For the new
comedies
that now appear
Are even more debased than these new coins.
Are even more debased than these new coins.
Warner - World's Best Literature - v16 to v20 - Phi to Qui
Frequently their origin is discovered; they are acknowledged
by delighted parents, who hasten to betroth them to their happy
lovers. Sometimes however the women are much more debased, and
the plays too coarse to be at all enjoyable.
The most important rôle is that of the slaves. These usually
stand shoulder to shoulder with their young masters, and give them
their loyal and constant support. Naturally they fall into two
classes, the honest and the dishonest. The former are few in num-
bers; and are either old slaves who have grown up in the family,
and perhaps served as tutors for the children, or stupid country
clowns, coarse in speech and habit, who serve mainly as foils to their
unscrupulous fellows. The dishonest slaves are the life of the play,
and ancient critics regarded their rôles as the most important. Their
chief characteristics are an extraordinary boldness and skill in inven-
tion and trickery, with the most utter shamelessness in carrying out
their plans. They help their young masters out of their difficul-
ties, supply the necessary money, and at the same time furnish the
broad humor so essential to comedy. Running the risk of the most
condign punishment from the fathers, or others whom they have
deceived, they preserve a careless coolness in the most trying cir-
cumstances, and almost always manage to secure a full and com-
plete pardon, and often manumission at the end.
The lovers and their assisting slaves are often opposed by stern
fathers. These are sordid and miserly elders, who have either accu-
mulated a competence by severe toil or have married for money.
In their youth they were dissipated, but they have no sympathy
with their sons when they follow a similar course. They are there-
fore the objects of attack by the slaves, and are usually cheated out
of the money needed. Their feeling towards their wives is one of
1
8
## p. 11560 (#174) ##########################################
11560
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
aversion and contempt, and they take delight in deceiving them.
The wives in their turn are usually depicted as shrewish and un-
lovely, which may be for comic effect merely. The other class of
fathers is more attractive. These are genial and mild, prudent and
wise in council. They have frequently gained their wealth in for-
eign trade, and settled down to enjoy a quiet and dignified old age.
They are their sons' confidants instead of enemies, and look kindly
upon their youthful follies out of remembrance of their own youth.
Peculiar to Comedy are the Parasites. These are decayed gen-
tlemen who live by their wits. They often attach themselves to
some family, or young man, and assist the latter in his love intrigues.
They are perpetually hungry, and during the most serious discussions
their minds run continually upon the prospects of a dinner. They
endure the most scornful snubs if they can get but the lowest seats
at the feast. They are the perpetual objects of mockery, and their
exaltation or depression when they are invited to a dinner or cheated
of it furnish some of the liveliest scenes. The plots in which these
and minor characters appear are somewhat stereotyped, and the
motives are few and simple. But the most of the plays may be
grouped roughly in four classes: those in which some particular type
of character is portrayed; those which turn upon the recovery of
children lost or stolen in infancy; plays of simple intrigue; and those
which turn upon the impersonation of an individual or a pair of
individuals by another.
The best of the first class is the 'Aulularia,' which gives us the
fortunes and misfortunes of a miser who has discovered a pot of gold
in his house, and imagines that every one knows it and has designs
upon it. The 'Miles, Gloriosus' portrays the braggart soldier, who is
always boasting of his glorious deeds in war, and trying his fortune
with the ladies,- with indifferent success. The most interesting ex-
ample of the second class is the 'Rudens'; which, though faulty in
construction, shows Plautus at his best, and is really of a high order.
Of a lower order are the Curculio' and the Epidicus'; the latter of
which, as Plautus tells us in another comedy, was his favorite drama.
In these plays, opportunity is given for the liveliest play of feel-
ing, and some of the scenes where the child is recognized are very
pathetic. The most interesting example of the third class is the Tri-
nummus. An old man going abroad on a business venture has com-
initted to the care of a faithful friend a sum of money, which in
case of necessity shall be used to preserve his family, a son and
daughter, from the excesses of the profligate son. The play records
the devices of the friend to employ some of it as a dower for the
daughter, without allowing the son to know that he has it in his pos-
session. A parasite is accordingly hired for three nummi (shillings)
## p. 11561 (#175) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11561
to act as messenger from the absent father; and he gives his name to
the play. To the fourth class belong the three most important come-
dies: the Captives' and the 'Menæchmi,' abstracts of which follow;
and the Amphitruo,' a tragicomedy, which is interesting as showing
some tendency to burlesque the religious myths of the people. The
play gives the story of how Jupiter and Mercury personated Amphi-
truo and his slave Sosia, for the purpose of beguiling Amphitruo's
wife Alcmena.
Two of the best plays may be sketched in outline. We place
first the 'Captives,' though the plot hardly justifies Lessing's extrava-
gant praise of it as the best ever devised. At the outset we are
informed that Philopolemus, only son of a certain Hegio, was some
time previously captured in battle and made a slave in Elis; since
which time Hegio has been buying war captives, with the hope that
he might finally secure some Elean of quality with whom to effect an
exchange for his son. The stage represents Hegio's court-yard. He,
entering, informs us that he has recently made a purchase of import-
ant captives, two of whom he thinks may serve his purpose. After
he retires, the two captives, Philocrates and his slave Tyndarus, are
brought in, guarded, and lamenting their fate. They plan to person-
ate each other, with the hope that Philocrates, if looked upon as the
slave, may the easier escape. In the next scene Hegio learns from
them that his son is actually in bondage to Philocrates's father, and
the supposed Tyndarus (really the master, Philocrates) is sent away
to negotiate an exchange. Subsequently Hegio introduces another of
the captives, Aristophontes, who claims to have known Philocrates in
He being brought face to face with the supposed Philocrates,
immediately discloses the true state of affairs; and Hegio in a fury
orders the now discovered Tyndarus to punishment. Later, Philocra-
tes returns with Philopolemus; and in the ensuing explanation Tyn-
darus is discovered to be a long-lost son of Hegio, who was stolen
when he was but four years old.
In the Menæchmi,' the prologist states that an old Syracusan
merchant had two sons. Once on a business trip to Tarentum he
took one of the boys, who strayed away in the crowd and was stolen.
On his return the father was shipwrecked and drowned. The grand-
father bestowed the name of the lost boy, Menæchmus, upon the
surviving son at home. Long afterwards the son set out in search
of his brother; and in the course of his travels arrived at Epidamnus,
where the play opens. The first scene is an interview between a
parasite and Menæchmus I. (the lost one), who gleefully explains how
he has stolen his wife's cloak, and is going to bestow it upon Erotium,
a courtesan. On the appearance of Erotium he presents the cloak,
and bespeaks a dinner for himself and the parasite. In the next
scene Menæchmus II. and his servant Messenio appear. Then follow
## p. 11562 (#176) ##########################################
11562
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
two amusing scenes, first with the cook who is to prepare the dinner,
and later with Erotium; both think they are talking with Menæch-
mus I. finally Menæchmus II. goes in with Erotium to dinner. Later
the parasite appears, complaining that he has been detained and is
afraid he has lost his dinner. Menæchmus II. comes out of Erotium's
house with the cloak, which he is to take to a cleaner's to be cleaned.
The parasite, thinking that he is Menæchmus I. , attacks him for not
waiting for him, and finally, in high dudgeon departs to inform the
wife of her husband's doings. After Menæchmus II. leaves the stage,
Menæchmus I. appears and is met by his angry wife, whom he tries
to pacify by promising to return the cloak. After his departure
Menæchmus II. enters with the cloak. He has an amusing discus-
sion with the wife, and later with the wife's father, whom she has
summoned in desperation. He finally gets rid of them by feigning
madness; and the old man goes in search of a physician, while
Menæchmus II. hurries away. Then Menæchmus I. enters, and is
pounced upon by the physician and his attendants. He is rescued by
Messenio, who has just entered in search of his master, Menæchmus
II. In the final scene the two Menæchmi are brought face to face;
and the kinship of the long-separated brothers is explained by Mes-
senio, who is given his freedom for his services.
Certain of the plays were performed occasionally down to the
close of the Republic, or even later. Indeed, Plautus remained a
much read and appreciated author from the time of Varro and Cicero
until the dark ages. The Christian fathers, especially Jerome, were
very fond of him. At the Renaissance the newly discovered plays
were eagerly caught up in Italy, and later in France and Germany.
