[3,32] Μετὰ δὲ τοῦτον τὸν πόλεμον ἕτερος ἀνέστη Ῥωμαίοις ἐκ τοῦ Σαβίνων ἔθνους, ἀρχὴ δὲ αὐτοῦ καὶ πρόφασις ἐγένετο τοιάδε· ἱερόν ἐστι κοινῇ τιμώμενον ὑπὸ Σαβίνων τε καὶ Λατίνων ἅγιον ἐν τοῖς πάνυ θεᾶς Φερωνείας ὀνομαζομένης, ἣν οἱ μεταφράζοντες εἰς τὴν Ἑλλάδα γλῶσσαν οἱ μὲν Ἀνθοφόρον, οἱ δὲ Φιλοστέφανον, οἱ δὲ Φερσεφόνην καλοῦσιν· εἰς δὴ τὸ ἱερὸν τοῦτο συνῄεσαν ἐκ τῶν περιοίκων πόλεων κατὰ τὰς ἀποδεδειγμένας ἑορτὰς πολλοὶ μὲν εὐχὰς ἀποδιδόντες καὶ θυσίας τῇ θεῷ, πολλοὶ δὲ χρηματιούμενοι διὰ τὴν πανήγυριν ἔμποροί τε καὶ χειροτέχναι καὶ γεωργοί, ἀγοραί τε αὐτόθι λαμπρόταται τῶν ἐν ἄλλοις τισὶ τόποις τῆς Ἰταλίας ἀγομένων ἐγίνοντο. εἰς ταύτην δὲ τὴν πανήγυριν ἐλθόντας ποτὲ Ῥωμαίων ἄνδρας οὐκ ἀφανεῖς Σαβῖνοί τινες {ἄνδρες} συναρπάσαντες ἔδησαν καὶ τὰ χρήματα ἀφείλοντο, πρεσβείας τε περὶ αὐτῶν ἀφικομένης οὐδὲν ἐβούλοντο τῶν δικαίων ποιεῖν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰ σώματα καὶ τὰ χρήματα τῶν συλληφθέντων κατεῖχον ἐγκαλοῦντες καὶ αὐτοὶ Ῥωμαίοις, ὅτι τοὺς Σαβίνων φυγάδας ὑπεδέχοντο κατασκευάσαντες ἄσυλον ἱερόν, ὑπὲρ ὧν ἐν τῷ πρὸ τούτου λόγῳ δεδήλωταί μοι. ἐκ τούτων δὴ τῶν ἐγκλημάτων εἰς πόλεμον καταστάντες ἐξῄεσαν εἰς ὕπαιθρον ἀμφότεροι δυνάμεσι πολλαῖς, γίνεταί τε αὐτῶν ἐκ παρατάξεως ἀγών· διέμενον γὰρ ἀγχωμάλως ἀγωνιζόμενοι καὶ διελύθησαν ὑπὸ τῆς νυκτὸς ἀμφίλογον καταλιπόντες τὸ νίκημα. ταῖς δ´ ἑξῆς ἡμέραις μαθόντες ἀμφότεροι τῶν τε ἀπολωλότων καὶ τῶν τραυματιῶν τὸ πλῆθος οὐκέτι πεῖραν ἐβούλοντο ἑτέρου λαβεῖν ἀγῶνος, ἀλλ´ ἐκλιπόντες τοὺς χάρακας ἀπῄεσαν· καὶ διαλιπόντες τὸν ἐνιαυτὸν ἐκεῖνον πάλιν ἐξῄεσαν ἐπ´ ἀλλήλους μείζονας παρασκευασάμενοι δυνάμεις, γίνεταί τε αὐτῶν περὶ πόλιν Ἠρητὸν ἀπὸ σταδίων ἑξήκοντα καὶ ἑκατὸν τῆς Ῥώμης ἀγών, ἐν ᾧ πολλοὺς μὲν ἀμφοτέρων συνέβη πεσεῖν· ἰσορρόπου δὲ κἀκείνης τῆς μάχης ἐπὶ πολὺν χρόνον διαμενούσης ἀνατείνας εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν τὰς χεῖρας ὁ Τύλλος εὔξατο τοῖς θεοῖς, ἐὰν νικήσῃ τῇ τόθ´ ἡμέρᾳ Σαβίνους, Κρόνου τε καὶ Ῥέας καταστήσεσθαι δημοτελεῖς ἑορτάς, ἃς ἄγουσι Ῥωμαῖοι καθ´ ἕκαστον ἐνιαυτὸν ὅταν ἅπαντας τοὺς ἐκ γῆς συγκομίσωσι καρπούς, καὶ τὸν τῶν Σαλίων καλουμένων διπλασιάσειν ἀριθμόν. οὗτοι δ´ εἰσὶ πατέρων εὐγενῶν ἐνοπλίους ὀρχήσεις κινούμενοι πρὸς αὐλὸν ἐν τοῖς καθήκουσι χρόνοις καὶ ὕμνους τινὰς ᾄδοντες πατρίους, ὡς ἐν τῷ προτέρῳ δεδήλωκα λόγῳ. μετὰ δὲ τὴν εὐχὴν ταύτην θάρσος τι καταλαμβάνει τοὺς Ῥωμαίους καὶ ὥσπερ ἀκμῆτες εἰς κάμνοντας ὠσάμενοι διασπῶσι τὰς τάξεις αὐτῶν περὶ δείλην ὀψίαν ἤδη καὶ ἀναγκάζουσι τοὺς πρωτοστάτας ἄρξαι φυγῆς, ἀκολουθήσαντές τε αὐτοῖς φεύγουσιν ἐπὶ τὸν χάρακα καὶ περὶ τὰς τάφρους πολλῷ πλείονας καταβαλόντες, οὐδ´ οὕτως ἀπετράποντο, ἀλλὰ παραμείναντες τὴν ἐπιοῦσαν νύκτα καὶ τοὺς ἀπὸ τοῦ ἐρύματος μαχομένους ἀνείρξαντες ἐκράτησαν τῆς παρεμβολῆς. μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο τὸ ἔργον ὅσην ἐβούλοντο τῆς τῶν Σαβίνων λεηλατήσαντες, ὡς οὐδεὶς αὐτοῖς οὐκέτι περὶ τῆς χώρας ἐξῄει μαχησόμενος, ἀπῄεσαν ἐπ´ οἴκου. ἀπὸ ταύτης τῆς μάχης τὸν τρίτον κατήγαγε θρίαμβον ὁ βασιλεύς, καὶ μετ´ οὐ πολὺ πρεσβευσαμένοις τοῖς Σαβίνοις καταλύεται τὸν πόλεμον αἰχμαλώτους τε παρ´ αὐτῶν κομισάμενος, οὓς ἐτύγχανον εἰληφότες ἐν ταῖς προνομαῖς, καὶ αὐτομόλους βοσκημάτων τε καὶ ὑποζυγίων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων χρημάτων ὅσα τοὺς γεωργοὺς ἀφείλοντο, ἣν ἔταξεν ἡ βουλὴ τῶν Ῥωμαίων ζημίαν τιμησαμένη τὰς βλάβας πρὸς ἀργύριον, ἀναπράξας.

