§5.1.4ἔστι δὲ πεδίον σφόδρα εὔδαιμον καὶ γεωλοφίαις εὐκάρποις πεποικιλμένον.
It is a very fertile plain and is diversified with fruitful hills.
διαιρεῖ δʼ αὐτὸ μέσον πως ὁ Πάδος, καὶ καλεῖται τὸ μὲν ἐντὸς τοῦ Πάδου τὸ δὲ πέραν· ἐντὸς μὲν ὅσον ἐστὶ πρὸς τοῖς Ἀπεννίνοις ὄρεσι καὶ τῇ Λιγυστικῇ, πέραν δὲ τὸ λοιπόν.
The Padus divides it approximately in the middle, and one part is called "this side of the Padus" and the other "beyond it"; the part on this side is as much as lies towards the Apennine Mountains and Liguria, and the part beyond is the rest.
οἰκεῖται δὲ τὸ μὲν ὑπὸ τῶν Λιγυστικῶν ἐθνῶν καὶ τῶν Κελτικῶν, τῶν μὲν ἐν τοῖς ὄρεσιν οἰκούντων τῶν δʼ ἐν τοῖς πεδίοις, τὸ δʼ ὑπὸ τῶν Κελτῶν καὶ Ἑνετῶν.
It is inhabited on the one hand by the Ligurian and Celtic tribes, some of them dwelling in the mountains and others in the plains, and on the other hand by the Celts and the Heneti.
οἱ μὲν οὖν Κελτοὶ τοῖς ὑπεραλπείοις ὁμοεθνεῖς εἰσι, περὶ δὲ τῶν Ἑνετῶν διττός ἐστι λόγος.
Now, while the Celts are of the same race as the transalpine Celts, concerning the Heneti there are two accounts.
οἱ μὲν γὰρ καὶ αὐτούς φασιν εἶναι Κελτῶν ἀποίκους τῶν ὁμωνύμων παρωκεανιτῶν, οἱ δʼ ἐκ τοῦ Τρωικοῦ πολέμου μετʼ Ἀντήνορος σωθῆναι δεῦρό φασι τῶν ἐκ τῆς Παφλαγονίας Ἑνετῶν τινάς· μαρτύριον δὲ τούτου προφέρονται τὴν περὶ τὰς ἱπποτροφίας ἐπιμέλειαν, ἣ νῦν μὲν τελέως ἐκλέλοιπε, πρότερον δʼ ἐτιμᾶτο παρʼ αὐτοῖς ἀπὸ τοῦ παλαιοῦ ζήλου τοῦ κατὰ τὰς ἡμιονίτιδας ἵππους.
For some say that they too are colonists of the Celts who bear the same name and dwell near the ocean, while others say that some of the Heneti from Paphlagonia escaped with Antenor after the Trojan War and saved themselves here; and as evidence of this they bring forward their attention to horse-breeding, which has now indeed completely disappeared, but was formerly prized among them from their ancient zeal for mares that breed mules.
τούτου δὲ καὶ Ὅμηρος μέμνηται
ἐξ Ἑνετῶν, ὅθεν ἡμιόνων γένος ἀγροτεράων. καὶ Διονύσιος ὁ τῆς Σικελίας τύραννος ἐντεῦθεν τὸ ἱπποτροφεῖον συνεστήσατο τῶν ἀθλητῶν ἵππων, ὥστε καὶ ὄνομα ἐν τοῖς Ἕλλησι γενέσθαι τῆς Ἑνετικῆς πωλείας καὶ πολὺν χρόνον εὐδοκιμῆσαι τὸ γένος.
Homer too mentions this: "From the Heneti, whence is the race of wild mules." And Dionysius, the tyrant of Sicily, established his stud-farm of athletic horses from there, so that the name of the "Henetic filly" became famous among the Greeks, and the breed was highly esteemed for a long time.
§5.1.5̔́απασα μὲν οὖν ἡ χώρα ποταμοῖς πληθύει καὶ ἕλεσι, μάλιστα δʼ ἡ τῶν Ἑνετῶν· πρόσεστι δὲ ταύτῃ καὶ τὰ τῆς θαλάττης πάθη.
Now the whole country abounds in rivers and marshes, and especially that of the Heneti; and in addition to this, it experiences the phenomena of the sea.
μόνα γὰρ ταῦτα τὰ μέρη σχεδόν τι τῆς καθʼ ἡμᾶς θαλάττης ὁμοιοπαθεῖ τῷ ὠκεανῷ καὶ παραπλησίως ἐκείνῳ ποιεῖται τάς τε ἀμπώτεις καὶ τὰς πλημμυρίδας, ὑφʼ ὧν τὸ πλέον τοῦ πεδίου λιμνοθαλάττης γίνεται μεστόν.
For these parts alone, or nearly so, of our sea have similar experiences to the ocean, and in a similar manner to it produce both ebbs and flows, by which the greater part of the plain becomes full of lagoons.
διώρυξι δὲ καὶ παραχώμασι, καθάπερ ἡ κάτω λεγομένη χώρα τῆς Αἰγύπτου, διωχέτευται, καὶ τὰ μὲν ἀνέψυκται καὶ γεωργεῖται τὰ δὲ διάπλους ἔχει· τῶν δὲ πόλεων αἱ μὲν νησίζουσιν αἱ δʼ ἐκ μέρους κλύζονται, ὅσαι δὲ ὑπὲρ τῶν ἑλῶν ἐν τῇ μεσογαίᾳ κεῖνται τοὺς ἐκ τῶν ποταμῶν ἀνάπλους θαυμαστοὺς ἔχουσι, μάλιστα δʼ ὁ Πάδος· μέγιστός τε γάρ ἐστι καὶ πληροῦται πολλάκις ἔκ τε ὄμβρων καὶ χιόνων, διαχεόμενος δʼ εἰς πολλὰ μέρη κατὰ τὰς ἐκβολὰς τυφλὸν τὸ στόμα ποιεῖ καὶ δυσείσβολός ἐστιν· ἡ δʼ ἐμπειρία περιγίνεται καὶ τῶν χαλεπωτάτων.
