[407] “Inde ubi prima fides” 3. 69. Rest is said to drive out sleep, the meaning being that the first sleep has come to an end, and the sleeper wakes, indisposed to sleep again. As in 2. 268, there is a mixture of ‘prima quies,’ first sleep, and “ubi primum.” ‘Medio curriculo’ is a temporal or local abl., in the middle of the course. ‘Abactae’ nearly i. q. “abeuntis,” with a further notion of being driven in a car, like “Nox horis acta” 3. 512.
[408] Virg. seems to have taken hints for this simile from three other comParisons, one in Hom., Il. 12. 433 foll., the other two in Apoll. R., 3. 291 foll., 4. 1062 foll., though the point of the comParison here is different from that of any of its predecessors.
[409] “Colo calathisve Minervae” 7. 805. ‘Tolerare vitam,’ as we talk of sustaining or supporting life, like “perfacile angustis tolerarit finibus aevum” Lucr. 2.1171. So Plaut. Trin. 2. 2. 57, “tolerare eius egestatem volo.” The construction with the abl., which again corresponds to our idiom, is found in Caesar, Pliny, &c. ‘Minerva,’ the goddess of spinning for the act of spinning, like Ceres, Bacchus, &c. Ov. M. 4. 33 has “intempestiva turbantes festa Minerva,” probably in imitation of Virg. On ‘tenui’ Serv. says “non filo tenui, id est, subtili artificio, sed parvo pretio lanificii, id est, tenuiter et exiliter victum praebente.” Perhaps the first interpretation may deserve reconsideration.
[410] Inpositum was strangely misunderstood in Serv.'s time, some taking it with ‘cinerem’ and supplying “placet” to ‘tolerare,’ others connecting ‘tenuique Minerva inpositum’ in apparent defiance of ‘que.’ ‘Cinerem et sopitos suscitat ignis’ 5. 743.
[411] Noctem addens operi is something like “partem solido demere de die” Hor. 1 Od. 1. 20, but bolder. ‘Adlumina:’ by the fire or torchlight, like “ad luminis ignis” G. 1. 291, though it might conceivably be ‘till daylight,’ which is one of the interpretations there also. Comp. generally the description of a virtuous woman Prov. 31. 15, “She riseth while it is yet night.”
[412] Med. has ‘exercens.’ “Nocturna carpentes pensa puellae” G. 1. 390. ‘Castum servare cubile,’ “ne cogatur propter paupertatem pudorem deserere” Serv. Comp. the words of the epitaph “domi mansit, lanam fecit.”
[413] Educere i. q. “educare:” see on 6. 765. The sense is from Il. 12. 435, ἵνα παισὶν ἀεικέα μισθὸν ἄρηται.
[414] Virg., as Wagn. remarks, originally intended simply to indicate the time of Valcan's rising, but, having dwelt on the circumstances of the housewife's rising to work, he ends by a comParison. ‘Iguipotens’ v. 423, &c. It may be questioned whether ‘tempore illo’ means ‘at that time,’ ‘segnior’ referring to the comParison with the woman, or ‘than that time,’ something like πλείω τοῦ ξυνεύδοντος χρόνου Aesch. Ag. 894, for πλείω ἢ κατὰ τὸν ξοσεύδοντα χρόνον. We might have expected ‘illa,’ in which case ‘tempore segnior’ would have been taken ‘more siuggish in respect of time’ (comp. 7. 383, G. 2. 275); but there seems to be no variation in the MSS.
[415] The island intended by Virg. was called Hiera, one of the Aeolian isles between lipara and Sicily (Dict. G. “Aeoliae Insulae”). ‘Sicanium latus’ for “Sicaniae latus,” like “Hesperium Siculo latus abacidit” 3. 418.
[417] Erigitur i. q. “se tollit,” “surgit.” Rom. has ‘Lipare,’ which Markland wished to read, as other authors make Lipara Vulcan's island. “Ardua saxis” 3. 271.
[418] ‘Exesus’ is found elsewhere of a cavern, in the sense of hollowed out (comp. G. 4. 419 “specus exesi latere in montis,” where perhaps the reference is to the effect of the sea): here the notion is that the fire, “ignis edax,” has caused the cavity. “Cyclopum caminis” 6. 630.
[419] Virg. supposes a submarine connexion between Sicily and Hiera. Forb. condemns this interpretation, without saying why, and prefers to take ‘Aetnaea’ “qualia sunt Aetnae.” The difficulty was recognized by Serv., one of whose views is that the noise in Hiera is so great as to be echoed by Aetna.
[420] Gemitum of the sound of blows, as in Ov. M. 12. 487, comp. by Forb., “Plaga facit gemitus ceu corpore marmoris icti.” Med., Pal., and Gud. have ‘gamitus,’ which apparently arose from the first letter in the next word, ‘gemitum’ having been written, as frequently in abbreviations, without the final letter. Serv. however seems to have read the plural. ‘Strident’ (‘trident’) is the first reading of Med. For ‘strido’ comp. 4. 689.
[421] Strictura is a word used not unfrequently in connexion with metallurgy: but the ancients themselves seem not to have been agreed about its meaning. Serv. explains it here as “terra ferri massam coacta,” which apparently means the metal in the ore. In his note on 10. 174, he refers to Varro as saying of Ilva “nasci quidem illic ferrum, sed in stricturam non posse cogi nisi transvectum in Populoniam,” where the sense would seem to be just the contrary, the metal as separated from the ore; but the reading of the words appears to be in some doubt. This latter sense of ‘strictura’ would agree with Persius 2. 66, “stringere venas Ferventis massae crudo de pulvere iussit,” where see Jahn. Non. twice defines the word (pp. 21, 523, 524) as meaning the sparks which are struck out from iron when beaten on the anvil, “quod aut stricte emittantur, id est, celeriter, aut quod oculos sui fulgore perstringant:” it may be questioned, however, whether he does not extract this interprestaion from an instance he quotes from Lucil. Sat. 3 (v. 29 Müller), “crebrae ut scintillae in stricturis, quod genus olim Ferventi ferro,” where either of the other meanings would be equally applicable. The word occurs also in Pliny 34. 14; but the text seems to be too uncertain to build anything upon. If a decision must be made, the probability would seem to be in favour of Serv.'s second interpretation. The Chalybes are the traditional workers in iron, so the metal is called ‘stricturae Chalybum,’ as mines are called “Chalybum metalla” 10. 174. So Aesch. Theb. 728, χάλυβος Σκυθῶν ἄποικος is a personification of iron. ‘Ignis anhelat:’ the fire is conceived of as the breath that comes panting out from the furnace. ‘Anhelo’ is generally used of the person panting: but it is applied to the breath by Auct. ad herenn. 4. 33, “Anhelans ex imis pulmonibus prae cura spiritus ducebatur.”
[422] Domus and ‘tellus’ are in apposition with ‘insula’ v. 416; they might however be taken in a sort of general apposition to the whole sentence preceding, like “Nympharum domus” 1. 168. ‘Volcania:’ the Romans called Hiera “Volcani Insula,” and its modern name is Vulcano.
[423] Pal. and Gud. originally have ‘huc;’ but ‘hoc’ is attested by Serv. The use of ‘hoc’ for ‘huc’ is archaic, and its not being found elsewhere in Virg. is perhaps, as Gossrau thinks, an argument against it here. It is found however in Plaut. Amph. 1. 1. 11, and other places: see Hand Turs. vol. 3. 95 foll.
