XL.
Non ut ad pugnam sed ad bellandum (ad bellandum: that is, with all the baggage, supply trrain, artillery, and the rest) profecti confluentis Padi et Ardae fluminum, sedecim inde milium spatio distantis, petebant. (confluentis Padi et Ardae fluminum, sedecim inde milium spatio distantis, petebant: ‘they headed for the confluence of the Po and the Adda rivers, sixteen miles distant from their present location’; inde: ‘from there’. The distance is in fact much greater, as explained in note for immensum id spatium in ch. 44. The Po and the Adda meet 7 miles west of Cremona; the direction of the march was westward from Bedriacum, towards Cremona. confluentes: pres. participle of confluo, used as a noun in the plural to designate the meeting of two rivers) Celso et Paulino abnuentibus militem itinere fessum, sarcinis gravem obicere hosti, non omissuro quo minus expeditus et vix quattuor milia passuum progressus aut incompositos in agmine aut dispersos et vallum molientis adgrederetur, (Celso et Paulino abnuentibus militem …obicere hosti, non omissuro quo minus …adgrederetur: the excerpt is an abl. abs. with dependent clauses: lit. ‘Celsus and Paulinus refusing to throw their troops to an enemy not about to pass over the opportunity to fall upon them, …’. The use of following clauses and other structures dependent on an abl. abs. is seldom found in classical writers, but is frequent – some say too frequent – in Tacitus, whose prose is a veritable minefield of ablatives absolute, serving in functions far removed from the original adverbial use of the construction. Cf. G. 410, N. 4 and A.G. 419, b. omissuro: dative, modifies hosti; the free use of the future participle as an adjective in simple agreement with a noun is found in poetry and later writers only. Cf. A.G. 498. non omissuro quo minus …adgrederetur is an adjective clause modifying hosti . The conjunction quo minus or quominus, lit. ‘that for that reason the less’, is used after verbs of neglecting, hindering, resisting, refusing, doubting, and the like to express purpose or consequence. Lit. ‘[the enemy] was not going to miss the chance that thereby the less they should attack …’.) Titianus et Proculus, ubi consiliis vincerentur, (ubi consiliis vincerentur: ubi, with the iterative sense of ‘whenever’, is often found followed by the subjunctive in Tacitus) ad ius imperii transibant. aderat sane citus equo Numida (citus equo Numida: ‘a rapid Numidian on horse’; riders from Numidia, the region around Carthage in North Africa, were employed as messengers on account of their swiftness.) cum atrocibus mandatis, quibus Otho increpita ducum segnitia (increpita ducum segnitia: abl. abs., ‘the commanders’ lack of energy being taken to task’) rem in discrimen mitti iubebat, aeger mora et spei impatiens.