§9.67.1τῷ δὲ κατόπιν ἔτει Λευκίου Αἰβουτίου καὶ Ποπλίου Σερουιλίου Πρίσκου παρειληφότων τὴν ἀρχὴν οὐδὲν οὔτε κατὰ πολέμους ἔργον ἀπεδείξαντο Ῥωμαῖοι λόγου ἄξιον οὔτε πολιτικόν, ὑπὸ νόσου κακωθέντες ὡς οὔπω πρότερον λοιμικῆς·
In the following year, when Lucius Aebutius and Publius Servilius Priscus had assumed the magistracy, the Romans displayed no deed worthy of mention either in war or in civil affairs, being afflicted by a pestilential disease such as had never occurred before.
ἣ τὸ μὲν πρῶτον ἵππων τε φορβάδων καὶ βοῶν ἀγέλαις προσῆλθεν, ἀπὸ δὲ τούτων εἴς τʼ αἰπόλια καὶ ποίμνας κατέσκηψε, καὶ διέφθειρεν ὀλίγου δεῖν πάντα τὰ τετράποδα· ἔπειτα τῶν νομέων τε καὶ γεωργῶν ἥψατο, καὶ διελθοῦσα διὰ πάσης τῆς χώρας εἰς τὴν πόλιν ἐνέπεσε.
At first, it attacked the herds of grazing horses and oxen, and from these it fell upon the goat-pens and sheepfolds, and destroyed almost all the four-footed beasts; then it touched the herdsmen and husbandmen, and passing through all the country, it fell upon the city.
§9.67.2θεραπόντων μὲν οὖν καὶ θητῶν καὶ τοῦ πένητος ὄχλου πλῆθος ὅσον διέφθειρεν, οὐ ῥᾴδιον ἦν εὑρεῖν.
Indeed, how great a multitude of slaves, hirelings, and the poor crowd it destroyed was not easy to find.
κατʼ ἀρχὰς μὲν γὰρ ἐφʼ ἁμάξαις σωρηδὸν οἱ θνήσκοντες ἀπεκομίζοντο, τελευτῶντες δʼ, ὧν ἐλάχιστος ἦν ὁ λόγος, εἰς τὸ τοῦ παραρρέοντος ποταμοῦ ῥεῖθρον ὠθοῦντο.
For at first, those who died were carried away in heaps on wagons, but in the end, those of whom there was the least regard were pushed into the stream of the river flowing by.
τῶν δʼ ἐκ τοῦ βουλευτικοῦ συνεδρίου τὸ τέταρτον μέρος συνελογίσθη διεφθαρμένον, ἐν οἷς ἦσαν οἵ θʼ ὕπατοι ἀμφότεροι καὶ τῶν δημάρχων οἱ πλείους.
And of the members of the senate, a fourth part was reckoned to have perished, among whom were both consuls and the majority of the tribunes.
§9.67.3ἤρξατο μὲν οὖν ἡ νόσος περὶ τὰς καλάνδας τοῦ Σεπτεμβρίου μηνός, διέμεινε δὲ τὸν ἐνιαυτὸν ἐκεῖνον ὅλον, ἅπασαν ὁμοίως καταλαμβάνουσα καὶ διεργαζομένη φύσιν τε καὶ ἡλικίαν.
The disease began, then, about the calends of the month of September, and lasted that entire year, attacking and destroying every constitution and age alike.
γενομένης δὲ τοῖς πλησιοχώροις γνώσεως τῶν κατεχόντων τὴν Ῥώμην κακῶν, καλὸν ἡγησάμενοι καιρὸν εἶναι Αἰκανοί τε καὶ Οὐολοῦσκοι καταλῦσαι τὴν ἀρχὴν αὐτῆς, συνθήκας τε καὶ ὅρκους ἐποιήσαντο πρὸς ἀλλήλους περὶ συμμαχίας· καὶ παρασκευασάμενοι τὰ εἰς πολιορκίαν ἐπιτήδεια, ὡς εἶχον ἀμφότεροι τάχους, ἐξῆγον τὰς δυνάμεις.
