§1034_frg11Quíd minitabas te facturum, si istas pepulissem fores? §1034_frg12Ibi scrobes ecfodito tu plus sexagenos in die. §1034_frg13Noli pessimo precari. §1034_frg14animam comprime §1034_frg15Mánifestum hunc optorto collo teneo furem flagiti. §1034_frg16Immo ego hunc, Thebani cives, qui domi uxorem meam §1034_frg16aimpudicitia impedivit, teneo, thensaurum stupri. §1034_frg17Nilne te pudet, sceleste, populi in conspectum ingredi? §1034_frg18clandestino §1034_frg19Qui nequeas nostrorum uter sit Amphitruo decernere. §1035Vós inter vos partite; ego abeo, mihi negotium est; §1036neque ego umquam usquam tanta mira me vidisse censeo. §1037Blepharo, quaeso ut advocatus mi adsis neve abeas.
"What were you threatening you would do, if I had knocked on those doors?" "Dig there more than sixty ditches a day." "Do not invoke bad curses." "Hold your breath." "I hold this manifest thief of wickedness by his twisted neck." "Nay, citizens of Thebes, I hold this man, who entangled my wife in unchastity at home while I was away, a treasure-house of disgrace." "Are you not at all ashamed, scoundrel, to come into the sight of the people?" "Secretly." "You who cannot decide which of us is Amphitruo." "Divide it between yourselves; I am leaving, I have business; nor do I think that I have ever seen such wonders anywhere." "Blepharo, I pray you, stand by me as an advocate and do not leave." "Farewell.
What need is there of me as an advocate, when I do not know for which of the two I am an advocate?" "I am going inside from here.
Alcumena is in labor." "I am ruined, wretched man that I am.
§1040quid ego faciam, quem advocati iam atque amici deserunt?
What shall I do, whom advocates and friends are now deserting?
§1041numquam edepol me inultus istic ludificabit, quisquis est; §1042nam iam ad regem recta me ducam resque ut facta est eloquar.
By Pollux, that fellow, whoever he is, shall never make sport of me unpunished; for now I shall betake myself straight to the king and state how the matter happened.
† §1043ego pol illum ulciscar hodie Thessalum veneficum, §1044qui pervorse perturbavit familiae mentem meae.
By Pollux, I shall take vengeance today on that Thessalian sorcerer, who has perversely disturbed the mind of my household.
§1045sed ubi illest? intro edepol abiit, credo ad uxorem meam.
But where is he? By Pollux, he has gone inside, I believe, to my wife.
§1046qui me Thebis alter vivit miserior? quid nunc agam,
Who lives in Thebes more wretched than I?
§1047quem omnes mortales ignorant et ludificant ut lubet.
What shall I do now, whom all mortals ignore and mock as they please.
§1048certumst, intro rumpam in aedis: ubi quemque hominem aspexero, §1049si ancillam seu servom sive uxorem sive adulterum §1050seu patrem sive ávom videbo, óbtruncabo in aedibus.
I am resolved to burst into the house; wherever I see any human being, whether handmaid or slave or wife or adulterer, or father or grandfather, I shall slaughter them in the house.
§1051neque me Iuppiter neque di omnes id prohibebunt, si volent, §1052quin sic faciam ut constitui. pergam in aedis nunciam.
Neither Jupiter nor all the gods shall prevent me, even if they wish, from doing as I have resolved.
§1053Spes átque opes vitaé meae iacént sepultae in pectore, §1054neque ullast confidentia iam in corde, quin amiserim; §1055ita mihi videntur omnia, mare terra caelum, consequi, §1056iam ut opprimar, ut enicer.
I shall go into the house right now." "The hopes and resources of my life lie buried in my breast, nor is there any confidence now in my heart that I have not lost them; so do all things, sea, land, and sky, seem to pursue me, that I may now be crushed and slain.
me miseram, quid agam nescio.
Wretched me, I know not what to do.
