ODE LI. FLY not thus my brow of snow, Lovely wanton! fly not so. Though the wane of age is mine, Blest, if thou couldst sigh for me! Alberti has imitated this ode; and Capilupus, in the following epigram, has given a version of it: — Cur, Lalage, mea vita, meos contemnis amores? Aspice ut intextas deceant quoque flore corollas Oh! why repel my soul's impassion'd vow, Where the young rosebud with the lily glows; See, in yonder flowery braid, Just, my girl, like thee and me! See, in yonder flowery braid, Cull'd for thee, my blushing maid!] "In the same manner that Anacreon pleads for the whiteness of his locks, from the beauty of the colour in garlands, a shepherd, in Theocritus, endeavours to recommend his black hair : — Και το ιον μελαν εστι, και & γραπτα ύακινθος, Αλλ' εμπας εν τοις στεφανοις τα πρωτα λεγονται.” Longepierre, Barnes, &c. ODE LII. AWAY, away, ye men of rules, What have I to do with schools? They'd make me learn, they'd make me think, My soul upon the goblet's brim; Teach me this, and let me twine Some fond, responsive heart to mine, "This is doubtless the work of a more modern poet than Anacreon; for at the period when he lived rhetoricians were not known." - Degen. Though this ode is found in the Vatican manuscript, I am much inclined to agree in this argument against its authenticity; for though the dawnings of the art of rhetoric might already have appeared, the first who gave it any celebrity was Corax of Syracuse, and he flourished in the century after Anacreon. Our poet anticipated the ideas of Epicurus, in his aversion to the labours of learning, as well as his devotion to voluptuousness. Πασαν παιδειαν μακαριοι φευγετε, said the philosopher of the garden in a letter to Pythocles. Teach me this, and let me twine Some fond, responsive heart to mine.] Βγ χρυσης Αφροδίτης For, age begins to blanch my brow, Fly, and cool my goblet's glow And there's an end — for ah, you know They drink but little wine below! here, understand some beautiful girl, in the same manner that Avalos is often used for wine. "Golden" is frequently an epithet of beauty. Thus in Virgil, “Venus aurea ;" and in Propertius, "Cynthia aurea." Tibullus, however, calls an old woman "golden." The translation d'Autori Anonimi, as usual, wantons on this passage of Anacreon: E m'insegni con piu rare Forme accorte d'involare Ad amabile beltade Il bel cinto d' onestade. And there's an end - for ah, you know They drink but little wine below!] Thus Mainard: La Mort nous guette; et quand ses lois |