loose grounds corne best in thickest proves Choose with thine eie that piece that is most plain There digge a pit and then throw in againe The clods and earth and tread them strongly in If they 'le not fill the pit the soile is thin And best for Vineyards and for pasture grasse But if the clods do more than fill the place The earth is thick and solid try that soile And plow it well though hard and full of toile That earth that 's salt or bitter bad for sowing For that will never be made good by plowing Nor vines nor apples planted there abide In their first generous tast may thus be tride Take a thick-woven Osiar colander Through w ch the pressed wines are strained clear And put a piece of that bad earth into it Well mixt with water then strain them through it You shall perceive the struggling water flow And in great drops will through the Osiars goe But by the tast you may discerne it plaine The bitternesse will make the taster straine His countenance awry So you may know By handling whether ground be fat or no Leane earth will crumble into duâ—t but thicke Like pitch fat earth will to your fingers sticke Moist land brings forth tall grasse and oft is found Too rich oh give not me so rank a ground Nor let it coâ—ns yong husks too richly raise Earth that is heavy her own weight betrayes And so of light our eyes do iudge aright The colour of the land or black or white But to finde out that cursed quality Of cold in grounds of all will hardest be Yet that the trees which prosper there will shew Pitch trees black Ivie and the balefull Yew These things consider'd well remember thou Long before hand in furrowes deep to plow And breake the earth then let it lye thus broke Expos'd to North-cast-windes and winters shock Before thou plant thy fruitfull Vines therein For they thrive best in rotten ground and thin The Windes and hoary Frosts after the toile Of digging Husbandmen wil rot the soile But he that throughly vigilant will be Must finde a place out for a nurcerie Iust like the place he plants in left a tree Transplanted do not with the soile agree And he to plant it as it was must marke The Heavens four quarters on the tender baâ—ke To know how every tree did stand which side Endur'd the South which did the North abide And let their former situation stand Consider then if Plaine or mountaine Land Be best for Vines if plain good ground thou choose Then plant them thicke the Grapes can nothing loose By their thick standing there if on a Hill Thou plant with measure and exactest skill Set them in rowes by equall distance held As when an Army 's ranged in the field And standâ— for triall of a mighty day In equall squadrons they themselves display Ore the broad field which seemes with glittering armes To move before the battel 's fierce alarmes Do â—ound and Mars to both stands doubtfull yet So trees at equall distance ranked set Not only to delight thy prospect there But cause the ground can no way else conferre To all an equall vigour nor can they Have roome at large their branches to display Perchance how deep to digge thy furrowes now thou 'dst learne Thy Vines in shallow ones will grow But other trees more deeply digg'd must be Chiefly th' Aesculean Oake who still more high He lifts his branches in the ayre more low His root doth downward to Avernus go Therefore no windes nor winter stormes orethrow Thoâ—â— Trees for many yeares unmov'd they grow And many ages of mankinde outweare And sp 〈…〉 ing their fair branches here and there Themselves 〈…〉 do make a stately sâ—ade Let not thy Vineyards to the West be made Nor plant tâ—ou â—â—asels 'mongst thy Vines nor yet Lop off their highest branches which are beat With winds nor prune them with blunt knives nor yet Wilde Olive trees 'mongst other Olives set For unawares fire oft is scattered Which in the dry fat â—inde conceal'd and fed Seizes the tree the leaves and branches takes And through the aire a crackling noise it makes Till on the top it reigne with victory Involving all the wood in â—lames and fly Like a black pitchy cloud up to the sky Especially if stormy windes do ly Vpon the wood the â—lames about to beare When this doth chance the Olives burned there Spring from the root no more in their first state But to wilde Olives do degenerate Let none perswade thee then how wise so ere When Boreas blowes the harden'd earth to stir Winter congeales the ground and suffers not The trees new set in th' earth to spread their root But when the golden spring doth first appeare And that white bird is come whom serpents feare Is the best time of all to plant thy vines The next is when the Autumnall cold beginnes When now the 〈◊〉 shortâ—ns the daies and done The Summer is yet winter not begun The Spring 's the time that cloaths the woods with leaves The earth then swells and seed with ioy receives The Iove Almighty down descends and powers Into the earths glad bosome fruitfull showers And mixt with her great body he doth feed All births of hers and foster every seed Each bush with loudly chirping birds is grac'd Beasts at set