petis ut tibi avunculi mei exitum scribam, quo verius tradere posteris possis. erat Miseni classemque imperio praesens regebat.
You ask that I write to you about the death of my Uncle, so that you can hand it down accurately to posterity. He was at Misenum and commanding the fleet in person with power.
nonum kal. Septembres hora fere septima mater mea indicat ei nubem mirabilem apparere; quae visa est ei, ut eruditissimo viro, magna propiusque noscenda.
On 24th August, around the seventh hour, my mother pointed out to him that a strange cloud was appearing ; which seemed to him as one may expect of a very scholarly man, important and needing to be investigated at close quarters.
iubet liburnicam parari; me si venire una vellem rogat; respondi studere me malle, et forte ipse quod scriberem dederat.
He ordered that a fast boat be made ready; he asked me if I would like to come with him; I replied that I would prefer to study, and by chance he himself had given me something to write.
egrediebatur domo; accipit codicillos Rectinae Tasci imminenti periculo perterritae (nam villa eius subiacebat, nec ulla nisi navibus fuga): orabat ut se tanto discrimini eriperet.
He was going out of his house; he received a note from Rectina, the wife of Tascius, who was terrified by the imminent danger (for her house was lying beneath the volcano, and there was no other escape, except by boat): she was begging that he would rescu
vertit ille consilium et quod studioso animo inceperat obit maximo.
He changed plan and what he had begun with an inquiring mind he accomplished with a heroic mind.
deducit quadriremes, ascendit ipse non Rectinae modo sed multis (erat enim frequens amoenitas orae) laturus auxilium.
He launched warships, and he himself embarked not only to bring help to Rectina but to many others (for that delightful stretch of coast was densely populated).
festinat illuc unde alii fugiunt, rectumque cursum recta gubernacula in periculum tenet adeo solutus metu, ut omnes illius mali motus, omnes figuras ut deprenderat oculis dictaret adnotaretque.
He hurried there to the place where others were fleeing, and held a straight course with a straight rudder into danger, so free from fear that he dictated and made notes on all the movements of that disaster and all the features as he had observed them wi
iam navibus cinis incidebat, calidior et densior, quo proprius accederent; iam pumices etiam lapidesque nigri et ambusti et fracti igne; iam vadum subitum et litora ruina montis obstantia.
Now ash was falling onto the ships, hotter and thicker, as they were approaching nearer; now even pumice and stones, blackened and scorched and broken by fire; now sudden shallow water and shores blocked them with debris from the mountain.
haesitat paulisper an retro navigaret; mox gubernatori ut ita faceret monenti 'fortes' inquit 'fortuna adiuvat: Pomponianum pete.'
He hesitated for a short time whether to sail back; soon he said to the helmsman that was telling him to do so, 'Fortune' he said, 'helps the brave: make for Pomponianus!'
Pomponianus erat Stabiis diremptus sinu medio (nam mare sensim circumactis curvatisque litoribus infunditur); ibi periculum, quamquam nondum appropinquabat, tamen valde conspicuum erat; Pomponianus igitur sarcinas posuerat in naves, certus fugae si contra
Pomponianus was at Stabiae separated by an intervening bay (for the sea runs in gradually with the shore, sweeping round and curving in); there the danger, although it was not yet approaching, however was very conspicuous; Pomponianus therefore had put hi
quo tum secundissimo avunculus meus invectus, amplectitur trepidantem consolatur hortatur, utque timorem eius sua securitate leniret, iubet ferri in balineum; lotus recumbit cenat, aut hilaris aut (quod est aeque magnum) similis hilari.
Then my Uncle, having sailed in with the wind directly behind him, embraced the trembling man, cheered him up and encouraged him, and in order to soothe his fear with his assuredness, he ordered to be carried to the baths; having bathed he lied down, had
interea e Vesuvio monte pluribus locis latissimae flammae altaque incendia relucebant, quorum fulgor et claritas tenebris noctis excitabatur.
