Part 41

#noctū ambulābat in pūblicō Themistoclēs, quod somnum capere nōn posset#, _TD._ 4, 44, _Themistocles used to walk the streets nights, ‘because he could not sleep,’_ given as Themistocles’s reason; the writer’s would be #poterat#. #Paetus omnēs librōs, quōs frāter suus relīquisset, mihī̆ dōnāvit#, _Att._ 2, 1, 12, _Paetus made me a present of all the books ‘that his brother had left.’_ #dum reliquae nāvēs eō convenīrent, in ancorīs expectāvit#, 4, 23, 4, _he waited at anchor till the rest of the vessels should gather there_ (2005). #pervēnit priusquam Pompēius sentīre posset#, Caes. _C._ 3, 67, 4, _he got there before Pompey should be able to learn of his coming_ (1919). #Xerxēs praemium prōposuit, quī invēnisset novam voluptātem#, _TD._ 5, 20, _Xerxes offered a reward to anybody who should devise a new form of entertainment_ (2110).

1726. A speaker or writer may quote his own thoughts in the indirect form, like another person’s: as, #haec tibi dictābam post fānum putre Vacūnae, exceptō quod nōn simul essēs, cētera laetus#, H. _E._ 1, 10, 49, _I write thee this behind Vacuna’s mouldering pile, in all else well, except that thou’rt not here the while_ (1601).

1727. Instead of an intimation of indirect discourse by a mere subjunctive, a verb of thinking or saying is sometimes introduced by #quī#, or especially #quod#, sometimes by #cum#, and put illogically itself in the subjunctive: as, #litterās, quās mē sibī̆ mīsisse dīceret, recitāvit#, _Ph._ 2, 7, _he read off a letter, which he said I sent him_, i.e. #quās mīsissem#. #impetrāre nōn potuī, quod religiōne sē impedīrī dīcerent#, Sulpicius in _Fam._ 4, 12, 3, _I could not get leave, because they said they were hampered by religious scruple_, i.e. #quod impedīrentur#. #cum dīceret#, _DN._ 3, 83, _saying as he did_. This construction is common in Cicero, somewhat so in Caesar, rare in Sallust.

1728. The subjunctive is used in sentences expressing an essential part of the thought, which are subordinate to another subjunctive, or to an infinitive. This is called the _Subjunctive of Attraction_, or _of Assimilation_: as,

#vereor nē, dum minuere velim labōrem, augeam#, _Leg._ 1, 12, _I am afraid I may make the work harder, while I am aiming to make it less_. #sī sōlōs eōs dīcerēs miserōs, quibus moriendum esset, nēminem eōrum, quī vīverent exciperēs#, _TD._ 1, 9, _if you should pronounce only such people unhappy as had to die, you would not except one of those who were living_. #mōs est Syrācūsīs, ut sī quā dē rē ad senātum referātur, dīcat sententiam quī velit#, _V._ 4, 142, _it is the custom at Syracuse, that if any question is discussed in the senate, anybody who pleases may express his opinion_. #sapiēns nōn dubitat, sī ita melius sit, migrāre dē vītā#, _Fin._ 1, 62, _the sage does not hesitate, if this be the better course, to withdraw from life_. #mōs est Athēnīs laudārī in cōntiōne eōs, quī sint in proeliīs interfectī#, _O._ 151, _it is the custom in Athens to eulogize in public assembly such as have fallen in action_.

1729. The indicative is kept in subordinate statements added or vouched for by the person reporting, and also in circumlocutions equivalent to a substantive: as,

#nūntiātum est Ariovistum ad occupandum Vesontiōnem, quod est oppidum maximum Sēquanōrum, contendere#, 1, 38, 1, _it was reported that Ariovistus was pressing on to seize Vesontio, which is the most considerable town of the Sequans_. #prūdentissima cīvitās Athēniēnsium, dum ea rērum potīta est, fuisse trāditur#, _RA._ 70, _Athens is said to have been passing wise, as long as she held the hegemony_. #vīs, quae restant, mē loquī?# T. _Andr._ 195, _wilt have me tell the rest?_ i.e. #relicua#. #fierī potest, ut id quod sentit polītē ēloquī nōn possit#, _TD._ 1, 6, _it may be that he cannot express his thought in polished style_, i.e. #sententiam suam#.

