Germania and Agricola Part 16

_Cimbri_. The same with the Cimmerii, a once powerful race, who, migrating from western Asia, that hive of nations, overran a large part of Europe, but their power being broken by the Romans, and themselves being overrun and conquered by the Gothic or German Tribes, they were pushed to the extreme western points of the continent and the British Isles, where, and where alone, distinct traces of their language and literature remain to this day. They have left their name indelibly impressed on different localities in their route, e.g. the Cimmerian Bosphorus, the Cimbric Chersonesus (now Jutland, occupied by the Cimbri in the days of T.), c.u.mberland (c.u.mbria, from Cimbri) &c. The ancient name of the Welsh was also Cymri, cf. Tur. His. Ang. Sax. 1. 2.

_Gloria_ is abl. limiting _ingens_.

_Castra ac spatia_. In apposition with _lata vestigia_==spatiosa castra or castrorum spatia, H. 704, II. 2; Z. 741.

_Utraque ripa_, sc. of the Rhine, _the_ river and river bank by eminence.

_Molem ma.n.u.sque. The ma.s.s of their population, and the number of their armies_. Observe the alliteration, as if he had said: measure the ma.s.s and might.

_Exitus_, i.e. _migrationis_. Often used in this sense, cf. Caes. B.C.

3, 69: Salutem et _exitum_ sibi pariebant.--_Fidem, proof_.

_s.e.xcentesimum--annum_. T. follows the Catonian Era. According to the Varronian Era, received by the moderns, the date would be A.U.C.

641 = A.C. 113.

_Alterum--consulatum_. The second consuls.h.i.+p of Trajan (when he was also Emperor) was, after the reckoning of Tacitus, A.U.C. 850, according to modern computation, 851 = A.D. 98. This year doubtless marks the time when this treatise was written, else why selected?

_Vincitur_. So long is Germany in being conquered. (The work was never completed.) Cf. Liv. 9, 3: quem per annos jam prope _triginta vincimus_.

_Medio--spatio. In the intervening period_, sc. of 210 years.

_Samnis--Galliaeve_. The Romans had fought b.l.o.o.d.y, and some times disastrous battles with the Samnites (at the Caudine Forks, Liv. 9, 2.), with the Carthaginians (in the several Punic Wars), with the Spaniards under Viriathus and Sertorius (Florus, Lib. 2.), with the Gauls (Caes.

B.G. pa.s.s.). But none of these were so sanguinary as their wars with the Germans.

_Admonuere_, sc. vulneribus, cladibus==castigavere.

_Regno--libertas_. Liberty and monarchy in studied ant.i.thesis. T. means to imply that the former is the stronger principle of the two.

_Arsacis_. The family name of the Parthian kings, as Pharaoh and Ptolemy of the Egyptian, Antiochus of the Syrian, &c.

_Amisso et ipse_, sc. _oriens_; the East _itself also lost_ its prince (Pacorus), in the engagement, as well as the Romans their leader (Cra.s.sus).--_Objecerit, reproach us with_. Subj. Cf. n. G. 2: _peteret_.

_Ventidium_. Commander under Anthony, and conqueror of the Parthians in three battles, A.U.C. 715. He was raised from the lowest rank and the meanest employment, hence perhaps the expression, _dejectus infra, humbled beneath Ventidius_.

_Carbone--Manlio_, Cneius Papirius Carbo defeated at Noreja, A.U. 641 (Liv. Epit. 63.), L. Ca.s.sius Longinus defeated and slain, 647 (Caes. B.G.

1, 7. 12.), M. Aurelius Scaurus defeated and taken captive, 648 (Liv.

Epit. 67.), Servilius Caepio and M. Manlius defeated with great slaughter at Tolosa, 649 (Liv. Epit. 67.), Quintilius Varus defeated and slain, 762 (Suet. Oct. 23.)--all these victories over the Romans in their highest strength and glory--either in the time of the _Republic (Populo Romano)_, or of the _Empire_ under Augustus (_Caesari_)--all these attested the courage and military prowess of the Germans; and they were still, for the most part, as free and as powerful as ever.

_Caius Marius_ almost annihilated the Cimbri at Aquae s.e.xtiae, A.U.C.

652.

_Drusus_. Claudius Drusus invaded Germany four times, 742-3, and finally lost his life by falling from his horse on his return, cf. Dio. Libb. 54.

55.

_Nero_, commonly known as Tiberius (brother of Drusus and stepson of Augustus), had the command in Germany at three different times, 746-7, 756-9, 764-5, cf. Suet. Tib. 9. seq.

_Germanicus_, son of Drusus, made four campaigns in Germany, A.D. 14-16, cf. Ann. B. 1. and 2.

_C. Caesaris_. Caligula, cf. Suet. Calig.; T. His. 4, 15.

_Discordiae--armorum_. The civil wars after the death of Nero under Galba, Otho, and Vitellius.

_Expugnatis--hibernis_. By the Batavians under Civilis. His. 4, 12 seq.; A. 41.

