plerisque regressis in castra sua, noctem ad erumpendum liberam habuissent, et septem armatorum hominum milia perrumpere etiam confertos hostes possent, neque per se ipsi id facere conati sunt neque alium sequi voluerunt. Nocte prope tota P. Sempronius Tuditanus non destitit monere, adhortari1 eos, dum paucitas hostium circa castra, dum quies ac silentium esset, dum nox inceptum tegere posset, se ducem sequerentur: ante lucem pervenire in tuta loca, in sociorum urbes posse. Sicut avorum memoria P. Decius tribunus militum in Samnio, sicut nobis adolescentibus priore Punico bello Calpurnius Flamma2 trecentis voluntariis, cum ad tumulum eos capiendum situm inter medios duceret hostes, dixit Moriamur, milites, et morte nostra eripiamus ex obsidione circumventas legiones: si hoc P. Sempronius diceret, nec viros quidem nec Romanos3 vos duceret, si nemo tantae virtutis extitisset comes. Viam non ad gloriam magis quam ad salutem ferentem demonstrat; reduces in patriam ad parentes, ad conjuges ac liberos facit. Ut servemini, deest vobis animus? Quid, si moriendum pro patria esset, faceretis? Quinquaginta milia civium sociorumque circa vos eo ipso die caesa jacent. Si tot exempla virtutis non movent, nihil unquam movebit; si tanta clades vilem vitam non fecit, nulla faciet. Et liberi atque incolumes desiderate patriam : immo1 desiderate, dum 1 Monere refers to the reproaches which Tuditanus threw against them, adhortari to his rousing and inflaming the flickerings of courage and energy which still existed among them. Admonemus cunctantem, adhortamur proficiscentem. 2 The patriotic self-devotion of two Roman tribuni militum, who, to save the rest of the army, threw themselves and their cohorts in the way of the enemy, is often spoken of with high commendation; and the more joyfully because they both escaped the death which appeared certain. The exploit of P. Decius Mus, in a war with the Samnites, is related in Liv. vii. 34: that of M. Calpurnius Flamma was performed in Sicily during the First Punic war; but from the loss of the second decade of Livy's work, we have not his account of it. It is related, however, in an extract from Cato's Origines preserved by Gellius, Noctes Atticae, iii. 7. 3Neither as men nor as Romans;' but as quidem is joined to the one nec with the sense that it has in the expression ne-quidem, the meaning here is non modo Romanos sed ne viros quidem. 4 Immo unsays the previous sentence, and puts a stronger in its place. Zumpt, § 277. The former sentence was, 'Long for your fatherland, whilst you are freemen;' the new one, nay, long for it whilst patria est, dum cives ejus estis. Sero nunc desideratis, deminuti capite,1 abalienati jure civium, servi Carthaginiensium facti. Pretio redituri estis eo, unde ignavia ac nequitia abistis? P. Sempronium civem vestrum non audistis arma capere ac sequi se jubentem: Hannibalem post paullo audistis castra prodi et arma tradi jubentem. Quam ego ignaviam istorum accuso, cum scelus possim accusare? Non enim modo sequi recusarunt bene monentem, sed obsistere ac retinere conati sunt, ni strictis gladiis viri fortissimi inertes summovissent. Prius, inquam, P. Sempronio per civium agmen quam per hostium fuit erumpendum. Hos cives patria desideret? quorum si ceteri similes fuissent, neminem hodie ex iis, qui ad Cannas pugnaverunt, civem haberet. Ex milibus septem armatorum sexcenti extiterunt, qui erumpere auderent, qui in patriam liberi atque armati redirent: neque iis quadraginta milia2 hostium obstitere. Quam tutum iter duarum prope legionum agmini futurum censetis fuisse ? Haberetis hodie viginti milia armatorum Canusii, fortia, fidelia, Patres conscripti. Nunc autem quemadmodum hi boni fidelesque (nam fortes ne ipsi quidem dixerint) cives esse possunt? Nisi quis credere potest fuisse, ut3 erumpentibus, quin erumperent, obsistere conati sunt; aut non invidere eos cum incolumitati tum gloriae illorum per virtutem partae, cum sibi timorem ignaviamque servitutis ignominiosae causam esse sciant. Maluerunt in tentoriis latentes simul lucem atque hostem expectare, cum silentio noctis erumpendi occasio esset. Ad erumpendum e castris defuit animus; ad tutanda fortiter you have a country; but as you have now lost it by your cowardice, it is needless to speak of longing for it.' 1 One who loses his liberty, or his right of citizenship, or his position in his tribe, or the right of voting according to the census, underwent, according to Roman notions, a loss of caput; that is, civil existence. The degrees of this loss were of such a kind, that the maxima deminutio capitis (in the loss of the rights of citizenship) naturally included the less and least (minima capitis deminutio). 2 The manuscripts read sexcenta milia, which is evidently far too large a number; but the reading should probably be sexaginta milia. 3 Equivalent to cum, of time, unless a person can believe that they were so then, when they attempted.' 4 Dependent on nisi quis credere potest. 