Livy's History of Rome: Book 29
Scipio in Africa
29.1
On his arrival in Sicily
Scipio organised the volunteers into maniples and centuries, and selected
three hundred of the most robust and active whom he kept about his person.
They did not carry arms, and did not know why they were unarmed, and why
they were not included in the centuries. Then he picked out of the whole
military population of Sicily three hundred of the noblest and wealthiest and
formed them into a cavalry corps to take with him into Africa. He fixed a
day on which they were to present themselves fully equipped with horses and
arms. The prospect of a campaign far from home with its many toils and
great dangers both by land and sea appalled the young fellows as well as
their parents and relations. When the appointed day arrived they all appeared
fully armed and accounted. Scipio then told them that it had come to his
knowledge that some of the Sicilian cavalry were looking forward with
dread to their expedition as one full of difficulties and hardships. If any of
them felt like that he would rather that they owned it at once than that the
republic should have reluctant and inefficient soldiers who were always
grumbling. They should speak out their mind, he would listen to them
without any feeling of resentment. One of them ventured to say that if he
were free to choose he would rather not go, whereupon Scipio replied:
"Since, young man, you have not concealed your real sentiments I will
provide a substitute for you; you will give up to him your horse and your
arms and other military outfit and take him with you at once to train him and
instruct him in the management of a horse and the use of arms." The man
was delighted to get off on these terms and Scipio handed over to him one of
the three hundred whom he was keeping unarmed. When the others saw the
trooper exempted in this way with the commander's approval they, every one
of them, excused themselves and accepted a substitute. By this means the
Romans replaced the three hundred Sicilian cavalry without any expense to
the State. The Sicilians had all the care of their training, for the general's
orders were that any one who did not carry this out would have to go on
active service himself. It is said that this turned out a splendid squadron of
cavalry and did good work for the republic in many battles.
Then he inspected the legions and picked out the men who had seen
most service, particularly those who had been under Marcellus, as he
considered that these had been trained in the best school, and after their
protracted investment of Syracuse were thoroughly familiar with the
methods of attacking fortified places. In fact Scipio was not contemplating
any small operations, he had already fixed his mind on the capture and
destruction of Carthage. He then distributed his army amongst the fortified
towns and ordered the Sicilians to supply corn, thus husbanding what had
been brought from Italy. The old ships were refitted and C. Laelius was sent
with them to plunder the African coast; the new ones he beached at
Panormus, as owing to their hasty construction they had been built of
unseasoned wood and he wished them to be on dry land through the winter.
When his preparations for war were completed, Scipio visited Syracuse. This
city had not yet recovered its tranquillity after the violent convulsions of the
war. Certain men of Italian nationality had seized the property of some
Syracusans at the time of the capture, and though the senate had ordered its
restitution they still retained it. After making fruitless efforts to recover it,
the Greeks came to Scipio for redress. He felt that confidence in the honesty
of the government was of the very first importance, and by issuing a
proclamation and pronouncing judgment against those who persisted in
keeping possession he succeeded in restoring their property to the
Syracusans. This action on his part was gratefully appreciated not only by
the owners themselves but by all the cities of Sicily, and they exerted
themselves more than ever to assist him.
During this summer an extensive war broke out in Spain at the
instigation of Indibilis, whose sole motive was his intense admiration for
Scipio which made him think lightly of other commanders. The people
looked upon him as the only general the Romans had left to them, all the
others having been killed by Hannibal. Indibilis told the Spaniards that it was
owing to this there was no one else who could be sent to Spain after the two
Scipios were killed, and when the war began to press more heavily on Italy
he was recalled home as the only man who could oppose Hannibal. The
Roman generals in Spain were nothing but names and the veteran army had
been withdrawn; now there was confusion everywhere, and an untrained
mob of raw recruits. Never again would Spain have such a chance of
recovering its liberty. Up to that time it had been in bondage to either the
Romans or the Carthaginians, nor always to one alone, occasionally to both
at the same time. The Carthaginians had been expelled by the Romans, the
Romans could be expelled by the Spaniards if they were unanimous, and then
with their country freed for ever from foreign domination they could return
to the traditions and rites of their forefathers. By arguments of this kind he
succeeded in rousing his own people and their neighbours, the Ausetani.