§1057ita tanta mira in aedibus sunt facta.
such great wonders have occurred in the house.
vae miserae mihi, §1058animo malest, aquam velim.
Woe to wretched me, I feel faint, I want water.
corrupta sum atque absumpta sum.
I am ruined and exhausted.
§1059caput dolet, neque audio, nec oculis prospicio satis, §1060nec me miserior femina est neque ulla videatur magis.
My head aches, I can neither hear, nor see well enough with my eyes, nor is there any woman more wretched than I, nor could any seem more so.
§1061ita erae meae hodie contigit.
so has it happened today to my mistress.
nam ubi parturit, deos síbi invocat, §1062strepitús, crepitus, sonitús, tonitrus: ut subito, ut propere, ut valide tonuit!
For when she was in labor, she called upon the gods, noise, rattling, din, thunder: how suddenly, how quickly, how mightily it thundered!
§1063ubi quísque institerat, cóncidit crepitu.
Wherever each one had stood, he fell down at the noise.
íbi nescio quis máxuma §1064vóce exclamat: “Alcumena, adest auxilium, ne time: §1065et tibi et tuis propitius caeli cultor advenit.
Then someone with a very loud voice cried out: 'Alcumena, help is near, fear not: and to you and to yours, the propitious dweller of heaven comes.
Arise,' he said, 'you who have fallen down out of fear from my terror.' As I lay there, I arose.
ardére censui aédis, ita tum cónfulgebant.
I thought the house was on fire, so brightly did it then shine.
§1068íbi me inclamat Álcumena; iam éa res me horrore ádficit, §1069erílis praevertít metus: accúrro, ut sciscam quíd velit.
Then Alcumena called out to me; now that matter fills me with dread, fear of my mistress overcame my dread: I ran to her, to find out what she wanted.
§1070atque illam geminos filios pueros peperisse conspicor; §1071neque nostrum quisquam sensimus, quom peperit, neque providimus.
And I beheld that she had given birth to twin boys; and none of us perceived when she gave birth, nor did we foresee it.
§1072séd quid hoc? quis hic ést senex, qui ante aédis nostras síc iacet?
But what is this? Who is this old man who lies thus before our house?
§1073numnam húnc percussit Iúppiter?
Has Jupiter struck him, by any chance?
§1074credo édepol, nam, pro Iúppiter, sepúltust quasi sit mórtuos.
Indeed I believe so, for, by Jupiter, he lies buried as if he were dead.
§1075ibo et cognoscam, quisquis est.
I shall go and find out, whoever he is.
Amphitruo híc quidem est érus meus.
Why, this is my master Amphitruo.
§1076Amphítruo. §1076bPerii. §1076cSúrge. §1076dInterii. §1076eCédo manum. §1076fQuis mé tenet? §1077Tua Bromia ancilla. §1077bTotus timeo, íta me increpuit Iuppiter.
Amphitruo." "I am dead." "Arise." "I am finished." "Give me your hand." "Who is holding me?" "Your handmaid, Bromia." "I tremble all over, so did Jupiter rebuke me.
§1078nec secus est, quasi si ab Acherunte veniam.
And it is no different than if I were coming from Acheron.
sed quid tu foras §1079egressa es? §1079bEadem nos formido timidas terrore impulit §1080in aedibus, tu ubi habitas.
But why have you come out of doors?" "The same fear struck us with terror, in the house where you dwell.
nimia mira vidi. vae mihi,
I have seen too many wonders.
§1081Amphitruo, íta mihi animus etiam nunc abest. §1081bAgedum expedi: §1082scin me tuom esse erum Amphitruonem? §1082bScio. §1082cVide etiam nunc. §1082dScio. §1083Haec sola sanam mentem gestat meorum familiarium.
Woe to me, Amphitruo, so much is my mind even now gone." "Come now, explain: do you know that I am your master Amphitruo?" "I know." "Look even now." "I know." "She alone of my household possesses a sound mind."