Genitives of this kind are:-peccati, maleficii, sceleris, caedis, veneficii, parricidii, furti, repetundarum, peculatus, falsi, injuriarum, rei capitalis, proditionis, majestatis; probri, stultitiae, avaritiae, audaciae, vanitatis, levitatis, temeritatis, ignaviae; timoris, impietatis, and others.

Miltiades proditionis est accusatus, quod, quum Parum expugnare posset, e pugna discessisset, Nep. Milt.

Thrasybulus legem tulit, ne quis ante actarum rerum accusaretur neve multaretur, Nep. Thras. 3.

Note 1. To these verbs we must add a few adjectives, which are used instead of their participles: reus, compertus, noxius, innoxius, insons, manifestus. Sometimes the preposition de is used, with the verbs of accusing and condemning, instead of the genitive, e. g. de vi condemnatus est, nomen alicujus dė parricidio deferre.

[§ 447.] Note 2. The punishment, with the verbs of condemning, is commonly expressed by the genitive; e. g. capitis, mortis, multae, pecuniae, quadrupli, octupli, and less frequently by the ablative, capite, morte, multa, pecunia. The ablative, however, is used invariably when a definite sum is mentioned; e. g. decem, quindecim milibus aeris. Sometimes we find the preposition ad or in: ad poenam, ad bestias, ad metalla, in metallum, in expensas, and Tacitus uses also: ad mortem. The meaning of capitis accusare, arcessere, absolvere, and of capitis or capite damnare, condemnare must be explained by the signification of what the Romans called a causa capitis. Voti or votorum damnari, to be condemned to fulfil one's vow, is thus equivalent to "to obtain what one wishes."

[§ 448.] 12. The genitive is used with the verbs esse and fieri, in the sense of "it is a person's business, office, lot, or property," the substantives res or negotium being understood: e. g. hoc est praeceptoris, this is the business of the teacher; non est mearum virium, it is beyond my strength; Asia Romanorum facta est, Asia became the property of the Romans. The same genitive is found also with some of the verbs mentioned in § 394., esse being understood.

But instead of the genitive of the personal pronouns mei, tui, sui, nostri, vestri, the neuters of the possessives, meum, tuum, suum, nostrum, vestrum est, erat, &c., are used.

Cujusvis hominis est errare, nullius nisi insipientis in errore perseverare, Cic. Phil. xii. 2.

Sapientis judicis est, semper non quid ipse velit, sed quid lex et religio cogat, cogitare, Cic. p. Cluent. 58.

Bello Gallico praeter Capitolium omnia hostium erant, Liv. vi. 40. Tuum est, M. Cato, qui non mihi, non tibi, sed patriae natus es, videre quid agatur, Cic. p. Muren. 38.

Note 1. We have here followed Perizonius (on Sanctius, Minerva, in many passages), in explaining the genitive by the ellipsis of negotium. This opinion is confirmed by a passage in Cicero, ad Fam. iii. 12.: non horum temporum, non horum hominum et morum negotium est; but we ought not to have recourse to such an ellipsis, except for the purpose of illustrating the idiom of a language, and we should not apply it to every particular case; for, in most instances, it would be better, and more consistent with the Latin idiom, to supply proprius as an adjective and proprium as a substantive. (Comp. § 411.) In the following sentences from Cicero, proprium est animi bene constituti laetari bonis rebus, and sapientis est proprium, nihil quod poenitere possit facere, we might omit proprium and use the genitive alone. In the following sentences the words munus and officium might be omitted: Cic. p. Mil. 8.: principum munus est resistere levitati multitudinis, and Terent. Andr. ii. 1. 30. neutiquam officium liberi esse hominis puto, quum is nil mereat, postulare id gratiae apponi sibi; and hence we may also assume the ellipsis of munus and officium for the purpose of illustrating the Latin idiom.

Esse is joined with a genitive expressing quality, est stultitiae, est levitatis, est hoc Gallicae consuetudinis, especially moris est, for which without difference in meaning, we may say stultitia est, levitas est, haec consuetudo est Gallorum, mos est; e. g. Cic. in Verr. i. 26.: negavit moris esse Graecorum, ut in convivio virorum accumberent mulieres, the same as morem esse Graecorum.

