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This light-armed people, relying more on their activity than on their strength, cannot struggle for the field of battle, enter into close engagement, or endure long and severe actions, such as the poet describes: "Jam clypeo clypeus, umbone repellitur umbo, Ense minax ensis, pede pes, et cuspide cuspis."

Duriora genti corpora, stricti artus, minax vultus et major animi vigor.

But this whole story is merely a complicated and fantastic romance, embroidered about a truth which in itself is comparatively simple. Tacitus himself tells us that Agrippina was a most exacting mother; that is, a mother of the older Roman type in his own words, trux et minax.

It is odd therefore, that the one apposite passage which recurred to me in its entirety was in hexameters and pentameters: Me miserum, quanti montes volvuntur aquarum! Jam jam tacturos sidera summa putes. Quantae diducto subsidunt aequore valles! Jam jam tacturas Tartara nigra putes. Quocunque adspicio, nihil est nisi pontus et aether; Fluctibus hic tumidis, nubibus ille minax....

All the inconveniences in the world are not considerable enough that a man should die to evade them; and, besides, there being so many, so sudden and unexpected changes in human things, it is hard rightly to judge when we are at the end of our hope: "Sperat et in saeva victus gladiator arena, Sit licet infesto pollice turba minax." Pentadius, De Spe, ap.