Godfrey of Winchester: Epigrammata

Undique susceptum qui miscuit utile dulci,
Undique laudatum pagina nostra refert;
Quod sequor a longe, cum ludis seria libans,
Immo per ludos seria notificans.
Proposui ludendo quidem garrire aliorum
Mores, carpo alios, me quoque carpo simul.
Rubigo invidiæ, species invisa cachinni,
Omnis abest, ut me, rideo sic alios.

Everywhere that which was taken up by him who mixed the useful with the sweet,
Everywhere our page reports, praised;
Which I follow from afar, when I, at plays, pour out the serious,
Nay, proclaiming serious things through the plays.
I have proposed, indeed by jesting, to speak the chatter of others’
morals; I pluck at others, I too am plucked at at the same time.
The rust of envy, the hateful semblance of laughter,
Are wholly absent; as I mock myself, so I laugh at others.

Rideo mecum alios, ne nos male rideat alter;
Ne quis nos possit lædere, rideo nos.
Invidus irrisor redivivo crimine gaudet,
Et semel irrisum, terque quaterque cupit.
Nolo redargutis superesse notabile quicquam,
Causa et quod sequitur depereant pariter.

I laugh at others with myself, lest another laugh ill at us;
Lest anyone be able to injure us, I laugh at us.
The envious mocker rejoices in a revived charge,
And once mocked, desires it thrice and four times.
I wish that nothing notable remain for the refuters,
May both the cause and what follows perish alike.

I.Dum nescias, esse discendum.

1.While you do not know, one must learn to be.

Discendi, Damiane, modum te quærere dicunt;
Discas, dum nescis, sit modus iste tibi.

They say, Damian, that you should seek the method of learning;
Learn while you are ignorant — let that be your method.

II.Ruinam in ascensu timendam.

II.Ruin is to be feared in ascent.

Sæpe ruis, dum sæpe petis nimis alta, Corane,
Fac sit sufficiens una ruina tibi.

Often you rush, while often you seek things too lofty, Corane,
Make one ruin sufficient for you.

III.Contemptum stulti non esse curandum.

3.The contempt of a fool is not to be cared for.

Contemptum stulti contempnere, Didime, laus est,
Contempni a stulto dedecus esse nego.

To contemn the contempt of a fool, Didime, is a praise,
I deny that to be contemned by a fool is a dishonour.

IV.Quod doces, esse faciendum.

4.What you teach must be done.

Multa, Salo, sed plura, Cato, me verba docetis,
At nemo vestrum quanta docetis agit.

You teach me many words, Salo, and still more, Cato,
But none of you puts into practice how great the things you teach.

V.Discendum, esse, ne discas.

5.Learning—be, lest you cease to learn.

Hebale, disce diu, juvenisque puerque labora,
Neve senex discas, Hebale, disce prius.

VI.Quod multorum est ab uno non esse quærendum.

6.That which pertains to many ought not to be sought from one.

Soli laus tibi multorum quæris honorem,
Sed quod multorum est dissociare grave est.

You seek for yourself alone the praise and the honor of many,
But to dissociate what is of many is grievous.

VII.Colendo nequam nequicquam proficere.

7.By cultivating, to become corrupt and to profit in vain.

Pecte lavaque canem, curam tibi ponis inanem,
Pontice, sic studium dum colis Elvidium.

Comb and wash the dog, you lay upon yourself a vain care,
Ponticus, so while you cultivate your zeal for Elvidius.

VIII.Onus quærere, honorem quærendo.

VIII.To seek a burden by seeking honor.

Quæris onus magnum, magnum dum quæris honorem,
Cretice, sperne prius, non erit ulterius.

You seek a great burden, while you seek a great honor,
Cretan, spurn it first — there will be no further.

IX.Pro viribus tuis non omnes esse pensandos.

CHAPTER 9. That not all are to be measured by your strength.

Impos virtutis, alios virtutis inanes
Æquiparando tibi, Gratidiane, refers.

By setting your virtue above, you make other men's vain virtues equal to yourself;
by equating them to you, Gratidiane, you present them as your own.

X.A vitio esse surgendum.

CHAPTER 10. That one must rise from vice.

Alphesibúo, luto semper versaris eodem,
Immersusque semel surgere dissimulas.

Alphesibúo, you always wallow in the same mud,
and once immersed you pretend to rise.

XI.Vitiosum deprehendi dolere.

11.To grieve at being found faulty.

Non culpam peccasse gravem, non crimen inisse,
Sed te deprensum, Volusiane, doles.

You do not grieve a fault — that a grave sin was committed, nor a crime — that it was entered into,
but you lament that you were caught, Volusianus.

XII.Quod irrides, faciendum non esse.

12.That which you deride ought not to be done.

Deridens alios, non inderisus abibis,
Unde alios rides, Scævola, si facias.

Mocking others, you will not depart unmocked,
From those at whom you laugh, Scævola, if you do.

XIII.Qui multa possident multis egere.

13.Those who possess much have need of many.

Cum tu possideas, Andronice, plura petitis,
Haud mirum multis si tamen indigeas.

Since you possess more, Andronice, you seek more,
No wonder to many, if nevertheless you are in need.

XIV.Videndum esse cui secreta committas.

14.One must see to whom you commit secrets.

Utre merum fracto committere, balsama cribro,
Stultum est, et stultum, Plance, tacenda Syro.

To entrust undiluted wine to a broken vessel, or balsam to a sieve,
is foolish; and foolish too, Plance, is to be silent before a Syrian.

XV.Libros non pretium eorum habere, non multum proficere.

15.That books' worth is not their price; they do not profit much.

Libros ferre manu, non sensum corde nec ore,
Verbum, Caune, parum proficit, immo nihil.

To carry books in the hand, not sense in the heart nor on the lips,
The word, Caune, profits little, nay nothing.

XVI.Virtuti studere si sapias.

16.If you are wise, devote yourself to virtue.

Propositum sapiens virtutis sedulus urget;
Hædue, non urges; fac, sapienter ages.

The diligent wise man urges forward the purpose of virtue;
Do not be driven; do it—act wisely.

XVII.Amicum tarde adquiri, sed cito amitti.

17.A friend is acquired slowly, but is lost quickly.

Prudenti, Probe, consilio servandus amicus,
Quem sero adquiris, sed cito perdis eum.

To the prudent man, Probe, a friend must be kept by counsel,
Whom you acquire late, but quickly you lose him.

XVIII.Pauca utilia multis inutilibus præponenda.

18.Few useful things ought to be set before many useless ones.

Pauca Titus pretiosa dabat, sed vilia plura;
Ut meliora habeam, pauca det oro Titus.

A few precious things Titus gave, but many things more cheap;
That I may have better things, I beg Titus to give a few.

XIX.Miserum hominem nocere dum prodesse contendit.

19.Wretched is the man who, while he strives to be of benefit, does harm.

Te video solum dum prosis, Aule, nocere;
Nec prodesse tamen, si petis ut noceas.

I see you alone, Aulus, harming while you strive to profit;
Nor would you, however, avail to help, if you ask that you harm.

XX.Loqui sed cum mensura debere.

20.To speak, but one ought to do so with measure.

Pauca loqui moneo, sed non omnino silere;
Ita velis, Orpheu, ne penitus sileas.

I advise you to speak little, but not to be entirely silent;
so may you will, Orpheus, that you not be utterly silent.

XXI.Inimicum obsequio torqueri, vel corrigi.

21.To torment an enemy by obsequiousness, or to correct him.

Hostes, Kare meos dum servio, munera præsto;
Obsequiis venor, torqueo, vel revoco.

Enemies: while I serve my dear ones I present gifts;
by compliances I court, I torment, or I call back.

XXII.Amari volentem amare decere.

22.It is fitting to love one who wishes to be loved.

Miraris quod nullus amat te, Ceciliane,
Non quod amas nullum; dilige, carus eris.

You marvel that no one loves you, Ceciliane,
Not that you love no one; love, and you will be dear.

XXIII.Vitium antequam petas subolere.

23.A fault to be born before you ask for offspring.

Druse, comedisti quem misit Silvius hircum;
Vel tibi non nasus, vel tibi nasus olet.

Druse, you have eaten the goat which Silvius sent;
either you have no nose, or your nose smells.

XXIV.Nec levare premenda, nec premere levanda.

24.Neither to raise what must be pressed, nor to press what must be raised.

Dum calcanda levas, premis extollenda, Repande,
Aut stultum aut nequam te ratione probas.

While you lift up what must be trodden, and press down what must be raised, Repande,
by your reasoning you prove yourself either foolish or wicked.

XXV.Datum non repetere.

25.Do not reclaim what has been given.

Multa mihi donas, vereor ne multa requiras,
Nolo mihi dones, Aulice, si repetas.

You give me many things; I fear lest you demand many back,
I do not wish you to give to me, Aulice, if you will reclaim them.

XXVI.Neque decipere neque decipi.

26.Neither to deceive nor to be deceived.

Nullum decipias, non decipiaris ab ullo,
Fallere vel falli, Pirame, par vitium est.

Deceive no one, be not deceived by any,
To deceive or to be deceived, Pirame, is an equal vice.

XXVII.Petenti quod difficile est negari.

27.To a petitioner, what is hard to deny.

Postulat usque sibi justa ratione negari,
Qui quod difficile est, id sibi, Pyrrhe, petit.

He continually demands that it be denied to him on just grounds,
He who asks for what is difficult, O Pyrrhus, asks that it be denied to him.

XXVIII.Cupere quod necesse est.

28.To desire what is necessary.

Si mecum, Thaliarche, sapis, quodcunque necesse est,
Id cupias, animum casibus æquipara.

If you are wise with me, Thaliarche, desire whatever is necessary,
Make your mind equal to the vicissitudes of chance.

XXIX.Stare ubi alii jaceant decorum esse.

29.It is seemly to stand where others lie.

Candide, ubi jaceant omnes, te stare decorum est;
Quod stas, quod solus, magnum opus, egregium est.

Candide, where all lie, it is fitting that you stand;
That you stand, that you alone, is a great work, an outstanding feat.

XXX.Exitus rerum inspiciendos.

30.The ends of things are to be inspected.

Aut sapit Archesilas, et prospicit ultima rerum,
Aut si contempnit, non sapit Archesilas.

Either Archesilas is wise, and foresees the ultimate issues of things,
or if he scorns them, Archesilas is not wise.

XXXI.Cito vel sero decedere nihil ad rem.

31.To depart quickly or late is of no consequence.

Tarde vel subito vita decedere, nil est;
Si bene, discedas, Pindare, non nihil est.

To die late or suddenly is nothing;
If you depart well, Pindar, it is not nothing.

XXXII.Sub onere rectum esse gloriosum.

32.To be upright under a burden is glorious.

Sub quocunque onere, strepitu omni, omnive labore,
Rectum stare, Licha, gloria non modica est.

Under whatever burden, with every clamor, and with every labor,
To stand upright, Licha, is no small glory.

XXXIII.Ridere vel rideri, vitium.

33.To laugh or to be laughed at, a vice.

Si rides alium, vel si rideris, utrumque
Culpa est, Maure, prius turpe, sequensque magis.

If you laugh at another, or if you are laughed at, both
are fault, Maure: the former shameful, and the latter more so.

XXXIV.Tempnere tempni debere.

34.To scorn that which ought to be scorned.

Vivere, Prote, velis feliciter atque beate,
Tempni tempne, aliis vilis, et esto tibi.

Live, Prote, may you wish to live happily and blessedly,
Despise contempt—let it be vile to others—and be enough for yourself.

XXXV.Ne contempnamur, bene esse vivendum.

35.Lest we be despised, one must live well.

Contempnat te nemo velim, sic vive, Trebati;
Tempnuntur mores? tempneris ipse miser.

May no one despise you, I wish; so live, Trebati;
Are manners despised? you yourself will be despised, wretch.

XXXVI.Honorandum esse doctorem.

36.A teacher ought to be honored.

Arguitur furia, medicum dum percutit æger,
Et tu doctorem dum, Menalippe, tuum.

Fury is blamed while the patient strikes the physician,
And you, Menalippe, (blame) your own doctor.

XXXVII.Non obloquendum amico.

37.One must not speak reproach to a friend.

Frangis amicitiam dum, Turdale, rodis amicum;
Insidians socium, frangis amicitiam.

You break friendship while, Turdale, you gnaw at a friend;
Ambushing a socius, you break friendship.

XXXVIII.Jurgio pacem non creandam.

38.Peace must not be made by quarrel.

Scæva, tene, quia siqua paret discordia pacem,
Et tua nos pacant jurgia, Scæva, tene.

Scæva, hold back, for if any discord should bring forth peace,
and if your quarrels make us peaceful, Scæva, hold back.

XXXIX.Verbis picturatis non esse credendum.

39.Painted words are not to be trusted.

Verborum multos mihi, Victorine, colores
Pingis, nullique est attribuenda fides.

You paint for me, Victorine, many hues of words
and to none of them is any trust to be ascribed.

XL. Opinionem malam fugiendam.

CHAPTER 40. A bad opinion must be shunned.

Commissum, Damasippe, tuum quod verba sequantur,
Hanc metuis, quid plebs garriat, haud metuis.

You fear, Damasippus, that what was committed may be followed by your words,
this you dread, what the plebs chatters, you do not dread.

XLI. Melius probatum amare, quam amatum probare.

41.Better to be proven loving than to prove oneself loved.

Marce, perutilius censemus amare probatum,
Quam quem reddideris, velle probare, tuum.

Marce, we judge it far more useful to love the approved,
Than for you to wish to prove as your own the one whom you have returned.

XLII. Pingui ventre tenuem sensum non nutriri.

42.A thin mind is not nourished by a fat belly.

Vult sensum tenuem, curat dum, Mervie, ventrem,
Ob tenuem sensum nutrit aqualiculum.

He desires a thin understanding; meanwhile, Mervius, he cares for his belly,
and because of that thin understanding he nourishes a little watery morsel.