Translations were made; and great authors wrote plays based upon
those of Plautus, of which a few may be mentioned: Molière's
'Amphitryon' was based upon the 'Amphitruo,' and the two together
inspired Dryden's 'Amphitryon. ' Molière's 'L'Avare' was an imita-
tion of the 'Aulularia,' and it in turn inspired Shadwell's 'Miser'
and Fielding's 'Miser. ' The Captivi' was the basis of Ariosto's
'Suppositi' and of Rotrou's 'Les Captifs. ' Ben Jonson's 'The Case
is Altered' has scenes from the 'Aulularia' and 'Captivi. ' To the
Menæchmi must be referred Cecchi's 'Le Moglie,' Goldoni's 'I due
Gemelli, Shakespeare's 'Comedy of Errors,' and many others. The
< Miles Gloriosus' formed a favorite type; and we find traces of it in
Dolce's 'Il Capitano,' Corneille's 'L'Illusion Comique,' Udall's 'Ralph
Roister Doister,' and others. A careful study of Plautus's influence on
modern literature may be found in Reinhardtstöttner's 'Spätere Be-
arbeitungen Plautinischer Lustspiele' (Leipzig, 1886).
(
By reason of the great difference between the archaic Latin of
Plautus and the later classical Latin, the manuscript tradition soon
became faulty and the text corrupt. During this century great
## p. 11563 (#177) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11563
progress has been made in the reconstruction of the text, through
the labors of many scholars, notably Ritschl and Studemund. Ritschl
began a critical edition of Plautus as early as 1849. This was com-
pleted after his death by three of his pupils,- Goetz, Schoell, and
Loewe, the last part appearing in 1894. This edition has a marvel-
ously complete apparatus criticus, but the text is marred by many
violent emendations and arbitrary changes. Two of the same editors,
Goetz and Schoell, have since published a complete text in the Teub-
ner series (Leipzig, 1893-95); but this edition is as conservative as
the larger one is radical, and the text has been left incomprehensi-
ble in many places through despair of certain emendation. The best
text for practical use is that of Leo (Berlin, 1895–96). No adequate
English translation of the whole of Plautus has appeared. That of
Thornton, published in the last century, in blank verse, follows a
poor text, and that by Riley in the Bohn collection has no merit but
that of literalness. In 1893 appeared the first volume of a new trans-
lation in the original metres by Sugden, comprising the Amphitruo,
Asinaria, Aulularia, Bacchides, and Captivi. The editor has taken
surprising liberties, not merely expurgating his text, but actually
"correcting" the plots.
Gonzalez Lorly
>
[The citations from Plautus are translated for the Library by William C.
Lawton. ]
FROM MILES GLORIOSUS) (THE BRAGGART SOLDIER)
[The soldier himself opens the play, coming forth from his house, which,
with a neighbor's, forms the back of the scene. He is attended by his Fal-
staffian retinue, and also by his especial flatterer and shadow Artotrogus,—
"Breadeater. " The pompous veteran has the first word. ]
YRGOPOLINICES See to it that more splendid be my shield,
Than the sun's rays are when the day is bright;
So when there's need, in battle's close array
Its sheen may blind the eyes of enemies.
And this my cutlass I would comfort too,
That it be not downhearted, nor lament
That it is worn so long in idleness,
Though sadly bent on massacre of foes! -
But where is Artotrogus?
PYRO
Ρ
## p. 11564 (#178) ##########################################
11564
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
Artotrogus [promptly] —
Here, beside
The man so valiant, kingly, fortunate,
Mars might not such a warrior call himself,
Nor dare to match your valor with his own!
Pyrgopolinices—
That one I saved on the Curculionian plains,
When Búmbomáchides Clýtomestóridysárchides,
Grandson of Neptune, was commander-in-chief —
Artotrogus-
I remember. He, you mean, in arms of gold,
Whose legions with your breath you puffed away,
As wind doth leaves and rushes good for thatch.
Pyrgopolinices-
Why, that is nothing!
[And the complacent warrior goes striding, with nodding helmet-plumes
and waving locks, up and down the stage; so that the weary flatterer, begin-
ning his return compliment, presently has an instant to tell us of the audience
- behind his hand-something of his real opinions. ]
Artotrogus
So forsooth it is,
To deeds I'll tell-
[Aside] which you did never do!
If you can find a more mendacious man,
Or one more boastful than this fellow is,
Take me and hold me for your chattel, then!
Just one thing: olive salad he can bolt!
Pyrgopolinices [turning]—
Where are you?
[The parasite pretends he has been all the time cataloguing the hero's
exploits: -]
Artotrogus-
Pyrgopolinices —
How with a fisticuff you broke his arm!
Here! Then, there's that elephant:
Artotrogus-
Pyrgopolinices -
Artotrogus-
What's that? his arm?
I didn't try to strike.
His thigh I meant, of course.
No! If you had,
With effort, through the creature's hide and heart
And through his bones your arm had made its way.
Pyrgopolinices [modestly] —
That doesn't matter.
Artotrogus-
No, 'tis not worth while
For me to tell, who know your valorous deeds.
## p. 11565 (#179) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11565
[Aside] -
My belly makes this misery; and my ears
Must hearken, lest my teeth have naught to do.
To every lie he tells I must assent!
Pyrgopolinices-
What am I saying?
Artotrogus-
I remember, it happened.
Pyrgopolinices-
Artotrogus [rather wearily]-
Pyrgopolinices [more sharply]
You remember - ?
Artotrogus [rapidly]—
Pyrgopolinices —
Yes, a hundred in Cilicia,
And fifty, a hundred in Scytholatronia,
Thirty from Sardis, sixty Macedonians,-
All of them in a single day you slew.
Artotrogus-
Pyrgopolinices [complacently]-
Artotrogus-
-
What is the grand sum total?
Artotrogus
Pyrgopolinices-
―
-
Your memory's good.
Artotrogus-
I know what you would say:
-
So many should it be. You reckon well.
Pyrgopolinices —
Artotrogus-
What?
I have no records,-I remember it so.
Pyrgopolinices—
Whatever it is.
Seven thousand!
Pyrgopolinices [eagerly]—
Artotrogus-
While you shall play your part as you do now,
Table companion will I hold you still.
The tidbits prompt me aright!
What! In Cappadocia, at a single blow
You had slain five hundred! But-your sword was dull.
Poor wretched infantry, I let them live.
Why say what all men know, that on the earth
You only, Pyrgopolinices, live
In valor, beauty, deeds, unconqueredest ?
All women love you,- and good reason too,
You are so handsome. Like those yesterday
That plucked my cloak.
What did they say to you?
They asked me: "Is this Achilles? " so said one.
## p. 11566 (#180) ##########################################
11566
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
"Yes, 'tis his brother," said I. Then the other:
"Well, he is handsome, surely," so she said,
"And noble. See how well his hair becomes him!
Happy the women are with whom he wives! "
Pyrgopolinices-
Did they say so?
Artotrogus-
Why, yes! Both made me swear
To-day I'd bring you in procession by.
Pyrgopolinices [pensively]-
To be too handsome is a piteous thing!
Artotrogus-
It bores me! For they pray and crowd and beg,
So that I cannot get your business done.
[A movement of the soldier at this word "business" gives the quick-witted
flatterer his cue. ]
Pyrgopolinices-
Have you
Artotrogus-
Pyrgopolinices —
Artotrogus-
You give your mind to mine right wittily.
Pyrgopolinices-
You mean your tablets? Yes, and pen.
'Tis fit that I should know your nature well,
And try to scent out that which you desire.
Artotrogus-
'Tis time, methinks, to hasten to the Forum;
For there must I bestow their wage upon
The hirelings I enlisted yesterday.
For King Seleucus begged me earnestly,
To gather and enroll him mercenaries.
Why, then, let's go.
Pyrgopolinices—
Attendants, follow me!
[Exeunt omnes.
[The prologue, rather singularly, is now spoken, at the opening of the
second act. It may be interesting to cite a few lines, though its literary merit
is small. ]
Palæstrio [a slave, appearing from the soldier's house, as Prologue]-
This argument I'll tell you courteously,
If you to listen will be mannerly.
Who will not listen, let him up and go,
So making room for one disposed to hear.
This comedy we are about to play,
## p. 11567 (#181) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11567
For sake of which you sit so festive there,-
Its argument and name I'll tell to you.
'Alazon is the drama's name in Greek,
And Braggadocio is our word for it. .
This's Ephesus. Yon soldier is my master,
Who went thence townward; boastful, insolent,
Filthy, and full of crapulence and lies.
He says the women chase him all unsought.
A laughing-stock he is, where he appears.
So, while with mocking lips they lead him on,
Most of the girls you'll see with mouths awry!
[The last line is perhaps a random jest aimed at the extravagant comic
masks. If so, it is an indication of post-Plautine date. One of the most
interesting prologues, that of the Casina,' was certainly composed for a late
revival of a remarkably coarse and brutal play. A few examples of these pro-
logues may be instructive. ]
PROLOGUE OF CASINA ›
THE
HE men who drink old wine I count as wise,
And those that gladly hear an ancient play.
Since antique words and phrases please you well,
An old-time drama should delight you more.
For the new comedies that now appear
Are even more debased than these new coins.
