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And even the ranks of Tuscany
Could scarce forbear to cheer.

But fiercely ran the current,
Swollen high by months of rain:
And fast his blood was flowing;
And he was sore in pain,
And heavy with his armor,

And spent with changing blows:
And oft they thought him sinking,
But still again he rose.

Never, I ween, did swimmer,
In such an evil case,

Struggle through such a raging flood
Safe to the landing-place:

But his limbs were borne up bravely

By the brave heart within,

And our good father Tiber

Bore bravely up his chin.

"Curse on him!" quoth false Sextus;
"Will not the villain drown?
But for this stay, ere close of day
We should have sacked the town!"
"Heaven help him!" quoth Lars Porsena,
"And bring him safe to shore;
For such a gallant feat of arms
Was never seen before."

And now he feels the bottom;
Now on dry earth he stands;
Now round him throng the Fathers
To press his gory hands;

And now, with shouts and clapping,

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And noise of weeping loud,
He enters through the River-gate,
Borne by the joyous crowd.

They gave him of the corn-land,
That was of public right,
As much as two strong oxen

Could plough from morn till night;
And they made a molten image,
And set it up on high,

And there it stands unto this day
To witness if I lie.

It stands in the Comitium,
Plain for all folk to see;
Horatius in his harness,
Halting upon one knee:
And underneath is written,
In letters all of gold,

How valiantly he kept the bridge
In the brave days of old.

And still his name sounds stirring
Unto the men of Rome,

As the trumpet-blast that cries to them
To charge the Volscian home;
And wives still pray to Juno

For boys with hearts as bold

As his who kept the bridge so well
In the brave days of old..

And in the nights of winter,

When the cold north winds blow, And the long howling of the wolves. Is heard amidst the snow;

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When round the lonely cottage
Roars loud the tempest's din.
And the good logs of Algidus
Roar louder yet within;

When the oldest cask is opened,
And the largest lamp is lit;

When the chestnuts glow in the embers,
And the kid turns on the spit;
When young and old in circle
Around the firebrands close;
When the girls are weaving baskets,
And the lads are shaping bows;

When the goodman mends his armor,
And trims his helmet's plume;
When the goodwife's shuttle merrily
Goes flashing through the loom;
With weeping and with laughter
Still is the story told,

How well Horatius kept the bridge
In the brave days of old.

HELPS FOR STUDY

Who was Lars Porsena?

Why did he swear by the "Nine Gods"?

Why did he bid his messenger summon his forces to march on Rome?

Tell in your own words of the gathering of the army.

What effect did this have upon Rome?

How did the "Thirty" decide?

What did Horatius propose doing?

For how many men did he ask?

Who were the two who volunteered?

Tell of the experiences of the "Dauntless Three."

How did Sextus speak of Horatius? How did Lars Porsena?
How was Horatius rewarded for his brave deed?

How do the Romans preserve his memory?

Explain the following: "trysting day," "summon his array," "pourng in amain," "lifts to heaven her diadem of towers," "tale of men, ," "Fathers of the City," "I wis," "reedy Thrasymene," "none was for a party, all were for the state," "pale augurs,' ""the she-wolf's litter,” “I ween," ‘molten image," "kid turns on the spit."

99 66

NOTES

Horatius was surnamed "Cocles," meaning one-eyed. He had probably lost an eye in war.

1 Lars Porsena. Lars was a title of honor given to nearly all the Etruscan kings or chiefs. Porsena was king of the Etruscan town of Clusium, and one of the most powerful chiefs of the period.

2 The Nine Gods. Gods whom the Etruscans regarded as possessing the power to hurl thunderbolts.

3 House of Tarquin. The family of Tarquin was of Greek descent, its founder, Demaratus, an exile from Corinth, having settled at the town of Tarquinii and married an Etruscan wife.

63 Must. New unfermented wine, which the ancients used to boil down during October.

122 Rock Tarpeian. In this case probably the whole of the hill afterwards called the Capitoline. Its earliest name was Mons Saturninus, but after the betrayal of the fortress to the Sabines by the vestal Tarpeia, its name was changed to that of Tarpeian Hill. 136 Janiculum. The highest of the Roman hills, stretching along the Tuscan side of the river. It is said to have derived its name from Janus, a deified king of Latium who, according to tradition, built a town or fortress there.

147 River-Gate. The name looks as though Macaulay had the Porta Flumentana in his mind. Strictly, the Porta Trigemina was the gate nearest to the point of danger.

151 The bridge. The Sublician bridge (Pons Sublicius), formed entirely of wood. It was built by Ancus Martius, and appears to have crossed the river near the Aventine hill, outside the Porta Trigemina, at the place where remains of a wooden bridge still exist.

229 The holy maidens. The Vestal virgins, priestesses of Vesta. Their chief duty was to watch the ever-burning flame on the altar of the goddess Vesta, and to guard the sacred relics.

488 Palatinus. One of the seven hills on which Rome was built; said to have been the site of the original city of Romulus. It was on the left bank of the river between the Capitoline and Aventine hills, and immediately opposite the Janiculum.

492 Father Tiber. The Tiber received its name from a king of Alba, Tiberinus or Thybris, who was drowned in its waters and became the river-god. He was regularly invoked by the augurs in their

prayers. The river is often called "father Tiber" by Latin authors, Compare the "father Thames" of English poets.

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