READINGS IN LATIN. 



mi. i tho " Gormania," a briof account of a country and people 

 bad by tin* time oomo very much in contact, 

 in ttlxo a dialogue " Do Oratoribus " attributed to 

 him, Imt it in very unlike hia niiual manner of writing. 

 ; :>l" of Tacitus is peculiar to himself, and remarkably 

 unlike the received models of Latin composition. This, how- 

 ever, is not owing to mere oaprioe it is of aet pnrpoae and 

 carefully studied, every possible pains being taken to make tho 

 narrative as striking and effective as possible. We have no 

 > -!>* hero to detail fully tho peculiarities of our author's style, 

 but we may notice them briefly as variety, both in the DM of 

 words and the composition and arrangement of sentences ; 

 brevity and eoneiienets in hit language no one ever possessed 

 the " art of putting things " so neatly and forcibly as Tacitus ; 

 ami ii general j>oetical complexion in his narrative. 



Tho following extract is a delineation of tho character of one 

 of tho most infamous men of an infamous ago, and will serve 

 as a specimen of Tacitus' peculiar powor in this style of 

 writing : 



TACITUS. "ANNALS," IV. 1. 



C. Asinio, C. Antistio consulibus nonus Tiberio annas erat 



oomposita) roi publicao, florentia domus (nam Germanic! mortem 1 



inter prospora ducobat), cum ropente turbare fortuna coepit, 



aut ssevientibua viroa prabere. Initium' et causa 



.Klium Sojanum cohortibus prsetoriis 4 prsefectum, cujus do 

 potentia supra momoravi : nnuo originem, mores, ot quo faci- 

 noro dominationom raptum ierit, 6 expediam. Gonitus Vulsiniis, 6 

 patro Seio Strabono cquito Romano, mox Tiberium variis artibus 



i t adco, ut obscurum 7 advorsum alios sibi uni 8 incautum 

 intectumquo efficeret ; non tarn sollertia (qnippe isdem artibus 9 

 victus est), quam deum ira in rem Romanam, cujus pan exitio 1 " 

 vignit cociditque. Corpus illi laborum tolerans, animus audax ; 

 sui obtegens, in alios criminator ; juxta 11 adulatio et superbia ; 

 palam compositus pndor, intus summa apiscendi libido ; ejusqne 

 causa 12 modo largitio ct luxus, ssepius industria ac vigilantia, 

 baud minus noxiaj,' 3 quoties parando regno finguntur. 14 



NOTES. 



1. Germanici mortem. Gerrnanicus, a member of the imperial 

 family, was looked upon by Tiberius as a rival, owing to his great 

 success as a general, and consequent popularity. In the previous 

 year, on his return to Kome from a successful campaign in Germany, 

 he died suddenly, as it was believed, by poison administered at the 

 instigation of Tiberius. 



_. Ipse. Tiberius. Supply csepit with seevire. 



3. Initium, sc. soeviendi, etc. 



4. Cohortibus praetoriis. These were the emperor's body-guard, 

 who were quartered in Rome. 



5. Raptum ierit, lie went about to seize. Raptum is the supine in 

 -urn after ierit, a verb of motion, and governs domiuatiouom. 



6. Vulsiniis, a town in Etruria. 



7. Obscurum. Tacitus frequently dwells upon this especial feature 

 ba the character of Tiberius his dissimulatio, or habit of concealment. 



8. Sibi uni i.e., to Sejanus. 



9. Isdem artibus. Because he was afterwards crushed by tho craft 

 of Tiberius. 



10. Pan exitio. Since ho killed so many in his life, and at his 

 death involved so many in his ruin. Translate To which lie was 

 equally fatal loth in the height of his poiccr and in his death. 



1L Juxta. At once /atoning and imperious, or more literally, servility 

 and pride were united in him. 



12. Causa, abl. , and to gain this lie employed. 



13. Haud minus noxia, no less dangerous i.e., than largitio and 

 luxus. 



14. Finguntur, they are assumed. The reader will notice in this 

 passage how all the points are put separately, without connecting 

 particles, and carefully balanced one against the other, while tho 

 choice of words and the formation of the sentences is studiously 

 varied. 



The following singular version of tho early history of the 

 Jews will, no doubt, be read with interest : 



TACITUS. "HISTORIES," V. 31. 



