ὁ δὲ Κάμιλλος ἐπὶ χιλιαρχίαν ἕκτην καλούμενος παρῃτεῖτο, γεγονὼς μὲν ἡλικίας ἤδη πρόσω καί πού τινα καί φθόνον δεδιὼς καί νέμεσιν ἐπὶ δόξῃ τοσαύτῃ καί κατορθώμασιν· ἡ δὲ φανερωτάτη τῶν αἰτιῶν ἦν ἀρρωστία σώματος· ἐτύγχανε γὰρ νοσῶν περὶ τὰς ἡμέρας ἐκείνας.
Camillus, called now to be military tribune for the sixth time, declined the honour, being already well on in years, and fearful perhaps of the envy of men and the resentment of the gods which often follows upon such glorious successes as his. But the most manifest reason was his bodily weakness, for it chanced that in those days he was sick.
οὐ μὴν π.,ρῆκεν αὐτῷ τὴν ἀρχὴν ὁ δῆμος, ἀλλὰ βοῶν μήτε ἱππεύοντος αὐτοῦ μήτε ὁπλομαχοῦντος ἐν τοῖς ἀγῶσι δεῖσθαι, βουλευομένου δὲ μόνον καί προστάττοντος, ἠνάγκασεν ὑποστῆναι τὴν στρατηγίαν καί μεθʼ ἑνὸς τῶν συναρχόντων Λευκίου Φουρίου τὸν στρατὸν ἄγειν εὐθὺς ἐπὶ τοὺς πολεμίους. οὗτοι δʼ ἦσαν Πραινεστῖνοι καί Οὐολοῦσκοι μετὰ πολλῆς δυνάμεως τὴν συμμαχίδα τῶν Ῥωμαίων πορθοῦντες.
The people, however, would not relieve him of the office. He had no need, they cried, to fight in the ranks of the cavalry or the men-at-arms, but only to counsel and ordain; and so they forced him to undertake the command, and with one of his colleagues, Lucius Furius, to lead the army at once against the enemy. These were the Praenestines and Volscians, who, with a large force, were laying waste the lands of the Roman allies.
ἐξελθὼν δὲ καί παραστρατοπεδεύσας τοῖς πολεμίοις αὐτὸς μὲν ἠξίου τρίβειν τὸν πόλεμον χρόνῳ, κἂν εἰ μάχης δεήσειε ῥώσας τὸ σῶμα διαγωνίσασθαι, Λευκίου δὲ τοῦ συνάρχοντος ἐπιθυμίᾳ δόξης φερομένου πρὸς τὸν κίνδυνον ἀκατασχέτως καί συνεξορμῶντος ἅμα ταξιάρχους καί λοχαγούς, φοβηθεὶς μὴ φθόνῳ δή τινι δοκῇ κατόρθωμα καί φιλοτιμίαν ἀφαιρεῖσθαι νέων ἀνδρῶν συνεχώρησεν ἄκων ἐκείνῳ παρατάξαι τὴν δύναμιν, αὐτὸς δὲ διὰ τὴν ἀσθένειαν ὑπελείφθη μετʼ ὀλίγων ἐν τῷ στρατοπέδῳ.
Marching forth, therefore, and encamping near the enemy, he himself thought it best to protract the war, that so, in case a battle should at last be necessary, he might be strong of body for the decisive struggle. But Lucius, his colleague, carried away by his desire for glory, would not be checked in his ardour for battle, and incited the same feelings in the inferior officers of the army. So Camillus, fearing lest it be thought that out of petty jealousy he was trying to rob younger men of the successes to which they eagerly aspired, consented, with reluctance, that Lucius should lead the forces out to battle, while he himself, on account of his sickness, was left behind in the camp with a few followers.
