Ecl. 5.1Cūr nōn, Mopse, bonī quoniam convenīmus ambō,
tū calamōs īnflāre levīs, ego dīcere versūs,
hīc corylīs mīxtās inter cōnsēdimus ulmōs?Why, Mopsus, since we have met, both of us skilled, you at blowing on the light reeds, I at singing verses, do we not sit down here among the elms mixed with hazels? Ecl. 5.4Tū maior;You are the elder; Ecl. 5.4tibi mē est aequum pārēre, Menalca,
5sīve sub incertās zephyrīs mōtantibus umbrās,
sīve antrō potius succēdimus: aspice, ut antrum
silvestris rārīs sparsit lābrusca racēmīs.it is right for me to obey you, Menalcas, whether we go beneath the shadows that shift as the west winds stir them, or rather into the cave: see how the wild vine has dotted the cave with sparse clusters. Ecl. 5.8Montibus in nostrīs sōlus tibi certat Amyntās.In our hills Amyntas alone competes with you. Ecl. 5.9Quid, sī īdem certet Phoebum superāre canendō?What if he should also compete to outdo Phoebus in singing? Ecl. 5.10Incipe, Mopse, prior, sī quōs aut Phyllidis ignēs,
aut Alcōnis habēs laudēs, aut iūrgia Codrī:
incipe, pāscentīs servābit Tityrus haedōs.Begin first, Mopsus, if you have any song of the loves of Phyllis, or praises of Alcon, or quarrels of Codrus: begin; Tityrus will watch the grazing kids.
Ecl. 5.13Immō haec, in viridī nūper quae cortice fāgī
carmina dēscrīpsī et modulāns alterna notāvī,
15experiar, tū deinde iubētō ut certet Amyntās.No, I will try these songs which I lately wrote down on the green bark of a beech, marking the tune and the words in turn; then you bid Amyntas compete. Ecl. 5.16Lenta salix quantum pallentī cēdit olīvae,
pūniceīs humilis quantum saliunca rosētīs,
iūdiciō nostrō tantum tibi cēdit Amyntās.As far as the pliant willow yields to the pale olive, as far as the lowly Celtic nard to beds of crimson roses, so far, in my judgement, does Amyntas yield to you. Ecl. 5.19sed tū dēsine plūra, puer;But say no more, boy; Ecl. 5.19successimus antrō.we have come into the cave. Ecl. 5.20Extīnctum nymphae crūdēlī fūnere Daphnim
flēbant;The nymphs were weeping for Daphnis, taken by a cruel death; Ecl. 5.21vōs corylī testēs et flūmina nymphīs;you hazels and rivers bear witness for the nymphs; Ecl. 5.22cum complexa suī corpus miserābile nātī,
atque deōs atque astra vocat crūdēlia māter.when, clasping the pitiful body of her son, his mother calls both the gods and the stars cruel.
Ecl. 5.24Nōn ūllī pāstōs illīs egēre diēbus
25frīgida, Daphni, bovēs ad flūmina;In those days, Daphnis, no one drove the pastured cattle to the cool rivers; Ecl. 5.25nūlla neque amnem
lībāvit quadrupēs, nec grāminis attigit herbam.no four-footed beast tasted the stream or touched a blade of grass. Ecl. 5.27Daphni, tuum Poenōs etiam ingemuisse leōnēs
interitum montēsque ferī silvaeque loquuntur.Daphnis, even the Punic lions groaned over your death, so the wild mountains and the woods declare. Ecl. 5.29Daphnis et Armeniās currū subiungere tigrēs
30īnstituit;Daphnis also taught men to yoke Armenian tigers to the chariot; Ecl. 5.30Daphnis thiasōs indūcere Bacchī,
et foliīs lentās intexere mollibus hastās.Daphnis taught them to lead on the revel-bands of Bacchus, and to wreathe pliant wands with soft leaves. Ecl. 5.32Vītis ut arboribus decorī est, ut vītibus ūvae,
ut gregibus taurī, segetēs ut pinguibus arvīs,
tū decus omne tuīs.As the vine is the glory of the trees, as grapes of the vines, as bulls of the herds, as crops of rich fields, so you were the whole glory of your people. Ecl. 5.34Postquam tē fāta tulērunt,
35ipsa Palēs agrōs atque ipse relīquit Apollo.After the fates took you away, Pales herself and Apollo himself left the fields.
Ecl. 5.36Grandia saepe quibus mandāvimus hordea sulcīs,
īnfēlīx lolium et sterilēs nāscuntur avēnae;In furrows to which we often entrusted large grains of barley, unlucky darnel and barren wild oats spring up; Ecl. 5.38prō mollī violā, prō purpureō narcissō,
carduus et spīnīs surgit paliūrus acūtīs.instead of the soft violet, instead of the purple narcissus, the thistle and the thorn with its sharp spikes rise up. Ecl. 5.40Spargite humum foliīs, indūcite fontibus umbrās,
pāstōrēs, mandat fierī sibi tālia Daphnis;Strew the ground with leaves, cover the springs with shade, shepherds: Daphnis bids such things be done for him; Ecl. 5.42et tumulum facite, et tumulō superaddite carmen:
DAPHNIS EGO IN SILVĪS HINC VSQUE AD SĪDERA NŌTVS
FŌRMONSI PECORIS CVSTŌS FŌRMONSIOR IPSE.and build a mound, and over the mound set this verse: 'I AM DAPHNIS IN THE WOODS, KNOWN FROM HERE EVEN TO THE STARS, KEEPER OF A LOVELY FLOCK, LOVELIER MYSELF.' Ecl. 5.45Tāle tuum carmen nōbīs, dīvīne poēta,
quāle sopor fessīs in grāmine, quāle per aestum
dulcis aquae saliente sitim restinguere rīvō:
nec calamīs sōlum aequiparās, sed vōce magistrum.Your song is to us, divine poet, like sleep on the grass to the weary, like quenching one's thirst in the heat from a leaping brook of sweet water: not on the pipes only, but in voice too, you equal your master.
