Martial, : the twelve books of Epigrams,.

BOOK ONE

PREFACE
I hope that in these little books of mine I have observed such due
proportion that no man who is conscious of his own rectitude can
complain about them, seeing that their sportive mood preserves,
even towards the meanest individuals, that decent respect in
which the authors of old were so lacking that they not only made
wrongful use of real names, but even did this in the case of the
great. For myself I would seek reputation at a lower price than
that, and the last thing for which I desire to be commended is
mere smartness.
May the malicious commentator abstain from meddling with
the plain meaning of my jokes, and frotm writing my epigrams
anew; for he is dishonourable 'who misapplies ingenuity upon
another's book. I wozild make no apologyfor immodest unreserve
in word-that is, for the language of epigram-were I the first to
use it, but thiis s the manner in which Catullus w'rites, and
Marsus, Pedo, Gaetllicus, and every other author whose works
are read all through; yet if there be any mnan so ostentatiously
prim, that one may not, even on a single page, speak plain Latin
to him, he can be content to go no further than this preface-or
rather no further than the title. Epigrams are written for those
who are used to look on at the gamles of Flora; therefore let no
Cato come into our playhouse or if he come let him watch the
show-and methinks I shall be wc'ithi;t m rights if I close this
preface with some verse* When you knew that the gamees of gay Flora iwere on
You might from the theatre refrainl
Or did you, stern Cato, come in with a frown
Just to make a grilm exit again?