Chapter C: Sallustii Crispi (1)

BELLUM JUGURTHINUM.

* * * * *

1. Falso queritur de natura sua genus humanum quod imbecilla atque aevi brevis[1] forte potius quam virtute regatur. Nam contra reputando neque majus aliud neque praestabilius invenias,[2] magisque naturae industriam hominum quam vim aut tempus deesse. Sed dux atque imperator vitae mortalium animus est, qui, ubi ad gloriam virtutis via grassatur,[3] abunde pollens potensque et clarus est, neque fortuna eget, quippe probitatem, industriam aliasque artes bonas neque dare neque eripere cuiquam potest. Sin captus pravis cupidinibus ad inertiam et voluptates corporis pessumdatus est, perniciosa libidine paulisper[4] usus, ubi per socordiam vires, tempus, ingenium diffluxere, naturae infirmitas accusatur; suam quisque culpam auctores ad negotia transferunt.[5] Quodsi[6] hominibus bonarum rerum tanta cura esset, quanto studio aliena ac nihil profutura multumque etiam periculosa[7] petunt; neque regerentur[8] magis quam regerent casus, et eo magnitudinis[9] procederent, ubi pro mortalibus gloria aeterni fierent.

[1] _Aevi brevis_, 'of short duration.' _Aevum_, in the sense of _aetas_,
is rather poetical, and does not occur till a rather late period;
whence the common expression _medium aevum_, 'the middle ages,' is
not exactly in accordance with the best Latinity.
[2] _Invenias_; supply _quam naturam humanam_.
[3] _Grassatur_, the same as _ingreditur_, 'advances towards;' but
_grassari_ has the additional meaning of power and vehemence, whence
it is often used to mark the progress of something bad.
[4] _Paulisper_, 'for a short time.'
[5] _Auctores_ contains a whole clause--'every one transfers his own
fault, _though he himself is the author of it_, to circumstances;'
that is, to the things which he himself has done.
[6] _Quodsi_, 'if, however.' Zumpt, S 807.
[7] 'And at the same time very dangerous.' In many cases one feels
inclined to assign to the adverb _multum_ the meaning of 'often,'
but with adjectives, it is used only to strengthen their meaning.
[8] _Regerentur_; supply _casibus_.
[9] _Eo magnitudinis_; that is, _ad eam magnitudinem_, 'to that
greatness.' See Zumpt, S 434.

2. Nam uti genus hominum compositum ex corpore et anima est, ita res cunctae studiaque omnia nostra corporis alia, alia animi[10] naturam sequuntur. Igitur praeclara facies, magnae divitiae, ad hoc vis corporis et alia hujuscemodi omnia brevi dilabuntur; at ingenii egregia facinora sicuti anima immortalia sunt. Postremo corporis et fortunae bonorum ut initium sic finis est, omniaque orta occidunt et aucta senescunt: animus incorruptus[11] aeternus, rector humani generis, agit atque habet cuncta neque ipse habetur.[12] Quo magis pravitas eorum admiranda est,[13] qui dediti corporis gaudiis per luxum atque ignaviam aetatem agunt, ceterum[14] ingenium, quo neque melius neque amplius aliud in natura mortalium est, incultu atque socordia torpescere sinunt; quum praesertim tam multae variaeque sint artes animi, quibus summa claritudo paratur.

[10] According to the common arrangement of words, it would be _alia
corporis, alia animi_; but Sallust abandons this order just because
it is common. For the same reason he prefers _alii--pars_ to
_alii--alii_. _Naturam corporis_ (or _animi_) _sequuntur_, 'they
follow the nature (that is, they are of the same kind) of body and
mind.' Regarding the change of _anima_ into _animus_, it must be
observed that _anima_ is 'the soul,' the seat and basis of _animus_
(mind), which is the activity of the _anima_.
[11] 'But the mind is not subject to corruption' (that is, to dissolution
and annihilation), for a perfect participle with the negative prefix
in frequently denotes a passive impossibility, which is usually
expressed by adjectives ending in _ilis_ or _bilis_; as _invictus
miles_, an invincible soldier.
[12] 'The mind possesses all things, but itself is not possessed;' that
is, it is free. This is an imitation of a well-known Greek phrase,
[Greek: echo, ouk echomai].
[13] _Admirari_ signifies not only 'to admire,' but also 'to wonder,' at
anything which is surprising or displeasing; and in the latter sense
it is the same as _mirari_.
[14] Respecting _ceterum _ as an adversative conjunction, see Zumpt,
S 349.

3. Verum ex his magistratus et imperia, postremo omnis cura rerum publicarum minime mihi hac tempestate[15] cupiunda videntur; quoniam neque virtuti honos datur, neque illi, quibus per fraudem is fuit,[16] tuti aut eo magis honesti[17] sunt. Nam vi quidem regere patriam aut parentes,[18] quamquam et possis et delicta corrigas,[19] tamen importunum est; quum praesertim omnes rerum mutationes caedem, fugam, aliaque hostilia portendant,[20] frustra autem niti,[21] neque aliud se fatigando nisi odium quaerere, extremae dementiae est; nisi forte[22] quem inhonesta et perniciosa libido[23] tenet, potentiae paucorum decus atque libertatem suam gratificari.

[15] _Hac tempestate_, the same as _hoc tempore_. Sallust frequently uses
_tempestas_ in this sense, though certainly the time which he paints
in such dark colours--namely, the period after the murder of Caesar,
in B.C. 44--was an agitated and stormy one.
[16] 'Who have obtained by fraud an honour or honourable office,'
_quibus honos contigit_.
[17] _Honestus_, 'honoured,' or 'honourable;' for _honestus_ (from
_honor_) is both the one who is intrusted with an honourable office,
and in general he who is worthy of an honour. The persons here spoken
of were _honesti_ in the first, but not in the second sense.
[18] It might seem doubtful as to whether _parentes_ here means 'obeying
persons'--that is, subjects of the Roman state--or 'kinsmen,'
'relatives.' We believe the latter to be the case, because to control
subjects by force was not deemed improper by the ancients. Sallust
elsewhere also combines _patria et parentes_ (_Catil._ 6, _Jug._ 87),
thereby expressing the idea of a free and equal _civitas_, which is
to be convinced, not forced, and to be governed by magistrates chosen
by itself, and not by a despotic ruler. The word _importunus_
properly characterises the rudeness and unbearableness of a despot or
tyrant.
[19] 'Even if you have the power, and intend to punish actual crimes
in the state'--whereby Sallust intimates that a tyrannical government
may actually introduce improvements, as history proves to have been
the case at all times. The subjunctive is used with _quamquam_,
because the author speaks only of a possibility, and also because an
indefinite person is addressed by the second person singular. Compare
Zumpt, S 831, 3.
[20] _Portendere_ is here the same as 'to bring with one's self,' or 'to
be followed by.' It is a very sound remark, that by violent changes
in a constitution, improvements may indeed be effected, but that at
the same time these are accompanied or followed by many acts of
injustice and crime.
[21] _Frustra niti_, 'to strive in vain (namely, to effect improvements),
if, after all, nothing but hatred is incurred by it, is extreme
folly.'
[22] _Nisi forte_, 'unless perhaps'--which surely cannot be the case
with any sensible man. Respecting this use of _nisi forte_,
expressing an improbable supposition, see Zumpt, S 526.
[23] _Libido--gratificari_, 'the inclination to gratify;' for _libido
tenet_ is only a paraphrase for _libet_. This statement is striking,
and but too true, for there are men who think it an honour to
sacrifice their own conviction and independence for the purpose of
pleasing persons in power.

