Ecl. 9.1Quō,
tē, Moeri?pedēsWhere are your feet taking you, Moeris? Ecl. 9.1an, quō via dūcit, in urbem?Is it into town, where the road leads? Ecl. 9.2Ō Lycida, vīvī pervēnimus, advena nostrī
(quod numquam veritī sumus) ut possessor agellī
dīceret: "Haec mea sunt;O Lycidas, we have lived to see the day when a stranger, owner of our little farm (a thing we never feared), could say: 'These are mine; Ecl. 9.4veterēs migrāte colōnī!"be off, you old tenants!' Ecl. 9.5nunc victī, trīstēs, quoniam Fors omnia versat,
hōs illī—quod nec vertat bene—mittimus haedōs.now, beaten and sad, since Chance overturns everything, we are sending him these kids—and may it bring him no good! Ecl. 9.7Certē equidem audieram, quā sē subdūcere collēs
incipiunt, mollīque iugum dēmittere clīvō,
ūsque ad aquam et veterēs (iam frācta cacūmina) fāgōs
10omnia carminibus vestrum servāsse Menalcān.Surely I had heard that, from where the hills begin to draw back and let their ridge down in a gentle slope, as far as the water and the old beeches, their tops now broken, your Menalcas had saved everything by his songs.
Ecl. 9.11Audierās, et fāma fuit;You had heard it, and so the story went; Ecl. 9.11sed carmina tantum
nostra valent, Lycida, tēla inter Mārtia, quantum
Chaoniās dīcunt aquilā veniente columbās.but our songs, Lycidas, avail as much among the weapons of Mars as they say Chaonian doves do when the eagle comes. Ecl. 9.14quod nisi mē quācumque novās incīdere lītēs
15ante Sinistra cavā monuisset ab īlice cornīx,
nec tuus hic Moeris, nec vīveret ipse Menalcās.Indeed, had not a crow on the left from a hollow holm-oak warned me beforehand to cut short the new quarrels however I could, neither your Moeris here nor Menalcas himself would be alive. Ecl. 9.17Heu, cadit in quemquam tantum scelus?Alas, can such a crime befall anyone? Ecl. 9.17Heu, tua nōbīs
paene simul tēcum sōlātia Rapta, Menalca?Alas, were your comforts nearly snatched from us, Menalcas, along with you? Ecl. 9.19quis caneret nymphās;who would sing of the nymphs; Ecl. 9.19quis humum flōrentibus herbīs
20spargeret, aut viridī fontēs indūceret umbrā?who would strew the ground with flowering herbs, or cover the springs with green shade? Ecl. 9.21vel quae sublēgī tacitus tibi carmina nūper,
cum tē ad dēliciās ferrēs, Amaryllida, nostrās?or sing the songs which I quietly stole from you the other day, when you were making your way to Amaryllis, our darling?
Ecl. 9.23Tityre, dum redeō—brevis est via—pāsce capellās,
et pōtum pāstās age, Tityre, et inter agendum
25occursāre caprō, cornū ferit ille, cavētō.Tityrus, until I return—the way is short—feed the goats, and when they have fed, drive them to water, Tityrus, and while you drive them, take care not to get in the way of the he-goat: he butts with his horn. Ecl. 9.26Immō haec, quae Vārō necdum perfecta canēbat:
"Vāre, tuum nōmen, superet modo Mantua nōbīs—
Mantua, vae miserae nimium vīcīna Cremōnae—
cantantēs sublīme ferent ad sīdera cycnī."Or rather these, which he was singing to Varus, not yet finished: 'Varus, your name, if only Mantua is left to us—Mantua, alas, too near to wretched Cremona—singing swans shall carry aloft to the stars.' Ecl. 9.30Sīc tua Cyrnēās fugiant exāmina taxōs;So may your swarms shun the yews of Corsica; Ecl. 9.31sīc cytisō pāstae distendant ūbera vaccae!so may your cows, fed on clover, swell their udders! Ecl. 9.32Incipe, sī quid habēs: et mē fēcēre poētam
Pīeridēs;Begin, if you have anything: the Pierian Muses have made me too a poet; Ecl. 9.33sunt et mihi carmina;I too have songs; Ecl. 9.33mē quoque dīcunt
vātem pāstōrēs, sed nōn ego crēdulus illīs.the shepherds call me a bard as well, but I do not believe them.
