In Catilinam 2.11

2.24Ō bellum magnō opere pertimēscendum, cum hanc sit habitūrus Catilīna scortōrum cohortem praetōriam!

What a war to be greatly feared, when Catiline is going to have this bodyguard of prostitutes!

Note. Ō bellum … pertimēscendum: accusative of exclamation. cohortem praetōriam: the general's bodyguard; Catiline's will be made of prostitutes.

2.24Īnstruite nunc, Quirītēs, contrā hās tam praeclārās Catilīnae cōpiās vestra praesidia vestrōsque exercitūs.

Draw up now, citizens, your garrisons and your armies against these splendid forces of Catiline.

2.24Et prīmum gladiātōrī illī cōnfectō et sauciō cōnsulēs imperātōrēsque vestrōs oppōnite;

And first set your consuls and generals against that worn-out and wounded gladiator;

Note. gladiātōrī illī: Catiline himself, insulted as a beaten gladiator. cōnfectō et sauciō: 'worn out and wounded'.

2.24deinde contrā illam naufragōrum ēiectam ac dēbilitātam manum flōrem tōtīus Ītaliae ac rōbur ēdūcite.

then lead out the flower and strength of all Italy against that shipwrecked and crippled band of castaways.

2.24Iam vērō urbēs colōniārum ac mūnicipiōrum respondēbunt Catilīnae tumulīs silvestribus.

Indeed the cities of the colonies and the towns will be a match for Catiline's wooded hills.

Note. The towns of Italy will be a match for Catiline's 'wooded hills', the hideouts of his band. Catilīnae goes with tumulīs.

2.24Neque ego cēterās cōpiās, ōrnāmenta, praesidia vestra cum illīus latrōnis inopiā atque egestāte cōnferre dēbeō.

Nor should I compare the rest of your forces, your equipment and your garrisons with the poverty and want of that bandit.

2.25Sed sī, omissīs hīs rēbus quibus nōs suppeditāmur, eget ille, senātū, equitibus Rōmānīs, urbe, aerāriō, vectīgālibus, cūnctā Ītaliā, prōvinciīs omnibus, exterīs nātiōnibus, sī hīs rēbus omissīs causās ipsās quae inter sē cōnflīgunt contendere velīmus, ex eō ipsō quam valdē illī iaceant intellegere possumus.

But if we leave aside all these things with which we are supplied and he is lacking, the senate, the Roman knights, the city, the treasury, the revenues, all Italy, all the provinces, the foreign nations; if, leaving these aside, we wished to compare the very causes that are fighting each other, we can see from that alone how utterly they are beaten.

Note. eget ille: understand 'with which he is lacking'. A long list of Rome's resources (senate, knights, treasury, revenues, provinces). causās ipsās … contendere: 'to compare the causes themselves'. quam valdē illī iaceant: indirect question, 'how badly they are beaten'.

2.25Ex hāc enim parte pudor pugnat, illinc petulantia;

For on this side fights decency, on that side insolence;

Note. Sentences 55-63 are a famous passage of antithesis: hinc (our side) against illinc (Catiline's), virtue against vice, in short balanced clauses with the verb pugnat understood.

2.25hinc pudīcitia, illinc stuprum;

on this side chastity, on that side lewdness;

2.25hinc fidēs, illinc fraudātiō;

on this side good faith, on that side fraud;

2.25hinc pietās, illinc scelus;

on this side devotion, on that side crime;

2.25hinc cōnstantia, illinc furor;

on this side steadiness, on that side madness;

2.25hinc honestās, illinc turpitūdō;

on this side honour, on that side disgrace;

2.25hinc continentia, illinc libīdō;

on this side self-control, on that side lust;

2.25hinc dēnique aequitās, temperantia, fortitūdō, prūdentia, virtūtēs omnēs certant cum inīquitāte, luxuriā, ignāviā, temeritāte, cum vitiīs omnibus;

on this side, in short, justice, moderation, courage, wisdom, all the virtues contend with injustice, extravagance, cowardice, recklessness, with all the vices;

Note. The four cardinal virtues appear here: aequitās (justice), temperantia (moderation), fortitūdō (courage), prūdentia (wisdom).

2.25postrēmō cōpia cum egestāte, bona ratiō cum perditā, mēns sāna cum āmentiā, bona dēnique spēs cum omnium rērum dēspērātiōne cōnflīgit.

lastly plenty fights with poverty, sound reason with ruined reason, a sane mind with madness, and, finally, good hope with despair of everything.

2.25In eius modī certāmine ac proeliō nōnne, sī hominum studia dēficiant, dī ipsī immortālēs cōgant ab hīs praeclārissimīs virtūtibus tot et tanta vitia superārī?

In a contest and battle of this kind, even if the zeal of men should fail, would not the immortal gods themselves force so many and such great vices to be overcome by these most glorious virtues?

Note. nōnne expects the answer 'yes'. sī … dēficiant … cōgant: an 'ideal' condition with present subjunctives, 'if … should fail, would not …'.