D. IVNI IVVENALIS SATVRA I
Decimus Junius Juvenalis [Juvenal]
1st-2nd c. AD
Trans RMBullard
Latin (Imperial Era)
Semper ego auditor tantum?
[Should I also be only a 'listener'?]
numquamne reponam
uexatus totiens rauci Theseide Cordi?
[Can I never respond even when I am pestered by noisy Cordus' Theseid?]
inpune ergo mihi recitauerit ille togatas,
hic elegos?
[OK, will a fellow over here be able to perform his Roman plays, and another over there his elegies with no chance to be punishment?]
inpune diem consumpserit ingens
Telephus aut summi plena iam margine libri 5
scriptus et in tergo necdum finitus Orestes?
[Will the story of giant Telephus have taken the entire day, or the story of Orestes, one already written the entire margin of a largest book you could find, and not even finished on the book's back, with no chance of punishment?]
nota magis nulli domus est sua quam mihi lucus
Martis et Aeoliis uicinum rupibus antrum
Vulcani;
[No one's house is more known to me than the grove of Mars and Vulcan's cave that lies near by Aeolios' rocks;]
quid agant uenti,
[What might the winds do?]
quas torqueat umbras
Aeacus,
[what are the shadows that Aeacos torments?]
unde alius furtiuae deuehat aurum 10
pelliculae,
[from whence can another man carry off the gold treasure of the secret bit of hide?]
quantas iaculetur Monychus ornos,
[How many grand trees were felled by Monychos?]
Frontonis platani conuolsaque marmora clamant
semper et adsiduo ruptae lectore columnae.
[Ever and always do the plane trees and shattered marble of Fronto blurt out, and his colonnade broken by the constant readings.]
expectes eadem a summo minimoque poeta.
[You can expect the very same songs from the best and worst poet.]
et nos ergo manum ferulae subduximus,
[and, for our part, I thusly submitted my hand to the teacher's rod]
et nos 15
consilium dedimus Sullae,
[and I myself "gave legal counsel" to Sulla]
priuatus ut altum
dormiret.
[I advised that he sleep late as a private citizen.]
stulta est clementia,
[Mercy is stupid]
cum tot ubique
uatibus occurras,
[when so often you run into bards everywhere]
periturae parcere chartae.
[and you save paper that will go to waste.]
cur tamen hoc potius libeat decurrere campo,
[And in any event, why might it be more pleasing to dash down the field,]
per quem magnus equos Auruncae flexit alumnus, 20
[through which the great nursling of Aurunca steered his horses]
si uacat ac placidi rationem admittitis, edam.
[if it means nothing, and you peacefully accept a reason, I shall give it.]
cum tener uxorem ducat spado,
[when a soft-skinned eunuch can take a wife]
Meuia Tuscum
figat aprum
[and Mevia can stick a Tuscan boar through]
et nuda teneat uenabula mamma,
[and hold hunting gear at the side of her naked breast]
patricios omnis opibus cum prouocet unus
[and when a single man can gain possession of estates over all of his family members]
quo tondente grauis iuueni mihi barba sonabat, 25
[from the very same chap did my grim beard yell out in pain, when I was a young man]
cum pars Niliacae plebis,
[when a member of the Nile's common folk]
cum uerna Canopi
Crispinus Tyrias umero reuocante lacernas
uentilet aestiuum digitis sudantibus aurum
[when a common house slave from Canopus, Crispinus can blow the summery gold upon his sweaty fingers, his shoulder looking like the robes worn in Tyre]
nec sufferre queat maioris pondera gemmae,
[and he cannot possible endure the weight of a heavier gemstone,]
difficile est saturam non scribere.
