XXV.
Sic mitigatis animis Bonnam, hiberna primae legionis, ventum. infensior illic miles culpam cladis (cladis: cf. ch. 20) in Hordeonium vertebat: eius iussu derectam adversus Batavos aciem, tamquam a Mogontiaco legiones sequerentur; (eius iussu derectam [esse] adversus Batavos aciem, tamquam a Mogontiaco legiones sequerentur: ‘that their forces had been led out by his orders, on the understanding that the legions would follow’; tamquam, as so often in Tacitus, has causal sense: ‘because’, ‘on the ground that …’) eiusdem (eiusdem: ‘of Flaccus himself’) proditione caesos, nullis supervenientibus auxiliis: ignota haec ceteris exercitibus neque imperatori suo (imperatori suo: ‘their emperor’, ‘their commander-in-chief’) nuntiari, cum adcursu tot provinciarum extingui repens perfidia potuerit. (cum …potuerit: potuerit corresponds to potuit of direct discourse, as temporal cum requires indicative whenever the tense is present, perfect, or future.) Hordeonius exemplaris (exemplaris: exemplares or exempla: ‘copies’) omnium litterarum, quibus per Gallias Britanniamque et Hispanias auxilia orabat, exercitui recitavit instituitque pessimum facinus, ut epistulae aquiliferis legionum traderentur, a quis ante militi quam ducibus legebantur. (a quis ante militi quam ducibus legebantur: quis is an ancient form of quibus and refers to aquiliferis: ‘by whom [the messages] were read to the rank and file sooner than to the commanders’; the adverb ante (‘before’) in ante …quam and even more prius (‘sooner’) in prius …quam, in combination with the relative particle quam, point to the comparative character of the two temporal conjunctions. The indictive is used, as here, when a time limit is stated as a fact, i.e. without anticipation or design or failure to occur. Cf. G. 574 – 577 and A.G. 550, 551.) tum e seditiosis unum vinciri iubet, magis usurpandi iuris, quam quia unius culpa foret. (magis usurpandi iuris, quam quia unius culpa foret: ‘more to affirm his authority than because it was the fault of one man’; usurpandi iuris: the genitive gerundive is here used in a predicative sense to express purpose, without recourse to causa or gratia. The genitive alone is found most often in Tacitus; cf. G. 428, R. 2. quia … foret: quia requires subjunctive when the reason given is false.) motusque Bonna exercitus in coloniam Agrippinensem, (Bonna …in coloniam Agrippinensem: ‘from Bonn to Cologne’) adfluentibus auxiliis Gallorum, qui primo rem Romanam enixe iuvabant: mox valescentibus Germanis pleraeque civitates adversum nos arma <sumpsere> spe libertatis et, si exuissent servitium, (si exuissent servitium: ‘if they had shaken off servitude’, plup. subjunctive for condition contrary to fact in the past) cupidine imperitandi. (cupidine imperitandi: objective genitive gerund after cupidine) gliscebat iracundia legionum, nec terrorem unius militis vincula indiderant: quin idem ille arguebat ultro conscientiam ducis, tamquam nuntius inter Civilem Flaccumque falso crimine testis veri opprimeretur. (quin idem ille arguebat ultro conscientiam ducis, tamquam nuntius inter Civilem Flaccumque falso crimine testis veri opprimeretur: quin: introduces a statement that supports what precedes; idem ille: emphatic, ‘that same individual’; ultro: ‘even’, ‘into the bargain’, Thus: ‘indeed the same man even accused his commander of collusion, inasmuch as he, a messenger between Civilis and Flaccus and a witness of the truth, was being suppressed on false charges’; tamquam, as previously noted, has often almost the causal sense of quod or quia in Tacitus.) conscendit tribunal Vocula mira constantia, prensumque militem ac vociferantem duci ad supplicium iussit: et dum mali pavent, optimus quisque iussis paruere. exim (exim: or exin, or exinde: ‘thereafter’) consensu ducem Voculam poscentibus, Flaccus (consensu ducem Voculam poscentibus, Flaccus …: abl. abs. of causal sense: ‘because all by general consent demanded Vocula as leader, Flaccus …’) summam rerum ei permisit.