Page:Catullus, Tibullus and Propertius.djvu/136

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From the immediate context we gather that, if the auspices were favourable on the showing of this rural sacrifice, it was a signal for general relaxation and merry-making. Tibullus would call for Falernian of a prime old brand, and broach a cask of Chian to boot. The revelry which in his view of things would appropriately follow, reminds one of the orgies in which, according to the song, "no man rose to go till he was sure he could not stand." Constant toasting of absent friends and patrons induced a moistness and a reeling gait, which on this occasion was not a reproach, or shame, but quite the contrary. It was, says Tibullus, a usage of primeval precedent in the golden age of man's innocency, when first the rural gods bore a hand in instructing him to harvest his fruits, and Bacchus assisted in organising the choral song and dance which celebrated such harvests. Even Cupid, who was country-born and country-bred, should be