[it is not difficult for me write my satire.]
nam quis iniquae 30
tam patiens urbis, tam ferreus,
[You see, who might be so tolerant of a wicked city, who is so iron-willed]
ut teneat se,
[that he can contain himself]
causidici noua cum ueniat lectica Mathonis
plena ipso,
[When a new litter comes, filled by Matho the Pettifogger all by himself,]
post hunc magni delator amici
et cito rapturus de nobilitate comesa
quod superest,
[after this fellow, the Snitch of an important associate, and a man quickly about to steal away whatever is left from a gnawed-out class of nobles]
quem Massa timet, quem munere 35
palpat Carus et a trepido Thymele summissa Latino;
[he's a man whom Massa fears, a man whom Carus flatters with a high position, and for whom Thymela was placed beneath nervous Latinus;]
cum te summoueant qui testamenta merentur
noctibus,
[When there are men who move you out of the way by earning wills by night,]
in caelum quos euehit optima summi
nunc uia processus,
[men whom the very best road of the greatest procession carries up to heaven,]
uetulae uesica beatae?
[the bladders of some rich old sugar-mama?]
unciolam Proculeius habet,
[Proculeius holds an eleventh of the estate,]
sed Gillo deuncem, 40
[but Gillo, a twelfth]
partes quisque suas ad mensuram inguinis heres.
[each man owns his own share as heir through the measure of their privates.]
accipiat sane mercedem sanguinis
[Let him indeed accept the price of blood]
et sic
palleat
[and so let him grow pale]
ut nudis pressit qui calcibus anguem
[like a man who just stepped his bare feet upon a snake]
aut Lugudunensem rhetor dicturus ad aram.
[or a speaker about to orate before an altar in Lyons.]
quid referam quanta siccum iecur ardeat ira, 45
[Why should I care to recall how much anger can inflame a dry liver,]
cum populum gregibus comitum premit hic spoliator
pupilli prostantis et hic damnatus inani
iudicio?
[when over here a plunderer of a prostituted youth crowds the people with flocks of his associates, and over there a man has been condemned by a predetermined sentence?]
quid enim saluis infamia nummis?
[You see, what good comes with a bad reputation even when your money saves you?]
exul ab octaua Marius bibit
[Marius the Exile drinks from an eighth his share]
et fruitur dis
iratis,
[and takes advantage of angry gods]
at tu uictrix, prouincia, ploras. 50
[but it is you, victorious province, who weep.]
haec ego non credam Venusina digna lucerna?
[Shall I, for my part, not believe these topics to be worthy of Venusian's lamp?]
haec ego non agitem?
[Shall I, for my sake, not stir them up?]
sed quid magis?
[but what more is there?]
Heracleas
aut Diomedeas aut mugitum labyrinthi
et mare percussum puero fabrumque uolantem,
[why talk about Hercules, or Diomedes, or lowing of the labyrinth, or the sea crashed through by a lad, or a blacksmith flying about,]
cum leno accipiat moechi bona,
[when a pimp can confiscate the assets of a whoremonger]
si capiendi 55
ius nullum uxori, doctus spectare lacunar,
doctus et ad calicem uigilanti stertere naso;
[if there is no law governing taking a wife, for a man well-trained in staring at the ceiling, and well-learned in snoring face down in his wine bowl from his nose that never sleeps;]
cum fas esse putet curam sperare cohortis
[When one can think it appropriate to hope of care from his entourage]
qui bona donauit praesepibus
[while he gave gifts to stables]
et caret omni
maiorum censu,
[and lacks all concordance with his forefathers,]
dum peruolat axe citato 60
Flaminiam puer Automedon?
[while a mere boy, an Automedon, flies along the Flaminian Way upon his fast chariot?]
nam lora tenebat
ipse,
[you see, he himself used to hold the chords,]
lacernatae cum se iactaret amicae.
