It is to be noticed that the second of these, or the penthemimeral cæsura, is far the commonest, if there be only one, but that in a very large proportion of lines both are found. If a verse be examined which contains no cæsura at all, the result will be found to be inharmonious, as the ear of the reader will readily perceive. There will be no place for the voice to rest. Dignum mentě dom ōque legentis hon estă Nĕr ōnīs. Comparing this with the first line of the Æneid, Armă vir umque căn ō, Troj|æ qui prīmus ab ōrīs, the difference of rhythm is at once apparent, and the superiority of the latter verse, in point of melody, is plainly seen. The learner is advised to notice carefully the various possible arrangements of the words in the following verses, in order to see which of these combinations are defective. Quod tibi | māluě | rīm, sîně | mē dē bērě pro | cellæ | (1). The verse as it stands is unobjectionable, possessing a due penthemimeral cæsura. Alter it as follows: Maluč rīm tibi quod sine me de bērě pro cella (a). Here the second foot ends with tibi, and the third foot begins with a new word, 'quod,' the effect being to make the rhythm jerking instead of harmoniously continuous. Again, Quod tibi me sině | māluě | rīm dē bērě pro cellæ | (b) labours under the same defect, the first two feet consisting virtually of separate words like the line of Ennius (see Oxenham, p. 11): Celso pectore sæpe ju bām quas sat simul altām. ju|bām simul|āltām. It will be seen from this that it may be laid down as a rule to be generally observed, that the second foot must not consist of, nor end, one word. Lumină custod is succumberě nesciă somnō | (2). If this be written Custōd is succumbĕre | lumină | nesciă somno (a), there is neither penthemimeral nor hephthemimeral cæsura, and the verse is inharmonious. Or, Lūmină | nēsciă | custod | is sūc | cumbĕre | sōmnō| (6). Here there is the hephthemimeral cæsura, but the first two feet are contained in two separate words, which is a faulty arrangement. Conscia sit Jun |ō sac | ris præ fectă măritis (3). Write this Consciă Junō sit sac ris præ fectă măr itis (a), and it has the fault of making the first two feet contained in two separate words. Again write it Jūno consciă sit, sac ris præ fectă măr | itis (b), and the verse is less harmonious than as it stood originally, because it begins with a spondee contained in a single word -a beginning found comparatively seldom. In fact, it is far more usual for a verse to begin with a dactyl than a spondee in any form whatever. In a continuous passage of Ovid's Heroides, taken entirely at random, out of seventeen lines fourteen begin with a dactyl, and three only with a spondee; the spondee in no instance out of the three being contained in a single word. Worst of all would be Sacris Jūnō consciă | sit præ fectă măritis (c), where the first three feet are contained in separate words. A hexameter must end with a word of two syllables, or of three. A word of four syllables is occasionally found in this position, as in Virgil's Et nunc ille Paris cum semiviro comitatu, especially with a spondaic verse,-one, that is, where the dactyl in the fifth foot is replaced by a spondee, as Posse viam ad muros et monia Pallantea, but these endings should be carefully avoided by learners. Sometimes a hexameter is closed by two monosyllables, as Hoc illic Medea fui, nova nupta quod hic est, but this ending is not common. A hexameter should not end with two dissyllables, unless a monosyllable precede, and even then the rhythm is inharmonious. The line quoted above from Ennius, Celso pectore sæpe jubam quassat simul altam, is a violation of this rule. If the last three feet are contained in three words-an arrangement by no means frequent-a monosyllable must precede these three words, as Impulit, impulsu quo maximus insonat æther. Before arranging the words of the following verses in proper order, the learner must remember, as the result of the foregoing remarks, (1) That every verse must have a penthemimeral or hephthemimeral cæsura. (2) That the second or third foot must not consist of a single word, nor end one. (3) That every verse must end in a dissyllable or trisyllable, or occasionally two monosyllables. EXERCISE I. Arrange the following verses. The doubtful syllables are marked: the quantity of the others must be determined by the rules of prosody. (1) Laudabas quoque hæc omnique plăcebam a parte Si difficilis natura formam mihi něgāvit (1) Brevis sum: at quod omnes terras impleat nōmen Tunc te solito plus nostra juvabat lascīvia (1) Observe that, in these verses, the words separated from the succeeding clauses by a semicolon or colon naturally form the first part of the verse, and cannot be intermingled with the following words. EXERCISE II. Quin etiam turre lumina summâ vigilantia (1) Precor, parce: movē(2)que auram făcĭlem modĕrātius (1) See note on the previous exercise. (2) Que must follow the first word in the clause: whatever word you begin with after the colon, must have ‘que' attached to it. EXERCISE III. Quam ut vidi procul, dixi insula quid me fugis (1) This verse ends with sacra est, scanned as sacr' est, and forming a spondee. |