Greece -- Biography -- Early works to 1800; Rome -- Biography -- Early works to 1800
V. In the tenth year of the war, the Senate recalled all the rest of the
generals, and made Camillus Dictator. He chose Cornelius Scipio to be
his Master of the Knights, and made a vow to the gods, that, if he
succeeded in bringing the war to a glorious close, he would celebrate a
great festival, and build a shrine to the goddess whom the Romans call
_Mater Matuta_. This goddess, from the rites with which she is
worshipped, one would imagine to be the same as the Greek Leukothea. For
they bring a slave girl into the temple and beat her, and then drive her
out; they take their brothers' children in their arms in preference to
their own, and generally their ceremonies seem to allude to the nursing
of Bacchus, and to the misfortunes which befell Ino because of her
husband's concubine. After this, Camillus invaded the Faliscan
territory, and in a great battle overthrew that people, and the
Capenates who came to their assistance. Next, he turned his attention to
the siege of Veii, and, perceiving that it would be a difficult matter
to take the city by assault, he ordered mines to be dug, as the ground
near the walls was easily worked, and the mines could be sunk to a
sufficient depth to escape the notice of the besieged. As this work
succeeded to his wish, he made a demonstration above ground to call the
enemy to the walls and distract their attention, while others made their
way unperceived through the mine to the Temple of Juno in the citadel,
the largest and most sacred edifice in the city. Here, it is said, was
the King of the Veientines, engaged in sacrificing. The soothsayer
inspected the entrails, and cried with a loud voice, that the goddess
would give the victory to whoever offered that victim. The Romans in the
mine, hearing these words, quickly tore up the floor, and burst through
it with shouts and rattling arms. The enemy fled in terror, and they
seized the victims and carried them to Camillus. However, this story
sounds rather fabulous.
The city was stormed, and the Romans carried off an enormous mass of
plunder. Camillus, who viewed them from the citadel, at first stood
weeping, but when, congratulated by the bystanders, raised his hands to
heaven and said, "Great Jupiter, and all ye other gods, that see all
good and evil deeds alike, ye know that it is not in unrighteous
conquest, but in self-defence, that the Romans have taken this city of
their lawless enemies. If," he continued, "there awaits us any reverse
of fortune to counterbalance this good luck, I pray that it may fall,
not upon the city or army of Rome, but, as lightly as may be, upon my
own head." After these words he turned round to the right, as is the
Roman habit after prayer, and while turning, stumbled and fell. All
those present were terrified at the omen, but he recovered himself,
saying that, as he had prayed, he had received a slight hurt to temper
his great good fortune.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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