[1] Quinque dies: accusative of duration of time (A&G 423).
pollicitus...futurum [esse]: pollicitus sets up indirect speech with accusative (me) and infinitive construction. Horace is the one who did the promising and is also the subject of the accusative.
[2] Sextilem totum: another accusative of duration of time. Sextilis is August - the “sixth” month of the year when the calendar started with March. People of means would often leave Rome at this time because there was an increase in sickness in Rome (see Harper 2019 for more on the role of sickness and plague in Roman history).
mendax: he admits he is a “liar” and thus, possibly, will win Maecenas’ approval for his admission. One can push this description as mendax and wonder if it applies to other elements of the poem, see Bowditch 2001: “Horace’s use of mendax warns Maecenas to suspect the overt statements of the poem, not to find meaning beneath the transparent surface of form but to interpret beneath a sometimes illogical opacity of signification” (183).
atqui: “however”; it is not the same as atque.
[3] sanum recteque valentem: this expands upon the calls to live rightly (vivere recte) expressed earlier in the collection (cf. 1.2.41, 1.6.29) and indicates the importance of good health as part of this equation. If Maecenas has been reading the collection as a whole, he has just read in the previous epistle the collocation, vive, vale (1.6.67) and this line furthers the thought of how to do so. There is much to be gained in thinking about the book as a whole and the way various letters inform one another.
[4] quam: relative pronoun with the antecedent veniam in the following line.
aegrotare timenti: aegrotare is a complementary infinitive with timenti. One would expect a ne- fear clause, but this construction is Horace's innovation. Horace will write later that the environment of his Sabine estate is useful for warding off sickness and fever (1.16.12-16, 21-24)
[5] dum: “as long as”.
Maecenas: vocative addressee of the poem. Maecenas is Horace’s patron and here being addressed again after Epistle 1.1.
ficus prima: “early autumn” lit. “first fig”. The fig tree was hardy and there was a famous ficus ruminalis in Rome. Here’s one that is reputedly a descendant of one planted by Nero (growing upside down!).
[6] dissignatorem: an official, in this case someone leading a funeral who is accompanied by darkly-garbed lictors (licoribus atris).
[7] pallet: “grow pale over, worry about” (+dat. = pueris). Their pallor contrasts with the black garments of the lictors.
matercula: the diminutive of mater probably meant to evoke sympathy.
[8] officiosa...sedulitas: “dutiful officiousness” indicates visiting those that are sick or possibly the morning salutatio (which will reappear in the story of Mena and Philippus at the end of the poem). The “work” duties that continue during August, in tandem with opella forensis: “inconsequential legal duties” - note the diminutive opella (A&G 243). Likewise foreshadowing Philippus' work as an advocate.
[9] adducit febris: “bring on fevers”. febris is accusative plural (long -is for -es). Most of these fevers were probably malarial in nature, see Sallares 2002 (an exhaustive and interesting account).
testamenta resignat: “unsealing wills” is a euphemism for dying.
[10] bruma nives: A Lucretian phrase (DRN 5.746).
Albanis ... agris: dative with compound verb inlinet. The Alban hills are about 12 miles SE from Rome. Horace seems to set up the reader to understand that he will return to Rome in winter, but he frustrates those expectations and says he will not actually return until the spring.
[11] vates tuus: Horace speaks of himself as vates also, famously, at C. 2.20.3. It is used of inspired poets usually and is a heightened way of speaking about the poet popular in the Augustan period (cf. Verg. Aen. 7.41). The personal adjective tuus is affectionate and does not indicate that Horace was a “sell-out” although the phrase does make him into a 3rd person subject (as opposed to simply saying “I will visit you…”).
sibi parcet: parcere takes the dative “spares himself, goes easy on himself” (A&G 367).
[12] contractus leget: I like the image of Horace all bundled up by the shore with a book. It is notable that he doesn’t say he will write, but simply read. There is the acknowledgement that a good poet needs to read as well as write. Maecenas is his “sweet friend” and he had been addressed as dulce decum meum in the very first ode (C. 1.1.2).
[13] cum Zephyris...hirundine prima: signs of spring (cf. a similar use of Zephyrs at C. 4.7.9).
si concedes: protasis of a future more vivid condition (A&G 516). As Maecenas’ client, there is the possibility that he will demand Horace’s presence.
