- Source
- Titi Livi ab urbe condita libri editionem priman, Pars I-IV, Libri I-XL. Editio Stereotypica. Weissenborn, Wilhelm; Mueller, Moritz, editors. Leipzig: Teubner, 1884-1911.
- 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:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:23.8.1-23.8.11
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-24
Hannibal stays at the house of the Ninnii in Capua and invites the pro-Carthaginian Calavius and his son to a banquet. After the feast, the son, who remains loyal to Rome, takes his father to the garden and reveals his plan to assassinate Hannibal.
Deversatus est apud Ninnios Celeres, Sthenium Pacuviumque, inclutos nobilitate ac divitiis.
Hannibal stayed at the house of the Ninnii Celeres, Sthenius and Pacuvius, men famous for their nobility and wealth.
eo Pacuvius Calavius, de quo ante dictum est, princeps factionis eius, quae traxerat rem ad Poenos, filium iuvenem adduxit, abstractum1 a Deci Magi latere, cum quo ferocissime pro Romana societate adversus Punicum foedus steterat, nec eum aut inclinata in partem alteram civitas aut patria maiestas sententia depulerat.
Thither Pacuvius Calavius, of whom mention has been made before, the leader of that faction which had drawn the state over to the Carthaginians, brought his young son, who had been drawn away from the side of Decius Magius, with whom he had stood most fiercely for the Roman alliance against the Carthaginian treaty, and whom neither the state, inclining to the other side, nor his father’s authority had deterrred from his opinion.
huic tum pater iuveni2 Hannibalem deprecando magis quam purgando placavit, victusque patris precibus lacrimisque etiam ad cenam eum cum patre vocari iussit, cui convivio neminem Campanum praeterquam hospites Vibelliumque Tauream, insignem bello virum, adhibiturus erat.
For this youth, then, the father appeased Hannibal, rather by entreating than by exculpating him; and won over by the father’s prayers and tears, Hannibal ordered him also to be invited to the dinner with his father, to which banquet he was going to admit no Campanian except their hosts and Vibellius Taurea, a man distinguished in war.
epulari coeperunt de die, et convivium non ex more Punico aut militari disciplina esse,3 sed, ut in civitate atque etiam domo diti ac luxuriosa, omnibus voluptatium inlecebris instructum.
They began to feast early in the day, and the banquet was not according to Carthaginian custom or military discipline, but, as was natural in a wealthy and even luxurious city and house, furnished with all the allurements of pleasure.
unus nec dominorum invitatione nec ipsius interdum Hannibalis Calavius filius perlici ad vinum potuit, ipse valetudinem excusans, patre animi quoque eius haud mirabilem perturbationem causante.
The son of Calavius alone could not be induced to drink wine, either by the invitation of the hosts or sometimes of Hannibal himself, he himself pleading ill health, while his father alleged the not surprising agitation of his mind as well.
solis ferme occasu patrem Calavium ex convivio egressum secutus filius, ubi in secretum —
About sunset, the son, having followed his father Calavius as he left the banquet, when they had come into a private spot—
hortus erat posticis aedium partibus — pervenerunt, “Consilium” inquit “adfero, pater, quo non veniam solum peccati, quod defecimus ad Hannibalem, impetraturi ab Romanis, sed in multo maiore dignitate et gratia fituri simus4 Campani, quam umquam fuimus.”
there was a garden in the back part of the house—he said, “I bring a plan, father, by which we shall not only obtain from the Romans pardon for the sin of having defected to Hannibal, but shall make us Campanians to be in much greater dignity and favor than we have ever been.”
cum mirabundus pater, quidnam id esset consilii, quaereret, toga reiecta ab umero latus succinctum gladio nudat.
When the father, full of wonder, asked what that plan could be, the youth, throwing back his toga from his shoulder, bared his side girt with a sword.
“iam ego” inquit “sanguine Hannibalis sanciam Romanum foedus. te id prius scire volui, si forte abesse, dum facinus patratur, malles.”5
”Now,” he said, “I will ratify the Roman treaty with the blood of Hannibal. I wanted you to know this beforehand, in case you should prefer to be absent while the deed is being performed.”
- 23.8.3abstractum
Perfect passive participle modifying filium iuvenem (§23.8.2) in the preceding section, describing the state of the son who had been drawn away from Decius Magius and explaining his pro-Roman stance.
- 23.8.4huic ... iuveni
Dative of interest (commodi). The direct object of the transitive verb placavit is the accusative Hannibalem, while the dative huic... iuveni indicates "for the sake of" or "in respect to" this young son.
- 23.8.6esse
Historical infinitive. Following coeperunt in the main clause, the infinitive is used as a main verb after the conjunction et to vividly depict the luxurious nature of the banquet. The subsequent instructum can also be understood as an ellipsis of instructum esse.
- 23.8.9fituri simus
Active periphrastic subjunctive combining the future participle fituri and the present subjunctive simus. In the clause introduced by the relative pronoun quo (ablative of means), it expresses a future outcome, characteristic, or intention relative to the main clause.
- 23.8.11si ... malles
Imperfect subjunctive (malles from malo). Used to express a condition or future expectation from a past perspective ("in case you should prefer"), serving as the motive for the past action volui.