ACCENSI, in the Roman armies, certain supernumerary soldiers, designed to supply the place of those who should be killed or anywise disabled. They were thus denominated, quia accensebantur, or ad censum adhibebantur. Vegetius calls them supernumerarii legionum. Cato calls them ferentarii, in regard they furnished those engaged in battle with weapons, drink, &c. Nonnius suggests another reason of that appellation, viz. because they fought with stones, slings, and weapons, qua feruntur, such as are thrown, not carried in the hand. They were sometimes also called velites, and velati, because they fought clothed, but not in armour; sometimes adscriptiti, and adscriptivi; sometimes rorarii. The accensi, Livy observes, were placed in the rear of the army, because little was expected from them: they were taken out of the fifth class of citizens.