Helps to Latin Translation at Sight Part 6

All the rest of the sentence will now take its proper place, as in some way modifying the action of +premebant+.

Thus:--

+c.u.m ... conversa esset+ tells us _when_ they were pressing.

+a dextro cornu+ _where_ +vehementer+ _how_ +mult.i.tudine suorum+ _how or why_

N.B.--+suorum+, reflexive, must be identical with the subject of +premebant+.

Now translate _{Though}{When} the enemy's line had been routed and put to flight on their left wing, on their right wing, owing to their great numbers, they were pressing hard upon our line._

+V.+ +Id c.u.m animadvertisset Publius Cra.s.sus adulescens, qui equitatui praeerat, quod expeditior erat quam hi qui inter aciem versabantur, tertiam aciem laborantibus nostris subsidio misit.+

(i.) _Vocabulary._--

+animadvertisset+ = +animum + ad + verto+ = _to turn the mind to, to observe_.

+adulescens+ = here like our _junior_, to distinguish him from his father, Marcus Cra.s.sus the triumvir.

+expeditior+ = _more free_ (+ex + pes+ = _foot-free_; so +impeditus+ = _hampered_, _hindered_).

+versabantur+--(+verso+ frequent. of +verto+) = _turn this way and that_; so +verso-r+ dep. = _turn oneself_, _engage in_, _be_, according to the context.

(ii.) _Translation._--This sentence is more involved, 'periodic'[8] in style. You will see on p. 23 how much help can be given by a more detailed a.n.a.lysis. [[Demonstration I: Table]]

[Footnote 8: See Introduction, pp. 7-9, -- 11.]

[[Introduction 11. Help through a Study of the Period in Latin.]]

Now, as before, bracket the subordinate clauses thus:--

+1.+ +Id ... adulescens+ +2.+ +qui ... praeerat+ +3.+ +quod ... versabantur+

and then the only princ.i.p.al verb is +MISIT+. Underline this. Next underline the princ.i.p.al subject, clearly +P. CRa.s.sUS+, which is also the subject of clause 1. Then, _outside the brackets_, the only possible object is +ACIEM+: underline this.

Now a.n.a.lyse, as on p. 23. [[Demonstration I: Table]]

(a) Write down +CRa.s.sUS+, +MISIT+, +ACIEM+.

(b) Place alongside these their proper enlargements.

(c) If necessary, a.n.a.lyse separately all subordinate clauses--_e.g._ A1, A2, A3 in example on p. 23.

You should now be able to translate without any difficulty; only take care to arrange the enlargements so as to make the best sense and the best English. Thus: _When Publius Cra.s.sus the younger, who was in command of the cavalry, had observed this, he sent the third line to the help of our men who were hard pressed, as he was more free to act than those who were engaged in action._

+VI.+ +Ita proelium rest.i.tutum est.+ _In this way the battle was restored._

_Final Hints._

Remember that +one pa.s.sage mastered+ is worth a great many hurriedly translated. So before you leave this pa.s.sage notice carefully in the

I. _Vocabulary._--

(i.) Any words that are quite new to you. Look them out in the dictionary, and notice their derivation and use; if you do not do this you will find the same word new to you the next time you meet with it.

(ii.) _English Derivatives._--As you have seen, these will often help you to the root-meaning of a word. Thus:--

+reiectis+ = _reject, throw away_ +insilirent+ = _insult, jump on_

and in the case of verbs, as these two examples show, derivatives are most easily found from the _supine_ stem.

N.B.--This must be done very carefully, because many such English derivatives have come from Latin words after they had wholly, or in part, lost their cla.s.sical meaning, or from Latin words not found at all in cla.s.sical Latin.

A great many other English words are derived from the Latin of this pa.s.sage--e.g. _pugnacious_, (with) _celerity_, _fact_, _except_, _military_, _manual_, _super_-sede, _vulnerable_, _hostile_, _sinister_, uni-_corn_, and many others.

(iii.) _Prefixes._--Notice especially the force of prepositions and inseparable particles in composition, e.g.:--

+re-+ in +re-iectis+, +re-vellerent+, +rest.i.tutum+.

+in-+ in +impetus+, +insilirent+.

+ex-+ in +exceperunt+, +expeditior+.

(iv.) _Simple Phonetic Changes in Composition_, e.g.:--

+a+ to +i+ in +insilirent+, +cominus+ (+con + ma.n.u.s+).

(v.) _Groups of Related Words._

Thus +acies+ v+ac+ = _sharp_, is related to +ac-er+, sharp; +ac-ervus+, a heap; +ac-utus+, sharp, &c.

+expeditior+ v+ped+ = _tread, go_, is related to +pes+, a foot; +impedio+ = entangle; +impedimentum+ = hindrance, etc.

II. _Historical and other Allusions._--

(i.) Read a summary of Caesar's campaign against Ariovistus.

(ii.) _Terms relating to War._--Thus notice:--

+pilum+, the distinctively _Roman_ infantry weapon, and see a good ill.u.s.tration.

_phalanx_; cf. the Roman +testudo+.

+tertiam aciem+--_i.e._ the line of reserves, kept for just such emergencies. Read, if necessary, some short account of the +triplex acies+, the usual Roman order of battle.

III. _Some Authorities._--

(i.) _Caesar_, Allen and Greenough, published by Ginn & Co. (an admirable edition).

(ii.) Froude's _Caesar_, p. 50.

(iii.) Mommsen's _History of Rome_, vol. iv. p. 295.