Except is in 285 (a) dat. and abl. plural, e. g. mensis, vobis, quis; so gratis, foris. Also in acc: (and nom.) plural of -1 stems; e.g. omnis. (b) 2nd pers. sing. pres, ind. of verbs with -I stems; e.g. audīs; also possis (and other compounds of sis), velis, nolis, malis. (c) 2nd pers. sing. of perf. subj. and compl. fut. in which is is common; e.g. videris. (But see Book II.) (d) Samnis, Quiris. Sangvis sometimes, pulvis once, has -Is. Luer, (e) some Greek words; Simois, Eleusis, Salamis (nom. sing.). iii Quantity of syllables by position in the same 286 word 1 A syllable ending with a vowel (or diphthong) immediately 287 followed by another syllable beginning with a vowel, or with h and a vowel, is short; as, via, praeustus, contrǎhit. Except (a) In the genitives of pronouns, &c. in -ius; e.g. illius, where (b) the penultimate a in the old genitive of nouns with -a (d) The syllable fi in fio (except before er; e.g. fíèri, fiěrem). In Greek words a long vowel is not shortened by coming before another vowel; e.g. Nerēldi, Ēōō (but cf. § 229), Aenēās, āēra, Maeōtia. 2. A syllable2 containing a vowel immediately followed by two consonants, or by x, or z, is long; as, regent, strix. But if the two consonants immediately following a short vowel be the first a mute or f, and the second a liquid, the vowel remains 1 See Ritschl, Opusc. 11. 678 foll. 2 For the length of the vowel itself in some cases see §§ 151 note, 167. 2. 1050 short in prose and in comic poets, though in other verse it is frequently lengthened. The following combinations occur in Latin words: pr, br, cr, gr, tr1, dr, fr; pl, cl, fl; e.g. apro, těnebræ, võlucris, agrum, patris, qvadriga, vafrum; maniplus, assecla, refluus. Bl also occurs in publicus, but the first syllable is always long (for pouplicus). In Greek words other combinations allow the vowel to remain short; e.g. atlas, Těcmessa, Cycnus, Daphne, Where the combination is due to composition only, the syllable is always lengthened, just as if the words were separate (cf. § 292); e. g. subruo, abluo. iv. Effect of initial sounds on the final syllable of 228 a preceding word. In verse the final syllable of a word is affected by the vowel or consonants at the commencement of the next word, in something the same way in which one syllable is affected by the succeeding syllable in the same word. I. A final vowel or diphthong or a final syllable in m is omitted (or at least slurred over) in pronunciation, if the next word commence with a vowel or diphthong or h. See the preface. Thus vidi ipsum, vive hodie, monstrum ingens are read in verse as of no more length than vid-ipsum, viv-hodie, monstr-ingens. When est follows a vowel or m the e was omitted (see in Book II.). But the poets (except the early dramatists) refrain in certain cases 289 from so putting words as to occasion such an elision2. Especially it is avoided when the second word begins with a short vowel; viz. (a) Monosyllables ending in long vowel or m are rarely elided before a short syllable, and, particularly, the following are never so elided; sim, dem, stem, rem, spem, spe, do, sto, qui (plur.): the following are so elided; cum, tum, num, sum, jam, nam, tam, quam, me, te, se, de, mi (dat.), qui (sing.), ni, si, tu. (b) An iambic word, ending in a vowel, in dactylic verse is not elided before a short syllable or an accented long syllable. 1 Arbitro, arbitrium, &c.; genetrix, meretrix, are nowhere found with long second syllable. 2 These statements are abridged from Luc. Müller, p. 283. (c) A cretic ending in a vowel was very rarely elided before a short syllable, except by Catullus, and Horace in Satires. (d) A spondee ending in a vowel, is rarely elided, by Horace in lyrics, or by Ovid and subsequent poets, before a short syllable, except in first foot; e.g. certe ego, multi inopes, risi ego (Lucan, Martial). (e) Of words ending in m (counting the last syllable as short) a pyrrich is very rarely elided before a short syllable or accented long syllable, except uninflected particles; e.g. enim, quidem. dactyl is rarely elided before a short syllable by Ovid or later writers. A (f) Of words ending in ǎ or a pyrrich or dactyl is rarely elided before a short syllable, except (1) in proper names; or (2) in first foot; or (3) in words ending in ă, before a word beginning with ǎ; or (4) in the words cito, ego, modo, duo. An elision at the end of a verse before a vowel in the same verse 290 is very rare in any poet, except in Horace's Satires and Epistles. An elision at end of a verse before a vowel at the beginning of the next verse is found not uncommonly in Vergil, only once or twice in other writers' hexameters. In glyconic and sapphic stanzas it is not uncommon; e.g. Aut dulcis musti