XXXIII.
Inter quae Severus Caecina censuit ne quem magistratum cui provincia obvenisset uxor comitaretur, (inter quae Severus Caecina censuit ne quem magistratum cui provincia obvenisset uxor comitaretur: the chapter is entirely in indirect discourse after censuit: ‘in the course of the debate, Severus Caecina came up with the proposal that no spouse should accompany any magistrate to whom the government of a province would have fallen to.’ Aulus Caecina Severus was the general who fought in Germany against Arminius under Germanicus (cf. Book 1, ch. 31, 63 ff, etc.). He took his place in the senate in 16 A.D., after his return from Germany with Germanicus. inter quae: Caecina’s proposal had nothing to do with the agenda for that day, as brought before the senate by the consuls (cf. neque relatum de negotio in next chapter). quem is for aliquem after ne (cf. G. 315); ne ….comitaretur is negative purpose clause; another occurs further down, ne feminae …traherentur; cui provincia obvenisset: subjunctive for rel. clause in oratio obliqua; note that the subjunctive would be used also in direct speech, owing to the attraction of the ne purpose clause. See G. 663.) multum ante repetito (multum ante repetito …: ‘it having been repeated often before that …’; abl. abs. consisting of the perfect participle alone used impersonally and followed by an infinitive clause (here concordem sibi coniugem [esse]) or one with ut + subjunctive. Many of these participles so used became adverbials. See G. 410, Note 4.) concordem sibi coniugem (concordem sibi coniugem [esse]: ‘that his wife was congenial to him’; concors is found with dative only in post-Augustan writers (Lewis and Short).) et sex partus enixam, (sex partus enixam: ‘having brought forth six children’) seque quae in publicum statueret domi servavisse, cohibita intra Italiam, (seque quae in publicum statueret domi servavisse: ‘that he (se) had followed in his home the rules he was prescribing for the public’; quae …statueret: cf. note for cui provincia obvenisset; in publicum: in + acc. can denote purpose.) quamquam ipse pluris per provincias quadraginta stipendia explevisset. (quamquam … explevisset: subjunctive after quamquam in oratio obliqua.) haud enim frustra placitum olim ne feminae in socios aut gentis externas traherentur: inesse mulierum comitatui quae pacem luxu, bellum formidine morentur et Romanum agmen ad similitudinem barbari incessus convertant. (inesse mulierum comitatui quae … morentur et … convertant: ‘that in a body of women there were those who …delayed and …transformed …’: comitatui is dat. with inesse; quae …morentur et …convertant …: rel. clause of tendency or characteristic; the sense is consecutive, best expressed by subjunctive: lit. ‘women of such a character that would …’; cf. A.G. 534-535. The present subjunctives morentur and convertant are in place of the imperfect morarentur and converterent after censuit, the historical main verb of saying at the outset of the chapter. Writers, especially Tacitus, use the present to bring the action closer in time to the readers (repraesentatio, cf. A.G. 585, b., Note). The same applies to adsit, in next note, in place of adesset) non imbecillum tantum et imparem laboribus sexum sed, si licentia adsit, saevum, ambitiosum, potestatis avidum; (si licentia adsit, saevum, ambitiosum, potestatis avidum [esse]: lit. ‘if license is present, [their sex] is demanding, ambitious, greedy.’ Conditional sentence in oratio obliqua with condition simple or logical (type I), protasis with subjunctive (indicative in direct discourse), apodosis with (implied) infinitive.) incedere inter milites, habere ad manum centuriones; praesedisse nuper feminam exercitio cohortium, decursu legionum. (praesedisse nuper feminam exercitio cohortium, decursu legionum: ‘[he said] that lately a woman had directed the training of the cohorts, the parade of the legions.’ feminam: a pointed allusion to Plancina, Piso’s wife; cf. Book 2, ch. 55. Less likely that the reference is to Agrippina (cf. Book 1, ch. 69), whose intervention was limited to helping the soldiers returning from a strenuous campaign.) cogitarent ipsi quotiens repetundarum aliqui arguerentur plura uxoribus obiectari: (cogitarent ipsi quotiens repetundarum aliqui arguerentur plura uxoribus obiectari: cogitarent is hortative subjunctive in indirect speech: ‘let themselves consider that whenever any (aliqui) magistrate was accused of malversation, most of the charges were thrown against the women.’ quotient is here relative, not interrogative, particle with the sense of ‘whenever’, like ubi, quando, cum, etc., followed by indicative, except in later writers or in oratio obliqua. repetundarum: genitive of [res] repetundae, lit. ‘money to be claimed back’; aliqui is the adjective form of aliquis, pronoun.) his statim adhaerescere deterrimum quemque provincialium, (his statim adhaerescere deterrimum quemque provincialium: ‘the vilest of the provincials stuck to them (his = ‘to the women’) at once, i.e. ‘went in cahoots with them.’ For use of quisque + superlative, cf. G. 318, 2.) ab his negotia suscipi, transigi; duorum egressus coli, duo esse praetoria, (duorum egressus coli, duo esse praetoria: lit. ‘the public appearances of two persons were shown reference’, i.e. ‘had to be provided with escort and attendance’; duo esse praetoria: ‘there were two centers of government.’ Praetorium is lit. the general’s tent and quarters in a Roman camp, here the governor’s palace or residence.) pervicacibus magis et impotentibus mulierum iussis quae Oppiis quondam aliisque legibus constrictae (pervicacibus magis et impotentibus mulierum iussis quae Oppiis quondam aliisque legibus constrictae: abl. abs. followed by rel. clause: ‘more peremptory and wild being the dictates of the women, who were once kept in line by the Oppian and other laws’; Oppiis legibus: sumptuary laws regulating conduct and restraining extravagance, especially in food and dress. They were passed during the second Punic war (218-201 B.C.).) nunc vinclis exolutis domos, fora, iam et exercitus regerent.