_Affectavere. Aspired to the government of_, cf. note on affectationem, 28. After _donec_, T. always expresses a single definite past action by the perf. ind., cf. A. 36: _donec--cohortatus est_; a repeated, or continued past action by the imp. subj. cf. note, A. 19: _donec--fieret_; and a present action, which is in the nature of the case also a continued action, by the pres. subj. cf. note, 1: _separet_.

_Triumphati_. Poetice, cf. Virg. Aen. 6, 837: Triumphata Corintho; Hor.

Od. 3, 3, 43: Triumphati Medi. The reference here is to the ridiculous triumph of Domitian, A. 39, in which slaves, purchased and dressed out for the purpose, were borne as captives through the streets.

x.x.xVIII. _Suevis_. In the time of T. a powerful confederacy, embracing all the tribes enumerated in 39-45, and covering all the eastern and larger half of Germany. But the confederacy was soon dissolved and seldom appears in subsequent history. We still have a trace of their name in the Modern _Suabia_. The name is supposed by some philologists (e.g. Zeuss) to denote _unsettled wanderers_ (Germ. Schweben, to wave, to hover, cf.

Caes. B.G. 4, 1: Suevis non longius anno remanere uno in loco, etc.); as that of the Saxons does settlers, or _fixed residents_ (Germ. Sa.s.sen), and that of the Franks, _freemen_. See Rup. in loc. An ingenious Article in the North American Review (July, 1847), makes the distinction of Suevi and non-Suevi radical and permanent in the religion and the language of the Germans; the Suevi becoming Orthodox Catholics, and the non-Suevi Arians in Ecclesiastical History, and the one High-Dutch and the other Low-Dutch in the development of their language.

_Adhuc_. Cf. note on it, 19. As to position, cf. _insuper_ 31, and 34.

The Suevi are _still (adhuc)_ divided into distinct tribes bearing distinct names, though united in a confederacy. Cf. Hand's Tursellinus, 1, 163. Dod. renders _besides_, sc. the general designation of Suevi.

_In commune. In common_. Not used in this sense by Cic., Caes. and Liv., though frequent in T. Gr. Cf. note on the same, 27.

_Obliquare. To turn the hair back, or comb it up_ contrary to its natural direction--and then fasten it in a knot on the top of the head (_substringere nodo_); so it seems to be explained by the author himself below: _horrentem capillum retro sequuntur ac in ipso solo vertice religant_. Others translate _obliquare_ by _twist_. Many ancient writers speak of this manner of tying the hair among the Germans, cf. Sen. de Ira. 3, 26.; Juv. 13, 164.

_A servis separantur. Separantur_==distinguuntur. Servants among the Suevi seem to have had their hair shorn. So also it was among the Franks at a later date. Vid. Greg. Tur. 3, 8.

_Rarum et intra_, etc. Enallage, cf. note _certum quique_, 32.

_Retro sequuntur_, i.e. _follow it back_, as it were, in its growth, and _tie it up on the very crown of the head only_, instead of letting it hang down, as it grows (submittere crinem). So K., Or. and many others.

Pa.s.sow and Dod. take sequuntur in the sense of _desire, delight in_ (our word _seek_). The word bears that sense, e.g. 5: argentum magis quam aurum _sequuntur_. But then what is _retro_ sequuntur? for _retro_ must be an adjunct of _sequuntur_ both from position, and because there is no other word which it can limit. _Saepe_ implies, that sometimes they made a knot elsewhere, but _often they fasten_ it there, and there _only_. See Or. in loc. This whole pa.s.sage ill.u.s.trates our author's disposition to avoid technical language. Cf. note, II. 2, 21.

_Innoxiae. Harmless_, unlike the beauty cultivated among the _Romans_ to dazzle and seduce.

_In alt.i.tudinem_, etc. _For the sake of_ (increased) _height and terror_, i.e. to appear tall and inspire terror. Cf. note, A, 5: _in jactationem_; A. 7: _in suam famam_. The ant.i.thetic particle is omitted before this clause as it often is by our author.

_Ut hostium oculis_, to strike with terror the eyes of the enemy, for primi in omnibus proeliis _oculi_ vinc.u.n.tur, 43.

x.x.xIX. _Vetustissimos. Oldest_. _Vetus_ is _old_, of long _duration_ ([Greek; etos], aetas). _antiquus, ancient_, belonging to a _preceding_ age (ante). _Recens_ (fresh, young) is opposed to the former: _novus_ (new, modern), to the latter. See Ramshorn and Freund.

_Fides antiquitatis. Antiquitatis_ is objective gen.==_the belief, or persuasion of their antiquity_.

_Auguriis--sacram_. The commentators all note the hexameter structure of these words, and many regard them as a quotation from some Latin poet.

The words themselves are also poetical, e.g. _patrum_ for _majorum_, and _formidine_ for _religione_. The coloring is Virgilian. Cf. Aen. 7, 172; 8, 598. See Or. in loc. and Preliminary Remarks to the Histories, p. 234.

_Legationibus coeunt_. Just as we say: _convene by their delegates_, or _representatives_.

_Publice_==publica auctoritate, cf. same word, 10.

_Primordia_. Initiatory rites.

_Minor_, sc. numine. _Inferior to the G.o.d_.