5. Doris.] The daughter of Oceanus and Tethys. She was married to her brother Nereus, by whom the became mother of the fea Nymphs, who, from their father, are called Nereids. Doris is here used for the fea itself. She is called amara, because the fea water is bitter. 6. Incipe: follicitos, &c.] The Poet now proposes the subject of his Eclogue; the love of Gallus. Sollicitos. Thus Ovid; 5 when thou glideft beneath the Sicilian waves. Begin let us fing the anxious loves of Gallus, whilft the fnub-nofed kids crop the tender twigs. We do not fing to the deaf, the woods refound our voice. What woods or lawns detained you, Lycoris will not hearken, yet the fong will be repeated by Echo in the woods. Thus Pope, in his fecond Paftoral; "Ye fhady beeches, and ye cooling ❝ftreams, "Defence from Phoebus, not from έσι Cupid's beams, "To you I mourn, nor to the deaf I fing, 24 "The woods fhall anfwer, and their "echo ring. The hills and rocks attend my "doleful lay "Why art thou prouder, and more "hard than they? 9. Quae nemora, &c.] The Poet turns his difcourfe to the Naiads, who neglected Gallus in his diftrefs, when even the trees and shrubs, and inanimated mountains and rocks Res eft folliciti plena timoris condoled with him. 66 amor." This paffage is an imitation of one in the upris of Theocritus; Πα ποκ' ἄρ ̓ ἦθ ̓ ὅκα Δάφνις ἐτάκειο ; τα ποκα Νύμφαι; Η κατὰ Πηνειῶ καλά Τέμπεα, ἤ Οὐ γὰρ δὴ ποταμοῖο μέγαν ρόον εἶχει Οὐδ ̓ Αἴτνας σκοπιάν, οὐδ' *Ακεδος ἶε A a O Naiad Nymphs, when Gal- Naiades, indigno cum Gallus amore periret? NOTES. Τῆνον μαν θῶες, τῆνον λύκοι ὠρυσανίο, θανόντα. "For him the wolves, the pards "and tygers moan'd; "For him with frightful grief the "lions groan'd. CREECH. Milton, in his Monody on the death "Where were ye Nymphs, when For neither were ye playing on Nor yet where Deva spreads her Pope allo has imitated this beautiful paflage, in his fecond Paftoral ; "Where ftray, ye Mufes, in what "lawn or grove, "While your Alexis pines in hope"lefs love? "In those fair fields where facred "Ifis glides, "Or elfe where Cam his winding vales divides?" "The Poet fpeaks to the Naiads, "or Nymphs, who prefide over "the fountains, which rife in Par"naffus, Pindus, and Helicon, and "chides them for not coming to "comfort Gallus in his defpair. "Here is also a tacit reproof given "to Gallus himfelf, for yielding to "love, and neglecting his poëtical "ftudies." RUAEUS. Saltus.] See the note on ver. 471. of the fecond Georgick. 10. Indigno.] It fignifies great or cruel: thus our Poet has indignas hyemes in the second Georgick. Periret.] Pierius found peribat in the Roman manufcript, and periret in the Lombard. 11. Parnaffi.] A mountain of Phocis, facred to Apollo and the Muses. See the note on ver. 291. of the third Georgick. Pindi.] "A mountain on the "confines of Macedonia, Epirus, "and Theffaly; whence it is e"qually afcribed to thefe three regions. Some fay, that it reaches 66 even certain, that these four moun"tains, though they are extended "to a very great distance, are "nevertheless almost contiguous, "and are all facred to the Muses." RUAEUS. 12. Aonia Aganippe.] "A foun"tain of Boeotia, facred to the "Muses, rifing in the mountain "Helicon, not far from Thebes, and running down to the river "Permeffus. Aonian, that is Boe"otian, from Aon the fon of Nep"tune. Observe in this place the "opening of the vowels Aonia Aga"nippe." RUAEUS. Some read Aoniae Aganippe, others Aoniae Aganippes, and others Aoniae Aganippae: but it is plain, that Servius read Aonia Aganippe; for he lays "Nominitivi funt fingulares. 13. Illum etiam lauri, &c.] This is a strong expreffion of the Poet's aftonishment at the neglect which the Nymphs fhewed of the diftrefsof Gallus. He infinuates a furprize, that the Nymphs, who inhabited the hills and fountains facred to Apollo and the Muses, should flight fo excellent a Poet, when even the woods and rocks lamented his misfortunes. Theocritus fpeaks of the brute beats mourning for Daphnis: but Virgil extends the grief for Gallus to the trees, and even to the inanimated ftones. Heinfius would have this line run thus "Illum etiam lauri, etiam flevere "myricae," without the fecond illum, as it is found in feveral manufcripts. Pierius obferved this reading in the Roman manufcript: but in the Lombard, he found the illum repeated, and thinks the triple mention of illum etiam in these two verfes expreffes the paffion with greater ve→ hemence. He does not however diflike the other reading; and thinks the exility of it adapted to the paftoral character, and miserable state of a deploring perfon. Lauri.] See the note on ver.. 306. of the first Georgick. Myricae.] See the note on ver. 2. of the fecond Eclogue. La Cerda has obferved, that the tamarisk, as well as the bay, was facred to Apollo. 