the soldiers to place their hope of safety in their weapons.  So they joined battle with the enemy.  Meanwhile a wolf in pursuit of a deer had invaded the space between the two armies and darting toward the Romans passed through their ranks.  This encouraged them, for they regarded themselves as having a bond of union with him, since, according to tradition, a she-wolf had reared Romulus.  But the deer ran to the other side and was struck down, thus leaving to them fear and the issue of disaster.  When the armies collided, Maximus quite easily conquered the foes opposed to him, but Decius was defeated.  And recalling the self-devotion of his father, undertaken on account of the dream, he likewise devoted himself, though without giving anybody any information about his act.  Scarcely had he let himself be slain, when the men ranged at his side, partly through shame at his deed (feeling that he had perished voluntarily for them) and partly in the hopes of certain victory as a result of this occurrence, checked their flight and nobly withstood their pursuers.  At this juncture Maximus, too, assailed the latter in the rear and slaughtered vast numbers.  The survivors took to their heels and were annihilated.  Fabius Maximus then burned the corpse of Decius together with the spoils and made a truce with such as asked for peace.

The following year Atilius Regulus again waged war with the Samnites.  And for a time they carried on an evenly contested struggle, but eventually, after the Samnites had won a victory, the Romans conquered them in turn, took them captive, led them beneath the yoke, and so released them. [Sidenote:  FRAG. 33^23] THE SAMNITES, ENRAGED AT WHAT HAD OCCURRED, RESORTED TO DESPERATE MEASURES WITH THE INTENTION OF EITHER CONQUERING OR BEING UTTERLY DESTROYED, THREATENING WITH DEATH HIM WHO SHOULD REMAIN AT HOME.  So these invaded Campania:  but the consuls ravaged Samnium, since it was destitute of soldiers, and captured a few cities.  Therefore the Samnites abandoning Campania made haste to reach their own land; and having come into hostile collision with one of the consuls they were defeated by a trick and in their flight met with terrible reverses, losing their camp and in addition the fortress to the assistance of which they were advancing.  The consul celebrated a triumph and devoted to public uses the goods gathered from the spoils.  The other consul made a campaign against the Etruscans and reduced them in short order:  he then levied upon them contributions of grain and money, of which he distributed a part to the soldiers and deposited the rest in the treasuries.