to institute an investigation

quaestĭo, ōnis, f. [quaero], a seeking.

In gen. (Plautin.):

cave, fuas mi in quaestione,

lest you suffer yourself to be to seek, lest I have to look after you, Plaut. Pers. 1, 1, 52:

tibi ne in quaestione essemus,

id. Capt. 2, 2, 3; id. Ps. 2, 2, 68.—

In partic., an inquiry, investigation, a questioning, question, subject of inquiry:

quaestio est appetitio cognitionis, quaestionisque finis inventio,

Cic. Ac. 2, 8, 26; 2, 36, 115:

quae veri simillima (sententia sit), magna quaestio est,

id. Tusc. 1, 11, 23; id. Fin. 2, 11, 34:

rem in disceptationem quaestionemque vocare,

to investigate, id. de Or. 3, 32, 129:

res in quaestione versatur,

is under investigation, id. Clu. 58, 159:

de moribus ultima fiet quaestio,

Juv. 3, 141:

res in quaestionem venit,

comes under investigation, Quint. 5, 14, 16:

modo aliquam quaestionem poëticam ei proponeret,

Nep. Att. 20, 2; cf. Cic. Att. 7, 19 fin.; Sen. Ben. 5, 8, 6; id. Ep. 48, 1; Suet. Tib. 56:

quaestionem instituere,

to institute an investigation, Quint. 7, 1, 6:

quaestionem solvere,

Sen. Ep. 48, 11; Quint. 5, 10, 26.—

A public judicial investigation, examination by torture, a criminal inquiry, inquisition; the crime is usu. constr. with de:

cum praetor quaestionem inter sicarios exercuisset,

instituted a trial for assassination, Cic. Fin. 2, 16, 54:

verberibus ac tormentis quaestionem habuit pecuniae publicae,

id. Phil. 11, 2, 5:

quaestionem mortis paternae de servis paternis habere,

id. Rosc. Am. 28, 78:

quaestionem fugitare,

id. ib. 28, 78:

servos in quaestionem polliceri,

id. ib. 28, 77:

quaestionem ferre in aliquem,

to appoint, institute, make a motion for, id. de Or. 1, 53, 227:

habere ex aliquo,

Liv. 33, 28:

facere alicui,

against any one, Dig. 34, 3, 20:

quaestionem de furto constituere,

Cic. Clu. 64, 181:

quaestionem instituere de morte alicujus,

id. ib. 64, 181:

quaestionem de morte viri habere,

id. ib. 65, 182;

63, 176: quaestionem habere de servis in caput filii,

id. ib. 63, 176:

ad quaestionem abripi,

to examination by torture, id. ib. 33, 89:

alicui servum in quaestionem ferre,

id. ib. 64, 181:

postulare servum in quaestionem,

id. ib. 64, 181:

quaestiones severius exercere,

Liv. 9, 34:

quaestioni praeesse,

to conduct a trial as judge, Cic. Rosc. Am. 4, 11: quaestiones perpetuae, the inquisitions concerning certain crimes (repetundarum, majestatis, de falso, de sicariis, de injuriis, etc.), conducted annually, after 605 A. U. C., by a standing commission, and presided over by the prætor, Cic. Brut. 27, 106:

judex quaestionis,

the director of the criminal court under the presidency of the prætor, id. Clu. 54, 148; 33, 89; id. Brut. 76, 264:

quaestiones extraordinariae,

trials out of the common course, held under a special commission, Liv. 39, 14; so,

quaestio nova,

Cic. Mil. 5, 13:

A QVAESTIONIBVS,

an attendant in examinations, a torturer, inquisitor, Inscr. Grut. 545, 6; 560, 1. —

Transf.

The court, the judges:

dimittere eo tempore quaestionem,

Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 30, § 74:

totam quaestionem a severitate ad clementiam transtulit,

Val. Max. 8, 1, 6.—

The subject of investigation, the matter, case, question:

perdifficilis et perobscura quaestio est de naturā deorum,

Cic. N. D. 1, 1, 1:

dividere totam de dis immortalibus quaestionem in partis quattuor,

id. ib. 2, 1, 3:

quaestio proposita,

Quint. 9, 2, 39.—

In partic., in rhet.

