A Poetical Translation of the works of Horace With the Original Text, and Critical Notes collected from his best Latin and French Commentators. By the Revd Mr. Philip Francis...The third edition |
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 | A Poetical Translation of the works of Horace |  |
Epist. XX. To His Book.
The Shops of Rome impatient to behold,
And, elegantly polish'd, to be sold,
You hate the tender Seal, and guardian Keys,
Which modest Volumes love, and fondly praise
The public World, even sighing to be read,—
Unhappy Book! to other Manners bred.
Indulge the fond Desire, with which You burn,
Pursue thy Flight, yet think not to return.
And, elegantly polish'd, to be sold,
You hate the tender Seal, and guardian Keys,
Which modest Volumes love, and fondly praise
The public World, even sighing to be read,—
Unhappy Book! to other Manners bred.
Indulge the fond Desire, with which You burn,
Pursue thy Flight, yet think not to return.
373
But, when insulted by the Critic's Scorn,
How often shall You cry, Ah! me forlorn?
When he shall throw the tedious Volume by,
Nor longer view thee with a Lover's Eye.
How often shall You cry, Ah! me forlorn?
When he shall throw the tedious Volume by,
Nor longer view thee with a Lover's Eye.
If Rage pervert not my prophetic Truth,
Rome shall admire, while you can charm with Youth,
But soon as vulgar Hands thy Beauty soil,
The Moth shall batten on the silent Spoil;
Then fly to Afric, or be sent to Spain,
Our Colonies of Wits to entertain.
This shall thy fond Adviser laughing see,
As, when his Ass was obstinate like thee,
The Clown in Vengeance push'd him down the Hill:
For who would save an Ass against his Will?
Rome shall admire, while you can charm with Youth,
But soon as vulgar Hands thy Beauty soil,
The Moth shall batten on the silent Spoil;
Then fly to Afric, or be sent to Spain,
Our Colonies of Wits to entertain.
This shall thy fond Adviser laughing see,
As, when his Ass was obstinate like thee,
The Clown in Vengeance push'd him down the Hill:
For who would save an Ass against his Will?
At last thy stammering Age in Suburb-Schools
Shall toil in teaching Boys their Grammar-Rules:
But when in Evening mild the listening Tribe
Around thee throng, thy Master thus describe;
A Free-man's Son, with moderate Fortune blest,
Who boldly spread his Wings beyond his Nest;
What from my Birth you take, to Virtue give,
And say, with Ease and Happiness I live,
With all that Rome in Peace and War calls great:
Of lowly Stature: fond of Summer's Heat:
Early turn'd gray; to Passion quickly rais'd,
But of Good-nature and with Ease appeas'd.
Let them, who ask my Age, be frankly told,
That I was forty-four Decembers old,
When Lollius chose with Lepidus to share
The Power and Honours of the Consul's Chair.
Shall toil in teaching Boys their Grammar-Rules:
But when in Evening mild the listening Tribe
Around thee throng, thy Master thus describe;
A Free-man's Son, with moderate Fortune blest,
Who boldly spread his Wings beyond his Nest;
What from my Birth you take, to Virtue give,
And say, with Ease and Happiness I live,
375
Of lowly Stature: fond of Summer's Heat:
Early turn'd gray; to Passion quickly rais'd,
But of Good-nature and with Ease appeas'd.
Let them, who ask my Age, be frankly told,
That I was forty-four Decembers old,
When Lollius chose with Lepidus to share
The Power and Honours of the Consul's Chair.
| A Poetical Translation of the works of Horace | |