By means of canals and dikes, just like the so-called Lower Egypt, it is channeled, and some parts are dried and cultivated, while others have passage for ships; and of the cities, some are island-like, while others are partially washed by the waters, and all those situated in the interior above the marshes have wonderful sailing routes up from the rivers, especially the Padus; for it is the largest, and is often filled both by rains and snows, and, being dispersed into many parts at its outlets, makes its mouth blind and difficult of entry; but experience overcomes even the most difficult things.
§5.1.6τὸ μὲν οὖν ἀρχαῖον, ὥσπερ ἔφην, ὑπὸ Κελτῶν περιῳκεῖτο τῶν πλείστων ὁ ποταμός.
In ancient times, then, as I said, the river was inhabited around by Celts for the most part.
μέγιστα δʼ ἦν τῶν Κελτῶν ἔθνη Βόιοι καὶ Ἴνσουβροι καὶ οἱ τὴν Ῥωμαίων ποτὲ ἐξ ἐφόδου καταλαβόντες Σένονες μετὰ Γαισατῶν.
The greatest tribes of the Celts were the Boii, the Insubres, and the Senones, who once with the Gaesatae captured Rome by an onset.
τούτους μὲν οὖν ἐξέφθειραν ὕστερον τελέως Ῥωμαῖοι, τοὺς δὲ Βοΐους ἐξήλασαν ἐκ τῶν τόπων.
These, indeed, the Romans afterwards completely destroyed, and the Boii they expelled from their places.
μεταστάντες δʼ εἰς τοὺς περὶ τὸν Ἴστρον τόπους μετὰ Ταυρίσκων ᾤκουν πολεμοῦντες πρὸς Δακούς, ἕως ἀπώλοντο πανεθνεί· τὴν δὲ χώραν οὖσαν τῆς Ἰλλυρίδος μηλόβοτον τοῖς περιοικοῦσι κατέλιπον.
Having migrated to the regions around the Ister, they lived with the Taurisci, waging war against the Daci until they perished root and branch; and they left their country, which was part of Illyria, as sheep-pasture for their neighbors.
Ἴνσουβροι δὲ καὶ νῦν εἰσί.
But the Insubres exist even now.
Μεδιολάνιον δʼ ἔσχον μητρόπολιν, πάλαι μὲν κώμην (ἅπαντες γὰρ ᾤκουν κωμηδόν), νῦν δʼ ἀξιόλογον πόλιν, πέραν τοῦ Πάδου, συνάπτουσάν πως ταῖς Ἄλπεσι.
They had Mediolanium as their metropolis, formerly indeed a village (for they all lived by villages), but now a remarkable city, beyond the Padus, joining in a way with the Alps.
πλησίον δὲ καὶ Ὀυήρων, καὶ αὕτη πόλις μεγάλη.
And near it is also Veron, and this too is a large city.
ἐλάττους δὲ τούτων Βριξία καὶ Μάντουα καὶ Ῥήγιον καὶ Κῶμον· αὕτη δʼ ἦν μὲν κατοικία μετρία, Πομπήιος δὲ Στράβων ὁ Μάγνου πατὴρ κακωθεῖσαν ὑπὸ τῶν ὑπερκειμένων Ῥαιτῶν συνῴκισεν· εἶτα Γάιος Σκιπίων τρισχιλίους προσέθηκεν· εἶτα ὁ θεὸς Καῖσαρ πεντακισχιλίους ἐπισυνῴκισεν, ὧν οἱ πεντακόσιοι τῶν Ἑλλήνων ὑπῆρξαν οἱ ἐπιφανέστατοι· τούτοις δὲ καὶ πολιτείαν ἔδωκε καὶ ἐνέγραψεν αὐτοὺς εἰς τοὺς συνοίκους· οὐ μέν τοι ᾤκησαν αὐτόθι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοὔνομά γε τῷ κτίσματι ἐκεῖνοι κατέλιπον· Νεοκωμῖται γὰρ ἐκλήθησαν ἅπαντες, τοῦτο δὲ μεθερμηνευθὲν Νοβουμκῶμουμ λέγεται.
Smaller than these are Brixia, Mantua, Rhegium, and Comum; the last was indeed a moderate settlement, but Pompeius Strabo, the father of Magnus, established it anew after it had been damaged by the Raeti who lay above; then Gaius Scipio added three thousand; and then the divine Caesar established five thousand more, of whom five hundred were the most distinguished of the Greeks; and to these he both gave citizenship and enrolled them among the fellow-citizens; they did not, however, live there, but they at least left the name to the settlement; for they were all called "Neocomitae", which, when translated, is called "Novum Comum".
ἐγγὺς δὲ τοῦ χωρίου τούτου λίμνη Λάριος καλουμένη· πληροῖ δʼ αὐτὴν ὁ Ἀδούας ποταμός· εἶτʼ ἐξίησιν εἰς τὸν Πάδον· τὰς δὲ πηγὰς ἔσχηκεν ἐν τῷ Ἀδούλᾳ ὄρει, ὅπου καὶ ὁ Ῥῆνος.
Near this place is a lake called Larius, which the river Adouas fills; then it flows out into the Padus; and it has its sources in Mount Adulas, where the Rhine also rises.