1When religious matters had thus been completed, the dictator then put the question of the war and the state, asking with which and how many legions the fathers thought the victorious enemy should be met. 2It was decreed that he should take over the army from the consul Gnaeus Servilius; 2should enrol, besides, from citizens and allies as many cavalry and infantry as he saw fit; 2and should do and perform everything else as he judged to be in the interest of the republic. 3Fabius said that he would add two legions to the army of Servilius. 3When these had been enrolled through the master of the horse, he proclaimed a day for them to assemble at Tibur; 4and having published an edict that those whose towns and forts were unfortified should move into safe places, and that all the inhabitants of the region through which Hannibal was going to pass should also move out of the countryside, first burning their buildings and destroying their crops, so that there should be a supply of nothing, he himself set out along the Flaminian Way to meet the consul and his army, and when near Ocriculum by the Tiber he caught sight of the column and the consul advancing towards him with the cavalry, he sent an orderly to tell the consul to come to the dictator without his lictors.
6When he had obeyed the order, and their meeting had made a great show of the dictatorship before citizens and allies, who through lapse of time had now almost forgotten that office, a letter was brought from the city saying that merchant ships carrying supplies from Ostia to the army in Spain had been captured by the Carthaginian fleet near the harbour of Cosa. 7And so the consul was at once ordered to set out for Ostia and, manning the ships that were at the city of Rome or at Ostia with soldiers and naval allies, to pursue the enemy fleet and guard the coasts of Italy. 8A great number of men had been enrolled at Rome; 8even freedmen who had children and were of military age had taken the oath.
9Of this city army, those who were under thirty-five years of age were put on board the ships; the others were left to guard the city.