THE SUBJUNCTIVE OF REPEATED ACTION.

1730. The subjunctive is sometimes used in relative, temporal, or conditional sentences, to express action repeated or occurring at no particular time: as,

(_a._) #neque aliter sī faciat, ūllam inter suōs habet auctōritātem#, 6, 11, 4, _and if he does not do this, he never has any ascendancy at all over his people_. With the present and perfect, however, this subjunctive is confined principally to the indefinite second person singular (1030): as, #bonus sēgnior fit, ubī̆ neglegās#, S. _I._ 31, 28, _the good man always gets slacker, when you are neglectful_. #sīquoi mūtuom quid dederīs, fit prō propriō perditum#, Pl. _Tri._ 1050, _if you’ve lent anything to any man, ’tis not your own, but lost_. (_b._) The imperfect and pluperfect subjunctive begin with Catullus and Caesar, and get to be common with Livy and Tacitus: as, #sī quis prehenderētur, cōnsēnsū mīlitum ēripiēbātur#, Caes. _C._ 3, 110, 4, _every time a man was taken up, he was rescued by the joint action of the rank and file_. #quemcumque līctor prēndisset, tribūnus mittī iubēbat#, L. 3, 11, 2, _every man the lictor arrested, a tribune would order released_.

THE SUBJUNCTIVE AS IN THE SIMPLE SENTENCE.

1731. The subjunctive of wish, of action conceivable, or of interrogation, is sometimes used in a subordinate sentence exactly as in main sentences: as,

#haec diē nātālī meō scrīpsī, quō utinam susceptus nōn essem#, _Att._ 11, 9, 3, _this I have written on my birthday, on which day I wish I had never been lifted from the ground_ (1544). #ut videās#, Lucr. 3, 348, _so that you can see_ (1556). #neque id faciō, ut forsitan quibusdam videar, simulātiōne#, _Fam._ 1, 8, 2, _nor do I do it, as perhaps I may seem to some to do, from hypocrisy_ (1556). #etiamst paucīs vōs quod monitōs voluerim#, Pl. _Cap._ 53, _there’s one point more, on which I’d have you briefly warned_ (1558). #erant eiusmodī sitūs oppidōrum, ut neque pedibus aditum habērent neque nāvibus, quod minuente aestū nāvēs in vadīs adflīctārentur#, 3, 12, 1, _the towns were so situated that there was no access to them by land, nor by boat either, because at ebb tide vessels would pound on the shoals_ (1559). #vix erat hoc imperātum, cum illum spoliātum vidērēs#, _V._ 4, 86, _hardly was the order from his lips, when you might have seen the man stript_ (1559). #quō mē vertam nesciō#, _Clu._ 4, _I don’t know which way to turn_ (1563).

[Erratum: 1731 ... #neque id faciō, ut forsitan quibusdam videar, simulātiōne#, final , missing]

TENSE OF THE SUBORDINATE SENTENCE.

THE TENSES OF THE INDICATIVE.

1732. I. The tense of a subordinate indicative often indicates a close relation of time with the tense of the leading verb, particularly in cases of repeated contemporaneous or antecedent action. The subordinate sentence in such combinations is said to have _Relative_ time.

1733. (1.) The subordinate indicative tense may express action concurrent with the main action. Two concurrent sentences are usually put in the same tense.

Concurrent action is said to be (_a._) _congruent_, when two actions merely cover the same time: as, #dum legō, adsentior#, _TD._ 1, 24, _as long as I am reading, I assent_. #dum necesse erat, ūnus omnia poterat#, _RA._ 139, _so long as it had to be, one man controlled the world_. #dum Latīnae loquentur litterae, quercus huic locō nōn deerit#, _Leg._ 1, 2, _as long as Latin literature has the gift of speech, this spot will not lack its oak_. #vīxit, dum vīxit, bene#, T. _Hec._ 461, _he lived well all the time he lived_. #quoad potuit, fortissimē restitit#, 4, 12, 5, _as long as he could, he made a manful stand_. Or (_b._) _coincident_, when one action is virtually the same as the other: as, #cum tacent, clāmant#, _C._ 1, 21, _while they are dumb, they cry out_, i.e. their silence is as telling as a shout. #fēcistī mihī̆ pergrātum, quod Serāpiōnis librum mīsistī#, _Att._ 2, 4, 1, _you have obliged me very much by sending Serapio’s book_.

