- 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
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- 日本語 · English · 简体中文 · 한국어
- CTS URN
- urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:28.18.1-28.18.12
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-10-31
Syphax hosts both Scipio and Hasdrubal simultaneously and attempts to reconcile them, but Scipio refuses a formal conference for personal and official reasons. Hasdrubal then warns the Carthaginians of Scipio's extraordinary charisma and his clear ambition to invade Africa.
magnificumque id Syphaci — nec erat aliter — visum, duorum opulentissimorum ea tempestate duces populorum1 uno die suam pacem amicitiamque petentes venisse.
And this seemed magnificent to Syphax—as indeed it was—that the leaders of the two wealthiest nations at that time had come on the same day seeking his peace and friendship.
utrumque in hospitium invitat; et quoniam fors eos sub uno tecto esse atque ad eosdem penates voluisset, contrahere ad conloquium dirimendarum simultatium causa est conatus, scipione abnuente aut privatim sibi ullum cum Poeno odium esse, quod conloquendo finiret,2 aut de re publica se quicquam cum hoste agere iniussu senatus posse.
He invited both to his hospitality; and since fortune had willed them to be under one roof and at the same household gods, he attempted to bring them together for a conference to resolve their enmities. But Scipio refused, stating that he had no private hatred against the Carthaginian to be ended by a conference, nor could he transact any public business with an enemy without the orders of the senate.
illud3 magno opere tendente rege ne alter hospitum exclusus mensa videretur, ut in animum induceret ad easdem venire epulas, haud abnuit;
Since the king strove earnestly that neither of his guests should seem excluded from his table, Scipio did not refuse to bring himself to attend the same banquet.
cenatumque simul apud regem est, et eodem etiam lecto Scipio atque Hasdrubal, quia ita cordi erat regi, accubuerunt.
Thus they dined together at the king’s palace, and Scipio and Hasdrubal even reclined on the same couch, because it was pleasing to the king.
tanta autem inerat comitas Scipioni atque ad omnia naturalis ingenii dexteritas, ut non Syphacem modo, barbarum insuetumque moribus Romanis, sed hostem etiam infestissimum facunde adloquendo sibi conciliarit:
Moreover, there was such charm in Scipio and a natural dexterity of mind in all things, that he won over not only Syphax, a barbarian unaccustomed to Roman manners, but even his most bitter enemy by his eloquent conversation.
mirabilioremque sibi eum virum congresso coram4 visum prae se ferebat quam bello rebus gestis, nec dubitare, quin Syphax regnumque eius iam in Romanorum essent potestate: eam artem illi viro ad conciliandos animos esse.
And Hasdrubal openly declared that the man seemed more admirable to him upon meeting him face to face than from his exploits in war, and that he did not doubt that Syphax and his kingdom were already in the power of the Romans: such was that man’s skill in winning minds.
itaque non quo modo Hispaniae amissae sint quaerendum magis Carthaginiensibus esse, quam quo modo Africam retineant cogitandum.
Therefore, the Carthaginians should not inquire how Spain was lost, so much as they should consider how they might retain Africa.
non peregrinabundum neque circa amoenas oras vagantem tantum ducem Romanum relicta provincia novae dicionis, relictis exercitibus, duabus navibus in Africam traiecisse et commisisse sese in hostilem terram, in potestatem regiam, in fidem inexpertam, sed potiundae Africae spem adfectantem.
For the Roman general had not crossed into Africa with two ships, leaving his province, his newly acquired dominion, and his armies, merely as a traveler or to wander along pleasant shores, but as one aiming at the hope of mastering Africa.
hoc eum iam pridem volutare in animo, hoc palam fremere, quod non, quem ad modum Hannibal in Italia, sic Scipio in Africa bellum gereret.5
This, he said, Scipio had long been revolving in his mind and openly clamoring: why he, like Hannibal in Italy, should not likewise wage war in Africa.
Scipio foedere icto cum Syphace profectus ex Africa dubiisque et plerumque saevis in alto iactatus ventis die quarto Novae Carthaginis portum tenuit.
Scipio, having concluded the treaty with Syphax, set out from Africa, and after being tossed on the deep by shifting and mostly violent winds, reached the harbor of New Carthage on the fourth day.
- 28.18.1duorum opulentissimorum ea tempestate duces populorum
The nominative plural 'duces' (the subject of 'venisse') is nested inside the genitive phrase 'duorum opulentissimorum ... populorum'. This genitive modifies 'duces', meaning 'the leaders of the two wealthiest nations at that time'.
- 28.18.3quod conloquendo finiret
The antecedent of the relative pronoun 'quod' is 'ullum odium'. The subjunctive 'finiret' is a subjunctive of characteristic (or purpose), meaning 'any hatred which he might end by talking'.
- 28.18.4illud
The demonstrative pronoun 'illud' functions cataphorically to anticipate the subsequent 'ut' clause ('ut in animum induceret...').
- 28.18.7congresso coram
The perfect participle dative masculine singular of 'congredior', agreeing with 'sibi' (referring to Hasdrubal), meaning 'to him (Hasdrubal) having met (Scipio) face to face'.
- 28.18.11quod non ... bellum gereret
The subjunctive 'gereret' is used in the 'quod' clause expressing the ground of complaint after the verb 'fremere'. The subject is Scipio, meaning 'that Scipio was not waging war in Africa in the way Hannibal had done in Italy'.
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-22)
- 2026-09-22 AI review — source 1