Fragment

“Militis in galea nidum fecere columbæ.”—PETRONIUS

Within the soldier’s helmet see
The nesting dove;
Venus and Mars, it seems to me,
In love.

On the Uses of Adversity

“Nam nihil est, quod non mortalibus afferat usum.”—PETRONIUS

Nothing there is that mortal man may utterly despise;
What in our wealth we treasured, in our poverty we prize.

The gold upon a sinking ship has often wrecked the boat,
While on a simple oar a shipwrecked man may keep afloat.

The burglar seeks the plutocrat, attracted by his dress—
The poor man finds his poverty the true preparedness.