"But say by what Discernment are you taught
To know that this voracious Pike was caught
Where the full River's lenient Waters glide,
Or where the Bridges break the rapid Tide:
In the mid-Ocean, or where Tiber pays
With broader Course his Tribute to the Seas."[3]
It was then that the rich Romans had at their villas magnificent piscinæ filled with fresh-and salt-water fishes that might be netted at a moment's notice to set before their guests. In his ode "On the Prevailing Luxury," the Venusian bard also alludes to these vivaria and the inordinate fondness for fish of the Romans:
"Soon regal piles each rood of land
Will from the farmer's ploughshare take,
Soon ponds be seen on every hand