[whenever he would hurl himself to his cloak-wearing girlfriend.]
nonne libet medio ceras inplere capaces
quadriuio,
[And does it please you to line up wax portraits of competent men in the middle of the crossroads,]
cum iam sexta ceruice feratur
hinc atque inde patens ac nuda paene cathedra 65
[when nowadays, here and there, a chair, blatant and almost made of raw wood, is borne by a team of six necks]
et multum referens de Maecenate supino
signator falsi,
[and the fraudulent trustee is recalling a great deal about Maecenas in recline]
qui se lautum atque beatum
exiguis tabulis et gemma fecerit uda?
[this being a man who made himself praiseworthy and blessed through shoddy records, and a moist gem?]
occurrit matrona potens,
[His powerful matron meets him along the way,]
quae molle Calenum
porrectura uiro miscet sitiente rubetam 70
[she's a woman fit to stretch out a cup of smooth Calenian wine to her parched husband, as she mixes in toad poison,]
instituitque rudes melior Lucusta propinquas
per famam et populum nigros efferre maritos.
[and a modern day Locusta teaches her unsavvy neighbors how to take out their charred spouses through rumor, and agent.]
aude aliquid breuibus Gyaris et carcere dignum,
[try to do something worthy of the short-lived Giants, worthy of jail too]
si uis esse aliquid.
[if you want to be a somebody.]
probitas laudatur et alget;
[goodness gets praise, and freezes its ass off.]
criminibus debent hortos, praetoria, mensas, 75
argentum uetus et stantem extrapocula caprum.
[People owe their gardens, their estates, their tables, their aged silver and cups with reliefs of goats, to their crimes.]
quem patitur dormire nurus corruptor auarae,
[who can allow embezzler to sleep with his greedy nursemaid,]
quem sponsae turpes et praetextatus adulter?
[to be corrupted by foul promises, and an adulterer cloaked in a prestigious garb?]
si natura negat,
[If one's natural instincts refuse,]
facit indignatio uersum
qualemcumque potest, quales ego uel Cluuienus. 80
[sheer indignation forces poetry out, whatever type one can manage, whether it is I myself or Cluvienus.]
ex quo Deucalion nimbis tollentibus aequor
nauigio montem ascendit sortesque poposcit
[From what place Deucalion climbed the mount upon his ship through rainstorms that raised the level of the sea, and then requested to know his destiny]
paulatimque anima caluerunt mollia saxa
[and how gradually stones grew hot with tender spirit,]
et maribus nudas ostendit Pyrrha puellas,
[and how Pyrrha shows newly naked maidens to their husbands,]
quidquid agunt homines, uotum, timor, ira, uoluptas, 85
gaudia, discursus, nostri farrago libelli est.
[whatever things men do, their prayers, their fear, their anger, their desire, their joys, their conversations will be the fodder of my little work.]
et quando uberior uitiorum copia?
[and when will the quantity of vices be more fertile?]
causidici noua cum ueniat lectica Mathonis
plena ipso,
[When a new litter comes, filled by Matho the Pettifogger all by himself,]
post hunc magni delator amici
et cito rapturus de nobilitate comesa
quod superest,
[after this fellow, the Snitch of an important associate, and a man quickly about to steal away whatever is left from a gnawed-out class of nobles]
quem Massa timet, quem munere 35
palpat Carus et a trepido Thymele summissa Latino;
[he's a man whom Massa fears, a man whom Carus flatters with a high position, and for whom Thymela was placed beneath nervous Latinus;]
cum te summoueant qui testamenta merentur
noctibus,
[When there are men who move you out of the way by earning wills by night,]
in caelum quos euehit optima summi
nunc uia processus,
[men whom the very best road of the greatest procession carries up to heaven,]
uetulae uesica beatae?
[the bladders of some rich old sugar-mama?]
unciolam Proculeius habet,
[Proculeius holds an eleventh of the estate,]
sed Gillo deuncem, 40
[but Gillo, a twelfth]
partes quisque suas ad mensuram inguinis heres.
