1The Semnones claim to be the oldest and noblest of the Suebi; 1the belief in their antiquity is confirmed by religion. 2At a fixed time all the peoples of the same name and blood assemble through their embassies in a forest made sacred by the auguries of their fathers and by ancient dread, and with the public slaughter of a human being they celebrate the horrifying first rites of their barbarous worship. 3There is also another form of reverence paid to the grove: no one enters it unless bound with a cord, as an inferior who openly acknowledges the power of the deity. 3If by chance he has fallen, it is not permitted to be lifted up or to rise: they roll themselves out along the ground.
4And the whole of this superstition looks to this, that from there the race had its beginning, that there dwells the god who rules over all, and all else is subject and obedient. 4The fortune of the Semnones adds to their authority: they inhabit a hundred districts, and their great size makes them believe themselves the head of the Suebi.