LI.
Solus Lepido Rubellius Blandus e consularibus adsensit: (Lepido Rubellius Blandus … adsensit: ‘Rubellius Blandus agreed with Lepidus.’ He was the man who had proposed exile for Lepida in ch. 23.) ceteri sententiam Agrippae secuti, ductusque in carcerem Priscus ac statim exanimatus. id Tiberius solitis sibi ambagibus (solitis sibi ambagibus: abl of manner: ‘with the beating about the bush usual with him’; sibi is dat. of interest.) apud senatum incusavit, cum extolleret pietatem quamvis modicas principis iniurias acriter ulciscentium, (cum extolleret pietatem quamvis modicas principis iniurias acriter ulciscentium: use of narrative cum + subjunctive to mark contemporaneity with the action of the main verb (deprecare in next note); in such cases cum means ‘while’: lit. ‘while he commended the devotion of them severely avenging the injuries of the emperor, however slight, …’; quamvis modicas: quamvis, normally a subordinating conjunction, is often found modifying adjectives and adverbs, less often participles. Cf. G. 609, note 2.) deprecare tam praecipitis verborum poenas, (deprecare tam praecipitis verborum poenas: ‘…he deplored the hasty penalties of words’ poena is with gen. to express the nature of punishment (Oxford Lat. Diction.); deprecare is historical infinitive.) laudaret Lepidum neque Agrippam argueret. igitur factum senatus consultum ne decreta patrum ante diem [decimum] ad aerarium deferrentur idque vitae spatium damnatis prorogaretur. (factum senatus consultum ne decreta patrum ante diem [decimum] ad aerarium deferrentur idque vitae spatium damnatis prorogaretur: subjunctive for commands in indirect discourse after factum [est] senatus consultus (A.G. 588): ‘that the senate decrees should not be brought to the Treasury before the tenth day [following adoption] and that the same length of life be continued for those condemned’; a law acquired force only after being registered in the aerarium, the temple of Saturn on the Capitoline hill. decimum is missing in the original text, but the number is confirmed by the historians Suetonius and Dio.) sed non senatui libertas ad paenitendum erat (sed non senatui libertas ad paenitendum erat: senatui is dat. of possessor with erat: ‘but the senate did not have the liberty to reconsider [its verdicts]’ (lit. ‘for repenting’; ad + gerund is one of the ways purpose is expressed in Latin.) neque Tiberius interiectu temporis mitigabatur. (neque Tiberius interiectu temporis mitigabatur: ‘neither was Tacitus softened by the interposition of time.’ The abl. interiectu is found three times in the Annals and practically nowhere else.)