1.34.1Quam ob rem placuit eī ut ad Ariovistum lēgātōs mitteret, quī ab eō postulārent utī aliquem locum medium utrīsque conloquiō dēligeret: velle sēsē dē rē pūblicā et summīs utrīusque rēbus cum eō agere.So he decided to send envoys to Ariovistus to ask him to choose some place halfway between them for a conference: he wanted to discuss with him matters of state of the highest importance to both.Note. Quam ob rem: 'for this reason'. utrīsque: 'for both sides'. 1.34.2Eī lēgātiōnī Ariovistus respondit: sī quid ipsī ā Caesare opus esset, sēsē ad eum ventūrum fuisse;To this embassy Ariovistus replied that if he himself had needed anything from Caesar, he would have come to him;Note. sī quid ipsī ā Caesare opus esset: 'if he himself had needed anything from Caesar'; opus est takes the dative of the person. 1.34.2sī quid ille sē velit, illum ad sē venīre oportēre.if Caesar wanted anything from him, Caesar ought to come to him. 1.34.3Praetereā sē neque sine exercitū in eās partēs Galliae venīre audēre quās Caesar possidēret, neque exercitum sine magnō commeātū atque mōlīmentō in ūnum locum contrahere posse.Besides, he did not dare come without an army into those parts of Gaul that Caesar held, and he could not bring an army together in one place without great supplies and effort. 1.34.4Sibi autem mīrum vidērī quid in suā Galliā, quam bellō vīcisset, aut Caesarī aut omnīnō populō Rōmānō negōtiī esset.And it seemed strange to him what business Caesar, or the Roman people at all, had in his Gaul, which he had conquered in war.
Lectitō › Julius Caesar › Gallic War, Book 1 › De Bello Gallico 1.34
Caesar · De Bello Gallico I
De Bello Gallico 1.34
Ariovistus will not come
In brief. Caesar invites Ariovistus to a conference halfway between them. Ariovistus replies that Caesar should come to him if he wants something, and asks what business Rome has in the part of Gaul he has conquered.
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Read in LectitōGrammar in this passage: purpose clauses ×1, indirect statement ×1
Latin vocabulary for this passage (62 words)
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| ob, prep. with acc. | on account of, for; in compounds, to, against |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| placeō, -ēre, placuī, placitum (+ dat.) | please (placuit eī: he decided) |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| ad, prep. with acc. | to, toward; at, near; for |
| lēgātus, -ī, m. | ambassador |
| mittō, mittere, mīsī, missus | send |
| ā, ab (prep. + abl.) | away from, from; by (ā only before consonants) |
| postulō, -āre, -āvī, -ātus | ask, request, demand |
| aliquis, -quid, indef. pron. | someone, any one, something, anything, some, any |
| locus, -ī, m., plur. loca, -orum, n. | place, situation |
| medius, -a, -um | mid, middle |
| uterque, utraque, utrumque | each, either, both |
| colloquium (conloquium), -ī n. | conference, talk |
| dēligō, -ligere, -lēgī, -lēctus | choose out, choose, select |
| volō, velle, voluī | wish |
| suī, sibi, sē or sēsē, reflexive pron. | himself, herself, itself, themselves |
| dē, prep, with abl. | down from, from, out of; about, concerning, of |
| pūblicus, -a, -um | public, of the state (rēs pūblica: the state) |
| et, conj. | and; et ... et, both ... and |
| summus, -a, -um | uppermost, highest, greatest |
| cum, prep, with abl. | with |
| agō, agere, ēgī, āctus | drive; do; pass, lead; grātiās agere, see grātia |
| lēgātiō, -ōnis f. | embassy, mission |
| respondeō, -spondēre, -spondī, -spōnsus | reply, answer |
| sī, conj. | if |
| quis, qua, quid, indef. pron. | any one, anybody, anything, some one, somebody, something |
| ipse, ipsa, ipsum, intensive pron. | self, himself, herself, itself, themselves; often to be rendered by very |
| opus, operis, n. | work, task |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| veniō, venīre, vēnī, ventus | come |
| ille, illa, illud, dem. pron. | that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc |
| oportet, -ēre, oportuit (impersonal) | it is right, it is necessary |
| praetereā, adv. | besides this, besides, moreover |
| neque or nec, conj. | and not, nor; neque ... neque, neither ... nor; neque enim, for ... not |
| sine, prep. with abl. | without |
| exercitus, -ūs, m. | army |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| pars, partis, f. | part, side, direction |
| audeō, audēre, ausus sum | dare |
| possideō, -sidēre, -sēdī, -sessus | hold, possess |
| magnus, -a, -um | large, big, great, mighty; loud |
| commeātus, -ūs, m. | supplies, provisions |
| atque, ac (conj.) | and; after comparisons: as, than (ac only before consonants) |
| mōlīmentum, -ī n. | effort, trouble |
| ūnus, -a, -um | one; only, alone |
| contrahō, -ere, -trāxī, -trāctum | draw together, collect |
| possum, posse, potuī | be able, have power, can |
| autem, conj. | moreover; but, however; now |
| mīrus, -a, -um | wonderful, strange |
| videō, vidēre, vīdī, vīsus | see; pass., seem |
| quis, quid, interrog. pron. | who? which? what? |
| suus, -a, -um | his, her, its, or their own; his, her, its, their |
| bellum, -ī, n. | war |
| vincō, -ere, vīcī, victum | conquer, defeat |
| aut, conj. | or; aut ... aut, either ... or |
| omnīnō, adv. | altogether, wholly, entirely |
| populus, -ī m. | people, nation |
| Rōmānus, -a, -um | Roman |
| negōtium, -ī, n. | business, matter; task, trouble, difficulty |
Caesar, De Bello Gallico I. Latin text: T. Rice Holmes (Oxford, 1914), public domain; digital text from the Perseus Digital Library, CC BY-SA. Word analysis: LatinCy, then every word checked and corrected by hand. Vocabulary: F. Ritchie (1903, public domain) and entries written for this app. English translation, notes and grammar hints: written for this app.