4. Ceterum ex aliis negotiis, quae ingenio exercentur, in primis magno usui est memoria rerum gestarum:[24] cujus de virtute quia multi dixere, praetereundum puto, simul ne per insolentiam[25] quis existimet memet studium meum laudando extollere. Atque ego credo fore, qui, quia decrevi procul a re publica aetatem agere, tanto tamque utili labori meo nomen inertiae imponant: certe, quibus[26] maxima industria videtur salutare plebem et conviviis gratiam quaerere. Qui si reputaverint, et quibus ego temporibus magistratum adeptus sim, et quales viri idem assequi nequiverint,[27] et postea quae genera hominum in senatum pervenerint, profecto existimabunt me magis merito quam ignavia judicium animi mei mutavisse, majusque commodum ex otio meo quam ex aliorum negotiis rei publicae venturum. Nam saepe ego audivi, Q. Maximum,[28] P. Scipionem, praeterea civitatis nostrae praeclaros viros solitos ita dicere, quum majorum imagines[29] intuerentur, vehementissime sibi animum ad virtutem accendi. Scilicet[30] non ceram illam neque figuram tantam vim in sese habere, sed memoria rerum gestarum eam flammam egregiis viris in pectore crescere neque prius sedari, quam virtus eorum famam atque gloriam adaequaverit.[31] At contra, quis est omnium his moribus,[32] quin divitiis et sumptibus, non probitate neque[33] industria cum majoribus suis contendat? Etiam homines novi,[34] qui antea per virtutem soliti erant nobilitatem antevenire, furtim et per latrocinia potius quam bonis artibus ad imperia et honores nituntur; proinde quasi[35] praetura et consulatus atque alia omnia hujuscemodi per se ipsa clara et magnifica sint, ac non perinde habeantur, ut eorum, qui ea sustinent, virtus est. Verum ego liberius altiusque processi, dum me civitatis morum piget taedetque; nunc ad inceptum redeo.

[24] _Memoria rerum gestarum_, 'the recording of events ;' that is, the
writing of history, the usefulness (_virtus_) of which is
acknowledged.
[25] The words _per insolentiam_ belong to _laudando extollere_,
and the meaning is, 'that no one may believe me to extol my own
occupation with excessive praise.' _Per insolentiam_ is the same as
_insolenter_, _per_ expressing manner.
[26] 'At least _those_ to whom it appears to be a lofty occupation,' &c.
Respecting the omission of the demonstrative pronoun before the
relative, even when they are in different cases, see Zumpt, S 765.
[27] 'And what distinguished men were unable to attain such a
distinction.' Sallust here boasts of having obtained a seat in the
senate, and a high magistracy, at a time when it was a matter of
difficulty, and when even men of great merit were unable to gain
either. But at the same time he adds the remark, that afterwards many
undeserving persons were introduced into the senate, to
co-operate with whom was no honour. _Quae genera hominum_ refers to
the filling up of the senate with persons from the lower classes, and
even with such as were not free-born. This connivance at ambitious
upstarts, or rather this recklessness in filling up the vacancies in
the supreme council of Rome, was shown not only by the dictator J.
Caesar, but by his successors in power, M. Antony and Octavianus. In
consequence of such things, Sallust adds, it will be evident that he
was justified in withdrawing from public life.
[28] That is, the celebrated Fabius Maximus, surnamed Cunctator, who
distinguished himself by his prudence in the second Punic War.
P. Scipio is the elder Scipio Africanus, the conqueror of Hannibal.
We might indeed imagine that Sallust is speaking of Scipio Africanus
the younger, but his being mentioned along with Fabius Maximus must
lead every reader to think of the elder Scipio.
[29] The images (_imagines_) of ancestors might indeed be statues, but
from the mention of wax in the next sentence, it is evident that we
have to understand the wax masks which constituted the greatest
ornament in the vestibule of the house of a noble family. The busts
(portraits) of those ancestors who had been invested with a curule
office were made of wax, and their descendants used these wax
portraits to dress up persons representing in public processions the
illustrious deceased, adorned with all the insignia of the offices
with which they had been invested. Such processions, especially at
public funerals (a real kind of masquerade), were intended to keep
alive in the memory of the Romans not only the names and exploits
of their illustrious statesmen and warriors, but even their bodily
appearance.
[30] _Scilicet_, in this passage, is not a conjunction as usual, but, as
in the earlier Latinity of Plautus and Terence, it is used for _scire
licet_, 'one may perceive,' or 'it is self-evident,' and is
accordingly followed by the accusative with the infinitive.
[31] 'The flame of their noble ambition did not become extinguished until
their merit had obtained the fame and glory' (namely, of those
ancestors).
[32] _His moribus_, 'in the present state of morality;' an ablative
absolute.
[33] Instead of _neque_, the author might have used _aut_, for both
particles are used to continue a negative statement. See Zumpt,
S 337.
[34] _Homines novi_, 'new men,' so called by the Romans, were those
persons who were the first of their family to rise to curule offices,
as Cato Censorius, and at a later time Cicero. In former times,
Sallust says, such _homines novi_ distinguished themselves by their
ability, while now they rise by base means, especially by party
strife and party interest, which he contemptuously calls
_latrocinium_.
[35] _Proinde quasi_, 'just as if,' and afterwards _perinde habentur ut_,
'they are considered as of equal value.' Compare Zumpt, SS 282 and
340.

5. Bellum scripturus sum,[36] quod populus Romanus cum Jugurtha rege Numidarum gessit; primum quia magnum et atrox variaque victoria fuit, dein quia tunc primum superbiae nobilitatis obviam itum est; quae contentio divina et humana cuncta permiscuit eoque vecordiae processit, uti studiis civilibus bellum atque vastitas Italiae finem faceret. Sed priusquam hujuscemodi rei initium expedio, pauca supra repetam, quo ad cognoscendum omnia illustria magis magisque in aperto sint.[37] Bello Punico secundo, quo dux Carthaginiensium Hannibal post magnitudinem nominis Romani[38] Italiae opes maxime attriverat, Masinissa rex Numidarum, in amicitiam receptus a P. Scipione, cui postea Africano[39] cognomen ex virtute fuit, multa ei praeclara[40] rei militaris facinora fecerat; ob quae victis Carthaginiensibus et capto Syphace, cujus in Africa magnum atque late imperium valuit,[41] populus Romanus quascunque urbes et agros manu ceperat, regi dono dedit. Igitur amicitia Masinissae bona atque honesta nobis permansit. Sed imperii vitaeque ejus finis idem fuit. Dein Micipsa filius regnum solus obtinuit, Mastanabale et Gulussa fratribus morbo absumptis. Is Adherbalem et Hiempsalem ex sese genuit, Jugurthamque, filium Mastanabalis fratris, quem Masinissa, quod ortus ex concubina erat, privatum dereliquerat,[42] eodem cultu quo liberos suos domi habuit.

