[254] Olli: Heyne comp. Enn. A. 1. 31, “Olli respondet rex Albai longai.” Niebuhr, Lect. vol. ii. p. 155, ed. 1844, says that Virg. admitted a few archaic forms in compliance with the precepts of the Alexandrian grammarians about epic composition. ‘Subridens,’ ‘smiling gently.’ The line is nearly repeated 12. 829. ‘Hominum sator atque deorum,’ 11. 725.
[255] Serv. quotes Enn. (A. fr. inc. 3), “Iuppiter hic risit, tempestatesque serenae Riserunt omnes risu Iovis omnipotentis.” Heyne refers to Gud. Inscrip. p. 5, n. 3, for an inscription “Iovi Opt. Max. Serenatori;” and Henry says there is a representation (supposed to be unique) of Iuppiter Serenus, with the inscription “Iovi Sereno Sacr.,” on an ancient lamp in the Passerian Museum. ‘Tempestates’ means the weather rather than the storms, so that there is no occasion to suppose a zeugma, with Wagn.
[256] Oscula libavit: see note on G. 2. 523, and comp. 12. 434, and Sueton. Aug. 94, “osculum pueri delibatum digitis ad os suum detulisset.” The word however, even in its primary sense, seems to mean, not simply lips, but lips for kissing. Heyne remarks that ‘natae’ is used after ‘olli’ as Hom. uses Ἕκτορι after τῷ δ᾽. There is great delicacy in the use of the subst. here, which has the force of “pater natae.” See on E. 8. 1, 18.
[257] Metu, the old dative, for which Weidner refers to Gell. 4. 16. 5. ‘Parce:’ see on G. 2. 339. ‘Tuorum fata,’ like “fata Phrygum,” 7. 294. ‘Tibi’ is the ethical dative connected with the whole sentence, as we might say, ‘to your comfort.’
[258] Urbem et promissa Lavini moenia is a hendiadys. Many in Serv.'s time omitted ‘et.’ Observe the change of quantity from “Lavina,” v. 2, which is like that in “Italia,” “Italus,” “Apulia,” “Appulus,” &c., a larger licence being allowed for metrical convenience in proper names than in other words.
[259] Heyne quotes Enn. A. 1. 47, “unus erit quem tu tolles ad caerula caeli Templa,” which he supposes to be said, not by Venus, but by Mars, because Ovid introduces the line (F. 2. 487) in a speech of Mars praying for the deification of Romulus. ‘Ad sidera:’ see on 3. 158. Here apotheosis of course is meant. Gud. has ‘sublimen,’ a word which Ribbeck introduces here and elsewhere on very slender authority.
[260] Neque me sententia vertit: see note on v. 237, and comp. 10. 608, “nec te sententia fallit.” ‘Magnanimus’ of Aeneas, 5. 17., 9. 204, the Homeric μεγάθυμος.
[261] Wagn. has rightly changed Heyne's punctuation, ‘Hic, tibi fabor enim,’ which is also approved by Serv. ‘Tibi’ implies ‘thou shalt see him victorious in Italy.’ ‘Quando’ has the force of ‘quandoquidem,’ as ὅτε that of ὅτι. The ‘re’ in ‘remordet’ may express either a single recurrence or frequent repetition; the latter sense seems more natural here. “Cura recursat,” below, v. 662. ‘Remordere’ is found Lucr. 3.827., 4. 1135.
[262] Volvens is probably a metaphor from a book unrolled. “Volvendi sunt libri cum aliorum tum inprimis Catonis,” Cic. Brut. 87. Jupiter says he will open yet farther the secrets that lie in the book of fate. The notion in “movebo” is that of “quieta movere.” “Fallax historias movet,” Hor. 3 Od. 7. 20, quoted by Gossrau. So “excitare,” to cite, as we say colloquially, to rake up. ‘Awaken the secrets of Fate's book from the distant pages where they slumber.’
[263] Bellum ingens, G. 2. 279. ‘Populosque ferocis contundet,’ ‘will crush its bold nations.’ Comp. 4. 229., 5. 730, &c.
[264] Mores conveyed to a Roman many of the notions which political institutions and a social system convey to us. Comp. 8. 316, “Queis neque mos neque cultus erat;” and see on G. 4. 5. There is not a mere play on the double sense of the word ‘ponere,’ as the building of a city implies a settled civil government. ‘Mores ponere,’ like νομοθετεῖν in Greek. “Inponere morem,” 6. 852; “Posuere urbem,” 8. 53. There may be a notion too of giving (‘ponere’ = “dare,” as θεῖναι ῀ δοῦναι), as ‘viris’ seems to show.
[265] The legend was that the first settlement (represented in Virg. by the camp) endured for three years, Lavinium for thirty, after which the kingdom was transferred to Alba, which lasted for three hundred. For the form of expression comp. v. 755 below.
[266] The propriety of ‘hiberna,’ as denoting that he was still in the camp, has not been noticed. ‘Rutulis subactis’ may very well be the abl. absol.; but it is more probably the dative, an idiom common in Greek, and found also in Juv. 14. 10, “Cum septimus annus Transierit puero.” It is a variety of the ethical or personal dative. See on v. 102 above.
[267] Fragm. Vat. originally had ‘quo,’ from which Ribbeck extracts ‘quoi.’
[268] Heyne without reason suspects this line. It is a natural attempt to strengthen a weak point of the legend, the absence of any connexion between Iulus and any character in the Trojan story. ‘Dum res stetit Ilia regno’ may either be rendered with Wagn., ‘dum res stetit Ilio regno’ (‘res stetit’ = “fortuna stetit”), or, which seems better, while the Trojan state (‘res Ilia,’ like ‘res Romana’) stood with power unbroken (‘stetit regno,’ ‘stood in respect of its power’). In the latter case we may compare 2. 88, “Dum stabat regno incolumis.” With the perfect after ‘dum,’ in the sense of duration, comp. 3. 15, “Dum Fortuna fuit.”
[269] Volvendis mensibus: here and in “volvenda dies,” 9. 7, Virg. has followed the usage of Enn. A. inc. 69, “clamor ad caelum volvendus per aethera vagit,” and of Lucr. 5.1276, “Sic volvenda aetas conmutat tempora rerum.” Both in this passage and in 9. 7, however, the ordinary sense of the gerundive would have force, as in each case it is a god who may be speaking of destiny, so that we may doubt whether Virg. would have used the word in a connexion where he could not have availed himself of common as well as of archaic associations. Understood in the ordinary sense, ‘volvendis mensibus’ will be an instrumental or modal ablative. ‘Orbis:’ “annuus orbis” occurs in 5. 46. The epithet which is here wanting must be supplied from the context, especially from ‘mensibus.’
[270] ‘Inperio’ may be either dative, ‘for his reign,’ or modal abl. = ‘inperando.’ Heins. restored ‘ab sede’ for ‘a sede,’ from Med., Rom., &c.
[271] Muniet, ‘build and fortify.’ ‘Multa vi,’ ‘with great power and might,’ not, ‘with strong fortifications.’ Virg. doubtless followed Lucr. 1.728, “multa munita virum vi”, where however population seems meant. Wagn. retains ‘longam’ as more poetical than ‘Longam;’ he however writes ‘Longam’ in 6. 766. A similar inversion of the names of persons is found even in prose writers. See Macleane on Hor. 2 Od. 2. 3.
