At iam māter: “Duae hōrae sunt, cum[1] Anna et Lūcius discessērunt; et tempus est, līberī, vōs quoque cubitum īre. Nam crās iter rūrsus est ingrediendum.”
Cornēlia autem: “Sine[2] maneāmus, sīs,” inquit, “dum pater aliquid amplius nārret. Nam haec omnia libentissimē audīvimus.”
“Ūnum modo addam,” inquit Cornēlius. “Tum vōbīs discēdendum erit; nam ego ratiōnēs quāsdam cum Onēsimō cōnficere volō:
“Quaestūs[3] cuiusvīs avidus, Caligula reliquiās omnium spectāculōrum per praecōnem[4] vēndidit; ac vērō usque eō[5] extendēbat[6] pretium, ut nōnnūllī, nūgās[7] immēnsō[8] emere coāctī, bonīs suīs[9] exuerentur[10] vēnāsque sibi aperīrent.
“Ōlim, cum auctiō tālis habērētur, quīdam Apōnius Saturnīnus in subselliīs obdormīvit. Quō animadversō, imperātor praecōnem monuit nē virum crēbrō capitis mōtū sibi nūtantem praeterīret; nec licendī[11] fīnis factus est, priusquam Apōniō ignōrantī tredecim[12] gladiātōrēs vīlissimī sēstertium[13] nōnāgiēs[14] addictī[15] sunt.”
“Hahahae!” inquiunt līberī, quī iam aequō animō cubitum iērunt.
- ↑ cum, freely; since; but cf. note on XIII, 19.
- ↑ Sine: imper., governing following verb.
- ↑ quaestus, -ūs, m., income, profit.
- ↑ praecō, -ōnis, m., auctioneer; per praecōnem, at auction.
- ↑ usque eō, to such a point.
- ↑ extendō, tendere, -tendī, -tentus, tr., advance.
- ↑ nūgae, -ārum, f., trumpery, trifles.
- ↑ immēnsō: abl. of price.
- ↑ bonīs suīs: abl. of separ.
- ↑ exuō, -uere, -uī, -ūtus, tr., strip.
- ↑ liceor, -ērī, -itus sum, tr. and intr., bid; do not confuse with the with the impers. licet.
- ↑ tredecim, indecl. num., thirteen.
- ↑ sēstertius, -ī, m., sesterce (value about four cents); gen. pl. in text.
- ↑ nōnāgiēs, adv., ninety times; with sēstertium, centēnis mīlibus (‘hundreds of thousands’) is understood. The amount then is 9,000,000 sesterces, or nearly $400,000.
- ↑ addīcō, -dīcere, -dīxī, -dictus, tr., knock down (at auction).
