L.
Iam Tiberium corpus, iam vires, nondum dissimulatio deserebat: (iam Tiberium corpus, iam vires, nondum dissimulatio deserebat: ‘by this time his physical strength was deserting Tiberius, not yet his dissimulation.’ corpus …vires may be hendiadys, ‘his vital forces’) idem animi rigor; sermone ac vultu intentus quaesita interdum comitate quamvis manifestam defectionem tegebat. (sermone ac vultu intentus quaesita interdum comitate quamvis manifestam defectionem tegebat: ‘watchful of his words and expression, now and then with affected amiability he would try to cover his decline, however obvious.’ sermone ac vultu is abl. of specification after intentus; quaesita … comitate is abl. of manner; quamvis manifestam: the use of subordinating conjunctions like quamvis, etsi, quamquam, quasi, nisi and others with adjectives and participles became more frequent from Livy on. They occur most often in Tacitus.) mutatisque saepius locis tandem apud promunturium Miseni consedit in villa cui L. Lucullus quondam dominus. (tandem apud promunturium Miseni consedit in villa cui L. Lucullus quondam dominus: lit. ‘in the end he settled on the promontory of Misenum in a villa to which once Lucius Lucullus [was] master.’ promontorium Miseni or Cape Misenum is at the west end of the bay of Naples and was one of the two largest naval bases of the Roman empire, the other being Ravenna on the Adriatic coast of Italy. The villa of Lucullus, the ultimate winner of the wars against Mithridates, the king of Pontus, from 74 to 66 B.C., stood at the westernmost edge of the cape on top of a cliff overlooking the sea. Traces of it are still visible today. Enormously rich, Lucullus was famous for his banquets and parties. The adjective ‘Lucullean’ has entered the English language as a synonym of lavish, sumptuous, extravagant.) illic eum adpropinquare supremis tali modo compertum. (illic eum adpropinquare supremis tali modo compertum: ‘there, it was revealed in the following way that Tiberius’ (eum) was approaching his end.’ supremis is dative of indirect object with the intransitive adpropinquare.) erat medicus arte insignis, nomine Charicles, non quidem regere valetudines principis solitus, consilii tamen copiam praebere. is velut propria ad negotia digrediens et per speciem officii manum complexus pulsum venarum attigit. (is velut propria ad negotia digrediens et per speciem officii manum complexus pulsum venarum attigit: lit. ‘[Charicles] (is) under the pretense of taking leave [of the emperor] for personal business, having grasped his hand for a show of respect, put his finger on the pulse of the veins..’ complector being deponent, complexus has active sense, as does the English perfect participle.) neque fefellit: (neque fefellit: the subject of fefellit is Charicles: ‘he did not fool [Tiberius]’) nam Tiberius, incertum an offensus tantoque magis iram premens, instaurari epulas iubet discumbitque ultra solitum, quasi honori abeuntis amici tribueret. (nam Tiberius, incertum an offensus tantoque magis iram premens, instaurari epulas iubet discumbitque ultra solitum, quasi honori abeuntis amici tribueret: ‘for Tiberius, perhaps offended, so all the more repressing his anger, ordered that banqueting be continued and he remained at table beyond what was usual with him, as if he conceded [this] to the honor (honori) of the departing friend.’ incertum an: a formula often found in Tacitus to express doubt about something, ‘it is not certain whether …’, followed by indirect question with subjunctive, but here without finite verb. tanto magis ira premens: tanto is an ancient abl. of difference with magis: lit. ‘by so much more repressing his anger’; quasi … tribueret: conditional clause of comparison: the condition is impliedly contrary to fact, hence the subjunctive.) Charicles tamen labi spiritum nec ultra biduum duraturum Macroni firmavit. (Charicles tamen labi spiritum nec ultra biduum duraturum Macroni firmavit: tamen here means ‘despite Tiberius’ show of strength’: ‘still, Charicles confirmed to Macro that [Tiberius’] forces were ebbing and that he would not last beyond two days.’ ultra biduum: the prep. ultra takes acc.) inde cuncta conloquiis inter praesentis, nuntiis apud legatos (inde cuncta conloquiis inter praesentis, nuntiis apud legatos: ‘on that (inde), all necessary measures [were taken], in meetings among those present and by messengers to the legates, … ’) et exercitus festinabantur. septimum decimum kal. Aprilis interclusa anima creditus est mortalitatem explevisse; (septimum decimum kal. Aprilis interclusa anima creditus est mortalitatem explevisse: ‘he was believed to have completed his mortal journey on the sixteenth of March.’ To calculate the date from the given kalends, add two days to the number of days in the previous month and subtract the given number of days from the kalends of April. interclusa anima: abl. abs., ‘his breathing having stopped’) et multo gratantum concursu ad capienda imperii primordia G. Caesar egrediebatur, cum repente adfertur redire Tiberio vocem ac visus vocarique qui recreandae defectioni cibum adferrent. (multo gratantum concursu ad capienda imperii primordia G. Caesar egrediebatur, cum repente adfertur redire Tiberio vocem ac visus vocarique qui recreandae defectioni cibum adferrent: ‘Gaius Caesar was leaving [the villa], with a large queue of well-wishers, to assume the first duties of command, when of a sudden it was reported that speech and sight were returning to Tiberius and that those who should bring food to cure his fainting fit were being called [by him].’ ad capienda imperii primordia: dative gerundive to express purpose, lit. ‘ for the new commencement of the empire to be assumed’ primordium was also used in relation to Tiberius’ reign in Book 1, ch. 7. cum repente adfertur: use of inverse temporal cum, so called for two reasons, first, because the cum clause is placed after the main clause, second, because the cum clause appears to take on, in place of the main clause, the leading role in moving the narrative forward. It introduces an unexpected event and is announced by adverbs like repente, vix, nondum, and others. See G. 581.) pavor hinc in omnis, et ceteri passim dispergi, se quisque maestum aut nescium fingere; (pavor hinc in omnis, et ceteri passim dispergi, se quisque maestum aut nescium fingere … : ‘thereupon, general panic: all others dispersed in every direction, each pretended himself (se quisque … fingere) grief-stricken or unaware … .’) Caesar in silentium fixus a summa spe novissima expectabat. ( … Caesar in silentium fixus a summa spe novissima expectabat: ‘ … Caligula, struck speechless, expected the abyss after the summits of hope.’ novissima: ‘the worst’, ‘the unthinkable’, ‘the cruelest reprisals’) Macro intrepidus opprimi senem iniectu multae vestis iubet discedique ab limine. (Macro intrepidus opprimi senem iniectu multae vestis iubet discedique ab limine: ‘Macro, master of himself, gave the order that the old prince be stifled by throwing [over him] a huge mound of clothes and that the room be vacated.’ iubet discedi ab limine: the passive discedi is impersonal use of the passive of an intransitive verb: lit. ‘he gave orders that it be departed from the door.’ ab limine may well be metonymy for the room itself. With iubeo it is always preferable to provide a subject for the infinitive that follows, even if it means turning the infinitive to the passive form. The historical present iubet recurs twice in the chapter. Another historical present is adfertur above.) sic Tiberius finivit octavo et septuagesimo aetatis anno.