Now we have hearkened to the people's cry,
That you desire to hear the Plautine plays,
And so bring out this ancient comedy,
Which you approved; — that is, you elder men:
The younger sort, I am sure, have known it not;
But that you may, we earnestly shall strive.
All dramas it surpassed, when acted first.
The flower of poets still were living then,
Though now departed whither all must pass, -
In absence helpful still to those that are.
And with full earnestness we beg you all
Kindly to give attention to our troop.
-
Cast from your minds your cares and debts away.
Let no one stand in terror of his dun.
'Tis holiday. The banks keep holiday.
'Tis peace! The forum has its halcyon days.
## p. 11568 (#182) ##########################################
11568
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
PROLOGUE OF TRINUMMUS›
Enter Two Female Figures
M
OTHER - Follow, my daughter, to fulfill your task.
Daughter-I follow, ignorant what the end may be.
Mother-'Tis here: lo, yonder house; go straightway in.
[Exit daughter.
[To the audience] —
Now, lest you err, I'll give you guidance brief,-
At least if you will promise to attend.
Who then I am, and she who passed from here
Within, if you but hearken, I will tell.
First, Plautus made my name Extravagance,
And called my daughter yonder, Poverty.
But why impelled by me she entered there,
Hearken and lend your ears while I explain.
A certain youth, who in that house abides,
Has squandered, with my aid, his heritage.
And seeing he can no longer nourish me,
I have given my daughter to abide with him. -
Do not expect the argument of our play.
The old men coming yonder will make clear
The story.
In Greek, Thesaurus' was it called.
Philemon wrote it. Plautus rendering it
(
In barbarous speech, called it Trinummus': now
He begs the drama may retain the name.
That's all. Farewell. In silence now attend.
[As these characters do not appear again, Plautus "made their names »
here only. That is, this passage claims at least to be from the dramatist's
own hand. ]
WITH
PROLOGUE OF RUDENS›
Arcturus speaks, as Prologue
ITH him who moves all races, seas, and lands,
In the celestial city I abide.
Such am I as you see,
-a glorious star
That rises ever at the fitting time,
Here and in heaven. Arcturus is my name.
Shining by night in heaven amid the gods,
By day I walk on earth among mankind.
And other stars to earth from heaven descend:
## p. 11569 (#183) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11569
Jupiter, ruler over gods and men,
Among the several nations sends us forth,
To know the deeds, ways, piety, and faith
Of men, according to the means of each.
[Such poetic passages are rare. Equally characteristic of Roman com-
edy are the Epilogues. We give two very brief examples, illustrating the two
extremes of moral pretentiousness. ]
EPILOGUE OF THE CAPTIVES ›
TH
HIS our comedy, spectators, is for honest morals made.
No love-making is there in it, nor a love intrigue at all.
No false fathering of children, nor embezzlement of money.
Rarely do the poets fashion such a comedy as this,
Where the good are rendered better.
EPILOGUE OF THE ASINARIA)
F BEHIND his goodwife's back this old man had a little fun,
Nothing new or strange he did, nor different from the com-
mon run!
If you wish to beg him off and save him from his cudgeling,
This by loud applause you'll have no trouble in accomplishing.
[A few miscellaneous passages will indicate the various tones struck in
these rollicking comedies. Of course we rarely know how much is translation
from the Greek, how much original invention. ]
WHO
XX-724
BUSYBODIES
HO, knowing nothing, claim to know it all.
What each intends, or will intend, they know.
What in the queen's ear the king said, they know.
They know what Juno chatted of with Jove.
What never was or is, - they know it, though!
## p. 11570 (#184) ##########################################
11570
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
UNPOPULARITY OF TRAGEDY
Mercury speaks, in the Prologue of the Amphitruo
HE plot of this our tragedy next I'll tell-
Why did you knit your brows? Because I said
'Twould be a tragedy? I'm a god, I'll change it.
From tragedy I'll make it, if you will,
A comedy,- with every verse the same.
Will you, or not? - Why! stupid that I am,
As if, a god, I knew not your desire!
Upon this point I understand your minds.
I'll make a mixture, tragicomedy.
MIXTURE OF GREEK AND ROMAN MANNERS
From Prologue to 'Casina'
SOME
OME here, methinks, will say among themselves,
"Prithee, what's this? A wedding among slaves?
A strange thing this to play, that's nowhere done! "
I say, in Carthage this is done, and Greece,
And of our country, in Apulia too.
Yes, servile marriages more carefully
Are celebrated than a freeman's there.
REWARDS OF HEROISM
[From the Captives. ' Tyndarus, a slave, captured in war with the young
master who has been his lifelong comrade, exchanges name and station with
him, and the supposed slave has been sent off to secure the ransom. The
trick has just been discovered and acknowledged. ]
HR
EGIO- To your own utter misery this was done.
Tyndarus-Since for no sin I fall, little I reck.
If he who promised comes not, and I die,
This will be counted honor still, in death,
That I from servitude and hostile hands
Restored my master to his home and father;
And here I rather chose to put my life
In peril, than that he should be destroyed.
Hegio- Enjoy that glory, then, in Acheron!
## p. 11571 (#185) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11571
Tyndarus-
Hegio-
Tyndarus-
Hegio-
Tyndarus
I saved my lord; I exult that he is free,
Whom my old master trusted to my charge:
This you account ill done?
Most wickedly.
But I, opposing you, say—righteously:
Bethink you, if a slave of yours had wrought
For your son this, what thanks you'd render him.
Would you release him from his servitude?
Would he be in your eyes a slave most dear?
Answer.
I think so.
Why then wroth at me?
[In one note of sad defiance we seem to hear an echo of Antigone's voice:
it occurs a little later in the same scene. ]
Beyond my death no ill have I to fear.
And though I live to utmost age, the time
Of suffering what you threaten still is brief.
FISHERMEN'S LUCK
[This passage is of unique interest as the one notable choral ode in Plau-
tus. Its dramatic purpose is not very evident; and indeed, the fishermen do
little more than add "local color" to the scene of shipwreck. ]
M
OST wretched in every way is the life of men that are poverty-
stricken;
And especially those who have learnt no trade, who are des-
titute of employment.
Whatever they happen to have in the house, they perforce therewith
are contented.
But as for ourselves, how wealthy we are you may judge pretty well
from our costume.
These hooks that you see, and bamboo poles, are our means for
attaining a living;
And every day from the city we come to secure a subsistence hither.
Instead of gymnastics and boyish games, this toil is our exercise
only.
Sea-urchins and limpets we strive to secure, with oysters and scallops
and cockles;
The nettles as well, in the sea that dwell, and the striped crabs and
the mussels.
## p. 11572 (#186) ##########################################
11572
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
And among the rocks after that with our hooks and lines we go
a-fishing,
But if no luck is our por-
And we catch no fish, then, salted ourselves, well drenched in the
briny water,
To our homes we go, and slink out of sight, and to bed without any
To capture our food from out of the sea.
tion,
supper.
And unless we have eaten the cockles we caught, our dinner has
been no better.
[Lastly, we may echo the epitaph, in rather awkward hexameters, which
is said to have been composed by Plautus on himself. Gellius, who trans-
mits it, evidently doubts its authenticity, but cites it on the high authority of
Varro:-]
SIN
INCE he has passed to the grave, for Plautus Comedy sorrows;
Now is the stage deserted; and Play, and Jesting, and Laughter,
Dirges, though written in numbers yet numberless, join in la-
menting.
## p. 11573 (#187) ##########################################
11573
PLINY THE ELDER
(23-79 A. D. )
HILE the younger Pliny wins his place in literature chiefly by
his refined caste and fastidious sense of form, these traits
are so lacking in the uncle that his ponderous Cyclopædia
of Natural Sciences stands almost like a massive bowlder beside the
cultivated field of belles-lettres. It is indeed a sufficient proof of life-
long industry; but Pliny was not, like Humboldt, himself a master
of many sciences. He had, in numberless passages, not even sufficient
critical intelligence to translate or summarize correctly his learned
authorities. So while there are a thousand
subjects on which we appeal to him as our
sole authority, our gratitude is usually quer-
ulous, as gratitude, indeed, too often is!
Yet the courage, sincerity, and energy of
the man are rarely equaled.
2
Caius Plinius Secundus was a native of
Cisalpine Gaul; probably of Como, where
the family estates certainly lay. He rose
to high favor at court under the Fla-
vian emperors,- having been in fact an
old fellow-soldier of Vespasian before that
sturdy veteran's elevation to the throne,-
and ended his days as admiral of the fleet
at Misenum, as is so thrillingly related in
a famous letter of his nephew cited in the next article.
We are
indebted to the same filial hand for an account of the elder scholar's
methods of research.
