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Julius Caesar · Gallic War §4.5.1-4.5.3

Fickleness of the Gauls and Hasty Decisions from Rumors

Passage 123 of 404 · Latin

Summary

Caesar, wary of the Gauls' fickleness and impulsiveness, describes their habit of gathering rumors from travelers and merchants, which often leads them to make hasty decisions they immediately regret.

§4.5.1His de rebus Caesar certior factus et infirmitatem Gallorum veritus, quod sunt in consiliis capiendis mobiles et novis plerumque rebus student, nihil his committendum existimavit.
Having been informed of these matters and fearing the instability of the Gauls, because they are fickle in making plans and generally eager for political change, Caesar thought that nothing should be entrusted to them.
§4.5.2Est enim hoc Gallicae consuetudinis, uti et viatores etiam invitos consistere cogant et quid quisque eorum de quaque re audierit aut cognoverit quaerant et mercatores in oppidis vulgus circumsistat quibus ex regionibus veniant quas ibi res cognoverint pronuntiare cogat.
For it is of Gallic custom that they compel travelers to stop even against their will and inquire what each of them has heard or learned about each matter, and in the towns the crowd surrounds merchants and forces them to declare from what regions they come and what things they have learned there.
§4.5.3His rebus atque auditionibus permoti de summis saepe rebus consilia ineunt, quorum eos in vestigio paenitere necesse est, cum incertis rumoribus serviant et pleri ad voluntatem eorum ficta respondeant.
Influenced by these events and reports, they often enter into plans regarding the most important matters, which they must repent of on the spot, since they are slaves to uncertain rumors and most people reply with fictions suited to their wishes.

Notes

  1. §4.5.2Gallicae consuetudinis — Genitive of characteristic or predicate genitive. The subject is the entire noun clause starting with 'uti', meaning 'it is a characteristic of Gallic custom that...'.
  2. §4.5.2vulgus circumsistat ... cogat — Note the change of subject within the uti-clause. While 'cogant' and 'quaerant' in the first half have a third-person plural subject (the Gauls), in the second half the singular noun 'vulgus' (the crowd) becomes the subject, with its verbs in the third-person singular ('circumsistat', 'cogat'). The object of 'cogat' is 'mercatores'.
  3. §4.5.3quorum eos ... paenitere — The construction of the impersonal verb of feeling 'paenitet', which takes an accusative of the person feeling the emotion (eos) and a genitive of the cause of the emotion (the relative pronoun 'quorum', referring back to 'consilia'). This accusative with infinitive clause is the subject of 'necesse est'.

Cite this passage

Julius Caesar, Gallic War §4.5.1-4.5.3. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0448.phi001.humanitext-lat2:4.5.1-4.5.3

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