properly the<br />
reading; for appellare signifies to accost;<br />
whereas, if the virgin spoke, it would have<br />
been in reply. Besides, we are just told<br />
she is silent, silet. What an interest is<br />
given by the poet. She is not only silent,<br />
but through modesty cannot even look<br />
upon Perseus. Lucian specially refers to<br />
the modesty of Andromeda, as represent<br />
ed in a picture which he saw:<br />
On the right hand «» you enter the hall, a<br />
lr=nsaclion r pre nl d hi h t le Grecian<br />
and E nopian ustone 1 y qual claim i.—Per<br />
seus, when returning from In_ Bie ht against the<br />
Gorgon?, kills the sea-roonsler by the way, sets<br />
Andromeda free, and soon after marries and<br />
takes her along with him to Argos Remark<br />
how much 'h= -ti"t h— here e~l ibiled 'n small<br />
space. Sham and fa re b aut fully ex<br />
pressed in the attitude of the virgin, a. she looks<br />
down from the rock to observe the youthful hero<br />
engaged in fight for love of her, and how diffi<br />
cult it proves to him to subdue the monster,<br />
making up to him with h's impenetrate -cales,<br />
prickly points, and wid apm jaw P r us<br />
with his left hand holds before him the head of<br />
Medusa, wbile he makes a powerful stroke at<br />
him wiih the sword in his right; already the<br />
monster is turned into stone on the side thai he<br />
had turned toward the Gorgon whilst th~ other<br />
3 et show igns of life 1 y t le b ood 1 1 ush s<br />
from the wound n had received from Hie cimelar<br />
of the hero.—ENCOMIUM ON A MAGNIFICENT HALL.<br />
23. Sua ne delifta. Lest Persous mav<br />
think she is confined there on account at<br />
her own crimes, she gives him the relation<br />
of her mother's presumption, and the pe<br />
nalty wh ch was inflicted.<br />
FABTJLA VII.<br />
METAMORPHOSED N.<br />
Insonuit; veniensque immense bellua ponto<br />
Eminet; et latuin sub pectore possidet aequor.<br />
Conclamat virgo: genitor lugubris, et amens<br />
Mater adest; ambo miseri, sed justius ilia ; 30<br />
Nee secum auxilium, sed dignos tempore fietus,<br />
Plangoremque ferunt; vinctoque in corpore adhaerent.<br />
Cum sic hospes ait: Lacrvmarum Jonpa manere<br />
Tempora vos poterunt; ad opem brevis hora lerendam est. pore.<br />
Hanc ego si peterem, Perseus Jove natus et ilia, 35<br />
Quam clausam implevit foecundo Jupiter auro,<br />
Gorgonis anguicomae Perseus superator, et alis<br />
./Ethercas ausus jactatis ire per auras :<br />
Praeferrer cunctis certe gener. Addere tantis<br />
Dotibus et meritum, faveant modo numina, tento : 40<br />
Ut mea sit, servata mea virtute, paciscor.<br />
Accipiunt legem, quis enim dubitaret ? et orant,<br />
1* I'LfJ ItiJMJ'<br />
Promittuntque super regnum dotale, parentes.<br />
Ecce ! velut navis, prsefixo concita rostro,<br />
Sulcat aquas, juvenum sudantibus acta lacertis : 45<br />
Sic fera, dimotis impulsu pectoris undis,<br />
Tantum aberat scopulis, quantum Balearica torto<br />
Funda potest plumbo medii transmittere coeli:<br />
Cum subitfi, juvenis, pedibus tellure repulsa,<br />
Arduus in nubes abiit: ut in asquore summo 50<br />
Umbra viri visa est, visam fera ssvit in umbram.<br />
30. Justius ilia. The mother is said to<br />
be more deservedly miserable, because she<br />
had been the occasion of the exposure of<br />
her daughter to the monster.<br />
34. Brevis hora; the time is short. As<br />
the monster is fast advancing, on account<br />
of the shortness of the time and the urgen<br />
cy of the occasion, Perseus briefly recounts<br />
his origin and exploits.<br />
35. Jlanc si peterem : if I ask her in<br />
marriage.<br />
35. Ilia. Danae, the daughter of Acri-<br />
sius.<br />
36. Quam clausam: whom shut up.<br />
Hence Horace:<br />
Inclusam Danagn turris aheiiea;<br />
RolmstiECjue fores, et yigilum ennum<br />
Trisies exculiiiB. inuuierant satis<br />
Noclurnis ak ululteris.—LIB. iii. Od. xvi.<br />
36. Fcecundo auro: with fecundating<br />
gold. So Horace:<br />
Ciistodem pavidnm Jupiter ct Venus<br />
Ruussenl: fore enim tutum iter et patens<br />
Converse in prelinm deo.—LIB. iii. Od. xvi.<br />
41. Paciscor : I stipulate.<br />
44. Vdut navis. This simile is lively<br />
and expressive. It presents a clear idea<br />
of the size and force of the monster.<br />
47. Torto plumbo: with leaden ball<br />
whirled round.<br />
50. Arduus in nubes aliit; mounts up<br />
Vito the air. This appears to have been<br />
NOT^E.<br />
299<br />
31. Nee feruni auz<br />
ilium iecum, ecd plan-<br />
gorem, fletusque dig<br />
nos lempore; adhre-<br />
rentque in vincto cor<br />
4-1. Ecce velut na<br />
vis conciiii, acta su-<br />
danlibiifi lacertis ju-<br />
venum, sulcat aquai<br />
pnEfi-xo rostro<br />
copied by Spenser, in the fight with tbo<br />
dragon:<br />
Then with his waving winp" di~played wide,<br />
Himsc'f upright lie "i ed f om ll ground,<br />
And wit i trong fli ht d_d forcibly divide<br />
The yielding air, which nigli too feeble found<br />
Her flitting pans and elements unsound,<br />
To bear so great a weight.—FAERIE QUEENE.<br />
51. Viri. Of Perseus. We give a de<br />
scription of the destruction of the monster<br />
by Perseus, which we wrote as a cchool<br />
exercise. As it was inspired by the text,<br />
it may not be altogether inappropriate,<br />
though a juvenile production:<br />
Entranced in wo, fair Cassiope's child,<br />
The victim of a mother's wanton hoast,<br />
Beheld the rugged crags that reared their wild<br />
And threatening heads above the stormy coast<br />
And as she gazed upon the sea before,<br />
In mockery t ough her bosom stole n host<br />
Of pie ant n emories, while with angry roar<br />
The death-denouncing waves broke on the roclcy<br />
shore.<br />
The ample treasure of her raven locks<br />
In darksome beauty streaming on ihe wind,<br />
Upon a pedestal of blackened rocks<br />
Like Parian statue stood the maid, confined<br />
By chains which marred the tender wrists ther<br />
bound:<br />
The thoughts of home came thronging on her<br />
mind,—<br />
Her bosom heaved, her eyes in tears were<br />
drownedf<br />
And grief burst from her lips in sorrow's plain<br />
tive sound.