[148] The story is taken up from 8. 607, where Aeneas is left with Tarchon. It is better to make the apodosis of ‘ut’ begin at v. 153, ‘haud fit mora,’ than at v. 149, which would involve the harshness of making ‘ingressus’ = “ingressus est.” ‘Ingredior’ with dat. as in v. 763 below: a rare construction in this sense.
[149] Adiit Pal.: see Excursus on G. 2. 81. ‘Memorant’ Rom. for ‘memorat.’
[150] For ‘quidve ipse’ Pal. has (mostly in an erasure) ‘aut quidve,’ and so Gud., with ‘ipse’ written above as a correction. Serv. says that in his time many thought Virg. should have written “quidque petat quidque ipse ferat,” and Jahn would correct the passage accordingly. No doubt ‘que’ is required in strictness of expression, as, though the questions might be put disjunctively, they could not be so answered: but Virg., as Wagn. rightly remarks, is thinking of the questions as put by Tarchon. For the disjunctive in questions comp. 2. 75, 151, G. 4. 446 &c. ‘Quid ferat,’ ‘what offers he brings with him,’ as 2. 75.
[151] Turnus is the only person to whom Virg. applies the words ‘violentus’ and ‘violentia;’ which is significant as determining his character: see 11. 354, 376., 12. 9, 45.
[152] ‘What ground of confidence human fortunes can entertain:’ not ‘what confidence can be placed in human fortunes:’ for ‘fiducia’ usually governs a gen. of the object. Comp. 2. 75, “quae sit fiducia capto.” The meaning is that Tarchon, if he failed to aid Aeneas, might one day want aid himself. For the quasi-personification of ‘rebus’ comp. “rebus fessis” 11. 335 &c., and see 9. 278 note.
[154] Opes of military power: comp. 1. 571 (note) and 8. 171. ‘Foedus ferire’ explained fully by Livy 1. 24. Pal. had originally ‘fert,’ which one correction changes into ‘effert,’ another into ‘ferit.’ ‘Fatis’ the MSS. of Serv., and so the edd. before Heins. The construction ‘libera fati’ is an imitation of the Greek use of ἐλεύθερος with gen.: comp. Eur. Phoen. 999, οἱ μὲν θεσφάτων ἐλεύθεροι Κοὐκ εἰς ἀνάγκην δαιμόνων ἀφιγμένοι (Taubm.). Horace has “liber laborum” A. P. 212, where Orelli gives other instances of the constr. ‘Liber’ is used with gen. in a different sense by Plautus, Amph. prol. 105.
[155, 156] Gens Lydia 8. 479. “Externos duces” 8. 503. The hiatus is like that in 5. 735.
[157] Prima tenet 5. 194, 338. ‘Rostro Phrygios subiuncta leones’ apparently means ‘with lions joined to its beak underneath:’ the construction being like “delphinum caudas utero commissa luporum” 3. 428, and Horace's “laevo suspensi loculos tabulamque lacerto.” The beak of a ship was generally (though not always) below the ornament or parasemon (Dict. A. ‘Navis’), and this seems to be the case here. The lions are joined to the beak beneath them, and over them (‘super’ v. 158) rises the figure or the painting of Ida, the figure-head consisting of the whole group. Wagn.'s explanation “leones rostro ita subiuncti ut ipsum rostrum in leonum faciem abiret” puts an unnecessary strain on the words. ‘Phrygii leones’ the lions of Cybele, the special guardian of the Trojan fleet.
[158] Super, ‘above the lions,’ precludes Lersch's idea (A. V. p. 126) that the figure of Ida was in the stern. ‘Ida’ may be either a carved human figure representing the mountain, or a painting of the mountain itself. The Trojans had built their fleet under the shadow of Ida (3. 5, 6), and the form of the mountain would remind them that they were taking their home with them to their new settlement.
[159] “Caecosque volutat Eventus animo secum” 6. 157.
[161] Adfixus implying closeness as in 5. 852, “adfixus et haerens.” ‘Quaerit sidera’ = “quaerit de sideribus:” comp. 2. 105, “scitari et quaerere caussas:” 6. 868, “ingentem luctum ne quaere tuorum.” “Noctis opacae” 8. 658.
[162] Iter is put into loose apposition with ‘sidera’ after ‘quaerit,’ because in questioning Aeneas about the stars Pallas' object was to question him about the course of the vessel. There is a somewhat similar apposition G. 3. 40, “silvas saltusque sequamur . . . . tua Maecenas haud mollia iussa:” though there the construction is not to be resolved in quite the same way. ‘Iter’ with gen. as 2. 359, “mediaeque tenemus Urbis iter:” comp. 9. 391. ‘Idem’ for “iter” Med. a m. p. ‘Quae passus’ = “quae passus est:” the verb substantive being omitted for metrical convenience: comp. E. 8. 24, “Panaque qui primus calamus non passus inertis:” and see vv. 655, 827 below.
[163-184] After an invocation of the Muses begins a short catalogue of the Etruscan chiefs now sailing with Aeneas. Massicus, with a thousand men from Clusium and Cosae; Abas, with six hundred from Populonia and three hundred from Ilva; the augur Asilas, with a thousand from Pisa; and Astyr, with three hundred from Caere, Pyrgi, and Graviscae.
