Heavy Construction

420.

Thus it may replace -

1. A Temporal Clause (§541 if.):

• patre interfecti, [his] father having been killed. [This corresponds to curn peter interfectus esset, when his father had been killed.]

  

• recentibus sceleris *ius vestiglis (Q. C. vii. 1.1), while the traces of the erims were fresh. [Cf. dum recentia sunt vestigia.]

2. A Causal Clause (§540):

• at ei qul Alesiae obside*bantur praeteriti die qus auxilia suSrum exspecta* verant, consimpte- omni frements, couciliS coecto- co*nsulta-bant (B. G. vii. 77), but those who were under siege at Alesia, since the time, etc., had expired, and their grain had been exhausted, calling a council (see 5 below), consulted together. [Cf. cum diss praeterisset, etc.]

  

• Dsr*us, de-spera*ta pAce, ad reparand5s vins intendit animum (Q. C. iv. 6.1), Darius, since he despaired of peace, devoted his energies to recruiting his forces. [Cf. cum pAcem de-sp5rsret.]

3. A Concessive Clause (§527):

• at eS repignante ilebat (c5nsul), immo verS es fi*bat magis (Mu. 34), but though he (Clodius) opposed, he (Milo) was likely to be elected consul; nay, rather, etc.

  

• turribus excitatis, tamen bIle altitu-do- puppium ex barbaris nllvibus supersbat (B. *. iii. 14), although towers had been built up, still the high sterns of the enemy's shiss *se above them.

4. A Conditional Clause (§521):

• 

• occurrebat el, mancam et de*bilern praetu ram futu*ram suam, cbnsule Milo-ne (Mu. 25), it occurred to him that his proitorship would be maimed and feeble, if Milo were consul. [si Milo consul esset.]

  

• qua (regione) 8Ub5Cti lic*bit d*currere in illud mare (Q. C. ix. 3. 13), if this region is subdued, we shall be free to run down into that sea.

  

• qua quidem diltricta (Arch. 28), if this be taken away.

5. A Clause of Accompanying Circumstance :

• ego haec a Chrysogon* mea sponte, rembto Sex. R5sci5, quaer* (Rosc. Am. 130), of my own accord, without r*erence to Sertus Roscius (Sextus Roscius being put aside), I ask these questions of Chrysogonus.

  

• nec imperante nec sciente nec praesente domin5 (Mu. 29), without their master's giving orders, or knowing it, or being present.

NOTE: As the English Nominative Absolute is far less common than the Ablative Absolute in Latin, a change of form is generally required in translation. Thus the present participle is oftenest to be rendered in English by a relative clause with when or while; and the perfect passive participle by the perfect active participle. These changes may be seen in the following example: -

o .333333em plus8pt minus2pt At illí, intermissó spatió, imprúdentibus nostrís atque occupatís in múnítióne castrórum, subitó sé ex silvís éiécerunt; impetúque in eós factó quí erant in statióne pró castrís conlocátí, ácriter púgnávérunt; duábusqus missís subsidió cohortibus á Caesare, cum hae (perexiguó intermissó locí spatió inter sé) cónstitissent, novó genere púgnae perterritís nostrís, per mediós audácissimé perrúpérunt séque inde incolumís recépérunt. - CAESAR, B. G. v.15.

=.333333em plus8pt minus2pt But they, having paused a space, while our men were unaware and busied in fortifying the camp, suddenly threw them selves out of the woods; then, making an attack upon those who were on guard in front of the camp, they fought fiercely and, though two cohorts had been sent by c*ar as reinforcements, after these had taken their position (leaving very little space of ground between them), as our men were alarmed by the strange kind of fighting, they dashed most daringly through the midst of them and got off safe.



For the Ablative with Prepositions, see §220.