Translation of: LENTULUS REACHES HOME-PUBLIUS VISITS POMPEII WITH HIS FATHER

[Propertius]

On pg. 207 & 208 of D'Ooge's book.

LENTULUS REACHES HOME-PUBLIUS VISITS POMPEII WITH HIS FATHER
After a few days, the ship of M. Cornelius Lentulus made for the harbor of Misenum, the harbor that is located not far from Pompeii; in that harbor, the Roman fleet was placed and prepared for naval battles. Ships of all kinds could be seen there. And now, with incredible speed, the man-of-war by which Lentulus was borne approached the shore; for it was driven forward not just by the wind but also by oars. On the high stern stood the helmsman, and not far away, some Roman soldiers with splendid arms, amongst whom the most renowned was Lentulus. Then, the slaves ceased to struggle with the oars; the sailors furled the sail and dropped the anchors. Lentulus immediately disembarked from the ship and hurried to his villa. Julia, Publius, and the whole family expected him. What embraces there were, what great joy!
On the next day, Lentulus told his son, “Come with me, my Publius. I will make a trip to Pompeii today. Your mother urges that I buy produce and food. For we have called many friends to dinner and we lack many things. She urges that we set out as soon as possible.” “Gladly, my father,” said Publius. “It is always pleasing to me to be with you; nor have I ever seen Pompeii. I am prepared to set out without delay.” Then, they quickly boarded a chariot and they were borne to the walls of the city. They entered the city by way of the Stabian gate. Publius is amazed at the paved roads and the stepping-stones which were arranged in the middle and the deep tracks which the wheels had made between these rocks. He also marvels at the din, the multitude, the chariots, the fountains, the houses, the shops, (and) the forum with its statues, temples, and the rest of the public buildings.

[bedwere]

On pg. 207 & 208 of D'Ooge's book.

LENTULUS REACHES HOME-PUBLIUS VISITS POMPEII WITH HIS FATHER
After a few days, the ship of M. Cornelius Lentulus made for the harbor of Misenum, the harbor that is located not far from Pompeii; in that harbor, the Roman fleet was placed and prepared for naval battles. Ships of all kinds could be seen there. And now, with incredible speed, the man-of-war by which Lentulus was carried approached the shore; for it was driven forward not just by the wind but also by oars. On the high stern stood the helmsman, and not far away, some Roman soldiers with splendid arms, amongst whom the most renowned was Lentulus. Then, the slaves ceased to struggle with the oars; the sailors furled the sail and dropped the anchors. Lentulus immediately disembarked from the ship and hurried to his villa. Julia, Publius, and the whole family expected him. What embraces there were, what great joy!
On the next day, Lentulus told his son, “Come with me, my Publius. I will make a trip to Pompeii today. Your mother urges that I buy produce and food. For we have called many friends to dinner and we lack many things. She urges that we set out as soon as possible.” “Gladly, my father,” said Publius. “It is always pleasing to me to be with you; nor have I ever seen Pompeii. I am prepared to set out without delay.” Then, they quickly boarded a chariot and they were borne to the walls of the city. They entered the city by way of the Stabian gate. Publius is amazed at the paved roads and the stepping-stones which were arranged in the middle and the deep tracks which the wheels had made between these rocks. He also marvels at the din, the multitude, the chariots, the fountains, the houses, the shops, the forum with its statues, the temples, and the rest of the public buildings.

[Propertius]

On pg. 207 & 208 of D'Ooge's book.

LENTULUS REACHES HOME-PUBLIUS VISITS POMPEII WITH HIS FATHER
After a few days, the ship of M. Cornelius Lentulus made for the harbor of Misenum, the harbor that is located not far from Pompeii; in that harbor, the Roman fleet was placed and prepared for naval battles. Ships of all kinds could be seen there. And now, with incredible speed, the man-of-war by which Lentulus was carried approached the shore; for it was driven forward not just by the wind but also by oars. On the high stern stood the helmsman, and not far away, some Roman soldiers with splendid arms, amongst whom the most renowned was Lentulus. Then, the slaves ceased to struggle with the oars; the sailors furled the sail and dropped the anchors. Lentulus immediately disembarked from the ship and hurried to his villa. Julia, Publius, and the whole family expected him. What embraces there were, what great joy!
On the next day, Lentulus told his son, “Come with me, my Publius. I will make a trip to Pompeii today. Your mother urges that I buy produce and food. For we have called many friends to dinner and we lack many things. She urges that we set out as soon as possible.” “Gladly, my father,” said Publius. “It is always pleasing to me to be with you; nor have I ever seen Pompeii. I am prepared to set out without delay.” Then, they quickly boarded a chariot and they were borne to the walls of the city. They entered the city by way of the Stabian gate. Publius is amazed at the paved roads and the stepping-stones which were arranged in the middle and the deep tracks which the wheels had made between these rocks. He also marvels at the din, the multitude, the chariots, the fountains, the houses, the shops, the forum with its statues, the temples, and the rest of the public buildings.

I think I mistranslated something here. In the original it reads:

quae in medio disposita erant

I translated it as:

which were arranged in the middle

I think it should be:

which had been arranged in the middle

What do you think?

[bedwere]

I think that either is fine. If you use "were", it means you interpret disposita erant as a participle + sum. Otherwise, it is the pluperfect. There is a shade of difference, of course. You may want to have a more qualified opinion and post in the Learning Latin section.

[Anto]

On pg. 207 & 208 of D'Ooge's book.

He also marvels at the din, the multitude, the chariots, the fountains, the houses, the shops, the forum with its statues, the temples, and the rest of the public buildings.

Hi,
If I am not wrong, I think I have a little correction to the translation of this sentence.

This is the original sentence:
"Etiam strepitum miratur, multitudinem, carros, fontis, domos, tabernas, forum cum statuis, templis, reliquisque aedificiis publicis".

Since "statuis, templis, reliquisque aedificiis publicis" are in the ablative (not in the accusative), it means that all of them relate to "cum". Therefore, I would tranlate it like this:
the forum with its statues, (its) temples, and the rest of (its) public buildings.

What do you think?

[bedwere]

I think that you are right that all those ablatives refer to cum, but I'd rather leave the translation as is. It is not wrong and it attracted your attention, encouraging you to meditate on cases and prepositions. Let's not deprive other students of this opportunity.