LXXVII.
Contra Domitius Celer, ex intima eius amicitia, (ex intima eius amicitia: abl. of origin with ex: lit. ‘from his closest friendship’, i.e. ‘from among his closest associates’) disseruit utendum eventu: (disseruit utendum [esse] eventu: lit. ‘argued that it should be profited from the occasion’; see note for quid agendum [esset] in previous chapter and also the note below for relinquendum etiam rumoribus tempus …. eventu is abl. with utor, ‘to make use of’.) Pisonem, non Sentium Syriae praepositum; huic fascis (fascis: bound bundles of wooden rods with the blade of an axe protruding from the side of the bundle; symbols of a magistrate’s authority.) et ius praetoris, huic legiones datas. si quid hostile ingruat, quem iustius arma oppositurum quam qui legati auctoritatem et propria mandata acceperit? (si quid hostile ingruat, quem iustius arma oppositurum quam qui legati auctoritatem et propria mandata acceperit?: conditional sentence in indirect speech, the apodosis of which is a rhetorical question (hence infinitive in oratio obliqua) that at the same time is the main clause of a comparative sentence. The condition is potential in present time and has present subjunctive by repraesentatio in place of the imperfect required after the historical disseruit, the verb of saying: ‘if an attack should occur, who more justly should fight it back with arms than he who had been given authority as legate and had received personal (propria) mandates?’ The perfect subjunctive acceperit in the subordinate clause of the comparative sentence replaces accepisset, in view of the Latin preference for the perfect to represent the same tense of the indicative in direct discourse. For repraesentatio see B. 318, A.G. 585, b. and Note). For use of the active periphrasis in -urus to express future infinitive in the apodosis (oppositurum [esse]), see G. 656, 658, B. 320.) relinquendum etiam rumoribus tempus quo senescant: (relinquendum etiam rumoribus tempus quo senescent: lit. ‘it is also to be given time to rumors in which to lose their freshness’; relinquendum [esse] is impersonal use of the gerundive, here in indir. discourse. Gerundive is a Latin verbal of passive sense, quite convenient when expressing advisability, necessity, obligation, etc. It has no equivalent in English.) plerumque innocentis recenti invidiae imparis. (plerumque innocentis recenti invidiae imparis: abl. abs. in indir. speech: ‘most often the innocent being unable to cope on even terms with the first thrust of unpopularity’; recenti invidiae imparis: par and impar require dative of the thing, ‘unequal to fresh unpopularity’.) at si teneat exercitum, augeat viris, multa quae provideri non possint fortuito in melius casura. (at si teneat exercitum, augeat viris, multa quae provideri non possint fortuito in melius caesura: the conditional sentence is of the same type and has the same construction in indirect speech as the one above in si quid hostile ingruat, quem …., with present subjunctive in the protasis and the active periphrasis in -urus in the apodosis: ‘on the other hand, if he kept control of the army and added new forces, many things that could not be foreseen might by chance turn out for the better.’) ‘an festinamus cum Germanici cineribus adpellere, ut te inauditum et indefensum planctus Agrippinae ac vulgus imperitum primo rumore rapiant? (‘an festinamus cum Germanici cineribus adpellere, ut te inauditum et indefensum planctus Agrippinae ac vulgus imperitum primo rumore rapiant?: the passage is in direct speech: ‘‘are we to hurry to reach Rome in the company of Germanicus’ ashes for the purpose of having Agrippina’s wailing and the first blast of gossip from the ignorant mob sweep you (te) away without being heard, without proper defense?’’) est tibi Augustae conscientia, (Augustae conscientia: ‘Augusta’s (Livia’s) complicity’, especially with Plancina; cf. ch. 43.) est Caesaris favor, sed in occulto, et perisse Germanicum nulli iactantius maerent quam qui maxime laetantur.’ (perisse Germanicum nulli iactantius maerent quam qui maxime laetantur.’: ‘no one laments Germanicus’ death more loudly than those who rejoice in it the most.’)