78

Herennius Rufinus became angry and said disgraceful things in front of Pontianus and other witnesses, that Pudentilla was a hussy and I a mage, and he threatened to kill me. As if such an effeminate man could carry out the threat! Pudentilla then retired to her country villa and wrote the notorious letter saying, according to the prosecution, that I had used magical means to get her to love me and that she was not in her right mind. 

(1)

Hīsce audītīs: construe with exacerbātus.

aquāriolus iste: prostitutes had “water carriers” as servants, to wash themselves off after intercourse: see Cicero, Pro Caelio 34 (Appius Claudius to Clodia), ideo aquam adduxi ut ea tu inceste uterere? (Jones).

A strong insult, expressed in a word which is first attested here. Rufinus is even less than a pimp: he is called only a servant carrying washing-water to a prostitute. As a denigratory term it also reduces the importance of Rufinus's ira and furor (Hunink).

fēminam sānctissimam et pudīcissimam: Pudentilla.

eius: Pudentilla.

digna cubiculō suō: "(things) worthy of his own bedroom," in its status as a brothel, i.e., very rude things. 

"shameless, obscene remarks" (Hunink). 

(2)

amātrīcem: "hussy" (Hunink).

clāmitāret: "he was shouting that..." introducing three indirect statements:

eam (esse) amātrīcem.

mē (esse) magum et venēficum.

sē ... allātūrum esse.

multīs audientibus: "with many people there (to hear him say so)" "with many witnesses."

allātūrum: > affero, supply esse for a future active infinitive continuing the indirect statement.

(3)

moderārī: deponent, "to restrain" + dat.

animō: "in my heart" (LS animus II.B.1.a).

cuīquam virō: "to any man," dative after minitor, "to threaten someone (dat.) with something (acc.).”

(4)

quā ... manū: "with what (kind of) hand?" Will Herennius Rufinus dress in the costume of a murderess in order to get his own murders done?

Philomēlae an Mēdēae an Clytemnēstrae: mythological women known for murdering close relatives.

Quās tamen cum saltās: "but when you dance these (characters)," i.e., when he performs the fabulae salticae about these mythological figures (see ch. 74).

In this period, tragic subjects were usually no longer dealt with in complete tragedies but in fabulae salticae … formed by a pantomime dancer, who was accompanied by a choir. (Hunink).

mollitia animī: "softness of spirit," i.e., cowardliness or gentleness, general disinclination to handle weaponry.

formīdō ferrī: "fear of (handling any) iron (weapon)."

sine clūdīne: "without (even) a prop sword."

Rufinus is too much of a weakling to dance even with a cluden (or cludo). This word occurs only here and must refer to some special dagger used by actors. It is likely to have been blunt and innocuous, like the novacula with which Giton stages his melodramatic suicide at Petronius, Satyricon 94.12-14 (Hunink).

(5)

longius: "any further," "too far."

ab ōrdine: "from the right order (of my speech)."

nē ... dīgrediar: negative purpose clause, with an understood main clause indicating that he will continue his narrative instead of continuing to insult Herennius Rufinus.

postquam fīlium videt praeter opīniōnem contrā suam esse sententiam dēprāvātum: postquam videt fīlium praeter opīniōnem dēprāvātum esse contrā suam sententiam.

praeter opīniōnem: "against her expectation," "unexpectedly."

dēprāvātum esse contrā: "had been turned against."

suam sententiam: Pontianus' previous opinion in favor the marriage of his mother to Apuleius.

rūs: accusative of place to which, construe with the participle profecta.

obiūrgandī grātiā: genitive gerund used with grātiā to express purpose.

illās fāmōsissimās litterās: "that letter we've heard so much about."

aiēbant: "were asserting."

(6)

tabulāriō Pontiānī praesente: his personal record-keeper who must have still maintained custody of the documents after the young man's death and must be present to ensure the legitimacy of the document through chain of custody.

tabulāriō: "secretary."

contrā scrībente Aemiliānō: "with Aemilianus writing (out a copy) opposite (me, as I was writing down a copy)" presumably so that each side would have a faithful copy of the letter to use in preparation for the trial.

nudiūs tertius: "now is the third day since" = "the day before yesterday."

testātō: adv., "before witnesses," LS testor II.2. 

dēscrībsimus: transcribed," "copied out" (OLD 3). 

A copy of this letter was taken two days previously by both Apuleius and Aemilianus, in the presence of the tabularius or secretary of Pontianus, perhaps the libertus mentioned in ch. 53. This was done at the bidding of Claudius Maximus, and before witnesses. It is not clear why a copy was considered necessary, when the original document was available. It was perhaps with a view to ensuring that there should be no dispute as to the wording or punctuation of the letter, which was adduced as evidence by both sides. The original was clearly in the possession of the tabularius after Pontianus' death. That is the only possible explanation of his presence (B/O). 

contrā praedicātiōnem istōrum: contrary to what the accusers said would be found in the letter ahead of its being opened.

prō mē: "favorable to my case," emphatic.

omnia ... reperiuntur: "everything is being discovered (to be)."