The Republic. R O 
us, that their'offensive weapon was the sword. The Triarii 
formed the tinrd line of divisions; from whence they were 
called Triarii or Tertiani. Their weapon was a sort of 
lance, which the Roman historians call Pilum. These three 
orders of Hastati, Principes, and Tria'ii were divided 
into manipuli. Between these little battalions there were 
generally empty spaces left, in such a manner, that the 
manipuli of the second line, or principes, were posted 
directly opposite the spaces of the first or hastati, and those 
of the third over against the spaces in the second. By this 
means, the principes were ready to take the place of the 
hastati, whenever they should be repulsed by the enemy, 
and forced to retire through the spaces between each line, 
and each manipnlus; and then it was the business of the 
principes to sustain the attacks of the enemy til! the hastati 
rallied behind the third line. If the second line underwent 
the same fate as the first, it retreated through the spaces 
before mentioned, and was, relieved by the triarii; and 
then, as the third attack was the last effort of the legion, 
all these bodies were so united as to make but one great 
battalion. 
The following was commonly the order of their battles. 
As soon as the legions were drawn up in battalia, the consul 
ordered the light-armed infantry, which the Homan historians 
call Leves, Rorarii, and Accensi, to advance into the 
spaces between each manipulus. The rorarii and accensi 
seem to have been two different classes, both comprehended 
under the general name of Laves; at least we have reason 
to guess so from Livy’s account, (B. 8.) They were darfmen 
and slingers, who skirmished at the head of the legions, 
and after they had made their first attack, retired through 
the spices between the battalions, and returned to th charge 
a second or third time, till the battle was begun. The 
legions were flanked, both to the right and left, by the 
auxiliary infantry, which the people of Latium, among 
others, furnished. These foreign troops were drawn up in 
-the same manner as the legions. They had their hastati, 
principes, and triarii, as we are told by Livy, (B. 8.) These 
were posted in three different lines, so as to flank the Roman 
legions which were in the centre. As for the cavalry, both 
that of the Romans and their auxiliaries was inferior in 
number to the infantry, in which the main strength of the 
army consisted; and the horse were generally posted in the 
wings, so as to cover the two flanks. They fought in 
Turmce, or squadrons, which were drawn up at some distance 
from one another, that they might have the more liberty to 
wheel, and make the several motions which were in use. 
Each Turma contained thirty men, which were subdivided 
into three Decuriae, (i. e. brigades of ten horsemen each,) 
with an officer at the head of them, who was called Decurio. 
It is uncertain whether these three tens were joined in one 
body, or posted at a distance from each other. The army 
was variously drawn up, sometimes in the form of a square, 
sometimes of a triangle; in a wedge; in a circle, that it 
might face every way; and even in a crescent, that it might 
enclose the enemy. A change took place in the situation of 
the manipuli under Scipio Africanus. He caused the prin¬ 
cipes and triarii to stand exactly behind the hastati instead of 
opposite their interstices. In the time of Julius Ceesar, the 
number of men in each manipulus was increased, and it was 
called a cohort. 
The superiority of the legionary system over the phalanx. 
Was clearly manifested in the wars between the Greeks and 
Romans, the former of whom were especially attached to 
the phalanx, and had long been used to its most effective 
evolutions. Still, however, it was broken by the lines of the 
Romans. 
With the subjection of the Samnites, who had w’arred 
with Rome for nearly fifty years, peace returned, and with 
it the private disputes of the Romans. The old law' of the 
debtor being made slave to the creditor, had caused a par¬ 
ticular instance of oppression and brutality, and the popular 
indignation rose so high against Plotius, the offending cre¬ 
ditor, that he was executed, and if the law was not annulled in 
M E. The Republic. 239 
form, its enforcement was abstained from, and the imprisoned 
debtors liberated. This, however, did not satisfy the people ; 
they demanded an abrogation of the law, and this being 
refused, they left the city. To bring them back,HoRTENSius, 
A. U. C. 466, was appointed dictator, and he made some 
very important concessions. 
During the latter p irt of the fourth century, the Licinian 
and Sextian laws had been wrung from the patricians. 
These laws, so named from Licinius and Sextus, the tribunes 
of the people, in the first place limited every man’s posses¬ 
sions to 500 acres of land ; secondly, released debtors from 
paying interest, (which meant, in those days, usury,) and 
thirdly, opened the consulship and other high offices of state 
to the plebeians as well as patricians. In the year 414, the 
plebeians obtained the important concession, that the people 
should propose instead of ratify the laws, and that senators 
and commons should be alike bound to obey those laws. 
But it was now' complained that the senators and patricians 
did not submit to them. Hortensius declared, that for the 
future, whatever decrees were made in the comitia by tribes, 
should be equally observed both by the nobility and the 
people; and it is probable that better measures were now 
taken than formerly, to prevent the infractions of this law. 
Another law Hortensius made was in favour of the country 
people : they complained that justice was not administered 
at Rome on market-days; and that when any causes w'ere 
depending, they were forced to leave their work, and come 
to the city to have them determined ; and it was granted 
them that the market-days should no longer be vacation-days 
for the judges ; that so they might have their causes heard 
before they returned home. The next grievance w'as that 
the senate still had a power to prevent popular enactments from 
taking place, by their veto. This, Hortensius deprived them 
of, and the minds of all became satisfied, and the respective 
parties assumed a degree of calmness and serenity long 
unknown to Rome. 
The increasing dominion of the Romans began at length 
to alarm the remotest nations of Italy. The Tareutines 
especially resol ved to check these dangerous usurpers, and, for 
the purpose of strengthening their own forces, invited 
over Pyrrhus, the famous king of Epirus. The necessity of 
this step was apparent from the manifest superiority the 
Roman forces displayed when opposed to those of the 
Tarentines. 
Pyrrhus had no sooner arrived in Tarentum than he found 
the inhabitants engrossed with licentiousness and gaiety. 
They had expected that the Epirots alone were to brave the 
dangers of the war; but Pyrrhus resolved to reform them, 
and to put an end to the divisions which were fomented by 
their idleness and vices. He prohibited their feasts, their 
masquerades, and their plays. He put down the harangues 
and debates of their demagogues; and, selecting the strong¬ 
est of the youth, he inured them to military exercises and the 
use of arms. The Tarentines could not brook such a 
system of severe and rigorous discipline; they com¬ 
plained loudly of their new ally, and even attempted 
to quit their country, but Pyrrhus made it a capital crime 
to abandon their ferritory, and increased the severity of 
his measures in proportion as they endeavoured to resist 
or evade them. 
While Pyrrhus was thus disciplining the Tarentines, P. 
Valerius Lrevinus, the Roman consul, entered Lucania and 
ravaged thecountry. Though Pyrrhus had not yet collected 
his contingents from the allies of the Tarentines, he yet 
ventured into the field, and advanced to the Roman camp 
on the banks of the Siris. Upon reconnoitring the camp 
from the opposite bank, and observing the entrenchment®, 
and the good order which characterized the whole, he re¬ 
nounced his plan of attacking them, and waited in his own 
entrenchments for the reinforcements which he expected. 
The Roman consul, however, was desirous of bringing 
Pyrrhus to a general engagement before the arrival of the 
confederate troops. He accordingly addressed his army, 
and drawing up his infantry on the banks of the Siris, the 
cavalry 
