lans, "by whose advice and assistance the
Veliternians and Privernians had made war on the Roman people." The
Tusculans, with their wives and children, came to Rome. The whole party
in mourning habits, like persons under accusation, went round the
tribes, throwing themselves at the feet of the citizens. The compassion
thus excited operated more effectually towards procuring them pardon,
than all their arguments did towards clearing them of guilt. Every one
of the tribes, except the Pollian, negatived the proposition. The
sentence of the Pollian tribe was, that the grown-up males should be
beaten and put to death, and their wives and children sold by auction,
according to the rules of war. It appears that the resentment which rose
against the advisers of so rigorous a measure, was retained in memory by
the Tusculans down to the age of our fathers; and that hardly any
candidate of the Pollian tribe could, ever since, gain the votes of the
Papirian.

38. On the following year, in the consulate of Quintus Fabius and Lucius
Fulvius, Aulus Cornelius Arvina being made dictator, and Marcus Fabius
Ambustus master of the horse, a levy being held with more than usual
rigour in consequence of their apprehension of a very serious war in
Samnium, (for it was reported that some young men had been hired from
their neighbours,) led forth a very strong army against the Samnites.
Although in a hostile country, their camp was pitched in as careless a
manner as if the foe were at a great distance; when, suddenly, the
legions of the Samnites approached with so much boldness as to advance
their rampart close to an out-post of the Romans. Night was now coming
on; that prevented their assaulting the works; but they did not conceal
their intention of doing so next day, as soon as the light should
appear. The dictator found that there would be a necessity for fighting
sooner than he had expected, and lest the situation should be an
obstruction to the bravery of the troops, he led away the legions in
silence, leaving a great number of fires the better to deceive the
enemy. On account of the proximity of the camps, however, he could not
escape their observation: their cavalry instantly pursued, and pressed
closely on his troops, in such a way as to refrain from attacking them
until the day appeared. Their infantry did not even quit their camp
before daylight. As soon as it was dawn, the cavalry venturing to attack
the enemy by harassing the Roman r