[36] Respecting the special meaning of this periphrastic conjugation,
see Zumpt, S 498. Sallust states that he wishes to describe this
war separately, because during its progress there was kindled at
Rome that struggle between the populares and the optimates, which
was in the end carried on with such senseless vehemence, that only
the devastation of Italy put a stop to the civil discord (_studiis
civilibus_), and that only a military despotism (first of Caesar, and
afterwards of the triumvirs) was able to restore peace. This part of
the description of the Jugurthine war, accordingly, is of the
greatest importance, in forming a correct idea of the history of Rome
at that time.
[37] The same meaning might have been expressed by _ut omnia ad
cognoscendum illustriora et apertiora sint_. See Zumpt, S 106.
[38] That is, 'after the Roman name had become great;' for in earlier
times the Roman people had suffered still greater reverses,
especially when the Gauls took and burned the city of Rome itself.
But the author purposely avoids speaking of those early periods.
[39] _Africano_. See Zumpt, S 421.
[40] About _et_ after _multa_, see Zumpt, S 756.
[41] _Magnum atque late_, the connection of an adjective and adverb is
somewhat singular--'the dominion of Syphax existed as a large one,
and had a wide extent;' for he possessed the whole of western
Numidia, being the hereditary king of the people of the Massaesyli,
while Masinissa had only the smaller, eastern, part, and the tribe
of the Massyli.
[42] 'He had left him behind in a private station;' that is, he had not
appointed him in his will ruler of any portion of his dominions. But
his uncle Micipsa gave him that which his grandfather Masinissa
had refused to him; namely, he recognised him as a prince of the
royal family.

6. Qui ubi primum adolevit, pollens viribus, decora facie, sed multo maxime ingenio validus, non se luxu[43] neque inertiae corrumpendum dedit, sed, uti mos gentis illius est, equitare, jaculari, cursu cum aequalibus certare, et quum omnes gloria anteiret, omnibus tamen carus esse; ad hoc pleraque tempora in venando agere, leonem atque alias feras primus aut in primis ferire, plurimum facere, minimum ipse de se loqui. Quibus rebus Micipsa tametsi initio laetus fuerat, existimans virtutem Jugurthae regno suo gloriae fore, tamen, postquam hominem adolescentem exacta sua aetate et parvis liberis magis magisque crescere intellegit, vehementer eo negotio permotus, multa cum animo suo volvebat. Terrebat eum natura mortalium avida imperii et praeceps ad explendam animi cupidinem, praeterea opportunitas suae liberorumque aetatis,[44] quae etiam mediocres viros spe praedae transversos agit;[45] ad hoc studia Numidarum in Jugurtham accensa, ex quibus, si talem virum dolis interfecisset, ne qua seditio aut bellum oriretur, anxius erat.

[43] _Luxu_ for _luxui_. See Zumpt, S 81.
[44] 'The favourable opportunity of his advanced age, and of the tender
age of his children.'
[45] Opportunities are apt to lead ordinary persons (not endowed with
great mental powers) away from the right path. _Transversus_, 'that
which turns away to one side.'

7. His difficultatibus circumventus ubi videt neque per vim neque insidiis opprimi posse hominem tam acceptum popularibus, quod erat Jugurtha manu promptus et appetens gloriae militaris, statuit eum objectare periculis et eo modo fortunam temptare. Igitur bello Numantino[46] Micipsa, quum populo Romano equitum atque peditum auxilia mitteret, sperans vel ostentando virtutem vel hostium saevitia facile eum occasurum, praefecit Numidis, quos in Hispaniam mittebat. Sed ea res longe aliter, ac ratus erat, evenit. Nam Jugurtha, ut erat impigro atque acri ingenio, ubi naturam P. Scipionis, qui tum Romanis imperator erat,[47] et morem hostium cognovit, multo labore multaque cura, praeterea modestissime parendo et saepe obviam eundo periculis in tantam claritudinem brevi pervenerat, ut nostris vehementer carus, Numantinis maximo terrori esset. Ac sane, quod difficillimum in primis[48] est, et proelio strenuus erat et bonus consilio; quorum alterum[49] ex providentia timorem, alterum ex audacia temeritatem affere plerumque solet. Igitur imperator omnes fere res asperas per Jugurtham agere, in amicis habere, magis magisque eum in dies amplecti; quippe cujus neque consilium neque inceptum ullum frustra erat.[50] Huc accedebat munificentia animi et ingenii sollertia, quis rebus sibi multos ex Romanis familiari amicitia conjunxerat.

[46] 'In the war against Numantia.' Numantia was the capital of the
Arevaci, a tribe of the Celtiberians in Spain, and was situated
on the upper Durius (now Duero), in the mountainous district whence
the Durius and Tagus flow westward, and other rivers eastward,
into the Iberus (Ebro), and southward into the Mediterranean. This
city carried on a desperate war against Rome to defend its own
independence. After a brave resistance of many years, it was taken
and destroyed, B. C. 133, by Scipio the younger, the destroyer of
Carthage. Its ruins are believed to be in the neighbourhood of the
modern Soria.
[47] _Qui tum erat_--that is, _quem tum Romani imperatorem habebant_.
[48] _Difficillimum in primis_, like _difficillimum omnium_; that is, the
most difficult among those that were the first or foremost in
difficulty.
[49] The one--namely, to be good in council--usually produces
timidity; the other--namely, to be bold in battle--rashness.
_Alterum--alterum_, takes up the things mentioned before, but in an
inverse order; respecting which, see Zumpt, S 700, note.
[50] _Erat_ for the usual subjunctive _esset_.

8. Ea tempestate in exercitu nostro fuere complures novi atque nobiles, quibus divitiae bono honestoque potiores erant,[51] factiosi domi, potentes apud socios, clari magis quam honesti, qui Jugurthae non mediocrem animum pollicitando accendebant, si Micipsa rex occidisset, fore, uti solus imperio Numidiae potiretur, in ipso maximam virtutem, Romae omnia venalia esse. Sed postquam Numantia deleta P. Scipio dimittere auxilia et ipse reverti domum decrevit, donatum atque laudatum magnifice pro contione[52] Jugurtham in praetorium abduxit ibique secreto monuit, uti potius publice quam privatim amicitiam populi Romani coleret neu quibus[53] largiri insuesceret; periculose a paucis emi, quod multorum esset: si permanere vellet in suis artibus,[54] ultro illi et gloriam et regnum venturum, sin properantius pergeret, suamet ipsum pecunia praecipitem casurum.

[51] 'To whom wealth was of more importance than that which is good and
noble.'
[52] For the meaning of _pro_ in this and similar expressions, see
Zumpt, S 311.
[53] Not to make presents to individuals, _quibus_ being used for
_aliquibus_. Scipio must have seen with displeasure the intimacy
between Jugurtha and certain young ambitious Romans of an equivocal
character.
[54] 'In his own mode of acting,' must be understood here of his
honourable mode of acting; though there are also _malae artes_, such
as faithlessness, cunning, flattery, and the like.