[each man owns his own share as heir through the measure of their privates.]
accipiat sane mercedem sanguinis
[Let him indeed accept the price of blood]
et sic
palleat
[and so let him grow pale]
ut nudis pressit qui calcibus anguem
[like a man who just stepped his bare feet upon a snake]
aut Lugudunensem rhetor dicturus ad aram.
[or a speaker about to orate before an altar in Lyons.]
quid referam quanta siccum iecur ardeat ira, 45
[Why should I care to recall how much anger can inflame a dry liver,]
cum populum gregibus comitum premit hic spoliator
pupilli prostantis et hic damnatus inani
iudicio?
[when over here a plunderer of a prostituted youth crowds the people with flocks of his associates, and over there a man has been condemned by a predetermined sentence?]
quid enim saluis infamia nummis?
[You see, what good comes with a bad reputation even when your money saves you?]
exul ab octaua Marius bibit
[Marius the Exile drinks from an eighth his share]
et fruitur dis
iratis,
[and takes advantage of angry gods]
at tu uictrix, prouincia, ploras. 50
[but it is you, victorious province, who weep.]
haec ego non credam Venusina digna lucerna?
[Shall I, for my part, not believe these topics to be worthy of Venusian's lamp?]
haec ego non agitem?
[Shall I, for my sake, not stir them up?]
sed quid magis?
[but what more is there?]
Heracleas
aut Diomedeas aut mugitum labyrinthi
et mare percussum puero fabrumque uolantem,
[why talk about Hercules, or Diomedes, or lowing of the labyrinth, or the sea crashed through by a lad, or a blacksmith flying about,]
cum leno accipiat moechi bona,
[when a pimp can confiscate the assets of a whoremonger]
si capiendi 55
ius nullum uxori, doctus spectare lacunar,
doctus et ad calicem uigilanti stertere naso;
[if there is no law governing taking a wife, for a man well-trained in staring at the ceiling, and well-learned in snoring face down in his wine bowl from his nose that never sleeps;]
cum fas esse putet curam sperare cohortis
[When one can think it appropriate to hope of care from his entourage]
qui bona donauit praesepibus
[while he gave gifts to stables]
et caret omni
maiorum censu,
[and lacks all concordance with his forefathers,]
dum peruolat axe citato 60
Flaminiam puer Automedon?
[while a mere boy, an Automedon, flies along the Flaminian Way upon his fast chariot?]
nam lora tenebat
ipse,
[you see, he himself used to hold the chords,]
lacernatae cum se iactaret amicae.
[whenever he would hurl himself to his cloak-wearing girlfriend.]
nonne libet medio ceras inplere capaces
quadriuio,
[And does it please you to line up wax portraits of competent men in the middle of the crossroads,]
cum iam sexta ceruice feratur
hinc atque inde patens ac nuda paene cathedra 65
[when nowadays, here and there, a chair, blatant and almost made of raw wood, is borne by a team of six necks]
et multum referens de Maecenate supino
signator falsi,
[and the fraudulent trustee is recalling a great deal about Maecenas in recline]
qui se lautum atque beatum
exiguis tabulis et gemma fecerit uda?
[this being a man who made himself praiseworthy and blessed through shoddy records, and a moist gem?]
occurrit matrona potens,
[His powerful matron meets him along the way,]
quae molle Calenum
porrectura uiro miscet sitiente rubetam 70
[she's a woman fit to stretch out a cup of smooth Calenian wine to her parched husband, as she mixes in toad poison,]
instituitque rudes melior Lucusta propinquas
per famam et populum nigros efferre maritos.
[and a modern day Locusta teaches her unsavvy neighbors how to take out their charred spouses through rumor, and agent.]
aude aliquid breuibus Gyaris et carcere dignum,
[try to do something worthy of the short-lived Giants, worthy of jail too]
si uis esse aliquid.
[if you want to be a somebody.]
probitas laudatur et alget;
[goodness gets praise, and freezes its ass off.]
criminibus debent hortos, praetoria, mensas, 75
argentum uetus et stantem extrapocula caprum.
