“Mortālem īnfēlīcem!” inquit Cornēlia. “Quō modō ex tantīs malīs sē expedīvit?”[1]
Tum māter: “Ad caelum bracchia tollēns: ‘Dā veniam, pater Bacche,’ inquit; ‘peccāvī. Sed miserēre,[2] precor, mēque ex hōc malō ēripe.’
“Quō audītō, deus mītis revocāvit mūnus, et Midae imperāvit ut quōdam in fonte lavārētur. Quod cum factum esset, vīs[3] aurea ex corpore rēgis in aquam cessit; ac trāditum est in harēnā flūminis, quod inde oritur, grāna[4] aurea etiam hodiē reperīrī posse.”
“Papae!” inquit Sextus. “Hoc vērum esse vix crēdere possum.”
At māter: “Idem dīcēs, cum vōbīs aliud nārrāverō, quod posteā huic rēgī accidit:
“Nam deus Pān, dum nymphīs tenerīs carmina fistulā[5] modulātur,[6] glōriārī ausus est sē Apollinem ipsum cantū[7] superāre posse. Quārē illī duo ad certāmen sub Tmōlō iūdice[8] vēnērunt; quō in certāmine Pān facile victus est.
“Tmōlī iūdicium omnibus placuit; Midās sōlus dissentiēbat.[9] Quam ob rem prō tantā stultitiā Apollō aurēs rēgis in spatium trāxit, eāsque in speciem asinī aurium mūtāvit. Itaque Midās, ut hoc vitium[10] turpe tegeret, semper posteā caput tiārā[11] vēlāre[12] coāctus est.”
Dum haec dīcuntur, nūbēs in caelō cōgēbantur, brevīque imber frīgidus[13] cōnsecūtus est. Viātōrēs, in vīllā quādam duās hōrās morātī, multō ante noctem tamen potuērunt Fundōs pervenīre; ubi ad dēversōrium sine morā sē contulērunt.
- ↑ expediō, -īre, -īvī, -ītus, tr.; sē expedīre, escape.
- ↑ misereor, -ērī, -itus sum, intr., pity. Imper. in text.
- ↑ vīs, potency.
- ↑ grānum, -ī, n., grain.
- ↑ fistula, -ae, f., pipe; trans. abl., ‘on.’
- ↑ modulor, -ārī, -ātus sum, tr., play.
- ↑ cantū: abl. of spec.
- ↑ sub Tmōlō iūdice: i.e., with Tmolus as umpire.
- ↑ dissentiō, -sentīre, -sēnsī, -sēnsum, intr., dissent.
- ↑ vitium, -ī, n., blemish.
- ↑ tiāra, -ae, f., turban.
- ↑ vēlō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus, tr., cover.
- ↑ frīgidus, -a, -um, adj., cold.
