THE CAPTIVES ARE QUESTIONED
221
pugnātum est. Nē vulnerātī quidem pedem rettulērunt. Tandem,
dē[1] tertiā vigiliā, Pūblius, quem Caesar illī operī[2] praefēcerat, nūntiāvit partem[3] mūrī ictibus arietis labefactam concidisse.
TURRES, ARIETES, VINEA Quā rē auditā Caesar signum dat; mīlitēs inruunt et magnā cum caede hostium oppidum capiunt.
Postridiē eius diēī, hōc oppidō expugnatō, captīvōrum[4] quī nōbilissimī sunt ad imperātōrem ante praetōrium[5] addūcuntur. Ipse, lōricā aurātā et palūdāmentō purpureō īnsignis, captivōs per interpretem in hunc modum interrogat:[6] Vōs quī estis?[7]
- Interpres. Rogat imperātor quī sītis.
- Captīvī. Fīliī rēgis sumus.
- Interpres. Dicunt sē fīliōs esse rēgis.
- Imperātor. Cur mihi tantās iniūriās intulistis ?
- Interpres. Rogat cūr sibi tantās iniūriās intuleritis.
- Captīvī. Iniūriās eī nōn intulimus sed prō patriā bellum gessimus. Semper voluimus Rōmānīs esse amīcī, sed Rōmānī sine causā nōs domō patriāque expellere cōnātī sunt.
- Interpres. Negant[8] sē iniūriās tibi intulisse, sed prō patriā bellum gessisse. Semper[9] sē voluisse amīcōs Rōmānīs esse, sed Rōmānōs sine causā sē domō patriāque expellere cōnātōs esse.
- ↑ Between twelve and three o'clock in the morning. The night was divided into four watches.
- ↑ operī, § 501. 15.
- ↑ partem, subj. acc. of concidisse.
- ↑ captīvōrum … sunt, the noblest of the captives.
- ↑ The general‘s headquarters.
- ↑ Study carefully these direct questions, indirect questions, and indirect statements.
- ↑ See Plate III, p. 148.
- ↑ Negant, etc., they say that they have not, etc. Negant is equivalent to dīcunt nōn, and the negative modifies intulisse, but not the remainder of the indirect statement.
- ↑ Semper, etc., that they have always, etc.