The following year Atilius Regulus again waged war with the Samnites. And for a time they carried on an evenly contested struggle, but eventually, after the Samnites had won a victory, the Romans conquered them in turn, took them captive, led them beneath the yoke, and so released them. [Sidenote: FRAG. 33^23] THE SAMNITES, ENRAGED AT WHAT HAD OCCURRED, RESORTED TO DESPERATE MEASURES WITH THE INTENTION OF EITHER CONQUERING OR BEING UTTERLY DESTROYED, THREATENING WITH DEATH HIM WHO SHOULD REMAIN AT HOME. So these invaded Campania: but the consuls ravaged Samnium, since it was destitute of soldiers, and captured a few cities. Therefore the Samnites abandoning Campania made haste to reach their own land; and having come into hostile collision with one of the consuls they were defeated by a trick and in their flight met with terrible reverses, losing their camp and in addition the fortress to the assistance of which they were advancing. The consul celebrated a triumph and devoted to public uses the goods gathered from the spoils. The other consul made a campaign against the Etruscans and reduced them in short order: he then levied upon them contributions of grain and money, of which he distributed a part to the soldiers and deposited the rest in the treasuries. However, there befell a mighty pestilence, and the Samnites and Falisci began to bestir themselves; they entertained a contempt for the Romans both on account of the disease and because, since no war menaced, they had chosen the consuls not on grounds of excellence. The Romans, ascertaining the situation, sent out Carvilius along with Junius Brutus, and with Quintus Fabius his father Rullus Maximus, as subcommanders or lieutenants. Brutus worsted the Falisci and plundered their possessions as well as those of the other Etruscans: Fabius marched out of Rome before his father and pushed rapidly forward when he learned that the Samnites were plundering Campania. Falling in with some scouts of theirs and seeing them quickly retire he got the impression that all the enemy were at that point and believed they were in flight. Accordingly, in his hurry to come to blows with them before his father should arrive, in order that the success might appear to be his own and not his elder's, he went ahead with a careless formation. Thus he encountered a compact body of foes and would have been utterly destroyed, had not night intervened. Many of his men died also after that with no physician or relative to attend them, because they had hastened on far ahead of the baggage carriers in the expectation of immediate victory. Of a surety they would have perished on the following day but for the fact that the Samnites, thinking Fabius's father to be near, felt afraid and withdrew.