Poteris.] Pierius found poteras in the Roman and Medicean manufcripts. Burman contends for this reading, which is alfo approved by Heinfius, and feveral other editors. La Cerda, Ruaeus, and many others read poteris, which is allowed alfo by Arufianus.

81. Mitia poma.] Matura, fays Servius, quae non remordent cum mor dentur. But the Poet may mean mild, in oppofition to thofe forts, which are very harfh, and fcarce fit to be eaten. Or perhaps mild apples may be used for fuch as are made mild by culture, to diftinguish them from wildings or crabs.

82. Caftaneae molles.] Servius interprets molles, maturae again; but I do not know, that cheftnuts are foft, when they are ripe. Some will have molles to mean new and fresh; others think the Poet means a particular fort of cheftnuts, which is diftinguished by this epithet from the Caftanea hirfuta. They are faid, by Palladius, to lofe the roughnefs of their hufk, by being ingrafted on an almond;

upon green leaves: we bave mild apples, foft chestnuts, and Plenty of new cheese. And already the chimnies of the vil lages fmoak afar off, and greater fhadows fall from the mountains.

as we find in Pliny, Torrere has in cibis gratius.

Preffi copia latis.] Servius underftands this to mean cheese; Emulti et in cafeum coati. Others think it means only curdled milk, I believe it fignifies curd, from which the milk has been fqueezed out, in order to make cheefe. We find in the third Georgick, that the fhepherds used to carry the curd, as foon as it was preffed, into the towns; or elfe falt it, and fo lay it by for cheese against winter;

"Quod furgente die mulfere, horifque diurnis,

It was therefore analogous to what we call new cheese.

83. Et jam fumma procul, &c.] This defcription of an evening in the country is very natural, and full of paftoral fimplicity. The fmoaking of the cottage chimnies fhews, that the labourers have left off their work, and are preparing their fup pers. The lengthening of the fha dows, that fall from the neighbour ing hills is entirely rural, and de fcribes an artlefs manner of meat furing time, fuitable to the inno cence of paftoral poetry.

C 2

OGA

ECLOGA

1. Formofum paftor, &c.] In this Eclogue the Poet defcribes the paffion of a fhepherd for a beautiful boy, with whom he is greatly in love. The inclinations to this unnatural vice were long before Virgil's time fpread over great part of the world, and may be looked upon as one of the greatest abominations of the Heathen, there being several inftances of the wrath of God being peculiarly inflicted on fuch as were addicted to it. However, it would be as unjust to cenfure Virgil particularly for having mentioned this crime without a mark of deteftation, as to condemn him for his idolatry, than which nothing is more abominable in the fight of God. It would be very easy to excufe our Poet, by fhewing the frequent mention of this vice by many of the moft efteemed Greek and Roman writers, whofe very deities were fuppofed to be guilty of it; but I do not chufe to ftain thefe papers with the repetition of fuch horrid impurities, and could rather with it was poffible to bury them in oblivion. Some indeed have ventured to affirm, that this whole Eclogue is nothing but a warm defcription of a pure friendship: but I fear an

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im

partial reader will be foon convinced, that many of the expreffions are too warm to admit of any fuch interpretation. This however may be faid in Virgil's commendation, that he keeps up to his character of modefty, by not giving way to any lafcivious or indecent words, which few of his contemporaries could know how to avoid even in treating of lefs criminal fubjects. The first five lines are a narration of Corydon's paffion;, in which the Poet plainly imitates the beginning of the 'Epaoln's of Theocritus;

̓Ανήρ τις πολύφιλος απηνέος ἤρατ' ἐφάβω

Τἂν μορφὼν ἀγαθῷ, τὸν δὲ τρόπον οὐκ

Μίσει τὸν φιλέοντα, καὶ οὐδὲ ἕν ἄμορον

Corydon.]

Corydon.] The Commentators are unanimous 'almoft, in fuppofing that Virgil means himself under the feigned name of Corydon. They feem perfuaded, that he was always thinking of himself; and continually defcribing his own business, and his own follies in thefe Bucolicks. In fhort, they make a meer Proteus of him, varying his fhape in almost every Eclogue. In the firft he was Tityrus, old, poor, and a fervant; but here, under the name of Corydon, he is young, handfome, and rich. There he cultivated only a few barren acres, half covered with ftones and rufhes, on the banks of Mincius: here he is poffeffed of fine paftures, and has a thousand lambs feeding on the mountains of Sicily. These are fuch inconfiftencies, that I wonder any one can imagine, that Virgil is both Tityrus and Corydon. For my own part, I believe he is neither; at least, not Corydon, there being fome room to imagine, that he might mean himself under the name of Tityrus, a fhepherd near Mantua, and an adorer of Auguftus. It seems moft probable, that the perfon of Corydon is as fictitious as the name.

