Look down propitious, and my thoughts inspire;
Warm my chafte bofom with thy facred fire!
Let all thy flames with all their raptures roll,
Deep in my breast, and kindle all my foul!
The Trojans, after a seven years voyage, fet fail for Italy, but are overtaken by a dreadful storm, which Eolus raises at Juno's request. The tempeft finks one ship, and scatters the reft: Neptune drives off the winds, and calms the feas. Æneas with his own, and fix more ships, arrives safe at an African port. Venus complains to Jupiter of her fon's misfortunes. Jupiter comforts her, and fends Mercury to procure him a kind reception among the Carthagi-. nians. Encas, going out to discover the country, meets his mother in the shape of a huntress, who conveys him in a cloud to Carthage; where he sees his friends whom he thought loft, and receives a kind entertainment from the queen. Dido, by a device of Venus, begins to have a paffion for him, and, after some discourse with him defires the hiftory of his adventures fince the fiege of Troy; which is the subject of the two following books.
ARMS and the Man I fing, the first who bore
His course to Latium from the Trojan fhore;
By fate expell'd, on land and ocean toft,
Before he reach'd the fair Lavinian coaft:
Doom'd by the Gods a length of wars to wage,
And urg'd by Juno's unrelenting rage;
Ere the brave hero rais'd, in these abodes,
His deftin'd walls, and fix'd his wand'ring gods.
Hence the fam'd Latian line, and fenates come,
And the proud triumphs, and the tow'rs of Rome. 19
Say, Mufe, what caufes could fo far incense
Celeftial pow'rs, and what the dire offence
That mov'd heav'n's aweful emprefs to impofe
On fuch a pious prince a weight of woes,
Expos'd to dangers, and with toils opprest?
Can rage fo fierce inflame an heavenly breast?
Against th' Italian coaft, of ancient fame
A city rofe, and Carthage was the name ;
A Tyrian colony; from Tiber far;
Rich, rough, and brave, and exercis'd in war.
Which Juno far above all realms, above
Her own dear Samos, honoured with her love.
Here flood her chariot, here her armour lay,
Here she defign'd, would destiny give way,
Ev'n then the feat of universal sway.
But of a race she heard, that should destroy
The Tyrian tow'rs, a race deriv'd from Troy,
Who proud in arms, triumphant by their swords,
Should rise in time, the world's victorious lords;
By fate defign'd her Carthage to fubdue,
And on her ruin'd empire raise a new.
This fear'd the goddess; and in mind she bore
The late long war her fury rais'd before
For Greece with Troy; nor was her wrath refign'd,
But every cause hung heavy on her mind;
Her form difdain'd, and Paris' judgment, roll
Deep in her breaft, and kindle all her foul;
Th' immortal honours of the ravish'd boy,
And laft, the whole detefted race of Troy.
With all these motives fir'd, from Latium far
She drove the relicks of the Grecian war:
Fate urg'd their courfe; and long they wander'd o'er
The spacious ocean tost from shore to shore.
So vaft the work to build the mighty frame,
And raife the glories of the Roman name!
Scarce from Sicilian fhores the shouting train Spread their broad fails, and plough'd the foamy main; When haughty Juno thus her rage exprest; Th' eternal wound ftill rankling in her breast.
Then must I ftop? are all my labours vain? And muft this Trojan prince in Latium reign?
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