STRETCH FORTH

Extend the balance arm, and hang a tiny weight
from this end; that same weight will balance a much heavier one.
Virtue compensates for virtue in the descendants; one day,
through the advancement of the lineage, it stands out among the ancestors.
The poem uses the metaphor of a steelyard balance or lever to show how "virtue" (excellence or character) can act as a force multiplier, allowing a younger son or a later generation to achieve the same weight and importance as those who came before.

Anthony Ulrich, Duke of Brunswick and Lüneburg. Born
October 4, 1633.
Anthony Ulrich was a significant figure in the German Baroque, known as a politician, an art collector, and a novelist.

EXPAND

Dido was able to enclose a kingdom within a bull’s hide
after she cut it into thin leather thongs.
To bear a heavy fate is great, but to protect it is greater;
and to expand it by deed is as much a necessity as it is an honor.
The poem refers to the founding of Carthage. Queen Dido was promised only as much land as a bull's hide could cover; she cleverly cut the hide into a single long string to encircle a large territory. The poet argues that Ferdinand Albert should similarly use his wits to "expand" his inheritance and reputation.

Ferdinand Albert, Duke of Brunswick and Lüneburg. Born
May 22, 1636. See page 384.

A decorative typographic ornament composed of small floral motifs arranged in a symmetrical rectangular block.