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Plautus · Miles Gloriosus §800-869

Palaestrio's Instructions and Lucrio's Confession of Drunkenness

Passage 14 of 24 · Latin

Summary

Palaestrio instructs Pleusicles to use a pseudonym for Philocomasium and sends him inside. He then interrogates Lucrio, the under-cellarer who is watching the house while Sceledrus sleeps off a heavy drunk, and forces him to admit they have been stealing and drinking wine.

§800ei dabo, aps tua mi uxore dicam delatum et datum, §801ut sese ad eum conciliarem; ille eiusmodi est: cupiet miser, §802qui nisi adulterio studiosus rei nulli aliaest improbus.
Palaestrio: I shall give it to him, and say that it was brought and given to me by your wife, so that I might conciliate her to him; he is of such a sort: the wretch will desire her, he who is good for nothing else except being enthusiastic for adultery.
§803Non potuit reperire, si ipsi Soli quaerendas dares, §804lepidiores duas ad hanc rem quám ego.
Periplectomenus: He could not have found, even if you were to give the search to Sol himself, two more delightful women for this business than I have.
hábe animum bonum.
Be of good cheer.
§805Ergo adcura, sed propere opus est.
Palaestrio: Therefore, take care of it, but there is need of haste.
nunc tu ausculta, Pleusicles.
Now you listen, Pleusicles.
§806Tibi sum oboediens.
Pleusicles: I am obedient to you.
§806bHoc facito, miles domum ubi advenerit, §807memineris ne Philocomasium nomines.
Palaestrio: Do this: when the soldier comes home, remember not to name Philocomasium.
§807bQuem nominem?
Pleusicles: Whom should I name?
§808Diceam.
Palaestrio: Dicea.
§808bNempe eandem quae dudum constitutast.
Pleusicles: Surely the same one who was decided upon just now.
§808cPax, abi.
Palaestrio: Peace, go away.
§809Meminero.
Pleusicles: I shall remember.
sed quid meminisse id refert, rogo ego te tamen.
But what use is it to remember that, I ask you nevertheless?
§810Ego enim dicam tum quando usus poscet; interea tace, §811ut nunc etiam hic agat ac tu tum partis defendas tuas.
Palaestrio: For I shall tell you then when necessity demands; meanwhile keep silent, so that now he may still act here, and you may then defend your part.
§812Ego eo intro igitur. — §812bEt praecepta sobrie ut cures face.
Pleusicles: I am going inside then. — Palaestrio: And see to it that you care for the instructions soberly.
§813quantas res turbo, quantas moveo machinas.
How great affairs I throw into confusion, how great engines I set in motion!
§814eripiam ego hodie concubinam militi, §815si centuriati bene sunt maniplares mei.
Today I shall snatch the mistress from the soldier, if my soldiers are well organized.
§816sed illúm vocabo.
But I shall call him.
heus Sceledre, nisi negotiumst, §817progredere ante aedis, te vocat Palaestrio.
Hey, Sceledrus, unless you are busy, come out before the house; Palaestrio calls you.
§818Non operaest Sceledro.
Lucrio: Sceledrus has no leisure.
§818bQuid iam?
Palaestrio: Why now?
§818cSorbet dormiens.
Lucrio: He is sipping while sleeping.
§819Quid, sorbet?
Palaestrio: What, sipping?
§819bIllud, stertit, volui dicere. §820sed quia consimile est, quom stertas, quasi sorbeas — §821Eho an dórmit Sceledrus intus?
Lucrio: I meant to say that, snoring; but because it is very similar, when you snore, as if you were sipping — Palaestrio: Eh! Is Sceledrus sleeping inside?
§821bNon naso quidem, §822nam eo mágnum clamat.
Lucrio: Not with his nose, indeed, for he makes a great noise with it.
tetigit calicem clanculum, §823dum misit nardum in amphoram, cellarius.
He touched the cup secretly, the cellar-keeper, while he was putting nard into the amphora.
§824_825Eho tu sceleste, qui illi suppromus essuppromu's, eho — §826Quid vis?
Palaestrio: Eh, you scoundrel, you who are his assistant cellar-keeper, eh — Lucrio: What do you want?
§826bQui lubitum est illi condormiscere?
Palaestrio: How did it please him to fall asleep?
§827Oculis opinor.
Lucrio: With his eyes, I suppose.
§827bNon te istuc rogito, scelus.
Palaestrio: I am not asking you that, you rogue.
§828procede huc.
Come out here.
periisti iam, nisi verum scio.
You are dead now, unless I know the truth.
§829prompsisti tu illi vinum?
Did you draw wine for him?
§829bNon prompsi.
Lucrio: I did not draw it.
§829cNegas?
Palaestrio: Do you deny it?
§830Nego hercle vero, nam ille me vetuit dicere; §831neque equidem heminas octo exprompsi in urceum §832neque illic calidum éxbibit in prandium.
Lucrio: By Hercules, I certainly deny it, for he forbade me to say; nor indeed did I draw eight heminae into the pitcher, nor did he drink it hot for lunch.
§833Neque tu bibisti?
Palaestrio: Nor did you drink?
§833bDi me perdant, si bibi, §834si bibere potui.
Lucrio: May the gods destroy me, if I drank, if I could drink.
§834bQuid iam?
Palaestrio: Why now?
§834cQuia enim obsorbui; §835nam nimis calebat, amburebat gutturem.
Lucrio: Because, you see, I gulped it down; for it was too hot, it burned my throat.
§836Alii ebrii sunt, alii poscam potitant.
Palaestrio: Some are drunk, others keep drinking sour wine.
§837bono subpromo et promo cellam creditam.
To a good assistant and keeper is the cellar entrusted!
§838Tu hércle idem fáceres, si tibi esset credita: §839_840quoniam aemulari non licet, nunc invides.
Lucrio: By Hercules, you would do the same, if it were entrusted to you: since you cannot imitate it, now you are envious.
§841Eho an umquam prompsit antehac? responde, scelus.
Palaestrio: Eh, did he ever draw before this? Answer, you rogue.
§842atque ut tu scire possis, ego dico tibi: §843si falsa dices, Lucrio, excruciabere.
And that you may know, I tell you: if you tell lies, Lucrio, you shall be tortured.
§844Ita vero? ut tu ipse me dixisse delices, §845post e sagina ego eiciar cellaria, §846ut tibi, si promptes, alium subpromum pares.
Lucrio: Really? So that you yourself may betray that I said it, and after that I may be cast out from the cellar fatting-stall, so that, if you draw, you may find another assistant for yourself.
§847Non edepol faciam.
Palaestrio: By Pollux, I shall not do that.
age eloquere audacter mihi.
Come, speak out boldly to me.
§848Numquam edepol vidi promere.
Lucrio: By Pollux, I never saw him draw.
verum hoc erat: §849mihi imperabat, ego promebam postea.
But this was the way: he would command me, and I would draw afterwards.
§850Hoc illi crebro capite sistebant cadi.
Palaestrio: This is why the jars frequently stood on their heads for him.
§851Non hercle tam istoc valide cassabant cadi; §852sed in célla erat paulum nimis lóculi lubrici, §853ibi erat bilibris aula sic propter cados, §854ea saepe deciens complebatur: vidi eam §855plenam atque inanem fieri, plenam maxume; §856ubi bacchabatur aula, cassabant cadi.
Lucrio: By Hercules, the jars did not fall over so violently; but in the cellar there was a little too slippery a spot, there was a two-pound jar right by the wine-jars like this, that was often filled ten times: I saw it become full and empty, especially full; when the jar held revelry, the wine-jars fell.
§857Abi, abi íntro iam.
Palaestrio: Go, go inside now.
vos in cella vinaria §858bacchanal facitis.
You are making a Bacchanal in the wine-cellar.
iam hercle ego erum ádducam a foro.
By Hercules, I shall now bring the master from the forum.
§859Perii, excruciabit mé erus, domum si venerit,
Lucrio: I am ruined!
§860quom haec facta scibit, quia sibi non dixerim.
The master will torture me if he comes home, when he knows these things were done, because I did not tell him.
§861fugiam hercle aliquo atque hoc in diem extollam malum.
By Hercules, I shall flee somewhere and put off this evil for the day.
§862ne dixeritis, obsecro, huic, vostram fidem.
Do not tell him, I beseech you, by your faith!
§863Quo té agis?
Palaestrio: Where are you going?
§863bMissus sum aliquo: iam huc revenero.
Lucrio: I have been sent somewhere; I shall return here soon.
§864Quis misit?
Palaestrio: Who sent you?
§864bPhilocomasium.
Lucrio: Philocomasium.
§864cAbi, actutum redi.
Palaestrio: Go, return immediately.
§865Quaeso tamen tu meam partem, infortunium §866si dividetur, me absente accipito tamen.
Lucrio: I beg you, however, if the trouble is divided, take my share, even though I am absent.
§867Modo intellexi quam rem mulier gesserit: §868quia Sceledrus dormit, hunc subcustodem suom §869foras áblegavit, dum ab se huc transiret.
Palaestrio: Just now I understood what business the woman has carried out: because Sceledrus is asleep, she has sent away this under-guardian of hers out of doors, while she crossed over from her house to here.
placet.
It pleases me.

