The Romans, having thus secured control of the Tarentini, turned their attention to Rhegium, whose inhabitants after taking Croton by treachery had razed the city to the ground and had slain the Romans there. They averted the danger that was threatening them from the Mamertines holding Messana (whom the people of Rhegium wanted to get as allies), by coming to an agreement with them; but in the siege of Rhegium they suffered hardships through a scarcity of food and some other causes until Hiero by sending from Sicily grain and soldiers to the Romans strengthened their hands and materially aided them in capturing the city. [Sidenote: B.C. 270 (_a.u._ 484)] The place was restored to the survivors among the original inhabitants: those who had plotted against it were punished. Hiero, who was not of distinguished family on his father's side and on his mother's was akin to the slave class, ruled almost the whole of Sicily and was deemed a friend and ally of the Romans. After the flight of Pyrrhus he became master of Syracuse, and having a cautious eye upon the Carthaginians who were encroaching upon Sicily he was inclined to favor the Romans; and the first mark of favor that he showed them was the alliance and the forwarding of grain already narrated. After this came a winter so severe that the Tiber was frozen to a great depth and trees were killed. The people of Rome suffered hardships and the hay gave out, causing the cattle to perish. [Sidenote: B.C. 269 (_a.u._ 485)] VIII, 7.--The next year a Samnite named Lolius living in Rome as a hostage made his escape, gathered a band and seized a strong position in his native country from which he carried on brigandage. Quintus Gallus and Gaius Fabius made a campaign against him. Him and the rabblement with him, most of them unarmed, they suppressed; on proceeding, however, against the Carcini in whose keeping the robbers had deposited their booty, they encountered trouble. Finally one night, led by deserters, they scaled the wall at a certain point and came dangerously near perishing on account of the darkness,--not that it was a moonless night but because it was snowing fiercely. But the moon shone out and they made themselves absolute masters of the position. A great deal of money fell to the share of Rome in those days, so that they actually used silver denarii.