times the ioyes of Venus tast The ground stirr'd up by Zephyres warmer winde Opens her selfe and brings forth fruit in kinde Young blooming trees dare trust themselves unto The Sun new mounted the vine branches now Feare not the rising Southren windes nor yet The North-East-winde that causes tempests great But shoot their blossoms forth spread their leafe No other daies but such t is my beliefe When first the world beginning had were known Th' earth had no other tâ—nor Spring alone And that perpetual the great world enioy'd No East-windes winter blasts that age annoy'd When first all Cattell their beginning had When of the earth mankindes hard race was made When wilde Beasts fill'd the woods stars the sky Nor could the tender creatures easily Endure this change but heaven to make amends Twixt heat and cold this temper'd season sends What plants so ere thou setst in th' earth be sure Cover them well and with fat dung manure Put shells and sandy stones therein twixt them Moisture will flow and thin exhalings steame From whence the plants will gather hart Some lay Great stones at top vessels of thick clay Which from all stormes will guard and fence them sound This when the dog-star cleaves the thirsty ground And when thou plantst thy Vines dig round about To bring good store of earth to every root Or exercise thy struggling Steeres to plow The ground in surrowes deep twixt every row Then get light reeds smooth wands ashen stakes With horned forkes whose supportation makes Young Vines contemne the windes and to the top Of Elmes to clime by broad-spred branches
VIRGIL'S Georgicks Englished by Tho May Esq Lo printed for Tho. Walkley in Brittains Burse Râ—ughan fecit 1628 To my truely judicious Friend Christopher Gardiner of Haleng Esquire I Cannot make a fitter choise of any Name to stand prefixed before this Worke than such a friends who not onely vnderstands but loves endeavours of this nature one as far from pride as ignorance and such a Reader as I could wish all but cannot hope to finde many It is a Translation of such a Poet as in our age is no lesse admired than hee was once honoured in his Romane world To speake how learned the Poem is how full of heights not improperly raised out of a meane subject were needlesse to you who so well vnderstand the originall of it and the pattern of this originall the Poem of Hesiod If there were any thing in my paines which might either offend an honest eare or justly suffer a great condemnation from a learned Censurer I should bee fearefull to commend it to you whose Religion Life and Learning are so well known vnto me This Worke may informe some delight others it can hurt none it is no new thing being a Translation but an old Worke of such a Poet who in the Opinion of his owne times was an honest man as well as an able writer Whose Poem if I have truely rendered I thinke it better than publishing mine owne fancies to the World especially in an Age so much cloyed with cob-webbe Inventions and vnprofitoble Poemes How much I have failed in my vndertaking as missing the sense of Virgil or not expressing of him highly and plainely enough they onely are able Iudges who can conferre it and such are you to whose iudgement I leave it and rest Your true Friend THOMAS MAY. GEORGICON The first BOOKE THE ARGVMENT TIllage in all her severall parts is showne Her favouring gods her first invention Her various seasons the celestiall signes And how the Plow-mans providence divines Of future weather what presages bee From Beasts and Birds by wise antiquity Drawne into rules insallible from whence The Plow-man takes despaire or confidence It hat tooles th' industrious husband's works aâ— vaile Fro whence our Poet sadly doth bewaile That crooked Sickles turn'd to Swords so late Had drunke the blood of Romes divided State And in few yeares with her unnaturall wounds Had twice manur'd Aemathiaeâ— fatal grounds What makes rich crops what season most enclines To plowing th' earth marrying elms with vines What care of Neat or Sheep is to be hâ—d Of frugall Bees what trials may be made I sing Mecoenaâ— here You lights most cleare Whose heavenly course directs the sliding yeare Bacchus and fostring Ceres if first you Did for Chaonian Mast rich Corne bestow And temper'd waters with invented b wine You tillage-favouring gods ye c Fauns divine And virgin Dryades be present now I sing your bounties and great d Neptune thou Whose tridents stroke did first froÌ„ th' earth produce A warlike horse thou that the woods dost use Whose full three hundred snow-white Bullocks run Grazing rich e Caeas pasture fields upon Sheep-keâ—ping Pan with favour present bee If thy Mâ—â—nalian flocks be deare to thee Leaving Lycaeus and faire Arcady Minerva foundresse of the Olive tree Thou f youth inventer of the crooked plow And thou that mak'st the tender Cypresse grow Vp from the root g Silvanus all that love Tillage both gods and goddesses above That growing plants can foster without seed And them from heaven with raine sufficing feed And thou great Caesar whom t is yet not