Ecl. 9.35Nam neque adhūc Variō videor, nec dīcere Cinna
digna, sed argūtōs inter strepere ānser olōrēs.For I do not yet seem to sing anything worthy of Varius or of Cinna, but to cackle like a goose among melodious swans. Ecl. 9.37Id quidem agō et tacitus, Lycida, mēcum ipse volūtō,
sī valeam meminisse;That is just what I am doing, Lycidas, turning it over silently in my mind, to see if I can remember it; Ecl. 9.38neque est ignōbile carmen:
`hūc ades, Ō Galatēa;and it is no mean song: 'Come here, O Galatea; Ecl. 9.39Quis est nam lūdus in undīs
40hīc vēr purpureum;for what pleasure is there in the waves? Here is purple spring; Ecl. 9.40variōs hīc flūmina circum
fundit humus flōrēs;here, around the rivers, the earth pours out varied flowers; Ecl. 9.41hīc candida pōpulus antrō
imminet, et lentae texunt umbrācula vītēs.here the white poplar leans over the cave, and the pliant vines weave shady bowers. Ecl. 9.43hūc ades: īnsānī feriant sine lītora flūctūs.Come here: let the mad waves beat upon the shores.' Ecl. 9.44Quid, quae tē pūrā sōlum sub nocte canentem
45audieram?What of the song I had heard you singing alone on a clear night?
Ecl. 9.45Numerōs meminī, sī verba tenērem.I remember the tune, if only I could hold the words. Ecl. 9.46"Daphni, quid antīquōs signōrum suspicis ortūs?'Daphnis, why do you gaze up at the ancient risings of the constellations? Ecl. 9.47Ecce Diōnaeī prōcessit Caesaris astrum,
astrum, quō segetēs gaudērent frūgibus, et quō
dūceret aprīcīs in collibus ūva colōrem.Look, the star of Caesar, descendant of Dione, has come forth, the star by which the cornfields would rejoice in their crops, and by which the grape would take on its colour on the sunny hills. Ecl. 9.50īnsere, Daphni, pirōs: carpent tua pōma nepōtēs."Graft your pear-trees, Daphnis: your grandchildren will gather your fruit.' Ecl. 9.51Omnia fert aetās, animum quoque: saepe ego longōs
cantandō puerum meminī mē condere sōlēs:
nunc oblīta mihi tot carmina;Age carries all things away, the mind too: often, I remember, as a boy I sang long days to their close: now so many songs are forgotten by me; Ecl. 9.53vōx quoque Moerim
iam fugit ipsa;even his voice itself now fails Moeris; Ecl. 9.54lupī Moerim vīdēre priōrēs.the wolves saw Moeris first.
Ecl. 9.55Sed tamen ista satis referet tibi saepe Menalcās.But Menalcas will often repeat those songs to you fully enough. Ecl. 9.56Causandō nostrōs in longum dūcis amōrēs:
et nunc omne tibi strātum silet aequor, et omnēs,
aspice, ventōsī cecidērunt murmuris aurae.With your excuses you put off my longing for a long time: and now, see, the whole sea lies level and silent for you, and all the breezes of the gusty murmur have died away. Ecl. 9.59hinc adeō media est nōbīs via;From here, in fact, we are halfway along the road; Ecl. 9.59namque sepulcrum
60incipit adpārēre Bianoris: hīc ubi dēnsās
agricolae stringunt frondēs, hīc, Moeri, canāmus;for Bianor's tomb is beginning to come into view: here, where the farmers are stripping the thick leaves, here, Moeris, let us sing; Ecl. 9.62hīc haedōs dēpōne: tamen veniēmus in urbem.set the kids down here: we shall reach the town even so. Ecl. 9.63aut sī, nox pluviam nē colligat ante, verēmur,
cantantēs licet ūsque (minus via laedit) eāmus;or if we fear that night may gather rain first, we may go on singing all the way (the road wearies less); Ecl. 9.65cantantēs ut eāmus, ego hōc tē fasce levābō.so that we may go singing, I will relieve you of this bundle.
Ecl. 9.66Dēsine plūra, puer, et quod nunc īnstat agāmus:
carmina tum melius, cum vēnerit ipse, canēmus.Say no more, boy, and let us do what is now in hand: we shall sing songs better when he himself has come.