dissipati sunt: dissipare,to scatter.
258. praetervehens: riding by.
259. cruore: cruor, blood, gore.
The battle of Cannae: the consuls Varro and Paulus find Hannibal ready to fight but are themselves disunited.
Consules satis exploratis itineribus sequentes Poenum, ut ventum ad Cannas est et in conspectu Poenum habebant, bina castra communiunt. Hannibal, spem nactus facturos copiam 235 pugnandi consules, dirigit aciem lacessitque Numidarum procursatione hostes. Inde rursus sollicitari seditione militari ac discordia consulum Romana castra, cum Paulus Flaminii temeritatem Varroni, Varro Paulo speciosum timidis ac segnibus ducibus exemplum Fabium obiceret. (XXII.44.1–5, excerpts)
The lines of battle are finally drawn up.
240 Postero die Varro, cui sors eius diei imperi erat, nihil consulto collega, signum proposuit instructasque copias flumen traduxit, sequente Paulo, quia magis non probare quam non adiuvare consilium poterat. Consules cornua tenuere, Terentius laevum, Aemilius dextrum; Gemino Servilio media pugna 245 tuenda data.
Hannibal prima luce quosque in acie locabat. Duces cornibus praeerant, sinistro Hasdrubal, dextro Maharbal; mediam aciem Hannibal ipse cum fratre Magone tenuit. Ventus adversus Romanis coortus, multo pulvere in ipsa ora volvendo, prospectum 250 ademit. (XXII.45.5–46.9, excerpts)
The bravery and death of Paulus, and the rout of the Romans.
Parte altera pugnae Paulus, quamquam primo statim proelio funda graviter ictus fuerat, tamen et occurrit saepe cum confertis Hannibali et aliquot locis proelium restituit, protegentibus eum equitibus Romanis, omissis postremo equis quia 255 consulem et ad regendum equum vires deficiebant. Pepulerunt tamen iam paucos superantes et labore ac vulneribus fessos; inde dissipati omnes sunt equosque ad fugam qui poterant repetebant. Cn. Lentulus, tribunus militum, cum praetervehens equo sedentem in saxo cruore oppletum consulem vidisset, 260 “L. Aemili,” inquit, “quem unum insontem culpae cladis hodiernae dei respicere debent, cape hunc equum, dum et tibi virium aliquid superest et comes ego te tollere possum ac protegere. Ne funestam hanc pugnam morte consulis feceris; etiam sine hoc lacrimarum satis luctusque est.”
262. comes: companion, comrade.
263. ne…feceris: JUSSIVE SUBJUNCT., do not make.
funestam:disastrous, i.e., more catastrophic than it already is.
264. luctus: grief, sorrow; gen.
265. macte virtute esto: idiomatic, be honored for your courage, bravo.
266. cave: (sometimes cave ne) + the JUSSIVE SUBJUNCT. absumas, a prohibition, lit., beware of wasting = do not waste.
miserando: miserari,to pity.
exiguum:scanty, small, little.
269. Fabio: sc. nuntia; the vb. takes a JUSSIVE SUBJUNCT. in the preceding cl., an IND. STATE. here.
270. memet: emphatic for me.
271. patere: imper. of patior.
reus:defendant; Paulus had earlier been charged with misappropriation of booty (in 219 B.C.) but not convicted.
e:as a result of, after.
272. alieno crimine: lit., by a charge belonging to another, i.e., by incriminating another.
274. haec…agentes: i.e., as Lentulus and Paulus were engaged in this exchange.
276. undique: adv., from all sides, on all sides.
effuse: adv., far and wide.
277. consul alter: Varro.
insertus: inserere,to introduce, join.
278. Venusiam: Venusia, the modern Venosa, a town in Apulia about 30 miles southwest of Cannae.
281. tantadem prope…pars (282): nearly the same proportion.
282. caesi: sc. esse.
283. haec est: Eng. would say such was.
284. ceteri: i.e., in contrast to Maharbal.
circumfusi: circumfundere,to pour around; pass., to gather around. Eng. would use a finite vb., not a partic., in parallel with gratularentur and suaderent, when the others had gathered round and were….
285. ut…et…sumeret et…daret (286): JUSSIVE NOUN CL., depending on suaderent, that he should both…and….
perfunctus: perfungi + abl., to perform, complete.
bello: these Carthaginians considered that the war, and not merely the battle, had been won.
diei: PARTITIVE GEN. with quod reliquum esset, what was left of the day.
