Bellum Africum 44

A captured ship and Scipio's offer

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B. Afr. 44.1Intereā ex secundō commeātū, quem ā Siciliā mīserat Alienus, nāvis ūna, in quā fuerat Q. Cōminius et L. Ticida, eques Rōmānus, ab residuā classe cum errāvisset dēlātaque esset ventō ad Thapson, ā Vergiliō scaphīs nāviculīsque āctuāriīs excepta est et ad Scīpiōnem dēducta.Meanwhile, from the second convoy which Alienus had sent from Sicily, one ship, which carried Quintus Cominius and Lucius Ticida, a Roman knight, had strayed from the rest of the fleet and been carried by the wind to Thapsus; it was taken by Vergilius with skiffs and light fast boats and brought to Scipio.Note. Thapson: Greek accusative of Thapsus. cum errāvisset dēlātaque esset: cum with the pluperfect subjunctive, 'after it had strayed and been carried'. B. Afr. 44.2Item altera nāvis triēris ex eādem classe errābunda ac tempestāte dēlāta ad Aegimūrum ā classe Vārī et M. Octāviī est capta, in quā mīlitēs veterānī cum ūnō centuriōne et nōnnūllī tīrōnēs fuērunt;Likewise another ship from the same fleet, a trireme, wandering and carried by a storm to Aegimurus, was captured by the fleet of Varus and Marcus Octavius; on board were veteran soldiers with one centurion and some recruits;Note. trierīs: a trireme. errābunda: 'wandering'. P. Attius Varus and M. Octavius commanded the Pompeian fleet. B. Afr. 44.2quōs Vārus adservātōs sine contumēliā dēdūcendōs cūrāvit ad Scīpiōnem.Varus kept them under guard and had them brought to Scipio without ill-treatment.Note. adservātōs … dēdūcendōs cūrāvit: cūrō with a gerundive, 'had them taken'. B. Afr. 44.3Quī postquam ad eum pervēnērunt et ante suggestum eius cōnstitērunt, "Nōn vestrā", inquit, "sponte vōs certō sciō, sed illīus scelerātī vestrī imperātōris impulsū et imperiō coāctōs cīvēs et optimum quemque nefāriē cōnsectārī.When they reached him and stood before his platform, he said: "Not of your own will, I am sure, but driven and forced by the command of that criminal general of yours, you are hunting down your fellow citizens and all the best men wickedly.Note. Nōn vestrā sponte: 'not of your own accord'; sponte is used only in the ablative with a possessive. vōs … coāctōs … cōnsectārī: indirect statement after sciō. optimum quemque: 'all the best men', quisque with a superlative.

B. Afr. 44.4Quōs quoniam fortūna in nostram dētulit potestātem, sī, id quod facere dēbētis, rempūblicam cum optimō quōque dēfendētis, certum est vōbīs vītam et pecūniam dōnāre.Now that fortune has brought you into our power, if you do what you ought, and defend the republic together with all the best men, I am resolved to grant you your life and money.Note. certum est: 'I have decided'. cum optimō quōque: as in sentence 62. rem pūblicam is written as one word here. B. Afr. 44.4Quāpropter, quid sentiātis, prōloquiminī."So speak out and say what you think."Note. prōloquiminī: plural imperative of the deponent prōloquor.

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Grammar in this passage: cum clauses ×1, gerunds and gerundives ×1, indirect statement ×2

Latin vocabulary for this passage (88 words)

