- 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-lat2:41.21.1-41.21.13
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-12
The allotment of provinces to the praetors and military levies are decided, while a devastating pestilence strikes Rome, leading to numerous deaths, the passing of prominent priests, and the reporting of various ominous prodigies across the territories.
M. Atilio praetori provincia Sardinia obvenerat;
M. Atilius the praetor had obtained the province of Sardinia by lot;
sed cum legione nova, quam consules conscripserant, quinque milibus peditum, trecentis equitibus in Corsicam iussus est transire. dum is ibi bellum gereret, Cornelio prorogatum imperium, uti obtineret Sardiniam.
but he was ordered to cross over to Corsica with a new legion which the consuls had enrolled, consisting of five thousand infantry and three hundred cavalry. While he was waging war there, the command of Cornelius was prolonged, that he might retain Sardinia.
Cn. Servilio Caepioni in Hispaniam ulteriorem et P. Furio Philo in citeriorem tria milia peditum Romanorum, equites centum quinquaginta, et socium Latini nominis quinque milia peditum, trecenti equites, Sicilia L. Claudio sine supplemento decreta.1
To Cn. Servilius Caepio for Farther Spain, and to P. Furius Philus for Hither Spain, three thousand Roman infantry and one hundred and fifty cavalry, and five thousand infantry of the Latin allies with three hundred cavalry, were decreed; Sicily was decreed to L. Claudius without reinforcements.
duas praeterea legiones consules scribere iussi cum iusto numero peditum equitumque, et decem milia peditum sociis imperare et sescentos equites.
Besides, the consuls were ordered to enroll two legions with the regular number of infantry and cavalry, and to demand ten thousand infantry and six hundred cavalry from the allies.
dilectus consulibus eo2 difficilior erat, quod pestilentia, quae priore anno in boves ingruerat, eo verterat in hominum morbos. qui inciderant, haud facile septimum diem superabant; qui superaverant, longinquo, maxime quartanae, inplicabantur morbo.
The levy was the more difficult for the consuls because the pestilence, which in the previous year had fallen upon the cattle, had in this year turned into diseases among men. Those who had fallen ill scarcely survived the seventh day; and those who did survive were afflicted with a lingering disease, especially the quartan ague.
servitia maxime moriebantur; eorum strages per omnis vias insepultorum erat. ne liberorum3 quidem funeribus Libitina sufficiebat. cadavera intacta a canibus ac volturibus tabes absumebat;
The slaves died in the greatest numbers; their unburied corpses lay in heaps along all the roads. Not even for the funerals of free citizens was Libitina sufficient. The corpses, untouched by dogs and vultures, were consumed by decay.
satisque constabat nec illo nec priore anno in tanta strage boum hominumque volturium usquam visum.
And it was well established that neither in that nor in the previous year, in so great a slaughter of cattle and men, was a vulture seen anywhere.
sacerdotes publici ea pestilentia mortui sunt Cn. Servilius Caepio pontifex, pater praetoris, et Ti. Sempronius Ti. filius Longus decemvir sacrorum et P. Aelius Paetus augur et Ti. Sempronius Gracchus et C. Mamilius Atellus curio maximus et M. Sempronius Tuditanus pontifex. pontifices suffecti sunt C. Sulpicius Galba in locum Tuditani.
The public priests who died of that pestilence were Cn. Servilius Caepio, the pontiff, father of the praetor; Ti. Sempronius Longus, son of Tiberius, a decemvir for sacred rites; P. Aelius Paetus, the augur; Ti. Sempronius Gracchus; C. Mamilius Atellus, the curio maximus; and M. Sempronius Tuditanus, the pontiff. C. Sulpicius Galba was appointed pontiff in place of Tuditanus.
augures suffecti sunt in Gracchi locum T. Veturius Gracchus Sempronianus, in P. Aeli Q. Aelius Paetus. decemvir sacrorum C. Sempronius Longus, curio maximus C. Scribonius Curio sufficitur.
The augurs appointed were T. Veturius Gracchus Sempronianus in place of Gracchus, and Q. Aelius Paetus in place of P. Aelius. C. Sempronius Longus was appointed a decemvir for sacred rites, and C. Scribonius Curio was appointed curio maximus.
cum pestilentiae finis non fieret, senatus decrevit, uti decemviri libros Sibyllinos adirent.
Since there was no end to the pestilence, the senate decreed that the decemvirs should consult the Sibylline books.
ex decreto eorum diem unum supplicatio fuit, et Q. Marcio Philippo verba praeeunte populus in foro votum concepit, si morbus pestilentiaque ex agro Romano emota esset, biduum ferias ac supplicationem se habiturum.4
According to their decree there was a supplication for one day, and, Q. Marcius Philippus dictating the words, the people in the forum made a vow that, if the disease and pestilence should be removed from the Roman territory, they would keep a festival and supplication for two days.
in Veienti agro biceps natus puer, et Sinuessae unimanus, et Auximi puella cum dentibus, et arcus interdiu sereno caelo super aedem Saturni in foro Romano intentus, et tres simul soles effulserunt, et faces eadem nocte plures per caelum lapsae sunt, et Lanuvini Caeritesque anguem in oppido suo iubatum, aureis maculis sparsum, apparuisse adfirmabant, et in agro Campano bovem locutum esse satis constabat.
In the territory of Veii a boy was born with two heads, and at Sinuessa a one-handed boy, and at Auximum a girl with teeth, and a rainbow was seen in the daytime in a clear sky over the temple of Saturn in the Roman forum stretched out, and three suns shone at the same time, and several torches glided through the sky on the same night, and the people of Lanuvium and Caere asserted that a crested serpent, speckled with golden spots, had appeared in their town, and it was well established that in the Campanian territory an ox had spoken.
- 41.21.3decreta
The verb decreta at the end of the sentence agrees in gender and number with the subject Sicilia (feminine singular). However, a corresponding verb (such as decreta sunt) must be understood for the preceding compound subjects (tria milia, equites, etc.) in the clause starting with Cn. Servilio Caepioni. For clarity across all translations, the verb is supplied.
- 41.21.5eo
Two instances of eo occur in this sentence. The first eo is an ablative of degree of difference modifying the comparative difficilior ('by so much the more difficult'). The second eo is an adverb of direction ('thither', i.e., turning 'to' the diseases of men). Their distinct grammatical functions must be distinguished.
- 41.21.6liberorum
Genitive of liberi, which can mean either 'children' or 'free citizens' (as opposed to slaves, servitia). Given the preceding sentence 'The slaves died in the greatest numbers' (servitia maxime moriebantur), it is contextually most natural to interpret it here as 'free citizens' in contrast to slaves.
- 41.21.11se habiturum
An accusative with infinitive construction (with esse omitted) introduced by votum concepit ('made a vow'). The pronoun se refers to the collective noun populus (the subject of the main clause). Although populus is a collective singular noun, se and the future participle habiturum (masculine accusative singular) formally agree with it.