Meanwhile from Mount Vesuvius in many places, very broad sheets of flame and high fires were blazing, whose glare and brightness was being emphasised by the darkness of the night.
ille in remedium formidinis dictitabat ignes agrestium trepidatione relictos desertasque villas per solitudinem ardere.
He repeatedly said as a remedy for fear that they were fires which had been abandoned in fear by the country folk and the deserted houses were burning in the abandoned areas.
tum se quieti dedit et quievit verissimo quidem somno; nam meatus animae, qui illi propter amplitudinem corporis gravior et sonantior erat, ab eis qui limini obversabantur audiebatur.
Then he gave himself to rest and indeed he rested in very true sleep; for his breathing, which because of the stoutness of his body, was heavy and noisy, was be heard by those who were moving about near the doorway.
sed area ex qua cubiculum adibatur ita iam cinere mixtisque pumicibus completa surrexerat, ut si longior in cubiculo mora esset, exitus negaretur.
But the courtyard from which his bedroom could be accessed, now so full with a mixture of ash and pumice, had risen, so that if the delay had been any longer in the bedroom, escape would be impossible.
excitatus procedit, seque Pomponiano ceterisque qui pervigilaverant reddit. inter se consulunt, utrum intra tecta maneant an in aperto vagentur.
Having been woken up, he came out and went back to Pomponianus and the others who had stayed awake all night. They consulted amongst themselves whether they should stay inside the building, or roam about in the open.
nam crebris ingentibusque tremoribus tecta nutabant, et quasi emota sedibus suis nunc huc nunc illuc abire aut referri videbantur.
For the buildings were shaking with frequent and large tremors, and as if torn away from their foundations, they seemed to sway forwards and backwards, now this way now that.
sub dio rursus casus pumicum metuebatur, quamquam
levium exesorumque, quod tamen periculorum collatio elegit; et apud illum quidem ratio rationem, apud alios timorem timor vicit.
On the other hand under the sky, the falling of the pumice was being feared, although they were light and porous, however a comparison of the dangers suggested the latter choice; and for him reason conquered reason, whereas for the others, one fear conque
cervicalia capitibus imposita linteis constringunt; id munimentum contra incidentia fuit. iam dies alibi, illic nox omnibus noctibus nigrior densiorque; quam tamen faces multae variaque lumina solvebant.
They put pillows on their heads and tied them down with linen cloths, this was their protection against falling objects. Now it was daylight elsewhere, there it was night, blacker and denser than all other nights; however many torches and various lamps we
placuit egredi in litus, et ex proximo adspicere, num
mare fugam praeberet; quod adhuc vastum et adversum manebat. ibi in abiecto linteo recumbens semel atque iterum frigidam aquam poposcit hausitque.
They decided to go out to the sea-shore, and to investigate from close by whether the sea provided an escape; it was still remaining swollen and unfavourable. There, lying down on the linen cloth that had been thrown down, time and time again he asked for
deinde flammae flammarumque praenuntius odor sulphuris alios in fugam vertunt, excitant illum. innitens servis duobus surrexit et statim concidit.
Then flames and the warning sign of flames and the smell of sulphur turned the others to flight and aroused him. Leaning on two of the slaves, he got up and collapsed at once.
spiritus enim, ut ego credo, densiore caligine obstructus erat, claususque stomachus qui illi natura invalidus et angustus et saepe aestuans erat.
For his breathing, as I believe, had been obstructed by denser fumes, and blocked his windpipe, which in his case was by nature weak and narrow and often inflamed.
ubi dies redditus est (is ab eo quem novissime viderat tertius), corpus inventum est integrum inlaesum opertumque ut fuerat indutus: habitus corporis dormienti quam mortuo similior.
When daylight had been restored (this was the third day after that day which he had seen last), his body was found intact and uninjured and covered as he had been dressed: the appearance of his body was more similar to someone sleeping than dead.