PLINY THE ELDER
"He had a quick apprehension, marvelous power of application, and was
of an exceedingly wakeful temperament. He always began to study at mid-
night at the time of the feast of Vulcan, not for the sake of good luck, but for
learning's sake; in winter generally at one in the morning, but never later
than two, and often at twelve. He was a most ready sleeper, insomuch that he
would sometimes, whilst in the midst of his studies, fall off and then wake up
again. Before daybreak he used to wait upon Vespasian (who also used his
nights for transacting business), and then proceed to execute the orders he
had received. As soon as he returned home, he gave what time was left to
## p. 11574 (#188) ##########################################
11574
PLINY THE ELDER
study. After a short and light refreshment at noon (agreeably to the good
old custom of our ancestors), he would frequently in the summer, if he was
disengaged from business, lie down and bask in the sun: during which time
some author was read to him, while he took notes and made extracts,— for
every book he read he made extracts out of; indeed, it was a maxim of his
that no book was so bad but some good might be got out of it. When this
was over, he generally took a cold bath, then some slight refreshment and
a little nap. After this, as if it had been a new day, he studied till supper-
time, when a book was again read to him, which he would take down run-
ning notes upon. I remember once, his reader having mispronounced a word,
one of my uncle's friends at the table made him go back to where the word
was and repeat it again; upon which my uncle said to his friend, 'Surely you
understood it? ' Upon his acknowledging that he did, 'Why then,' said he,
'did you make him go back again? We have lost more than ten lines by this
interruption. Such an economist he was of time! In the summer he used to
rise from supper at daylight, and in winter as soon as it was dark: a rule he
observed as strictly as if it had been a law of the State.
"Such was his manner of life amid the bustle and turmoil of the town; but
in the country his whole time was devoted to study, excepting only when he
bathed. In this exception I include no more than the time during which he
was actually in the bath; for all the while he was being rubbed and wiped,
he was employed either in hearing some book read to him or in dictating
himself. In going about anywhere, as though he were disengaged from all
other business, he applied his mind wholly to that single pursuit. A short-
hand writer constantly attended him, with book and tablets, who in the winter
wore a particular sort of warm gloves, that the sharpness of the weather
might not occasion any interruption to my uncle's studies; and for the same
reason, when in Rome, he was always carried in a chair. I recollect his once
taking me to task for walking. You need not,' he said, 'lose those hours. '
For he thought every hour gone that was not given to study. Through this
extraordinary application he found time to compose the several treatises I
have mentioned; besides one hundred and sixty volumes of extracts, which
he left me in his will, consisting of a kind of commonplace, written on both
sides in very small hand,- so that one might fairly reckon the number con-
siderably more. He used himself to tell us that when he was comptroller of
the revenue in Spain, he could have sold these manuscripts to Largius Lici-
nus for four hundred thousand sesterces, and then there were not so many
of them. When you consider the books he has read, and the volumes he has
written, are you not inclined to suspect that he never was engaged in public
duties or was ever in the confidence of his prince? On the other hand, when
you are told how indefatigable he was in his studies, are you not inclined to
wonder that he read and wrote no more than he did? »
The mass of citations just mentioned was evidently in great
part utilized for the 'Historia Naturalis, or Cyclopædia. This great
work was provisionally completed, and presented to the prince-regent
Titus, in 77 A. D. The dedication is fulsome, and written in a style
utterly inferior to his younger kinsman's. The body of the work
## p. 11575 (#189) ##########################################
PLINY THE ELDER
11575
varies in manner with the subject and the source of the citations, but
our chief quarrel with it is for ambiguous or even nonsensical
statements on important questions of fact.
The arrangement is sufficiently logical. After a general descrip-
tion of the universe (Book ii. ), there follows Geography (Books iii. -
vi. ), Anthropology (vii. ). Zoölogy (viii. -xi. ), Botany (xii. -xxvii. ), and
Mineralogy (xxxiii. -xxxvii. ). Under Botany a digression of eight books
(xx. -xxvii. ) deals with the medicinal uses of plants; and thereupon
follows, somewhat out of place (xxviii. -xxxii. ), an account of cura-
tives derived from the animal world. Under Mineralogy the largest
and most important sections deal with the uses of metals, pigments,
and stones,-i. e. , with the history of the Fine Arts. Besides the
introductory book, on the scope of his work and his sources of in-
formation, Pliny prefixes to each subsection a list of his authorities.
These foot up nearly five hundred writers, more than two thirds of
them in Greek. It is evident, however, that many, if not most, were
cited at second or third hand from manuals, epitomes, etc.
Pliny's labors upon his Cyclopædia were apparently continued to
the last. In the form we now have it, the book has probably been
edited not very critically-by the nephew after the uncle's death.
Pliny's work influenced later antiquity powerfully, and has been
transmitted in many MSS. The most accessible edition is by Detlef-
son (Berlin, 1866-73) in six volumes. The Bohn translation (also in
six volumes) is fairly good, and is abundantly supplied with learned
and somewhat discursive foot-notes.
-
-
Our admiration for Pliny's iron energy increases to astonishment
over the catalogue of his lost works. Of these the most important
was perhaps the history of his own times, in thirty-one books; which
was however soon eclipsed by Tacitus's masterpiece, and passed into
oblivion. The wars in Germany were also treated in twenty books,
doubtful points of grammar in eight, the life of his friend Pomponius
Secundus in two, the art of oratory in three, and the hurling of the
javelin from horseback apparently in one.
But even the catalogue grows exhausting!
INTRODUCTION TO LITHOLOGY
From the Natural History>
I
T NOW remains for us to speak of stones, or in other words,
the leading folly of the day; to say nothing at all of our
taste for gems and amber, crystal and murrhine vases. For
everything of which we have previously treated, down to the
## p. 11576 (#190) ##########################################
11576
PLINY THE ELDER
present book, may, by some possibility or other, have the appear-
ance of having been created for the sake of man: but as to
the mountains, Nature has made those for herself, as a kind of
bulwark for keeping together the bowels of the earth; as also
for the purpose of curbing the violence of the rivers, of breaking
the waves of the sea, and so, by opposing to them the very hard-
est of her materials, putting a check upon those elements which
are never at rest. And yet we must hew down these mountains,
forsooth, and carry them off; and this for no other reason than
to gratify our luxurious inclinations: heights which in former days
it was reckoned a miracle even to have crossed!
Our forefathers regarded as a prodigy the passage of the
Alps, first by Hannibal, and more recently by the Cimbri; but
at the present day, these very mountains are cut asunder to
yield us a thousand different marbles, promontories are thrown
open to the sea, and the face of nature is being everywhere
reduced to a level. We now carry away the barriers that were
destined for the separation of one nation from another; we
construct ships for the transport of our marbles; and amid the
waves, the most boisterous element of nature, we convey the
summits of the mountains to and fro: a thing, however, that is
even less pardonable than to go on the search amid the regions
of the clouds for vessels with which to cool our draughts, and to
excavate rocks towering to the very heavens in order that we
may have the satisfaction of drinking from ice! Let each reflect,
when he hears of the high prices set upon these things, when
he sees these ponderous masses carted and carried away, how
many there are whose life is passed far more happily without
them. For what utility or for what so-called pleasure do mor-
tals make themselves the agents, or more truly speaking the vic-
tims, of such undertakings, except in order that others may take
their repose in the midst of variegated stones? Just as though,
too, the shades of night, which occupy one half of each man's
existence, would forbear to curtail these imaginary delights.
Indeed, while making these reflections, one cannot but feel
ashamed of the men of ancient times even. There are still in
existence censorial laws, which forbid the kernels in the neck
of swine to be served at table; dormice too, and other things too
trifling to mention: and yet there has been no law passed for-
bidding marble to be imported, or the seas to be traversed in
search of it!
## p. 11577 (#191) ##########################################
PLINY THE ELDER
11577
It may possibly be observed that this was because marble was
not then introduced. Such however is not the fact: for in the
ædileship of M. Scaurus, three hundred and sixty columns were
to be seen imported; for the decorations of a temporary thea-
tre, too,- one that was destined to be in use for barely a single
month. And yet the laws were silent thereon; in a spirit of
indulgence for the amusements of the public, no doubt. But
then, why such indulgence? or how do vices more insidiously
steal upon us than under the plea of serving the public? By
what other way, in fact, did ivory, gold, and precious stones,
first come into use with private individuals?
Can we say that there is now anything that we have reserved
for the exclusive use of the gods? However, be it so, let us
admit of this indulgence for the amusements of the public; but
still, why did the laws maintain their silence when the largest
of these columns, pillars of Lucullan marble, as much as eight-
and-thirty feet in height, were erected in the atrium of Scaurus?
a thing, too, that was not done privately or in secret; for the
contractor for the public sewers compelled him to give security
for the possible damage that might be done in the carriage of
them to the Palatium. When so bad an example as this was
set, would it not have been advisable to take some precautions
for the preservation of the public morals? And yet the laws still
preserved their silence, when such enormous masses as these
were being carried past the earthenware pediments of the tem-
ples of the gods, to the house of a private individual!
by delighted parents, who hasten to betroth them to their happy
lovers. Sometimes however the women are much more debased, and
the plays too coarse to be at all enjoyable.
