Bellum Alexandrinum 66

B. Alex. 66.1Paucīs diēbus in eā prōvinciā cōnsūmptīs Sextum Caesarem, amīcum et necessārium suum, legiōnī Syriaeque praeficit;

After spending a few days in that province, he put Sextus Caesar, his friend and kinsman, in command of the legion and of Syria;

Note. Sextum Caesarem: Sextus Julius Caesar, a young kinsman of the dictator. legiōnī Syriaeque praeficit: praeficiō takes the dative of what is put under command.

B. Alex. 66.1ipse eādem classe, quā vēnerat, proficīscitur in Ciliciam.

he himself set out for Cilicia with the same fleet in which he had come.

Note. eādem classe, quā vēnerat: ablative of means, 'by the same fleet by which he had come'.

B. Alex. 66.2Cuius prōvinciae cīvitātēs omnēs ēvocat Tarsum, quod oppidum ferē tōtīus Ciliciae nōbilissimum fortissimumque est.

He summoned all the communities of that province to Tarsus, the most famous and strongest town in almost the whole of Cilicia.

Note. Tarsum: accusative of the town to which, without a preposition. quod oppidum: the relative adjective agrees with oppidum.

B. Alex. 66.3Ibi rēbus omnibus prōvinciae et fīnitimārum cīvitātium cōnstitūtīs cupiditāte proficīscendī ad bellum gerendum nōn diūtius morātur magnīsque itineribus per Cappadociam cōnfectīs bīduum Mazacae commorātus Comana vēnit, vetustissimum et sanctissimum in Cappadociā Bellōnae templum, quod tantā religiōne colitur, ut sacerdōs eius deae maiestāte, imperiō, potentiā secundus ā rēge cōnsēnsū gentis illīus habeātur.

There he settled all the affairs of the province and of the neighbouring communities, and in his eagerness to set out to wage the war he delayed no longer; making forced marches through Cappadocia and stopping two days at Mazaca, he came to Comana, the most ancient and holy temple of Bellona in Cappadocia, which is worshipped with such awe that its priest is held, by the agreement of that people, to be second only to the king in majesty, authority and power.

Note. proficīscendī: gerund in the genitive with cupiditāte. ad bellum gerendum: gerundive of purpose. Mazacae: locative. Comāna: neuter plural accusative, the place to which. sānctissimum: the edition misprints sānctissmum; the reading has been corrected. Bellōnae: the Romans identified the Cappadocian goddess Ma with their war-goddess Bellona. ut … habeātur: result clause.

B. Alex. 66.4Id hominī nōbilissimō Lycomēdī Bīthȳnō adiūdicāvit, quī rēgiō Cappadocum genere ortus iūre minimē dubiō, vetustāte tamen propter adversam fortūnam maiōrum suōrum mūtātiōnemque generis intermissō sacerdōtium id repetēbat.

He awarded this priesthood to Lycomedes, a Bithynian of the highest birth, who was descended from the royal family of the Cappadocians and was claiming the priesthood by a right that was not at all in doubt, but which had lapsed over the years because of the misfortunes of his ancestors and the change of dynasty.

Note. Id: the priesthood (sacerdōtium) just mentioned. iūre minimē dubiō, vetustāte tamen … intermissō: 'by a right not at all in doubt, but one that had lapsed with time'. maiōrum: 'ancestors', the genitive plural of maiōrēs.

B. Alex. 66.5Frātrī autem Ariobarzānis Ariarathī, cum bene meritus uterque eōrum dē rēpūblicā esset, nē aut regnī hērēditās Ariarathēn sollicitāret aut hērēs regnī terrēret Ariobarzānēn, partem Armeniae minōris concessit eumque Ariobarzānī attribuit, quī sub eius imperiō ac diciōne esset.

To Ariarathes, the brother of Ariobarzanes, since each of them had served the Republic well, he granted a part of Lesser Armenia, so that neither the inheritance of the kingdom should tempt Ariarathes nor the heir to the kingdom alarm Ariobarzanes; and he made him subject to Ariobarzanes, so that he would be under his authority and rule.

Note. Ariarathī: dative, in apposition to Frātrī. nē aut … aut: a negative purpose clause, 'so that neither … nor'. Ariarathēn, Ariobarzanēn: Greek accusatives in -ēn. quī … esset: relative clause of purpose, 'so that he should be'.

B. Alex. 66.5Ipse iter inceptum similī vēlōcitāte cōnficere coepit.

He himself began to complete the journey he had begun with the same speed.

Note. simili vēlōcitāte: ablative of manner.