READ OUT LOUD. Choose which marked text you prefer to practice with - macrons in verse form, or macrons in prose order, or accent marks in prose order, or focusing on the meter. You will find materials for all of these options below. :-)
VERSE MACRONS. Here is the verse text with macrons:
Tempestāte domī quīdam cōgente latēbat
Rusticus, haec ergō longa quod esset hiems:Et mactāvit Ovēs, et quōrum servit arātro
Robur, ut inde cibōs comparet ille, Bovēs.Illa Canēs fierī cautī cum forte vidērent,
Mōlīrī celerem constituēre fugam.Posse vidērentur quod nōn spērāre salūtem
Hīc, ubi nōn essent corpora tūta Boum.Quōrum conveniēns tamen ūsibus esset arandī,
Quō sint assiduē rūra colenda, labor. PROSE MACRONS. Here is the same text with macrons written out in prose word order:
Rusticus quīdam, tempestāte cōgente, domī ergō latēbat quod haec hiems longa esset. Et Ovēs mactāvit, et Bovēs, quōrum robur arātro servit ut inde ille cibōs comparet. Canēs cautī, cum illa fierī forte vidērent, fugam celerem mōlīrī constituēre, quod vidērentur hīc salūtem spērāre nōn posse, ubi Boum corpora tūta nōn essent, quōrum tamen labor ūsibus arandī conveniēns esset, quō rūra assiduē colenda sint.
STRESS (ACCENT) MARKS. Here is the prose text with accents, plus some color-coding for the words of three or more syllables (blue: penultimate stress; red: antepenultimate stress):
Rústicus quidam, tempestáte cogénte, domi ergo latébat quod haec hiems longa esset. Et Oves mactávit, et Boves, quorum robur arátro servit ut inde ille cibos cómparet. Canes cauti, cum illa fíeri forte vidérent, fugam célerem molíri constituére, quod videréntur hic salútem speráre non posse, ubi Boum corpora tuta non essent, quorum tamen labor úsibus arándi convéniens esset, quo rura assídue colénda sint.
ELEGIAC COUPLET METER. Below I have used an interpunct dot · to indicate the metrical elements in each line, and a double line || to indicate the hemistichs of the pentameter line.
Tempes·tāte do·mī quī·dam cō·gente la·tēbat
Rusticus, ·haec er·gō || longa quod ·esset hi·ems:Et mac·tāvit O·vēs, et· quōrum ·servit a·rātro
Robur, ut· inde ci·bōs || comparet ·ille, Bo·vēs.Illa Ca·nēs fie·rī cau·tī cum· forte vi·dērent,
Mōlī·rī cele·rem || constitu·ēre fu·gam.Posse vi·dēren·tur quod· nōn spē·rāre sa·lūtem
Hīc, ubi· nōn es·sent || corpora· tūta Bo·um.Quōrum· conveni·ēns tamen ·ūsibus ·esset a·randī,
Quō sint· assidu·ē || rūra co·lenda, la·bor.IMAGE. Here is an illustration for the story from the 1574 edition of Osius:
Here is an illustration from the Medici Aesop, which is online at the New York Public Library website.
What follows is an unmarked version of the prose rendering to faciliate word searches: Rusticus quidam, tempestate cogente, domi ergo latebat quod haec hiems longa esset. Et Oves mactavit, et Boves, quorum robur aratro servit ut inde ille cibos comparet. Canes cauti, cum illa fieri forte viderent, fugam celerem moliri constituere, quod viderentur hic salutem sperare non posse, ubi Boum corpora tuta non essent, quorum tamen labor usibus arandi conveniens esset, quo rura assidue colenda sint.
