- 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-lat2:44.8.1-44.8.9
- Generated
- Humanitext Reader · reader.humanitext.ai · 2026-11-12
The consul moved from Dium to Phila for supply distribution, but this withdrawal was poorly received and allowed Perseus to reoccupy Dium and fortify the Elpeus river. Meanwhile, the consul sent Popilius to Heracleum.
his magno opere laetus consul ab Dio ad Philan ducit,1 simul ut praesidium eius firmaret, simul ut militi frumentum, cuius tarda subvectio erat, divideret.
Greatly rejoiced by these tidings, the consul led his army from Dium to Phila, both to strengthen its garrison and to distribute grain to the soldiers, the transport of which was slow.
ea profectio famam haudquaquam secundam habuit. nam alii metu recessisse eum ab hoste ferebant, quia manenti2 in Pieria proelio dimicandum foret, alii ignarum, belli quae in dies fortuna novaret, ut opperientibus sese rebus,3 emisisse de manibus ea, quae mox repeti non possent.
This departure had by no means a favorable reputation. For some reported that he had retreated from the enemy out of fear, because if he remained in Pieria he would have had to engage in battle, while others said that, ignorant of what the fortune of war was changing day by day, as if waiting upon events, he had let slip from his hands those opportunities which could not soon be recovered.
simul enim cessit possessione Dii, excitavit hostem, ut tunc tandem sentiret recuperanda esse, quae prius culpa amissa forent.
For as soon as he gave up possession of Dium, he roused the enemy, so that then at last they realized that what had previously been lost through their own negligence must be recovered.
audita enim profectione consulis regressus Dium, quae disiecta ac vastata ab Romanis erant, reficit, pinnas moenium decussas reponit, ab omni parte muros firmat; deinde quinque milia passuum ab urbe citra ripam Elpei amnis castra ponit, amnem ipsum transitu perdifficilem pro munimento habiturus.
For having heard of the consul’s departure, Perseus returned to Dium and repaired what had been demolished and devastated by the Romans, replaced the battlements of the walls that had been thrown down, and strengthened the walls on every side; then he pitched camp five miles from the city on this side of the bank of the river Elpeus, intending to hold the river itself, which was very difficult to cross, as a fortification.
fluit ex valle Olympi montis, aestate exiguus, hibernis idem4 incitatus pluviis et supra rupes ingentis gurgites facit et infra prorutam in mare evolvendo terram praealtas voragines cavatoque medio alveo ripas utrimque praecipitis.5
It flows out of the valley of Mount Olympus, scanty in summer, but the same river when swollen by winter rains forms huge whirlpools above the rocks, and below, by rolling down the eroded earth into the sea, it creates very deep abysses, and by hollowing out its channel in the middle, makes the banks steep on both sides.
hoc flumine saeptum iter hostis credens extrahere relicum tempus aestatis in animo habebat.
Believing that the enemy’s path was blocked by this river, he intended to spin out the remainder of the summer.
inter haec consul a Phila Popilium cum duobus milibus armatorum Heracleum mittit.
Meanwhile, the consul sent Popilius from Phila to Heracleum with two thousand armed men.
abest a Phila quinque milia ferme passuum, media regione inter Dium Tempeque in rupe amni inminente positum.
It is distant from Phila about five miles, situated on a rock overhanging the river in the middle region between Dium and Tempe.
- 44.8.1ducit
The verb 'ducere' is used intransitively without an accusative object (such as 'exercitum'), meaning 'to march' or 'to lead the army'.
- 44.8.2manenti
Dative of agent modifying the omitted 'consuli', associated with the passive periphrastic subjunctive 'dimicandum foret'. It functions as a conditional participle: 'if he remained'.
- 44.8.3ut opperientibus sese rebus
An ablative absolute introduced by 'ut' ('as if', 'as though'). Literally 'with circumstances waiting for themselves (or for him)', depicting the consul as if merely waiting for events to unfold.
- 44.8.6idem
The pronoun referring to the subject, the river. It emphasizes the contrast between its state in summer ('aestate exiguus') and the same river when swollen by winter rains ('hibernis pluviis incitatus').
- 44.8.6ripas utrimque praecipitis
The object 'ripas' and its predicative accusative adjective 'praecipitis' (an archaic spelling of 'praecipites') governed by the implied or expressed 'facit'. Combined with the ablative of means 'cavato medio alveo', it means 'makes the banks steep on both sides'.