Other tribes round joined them and in a few days 30,000 infantry and about
4000 cavalry mustered in the Sedetanian territory, the appointed rendezvous.
29.2
.The
Roman commanders, L. Lentulus and L. Manlius Acidinus, were determined
not to let the war spread through any remissness on their part. They united
their forces and marched with their combined strength through the
Ausetanian territory, inflicting no injury on either the hostile or the peaceable
districts, until they came to where the enemy was encamped. They fixed their
own camp at a distance of three miles from that of the enemy, and sent
envoys to persuade him to lay down his arms. When, however, the Spanish
horse attacked a party of foragers, cavalry supports were at once hurried up
from the Roman outposts, and a skirmish took place without any special
advantage to either side. On the morrow the whole of the Spanish army
marched under arms and in battle formation to within a mile of the Roman
camp. The Ausetani formed the centre, the Ilergetes were on the right and
the left was made up of various nameless tribes. Between the wings and the
centre open spaces were left, wide enough to allow of the cavalry charging
through when the right moment arrived. The Roman line was formed in the
usual way, except that they so far copied the enemy as to leave spaces
between the legions for their cavalry also to pass through. Lentulus,
however, saw that this disposition would be of advantage to that side only
who were the first to send their cavalry through the wide gaps in the
opposing line. Accordingly he gave the military tribune, Servius Cornelius,
orders to send his cavalry at full speed through the openings. He himself,
finding that his infantry were making no progress, and that the twelfth
legion, who were on the left, opposed to the Ilergetes, were beginning to
give ground, brought up the thirteenth legion who were in reserve to their
support. As soon as the battle was restored in this quarter he rode up to L.
Manlius, who was at the front encouraging his men and bringing up
assistance wherever it was required, and pointed out to him that all was safe
on his left and that S. Cornelius, acting under his orders, would soon envelop
the enemy with a whirlwind of cavalry. He had hardly said this when the
Roman cavalry charging into the middle of the enemy threw his infantry into
confusion, and at the same time barred the passage for the Spanish horse.
These, finding themselves unable to act as cavalry, dismounted and fought
on foot. When the Roman commanders saw the enemy's ranks in disorder,
confusion and panic spreading and the standards swaying to and fro, they
appealed to their men to break up the enemy while thus shaken and not let
them re-form their line. The barbarians would not have withstood the furious
attack which followed had not Indibilis and his dismounted cavalry placed
themselves in front to screen the infantry. There was very violent fighting for
some time, neither side giving way. The king though half dead kept his
ground till he was pinned to the earth by a javelin, and then those who were
fighting round him were at last overwhelmed beneath showers of missiles. A
general flight began and the carnage was all the greater because the troopers
had no time to recover their horses, and the Romans never relaxed the
pursuit until they had stripped the enemy of his camp. 13,000 Spaniards were
killed on that day and about 1800 prisoners taken. Of the Romans and allies
a little more than 200 fell, mainly on the left wing. The Spaniards who had
been routed on the field or driven out of their camp, dispersed amongst the
fields, and finally returned to their respective communities.
29.3
After this
Mandonius summoned a meeting of the national council, at which loud
complaints were uttered about the disasters they had incurred, and the
authors of the war were strongly denounced. It was resolved to send envoys
to make a formal surrender and offer to give up their arms. They threw all
the blame on Indibilis for starting the war, and on the other chieftains also,
most of whom had fallen in the battle. The reply they received was that their
surrender would only be accepted on condition of their giving up Mandonius
alive and the other instigators of the war; failing this, the Roman army would
march into the country of the Ilergetes and Ausetani, and into the territories
of other nations one after another. When this reply was reported to the
council, Mandonius and the other chiefs were at once arrested and handed
over for punishment. Peace was re-established amongst the Spanish tribes.