XLIII. Difficilia inquirenda, facilia non adeo.

XLIII. Difficult things to inquire into, the easy not so much.

In scirpo nodum quærendo, Viselle, laboras,
Dignaque quæsitu prætereundo probas.

You toil, Viselle, seeking a knot in a reed,
and by passing over what is worthy of search you prove yourself.

XLIV. Vitium animæ despicabilius quam corporis.

44.A vice of the soul more despicable than of the body.

Ridemus Calirum dissutis naribus esse,
Non rupilum fúdis moribus effluere.

We laugh that Calirus has his nostrils unbound,
and that by his dissolute manners he does not dissolve into filth.

XLV. Socium non ascisci omnimodis mobilem.

45.Do not take on as a partner one altogether mutable..

Dum vertis habitum, mores, et verba, Levine,
Te sibi nemo parem, nemo facit socium.

While you change your garb, your mores, and your words, Levine,
no one will make you equal to himself, no one will take you as a companion.

XLVI. Non semper studendum tristibus.

46.One must not always apply oneself to sorrowful things.

Eutrapelus non blanditias, non gaudia vultu
Significat, ringi, frendere, flere vacat.

Eutrapelus signifies neither blandishments nor joys in his countenance,
he has leisure to be gnawed, to gnash his teeth, to weep.

XLVII. Naturam assiduitate culturæ novandam.

XLVII. Nature is to be renewed by the assiduity of cultivation.

Naturam cultura novans, educit ab imo;
Ergo nova mores, Corve, colendo tuos.

Renewing nature through cultivation, it brings forth from the very depths;
Therefore, Corve, by cultivating you renew your own new mores.

XLVIII. Velle sapere, non vocari sapientem.

48.To wish to be wise, not to be called wise.

Nil, Beroine, sapis, et dicis te sapientem;
Dum rapis hoc nomen, nil, Beroine, sapis.

You know nothing, Beroine, and you call yourself wise;
While you seize that name, you know nothing, Beroine.

XLIX. Ut ventri imperes, gulam arcendam.

49.To rule the belly, the throat must be curbed.

In vilem fumum sorbillans omnia vertis,
Merule, ventris amans, non regis ipse gulam.

Into vile smoke, sorbing up all things, you turn them, Merule, lover of the belly; you yourself do not rule the throat.

L. Non tamtum grandia, sed et parva, cavenda.

50.Not only great things, but also small things must be guarded against.

Quem leo non tetigit, dum mordet aranea lædit,
Enole, non tantum grandia, parva cave.

He whom the lion did not touch, the spider's bite wounds,
Enole, beware not only great things, but small ones.

LI. Hominem nequam nullo modo leniendum.

51.A wicked man must in no way be softened.

Lenio sæpe mihi pastu volucremque feramque,
Lenio te nullo, Nasidiene, bono.

I often soothe for myself bird and beast with food,
but you, Nasidienus, I soothe by no good means.

LII. Miseris nec quod miseri sint credi.

52.Nor should it be believed that the wretched are wretched.

Grande doloris onus miseris superadjicitur, dum
Nec quod sunt miseri, creditur, Aule, sibi.

A great burden of sorrow is laid upon the wretched,
nor is it believed that they are miserable, Aulus, by themselves.

LIII. Consilium senum rejiciendum non esse.

53.The counsel of the elders should not be rejected.

Pannorum veterum facile contempnitur usus,
Non sic conciliun, Postumiane, senum.

The use of old garments is easily despised,
Not so the council of the elders, O Postumianus.

LIV. Non se ultro ingerendum.

54.One must not thrust oneself in of one’s own accord.

Jure repellendum Pethosirim dicimus, ultro
Qui se non gratis ingerit officiis.

We say Pethosirus ought rightly to be repelled, of his own accord
who does not thrust himself gratuitously into offices.

LV. Amare ut amicus sis.

55.Love so that you may be a friend.

Omnis amicus amat, sed non qui amat omnis amicus;
Si quem, Basse, tu amas, esto et amicus ei.

Every friend loves, but not every one who loves is a friend;
If you love someone, Basse, be also a friend to him.

LVI. Qui amico non parcit, inimico non parcere.

56.He who spares not his friend should not spare his enemy.

Innumeras fraudes in amicos tendit Ulixes,
Quid facturus erit hostibus ergo suis.

Innumerable frauds Ulysses plots against his friends,
What, then, will he be about to do to his own enemies?

LVII. Statum mentis esse firmandum.

57.The state of the mind must be strengthened.

Mobilibus ventis similas ludibria mentis,
Veseve, nunquam stans, sed quasi turbo volans.

Like the mobile winds, the mind’s like toys and illusions, Veseve,
never standing, but flying as though a whirlwind.

LVIII. Timore mortis delicias comprimendas.

58.On restraining delights by the fear of death.

Delicias carnis spes funeris ultima solvit;
Mortem quando vides te prope, Magne, times.

The final hope of a funeral dissolves the delights of the flesh;
When you see death near, Great one, you tremble.

LIX. Sermonem inutilem esse spernendum.

59.Useless speech must be scorned.

Sermo, Flacce, tuus currit nimis, accipiendus
Haud tamen est, nulla quem parit utilitas.

Your sermon, Flaccus, runs on too long to be received,
Nor yet is it one which yields any utility.

LX. Absque moribus genus non valere.

60.Without morals, a people does not prevail..

Stemmata continuas, recitas ex ordine patres,
Sed nisi sint mores, Damma, mihi nihil es.

You recite continuous stemmata, naming fathers in order,
But unless there be morals, Damma, you are nothing to me.

LXI. Occultum hostem sævius nocere.

61.An occult enemy wounds more savagely.

Cautio provisa, formido videtur aperta,
Occultus hostis sævior, Elne, tibi.

A precaution provided seems an open fear,
a hidden enemy is more savage to you, Elne.

LXII. Culpam sapienti ostensam cito finiri.

62.A blame shown to the wise is quickly ended.

Ad radios solis siccatur nonius humor,
Et tua culpa, Line, judicis arbitrio.

By the sun's rays the ninth moisture is dried,
And by your fault, Line, at the judge's discretion.

LXIII. Eligendum cui placeamus.

63.Whom we must choose to please.

Prædicat Ermogeras non omnibus esse placendum,
Elige de multis, Regule, cui placeas.

Ermogeras declares that one must not be pleasing to all,
Choose from the many, Regulus, whom you will please.

LXIV. Studium virtutis semper habendum.

64.The zeal for virtue must always be kept.

Incipit Alchidamas virtuti sæpe studere,
Sed sine fine parum proderit incipere.

Alchidamas begins often to strive for virtue,
But to begin without end will profit little.

LXV. Non litigare.

65.Do not quarrel.

Exaltas in lite tuam, Germanice, vocem,
Ut furius mentis vox furiosa sonet.

You lift up your voice in the quarrel, Germanice,
so that the voice of your furious mind sounds raging.

LXVI. Propter fortunam non superbire.

66.Not to be proud on account of fortune.

Extolli noli, quod te fortuna beavit,
Pomponi, hæc eadem quæ levat ipsa premit.

Be not exalted, Pomponi, by that which Fortune has favored you with,
for the very thing that raises you likewise presses you down.

LXVII. Moribus homines non natura dissentire.

67.That men differ in mores, not by nature.

Ejusdem naturæ homines cognosce, Menacla,
Et tamen hos morum gratia dissimulat.

Recognize men of the same nature, Menacla,
And yet for the sake of morals he disguises these.

LXVIII. Ut medicinam, ita et sermonem variandam.

68.As medicine, so too speech should be varied.

Infirmis variis medici varianda supellex,
Sermoque, Pyrrhe, tuus quem facis ad juvenes.

For the various infirm the physician’s kit must be varied,
and your speech, Pyrrhe, which you address to the young.

LXIX. Vitiosi esse ut lateat.

69.To be vicious so that it may lie hidden.

Indicium culpæ nos, Clinia, dicimus esse
Quod semper latebras, semper amas tenebras.

We call an indication of guilt, Clinia,
that you always lurk in hiding, always love the shadows.

LXX. Vitium loco non mutari.

70.Vice is not changed by place.

Quacunque incedit rostratam vidimus Ybim,
Et te cum pravis moribus, Alle, tuis.

Whithersoever Ybim walks, beaked, we have seen,
And you with your perverse morals, Alle, we have seen.

LXXI. Vitium animi et in corpore apparere.

71.The vice of the mind appearing also in the body.

Invidiæ flamma quia, Tigilline, laboras,
Exsiccata cutis omnibus insinuat.

Because you, Tigilline, suffer the flame of envy,
your dried-up skin insinuates itself to all.

LXXII. Volentem portari et alios portare.

72.To wish to be carried and to carry others.

Portari semper, nunquam portare, suesti,
Fusce, quod a nobis exigis, exigimus.

Always to be borne, never to bear, you are wont, Fusce,
that which you exact from us, we exact from you.

LXXIII. Sapientem non esse ridendum.

73.A wise man is not to be ridiculed.

Ridemus claudum, rectum dum ridet, Alesi,
Ridemus risum de sapiente tuum.

We laugh at the lame man, while the upright one laughs, Alesi,
We laugh at your laugh about the wise man.

LXXIV. Spondenti sæpe non multum esse credendum.

74.To the promiser, often not much is to be believed.

Sponsio spes vacua, sponsor versatilis aura;
Noli spondenti fidere, Dagne, nimis.

A pledge is empty hope, the sponsor a changeable breeze;
Do not trust the promiser, Dagne, too much.

LXXV. Non esse variandum sermonem.

75.Not to vary one's discourse.

Bos mugit, sed balat ovis, variatio nulla;
Tu semper linguam, Faune, tuam varias.

The ox bellows, but the sheep bleats, no variation;
You always vary your tongue, Faunus, your tongue.

LXXVI. Virtutem locali mutatione non quærendam.

76.Virtue not to be sought by a local change.

Proficies, Labiene, parum, si climata transis,
Dum vitam, mores trans mare sæpe petis.

You will profit little, Labiene, if you change climates,
While you often seek your life and your manners across the sea.

LXXVII. Vitam bestialem non imitandam.

77.A beastly life not to be imitated.

More probaris aper, et nomine diceris Aper,
Nomine sis Aper, more vetaris aper.

By custom you will be proved a boar, and by the name you will be called Aper,
Be Aper in name, and by custom you will be forbidden to be a boar.

LXXVIII. Cito laudare vel vituperare vitium esse.

78.To praise or to blame quickly is a vice.

Vituperat subito subito qui laudat, Aledi;
Hoc utrumque tuum significant vitium.

He who praises one moment and reproves the next, Aledi;
This vice of yours denotes both.

LXXIX. Dulcedinem divitiarum sæpe gravare.

79.That the sweetness of riches often becomes a burden.

Mella, cibus dulcis, sunt sæpe nocentia multis;
Divitiæ dulces pluribus, Alle, graves.

Honey, a sweet food, is often harmful to many;
riches, sweet to more, Alle, are burdensome.

LXXX. Virtutem exercendam, vitium fugiendum.

80.Virtue must be practiced, vice must be shunned.

Pro virtute vacat fervens ad turpia Vacca;
De vitio laudem quærit habere parem.

The fervent Vacca applies herself to shameful deeds in place of virtue;
about vice she seeks to possess equal praise.

LXXXI. Non cathedram qua doceatur, sed quæ doceantur inquirent.

81.They should inquire not after the chair by which one is taught, but after the things to be taught.

Qua doceat sedem quærit Plotinus et ædem;
Quærit qua doceat, non ea quæ doceat.

Plotinus seeks the seat and the dwelling where he may teach;
he seeks where to teach, not the things which he should teach.

LXXXII. Viliorem dominari ridiculosum esse.

82.That a meaner man should rule is ridiculous.

Ridemus murem dominantem muribus, Acci;
Te quoque collegas dum dominando premis.

We laugh at a mouse ruling over mice, Acci;
you too press down your colleagues while domineering.

LXXXIII. Superbia pacem everti.

83.Pride overturns peace.

Aeriam pacem ventosa superbia tollit,
Atque tumor mentis, Maximiane, tibi.

Blustering pride upsets airy peace,
and a swelling of the mind, Maximianus, is yours.

LXXXIV. Muneribus justitiam tolli.

84.Justice is removed by gifts.

Missilibus, Datiane, tuis Astræa recessit;
Vincis muneribus jus, Datiane, tuis.

By your missiles, Datianus, Astraea has withdrawn;
You overcome justice with gifts, Datianus, yours.

LXXXV. Laudari a turpibus, vel ob turpia, laudem non esse.

85.To be praised by the base, or praised for base things, is no praise.

Nullum credo decus laudari a turpibus, Herme;
Sed nec laudari ob turpia credo decus.

I believe no honor ought to be praised as coming from base things, Herme;
but nor do I believe honor ought to be praised on account of shameful deeds.

LXXXVI. Senem puerum esse non decere.

86.That an old man should be a boy is not becoming.

Post annos centum puer Alphesibúus adhuc est;
Non ætate puta, sed vitio, puer est.

After one hundred years Alphesibúus is still a boy;
Not by age, think, but by a vice (vitium), he is a boy.

LXXXVII. Displicere ineptum unde placere contendit.

87.To displease whence the inept strives to please.

Exemplo, Menelae, tuo testaris ineptum,
Unde placere cupit, sæpe placere parum.

By your example, Menelaus, you attest that it is inept,
from which he desires to please; often, to please is scarcely enough.

LXXXVIII. Hostes diligere, amicos negligere, non decere.

88.To cherish enemies and to neglect friends is unbecoming.

Hostes Glaucus amat, Probus apernatur amicos;
Scævola, stultitiæ dignus uterque nota.

Glaucus loves his enemies, Probus is open to friends;
Scævola—both are noted as deserving of folly.

LXXXIX. Non de omni victoria coronam decere.

89.A crown is not fitting for every victory.

Signiferum belli quæsita corona decebit;
Quem subitant lites, Mopse, corona decet?

A sought crown of war will befit the standard-bearer;
Which crown, Mopse, suits him whom quarrels assail?

XC. Libros ob sententias diligendos.

90.On books to be cherished for their sentences.