τοῦ δὲ Λευκίου προπετῶς χρησαμένου τῇ μάχῃ καί σφαλέντος, αἰσθόμενος τὴν τροπὴν τῶν Ῥωμαίων οὐ κατέσχεν αὑτόν, ἀλλʼ ἀναθορὼν ἐκ τῆς στιβάδος ἀπήντα μετὰ τῶν ὀπαδῶν ἐπὶ τὰς πύλας τοῦ χάρακος, διὰ τῶν φευγόντων ὠθούμενος εἰς τοὺς διώκοντας, ὥστε τοὺς μὲν εὐθὺς ἀναστρέφειν καί συνακολουθεῖν, τοὺς δὲ προσφερομένους ἔξωθεν ἵστασθαι πρὸ αὐτοῦ καὶ συνασπίζειν, παρεγγυῶντας ἀλλήλοις μὴ ἀπολείπεσθαι τοῦ στρατηγοῦ.
Lucius conducted the battle rashly and was discomfited, whereupon Camillus, perceiving the rout of the Romans, could not restrain himself, but sprang up from his couch and ran with his attendants to the gate of the camp. Through the fugitives he pushed his way to their pursuers. Those of his men who had passed him into the camp, wheeled about at once and followed him, and those who came bearing down on him from outside, halted and formed their lines about him, exhorting one another not to abandon their general.
τότε μὲν οὖν οὕτως ἀπετράποντο τῆς διώξεως οἱ πολέμιοι· τῇ δʼ ὑστεραίᾳ προαγαγὼν τὴν δύναμιν ὁ Κάμιλλος καί συνάψας μάχην αὐτούς τε νικᾷ κατὰ κράτος καὶ τὸν χάρακα λαμβάνει συνεισπεσὼν τοῖς φεύγουσι καί διαφθείρας τοὺς πλείστους, ἐκ δὲ τούτου πυθόμενος πόλιν Σατρίαν ὑπὸ Τυρρηνῶν ἑαλωκέναι καί τοὺς οἰκήτορας ἀπεσφάχθαι Ῥωμαίους ἅπαντας ὄντας, τὴν μὲν πολλὴν καί βαρεῖαν τῆς δυνάμεως εἰς Ῥώμην ἀπέστειλεν, αὐτὸς δὲ τοὺς ἀκμάζοντας μάλιστα καί προθυμοτάτους ἀναλαβών ἐπέβαλε τοῖς τὴν πόλιν ἔχουσι Τυρρηνοῖς καί κρατήσας τοὺς μὲν ἐξήλασεν αὐτῶν, τοὺς δὲ ἀπέκτεινεν.
In this way, for that day, the enemy were turned back from their pursuit. On the next day, Camillus led his forces out, joined battle with the enemy, defeated them utterly, and took their camp, actually bursting into it along with those who fled to it, and slaying most of them. After this, learning that the city of Satricum had been taken by the Tuscans, and its inhabitants, all Romans, put to the sword, he sent back to Rome the main body of his army, comprising the men-at-arms, while he himself, with the youngest and most ardent of his men, fell suddenly upon the Tuscans who held the city and mastered them, expelling some and slaying the rest.
ἐπανελθὼν δὲ μετὰ πολλῶν λαφύρων εἰς Ῥώμην ἐπέδειξε φρονιμωτάτους ἁπάντων τοὺς μὴ φοβηθέντας ἀσθένειαν καὶ γῆρας ἡγεμόνος ἐμπειρίαν καὶ τόλμαν ἔχοντος, ἀλλʼ ἑλομένους ἐκεῖνον ἄκοντα καὶ νοσοῦντα μᾶλλον ἢ τῶν ἐν ἡλικίᾳ τοὺς δεομένους καὶ σπουδάζοντας ἄρχειν. διὸ καὶ Τουσκλανῶν ἀφεστάναι λεγομένων ἐκέλευον ἐξιέναι τὸν Κάμιλλον ἐπʼ αὐτούς ἕνα τῶν πέντε συστρατήγων προσελόμενον.
