- 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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- CTS URN
- urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:34.49.1-34.49.11
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-08
Quinctius explains to the Greek representatives why the tyrant Nabis of Sparta was allowed to remain, and promises the complete withdrawal of the Roman army to dispel Aetolian skepticism. He further counsels the Greeks on preserving their liberty wisely and avoiding internal discord.
nec ignarus huius habitus animorum Quinctius, si sine excidio Lacedaemonis fieri potuisset,1 fatebatur pacis cum tyranno mentionem admittendam auribus non fuisse;
Quinctius, not unaware of this state of mind, confessed that, if it could have been done without the destruction of Lacedaemon, the mention of peace with the tyrant should not have been admitted to their ears;
nunc, cum aliter quam ruina gravissimae civitatis opprimi non posset, satius visum esse, tyrannum debilitatum ac totis prope viribus ad nocendum cuiquam ademptis relinqui, quam intermori vehementioribus, quam quae pati posset,2 remediis civitatem sinere, in ipsa vindicta libertatis perituram. praeteritorum commemorationi subiecit, proficisci sibi in Italiam atque omnem exercitum deportare in animo esse;
but now, since he could not be crushed otherwise than by the ruin of a most influential state, it had seemed better for the tyrant to be left weakened and with almost all his power to do harm taken away from him, than to allow the state to die from remedies more violent than it could bear, perishing in the very vindication of its liberty. To the commemoration of the past he added: that it was his intention to depart for Italy and to transport the entire army;
Demetriadis Chalcidisque praesidia intra decimum diem audituros deducta, Acrocorinthum ipsis extemplo videntibus vacuam Achaeis traditurum, ut omnes scirent, utrum Romanis an Aetolis mentiri mos esset, qui male commissam libertatem populo Romano sermonibus distulerint et mutatos pro Macedonibus Romanos dominos.
that within ten days they would hear that the garrisons of Demetrias and Chalcis had been withdrawn, and that he would deliver up Acrocorinthus to the Achaeans empty immediately before their own eyes, so that all might know whether the custom of lying belonged to the Romans or the Aetolians, who had spread by rumors that liberty had been poorly entrusted to the Roman people, and that the Romans had merely been substituted for the Macedonians as masters.
sed illis nec, quid dicerent, nec, quid facerent, quicquam umquam pensi fuisse;3 reliquas civitates monere,4 ut ex factis, non ex dictis amicos pensent intellegantque, quibus credendum et a quibus cavendum sit. libertate modice utantur; temperatam eam salubrem et singulis et civitatibus esse, nimiam, et aliis gravem et ipsis qui habeant praecipitem esse.
But to them, neither what they said nor what they did had ever been of any concern; he warned the remaining states to value and understand their friends from deeds, not from words, so that they might know whom to trust and of whom to beware. Let them use their liberty with moderation; for when tempered, it was wholesome both for individuals and for states, but when excessive, it was both burdensome to others and ruinous to those who possessed it.
concordiae in civitatibus principes et ordines inter se, et in commune omnes civitates consulerent. adversus consentientis nec regem quemquam satis validum nec tyrannum fore;
In the states, the leading men and the orders should consult among themselves for harmony, and all the states for the common good. Against those who agreed, no king or tyrant would be strong enough;
discordiam et seditionem omnia opportuna insidiantibus facere, cum pars, quae domestico certamine inferior sit, externo potius se applicet quam civi cedat.
discord and sedition made all things favorable to those who plotted against them, since the party that was inferior in a domestic conflict would rather apply itself to an outsider than yield to a fellow citizen.
alienis armis partam, externa fide redditam libertatem sua cura custodirent servarentque, ut populus Romanus dignis datam libertatem ac munus suum bene positum sciret.
Let them guard and preserve by their own care the liberty won by foreign arms and restored by foreign good faith, so that the Roman people might know that liberty had been given to those worthy of it and that their gift had been well bestowed.
- 34.49.1si sine excidio Lacedaemonis fieri potuisset
A past contrary-to-fact conditional clause (subjunctive pluperfect potuisset). The apodosis is in indirect speech (accusative with infinitive mentionem ... non fuisse), where an original indicative pluperfect (or fuerat/fuisset) has been changed to the infinitive.
- 34.49.3vehementioribus, quam quae pati posset
The comparative vehementioribus is followed by a relative clause introduced by quae. It means 'remedies more violent than those which it could bear.' The subjunctive posset denotes characteristic or restriction within a comparative clause.
- 34.49.7quicquam umquam pensi fuisse
The partitive genitive pensi (genitive neuter singular of the adjective pensus) is dependent on the pronoun quicquam, forming an idiomatic expression meaning 'anything of consideration/importance.' It is similar to the expression nihil pensi habere/esse (to have/be of no concern).
- 34.49.7reliquas civitates monere
In the context of indirect speech, monere functions either as a historical infinitive with Quinctius as the subject, or as an infinitive continuing the indirect discourse with the main verb of speaking omitted.
Translated by Gemini 3.5 Flash (published 2026-05-25) · Revision history (1, latest 2026-09-22)
- 2026-09-22 AI review — source 1