LXXV.
Ita promissis simul ac minis temptabantur, ut bello impares, in pace nihil amissuri; (promissis simul ac minis temptabantur, ut bello impares, in pace nihil amissuri: ‘[the praetorians] were assailed with both promises and threats, as too weak for war and not going to lose anything in peace’.) neque ideo praetorianorum fides mutata. sed insidiatores ab Othone in Germaniam, a Vitellio in urbem missi. utrisque frustra fuit, (utrisque frustra fuit: ‘neither side had success’; utrisque is dat. of possessor with fuit.) Vitellianis inpune, per tantam hominum multitudinem mutua ignorantia fallentibus: (mutua ignorantia fallentibus: abl. abs.: ‘Vitellius’ men deceiving with impunity, thanks to the unfamiliarity [of city people] with one another’) Othoniani novitate vultus, omnibus in vicem gnaris, prodebantur. Vitellius litteras ad Titianum (ad Titianum: under Nero, as proconsul in Asis, he had Agricola, Tacitus’ father-in–law, under him as questor; cf. Agricola 6.) fratrem Othonis composuit, exitium ipsi filioque eius minitans (exitium ipsi filioque eius minitans: ‘threatening death for himself and his son’; ipsi refers to Tatianus; filioquo eius, not filioque suo, since Tatianus is not the subject.) ni incolumes sibi mater ac liberi servarentur. (ni incolumes sibi mater ac liberi servarentur: ni or nisi introduces a negative condition and is usually followed by indicative for logical condition (cf. G. 595), except in indir. speech, as here; sibi is dat. of interest.) et stetit domus utraque, sub Othone incertum an metu: (incertum an metu: an usually precedes the second part of a disjunctive or double question, but can also be found with simple questions; incertum an suggests a weak affirmation ( ‘perhaps’) never a strong negation; cf. G. 457.) Vitellius victor clementiae gloriam tulit.