1734. (2.) The subordinate indicative tense may express action contemporaneous, antecedent, or subsequent, in relation to the main action.

1735. (_a._) Action contemporaneous with a main present is expressed by a present, with a main future or virtual future, by a future, with a main secondary tense by an imperfect: as,

#quod est, eō decet ūtī#, _CM._ 27, _what you have, that you should avail yourself of_. #hōrologium mittam, sī erit sūdum#, _Fam._ 16, 18, 3, _I will send the clock, if it is pleasant_ (1625). #paulātim dabis, sī sapiēs#, T. _Hau._ 870, _you’ll give in driblets, if you are wise_. #cum relaxāre animōs volent, caveant intemperantiam#, _Off._ 1, 122, _when they want to unbend, let them beware of excess_ (1625; 1718). #omnia deerant, quae ad reficiendās nāvēs erant ūsuī#, 4, 29, 4, _they were out of everything that was serviceable for repairing their vessels_.

1736. (_b._) Action antecedent to a main present is expressed by a perfect, to a main future or virtual future by a future perfect, to a main secondary tense by a pluperfect: as,

#quōcumque aspexistī tuae tibī̆ occurrunt iniūriae#, _Par._ 18, _wherever you turn your gaze, you are confronted by your own abominable acts_. #cum posuī librum, adsēnsiō omnis ēlābitur#, _TD._ 1, 24, _when I drop the book, all assent melts away_ (1860). #quicquid fēceris, adprobābō#, _Fam._ 3, 3, 2, _no matter what you do, I shall think it well_ (1626). #ut quisque istīus animum offenderat, in lautumiās statim coniciēbātur#, _V._ 5, 143, _any man that wounded his sensibilities was always flung into the quarries without any ado_.

1737. (_c._) Action subsequent to a main present is expressed by the future participle with a present form of #sum#, to a main future or virtual future by the future participle with a future form of #sum#, and to a main secondary tense by the future participle with an imperfect form of #sum#: as,

#decem diēs sunt ante lūdōs, quōs Cn. Pompēius factūrus est#, _V. a. pr_. 31, _there are ten days before the shows which Pompey is to manage_. #attentōs faciēmus, sī dēmōnstrābimus ea, quae dictūrī erimus, magna esse#, _Inv._ 1, 23, _we shall make people attentive if we show that what we are going to say is important_. #rēx, quia nōn interfutūrus nāvālī certāminī erat, Magnēsiam concessit#, L. 36, 43, 9, _as the king was not to have a hand in the action at sea, he moved off to Magnesia_.

1738. II. A subordinate indicative tense is said to be _Independent_ when it simply expresses time of its own, without any close relation to the time of the main action.

Such independent tenses may denote general present action: as, #ībam forte viā sacrā, sīcut meus est mōs#, H. _S._ 1, 9, 1, _in Sacred Street, as is my wont, I happened to be promenading_ (relatively, #erat mōs#, 1735). #nōn mē appellābis, sī sapis#, Pl. _Most._ 515, _you won’t address me, if you have sense_ (relatively, #sī sapiēs#, 1735). Or past action, either continuous, completed, or indefinite: as, #ut mōs fuit Bī̆thȳniae rēgibus, lectīcā ferēbātur#, _V._ 5, 27, _he regularly rode in a litter, as was the practice of the despots of Bithynia_; here #fuit# denotes action simply as past, without further definition of time (1603), whereas #erat#, relative to the time of #ferēbātur#, would imply _which was then the practice_ (1595).

1739. With #dum#, _in the time while_, an independent present is used: see 1995. With #postquam#, &c., _after_, an independent perfect is used of a single action; see 1925.

THE TENSES OF THE SUBJUNCTIVE.

1740. Subordinate subjunctive sentences were originally independent coordinate sentences, in the tense required to express the thought. By degrees the subordinate sentence blended closely with the main sentence, and the combination of the two was regarded as one whole.

1741. I. The time of the subordinate subjunctive is usually _Relative_, that is either contemporaneous, antecedent, or subsequent, in relation to that of the main action.

1742. Action contemporaneous with the main action is expressed by a present or imperfect subjunctive. Action antecedent is expressed by a perfect or a pluperfect subjunctive. Action subsequent is expressed by the future participle with a form of #sim# or of #essem#.