They were required to furnish double pay for the troops that year, a six
months' supply of corn, and cloaks and togas for the army. Hostages were
also demanded from about thirty tribes. In this way the revolt in Spain was
crushed without any serious disturbance, and all the terror of our arms was
turned towards Africa. C. Laelius reached Hippo Regius in the night, and at
daybreak his soldiers and the crews of the vessels were sent ashore for the
purpose of ravaging the surrounding country. As the inhabitants were all
peacefully pursuing their avocations and suspecting no danger, considerable
mischief was done amongst them. Wild alarm was spread through Carthage
by the breathless fugitives, who declared that a Roman fleet had arrived
under the command of Scipio; the report of his having crossed over to Sicily
had already got abroad. As no one was quite clear as to how many ships had
been sighted, or what was the strength of the force that was landed, they
were led by their fears to exaggerate everything. When they had recovered
from the first shock of alarm they were filled with consternation and grief.
"Has Fortune," they asked, "so completely changed that the nation which in
the pride of victory had an army before the walls of Rome, and after making
so many of the enemy's armies bite the dust, forced or persuaded into
submission all the peoples of Italy should now in the recoil of war have to
witness the desolation of Africa and the siege of Carthage without having
anything like the resources which the Romans have wherewith to meet these
troubles? In the Roman plebs and in Latium they are supplied with a soldiery
which is always growing more efficient and more numerous to replace all the
armies they have lost, whilst our common people are utterly unwarlike
whether in town or country. We have to hire mercenaries from amongst the
Africans, upon whom no dependence can be placed, who are as fickle as the
wind. The native sovereigns are hostile now; Syphax has quite turned against
us since his interview with Scipio; Masinissa has openly declared himself our
bitterest enemy. Nowhere does there appear the slightest prospect of help.
Mago has not created any outbreak in Gaul nor has he effected a junction
with Hannibal; Hannibal himself is weakening, both in prestige and in
strength."
29.4
The
Carthaginians were recalled from the gloomy reflections into which the dire
news had plunged them by the pressure of immediate danger and the
necessity of devising means to meet it. They decided to raise a hasty levy
from the town and country population alike, to send officers to enlist African
mercenaries, to strengthen the defences of the city, to accumulate stores of
corn, to prepare a supply of weapons and armour, to fit out ships and
despatch them against the Roman fleet at Hippo. In the midst of these
preparations news came that it was Laelius, not Scipio, who was in
command, that the force he had brought was only sufficient to make a raid
and that the main strength of the war was still in Sicily. So they breathed
freely once more, and began to send deputations to Syphax and the other
princes with the view of consolidating their alliance. They even sent envoys
to Philip with the promise of two hundred talents of silver to induce him to
invade either Sicily or Italy. Instructions were also sent to their generals in
Italy to keep Scipio fully employed at home and so prevent him from leaving
the country. To Mago they sent not only instructions but also 25 warships, a
force of 6000 infantry, 800 cavalry and 7 elephants. A large amount of
money was also forwarded to him to enable him to raise a body of
mercenaries, with which he might be able to move nearer Rome and form a
junction with Hannibal. Such were the preparations and plans of Carthage.
While Laelius was carrying off the enormous quantity of booty which he had
taken from the defenceless and unprotected peasantry, Masinissa, who had
heard of the arrival of the Roman fleet, came with a small escort to visit him.
He complained of the want of energy shown by Scipio. Why, he asked, had
he not brought his army to Africa just at a time when the Carthaginians were
in a state of dismay and consternation, and Syphax was preoccupied with
war with his neighbours? He was quite certain that if time were allowed him
for arranging matters as he wished, Syphax would be anything but a true
friend to the Romans. Laelius must urge Scipio to push on without delay and
he, Masinissa, though driven from his kingdom would assist him with a force
of horse and foot, which would be by no means contemptible. Laelius
himself, too, must not stay in Africa, there was reason to believe that a fleet
had sailed from Carthage with which in Scipio's absence it would not be safe
to engage. After this conversation Masinissa took his departure, and the
following day Laelius left Hippo with his ships laden with plunder and
returned to Sicily where he laid Masinissa's instructions before Scipio.