[People owe their gardens, their estates, their tables, their aged silve and cups with reliefs of goats, to their crimes.]
quem patitur dormire nurus corruptor auarae,
[who can allow embezzler to sleep with his greedy nursemaid,]
quem sponsae turpes et praetextatus adulter?
[to be corrupted by foul promises, and an adulterer cloaked in a prestigious garb?]
si natura negat,
[If one's natural instincts refuse,]
facit indignatio uersum
qualemcumque potest, quales ego uel Cluuienus. 80
[sheer indignation forces poetry out, whatever type one can manage, whether it is I myself or Cluvienus.]
ex quo Deucalion nimbis tollentibus aequor
nauigio montem ascendit sortesque poposcit
[From what place Deucalion climbed the mount upon his ship through rainstorms that raised the level of the sea, and then requested to know his destiny]
paulatimque anima caluerunt mollia saxa
[and how gradually stones grew hot with tender spirit,]
et maribus nudas ostendit Pyrrha puellas,
[and how Pyrrha shows newly naked maidens to their husbands,]
quidquid agunt homines, uotum, timor, ira, uoluptas, 85
gaudia, discursus, nostri farrago libelli est.
[whatever things men do, their prayers, their fear, their anger, their desire, their joys, their conversations will be the fodder of my little work.]
et quando uberior uitiorum copia?
[and when will the quantity of vices be more fertile?]
quando
maior auaritiae patuit sinus?
[when has a great swell of avarice presented itself?]
alea quando
hos animos?
[when has gambling not taken the minds of these people?]
neque enim loculis comitantibus itur
ad casum tabulae,
[you see, a transaction will never fall between the pockets of friends even, to the chest upon one's table,]
posita sed luditur arca. 90
[instead, one's bank is wagered and gambled away.]
proelia quanta illic dispensatore uidebis
armigero!
[What awesome battles will you see there among the armed dealer!]
simplexne furor sestertia centum
perdere et horrenti tunicam non reddere seruo?
[Ain't it pure nuts for you to lose 100 sesterces, and to not even be able to come back with tunic to give to a shivering slave?]
quis totidem erexit uillas,
[Who's the fellow who so often swept up entire estates in the country,]
quis fercula septem
secreto cenauit auus?
[who's the grandfather who dined in secret on seven whole courses in one go?]
nunc sportula primo 95
limine parua sedet turbae rapienda togatae.
[Now there sits upon the first threshold, a small donation, set to snatched away by the toga-wearing rabble.]
ille tamen faciem prius inspicit
[And yet, here this fellow is, looking upon the face of the man before him,]
et trepidat ne
suppositus uenias ac falso nomine poscas:
[and fearing that you not come, bowed down and making his request through some made-up name;]
agnitus accipies.
[you can receive something even as a nobody.]
iubet a praecone uocari
ipsos Troiugenas,
[He orders the Trojan-born Romans themselves to be announced by the deacon,]
nam uexant limen et ipsi 100
nobiscum.
[you see, these men themselves also stir the porch alongside us.]
'da praetori, da deinde tribuno.'
['Give to the praetor, and then give to the tribune.']
sed libertinus prior est.
[But the freedman is ahead in the line.]
'prior' inquit 'ego adsum.
[So says he, "I'm here before you.]
cur timeam dubitemur locum defendere,
[Why should I fear or hesitate to defend my place,]
quamuis
natus ad Euphraten,
[even if I was born on the Euphrates,]
molles quod in aure fenestrae
arguerint,
[when my smooth windows creak in the breeze,]
licet ipse negem?
[can I really deny myself?]
sed quinque tabernae 105
quadringenta parant.
[But five of my shops prepare the necessary forty-five required.]
quid confert purpura maior
optandum,
[What thing more desirable can be conferred, than the purple cloak,]
si Laurenti custodit in agro
conductas Coruinus ouis,
[if Corvinus still watches his sheepfolds, led around the Laurentine countryside,]
ego possideo plus
Pallante et Licinis?'
