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having driven them out, and having learned that the Samnites were plundering Campania, he hastened. And having encountered some of their scouts, and seeing them swiftly retreating, he thought that all the enemy happened to be there and believed they were fleeing; and from this, hastening to engage them before his father arrived, so that the success 2.173 might seem to be his and not his father's, he advanced in disorder. And having fallen upon the enemy in a mass, he would have been utterly destroyed with his whole army, if night had not fallen. Many therefore died even after this, with neither a doctor nor any necessary supplies present, because they had hurried on far ahead of the baggage train as if they would be victorious at once; and they certainly would have perished on the next day as well, if the Samnites, thinking his father was near, had not become afraid and withdrawn. But when those in the city learned these things, they were terribly angry, and having summoned the consul, they wished to call him to account. But his old father, after recounting both his own brave deeds and those of his ancestors, and promising that his son would do nothing unworthy of them, and putting forward his youth as the cause for the misfortune, immediately freed them from their anger. And going out with him, he conquered the Samnites in battle and took their camp and ravaged their country and drove off much booty; and part of it he gave to the public treasury, and the rest he distributed to the soldiers. For these reasons indeed, the Romans exalted both him and his son and commanded him to rule thereafter as proconsul, using his father even then as his lieutenant. And he himself managed and conducted all things, sparing his old age in no way, yet he was not seen to be doing things by himself, but he attached the glory of the deeds to his son. After these things, when some tribunes proposed a cancellation of debts, since this was not granted by the lenders 2.174, the populace rose in sedition; and the matters of the sedition were not quelled until enemies attacked the city. And the Tarentines began the wars, having won over as allies the Tyrrhenians and Gauls and Samnites and many others. But the others the Romans, engaging in various battles, conquered with different consuls at different times; but the Tarentines, although they themselves had prepared the war, nevertheless had not yet openly arrayed themselves for battle. And while Lucius Valerius was admiral, and wished to anchor with his triremes at Tarentum, as he was going where he had been sent with them, considering the land friendly, the Tarentines, suspecting from their guilty conscience about what they were doing that Valerius