The most important rôle is that of the slaves. These usually
stand shoulder to shoulder with their young masters, and give them
their loyal and constant support. Naturally they fall into two
classes, the honest and the dishonest. The former are few in num-
bers; and are either old slaves who have grown up in the family,
and perhaps served as tutors for the children, or stupid country
clowns, coarse in speech and habit, who serve mainly as foils to their
unscrupulous fellows. The dishonest slaves are the life of the play,
and ancient critics regarded their rôles as the most important. Their
chief characteristics are an extraordinary boldness and skill in inven-
tion and trickery, with the most utter shamelessness in carrying out
their plans. They help their young masters out of their difficul-
ties, supply the necessary money, and at the same time furnish the
broad humor so essential to comedy. Running the risk of the most
condign punishment from the fathers, or others whom they have
deceived, they preserve a careless coolness in the most trying cir-
cumstances, and almost always manage to secure a full and com-
plete pardon, and often manumission at the end.
The lovers and their assisting slaves are often opposed by stern
fathers. These are sordid and miserly elders, who have either accu-
mulated a competence by severe toil or have married for money.
In their youth they were dissipated, but they have no sympathy
with their sons when they follow a similar course. They are there-
fore the objects of attack by the slaves, and are usually cheated out
of the money needed. Their feeling towards their wives is one of
1
8
## p. 11560 (#174) ##########################################
11560
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
aversion and contempt, and they take delight in deceiving them.
The wives in their turn are usually depicted as shrewish and un-
lovely, which may be for comic effect merely. The other class of
fathers is more attractive. These are genial and mild, prudent and
wise in council. They have frequently gained their wealth in for-
eign trade, and settled down to enjoy a quiet and dignified old age.
They are their sons' confidants instead of enemies, and look kindly
upon their youthful follies out of remembrance of their own youth.
Peculiar to Comedy are the Parasites. These are decayed gen-
tlemen who live by their wits. They often attach themselves to
some family, or young man, and assist the latter in his love intrigues.
They are perpetually hungry, and during the most serious discussions
their minds run continually upon the prospects of a dinner. They
endure the most scornful snubs if they can get but the lowest seats
at the feast. They are the perpetual objects of mockery, and their
exaltation or depression when they are invited to a dinner or cheated
of it furnish some of the liveliest scenes. The plots in which these
and minor characters appear are somewhat stereotyped, and the
motives are few and simple. But the most of the plays may be
grouped roughly in four classes: those in which some particular type
of character is portrayed; those which turn upon the recovery of
children lost or stolen in infancy; plays of simple intrigue; and those
which turn upon the impersonation of an individual or a pair of
individuals by another.
The best of the first class is the 'Aulularia,' which gives us the
fortunes and misfortunes of a miser who has discovered a pot of gold
in his house, and imagines that every one knows it and has designs
upon it. The 'Miles, Gloriosus' portrays the braggart soldier, who is
always boasting of his glorious deeds in war, and trying his fortune
with the ladies,- with indifferent success. The most interesting ex-
ample of the second class is the 'Rudens'; which, though faulty in
construction, shows Plautus at his best, and is really of a high order.
Of a lower order are the Curculio' and the Epidicus'; the latter of
which, as Plautus tells us in another comedy, was his favorite drama.
In these plays, opportunity is given for the liveliest play of feel-
ing, and some of the scenes where the child is recognized are very
pathetic. The most interesting example of the third class is the Tri-
nummus. An old man going abroad on a business venture has com-
initted to the care of a faithful friend a sum of money, which in
case of necessity shall be used to preserve his family, a son and
daughter, from the excesses of the profligate son. The play records
the devices of the friend to employ some of it as a dower for the
daughter, without allowing the son to know that he has it in his pos-
session. A parasite is accordingly hired for three nummi (shillings)
## p. 11561 (#175) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11561
to act as messenger from the absent father; and he gives his name to
the play. To the fourth class belong the three most important come-
dies: the Captives' and the 'Menæchmi,' abstracts of which follow;
and the Amphitruo,' a tragicomedy, which is interesting as showing
some tendency to burlesque the religious myths of the people. The
play gives the story of how Jupiter and Mercury personated Amphi-
truo and his slave Sosia, for the purpose of beguiling Amphitruo's
wife Alcmena.
Two of the best plays may be sketched in outline. We place
first the 'Captives,' though the plot hardly justifies Lessing's extrava-
gant praise of it as the best ever devised. At the outset we are
informed that Philopolemus, only son of a certain Hegio, was some
time previously captured in battle and made a slave in Elis; since
which time Hegio has been buying war captives, with the hope that
he might finally secure some Elean of quality with whom to effect an
exchange for his son. The stage represents Hegio's court-yard. He,
entering, informs us that he has recently made a purchase of import-
ant captives, two of whom he thinks may serve his purpose. After
he retires, the two captives, Philocrates and his slave Tyndarus, are
brought in, guarded, and lamenting their fate. They plan to person-
ate each other, with the hope that Philocrates, if looked upon as the
slave, may the easier escape. In the next scene Hegio learns from
them that his son is actually in bondage to Philocrates's father, and
the supposed Tyndarus (really the master, Philocrates) is sent away
to negotiate an exchange. Subsequently Hegio introduces another of
the captives, Aristophontes, who claims to have known Philocrates in
He being brought face to face with the supposed Philocrates,
immediately discloses the true state of affairs; and Hegio in a fury
orders the now discovered Tyndarus to punishment. Later, Philocra-
tes returns with Philopolemus; and in the ensuing explanation Tyn-
darus is discovered to be a long-lost son of Hegio, who was stolen
when he was but four years old.
In the Menæchmi,' the prologist states that an old Syracusan
merchant had two sons. Once on a business trip to Tarentum he
took one of the boys, who strayed away in the crowd and was stolen.
On his return the father was shipwrecked and drowned. The grand-
father bestowed the name of the lost boy, Menæchmus, upon the
surviving son at home. Long afterwards the son set out in search
of his brother; and in the course of his travels arrived at Epidamnus,
where the play opens. The first scene is an interview between a
parasite and Menæchmus I. (the lost one), who gleefully explains how
he has stolen his wife's cloak, and is going to bestow it upon Erotium,
a courtesan. On the appearance of Erotium he presents the cloak,
and bespeaks a dinner for himself and the parasite. In the next
scene Menæchmus II. and his servant Messenio appear. Then follow
## p. 11562 (#176) ##########################################
11562
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
two amusing scenes, first with the cook who is to prepare the dinner,
and later with Erotium; both think they are talking with Menæch-
mus I. finally Menæchmus II. goes in with Erotium to dinner. Later
the parasite appears, complaining that he has been detained and is
afraid he has lost his dinner. Menæchmus II. comes out of Erotium's
house with the cloak, which he is to take to a cleaner's to be cleaned.
The parasite, thinking that he is Menæchmus I. , attacks him for not
waiting for him, and finally, in high dudgeon departs to inform the
wife of her husband's doings. After Menæchmus II. leaves the stage,
Menæchmus I. appears and is met by his angry wife, whom he tries
to pacify by promising to return the cloak. After his departure
Menæchmus II. enters with the cloak. He has an amusing discus-
sion with the wife, and later with the wife's father, whom she has
summoned in desperation. He finally gets rid of them by feigning
madness; and the old man goes in search of a physician, while
Menæchmus II. hurries away. Then Menæchmus I. enters, and is
pounced upon by the physician and his attendants. He is rescued by
Messenio, who has just entered in search of his master, Menæchmus
II. In the final scene the two Menæchmi are brought face to face;
and the kinship of the long-separated brothers is explained by Mes-
senio, who is given his freedom for his services.
Certain of the plays were performed occasionally down to the
close of the Republic, or even later. Indeed, Plautus remained a
much read and appreciated author from the time of Varro and Cicero
until the dark ages. The Christian fathers, especially Jerome, were
very fond of him. At the Renaissance the newly discovered plays
were eagerly caught up in Italy, and later in France and Germany.
Translations were made; and great authors wrote plays based upon
those of Plautus, of which a few may be mentioned: Molière's
'Amphitryon' was based upon the 'Amphitruo,' and the two together
inspired Dryden's 'Amphitryon. ' Molière's 'L'Avare' was an imita-
tion of the 'Aulularia,' and it in turn inspired Shadwell's 'Miser'
and Fielding's 'Miser. ' The Captivi' was the basis of Ariosto's
'Suppositi' and of Rotrou's 'Les Captifs. ' Ben Jonson's 'The Case
is Altered' has scenes from the 'Aulularia' and 'Captivi. ' To the
Menæchmi must be referred Cecchi's 'Le Moglie,' Goldoni's 'I due
Gemelli, Shakespeare's 'Comedy of Errors,' and many others. The
< Miles Gloriosus' formed a favorite type; and we find traces of it in
Dolce's 'Il Capitano,' Corneille's 'L'Illusion Comique,' Udall's 'Ralph
Roister Doister,' and others. A careful study of Plautus's influence on
modern literature may be found in Reinhardtstöttner's 'Spätere Be-
arbeitungen Plautinischer Lustspiele' (Leipzig, 1886).
