10. The Gauls were the next people that incurred the displeasure of
the Romans. 11. A time of peace, when the armies were disbanded, was
the proper season for new irruptions; accordingly, these barbarians
invited fresh forces from beyond the Alps, and entering Etru'ria,
wasted all with fire and sword, till they came within about three
days' journey of Rome. 12. A praetor and a consul were sent to
oppose them, who, now instructed in the improved arts of war, were
enabled to surround the Gauls. 13. It was in vain that those hardy
troops, who had nothing but courage to protect them, formed two fronts
to oppose their adversaries; their naked bodies and undisciplined
forces were unable to withstand the shock of an enemy completely
armed, and skilled in military evolutions. 14. A miserable slaughter
ensued, in which forty thousand were killed, and ten thousand taken
prisoners. 15. This victory was followed by another, gained by
Marcel'lus, in which he killed Viridoma'rus, their king, with his own
hand. 16. These conquests forced them to beg for peace, the conditions
of which served greatly to enlarge the empire.
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