15. Maenalus. See the note on ver. 22. of the eighth Eclogue. Lycaei.] See the note on ver. 2. of the third Georgick. 1 The reader will obferve the great propriety of thefe verfes. Gallus is lamented by the bays and tamarisks, A a 2 two The sheep alfo fand round Stant et oves circum: noftri nec poenitet illas : bim: I am not ashamed of them: NOTES.. "fhepherd." He adds, that Vir- not defpife either thee or me: "either thee bewailing thy own "paffion, or me celebrating it. "2. Becaufe Adonis also, who was "beautiful, and beloved by Venus, two trees facred to Apollo, the god of verfe; and by Maenalus and Lycaeus, two mountains of Arcadia, facred to Pan, the god of fhepherds, and inventor of the rural pipe. Some have injudiciously cenfured Virgil, for defcending to speak of hills and rocks, after he had mentioned trees. It is true, that trees are above ftones, in the scale of nature: but however it is very evident, that the Poet does not fall, but rife in his expreffion. Trees are allowed by the philofophers to have a fort of life, which is called vegetative: but ftones are faid to be inanimated. It is therefore more marvellous, to afcribe fenfe to ftones than to trees., Not only the bays and tamarisks mourn for Gallus, but even the woody mountain Maenalus; and not only that woody mountain, but even the bleak rocks of Lycaeus. Thus the greatest wonder is plainly referved for the laft. Catrou has neglected the epithet gelidi here: but all our tranflators have carefully preferved it. 16. Stant et oves, &c.] Virgilluy, et ont pris part à fon afflictinow represents Gallus as a fhepon. Divin poëte ne mefprife herd, and makes an apology to that "point les larmes des troupeaux; eminent perfon, for defcribing him "le bel Adonis luy-mefme les a under that character. "bien gardez le long des rivieres.” Ruaeus renders it literally, neque contemnunt nos. W. L. gives a different fenfe, to the whole, paffage, By the flocks ftanding round Gallus, he understands the Bucolicks, which he himself made. By noftri nec poenitet illas, he takes Virgil to mean, that he himself had treated this kind There seems to be fome difficulty in understanding the true meaning of this paffage. Servius fays the fenfe is this; As the fheep, O "Gallus, are not ashamed to ftand "round thee, fo neither do thou be afhamed of them; for even "Adonis himself was formerly a was a feeder of sheep." De Marolles feems to understand noftri nec poenitet illas to mean, that the fheep partook with him in his distress ; "Les 66 brebis fe font amaffées autour de of Nec te poeniteat pecoris, divine poeta. NOTES. of poetry in such a manner, that it need not be ashamed to have fallen into his hands, in which fenfe Vives alfo takes it. He rightly interprets nec te poeniteat, &c. to mean, that though Gallus was fo excellent a poet, that he might even be called divine, yet he need not be ashamed to be accounted a Bucolic poet. Accordingly his tranflation is as follows; "And all the flocks about him "Ne ever they of mee neede them "ftreame, The Earl of Rofcommon, in his tranflation, leaves out the words in question; "The fheep around him ftand, "while the bleft bard, "Nor fcorns, nor is afham'd to be “their ward; "Since on the river banks the beau 66 teous boy nor do thou be afpamed of cat-~ tle, O divine poet. "Them, heav'nly poet, blush not "thou to own; "Ev'n fair Adonis, did not fcorn 66 to tend "Along the river's fide, his fleecy "charge." Catrou follows the fame interpretation; "Ses brebis attriftées étoient 66 autour de lui; car enfin elles pren➡ "nent part à nos afflictions. N'ayez "donc pas de honte, tout Poëte "illuftre que vous êtes, de vous "voir travesti en Berger. Adonis "luy-même ne dédaigna pas de con"duire un troupeau. Burman declares himself to be of the fame opinion, in the following note on this paffage; "The Scholiaft on "Horace Lib. 1. Od. 28. will "have this to be an Hypallage, for "nos illarum non poenitet: but I am "Adonis kept his bleating flocks "not of his opinion; and take the "with joy:" as does Dryden alfo ; "fenfe to be, they are contented "with us fhepherds, and do not "defire any other. Thus Terence, "Phorm. Í. iv. 20. Noftri nofmet fhep-"poenitet, and the common expreffion fuae quemque fortunae "poenitet, which Horace, I. Sat. 1. "expreffes by neminem contentum A a 3 The fheep furround their ' ₹ " vivere |