Website of the Gods!!!

This is a blog of the gods, Ancient Rome, the Gallic Wars, translations, and other Latiny stuff!

Friday, June 11, 2010

Honors Latin II Final Part 2

Paragraph 1:
Among the Helvetii, Orgetorix was by far the most noble and rich. He, when M. Messala and M. Pisone were consuls, induced by desire of sovereignty, made a conspiracy and persuaded the nobles and citizens to march with him away from their territory with all their supplies: this would be very easy, as they excelled all in bravery, to gain command of the whole of Gaul. He persuaded them that this was easy to do, that from every side the natural location secured them: from one part the Rhine River was broad as well as deep, which divided the territory of the Helvetii from the Germans; from another part was the high Jura Mountain, which is between the Sequani and the Helvetii; from the third part was Lake Lemmano and the river Rhone, which divided our province from the Helvetii. These things made very little space that they could roam in, and they were not enough able to easily bring war to their neighbors; any human from that part was eager to wage war, and this made them sorrowful. While before a great crowd of men, and before the glory as well as valor of war, to have them judge their confined territory, which in length was 240 Roman miles, and they lie open in width of 180 Roman miles.

Paragraph 2:
This Helvetii thing is revealed by a truce. They gathered, as was custom, to talk about the cause to Orgetorix himself in chains; if found guilty, the penalty was to burn in fire. On the agreed day of the occasion for judgment, all of Orgetorix's family gathered for the trial, up to ten thousand people from every side, and all of his clients and debtors, of which he had a great number, drew together in the same place; that through them he did not make his plea, but was snatched away. Together the citizens, for the sake of him, aroused with weapons, to follow in an attempt and crowd of people to force the magistrate out of their territory, but Orgetorix was dead, and neither was suspicion away, as the Helvetii judged, that he did not commit suicide.

Paragraph 3:
After his death, the Helvetii did nothing less than set up to make an attempt anyway, to move out of their territory. Where now they were preparing to be decided on this thing, they set fire to all their towns (which numbered up to 12), they set fire to their 400 villages, and they set fire to the remainder of the private buildings; They burned all the crops that they could not carry between them, and suffered burning their homes so that there was no hope of returning, and they were prepared to endure all dangers; They had ordered for three months of rations to bring out of their homes. They persuaded the Rauracis and Tulingis and Latobrigis, their neighbors, to take the same plan, and, after burning their towns and villages, to set out with them: And they admit to their party and unite with themselves as confederates the Boios, who had lived on the other side of the Rhine, and had crossed over into the Noricum territory, and assaulted Noreia.

Sorry, Mr. Wojo, I butchered the tenses and moods, as I was in a hurry, but the paragraphs seem to make sense.

No comments: