37: De Musca et Formica

This fable is as close as the elegiac Romulus comes to the now-popular fable of the ant and the grasshopper. Here the characters are a fly and an ant. The fly seeks to glorify her own lifestyle by talking about the glories of flying and the royal tables that she is able to take food from. The ant retaliates by noting that although her lifestyle may be more humble, she always has a guaranteed next meal, and she is not forced to live as a thief. The moral, however, does not glorify the humble lifestyle of the ant as might be expected. Instead, it warns to watch the tongue, for sweet words produce sweetness, while words spoken in hatred continue to produce hate.

Perry 521

movēns lītēs: lit., “moving a quarrel,” but with the sense of, “seeking a quarrel or instigating a fight.” 

voce: “wearies with his voice”; ablative of means with fatigat. 

se ... ipsa suis: “she herself shamefully decorates herself with her own titles.” Titulīs suīs is an abl. of means with ornat. 

mersa cavīs: “having been immersed in caves”; mersa is a perf. part. nom. Cavīs is an abl. of means with the in understood. The cavīs here appear to be underground ant tunnels. 

mihi: dative of possession that you could take with either  levitās or ālīs. 

alis: “is sought with my wings”; ablative of means.

grana: “your delights are seeds”; nom. Pred.

Quod bibis: “the thing which you drink,” or, “that which you drink.” Countered later with quod bibo. 

mihi suggerit aurum: “brings gold to me.” 

premis ... saxa: “you press (on) rocks,” i.e., when you sleep.

Sēde, cibīs, pōtū, thalamīs: abl. with utor. 

teneris genis: “fix kisses on the tender cheek”; ablative of place where.

Nōn minus ūrentēs sagittās: litotes, “no less burning arrows.” 

nescit tua penna quiētem: the implication is that the fly never stops buzzing around. 

sunt mihi ... sunt tibi: note antithesis in each line. Datives of possession. 

laetam ... tristem: “sees that I am happy ... the palace sees that you are sad,” i.e., I am happy in the cave, you are sad in the palace; acc. pred.

plus ... quam: “seeds please more ... than wealth.”

Vēnātur mihi farra labor: “My work pursues grain.” Contrasted in the next clause, where vēnātur should be repeated. 

toxicat illa timor: supply tibi. 

Mundō: could be modifying farre, as, “neat grain,” or could be a noun, as, “in my own (little) world.” 

farre: “I enjoy my grain”; abl. after fruor.

tactu: “with your touch”; ablative of means. Modifies foedās. 

cum ... noceam: “while I harm no one”; pres. subj. in a cum circumstantial clause. Nūllī is a dative with noceam.  

ūna nocēs: “you alone will harm” + dative (cuilibet). 

mea: supply vīta. Subject of est. Speculum is the predicate. 

parcendi ... vorandi: “a mirror of behaving economically ... a mirror of gulping down (i.e. gluttony)”; gen. gerunds.

non nisi: “you do not eat unless,” i.e., you only eat; litotes.

comedas ... cessem: “in order to eat ... lest I cease”; pres. subj. in purpose clauses.

palato: “sweet to the palate”; dative of specification with dulcia. 

bibens: “(by) drinking”; pres. part. instrumental.

tibi: dative of possession. 

ventoso flabello: “conquered by the windy fan”; ablative of means with victa. 

aestivi favoris: “gift of summery kindness,” transferred epithet.

parcant: “if others are sparing”; pres. subj. in a present general conditional.

dulcia, turpia: modify verba. 

reddi: “are in the habit of being returned”; pres. inf. pass. complementing solent.