Libros non pretium quæris, Melibúe, librorum;
Ut libros habeas, nec sapiendo teras.

You seek not the price of books, Melibue, the price of books;
That you may have books, nor, by being wise, wear them out.

XCI. Amare et amari decere.

91.It is fitting to love and to be loved.

Nulli carus erat Erisicthonus, et sibi nullus
Elegit misera conditione frui.

Erisichthon was dear to no one, and in his miserable condition no one chose to take pleasure in him.

XCII. De honore dolorem sæpe prodire.

92.That from honor pain often issues forth.

Nolit in accepto gaudere Seranus honore;
Sæpe dolor læto prodiit introitu.

Seranus will not rejoice in the honour received;
often sorrow has come forth at a joyous entrance.

XCIII. De remissa infortunii dolere qui invidet.

93.On the envious one who grieves at the remission of misfortune.

Galba dolet, Cicero quoniam pede claudicat uno;
Nempe hunc deficere vellet utroque pede.

Galba grieves, because Cicero limps with one foot;
indeed he would wish him to fail by both feet.

XCIV. Non esse amicum qui amico non relinquit amicum.

94.Not a friend is he who will not leave one friend for another..

Si nobis nullum, Catia, relinquis amicum,
Te fratrem nobis non reor, aut sociam.

If you leave us no friend, Catia,
I do not deem you our brother, nor our companion.

XCV. Judicem curis vacuandum.

95.The judge should be freed from cares.

Dedita mens curis fit veri nescia juris,
Astruis hoc versis, Maxime, judiciis.

A mind devoted to cares becomes ignorant of true law,
you confirm this with your perverted judgments, Maxime.

XCVI. Appetitorem laudis negata laude tristari.

96.The seeker of praise saddened by praise withheld.

Sæpe, Vitelle, doles, quia te laudando superfers
Omnibus, et nulla laus tibi grata placet.

Often, Vitelle, you grieve, because by praising yourself you surpass everyone,
and no praise seems pleasing or acceptable to you.

XCVII. Non cui invidet, sed qui invidet, nocere invidiam.

97.Not to whom one envies, but the one who envies, does envy do harm.

Torres invidia non Quintum, Candide, sed te;
Torres invidia non alium nisi te.

Torres’s envy harms not Quintus, Candide, but you;
Torres’s envy harms no one else but you.

XCVIII. Virtuti modum adhibendum.

98.A measure must be applied to virtue.

Virtutis studio nimius, Crysippe, videris,
Virtus absque modo nomen habet vitii.

You seem, Chrysippus, excessively zealous in the pursuit of virtue,
virtue without measure bears the name of vice.

XCIX. Virtute non opibus beati.

99.Blessed by virtue, not by wealth.

Credis opes solas te posse, Charine, beare;
Virtus est quæ te sola beare queat.

Do you believe wealth alone can bless you, Charine;
It is virtue that alone can bless you.

C. Lectionem sine operibus non satis prodesse.

100.Reading without works does not sufficiently profit.

Frustra multa legis, Hugo, si nil opereris;
Non, Hugo, te vere lectio sola beat?

You read many things in vain, Hugo, if you do nothing;
Nay, Hugo, does reading alone truly make you blessed?

CI. Jus observandum.

CHAPTER 101. The law must be observed.

Injuste vivis, dum jus effringere vi vis;
Non uti velis altius, Alte, velis.

You live unjustly, while you wish to break the law by force;
Do not desire to use it more arrogantly, O Lofty One.

CII. Indignum gloriam quæri ex culpa.

102.An unworthy glory to be sought from fault.

Miramur Rupilum per quæque nefanda vagari,
Et sibi virtutis præmia velle dari;
Juris amatorem merito celebramus honore,
Præmia vel laudes abnuimus sceleri.

We marvel at Rupilum roaming through every nefarious thing,
and wishing that prizes of virtue be given to himself;
a lover of law we rightly celebrate with honor,
prizes or praises to crime we refuse.

CIII. Non pudere peccare quem peccasse non pudet.

103.He who is not ashamed to have sinned is not ashamed to sin.

Quæ puer et juvenis commisit turpia Phorbas,
Tanquam si placeant, sæpe referre solet;
Sed ratio est quia quem nunquam peccasse pudebit,
Nec peccare pudet, vive et utrumque pudet.

What shameful acts that boy and youth Phorbas committed,
as if they pleased him, he is often wont to recount;
but the reason is that him it will never shame to have sinned,
nor is it shame to sin — he lives, and both are a shame.

CIV. Raritate etiam vilia placere.

CIV. Even humble things please by their rarity.

Vilia divitibus notum est plerumque placere,
Nec quia vilia sunt, sed quia rara, Line.
Sic plerumque premit pretiosa frequentior usus;
Cum pisces oleant, vilia carna placent.

Cheap things are for the most part known to please the rich,
Not because they are cheap, but because they are rare, Line.
Thus more frequent use commonly presses down the precious;
When fish have a smell, cheap flesh is pleasing.

CV. Honesta multa vi paupertatis extingui.

105.Many honorable things are extinguished by the force of poverty.

Non sanguis, non oris honor, non gloria sensus,
Non gravitas morum, proderit, Aule, tibi;
Pauper enim tu semper eris, quia pauper es, et te
Colliget ulterior ulteriore gradus.

Not blood, not the honor of birth, not the glory of rank,
Not the gravity of manners will avail you, Aule;
For you will always be poor, because you are poor, and
One further step will gather you, step after step.

CVI. Os ad mores contorquendum.

106.The mouth to be twisted toward morals.

Hostem, Laude, tuum socium tibi sæpe refingis,
Collegamque tuum diro odio insequeris;
Ergo premas laudesve modum servare memento,
Moribus ut versis os variare queas.

Laude, you often refashion your enemy into an ally for yourself,
and pursue your colleague with dire hatred;
therefore remember to curb praise and to keep it measured,
so that, your manners turned, you may be able to vary your countenance.

CVII. Placare mordacem parum proficere.

107.It profits little to placate a mordant one.

Nil tibi proficias pectendo canem atque lavando,
Paule, lava laterem, nil tibi proficias.
Nil tibi proficias hominem mulcendo caninum,
Servi, fer curam, nil tibi proficias.

It profits you nothing to comb and wash a dog,
Paul, wash its flank — it profits you nothing.
It profits you nothing to mollify a doggish man by soothing him,
Slave, take the care — it profits you nothing.

CVIII. Præposterum ante docere quam discere.

108.It is absurd to teach before learning.

Ante docere cupis quam discere, Pontiovane,
Et regere affectas, nescius ipse regi.
Quam male confundit ratio præpostera mores,
Cum docet indoctus, ducit et absque duce.

You would teach before learning, Pontiovane,
and strive to rule, yourself ignorant how to rule.
How falsely preposterous reason confounds manners,
when the unlearned teaches, and leads though without a leader.

CIX. Ignotis nota esse prúponenda.

109.Unknown things must be presented as known.

Visceribus peregrina tuis annectere, durum est;
Concordare sibi extranea, difficile est.
Quod jungit natura tibi, Marcelle, repellis,
Exterum et adversum vis sociare tibi.

To fasten foreign things upon your own viscera is harsh;
to make alien things concordant with oneself is difficult.
What nature joins to you, Marcelle, you repel,
and you desire to associate to yourself the alien and hostile.

CX. In subventu aliorum sibi non nocendum.

110.In coming to the aid of others, one must not harm oneself.

Ne noceas tibi, sic aliis prodesse memento;
Velle beare alios, prodere te, miserum est;
Quo vitio cum decenti plerique laborent,
Unum supra omnes Euripidem video.

Do not harm yourself; remember thus to be of use to others;
To wish to benefit others, yet to betray yourself, is pitiable;
By which fault most decent folk are afflicted,
I see one Euripides above all.

CXI. Altiora casu graviore prolabi.

111.To fall into loftier things by a graver misfortune.

Altior ascensus, gravior plerumque ruina est,
Sollicitudo gravis, præproperatus honor.
Cum nimis alta petis citus incautusque, ruina
Et gravis et subita est, Sexte, timenda tibi.

A loftier ascent is, for the most part, a heavier ruin,
Anxious solicitude is grave, and over-hasty honor.
When you seek too lofty things, swift and incautious, the ruin
Is both weighty and sudden, Sexte, and must be feared by you.

CXII. Invidum raro vel nunquam conciliandum.

112.The envious should be rarely or never conciliated.

Invidus es, Gaius, frustra sibi, Magne, placere
Contendis, non te conciliabis ei.
Diligis? instigas; vis pacificare? Fatigas;
Sic exhibitio perdis amore duos.

You are envious, Gaius, striving in vain, O Great one, to please him
You strive, you will not win him over to you.
Do you love? you incite; would you pacify? you weary;
Thus by your display you lose two through love.

CXIII. De justitia nasci sæpe injustitiam.

113.On justice often giving birth to injustice.

Crimina nulla tibi quoniam sunt, Galle, superbis;
Inflaris, quoniam crimina nulla tibi.
Crimen in omne ruis, quia non peccasse superbis,
Te justum esse putans, crimen in omne ruis.

Because you have no crimes, Galle, you are proud;
You swell, because you have no crimes.
You rush into every crime, because you have not sinned against the proud,
Thinking yourself just; you rush into every crime.

CXIV. Invitum non posse servari.

114.An unwilling person cannot be held..

Invitum servare diu, provincia dura est;
Vis servare planum, Maximiane? grave est.
Non foveam accendit, laqueos parat, excitat ignes;
Mortem amplexanti vivere difficile est.

To keep unwillingly for long is a harsh province;
Would you desire to keep it steady, Maximiane? it is grievous.
He does not kindle a pit for warmth, he prepares snares, he stirs up fires;
For one embracing death, to live is difficult.

CXV. Parvis prodesse quod parvi sunt.

115.That small things are of use because they are small.

Qui vidit te, Grosphe, duos deprendit in uno,
A retro puerum videt, ab ante, virum.
Si ludis, puer es; da posteriora, probatur,
Ludum defendis; vertere, liber eris.

He who saw you, Grosphe, discovered two in one,
from behind he beholds a boy, from before, a man.
If you make sport, you are a boy; give the hindparts, you're proved,
you defend the game; turn about, and you will be free.

CXVI. Vocem habendam pro corpore.

116.A voice to be held in place of the body.

Zoile, dum tussis, dum verbis aera rumpis,
Tu major toto corpore conciperis.
Colligit auditus, quod visio certa refellit;
Auris amanda tibi, visio non adeo.

Zoile, while you cough, while with words you rend the air,
You are conceived greater than your whole body.
Hearing collects what certain sight refutes;
The ear is to be loved by you, sight not so much.

CXVII. Hominem levem nemini debere placeri.

117.A man of levity ought to be pleasing to no one.

Mente levis, sermone duplex, tibi complacet, Albi,
Unius est et non consonuere tibi.
Si levis es, comitare levem, si fixus, et idem,
Prothea miramur complacuisse tibi.

Light in mind, double in speech, you delight, Albi,
He is of one sort and does not accord with you.
If you are light, keep company with the light; if fixed, likewise,
We marvel that Proteus has pleased you.

CXVIII. Non de eodem accusari et accusare debere.

118.One ought not to be both accused of and to accuse concerning the same thing.

Bella Neoptolemi nigro sale, Phædria, punis,
Dente premis nigro bella Neoptolemi.
Bella Neoptolemus sibi præmonstrata capescit,
Sumit quæ dederas bella Neoptolemus.

With black salt you chastise the wars of Neoptolemus, Phædria,
With a black tooth you press the wars of Neoptolemus.
Neoptolemus lays hold of for himself the wars foretold to him,
Neoptolemus takes the wars which you had bestowed.

CXIX. Operam non bono impensam amitti.

119.Let not the effort expended on what is not good be lost..

Serpentem compone sinu, blandire, foveto,
Ludificas operam, Ceciliane, tuam.
Friguit ante sinum, calet, et vomit ore venenum,
Virus torpebat, tu facis, ut caleat.

Place the serpent in your bosom, coax it, cherish it,
You play with your labour, Ceciliane.
It grows cold before the fold, it grows warm, and vomits venom from its mouth,
The virus lay numb; you make it grow warm.

CXX. Rebus inutilibus operam non adhibendam.

120.Effort must not be applied to useless matters.

Arte tua crines reparasti, Leda, marito,
Pulsa canitie redditur ecce color.
Arte tua nervum tendis relevare mariti,
Sed jacet et languet, heu! quia vincitur ars.

By your art you restored your husband's hair, Leda,
The driven-away canity, behold, is returned to color.
By your art you strive to stretch the husband's nerve anew,
But he lies and languishes, alas! for the art is overcome.

CXXI. In vitio non permanendum.

121.One must not remain in vice.

Unice vive puer, lætus cantabat Adonis,
Nunc quoque cantat adhuc, unice vive puer.
Non silet aut siluit tibi nomen amoris apud me,
Nomen amare probans, non silet aut siluit.

Live, only one, boy, Adonis sang, joyful,
Even now he still sings too, live, only one, boy.
The name of love before me does not fall silent nor has it ever been silent for you,
The name, approving to love, does not fall silent nor has it ever been silent.

CXXII. Agere prius, post exigere.

122.To act first, to demand afterwards.

Exigis a nobis quem nulli solvis amorem,
Quam nulli præstas, exigis, Aule, fidem.
Exigis a nobis quem non merearis honorem,
Mirum est quod non das id tibi velle dari.

You demand of us a love which you loosen for no one,
You demand faith, Aulus, which you bestow on no one.
You demand from us an honour which you do not deserve,
It is strange that you do not give to yourself what you wish to be given.

CXXIII. Loqui nocere, silere non.

123.To speak harms, not to be silent.

Rufe, tui comites servare silentia norunt,
Conticuere diu, Rufe, tui comites.
Tarquinius Brutum per longa silentia pressit,
Ille tacens regi cogitat exilium.

Rufus, your companions know how to keep silence,
Your companions were silent long, Rufus.
Tarquinius pressed down Brutus by long silences,
He, silent, plots exile for the king.