9. Sic locutus cum litteris eum, quas Micipsae redderet, dimisit. Earum sententia haec erat: 'Jugurthae tui bello Numantino longe maxima virtus fuit, qnam rem tibi certo[55] scio gaudio esse. Nobis ob merita sua carus est; ut idem senatui et populo Romano sit, summa ope nitemur. Tibi quidem pro nostra amicitia gratulor. En habes virum dignum te atque avo suo Masinissa.' Igitur rex, ubi ea, quae fama acceperat, ex litteris imperatoris ita esse cognovit, cum virtute tum gratia viri permotus flexit animum suum et Jugurtham beneficiis vincere aggressus est, statimque eum adoptavit et testamento pariter cum filiis heredem instituit. Sed ipse paucos post annos morbo atque aetate confectus quum sibi finem vitae adesse intellegeret, coram amicis et cognatis itemque Adherbale et Hiempsale filiis dicitur hujuscemodi verba cum Jugurtha habuisse:[56]

[55] _Certo scio_; we also find _certe scio_. See Zumpt, S 266, note. [56] _Verba habere_ is sometimes used in the sense of _orationem habere_.

10. 'Parvum ego te, Jugurtha, amisso patre, sine spe, sine opibus, in meum regnum accepi, existimans non minus me tibi, quam si genuissem, ob beneficia carum fore; neque ea res falsum me habuit.[57] Nam, ut alia magna et egregia tua omittam, novissime rediens Numantia meque regnumque meum gloria honoravisti tuaque virtute nobis Romanos ex amicis amicissimos[58] fecisti; in Hispania nomen familiae renovatum est, postremo, quod difficillimum inter mortales est, gloria invidiam vicisti. Nunc, quoniam mihi natura finem vitae facit, per hanc dexteram, per regni fidem[59] moneo obtestorque, uti hos, qui tibi genere propinqui, beneficio meo fratres sunt, caros habeas, neu malis alienos adjungere[60] quam sanguine conjunctos retinere. Non exercitus neque thesauri praesidia regni sunt, verum amici, quos neque armis cogere neque auro parare queas; officio et fide pariuntur.[61] Quis autem amicior quam frater fratri? aut quem alienum fidum invenies, si tuis hostis fueris? Equidem ego vobis regnum trado firmum, si boni eritis; sin mali, imbecillum. Nam concordia parvae res crescunt, discordia maximae dilabuntur. Ceterum ante hos[62] te, Jugurtha, qui aetate et sapientia prior es, ne aliter quid eveniat, providere decet. Nam in omni certamine qui opulentior est, etiamsi accipit injuriam, tamen quia plus potest, facere videtur. Vos autem, Adherbal et Hiempsal, colite, observate[63] talem hunc virum, imitamini virtutem et enitimini, ne ego meliores liberos sumpsisse videar quam genuisse.'

[57] _Me falsum habuit_ for _me fefellit_. We remarked before (Cat. 51)
[note 253 above] that Sallust is fond of using _habere_ in certain
phrases.
[58] _Amicissimos._ See Zumpt, S 410.
[59] _Per regni fidem_, 'by the conscientiousness which is observed in
governing, and must be observed;' so that it is almost the same as
_per regiam fidem_, or _per fidem regum_, which kings owe to one
another.
[60] _Adjungere_; supply _tibi_, 'connect yourself with strangers,' as
opposed to supporting and maintaining friendly relations with his
friends and kinsmen.
[61] Sallust here changes his expression. He might have said _parantur_,
but _parere_ also occurs in other authors in the sense of _parare_,
or 'to acquire.'
[62] _Ante hos_, 'in preference to these.'
[63] _Observare_ has a sense similar to that of _colere_, 'to honour' and
refers to the observance of all the duties of devotedness, especially
in the external relations of social life.

11. Ad ea Jugurtha, tametsi regem ficta locutum intellegebat et ipse longe aliter animo agitabat, tamen pro tempore benigne respondit. Micipsa paucis post diebus moritur. Postquam illi more regio justa magnifice fecerant, reguli[64] in unum convenerunt, ut inter se de cunctis negotiis disceptarent. Sed Hiempsal, qui minimus ex illis erat, natura ferox et jam ante ignobilitatem Jugurthae, quia materno genere impar erat, despiciens, dextera Adherbalem assedit,[65] ne medius ex tribus, quod apud Numidas honori ducitur, Jugurtha foret. Dein tamen ut aetati concederet fatigatus[66] a fratre, vix in partem alteram transductus est. Ibi quum mulla de administrando imperio dissererent, Jugurtha inter alias res jacit oportere quinquennii consulta et decreta omnia rescindi; nam per ea tempora confectum annis Micipsam parum animo valuisse. Tum idem Hiempsal placere sibi respondit; nam ipsum illum tribus proximis annis[67] adoptatione in regnum pervenisse. Quod verbum in pectus Jugurthae altius, quam quisquam ratus erat, descendit. Itaque ex eo tempore ira et metu anxius moliri, parare atque ea modo cum animo habere,[68] quibus Hiempsal per dolum caperetur. Quae ubi tardius procedunt neque lenitur animus ferox, statuit quovis modo inceptum perficere.

[64] _Reguli_ may be petty kings with small dominions as well as young
kings--that is, princes. We here take the latter to be the meaning.
[65] _Adherbalem assedit_, or _Adherbali assedit_, 'he sat himself down
at the right-hand side of Adherbal.' See Zumpt, S 386, note. There
accordingly remained for Jugurtha only the place on the left of
Adherbal--that is, the least honourable of the three places.
[66] _Fatigatus_ is commonly construed with an ablative, which is here to
be supplied (_precibus_); but without such an addition, _fatigare_
signifies 'to importune a person with prayers and requests.'
[67] 'Within the last three years;' but as the author is here speaking
of the time at which something happened, it is used instead of
_ante triennium_, or _triennio ante_.
[68] _Cum animo habere_, the same as _cum_, or _in animo agitare_,
_volvere_, _reputare_. Here, again, we must attend to the use of
_habere_.

12. Primo conventu, quem ab regulis factum supra memoravi, propter dissensionem placuerat dividi thesauros finesque imperii singulis constitui. Itaque tempus ad utramque rem decernitur, sed maturius ad pecuniam distribuendam. Reguli interea in loca propinqua thesauris alius alio[69] concessere. Sed Hiempsal in oppido Thirmida forte ejus domo utebatur, qui proximus lictor[70] Jugurthae carus acceptusque ei semper fuerat; quem ille casu ministrum oblatum promissis onerat impellitque, uti tamquam suam visens domum eat, portarum claves adulterinas[71] paret (nam verae ad Hiempsalem referebantur); ceterum, ubi res postularet, se ipsum cum magna manu venturum. Numida mandata brevi conficit atque, uti doctus erat, noctu Jugurthae milites introducit. Qui postquam in aedes irrupere, diversi regem quaerere, dormientes alios, alios occursantes interficere, scrutari loca abdita, clausa effringere, strepitu et tumultu omnia miscere; quum[72] interim Hiempsal reperitur occultans sese tugurio mulieris ancillae, quo initio pavidus et ignarus loci perfugerat. Numidae caput ejus, uti jussi erant, ad Jugurtham referunt.

[69] _Alius alio_, 'one in one direction, and the other in another.' See
Zumpt, S 289.
[70] _Proximus lictor_ is the one of the lictors who, when they precede
the praetors or consuls, walks last, and is therefore nearest to his
commander; and this lictor, according to Roman custom, had the
highest rank among his fellow-lictors. The customs of the Romans were
imitated at the courts of allied princes.
[71] _Claves adulterinae_, 'imitation keys.'
[72] Respecting the _quum_ in descriptions, where it is commonly preceded
by _interea_, or _interim_, see Zumpt, S 580.