was sailing against them, put out to sea against him in a rage, and falling upon him as he expected nothing hostile, sank him and many others; and of those who were captured, some they imprisoned, and others they even killed. When the Romans learned these things they were angry, but nevertheless they sent ambassadors to bring charges against them and demand satisfaction. But they not only gave them no reasonable reply, but even mocked them, so as even to soil the garment of Lucius Postumius, the chief of the ambassadors. And when an uproar arose over this, and the Tarentines were laughing derisively, Postumius said, "Laugh, laugh while you may; for you will weep for a very long time when you wash this garment clean with your blood." When the ambassadors therefore had returned, the Romans, learning what had been done, were grieved, and voted for Lucius Aemilius the consul to march against the Tarentines. He, having approached Tarentum, sent them favorable 2.175 proposals, thinking they would choose peace on some moderate terms. But they were opposed to one another in their opinions; and while the older and wealthy men were eager for peace, and the men of military age and those having little or nothing chose war, the younger men prevailed. Nevertheless, being afraid, they decided to summon Pyrrhus of Epirus as an ally, and have sent ambassadors and gifts to him. But Aemilius, having learned this, plundered and destroyed their country. And they came out against him, but were routed, so that the Romans ravaged their country without fear and captured some forts. And much of the

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ἐξελάσας, καὶ τοὺς Σαυνίτας ληίζεσθαι τὴν Καμπανίδα πυθόμενος, ἠπείγετο. προσκόποις τέ τισιν αὐτῶν ἐντυχών, καὶ ταχέως ἀποχωροῦντας σφᾶς θεασάμενος, πάντας τε πολεμίους τυγχάνειν ἐκεῖ ἐνόμισε καὶ φεύγειν ἐπίστευσε· κἀκ τούτου σπεύσας αὐτοῖς συμβαλεῖν πρὸ τοῦ τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ ἀφικέσθαι, ιν' αὐτοῦ τὸ κατόρ2.173 θωμα, ἀλλὰ μὴ ἐκείνου δοκῇ, προεχώρησεν ἀσυντάκτως. καὶ περιπεσὼν ἀθρόοις τοῖς πολεμίοις πανσυδὶ αν διεφθάρη, εἰ μὴ νὺξ ἐγένετο. πολλοὶ δ' ουν καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα τεθνήκασι, μήτ' ἰατροῦ μήτ' ἐπιτηδείου τινὸς παρόντος, διὰ τὸ πολὺ πρὸ τῶν σκευοφόρων αὐτοὺς ἐπειχθῆναι ὡς αὐτίκα νικήσοντας· καὶ πάντως αν καὶ τῆς ὑστεραίας ἀπώλοντο, εἰ μὴ οἱ Σαυνῖται τὸν πατέρα αὐτοῦ ἐγγὺς ειναι νομίσαντες εδεισάν τε καὶ ἀνεχώρησαν. Πυθόμενοι δὲ ταῦθ' οἱ ἐν τῷ αστει δεινῶς ἠγανάκτησαν, καὶ μεταπεμψάμενοι τὸν υπατον εὐθύνειν ηθελον. ὁ δὲ γέρων ὁ τούτου πατὴρ καταριθμήσας τά τε οἰκεῖα καὶ τὰ τῶν προγόνων ἀνδραγαθήματα, καὶ ὑποσχόμενος μηδὲν αὐτῶν πράξειν ἀνάξιον τὸν υἱόν, καὶ τὴν τούτου νεότητα πρὸς τὸ ἀτύχημα προβαλόμενος, τῆς ὀργῆς αὐτοὺς αὐτίκα