fering troops, who had always been in
want of common necessaries. Pompey, as soon as our men had forced the
trenches, mounting his horse, and stripping off his general's habit,
went hastily out of the back gate of the camp, and galloped with all
speed to Larissa. Nor did he stop there, but with the same dispatch,
collecting a few of his flying troops, and halting neither day nor
night, he arrived at the sea-side, attended by only thirty horses, and
went on board a victualing barque, often complaining, as we have been
told, that he had been so deceived in his expectation, that he was
almost persuaded that he had been betrayed by those from whom he had
expected victory, as they began the flight.

VIRGIL.

Virgil was born October 15, 70 B.C., and died 19 B.C. His father was
an opulent farmer, and gave his son a liberal Greek and Latin
education. His principal works were the _Georgica_ and the _AEneid_.
The _Georgica_ (Georgics), or "Agricultural Poems," is a didactic poem
in four books, dedicated to Maecenas. In the first book he treats of
the cultivation of the soil; in the second, of fruit trees; in the
third, of horses and other cattle, and in the fourth, of bees. It
gives us the most finished specimen of the Latin hexameter which we
have. It is acknowledged by scholars to stand at the head of all
Virgil's works, and is certainly the most elaborate and extraordinary
instance of power in embellishing a most barren subject which human
genius has ever afforded. The commonest precepts of farming are
delivered with an elegance which could scarcely be attained by a poet
who should endeavor to clothe in verse the sublimest maxims of
philosophy.

At what time Virgil projected the _AEneid_ is uncertain, but from a
very early age he appears to have had a strong desire of composing an
epic poem which would be an enduring monument of his fame. And he has
succeeded, for this poem is ranked as one of the great epics of the
world. It is divided into twelve books, and originates from an old
Roman tradition that AEneas and his company of Trojans settled in
Italy, and founded the Roman nation.

PRAISE OF RURAL LIFE.

(_By Virgil._)

Thrice happy swains! whom genuine pleasures bless,
If they but knew and felt their happiness!
From wars and discord far, and public strife,
Earth with salubrious fruits supports their life;
Tho' high-arch'd domes, tho' marble halls they want,
And columns cased in gold a