[14] non quo more: “not in the same way as…” take line 15 first.
piris vesci: vescor takes the ablative case.
Calaber...hospes: Calabria is the toe of the boot of Italy. Host/guest behavior is highlighted with this story but it is made to reflect on the patron/client relationship (a.k.a. clientela). While this is related to the behavior of Maecenas, it also evokes traditional xenia. Hosts were expected to give their guests little gifts at the close of a dinner party.
[15] sodes: si audes “if you please”. This host demands that his satiated guest eat the pears or take them home.
[16] iam satis est: “I’m full”.
benigne: “no, thank you”; it will be repeated at line 62.
[17] The host encourages the guest to take some pears home for his children.
invisa...munuscula may evoke Cat. 64.103: non ingrata tamen frustra munuscula divis.
[18] tam...quam si: clause of conditional comparison with dimittar in the subjunctive (A&G 524). A kind refusal of the guest.
[19] This boorish host tells his guest that what he does not take will simply feed the pigs.
ut libet: “as you wish”. A&G 207 for the impersonal verb libet. This phrase is repeated in the later exemplum, thus linking these two tales.
porcis...comedenda: the gerundive takes the dative (A&G 374).
[20] prodigus: “wasteful” here.
spernit et odit has a rhyming quality that makes it memorable. We see a similar quality in videt ridetque at line 70.
[21] We reap what we sow.
tulit ... feret: the rhetorical trope of utilizing the same verb in different forms is polyptoton.
omnibus annis: Ablative of time (A&G 423).
[22] bonus et sapiens: this is the ideal that is actively questioned and tested in these letters. This expression is pointed with Maecenas as addressee (who would be one of the dignis).
paratus: the nominative after the infinitive is a Greek construction (cf. C. 3.27.73).
[23] quid distent aera lupinis: Horace indicates that the good benefactor knows the difference between true and false goods. Beans were used as fake-money on the Roman stage. distent is subjunctive in an indirect question (A&G 574).
[24] Horace will show himself to be worthy (dignum) of Maecenas.
pro laude merentis: “in accord with the fame of my benefactor” (Kirkland ad loc.).
[25] quodsi: “but if,” introduces a future more vivid condition, with the apodosis (reddes) having the force of a polite command (A&G 514). The repetition of reddes is a strong reminder of what can be given in a clientela relationship, and what can not.
[26] Horace must turn back time if he is to never leave Rome. Some of these characteristics are featured in other poems, and it resembles his thoughts at C. 4.1.3-4 with the mention of Cinara and Ars 37 with mention of his black hair. One gets the sense that Maecenas is still engaging in this sort of dandy behavior in Rome, while Horace has grown out of it.
angusta fronte: If one has a thick head of hair, there is only a small amount of forehead showing. Cf. C. 1.33.5 where a tenuis frons indicates youth.
[27] dulce loqui: note how Lalage in C. 1.22.23-24 laughs and speaks sweetly. There is a sense that Horace would have to return to who he was in previous poems as well (note also the possible play with C. 3.2.13: dulce et decorum est pro patria mori). Bowditch 2001 writes, “an autobiographical image acquires properties associated with genre: in this case, time has both stripped the poet of a youthful physique and robbed him of his lyric speech” (227).
[28] inter vina: at a symposium or among wine with friends - a situation found often in the Odes.
maerere: “to mourn, lament” (cf. Epod. 15.23 for this verb used of lovers). For the flight of such lovers, see C. 2.5.17 and 4.1.38-40.
protervitas: a quality Horace often associates with young lovers, see C. 3.14.25-28 and 1.19.7.
[29] Horace introduces a fable that addresses his relationship with Maecenas.
tenuis vulpecula: “a skinny little fox”. Foxes were known for their cleverness., but this one gets in trouble because of his gluttony. This Horatian version of the fable is adapted many times, probably most famously in Milne’s Winnie the Pooh. Horace utilizes concrete word order to fit the fox between the slender crack (angustam rimam) in the line. For more on his use of animal fables, see Trinacty 2012.
[30] cumeram frumenti: a chest or storage vessel for grain. Cf. S. 1.1.53.
pastaque: from pascor “having eaten”.
[31] ire...tendebat: tendere+inf. Is primarily a poetic use “to strive, endeavor (to do something)”.
foras: “out” or “outside” (A&G 428i).
