§ 41.

with dum

Hist. Inf.

Omission of sum, &c.

Verb used for part.

Part. as subst.

Abl. Abs.

dependent clauses come before the present, as in 9, 24); sometimes the two ideas are confused, and presents and imperfects follow intermixed, as in 10, 2-11; 17, 16.

The use of dum with the present (cf. §30) arises similarly from this kind of vivid narration.

Cf. 1, 2; 4, 10; 12, 6, &c.; 25, 11, &c.

§ 41. B. The use of the historic infinitive as a main verb to express rapid sequence or vivid description; where we use the hist. pres. or the verbs 'began to,' 'proceeded to,' &c., and often the participle or the verbal substantive in -ing.

Cf. §§ 28, 8, 31; and (1) 21; 2, 15; (4) 18; 7, 9, 27; 12, 1—4; 26, 28.

γ. The omission of the verb, mostly of est, sunt, and esse, or inquit, &c. (very rarely the subj. of sum, cf. 2, 3; 4, 9); and in cases (Madv. § 478) where the present participle of sum might be used if it existed.

Cf. §§ 28, 40; and 17, 24; 21, 30-3; 24, 18; 25, 28; 31, 14.

8. Use of imperfect indic. (26, 40) or quum with subjunctive (7, 33) where we use a kind of ablative absolute, or pendent participle. Cf. § 25 (ii).

E. The use of the present participle as substantive.
Cf. § 25 €, § 42 a.

¿. The ablative absolute, with or without participle, nate clause. at the end of a sentence where we use a co-ordinate clause.

for co-ordi

§ 42. Tacitean

idioms.

Pres. part. frequent.

Cf. § 9, § 428.

§ 42. Tacitean idioms :

Frequent use of present participle, as § 41 €, § 25 €, both for clauses (temporal, conditional, &c.), and also for persons, and classes, or for abstract substantives: and of the passive participle similarly.

Adeo furentes infirmitate retinentis accendebat. Hist. 1. 9. Nec deerant sermones increpantium. H. 1. 7.

Cf. 2, 15, 19; 8, 19; 19, 9, 32; 24, 47.

Adj. for

§ 42. B. Similar use of adjective, as participle, or as $42. if v were omitted; pronus ad novas res scelere insuper Part. agitatur.

Cf. § 20, and 8, 9, 11; 18, 9; 24, 31.

γ.

of copuia

Omission of copula-verb, especially with adjec- Omission tives; omission of other common verbs readily supplied. verb, &c. Especially in the favourite parenthetical use of incertum an (dolo), or sive-sive. Sive verum istud sive ex ingenio principis fictum. Cf. 24, 49.

Cf. 2, 3, 9, 12; 4, 9, 13; 11, 17.

for co-ordi

nate.

8. Frequent use of ablative absolute both before Abl. Abs. and, more frequently, after the main verb, as co-ordinate clause (stating a fresh fact), or as attendant circumstance, &c.; e.g. lubrico statu, attritis opibus, H. 1. 10; of the gerund in do, 24, 35, similarly; of the gerundive (e.g. An. XI. 32, dissimulando metu digreditur) in modal or final sense, cf. 22, 12; of the ablat. absol. used impersonally, e.g. explorato, nuntiato, cf. 4, 3. But cf. Tac. An. xv. 24, 28 with An. XI. 32.

Cf. 2, 6; 4, 12; 11, 12, 17.

Ind.

E. Use of quamquam with subjunctive, and with par- Subj. for ticiples, An. XI. 32; xvI. 15 (and quamvis, even of facts); more frequent use of the subjunctive generally, wherever a fact can be stated subjectively or where the indefinite idea of frequency justifies its use; on the other hand, occasional interpolation of the indicative in obliqua oratio, and frequent use of the construction, circumveniebatur ni...se opposuissent.

Cf. 2, 3, 18; 4, 22; 8, 29; 16, 14, 33.

Asyndeton. 42. Omission of conjunctive and disjunctive

Zeugma, &c.

Infinitives

substanti

getically.

copulas.

Cf. 11, 7, 15, 17.

n. Union or confusion of incongruous ideas and constructions.

Cf. 2, 10; 8, 10, 16; 9, 7; 10, 14; 11, 10-12; 16, 5, 37; 18, 17; 22, 27.

0. Free use of infinitives (i) as substantives both as vally, epexe. subject and object (as in Greek with the article), (ii) epexegetically as in Greek; (iii) with ellipse of verb, to express habit, inception, &c., even after quum, ubi; e.g. legionibus cum damno labor, et fodere rivos. An. XI. 20. auferre, trucidare, rapere, falsis nominibus imperium... appellant. Agr. 30.

Tacitean imitations of Greek

and poet. forms.