CXXIV. Datum non recordandum.

124.That which is given should not be recalled.

Splendida dona mihi dum sæpe et sæpe dedisse
Omnibus aut multis, Maximiane, refers,
Quæ dederas, vel plura, tibi te velle rependi
Omnibus aut multis, Maximiane, refers.

While again and again you tell me that you gave splendid gifts
to all or to many, O Maximian,
that those things which you had given, or more, you wish to have repaid to you,
to all or to many, O Maximian, you declare.

CXXV. Non de alieno sed de suo gloriam quærendam.

125.Glory not to be sought from another's things but from one's own.

Non numeres tibi divitias, non facta priorum,
Si laudem a nobis, Aureliane, petas;
Auctores magnorum operum sua facta celebrant,
Et laus ipsorum, non tua laus, agitur.

Do not count riches as yours, nor the deeds of those before you,
if you seek praise from us, Aurelian;
the authors of great works celebrate their own deeds,
and their praise, not your praise, is what is at issue.

CXXVI. Usui vel naturæ commoda expetenda.

CHAPTER 126. Advantages for use or for nature to be sought.

Non indignatur serpente ciconia pasci,
Pasci triticea messe columba petit;
Pindare, nil sceleris homo nequam prorsus abhorret,
Virtus in voto qua veneremur habet.

The stork does not disdain to feed on the serpent,
The dove seeks to feed on the wheat-harvest;
Pindar—an utterly depraved man is not averse to any wickedness,
Virtue dwells in the vow by which we venerate.

CXXVII. Paulatim magna decident.

127.Gradually great things will fall.

Decidit immensus paulatim montis acervus,
Fluminea tellus alluvione fluit.
Fidime, virtutis paulatim decidit usus,
Justus homo culpæ diruitur fluvio.

An immense heap of the mountain slowly fell away,
the land flows with a riverine alluvion.
Fidime, the practice of virtue gradually declines,
the just man is swept down by a flood of guilt.

CXXVIII. Perfidam mentem inscrutabilem esse.

128.That a perfidious mind is inscrutable.

Inscrutabilis est maris exundantis abyssus;
Æquora mota hominis rejiciunt oculum;
Inscrutabilis est malefidæ mentis abyssus,
Dædale, turbida mens non habet intuitum.

Inscrutable is the abyss of the overflowing sea;
The stirred seas repel a man's eye;
Inscrutable is the abyss of a treacherous mind,
Daedalian— the turbid mind admits no insight.

CXXIX. Non nimis cupiendum.

129.Not to desire too much.

In mundo quid, Druse, facis, qui major es ipso?
Omnis gloria te non capit, omnis honor;
Amplexu cupido totum complecteris orbem,
Et nunquam penitus es tibi sufficiens.

What do you do in the world, Druse, who are greater than the world itself?
All glory does not contain you, all honor;
With an embrace of desire you would encompass the whole orb,
And you are never wholly sufficient to yourself.

CXXX. Laudari stultum et deficere.

130.To be praised is foolish, and to fall short.

Qui te laudabant jam defecere, Melane;
Rumor falsidicus surgit, et ecce cadit.
Despicio fumum dum surgit deficientem;
Deficit exurgens gloria do nihilo.

Those who praised you have already deserted you, Melane;
a lying rumor rises, and behold, it falls.
I despise the smoke while it rises, already failing;
the glory, rising, sinks away into nothing.

CXXXI. Animum videri in facie.

131.To have the mind seen in the face.

Lubricus aspectus, facies incerta, Macrine,
Significant nobis te nimis esse levem.
Est speculum mentis facies, oculique revelant
Qualia sunt intus mens animusque hominis.

A slippery glance, an uncertain visage, Macrine,
show to us that you are too light (levem).
The face is the mirror of the mind, and the eyes disclose
what the mind and the animus of a man are within.

CXXXII. Nihil pejus optare avaro quam diu vivere.

CXXXII. Nothing is worse for a miser than to desire to live long.

Orandum quid vel gravius vel pejus avaro
Secula quam vitæ continuare diu?
Nasidiene, diu vixisti semper avarus,
Oro tibi vivas, Nasidiene, diu.

What can be prayed — either graver or fouler for a miser —
than that he prolong the ages beyond his life?
Nasidiene, you have lived long, always avaricious,
I beg that you live long, Nasidiene.

CXXXIII. Non de nihilo esse gaudendum.

133.One must not rejoice over nothing.

Tres in fronte pili tibi dant, Tatiane, tumorem,
Et quia calvus eos invidet esse tibi;
At brevis hic numerus tibi dampna gemenda reportat,
Huic quia nullus adest, nec se habuisse putat.

Three hairs on your brow give you a swelling, Tatiana,
and because a bald man envies them to be yours;
but this scanty number brings you lamentable losses to bewail,
since no one attends to it, nor thinks himself to have had it.

CXXXIV. Se senem qui dolet, velle delirare.

134.He who laments himself to be an old man wishes to be delirious.

Præproperam tibi canitiem, Tite, plangis adesse,
Et senis ad nomen subrigit ira jecur;
Delirasse parum tibi forte videris, et ardes
Protelare tuæ tempora nequitiæ.

You lament an untimely greyness as if already present, Titus,
and at the name of an old man your liver, angry, rises up;
you perhaps may seem to have raved too little, and you burn
to postpone the seasons of your wickedness.

CXXXV. Placere opere non gestu.

135.To please by work, not by gesture.

Versus, Dave, canis, vultuque manuque laborans
Ut placeas gestu, carmine si nequeas;
Non te versum, sed versum laudare decet te,
Fac ut te versus laudet ubique tuus.

Versus, Dave, a dog, toiling with face and hand,
that you may please by gesture, if you cannot by song;
It befits you to praise the verse, not that the verse praise you,
Make that your verse praises you everywhere.

CXXXVI. Avarum in vita nulli, in morte multis prodesse.

136.The avaricious man benefits no one in life, in death benefits many.

Non sibi non aliis prodest dum vivit avarus,
Et prodest aliis et sibi dum moritur.
Ut quod prosit agas ergo vixisse, Melampe,
Jam tibi sufficiat vita inimica tibi.

The miser benefits neither himself nor others while he lives,
and benefits both others and himself when he dies.
Therefore, Melampus, let having lived suffice you, that you do what is of use,
and let a life now inimical to you be enough for you.

CXXXVII. Se non posse refringere.

137.To be unable to restrain oneself.

Pigmeis nanisque sodalibus uteris, usque,
Sisiphe, num casu vel ratione facis.
Apparere quidem faciunt non te esse gigantem;
Nam mihi pigmeus, non mihi nanus eris.

You keep company with Pygmies and dwarf comrades ever, Sisyphus—do you do it by chance or by reason?
They indeed make it appear that you are not a giant;
for to me you will be a pygmy, not a dwarf.

CXXXVIII. Nobis esse placere, aliena non.

138.To please ourselves, not another’s.

Nostra aliis, et plus nobis aliena placere,
Commune id vitium est, morbus et iste gravis.
Qui cum pene omnes titillet, in omnibus unum,
Et supra cunctos te, Damasippe, movet.

That our own things please others, and that another's please us more,
Is a common vice, and that is a grievous disease.
Which, since it tickles almost everyone, makes everyone alike,
And stirs you above all, Damasippe.

CXXXIX. Potestatem iracundiæ additam esse pro fulmine.

CXXXIX. That a power of anger had been added in place of a thunderbolt.

Tydeu, cum nequeas rabiem compescere cordis,
Offendit qui te præcluem honore facit;
Nam fulmen pariunt, regno dum jungitur ira;
Ira movet gladium, sanguine gliscit honor.

Tydeu, when you cannot curb the madness of your heart,
he wrongs who crowns you with exalted honor;
for thunder is begotten when anger is yoked to rule;
anger stirs the sword, and honor swells with blood.

CXL. Patres non odire, sed obedire.

140.Fathers not to hate, but to obey.

Tu benefacta tui tanquam malefacta parentis
Semper dente malo, Garrule, persequeris.
Dilige si bonus est justa pietate parentem,
Si malus est, tolera, filius esto bonus.

You pursue your father's benefactions as if they were his malefactions
always with a malicious tooth, Garrule.
Love, if he is good, the parent with just pietas,
if he is wicked, endure him; be thou a good son.

CXLI. Quæ aliis feceris, ab eis expectare eadem.

141.What you do to others, expect the same from them.

Jurgia, clamores tibi gloria, gloria lites,
Et facis et dicis omnibus unde noces.
Expectes eadem quæ nobis feceris, Alte,
Nam quem tu lædis, te ferit ille libens.

Quarrels, cries—“glory, glory”—are yours, disputes,
And you both do and say to everyone from whom you harm.
Expect the same things which you have done to us, Alte,
For whom you wound, he will gladly strike you.

CXLII. Dominos avaros servos nequam diligere.

142.To love greedy masters and wicked servants.

Dispensator eris per tempora longa, Treboni,
Unum qui leporem multiplicare sapis.
Unus quippe recens raro vix sufficit uni,
Sed servando vetus mille facit lepores.

You will be steward through long times, Trebonius,
one who knows how to multiply a single hare.
For one fresh hare scarcely is enough for one, rarely,
but by preserving the old a thousand hares he makes.

CXLIII. Servos divites non agnoscere se.

143.The rich do not acknowledge that they are servants.

Damma fuit servus, se non agnoscit, honore
Sublimis factus se vacuisse putat
Quod quondam fuerat, sed sumpta pelle leonis,
Qui vilis fuerat vilis asellus erat.

Damma was a slave, he does not recognize himself,
Made lofty by honor he thinks he has ceased to be
What once he was; but having put on a lion’s skin,
He who had been base was a base little ass.

CXLIV. Sæpe unde ridemus et nos rideri.

CXLIV. Often from the very thing at which we laugh we ourselves are laughed.

Ridebas ficos aliorum sæpe, Rubelli,
Irrident ficos ecce tuos alii.
Infirmæ naris stillam ridere solebas,
Profluvium ecce tuum risus ubique premit.

You used to laugh at other people's figs, Rubellus,
behold now others laugh at your figs.
You were wont to laugh at the drop from a feeble nose,
behold your own effusion now provokes laughter everywhere.

CXLV. Deceptores aliorum et decipere et decipi.

145.Deceivers of others, both to deceive and to be deceived.

Servule, dulce canis volucres ad retia suadens,
Ut me decipias, Servule, dulce canis.
Unus adulando te mecum decipis ipse;
Uni falsa loquens, decipis ipse duos.

Servule, sweet dog urging the birds toward the nets,
That you may deceive me, Servule, sweet dog.
By flattering one, you yourself deceive one — me;
Speaking falsehoods to one, you yourself deceive two.

CXLVI. Vinosum vitii proximitate torreri.

146.To be scorched by the proximity of a vinous vice.

Ad dubiam cúnam me, Nasidiene, vocasti,
Sed longe a mensa me recubare facis.
Irritor visu, magis irritarer odore;
Si me flere velis, fac propius sedeam.

You have called me to the doubtful couch, Nasidienus,
but you make me recline far from the table.
I am provoked by sight; I would be more provoked by smell;
If you would have me weep, cause me to sit nearer.

CXLVII. Juvenem largum, senem parcum mirari.

147.To marvel at a generous youth, a sparing old man.

Miramur juvenes largos, vetulosque tenaces,
Illis cum multum, his breve restet iter.
Vibidius nostrum minuit de parte stuporem,
Cum puer atque senex prodigus extiterit.

We marvel at lavish youths, and at miserly old men who hold fast,
for to the former much remains, to the latter a short way is left.
Vibidius lessens our wonder on that point,
when a boy and an old man alike have proved prodigal.

CXLVIII. Os non male mutandum.

148.The mouth should not be changed for the worse.

Curinomus quando satur est, jejunia laudat;
Quando jejunus prandia magnificat.
Unde fit ut multi super illo multa loquantur,
Quod sic delirans os et opus variat.

Curinomus, when sated, praises fasts;
When fasting, he magnifies meals.
Whence it comes that many speak much about him,
because thus, raving, he changes mouth and deed.

CXLIX. Pauperi nec in morte sufficere.

149.Not enough for the poor even in death.

Pauper divitibus tumulos, Marcelle, parabas,
Num tibi defuncto quis tumulum faciat?
Cum saperes te sorte mori, cum pauperem egere,
Composuisse prius te tibi oportuerat.

You were preparing tombs for the rich, Marcelle,
Do you imagine anyone will make a tomb for you when you are dead?
Since you knew you would die by lot, since you were needy as a pauper,
You ought first to have provided for yourself.

CL. Aliena non tractanda.

CL. Do not handle another’s possessions.

Et virtus et de virtutis semine sermo
Lucet, et apparet simplici inesse suo;
Si justus, hæc magnificas, si sordidus, audes
Attrectare, tamen utraque degeneras.

And both virtue and the speech from virtue’s seed
shine, and it appears to be innate in the simple;
If you are just, you magnify these things; if sordid, you dare
to handle them — yet in either case you degenerate.

CLI. Locum mores non mutare.

151.Do not change your manners for a place.

Serpentem innocuum faciunt deserta locorum,
Non quia virus abest, sed quia cui noceat.
Dat virus natura, locus non, ergo recedens
Tu virus tecum, Gratidiane, feres.

Deserted places make the snake harmless,
Not because the virus is gone, but because there is none for it to harm.
Nature gives the virus, not the place; therefore, departing,
You will carry the virus with you, Gratidian.

CLII. Amicum pro ipso habendum.

152.A friend should be held for his own sake.

Ut bove, sicut equo, sic utitur Aulus amico,
Sic fratre et socio, ceu bove, sicut equo.
Optat equo atque bovi durare diuque valere,
Sed sibi tantum ipsi, non id equo atque bovi.

Just as to an ox, as to a horse, so Aulus uses a friend,
So to a brother and companion, like to ox and horse.
He wishes the horse and ox to endure and to be strong for long,
But only for himself he wishes this, not for the horse and ox.

CLIII. Nomen honoris, non rem, parum valere.

153.The name of honor, not the thing, is of little worth.

Nomen honoris habere parum est, non pondus honoris,
Momentum nullum, et nomen habere parum est.
Nomen et amittis, si tantum est nomen honoris,
Si quæ poscit honor, Maxime, nulla facis.

To bear the name of honor is little, not the weight of honor,
no moment, and to bear the name is little.
And you even lose the name, if the name of honor is only a name,
If honor demands any things, Maxime, you do none.

CLIV. Consilio juvenum non esse fidendum.

154.Young men's counsel is not to be trusted.

Consilio juvenum fidis, Melibúe, ruinam
Expectare potes, dum sine consilio es.
Non est securus, supra titubantia fultus,
Jungere labenti, labitur ille, cadis.

Trusting in the counsel of youths, Melibúe, you can expect ruin
while you remain without counsel.
It is not secure, supported upon things tottering above,
to join with one who is slipping; he slips — you fall.

CLV. Magna promittere, parva dare, non decere.

155.To promise great things and give small ones is not becoming.

Murenas nobis spondebas, Albinovane;
Lumbricos tenues, Albinovane, paras.
Magna quidem dare, sed promittere parva, decorum est;
Te facere e contra gloria nulla tibi.

You pledged morays to us, Albinovanus;
you procure thin little worms, Albinovanus.
It is indeed proper to give great things but to promise small ones;
to do the contrary brings you no glory.

CLVI. Sua communicare.

156.To share one’s own.

Unde habeas, Line, non curas, curas ut abundes,
Et solus perdas, omnia solus habes.
Tu non participas possessi gaudia cuiquam,
Ergo nec amissi participas lacrimam.

From what you possess, Line, you have no cares; cares that you abound in, you do not have,
And you alone lose, you alone hold everything.
You share the joys of possession with no one,
Therefore you share not the tear of what is lost.

CLVII. Furenti respondendum non esse.

CHAPTER 157. One ought not to answer a raging person.

Respondere tibi dum nolo de mea demens,
Me victum irrides, sed Senecæ ratio est.
Qui vincis, vinci, qui vincor, vincere, vincit
Te ira gravisque furor, liber ab his ego sum.

While I, raving, do not wish to answer you about my own affairs,
you mock me as vanquished, but this is Seneca’s doctrine.
“You who conquer, be conquered; I who am conquered, conquer” —
anger and grievous fury conquer you; I am free from these.

CLVIII. Servos non esse pauperandos.

158.Slaves are not to be impoverished.

Dum spolias servos, dum diripis omnia eorum,
Compede servitii, Lentule, solvis eos.
Paupertas servum tibi libertate coæquat,
Assint divitiæ, tu dominaris eis.

While you strip slaves, while you plunder all their goods,
with the fetter of servitude, Lentulus, you loosen them.
Poverty makes a slave equal to you in liberty,
if riches are present, you domineer over them.

CLIX. Sibi in omnibus providendum.

159.One must provide for oneself in all things.

Multiplici giro milvus circumvolat escam,
Infectam metuens tristibus aucupiis.
Servule, tu nulla ratione per omnia curris,
Te nudum opponens omnibus insidiis.

With many a giro the kite wheels about its prey,
fearing the bait tainted by the grim fowlers.
Little slave, you through all things run with no reason,
exposing yourself naked to every ambush.

CLX. Putandum, esse vitium dum recens est.

160.It should be reckoned a fault while it is fresh.

Spira recens et parva tibi, Sejane, putanda,
Dum rudis et parva est culpa putanda tibi;
Firmat humi spinam robusta et plurima radix,
Mens assueta malo, firmius hæret ei.

A fresh and small sprout ought to be reckoned for you, Sejanus,
while your fault is to be deemed raw and slight;
a robust and very abundant root fastens the thorn in the ground,
a mind accustomed to evil clings to it all the more firmly.

CLXI. Carpendum, carpere non decere.

161.To be criticized, it is not proper to carp.

Cur maculas alios maculosior omnibus, Albi?
Et carpi dignus, carpere non metuis.
Carpendos etenim carpis torrente cachinno,
Ne quis carpendum te magis esse putet.

Why, Albi, are you more spotted with stains than all others?
And though worthy to be picked at, you do not fear being picked at.
For you pick at those things that are to be picked at with a torrent of laughter,
lest anyone reckon you to be the more deserving of being picked at.

CLXII. Secum morari et consistere, mentis esse compositæ.

162.To linger with oneself and to stand firm, to be of a composed mind.

Est mentis bene compositæ consistere secum,
Et non immotus dissimiles ruere.
Lause, ut consistas tecum, tecumque moreris,
Figi disce loco, ne levis esse velis.

It is of a mind well-composed to stand with oneself,
and not, unsteady, to rush toward dissimilar things.
Praise thyself, that thou mayest stand with thyself and abide with thyself,
Learn to be fixed in place, lest thou wish to be light.

CLXIII. Antequam ames probare, probatum amare.

163.Before you love, test; love that which has been proved.

Sæpe diuque suo quem dignum censet amore
Pertractum sapiens sic amat exhibitum.
Antequam ames, Crysippe, proba, sed amare probatum
Cura, toto illum pectore suscipias.

Often and long the wise man loves one whom he judges worthy of love;
thus he loves what has been tested and presented.
Before you love, Crysippe, examine; but love the examined—
see that you take him into your whole heart.

CLXIV. Dare cum hilaritate.

164.To give with cheerfulness.

Attollunt hilares vilissima munera vultus,
Vultus sublustres maxima dejiciunt.
Si donas tristis, et dona et præmia perdis,
Didime, dona hilaris, non sine laude facis.

Cheerful faces uplift the cheapest gifts,
Faces half-dim cast down the greatest.
If you give sorrowful, both gifts and prizes you lose,
Give, give cheerfully — gifts gladly given are not without praise.

CLXV. De bono vel male non jactare.

165.On not vaunting good or ill.

Iratis irato animo respondet Alanus,
Et se jactat in hoc, grande nimis vitium.
Si iratis placato animo respondet Alanus,
Et se jactat in hoc, grande quoque est vitium.

Alanus answers the angry with an angry mind,
And boasts of himself in this, a vice too great.
If Alanus answers the angry with a placated mind,
And boasts of himself in this, it is likewise a great vice.

CLXVI. Voracem et capere et rapere.

166.To both take and to seize the voracious.

Prodigus est Ancon, nec se novit cohibere,
Currenti nunquam fræna retentat equo:
Culpa quidem gravis est, gemini quoque causa reatus,
Cum male cuncta vorans, et cupit atque rapit.

Ancon is prodigal, nor knows how to cohere himself,
He never holds the reins on a horse that runs:
Indeed the fault is grave, and likewise the cause of a twofold guilt,
Since, ill-devouring all things, he both desires and seizes.

CLXVII. Famæ non operi confidentem cito decidere.

167.He who trusts to fame rather than to work soon falls.

Quæ crescit ramis et non radicibus arbor,
Æmiliane, brevi flamine mota ruit.
Qui celebris famæ ramos per inania tendit,
Non radicem operum, corruit ex facili.

That tree which grows by branches and not by roots, Aemilian, is overthrown by a brief gust.
He who extends the branches of celebrated fame into empty things, and not the root of his deeds, falls away easily.

CLXVIII. Neminem sese efferre debere.

168.No one ought to exalt himself.

Vir bonus et prudens nulli sua facta revelat,
Non quærens laudem perdat opusque suum.
Tu facis e contra, tua, Tityre, turpia nudans,
Laudari cupiens quæ male gesta probas.

A good and prudent man reveals his deeds to no one,
Not seeking praise he does not lose his work.
You do the opposite, you, Tityrus, baring your own shameful things,
Desiring to be praised you approve what is ill done.

CLXIX. Imitandum esse quem magis aspectu probaveris quam auditu.

169.You should imitate him whom you have approved more by sight than by hearing.

Illum proponas tibi, Cælestine, sequendum,
Quem magis aspectu quam aure probatum habeas.
Sunt homines nequam, bene de virtute loquentes,
Non hos sed verbum pectore fige tuo.

Set that man before you, Cælestine, to be followed,
whom you should count more proved by aspect than by hearing.
There are wicked men, speaking well about virtue,
not these but the word fix in your heart.

CLXX. Inimicos procul removendos.

170.Enemies to be kept far away.

Audisti quoniam vermes de carne creati
Carnem rursus edant, pellis eos, abigis;
Vipeream prolem de te, Phidippe, dedisti,
Quæ te rodit ovans, tu tamen usque foves.

You have heard that worms, created from flesh,
again eat flesh; skin them, you drive them off;
Phidippe, you bore from yourself a viperine offspring,
which, exulting, gnaws you, yet you continually cherish it.

CLXXI. Velle debere et regi et regere.

171.To will is to owe both to be ruled and to rule.

Non vult vera loqui Titus, ut non audiat ipse;
Cumque regi non vult, neminem et ipse regit.
Sic in eo pereunt casti commercia amoris,
Cum nullum curans aut regit aut regitur.

Titus will not speak truths, so that he himself does not hear them;
and since he will not be ruled, he himself rules no one.
Thus in him the chaste commerces of love perish,
when, caring for no one, he neither rules nor is ruled.

CLXXII. Vitam hominis varicam esse.

172.The life of man is variable.

Alternis vicibus mutantur tempora mundi,
Temperies cúli, Plaute, vices patitur.
Sic alternatur humanæ formula vitæ,
Tristibus et lætis dissimilata ruit.

By alternating turns the times of the world are changed,
the climate of the sky, Plaute, endures vicissitudes.
So the pattern (formula) of human life is alternated,
diverse in sorrowful and joyful parts it rushes on.

CLXXIII. Dici vel esse bonum, idem non esse.

173.To be called good or to be good are not the same.

Dici aut esse bonum non nos reputamus ut unum;
Dici non multum proderit, esse nimis.
Dici aut esse malum, Protheu, non dicimus unum;
Dici, si noceat, sed magis esse nocet.

We do not reckon dici and esse to be one good;
to say it will not much avail, to be (it) is too much.
We do not call dici and esse one evil, Protheu;
saying may hurt if it harms, but being hurts more.

CLXXIV. Servum eundem et dominum unius non esse.

174.That the same man is not both a slave and the master of one.

Miramur tibi, Naupliades, te nolle præesse,
Illum quem videas nolle subesse tibi.
Quæris qui præsit, sed non nisi subjiciatur;
Servum esse et dominum me tibi, difficile est.

We marvel at you, Naupliades, that you will not preside,
that he whom you see will not submit himself to you.
You ask who presides, but none presides except one who is subjected;
That I be both your servant and your lord to you is difficult.

CLXXV. Inter nequam bonum apparere, parum esse.

175.That good, when it appears among the wicked, is of little worth.

Omnes infamas, accusas criminis omnes,
Euthyme, ut inter eos tu bonus emineas.
Apparere bonum, sed supra castra bonorum
Magna inter nequam, gloria parva tibi.

You brand everyone infamous, you accuse all of crime,
Euthyme, that you may stand out among them as good.
To appear good — but over the camp of the good
Great among the wicked, a small gloria is yours.

CLXXVI. Invidum præstare ut noceat.

176.To grant the envious leave to harm.

Scribam ex quinque viro faciens Nasica Coranum,
Multum invidit ei, contulit, et nocuit.
Donum donat ei, nec non ut honore careret,
Sed ne majorem consequeretur eo.

I will write that Nasica, fashioning Coranus from five men,
envied him greatly, bestowed and harmed him.
He gives him a gift, and likewise so that he might lack honor,
but so that he should not attain a greater one than himself.

CLXXVII. Hominem factiosum a re pro re movendum.

177.A factious man must be removed from a matter for the sake of the matter.

Insidiis cives et amicos sollicitantem,
Consilium Bruti se vocat exilio.
Sic quia non patitur respublica nostra Cethegum,
In brevibus Gyaris aptat eum solio.

By ambushes troubling citizens and friends,
he names Brutus’s counsel “exile.”
Thus, because our res publica does not endure Cethegus,
he assigns him forthwith to the seat of Gyarus.

CLXXVIII. Vitium non esse iterandum.

178.A fault must not be repeated.

Qui male moratum te dicunt, Æmiliane,
Illos mendaces ut facias cupio.
Sed tu quod contra est, ut eorum oratio vera
Sit, re confirmas prave, iterans vitia.

Those who say that you have behaved ill, Æmiliane,
I desire that you make them liars.
But you, perversely, by deed confirm the contrary, so that their speech
may be true, repeating your vices.

CLXXIX. Non paria Deo sentire.

179.Not to deem things equal to God.

Subdi velle Deo, servire creata creanti,
Consentire illi æqualia, justitia est.
Non sic Drusus, qui divina humanaque frangens,
Miscuit audacter fasque nefasque simul.

To subject one’s will to God, to serve the created to the Creator,
to assent that things are equal to him, is justice.
Not so Drusus, who, breaking divine and human law,
boldly mingled right (fas) and wrong (nefas) together.

CLXXX. In paupere raram esse facundiam.

CLXXX. That eloquence is rare in the poor.

In tenui panno nulla est facundia, Peleu,
Sed cum purpurea veste parata venit.
Sit pauper probus et sapiens, omnino negatur,
Sit dives, recte protinus aunuitur.

In a thin garment there is no eloquence, Peleu,
but when he comes arrayed in a purple robe.
If poor, honest and sapient, he is wholly refused,
if rich, he is straightaway and rightly favored.

CLXXXI. Qui datur vel recipitur ab homine nequam, honorem non esse.

181.That which is given or received from a wicked man is not an honor.

Quem Nero dat sumit Catilina nefandus honorem,
Si Senecæ credas, Cretice, nullus honor.
Hoc super oblato noli unquam lætior esse,
Nec super ablato mústior esse velis.

Whom Nero gives, the infamous Catiline receives the honor,
If you believe Seneca, Cretice, no honor exists.
When this is offered, never be more glad for it,
Nor when it is taken away wish to be grieved more.