[32] cui: dative relative pronoun. The antecedent is the fox.
mustela: a weasel. Some scholars believe weasels were kept as pets by Romans to be mousers, but this may be the equivalent of an urban legend for Classicists. Bettini 2013 is a fabulous read and will clarify what weasels meant for the ancient audience.
[33] macra: “lean” - the adjective is usually used of animals, as here.
cavum...artum: rephrasing the angustam rimam.
[34] hoc...imagine: ablative of means. The imago is the story and shows how such Horace has created the striking “image” by his words.
compellor: “I am rebuked/reproached”. If someone uses this story/image against Horace (even Maecenas himself), he will give up all that Maecenas has given to him. Horace’s freedom is at stake, in some sense, as Johnson 1993 reminds us, “What he means is ‘If ever I discover that I am (without your having planned it that way) enslaved by your gifts, I will drop them instantly and run like hell.’” (45).
[35] Horace tries to distance himself from some of the possible claims made against him (as “client” to such a strong patron as Maecenas). Some of these critiques were made by his slave in Sat. 2.7.22ff.
somnum plebis: Horace doesn’t praise the common folk while living in the lap of luxury.
satur altilium: “full of fattened birds”.
[36] otia... liberrima: note the superlative in -rimus-a-um (A&G 125). His otium is more valuable than riches. O’Loughlin 1978: 53-154 discusses otium in Vergil and Horace’s poetry.
divitiis Arabum: for the riches of Arabia, see also C. 1.29.1-2 for the proverbial riches of the East.
muto: “to exchange”.
[37] verecundum: describing Horace, as a modest individual.
laudasti: syncopated perfect (A&G 181a), Maecenas is the subject “you”.
rexque paterque: The idealized position of a patron as both king and father (at Sat. 2.1.42, Jupiter is rex et pater). This smacks of flattery, although Horace earlier modified what it is to be a rex, in his earlier Epistle to Maecenas (see 1.1.59-60).
[38] audisti coram...absens: Horace speaks well of Maecenas both when they are face-to-face as well as when they are not. audisti: here = “have heard yourself called” (Mayer ad loc.).
[39] si possum...reponere: reponere is complementary infinitive with possum. One might expect the subjunctive, but the indicative is “archaic and colloquial” (according to Kirkland ad loc.). Horace implies that he will happily (laetus) return the Maecenas’ gifts, if it is necessary.
[40] These lines begin a story found in Homer’s Odyssey (4.589-619). This builds upon some of his findings in Epistle 1.2 as to the applicability of Homer to living a good life. Horace, like Telemachus, understands that certain gifts are unsuitable for various reasons.
Telemachus: Odysseus’ son, who spends the opening books of the Odyssey looking for information about his father, including a visit to Menelaus and Helen in Sparta in Ody. 4.
patientιs: πολύτλας in Greek, stressing his long-suffering toils.
[41] aptus: the adjective takes the dative (A&G 384).
Ithace: the island of Ithaca.
ut: explaining why it isn’t suitable for horses.
neque...nec: “neither...nor”.
[42] multae prodigus herbae: “lavish with much grass”.
[43] Atride: Voc. “son of Atreus” = Menelaus.
magis apta tibi: Horses are “more fitting” for the fields around Sparta. apta further modifies tua dona. As Menelaus provides gifts for Telemachus as part of the xenia relationship, so appropriate gifts are to be given and received in the clientela relationship. Telemachus ends up with a beautiful mixing bowl made by the god Hephaestus (not too shabby!).
[44] Horace furnishes us the moral of the tale: parvum parva decent and applies this to himself and his own wants and needs.
mihi: with placet in the next line. For placet+dat. see A&G 274.
regia Roma: “royal Rome”. Horace gives Rome such a grandiose term to contrast with the humble residences in the following line. The alliteration contrasts with the alliterative parvum parva at the beginning of the line.
[45] vacuum Tibur: modern Tivoli. vacuum here has the sense of “quiet.”
imbelle Tarentum: modern Taranto. A port city in southern Italy that was a resort town at this period.
