2.6Quod exspectāvī, iam sum adsecūtus ut vōs omnēs factam esse apertē coniūrātiōnem contrā rem pūblicam vidērētis;What I was waiting for I have now achieved: that you all see that a conspiracy has been formed openly against the state; 2.6nisi vērō sī quis est quī Catilīnae similīs cum Catilīnā sentīre nōn putet.unless, of course, there is anyone who does not think that those like Catiline agree with Catiline.Note. nisi vērō: 'unless, of course', ironic. quī ... nōn putet: 'who does not think'. Cicero mocks anyone still doubtful. 2.6Nōn est iam lēnitātī locus;There is no longer any room for leniency; 2.6sevēritātem rēs ipsa flāgitat.the situation itself demands severity. 2.6Ūnum etiam nunc concēdam: exeant, proficīscantur, nē patiantur dēsīderiō suī Catilīnam miserum tābēscere.One thing I shall grant even now: let them leave, let them set out, let them not allow poor Catiline to waste away with longing for them.Note. exeant, proficīscantur, nē patiantur: jussive subjunctives, 'let them leave ...'. dēsīderiō suī: 'from longing for them'; suī is the genitive of the reflexive, referring to the followers. The pity for 'poor Catiline' is sarcastic. 2.6Dēmōnstrābō iter: Aurēliā viā profectus est;I shall show them the route: he set out by the Aurelian Way;Note. The Via Aurelia ran north-west along the coast of Etruria, towards Manlius' camp at Faesulae. Catiline pretended he was going to exile at Massilia. 2.6sī accelerāre volent, ad vesperam cōnsequentur.if they are willing to hurry, they will catch him by evening. 2.7Ō fortūnātam rem pūblicam, sī quidem hanc sentīnam urbis ēiēcerit!O fortunate state, if it really has thrown out this sewage of the city!Note. Ō with the accusative is an exclamation: 'O fortunate state!'. sentīnam: the bilge water in the bottom of a ship, a vivid image for the city's dregs.
2.7Ūnō mē hercule Catilīnā exhaustō levāta mihi et recreāta rēs pūblica vidētur.With Catiline alone drained off, I swear, the state seems to me relieved and refreshed.Note. mē hercule (also mehercule): 'by Hercules', a common oath. Catilīnā exhaustō: ablative absolute, with the image of draining off foul water continued from sentīnam. 2.7Quid enim malī aut sceleris fingī aut cōgitārī potest quod nōn ille concēperit?For what evil or crime can be imagined or devised that he has not conceived? 2.7quis tōtā Ītaliā venēficus, quis gladiātor, quis latrō, quis sīcārius, quis parricīda, quis testāmentōrum subiector, quis circumscrīptor, quis gāneō, quis nepōs, quis adulter, quae mulier īnfāmis, quis corruptor iuventūtis, quis corruptus, quis perditus invenīrī potest quī sē cum Catilīnā nōn familiārissimē vīxisse fateātur?What poisoner in all Italy, what gladiator, what bandit, what assassin, what parricide, what forger of wills, what swindler, what glutton, what spendthrift, what adulterer, what woman of ill repute, what corrupter of youth, what corrupted youth, what ruined man can be found who does not admit that he has lived on the closest terms with Catiline?Note. A long list of interrogatives with quis: 'what poisoner ... what gladiator ...'. The catalogue of criminals is a set piece of invective. testāmentōrum subiector: someone who forges and substitutes wills. 2.7quae caedēs per hōsce annōs sine illō facta est, quod nefārium stuprum nōn per illum?What murder has been committed in these years without him, what wicked act of debauchery not through him? 2.8Iam vērō quae tanta umquam in ūllō iuventūtis inlecebra fuit quanta in illō?And again, what man ever had such a power to lure the young as he had?
2.8quī aliōs ipse amābat turpissimē, aliōrum amōrī flāgitiōsissimē serviēbat, aliīs frūctum libīdinum, aliīs mortem parentum nōn modo impellendō vērum etiam adiuvandō pollicēbātur.He himself loved some most shamefully, served the passions of others most disgracefully, and promised to some the enjoyment of their lusts, to others the death of their parents, not only urging them on but even helping.Note. The alternating aliōs ... aliōrum ... aliīs ... aliīs gives a chain of contrasts. impellendō ... adiuvandō: ablative gerunds, 'by urging ... by helping'. 2.8Nunc vērō quam subitō nōn sōlum ex urbe vērum etiam ex agrīs ingentem numerum perditōrum hominum conlēgerat!And now how suddenly he had collected a huge number of ruined men, not only from the city but also from the countryside! 2.8Nēmō nōn modo Rōmae sed nē ūllō quidem in angulō tōtīus Ītaliae oppressus aere aliēnō fuit quem nōn ad hoc incrēdibile sceleris foedus ascīverit.There was no one burdened with debt, not only at Rome but in any corner of all Italy, whom he did not enlist in this incredible pact of crime.Note. nē ūllō quidem in angulō: 'not even in any corner'. nē ... quidem frames the emphasized words. aere aliēnō oppressus: 'weighed down by debt'. Debt relief was a main promise of Catiline's movement.