The rhetorical subject of debate: quaestionum duo sunt genera: alterum infinitum, alterum definitum. Definitum est, quod hupothesin Graeci, nos causam: infinitum, quod thesin illi appellant, nos propositum possumus nominare, Cic. Top. 21, 79. —

The main point in a disputed matter, the issue in a cause: quaestio est quae ex conflictione causarum gignitur controversia, hoc modo: Non jure fecisti: jure feci. Causarum autem haec est conflictio, in quā constitutio constat;

ex eā igitur nascitur controversia, quam quaestionem dicimus, hoc modo: jurene fecerit,

Cic. Inv. 1, 13, 18; cf. id. ib. 1, 6, 8.—

A question, a disputed point, quaestio est, it is doubtful, may be disputed:

sapientia efficit sapientis sola per se: beatos efficiat necne sola per se quaestio est,

Cic. Top. 15, 60; id. Tusc. 4, 13, 29; id. Inv. 2, 20, 60:

quaestio est, an, etc.,

Quint. 7, 3, 22; cf.:

nulla quaestio est,

Aug. Retract. 1, 19, 6; cf.

also: in quaestione est,

Plin. 11, 17, 18, § 57; 10, 22, 27, § 52:

quaestionis est immensae,

id. 7, 28, 29, § 101; 28, 2, 3, § 10.

quaero (old orthogr. QVAIRO, Epitaphs of the Scipios, 6; for the original form and etym. quaeso, ĕre, v. quaeso), sīvi or sĭi, sītum, 3, v. a., to seek.

Lit.

In gen.: aliquem, Enn. ap. Cic. Div. 1, 20, 40 (Ann. v. 43 Vahl.); Plaut. Mil. 2, 3, 3:

te ipsum quaerebam,

Ter. Heaut. 4, 8, 3:

escam in sterquilinio,

Phaedr. 3, 12 init. —

In partic.

To seek to get or procure, to seek or search for a thing, Ter. Heaut. 3, 1, 38:

rem mercaturis faciendis,

Cic. Par. 6, 2, 46.— Absol.:

contrivi in quaerendo vitam atque aetatem meam,

Ter. Ad. 5, 4, 15; 5, 3, 27; Hor. Ep. 1, 7, 57; id. A. P. 170.—

Transf., to get, procure, obtain, acquire a thing:

uxores liberorum quaerendorum causā ducere,

Suet. Caes. 52:

liberorum quaerundorum causā ei uxor data est,

Plaut. Capt. 4, 2, 109; cf.:

quaerunt litterae hae sibi liberos,

id. Ps. 1, 1, 21.—

To seek for something missing, to miss:

Siciliam in uberrimā Siciliae parte,

Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 18, § 47:

optatos Tyndaridas,

Prop. 1, 17, 18:

Phoebi comam,

Tib. 2, 3, 20:

amnes,

Stat. Th. 4, 703.—

To ask, desire, with ut and subj.:

quaeris ut suscipiam cogitationem quidnam istis agendum putem,

Cic. Att. 14, 20, 4.—

Trop.

In gen., to seek, i. e. to think over, meditate, aim at, plan a thing:

dum id quaero, tibi qui filium restituerem,

Ter. Heaut. 3, 1, 83:

quonam modo maxime ulti sanguinem nostrum pereamus,

Sall. C. 33,5:

fugam,

Cic. Att. 7, 17, 1; id. Mur. 37, 80:

sibi remedium ad rem aliquam,

id. Clu. 9, 27:

de gratiā quid significares, mecum ipse quaerebam,

id. Att. 9, 11, A, 1.—With inf.:

tristitiae causam si quis cognoscere quaerit,

seeks, strives, endeavors, Ov. Tr. 5, 4, 7; id. Am. 1, 8, 51; Hor. C. 3, 4, 39; id. Ep. 1, 1, 2 al.—

In partic.

To look for, seek to gain any thing; to get, acquire, obtain, procure:

laudem sibi,

Ter. Heaut. 2, 3, 74:

salutem alicui malo,

id. Ad. 3, 2, 2:

negabant ullā aliā in re nisi in naturā quaerendum esse illud summum bonum,

Cic. Ac. 1, 5, 19:

pudentem exitum suae impudentiae,

id. Verr. 2, 1, 1, § 2:

invidiam in aliquem,

id. Rab. Post. 17, 46. —

Of inanim. and abstr. subjects, to demand, need, require, = requirere:

quod cujusquam oratoris eloquentiam quaereret,

Cic. Verr. 2, 1, 10, § 29:

lites ex limitibus judicem quaerant,

Varr. R. R. 1, 15, 1:

bellum dictatoriam majestatem quaesivisset,

Liv. 8, 30:

quaerit Boeotia Dircen,

Ov. M. 2, 239. —

To seek to learn from any one; to ask, inquire, interrogate (cf.: interrogo, percontor).

