In Catilinam 3.2

3.3Nam tum cum ex urbe Catilīnam ēiciēbam— nōn enim iam vereor huius verbī invidiam, cum illa magis sit timenda, quod vīvus exierit—, sed tum cum illum exterminārī volēbam, aut reliquam coniūrātōrum manum simul exitūram aut eōs quī restitissent īnfirmōs sine illō ac dēbilīs fore putābam.

For at the time when I was driving Catiline out of the city (I am not afraid of the unpopularity of that word now, since what is more to be feared is that he got out alive), at the time when I wanted him banished, I thought either that the rest of the band of conspirators would leave with him, or that those who stayed behind would be weak and helpless without him.

Note. The dashes enclose an aside: Cicero is not afraid of being called the man who 'drove out' Catiline; what he fears is the charge that he let him get away alive. fore is the future infinitive of sum: 'would be'.

3.4Atque ego, ut vīdī, quōs maximō furōre et scelere esse īnflammātōs sciēbam, eōs nōbīscum esse et Rōmae remānsisse, in eō omnīs diēs noctēsque cōnsūmpsī ut quid agerent, quid mōlīrentur sentīrem ac vidērem, ut, quoniam auribus vestrīs propter incrēdibilem magnitūdinem sceleris minōrem fidem faceret ōrātiō mea, rem ita comprehenderem ut tum dēmum animīs salūtī vestrae prōvidērētis cum oculīs maleficium ipsum vidērētis.

And when I saw that the men I knew to be on fire with the greatest madness and wickedness were still among us and had stayed in Rome, I spent all my days and nights on this, to perceive and see what they were doing and what they were plotting, so that, since my speech would win less belief in your ears because of the incredible size of the crime, I might grasp the thing so firmly that you would only then take thought for your safety in your minds when you saw the crime itself with your eyes.

Note. ut … sentīrem ac vidērem: purpose. The second ut clause explains why: the crime was so huge that the people would not believe a mere speech (ōrātiō mea), so Cicero wanted proof they could see with their own eyes.

3.4Itaque ut comperī lēgātōs Allobrogum bellī Trānsalpīnī et tumultūs Gallicī excitandī causā ā P. Lentulō esse sollicitātōs, eōsque in Galliam ad suōs cīvīs eōdemque itinere cum litterīs mandātīsque ad Catilīnam esse missōs, comitemque eīs adiūnctum esse T. Volturcium, atque huic esse ad Catilīnam datās litterās, facultātem mihi oblātam putāvī ut, quod erat difficillimum quodque ego semper optābam ab dīs immortālibus, tōta rēs nōn sōlum ā mē sed etiam ā senātū et ā vōbīs manifestō dēprenderētur.

And so, when I learned that envoys of the Allobroges had been tampered with by Publius Lentulus to stir up a war beyond the Alps and a rising in Gaul, and that they were being sent to their fellow citizens in Gaul, and on the same journey with letters and instructions to Catiline, and that Titus Volturcius had been attached to them as a companion, and that a letter to Catiline had been given to him, I thought a chance had been offered me, the thing that was hardest and that I was always praying the immortal gods for, that the whole affair might be caught red-handed not only by me but also by the senate and by you.

Note. The Allobroges were a Gallic people of the Rhône valley who had come to Rome to complain of their debts. The conspirators tried to win them over; instead they reported to Cicero, who used them as a trap. The indirect statements after comperī run on: lēgātōs … esse sollicitātōs, eōsque … esse missōs, comitemque … adiūnctum esse, huic esse … datās litterās.

3.5Itaque hesternō diē L. Flaccum et C. Pomptīnum praetōrēs, fortissimōs atque amantissimōs reī pūblicae virōs, ad mē vocāvī, rem exposuī, quid fierī placēret ostendī.

So yesterday I called to my house the praetors Lucius Flaccus and Gaius Pomptinus, very brave men and most devoted to the republic; I explained the matter and showed them what I wanted done.

Note. Praetors were the magistrates below the consuls; they could command troops in an emergency. quid fierī placēret: indirect question, 'what he wanted done'.

3.5Illī autem, quī omnia dē rē pūblicā praeclāra atque ēgregia sentīrent, sine recūsātiōne ac sine ūllā morā negōtium suscēpērunt et, cum advesperāsceret, occultē ad pontem Mulvium pervēnērunt atque ibi in proximīs vīllīs ita bipertītō fuērunt ut Tiberis inter eōs et pōns interesset.

They, since they held every fine and noble feeling about the republic, took on the task without objection or any delay, and when evening came on they went secretly to the Mulvian Bridge, and there they placed themselves in the nearest country houses in two groups, so that the Tiber and the bridge lay between them.

Note. The Mulvian Bridge carried the Via Flaminia over the Tiber north of Rome: the road north towards Catiline's army in Etruria. quī … sentīrent: a relative clause giving a reason ('since they …'), so subjunctive.

3.5Eōdem autem et ipsī sine cuiusquam suspīciōne multōs fortīs virōs ēdūxerant, et ego ex praefectūrā Reātīnā complūrīs dēlēctōs adulēscentīs quōrum operā ūtor adsiduē in reī pūblicae praesidiō cum gladiīs mīseram.

To the same place they had also brought, without anyone suspecting, many brave men, and I had sent several picked young men from the prefecture of Reate, whose help I use constantly in guarding the republic, armed with swords.

Note. Reate was a Sabine town that had Cicero as its patron; the young men from there served as his bodyguard. quōrum operā ūtor: ūtor takes the ablative.

3.6Interim tertiā ferē vigiliā exācta, cum iam pontem Mulvium magnō comitātū lēgātī Allobrogēs ingredī inciperent ūnāque Volturcius, fit in eōs impetus;

Meanwhile, at about the end of the third watch, when the envoys of the Allobroges with a large escort, and Volturcius with them, were starting to cross the Mulvian Bridge, an attack is made on them;

Note. The Roman night was divided into four watches; the end of the third is a little before dawn. Note the switch to the vivid present: fit, dūcuntur, sēdātur, trāduntur.

3.6dūcuntur et ab illīs gladiī et ā nostrīs.

swords are drawn both by them and by our men.

3.6Rēs praetōribus erat nōta sōlīs, ignōrābātur ā cēterīs.

The plan was known to the praetors alone; it was unknown to the others.

Note. Rēs … nōta sōlīs: the arrest was a set-up known only to the praetors; the envoys themselves were in on it, but their escort and Volturcius were not.