29.5
It was
about this time that the ships which had been despatched from Carthage to
Mago appeared off the coast at a place situated between the Ingauni and
Genua. Mago's fleet happened to be anchored there at the time, and as soon
as he learnt the nature of the instructions brought to him and that he was to
gather together as large a force as possible, he at once summoned a council
of the Gallic and Ligurian chieftains, the two nationalities of which the large
population of that country was composed. When they were assembled he
told them that his mission was to restore them to liberty, and as they could
see for themselves reinforcements were being sent to him from home. But it
depended upon them what numbers and strength would be available for the
war. There were two Roman armies in the field, one in Gaul, the other in
Etruria, and he knew as a matter of fact that Spurius Lucretius would unite
his forces with M. Livius. A good many thousands of men must be armed if
they were to offer an effectual resistance to two Roman generals and two
armies. The Gauls assured him that they were perfectly willing to do their
part, but as one Roman camp was on their territory and the other just within
the frontier of Etruria, almost within sight of them, any attempt to assist the
Carthaginians openly would subject their country to an invasion from both
sides. Mago must ask from the Gauls only such assistance as they could
furnish secretly. As for the Ligurians, the Roman camp was a long way from
their cities, they were therefore free to act as they chose, it was right that
they should arm their men and take their fair share in the war. The Ligurians
raised no objection, they only asked for an interval of two months in which
to raise their force. Mago in the meantime after sending the Gauls home
began to hire mercenary troops secretly throughout their country, and
clandestine supplies were sent to him from the different communities. M.
Livius marched his army of volunteer slaves from Etruria into Gaul and after
joining hands with Lucretius made preparations for opposing any movement
which Mago might make in the direction of Rome. If on the other hand the
Carthaginians remained quiet in that corner of the Alps he would also stay
where he was, near Ariminum, to defend Italy.
29.6
Scipio's
eagerness to carry out his project was quickened by the report which C.
Laelius brought back of his conversation with Masinissa, and the troops, too,
were very keen to make the voyage when they saw the whole of Laelius'
fleet loaded with plunder taken from the enemy. His larger purpose,
however, was crossed by a smaller undertaking, namely the conquest of
Locri, one of the cities which in the general defection of Italy had gone over
to the Carthaginians. The hope of achieving this object had arisen from a
very trivial incident. The struggle in Bruttium had assumed the character of
brigandage much more than that of regular warfare. The Numidians had
commenced the practice, and the Bruttians followed their example, not so
much because of their alliance with the Carthaginians as because it was their
traditional and natural method of carrying on war. At last even the Romans
were infected by the passion for plunder and, as far as their generals allowed
them, used to make predatory incursions on the enemy's fields. A party of
Locrians who had left the shelter of their city were caught by them in one of
these raids and carried off to Regium, and amongst them were some artisans
who had been working for the Carthaginians in the citadel of Locri. Many of
the Locrian nobles who had been expelled by their opponents when the city
was surrendered to Hannibal had retired to Regium and were living there at
the time. They recognised these artisans and naturally after their long
absence wanted to know what was going on at home. After replying to all
their questions the prisoners said that if they were ransomed and sent back
they believed that they could betray the citadel to them, as they lived there
and were implicitly trusted by the Carthaginians. The nobles, filled as they
were, with a yearning for home and burning to take vengeance on their
opponents, came to an understanding with them as to how the project was to
be executed and what signals those in the citadel were to look out for. They
then promptly ransomed them and sent them back. Their next step was to
proceed to Syracuse, where some of the refugees were staying, and
interview Scipio. They told him what the prisoners had promised to do, and
he felt that there was a reasonable prospect of success. Two military
tribunes, M. Sergius and P. Matienus, accompanied them back to Regium
with orders to take 3000 men from the garrison there and march to Locri.
Written instructions were also sent to the propraetor Q. Pleminius to take
command of the expedition.
