- 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-lat2:30.25.1-30.25.12
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-03
While Scipio respects the law of nations and dismisses the Carthaginian envoys unharmed despite their breach of the truce, he prepares for war. Meanwhile, Hannibal, returning to Africa, avoids a bad omen and lands his forces at Leptis.
nondum ab Roma reverterant legati, neque sciebatur, quae senatus Romani de bello aut pace sententia esset, necdum indutiarum dies exierat;
The envoys had not yet returned from Rome, nor was it known what the opinion of the Roman senate was concerning war or peace, and the period of the truce had not yet expired.
eo indigniorem1 iniuriam ratus Scipio, ab iis, qui petissent pacem et indutias, et spem pacis et fidem indutiarum violatam esse, legatos Carthaginem L. Baebium, L. Sergium, L. Fabium extemplo misit.
Scipio, considering the injury all the more shameful because the hope of peace and the pledge of the truce had been violated by those very people who had sought them, immediately sent Lucius Baebius, Lucius Sergius, and Lucius Fabius as envoys to Carthage.
qui cum multitudinis concursu prope violati essent nec reditum tutiorem futurum cernerent, petierunt a magistratibus, quorum auxilio vis prohibita erat, ut naves mitterent, quae se prosequerentur.
When they were almost violated by the rush of the crowd and saw that their return would not be any safer, they requested the magistrates, by whose assistance the violence had been prevented, to send ships to escort them.
datae triremes duae cum ad Bagradam flumen pervenissent, unde castra Romana conspiciebantur, Carthaginem rediere. classis Punica ad Uticam stationem habebat.
The two triremes that were granted returned to Carthage when they had reached the river Bagrada, from where the Roman camp was visible. The Carthaginian fleet was stationed at Utica.
ex ea tres quadriremes — seu clam misso a Carthagine nuntio, ut id fieret, seu Hasdrubale, qui classi praeerat, sine publica fraude auso2 facinus —
From this fleet, three quadriremes — whether because a messenger had been secretly sent from Carthage to effect this, or because Hasdrubal, who commanded the fleet, dared the crime without public authorization —
quinqueremem Romanam superantem promunturium ex alto repente adgressae sunt. sed neque rostro ferire celeritate sua praeterlabentem poterant, neque transilire armati ex humilioribus in altiorem navem, et defendebatur egregie, quoad tela suppeditarunt. quis deficientibus iam nulla alia res eam quam propinquitas terrae multitudoque a castris in litus effusa tueri potuit.
suddenly attacked from the deep sea a Roman quinquereme as it was doubling the promontory. But they could neither strike it with their rams as it slipped past by its own speed, nor could their armed men leap from their lower vessels into the higher ship, and it was defended outstandingly as long as weapons held out. When these failed, nothing else could protect it except the proximity of the land and the multitude that had poured out from the camp onto the shore.
concitatam enim remis, quanto maximo impetu poterant, in terram cum immisissent, navis tantum iactura facta, incolumes ipsi evaserunt.
For since they had run the ship onto the land, propelled by their oars with the greatest possible force, they themselves escaped unharmed, with only the loss of the ship.
ita alio super aliud scelere cum haud dubie indutiae ruptae essent, Laelius Fulviusque ab Roma cum legatis Carthaginiensibus supervenerunt.
Thus, when the truce had undoubtedly been broken by one crime upon another, Laelius and Fulvius arrived from Rome with the Carthaginian envoys.
quibus Scipio, etsi non indutiarum modo fides a Carthaginiensibus sed ius etiam gentium in legatis violatum esset, tamen se nihil nec institutis populi Romani nec suis moribus indignum in iis facturum esse cum dixisset, dimissis legatis bellum parabat.
To them, Scipio, although not only the pledge of the truce but also the law of nations regarding envoys had been violated by the Carthaginians, nevertheless declared that he would do nothing toward them that was unworthy of either the institutions of the Roman people or his own character; and having dismissed the envoys, he began to prepare for war.
Hannibali iam terrae adpropinquanti3 iussus e nauticis unus escendere in malum, ut specularetur, quam tenerent regionem, cum dixisset sepulchrum dirutum proram spectare, abominatus praetervehi iusso gubernatore ad Leptim adpulit classem atque ibi copias exposuit.
To Hannibal, who was now approaching land, one of the sailors was ordered to climb the mast to spy out which region they were holding. When he had said that a ruined tomb was in line with the prow, Hannibal, regarding this as a bad omen, ordered the helmsman to sail past, brought the fleet to Leptis, and there disembarked his forces.
- 30.25.2eo indigniorem
eo is an ablative of measure of difference modifying the comparative indigniorem, meaning "all the more shameful/unworthy." Alternatively, it can be understood as an ablative of cause referring to the preceding circumstances, "on that account all the more..."
- 30.25.5seu clam misso... seu Hasdrubale... auso
Two ablative absolute constructions are set in parallel by seu ... seu ... . The first is clam misso ... nuntio with a passive participle ("a messenger having been secretly sent"), and the second is Hasdrubale ... auso with the perfect participle of the semi-deponent verb audeo ("Hasdrubal having dared"). These express two alternative possibilities for the motive of the action.
- 30.25.11Hannibali iam terrae adpropinquanti
The dative Hannibali is not the direct object of the passive verb iussus [est] (was ordered), but is a dative of reference (or dative of disadvantage/advantage) establishing the context for the whole sentence ("for Hannibal, as he was now approaching land..."). It indicates that the order was given to one of the sailors for Hannibal's sake or in relation to him, rather than to Hannibal himself.
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-21)
- 2026-09-21 AI review — note 1