[8,65] Ἀκύλλιος μὲν οὖν ἅτερος τῶν ὑπάτων ἐν τῇ Πραινεστηνῶν χώρᾳ τὸν Ἑρνίκων στρατὸν ὑπομένοντα καταλαβὼν ἀντικατεστρατοπέδευσεν ὡς ἐδύνατο μάλιστ´ ἀγχοτάτω σταδίους ἀπὸ τῆς Ῥώμης ἀποσχὼν ὀλίγῳ πλείους διακοσίων· τρίτῃ δ´ ἀφ´ ἧς κατεστρατοπέδευσεν ἡμέρᾳ, προελθόντων ἐκ τοῦ χάρακος τῶν Ἑρνίκων εἰς τὸ πεδίον ἐν τάξει καὶ τὰ σημεῖ´ ἀράντων τῆς μάχης, ἀντεξῆγε καὶ αὐτὸς τὴν δύναμιν ἐν κόσμῳ τε καὶ κατὰ τέλη. ἐπεὶ δ´ ἀγχοῦ ἐγένοντο ἀλλήλων ἔθεον ἀλαλάξαντες ὁμόσε, πρῶτον μὲν οἱ ψιλοὶ σαυνίων τε βολαῖς καὶ τοξεύμασι καὶ λίθοις ἀπὸ σφενδόνης μαχόμενοι, καὶ πολλὰ τραύματα ἔδοσαν ἀλλήλοις· ἔπειτα ἱππεῖς ἱππεῦσι συρράττουσι κατ´ ἴλας ἐλαύνοντες καὶ τὸ πεζὸν τῷ πεζῷ κατὰ σπείρας μαχόμενον. ἔνθα δὴ καλὸς ἀγὼν ἦν ἐκθύμως ἀμφοτέρων ἀγωνιζομένων, καὶ μέχρι πολλοῦ διέμενον οὐδέτεροι τοῖς ἑτέροις τοῦ χωρίου, ἐν ᾧ ἐτάχθησαν, εἴκοντες. ἔπειτα ἡ Ῥωμαίων ἤρξατο κάμνειν φάλαγξ, οἷα διὰ πολλοῦ τοῦ μεταξὺ χρόνου τότε πρῶτον ἠναγκασμένη ὁμιλεῖν πολέμῳ. τοῦτο συνιδὼν Ἀκύλλιος ἐκέλευσε τοὺς ἀκμῆτας ἔτι καὶ εἰς αὐτὸ τοῦτο φυλαττομένους ὑπὸ τὰ κάμνοντα τῆς φάλαγγος ὑπελθεῖν μέρη, τοὺς δὲ τραυματίας καὶ τοὺς ἀπειρηκότας ὀπίσω τῆς φάλαγγος ἀπιέναι. οἱ δ´ Ἕρνικες ὡς ἔμαθον κινουμένους αὐτῶν τοὺς λόχους φυγῆς τ´ ἄρχειν τοὺς Ῥωμαίους ὑπέλαβον, καὶ παρακελευσάμενοι ἀλλήλοις ἐμβάλλουσι πυκνοῖς τοῖς λόχοις εἰς τὰ κινούμενα τῶν πολεμίων μέρη, καὶ οἱ ἀκραιφνεῖς τῶν Ῥωμαίων ἐπιόντας αὐτοὺς δέχονται· καὶ ἦν αὖθις ἐξ ὑπαρχῆς ἀμφοτέρων ἐκθύμως ἀγωνιζομένων μάχη καρτερά· καὶ γὰρ καὶ οἱ τῶν Ἑρνίκων ἐξεπληροῦντο λόχοι τοῖς ἀκμῆσιν ὑποπεμπομένοις εἰς τὰ κάμνοντα ὑπὸ τῶν ἡγεμόνων. ἐπειδὴ δὲ περὶ δείλην ὀψίαν ἦν ἤδη, παρακαλέσας τοὺς ἱππεῖς ὁ ὕπατος νυνὶ δὴ ἄνδρας ἀγαθοὺς γενέσθαι, ἐμβάλλει τοῖς πολεμίοις κατὰ τὸ δεξιὸν κέρας αὐτὸς ἡγούμενος τῆς ἴλης. οἱ δ´ ὀλίγον τινὰ δεξάμενοι χρόνον αὐτοὺς ἐγκλίνουσι, καὶ γίνεται φόνος ἐνταῦθα πολύς. τὸ μὲν οὖν δεξιὸν τῶν Ἑρνίκων κέρας ἐπόνει τ´ ἤδη καὶ ἐξέλειπε τὴν τάξιν, τὸ δ´ εὐώνυμον ἔτι ἀντεῖχε καὶ περιῆν τοῦ Ῥωμαίων δεξιοῦ· μετ´ ὀλίγον μέντοι καὶ τοῦτ´ ἐνέδωκεν. ὁ γὰρ Ἀκύλλιος τοὺς ἀρίστους τῶν νέων ἐπαγόμενος παρεβοήθει κἀκεῖ παραθαρρύνων τε καὶ ἐξ ὀνόματος ἀνακαλῶν τοὺς εἰωθότας ἐν ταῖς πρὶν ἀριστεύειν μάχαις, τά τε σημεῖα τῶν λόχων, ὅσοι μὴ ἐρρωμένως ἐδόκουν ἀμύνεσθαι, παρὰ τῶν σημειοφόρων ἁρπάζων εἰς μέσους ἐρρίπτει τοὺς πολεμίους, ἵνα τὸ δέος αὐτοὺς τῆς ἐννόμου τιμωρίας, εἰ μὴ ἀνασώσαιντο τὰς σημαίας, ἄνδρας ἀγαθοὺς εἶναι ἀναγκάσῃ· τῷ τε κάμνοντι αὐτὸς παρεβοήθει μέρει ἀεί, τέως ἐξέωσε τῆς στάσεως καὶ θάτερον κέρας. ψιλωθέντων δὲ τῶν ἄκρων οὐδὲ τὰ μέσα παρέμεινε. φυγὴ δὴ τῶν Ἑρνίκων τὸ μετὰ τοῦτ´ ἐγίνετο ἐπὶ τὸν χάρακα τεταραγμένη τε καὶ ἄκοσμος, καὶ οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι αὐτοῖς κτείνοντες ἠκολούθουν. τοσαύτη δ´ ἄρα προθυμία παρὰ τὸν τότ´ ἀγῶνα τῇ Ῥωμαίων στρατιᾷ ἐνέπεσεν, ὥστε καὶ τοῦ χάρακος τῶν πολεμίων πειρᾶσθαί τινας ἐπιβαίνειν ὡς ἐξ ἐφόδου χειρωσομένους· ὧν οὐκ ἀσφαλῆ τὴν προθυμίαν οὐδ´ ἐν τῷ συμφέροντι γιγνομένην ὁρῶν ὁ ὕπατος, σημαίνειν κελεύσας τὸ ἀνακλητικὸν κατεβίβασε τοὺς ὁμόσε χωροῦντας ἄκοντας ἀπὸ τῶν ἐρυμάτων, δείσας, μὴ ἐξ ὑπερδεξιῶν βαλλόμενοι σὺν αἰσχύνῃ τε καὶ μετὰ μεγάλης βλάβης ἀναγκασθῶσιν ὑποχωρεῖν, ἔπειτα καὶ τὴν ἐκ τῆς προτέρας νίκης εὔκλειαν ἀφανίσωσι. τότε μὲν οὖν ἤδη {καὶ} γὰρ ἦν περὶ δύσιν ἡλίου· χαίροντές τε καὶ παιανίζοντες οἱ Ῥωμαῖοι κατεστρατοπέδευσαν.

