Bellum Africum 24

B. Afr. 24.1Scīpiō interim cum hīs cōpiīs, quās paulō ante dēmōnstrāvimus, Uticae grandī praesidiō relictō profectus prīmum Hadrūmētī castra pōnit, deinde ibi paucōs diēs commorātus noctū itinere factō cum Labiēnī et Petrēī cōpiīs sē coniungit, atque ūnīs castrīs factīs III mīlia passuum longē ā Caesaris castrīs cōnsīdunt.

Meanwhile Scipio, with the forces which we described a little earlier, left a large garrison at Utica and set out; first he pitched camp at Hadrumetum, then, after staying there a few days, he marched by night and joined forces with Labienus and Petreius, and making a single camp they settled down three miles from Caesar's camp.

Note. quās paulō ante dēmonstrāvimus: the author's cross-reference to chapter 20. Uticae, Hadrūmētī: locatives. III mīlia passuum longē: 'three miles away'. considunt: plural, because Scipio, Labienus and Petreius are now together.

B. Afr. 24.2Equitātus interim eōrum circum Caesaris mūnītiōnēs vagārī atque eōs, quī pābulandī aut aquandī grātiā extrā vallum prōgressī essent, excipere: ita omnēs adversāriōs intrā mūnītiōnēs continēre.

Meanwhile their cavalry roamed around Caesar's fortifications and picked off those who had gone beyond the rampart to forage or fetch water: in this way they kept all their opponents penned inside the fortifications.

Note. Historic infinitives: vagārī, excipere, continēre. pābulandī aut aquandī grātiā: grātiā with a genitive gerund expresses purpose, 'for the sake of foraging or fetching water'. progressī essent: subjunctive of repeated action.

B. Afr. 24.3Quā rē Caesariānī gravī annōnā sunt cōnflīctātī, ideō quod nōndum neque ab Siciliā neque ab Sardiniā commeātus subportātus erat, neque per annī tempus in marī classēs sine perīculō vagārī poterant;

As a result Caesar's men were hard pressed by a severe shortage of food, because no supplies had yet been brought from either Sicily or Sardinia, and at that time of year fleets could not move about on the sea without danger;

Note. Caesariānī: 'Caesar's men', a term of the civil war. per annī tempus: 'because of the season'; it was winter.

B. Afr. 24.3neque amplius mīlia passuum VI terrae Āfricae quōquō versus tenēbant pābulīque inopiā premēbantur.

and they held no more than six miles of African land in any direction and were hard pressed by lack of fodder.

Note. quōquō versus: 'in every direction'. amplius mīlia passuum VI: amplius with the number left in the case the verb needs, without quam.

B. Afr. 24.4Quā necessitāte coāctī veterānī mīlitēs equitēsque, quī multa terrā marīque bella cōnfēcissent et perīculīs inopiāque tālī saepe essent cōnflīctātī, algā ē lītore collēctā et aquā dulcī ēlōta et ita iūmentīs ēsurientibus datā vītam eōrum prōdūcēbant.

Forced by this necessity, the veteran soldiers and cavalry, men who had fought many wars on land and sea and had often struggled with dangers and with shortages like this, gathered seaweed from the shore, washed it in fresh water, and by giving it in this way to their starving animals kept them alive.

Note. alga … collēctā … ēlōtā … datā: a chain of ablative absolutes describing the veterans' improvisation. iūmentīs ēsurientibus: dative, 'to the starving animals'.