Messalina Page 6

Question 1

Atque , tribus omnino comitantibus - tam repens erat solitudo - postquam per urbem pedibus ivit,

Answer 1

And
meanwhile, with only three accompanying her - so sudden was the isolation - after she went on foot through the city,

Question 2

vehiculo, quo purgamenta hortorum eripiuntur, Ostiensem viam intrat.

Answer 2

she entered the road to Ostia on a cart, in which the rubbish of the gardens was being taken away.

Question 3

nullam misericordiam civibus commovit quia flagitiorum deformitas praevalebat.

Answer 3

She evoked no pity in the citizens, because the appalling nature of the scandals carried more weight.

Question 4

et iam erat in aspectu Claudii clamitabatque ut audiret Octaviae et Britannici matrem.

Answer 4

And now she was in the sight of Claudius and kept shouting that he should listen to the mother of Octavia and Britannicus.

Question 5

Narcissus tamen obstrepuit, Silium et nuptias referens; simul codicillos
libidinum indices tradidit, quibus visus Caesaris averteret.

Answer 5

Narcissus, however, shouted her down, recalling Silius and the marriage; at the same time, he handed over a writing tablet as proof of her lusts, so that he might distract Caesar’s gaze with it.

Question 6

nec multo post urbem ingredienti offerebantur liberi, sed Narcissus amoveri eos iussit.

Answer 6

Not long afterwards, as he entered the city, his children were being brought forward to him, but Narcissus ordered them to be removed.