Lectitō › Julius Caesar › The Alexandrian War (Bellum Alexandrinum)
Bellum Alexandrinum 6
Ganymedes fouls the water
Hirtius, Bellum Alexandrinum. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōB. Alex. 6.1Hōc probātō cōnsiliō magnum ac difficile opus adgreditur.
Having approved this plan, he set about a great and difficult work.
Note. aggreditur (Kübler adgreditur): deponent, 'he set about'.
B. Alex. 6.1Interseptīs enim specibus atque omnibus urbis partibus exclūsīs, quae ab ipsō tenēbantur, aquae magnam vim ex marī rotīs ac māchinātiōnibus exprimere contendit;
For he blocked off the channels and shut off all the parts of the city that he himself held, and set about forcing a great quantity of water out of the sea with wheels and machinery;
Note. Interseptīs … specibus … exclūsīs partibus: two ablatives absolute. quae ab ipsō tenēbantur: ipsō is Ganymedes. rotīs ac māchinātiōnibus: water-wheels and lifting machines.
B. Alex. 6.1hanc locīs superiōribus fundere in partem Caesaris nōn intermittēbat.
he kept pouring this from the higher ground into Caesar's part without a break.
Note. hanc (aquam) … fundere … nōn intermittēbat: 'he did not stop pouring'. locīs superiōribus: ablative of place, 'from higher ground'.
B. Alex. 6.2Quam ob causam salsior paulō praeter cōnsuētūdinem aqua trahēbātur ex proximīs aedificiīs magnamque hominibus admīrātiōnem praebēbat, quam ob rem id accidisset;
For this reason the water drawn from the nearest buildings was somewhat saltier than usual, and caused men great surprise at why this had happened;
Note. salsior paulō praeter cōnsuētūdinem: 'somewhat saltier than usual'; paulō is ablative of degree of difference. quam ob rem id accidisset: indirect question.
B. Alex. 6.2nec satis sibi ipsī crēdēbant, cum sē īnferiōrēs eiusdem generis ac sapōris aquā dīcerent utī, atque ante cōnsuēssent, vulgōque inter sē cōnferēbant et dēgustandō, quantum inter sē differrent aquae, cognōscēbant.
and they did not quite trust themselves, since those lower down said they were using water of the same kind and taste as before, and they compared it openly with one another and, by tasting, learned how much the waters differed.
Note. cum … dīcerent: causal cum. sē īnferiōrēs: 'they, the ones lower down'. vulgō: 'openly, all together'. dēgustandō: gerund, 'by tasting'. quantum … differrent: indirect question.
B. Alex. 6.3Parvō vērō temporis spatiō haec propior bibī omnīnō nōn poterat, illa īnferior corruptior iam salsiorque reperiēbātur.
But in a short time the nearer water could not be drunk at all, and the lower was found to be already fouler and saltier.
Note. haec propior … illa īnferior: 'this nearer (water) … that lower (water)'. bibī: present passive infinitive.
Vocabulary
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| probō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | prove, show; approve |
| cōnsilium, -ī, n. | advice; plan, design, purpose; prudence |
| magnus, -a, -um | large, big, great, mighty; loud |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| difficilis, -e | not easy, difficult |
| opus, operis, n. | work, task |
| adgredior, -gredī, -gressus sum | approach; address; attack; undertake |
| intersaepiō, -īre, -saepsī, -saeptus | fence off, block, cut off |
| enim, conj. | for |
| specus, -ūs m. | cave, grotto |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| urbs, urbis, f. | city |
| pars, partis, f. | part, side, direction |
| exclūdō, -clūdere, -clūsī, -clūsus | shut out, hinder, prevent |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron. | self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very |
| teneō, -ēre, -uī, -tus | hold, keep; hold back, restrain, stop |
| aqua, -ae, f. | water |
| vīs, vīs, f. | violence, force; virtue, potency, efficacy; plur. vīrēs, -ium, strength; omnibus vīribus, with all one's strength, with might and main |
| ex, ē (prep. + abl.) | out of, from; of (ē only before consonants) |
| mare, maris, n. | sea |
| rota, -ae f. | wheel |
| māchinātiō, -ōnis f. | machine, device |
| exprimō, -primere, -pressī, -pressus | press out |
| contendō, -tendere, -tendī, -tentus | stretch, hasten |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| superior, -ius, adj. | higher; former, previous, preceding |
| fundō, -ere, fūdī, fūsum | pour; rout, scatter (an enemy) |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| nōn, adv. | not |
| intermittō, -mittere, -mīsī, -missus | leave off, interrupt; let pass; pass., be left between, intervene, elapse |
| ob, prep. with acc. | on account of, for; in compounds, to, against |
| causa, -ae, f. | cause, reason; abl. causā, for the sake of |
| salsus, -a, -um | salted, salt |
| paulō, adv. | by a little, a little, somewhat |
| praeter, prep. with acc. | before, past, by; besides, except |
| cōnsuētūdō, -inis f. | custom, habit; way of life |
| trahō, trahere, trāxī, trāctus | draw, drag |
| proximus, -a, -um | nearest, next |
| aedificium, -ī n. | building |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| homō, hominis, m. | man |
| admīrātiō, -ōnis f. | wonder, admiration |
| praebeō, -ēre, -uī, -itus | hold forth, supply, furnish, give; show, present, exhibit |
| quī, quae, quod, interrog. pron. adj. | what? |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| accidō, -cidere, -cidī | fall to or upon; befall, happen |
| neque or nec, conj. | and not, nor; neque ... neque, neither ... nor; neque enim, for ... not |
| satis, adv. | enough, sufficiently |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| crēdō, -dere, -didī, -ditus | believe |
| cum, conj. | when, while, after; since; although |
| īnferior, -ius | lower |
| īdem, eadem, idem, dem. pron. | the same; sometimes to be translated likewise, also |
| genus, generis, n. | kind, nature |
| sapor, -ōris m. | taste, flavour |
| dīcō, dīcere, dīxī, dictus | say, speak; diem dīcere, to appoint or set a day |
| ūtor, ūtī, ūsus | use |
| ante, prep, with acc. and adv. | before |
| cōnsuēscō, -suēscere, -suēvī, -suētus | become accustomed; in tenses of completed action, have become accustomed, be accustomed or wont |
| vulgō (adv.) | everywhere, commonly |
| inter, prep, with acc. | among, between |
| cōnferō, cōnferre, contulī, conlātus | bring together; grant, confer; sē cōnferre, to betake oneself, make one's way |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| dēgustō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | taste, take a taste of |
| quantum, adv. | how much? how? |
| differō, differre, distulī, dīlātum | differ; scatter, put off |
| cognōscō, -gnōscere, -gnōvī, -gnitus | find out, learn; in tenses of completed action, have found out, know |
| parvus, -a, -um | little, small |
| vērō, adv. | in truth, indeed; however |
| tempus, temporis, n. | time, season |
| spatium, -ī, n. | space, interval; space of time, time |
| propior, -ius | nearer (+ dat.) |
| bibō, bibere, bibī | drink |
| omnīnō, adv. | altogether, wholly, entirely |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| ille, illa, illud, dem. pron. | that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc |
| corruptus, -a, -um | spoiled, tainted, corrupt |
| iam, adv. | now, already |
| reperiō, reperīre, repperī, repertus | find, discover |