13. Ceterum fama tanti facinoris per omnem Africam brevi divulgatur; Adherbalem omnesque, qui sub imperio Micipsae fuerant, metus invadit; in duas partes discedunt Numidae; plures Adherbalem sequuntur, sed illum alterum bello meliores. Igitur Jugurtha quam maximas potest copias armat, urbes partim vi, alias voluntate imperio suo adjungit, omni Numidiae imperare parat.[73] Adherbal, tametsi Romam legatos miserat, qui senatum docerent de caede fratris et fortunis suis, tamen fretus multitudine militum, parabat armis contendere. Sed ubi res ad certamen venit, victus ex proelio profugit in provinciam[74] ac deinde Romam contendit. Tum Jugurtha patratis consiliis, postquam omnis Numidiae potiebatur, in otio facinus suum cum animo reputans, timere populum Romanum neque adversus iram ejus usquam nisi in avaritia nobilitatis et pecunia sua spem habere. Itaque paucis diebus[75] cum auro et argento multo legatos Romam mittit, quis praecepit, primum uti veteres amicos muneribus expleant, deinde novos acquirant, postremo quaecunque possint largiundo parare ne cunctentur. Sed ubi Romam legati venere et ex praecepto regis hospitibus aliisque, quorum ea tempestate in senatu auctoritas pollebat, magna munera misere, tanta commutatio incessit, uti ex maxima invidia in gratiam et favorem nobilitatis Jugurtha veniret; quorum pars spe, alii praemio inducti, singulos ex senatu ambiundo[76] nitebantur, ne gravius in eum consuleretur.[77] Igitur ubi legati satis confidunt, die constituto senatus utrisque datur. Tum Adherbalem hoc modo locutum accepimus:

[73] _Parat_, in the sense of _se parat_, 'he prepares himself,' or 'sets
about;' and thus _parare_ is not unfrequently used by Sallust
absolutely in the sense of _statuere_ and _instituere_.
[74] _Provincia_ here is the Roman province of Africa, consisting of the
territory of Carthage which had been destroyed, and containing the
towns of Leptis, Hadrumetum, Utica, and Carthage, which was
gradually rising again as a Roman town. That territory now belongs
to the dey of Tunis, a vassal prince of the Turkish sultan. Numidia,
in the west of the Roman province, was bounded in the west by the
kingdom of Mauretania, and comprised the modern Algeria which is
possessed by the French.
[75] _Paucis diebus_, 'within a few days;' that is, a few days after.
See Zumpt, S 480.
[76] _Singulos ambire_, 'to go about addressing individual persons,' has
at the same time the meaning of 'attempting to gain them over by
intreaties or promises.'
[77] 'That no severe decree might be passed against him,' _ne gravius
consilium in eum caperetur_.

14. 'Patres conscripti, Micipsa pater meus moriens mihi praecepit, uti regni Numidiae tantummodo procurationem[78] existimarem meam, ceterum jus et imperium ejus penes vos esse; simul eniterer domi militiaeque quam maximo usui esse populo Romano; vos mihi cognatorum, vos affinium[79] loco ducerem: si ea fecissem, in vestra amicitia exercitum, divitias, munimenta regni me habiturum. Quae quum praecepta parentis mei agitarem, Jugurtha, homo omnium, quos terra sustinet,[80] sceleratissimus contempto imperio vestro, Masinissae me nepotem et jam ab stirpe socium atque amicum populi Romani regno fortunisque omnibus expulit. Atque ego, patres conscripti, quoniam eo miseriarum venturus eram,[81] vellem potius ob mea quam ob majorum meorum beneficia posse a vobis auxilium petere, ac maxime deberi mihi beneficia a populo Romano, quibus non egerem; secundum ea, si desideranda erant, uti debitis uterer.[82] Sed quoniam parum tuta per se ipsa probitas est, neque mihi in manu fuit,[83] Jugurtha qualis foret, ad vos confugi, patres conscripti, quibus, quod mihi misserimum est, cogor prius oneri quam usui esse. Ceteri reges aut bello victi in amicitiam a vobis recepti sunt, aut in suis dubiis rebus societatem vestram appetiverunt; familia nostra cum populo Romano bello Carthaginiensi amicitiam instituit, quo tempore magis fides ejus quam fortuna petenda erat.[84] Quorum progeniem vos, patres conscripti, nolite pati me nepotem Masinissae[85] frustra a vobis auxilium petere. Si ad impetrandum nihil causae haberem praeter miserandam fortunam, quod paulo ante rex genere, fama atque copiis potens, nunc deformatus aerumnis, inops, alienas opes expecto, tamen erat majestatis Romani populi[86] prohibere injuriam neque pati cujusquam regnum per scelus crescere. Verum ego iis finibus ejectus sum, quos majoribus meis populus Romanus dedit, unde pater et avus meus una vobiscum expulere Syphacem et Carthaginienses. Vestra beneficia mihi erepta sunt, patres conscripti, vos in mea injuria despecti estis. Eheu me miserum! Hucine, Micipsa pater, beneficia tua evasere,[87] ut, quem tu parem cum liberis tuis regnique participem fecisti, is potissimum stirpis tuae extinctor sit? Nunquam ergo familia nostra quieta erit![88] semperne in sanguine, ferro, fuga versabimur? Dum Carthaginienses incolumes fuere, jure omnia saeva patiebamur; hostes ab latere, vos amici procul, spes omnis in armis erat. Postquam illa pestis ex Africa ejecta est, laeti pacem agitabamus, quippe quis hostis nullus erat, nisi forte quem vos jussissetis.[89] Ecce autem ex improviso Jugurtha, intoleranda audacia, scelere atque superbia sese efferens, fratre meo atque eodem propinquo suo[90] interfecto, primum regnum ejus sceleris sui praedam fecit, post, ubi me iisdem dolis non quit[91] capere, nihil minus quam vim aut bellum expectantem in imperio vestro, sicuti videtis, extorrem patria,[92] domo, inopem et coopertum miseriis effecit, ut ubivis tutius[93] quam in meo regno essem. Ego sic existimabam, patres conscripti, uti praedicantem audiveram patrem meum, qui vestram amicitiam diligenter colerent, eos multum laborem suscipere, ceterum ex omnibus maxime tutos[94] esse. Quod in familia nostra fuit,[95] praestitit, uti in omnibus bellis adesset vobis; nos uti per otium tuti simus, in vestra manu est, patres conscripti. Pater nos duos fratres reliquit; tertium, Jugurtham, beneficiis suis ratus est conjunctum nobis fore. Alter eorum necatus est, alterius ipse ego manus impias vix effugi. Quid agam? aut quo potissimum infelix accedam? Generis praesidia omnia extincta sunt; pater, uti necesse erat, naturae concessit; fratri, quem minime decuit,[96] propinquus per scelus vitam eripuit; affines, amicos, propinquos ceteros alium alia clades oppressit; capti ab Jugurtha pars in crucem acti, pars bestiis objecti sunt;[97] pauci, quibus relicta est anima, clausi in tenebris cum maerore et luctu morte graviorem vitam exigunt.[98] Si omnia, quae aut amisi aut ex necessariis adversa facta sunt,[99] incolumia manerent, tamen, si quid ex improviso mali accidisset, vos implorarem, patres conscripti, quibus pro magnitudine imperii jus et injurias omnes curae esse decet. Nunc vero exul patria, domo, solus atque omnium honestarum rerum egens, quo accedam aut quos appellem?[100] nationesne an reges, qui omnes familiae nostrae ob vestram amicitiam infesti sunt?[101] An quoquam mihi adire licet, ubi non majorum meorum hostilia monumenta plurima sint? aut quisquam nostri misereri potest, qui aliquando vobis hostis fuit? Postremo Masinissa nos ita instituit, patres conscripti, ne quem coleremus nisi populum Romanum, ne societates, ne foedera nova acciperemus; abunde magna praesidia nobis in vestra amicitia fore; si huic imperio[102] fortuna mutaretur, una occidendum nobis esse. Virtute ac dis volentibus magni estis et opulenti; omnia secunda[103] et obedientia sunt; quo facilius sociorum injurias curare licet. Tantum illud vereor, ne quos privata amicitia Jugurthae parum cognita transversos agat, quos ego audio maxima ope niti, ambire, fatigare[104] vos singulos, ne quid de absente incognita causa statuatis, fingere me verba et fugam simulare, cui licuerit in regno manere. Quodutinam[105] illum cujus impio facinore in has miserias projectus sum, eadem haec simulantem videam, et aliquando aut apud vos aut apud deos immortales rerum humanarum cura oriatur; nae ille, qui nunc sceleribus suis ferox atque praeclarus est, omnibus malis excruciatus impietatis in parentem nostrum, fratris mei necis mearumque miseriarum graves poenas reddat.[106] Jamjam frater, animo meo carissime, quamquam tibi immaturo et unde minime decuit vita erepta est,[107] tamen laetandum magis quam dolendum puto casum tuum;[108] non enim regnum, sed fugam, exilium, egestatem et omnes has, quae me premunt, aerumnas cum anima simul amisisti. At ego infelix, in tanta mala praecipitatus ex patrio regno, rerum humanarum spectaculum praebeo, incertus quid agam, tuasne injurias persequar, ipse auxilii egens, an regno consulam, cujus vitae necisque potestas ex opibus alienis[109] pendet. Utinam emori fortunis meis honestus exitus esset! neu vivere contemptus viderer, si defessus malis injuriae concessissem.[110] Nunc neque vivere libet, neque mori licet sine dedecore. Patres conscripti, per vos liberos[111] atque parentes vestros, per majestatem populi Romani subvenite misero mihi, ite obviam injuriae, nolite pati regnum Numidiae, quod vestrum est, per scelus et sanguinem familiae nostrae tabescere.'[112]

[78] Adherbal says that only the administration of Numidia belongs to
him, but that the legal title and supremacy belong to Rome--the
language of abject servility, by which he wishes to recommend himself
to the protection of the senate.
[79] _Affines_ are those connected with one another by marriage, whereas
_cognati_ are relations by blood.
[80] _Sustinere_ is here the same as _ferre_.
[81] 'As I was to come to such misery;' that is, as it had been ordained
by fate that I should come to such misery. See Zumpt, S 498.
[82] Adherbal wishes to be able to solicit the aid of the Romans, in
consequence of his own services, rather than those of his ancestors;
he then again divides that wish, considering it as most desirable
that the Roman people should owe him services without his being in
want of them, and next in desirableness that the services which he
requires should be performed as services due to him. By this latter
sentiment he returns to the point from which he set out--namely, his
wish to have done good services (_beneficia_) to the Romans. _Vellem_
in this sentence is followed twice by the accusative with the
infinitive (_posse_, to which _me_ is to be supplied, and _beneficia
deberi_), and then by a clause with _ut_ (_uti;_ that is,
_ut--uterer_). _Secundum ea_, 'next to,' or 'next after this,'
according to the etymology of _secundum_ from _sequor_.
[83] _In manu fuit_, an expression not uncommon in the comic poets; _in
manu alicujus est_, 'it is in a person's power.'
[84] 'At a time when the good fortune of the Romans did not render it so
desirable to enter into connection with them as their fidelity and
trustworthiness.'
[85] 'Do not allow me in vain to pray for your assistance.' _Me_ in this
sentence is accompanied by two accusatives in apposition, first
_progeniem_, and then _nepotem Masinissae_.
[86] Observe the unusual combination _Romani populi_ for _populi Romani_,
which is to be explained by the fact, that here _Romani_ is the more
emphatic word, placing the Roman people in contrast with other
nations.
[87] 'O I, unfortunate man! to what result, father Micipsa, have thy good
services led!' For the accusative _me miserum_, see Zumpt, S 402; and
for the double suffix in _hucine_, S 132.
[88] 'Never, then, will our family be at peace!' an exclamation to which
afterwards an interrogative sentence with _ne_ is appended. The
former also might have been expressed by _numquamne ergo_, &c.
[89] The subjunctive _jussissetis_ indicates a repeated action. See
Zumpt, S 569. The senate and people of Rome had the right to make war
and peace throughout the extent of the Roman dominion, so that the
allied nations and kings were obliged to regard those against whom
the Romans declared war as their own enemies; as, for example, not
long since, the Numantines.
[90] 'Who being a brother, was at the same time a relation.' Respecting
this use of the pronoun _idem_, when the two predicates are added to
one subject, see Zumpt, S 697.
[91] _Non queo_; that is, _nequeo_, or _non possum_.
[92] _Extorris_ (from _terra_), as _exsul_ from _solum_, 'homeless.'
Respecting the ablative denoting separation or privation, see Zumpt,
S 468.
[93] _Tutius_; the adjective _tutior_ also might have been used.
Respecting the use of adverbs with esse, see Zumpt, S 365.
[94] _Maxime tutos_; that is, _omnium tutissimos_.
[95] 'Whatever was in the power of our family;' _quod per familiam
nostram stetit_.
[96] This inserted clause belongs to the following _propinquus_. The
demonstrative _id_ (or _is_) is omitted, and the relative clause
precedes the word to which it refers. See Zumpt, SS 765, 813.
[97] _Pars--pars_; that is, _alii--alii_; whence the verb is in the
plural.
[98] _Exigere vitam_ for _agere vitam_, but implying a long and sorrowful
life.
[99] 'Which out of friendly things (circumstances), have become hostile.'
The neuter _necessaria_ also comprises the persons who are termed
_necessarii_, 'persons connected by ties of relationship or
friendship;' such as in particular Jugurtha, the adoptive brother of
the speaker.
[100] 'Whither shall I turn myself? whom shall I call to my assistance?'
Donatus, an ancient grammarian, in his commentary on Terence, quotes
from Sallust _quo accidam?_ 'whither shall I turn myself for
assistance?' but none of the manuscripts has that reading in this
passage.
[101] He alludes to the nations and kings who were still independent and
had not yet been incorporated with the Roman empire, especially
the kings of Syria and Egypt, and perhaps also the king of
Mauritania.
[102] Sallust might have said _hujus imperii_, but he prefers the dative,
which is a dativus incommodi.
[103] _Secundus_, 'favourable,' according to its derivation from
_sequor_, is especially used of a favourable wind, but also in the
general sense of 'assisting,' or 'devoted to.'
[104] _Fatigare_, 'to importune a person with prayers.' See note chap. 3.
[105] _Quodutinam_ connects this sentence in an animated manner with the
preceding, otherwise _utinam_ alone might be used. 'Yes, would that I
could but see Jugurtha feigning these very things.'
[106] _Nae ille--reddat_; as far as the sense is concerned, this sentence
forms the apodosis to the preceding wish: 'would that I could see
him in like circumstances, and would that at length the gods opened
their eyes; then he would surely have to pay a heavy penalty for
his impiety, for the death of my brother and for my sufferings.'
The present subjunctive in the apodosis corresponds with the same
tense in the protasis, and differs very little from the future
indicative. See Zumpt, S 524, note.
[107] 'Although life has been taken from thee before the age of maturity,
and by a person who should have done it least of all.' _Unde_,
the more general relative, is here used for _a quo homine_. In like
manner the Romans, in legal phraseology, called the defendant
_unde petitur_; that is, the person of whom payment is demanded.
[108] _Doleo_, 'I grieve at,' is construed with _de_, as _de casu tuo_,
with the ablative alone, _casu tuo_, and also as a transitive verb
with the accusative, _doleo casum tuum_. _Laetari_ here follows the
construction of _doleo_, for it is generally followed by _de_, or the
ablative alone. See Zumpt, S 383.
[109] Namely, the life and death of the persecuted Adherbal depends
upon the power of Jugurtha.
[110] Adherbal wishes two things: first, that a speedy death may
terminate his misfortunes; and second, not to be obliged to live in
contempt, if he should yield to Jugurtha. But neither of these
things, says he, can be done. Jugurtha will continue to lay snares
for him, and if he yields, and gives up to him his kingdom, he must
live despised. These two wishes are here uttered to move the hearts
of the senators, expressed as they are by a king.
[111] _Per vos liberos atque parentes vestros_. The words _per liberos_
belong together; to _vos_ supply _oro_. See Zumpt, S 794. Adherbal
intreats the senators by their children and parents, because Jugurtha
has so criminally trampled on the sacred rights of the family. Others
read _per vos per liberos vestros_; but this is wrong, and the
repetition of _per_ is bad: we never intreat persons by themselves,
but by something that is dear to them.
[112] _Tabescere_, 'to waste away,' 'perish;' the proper meaning is, 'to
be consumed by some disease.'

