XXXI.
Iam legiones in testudinem glomerabantur, et alii tela saxaque incutiebant, cum languescere paulatim Vitellianorum animi. ut quis ordine anteibat, cedere fortunae, (ut quis ordine anteibat, cedere fortunae: ‘to the degree anyone was prominent in rank’;) ne Cremona quoque excisa nulla ultra venia omnisque ira victoris non in vulgus inops, sed in tribunos centurionesque, ubi pretium caedis erat, reverteretur. (ne Cremona quoque excisa nulla ultra venia omnisque ira victoris …in tribunos centurionesque … reverteretur: negative purpose clause: ‘for fear, if Cremona were also stormed, that there would be no padon beyond and that all the victor’s anger would come down on the officers’; Cremona quoque excisa: abl. abs. of conditional sense, equivalent to a protasis with si; quoque: that is, in addition to the capture of the Vitellian camp; nulla ultra venia is the subject of a separate clause (with implied esset or foret), also part of the ne clause; ultra is adverb, not prep.) gregarius miles futuri socors et ignobilitate tutior perstabat: vagi per vias, in domibus abditi pacem ne tum quidem orabant, cum bellum posuissent. (pacem ne tum quidem orabant, cum bellum posuissent: temporal cum is found with all tenses of the indicative (see cum languescere above), but in narrative there is a strong preference for the subjunctive when the tense is imperfect or pluperfect (see also cum … iussisset below). This is the case even when the temporal relation is clearly defined, as in this instance, by the correlative tum in the main clause, and use of the indicative would seem more appropriate. Cf. A.G. 545, last example, 546; B. 288; G. 580, 585.) primores castrorum nomen atque imagines Vitellii amoliuntur; catenas Caecinae (nam etiam tunc vinctus erat) exolvunt orantque ut causae suae deprecator adsistat. aspernantem tumentemque lacrimis fatigant, (aspernantem tumentemque lacrimis fatigant: ‘with tears they keep importuning the unrelenting man, swollen with pride’.) extremum malorum, tot fortissimi viri proditoris opem invocantes; mox velamenta et infulas (velamenta et infulas: see Book 1, ch. 66 for similar usage.) pro muris ostentant. (amoliuntur … exolvunt orantque … fatigant … ostentant: use of hist. present for a more forceful narrative) cum Antonius inhiberi tela iussisset, signa aquilasque extulere; maestum inermium agmen deiectis in terram oculis sequebatur. circumstiterant victores et primo ingerebant probra, intentabant ictus: (ingerebant probra, intentabant ictus: ‘heaped insults on them, threatened blows’.) mox, ut praeberi ora contumeliis et posita omni ferocia cuncta victi patiebantur, subit recordatio illos esse qui nuper Bedriaci victoriae temperassent. (qui … victoriae temperassent: victoriae is dat. with temperare: lit. ‘who had shown restraint to their victory; temperassent is subjunctive for rel. clause in idirect speech introduced by subit recordatio.) sed ubi Caecina praetexta lictoribusque insignis, (praetexta lictoribusque insignis: ‘in his robe of office and distinguished by lictors’; praetexta is a toga with a purple border, worn by high magistrates.) dimota turba, consul incessit, exarsere victores: superbiam saevitiamque (adeo invisa scelera sunt), etiam perfidiam obiectabant. obstitit Antonius datisque defensoribus ad Vespasianum dimisit.