CHAPTER THE ONE HUNDRED AND NINETEENTH. "The conquering Roman now held the whole world in his sway, The ocean, the land; where the sun shone by day or the moon Gleamed by night: but unsated was he. And the seas Were roiled by the weight of his deep-laden keels; if a bay Lay hidden beyond, or a land which might yield yellow gold 'Twas held as a foe. While the struggle for treasure went on The fates were preparing the horrors and scourges of war. Amusements enjoyed by the vulgar no longer can charm Nor pleasures worn threadbare by use of the plebeian mob. The bronzes of Corinth are praised by the soldier at sea; And glittering gems sought in earth, vie with purple of Tyre; Numidia curses her here, there, the exquisite silks Of China; Arabia's people have stripped their own fields. Behold other woes and calamities outraging peace! Wild beasts, in the forest are hunted, for gold; and remote African hammon is covered by beaters, for fear Some beast that slays men with his teeth shall escape, for by that His value to men is enhanced! The vessels receive Strange ravening monsters; the tiger behind gilded bars And pacing his cage is transported to Rome, that his jaws May drip with the life blood of men to the plaudits of men Oh shame! To point out our impending destruction; the crime Of Persia enacted anew; in his puberty's bloom The man child is kidnapped; surrenders his powers to the knife, Is forced to the calling of Venus; delayed and hedged round The hurrying passage of life's finest years is held back And Nature seeks Nature but finds herself not. Everywhere These frail-limbed and mincing effeminates, flowing of locks, Bedecked with an infinite number of garments of silk Whose names ever change, the wantons and lechers to snare, Are eagerly welcomed! From African soil now behold The citron-wood tables; their well-burnished surface reflects Our Tyrian purples and slaves by the horde, and whose spots Resemble the gold that is cheaper than they and ensnare Extravagance. Sterile and ignobly prized is the wood But round it is gathered a company sodden with wine; And soldiers of fortune whose weapons have rusted, devour The spoils of the world. Art caters to appetite. Wrasse From Sicily brought to their table, alive in his own Sea water. The oysters from Lucrine's shore torn, at the feast Are served to make famous the host; and the appetite, cloyed, To tempt by extravagance. Phasis has now been despoiled Of birds, its littoral silent, no sound there is heard Save only the wind as it rustles among the last leaves. Corruption no less vile is seen in the campus of Mars, Our quirites are bribed; and for plunder and promise of gain