[10,53] Ἐπὶ δὲ τῆς ὀγδοηκοστῆς καὶ δευτέρας ὀλυμπιάδος, ἣν ἐνίκα στάδιον Λύκος Θεσσαλὸς ἀπὸ Λαρίσης, ἄρχοντος Ἀθήνησι Χαιρεφάνους, ἐτῶν τριακοσίων ἐκπεπληρωμένων ἀπὸ τοῦ Ῥώμης συνοικισμοῦ, Ποπλίου Ὁρατίου καὶ Σέξτου Κοιντιλίου διαδεδεγμένων τὴν ὕπατον ἀρχήν, λοιμικὴ νόσος εἰς τὴν Ῥώμην κατέσκηψε μεγίστη τῶν ἐκ τοῦ προτέρου χρόνου μνημονευομένων· ὑφ´ ἧς οἱ μὲν θεράποντες ὀλίγου ἐδέησαν πάντες ἀπολέσθαι, τῶν δ´ ἄλλων πολιτῶν ἀμφὶ τοὺς ἡμίσεις μάλιστα διεφθάρησαν, οὔτε τῶν ἰατρῶν ἀρκούντων ἔτι βοηθεῖν τοῖς καμάτοις, οὔτε οἰκείων ἢ φίλων τἀναγκαῖα ὑπηρετούντων. οἱ γὰρ ἐπικουρεῖν ταῖς ἑτέρων βουλόμενοι συμφοραῖς ἁπτόμενοί τε καματηρῶν σωμάτων καὶ συνδιαιτώμενοι τὰς αὐτὰς ἐκείνοις νόσους μετελάμβανον, ὥστε πολλὰς οἰκίας ἐξερημωθῆναι δι´ ἀπορίαν τῶν ἐπιμελησομένων. ἦν τε οὐκ ἐλάχιστον τῶν κακῶν τῇ πόλει καὶ τοῦ μὴ ταχέως λωφῆσαι τὴν νόσον αἴτιον τὸ περὶ τὰς ἐκβολὰς τῶν νεκρῶν γινόμενον. κατ´ ἀρχὰς μὲν γὰρ ὑπό τε αἰσχύνης καὶ εὐπορίας τῶν πρὸς τὰς ταφὰς ἐπιτηδείων ἔκαιόν τε καὶ γῇ παρεδίδοσαν τοὺς νεκρούς, τελευτῶντες δὲ οἱ μὲν ἀπ´ ὀλιγωρίας τοῦ καλοῦ, οἱ δὲ τἀπιτήδεια οὐκ ἔχοντες πολλοὺς μὲν ἐν τοῖς ὑπονόμοις τῶν στενωπῶν φέροντες ἐρρίπτουν τῶν ἀπογενομένων, πολλῷ δ´ ἔτι πλείους εἰς τὸν ποταμὸν ἐνέβαλλον· ἀφ´ ὧν τὰ μέγιστα ἐκακοῦντο πρὸς τὰς ἀκτὰς καὶ τὰς ἠϊόνας. ἐκκυμαινομένων γὰρ τῶν σωμάτων βαρεῖα καὶ δυσώδης προσπίπτουσα καὶ τοῖς ἔτι ἐρρωμένοις ἡ τοῦ πνεύματος ἀποφορὰ ταχείας ἔφερε τοῖς σώμασι τὰς τροπάς, πίνεσθαί τε οὐκέτι χρηστὸν ἦν τὸ ἐκ τοῦ ποταμοῦ κομισθὲν ὕδωρ, τὰ μὲν ἀτοπίᾳ τῆς ὀσμῆς, τὰ δὲ τῷ πονηρὰς τὰς ἀναδόσεις ποιεῖν τῆς τροφῆς. καὶ οὐ μόνον ἐν τῇ πόλει τὰ δεινὰ ἦν, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ἀγρῶν· καὶ οὐχ ἥκιστα ὁ γεωργὸς ἐπόνησεν ὄχλος ἀναπιμπλάμενος, καὶ προβάτων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τετραπόδων ἅμα διαιτωμένων, τῆς νόσου. ὅσον μὲν οὖν χρόνον τοῖς πολλοῖς ἐλπίδος τι ὑπῆν ὡς τοῦ θεοῦ σφίσιν ἐπικουρήσοντος, ἅπαντες ἐπί τε θυσίας καὶ καθαρμοὺς ἐτράποντο· καὶ πολλὰ ἐνεωτερίσθη Ῥωμαίοις οὐκ ὄντα ἐν ἔθει περὶ τὰς τιμὰς τῶν θεῶν ἐπιτηδεύματα οὐκ εὐπρεπῆ. ἐπεὶ δὲ ἐπέγνωσαν οὐδεμίαν αὐτῶν ἐπιστροφὴν ἐκ τοῦ δαιμονίου γινομένην οὐδ´ ἔλεον, καὶ τῆς περὶ τὰ θεῖα λειτουργίας ἀπέστησαν. ἐν ταύτῃ τῇ συμφορᾷ τῶν τε ὑπάτων ἅτερος ἀποθνήσκει, Σέξτος Κοιντίλιος, καὶ ὁ μετὰ τοῦτον ἀποδειχθεὶς ὕπατος Σπόριος Φούριος, καὶ τῶν δημάρχων τέτταρες, τῶν τε βουλευτῶν πολλοὶ καὶ ἀγαθοί. ἐπεβάλοντο μὲν οὖν ἐν τῇ νόσῳ τῆς πόλεως οὔσης στρατὸν ἐξάγειν ἐπ´ αὐτοὺς Αἰκανοὶ καὶ διεπρεσβεύοντο πρὸς τἆλλα ἔθνη, ὅσα Ῥωμαίοις πολέμια ἦν, παρακαλοῦντες ἐπὶ τὸν πόλεμον. οὐ μὴν ἔφθασάν γε προαγαγεῖν τὴν δύναμιν ἐκ τῶν πόλεων. ἔτι γὰρ αὐτῶν παρασκευαζομένων ἡ αὐτὴ νόσος κατέσκηψεν εἰς τὰς πόλεις. διῆλθε δ´ οὐ μόνον τὴν Αἰκανῶν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν Οὐολούσκων καὶ τὴν Σαβίνων γῆν, καὶ σφόδρα ἐκάκωσε τοὺς ἀνθρώπους. ἐκ δὲ τούτου συνέβη καὶ τὴν χώραν ἀγεώργητον ἀφεθεῖσαν λιμὸν ἐπὶ τῷ λοιμῷ συνάψαι. ἐπὶ μὲν δὴ τούτων τῶν ὑπάτων οὐδὲν ἐπράχθη Ῥωμαίοις διὰ τὰς νόσους οὔτε πολεμικὸν οὔτε πολιτικὸν εἰς ἱστορίας ἀφήγησιν ἐλθεῖν ἄξιον.

