IV.
Dies quo reliquiae tumulo Augusti (tumulo Augusti: the mausoleum of Augustus in the Campus Martius that has partly survived to this day) inferebantur modo per silentium vastus, modo ploratibus inquies; (per silentium vastus, … ploratibus inquies: vastus and inquies modify dies: ‘[the day] was dreary on account of the silence, … disquieted by lamentations’) plena urbis itinera, conlucentes per campum Martis faces. (conlucentes per campum Martis faces: ‘torches ablaze across the Campus Martius’; the Field of Mars was a wide open space within the first westward bend the river Tiber makes upon entering Rome.) illic miles cum armis, sine insignibus magistratus, populus per tribus concidisse rem publicam, nihil spei reliquum clamitabant, promptius apertiusque quam ut meminisse imperitantium crederes. (clamitabant promptius apertiusque quam ut meminisse imperitantium crederes: ‘they exclaimed too directly and openly for one to believe that they were remembering those in power.’ quam ut after a comparative is translated as ‘too … to’, that is, the suffix -ius in promptius and apertius is to be regarded as a mere intensifier of prompte and aperte. Cf. the following example: signa rigidiora quam ut imiterentur veritatem, ‘statues too stiff to imitate nature’. crederes is use of potential subjunctive with indefinite second person singular; cf. A.G. 447, 2.; meminisse is perfect infinitive in form, but present infinitive in meaning; imperitantium is genitive with meminisse.) nihil tamen Tiberium magis penetravit quam studia hominum accensa in Agrippinam, cum decus patriae, solum Augusti sanguinem, unicum antiquitatis specimen appellarent versique ad caelum ac deos integram illi subolem ac superstitem iniquorum (integram illi subolem [esse] ac superstitem iniquorum: infinitive clause after precarentur: ‘[they asked the gods] to spare her (illi = ‘to her’) children an to allow them to be the survivors of their enemies.’) precarentur. (cum … appellarent … precarentur: temporal cum + subjunctive, also called narrative or historical cum, provides the background for the action of the main verb, here penetravit.)