(
By reason of the great difference between the archaic Latin of
Plautus and the later classical Latin, the manuscript tradition soon
became faulty and the text corrupt. During this century great
## p. 11563 (#177) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11563
progress has been made in the reconstruction of the text, through
the labors of many scholars, notably Ritschl and Studemund. Ritschl
began a critical edition of Plautus as early as 1849. This was com-
pleted after his death by three of his pupils,- Goetz, Schoell, and
Loewe, the last part appearing in 1894. This edition has a marvel-
ously complete apparatus criticus, but the text is marred by many
violent emendations and arbitrary changes. Two of the same editors,
Goetz and Schoell, have since published a complete text in the Teub-
ner series (Leipzig, 1893-95); but this edition is as conservative as
the larger one is radical, and the text has been left incomprehensi-
ble in many places through despair of certain emendation. The best
text for practical use is that of Leo (Berlin, 1895–96). No adequate
English translation of the whole of Plautus has appeared. That of
Thornton, published in the last century, in blank verse, follows a
poor text, and that by Riley in the Bohn collection has no merit but
that of literalness. In 1893 appeared the first volume of a new trans-
lation in the original metres by Sugden, comprising the Amphitruo,
Asinaria, Aulularia, Bacchides, and Captivi. The editor has taken
surprising liberties, not merely expurgating his text, but actually
"correcting" the plots.
Gonzalez Lorly
>
[The citations from Plautus are translated for the Library by William C.
Lawton. ]
FROM MILES GLORIOSUS) (THE BRAGGART SOLDIER)
[The soldier himself opens the play, coming forth from his house, which,
with a neighbor's, forms the back of the scene. He is attended by his Fal-
staffian retinue, and also by his especial flatterer and shadow Artotrogus,—
"Breadeater. " The pompous veteran has the first word. ]
YRGOPOLINICES See to it that more splendid be my shield,
Than the sun's rays are when the day is bright;
So when there's need, in battle's close array
Its sheen may blind the eyes of enemies.
And this my cutlass I would comfort too,
That it be not downhearted, nor lament
That it is worn so long in idleness,
Though sadly bent on massacre of foes! -
But where is Artotrogus?
PYRO
Ρ
## p. 11564 (#178) ##########################################
11564
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
Artotrogus [promptly] —
Here, beside
The man so valiant, kingly, fortunate,
Mars might not such a warrior call himself,
Nor dare to match your valor with his own!
Pyrgopolinices—
That one I saved on the Curculionian plains,
When Búmbomáchides Clýtomestóridysárchides,
Grandson of Neptune, was commander-in-chief —
Artotrogus-
I remember. He, you mean, in arms of gold,
Whose legions with your breath you puffed away,
As wind doth leaves and rushes good for thatch.
Pyrgopolinices-
Why, that is nothing!
[And the complacent warrior goes striding, with nodding helmet-plumes
and waving locks, up and down the stage; so that the weary flatterer, begin-
ning his return compliment, presently has an instant to tell us of the audience
- behind his hand-something of his real opinions. ]
Artotrogus
So forsooth it is,
To deeds I'll tell-
[Aside] which you did never do!
If you can find a more mendacious man,
Or one more boastful than this fellow is,
Take me and hold me for your chattel, then!
Just one thing: olive salad he can bolt!
Pyrgopolinices [turning]—
Where are you?
[The parasite pretends he has been all the time cataloguing the hero's
exploits: -]
Artotrogus-
Pyrgopolinices —
How with a fisticuff you broke his arm!
Here! Then, there's that elephant:
Artotrogus-
Pyrgopolinices -
Artotrogus-
What's that? his arm?
I didn't try to strike.
His thigh I meant, of course.
No! If you had,
With effort, through the creature's hide and heart
And through his bones your arm had made its way.
Pyrgopolinices [modestly] —
That doesn't matter.
Artotrogus-
No, 'tis not worth while
For me to tell, who know your valorous deeds.
## p. 11565 (#179) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11565
[Aside] -
My belly makes this misery; and my ears
Must hearken, lest my teeth have naught to do.
To every lie he tells I must assent!
Pyrgopolinices-
What am I saying?
Artotrogus-
I remember, it happened.
Pyrgopolinices-
Artotrogus [rather wearily]-
Pyrgopolinices [more sharply]
You remember - ?
Artotrogus [rapidly]—
Pyrgopolinices —
Yes, a hundred in Cilicia,
And fifty, a hundred in Scytholatronia,
Thirty from Sardis, sixty Macedonians,-
All of them in a single day you slew.
Artotrogus-
Pyrgopolinices [complacently]-
Artotrogus-
-
What is the grand sum total?
Artotrogus
Pyrgopolinices-
―
-
Your memory's good.
Artotrogus-
I know what you would say:
-
So many should it be. You reckon well.
Pyrgopolinices —
Artotrogus-
What?
I have no records,-I remember it so.
Pyrgopolinices—
Whatever it is.
Seven thousand!
Pyrgopolinices [eagerly]—
Artotrogus-
While you shall play your part as you do now,
Table companion will I hold you still.
The tidbits prompt me aright!
What! In Cappadocia, at a single blow
You had slain five hundred! But-your sword was dull.
Poor wretched infantry, I let them live.
Why say what all men know, that on the earth
You only, Pyrgopolinices, live
In valor, beauty, deeds, unconqueredest ?
All women love you,- and good reason too,
You are so handsome. Like those yesterday
That plucked my cloak.
What did they say to you?
They asked me: "Is this Achilles? " so said one.
## p. 11566 (#180) ##########################################
11566
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
"Yes, 'tis his brother," said I. Then the other:
"Well, he is handsome, surely," so she said,
"And noble. See how well his hair becomes him!
Happy the women are with whom he wives! "
Pyrgopolinices-
Did they say so?
Artotrogus-
Why, yes! Both made me swear
To-day I'd bring you in procession by.
Pyrgopolinices [pensively]-
To be too handsome is a piteous thing!
Artotrogus-
It bores me! For they pray and crowd and beg,
So that I cannot get your business done.
[A movement of the soldier at this word "business" gives the quick-witted
flatterer his cue. ]
Pyrgopolinices-
Have you
Artotrogus-
Pyrgopolinices —
Artotrogus-
You give your mind to mine right wittily.
Pyrgopolinices-
You mean your tablets? Yes, and pen.
'Tis fit that I should know your nature well,
And try to scent out that which you desire.
Artotrogus-
'Tis time, methinks, to hasten to the Forum;
For there must I bestow their wage upon
The hirelings I enlisted yesterday.
For King Seleucus begged me earnestly,
To gather and enroll him mercenaries.
Why, then, let's go.
Pyrgopolinices—
Attendants, follow me!
[Exeunt omnes.
[The prologue, rather singularly, is now spoken, at the opening of the
second act. It may be interesting to cite a few lines, though its literary merit
is small. ]
Palæstrio [a slave, appearing from the soldier's house, as Prologue]-
This argument I'll tell you courteously,
If you to listen will be mannerly.
Who will not listen, let him up and go,
So making room for one disposed to hear.
This comedy we are about to play,
## p. 11567 (#181) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11567
For sake of which you sit so festive there,-
Its argument and name I'll tell to you.
'Alazon is the drama's name in Greek,
And Braggadocio is our word for it. .
This's Ephesus. Yon soldier is my master,
Who went thence townward; boastful, insolent,
Filthy, and full of crapulence and lies.
He says the women chase him all unsought.
A laughing-stock he is, where he appears.
So, while with mocking lips they lead him on,
Most of the girls you'll see with mouths awry!
[The last line is perhaps a random jest aimed at the extravagant comic
masks. If so, it is an indication of post-Plautine date. One of the most
interesting prologues, that of the Casina,' was certainly composed for a late
revival of a remarkably coarse and brutal play. A few examples of these pro-
logues may be instructive. ]
PROLOGUE OF CASINA ›
THE
HE men who drink old wine I count as wise,
And those that gladly hear an ancient play.
Since antique words and phrases please you well,
An old-time drama should delight you more.
For the new comedies that now appear
Are even more debased than these new coins.
Now we have hearkened to the people's cry,
That you desire to hear the Plautine plays,
And so bring out this ancient comedy,
Which you approved; — that is, you elder men:
The younger sort, I am sure, have known it not;
But that you may, we earnestly shall strive.