But when knowledge of the evils holding Rome reached the neighboring peoples, the Aequians and Volscians, thinking it a favorable opportunity to destroy her rule, made treaties and oaths with one another for an alliance; and having prepared the necessaries for a siege, as fast as both could, they led out their forces.
§9.67.4ἵνα δὲ τὴν ἀπὸ τῶν συμμάχων ἀφέλοιντο τῆς Ῥώμης ἐπικουρίαν εἰς τὴν Λατίνων τε καὶ Ἑρνίκων γῆν πρῶτον ἐνέβαλον.
And in order to deprive Rome of the assistance of her allies, they first invaded the land of the Latins and the Hernicians.
ἀφικομένης δὲ πρεσβείας ἐπὶ τὴν βουλὴν ἀφʼ ἑκατέρου τῶν πολεμουμένων ἐθνῶν ἐπὶ συμμαχίας παράκλησιν ὁ μὲν ἕτερος τῶν ὑπάτων Λεύκιος Αἰβούτιος ἐκείνην ἔτυχε τὴν ἡμέραν τεθνηκώς, Πόπλιος δὲ Σερουίλιος ἐγγὺς ὢν τοῦ θανάτου· ὃς ἔτι ὀλίγον ἐμπνέων συνεκάλει
But when an embassy from each of the nations being attacked arrived at the senate to summon aid, one of the consuls, Lucius Aebutius, happened to have died on that very day, and Publius Servilius was near death; who, still breathing a little, called together the senate.
§9.67.5τὴν βουλήν. τῶν δʼ οἱ πλείους ἡμιθνῆτες ἐπὶ κλινιδίων κομισθέντες καὶ συνεδρεύσαντες ἀπεκρίναντο τοῖς παροῦσιν ἀγγέλλειν τοῖς σφετέροις, ὅτι διὰ τῆς ἑαυτῶν ἀρετῆς τοὺς πολεμίους ἀμύνεσθαι ἡ βουλὴ αὐτοῖς ἐπιτρέπει, μέχρις ἂν ὁ ὕπατος ῥαίσῃ, καὶ ἡ §9.67.6συναγωνιουμένη δύναμις αὐτοῖς συναχθῇ.
Most of them, half-dead, carried on small couches and sitting in council, replied to those present to announce to their own people that the senate permitted them to defend themselves against the enemy by their own valor, until the consul should recover, and the force that was to fight with them should be assembled for them.
ταῦτα Ῥωμαίων ἀποκριναμένων Λατῖνοι μὲν ὅσα ἠδυνήθησαν ἐκ τῶν ἀγρῶν εἰς τὰς πόλεις ἀνασκευασάμενοι φυλακὴν ἐποιοῦντο τῶν τειχῶν, τὰ δʼ ἄλλα περιεώρων ἀπολλύμενα.
When the Romans had given this reply, the Latins, having removed whatever they could from the fields into the cities, kept guard of the walls, and let the rest go to ruin.
Ἕρνικες δὲ δυσανασχετοῦντες ἐπὶ τῇ λύμῃ καὶ διαρπαγῇ τῶν ἀγρῶν, ἀναλαβόντες τὰ ὅπλα ἐξῆλθον.
But the Hernicians, being unable to bear the destruction and plundering of their fields, took up their arms and went out.
ἀγωνισάμενοι δὲ λαμπρῶς καὶ πολλοὺς μὲν ἀποβαλόντες τῶν σφετέρων, πολλῷ δʼ ἔτι πλείους ἀποκτείναντες τῶν πολεμίων, ἐκβιασθέντες εἰς τὰ τείχη κατέφυγον, καὶ οὐκέτι μάχης ἐπειρῶντο.
Having fought illustriously and lost many of their own, but having slain far more of the enemy, they were forced and fled into their walls, and no longer attempted battle.