After the Fabii had been destroyed as related the Romans received rough treatment at the hands of the Etruscans.  Subsequently they concluded a peace with the enemy, but turning against one another committed many deeds of outrage, the populace not even refraining from attack upon the praetors.  They beat their assistants and shattered their fasces and made the praetors themselves submit to investigation on every pretext, great and small.  They actually planned to throw Appius Claudius into prison in the very midst of his term of office, inasmuch as he persistently opposed them at every point and had decimated the partners of his campaign after their giving way before the Volsci in battle.  Now decimation was the following sort of process.  When the soldiers had committed any grave offence the leader told them off in groups of ten and taking one man of each ten (who had drawn the lot) he would punish him by death.  At Claudius’s retirement from office the popular party straightway brought him to trial; and though they failed to condemn him, they forced him, by postponing their vote, to commit suicide.  And among the measures introduced by some of the tribunes to the prejudice of the patrician interests was one permitting the populace to convene separately, and without interference from the patricians to deliberate upon and transact as much business as they pleased.  They also ordained that, if any one for any cause should have a penalty imposed upon him by the praetors, the populace might thereupon have the case appealed to them and decide it.  And they increased the number of aediles and of tribunes, in order to have a large body of persons to act as their representatives.

[Sidenote:  FRAG. 21^1] DURING THE PROGRESS OF THESE EVENTS THE PATRICIANS OPENLY TOOK SCARCELY ANY RETALIATORY MEASURES, EXCEPT IN A FEW CASES, BUT SECRETLY SLAUGHTERED A NUMBER OF THE BOLDEST SPIRITS.  NEITHER THIS, HOWEVER, NOR THE FACT THAT ON ONE OCCASION NINE TRIBUNES WERE DELIVERED TO THE FLAMES BY THE POPULACE SEEMED TO RESTRAIN THE REST. NOT ONLY WERE THOSE WHO SUBSEQUENTLY HELD THE TRIBUNESHIP NOT CALMED, BUT ACTUALLY THEY WERE THE RATHER EMBOLDENED. [Sidenote:  FRAG. 21^2] THIS WAS THE CONDITION INTO WHICH THE PATRICIANS BROUGHT THE POPULACE.  AND THEY WOULD NOT OBEY THE SUMMONS TO GO ON A CAMPAIGN, THOUGH THE FOE ASSAILED, UNLESS THEY SECURED THE OBJECTS FOR WHICH THEY WERE STRIVING, AND IF THEY EVER DID TAKE THE FIELD, THEY FOUGHT LISTLESSLY, UNLESS THEY HAD ACCOMPLISHED ALL THAT THEY DESIRED. HENCE MANY OF THE TRIBES LIVING CLOSE TO THEM, RELYING ON EITHER THE DISSENSION OF THEIR FOES OR THEIR OWN STRENGTH, RAISED THE STANDARD OF REVOLT. [Sidenote:  FRAG. 22^1] AMONG THESE WERE ALSO THE AEQUI, WHO, AFTER CONQUERING AT THIS TIME MARCUS MINUCIUS WHILE HE SERVED AS PRAETOR, BECAME PRESUMPTUOUS. [Sidenote:  FRAG. 22^2] THOSE AT ROME, LEARNING THAT MINUCIUS HAD BEEN DEFEATED, CHOSE AS DICTATOR LUCIUS QUINCTIUS, WHO WAS A POOR MAN AND HAD DEVOTED HIS LIFE TO FARMING, BUT WAS DISTINGUISHED