All dramas it surpassed, when acted first.
The flower of poets still were living then,
Though now departed whither all must pass, -
In absence helpful still to those that are.
And with full earnestness we beg you all
Kindly to give attention to our troop.
-
Cast from your minds your cares and debts away.
Let no one stand in terror of his dun.
'Tis holiday. The banks keep holiday.
'Tis peace! The forum has its halcyon days.
## p. 11568 (#182) ##########################################
11568
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
PROLOGUE OF TRINUMMUS›
Enter Two Female Figures
M
OTHER - Follow, my daughter, to fulfill your task.
Daughter-I follow, ignorant what the end may be.
Mother-'Tis here: lo, yonder house; go straightway in.
[Exit daughter.
[To the audience] —
Now, lest you err, I'll give you guidance brief,-
At least if you will promise to attend.
Who then I am, and she who passed from here
Within, if you but hearken, I will tell.
First, Plautus made my name Extravagance,
And called my daughter yonder, Poverty.
But why impelled by me she entered there,
Hearken and lend your ears while I explain.
A certain youth, who in that house abides,
Has squandered, with my aid, his heritage.
And seeing he can no longer nourish me,
I have given my daughter to abide with him. -
Do not expect the argument of our play.
The old men coming yonder will make clear
The story.
In Greek, Thesaurus' was it called.
Philemon wrote it. Plautus rendering it
(
In barbarous speech, called it Trinummus': now
He begs the drama may retain the name.
That's all. Farewell. In silence now attend.
[As these characters do not appear again, Plautus "made their names »
here only. That is, this passage claims at least to be from the dramatist's
own hand. ]
WITH
PROLOGUE OF RUDENS›
Arcturus speaks, as Prologue
ITH him who moves all races, seas, and lands,
In the celestial city I abide.
Such am I as you see,
-a glorious star
That rises ever at the fitting time,
Here and in heaven. Arcturus is my name.
Shining by night in heaven amid the gods,
By day I walk on earth among mankind.
And other stars to earth from heaven descend:
## p. 11569 (#183) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11569
Jupiter, ruler over gods and men,
Among the several nations sends us forth,
To know the deeds, ways, piety, and faith
Of men, according to the means of each.
[Such poetic passages are rare. Equally characteristic of Roman com-
edy are the Epilogues. We give two very brief examples, illustrating the two
extremes of moral pretentiousness. ]
EPILOGUE OF THE CAPTIVES ›
TH
HIS our comedy, spectators, is for honest morals made.
No love-making is there in it, nor a love intrigue at all.
No false fathering of children, nor embezzlement of money.
Rarely do the poets fashion such a comedy as this,
Where the good are rendered better.
EPILOGUE OF THE ASINARIA)
F BEHIND his goodwife's back this old man had a little fun,
Nothing new or strange he did, nor different from the com-
mon run!
If you wish to beg him off and save him from his cudgeling,
This by loud applause you'll have no trouble in accomplishing.
[A few miscellaneous passages will indicate the various tones struck in
these rollicking comedies. Of course we rarely know how much is translation
from the Greek, how much original invention. ]
WHO
XX-724
BUSYBODIES
HO, knowing nothing, claim to know it all.
What each intends, or will intend, they know.
What in the queen's ear the king said, they know.
They know what Juno chatted of with Jove.
What never was or is, - they know it, though!
## p. 11570 (#184) ##########################################
11570
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
UNPOPULARITY OF TRAGEDY
Mercury speaks, in the Prologue of the Amphitruo
HE plot of this our tragedy next I'll tell-
Why did you knit your brows? Because I said
'Twould be a tragedy? I'm a god, I'll change it.
From tragedy I'll make it, if you will,
A comedy,- with every verse the same.
Will you, or not? - Why! stupid that I am,
As if, a god, I knew not your desire!
Upon this point I understand your minds.
I'll make a mixture, tragicomedy.
MIXTURE OF GREEK AND ROMAN MANNERS
From Prologue to 'Casina'
SOME
OME here, methinks, will say among themselves,
"Prithee, what's this? A wedding among slaves?
A strange thing this to play, that's nowhere done! "
I say, in Carthage this is done, and Greece,
And of our country, in Apulia too.
Yes, servile marriages more carefully
Are celebrated than a freeman's there.
REWARDS OF HEROISM
[From the Captives. ' Tyndarus, a slave, captured in war with the young
master who has been his lifelong comrade, exchanges name and station with
him, and the supposed slave has been sent off to secure the ransom. The
trick has just been discovered and acknowledged. ]
HR
EGIO- To your own utter misery this was done.
Tyndarus-Since for no sin I fall, little I reck.
If he who promised comes not, and I die,
This will be counted honor still, in death,
That I from servitude and hostile hands
Restored my master to his home and father;
And here I rather chose to put my life
In peril, than that he should be destroyed.
Hegio- Enjoy that glory, then, in Acheron!
## p. 11571 (#185) ##########################################
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
11571
Tyndarus-
Hegio-
Tyndarus-
Hegio-
Tyndarus
I saved my lord; I exult that he is free,
Whom my old master trusted to my charge:
This you account ill done?
Most wickedly.
But I, opposing you, say—righteously:
Bethink you, if a slave of yours had wrought
For your son this, what thanks you'd render him.
Would you release him from his servitude?
Would he be in your eyes a slave most dear?
Answer.
I think so.
Why then wroth at me?
[In one note of sad defiance we seem to hear an echo of Antigone's voice:
it occurs a little later in the same scene. ]
Beyond my death no ill have I to fear.
And though I live to utmost age, the time
Of suffering what you threaten still is brief.
FISHERMEN'S LUCK
[This passage is of unique interest as the one notable choral ode in Plau-
tus. Its dramatic purpose is not very evident; and indeed, the fishermen do
little more than add "local color" to the scene of shipwreck. ]
M
OST wretched in every way is the life of men that are poverty-
stricken;
And especially those who have learnt no trade, who are des-
titute of employment.
Whatever they happen to have in the house, they perforce therewith
are contented.
But as for ourselves, how wealthy we are you may judge pretty well
from our costume.
These hooks that you see, and bamboo poles, are our means for
attaining a living;
And every day from the city we come to secure a subsistence hither.
Instead of gymnastics and boyish games, this toil is our exercise
only.
Sea-urchins and limpets we strive to secure, with oysters and scallops
and cockles;
The nettles as well, in the sea that dwell, and the striped crabs and
the mussels.
## p. 11572 (#186) ##########################################
11572
TITUS MACCIUS PLAUTUS
And among the rocks after that with our hooks and lines we go
a-fishing,
But if no luck is our por-
And we catch no fish, then, salted ourselves, well drenched in the
briny water,
To our homes we go, and slink out of sight, and to bed without any
To capture our food from out of the sea.
tion,
supper.
And unless we have eaten the cockles we caught, our dinner has
been no better.
[Lastly, we may echo the epitaph, in rather awkward hexameters, which
is said to have been composed by Plautus on himself. Gellius, who trans-
mits it, evidently doubts its authenticity, but cites it on the high authority of
Varro:-]
SIN
INCE he has passed to the grave, for Plautus Comedy sorrows;
Now is the stage deserted; and Play, and Jesting, and Laughter,
Dirges, though written in numbers yet numberless, join in la-
menting.
## p. 11573 (#187) ##########################################
11573
PLINY THE ELDER
(23-79 A. D. )
HILE the younger Pliny wins his place in literature chiefly by
his refined caste and fastidious sense of form, these traits
are so lacking in the uncle that his ponderous Cyclopædia
of Natural Sciences stands almost like a massive bowlder beside the
cultivated field of belles-lettres. It is indeed a sufficient proof of life-
long industry; but Pliny was not, like Humboldt, himself a master
of many sciences. He had, in numberless passages, not even sufficient
critical intelligence to translate or summarize correctly his learned
authorities. So while there are a thousand
subjects on which we appeal to him as our
sole authority, our gratitude is usually quer-
ulous, as gratitude, indeed, too often is!
Yet the courage, sincerity, and energy of
the man are rarely equaled.
2
Caius Plinius Secundus was a native of
Cisalpine Gaul; probably of Como, where
the family estates certainly lay. He rose
to high favor at court under the Fla-
vian emperors,- having been in fact an
old fellow-soldier of Vespasian before that
sturdy veteran's elevation to the throne,-
and ended his days as admiral of the fleet
at Misenum, as is so thrillingly related in
a famous letter of his nephew cited in the next article.
We are
indebted to the same filial hand for an account of the elder scholar's
methods of research.
