cus on
its march, dispersed it, and returned to the camp laden with booty.

During the night of the following day Fabius again sent his cavalry
forward with orders to delay the march of the enemy so as to give time
for the arrival of the infantry. The two bodies of cavalry were soon
engaged, but the enemy, thinking he had to contend with only the same
troops as the day before, drew up his infantry in line so as to support
the squadrons, when suddenly the Roman legions appeared in order of
battle. At this sight the barbarians were struck with terror, the long
train of baggage thrown into confusion, and the infantry dispersed. More
than twelve thousand men were killed and all the baggage fell into the
hands of the Romans.

Only five thousand fugitives escaped from this rout; they were received
by the Senonan, Drappes, the same who in the first revolt of the Gauls
had collected a crowd of vagabonds, slaves, exiles, and robbers to
intercept the convoys of the Romans.

They took the direction of the Narbonnese with the Cadurcan Lucterius
who had before attempted a similar invasion.

Rebilus pursued them with two legions in order to avoid the shame of
seeing the province suffering any injury from such a contemptible
rabble. As for Fabius, he led the twenty-five cohorts against the
Carnutes and the other tribes whose forces had already been reduced by
the defeat they had suffered from Dumnacus. The Carnutes, though often
beaten, had never been completely subdued. They gave hostages, and the
Armoricans followed their example. Dumnacus, driven out of his own
territory, went to seek a refuge in the remotest part of Gaul.

Drappes and Lucterius, when they learned that they were pursued by
Rebilus and his two legions, gave up the design of penetrating into the
province; they halted in the country of the Cadurci and threw themselves
into the _oppidum_ of Uxellodunum (Puy-d'Issolu, near Varac), an
exceedingly strong place formerly under the dependence of Lucterius, who
soon incited the inhabitants to revolt.

Rebilus appeared immediately before the town, which, surrounded on all
sides by steep rocks, was, even without being defended, difficult of
access to armed men. Knowing that there was in the oppidum so great a
quantity of baggage that the besieged could not send it away secretly
without being detected and overtaken by the cavalry, and even by the
infantry, he divided his cohorts into three bodies and established three
cam