Ab urbe condita

the war. As it was, however, their huge numbers were exhausting their supplies, and owing to their previous inaction at Suessula and the delay in bringing on an action they were not far from absolute scarcity. They determined, therefore, since, as they imagined, the enemy was afraid to venture outside his camp, to send foraging parties into

the fields. Meantime they expected that as the Romans made no movement and had brought only as much corn as they could carry with the rest of their equipment on their shoulders, they, too, would soon be in want

of everything. When the consul saw the enemy scattered through the fields and only a few left on outpost duty in front of the camp, he addressed a few words of encouragement to his men and led them out to storm the