—— “Ce naif agrement,
Ce ton de cœur, ce negligé charmant,
Qui le rendit le poëte des Graces[517].”
Few poets, besides, have shown more freshness in their conceptions—more truth and nature in their delineations of amatory passion—more heartfelt tenderness in grief—and [pg 320]none, certainly, ever possessed a more happy art of embellishing trivial incidents, by the manner in which he treated them. Indeed, the most exquisite of his productions, in point of grace and delicacy, are those which were called forth by the most trifling occasions; while, at the same time, his Epithalamium of Peleus and Thetis proves, that he was by no means deficient in that warmth of imagination, energy of thought, and sublimity of conception, which form the attributes of perfection in those bards who tread the higher paths of Parnassus. Catullus is a great favourite with all the early critics and commentators of the 16th century. The elder Scaliger alone has pronounced on him a harsh and unmerited sentence: “Catullo,” says he, “docti nomen quare sit ab antiquis attributum, neque apud alios comperi, neque dum in mentem venit mihi. Nihil enim non vulgare est in ejus libris: ejus autem syllabæ cùm duræ sint, tum ipse non raro durus; aliquando vero adeo mollis, ut fluat, neque consistat. Multa impudica, quorum pudet—multa languida, quorum miseret—multa coacta, quorum piget[518].” In conclusion, the reader may, perhaps, like to hear the opinion of the pure and saintly Fenelon, concerning this obscene pagan.—“Catulle, qu’on ne peut nommer sans avoir horreur de ses obscenitéz, est au comble de la perfection pour une simplicité passionnée—
‘Odi et amo: quare id faciam fortasse requiris.
Nescio; sed fieri sentio, et excrucior.’
Combien Ovide et Martial, avec leurs traits ingenieux et façonnéz, sont ils au dessous de ces paroles negligées, ou le cœur saisi parle seul dans un espéce de désespoir.”
The different sorts of poetry which Catullus, though not their inventor, first introduced at Rome, were cultivated and brought to high perfection by his countrymen. Horace followed, and excelled him in Lyric compositions. The elegiac measure was adopted with success by Ovid, Tibullus, and Propertius, and applied by them to the expression of amatory sentiments, which, if they did not reach the refinement, or pure devotedness of the middle ages[519], were less gross than those of Catullus.
In his epigrammatic compositions, Catullus was imitated by several of his own contemporaries, most of whom also ranked in the number of his friends. Their works, however, have almost entirely perished. Quintus Lutatius Catulus, who is praised as an orator and historian by Cicero[520], has left two epigrams—one, Ad Theotimum, translated from Callimachus, the name Theotimus being merely substituted for that of Cephissus—and the other, Ad Roscium Puerum, addressed to the celebrated actor in his youth, and quoted by Cicero in his treatise, De Naturâ Deorum[521]—
“Constiteram, exorientem Auroram forte salutans;