Histories 2.53

Hist. 2.53.1Orīgō illī ē mūnicipiō Ferentiō, pater cōnsulāris, avus praetōrius;His origin was from the town of Ferentium, his father of consular rank, his grandfather of praetorian; Hist. 2.53.1māternum genus impār nec tamen indecōrum.his mother's family was not equal to theirs, but not without distinction. Hist. 2.53.1Pueritia ac iuventa, quālem mōnstrāvimus.His boyhood and youth were such as we have shown. Hist. 2.53.1Duōbus facinoribus, alterō flāgitiōsissimō, alterō ēgregiō, tantundem apud posterōs meruit bonae fāmae quantum malae.By two deeds, one most shameful, the other noble, he has earned from posterity as much good repute as bad. Hist. 2.53.1Ut conquīrere fābulōsa et fictīs oblectāre legentium animōs procul gravitāte coeptī operis crēdiderim, ita vulgātīs trāditīsque dēmere fidem nōn ausim.Though I should think it far from the dignity of the work I have undertaken to collect fabulous tales and delight the minds of readers with fictions, yet I would not dare to deny credit to what is commonly reported and handed down. Hist. 2.53.1Diē, quō Bedriacī certābātur, avem invīsitātā speciē apud Rēgium Lepidum celebrī lūcō cōnsēdisse incolae memorant, nec deinde coetū hominum aut circumvolitantium ālitum territam pulsamve, dōnec Othō sē ipse interficeret;On the day when the battle was being fought at Bedriacum, the local people relate, a bird of unfamiliar appearance settled in a much-frequented grove near Regium Lepidum, and was not afterwards frightened or driven off by gatherings of men or by birds flying around it, until Otho had killed himself; Hist. 2.53.1tum ablātam ex oculīs: et tempora reputantibus initium fīnemque mīrāculī cum Othōnis exitū competīsse.then it vanished from sight: and those who reckoned the times found that the beginning and end of the marvel coincided with Otho's death.