[3,32] After this war another arose against the Romans on the part of the Sabine nation, the beginning and occasion of which was this. There is a sanctuary, honoured in common by the Sabines and the Latins, that is held in the greatest reverence and is dedicated to a goddess named Feronia; some of those who translate the name into Greek call her Anthophoros or "Flower Bearer," others Philostephanos or "Lover of Garlands," and still others (p141) Persephonê. To this sanctuary people used to resort from the neighbouring cities on the appointed days of festival, many of them performing vows and offering sacrifice to the goddess and many with the purpose of trafficking during the festive gathering as merchants, artisans and husbandmen; and here were held fairs more celebrated than in any other places in Italy. At this festival some Romans of considerable importance happened to be present on a certain occasion and were seized by some of the Sabines, who imprisoned them and robbed them of their money. And when an embassy was sent concerning them, the Sabines refused to give any satisfaction, but retained both the persons and the money of the men whom they had seized, and in their turn accused the Romans of having received the fugitives of the Sabines by establishing a sacred asylum (of which I gave an account in the preceding Book). As a result of these accusations the two nations became involved in war, and when both had taken the field with large forces a pitched battle occurred between them; and both sides continued to fight with equal fortunes until night parted them, leaving the victory in doubt. During the following days both of them, upon learning the number of the slain and wounded, were unwilling to hazard another battle but left their camps and retired. They let that year pass without further action, and then, having increased their forces, they again marched out against one another and near the city of (p143) Eretum, distant one hundred and sixty stades from Rome, engaged in a battle in which many fell on both sides. And when that battle also continued doubtful for a long time, Tullus, lifting his hands to heaven, made a vow to the gods that if he conquered the Sabines that day he would institute public festivals in honour of Saturn and Ops (the Romans celebrate them every year after they have gathered in all the fruits of the earth)35 and would double the number of the Salii, as they are called. These are youths of noble families who at appointed times dance, fully armed, to the sound of the flute and sing certain traditional hymns, as I have explained in the preceding Book. 36After this vow the Romans were filled with a kind of confidence and, like fresh troops falling on those that are exhausted, they at last broke the enemy's line in the late afternoon and forced the first ranks to begin flight. Then, pursuing them as they fled to their camp, they cut down many more round the trenches, and even then did not turn back, but having stayed there the following night and cleared the ramparts of their defenders, they made themselves masters of the camp. After this action they ravaged as much of the territory of the Sabines as they wished, but when no one any longer came out against them to protect the country, they returned home. Because of this victory the king triumphed a third time; and not long afterwards, when the Sabines sent ambassadors, he put an end to the war, having first received from them the captives that they had taken in their foraging expeditions, together with the deserters, and levied the penalty which the Roman senate, estimating the damage at a certain sum of money, had imposed upon them for the cattle, the beasts of burden and the other effects that they had taken from the husbandmen.