CLXXXII. Bene vivere tantum promittere, parum prodesse.

CLXXXII. To promise only to live well is to profit little.

Sæpe sibi servanda diu proponit honesta
Paulus, nec servat Paulus honesta diu.
Dico, parum prodest promittere semper honesta,
Sed promissa semel firma tenere diu.

Often Paulus sets before himself that honest things must be kept long
yet Paulus does not keep honest things long.
I say, it profits little to promise always honest things,
but to hold firm the promises once made for a long time.

CLXXXIII. Ut desint majorum auxilia, minorum non contempnere.

183.If the assistance of the elders is wanting, do not despise that of the younger..

Magnorum cum non retinere juvamina possis,
Fac non magnorum, Symmache, non renuas.
Auxilia infirma consensus fortia reddit,
Umbram et quisque suam scito capillus habet.

When you cannot retain the favors of great men,
see, Symmachus, that you do not refuse those of the lesser.
Weak aids consensus renders strong,
and know that even a single hair has its own shadow.

CLXXXIV. Non pro parvis corporibus et animos parvos esse.

184.That souls should not be small because of small bodies.

Parvas sæpe domos reges habitare videmus,
Non reges magnas, Æmiliane, puta.
Sic animi grandes parvissima corpora servant,
Cum parvi interdum maxima possideant.

We often see kings dwell in small houses,
Do not suppose them kings of great houses, Æmiliane.
So great minds preserve most diminutive bodies,
Since small men at times possess the greatest things.

CLXXXV. Impossibile in omnibus valere æqualiter.

185.Impossible to be equally strong in all things.

Miror et admiror quod natus Apolline Phæthon
Omni tanquam uni militat officio.
Nam numerat, cantat, metitur, separat astra,
Construit, atque probat, litigat, ac trutinat.

I marvel and admire that Phaethon, born of Apollo,
as if to one alone, serves in every duty.
For he counts, sings, measures, separates the stars,
he builds and essays, disputes, and weighs.

CLXXXVI. Senem puerilibus intendere non decere.

186.It is not fitting to apply childish things to an old man.

De puero prodire senem me præcipis, at tu
De vetulo esse puer, Maximiane, cupis.
Esse semel puerum naturæ non vetat ordo,
Si superaddideris hoc venit ex vitio.

You bid me, from boyhood, to come forth an old man, yet you
wish an old man to be a boy, Maximian.
Nature's order does not forbid to be once a boy,
but if you have superadded this, it comes from vice.

CLXXXVII. Famam ut pereas non amandam.

187.It is not to be loved that you should lose your fame.

Nominis et famæ per secula longa petitor,
Insiliit mediis ignibus Empedocles.
Istius erroris dignus successor et hæres,
Quæque per alta ruens diceris, Hermenades.

A seeker of name and fame through long ages,
Empedocles leapt into the very midst of the fires.
A worthy successor and heir of that error,
and you who, rushing through the heights, are called Hermenades.

CLXXXVIII. Non nimiam comestionem exercendam.

188.That excessive feasting should not be practiced.

De dubia surgens cúna, Getulice, palles,
Perdunt officium perdita membra suum.
Esca quidem simplex sanum facit atque valentem,
Sed sanum multi destituere cibi.

Rising from a dubious cradle, Getulian, you grow pale,
Lost limbs forfeit their proper office.
Simple food indeed makes one sound and strong,
But many foods leave the healthy man bereft.

CLXXXIX. Pecuniam omnia pertimescere.

189.To dread money above all things.

Multimodis, Daciane, dolis evertis amicos,
Fúdera rescindens dissocias socios.
Assuis adversos sub amoris glutine falso;
Bella movens, pacem dissicis atque fidem.

In manifold ways, Dacian, by deceits you overturn friends,
tearing up treaties you estrange companions.
You unite the hostile beneath the false glue of love;
stirring wars, you sunder both peace and faith.

CXC. Inter dona naturæ mortem ponendam.

CXC. Death should be placed among nature's gifts.

Mortis, Paule, timor tibi vitæ commoda tollit,
Jam moreris vivens dum metuendo peris.
Inter naturæ ponas si munera mortem,
Te de morte metus sollicitare nequit.

Paul, the fear of death robs you of life's benefits,
Now you die while living, for you perish by fearing.
If among nature's gifts you place death,
Fear cannot solicit you about death.

CXCI. Amicos amici amandos.

CXCI. Friends must be loved by friends.

Me tanquam socium te dicis amare, Trebati,
Et quos prorsus amo dente furente teris.
Sed nisi sis sociis socius, et amicus amicis,
Non nostrum valeo dicere te socium.

You say that you love me as a companion, Trebati,
And you utterly waste with a raging tooth those whom I wholly love.
But unless you are a companion to companions, and a friend to friends,
I am not able to call you our companion.

CXCII. Hostem rejiciendum, patrem recipiendum esse.

192.The enemy must be rejected, the father must be received.

Si tibi blanditur, Nausistrate, respicis hostem,
Si monet atque regit despicis ipse patrem;
Insipiens stultusque modo trutinaris eodem,
Hostem dum recipis, persequerisque patrem.

If he flatters you, Nausistrate, you turn to the enemy,
If he advises and rules, you despise your own father;
Foolish and senseless, you now judge them the same,
While you receive the enemy, you persecute the father.

CXCIII. De nobilitate non superbiendum.

193.On nobility, one must not be proud.

Multum, Fauste, tua de nobilitate superbis,
Quodque bono Faustus omne nomen habes;
Sed nullum nomen momenti quodlibet omen,
Culpaque de patribus sæpe venire solet.

Much, Fauste, your nobility makes the proud,
And that you, Faustus, bear every good name;
But no name is of moment — any omen will do —
And faults often are wont to come from the fathers.

CXCIV. Non nimis studendum vino.

194.Do not study too much by wine.

Carbo, quid est quoniam sæpe mihi vina propinas?
Naso, non labris, hæc tua vina traho.
Unde fluant, si prævaleant quæro reperire,
Et non invenio vas aliquod nisi te.

Carbo, what is it that you so often pour me wines?
Naso, not from lips do I draw these your wines.
Whence they flow, if I seek to discover whence,
I find no vessel anywhere except you.

CXCV. Suis parcendum.

195.One must spare one's own.

Tollit ovem de fauce lupi persæpe molossus,
Ereptamque lupo ventre recondit ovem.
Tu quoque, Scæva, tuos prædone tueris ab omni,
Unus prædo tamen perdis ubique tuos.

Oft the Molossian hound lifts a sheep from the wolf’s throat,
And the sheep, snatched from the wolf, he hides in the wolf’s belly.
You likewise, Scæva, as a plunderer protect your own from every harm,
Yet you, a lone plunderer, nevertheless lose your men everywhere.

CXCVI. Non de minimo superbiendum.

196.One must not be proud of small things.

Qui non tyro fecit, nec fecit militis usum,
Qualiter ipse ducis præripit officium?
Grammatica minimum sudasti, Taure, palæstra,
Et petis orchestram præripiendo locum.

He who has not been a tyro, nor tried the use of soldiering,
How does he himself snatch away the duty of a leader?
You have sweated least in grammar, Taure, in the palaestra,
And you seek the orchestra by preempting the place.

CXCVII. Pauperibus deesse quædam, avaris omnia.

197.Some things denied to the poor, everything to the avaricious.

Pauperibus quædam, sed avaris omnia desunt,
Desunt inter opes omnia, Magne, tibi;
Desunt namque tibi quibus ipse carere videris,
Et tua sunt tibi sic ut quasi non tua sint.

Some things are wanting to the poor, but to the avaricious all things are wanting,
Among your wealth all things are wanting to you, Magne;
For there are lacking to you those things which you yourself seem to lack,
And your possessions are to you so as if they were not yours.

CXCVIII. Deteriora non legenda.

198.Worse things must not be read.

Bos fúnum, leporem canis, alba ciconia vermem,
Uno de prato sæpe simul capiunt;
Sensu multiplici cum pagina multa redundet,
Insipidum semper tu tibi, Plaute, legis.

The ox the rope, the dog the hare, the white stork the worm,
Often from one meadow they at once seize;
When a page overflows with manifold sense,
You always read yourself as insipid, Plaute.

CXCIX. Per immoderantiam male decidere.

199.To come to ruin through immoderation.

Immoderata sitis vivendi deliciose
Urgebat Tatium, nescit habere modum;
Jam quasi non sint divitiæ sic utitur illis,
Jam fastidit eas, nescit habere modum.
Vilia non adhibet, quæ sunt prætiosa ligurrit,
Utraque rejiciens, nescit habere modum.

An immoderate thirst for living delightfully
pressed Tatium; he knows not to have measure;
now he uses his riches as if they were nothing,
now he scorns them; he knows not to have measure.
He spurns the cheap, he ravenously devours the precious,
rejecting both—he knows not to have measure.

CC. Reprehensorem irreprehensibilem esse debere.

CC. A censurer ought to be irreproachable..

Dum furis et clamas, dum lites, Monice, curas,
Quod firmas verbo, destruis officio.
Tu Curius verbo, tu verbo Lælius alter,
Sed te longe alium clamor et ira probant.
Ecce caput fúdus pia vitæ semina spargit,
Prædicat et mores Liber et ipsa Venus.

While you steal and shout, while you busy yourself with lawsuits, Monice,
What you assert in word you undo by deed.
You are a Curius in word, you are in word another Lælius,
But clamor and anger prove you to be someone far different.
Behold a faithful head scatters the pious seeds of life,
And Liber proclaims morals, and Venus herself preaches them.

CCI. Rarum transitum esse mali in bonum.

201.The transition of evil into good is rare.

Spes inerat corvum mutari posse columba,
Æthiopem posse albescere, stultus eram.
Nam tu qui corvus, tu qui niger esse solebas,
Albule, corvus eris semper, et ipse niger.
Lingua loquax, venterque vorax, corvum, uva Gomorrhæ
Quam calcas, turpem te facit atque nigrum.

There was hope that a crow could be changed into a dove,
that an Ethiopian could grow white — I was foolish.
For you who were a crow, you who were wont to be black,
Albule, you will always be a crow, and yourself black.
A talkative tongue and a voracious belly, crow — the grape of Gomorrah
which you tread makes you shameful and black.

CCII. Sibi cupere male, ut alii sit male, invidorum esse.

202.To wish ill for oneself so that another may be ill is the mark of the envious.

Regali migrare domo me, Phædime, tecum
Sæpe et sæpe mones; invidus es, video.
Sæpe viatores amor et concordia junxit,
Me tibi collegam gratia nulla facit.
Ut patiar, vis ipsa pati, vis pauper et exul
Esse libens, ut sum pauper et exul ego.

You oft and oft advise me, Phaedime, to migrate with you from my regal house,
I see you are envious.
Often love and concord have joined travelers,
No grace or favor makes me your colleague.
That I should suffer, you yourself wish to suffer, you wish to be poor and an exile
Willingly, as I am poor and an exile.

CCIII. Servos sæpe dominos suos male decipere.

203.That slaves often ill-deceive their own masters.

Cogitat Ursidius sibi dote jugare puellam,
Ut placeat domino cogitat Ursidius.
Cogitat Ursidius hæredem tollere parvum,
Ut placeat domino cogitat Ursidius.
Cogitat Ursidius domino quacunque placere
Virgine vel puero, quam sapit Ursidius.

Ursidius thinks to join a girl to himself with a dowry,
that she may please the master, Ursidius thinks.
Ursidius thinks to take a little heir,
that he may please the master, Ursidius thinks.
Ursidius thinks to please the master by whatever means
with a maid or a boy whom Ursidius fancies.

CCIV. Cui aliquid oommittas videndum.

204.Whomsoever you entrust with anything must be observed.

Horti divitias commisit Fulvius uni,
Fures ille timens furibus exponere;
Vix Phúbus noctem, bis pressit Cynthia lucem,
Arboribus fascis diripiturque color.
Ergo servari non hos servare deceret;
Si servabis eos, non bene credo tibi.

Fulvius entrusted the garden’s riches to one man,
that man, fearing thieves, to expose them to thieves;
Scarcely did Phoebus press back the night, Cynthia twice the light,
the hues are plucked from the trees and torn away by bundles.
Therefore it would not be fitting to keep these guarded;
If you keep them, I do not much trust you.

CCV. Parum retinere qui cito cuncta transmittit.

205.He who swiftly passes over all things keeps too little.

Cuncta sapis si cuncta legis, sic, Rufe, probabas;
Sed legis, ergo sapis; Gallus utrumque negat.
Mille die cartas, totidem de nocte revolvis,
Sed nusquam esse potest siquis ubique cupit.
Nec bene firmatur radix quæ sæpe movetur,
Nec multa hospitia pignus amoris habent.

You claim to be wise if you read all things, so, Rufus, you used to affirm;
But you read, therefore you are wise — Gallus denies both claims.
You turn over a thousand sheets by day, as many again through the night,
Yet no one can be everywhere if he longs to be everywhere.
Nor is a root well fastened that is oft uprooted,
Nor do manifold lodgings serve as a sure pledge of love.

CCVI. Morum discordia gratiam distrahi.

206.The grace of manners is torn apart by discord.

Conventus morum faculam succendit amoris;
Si varias mores, gratia distrahitur.
Demetri Zetus vehementi canduit ira,
Amphion frater dum cecinit cithara,
Projicit hic citharam, jam fax extincta reluxit,
Et fraternus amor cúpit habere moram.

A meeting of mores kindled the torch of love;
But if mores are diverse, grace is torn apart.
Zetus, of Demetrius, burned with vehement anger,
While Amphion, his brother, sang on the cithara;
This one throws down the cithara, the extinguished torch now relit,
And fraternal love longs to take a stay.

CCVII. Intermittere philosophiam omittere est.

207.To discontinue philosophy is to omit it..

Intermissa diu tanquam si prorsus emissa,
Candide, Lucili, philosophia valet.
Discendi modus est, dum te nescire videbis;
Disce, sed assidue; disce, sed ut sapias.
Sumpta parum, prodest, quæ mox emittitur esca,
Bos quibus est pastus, ruminat hæc eadem.

