These having selected the best of the soldiers out of the two consular armies, led them against the Gauls.

This war was more tedious than was satisfactory to either party.

When at first the Gauls only were desirous of fighting, afterwards the Roman soldiers considerably surpassed the ferocity of the Gauls in their ardour for arms and battle; it by no means met the approbation of the dictator when no urgent necessity existed to run any hazard against an enemy, whose strength time and inconvenient situation would daily impair, in total inactivity, without provisions previously laid up or any fortified situation; besides, being persons of such minds and bodies, that all their force lay in brisk exertion, whilst the same flagged by short delay.

On these considerations the dictator protracted the war, and denounced a severe penalty against any one who should fight against the enemy without orders.

The soldiers, being much dissatisfied with this, first censured the dictator, in their conversation, when on guard and on the watches; sometimes they found fault with the patricians in general, for not having commanded the war to be conducted by the consuls.