Volcano decoquit umorem et foliis. (Verg.) Dissidens plebi numero beatorum eximit virtus. (Hor.) An hiatus is however permitted; Always at the end of one verse before an initial vowel in the next verse except in an anapæstic metre. Occasionally in the same verse; viz. (a) if there is an interruption of the sense; though it is very rare, when the first of the two vowels is short; e. g. Promissam eripui genero, arma impia sumpsi. (Verg.) Si pereo, hominum manibus periisse juvabit. (Verg.) (c) in thesis, a long vowel, especially in a monosyllable, is sometimes shortened instead of elided; e.g. Credimus? an qui amant ipsi sibi somnia fingunt? (Verg.) 291 (d) a word ending in m is rarely not elided (there being only about seven instances in arsis, and a few of monosyllables in thesis); e.g. 2. Miscent inter sese inimicitiam agitantes. (Enn.) Sed dum abest quod avemus, id exsuperare videtur. (Lucr.) A short final syllable ending in a consonant is lengthened by 292 an initial consonant in the word following; e.g. 3. Vellitur, huic atro liquntur sanguine gutta! (Verg.) Quo Phoebus vocet errantis jubeatque reverti. (Verg.) A short final syllable ending in a vowel is rarely lengthened 293 before two consonants at the beginning of the next word. This is done before sp, sc, st; more rarely still before pr, br, fr, tr. There are a few instances in Catullus, Tibullus, Martial, &c. (none in Lucretius, Vergil, Horace, Propertius, Ovid); e.g. Nulla fugæ ratio; nulla spes omnia muta. (Cat.) Tua si bona nescis Servare, frustra clavis inest foribus. (Tib.) On the other hand a short final vowel is rarely found before sp, sc, sq, st, gn. Lucilius, Lucretius, Horace in Satires, and Propertius have about 23 instances; Vergil one, and that where the sense is interrupted. Other poets have hardly a single instance: the collocation was avoided altogether. But before Greek words, e.g. Smăragdos, and (before z in) Zăcynthus, instances are found in many poets. 4. The enclitic -que is lengthened in arsis not uncommonly by Vergil (before two consonants, or a liquid or s), and by Ovid: very rarely by others; e.g. Tribulaque traheæque et iniquo pondere rastra. (Verg.) Dona dehinc auro gravia sectoque elephanto. (Verg.) 5. Occasionally (in Vergil about 50 times) a short final closed syllable is lengthened by the arsis, though the next word begins with a vowel: this is chiefly in the cæsura, or when a proper name or Greek word follows, or where the sense is interrupted; e.g. (all from Vergil): Pacem me exanimis et Martis sorte peremptis oratis? Equidem et vivis concedere vellem. Desine plura puer, et quod nunc instat agamus. 294 Also gr. Poet, ap. Cic. de Div. I. 15. Olli serva datur, operum haud ignara Minervæ, Pectoribus inhians, spirantia consulit exta. In thesis it is very rare; e.g. Si non periret immiserabilis Captiva pubes. (Hor.) v. Peculiarities in early dramatic verse. In early dramatic verse the quantity of syllables was not sO 295 definitely fixed or observed, as in the later dactylic and other verse. The principal cases of laxity may be classified as follows1. I. Final syllables, afterwards short, were sometimes used with their original long quantity; e.g. famā (nom. s.), sorōr, patēr, amēt, sciāt, ponebāt, percipīt, vendidīt, amēr, loquar, &c. 2. Final syllables with long vowels were sometimes used as short; e.g. domŏ (abl. s.), probě (adv.), tacě, manŭ, viri, &c.; conrigi, bonǎs, forăs, dolos, ověs, manus (acc. pl.), bonis, &c. Comp. also § 205, 233. 3. Syllables containing a vowel followed by two consonants were sometimes used as short. Such are (a) Syllables in the later language written with doubled consonants (cf. § 58); e.g. Immo, ille, simillimæ, Philippus, esse, Ŏcculto, &c. (b) Some syllables with two different consonants; e.g. Inter, Interim, intus, Inde, unde, němpe, omnis. So also apparently voluptas, magistratus, ministrabit, venŭstas, senectus, &c.; ĕxpediant, exigere, uxorem. 4. Final syllables ending in a consonant were sometimes not lengthened, though the next word began with a consonant; e.g. (in Terence) enim vero, auctus sit, soror dictast, dabit němo, simul conficiam, tamen suspicor, &c.; apud is frequently so used: even student facere. This licence is most frequent, when the final consonant is m, s, r, or t; and is due to the tendency of the early language to drop the final consonant (see § 86. 152, 5. 193, 5), and to shorten the final vowel. 5. On the freer use of synizesis, e.g. tvos for tuos, scjo for scio, &c. see § 92. 142. 1 See Ritschl Rhein. Mus. (1859), XIV. 395 sq. and Opusc. II. Pref. pp. 10, 11. Also Wagner's Preface to Plaut. Aulularia (1866), and to Terence (1869). The latter (with Corssen and others) goes farther in conceding such licences than Ritschl. |