1743. Subordinate sentences with verbs of will or aim, with verbs of fear, also final sentences and many consecutive sentences are expressed in Latin as contemporaneous with the main action, not as subsequent to it.

1744. II. The main and subordinate sentences may express wholly different spheres of time by tenses not commonly used together, when the thought requires it. In such cases the tense of the subordinate member is called _Independent_, like the analogous tenses of the indicative (1738).

1745. The use of subordinate subjunctive tenses relatively to the main tense, or what is commonly called the _Sequence of Tenses_, is as follows:

TENSE SUBORDINATE TO AN INDICATIVE.

1746. (1.) The present, or perfect subjunctive, or the future participle with a form of #sim#, is used in sentences subordinate to a primary tense (1717): as,

(_a._) #tē hortor, ut Rōmam pergās#, _QFr._ 1, 3, 4, _I urge you to repair to Rome_. #cūrā, ut quam prīmum veniās#, _Fam._ 4, 10, 1, _mind that you come as soon as you can_. #ego quid accēperim sciō#, _RA._ 58, _I know what I have received_. #quam sum sollicitus quidnam futūrum sit#, _Att._ 8, 6, 3, _how anxious I am to know what in the world is to come_. (_b._) #in eum locum rēs dēducta est ut salvī esse nequeāmus#, _Fam._ 16, 12, 1, _to such a pass has it come that we cannot be saved_. #an oblītus es quid initiō dīxerim?# _DN._ 2, 2, _have you possibly forgotten what I said at the start?_ #quoniam in eam ratiōnem vītae nōs fortūna dēdūxit, ut sempiternus sermō dē nōbīs futūrus sit, caveāmus#, _QFr._ 1, 1, 38, _since fortune has set us in such a walk of life that we are to be eternally talked about, let us be on our guard_. (_c._) #efficiam, ut intellegātis#, _Clu._ 7, _I will see that you understand_. #dīcent quid statuerint#, _V._ 2, 175, _they will tell what they decided on_. #quae fuerit causa, mox vīderō#, _Fin._ 1, 35, _what the reason was I won’t consider till by and by_ (1630). #tē disertum putābō, sī ostenderis quō modō sīs eōs inter sīcāriōs dēfēnsūrus#, _Ph._ 2, 8, _I shall think you a most effective speaker, if you show how you are going to defend them on the charge of murder_.

1747. (2.) The imperfect, or pluperfect subjunctive, or the future participle with a form of #essem#, is used in sentences subordinate to a secondary tense (1717): as,

(_a._) #hīs rēbus fīēbat, ut minus lātē vagārentur#, 1, 2, 4, _so it came to pass that they did not roam round much_. #docēbat, ut tōtīus Galliae prīncipātum Aeduī tenuissent#, 1, 43, 6, _he showed how the Aeduans had had the mastery over all Gaul_. #Flaccus quid aliī posteā factūrī essent scīre nōn poterat#, Fl. 33, _Flaccus could not tell what other people would do in the future_. (_b._) #is cīvitātī persuāsit, ut dē fīnibus suīs cum omnibus cōpiīs exīrent#, 1, 2, 1, _this man prevailed on his community to emigrate from their place of abode, bag and baggage_. #quās rēs in Hispāniā gessisset, disseruit#, L. 28, 38, 2, _he discoursed on his military career in Spain_. #an Lacedaemoniī quaesīvērunt num sē esset morī prohibitūrus?# TD. 5, 42, _did the Spartans ask whether he was going to prevent them from dying?_ (_c._) #Ariovistus tantōs sibī̆ spīritūs sūmpserat, ut ferendus nōn vidērētur#, 1, 33, 5, _Ariovistus had put on such high and mighty airs that he seemed intolerable_. #hīc pāgus, cum domō exīsset patrum nostrōrum memoriā, L. Cassium cōnsulem interfēcerat#, 1, 12, 5, _this canton, sallying out from home in our fathers’ recollection, had put Cassius, the consul, to death_. #illud quod mihī̆ extrēmum prōposueram, cum essem de bellī genere dictūrus#, _IP._ 17, _the point I had reserved till the end, when I was going to discourse on the character of the war_.