[8,65] Aquilius, one of the consuls, finding the army of the Hernicans waiting for him in the country of the Praenestines, encamped as near to them as he could, at a distance of a little more than two hundred stades from Rome. The second day after he had pitched his camp the Hernicans came out of their camp into the plain in order of battle and gave the signal for combat; whereupon Aquilius also marched out to meet them with his army duly drawn up and disposed in their several divisions. When they drew near to one another, they uttered their war-cries and ran to the encounter; and first to engage were the light-armed men, who, fighting with javelins, arrows, and stones from their slings, gave one another many wounds. Next, horsemen clashed with horsemen, charging in troops, and infantry with infantry, fighting by cohorts. then there was a glorious struggle as both armies fought stubbornly; and for a long time they stood firm, neither side yielding to the other the ground where they were posted. At length the Romans' line began to be in distress, this being the first occasion in a long time that they had been forced to engaged in war. Aquilius, observing this, ordered that the troops which were still fresh and were being reserved for this very purpose should (p191) come up to reinforce the parts of the line that were in distress and that the men who were wounded and exhausted should retire to the rear. The Hernicans, learning that their troops were being shifted, imagined that the Romans were beginning flight; and encouraging one another and closing their ranks, they fell upon those parts of the enemy's army that were in motion, and the fresh troops of the Romans received their onset. Thus once more, as both sides fought stubbornly, there was a strenuous battle all over again; for the ranks of the Hernicans were also continually reinforced with fresh troops sent up by their generals to the parts of the line that were in distress. At length, late in the afternoon, the consul, encouraging the horsemen now at least to acquit themselves as brave men, led the squadron in a charge at the enemy's right wing. This, after resisting them for a short time, fell back, and a great slaughter ensued. While the Hernicans' right wing was now in difficulties and no longer keeping its ranks, their left still held out and was superior to the Romans' right; but in a short time this too gave way. For Aquilius, taking with him the best of the youth, hastened to the rescue there also, and exhorting his men and calling by name upon those who had been wont to distinguish themselves in former battles, and seizing from their bearers the standards of any centuries that did not seem to be fighting resolutely, he hurled them into the midst of the enemy, in order that their fear of the punishment prescribed by the laws in the case of failure to recover the standards might compel them to be brave men; and he himself continually came to (p193) the relief of any part that was in distress, till he dislodged the other wing also from its position. Their flanks being now exposed, even the centre did not stand its ground. It became a flight then for the Hernicans, a flight back to their camp in confusion and disorder; and the Romans pursued, cutting them down. Such ardour, indeed, came upon the Roman army in that struggle that some of the men endeavoured even to mount the ramparts of the enemy's camp in the hope of taking it by storm. But the consul, perceiving that their ardour was hazardous and detrimental, ordered the signal for a retreat to be sounded and thus brought down from the ramparts against their will those who were coming to blows with the enemy; for he feared that they would be forced by the missiles hurled down upon them from above to retire with shame and great loss and would thus efface the glory of their earlier victory. On that occasion, then, it being now near sunset, the Romans made their camp rejoicing and singing songs of triumph.