the fall of so distinguished a man, and that the exiles
were advancing boldly at a run, and his own men disheartened
and giving ground, gave the signal to his own cohort,
a chosen body of men which he kept for the defence
of his person, to treat every Roman soldier, whom
they saw fleeing from the battle, as an enemy.
Upon this the Romans, in fear of the danger on both
sides, turned from flight and attacked the enemy,
and the battle was restored. The dictator’s
cohort then for the first time engaged in the fight,
and with persons and courage unimpaired, fell on the
wearied exiles, and cut them to pieces. There
another engagement took place between the leading
officers. The Latin general, on seeing the cohort
of the exiles almost surrounded by the Roman dictator,
hurried up some companies of reserves to the front.
Titus Herminius, a lieutenant-general, seeing them
advancing in a body, and recognising Mamilius, distinguished
among them by his armour and dress, encountered the
leader of the enemy with violence so much greater
than the master of the horse had shown a little before,
that at one thrust he ran him through the side and
slew him. While stripping the body of his enemy,
he himself received a wound with a javelin, and, though
brought back to the camp victorious, died while it
was being dressed. Then the dictator hurried
up to the cavalry, entreating them, as the infantry
were tired out, to dismount and take up the fight.
They obeyed his orders, dismounted, flew to the front,
and, taking the place of the first line, covered themselves
with their targets. The infantry immediately recovered
their courage when they saw the young nobles sustaining
a share of the danger with them, the mode of fighting
being now the same for all. Then at length the
Latins were beaten back, and their line, disheartened,
gave way. The horses were then brought up to the
cavalry, that they might pursue the enemy: the
infantry likewise followed. Thereupon the dictator,
disregarding nothing that held out hope of divine
or human aid, is said to have vowed a temple to Castor,
and to have promised rewards to the first and second
of the soldiers who should enter the enemy’s
camp. Such was the ardour of the Romans that
they took the camp with the same impetuosity wherewith
they had routed the enemy in the field. Such
was the engagement at the Lake Regillus.
The dictator and master of the horse returned to the city in triumph. For the next three years there was neither settled peace nor open war. The consuls were Q. Cloelius and T. Larcius. They were succeeded by A. Sempronius and M. Minucius. During their consulship a temple was dedicated to Saturn and the festival of the Saturnalia instituted. The next consuls were A. Postumius and T. Verginius. I find in some authors this year given as the date of the battle at Lake Regillus, and that A. Postumius laid down his consulship because the fidelity of his colleague was suspected, on which a Dictator was appointed.