intereā, adv.	in the meantime, meanwhile
ex, ē (prep. + abl.)	out of, from; of (ē only before consonants)
secundus, -a, -um	following, favorable
commeātus, -ūs, m.	supplies, provisions
quī, quae, quod, rel. pron.	who, which
ā, ab (prep. + abl.)	away from, from; by (ā only before consonants)
mittō, mittere, mīsī, missus	send
nāvis, -is, f.	ship
ūnus, -a, -um	one; only, alone
in, prep. with acc. and abl.	with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on
sum, esse, fuī, futūrus	be
quīntus, -a, -um	fifth
et, conj.	and; et ... et, both ... and
eques, equitis m.	horseman; (pl.) cavalry
Rōmānus, -a, -um	Roman
residuus, -a, -um	remaining, lingering
classis, -is f.	fleet
cum, conj.	when, while, after; since; although
errō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	wander, stray; be mistaken
dēferō, -ferre, -tulī, -lātus	bear or carry away or off
que, enclitic conj.	and
ventus, -ī, m.	wind
ad, prep. with acc.	to, toward; at, near; for
scapha, -ae, f.	boat, skiff
nāvicula, -ae f.	small boat
āctuārius, -a, -um	fast (of ships: light, built for speed)
excipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus	take out or up, receive, welcome, entertain
dēdūcō, -dūcere, -dūxī, -ductus	lead down or away, bring; nāvem dēdūcere, to draw down or launch a ship
item	likewise, also
alter, -era, -erum	one or the other (of two); another, second
triēris, -is f. (also as adj.)	a trireme, a warship with three banks of oars
īdem, eadem, idem, dem. pron.	the same; sometimes to be translated likewise, also
errābundus, -a, -um	wandering, straying about
atque, ac (conj.)	and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants)
tempestās, -tātis, f.	weather; storm, tempest
capiō, capere, cēpī, captus	take, catch, seize; receive, suffer; adopt
mīles, mīlitis, m.	soldier
veterānus, -a, -um	veteran
cum, prep, with abl.	with
centuriō, -ōnis m.	centurion (officer commanding about 80 men)
nōnnūllus, -a, -um	not none, some, several
tīrō, -ōnis m.	a recruit, a raw soldier
adservō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus	keep, guard, hold in custody
sine, prep. with abl.	without
contumēlia, -ae f.	insult, outrage
cūrō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum	take care of; (+ gerundive) have something done
postquam, conj.	later than, after, when
is, ea, id, dem. pron.	this, that; he, she, it, they
perveniō, -venīre, -vēnī, -ventus	come through, come, arrive, reach
ante, prep, with acc. and adv.	before
suggestus, -ūs m.	platform, tribunal
cōnsistō, -sistere, -stitī, -stitus	station oneself, take one's stand; consist
nōn, adv.	not
vester, -tra, -trum	your
inquam, inquis, inquit, defective verb	I say, you say, he says
sponte, f. abl. sing., modified by meā, tuā, suā	of one's own accord, voluntarily
vōs	plur. of tū
certō, adv.	with certainty, for certain, certainly
sciō, -īre, -īvī, -ītus	know
sed, conj.	but
ille, illa, illud, dem. pron.	that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc
scelerātus, -a, -um	wicked, criminal
imperātor, -ōris, m.	commander, general
impulsus, -ūs m.	push; urging, instigation
imperium, -ī, n.	command; sway, rule
cōgō, cōgere, coēgī, coāctus	drive together, collect; compel
cīvis, -is, m. and f.	citizen, fellow-citizen, subject
bonus, -a, -um	good
quisque, quaeque, quidque, indef. pron.	each
nefāriē, adv.	wickedly, abominably
cōnsector, -ārī, -ātus sum	pursue, chase
quoniam, conj.	since now, since
fortūna, -ae, f.	fortune
noster, -tra, -trum	our
potestās, -ātis f.	power, authority
sī, conj.	if
faciō, facere, fēcī, factus	make, do; iter facere, see iter
dēbeō, -ēre, -uī, -itus	owe; with infin., ought
rēspūblica, reīpūblicae f. (rēs pūblica)	the state, the commonwealth, public affairs
dēfendō, -fendere, -fendī, -fēnsus	ward off; defend
certus, -a, -um	determined, fixed, certain; certiōrem facere, to make more certain, inform
vīta, -ae, f.	life
pecūnia, -ae, f.	money (the possession of cattle constituting wealth in early times)
dōnō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum	give; present (someone with something)
quāpropter (adv.)	for which reason, wherefore
quis, quid, interrog. pron.	who? which? what?
sentiō, sentīre, sēnsī, sēnsus	perceive, feel
prōloquor, -ī, -locūtus sum	speak out, declare openly

Anonymous, Bellum Africum. Latin text: B. Kübler and E. Wölfflin, C. Iulii Caesaris Commentarii, vol. III (Leipzig: Teubner, 1896–97), public domain; transcribed for this app from the Internet Archive scan. Word analysis: LatinCy, then every word checked and corrected by hand. English translation, notes and grammar hints: written for this app.