[46] Horace begins the story that will take up much of the remainder of the poem. An unsuitable gift leads to problems in the life of the one who received it. Horace utilizes the tale to reflect (and refract) aspects of his own relationship with Maecenas and the larger question of clientela.
causisque...agendis / clarus: Philippus was famous as a lawyer. Mayer and Cucchiarelli (ad loc.) believe that Philippus should be identified as L. Marcius Philippus who was consul in 91 BCE.
[47] ab officiis: “from his duties”.
octavam...horam: The Romans broke up the day and night into 12 hours each, so the 8th hour could range from 12:45 - 2:30 p.m. depending on the time of year.
[48] foro nimium distare Carinas: distare is dependent on queritur in indirect speech. The Carinae neighborhood is not actually very far distant from the Roman Forum and was considered one of the most impressive neighborhoods in the city. The church of Saint Peter “In Chains” is located in this neighborhood.
[49] iam grandis natu: natu is ablative of specification (A&G 418). As an old man, the short walk to the Carinae would seem long and steep.
ut aiunt: “so they say” indicates that this is a story told by others (and may not be 100% accurate), and lets Horace distance himself from some of the details (see Ep. 1.6.40).
[50] adrasum quendam: “a certain close-shaven man”.
tonsoris: the barber shop was a place to hang-out in ancient Rome (as in modern Rome).
[51] cultello: diminutive “little knife”.
leniter: “smoothly” - this sort of calm demeanor/action piques the curiosity of Philippus. Note how later in the Epistles, the ability to live leniter is lauded (1.18.97).
proprios...unguis: he gives himself a manicure instead of having the barber do it.
[52] puer: used of his slave, Demetrius.
non laeve: litotes. laeve is only used adverbially here in Latin literature. Mayer (ad loc.) notes that this may be “a loan-shift from σκαιῶς, not inappropriately used of a Greek boy”.
[53] abi, quaere et refer: three imperatives. Which will be answered in line 55 with it redit et narrat.
unde domo: While this would be a customary question, it also restates Aen. 8.114 where Pallas addresses the question to Aeneas. In extant Latin literature, it only appears in these two places and Seneca Dial. 12.6.3, which seems to be an allusion to both the Horatian and Vergilian texts.
[54] sit: subjunctive in all of these indirect questions.
quo...patre quove patrono: These questions would serve to show if he was freeborn or a freedman.
[55] nomine: “by name” (ablative of specification, A&G 418). Volteius Mena is his name showing that he was the freedman of one Volteius.
[56] praeconem: an auctioneer, like Horace’s father (see Sat. 1.6.86).
tenui censu: ablative of description (A&G 415). Note exiguum censum at Ep. 1.143. In general such slender means are celebrated by Horace.
notum: takes the infinitives of the following line (A&G 461).
[57] loco: “on the right occasion” (OLD 21b). It should be taken with all of the infinitives. Mena knows how to “pick his spot” for hard work, relaxation, earning money, and spending it (uti).
[58] gaudentem: gaudeo + abl. = “to rejoice in”.
lare certo: The Lares were the household gods, so this is an example of metonymy = Mena has his own house.
[59] ludis: ludi can refer to theatrical games as well as other entertainments in Rome.
post decisa negotia: “after work is done/completed”.
Campo: The Campus Martius was a large park-like area at this time where athletic activities took place. Horace will mention them again at Ep. 1.18.52-54.
[60] scitari...veniat: The words of Philippus to his slave. scitor is a deponent verb meaning “to ask, inquire”.
dic: introduces the indirect question of ad cenam veniat. Translate “ask him to come to dinner”.
[61] credere: historical infinitive (A&G 463), like mirari in the following line. These are the only historical infinitives in the Epistles (but Horace utilizes them in his Satires). Mena can’t believe that Philippus would invite him - he thinks there must be some catch!
[62] quid multa?: “What more?” or “In short”.
[63] neget ille mihi?: Philippus can not believe Mena would refuse him. The deliberative subjunctive can be found in questions that imply “doubt” or “indignation” as here (A&G 444).
improbus: the slave responds, taking his cue from the tone of Philippus’ question.
[64] neglegit aut horret: interesting alternative explanations. Either he doesn’t care about Philippus or else he may feel some fear (either embarrassment or actual consternation).
mane: adv. “in the morning”.
[65] vilia vendentem...scruta: vendentem agrees with Volteium and vilia scruta is the accusative direct object. scruta = “junk”. Mena reminds meusof someone at a modern flea market.
tunicato...popello: dat. “To the shirt-sleeved rabble” (Kirkland ad loc.).