Ardebat.] This verb is used alfo by Horace in an active sense;

the delight of his lord; and bed no room for bope.

It is allowed by the Criticks to be the ftrongeft word that can be used, to exprefs the moft extreme paffion. Therefore it does not feem to fuit with the purity of a difinterested friendship.

Alexim.] The Commentators are not fo well agreed about the perfon of Alexis, as they are about that of Corydon. Servius feems to think it was Auguftus, "Caefar Alexis in

perfona inducitur." Surely nothing can be more abfurd, than to imagine that Virgil, who in the first Eclogue had erected altars to Auguftus, fhould now degrade him to a fhepherd's boy; delicias Domini, and afterwards O formofe puer. Would the Poet have dared to call Auguftus a boy, the very term of reproach used by his enemies, which Servius himself tells us was forbidden by a decree of the Senate, as we have feen already in the note on ver. 43. of the firft Eclogue? Not much lefs ridiculous is the imagination of Joannes Lodovicus Vives, that Alexis is Gallus, whom at the fame time he allows to have been appointed by Auguftus, to command over armies and provinces. Virgil would not have treated fo great a perfon with fuch familiarity. In the tenth Eclogue indeed, where he celebrates an amour of Gallus, he reprefents him under the character of a shepherd; but not without making an apology for that liberty.

wain to the mountains and woods.

"Et formofus oves ad flumina pa"vit Adonis."

Servius mentions feveral other opinions concerning the real perfon of Alexis. He mentions one Alexander, a fervant of Pollio. It is pretended, that Virgil, being invited to dine with his master, took notice of his extraordinary beauty, and fell in love with him; upon which Pollio made a present of him to the Poet. Others think he was Caefar's boy, and that his master delighted in hearing him praifed. Servius mentions another opinion, that the name of Pollio's boy, whọ was given to Virgil, was Corydon. He concludes with faying, that Alexis was a proud boy, but greatly in favour with Pollio, to whom Virgil made his court by praifing his beloved fiave. Apuleius alfo affirms that Alexis was a feigned name for a boy belonging to Pollio; but Martial feems to have taken him for a favourite of Mecaenas ; "Sint Maecenates, non deerunt, Flacce, Marones, "Virgiliumque tibi vel tua rura dabunt.

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5

"Accipe divitias, et vatum maximus efto:

"Tu licet et noftrum, dixit, "Alexin ames.

"Adftabat domini menfis pulcherrimus ille,

"Marmorea fundens nigra falerna manu;

Et libata dabat rofeis carchefia labris,

"Quae poterant ipfum follicitare fovem.

"Excidit attonito pinguis Galatea poetae,

"Theftylis et rubras, meffibus "ufta genas.

"Protinus Italiam concepit, et arma virumque

"Qui modo vix culicem fleverat 66 ore rudi."

And in another epigram, we find

Et Maecenati Maro cum canta

"ret Alexim, "Nota tamen Marfi fufca Me-. "laenis erat,"

6. O crudelis Alexi, &c.] Corydon expatiates on the cruelty of Alexis, and reprefents the violence of his own paffion, by telling him, that even in the heat of the day, when all animals feek to repose themselves, and the weary reapers retire under the fhade to eat their dinners, he alone neglects his ease, pursuing the steps of his beloved.

7. Coges.] La Cerda reads cogis in the present tenfe, which he thinks more expreffive than the future: but the best authority feems to be for

coges, as Pierius found it in the Roman manufcript. The fame reading is admitted alfo by Heinfius, Ruaeus, and others.

8. Nunc etiam pecudes umbras et frigora captant.] In the warmer

O cruel Alexis, bave you ne regard for my fong? have you no compaffion for me? will you at length compel me to die? Even now the sheep enjoy the cool fhade: even now the bushes IO conceal the green lizards and Theftylis pounds garlick and wild thyme,

climates, the fhepherds are obliged to fhelter their flocks from the heat in the middle of the day, under rocks or fpreading trees. This is confe-. quently the moft convenient time for them to refresh themfelves with food and reft. See the note on ver. 331. of the third Georgick.

9. Virides .... lacertos.] The green lizard is very common in Italy, and is faid to be found alfo in Ireland. It is larger than our common eft or swift. This animal is mentioned by Theocritus, in his Θαλύσια, as marking the time of noon by fleeping in the hedges;

Πᾶ δὴ τὸ μεσαμέριον πόδας ἔλκεις, Ανίκα δὴ καὶ σαῦρος ἐφ ̓ αιμασιαῖσι καθεύδει.