How nimbly does the Verse move when the turning over very light Ground is represented!

  “—­Sub ipsum
  Arcturum, tenui s[=a]t erit suspendere sulco.—­

How slow does the heavy Waggon proceed in this Line!

  “Tardaque Eleusinae Matris Volventia Plaustra.—­

How does the Boat bound over the Po in these two Hemisticks!

  “—­Levis innatat alnus
  Missa Pado.—­

See Feathers dancing on the Water in this!

  “—­In aqua colludere plumas.—­

No Stem of the Crab-tree is more rough than this Verse.

  “Inseritur vero ex foetu nucis arbutus horrida:

Water is not more liquid than this.

  “Speluncisque lacus Clausos, lucosque sonantis.—­

S. & L. liquescit Carmen instar aquarum, says Erythraeus in his Note on this Line.

How gently flow the Streams in this Verse!

  “Unde pater Tiberinus, & unde Aniena fluenta.—­

What a roaring do the Hypanis and Caicus make in the next!

  “Sax[=o]sumque s[=o]nans Hypanis, Mysusque Caicus.

But now observe how he raises his Song to honour his Favourite Eridanus!

  “Et gemina auratus taurino cornua vultu
  Eridanus; quo non alius Per Pinguia culta
  In mare purpureum v[=i]olent[=i]or [=i]nflu[=i]t amn[=i]s.

The former Line strikes the Ear with Mysus and Caicus; here you have Auratus, Eridanus, and Alius.  Then an Alliteration, Per Pinguia, and at last the whole Passage rolls on in a Dactyl Line, and rushes into the Sea with an Assultus of the Vowel i, repeated five times in three Words.

  “—­Violentior influit amnis.

The following Line tours into the Skies with the highest Mountain in Italy.

  “—­Gaudetque nivali
  Vertice se attollens pater Appeninus, ad auras.—­

This falls down as low as the deepest Valley.

  “Saxa per, & scopulos, & depressas convalles.

In short there is nothing in Nature that Virgil’s Verse does not convey to the Ear, and the Eye; so that this Subject is inexhaustible, and must be left to every one’s particular Observation.

The learned Morhophius has a Passage relating to this Matter which comes in too properly here to be omitted.

“Solent Carminibus suae esse a Numeris Veneres, & certa quaedam Artificia, quae mirifice ornant versum, quales apud Virgilium, mirum numeri Poetici Observatorem, frequenter occurrunt, e.g. cum versus terminantur Monosyllabis, ut:  procumbit humi bos:  nascetur ridiculus mus.  Vel cum Spondaei multi adhibentur, ut; media agmina circumspexit:  Illi inter sese magna vi brachia tollunt.  Aut cum Dactyli & Spondaei ita miscentur, ut REI NATURAM EXPRIMANT, ut cum de turri ruente ait: 

“—­Convellimus altis
Sedibus; impulimusq;, ea lapsa repente ruinam
Cum sonitu trahit.—­