With ab:

cum ab iis saepius quaereret,

made inquiries, Caes. B. G. 1, 32:

quaero abs te nunc, Hortensi, cum, etc.,

Cic. Verr. 2, 3, 83, § 191:

quaesivit a medicis, quemadmodum se haberet,

Nep. Dion, 2, 4:

a quo cum quaesisset, quo se deduci vellet,

id. Epam. 4, 5; cf. Cic. N. D. 1, 22, 60. —

With de:

quaerebat paulo ante de me, quid, etc.,

Cic. Pis. 9, 18:

de te ipso quaero, Vatini, utrum, etc.,

id. Vatin. 4, 10:

quaero de te, arbitrerisne, etc.,

Liv. 4, 40:

cura tibi de quo quaerere nulla fuit,

Ov. P. 4, 3, 18.—

With ex:

quaesivi ex Phaniā, quam in partem provinciae putaret, etc.,

Cic. Fam. 3, 6, 1:

quaerit ex solo ea, quae, etc.,

Caes. B. G. 1, 18.—

With a rel.-clause:

ille baro te putabat quaesiturum, unum caelum esset an innumerabilia,

Cic. Fam. 9, 26, 3:

natura fieret laudabile carmen, an arte, Quaesitum est,

Hor. A. P. 409:

quaeritur inter medicos, cujus generis aquae sint utilissimae,

Plin. 31, 3, 21, § 31.—

To desire,

With inf. (post-Aug.):

e monte aliquo in alium transilire quaerens,

Plin. 8, 53, 79, § 214:

qui mutare sedes quaerebant,

Tac. G. 2.—

Transf., of animals, plants, etc., to desire, prefer, seek:

salictum et harundinetum... umidum locum quaerunt,

Varr. R. R. 1, 23, 5:

glires aridum locum quaerunt,

id. ib. 3, 15, 2; Col. 1, praef. §

26: lupinum quaerit maxime sabulosa,

Plin. 18, 14, 36, § 134;

so of the soil: ager aquosus plus stercoris quaerit,

demands, Pall. 1, 6, 15.—

To examine or inquire into judicially, to investigate, institute an investigation; with [p. 1502] acc. (rare):

hunc abduce, vinci, rem quaere,

Ter. Ad. 3 (4), 36:

non dubitabat Minucius, quin iste (Verres) illo die rem illam quaesiturus non esset,

Cic. Verr. 2, 2, 29, § 72. —With de and abl. (class.; cf.

Krebs, Autibarb. p. 962 sq.): de pecuniis repetundis,

Cic. Verr. 1, 9, 27:

de morte alicujus,

id. Rosc. Am. 41, 119:

de servo in dominum,

to question by torture, put to the rack, id. Mil. 22, 59:

aliquid per tormenta,

Suet. Tib. 58:

legibus,

to investigate according to the laws, impartially, Plin. Ep. 5, 21, 3. —

Transf.: si quaeris, si quaerimus (prop., if we, or you, look well into the matter; if we, or you, would know the truth), to say the truth, in fact, to speak honestly:

omnino, si quaeris, ludi apparatissimi,

Cic. Fam. 7, 1, 2:

at sunt morosi, et anxii, et difficiles senes: si quaerimus, etiam avari,

id. Sen. 18, 65:

si quaeritis,

id. de Or. 2, 62, 254; so,

too, si verum quaeris,

id. Fam. 12, 8, 1:

si verum quaeritis,

id. de Or. 2, 34, 146:

si verum quaerimus,

id. Tusc. 2, 23, 55: noli quaerere or quid quaeris? in short, in one word:

noli quaerere: ita mihi pulcher hic dies visus est,

id. Fam. 4, 4, 3:

quid quaeris? biduo factus est mihi familiaris,

id. ib. 3, 1, 2.— Hence, quaesītus, a, um, P. a., sought out.

In a good sense, select, special, extraordinary (mostly post-Aug.): epulae quaesitissumae, Sall. ap. Macr. S. 2, 9, 9 (Sall. H. 2, 23, 4 Dietsch); comp.:

leges quaesitiores (opp. simplices),

Tac. A. 3, 26:

quaesitior adulatio,

id. ib. 3, 57.— Sup.:

quaesitissimi honores,

Tac. A. 2, 53.—

In a bad sense (opp. to what is natural), far-fetched, studied, affected, assumed (class.):

vitabit etiam quaesita nec ex tempore ficta, sed domo allata, quae plerumque sunt frigida,

Cic. Or. 26, 89:

ut numerus non quaesitus, sed ipse secutus esse videatur,

id. ib. 65, 219:

comitas,

Tac. A. 6, 50:

asperitas,

id. ib. 5, 3.—

Subst.: quaesītum, i, n.

A question ( poet.):

accipe quaesiti causam,

Ov. M. 4, 793; id. F. 1, 278; Hor. S. 2, 6, 82.—

A question as a rhetorical figure, = pusma, Mart. Cap. 5, § 524.