ὁ δέ, καίπερ ἁπάντων βουλομένων καὶ δεομένων, ἐάσας τοὺς ἄλλους, προσείλετο Λεύκιον Φούριον οὐδενὸς ἂν προσδοκήσαντος, · ἐκεῖνος γὰρ ἦν ὁ παρὰ γνώμην τοῦ Καμίλλου διαγωνίσασθαι προθυμηθεὶς ἔναγχος καὶ δυστυχήσας περὶ τὴν μάχην ἀλλὰ βουλόμενος, ὡς ἔοικεν, ἀποκρύψαι τὴν συμφορὰν καὶ τὴν αἰσχύνην ἀπαλλάξαι τοῦ ἀνδρός ἀντὶ πάντων τοῦτον προῆγεν.
οἱ δὲ Τουσκλανοὶ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐπανορθούμενοι πανούργως, ἤδη βαδίζοντος ἐπʼ αὐτούς τοῦ Καμίλλου τὸ μὲν πεδίον ἀνθρώπων ὡς ἐν εἰρήνῃ γεωργούντων καὶ νεμόντων ἐνέπλησαν, τὰς δὲ πύλας εἶχον ἀνεῳγμένας καὶ τοὺς παῖδας ἐν τοῖς διδασκαλείοις μανθάνοντας, τοῦ δὲ δήμου τὸ μὲν βάναυσον ἐπὶ τῶν ἐργαστηρίων ἑωρᾶτο περὶ τάς τέχνας, τὸ δʼ ἀστεῖον ἐπὶ τῆς ἀγορᾶς ἐν ἱματίοις οἱ δʼ ἄρχοντες περιῄεσαν σπουδῇ καταλύσεις τοῖς Ῥωμαίοις ἐπαγγέλλοντες, ὡς οὐδὲν κακὸν προσδοκῶντες οὐδὲ συνειδότες. τούτων δὲ πραττομένων ἀπιστεῖν μὲν οὐκ ἐπῄει τῷ Καμίλλῳ τὴν προδοσίαν, οἰκτείρας δὲ τὴν ἐπὶ τῇ προδοσίᾳ μετάνοιαν αὐτῶν ἐκέλευσε πρὸς τὴν σύγκλητον ἐλθόντας παραιτεῖσθαι τὴν ὀργήν καὶ παραιτουμένοις συνέπραξεν αὐτὸς ἀφεθῆναί τε τὴν πόλιν αἰτίας ἁπάσης καὶ μεταλαβεῖν ἰσοπολιτείας, αὗται μὲν οὖν ἐγένοντο τῆς ἕκτης χιλιαρχίας ἐπιφανέσταται πράξεις.
He returned with much spoil to Rome, having proved that those citizens were the most sensible of all who did not fear the bodily age and weakness of a leader possessed of experience and courage, but chose him out, though he was ill and did not wish it, rather than younger men who craved and solicited the command. They showed the same good sense, when the Tusculans were reported to be on the brink of a revolt, in ordering Camillus to select one of his five colleagues as an aid, and march out against them.
Although all the five wished and begged to be taken, Camillus passed the rest by and selected Lucius Furius, to everyone’s surprise. For he was the man who had just now been eager to hazard a struggle with the enemy against the judgment of Camillus, and had been worsted in the battle. But Camillus wished, as it would seem, to hide away the misfortune and wipe away the disgrace of the man, and so preferred him above all the rest.
But the Tusculans, when once Camillus was on the march against them, set to rectifying their transgression as craftily as they could. Their fields were found full of men tilling the soil and pasturing flocks, as in times of peace; their gates lay wide open; their boys were at school conning their lessons; and of the people, the artizans were to be seen in their workshops plying their trades, the men of leisure sauntered over the forum clad in their usual garb, while the magistrates bustled about assigning quarters for the Romans, as though they expected and were conscious of no evil.
Their performances did not bring Camillus into any doubt of their intended treachery, but out of pity for the repentance that followed so close upon their treachery, he ordered them to go to the Senate and beg for a remission of its wrath. He himself also helped to make their prayers effectual, so that their city was absolved from all charges and received the rights of Roman citizenship. Such were the most conspicuous achievements of his sixth tribuneship.
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