Lectitō › Julius Caesar › The African War (Bellum Africum)
Bellum Africum 4
Plancus writes to Considius
Anonymous, Bellum Africum. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōB. Afr. 4.1L. Plancus interim lēgātus petit ā Caesare, utī sibi daret potestātem cum Cōnsidiō agendī, sī posset aliquā ratiōne perdūcī ad sānitātem.
Meanwhile his legate Lucius Plancus asked Caesar to give him leave to negotiate with Considius, in case he could somehow be brought to his senses.
Note. L. Plancus: Lucius Munatius Plancus, Caesar's legate. ūtī = ut. agendī: gerund in the genitive with potestātem, 'the power of negotiating'. sī posset: 'in case he could', a conditional of hope. ad sānitātem perdūcī: 'be brought to his senses'.
B. Afr. 4.2Itaque datā facultāte litterās cōnscrībit et eās captīvō dat perferendās in oppidum ad Cōnsidium.
So, when permission was given, he wrote a letter and gave it to a prisoner to take into the town to Considius.
Note. perferendās: gerundive of purpose agreeing with eās: 'gave them to be carried'.
B. Afr. 4.3Quō simulatque captīvus cum pervēnisset litterāsque, ut erat mandātum, Cōnsidiō porrigere coepisset, priusquam acciperet ille, "Unde", inquit, "istās?"
As soon as the prisoner had arrived there and began to hand the letter to Considius, as he had been instructed, Considius said, before he took it, 'Where is this from?'
Note. Quō: 'to that place'. simulatque … cum: the conjunction simulatque ('as soon as') is printed as two words, simul atque; the cum after it is redundant. Considius' curt question is elliptical: Unde (sc. sunt) istās? or (sc. affers) istās, 'Where do you bring these from?' iste often has a contemptuous tone.
B. Afr. 4.3Tum captīvus: "Imperātōre ā Caesare."
Then the prisoner said: 'From the commander, Caesar.'
Note. The prisoner answers Considius' unde with a/ab + ablative: 'From the commander Caesar.'
B. Afr. 4.4Tum Cōnsidius, "Ūnus est", inquit, "Scīpiō imperātor hōc tempore populī Rōmānī";
Then Considius said, 'There is only one commander of the Roman people at this time, Scipio';
Note. Considius refuses to grant Caesar the title imperātor: for the Pompeians, Q. Metellus Scipio, Pompey's father-in-law, was now the commander-in-chief.
B. Afr. 4.4deinde in cōnspectū suō statim captīvum interficī iubet litterāsque nōndum perlēctās, sīcut erant signātae, dat hominī certō ad Scīpiōnem perferendās.
then he ordered the prisoner to be killed at once before his eyes and gave the letter, still unread and sealed as it was, to a trusted man to take to Scipio.
Note. in cōnspectū suō: 'before his eyes'. sīcut erant signātae: 'still sealed as they were'. hominī certō: 'a reliable man'.
Vocabulary
| interim (adv.) | meanwhile |
| lēgātus, -ī, m. | ambassador |
| petō, -ere, -īvī or -iī, -ītus | seek, ask; attack |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| dō, dare, dedī, datus | give |
| potestās, -ātis f. | power, authority |
| cum, prep, with abl. | with |
| agō, agere, ēgī, āctus | drive; do; pass, lead; grātiās agere, see grātia |
| sī, conj. | if |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| aliquī, -qua, -quod, indef. pron. adj. | some, any |
| ratiō, -ōnis, f. | plan, means, method, manner; reason; account |
| perdūcō, -dūcere, -dūxī, -ductus | lead or bring through, lead, bring |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| sānitās, -tātis, f. | soundness; right reason, sanity |
| itaque, adv. | and so, accordingly, therefore |
| facultās, -tātis, f. | possibility, opportunity, chance, means |
| littera, -ae f. | letter (of the alphabet); pl. letter, writing |
| cōnscrībō, -ere, -scrīpsī, -scrīptum | enlist, enroll |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| captīvus, -a, -um | captive |
| perferō, -ferre, -tulī, -lātus | bear through, bear, endure; weather |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| oppidum, -ī, n. | town |
| quō, adv. | to what place? whither? to which place, whither; for which reason, wherefore, therefore; quō ūsque, till when? how long? |
| simul atque (simulatque), conj. | as soon as |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| perveniō, -venīre, -vēnī, -ventus | come through, come, arrive, reach |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| mandō, -dāre, -dāvī, -dātus | put in hand, intrust, commit; charge, command |
| porrigō, -ere, -rēxī, -rēctus | stretch out, hold out, hand |
| coepī, coepisse, coeptus (used in tenses of completed action) | have begun, began |
| priusquam, conj. | before than, sooner than, before |
| accipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take to oneself, receive, accept; hear; suffer |
| ille, illa, illud, dem. pron. | that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc |
| unde, adv. | whence |
| inquam, inquis, inquit, defective verb | I say, you say, he says |
| iste, ista, istud, dem. pron. | that of yours, that |
| tum, adv. | then, at that time |
| imperātor, -ōris, m. | commander, general |
| ūnus, -a, -um | one; only, alone |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| tempus, temporis, n. | time, season |
| populus, -ī m. | people, nation |
| Rōmānus, -a, -um | Roman |
| deinde, adv. | then, next |
| cōnspectus, -ūs, m. | sight |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| statim, adv. | on the spot, forthwith, at once, immediately |
| interficiō, -ficere, -fēcī, -fectus | put out of the way, kill |
| iubeō, iubēre, iussī, iussus | bid, order, command |
| nōndum, adv. | not yet |
| perlegō, -ere, -lēgī, -lēctus | read through, read out |
| sīcut (conj.) | just as |
| signō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | mark, seal; certify |
| homō, hominis, m. | man |
| certus, -a, -um | determined, fixed, certain; certiōrem facere, to make more certain, inform |