them. On these being subdued, there broke out the war with
the Samnites; and although before the close of that contest the Latin
nations had begun to rebel against Rome, nevertheless, when their
rebellion came to a head, the Samnites were in league with Rome, and
helped her with their army to quell the presumption of the rebels; on
whose defeat the war with Samnium was renewed.

When the strength of Samnium had been drained by repeated reverses,
there followed the war with the Etruscans; which ended, the Samnites
were once more stirred to activity by the coming of Pyrrhus into Italy.
When he, too, had been defeated, and sent back to Greece, Rome entered
on her first war with the Carthaginians; which was no sooner over than
all the Gallic nations on both sides of the Alps combined against the
Romans, by whom, in the battle fought between Populonia and Pisa, where
now stands the fortress of San Vincenzo, they were at last routed with
tremendous slaughter.

This war ended, for twenty years together the Romans were engaged in no
contest of importance, their only adversaries being the Ligurians, and
the remnant of the Gallic tribes who occupied Lombardy; and on this
footing things continued down to the second Carthaginian war, which for
sixteen years kept the whole of Italy in a blaze. This too being brought
to a most glorious termination, there followed the Macedonian war, at
the close of which succeeded the war with Antiochus and Asia. These
subdued, there remained not in the whole world, king or people who
either singly or together could withstand the power of Rome.

But even before this last victory, any one observing the order of these
wars, and the method in which they were conducted, must have recognized
not only the good fortune of the Romans, but also their extraordinary
valour and prudence. And were any one to search for the causes of this
good fortune, he would have little difficulty in finding them, since
nothing is more certain than that when a potentate has attained so great
a reputation that every neighbouring prince or people is afraid to
engage him single-handed, and stands in awe of him, none will ever
venture to attack him, unless driven to do so by necessity; so that
it will almost rest on his will to make war as he likes on any of his
neighbours, while he studiously maintains peace with the rest; who,
on their part, whether through fear of his power, or deceived by the
methods he takes to dull their vi