Philosophy, long interrupted as if wholly cast away, is of use, O candid Lucilius.
The method of learning is that you should seem to be ignorant;
Learn, but continually; learn, but so that you may be wise.
What is taken in too little avails not, like food that is soon cast forth,
— the ox on which it was fed ruminates the very same.

CCVIII. Diem præcedentem sequentis magistrum.

208.The teacher of the day preceding the next.

Ad lucrum converte diem tibi, Valeriane,
Et præcedentem pone sequentis iter;
Et vixisse velis, et multum vivere vive,
Vita vive bona, moribus et licitis.
Vince tuos mores, vincentis nomen habebis;
Sic mihi, sic aliis, Valerianus eris.

Turn the day to profit for yourself, Valerian,
And set the preceding as the route of the following;
Desire both to have lived, and live to live much,
Live a good life, in morals and in lawful things.
Conquer your manners, you will bear the name of one who conquers;
Thus to me, thus to others, you will be Valerian.

CCIX. Non dolere quod multorum est commune.

209.Do not grieve over what is common to many.

Quæstibus immensis jacturam, Pontice, defles,
Et commune malum ceu proprim, ipse doles.
Semita sæpe maris te merce beavit opima,
Quas dederat totiens ecce recepit opes.
Ergo dari tibi quod potuit mutabile credas,
Et quod mutatur esse negabo bonum.

You lament the loss from immense gains, Pontice,
and you yourself grieve a common evil as if it were your own.
Oft the sea’s pathway enriched you with abundant merchandise,
which it had given so often, behold, received back your riches.
Therefore believe that what could be changed was given to you,
and I will deny that that which is changed is a good.

CCX. Non ridere ne rideamur.

210.Not to laugh lest we be laughed at.

Ridebas facies aliorum, Pallidiane,
Ridetur facies, Pallidiane, tua.
Humanam faciem pallor maciesque tulere,
Longe diversam substituere tibi.
Ecce genas sulcat sine pondere pellis aniles,
Quales in silva simia scalpit anus.

You laughed at the faces of others, Pallidiane,
Your face will be laughed at, Pallidiane.
Pallor and macies carried off the human face,
And set in its place one far different for you.
Behold the aged skin furrows the cheeks without weight,
Like the monkeys an old woman carves in the wood.

CCXI. Homini aperienti se magis credendum.

211.One should give more credence to a man who opens himself.

Dam Simulus furit, et sese transfundit in iram,
Dum vomit omne quod est, me facit absque metu.
Sed dum blanditur, dum blæsa et dulcia verba
Supra oleum mollit, subruit usque metu;
Dum tacet, examinat, dum litigat ipse, serenat;
Irasci ergo velit, solvar ut usque metu.

While Simulus rages, and pours himself into anger,
while he vomits all that is, he makes me fearless.
But while he flatters, while bland and sweet words
soften above oil, he undermines me down to fear;
while he is silent, he examines; while he himself quarrels, he calms;
therefore let him wish to be angry, that I may be loosened into fear.

CCXII. Perfidiam invidiæ in lapsu æqualem.

112.The perfidy of envy equal to its fall.

Semper Athis ridet, rides tu, Sostrate, nunquam?
Natura fratres, dissimiles vitio.
Hic plorat risus alienaque gaudia semper,
Omnibus arridet neminem amans alius.

Athis always laughs; do you laugh, Sostratus, never?
Nature made them brothers, dissimilar in fault.
This one weeps, that one laughs, and ever delights in alien joys,
He smiles on everyone; the other loves no one.

Mortiferæ pestis vitium sibi nutrit uterque,
Perfidiæ primus, Sostratus invidiæ.

Each deadly pestilence nourishes its vice in itself,
First in perfidy, Sostratus in envy.

CCXIII. Rationalia irrationabilibus digniora.

213.Rational things are more worthy than the unreasoning..

Cur non evigilas tandem, rebusque gerendis
Non adhibis operam? Somnus et iste malus.
Inspice formicam multo fervere labore,
Ut durare queat frigus et auram hiemis.

Why do you not at last awake, and to the managing of affairs
do you not apply your care? Sleep — that wretched evil.
Behold the ant, burning with much toil,
so that she may endure the cold and the breath of winter.

Consilio, non natura te vincit, iniquum est,
Plance, præesse tibi quod ratione caret.

It is unjust that counsel, not nature, conquers you,
Plance, that you should preside over what lacks reason.

CCXIV. Invidum neminem velle docere.

214.On an envious man wishing to teach no one.

Audieram quia quem doctos contingit adire,
E stulto fieri, Celse, potest sapiens.
Sed sapis, et sapiens per te fit nemo tuorum,
Immo facis stultum qui fuerat sapiens.
Nil Platonis acumen, nil facundia Tulli,
Ut solus sedeas inter eos sapiens.

I had heard that whoever chances to visit the learned,
Can, O Celse, the wise be made a fool by a fool.
But you are wise, and through you none of your own becomes wise,
Nay, you make foolish the man who had been wise.
No Plato’s acumen, no facundia of Tullius,
So that you alone should sit among them as the wise.

CCXV. Cui des videndum.

215.Whom you should look to.

Qui justis sanctisque viris, Tigelle, ministrat,
Sumit ubi donat, spargit et accumulat.
Qui vero indignis bis munera præstita perdit,
Et quoniam donat, donat et immeritis.
Tu quoque communis meretricibus et parasitis
Quicquid habes perdis, perderis ergo miser.

He who serves just and holy men, Tigelle,
gains where he gives, he scatters and accumulates.
But he who gives gifts to the unworthy loses them twice,
and since he gives, he gives even to the undeserving.
You also, common to courtesans and parasites,
whatever you have you squander; therefore you will be ruined, wretch.

CCXVI. Militem, delicatum non bene prcæliari.

216.A delicate man is not fit to wage soldiering.

Mollibus assuetus loricam ferre recusat,
Cervici teneræ ferrea cassis obest.
Sæpius uncta manus capulum non accipit ensis,
Lota et fota cutis frigore et imbre dolet.
Assiduus Veneris vexillifer, Æmiliane,
Virtutis nunquam signifer esse potest.

Accustomed to soft things, he refuses to bear the cuirass,
an iron helmet harms his tender neck.
More often an anointed hand will not take the sword’s hilt,
the skin, washed and oiled, aches from cold and rain.
A constant standard-bearer of Venus, Æmiliane,
he can never be the standard-bearer of virtue.

CCXVII. Iniquo honorem non contingere.

217.That honor does not befall the unjust.

Injusto queritur contingere Gaius honorem,
Delituisse refert justitiæ faciem.
Dico, si sit honor, nulli contingit iniquo;
Si sit iniquus homo, nullus habetur honor.
Est honor, et quod non, sed dicitur hoc dato iniquo,
Dicitur et quod honor sit datus immerito.

They complain that honor befalls Gaius the unjust,
They report that he has hidden the face of Justice.
I say, if it be honor, it befalls no unjust man;
If the man is unjust, no honor is reckoned his.
There is an honor, and what is not, yet is called such when given to the unjust,
That too is said to be an honor bestowed without merit.

CCXVIII. Vitiosum non debere velle levari.

218.One ought not to desire that what is faulty be removed.

Est aliquis multo qui quærat honore levari,
Ipsius ut virtus notior esse queat.
Attolli multo nolit Damasippus honore,
Ejus ne vitium notius esse queat.
Omnis homo crimen tanto famosius in se,
Quanto qui peccat major habetur, habet.

There is someone by far who seeks to be raised by honor,
so that his very virtus may be the more known.
Damasippus by no means wishes to be exalted by honor,
lest his vice be made the more widely known.
Every man’s crimen becomes all the more notorious upon him,
the more renowned he who sins is held to be, the more notorious it becomes.

CCXIX. Omnino vitium levitatis occludere.

219.To shut out altogether the vice of levity.

Excusat vitiosa patrum natura tuorum,
Te, Probe, nempe levem te genuere leves.
Ah! quotiens petii, levitatis crimine spreto,
Ut constans lingua, corde, manu, fieres;
Sed modo ne levior fias levitate relicta,
Oro manere velis in levitate tua.
Ista tibi simplex placeat constantia saltem,
Ut miser æternum permaneasque levis.

The vicious nature of your fathers excuses you,
You, Probus, for truly light ones begot you light.
Ah! how often I begged, the crime of levity scorned,
That you might become steadfast in tongue, heart, and hand;
But only that you not grow lighter, left by levity,
I beg you to wish to remain in your levity.
Let at least that simple constancy please you,
So that you, wretched, may remain light forever.

CCXX. Frustra fatigari qui corrigit stultum.

220.He who corrects a fool is wearied in vain..

Errore illectus, non vult errore resolvi,
Solvere queris eum, stultus uterque nimis.
Ille quidem, quoniam vitam moriendo fatigat,
Tu, quia nolentem consilio revocas.
Hic fovea jacet, ille luto, contemnit uterque
Surgere, das dextram, Marce, levando neces.

Struck by error, he will not be loosened from error,
You seek to free him — both are too foolish.
He indeed, since he wears out his life by dying,
You, because you recall the unwilling by counsel.
One lies in a pit, the other in mud; each scorns
to rise — you give the right hand, Marcus; lifting is necessary.

Frustra autem niti, lites odiumque subire,
Extremusque furor summaque stultitia est.

But to strive in vain, and to submit to quarrels and hatred,
is the utmost fury and the highest folly.

CCXXI. Non posse teneri qui mutatur.

221.He who is changed cannot be held..

Amnis Acharnaum variabat sæpe figuras,
Alcides tenuit, cum superaret eum.
Diva Thetis formas quas sumere vellet, inibat;
Vidit eam Peleus, sensit, eam tenuit.
Contingi quoniam, quoniam potuere teneri,
Ille quidem victus, hæc fuit exhibita.

The Acharnaean river oft changed its shapes,
Alcides held it when it overcame him.
The divine Thetis entered into whatever forms she wished;
Peleus saw her, perceived her, he held her.
Since they could be touched, since they could be held,
He indeed was vanquished, she was yielded.

Sed quia nemo potest te, Protesilae, videre,
Nemo tenere potest, vincere nemo potest.

But since no one can see you, Protesilae,
No one can hold you, no one can conquer you.

CCXXII. In omnibus tempus aptum aspicere.

222.To behold the fitting time in all things.

Diligit Umbritius tenebras, latebrosa requirens;
Noctis amans, solem non videt Umbritius.
Disputat Umbritius cum cúlo lumina surgunt;
Cum fugiunt solem conticet Umbritius.
Colligit Umbritius vires a munere Bacchi;
Vires a cúna colligit Umbritius.

Umbritius loves the darkness, seeking hidden places wide;
a lover of night, Umbritius does not see the sun.
Umbritius disputes with his ass when the lights rise;
when they flee the sun, Umbritius falls silent.
Umbritius gathers strength from the gift of Bacchus;
from the cradle Umbritius gathers strength.

Corripit Umbritius vino somnoque labantes;
Infantes, stultos, corripit Umbritius.

He rebukes those staggering from wine and slumber;
Infants, fools, Umbritius rebukes.

CCXXIII. Nulli vel omnibus credere vitium esse.

223.To trust no one or to trust everyone is a vice.

Rufe, quid est quoniam te nulli credis amico?
Omnibus et nulli credere te, vitium est.
Omnia cum socio sapiens deliberat, æque
Ac sibi cuncta refert, ducit adintus eum.

Rufe, what is it, since you entrust yourself to no friend?
To trust both everyone and no one is a vice.
The wise man deliberates all things with his associate, equally
And brings all things back to himself, and leads him inward.

Sed facile est justo quam vivit dicere vitam,
Te tua difficile est facta referre palam.
Sic speciosus homo facie procedit aperta,
Cum facies turpis veste tegi soleat.

But easy it is for a just man to speak of the life he lives,
For you it has become difficult to relate your own things openly.
Thus a handsome man advances with his face uncovered,
While an ugly face is wont to be hidden by clothing.

CCXXIV. Horam bene vivendi procrastinandam non esse.

224.The hour for living well must not be postponed.

Vivendi recte fatuus procrastinat horam,
Crastine, eras semper das mihi, nunquam hodie.
Crastina lux accepta tibi, dum crastina lux est,
Dum venit, et nondum est; incipit esse, doles.
Das causas, tunc cras aliud promittis, et ecce
Dum cras multiplicas, tempus et hora fugit.

A fool procrastinates the hour of living rightly,
"Tomorrow" — you always give me that, never "today."
The tomorrow-light, when accepted by you, while it is tomorrow-light,
While it comes and is not yet; it begins to be, you grieve.
You give reasons, then promise another tomorrow, and behold
While you multiply tomorrows, time and the hour flee.

Rides me quasi derisum dum verba dedisti,
Tu te ludificas, tu capis et caperis.

You laugh at me as though derided while you spoke,
You make a sport of yourself; you seize and are seized.

CCXXV. Iniquum esse inire contraria.

225.It is unjust to undertake contrary things.

Postume, nummorum cumulabas milibus archam,
Ventre cibis vacuo, plena crumena cibus.
Sed compilavit fugiens te servulus, et fur,
Vel manus hostilis omnia diripuit.
Nunc conversus ovans ventris farcire crumenam,
Unus prædo tuus, tu tibi cuncta rapis.

Postume, you piled up a chest of coins by the thousands,
with your belly empty of foods, your purse full of food.
But a runaway little slave and a thief plundered you,
or a hostile hand tore away all things.
Now turned, rejoicing, to stuff the purse of your belly,
Your own single plunderer, you yourself seize everything.

Hoc factum sapiens premit, et condempnat utrumque,
Te nunc esse lupum, teque fuisse canem.

A wise man curbs this deed, and condemns both,
that you are now a wolf, and that you were a dog.

CCXXVI. Motum localem motum mentis ostendere.

226.To show that local motion is a motion of the mind.

