Lectitō › Sallust › The War with Catiline
Bellum Catilinae 41
The Allobroges choose Rome
Sallust, Bellum Catilinae. Latin text with a sentence-by-sentence English translation, notes and vocabulary.
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Read in LectitōCat. 41.1Sed Allobrogēs diū in incertō habuēre, quidnam cōnsilī caperent.
But the Allobroges were long uncertain what course to take.
Note. in incertō habuēre: 'they held it in doubt'. habuēre = habuērunt; Sallust often uses the -ēre ending of the perfect. quidnam cōnsilī caperent: indirect deliberative question; cōnsilī is partitive genitive with quidnam.
Cat. 41.2In alterā parte erat aes aliēnum, studium bellī, magna mercēs in spē victōriae;
On one side were debt, love of war, and great rewards in the hope of victory;
Note. The Gauls weigh two sides (in alterā parte … at in alterā), each a list without verbs, a typical Sallustian balance. aes aliēnum 'another's money' = debt.
Cat. 41.2at in alterā maiōrēs opēs, tūta cōnsilia, prō incertā spē certa praemia.
but on the other greater resources, safe counsels, and sure rewards instead of an uncertain hope.
Cat. 41.3Haec illīs volventibus tandem vīcit fortūna reī pūblicae.
As they turned these things over, the good fortune of the Republic at last won.
Note. haec illīs volventibus: ablative absolute, 'as they turned these things over'. fortūna reī pūblicae 'the good fortune of the Republic' is the subject of vīcit.
Cat. 41.4Itaque Q. Fabiō Sangae, quoius patrōciniō cīvitās plūrumum ūtēbātur, rem omnem, utī cognōverant, aperiunt.
So they reveal the whole matter, just as they had learned it, to Quintus Fabius Sanga, whose patronage their state used most of all.
Note. Q. Fabius Sanga was the Allobroges' patron at Rome; foreign peoples often had a Roman noble who looked after their interests. quoius = cuius; plūrumum = plūrimum, here adverbial: 'most of all'.
Cat. 41.5Cicerō per Sangam cōnsiliō cognitō lēgātīs praecipit, ut studium coniūrātiōnis vehementer simulent, cēterōs adeant, bene polliceantur dentque operam, utī eōs quam maxumē manufestōs habeant.
Cicero, having learned of the plan through Sanga, instructs the envoys to pretend a strong zeal for the conspiracy, to approach the others, to promise freely, and to do their best to have them caught as plainly as possible.
Note. praecipit, ut … simulent, … adeant, … polliceantur, … dent: a run of indirect commands in the present subjunctive after a historic present. operam dare, utī … 'take care that …'. quam maxumē manufestōs 'caught as red-handed as possible': quam + superlative = 'as … as possible'.
Vocabulary
| sed, conj. | but |
| diū, adv. | for a long time, a long time or while, long; comp |
| in, prep. with acc. and abl. | with acc.: into, onto, against; with abl.: in, on |
| incertus, -a, -um | uncertain, unreliable |
| habeō, -ēre, -uī, -itus | have, hold; consider |
| quisnam, quaenam, quidnam, interrog. pron. | who, which, or what, pray? who? which? what? |
| cōnsilium, -ī, n. | advice; plan, design, purpose; prudence |
| capiō, capere, cēpī, captus | take, catch, seize; receive, suffer; adopt |
| alter, -era, -erum | one or the other (of two); another, second |
| pars, partis, f. | part, side, direction |
| sum, esse, fuī, futūrus | be |
| aes, aeris, n. | copper, bronze |
| aliēnus, -a, -um | belonging to another, out of place |
| studium, -ī, n. | eagerness, zeal; study, pursuit |
| bellum, -ī, n. | war |
| magnus, -a, -um | large, big, great, mighty; loud |
| mercēs, mercēdis, f. | pay, reward, wages |
| spēs, speī, f. | hope |
| victōria, -ae, f. | victory |
| at, conj. | but |
| ops, opis f.; pl. opēs, -um | help; (pl.) resources, wealth, power |
| tūtus, -a, -um | safe |
| prō, prep. with abl. | before, in front of; for, in behalf of; for, as; in return for, for |
| certus, -a, -um | determined, fixed, certain; certiōrem facere, to make more certain, inform |
| praemium, -ī, n. | reward |
| hic, haec, hoc, dem. pron. | this; ille ... hīc, that ... this, the former ... the latter |
| ille, illa, illud, dem. pron. | that; he, she, it, they; ille ... hīc, see hīc |
| volvō, -ere, volvī, volūtus | roll, turn over; ponder (multa sēcum volvere) |
| tandem, adv. | at length or last, finally |
| vincō, -ere, vīcī, victum | conquer, defeat |
| fortūna, -ae, f. | fortune |
| rēs, reī, f. | thing, matter, affair, circumstance, situation; rē vērā, in truth, in fact, really |
| pūblicus, -a, -um | public, of the state (rēs pūblica: the state) |
| itaque, adv. | and so, accordingly, therefore |
| quīntus, -a, -um | fifth |
| quī, quae, quod, rel. pron. | who, which |
| patrōcinium, -ī n. | protection, patronage; legal defence |
| cīvitās, -tātis, f. | state |
| plūrimum (adv.) | most, very much (plūrimum posse: be most powerful) |
| ūtor, ūtī, ūsus | use |
| omnis, -e | all, every |
| ut, conj. | as; when; that; ita ut, as |
| cognōscō, -gnōscere, -gnōvī, -gnitus | find out, learn; in tenses of completed action, have found out, know |
| aperiō, -īre, -uī, -tus | open |
| per, prep, with ace. | through, by means of |
| lēgātus, -ī, m. | ambassador |
| praecipiō, -cipere, -cēpī, -ceptus | take beforehand, anticipate; order, charge |
| coniūrātiō, -ōnis f. | conspiracy |
| vehementer, adv. | violently, vehemently; earnestly; exceedingly, greatly |
| simulō, -āre, -āvī, -ātum | pretend |
| cēterī, -ae, -a, plur. adj. | the other, the remaining, the rest of |
| adeō, -īre, -iī, -itus | go to, approach |
| bene, adv. | well; successfully |
| polliceor, -licērī, -licitus | promise |
| dō, dare, dedī, datus | give |
| que, enclitic conj. | and |
| opera, -ae, f. | effort, work, labor |
| is, ea, id, dem. pron. | this, that; he, she, it, they |
| quam, adv. | how? as; than; with superl., as ... as possible |
| maximē, adv. | very greatly, exceedingly, especially |
| manifestus, -a, -um | plain, clear; caught in the act |