42

Since these spurious charges were so fishy, my accusors charged that I bewitched some boy. I've read that boys are sometimes used in divination. 

(1) 

piscēs hōrum: "the fish of these men," i.e., the fish-related charges of Apuleius's accusers.

patuērunt: "have been exposed," "have been laid bare" (Jones).

accipe aliud: "hear something else," a transitional phrase, as in 40.1.

parī ... stultitiā: ablative of description.

multō tantā: "many times as much." This expression, a favorite of Apuleius and also seen in Roman comedy (OLD tantus 3), may have originated from the ellipse of pecūniā.

vānius et nēquius: comparative adverbs with excōgitātum, or else adjectives modifying aliud: "more flimsy and malicious" (Jones).

(2)

Sciērunt: introduces extended indirect statement: argumentum piscarium ... futurum (esse); novitatem ... ridiculam (esse); aliquid ... fingendum esse.

eius: argūmentī.

fandō audīvit: "has heard tell that" + indirect statement (piscēs solēre). See OLD for 1.b.

potius: "(and) instead (that)," introducing the third leg of the indirect statement after sciērunt.

dē rēbus: "from material."

iam crēditīs: "(that is) already believed in," along with pervulgātiōribus in describing rēbus.

(3)

ad praescrīptum opīniōnis et fāmae: "to conform with (unreliable) belief and rumor."

cōnfīnxēre puerum ... corruisse: cōnfīnxēre = confinxērunt, "fabricated," "invented (a story) that ...." The infinitive is postponed for emphasis, placed after a series of participial phrases. 

cantātum: "having been enchanted" by Apuleius.

remōtīs arbitrīs: "once I had gotten observers out of the way" (Jones).

cōnsciīs: "accomplices."

testibus: "as witnesses."

nescientem suī: "unaware of himself" = "not knowing where he was" (Jones).

postea ... excitātum: supply esse, "(and) that he was afterward woken up."

(4)

istī: Apuleius's accusers.

mendāciō: "in their lie."

ausī: supply sunt.

Enim: enim (= enimvero) is placed first in the sentence only by comic writers (Plautus, Bacchides 702, Casina 475; Terence, Phormio 983) until we come to later authors such as Apuleius.

fābula ut implērētur:  = ut fābula implērētur. implērētur = "might be beefed up." See OLD impleo 6, "fill out (a theme, argument, etc.)."

addendum ... illud fuit: "the following had to be added," passive periphrastic introducing an indirect statement: puerum ... praedixisse.

praesāgiō: "in an oracular utterance." Apuleius has a tendency to use an ablative to reinforce a verb of similar meaning (B/O).

(5)

hoc ēmolumentum canticīs: supply esse, indirect statement after accipimus. "That this is the actual benefit from incantations."

accipimus: "we are told" (Jones). See LS accipio II.A.1.

praesāgium et dīvīnātiōnem: "(namely) oracular utterance and divination," identifying the emolumentum.

dē puerīs: "in cases concerning boys."

(6)

Meminī mē ... legere: "I recall reading that." Apuleius proceeds to paraphrase Varro from memory.

apud Varrōnem philosophum: "in the works of Varro the philosopher."

cum alia ... tum hoc etiam: "both other stories ... and the following, too," setting up indirect statements summarizing Varro's accounts: 

   puerum ... cecinisse 

   Fabium ... vēnisse

   puerōs ... indicāvisse 

   M. Catōnem philosophum ... habēre.

Trallibus ... cōnsultantibus: "When Tralles (i.e., the people of Tralles) was resorting to divination." See OLD consulto 3.b, "to consult an oracle, astrologer, or other means of divination." Tralles was a city in Asia Minor, modern Aydin, Turkey. The city name and tribal name of the original inhabitants was the same in Greek, Τράλλεις. 

dē ēventū: "about the outcome" of the war between Mithridates of Pontus and the Romans. In 88 BC Tralles surrendered to Mithridates VI and permitted the massacre of Romans, large numbers of whom were already living in Tralles (Cicero, Pro Flacco 57 and 71). See Appian, Mithridatic Wars 10.46.

magicā percontātiōne: "in a magical inquiry," "using magic to inquire."

cecinisse: "prophesied," puerum is the subject. OLD cano 8.

in aquā simulācrum Mercurī contemplantem: "gazing at the reflection of (a statue of) Mercury in (some body or container of) water."

quae futūra erant: "(the things) which were about to happen."

(7)

Fabium ... vēnisse: another indirect statement relating a story from Varro.

dēnārium: dēnāriōrum, as normal with this noun. 500 denarii is a large sum.

cōnsultum: accusative supine showing purpose, "to consult" Nigidius Figulus, a friend of Cicero and notable scholar said to engage in magic.

indicāvisse: the subject is Fabius, otherwise unknown.

ab eō ... carmine īnstīnctōs: "(boys) having been inspired by him (Nigidius) with an incantation."

ubi locōrum: "in what of (all) places," "where in the world," introducing an indirect question crumina defossa esset.

parte: abl. with cum, "with part," "with some."

eōrum: dēnāriōrum.

cēterī ut forent distribūtī: "(and) how the rest had been divided up." ut = quomodo, see LS ut I.A. 

forent distributi: = distributi essent, subj. in an indirect question, like defossa esset.

habēre: Catōnem is the subject.

quem: dēnārium.

in stipe Apollinis: "in the process of making a collection for Apollo." It is probable that Cato was concerned with the stips in his capacity as XVvir sacris faciundis (B/O).

cōnfessus est: an admission, since Cato had diverted the contribution (stips) from its intended purpose.