Cur adeo gaudes motu, Joviane, locali
Aer tam sæpe salis? an quoniam levis es?
Signat enim motum mentis mutatio tanta,
Quod non concordes, nec tibi convenias.
Pondus habe, stabis; cum pondere gleba quieta est,
Diripitur pulvis pro levitate sua.

Why do you rejoice so much in a local motion, Jovian,
in air so often of salt? or because you are light?
For so great a mutation of mind marks the motion,
that you are not constant, nor do you suit yourself.
Have weight, and you will stand; when with weight the clod is quiet,
dust is torn apart because of its own levity.

Nec natura loci tibi recte vivere donat,
Sed mens discreta propositique tenax.

Nor does the nature of a place grant you to live rightly,
But a discerning mind and tenaciousness of purpose.

CCXXVII. Pondus et pondus non habendum.

227.Weight and a weight not to be held.

Heu! quia pondus habes, et pondus, amice Valeri,
Te fratremque tuum pondere dissimulas.
Heu!

Alas! since you have a burden, and a weight, my friend Valerius,
you hide both yourself and your brother beneath that weight.
Alas!

quia spectatur præ cunctis mantica tergo,
Et non attendis qua premitur humerus.
Fratris verrucas mordaci dente refringis,
Ulcera dissimulans quæ tibi in ore sedent.
Ad culpas fratris aquilæ tu lumina portas,
Ad tua cum scelera nulla vel orba feras.

because the purse is seen before all upon your back,
And you do not heed by which shoulder it is pressed. You break your brother’s warts with a biting tooth,
concealing the ulcers that sit in your own mouth. To your brother’s faults you bring eagle-eyes,
to your own crimes you bear none, or you carry blind ones.

CCXXVIII. Miseriorem miserum non irridere.

228.Do not mock a man more miserable than yourself.

Calvitium, Calvine, tibi præbere solebat
Materiam risus, tu quoque calvus eris.
Paulatim fugiunt dextra levaque capilli,
Cum tineas pascis ante retroque fluunt.
Supremum capitis tenuis jam lucus obumbrat,
Jam coma rara locum subjicit et numerum.

Baldness, Calvine, used to furnish you matter for laughter,
you too will be bald.
Gradually the hairs flee to right and left,
when you feed the moths they flow forward and back.
A thin grove now shades the crown of the head,
Already the scanty hair yields both place and number.

Tempus adest quo te calvi ridere suescant,
Factus et absque pilis omnibus invideas.

The time is at hand when the bald will be wont to laugh at you,
And, made and without hairs, you will envy everyone.

CCXXIX. Amorem cogendo non adquiri.

229.Love is not won by force.

Torvus et ore minans te nos, Tite, poscis amare,
Invitus nemo, nemo coactus amat.
Blanditia, non imperio, vis crescit amoris,
Cæsar ubi jubeat, cedere nescit amor.
Vacca quidem taurum, sed et ipsa leæna leonem,
Iratos fugiunt, suscipiunt placidos.

With grim and threatening face you bid that we love you, Titus,
No one loves unwillingly, no one loves when compelled.
By blandishment, not by command, the force of love grows,
Where Caesar commands, love knows not to yield.
A cow indeed (fears) the bull, yet even the lioness (flees) the lion,
They flee the angry, they welcome the placid.

Dilige nos omnes, ut ameris ab omnibus unus;
Quærit amor pariles, dissimiles odium.

Love us all, so that you may be loved by all as one;
Love seeks equals, dissimilarity, hatred.

CCXXX. Peccandi libertatem usu adquiri.

230.That the freedom to sin is acquired by use..

Libertas peccandi emitur peccando, Verane,
Cum lima atque mora perniciosa colis.
Cum ratione carens turpes descendis in actus,
Cum tu confundis fasque nefasque simul.
Jam te nemo regit, nullus levat auspice verbo
Contra torrentem brachia nulla tuum,
Prodest ergo tibi cumulare furore furorem,
Si prodesse vocem quod parat usque mori.

Liberty of sinning is bought by sinning, truly,
When with file and delay you cultivate pernicious things.
When lacking reason you descend into shameful acts,
When you confound fas and nefas together.
Now no one rules you, no one sustains you with a guiding word,
No arms are against your torrent.
It profits you therefore to heap madness upon madness,
If that which is prepared to serve you is ever to die.

CCXXXI. Mores legendos, non vitam.

231.Manners to be read, not life.

Subtractum vitæ Lycidam, Germanice, defles,
Subtractum morti rectius esse putes.
Non vivens stetit ille diu, moriendo moratus,
Ante suam mortem mortuus ipse diu.
Quid prodest totiens ficus et musta videre,
Et speciem morum nec semel aspicere?

You lament Lycidas snatched from life, Germanicus,
and would deem it more proper that he be taken to death.
He did not long endure alive, but lingered in dying,
he himself long dead before his own death.
What profit is it to behold figs and must so often,
and never once to gaze upon the visage of mulberries?

Non ætas prolixa licet dat vivere nobis,
Sed virtutis amor, norma timenda reis.

Although long age may indeed grant us to live,
yet the love of virtue is a rule to be feared by the guilty.

CCXXXII. Auxilia multorum sibi quærenda.

232.Assistance of many must be sought for himself.

Æmule, væ soli! quia dum cadit ipse, levantem
Non habet, in se ipso spem sibi composuit.
Fúdera dum tempnit, dum spernit habere sodalem,
Perficit, ut sese nemo juvare velit.

Rival—woe to the solitary! for while he himself falls,
he has no one to lift him up, he has placed his hope in himself alone.
While he scorns alliances, while he spurns having a comrade,
he makes it so that no one will wish to help him.

Cum socio socius partitur pondera fati,
Pro socio patitur vera fides socii.
Nescit amor vehemens, ad quæque pericula rumpi,
Nec funus triplex rumpitur ex facili.
Forte quidem velles socium reperire fidelem,
Sed pravi mores zelus et ira negant.

When a comrade with a comrade shares the burdens of fate,
For a comrade he endures, on behalf of his comrade, the comrade’s true fidelity.
Passionate love does not know how to break itself off at dangers,
Nor is a threefold funeral easily broken.
Perchance indeed you would wish to find a faithful companion,
But crooked manners deny zeal and anger.

CCXXXIII. Cui pro natura bene est pauperem non esse.

233.To whom by nature it is well not to be poor.

Audio te, Rupili, de paupertate querentem,
Non quia nulla habeas, sed quia pauca tibi.
Sed dicit sapiens, quod nemo est pauper eo quod
Possideat pauca, sed quia plura velit.
Si paupertati assensum præbere studeres,
Si pro natura vivere, dives eras.

I hear you, Rupili, complaining about poverty,
Not because you have nothing, but because you have little.
But the wise man says that no one is poor because
He possesses little, but because he desires more.
If you would endeavour to give assent to poverty,
If you would live according to nature, you would be rich.

Aspicito, nudum quia te natura crearit,
Intrans et mundum tu nihil intuleris.
Quodque externa petas, quæ sive manentia tecum,
Seu te destituant, te faciant miserum.

I behold that nature made you naked,
Entering, and you will bring nothing into the world.
And whatever externals you seek, whether they remain with you,
or abandon you, will make you miserable.

CCXXXIV. Decipere non esse diligere.

234.To deceive is not to love.

Quod sequeris pueros, quod amas et amaris ab illis,
Nequam non hominis, simplicis aucupium est.
Prædixi quod amas, odium si præstat amorem,
Si sit amare gravi ludificare dolo.
Tu peccare doces, peccandi ponis habenas,
A te peccandi sumitur hora, Tati.

That which you pursue—boys, that which you love and are loved by them,
Is no man's deed, but the poaching of a simple soul.
I have foresaid what you love: whether hatred yields to love,
If to love be to mock with grievous guile.
You teach how to sin, you set the reins of sinning,
From you the hour for sinning is taken, Tati.

Munere semper emunt, ut possint crimen inire;
Ut factum celes, munere rursus emunt.
Culpa tua est, quod res et fama laborat eorum;
Quod pereunt censu et nomine, culpa tua est.
Vulnera vulneribus addenda laborque labori,
Ut vincas adhibe vulnera vulneribus.

They are always bought with a gift, so that they may be able to enter upon crime;
So that you may hide the deed, they buy again with a gift.
It is your fault that their goods and reputation suffer;
That they perish in estate and in name, it is your fault.
Wounds are to be added to wounds, and toil to toil,
So that you may prevail, apply wounds with wounds.

Ut superare queas tenui pascatur avena;
Sic nunquam ille satur, ut superare queas.
Jam tibi, chare, tuum tenuis farrago repressit,
Et meus in fortem cessit asellus equum.

So that you may be able to surpass, let him be fed on thin oats;
Thus he is never sated, that you may be able to surpass.
Now, dear one, your meager mash has held yours in check,
And my little ass has yielded to a sturdy horse.

CCXXXV. Etiam sapientes sapientibus uti debere.

235.Even the wise ought to make use of the wise.

Consilii virtus tibi præstans, docte Valeri,
Sufficit ad vitam gratia consilii.
Quare nec sapiens nec qui famuletur honori
Est prope te tantum turpis et insipiens.
Sæpe tamen sapiens alio sapiente docetur,
Sæpe videns ductu ducitur alterius.

The virtue of counsel conspicuous to you, learned Valerius,
the grace of counsel suffices for life.
Therefore neither the wise man nor he who ministers to honor
is, in your sight, so nearly utterly base and foolish.
Often, however, the wise man is taught by another wise man,
often the one who sees is led by the guidance of another.

Aut forsan tua qui miretur facta requiris,
Huic operi stultos eligis, exigitur.
Cui ratio est conjunx, tua laus cumulatior esset,
Si te laudaret cui magis ora favent.
Laudari tamen haud metuis sine pondere rerum,
Rem sine materia vis, sine luce diem.

Or perhaps you ask who marvels at your deeds,
For this work you choose fools; it is demanded.
To whom Reason is a spouse, your praise would be more heaped up,
If he who favors you more with his mouth were to praise you.
Yet you do not fear to be praised without the weight of things,
Power without matter, day without light.

Credo autem quod stultus, et est sapientia contra
Virtus et ratio sic odiosa tibi.
Hostia claude domus, ne tangat lumina judex,
Ne sapiens intret, hostia claude domus.

I believe, moreover, that he is foolish, and that wisdom is opposed;
Virtue and reason are thus hateful to you.
Close the house’s door, lest the judge touch the lamps,
Lest a wise man enter — close the house’s door.

CCXXXVI. In apparatu forinseco non omnia esse ponenda.

236.Not everything ought to be set forth in outward display.

Pallia Filus habet, digitos circumligat auro,
Et tamen est Filus paupere pauperior.
Sunt Tyriæ chlamydes, mulæ, jumenta, cientes
Filo, sed tamen est paupere pauperior.
Atria sunt Filo regali consita cultu,
Sed tamen est Filus paupere pauperior.

Filus has cloaks, he girds his fingers with gold,
And yet Filus is poorer than the poor.
There are Tyrian cloaks, mules, beasts, clients about Filus,
But yet he is poorer than the poor.
The halls of Filus are dressed in royal adornment,
But yet Filus is poorer than the poor.

Mensa, sciphus, sedile, torus, pretiosa supellex
Sunt Filo, tamen est paupere pauperior.
Esurit atque sitit, gemmis instructus et ostro,
Cyclade vestitus esurit atque sitit.
Pondus adesse famis, pallor maciesque loquuntur,
Aurea bulla negat pondus adesse famis.

Table, scyphus, seat, couch, and precious furnishings
are Filus’s, yet Filus is poorer than a pauper.
He hungers and he thirsts, bedecked with gems and purple,
clothed in Cyclade, he hungers and he thirsts.
The weight of hunger is present; pallor and leanness speak,
a golden bulla denies that the weight of hunger is present.

Ergo miser se servitio pro pane locabit,
Sed ne sit servus aurea bulla facit.
Si vero quemquam pulsabit supplice voto,
Ut non exoret serica vestis adest.
Ergo, ne pereat, fiat de divite pauper;
Pauper enim factus ditior esse potest.

Therefore the wretch will sell himself into service for bread,
but a golden bulla makes that he not be a slave.
If indeed he will beat his breast in a supplicant vow,
let a silken garment be present to plead.
Therefore, lest he perish, let him be made poor by the rich;
for made poor he can become richer.

CCXXXVII. Locum virtutem non dare.

237.To give no place to virtue.

Non bene viventes, Probe, te fugisse refertur,
Et sine peccato quærere terram hominum.
Sed sine peccato nullam reperire valebis,
Si non absque homine tu reperire velis.
Ibis ad occultos tractus, loca devia mundi;
Peccatum tecum est, conscia culpa comes.

It is told, Probe, that you fled from the ill‑living,
And sought the land of men without sin.
But without sin you will be able to find none,
If you will not find them apart from man.
You will go to occult tracts, the devious places of the world;
Sin is with you, conscious guilt your companion.

Ut fugias homines, tu te fuge primitus ipsum,
Alterius censor, censor et esto tuus.
Ens inter homines, homines fuge, turpia eorum,
Tu tecum degens, te fuge, facta tua.

If you would flee men, first flee thyself,
Be another’s censor, and be thy own censor.
A being among men, flee men—their shameful things,
Thou who livest with thyself, flee thyself, thy own deeds.

CCXXXVIII. Insolentiam esse reprimendam.

238.That insolence ought to be repressed.

Servit inutiliter nisi verbere fractus asellus,
Verbere distracto servit inutiliter.
Verbera si tuleris, furit et lascivit asellus;
Se non agnoscit, verbera si tuleris.
Si requiem dederis, discit non esse quietus,
In requie non est, requiem dederis.

He serves uselessly unless the little ass, broken by the lash,
When the lash is withdrawn he serves uselessly.
If you lay on blows, the ass rages and revels;
He does not know himself when you strike him.
If you give rest, he learns not to be quiet,
He is not in repose, though you have given rest.

Verbere tonde latus, ne forte tumescat asellus;
Neve reluctetur, verbere tonde latus.

Thrash the flank with the rod, lest the little ass grow swollen;
And lest he resist, thrash the flank with the rod.