Note 2. As it is the rule to use the neuter of the possessive pronouns, instead of the genitive of the personal pronouns, so in other cases, instead of a genitive of a substantive, an adjective derived from the substantive may be used, e. g. humanum est, imperatorium est, regium est; et facere et pati fortia Romanum est, Liv. ii. 12.

[§ 449.] 13. A similar ellipsis takes place with the impersonal verbs interest and refert, it is of interest or importance (to me), the person to whom any thing is of importance being expressed by the genitive; but instead of the genitive of the personal pronouns, the possessives mea, tua, sua, nostra, vestra, are used. These possessives are commonly considered to be accusatives neuter plural, commoda being understood; but from some verses in Terence, especially Phorm. iv. 5. 11. and v. 8. 47., we are obliged to consider them with Priscian (p. 1077.) as ablatives feminine singular, and it is not impossible that causă may be understood. The thing which is of interest or importance is not expressed by a substantive, but sometimes by the neuter of a pronoun; e. g. hoc mea interest, and usually by an accusative with the infinitive, or by ut and the interroga

*This explanation solves only half the difficulty, but both the use of the genitive and the length of re in refert are sufficiently accounted for by what has been said in a note at the foot of p. 16. We should add here that mea, tuā, suā, &c., are accusatives for meam, tuam, suam, &c. Comp. Key, The Alphabet, p. 77. — TRANSL.

tive particles with the subjunctive: e. g. multum mea interest, te esse diligentem, or ut diligens sis, (utrum) diligens sis nec ne. Semper Milo, quantum interesset P. Clodii, se perire, cogitabat, Cic. p. Mil. 21.

Caesar dicere solebat, non tam sua, quam reipublicae interesse, uti salvus esset, Suet. Caes. 86.

Inventae sunt epistolae, ut certiores faceremus absentes, si quid esset, quos eos scire aut nostra aut ipsorum interesset, Cic. ad Fam. ii. 4.

Quid refert, utrum voluerim fieri, an fuctum gaudeam? Cic. Philip. ii. 12.

Note 1. When an infinitive alone is joined to interesse, the preceding subject is understood, e. g. omnium interest recte facere, scil. se. The nominative of the subject in Cicero, ad Att. iii. 19., non quo mea interesset loci natura, is very singular. It has been asserted that refert is not joined with the genitive of the person; in Cicero, it is true, it does not occur, for he generally uses it with the pronouns mea, tua, sua, &c.; but other authors use the genitive; e. g. Sallust, Jug. 119.: faciendum aliquid, quod illorum magis, quam sua rettulisse videretur, and Liv. xxxiv. 27.: ipsorum referre, &c. Most frequently, however, refert is used without either a genitive or any of the pronouns mea, tua, &c.: refert, quid refert? magni, parvi, magnopere refert. The dative of the person in Horace, Serm. i. 1. 50.: vel dic quid referat intra naturae fines viventi, jugera centum an mille aret, is a singular peculiarity.

[$ 450.] Note 2. The degree of importance is expressed by adverbs or neuter adjectives, or by their genitives: magis, magnopere, vehementer, parum, minime, tam, tantopere; multum, plus, plurimum, permultum, infinitum, mirum quantum, minus, nihil, aliquid, quiddam, tantum, quantum; tanti, quanti, magni, permagni, parvi. The object for which a thing is of importance is expressed by the preposition ad, as in Cicero: magni interest ad honorem nostrum; a dative used in the same sense occurs in Tacitus, Ann. xv. 65. : non referre dedecori.

CHAP. LXXIV.

ABLATIVE CASE.

[§ 451.] 1. THE Ablative serves to denote certain relations of substantives, which are expressed in most other languages by prepositions.

Note. This is an important difference between the ablative and the other oblique cases; for the latter expressing necessary relations between nouns,

occur in all languages which possess cases of inflection, and do not, like the French or English, express those relations by prepositions. But the ablative is a peculiarity of the Latin language, which might indeed be dispensed with, but which contributes greatly to its expressive conciseness.