5 Supply here, for the sake of the connection, but it may be said;' Latin at enim. castra animum habuerunt. Dies noctesque aliquot obsessi vallum armis, se ipsi1 tutati vallo sunt; tandem ultima ausi passique, cum omnią subsidia vitae abessent affectisque fame viribus arma jam sustinere nequirent, necessitatibus magis humanis quam armis victi sunt. Orto sole hostis ad vallum accessit; ante secundam horam, nullam fortunam certaminis experti, tradiderunt arma ac se ipsos. Haec vobis2 ipsorum per biduum militia fuit. Cum in acie stare ac pugnare decuerat, tum in castra refugerunt; cum pro vallo pugnandum erat, castra tradiderunt, neque in acie neque in castris utiles. Vos redimam? cum erumpere castris oportet, cunctamini ac manetis; cum manere, castra tutari armis necesse est, et castra et arma et vos ipsos traditis hosti. Ego non magis istos redimendos, Patres conscripti, censeo, quam illos dedendos Hannibali, qui per medios hostes e castris eruperunt ac per summam virtutem se patriae restituerunt.' 61. Postquam Manlius dixit, quamquam Patrum quoque plerosque3 captivi cognatione attingebant, praeter exemplum civitatis minime in captivos jam inde antiquitus indulgentis, pecuniae quoque summa homines movit, qua nec aerarium exhaurire, magna jam summa erogata in servos ad militiam emendos armandosque, nec Hannibalem maxime hujusce rei, ut fama erat, egentem locupletari volebant. Cum triste responsum, non redimi captivos, redditum esset, novusque super veterem luctus tot jactura civium adjectus esset, cum magnis fletibus questibusque legatos ad portam prosecuti sunt. Unus ex iis domum abiit, quod fallaci reditu in castra jurejurando se exsolvisset.7 Quod ubi innotuit 1 Properly se ipsos; but when the subject and object of an action are the same, the Latin idiom is fond of giving prominence to the former. Zumpt, § 696. 2 Dativus commodi, for you.' Gram. § 261. 3 Plerique seems to have here as frequently (see xxi. 1) the sense of 'very many.' Zumpt, § 109, note. 4 See Gram. § 220. The idea of 'from,' implied in the adverb, accounts for the addition of inde; which, however, is not common. 5 See chap. 23, p. 314, note 5. 6 It might also have been locupletare, and according to our feelings, we should prefer the active; but volo, followed by an accusative with the infinitive passive, is a very common construction. 7 As to this subjunctive, see Gram. § 354; and as to the fact alluded to in the text, compare chap. 58. relatumque ad senatum est, omnes censuerunt comprehendendum et custodibus publice datis deducendum ad Hannibalem esse. Est et alia de captivis fama, decem primos venisse; de eis cum dubitatum in senatu esset, admitterentur in urbem nec ne, ita admissos esse, nel tamen iis senatus daretur. Morantibus deinde longius omnium spe, alios tres insuper legatos venisse, L. Scribonium et C. Calpurnium et L. Manlium. Tum demum ab cognato Scribonii tribuno plebis de redimendis captivis relatum esse, nec censuisse redimendos senatum; et novos legatos tres ad Hannibalem revertisse, decem veteres remansisse, quod per causam recognoscendi nomina captivorum ad Hannibalem ex itinere regressi religione sese exsolvissent. De iis dedendis magna contentione actum in senatu esse, victosque paucis sententiis qui dedendos censuerint. Ceterum proximis censoribus adeo omnibus notis ignominiisque confectos esse, ut quidam eorum mortem sibi ipsi extemplo consciverint, ceteri non foro solum omni deinde vita, sed prope luce ac publico caruerint. Mirari magis adeo discrepare inter auctores,2 quam quid veri sit discernere queas. Quanto autem major ea clades superioribus cladibus fuerit, vel fides indicat sociorum, quae ad eam diem firma steterat, tum labare coepit, nulla profecto alia de re quam quod desperaverant de imperio. Defecere autem ad Poenos hi populi, Atellani, Calatini, Hirpini, Apulorum pars, Samnites praeter Pentros, Bruttii omnes, Lucani, praeter hos Uxentini3 et Graecorum omnis ferme ora, Tarentini, Metapontini, Crotonienses Locrique et Cisalpini omnes Galli. 1 Ita, 'with the proviso,' ne-daretur,' that an audience of the senate was not to be granted them.' 2One can rather wonder that there is such a discrepancy of statement among the historians, than decide what is the truth.' For we say either discrepant auctores; or, impersonally, discrepat inter auctores. As to the statement, compare Cicero de officiis, iii. 32. 3 Uxentum was a town in Calabria, the south-eastern district of Italy. Surrentini, the reading in the editions, is incorrect; for Surrentum was a town on the Bay of Naples, and could not possibly desert to Hannibal at this time. 4 These four Greek colonies did not throw off the Roman alliance immediately after the battle of Cannae. Tarentum, indeed, did not fall into Hannibal's hands till the year 212 B. C.; that is, four years Nec tamen eae clades defectionesque sociorum moverunt ut pacis usquam1 mentio apud Romanos fieret, neque ante consulis Romam adventum, nec postquam is rediit renovavitque memoriam acceptae clades. Quo in tempore ipso adeo magno animo civitas fuit, ut consuli ex tanta clade, cujus ipse causa maxima fuisset,2 redeunti et obviam itum frequenter ab omnibus ordinibus sit, et gratiae actae, quod de re publica non desperasset; cui, si Carthaginiensium ductor fuisset, nihil recusandum supplicii foret.3 afterwards. Defecere, therefore, must here be understood rather of a decided inclination to leave the Carthaginians than an actual revolt. 1 That is, either in the senate or the popular assembly. 2Though he had himself been.' Gram. § 360, 6, note 3. 3 The imperfect for the pluperfect. See Gram. § 345, note. FINIS. EDINBURGH: PRINTED BY W. & R. CHAMBERS. |