Plurimi auctores consentiunt, orta per JEgyptum tabo quo9 

 corpora foedarct, regem Bocchorim adito Hammonis oraculo 

 remedium petentem, purgaro regnum et id genus hominum ut 

 invisum deis alias in terras avohere jussum. Sic conquisitnm 

 collectumque vulgus, postquam vastis locis 1 relictum sit, creteris 

 per lacrimas torpontibus,'- Moysen unum expulum monuisso ne 

 quam doorum hominumve opem expectarent utrisquo dcserti, 

 sed sibimet, duce coalesti, 8 crederent, primo cujus auxilio prto 



sontes miserias pepnlusent. 4 Adsensere, atqne omnium ignari fop. 



tiiitum it-r incijijunt; >-i-<l nihilaxiaeqtiatn inopiaaqoffifatifrabat, 

 Jamque baud procul exitio totis oampis procubuerant, own grox 

 asinorum agreatium e pasta in rapem nomore opaaam oonoes 

 sit. Sooutus Moyses oonjootora herbidi soli* largaa aquarum 

 Tenaa aperit ; id levamen,* et oonttnnom sex dienun iter Mnfflfff. 

 aoptimo pulsis oultoribos obtinuero terras in qnfs orbs et tern- 

 plum dicata. 7 Moyse* quo sibi in poatemm gentam firmaret, 

 novos ritos oontrariosqoe oeteris mortalibos indidit. Protaaa 

 illia omnia qua apud nos sacra ; rumum conooHsa apod illos qn 

 nobis incosta. Emgiem aninialis* quo momitrante errorem 

 sitimqae depulorant, ponetrali sacravere, cseso ariete velut ic 

 ooutuiueliam Hammonis. 



MOTX8. 



1. Vaatis locis, in the d*ert vsstus, in addition to th* idea of six*, 

 conveying that of emptiness. 



2. Per lacrimas torpentibus, lamenting and dapairing. 



8. Duce ctulesti, ablative absolute, tlteir guide bring a heavenly one. 



4. Pepulissent, they would drive away. If the sentence was in 

 oratio recta, giving the words of the speaker, it would be pepuleritia, 

 the future perfect hence the past tense in the oroho oMv/ua. 



5. Conjectura herbidi soli, judging from ike verdant nature of tA 

 ground. 



6. Id levamen, thus they obtained relief. 



7. Urbs et tempi um dicata. An abbreviated form of runissslnii 

 for " urbis condita et templum dicatum." 



8. Animalis. It was a common belief among the ancients that the 

 Jews worshipped the ass. Possibly the idea may have sprung from a 

 distorted idea of the figures of the chenfbim. 



Our last extract is tho final chapter of the " Agricola," and 

 it is one of the finest specimens of panegyric in the language. 

 Agricola was a Roman general, who won his fame chiefly by 

 hia successes in this country : 



TACITUS. "AGRICOLA," 46. 



Si quis piorum manibus locos, si, at sapicntibus placet, 1 non 

 cum corpore exstinguuntur magnao animae, placide quiescaa, 

 nosque, domum tuam, 2 ab infirmo desiderio et muliebribus la- 

 mentis ad contemplationom vii-tutum tuarum voces, qnos neqne 

 lugeri neque plangi fas est : admiratione to potios, et immor- 

 talibus laudibus, et, si natura snppeditet, zemulatu decoremus. 

 Is veras honos, ea conjunctissimi cujusque pietas. Id filiaa 

 quoque oxorique pracceperim, eic patris, sic mariti memonam 

 venerari, ut omnia facta dictaque ejus secum revolvant, famam- 

 quo ac fignram animi magis quam corporis conplectantur : non 

 quia intercedendum 3 putem imaginibus, qua3 marmoro ant sere 

 finguntur; Bed ut vultus hominum, ita 4 simulacra vnltus in- 

 becilla ac mortolia sunt, forma mentis aeterna ; quam tenere et 

 exprimere, non per alienam materiam et artcm, Bed tuis ipse 

 moribus possis. Quidquid ex Agricola* amavimus, quidquid 

 mirati sumus, manet mansurumque est in animis hominum, in 

 ffiternitate temporum, fama rerum. 8 Nam mnltos veterum, 

 velut inglorios ct ignobiles, oblirio obruet : Agricola, posteri- 

 tati norratus et traditus, superstes erit. 



1. Ut sapientibus placet. Plato and several other philosophers 

 had taught tho doctrine of the immortality of the sonl, or rather at 

 the thinking faculty. 



2. Domus tuam. Because Tacitus was a near relation of Agricola, 



3. Non quia iiiterceduudum, not that I think that ttatuea thould U 

 forbidden. 



4. Ut vultus ita, aa loth the face and that which images it are equally 

 frail and perishable. 



5. Ex Agricola, t'n Agricola' character. 



6. Fania rerum, in history. 



TRANSLATION OF PART OF EXTRACT II. IN LAST 

 READING. 



A walnut tree hard by the roadside, I get pelted with stones by 

 the passers by, though my life is faultless. Such a penalty is wont to 

 be inflicted on detected criminals when the peoples' wrath brooks not 

 slow delay. I have done no crime, unless for a tree to bear yearly 

 fruit for its owner is thought to bo a crime. In days gone by, when 

 times were better, tho trees would vie with each other iu fertility, 

 and their thankful owners, at the ripening of the crops, would wreathe 

 with garlands the statues of the gods of husbandry. Thus hast thoa 

 often, Bacchus, admired the vine sacred to thee, and Minerva has 

 admired her own olive; and it has been that the light fruit would havo 

 broken the parent tree had not a lorsg forked pole helped tho bow to 

 bear tho weight. 



