§9.69.1Ῥωμαῖοι δὲ τοὺς καλουμένους ἀντιβασιλεῖς ἑλόμενοι τῶν ἀρχαιρεσίων ἕνεκα, ὃ ποιεῖν εἰώθασιν, ὅταν ἀναρχία κατάσχῃ τὴν πόλιν, ὑπάτους ἀπέδειξαν Λεύκιον Λοκρήτιον καὶ Τῖτον Οὐετούριον Γέμινον.
The Romans, having chosen the so-called interreges for the purpose of holding elections, as they are accustomed to do whenever an anarchy holds the city, appointed Lucius Lucretius and Titus Veturius Geminus as consuls.
ἐπὶ τῆς τούτων ἀρχῆς ἥ τε νόσος ἐπαύσατο καὶ τὰ πολιτικὰ ἐγκλήματα ἀναβολῆς ἔτυχε, τά τʼ ἴδια καὶ τὰ κοινά, πειραθέντος μὲν αὖθις τὸ περὶ τῆς κληρουχίας πολίτευμα κινεῖν ἑνὸς τῶν δημάρχων Σέξτου Τιτίου, κωλύσαντος δὲ τοῦ δήμου καὶ εἰς ἐπιτηδειοτέρους ὑπερθεμένου καιρούς.
Under their administration, the disease ceased and political accusations, both private and public, were postponed; for although one of the tribunes, Sextus Titius, attempted again to introduce the measure concerning the distribution of land, the people prevented it and postponed it to more favorable times.
§9.69.2προθυμία τε πολλὴ πᾶσιν ἐνέπεσε τιμωρήσασθαι τοὺς ἐπιστρατεύσαντας τῇ πόλει κατὰ τὸν τῆς νόσου καιρόν· καὶ αὐτίκα τῆς βουλῆς ψηφισαμένης καὶ τοῦ δήμου τὸν πόλεμον ἐπικυρώσαντος κατεγράφοντο τὰς δυνάμεις, οὐδενὸς τῶν ἐχόντων στρατεύσιμον ἡλικίαν οὐδʼ, εἴ τινα ὁ νόμος ἀπέλυεν, ἀξιοῦντος ἐκείνης ἀπολειφθῆναι τῆς στρατείας·
And a great eagerness fell upon all to take vengeance on those who had marched against the city during the time of the disease; and immediately, upon the senate passing a decree and the people ratifying the war, they enrolled their forces, none of those who were of military age, nor even if the law exempted anyone, desiring to be left behind from that campaign.
νεμηθείσης δὲ τριχῇ τῆς δυνάμεως μία μὲν ὑπελείφθη φυλάττειν τὴν πόλιν, ἧς ἡγεῖτο Κόιντος Φούριος ἀνὴρ ὑπατικός· αἱ δὲ δύο σὺν τοῖς ὑπάτοις ἐξῆλθον ἐπί τʼ §9.69.3Αἰκανοὺς καὶ Οὐολούσκους.
And the force having been divided into three parts, one was left behind to guard the city, which was commanded by Quintus Furius, a man of consular rank; while the other two went out with the consuls against the Aequians and Volscians.
τὸ δʼ αὐτὸ τοῦτο καὶ ὑπὸ τῶν πολεμίων ἔτυχεν ἤδη γεγονός.
But this very same thing happened to have been done already by the enemy.
ἡ μὲν γὰρ κρατίστη δύναμις ἀφʼ ἑκατέρου τῶν ἐθνῶν συνελθοῦσα ὑπαίθριος ἦν ὑπὸ δυσὶν ἡγεμόσι, καὶ ἔμελλεν ἀπὸ τῆς Ἑρνίκων γῆς, ἐν ᾗ τότʼ ἦν, ἀρξαμένη πᾶσαν ἐπελεύσεσθαι τὴν Ῥωμαίων ὑπήκοον· ἡ δʼ ἧττον ἐκείνης χρησίμη τὰ οἰκεῖα πολίσματα ὑπελείφθη φυλάττειν, μή §9.69.4τις ἔφοδος αἰφνίδιος πολεμίων ἐπʼ αὐτὰ γένηται.
For their strongest force, assembled from both nations, was in the field under two commanders, and was about to march through all the territory subject to the Romans, starting from the land of the Hernicians, where it then was; while the force less useful than that was left behind to guard their own towns, lest any sudden attack of the enemy should be made upon them.
πρὸς ταῦτα βουλευομένοις τοῖς Ῥωμαίων ὑπάτοις ἐδόκει κράτιστον εἶναι ταῖς πόλεσιν αὐτῶν πρῶτον ἐπιχειρεῖν, κατὰ τοιόνδε τινὰ λογισμόν, ὅτι διαλυθήσεται τὸ κοινὸν αὐτῶν στράτευμα, εἰ πύθοιντο ἕκαστοι τὰ οἰκεῖα ἐν τοῖς ἐσχάτοις ὄντα κινδύνοις, καὶ πολὺ κρεῖττον ἡγήσεται τὰ σφέτερα σώζειν, ἢ τὰ τῶν πολεμίων φθείρειν.
To the Roman consuls deliberating on these matters, it seemed best to attack their cities first, according to some such reasoning: that their joint army would be dissolved if each should learn that their own homes were in the greatest dangers, and would think it much better to save their own possessions than to destroy those of the enemy.
Λοκρήτιος μὲν οὖν εἰς τὴν Αἰκανῶν ἐνέβαλεν, Οὐετούριος δʼ εἰς τὴν Οὐολούσκων.
Lucretius, therefore, invaded the territory of the Aequians, and Veturius that of the Volscians.
Αἰκανοὶ μὲν οὖν τὰ ἔξω πάντα ἀπολλύμενα περιορῶντες τὴν πόλιν καὶ τὰ φρούρια εἶχον ἐν φυλακῇ.
The Aequians, then, looking on while everything outside was being destroyed, kept the city and the fortresses under guard.