Ecl. 5.50Nōs tamen haec quōcumque modō tibi nostra vicissim
dīcēmus, Daphnimque tuum tollēmus ad astra;Yet we in turn will sing to you these songs of ours, such as they are, and raise your Daphnis to the stars; Ecl. 5.52Daphnin ad astra ferēmus: amāvit nōs quoque Daphnis.Daphnis we will carry to the stars: Daphnis loved us too. Ecl. 5.53An quicquam nōbīs tālī sit mūnere maius
Et puer ipse fuit cantārī dignus, et ista
55iam prīdem Stimichōn laudāvit carmina nōbīs.Could anything be greater to us than such a gift? Both the boy himself was worthy to be sung, and Stimichon has long since praised those songs of yours to us. Ecl. 5.56Candidus īnsuētum mīrātur līmen Olympī,
sub pedibusque videt nūbēs et sīdera Daphnis.Radiant Daphnis marvels at the unfamiliar threshold of Olympus, and sees the clouds and stars beneath his feet. Ecl. 5.58ergō alacris silvās et cētera rūra voluptās
Pānaque pāstōrēsque tenet, Dryadasque puellās;therefore lively delight holds the woods and all the countryside, and Pan and the shepherds and the Dryad maidens; Ecl. 5.60nec lupus īnsidiās pecorī, nec rētia cervīs
ūlla dolum meditantur: amat bonus ōtia Daphnis.neither does the wolf plot ambush for the flock, nor do any nets plot treachery for the deer: good Daphnis loves peace.
Ecl. 5.62ipsī laetitiā vōcēs ad sīdera iactant
intōnsī montēs;the unshorn mountains themselves fling their voices to the stars in joy; Ecl. 5.63ipsae iam carmina rūpēs,
ipsa sonant arbusta: "Deus, deus ille, Menalca."now the very rocks, the very orchards ring with song: 'A god, he is a god, Menalcas.' Ecl. 5.65Sīs bonus Ō fēlīxque tuīs!O be kind and gracious to your own! Ecl. 5.65Ēn quattuor ārās:
ecce duās tibi, Daphni, duās altāria Phoebō.See, four altars: look, two for you, Daphnis, two high altars for Phoebus. Ecl. 5.67pōcula bīna novō spūmantia lacte quotannīs,
crātērasque duo statuam tibi pinguis olīvī,
et multō in prīmīs hilarāns convīvia Bacchō,—
70ante focum, sī frīgus erit, sī messis, in umbrā,—
vīna novum fundam calathīs Ariūsia nectar.Two cups foaming with fresh milk every year, and two bowls of rich olive oil I will set up for you, and above all, gladdening the feast with plenty of wine—before the hearth if it is cold, in the shade if it is harvest—I will pour Ariusian wines, a new nectar, from goblets. Ecl. 5.72cantābunt mihi Damoetās et Lyctius Aegōn;Damoetas and Lyctian Aegon will sing for me; Ecl. 5.73saltantīs satyrōs imitābitur Alphesiboeus.Alphesiboeus will imitate the dancing satyrs.
Ecl. 5.74Haec tibi semper erunt, et cum solemnia vōta
75reddēmus Nymphīs, et cum lūstrābimus agrōs.These rites will always be yours, both when we pay our solemn vows to the Nymphs, and when we purify the fields. Ecl. 5.76Dum iuga montis aper, fluviōs dum piscis amābit,
dumque thymō pāscentur apēs, dum rōre cicādae,
semper honōs nōmenque tuum laudēsque manēbunt;As long as the boar loves the mountain ridges, as long as the fish loves the rivers, as long as bees feed on thyme and cicadas on dew, your honour and name and praises will always remain; Ecl. 5.79ut Bacchō Cererīque, tibi sīc vōta quotannīs
80agricolae facient: damnābis tū quoque vōtīs.as to Bacchus and Ceres, so to you the farmers will make vows each year: you too will hold them to their vows. Ecl. 5.81Quae tibi, quae tālī reddam prō carmine dōna?What gifts, what gifts can I give you in return for such a song? Ecl. 5.82Nam neque mē tantum venientis sībilus austrī,
nec percussa iuvant flūctū tam lītora, nec quae
saxōsās inter dēcurrunt flūmina vallēs.For neither the whistling of the rising south wind delights me so much, nor shores beaten by the waves, nor rivers that run down among rocky valleys.
Ecl. 5.85Hāc tē nōs fragilī dōnābimus ante cicūtā:
haec nōs, "Fōrmōsum Corydōn ārdēbat Alexim,"
haec eadem docuit, "Cūium pecus, an Meliboeī?"First I will present you with this fragile hemlock pipe: this taught me 'Corydon burned for lovely Alexis', this same one taught me 'Whose flock is this? Meliboeus'?' Ecl. 5.88At tū sūme pedum, quod, mē cum saepe rogāret,
nōn tulit Antigenēs—et erat tum dignus amārī—
90fōrmōsum paribus nōdīs atque aere, Menalca.But you take this crook, which Antigenes did not get, though he often asked me for it—and he was worthy of being loved then—handsome with its even knots and bronze, Menalcas.