And both have Saturn's rage, repell'd by Jove.' What star I know not, but some star, I find, Each has a different will, and few the same: Bart'ring for spices their Italian ware; A second shakes the box, and sits up late; 80 Then his lewd follies he would late repent; And his past years, that in a mist were spent. PER. But thou art pale in nightly studies grown, 10 To make the Stoic institutes thy own; Thou long with studious care hast till'd our youth, And sown our well-purg'd ears with whole some truth. From thee both old and young with profit 66 120 Not more to noble Brutus " could belong.' Hold," says the Stoic, "your assumption's wrong: I grant true freedom you have well de-` fin'd; But, living as you list, and to your mind, Are loosely tack'd, and must be left behind." "What! since the prætor did my fetters loose, And left me freely at my own dispose, So nicely to distinguish good from ill? And what thou art to follow, what to fly, Be wise and free, by Heav'n's consent, and mine. "But thou, who lately of the common strain, Wert one of us, if still thou dost retain he replies. "No, friend; nor fuming gums, nor sacrifice, Can ever make a madman free, or wise. PER. In spite of this, my freedom still remains. nap, 190 Up, up," says Avarice; thou snor'st again, Stretchest thy limbs, and yawn'st, but all in vain: The tyrant Lucre no denial takes; At his command th' unwilling sluggard wakes. "What must I do?" he cries: "What?" says his lord: "Why rise, make ready, and go straight aboard; With fish, from Euxine seas, thy vessel freight; Flax, castor, Coan wines, the precious weight Of pepper, and Sabæan incense, take With thy own hands, from the tir'd camel's back: 200 Once freed, 't is madness to resume your chain." Ay; there's the man, who, loos'd from lust and pelf, Less to the prætor owes, than to himself. But write him down a slave, who, humbly proud, With presents begs preferments from the crowd; That early suppliant," who salutes the tribes, And sets the mob to scramble for his bribes, That some old dotard, sitting in the sun, On holidays may tell that such a feat was done: In future times this will be counted rare. 260 Thy superstition too may claim a share: When flow'rs are strew'd, and lamps in order plac'd, And windows with illuminations grac'd, On Herod's day; 23 when sparkling bowls go round, And tunny's tails in savory sauce are drown'd, EXPLANATORY NOTES ON THE FIFTH SATIRE 1 Progne was wife to Tereus, King of Thracia. Tereus fell in love with Philomela, sister to Progne, ravish'd her, and cut out her tongue; in revenge of which, Progne kill'd Itys, her own son by Tereus, and serv'd him up at a feast, to be eaten by his father. 2 Thyestes and Atreus were brothers, both kings. Atreus, to revenge himself of his unnatural brother, kill'd the sons of Thyestes, and invited him to eat them. 3 By the childish robe is meant the prætexta, or first gowns which the Roman children of quality wore. These were welted with purple, and on those welts were fasten'd the bullæ, or little bells; which, when they came to the age of puberty, were hung up, and consecrated to the Lares, or household gods. 4 The first shields which the Roman youths wore were white, and without any impress or device on them, to shew they had yet achiev'd nothing in the wars. 5 Socrates, by the oracle, was declar'd to be the wisest of mankind: he instructed many of the Athenian young noblemen in morality, and amongst the rest Alcibiades. 6 Astrologers divide the heaven into twelve parts, according to the number of the twelve signs of the zodiac. The sign, or constellation, which rises in the east at the birth of any man, is call'd the Ascendant: Persius therefore judges that Cornutus and he had the same or a like nativity. 7 The sign of Gemini. 8 The sign of Libra. 9 Astrologers have an axiom that whatsoever Saturn ties is loos'd by Jupiter. They account Saturn to be a planet of a malevolent nature, and Jupiter of a propitious influence. 10 Zeno was the great master of the Stoic philosophy, and Cleanthes was second to him in reputation. Cornutus, who was master or tutor to Persius, was of the same school. 11 When a slave was made free, he had the privilege of a Roman born; which was to have a share in the donatives, or doles of bread, &c., which were distributed by the magistrates amongst the people. 12 The Roman people was distributed into several tribes. He who was made free was inroll'd into some one of them, and thereupon enjoy'd the common privileges of a Roman citizen. 