[but it is I who possess my than Pallas and Licinius?]
expectent ergo tribuni,
[Therefore, the tribunes must wait,]
uincant diuitiae,
[and riches prevail,]
sacro ne cedat honori 110
nuper in hanc urbem pedibus
qui uenerat albis,
[the man who had just recently come to this city of ours with chalked feet not be granted revered honor,]
quandoquidem inter nos sanctissima diuitiarum
maiestas,
[And already now is the majesty of piles of wealth the most worshipped of all among us,]
etsi funesta Pecunia templo
nondum habitat,
[even though deadly Money has yet to hold its place in a temple,]
nullas nummorum ereximus aras,
[we've erected no altars to coins,]
ut colitur Pax atque Fides, Victoria, Virtus 115
[such that Peace, and Faith, Victory, and Virtue is worshipped,]
quaeque salutato crepitat Concordia nido.
[and Harmony chirps in a well-welcomed nest.]
sed cum summus honor finito conputet anno,
[but since the greatest of all political positions draws up at the end of the year,]
sportula quid referat,
[why should he bring out any donations,]
quantum rationibus addat,
[this much can he add to his own balance sheets,]
quid facient comites quibus hinc toga,
[what should his associates do now, to whom the possessions of this guy consist only of his toga,]
calceus hinc est
et panis fumusque domi?
[and for that, his possessions are only his shoes, some bread, and the smoke from his chimney?]
densissima centum 120
quadrantes lectica petit,
[He seeks 100 pieces of coin in the thickest bed you can find,]
sequiturque maritum
languida
[and drowsy woman tags behind her husband]
uel praegnas et circumducitur uxor.
[or his pregnant wife is led around the place too.]
hic petit absenti nota iam callidus arte
ostendens uacuam et clausam pro coniuge sellam.
[This same clever fellow, with a trick everybody now knows, asks for a seat for his missing wife.]
'Galla mea est' inquit,
[So he says: "This is my lady, Gallia,]
'citius dimitte. moraris?
[Hurry up, get out of the way, what are you waiting for?]
125
profer, Galla, caput.
[Gallia, stick your head out.]
noli uexare, quiescet.'
[Don't bother her, she's sleeping.']
ipse dies pulchro distinguitur ordine rerum:
[The day itself is divided by a fine procession of events:]
sportula,
[first the donation baskets,]
deinde forum
[then, a trip to the Forum,]
iurisque peritus Apollo
atque triumphales,
[and the temple of Apollo, for lawyers, and the triumphal processions,]
inter quas ausus habere
nescio quis titulos Aegyptius atque Arabarches, 130
[among which places some Egyptian, or Arab chieftain, now dares to set up his statues,]
cuius ad effigiem non tantum meiiere fas est.
[whose image is not even appropriate so much as to piss on.]
uestibulis abeunt ueteres
[The old chaps scurry away from their porches]
lassique clientes
uotaque deponunt,
[and the weary clients stir up their appeals,]
quamquam longissima cenae
spes homini;
[even when hope of a dinner invitation is the farthest thing imaginable for a man;]
caulis miseris atque ignis emendus.
[he will soon have to put up with miserable cabbage and a small fire.]
optima siluarum interea pelagique uorabit
[Meanwhile, he will chow down the best fruits of the fruits and the sea,]
135
rex horum uacuisque toris tantum ipse iacebit.
[and lie down himself, like the king of these men, on couches that lie so very empty.]
nam de tot pulchris et latis orbibus et tam
antiquis una comedunt patrimonia mensa.
[you see, they devour their own inheritance on a single table with so many beautiful and wide dishes from around the world.]
nullus iam parasitus erit.
[No one can no longer be a parasite any more.]
sed quis ferat istas
luxuriae sordes?