Brevity:
Ellipse:

verbs in special

sense.

L. Imitation of Greek and of poetical forms, as in the use of the genitive (for ablative), of the objective genitive, of the subjective dative for ablative; of adjectives or participles for substantives and for adverbs: in the use of the positive for the comparative; in the variety of periphrases for common ideas (as death, suicide, &c.): e. g. volgus mutabile subitis; adrogans minoribus; sermonis nimius; vehementius quam caute, &c. Cf. 2, 2; 22, 11, 14, 23; 23, 28.

K.

General tendency to brevity, condensation, and ellipse of prepositions and nouns as well as verbs (as in 7); frequent usage of verbs in peculiar senses, e. g. agere, to continue, live, stay; tendere, to encamp; imputare, expedire, &c.; or with peculiar constructions, e.g. fungor, potior, with accusative.

Cf. 4, 14; 10, 8; 11, 2, 11; 22, 4.

Generally it will be seen that most of the peculiarities involve, either imitation of Greek-often as if the (Greek) article or participle v were understood-or an affectation of brevity, or a preference for a subjective

turn of thought suggestive rather than explicit, or, lastly, a desire for singularity or variety of expression.

§ 43. a. In English we often follow the train of $48. English thought in another's mind, his reasonings, or statements, oratio obliqua. and state them directly with or without a prefatory 'he said,' 'he advised,' &c. This is our oratio obliqua, marked only by the use of the past for the present, pluperfect for perfect (would, could, &c., for will, can). Ambiguities often occur in consequence.

Cf. (6) 12; (7) 10; (8) 15; (11) 5, &c.; (15) 7, 17.

oratio

B. In Latin the verb cannot be thus left in the in- Latin dicative mood, but is thrown into the infinitive or sub- obliqua. junctive. The subject becomes an accusative, the verb an infinitive, both in the main and in the co-ordinate clauses; while subordinate or dependent verbs become or remain subjunctives, in present or past tenses accordingly as the original main verb is present, past, or historic present. § 30 y, vi. § 41 a.

Cf. 4, 10-19; 6, 5-21; 11, 3-7; 12, 15.

verbs.

7. Words introducing this oratio obliqua, urging,' Ellipse of γ. 'saying,' 'he exclaimed,' he continued,' are omitted generally; dixit, respondit, videbatur, apparebat, ferebatur, &c., are sometimes used.

Commands and exhortations, dependent on monet, monuit ut, &c. suppressed, are put in the present or imperfect subjunctive.

Cf. 1, 6; 8, 15; 11, 3, 14; 12, 15; 24, 20.

in oratio

8. Independent questions when put in oratio obliqua, Questions as other main clauses, are expressed by the accusative obliqua. with the infinitive (being dependent on dicit, &c. not on rogat, &c.), e.g. Quem non videre? except where the second person of the oratio recta has to be expressed, when to avoid confusion the subjunctive is mostly used, as if it were a dependent clause. So nonne vides

§ 43. Indirect

tive.

becomes nonne videret; but nonne video, videmus? become nonne (se) videre? and nonne videt, vident? nonne videre eos? &c. See Madvig, § 405. Cf. 6, 11; 10, 3, 4; cf. also Cic. p. Rosc. Am. 23. 64.

The indirect interrogative however approximates to a interroga- simple dependent clause (when attached to a main verb expressed), and is treated as such (see ẞ); quaerit ubi esset Cato, ubi tu esses, ubi ipse esset.

Questions orig. in subj.

ted.

§ 43. . Questions originally in the subjunctive (like subordina- other dependent clauses) when put in oratio obliqua remain in the subjunctive with a change of tense according to ẞ, or § 30 ; e.g. utri paream? becomes utri pareret ? or utri parendum esset? in oratio obliqua; in both cases equally a main governing verb or a condition being suppressed.

Qui copulative with infin.

$ 44.

Speeches in oratio obliqua.

§ 45. Metaphors:

Here, as in § 30 †, the rule holds good that the subjunctive cannot do double duty. Quid faceres? (conditional) becomes quid facturus esset?

. The relative qui is often treated as a copula (et is) and followed by the infinitive mood, the relative sentences being then co-ordinate and not dependent. However the subjunctive is oftener found, so that the sentence becomes a qualifying clause. See Madvig, § 402. E.g. esse illi pecuniam et eloquentiam queis multos anteiret (or anteire).

§ 44. Short speeches in English are generally expressed in oratio recta; in Latin by oratio obliqua. but not always e.g. 26, 35; (15) 18; 30, 2. As a rule oratio obliqua is oftener used in Latin than in English for all speeches.

Cf. (1) 26; (7) 37; (10) 4; 16, 26; (28) 7; (30) 1.

§ 45. a. Metaphors are less frequent in Latin than