15. Postquam rex finem loquendi fecit, legati Jugurthae, largitione magis quam causa freti, paucis respondent: 'Hiempsalem ob saevitiam suam ab Numidis interfectum; Adherbalem ultro bellum inferentem, postquara superatus sit, queri, quod injuriam facere nequivisset: Jugurtham ab senatu petere, ne se alium putarent, ac Numantiae cognitus esset, neu verba inimici ante facta sua ponerent.'[113] Deinde utrique curia egrediuntur. Senatus statim consulitur: fautores legatorum, praeterea magna pars gratia depravata,[114] Adherbalis dicta contemnere, Jugurthae virtutem extollere laudibus; gratia, voce, denique omnibus modis pro alieno scelere et flagitio sua quasi pro gloria nitebantur. At contra pauci, quibus bonum et aequum divitiis carius erat, subveniundum Adherbali et Hiempsalis mortem severe vindicandam censebant; sed ex omnibus maxime Aemelius Scaurus, homo nobilis, impiger, factiosus, avidus potentiae, honoris, divitiarum, ceterum vitia sua callide occultans. Is postquam videt regis largitionem famosam impudentemque, veritus, quod in tali re solet, ne polluta licentia[115] invidiam accenderet, animum a consueta libidine continuit.

[113] _Ante facta_, &c. It would have been more common to say _factis
suis anteponerent_. In Cicero, _ante_ is not used to denote
preference as in Sallust, _Cat._ 53: _Graeci ante Romanos fuere_ for
_Graeci Romanis praestabant_.
[114] According to Sallust's mode of speaking, we should have expected
_depravati_, _pars_ being only another form for _alii_. But nothing
can be said against the grammatical agreement _pars depravata_, it
being that form which, according to grammar, should be used.
[115] Scaurus dreaded the stained audacity of those who accepted bribes
from Jugurtha without any scruple or shame, and would have liked to
stir up against them the hatred and envy of others. _Licentia_ is the
conduct of a man who thinks he is allowed to do anything, and
accordingly here signifies to accept bribes by which statesmen
disgrace themselves. The adjective which properly refers to men
(_pollutus_) is here transferred to _licentia_. Sallust describes
Aemelius Scaurus, one of the most eminent men of his age (he was
twice consul and princeps senatus), as a prudent aristocrat, anxious
to keep up a respectable appearance, and to avoid suspicion as much
as possible; although in secret he, too, had recourse to unfair means
to obtain influence and wealth. The events which Sallust has related
hitherto, the murder of Hiempsal, the expulsion of Adherbal by
Jugurtha, and Adherbal's flight to Rome, belong to the year B.C. 116,
a time when, if we except some trifling wars against barbarous tribes
on the frontiers, the Roman Republic was not engaged in any military
undertaking.

16. Vicit tamen in senatu pars illa, quae vero pretium aut gratiam anteferebat. Decretum fit, uti decem legati regnum, quod Micipsa obtinuerat, inter Jugurtham et Adherbalem dividerent. Cujus legationis princeps fuit L. Opimius, homo clarus et tum in senatu potens, quia consul, G. Graccho et M. Fulvio Flacco interfectis, acerrime victoriam nobilitatis in plebem exercuerat.[116] Eum Jugurtha tametsi Romae in inimicis habuerat, tamen accuratissime recepit, dando et pollicitando multa perfecit, uti famae, fide,[117] postremo omnibus suis rebus commodum regis anteferret. Reliquos legates eadem via aggressus, plerosque capit; paucis carior fides quam pecunia fuit. In divisione, quae pars Numidiae Mauretaniam attingit, agro virisque opulentior, Jugurthae traditur: illam alteram specie quam usu potiorem, quae portuosior et aedificiis magis exornata erat, Adherbal possedit.[118]

[116] Opimius had been consul in B.C. 121, and in that year he had,
with the authority of the senate, crushed the democratical party of
G. Gracchus by force of arms. In consequence of that victory,
several very harsh measures had been adopted by the aristocracy
to strengthen and increase the power of the senate and the nobility.
Opimius, too, was a statesman of loose principles, as is clear from
the narrative of Sallust.
[117] _Fide_ for _fidei_. See Zumpt, S 85, note 3.
[118] _Possedit_, 'he took possession of.' The present _possideo_ only
means 'to possess;' but the past tenses, _possedi_, _possessum_, at
the same time have the meaning of 'taking possession,' as if they
were formed from a present _possido_, _possidere_. Compare the
similarly-formed compounds of _sido_, _sidere_, in Zumpt, S 189.