plaine What ranke of gods shall one day entertaine Whether the World thy deity shall feare As Lord of fruits and seasons of the yeare Of lands and townes with Venus myrtle tree Crowning thy head or thou the god wilt bee Of the vast Sea and Thules farthest shore And thee alone the Saylors shall adore As Thetis sonne-in-law with all her Seas Giuen for a Dower or else that thou wilt please To adde one signe to the slow moneths and be Betwixt the ballance and h Erigâ—ne The fiery Scorpion will contract his space And leaue for thee in heauen the greater place What ere thou 'lt be for hell despaires to gaine Thee for her King nor thirst thou so for reigne Though Greece so much th' Elysian fields admire And sought Proserpinâ— would not retire Thence with her mother view with gracious eies And prosper this my ventrous enterprise Pity the Plow-mens errours and mine too And use thy selfe to be inuoked now When first the spring dissolues the mountaine snow When th' earth grows soft again west winds blow Then let your Oxen toile in furrowes deepe Let use from rusting your bright plowshares keep Those crops which twice have felt the sun twice The cold will Plow-mens greediest wish suffice Harvests from thence the crowded barnes will fill But least the fields we ignorantly till To know how different lands and climates are All windes and seasons let it be our care What every Region can or cannot beare Here corn thrives best vines best do prosper there Some Lands are best for fruit for pasture some From Tmolus see how fragrant saffrons come 'Mongst the Sabaeans frankincense doth grow Iron the naked Chalybes bestow India sends ivory Pontus beavers stone Epire swift horse that races oft haue wonne These severall vertues on each land and clime Nature bestow'd even from the point of time When stones in th' empti'd world Deuâ—alion threw FroÌ„ wheÌ„ce th' hard-harted race of mankind grew Therefore when first the yeare begins do thou Thy richest grounds most deep and strongly plow That Summers piercing Sun may ripen more And well digest the fallow gleâ—e but poore And barren grounds about October plow Not deepe in one lest weedes that rankly grow Spoile the rich crop in tother lest the dry And sandy grounds quite without moisture ly And let thy â—ield each other yeare remaine Fallow and ear'd to gather heart againe Or else thy corne thou there mayst safely sow Where in full codds last yeare rich pease did grow Or else where tares or lupines last were sowne Lupines that sadnesse cause for t is well knowne That oates hempe flaxe and poppy causing sleep Do burne the soile but best it is to keep The ground one yeare at rest forget not than With richest dung to hearten it againe Or with unsifted ashes so t is plaine That changing seedes gives rest unto a field And t is no losse to let it lye untill'd Fires oft are good on barren earshes made With crackling flames to burne the stubble blade Whether the earth some hidden strength do gaine From thence or wholesome nourishment obtaine Or that those fires digest or purge or dry All poisonous humours that in th' earth did ly Or else that heat new pores and caverns opes Through which good iuice comes to the following crops Or else it knits the earths too open veines And makes them more compact lest falling raines Soake
willing grounds and laden trees afford He sees no wrangling courts no lawes undone By sword nor peoples forc'd election Some search the Seas hid pathes some rush to war In Courts of Kings others attendants are One would his country and dear gods destroy That he himselfe might drink in gemmes and ly On purple beds another hoards up gold And ever wakes his hidden wealth to hold The pleading bars another doth admire And high applause from every seat desire Plebeians and Patritians some for goods Their guilty hands embrue in brothers bloods Some from their houses and dear countries rome In banishment to seek a forreine home Whilest the industrious husband plowes the soile And takes the profit of his yearly toyle With which his house and country too he serves And feedes his Heards th'Oxe that wel deserves No fruitlesse time young Cattell still are bred Or Corne is reap'd or fruits are gathered Corne that the surrowes lades and barnes doth fill When Winter comes Oyle in the Olive mill They make and Porkers fat with Acorns grow The Woods yeeld Crabs but Autumne does bestow All kindes of pleasant fruit the grapes hang by Hot sunny walls and ripen perfectly Meane while his pretty children kissing cull His neck his house is chast with Vdders full His Kine come home and in the flowery Meades His frisking Kids do butt with tender heads He feasts himselfe upon the grassie ground Whilst 'bout the fire carowling cups are crown'd And Bacchus is invok'd in sacrifice Then mongst his herdsmen makes a darting prize And sâ—ts the mark upon an Elme or they Prepar'd for wrastling their hard lims display Such lives as this the ancient Sabines led And so were Romulus and Remus bred So grew renowned Tuscany to fame So Rome the greatest of all lands became