XXX.
Munientibus castra apud Ticinum de adversa Caecinae pugna adlatum, et prope renovata seditio tamquam fraude et cunctationibus Valentis proelio defuissent: (tamquam …defuissent: Tacitus uses tamquam almost as a causal conjunction, followed by subjunctive to indicate an imagined reason.) nolle requiem, non expectare ducem, anteire signa, urgere signiferos; (nolle …expectare …anteire …urgere …: hist. infinitives make for a racier style than inperfect indicative.) rapido agmine Caecinae iunguntur. improspera Valentis fama apud exercitum Caecinae erat: expositos se tanto pauciores integris hostium viribus querebantur, simul in suam excusationem et adventantium robur per adulationem attollentes, (simul in suam excusationem et adventantium robur per adulationem attollentes: ‘both for their own exculpation and to extol the might of the newcomers through flattery’; in excusationem: use of in + acc. to express purpose; cf. in nullius iniuriam in ch. 20 of this Book.; attollentes: present participles may on rare occasions denote purpose, like the English infinitive, ‘to extol’.) ne ut victi et ignavi despectarentur. (ne ut victi et ignavi despectarentur: negative purpose clause, ‘lest they be despised as losers and cowards’) et quamquam plus virium, prope duplicatus legionum auxiliorumque numerus erat Valenti, (quamquam plus virium, prope duplicatus legionum auxiliorumque numerus erat Valenti: the subjects of erat are plus virium and numerus; Valenti is dative of possessor, which in the corresponding English construction with the verb ‘to have’ becomes the subject, just as the Latin subjects become the objects of ‘to have’. Thus: ‘even though Valens had more forces, nearly double the number of legions and auxiliaries, …’. It is estimated that Valens had more than 40,000, vs. Caecina’s 30,000 or less. quamquam …erat: quamquam is regularly followed by indicative, except in Tacitus, where the subjunctive is the rule rather than the exception.) studia tamen militum in Caecinam inclinabant, super benignitatem animi, qua promptior habebatur, (qua promptior habebatur: qua refers to benignitatem and is abl. of cause: ‘on account of which he was considered more obliging’) etiam vigore aetatis, proceritate corporis et quodam inani favore. hinc aemulatio ducibus: Caecina ut foedum ac maculosum, ille ut tumidum ac vanum inridebant. (Caecina …ille …inridebant: inridebant agrees in number with the two subjects, unlike English which prefers agreement with one at a time.) sed condito odio (condito odio: ‘their hatred being laid to rest’) eandem utilitatem fovere, crebris epistulis sine respectu veniae probra Othoni obiectantes, cum duces partium Othonis quamvis uberrima conviciorum in Vitellium materia abstinerent. (cum duces partium Othonis quamvis uberrima conviciorum in Vitellium materia abstinerent: lit. ‘while the leaders of Otho’s party held back from the fund of insulting language against Vitellius, however abundantly at their disposal’)