[20,4] Ὅτι περὶ τὴν Ῥηγίνων πόλιν πάθος γίγνεται δεινόν, οἷον καὶ περὶ Μεσσήνην ἐγένετο τὴν ἐν Σικελίᾳ, μεγάλης φυλακῆς καὶ προνοίας ἄξιον ἁπάσαις ταῖς πόλεσιν, ἀνάγκη δὲ τὰς αἰτίας καὶ τὰς προφάσεις τῶν κατασχόντων αὐτὴν κακῶν προειπεῖν. Ὅτε Λευκανοὶ καὶ Βρέττιοι δυνάμεσι πολλαῖς ἐπὶ Θουρίους στρατεύσαντες τήν τε χώραν αὐτῶν ἐξεπόρθησαν καὶ τὴν πόλιν περιχαρακώσαντες ἐπολιόρκουν—ἐφ´ οὓς ἀπεστάλη Ῥωμαίων δύναμις, ἧς ἡγεῖτο Φαβρίκιος ὁ ὕπατος—φοβηθέντες οἱ Ῥηγῖνοι, μὴ καὶ ἐπὶ σφᾶς οἱ βάρβαροι Ῥωμαίων ἀπελθόντων στρατιὰν ἀποστείλωσι, καὶ τὴν Ταραντίνων πόλιν ἐν ὑποψίαις ἔχοντες ἐδεήθησαν τοῦ Φαβρικίου δύναμιν τῇ πόλει λιπεῖν πρὸς τὰς αἰφνιδίους τῶν βαρβάρων ἐπιδρομάς, καὶ εἴ τις ἐκ τῶν Ταραντίνων ἐπιβουλή σφισιν ἀπροσδόκητος γένοιτο. καὶ λαμβάνουσι Καμπανοὺς μὲν ὀκτακοσίους, Σιδικίνους δὲ τετρακοσίους, ὧν ἁπάντων ἡγεῖτο Δέκιος Καμπανὸς τὸ γένος. οὗτος ὁ ἀνήρ, ὅτε κατάγοιτο παρὰ τοὺς ἐπιφανεστάτους τῶν ἐπιχωρίων ἑστιάσεις τε λαμπρὰς κατὰ τὴν φιλοφροσύνην τῶν ξένων ἑστιώμενος καὶ κατασκευὰς οἰκιῶν λαμπρὰς καὶ βαθυπλούτους παρὰ πολλοῖς ὁρῶν κατ´ ἀρχὰς μὲν ἐμακάριζε τοὺς Ῥηγίνους τῆς εὐδαιμονίας, ἔπειθ´ ὡς ἀναξίοις ἐφθόνει, τελευτῶν δ´ ὡς πολεμίοις ἐπιβουλεύειν ἤρξατο. καὶ προσλαβὼν κοινωνὸν τῶν ἀπορρήτων βουλευμάτων τὸν γραμματέα, πανοῦργον ἄνδρα καὶ πάσης πονηρίας ἀρχιτέκτονα, πρὸς αὐτοῦ πάντας Ῥηγίνους ἀποκτεῖναι καὶ τὴν εὐδαιμονίαν αὐτῶν τὴν μὲν αὐτὸς κατασχεῖν, τὴν δὲ τοῖς στρατιώταις διελεῖν, λέγοντος, ὅτι Μεσσήνην ὀλίγῳ πρότερον εἷλον --- ὑφ´ οὗ πεισθεὶς καὶ τὸν τρόπον τῆς ἐπιχειρήσεως σὺν αὐτῷ βουλευσάμενος, τοὺς ταγματάρχας καὶ τοὺς ἐπιφανεστάτους τῶν στρατιωτῶν εἰς τὸ συνέδριον ἐκάλεσεν· δεηθεὶς δὲ ἁπάντων ἀπορρήτους φυλάξαι τοὺς λόγους κίνδυνον ἔφη μέγαν αὐτῷ ἐπικρεμασθῆναι πολλῆς πάνυ φυλακῆς καὶ ταχείας δεόμενον, ὡς τοῦ καιροῦ μὴ διδόντος ἀναστροφήν. πεπυσμένους γὰρ τὴν Πύρρου διάβασιν τοὺς ἐπιφανεστάτους Ῥηγίνων κρύφα διαπέμπεσθαι πρὸς αὐτὸν ὑπισχνουμένους κατασφάξειν τὴν φρουρὰν καὶ παραδώσειν ἐκείνῳ τὴν πόλιν. ἔτι ταῦτα λέγοντος αὐτοῦ παρῆν τις ἐγκάθετος, αὐχμηρὸς ὡς ἐξ ὁδοῦ, γράμματα ὑπ´ αὐτοῦ Δεκίου κατεσκευασμένα κομίζων, ὡς παρὰ ξένου δή τινος ἰδίου, ἐν οἷς ἐδηλοῦτο μέλλων ὁ βασιλεὺς ἀποστέλλειν ἐπὶ τὸ Ῥήγιον πεντακοσίους στρατιώτας ὡς καταληψομένους τὴν πόλιν, ἀνοίξειν ὑπεσχημένων αὐτοῖς Ῥηγίνων τὰς πύλας. Τινὲς μὲν λέγουσι τὸν γραμματηφόρον ὑπὸ Φαβρικίου τοῦ ὑπάτου κατὰ σπουδὴν ἀπεστάλθαι, τὴν δ´ ἐπιστολὴν ταῦτα περιέχειν, ἃ μικρῷ πρότερον ἔφην, καὶ παραινεῖν Δεκίῳ φθάσαι τοὺς Ῥηγίνους· ἔχει δὲ λόγον ἀμφότερα. ἔδειξε δὴ ταῦτα τοῖς ἐν τῷ συνεδρίῳ παροῦσι, καὶ ἐπεὶ τάχιστα νὺξ ἐγένετο, φράσαντες οἱ ταγματάρχαι τοῖς ἄλλοις στρατιώταις, ἃ διενοοῦντο πράττειν, ἐπὶ τὰς οἰκίας τῶν Ῥηγίνων ἐχώρουν, καὶ τοὺς μὲν εὐωχουμένους ἔτι, τοὺς δὲ κοιμωμένους καταλαβόντες ἐν τοῖς ἰδίοις κατασφάττουσιν ἐφεστίοις ἀντιβολοῦντας καὶ γόνασι προσκυλιομένους καὶ ἀνθ´ ὅτου ταῦτα πάσχουσι μαθεῖν ἀξιοῦντας, οὔτε ἡλικίας οὔτε τύχης οὐδεμιᾶς φειδόμενοι. φονεύσαντες δὲ τοὺς ἄνδρας ἔτι δεινότερον ἔργον ἐξειργάσαντο, τάς τε γὰρ γυναῖκας τῶν ἰδίων ξένων καὶ τὰς παρθένους διελόμενοι συνῆσαν ἀκούσαις, ὧν τοὺς πατέρας καὶ τοὺς ἄνδρας ἐν ὀφθαλμοῖς ἀπέκτειναν. Δέκιος δὲ ἀντὶ φρουράρχου τύραννος ἐγεγόνει τῆς Ῥηγίνων πόλεως, καὶ λογιζόμενος, ὅτι δώσει Ῥωμαίοις ὧν ἔδρασε δίκας, Καμπανοῖς τοῖς κατέχουσι Μεσσήνην συμμαχίαν τίθεται μεγίστην ἰσχὺν τῶν ἐν Σικελίᾳ πόλεων ἔχουσι, καὶ τὴν πόλιν διὰ πολλῆς εἶχε φυλακῆς.

