I am currently working on a translation passage adapted from Livy 43.4 by Ashley Carter, titled Hortensius at Abdera, but got stuck only a few lines into it. Here is the sentence that I am struggling to translate:
cives, cum tantam pecuniam non haberent, ab eo petiverunt ut sibi permitteretur ut legatos de ea re ad consulem Hostilium, qui in Graecia quoque esset, et Romam mitterent.
So far, I have gotten:
Since they did not have money of such size, the citizens asked from him that he...
I'm not really sure why I'm so confused about the rest of it, as the grammar and vocab are both familiar to me already, but I hope someone can help me decipher this sentence.
To help, here is the passage in its entirety, along with the English context sentences that are given directly before it. I have put the sentence I am asking about in bold.
The citizens of Abdera try to save the city from the greedy Roman praetor, Hortensius. Hortensius now fell into disgrace.
Hortensius, praetor Romanus, qui bellum in Graecia gerebat, ad oppidum Abdera advenit. ibi, praedam quaerens, centum milia denariorum plurimumque frumentum a civibus poposcit. cives, cum tantam pecuniam non haberent, ab eo petiverunt ut sibi permitteretur ut legatos de ea re ad consulem Hostilium, qui in Graecia quoque esset, et Romam mitterent. qui simulatque ad consulem pervenerunt, audiverunt oppidum suum captum, principes occisos, ceteros venditos esse. tum legati Abderitae Romam ad senatum venerunt lacrimantes. querebantur oppidum suum ab Hortensio praetore sine iusta causa expugnatum ac direptum esse. haec res indigna senatoribus visa est. decreverunt Abderitas, qui iam servi essent, liberandos esse oppidumque restituendum esse. duo legati missi sunt qui haec facerent. iisdem mandatum est ut et Hostilio consuli et Hortensio praetori nuntiarent senatum decrevisse iniustum bellum contra Abderitas gestum esse; omnes cives qui adhuc vivi essent in libertatem restituendos esse.
The translation that I have gotten so far (i.e. the first two sentences) is this:
Hortensius, a Roman praetor, who was waging a war in Greece, arrived at the town of Abdera. There, looking for plunder, he demanded one hundred thousand denarii and very many grain from the citizens.