1748. With any kind of a secondary main sentence, a subordinate general truth usually stands in the past, contrary to the English idiom: as,

#hīc cōgnōscī licuit, quantum esset hominibus praesidī in animī firmitūdine#, Caes. _C._ 3, 28, 4, _here there was a chance to learn what a bulwark man has in courage_. In the direct form #est# (1588).

1749. A subsequent relation is sometimes loosely suggested by a simple subjunctive; necessarily so with verbs which lack the future participle, or which are in the passive: as, #sum sollicitus quidnam dē prōvinciīs dēcernātur#, _Fam._ 2, 11, 1, _I am anxious to see what in the world may be decided on about the provinces_.

1750. In a single example, a future perfect of resulting state is represented in subordination as follows: #nec dubitō quīn cōnfecta iam rēs futūra sit#, _Fam._ 6, 12, 3, _and I have no doubt the job will soon be completely finished up_, directly, #sine dubiō cōnfecta iam rēs erit#.

1751. (1.) An imperfect subjunctive expressing a particular past result, cause, reason, &c., is sometimes connected with a main general present tense (1744): as,

#cuius praeceptī tanta vīs est, ut ea Delphicō deō tribuerētur#, _Leg._ 1, 58, _the power of this rule is so mighty that it was ascribed to the Delphic god_. #cuius rē̆ī tanta est vīs, ut Ithacam illam sapientissimus vir immortālitātī antepōneret#, _DO._ 1, 196, _so irresistible is the power of this sentiment that the shrewdest of men loved his little Ithaca better than life eternal_; of Ulixes. #laudantur ōrātōrēs veterēs quod crīmina dīluere dīlūcidē solērent#, _V._ 2, 191, _the orators of old are admired ‘because they were always clear in explaining accusations away.’_ The secondary sequence is also sometimes exceptionally used with ordinary presents.

1752. (2.) The present of vivid narration is commonly regarded as a secondary tense, especially when the subordinate sentence precedes, and regularly with narrative #cum#. Sometimes however as a primary tense: as,

(_a._) #servīs suīs Rubrius, ut iānuam clauderent, imperat#, _V._ 1, 66, _Rubrius orders his slaves to shut the front door_. #Aeduī, cum sē dēfendere nōn possent, lēgātōs ad Caesarem mittunt#, 1, 11, 2, _the Aeduans, finding they could not defend themselves, send some envoys to Caesar_. (_b._) #hortātur, ut arma capiant#, 7, 4, 4, _he urges them to fly to arms_. Sometimes the two sequences stand side by side, or a subjunctive of primary sequence has itself a second subordinate subjunctive of secondary sequence. Either sequence is used with the present of quotation also (1592).

1753. (3.) Subordinate sentences of past action conceivable, of action non-occurrent, or dubitative questions of the past, retain their past unchanged with a main primary tense: as,

(_a._) #vērī simile nōn est, ut ille monumentīs maiōrum pecūniam antepōneret#, _V._ 4, 11, _it is not conceivable that the man would have thought more of money than of his heirlooms_, i.e. #nōn antepōneret# (1559). (_b._) #omnia sīc erunt inlūstria, ut ad ea probanda tōtam Siciliam testem adhibēre possem#, _V._ 5, 139, _everything will be so self-evident, that I could use all Sicily as a witness to prove it_ (1560). #taceō, nē haec quidem conligō, quae fortasse valērent apud iūdicem#, _Lig._ 30, _I’ll hold my tongue, I won’t even gather together the following arguments, which might perhaps be telling with a juryman_ (1560). (_c._) #quaerō ā tē cūr C. Cornēlium nōn dēfenderem#, _Vat._ 5, _I put the question to you, why I was not to defend Cornelius_ (1563).

1754. A final subjunctive subordinate to a perfect definite sometimes has the primary sequence, but more commonly the secondary: as,

(_a._) #etiamne ad subsellia cum ferrō vēnistis, ut hīc iugulētis Sex. Rōscium?# _RA._ 32, _have you actually come to the court-room knife in hand, to cut Roscius’s throat on the spot?_ (_b._) #nē īgnōrārētis esse aliquās pācis vōbīs condiciōnēs, ad vōs vēnī#, L. 21, 13, 2, _I have come to you to let you know that you have some chances of peace_. #addūxī hominem in quō satis facere exterīs nātiōnibus possētis#, _V. a. pr._ 2, _I have brought up a man in whose person you can give satisfaction to foreign nations_.

