Unde Et Quo Catius? Quintus Horatius Flaccus (Ft. John Conington)

Unde Et Quo Catius?

Horace. Catius

Horace

Ho, Catius! whence and whither?

C. Not to-day:
I cannot stop to talk: I must away
To set down words of wisdom, which surpass
The Athenian sage and deep Pythagoras.

H. Faith, I did ill at such an awkward time
To cross your path; but you'll forgive the crime:
If you've lost aught, you'll get it back ere long
By nature or by art; in both you're strong.

C. Ah, 'twas a task to keep the whole in mind,
For style and matter were alike refined.

H. But who was lecturer? tell me whence he came.

C. I give the precepts, but suppress the name.

The oblong eggs by connoisseurs are placed
Above the round for whiteness and for taste:
Procure them for your table without fail,
For they're more fleshy, and their yolk is male.
The cabbage of dry fields is sweeter found
Than the weak growth of washed-out garden ground.
Should some chance guest surprise you late at night,
For fear the new-killed fowl prove tough to bite,
Plunge it while living in Falernian lees,
And then 'twill be as tender as you please.
Mushrooms that grow in meadows are far best;
You can't be too suspicious of the rest.
He that would pass through summer without hurt
Should eat a plate of mulberries for dessert,
But mind to pluck them in the morning hour,
Before the mid-day sun exerts its power.