6.2
They were
not, however, long left undisturbed whilst thus considering the best means of
restoring the commonwealth after its grievous fall. On the one side, the
Volscians, their ancient foes, had taken up arms in the determination to wipe
out the name of Rome; on the other side, traders were bringing in reports of
an assembly at the fane of Voltumna, where the leading men from all the
Etruscan cantons were forming a hostile league. Still further alarm was
created by the defection of the Latins and Hernicans. After the battle of Lake
Regillus these nations had never wavered for 100 years in their loyal
friendship with Rome. As so many dangers were threatening on all sides and
it became evident the name of Rome was not only held in hatred by her foes,
but regarded with contempt by her allies, the senate decided that the State
should be defended under the auspices of the man by whom it had been
recovered, and that M. Furius Camillus should be nominated Dictator. He
nominated as his Master of the Horse, C. Servilius Ahala, and after closing
the law courts and suspending all business he proceeded to enrol all the men
of military age. Those of the "seniors" who still possessed some vigour were
placed in separate centuries after they had taken the military oath. When he
had completed the enrolment and equipment of the army he formed it into
three divisions. One he stationed in the Veientine territory fronting Etruria.
The second was ordered to form an entrenched camp to cover the City; A.
Manlius, as military tribune, was in command of this division, whilst L.
Aemilius in a similar capacity directed the movement against the Etruscans.
The third division he led in person against the Volscians and advanced to
attack their encampment at a place called Ad Mecium, not far from
Lanuvium. They had gone to war in a feeling of contempt for their enemy as
they believed that almost all the Roman fighting men had been annihilated by
the Gauls, but when they heard that Camillus was in command they were
filled with such alarm that they raised a rampart round them and barricaded
the rampart with trees piled up round it to prevent the enemy from
penetrating their lines at any point. As soon as he became aware of this
Camillus ordered fire to be thrown on the barricade. The wind happened to
be blowing strongly towards the enemy, and so it not only opened up a way
through the fire, but by driving the flames into the camp it produced such
consternation amongst the defenders, with the steam and smoke and
crackling of the green wood as it burnt, that the Roman soldiers found less
difficulty in surmounting the rampart and forcing the camp than in crossing
the burnt barricade. The enemy were routed and cut to pieces. After the
capture of the camp the Dictator gave the booty to the soldiers; an act all the
more welcome to them as they did not expect it from a general by no means
given to generosity. In the pursuit he ravaged the length and breadth of the
Volscian territory, and at last after seventy years of war forced them to
surrender. From his conquest of the Volscians he marched across to the
Aequi who were also preparing for war, surprised their army at Bolae, and in
the first assault captured not only their camp but their city.