[But who can stand these kinds filthy luxury-mongers?]
quanta est gula
[How great is the throat]
quae sibi totos 140
ponit apros,
[which gobbles down whole boars upon itself,]
animal propter conuiuia natum!
[and even an animal born for the occasion of banquets!]
poena tamen praesens,
[And yet, the penalty is apparent,]
cum tu deponis amictus
turgidus
[when it is you who pull down your cloak, all swollen]
et crudum pauonem in balnea portas.
[and you carry an undigested peacock into the bathhouse.]
hinc subitae mortes atque intestata senectus.
[And after that comes sudden deaths, and old age unaccompanied by wills.]
it noua nec tristis per cunctas fabula cenas;
[Here comes the strange, but not sad, story for all our dinner tables;]
145
ducitur iratis plaudendum funus amicis.
[And your death taken as a topic of applause by your angry associates.]
nil erit ulterius quod nostris moribus addat
posteritas,
[Nothing will more beyond the pale than that which the future generations will bring to our customs,]
eadem facient cupientque minores,
[sure, let less important people do and covet the very same things,]
omne in praecipiti uitium stetit.
[all vice has now reached its precipice.]
utere uelis,
totos pande sinus.
[Get ready to use your sails, and spread out the whole fold.]
dices hic forsitan 'unde 150
ingenium par materiae?
[At this point, perhaps you might ask, "From where comes the talent to match the topic?"]
unde illa priorum
scribendi quodcumque animo flagrante liberet
simplicitas?
["From where comes the plainness in writing natural to our predecessors, along side a mind set to rage, that could let loose things of the sort?]
"cuius non audeo dicere nomen?
["Whose name don't I dare to speak?"]
quid refert dictis ignoscat Mucius an non?"
[What does it matter whether or not Mucius is ignorant in his expressions?"]
pone Tigillinum,
[Put down Tigillinus,]`
taeda lucebis in illa 155
[you will shine a light upon those well-known places of darkness]
qua stantes ardent qui fixo gutture fumant,
[where men stand, burning and smoking in their tightened throats,]
et latum media sulcum deducit harena.'
[and a man leads his wide furrow down through the middle of the sand.]
qui dedit ergo tribus patruis aconita,
[And so, a fellow clan member who once administered poison to his relatives,]
uehatur
pensilibus plumis
[will he be dragged along by my feathered penstrokes]
atque illinc despiciat nos?
[and then after that, bear a grudge against me?]
'cum ueniet contra, digito compesce labellum: 160
["Whenever a man approaches you, you should button your lip with your finger:]
accusator erit qui uerbum dixerit "hic est."
[he will surely make accusations, whoever shall've spoken the words, "Here he is!"]
securus licet Aenean Rutulumque ferocem
committas,
[You can be safe and sound when you write about Aeneas, and his fierce Rutulian foe,]
nulli grauis est percussus Achilles
[now that he's been beaten down, Achilles is no longer a matter of dread to anyone,]
aut multum quaesitus Hylas urnamque secutus:
[or better yet, seek the Hylae, following their water pot:]
ense uelut stricto quotiens Lucilius ardens 165
infremuit,
[or as many times as Lucilius once roared inside, burning to draw his sword,]
rubet auditor cui frigida mens est
criminibus,
[a listener must blush, as his mind grows chill at the thought of crimes,]
tacita sudant praecordia culpa.
[and his innermost thoughts sweat with silent guilt.]
inde ira et lacrimae.
[And then comes rage, and tears.]
tecum prius ergo uoluta
haec animo ante tubas:
[And so, these things must be pondered out beforehand in one's mind, before the trumpets sound:]
galeatum sero duelli
paenitet.'
[One will regret strapping on one's helmet and joining the fight late in the game."]
experiar quid concedatur in illos 170
[Let me try me hand at what is available for those famous people]
quorum Flaminia tegitur cinis atque Latina.
[whose remains are covered by the Flaminian Way, and the Latin one too.]