[66] occupat: “surprises, catches unaware”. The fact that Philippus says hello first puts Mena in a difficult position.
[67] excusare: another historical infinitive (A&G 463),“offers as an excuse”.
mercennaria vincla: “binds/bonds of his work”. This “daily grind” would be the reason he could not visit Philippus at the morning salutatio.
[68] quod non venisset: for quod + subj. when the reason being given is not the author’s - in this case it is Volteius’ - see A&G 540.
[69] sic: “on this condition” (Mayer ad loc.). Anticipates the si clause.
ignovisse putato: The future imperative (putato) is common when the clause on which it depends refers to future time (in this case si cenas hodie mecum). Ignoscere takes the dative (tibi).
[70] ut libet: a cordial response. Supply te.
[71] post nonam: “after the ninth hour” = early afternoon. Kirkland reminds us that our word “noon” is derived from nonam (ad loc.).
nunc i: not “go away” but “c’mon, get to it!”.
rem strenuus auge: the repetition of strenuus from 46 shows that Philippus sees something of himself in Mena’s industriousness.
[72] ventum...est: the impersonal stresses the action.
dicenda tacenda: neuter accusative plural gerundives acting substantively (the direct objects of locutus). Mena says “what ought to be said”, but also “what ought not to be said”. This shows he might be out-of-his-depth socially, but it seems to charm Philippus.
[73] dormitum: a supine of purpose (A&G 509) with a verb of motion (dimittitur).
hic: “here”; at the home of Philippus.
[74] piscis: “like a fish”; he’s been caught (“hook, line, and sinker” would be our expression). Horace makes it known that this will not end well for Mena.
[75] cliens: in the morning he engages in the salutatio as a client to his patron.
conviva: remember this word is a first-declension masculine noun (with certus modifying it).
[76] rura suburbana: With towns, small islands, domus and rus, place towards can be expressed simply with the accusative (one does not need ad + acc., A&G 427).
indictis...Latinis: “when the Latin festival had been decreed”. The feriae Latinae was an annual festival celebrated on Mt. Alba in the spring. Public business and the courts would be closed during this time, so Philippus (and other nobles) would take advantage of the time to make excursions to the countryside.
[77] inpositus mannis: As his comes, Mena rides in a chariot with Philippus that is drawn by ponies from Gaul (mannis).
arvum caelumque Sabinum: much like Horace, Mena is enamored with the Sabine landscape and climate.
[78] videt ridetque: while at first Philippus smiles at such praises, it may start to be more of a “joke” when he convinces Mena to buy a farm and try his hand at farming (risus in the following line would seem to suggest this will be amusing to Philippus). The question of whether ridere implies “laughing at” someone vs. “laughing with” someone is a live one at different moments in the Epistles, and the use of this verb within two lines would probably remind the reader, Maecenas, that Horace’s previous missive to him also fixated on such laughter (Ep. 1.95, 97, 101).
[79] dum...quaerit: Greenough states, “equivalent to a present participle, as often” (ad loc.).
requiem: “diversion, amusement”. The fact that he is only doing this for himself (sibi) and that he only offers to loan (mutua) the money to Mena shows how different Philippus’ behavior is from Maecenas’.
[80] A total of 14,000 sesterces would buy only a small parcel of land. Columella “reckoned the average price as one thousand sesterces per iugerum” (Kirkland ad loc.).
[81] persuadet uti mercetur agellum: NB that Horace’s agellum “returns me to myself” (Ep. 1.14.1), but his country estate is more of a retreat for him than a working farm (and Horace has laborers that do much of the heavy lifting). For the purpose clause after a verb of persuasion, see A&G 563.
[82] longis ambagibus: ablative of means (A&G 409). The “windings” of the tale mirror the various tasks he must learn and engage in on the farm.
ultra / quam satis est: one needs to go “beyond” the line as well to see what is enjambed to complete the meaning of the phrase. This phrase is repeated from Ep. 1.6.16 and the question of what “is enough” (satis) is often on Horace’s mind and carries both philosophical and literary resonance (cf. Ep. 1.2.46, 1.15.43).
