[13,4] Ἐν δὲ τῇ ἀρχῇ τῶν μετὰ τὸν Κάμιλλον ὑπάτων νόσος εἰς Ῥώμην κατέσκηψε λοιμικὴ τὴν ἀρχὴν ἀπό τε ἀνομβρίας καὶ αὐχμῶν λαβοῦσα ἰσχυρῶν, ὑφ´ ὧν κακωθεῖσα ἥ τε δενδρῖτις καὶ ἡ σιτοφόρος ὀλίγους μὲν ἀνθρώποις καρποὺς ἐξήνεγκε καὶ νοσερούς, ὀλίγην δὲ καὶ πονηρὰν βοσκήμασι νομήν. προβάτων μὲν οὖν καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ὑποζυγίων ἀναρίθμητόν τι διεφθάρη πλῆθος οὐ χιλοῦ σπανισάμενον μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ποτοῦ· τοσαύτη γὰρ τῶν τε ποταμίων καὶ τῶν ἄλλων ναμάτων ἐπίλειψις ἐγένετο, ἡνίκα μάλιστα κάμνει πάντα δίψει τὰ βοτά. ἄνθρωποι δὲ ὀλίγοι μέν τινες διεφθάρησαν, ἃς οὔπω πρότερον ἐπείρασαν προσενεγκάμενοι τροφάς, οἱ δὲ λοιποὶ μικροῦ πάντες εἰς νόσους δεινὰς κατέπεσον ἀρχομένας μὲν ἀπὸ μικρῶν ἐξανθημάτων, ἃ περὶ τοὺς ἔξωθεν χρῶτας ἀνίστατο, κατασκηπτούσας δ´ εἰς ἕλκη μεγάλα φαγεδαίναις ὅμοια, πονηρὰν μὲν ὄψιν, δεινὴν δὲ ἀλγηδόνα παρέχοντα. ἦν τε οὐθὲν ἴαμα τῆς περιωδυνίας τοῖς κάμνουσιν, ὅ τι μὴ κνησμοὶ καὶ σπαραγμοὶ συνεχεῖς λωβώμενοι τοῖς χρωσὶ μέχρι γυμνώσεως ὀστέων.

[13,4] Under the consuls who succeeded Camillus a pestilence visited Rome, caused by a lack of rain and severe droughts, which damaged the land devoted to orchards as well as that which was planted to corn, so that they produced scanty and unwholesome harvests for human beings and scanty and poor grazing for stock. Countless sheep and beasts of burden perished for lack not only of fodder but also of water; to such an extent did the rivers and other streams fail, at the very season when all live stock suffers most from thirst. As for human beings, a few perished as the result of resorting to food of which they had made no previous test, while nearly all the rest were afflicted with severe maladies that began with small pustules, which broke out on various parts of the skin and ended up in large ulcers resembling cancers, evil in appearance and causing terrible pain. And there was no remedy for the agony suffered by the victims except continual scratching and tearing of the sores until the tortured flesh laid bare the bones.