[2121.] quasi, ut, or, from Livy on, tamquam or velut, as if, is sometimes used with participle constructions, nouns, and abridged expressions: as,
quasi temere dē rē pūblicā locūtus in carcerem coniectus est, DN. 2, 6, on the ground that he had been speaking without good authority about a state matter, he was clapped in jail. restitēre Rōmānī tamquam caelestī vōce iussī, L. 1, 12, 7, the Romans halted as if bidden by a voice from heaven. laetī, ut explōrātā victōriā, ad castra pergunt, 3, 18, 8, in high spirits, as if victory were assured, they proceeded to the camp.
[2122.] In old Latin, quasi is found a few times for the original quam sī after a comparative: as, mē nēmō magis respiciet, quasi abhinc ducentōs annōs fuerim mortuos, Pl. Tru. 340, nobody will pay any more attention to me than if I had been dead two centuries. It is also used (once in classical Latin, CM. 71) in periods of actual comparison, like tamquam ([1908]), with the indicative: as, senex ille illī dīxit, quasi ego nunc tibi dīcō, Pl. St. 545, that old man said to him, as I now say to you. For its use in figurative comparisons, see [1908], [1944]. For tamquam introducing a reason &c., see [1909], a late usage found rarely with quasi and ut.
[CONNECTION OF SEPARATE SENTENCES OR PERIODS.]
[2123.] Separate sentences or periods have a connective more commonly in Latin than in English. Sometimes, however, like the members of single periods, they are for special reasons put asyndetically ([1637]).
[(A.) Without a Connective.]
[2124.] Asyndeton is common with two or more separate sentences or periods:
[2125.] (a.) To represent a series of actions as occurring at the same moment: as,
hīc diffīsus suae salūtī ex tabernāculō prōdit; videt imminēre hostēs; capit arma atque in portā cōnsistit; cōnsequuntur hunc centuriōnēs; relinquit animus Sextium gravibus acceptīs vulneribus, 6, 38, 2, despairing of his life, he comes out of the tent; sees the enemy close at hand; seizes arms and takes his stand at the gate; the centurions rally round him; Sextius becomes unconscious, receiving severe wounds.