By Venus with a fifth part of her nectar.[1]

“Thrice happy, ay, more than thrice happy, they

Whom one soft bond unbroken binds together;

Whose love serene from bickering and reproach

In life’s last moment finds the first that severs.”

The closing lines of an ode to Mæcenas (Lib. II. Ode XII.) are worth noting:

“Say, for all that Achæmenes boasted of treasure,

All the wealth which Mygdonia gave Phrygia in tribute,

All the stores of all Araby—say, wouldst thou barter

One lock of Lycimnia’s bright hair?