Letter to Fuscus in Praise of Country Life — Horace, Epistles Book 1 (1.10.1–1.10.50), Latin & English

Urbis amatorem Fuscum salvere iubemus

We, lovers of the countryside, bid Fuscus, the lover of the city, hail,

ruris amatores, hac in re scilicet una

indeed in this one matter alone

multum dissimiles, at cetera¹ paene gemelli

very different, but in other respects almost twins

fraternis animis (quidquid negat alter, et alter)

with brotherly minds (whatever one denies, the other denies too),

adnuimus pariter vetuli notique columbi.

we nod assent together like old and well-known doves.

Tu nidum servas; ego laudo ruris amoeni

You keep the nest; I praise the streams

rivos et musco circumlita saxa nemusque.

of the lovely countryside, and the moss-covered rocks and the grove.

quid quaeris? vivo et regno, simul ista reliqui

What do you ask? I live and reign, as soon as I have left those things

quae vos ad caelum effertis rumore secundo,

which you raise to heaven with favorable applause,

utque sacerdotis fugitivus² liba recuso;

and like a runaway slave of a priest I refuse sacrificial cakes;

pane egeo iam mellitis potiore placentis.

I now need bread, better than honeyed cakes.

Vivere Naturae si convenienter oportet,

If it is necessary to live agreeably to Nature,

ponendaeque domo quaerenda est area primum,

and a plot of land must first be sought for building a house,

novistine locum potiorem rure beato?

do you know any place better than the blessed countryside?

est ubi plus tepeant hiemes, ubi gratior aura

Is there where winters are warmer, where a more pleasant breeze

leniat et rabiem Canis et momenta Leonis,

mitigates both the rage of the Dog-star and the fury of the Lion,

cum semel accepit Solem furibundus acutum?

when once he, raging, has received the sharp Sun?

est ubi divellat somnos minus invida Cura?

Is there where less envious Care disrupts sleep?

deterius Libycis olet aut nitet herba lapillis?

Does the grass smell or shine worse than Libyan pebbles?

purior in vicis aqua tendit rumpere plumbum,

Does the water in the streets strive to burst the lead pipes purer

quam quae per pronum trepidat cum murmure rivum?

than that which trembles with a murmur through the sloping stream?

nempe inter varias nutritur silva columnas,

Surely a grove is nourished among varied columns,

laudaturque domus longos quae prospicit agros.

and a house is praised which looks out upon long fields.

Naturam expelles furca, tamen usque recurret,

You may drive out Nature with a pitchfork, yet she will ever return,

et mala perrumpet furtim fastidia victrix.

and victoriously break through your wicked distastes in secret.

Non, qui Sidonio contendere callidus ostro

Not he, who is not clever enough to compare

nescit Aquinatem potantia vellera fucum,³

Aquinum’s dye drinking the fleeces with Sidonian purple,

certius accipiet damnum propiusve medullis,

will receive a damage more certain or closer to his marrow,

quam qui non poterit vero distinguere falsum,

than he who shall not be able to distinguish false from true.

quem res plus nimio delectavere secundae,

Him whom prosperous things have delighted more than enough,

mutatae quatient. si quid mirabere, pones

changed things will shake. If you admire anything, you will lay it down

invitus, fuge magna: licet⁴ sub paupere tecto

unwillingly; flee great things: under a poor roof it is permitted

reges et regum vita praecurrere amicos.

to surpass kings and friends of kings in life.

Cervus equum pugna melior communibus herbis

A stag, better in fight, used to drive the horse

pellebat, donec minor in certamine longo

from the common pastures, until the weaker one in the long contest

imploravit opes hominis frenum que recepit;

implored the help of man and received the bridle;

sed postquam victor violens discessit ab hoste,

but after the violent victor departed from the enemy,

non equitem dorso, non frenum depulit ore.

he did not shake off the rider from his back, nor the bridle from his mouth.

sic qui pauperiem veritus potiore metallis

Thus he who, fearing poverty, lacks liberty,

libertate⁵ caret, dominum vehet improbus atque

which is better than metals, will carry a master, miserable, and

serviet aeternum, quia parvo nesciet uti.

serve eternally, because he will not know how to use a little.

cui non conveniet sua res, ut calceus olim,

To whom his own fortune does not fit, like a shoe of old,

si pede maior erit, subvertet, si minor, uret.

if it is larger than the foot, it will trip him up, if smaller, it will pinch.

Laetus sorte tua vives sapienter, Aristi,

You, happy with your lot, will live wisely, Aristius,

nec me dimittes incastigatum, ubi plura

nor will you let me go unchastised, when

cogere quam satis est ac non cessare videbor,

I shall seem to collect more than is enough and not to cease.

imperat aut servit collecta pecunia cuique,

Accumulated money rules or serves each one,

tortum digna sequi potius quam ducere funem.

worthy to follow rather than to lead the twisted rope.

Haec tibi dictabam post fanum putre Vacunae,

These things I was dictating to you behind the decaying temple of Vacuna,

excepto quod non simul esses, cetera laetus.

except that you were not with me, happy in other respects.

Syntax notes5 items

1.10.3at cetera
An accusative of specification (or Greek accusative) functioning adverbially to mean 'in other respects', limiting the application of the statement that the speakers are almost twins.
1.10.10sacerdotis fugitivus
The adjective fugitivus is used substantively ('runaway'), governed by the genitive sacerdotis ('of a priest'). It is a metaphor for a slave who, weary of eating the sweet sacrificial cakes abundant in the temple, runs away, representing the poet's preference for simple country bread over luxurious city life.
1.10.26–27Non, qui Sidonio contendere callidus ostro / nescit Aquinatem potantia vellera fucum
A syntactically complex passage where the subject is 'qui nescit' ('he who does not know'), and the adjective 'callidus' functions adverbially ('skilfully'). 'contendere' ('to compare') compares 'Aquinatem fucum' ('Aquinum's dye', modifying the fleeces, 'vellera potantia') with 'Sidonio ostro' ('Sidonian purple').
1.10.32licet
Impersonal verb licet ('it is permitted / possible'), governing the following infinitive phrase reges et regum vita praecurrere amicos.
1.10.39potiore metallis / libertate
'libertate' is an ablative of separation/deprivation governed by the verb 'caret' ('lacks'). 'metallis' (metals, referring here to gold or wealth) is an ablative of comparison depending on the comparative adjective 'potiore' ('better/more desirable'), meaning 'liberty more desirable than wealth'.

Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-22) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-22)

2026-09-22 AI review — source 1

urn:cts:latinLit:phi0893.phi005.humanitext-lat2:1.10.1-1.10.50