[20,4] Rhegium suffered a calamity similar to that which had befallen Messana in Sicily, a calamity that illustrates the need of great precaution and forethought on the part of all cities. But it is necessary to state first the causes and excuses for the evils that befell this city. 2 When the Lucanians and Bruttians, having set out with numerous forces against Thurii, had ravaged its territory and were besieging the city after surrounding it with a palisade, and a force of Romans under the command of Fabricius the consul had been sent against them, the Rhegians, fearing that the barbarians would send an army against them (p403) also upon the departure of the Romans, and being suspicious of the city of Tarentum, begged Fabricius to leave a force in the city to guard against the sudden raids of the barbarians, and also in case there should be any unexpected hostile plot on the part of the Tarentines. And they received eight hundred Campanians and four hundred Sidicini, all under the command of Decius, a Campanian by birth. 3 This man, whenever he was lodged in the houses of the most prominent of the inhabitants, was entertained at splendid banquets in accordance with the hospitality due to guest; and when he beheld the splendid and costly appointments of many of the houses, he at first congratulated the Rhegians because of their prosperity, then envied them as being unworthy of it, and finally began to plot against them as enemies. 4 And taking as an accomplice of his secret designs his secretary, a crafty man and a deviser of every kind of mischief, he was advised by him to slay all the Rhegians and to seize their wealth, part loyal for himself and partly to distribute among his troops; for the man remarked that Messana had been taken in a similar fashion by the Mamertines a short time before.6 When he had been persuaded by them and had planned with him the manner of attack, he called to a council the tribunes and the most prominent soldiers; and after (p405) requesting them all to keep his remarks secret, he said that a grave danger overhung him, one that required very great and prompt precautions, since the occasion, he declared, did not permit of delay. For the most prominent Rhegians, he said, having learned of Pyrrhus' crossing, were secretly sending to him, promising to put the garrison to the sword and to hand over the city to him. 5 While he was still uttering these words, a man who had been suborned for the purpose appeared, covered with dust as if from a journey and bearing a letter, composed by Decius himself but purporting to be from a personal friend of his, in which it was revealed that the king was intending to send five hundred soldiers to Rhegium to take over the city, the inhabitants having promised to open their gates to them. 6 Some state that the bearer of the letter had been sent in earnest by Fabricius the consul, and that the letter contained the information which I have just given and urged Decius to forestall the Rhegians. Both reports are reasonable. These things he revealed to those who were present at the council; and as soon as it was night, the tribunes, having first told the other soldiers what they were intending to do, went to the houses of the Rhegians, and finding some of them still feasting and others asleep, they slew them at their own firesides, though the Rhegians entreated them and grovelled at their feet and demanded to know why they were thus treated; and they spared neither age nor rank. 7 After slaughtering the men they committed a still more outrageous crime: portioning out the wives and virgin daughters of their (p407) hosts, they forcibly lay with these women whose very fathers and husbands they had slain before their very eyes. 8 Decius from the commander of a garrison had thus become a tyrant of Rhegium; and reasoning that he would have to pay the penalty to the Romans for what he had done, he made an alliance with the Campanians who were in possession of Messana, the most powerful of the cities in Sicily, meanwhile keeping the city of Rhegium under strict guard.