Notes

  1. §803Non potuit reperire, si ipsi Soli quaerendas dares — The indicative in the apodosis of a conditional sentence. While the protasis `si... dares` is in the imperfect subjunctive (representing a contrary-to-fact or potential condition), the apodosis uses the perfect indicative of a verb of ability `non potuit` ("could not have found"). In Latin, verbs expressing ability (posse) or obligation (debere) regularly take the indicative in the apodosis of conditional clauses.
  2. §818cSorbet dormiens — A scene where the under-cellarer Lucrio humorously describes the drunken state of Sceledrus. The verb `sorbere`, which primarily means "to suck in, drink up," is used here in place of `stertere` ("to snore"), a play on words explained in §819–820. The present participle `dormiens` functions adverbially, describing the temporary state of the subject ("while sleeping").
  3. §833bDi me perdant, si bibi — A formulaic oath of strong denial. The literal translation is "May the gods destroy me if I drank," which functions as a vigorous assertion of innocence ("I certainly did not drink"). The main clause `Di me perdant` uses the present subjunctive (third-person plural) to express a wish or imprecation.
  4. §850capite sistebant cadi — An idiomatic expression; `capite sistere` means "to stand on one's head, to be inverted." Here it metaphorically describes the wine jars (cadi) being turned upside down and completely emptied. The verb `sistebant`, used intransitively, means "they were standing (on their heads)."

Cite this passage

Plautus, Miles Gloriosus §800-869. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0119.phi012.humanitext-lat2:800-869

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