New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-10-27
THE RUSTIC POET.


In order TO get at the point where Comparetii'
according 10 his critics goes wrong 1t 10 necessary
TO form OF Virgil clear an idea as possible
Everything goes to show that he was one OF that
small class Of men who consider their bodies
useful only to carry their intellect about. FIN
ical to degree about his work as poet. he was
utterly careless OF his personal appearance.
rustic born and bred he never learned the ways
of cities He stopped at the shoulders ne shui-
fed awkwardly in his walk, he hung his clothes
on his lank figure in any way that seemed con-
venient To be observed by others, above all 10
be followed by a curious crowd In the streets
gave him great annoyance. 1t seems almost
miracle that he ever became famous or ever
dared to venture away from his native fields.
But there is a story to account for this which has
been told so often that 1t can safely be omitted
here II 1t had not happened that the whole Ro-
man world was making over. and that everybody
who had any influence over the changed order OF
things. from Augustus and Mecaenas down. was
practically a new man, there probably would
have been little chance for the Mantuan farmer
poet As II was. he went TO the top. and the Ro-
man people felt instnctvely the truth that his
genius embodied more completely than that OF
all other men put together the spirit Of Roman
life and Roman history.
But Virgil. while he understood his people so
we'll showed that he wished as little Of their
company as possible He did not even for
the companionship ofhis friends. though his writ
ings show that he retained his liking and admra-
ton for them To escape them all he spent most
Of his time at a country place short distance
from Naples. His life there must have been
lonely for he appears TO have had nobody about
him but servants There is a tradition which in
dicates that he was on far from friendly terms
with some Of his neghbors. At all events he
lived the kind Of life which is usually supposed to
be characteristic OF silent. shy. moody man. His
eccentrcity and his shyness earned for him
among the people Of Naples. who in his day talked
a dialect Of the Greek language. the nickname OF
Parthenias equivalent to the Latin name Vir-
ginius 1t was only natural that man who had
SO few intimacies but whose name. even In his
lifetime. familiar to all the people OF Italy
who knew anything at ALL should have been the
subject Of numerous anecdotes some Of them SUI
pernatural in their character. The curious thing
is that later times took no notice Of any Of these
tales. with the exception OF the one which re-
corded the nickname given him by the Neapoli-
tans What Virgil had been to his own contempt
raries that he remained to all subsequent ages-a
mystery.
About the close Of the twelfth century. however.
he reappeared among the shadows of medieval
ignorance In the strangest disguise ever worn by
great poet He had somehow become a magi-
clan, an astrologer, pedaeogue. and prophet.
In this new character his name was connected
with marvels both in Rome ard Naples. This did
not happen because his works had ceased to be
read nor because what had been written about
him In his own time Or shortly afterward had
body who read at all In the Middle Ages was
familiar with portions at least Of Virgrs poems;
and among the most popular works. read and
read again from age to age. were those which
dealt with his life discussed mis- poetry.
The one idea which men of the twelfth century
found In these books about Virgil and in Vir-
OF extraordinary learning. They appear to have
illustrated this idea in their own way. At any
rate within the period OF single generation all
Europe appeals TO have heard magical tales
about Virgil Long before the middle Of the thir
tenth century they formed part Of the stock Of
wandering story tellers. This outbreak naturally
attracted the attention OF modern critics, and
there have been various attempts to account for
II. the most elaborate being that Of Comparett
The simplest critical theory was that Of Gabriel
Naude who expressed his belief that .fe twelfth
century story-teers were not in their right
minds. He specified man In particular but
he must have meant all who dealt in the same
kind Of fiction. Among recent critics there IL
general agreement. even Comparetti not dissent
ing. that the marvellous stories linking Virgil's
name with that OF Rome are travellers tales and
not native product. Tales about Virgil at
Mantua betray their literary character too plain
~ to leave any doubt - their origin Thus
the only controversy relates to the stories In
which Virgil figures at Naples. and here Cor1pa-
retti parts company somewhat denantly from all
others who have studied the subject