LVI.
At Zmymaei repetita vetustate, seu Tantalus Iove ortus illos, sive Theseus divina et ipse stirpe, sive una Amazonum condidisset, (repetita vetustate, seu Tantalus Iove ortus illos, sive Theseus divina et ipse stirpe, sive una Amazonum condidisset: abl. abs. governing a disjunctive statement or indirect question introduced by seu …sive …sive in place of utrum …an …an (cf. G. 496, 2.): ‘their antiquity having been traced back, whether Tantalus, Jupiter’s son or Theseus, also (et) of divine birth, or one of the Amazons had established them (illos)’; condidisset: subjunctive in indirect question brought in by seu …sive …sive. The pluperfect is for action completed in the past. Tantalus and Theseus are prominent figures in Greek mythology. The Amazons were a legendary population of women warriors and hunters.) transcendere ad ea, quis maxime fidebant, in populum Romanum officiis, (at Zmymaei … transcendere ad ea, quis maxime fidebant, in populum Romanum officiis: ‘the Smyrneans, however, moved on to those claims on which they mainly relied, their services to the Roman people. quis …officiis: dat. or abl. with fido.) missa navali copia non modo externa ad bella sed quae in Italia tolerabantur; seque primos templum urbis Romae statuisse, M. Porcio consule, (M. Porcio consule: Marcus Porcius Cato was censor in 195 B.C. and was famous for his conservatism; he was the first to write history in Latin, though his works have gone lost.) magnis quidem iam populi Romani rebus, nondum tamen ad summum elatis, stante adhuc Punica urbe et validis per Asiam regibus. testem adferebant, (magnis quidem iam populi Romani rebus, nondum tamen ad summum elatis, stante adhuc Punica urbe et validis per Asiam regibus: one long abl. abs.: lit. ‘Roman power (rebus) being certainly already great, yet not yet carried to the highest peak, Carthage still standing and mighty kings being still in Asia’; Punica urbe: ‘the Carthaginian city’, perhaps the greatest among Rome’s rivals.) simul L. Sullam (L. Sullam testem adferebant: ‘they adduced as proof L. Sulla, …’; Lucius Cornelius Sulla (138 – 78 B.C.), general and statesman, twice consul, once dictator, and the first Roman to seize power by force and unleash a civil war; the emergency mentioned here occurred during the first Mithridatic war, 88 – 84 B.C.) gravissimo in discrimine exercitus ob asperitatem hiemis et penuriam vestis, cum id Zmyrnam in contionem nuntiatum foret, omnis qui adstabant detraxisse corpori tegmina nostrisque legionibus misisse. (cum id Zmyrnam in contionem nuntiatum foret, omnis qui adstabant detraxisse corpori tegmina nostrisque legionibus misisse: in indirect discourse after adferebant: ‘when that (id) had been announced in the Smyrnaean assembly, all those present had removed their clothes and had sent them to our legions’: cum …nuntiatum foret: narrative cum is with subjunctive in direct speech (see note for cum …viseret in ch. 53) and remains unchanged in oratio obliqua. Zmyrnam in contionem: ‘in the Smyrnaean assembly’; Zmyrnam is adjective qualifying contionem, here in anastrophe.) ita rogati sententiam patres Zmyrnaeos praetulere. censuitque Vibius Marsus (Vibius Marsus: mentioned once before in Book 2, ch. 75 and ahead in Book 6, ch. 48.) ut M’. Lepido, cui ea provincia obvenerat, super numerum legaretur qui templi curam susciperet. et quia Lepidus ipse deligere per modestiam abnuebat, Valerius Naso (Valerius Naso: nothing else is known about this ex-praetor.) e praetoriis sorte missus est.