- Source
- Polybius. Vols. 1-4. Büttner-Wobst, Theodor, editor. Leipzig: Teubner, 1893.
- Translation
- AI-generated (gemini-3.5-flash) — machine translation; may contain errors
- Languages
- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:greekLit:tlg0543.tlg001.humanitext-grc2:33.1.1-33.1.8
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-12
The senate dispatches a commission to halt the conflict between Prusias and Attalus, and also debates the release of the detained Achaeans, which is ultimately defeated due to a procedural manipulation by the praetor Aulus Postumius.
ὅτι ἡ σύγκλητος ἔτι κατὰ χειμῶνα διακούσασα1 τῶν περὶ τὸν Πόπλιον Λέντλον ὑπὲρ τῶν κατὰ Προυσίαν διὰ τὸ νεωστὶ παραγεγονέναι τούτους ἐκ τῆς Ἀσίας, εἰσεκαλέσατο καὶ τὸν Ἀθήναιον τὸν Ἀττάλου τοῦ βασιλέως ἀδελφόν.
That the senate, having heard in detail still during the winter those around Publius Lentulus concerning the affairs of Prusias—as they had recently arrived from Asia—also summoned Athenaeus, the brother of king Attalus.
οὐ μέντοι πολλῶν προσεδεήθη λόγων, ἀλλʼ εὐθέως καταστήσασα πρεσβευτὰς συνεξαπέστελλε τῷ προειρημένῳ τοὺς περὶ Γάιον Κλαύδιον Κέντωνα καὶ Λεύκιον Ὁρτήσιον καὶ Γάιον Αὐρογκολήιον, ἐντολὰς δοῦσα κωλύειν τὸν Προυσίαν Ἀττάλῳ πολεμεῖν.
It did not, however, require many words, but immediately, after appointing ambassadors, dispatched those around Gaius Claudius Centho, Lucius Hortensius, and Gaius Aurunculeius together with the aforementioned, giving them instructions to prevent Prusias from making war on Attalus.
παρεγένοντο δὲ καὶ παρὰ τῶν Ἀχαιῶν πρέσβεις εἰς Ῥώμην ὑπὲρ τῶν κατεχομένων οἱ περὶ Ξένωνα τὸν Αἰγιέα καὶ Τηλεκλέα τὸν Αἰγειράτην.
There also arrived from the Achaeans ambassadors to Rome on behalf of those detained, those around Xenon of Aegium and Telecles of Aegeira.
ὧν ποιησαμένων λόγους ἐν τῇ συγκλήτῳ, καὶ τοῦ διαβουλίου προτεθέντος, παρʼ ὀλίγον ἦλθον ἀπολῦσαι2 τοὺς κατῃτιαμένους οἱ τοῦ συνεδρίου.
When these had made speeches in the senate and the debate had been proposed, the members of the assembly came within a little of releasing the accused.
τὴν δʼ αἰτίαν ἔσχε τοῦ μὴ συντελεσθῆναι τὴν ἀπόλυσιν Αὖλος Ποστόμιος, στρατηγὸς ὢν ἑξαπέλεκυς3 καὶ βραβεύων τὸ διαβούλιον.
But the blame for the release not being completed was laid upon Aulus Postumius, who was praetor and presiding over the debate.
τριῶν γὰρ οὐσῶν γνωμῶν, μιᾶς μὲν τῆς ἀφιέναι κελευούσης, ἑτέρας δὲ τῆς ἐναντίας ταύτης, τρίτης δὲ τῆς ἀπολύειν μέν, ἐπισχεῖν δὲ κατὰ τὸ παρόν, καὶ πλείστων δʼ ὄντων τῶν ἀφιέντων, παρελθὼν τὴν μίαν γνώμην4 διηρώτα τὰς δύο καθολικῶς, οἷς δοκεῖ τοὺς ἀνακεκλημένους ἀφιέναι καὶ τοὐναντίον.
For there being three opinions, one indeed ordering to release, another the opposite of this, and a third to release indeed but to delay for the present, and although those for releasing were the most numerous, he passed over the one opinion and put the question on the two in a general way: to those who favored releasing the summoned and the opposite.
λοιπὸν οἱ κατὰ τὸ παρὸν ἐπέχειν κελεύοντες προσέβησαν πρὸς τοὺς μὴ φάσκοντας δεῖν ἀπολύειν, καὶ πλείους ἐγενήθησαν τῶν ἀφιέντων. καὶ ταῦτα μὲν ἐπὶ τούτων ἦν. —
Consequently, those who ordered to delay for the present joined those saying they should not release, and they became more numerous than those for releasing. And such was the state of these matters. —
- 33.1.1ἔτι κατὰ χειμῶνα διακούσασα
The participle διακούσασα agrees with the subject ἡ σύγκλητος and has temporal force ("after hearing in detail"). The phrase κατὰ χειμῶνα indicates the urgency of the situation, as Roman diplomatic activities, which usually intensified after spring, were already being conducted during the winter.
- 33.1.4παρʼ ὀλίγον ἦλθον ἀπολῦσαι
The idiom παρʼ ὀλίγον ἔρχομαι followed by an infinitive means "to come within a little of doing" or "to almost do." The subject of this verb is οἱ τοῦ συνεδρίου (the members of the senate) located at the end of the sentence.
- 33.1.5στρατηγὸς ὢν ἑξαπέλεκυς
The expression "six-axed general (strategos)" is a literal Greek rendering of the Roman office "praetor." It derives from the praetor's right to be accompanied by six lictors carrying fasces with axes outside the pomerium or in the provinces.
- 33.1.7παρελθὼν τὴν μίαν γνώμην
The aorist participle παρελθών (from παρέρχομαι) here means "passing over" or "bypassing." It refers to Aulus Postumius' procedural maneuver of intentionally excluding the intermediate third option ("to release but delay for the present," designated as μίαν in the preceding sentence) and directing the vote toward a simple binary choice.
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-10-09)
- 2026-10-09 Collated with the printed edition — source 1