 56. The Fall of New London (continued) |
58. A Fresh Supply of Powder  |
Priusquam prōvinciae Americānae validae sunt factae, Indī oppida longinqua saepe adoriēbantur;[1] miseraque erat fortūna eōrum colōnōrum, quī ab eīs captī sunt. Ē quibus ūnus haec[2] ferē dē sē commemorat:[3]
“Ōlim,” inquit,[4] “cum barbarī subitō in conspectum vēnissent, ego cum oppidānīs cēterīs fugā[5] petivī salūtem, et in palūdem proximam quam[6] celerrimē contendī. Sed in lutō[7] prōlapsus, ā tribus Indīs captus sum, atque ūnā cum reliquīs captīvīs in silvās longē sum dēductus; ubi diēs multōs per montēs summō cum labōre fēcimus iter, cum interim contumēliās[8] acerbissimās cotidiē ferre cōgēbāmur.
“Noctū hostēs captīvōs humī supīnōs collocābant, cuneīsque in terrā dēfixīs, manūs pedēsque artē[9] religābant, nē quis[10] nostrum[11] per tenebrās effugere cōnārētur. Interdum autem[12] tanta erat inopia cibī, ut barbarī, veritī nē[13] frūmentum dēficeret, nōs etiam ignī mandāre[14] semel iterumque[15] in animō habērent. At ego, postquam frīgore fameque sum paene necātus, paucīs post mēnsibus a dominō novō emptus, postrēmō domum incolumis pervēnī.”
- ↑ adoriebantur: cf. capiebant,p. 65, l. 2..
- ↑ haec: neut. pl..
- ↑ commemorat: i.e. nārrat. The whole phrase may be rendered freely discourses somewhat as follows, etc..
- ↑ inquit: present tense.
- ↑ fugă: abl. of means; we would say, “in flight”; cf. other renderings of this abl., p. 57, ll. 6 and 8..
- ↑ quam: cf. p. 47, l. 14..
- ↑ lutō: lutum, -ī: n, mud.
- ↑ contumēliās: cf. p. 18, l. 1.
- ↑ artē: adv, tightly.
- ↑ quis: cf. the same phrase on p. 64.
- ↑ nostrum: from ego.
- ↑ autem: moreover.
- ↑ nē: cf. p. 61, 1. 6.
- ↑ mandāre: mandō, 1: consign.
- ↑ semel iterumque: see the Vocab.