55.

But with a crash like thunder

Fell every loosened beam,
And like a dam the mighty wreck
Lay right athwart the stream:
And a long shout of triumph
Rose from the walls of Rome
As,129 to the highest turret tops,
Was splashed the yellow foam.

56.

And like a horse unbroken

When first he feels the rein,
The furious river struggled hard,
And tossed his tawny mane;
And burst the curb and bounded
Rejoicing 120 to be free;

And whirling down, in fierce career,
Battlement, and plank, and pier,

Rushed headlong 132 to the sea.

57.

Alone stood brave Horatius,

But constant 133 still in mind;

129. As joins the sentence, foam was splashed, to rose. 130. Rejoicing limits river. 131. Battlement, plank, and pier are objects of the participle whirling, which limits river. 132. Headlong is an adverb limiting rushed. 133. Alone and constant are adjectives limiting Horatius.

Thrice thirty thousand foes 14 before,
And the broad flood behind.

"Down 135 with him!" cried false Sextus,

With a smile on his pale face.

"Now yield thee," cried Lars Porsena,
"Now yield thee to our grace."

58.

Round turned he, as 136 not deigning
Those craven ranks to see. 137
Naught 138 spake he to Lars Porsena,
To Sextus naught spake he;

But he saw on Palatinus

The white porch of his home,

134. Thousand is a noun. It is the subject of a verb suppressed, or perhaps the essential element of a phrase without a connective. (Seo 111.) In the latter case some participle must be supplied, perhaps being; thus, "Thirty thousand foes being before." Thirty is an adjective limiting thousand. Thrice is an adverb limiting thirty. Foes is a noun in apposition with thousand. (TO THE TEACHER.-Numeral words seem to be adjectives up to one hundred. But the words hundred, thousand, million, etc., are as surely nouns as are the names of other fixed quantities, as: bushel, ton, etc. "One thousand men made the attack." In this example, if thousand is an adjective, what does the adjective one limit? Certainly not men. There is a question whether the word men should be regarded as in apposition with thousand, as indicated above, or as the essential element of a phrase whose connective is of suppressed.) 135. Down may be parsed as an independent word. 135. The ellipsis seems to be best supplied thus: "Round turned he as (he would turn if he were) not deigning," etc. Deigning then limits he. 137. To see, an infinitive, object of deigning. Ranks is the object of deigning. 138. Naught is a noun, object of spake.

And he spake to the noble river
That rolls by the towers of Rome.

59.

139

"Oh, Tiber father Tiber! 138
To whom the Romans pray,
A Roman's life, a Roman's arms,
Take thou in charge this day!"
So he spake, and speaking sheathed
His good sword by his side,
And, with his harness on his back,
Plunged headlong in the tide.

60.

No sound of joy or sorrow

Was heard on either bank;

But friends and foes, in dumb surprise,
With parted lips and straining eyes,

Stood gazing 10 where he sank;
And when above the surges

They saw his crest appear,

141

All Rome sent forth a rapturous cry,
And even 12 the ranks of Tuscany

Could scarce forbear to cheer, 143

138. The first Tiber is independent by address, so also is father. The second Tiber is in apposition with father. 139. See 110. 140. Gazing limits friends and foes. 141. See 98. 142. Even is not here an adverb. It is an emphatic word throwing its force on the words ranks of Tuscany. It is perhaps best to parse it as an independent word. (See 571.) 143. To cheer, an infinitive, object of forbear. Forbear is an infinitive limiting could.

61.

But swiftly ran the current,

Swollen 144 high by months of rain :
And fast his blood was flowing;
And he was sore 145 with pain,
And heavy with his armor,

And spent with changing 146 blows:

And oft they thought him sinking, 147
But still again he rose.

62.

Never,148 I ween, did swimmer,
In such 149 an evil case,

Struggle 150 through such a raging flood

Safe to a landing place :

But his limbs were borne up bravely

By the brave heart within.

And our good father Tiber

Bare 151 bravely up his chin.

144 Swollen, a passive participle limiting current. 145. Sore, heavy, and spent are adnominal words, complements of was, and adjuncts of he. 146. Changing, a verbal noun. (See 380-8.) 147. Him sinking, forms the object of thought. (See 99.) 148. Never an adverb limiting struggle. 149. Such, an adjective limiting case. 150. Struggle is an infinitive, object of the verb did. (See 402, 411, and 418.) 151. Bare, an old past of bear.

63.

And now he feels the bottom;

Now on dry earth he stands ;
Now round him throng the fathers,
To press his gory hands;
And now with shouts and clapping,
And noise of weeping loud,

He enters by the River-gate,
Borne by the joyous crowd.

64.

They gave him of the corn-land,
That was of public right,152

As much as 153 two strong oxen

Could plow 154 from morn till night,

And they made a molten image,

And set it up on high,155

And there it stands unto this day

To witness if I lie.

152. Of right is a phrase, complement of the neuter verb was. 153. As is here a relative pronoun, object of the infinitive plow. (See 198.) 154. Plow is an infinitive, adjunct of could. (See 404.) 155. High is an adjective used as a noun. It is the essential element of a phrase. 156. Plain, an adjective limiting it. 157. To see is an infinitive whose subject is folk. This infinitive with its subject forms the essential element of a phrase whose connective is for. For joins the phrase to plain.