Cic. Tusc. iii. 28. 69 Theophrastus . . . moriens accusasse naturam dicitur, quod . . . hominibus . . . tam exiguam vitam dedisset: quorum si aetas potuisset esse longinquior, futurum fuisse, ut omnibus perfectis artibus, omni doctrina hominum vita erudiretur"Theophrastus on his death-bed is said to have accused Nature for having given to mankind so brief a space of life. Whereas if their time were to have been able to be longer, it had been about to come to pass (= practically "it would have come to pass ") that with all perfect arts, with all learning, the life of man should have been civilised." : Caes. Bell. Gall. v. 29 Caesarem arbitrari profectum in Italiam neque aliter Carnutes interficiendi Tasgetii consilium fuisse capturos, neque Eburones, si ille adesset, tanta cum contemptione nostri ad castra venturos esse= "as for Caesar, he thought he had set out for Italy not otherwise had the Carnutes been about to conceive (= practically "would they have conceived") the idea of murdering Tasgetius, nor had the Eburones, if he were to have been present, with so great contempt of our side been about to come (=practically "would they have come ") to the camp." : Caes. Bell. Civ. iii. 101 nisi eo ipso tempore quidam nuntii de Caesaris victoria per dispositos equites essent allati existimabant plerique futurum fuisse uti amitteretur = "they thought that if some news of Caesar's victory were not to have been at that very time brought by certain men on horseback, placed about for the purpose, it had been about to happen (=practically "it would | have happened") that it (sc. the town) would have been lost." Tac. Ann. iv. 18 immodice jactantis suum militem in obsequio duravisse, cum alii ad seditiones prolaberentur: neque mansurum Tiberio imperium, si iis quoque legionibus cupido novandi fuisset="boasting inordinately, as he did, that his soldiery had remained firm in their allegiance, while others had been slipping away into sedition and that the supreme rule had not been about to remain (= practically "would not have remained") with Tiberius, if in the case of those legions also the revolutionary spirit were to have been rife." Liv. i. 26 moti homines sunt .; maxime P. Horatio patre proclamante, se filiam jure caesam judicare. Ni ita esset, patrio jure in filium animadversurum fuisse= "the assembly was moved; not least of all, because Horatius, the father, openly proclaimed that in his judgment his daughter had been rightly slain. If it were not to have been so, he had been about to punish (=practically "he would have punished") his son by virtue of his paternal right." opera Plin. Hist. Nat.: Praef. 26 ex illis mox velim intellegi pingendi fingendique conditoribus, quos . . . invenies absoluta pendenti titulo inscripsisse, ut "Apelles faciebat" aut "Polycletus," tamquam incohata semper arte et imperfecta, ut contra judiciorum varietates superesset artifici regressus ad veniam, velut emendaturo quidquid desideraretur, si non esset interceptus 344= "by the light of those masters of painting and statuary I shall perchance desire to be shortly understood, whom you will find to have inscribed their completed works with a pendent title, such as 'Apelles was at work' or 'Polycletus,' as though the art was begun only always and imperfect, so that against the hostility of judgment-seats there might be a return for the artist to indulgence, as for one who was about to make good (=practically "who would have made good") whatsoever was found wanting, if he were not to have been intercepted." 345 Liv. xxiv. 26 eo cursu se ex sacrario proripuerunt, ut si effugium patuisset in publicum, impleturae urbem tumultu fuerint 346 = "with such a run they threw themselves forth from the sacred precincts, that, if there were to have been any escape into the open, they were about to fill (=practically "would | have filled") the town with their cries." Liv. xxiv. 26 quid quod si Andranodoro consilia processissent, illa cum viro fuerit 346 regnatura: sibi cum ceteris serviendum" nay, if Andranodorus' plans were to have met with success, the other with her husband was about to reign (practically "would have reigned"): while for herself and the rest of the people, the position of slaves was reserved" (= practically "they would | have become slaves "). = Liv. xxi. 34 in eos versa peditum acies haud dubium fecit, quin nisi firmata extrema agminis fuissent, ingens in eo saltu accipienda clades fuerit 346 "upon them turned, the line of foot-soldiers made it not doubtful, that unless the flanks of the body were to have been strengthened, an immense disaster was to be encountered (=practically "would have been encountered") in that defile." With implied protasis Liv. xxviii. 24 apparuitque quantam excitatura molem vera fuisset 347 clades, quum vanus rumor tantas procellas excivisset" and it became evident what a mountain of trouble a real disaster (= a disaster if real) had been about to raise up (=practically "would have raised up"), when a mere idle rumour had evoked such storms." 242. In cases under this heading the apodosis is, occasionally, rather implied in the form of the sentence than expressed. For example Tac. Ann. iii. 16 audire me memini ex senioribus visum saepius inter manus Pisonis libellum, quem ipse non vulgaverit: sed amicos ejus dictitavisse litteras Tiberii et mandata in Germanicum contineri, ac destinatum promere apud patres principemque arguere, ni elusus a Sejano per vana promissa foret = "I remember to have heard from our elders, that there was somewhat often seen, in the hands of Piso, a book, which he himself did not make public, but that as to it his friends used to say that a letter of Tiberius and injunctions against Germanicus were contained in it; and that it was in his contemplation to produce it before the senate and throw the guilt upon the emperor, (and that he would have done so) if he had not been put off by Sejanus by means of empty promises." Caes. Bell. Gall. i. 14 qui si alicujus injuriae sibi conscius. fuisset, non fuisse difficile cavere=“as to which state, if it were to have been conscious of any wrong-doing of 244. Before we finally part with Conditional Sentences. in Latin, it may be found useful if we append, by way of summary and finger-post, and with the appropriate English equivalents, the following table of the forms used to express the PROTASIS IN THE DIRECT SPEECH. Protasis in direct speech. |