17. Res postulare videtur Africae siturn paucis exponere et eas gentes, quibuscum nobis bellum aut amicitia fuit, attingere. Sed quae loca et nationes ob calorem aut asperitatem, item solitudines minus frequentata[119] sunt, de iis haud facile compertum narraverim; cetera quam paucissimis absolvam. In divisione orbis terrae plerique in parte tertia[120] Africam posuere, pauci tantummodo Asiam et Europam esse, sed Africam in Europa.[121]Ea fines habet ab occidente fretum nostri maris et Oceani,[122] ab ortu solis declivem latitudinem,[123] quem locum Katabathmon incolae appellant. Mare saevum, importuosum, ager frugum fertilis, bonus pecori, arbore infecundus, coelo terraque penuria aquarum. Genus hominum salubri corpore, velox, patiens laborum; plerosque senectus dissolvit, nisi qui ferro aut bestiis interiere; nam morbus haud saepe quemquam superat; ad hoc malefici generis plurima animalia. Sed qui mortales initio Africam habuerint, quique postea accesserint, aut quomodo inter se permixti sint, quamquam ab ea fama, quae plerosque obtinet, diversum est, tamen uti ex libris Punicis, qui regis Hiempsalis dicebantur, interpretatum nobis est, utique rem sese habere cultores ejus terrae putant, quam paucissimis dicam.[124] Ceterum fides ejus rei penes auctores erit.

[119] _Frequentata sunt_, 'they have been frequented.' The participle is
in the neuter, the subjects being both animate and inanimate.
_Asperitas_ refers to the inaccessible nature of mountainous
districts.
[120] Other editions have _in partem tertiam_, and this deviation from
the common mode of speaking (which is to use _pono_ with _in_ and the
ablative) commentators explain by the remark, that the division was
not yet made, but only supposed. But the Latin language knows of no
such distinction.
[121] In the earliest times, before the earth was divided into three
parts, it was rather customary to consider Africa, especially Egypt
and the countries about the Nile, as belonging to Asia. To connect
Africa with Europe could only have been an idea of those who divided
the earth into an eastern and a western half, and did not know the
vast extent of Africa to the south.
[122] _Fretum_, &c.; that is, the Fretum Herculeum, or the Straits of
Gibraltar. It is clear that Sallust wants to state only the northern
frontier of Africa on the Mediterranean, and the frontiers in the
east and west. The extent of Africa southward was too little known to
him to speak about it.
[123] 'The inclined plain,' or, as the geographer Mela says, 'the valley
which inclines towards Egypt.' The length of this valley extends from
south to north as far as the Mediterranean, and in the upper part it
separates the immense desert in the west from the oasis in the east,
which is considered as a part of Egypt. The easternmost country in
Africa on the Mediterranean was Cyrenaica. It is therefore quite
clear that Sallust does not include Egypt in Africa.
[124] Sallust wants to give a short account of the original inhabitants
of Africa, and their amalgamation with new immigrants, such as it
was translated for him from the Punic books of King Hiempsal. This
Hiempsal is not the same as the one already mentioned, who had been
murdered by Jugurtha, but a later descendant of Masinissa, who ruled
after Jugurtha, and was still alive in the days of Cicero, about
B. C. 60. _Interpretatum est_, in a passive sense. See Zumpt, S 632.

18. Africam initio habuere Gaetuli et Libyes, asperi incultique, quis cibus erat caro ferina atque humi pabulum, uti pecoribus. Hi neque moribus neque lege aut imperio cujusquam regebantur; vagi, palantes, qua nox coegerat, sedes habebant. Sed postquam in Hispania Hercules, sicuti Afri putant, interiit, exercitus ejus, compositus ex variis gentibus, amisso duce ac passim multis sibi quisque imperium petentibus,[125] brevi dilabitur. Ex eo numero Medi, Persae et Armenii, navibus in Africam transvecti, proximos nostro mari[126] locos occupavere. Sed Persae intra Oceanum magis; hique alveos navium inverses pro tuguriis habuere, quia neque materia in agris neque ab Hispanis emundi aut mutandi copia erat; mare magnum et ignara[127] lingua commercia prohibebant. Hi paulatim per connubia Gaetulos secum miscuere, et quia saepe temptantes agros[128] alia, deinde alia loca petiverant, semet ipsi Nomadas appellavere. Ceterum adhuc aedificia Numidarum agrestium, quae mapalia illi vocant, oblonga, incurvis lateribus tecta, quasi navium carinae sunt. Medi autem et Armenii accessere Libyes[129] (nam hi propius mare Africum agitabant, Gaetuli sub sole magis, haud procul ab ardoribus) hique mature oppida habuere; nam freto divisi ab Hispania mutare res inter se instituerant. Nomen eorum paulatim Libyes corrupere, barbara lingua Mauros pro Medis[130] appellantes. Sed res Persarum brevi adolevit; ac postea nomine Numidae, propter multitudinem a parentibus digressi, possedere ea loca, quae proxime Carthaginem Numidia appellatur. Deinde utrique[131] alteris freti finitimos armis aut metu sub imperium suum coegere, nomen gloriamque sibi addidere; magis ii, qui ad nostrum mare processerant, quia Libyes quam Gaetuli minus bellicosi. Denique Africae pars inferior pleraque ab Numidis possessa est; victi omnes in gentem nomenque imperantium concessere.

[125] Within the clause expressed by the ablative absolute
(_multis--petentibus_) there is inserted another stating that each
did so for himself, and that in the nominative case, because _multis
petentibus_ is, after all, only a different form for _quum multi
peterent_. Grammatically speaking, it ought to be _sibi quoque_; but
no Latin would have understood this, since he would have taken
_quoque_ as an adverb. See Zumpt, S 710. _Passim_, 'in different
places,' 'scattered everywhere,' but not 'here and there.' The
tradition of the immense conquests extending to the western
extremities of the known earth, which are ascribed to Hercules
(Heracles), who occurs in the traditions of various nations, runs
through the whole of ancient history.
[126] _Nostrum mare_ is the Mediterranean, the African coast of which
was occupied by the parts of Hercules' army here mentioned; and
the Persae, it is farther stated, occupied that coast which is more
within (that is, 'on this side,' as a person writing at Rome would
say) the ocean.
[127] _Gnarus_ and _ignarus_ have most commonly an active meaning,
denoting 'one who does know,' or 'one does not know;' but sometimes,
and especially in Sallust and Tacitus, they have a passive meaning,
'he who is known,' and 'he who is not known.' So here _ignara lingua_
is the same as _ignota lingua_.
[128] 'They tried the fields;' that is, 'the soil,' as to whether it was
fruitful, and in this manner they sometimes inhabited one place,
and sometimes another. _Alia, deinde alia_, is the same as _alia
atque alia_, as in chap. 26. Hence they were called in Greek [Greek:
Nomades], and the Greek accusative of this word, _Nomadas_ for
_Nomades_, is used by Sallust in the next sentence. See Zumpt, S 74.
[129] The Medes and Armenians in the army of Hercules joined the
Libyans, the ancient inhabitants of Africa. _Libyes_ is the
accusative, for _accedere_ is joined with the accusative as well as
the dative of the person whom one joins. See Zumpt, S 386, note.
[130] This derivation of the name _Mauri_ is very improbable. The Mauri
are the inhabitants of the western part of the African coast of the
Mediterranean. They lived to the west of the mouth of the river
Mulucha (which separated them from the Numidians), opposite Malaga
and Cadiz, and also on the coast of the ocean extending southward as
far as those countries were known to the ancients. The modern name of
Moors is derived from the ancient Mauri.
[131] _Utrique_ refers to _parentes_ and their descendants, the Numidae.
One part of the nation trusted to the other (_alteris freti_), and
was supported by it.