13 The master who intended to infranchise a slave carried him before the city prætor, and turn'd him round, using these words: "I will that this man be free." 14 Slaves had only one name before their freedom; after it they were admitted to a prænomen, like our christen'd names: so Dama is now call'd Marcus Dama. 15 At the proof of a testament, the magistrates were to subscribe their names, as allowing the legality of the will. 16 Slaves, when they were set free, had a cap given them, in sign of their liberty. 17 Brutus freed the Roman people from the tyranny of the Tarquins, and chang'd the form of the government into a glorious commonwealth. 18 The text of the Roman laws was written in red letters, which was call'd the Rubric; translated here, in more general words, "The letter of the law." 19 The Stoics held this paradox, that any one vice, or notorious folly, which they call'd madness, hinder'd a man from being virtuous; that a man was of a piece, without a mixture, either wholly vicious, or good; one virtue or vice, according to them, including all the rest. 20 The prætor held a wand in his hand, with which he softly struck the slave on the head, when he declar'd him free. 21 This alludes to the play of Terence, call'd The Eunuch; which was excellently imitated of late in English, by Sir Charles Sedley. In the first scene of that comedy Phædria was introduc'd with his man, Pamphilus, discoursing whether he should leave his mistress Thais, or return to her, now that she had invited him. 22 He who sued for any office amongst the Romans was call'd a candidate, because he wore a white gown; and sometimes chalk'd it, to make it appear whiter. He rose early, and went to the levees of those who headed the people; saluted also the tribes severally, when they were gather'd together to choose their magistrates; and distributed a largess amongst them, to bribe them for their voices; much resembling our elections of Parliament-men. 23 The commentators are divided what Herod this was, whom our author mentions; whether Herod the Great, whose birthday might possibly be celebrated, after his death, by the Herodians, a sect amongst the Jews, who thought him their Messiah; or Herod Agrippa, living in the author's time and after it. The latter seems the more probable opinion. 24 The ancients had a superstition, contrary to ours, concerning eggshells: they thought that if an eggshell were crack'd, or a hole bor'd in the bottom of it, they were subject to the power of sorcery. We as vainly break the bottom of an eggshell, and cross it, when we have eaten the egg, lest some hag should make use of it in bewitching us, or sailing over the sea in it, if it were whole. The rest, of the priests of Isis, and her oneey'd or squinting priestess, is more largely treated in the Sixth Satire of Juvenal, where the superstitions of women are related. THE SIXTH SATIRE OF PERSIUS TO CESIUS BASSUS, A LYRIC POET THE ARGUMENT This Sixth Satire treats an admirable commonplace of moral philosophy; of the true use of riches. They are certainly intended, by the power who bestows them, as instruments and helps of living commodiously ourselves, and of administ'ring to the wants of others who are oppress'd by fortune. There are two extremes in the opinions of men concerning them. One error, tho' on the right hand, yet a great one, is that they are no helps to a virtuous life; the other places all our happiness in the acquisition and possession of them; and this is, undoubtedly, the worse extreme. The mean betwixt these is the opinion of the Stoics; which is that riches may be useful to the leading a virtuous life, in case we rightly understand how to give according to right reason; and how to receive what is given us by others. The virtue of giving well is call'd liberality; and 't is of this virtue that Persius writes in this satire, wherein he not only shews the lawful use of riches, but also sharply inveighs against the vices which are oppos'd to it; and especially of those which consist in the defects of giving or spending, or in the abuse of riches. He writes to Cæsius Bassus, his friend, and a poet also; enquires first of his health and studies, and afterwards informs him of his own, and where he is now resident. He gives an account of himself, that he is endeavoring by little and little to wear off his vices; and particularly, that he is combating ambition and the desire of wealth. He dwells upon the latter vice; and being sensible that few men either desire or use riches as they ought, he endeavors to convince them of their folly; which is the main design of the whole satire. HAS winter caus'd thee, friend, to change |