§5.37.1ἐνιαυτῷ δὲ πέμπτῳ μετὰ τὴν ἐκβολὴν τοῦ βασιλέως, ὀλυμπιὰς μὲν ἦν ἐνάτη καὶ ἑξηκοστή, ἣν ἐνίκα στάδιον Ἰσχόμαχος Κροτωνιάτης τὸ δεύτερον, ἄρχων δʼ Ἀθήνησιν Ἀκεστορίδης, ὕπατοι δὲ Ῥωμαίων Μάρκος Οὐαλέριος ἀδελφὸς Οὐαλερίου Ποπλικόλα καὶ §5.37.2Πόπλιος Ποστόμιος Τούβερτος ἐπικαλούμενος.
In the fifth year after the expulsion of the king, it was the sixty-ninth Olympiad, in which Ischomachus of Croton won the stade race for the second time, Acestorides being archon at Athens, and the consuls of the Romans being Marcus Valerius, the brother of Valerius Publicola, and Publius Postumius surnamed Tubertus.
ἐπὶ τούτων ἕτερος ἐξεδέξατο Ῥωμαίους πόλεμος ἐκ τῶν ἔγγιστα οἰκούντων, ὃς ἤρξατο μὲν ἀπὸ λῃστηρίων, προὔβη δʼ εἰς πολλοὺς καὶ μεγάλους ἀγῶνας, ἐχώρησε μέντοι τελευτῶν εἰς διαλλαγὰς εὐπρεπεῖς ἐπὶ τῆς τετάρτης μετὰ τούσδε τοὺς ἄνδρας ὑπατείας πάντα τὸν μεταξὺ χρόνον πολεμηθείς.
Under these men, another war, arising from those who dwelt nearest to them, fell upon the Romans; it began with acts of plundering, but advanced to many great conflicts, though it finally reached a decent accommodation in the fourth consulship after these men, having been waged during all the intervening time.
Σαβίνων γάρ τινες καταγνόντες ἀσθένειαν τῆς πόλεως ἐκ τοῦ Τυρρηνικοῦ πταίσματος, ὡς οὐκέτι τὴν ἀρχαίαν ἀξίωσιν ἀναληψομένης, ἐπετίθεντο τοῖς εἰς τὴν χώραν κατιοῦσιν ἐκ τῶν ἐρυμάτων λῃστήρια καταστησάμενοι, καὶ πολλὰ τοὺς γεωργοὺς §5.37.3ἔβλαπτον.
For some of the Sabines, thinking meanly of the weakness of the city due to the Tyrrhenian disaster, and believing that it would no longer recover its ancient prestige, attacked those who went down into the country, establishing bands of robbers from their strongholds, and did much damage to the farmers.
ὑπὲρ ὧν ἀποστείλαντες οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι πρεσβείαν πρὶν ἐπὶ τὰ ὅπλα χωρῆσαι δίκας ᾔτουν καὶ τὸ λοιπὸν ἠξίουν μηδὲν εἰς τοὺς ἐργαζομένους τὴν γῆν παρανομεῖν.
In return for these wrongs, the Romans, before resorting to arms, sent an embassy to demand satisfaction and to request that they should not commit any further outrages against those who tilled the land.
αὐθάδεις δὲ λαβόντες ἀποκρίσεις προεῖπον αὐτοῖς τὸν πόλεμον.
But receiving arrogant answers, they declared war against them.
καὶ γίνεται ἡ μὲν πρώτη ἔξοδος ἑνὸς τῶν ὑπάτων Οὐαλερίου σὺν ἱππεῦσι καὶ ψιλῶν τοῖς ἀκμαιοτάτοις αἰφνίδιος ἐπὶ τοὺς λῃιζομένους τὴν χώραν καὶ φόνος τῶν καταληφθέντων ἐν ταῖς προνομαῖς συχνῶν ὄντων πολύς, οἷα εἰκὸς ἀνθρώπων ἀσυντάκτων τε καὶ οὐ προῃσθημένων τὴν ἔφοδον.
And the first excursion was made suddenly by one of the consuls, Valerius, with the horsemen and the most vigorous of the light-armed troops, against those who were plundering the country, and there was a great slaughter of those who were caught in their foraging, who were numerous—as was natural for men who were disordered and had not foreseen the attack.
§5.37.4ἔπειτα τῶν Σαβίνων πολλὴν ἀποστειλάντων ἐπʼ αὐτοὺς στρατιὰν ὑφʼ ἡγεμόνι τεταγμένην ἐμπείρῳ πολέμου Ῥωμαίων ἑτέρα γίνεται ἐπʼ αὐτοὺς ἔξοδος ἁπάσαις ταῖς δυνάμεσιν ἀγόντων ἀμφοτέρων τῶν ὑπάτων.
Then, when the Sabines had sent a large army against them under a commander experienced in war, another excursion was made against them by the Romans with all their forces, under the command of both consuls.
Ποστόμιος μὲν οὖν πλησίον τῆς Ῥώμης ἐν ὀρεινοῖς τόποις κατεστρατοπέδευσε δεδιώς, μή τις ἔφοδος ἐκ τῶν φυγάδων ἐπʼ αὐτὴν γένηται αἰφνίδιος· Οὐαλέριος δʼ ἐγγὺς τῶν πολεμίων παρὰ ποταμὸν Ἀνίητα, ὃς ἐκ πόλεως μὲν Τιβύρων καθʼ ὑψηλοῦ πολὺς ἐκχεῖται σκοπέλου, φέρεται δὲ διὰ τῆς Σαβίνων τε καὶ Ῥωμαίων πεδιάδος ὁρίζων τὴν ἑκατέρων χώραν· συνάπτει δὲ τὸ ῥεῦμα τῷ Τεβέρει ποταμῷ καλὸς μὲν ὀφθῆναι, γλυκὺς δὲ πίνεσθαι.
Postumius indeed, fearing lest some sudden attack should be made on the city by the exiles, encamped near Rome in the mountainous districts; but Valerius encamped near the enemy beside the river Anio, which, pouring in great volume from a high cliff at the city of Tibur, flows through the plain of both the Sabines and the Romans, marking the boundary of each territory, and joins its stream with the river Tiber, beautiful to look upon and sweet to drink.