παρέλυσε. καί οἱ συνεξελθὼν μάχῃ τοὺς Σαυνίτας ἐνίκησε καὶ τὸ στρατόπεδον αὐτῶν ειλε τήν τε χώραν ἐπόρθησε καὶ λείαν πολλὴν ηλασε· καὶ τὰ μὲν αὐτῆς ἐδημοσίωσε, τὰ δὲ τοῖς στρατιώταις κατένειμε. διά τοι ταῦτα οἱ ̔Ρωμαῖοι ἐκεῖνόν τε ἐμεγάλυνον καὶ τὸν υἱὸν καὶ εἰς τὸ επειτα ἀντὶ ὑπάτου αρξαι ἐκέλευσαν, ὑποστρατήγῳ καὶ τότε τῷ πατρὶ χρώμενον. καὶ ος πάντα μὲν αὐτὸς διῴκει καὶ διῆγε μηδὲν τοῦ γήρως φειδόμενος, οὐ μέντοι καὶ ενδηλος ην δι' ἑαυτοῦ τὰ πράγματα πράττων, ἀλλὰ τὴν δόξαν τῶν εργων τῷ παιδὶ προσῆπτε. Μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα δημάρχων τινῶν χρεῶν ἀποκοπὴν εἰσηγησαμένων, ἐπεὶ μὴ καὶ παρὰ τῶν δανει2.174 στῶν αυτη ἐδίδοτο, ἐστασίασε τὸ πλῆθος· καὶ οὐ πρότερον τὰ τῆς στάσεως κατηυνάσθη εως πολέμιοι τῇ πόλει ἐπήλθοσαν. ηρξαν δὲ τῶν πολέμων οἱ Ταραντῖνοι, Τυρσηνοὺς καὶ Γαλάτας καὶ Σαυνίτας καὶ αλλους προσεταιρισάμενοι πλείονας. ἀλλὰ τοὺς μὲν αλλους οἱ ̔Ρωμαῖοι συμβαλόντες διαφόροις μάχαις ἐνίκησαν καὶ ὑπάτοις αλλοτε αλλοις· οἱ δὲ Ταραντῖνοι, καίτοι αὐτοὶ τὸν πόλεμον παρασκευάσαντες, ομως ουπω πρὸς μάχην ἀντικατέστησαν φανερῶς. ναυαρχοῦντος δὲ Λουκίου Οὐαλερίου, καὶ τριήρεσι προσορμίσαι βουληθέντος ἐς Τάραντα, ἐπεὶ ἀπῄει οπῃ σὺν αὐταῖς ἀπεστάλη, φίλιον τὴν χώραν ἡγούμενος, οἱ Ταραντῖνοι κατ' αὐτῶν ὑποτοπήσαντες τὸν Οὐαλέριον πλεῖν ἐκ τοῦ συνειδότος ων εδρων, μετ' ὀργῆς ἀντανήχθησαν, καὶ προσπεσόντες αὐτῷ μηδὲν πολέμιον ἐλπίσαντι κατέδυσαν ἐκεῖνόν τε καὶ αλλους πολλούς· καὶ τοὺς ἁλόντας τοὺς μὲν καθεῖρξαν, τοὺς δὲ καὶ ἀπέκτειναν. πυθόμενοι δὲ ταῦθ' οἱ ̔Ρωμαῖοι ἠγανάκτησαν μέν, πρέσβεις δ' ομως ἀπέστειλαν ἐπεγκαλοῦντες αὐτοῖς καὶ δίκας ἀπαιτοῦντες. οἱ δὲ οὐ μόνον αὐτοῖς οὐδὲν ἐπιεικὲς ἀπεκρίθησαν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐτώθαζον, ὡς καὶ τὴν ἐσθῆτα τοῦ Λουκίου Ποστουμίου τοῦ προέχοντος κηλιδῶσαι τῶν πρέσβεων. θορύβου δὲ ἐπὶ τούτῳ γενομένου, καὶ τῶν Ταραντίνων ἐπικαγχαζόντων, ὁ Ποστούμιος "γελᾶτε" εφη, "γελᾶτε εως εξεστιν ὑμῖν· κλαυσεῖσθε γὰρ ἐπὶ μακρότατον οταν τὴν ἐσθῆτα ταύτην τῷ αιματι ὑμῶν ἀποπλύνητε." ̓Επανελθόντων ουν τῶν πρέσβεων οἱ ̔Ρωμαῖοι τὰ πραχθέντα μαθόντες ηλγησαν, καὶ στρατεῦσαι ἐπὶ τοὺς Ταραντίνους Λούκιον Αἰμίλιον τὸν υπατον ἐψηφίσαντο. ος εἰς Τάραντα προσχωρήσας λόγους αὐτοῖς 2.175 ἐπιτηδείους επεμψε, νομίζων εἰρήνην ἐπί τισι μετρίοις αἱρήσεσθαι. οἱ δὲ ταῖς γνώμαις ἀλλήλοις ἠναντιώθησαν· καὶ τῶν μὲν πρεσβυτέρων καὶ εὐπόρων τὴν εἰρήνην σπευδόντων, τῶν δ' ἐν ἡλικίᾳ καὶ ὀλίγα η μηδὲν ἐχόντων πόλεμον αἱρουμένων, ἐκράτησαν οἱ νεώτεροι. φοβούμενοι δὲ ομως, τὸν Πύρρον τὸν ̓Ηπειρώτην εἰς συμμαχίαν ἐβουλεύσαντο προσκαλέσασθαι, καὶ πρέσβεις αὐτῷ καὶ δῶρα πεπόμφασιν. Αἰμίλιος δὲ ταῦτα μαθὼν τὴν χώραν αὐτῶν ἐλεηλάτει καὶ εφθειρεν. οἱ δὲ ἐπεξῆλθον μέν, ἀλλ' ἐτράπησαν, ωστε τοὺς ̔Ρωμαίους τήν τε χώραν αὐτῶν ἀδεῶς πορθῆσαι καί τινα χειρώσασθαι φρούρια. πολλὴν δὲ τῶν