The ablative is used first with passive verbs to denote the thing by which any thing is effected (ablativus efficientis), and which in the active construction is expressed by the nominative: e. g. sol mundum illustrat, and sole mundus illustratur ; fecunditas arborum me delectat, and fecunditate arborum delector. If that by which any thing is effected is a person, the preposition ab is required with the ablative (see § 382.), with the sole exception of the participles of the verbs denoting "to be born" (natus, genitus, ortus, and in poetry also cretus, editus, satus), to which the name of the father or family is generally joined in the ablative without a preposition. Ab cannot be used with the ablative of a thing by which any thing is effected, unless the thing be personified.

Dei providentia mundus administratur, Cic.

Non est consentaneum, qui metu non frangatur, eum frangi cupiditate; nec qui invictum se a labore praestiterit, vinci a voluptate, Cic. De Off. i. 20.

Note. The words denoting "born" usually have the preposition ex or de joined to the name of the mother, but the ablative alone is also found, and there are a few passages in which ex or ab is joined to the name of the father; e. g. Terent. Adelph. i. 1. 15.: Atque ex me hic natus non est, sed ex fratre; Caes. Bell. Gall. vi. 18.: prognati ab Dite patre. Ortus ab aliquo is frequently used in speaking of a person's ancestors; e. g. Cic. p. Muren. 21.: qui ab illo ortus es; Caes. Bell. Gall. ii. 4.: plerosque Belgas esse ortos a Germanis (the same as oriundos).

[$ 452.] 2. An ablative expressing the cause (ablativus causae) is joined with adjectives, which, if changed into a verb, would require a passive construction: e. g. fessus, aeger, saucius (equivalent to qui fatigatus, morbo affectus, vulneratus est)—and with intransitive verbs, for which we may generally substitute some passive verb, of at least a similar meaning, as interiit fame, consumptus est fame; expectatio rumore crevit, expectatio aucta est rumore; gaudeo honore tuo, delector honore tuo. Thus verbs expressing feeling or emotion are construed with the ablative of the thing which is the cause of the feeling or emotion, as doleo, gaudeo, laetor; exilio, exulto, triumpho, lacrimo, puene desipio gaudio, ardeo cupiditate, desiderio. Sometimes the prepositions

propter and per are used instead of such an ablative, and when a person is described as the cause of an emotion, they are just as necessary as ab is with passive verbs.

We must notice in particular the construction of the following verbs: Glorior, I boast, is joined with an ablative denoting the cause e. g. victoriā meā, but is also construed with de, and in the sense of "glory in a thing," with in: e. g. Cic. De Nat. Deor. iii. 36.: propter virtutem recte laudamur, et in virtute recte gloriamur. Laboro, I suffer from, e. g. morbo, inopia, odio, is frequently joined also with ex, especially when the part of the body, which is the seat of the pain, is mentioned: e. g. ex pedibus, ex intestinis. Nitor and innitor aliqua re, I lean upon, is used, in a figurative sense, also with in; e. g. Cicero: in vita Pompeji nitebatur salus civitatis (in the sense of "strive after," with ad or in with the accus., as nitimur in vetitum). Sto aliqua re, I depend upon a thing, as judicio meo, auctore aliquo; also in the sense of "I persevere in or adhere to a thing," as foedere, jurejurando, condicionibus, promissis; it rarely takes in, as in Cicero: stare oportet in eo, quod sit judicatum. (Respecting acquiesco with the ablat. see § 416.) Fido and confido, "I trust in a thing," and the adjective fretus are joined with the ablat. of the thing trusted in, but may also be used with the dative of the person or thing trusted in. (See § 413.) The verbs constare, contineri, to consist of, are construed with the ablat. to denote that of which a thing consists: e. g. domus amoenitas non aedificio, sed silva constabat; tota honestas quattuor virtutibus continetur ; but constare is joined more frequently with ex or in, and contineri in the sense of "to be contained in a thing," is generally used with in, but even then not unfrequently with the ablative alone. (Consistere in the sense of "exist," is construed, like positum esse, only with in.)

Concordia res parvae crescunt, discordia maximae dilabuntur, Sallust, Jug. 10.

Est adolescentis majores natu vereri exque his deligere optimos et probatissimos, quorum consilio atque auctoritate nitatur, Cic. De Off. i. 34.

Virtute decet, non sanguine niti, Claud. Cons. Hon. iv. 219. Diversis duobus vitiis, avaritia et luxuria, civitas Romana laborabat, Liv. xxxiv. 4.

Delicto dolere, correctione gaudere nos oportet, Cic.