And in one wall did seven great hils containe And thus before Dictaean love did reigne And impious nations on slaine cattel fed His life on earth the golden Saturne led No classicks sounded then nor mortall blade Of swords the Smiths laborious anvile made But we enough have now produc'd our course And time it is to ease our wearyed horse FINIS Annotations upon the second BOOKE CAius a Mecaenas that famous cherisher of good learning to whom our Poet in this place acknowledges so much was a Gentleman of Etruria in high favour with Augustas Caesar and in great imployment of State under him Hee was in his friendship with learned men not onely bountifull but judicious in the placing of his bountie and above all others fortunate in the choise of the men Among all the Poets in that wise age wherein he lived Virgil and Horace were the onely two which I can finde whose meane fortunes needed his liberalitie as well as their vertues deserved his acquaintance how liberall he was their often acknowledgements in their Works have testified to the world how judicious or fortunate he was in those mens acquaintance no age of the world hath since beene ignorant his name having beene generally used for the love of learning no lesse than Caesar's for Imperiall dignity though there were both in that and the following ages as Iuvenal witnesseth in his seventh Satyr other men of honourable name and esteeme in Rome who were lovers of such things as Fabius Cotta Proculeius Lentulus c. Those Lords eyther fayled in judgement in the choyse of their friends or the injury of their times affoorded them not wits able enough to raise their fames since wee finde not any such manifest honour done to their memories as to this Mecaenas whose fortune it was that Virgil and Horace should live in his time and in such estates as to need his bounty for his owne honour which is not a thing incident to every age though wittie Martial in an Epigram of his could speake thus Sint Mecaenates non deerunt Flacce Marones yet the contrary by experience hath oft been found Maroes have beene borne when no Mecaenases have lived to cherish them as Homer the wonder of posteritie in his owne time little esteemed and Mecaenases have lived and wanted Maroes What Monarch in the world was ever more desirous of fame in that kinde and more able to requite than Alexander the Great Hee that so much honoured the memory of Homer and at the sacking of Thebes spared all the posteritie of the Poet Pindarus found in his owne time no able Poet to celebrate his fame There were in his time as Arianus witnesseth in the life of Alexander many Poets who would have written of him and stirred up by the greatnesse of his actions or moved with hopes form his known bounty had written in the praise of him but such and so poore were their inspirations they neyther deserued the acceptation of Alexander nor the sight of posterity b The Poplar is called the tree of Hercules for this reason as the Poets faine When Hercules had entred into Hell redeemed Theseus from prison there and returned victorious leading out Cerberus in triumph after him the first tree that he espyed was a Poplar tree of which he made himselfe a Garland and crowned himselfe after his new conquest c Our Poet after the description of those severall trees of strange natures which enrich the severall climates of the earth takes an occasion by way of comparison to extoll in all kinds the fruitfulnesse and withall the happinesse of his native Italy the magnificence of the Italian Cities the multitude and bravery of her people Of the populousnesse of Italy thus Plinius at one place speaketh This is that Italy which when Lucius Aemilius Paulus and Caius Attilius were Consuls upon the fame of the tumult of Gallia armed presently of her owne forces without the aide of any forreyners and without mustering of any Italians beyond the river of Po thirty thousand horsemen and seventy thousand foot and Diodorus Siculus speaking of Rome before the second Carthaginian warre sayes that the Senate as it were foreseeing the comming of Annibal with a warre so bloudy tooke a generall survey of themselves and their tributaries and found the number of men fit to beare armes to be ten hundred thousand And speaking also of the populousnesse of the Iland of Sicily esteemed then as a part of Italy for it was all called magna Graecia bids us not wonder at those mighty armies of Ninus Semiramis Darius or Xerxes since Dionysius the tyrant out of Syracusae onely armed an hundred and twenty thousand footmen with twelve thousand horsemen and a navy of foure hundred ships out of one haven d The sacrifices which in ancient times were offered to the gods were alwayes chosen eyther for likenesse or contrariety for likenesse some were offered as to Pluto the King of the darke world a blacke sheepe or steere were offered in sacrifice Others for contrarietie and hatred as a Sow because she rooteth up land and spoyleth corne was offered unto Ceres the Goat because he browzeth the Vines was offered to Bacchus the Goat was