were
received with cheers and great delight; they then mounted their horses
and fled, in order to kindle wars in many quarters.

8. When Fame, ever the malignant nurse of bad news, bruited this
abroad, the whole nation of the Thuringians became suddenly inflamed
with a desire for war; and among many preparations which seemed to
betoken danger, the standards of war were raised according to custom,
and the trumpets poured forth sounds of evil omen; while the predatory
bands collected in troops plundering and burning villages, and throwing
everything that came in their way into alarm by their fearful
devastations.

9. Against these hosts, Lupicinus, having collected his forces with the
greatest possible rapidity, advanced with more rashness than prudence,
and halted in battle array nine miles from the city. The barbarians,
perceiving this, charged our battalions before we expected them, and
dashing upon the shields with which they covered their bodies, they cut
down all who fell in their way with their swords and spears; and urged
on by their bloodthirsty fury, they continued the slaughter, till they
had taken our standards, and the tribunes and the greater part of the
soldiers had fallen, with the exception of the unhappy general, who
could find nothing to do but, while all the rest were fighting, to
betake himself to flight, and return full gallop to the city. And then
the enemies, clothing themselves in the arms of the Romans whom they had
slain, pushed on their devastating march without hindrance.

10. And since, after recounting various other exploits, we have now come
to this portion of our subject, we call upon our readers (if we shall
ever have any) not to expect a minute detail of everything that took
place, or of the number of the slain, which indeed it would be utterly
impossible to give. It will be sufficient to abstain from concealing any
part of the truth by a lie, and to give the general outline of what took
place: since a faithful honesty of narration is always proper if one
would hand events down to the recollection of posterity.

11. Those who are ignorant of antiquity declare that the republic was
never so overwhelmed with the darkness of adverse fortune; but they are
deceived in consequence of the stupor into which they are thrown by
these calamities, which are still fresh in their memory. For if the
events of former ages, or even of those immediately preceding our own
times are considered, it will