1755. An independent present or perfect subjunctive may be put with a main secondary tense (1744):

1756. (1.) In relative, causal, or concessive sentences: as,

#cum in cēterīs colōniīs duūm virī appellentur, hī sē praetōrēs appellārī volēbant#, _Agr._ 2, 93, _though they are styled in all other colonies The Two, these men wanted to be styled praetors_. #quī adulēscēns nihil umquam nisi sevērissimē et gravissimē fēcerit, is eā aetāte saltāvit?# _D._ 27, _did the man who in his growing years invariably behaved with austere propriety, dance and caper round in his old age?_ #hōc tōtō proeliō cum ab hōrā septimā ad vesperum pugnātum sit, āversum hostem vidēre nēmō potuit#, 1, 26, 2, _during the whole of this engagement, though the fighting went on from an hour past noon till evening, nobody could catch a glimpse of an enemy’s back_.

1757. (2.) Often in consecutive sentences: as,

(_a._) #in prōvinciā Siciliā, quam iste per triennium ita vexāvit, ut ea restituī in antīquum statum nūllō modō possit#, _V. a. pr._ 12, _in the province of Sicily, which the defendant so effectually tormented three years running that it cannot be restored at all to its original estate_. #priōrēs ita rēgnārunt, ut omnēs conditōrēs partium certē urbis numerentur#, L. 2, 1, 2, _such was the administration of the monarchs preceding, that they are all accounted founders of parts at least of Rome_. (_b._) The perfect subjunctive sometimes represents the time of the perfect definite: as, #tantum in aerārium pecūniae invēxit, ut ūnīus imperātōris praeda fīnem attulerit tribūtōrum#, _Off._ 2, 76, _he conveyed such quantities of money into the treasury, that the plunder turned in by a single commander has put an end to tribute for good and all_. #eō usque sē praebēbat patientem atque impigrum, ut eum nēmō umquam in equō sedentem vīderit#, _V._ 5, 27, _he showed himself so indefatigably active that no human being has ever seen him astride a horse_. Sometimes the time of the historical perfect: as, #temporis tanta fuit exiguitās, ut ad galeās induendās tempus dēfuerit#, 2, 21, 5, _so scant was the time that they had not time to put their helmets on_. #hīc ita quiēvit, ut eō tempore omnī Neāpolī fuerit#, _Sull._ 17, _this man held so quiet that he staid all that time at Neapolis_. In Cicero a negative subordinate perfect is not uncommon; an affirmative one is very rare. This construction is more common in Nepos, Livy, and Tacitus, and is the prevalent one in Suetonius.

1758. The imperfect only is used in complementary sentences with past verbs of happening, such as #accidit#, #contigit#, &c. (1966).

1759. When two consecutive subjunctives are coordinated, they usually have the same tense. Sometimes however the first is perfect and the second imperfect, or the reverse.

1760. (3.) An indirect question in the present or perfect sometimes retains its original tense with a main secondary tense (1744): as,

#hīc quantum in bellō fortūna possit, cōgnōscī potuit#, 6, 35, 2, _here there was a chance to see how potent dame Fortùne is in war_. Here #possit# represents #potest# of a general truth (1588); but usually general truths have the regular sequence (1748). #cūr abstinuerit spectāculō ipse, variē trahēbant#, Ta. 1, 76, _why the emperor did not go to the show, they accounted for in this way and that_, representing #cūr abstinuit? quō cōnsiliō redierim initiō audīstis, post estis expertī#, _Ph._ 10, 8, _what my idea was in coming back, you learned first by hearsay, afterwards by personal observation_, representing #quō cōnsiliō rediī?#

1761. The subordinate subjunctive has sometimes the sequence of the nearest verb, instead of that of its proper verb: as, #cūrāvit, quod semper in rē pūblicā tenendum est, nē plūrimum valeant plūrimī#, _RP._ 2, 39, _he arranged it so, a point which is always to be held fast in government, that the greatest number may not have the greatest power_.

[Erratum: 1750 ... directly, #sine dubiō cōnfecta iam rēs erit#. directly.]

TENSE SUBORDINATE TO A SUBJUNCTIVE.