[83] ne...morer: A little humor from Horace as this tale is already one of the longest he tells in the Epistles. Negative purpose clause (A&G 531).
ex nitido: “from a city slicker”. The contrast between urbanus and rusticus is strong in Roman thought and society.
[84] crepat: “to prattle, talk noisily about”. One might think of Horace’s Epode 2 which has a city money-lender extolling the beauty and benefits of a farming life.
mera: in the sense of “nothing but” but also playing on its common meaning of merum = “wine”.
ulmos: the elm trees were used to support the grape vines. For a detailed poetic description see Vergil’s Georgics 2.259-353.
[85] immoritur studiis: Greenough suggests “he works himself to death” (ad loc.).
amore...habendi: habendi is a gerund (A&G 502). Mena is trying to turn a profit on his Sabine farm (habere here = “to have possessions”), a thought far from the mind of Horace as he takes a cat-nap on the grass of his farm (Ep. 1.14.35).
[86] oves furto, morbo...capellae: chiastic word order.
periere: syncopated 3rd plural perfect active indicative of perire (“to lose, perish”).
[87] spem mentita seges: supply est. The difficulty and false hopes of farming have been a truism since Hesiod’s Works and Days.
bos est enectus arando: enecare “to kill, wear out, exhaust”. arando is another gerund (A&G 502), this time in the ablative case.
[88] offensus damnis: “troubled by his losses”.
de: + time expression = “starting with” or “at” (OLD 4a).
[89] iratus: Mayer makes the nice point that Horace “leaves it open whether the rage is directed at himself, at Philippus, or at both” (ad loc.).
Philippi … ad aedis: aedis has the long -is for -es (acc. pl.) = “house”.
[90] scabrum intonsumque: a far cry from the neat, well-shaven chap he first met (lines 50-51 above). Scabrum here means “rough”, but also has connotations of scabies and other afflictions of livestock.
[91] nimis attentusque: take nimis with attentus “frugal”. One can imagine that Mena’s disheveled appearance and shabby clothes would stand out at the salutatio, where one was supposed to wear one’s finest.
[92] pol: “by Pollux”. A common curse. Men often swore by Pollux and women by Castor (his brother).
me miserum: customary cry of misery found often in Roman comedy (Plaut. Aul. 721: heu me miserum, misere perii) and elegy (Ov. Am. 1.1.25: me miserum! Certas habuit puer ille sagittas). Here, Horace alters its meaning with vocares “you would call me Miser”, the apodosis of a present contrary-to-fact condition (A&G 514). Horace never uses the exclamation miserum me in his poetry, but here he shows how he can make the expression novel in the context of this letter.
[93] si velles: the protasis of that condition.
ponere: here = imponere.
[94] quod: “wherefore”.
Genium: one’s Genius was the spirit of that individual. At Ep. 2.2.187-89 Horace writes about the Genius of each individual as “a god attached to the human condition” (naturae deus humanae) and the cult of the Genius was being expanded during Augustus’ time.
deosque Penatis: the Penates were important household gods.
[95] obsecro et obtestor: doubling the verbs of entreaty for pathos. Found in Cicero as well as Plautus (Aul. 715-16: obsecro vos ego, mi auxilio, / oro obtestor…).
vitae me redde priori: the prior life he had is preferable to his new life as farmer (and client of Philippus). reddere is an important verb for the poem as a whole and connects the end of this tale to Horace’s own life and relationship with Maecenas (see notes above on lines 25, 27).
[96] qui semel adspexit: “once he has seen”. Mayer believes that adspexit is an incorrect recollection of line 90 above and suggests Holder’s emendation of agnovit (ad loc.).
quantum...praestent: indirect question (A&G 574).
dimissa petitis: both should be taken substantively - praestent has dimissa as its nominative subject and it takes the dative (petitis). What one has sought may be worse than what one left behind.
[97] mature: “quickly”.
redeat repetatque: hortatory subjunctives (A&G 439).
[98] suo modulo ac pede: “by his own measure and standard”. One size does not fit all and individuals should be allowed to change accordingly, if possible. A Roman “foot” was 296 mm (according to the OLD 9). This sentiment sounds like Panaetius, a philosopher who believed that individual progress is based on one's individual character (see McGann 1969: 10-12).
verum est: “it is right”. Horace ends with a one-liner (sententia) that ties up many of the strands of argument found in the letter.
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