The troops started from Regium carrying with them ladders
specially constructed to reach the lofty elevation of the citadel and about
midnight they arrived at the place from which they were to give the signal
agreed upon. The conspirators were on the look out, and when they
observed the signal they lowered ladders which they had made for the
purpose, and in this way the assailants were able to mount at several
different points simultaneously. Before any shouting arose they attacked the
men on guard who, suspecting no danger, were asleep. Their dying groans
were the first sounds that were heard, then there was the consternation of
men suddenly awakened and not knowing the cause of the tumult, and at last
when they discovered it they roused the rest and every man shouted his
loudest, "To arms! the enemy is in the citadel and the sentinels are being
killed!" The Romans, who were far outnumbered, would have been
overpowered had not the shouts of those outside bewildered the garrison,
whilst everything seemed more terrible in the confusion and panic of a
nocturnal assault. The Carthaginians in their alarm imagined that the citadel
was filled by the enemy, and abandoning all further resistance fled to the
other citadel which was situated not far from the first. The city itself, which
lay between the two as the prize of victory, was held by the townsmen.
Sorties were made from each citadel and skirmishes went on day by day. Q.
Pleminius commanded the Roman garrison and Hamilcar the Carthaginian.
The numbers on each side were augmented by reinforcements from
neighbouring positions. At last Hannibal himself moved up and the Romans
would not have held out had not the population, embittered by the tyranny
and rapacity of the Carthaginians, taken their side.
29.7
When
information reached Scipio as to the serious state of affairs at Locri and
Hannibal's approach, he feared for the garrison, which would be in great
danger owing to the difficulty of withdrawal. Leaving his brother Lucius in
command of a detachment at Messana, he set sail as soon as the tide turned
and allowed a favourable voyage. Hannibal had reached the river Bulotus, at
a point not far from Locri, and had sent instructions from there to Hamilcar,
ordering him to commence a violent attack on the Romans and Locrians,
whilst he himself would deliver an assault on the opposite side of the city,
which would be left unguarded as everyone's attention would be devoted to
the attack which Hamilcar was making. He arrived before the city at
daybreak and found the fighting already begun, but he would not confine
himself in the citadel where his men, crowded together, would hamper one
another's movements, and he had not brought scaling ladders for an attempt
on the walls. After giving orders for the baggage to be piled, he displayed his
army in battle formation with the view of intimidating the enemy. Whilst
ladders were being got ready and preparations made for an assault he rode
round the walls with his Numidians to see where an approach could best be
made. As he was advancing towards the wall, one of those who happened to
be close to him was struck by a missile from a scorpion, and, alarmed at the
danger to which his men were exposed, he ordered the retreat to be sounded
and entrenched himself in a position far beyond the range of any missiles.
The Roman fleet arrived from Messana sufficiently early in the day to allow
of the whole force disembarking and entering the city before sunset. The
next day the Carthaginians began the fighting from the citadel, whilst
Hannibal advanced to the walls with the scaling ladders and all other
apparatus in readiness for the assault. Suddenly a gate was flung open, and
the Romans sallied out against him -the last thing he was expecting. In their
sudden charge they killed as many as 200, and Hannibal, finding that the
consul was commanding in person, retired the rest of his force to his camp.
He sent word to those in the citadel that they must provide for their own
safety. During the night he broke up his camp and departed, and the men in
the citadel, after setting their quarters on fire in order to delay any pursuit by
the confusion thus created, followed and overtook their main body with a
speed which looked very much like flight.
29.8
When
Scipio discovered that the citadel had been evacuated and the camp
abandoned, he summoned the Locrians to an assembly and bitterly
reproached them for their defection. The authors of the revolt were executed
and their property assigned to the leaders of the other party as a reward for
their exceptional loyalty to Rome. As regarded the political status of Locri
he said that he would make no change, they were to send representatives to
Rome, and what the senate thought right, that would be their fate. He added
that he was quite sure that although they had behaved so badly to Rome,
they would be better off under the Romans, incensed as they were against
them, than under their friends, the Carthaginians. