Fulvius Flaccus was informed by deserters of this project before it was put into execution, and at once sent intellience of it to the senate. The news was received with varying as men's temperaments differed. Naturallv. at such a J‘J产 crisis, a meeting of the senate was instantly convened. Pubhus Cornelius。;”。，、拓r Asina was for recalling all the generals and armies from eve了 Dart of Italy f of the defence of the City, dlesg of Q印u aor any other object they had in vie钾. ，口r二，，.，_，.，，，， 必aDlus乃注a拟刃。usconsiQereQtoatltwould民a也5graceaerea chat it wouia be a uius maximus consrab Movlnlll只rnn只In户rentnRtltWOUld【犯 dis for them to suit their hold on Capua and allow themselves to be scared by Hannibal and marched up and down at his beck and menaces.“Do you suppose," he asked the senators,“that the man who did not venture to approach the City after his victory at Cannae, really hopes to capture it now that he has been driven away from Capua ? His object in coming here is not to attack Rome but to raise the siege of Capua. The army which is now in the City will be sufficient for our defence,加r it will be aided勿Jupiter and the other gods who have witnessed Hannibal's violation of treaty engagements." P. Valerius Flaccus advocated a middle course, which was ultimately adopted. He recommended that a despatch should be sent to the generals commanding at Capua, telling them what defensive force the City possessed. They themselves would know what troops Hannibal was bringing and how large an army wa名 required to maintain the siege of Capua. If one of the ge n {rals commanding could be scilt with a part of the army to Rome without interfering with the effective conduct 'of the siege by the other general.Uaudius and r}ulvius maht arrange w坦ch or them should continue the investment of Capua and which should go to Rome to prevent their own city from being invested. When this decision of the senate reached Capua, the proconsul Q. Fulvius, whose colleague had been obliged to leave for Rome owing to his wound, selected a force out of the three armies and crossed the Volturnus with 15,000 infantry and iooo cavalry. When he had definitely ascertained that Hannibal was advancing by the Latin Road, he sent men on in advance on the Appian Way and also to through the burghs situatedsome lying near it, to warnstored in readiness in their to the inhabitants to have supplies wns and to bring them in from the outlying fields to the line of march. They were further to call in their fighting men to defend their homes, and each municipality was to provide for its own protection.