§14.101.1μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα Λευκανῶν τὴν Θουρίαν καταδραμόντων οἱ Θούριοι παρήγγειλαν τοῖς συμμάχοις κατὰ τάχος ἀπαντᾶν μετὰ τῶν ὅπλων· αἱ γὰρ κατὰ τὴν Ἰταλίαν Ἑλληνίδες πόλεις ἐν ταῖς συνθήκαις εἶχον οὕτως, ἵνʼ ἥτις ἂν ὑπὸ τῶν Λευκανῶν λεηλατηθῇ χώρα, πρὸς ταύτην ἅπαντες παραβοηθῶσιν· ἧς δʼ ἂν πόλεως μὴ καταστῇ τὸ στρατόπεδον ἐπὶ τὴν βοήθειαν, τεθνάναι τοὺς ἐκείνης τῆς πόλεως στρατηγούς. §14.101.2διόπερ τῶν Θουρίων τοὺς βιβλιαφόρους ἀποστειλάντων ἐπὶ τὰς πόλεις πρὸς τὴν τῶν πολεμίων παρουσίαν, ἅπαντες παρεσκευάζοντο πρὸς τὴν ἀνάζευξιν.
After this, when the Lucanians overran the territory of Thurii, the Thurians ordered their allies to meet quickly in arms; for the Greek cities in Italy had it so in their treaties that whichever territory should be plundered by the Lucanians, to this all should bring aid, and that of whichever city the army did not arrive for aid, the generals of that city should be put to death. Therefore, when the Thurians dispatched letter-carriers to the cities regarding the presence of the enemy, everyone was preparing for the march.
αὐτοὶ δὲ προεξαναστάντες ταῖς ὁρμαῖς καὶ τὸ τῶν συμμάχων πλῆθος οὐκ ἀναμείναντες, ἀνέζευξαν ἐπὶ τοὺς Λευκανούς, ἔχοντες πεζοὺς μὲν πλείους τῶν μυρίων τετρακισχιλίων, ἱππεῖς δὲ σχεδὸν χιλίους. §14.101.3καὶ Λευκανοὶ μὲν ἀκούσαντες τὴν τῶν πολεμίων ἔφοδον ἀπεχώρησαν εἰς τὴν ἰδίαν χώραν· οἱ δὲ Θούριοι κατὰ σπουδὴν ἐμβαλόντες εἰς τὴν Λευκανίαν, τὸ μὲν πρῶτον φρούριον ἐξεῖλον, καὶ πολλῆς ὠφελείας κυριεύσαντες καθαπερεὶ δέλεαρ ἔλαβον τῆς ἑαυτῶν ἀπωλείας.
But they themselves, setting out beforehand in their eagerness and not waiting for the multitude of the allies, marched against the Lucanians, having more than fourteen thousand infantry and nearly a thousand cavalry. And the Lucanians, hearing of the approach of the enemy, withdrew into their own territory; but the Thurians, having invaded Lucania in haste, captured the first fortress, and having got possession of much booty, they received what was, as it were, a bait for their own destruction.
φρονηματισθέντες γὰρ ἐπὶ τῷ προτερήματι καταπεφρονηκότως διά τινων στενῶν καὶ ἀποκρήμνων ὁδῶν ἐπορεύθησαν, βουλόμενοι Λᾶον πόλιν εὐδαίμονα πολιορκῆσαι. §14.101.4ἐπειδὴ δὲ παρεγενήθησαν εἴς τι πεδίον κύκλῳ λόφοις ὑψηλοῖς καὶ κρημνοῖς περιειλημμένον, ἐνταῦθα οἱ Λευκανοὶ πάσῃ τῇ δυνάμει διέκλεισαν αὐτοὺς τῆς ἐπὶ τὰς πατρίδας ἐπανόδου.
For being elated by this success, they marched carelessly through certain narrow and precipitous roads, wishing to besiege Laos, a prosperous city. When they arrived at a plain enclosed all around by high and precipitous hills, there the Lucanians with all their force cut them off from their return to their homeland.
παράδοξον δʼ ἐπὶ τῷ λόφῳ καὶ φανερὰν ποιήσαντες τὴν ἑαυτῶν ἐπιφάνειαν ἐξέπληξαν τοὺς Ἕλληνας διά τε τὸ μέγεθος τοῦ στρατοπέδου καὶ τὴν τῶν τόπων δυσχωρίαν· εἶχον γὰρ Λευκανοὶ τότε πεζοὺς μὲν τρισμυρίους, ἱππεῖς δʼ οὐκ ἐλάττους τετρακισχιλίων.
Making their appearance on the hill unexpected and visible, they terrified the Greeks both because of the size of their army and the difficulty of the terrain; for the Lucanians had at that time thirty thousand infantry and no fewer than four thousand cavalry.