[10,53] In the eighty-second Olympiad (the one at which Lycus of Larissa in Thessaly won the foot-race), Chaerephanes being archon at Athens, when three hundred years were completed since the founding of Rome, and Publius Horatius and Sextus Quintilius had succeeded to the consulship, Rome was afflicted (p343) with a pestilence more severe than any of those recorded from past time. Almost all the slaves were carried off by it and about one half of the citizens, as neither the physicians were able any longer to alleviate their sufferings nor did their servants and friends supply them with the necessaries. For those who were willing to relieve the calamities of others, by touching the bodies of the diseased and continuing with them, contracted the same diseases, with the result that many entire households perished for want of people to attend the sick. Not the least of the evils the city suffered, and the reason why the pestilence did not quickly abate, was the way in which they cast out the dead bodies. For though at first, both from a sense of shame and because of the plenty they had of everything necessary for burials, they burned the bodies and committed them to earth, at the last, either through a disregard of decency or from a lack of the necessary equipment, they threw many of the dead into the sewers under the streets and cast far more of them into the river; and from these they received the most harm. For when the bodies were cast up by the waves upon the banks and beaches, a grievous and terrible stench, carried by the wind, smote those also who were still in health and produced a quick change in their bodies; and the water brought from the river was no longer fit to drink, partly because of its vile odour and partly by causing (p345) indigestion. These calamities occurred not only in the city, but in the country as well; in particular, the husbandmen were infected with the contagion, since they were constantly with their sheep and the other animals. As long as most people had any hopes that Heaven would assist them, they all had recourse to sacrifices and expiations; and many innovations were then made by the Romans and unseemly practices not customary with them were introduced into the worship of the gods. But when they found that the gods showed no regard or compassion for them, they abandoned even the observance of religious rites. During this calamity Sextus Quintilius, one of the consuls, died; also Spurius Furius, who had been appointed to succeeded him, and likewise four of the tribunes and many worthy senators. While the city was afflicted by the pestilence, the Aequians undertook to lead out an army against the Romans; and they sent envoys to all the other nations that were hostile to the Romans, urging them to make war. But they did not have time to lead their forces out of their cities; for while they were still making their preparations, the same pestilence fell upon their cities. 8 It spread not only over the country of the Aequians, but also over those of the Volscians and the Sabines, and grievously afflicted the inhabitants. In consequence, the land was left uncultivated and famine was added to the plague. Under these consuls, then, by reason of the pestilence nothing was done by the Romans, either in war or at home, worthy of being recorded in history.