Æratæ sonitant galeæ: sed nec pote quisquam
Undique nitendo corpus discerpere ferro.
Semper abundanteis hastas frangitque, quatitque;
Totum sudor habet corpus, moltumque laborat;
Nec respirandi fit copia præpete ferro.
Istrei tela manu jacientes sollicitabant.
Occumbunt moltei leto, ferroque lapique,
Aut intra moeros, aut extra præcipi casu[195].”
The concluding, or eighteenth, book seems to have been in a great measure personal to the poet himself. It explains his motive for writing:—
—— “Omnes mortales sese laudarier optant;” ——