PLINY THE ELDER
"He had a quick apprehension, marvelous power of application, and was
of an exceedingly wakeful temperament. He always began to study at mid-
night at the time of the feast of Vulcan, not for the sake of good luck, but for
learning's sake; in winter generally at one in the morning, but never later
than two, and often at twelve. He was a most ready sleeper, insomuch that he
would sometimes, whilst in the midst of his studies, fall off and then wake up
again. Before daybreak he used to wait upon Vespasian (who also used his
nights for transacting business), and then proceed to execute the orders he
had received. As soon as he returned home, he gave what time was left to
## p. 11574 (#188) ##########################################
11574
PLINY THE ELDER
study. After a short and light refreshment at noon (agreeably to the good
old custom of our ancestors), he would frequently in the summer, if he was
disengaged from business, lie down and bask in the sun: during which time
some author was read to him, while he took notes and made extracts,— for
every book he read he made extracts out of; indeed, it was a maxim of his
that no book was so bad but some good might be got out of it. When this
was over, he generally took a cold bath, then some slight refreshment and
a little nap. After this, as if it had been a new day, he studied till supper-
time, when a book was again read to him, which he would take down run-
ning notes upon. I remember once, his reader having mispronounced a word,
one of my uncle's friends at the table made him go back to where the word
was and repeat it again; upon which my uncle said to his friend, 'Surely you
understood it? ' Upon his acknowledging that he did, 'Why then,' said he,
'did you make him go back again? We have lost more than ten lines by this
interruption. Such an economist he was of time! In the summer he used to
rise from supper at daylight, and in winter as soon as it was dark: a rule he
observed as strictly as if it had been a law of the State.
"Such was his manner of life amid the bustle and turmoil of the town; but
in the country his whole time was devoted to study, excepting only when he
bathed. In this exception I include no more than the time during which he
was actually in the bath; for all the while he was being rubbed and wiped,
he was employed either in hearing some book read to him or in dictating
himself. In going about anywhere, as though he were disengaged from all
other business, he applied his mind wholly to that single pursuit. A short-
hand writer constantly attended him, with book and tablets, who in the winter
wore a particular sort of warm gloves, that the sharpness of the weather
might not occasion any interruption to my uncle's studies; and for the same
reason, when in Rome, he was always carried in a chair. I recollect his once
taking me to task for walking. You need not,' he said, 'lose those hours. '
For he thought every hour gone that was not given to study. Through this
extraordinary application he found time to compose the several treatises I
have mentioned; besides one hundred and sixty volumes of extracts, which
he left me in his will, consisting of a kind of commonplace, written on both
sides in very small hand,- so that one might fairly reckon the number con-
siderably more. He used himself to tell us that when he was comptroller of
the revenue in Spain, he could have sold these manuscripts to Largius Lici-
nus for four hundred thousand sesterces, and then there were not so many
of them. When you consider the books he has read, and the volumes he has
written, are you not inclined to suspect that he never was engaged in public
duties or was ever in the confidence of his prince? On the other hand, when
you are told how indefatigable he was in his studies, are you not inclined to
wonder that he read and wrote no more than he did? »
The mass of citations just mentioned was evidently in great
part utilized for the 'Historia Naturalis, or Cyclopædia. This great
work was provisionally completed, and presented to the prince-regent
Titus, in 77 A. D. The dedication is fulsome, and written in a style
utterly inferior to his younger kinsman's. The body of the work
## p. 11575 (#189) ##########################################
PLINY THE ELDER
11575
varies in manner with the subject and the source of the citations, but
our chief quarrel with it is for ambiguous or even nonsensical
statements on important questions of fact.
The arrangement is sufficiently logical. After a general descrip-
tion of the universe (Book ii. ), there follows Geography (Books iii. -
vi. ), Anthropology (vii. ). Zoölogy (viii. -xi. ), Botany (xii. -xxvii. ), and
Mineralogy (xxxiii. -xxxvii. ). Under Botany a digression of eight books
(xx. -xxvii. ) deals with the medicinal uses of plants; and thereupon
follows, somewhat out of place (xxviii. -xxxii. ), an account of cura-
tives derived from the animal world. Under Mineralogy the largest
and most important sections deal with the uses of metals, pigments,
and stones,-i. e. , with the history of the Fine Arts. Besides the
introductory book, on the scope of his work and his sources of in-
formation, Pliny prefixes to each subsection a list of his authorities.
These foot up nearly five hundred writers, more than two thirds of
them in Greek. It is evident, however, that many, if not most, were
cited at second or third hand from manuals, epitomes, etc.
Pliny's labors upon his Cyclopædia were apparently continued to
the last. In the form we now have it, the book has probably been
edited not very critically-by the nephew after the uncle's death.
Pliny's work influenced later antiquity powerfully, and has been
transmitted in many MSS. The most accessible edition is by Detlef-
son (Berlin, 1866-73) in six volumes. The Bohn translation (also in
six volumes) is fairly good, and is abundantly supplied with learned
and somewhat discursive foot-notes.
-
-
Our admiration for Pliny's iron energy increases to astonishment
over the catalogue of his lost works. Of these the most important
was perhaps the history of his own times, in thirty-one books; which
was however soon eclipsed by Tacitus's masterpiece, and passed into
oblivion. The wars in Germany were also treated in twenty books,
doubtful points of grammar in eight, the life of his friend Pomponius
Secundus in two, the art of oratory in three, and the hurling of the
javelin from horseback apparently in one.
But even the catalogue grows exhausting!
INTRODUCTION TO LITHOLOGY
From the Natural History>
I
T NOW remains for us to speak of stones, or in other words,
the leading folly of the day; to say nothing at all of our
taste for gems and amber, crystal and murrhine vases. For
everything of which we have previously treated, down to the
## p. 11576 (#190) ##########################################
11576
PLINY THE ELDER
present book, may, by some possibility or other, have the appear-
ance of having been created for the sake of man: but as to
the mountains, Nature has made those for herself, as a kind of
bulwark for keeping together the bowels of the earth; as also
for the purpose of curbing the violence of the rivers, of breaking
the waves of the sea, and so, by opposing to them the very hard-
est of her materials, putting a check upon those elements which
are never at rest. And yet we must hew down these mountains,
forsooth, and carry them off; and this for no other reason than
to gratify our luxurious inclinations: heights which in former days
it was reckoned a miracle even to have crossed!
Our forefathers regarded as a prodigy the passage of the
Alps, first by Hannibal, and more recently by the Cimbri; but
at the present day, these very mountains are cut asunder to
yield us a thousand different marbles, promontories are thrown
open to the sea, and the face of nature is being everywhere
reduced to a level. We now carry away the barriers that were
destined for the separation of one nation from another; we
construct ships for the transport of our marbles; and amid the
waves, the most boisterous element of nature, we convey the
summits of the mountains to and fro: a thing, however, that is
even less pardonable than to go on the search amid the regions
of the clouds for vessels with which to cool our draughts, and to
excavate rocks towering to the very heavens in order that we
may have the satisfaction of drinking from ice! Let each reflect,
when he hears of the high prices set upon these things, when
he sees these ponderous masses carted and carried away, how
many there are whose life is passed far more happily without
them. For what utility or for what so-called pleasure do mor-
tals make themselves the agents, or more truly speaking the vic-
tims, of such undertakings, except in order that others may take
their repose in the midst of variegated stones? Just as though,
too, the shades of night, which occupy one half of each man's
existence, would forbear to curtail these imaginary delights.
Indeed, while making these reflections, one cannot but feel
ashamed of the men of ancient times even. There are still in
existence censorial laws, which forbid the kernels in the neck
of swine to be served at table; dormice too, and other things too
trifling to mention: and yet there has been no law passed for-
bidding marble to be imported, or the seas to be traversed in
search of it!
## p. 11577 (#191) ##########################################
PLINY THE ELDER
11577
It may possibly be observed that this was because marble was
not then introduced. Such however is not the fact: for in the
ædileship of M. Scaurus, three hundred and sixty columns were
to be seen imported; for the decorations of a temporary thea-
tre, too,- one that was destined to be in use for barely a single
month. And yet the laws were silent thereon; in a spirit of
indulgence for the amusements of the public, no doubt. But
then, why such indulgence? or how do vices more insidiously
steal upon us than under the plea of serving the public? By
what other way, in fact, did ivory, gold, and precious stones,
first come into use with private individuals?
Can we say that there is now anything that we have reserved
for the exclusive use of the gods? However, be it so, let us
admit of this indulgence for the amusements of the public; but
still, why did the laws maintain their silence when the largest
of these columns, pillars of Lucullan marble, as much as eight-
and-thirty feet in height, were erected in the atrium of Scaurus?
a thing, too, that was not done privately or in secret; for the
contractor for the public sewers compelled him to give security
for the possible damage that might be done in the carriage of
them to the Palatium. When so bad an example as this was
set, would it not have been advisable to take some precautions
for the preservation of the public morals? And yet the laws still
preserved their silence, when such enormous masses as these
were being carried past the earthenware pediments of the tem-
ples of the gods, to the house of a private individual!
