XLVIII.
Advertit ea res Vespasiani animum ut vexillarios e legionibus ducemque Virdium Geminum spectatae militiae deligeret. (advertit ea res …animum ut …deligeret …: the ut clause is here consecutive: ‘the matter drew his attention, so that he dispatched …’.) ille incompositum et praedae cupidine vagum hostem adortus coegit in navis; effectisque raptim Liburnicis adsequitur Anicetum in ostio fluminis Chobi, (effectisque raptim Liburnicis adsequitur Anicetum in ostio fluminis Chobi: ‘light galleys having hastily been built, he cornered Anicetus at the mouth of the Chobus’. Chobus, now Khopi, is a river in Georgia which drains into the east end of the Black sea, near the town of Poti. For Liburnicis cf. note at the outset of ch. 42. adsequitur is historical present, just as tueri down below is historical infinitive.) tutum sub Sedochezorum regis auxilio, (tutum sub Sedochezorum regis auxilio: ‘safe under the protection of the king of the Sedochezi’, a tribe of the Caucasus region) quem pecunia donisque ad societatem perpulerat. ac primo rex minis armisque supplicem tueri: postquam merces proditionis aut bellum ostendebatur, fluxa, ut est barbaris, fide (fluxa, ut est barbaris, fide: abl. abs. with dependent comparative clause: ‘his loyalty being weak, as is typical for barbarians’) pactus Aniceti exitium (pactus Aniceti exitium …: ‘having negotiated Anicetus’ doom, he …’; deponent pactus, from transitive paciscor, is passive in form but active in meaning and accepts a direct object.) perfugas tradidit, belloque servili (bello servili: rather than harking back to Spartacus and the servile war of 73 B.C., Tacitus probably means that this was a war with an unworthy opponent.) finis impositus. Laetum ea victoria Vespasianum, cunctis super vota fluentibus, (cunctis super vota fluentibus: ‘everything flowing smoothly beyond all wishes’) Cremonensis proelii nuntius in Aegypto adsequitur. eo properantius Alexandriam pergit, ut fractos Vitellii exercitus urbemque externae opis indigam (urbem externae opis indigam: ‘a city in need of foreign resources’) fame urgeret. namque et Africam, (et Africam: ‘also Africa’) eodem latere sitam, terra marique invadere parabat, clausis annonae subsidiis inopiam ac discordiam hosti facturus. (clausis annonae subsidiis inopiam ac discordiam hosti facturus: ‘the supplies of corn being cut off, he was going to create famine and discord for the enemy’. facturus: poets and post-classical writers use the future participle as an ordinary adjective to express intent or purpose. Cf. A.G. 499.)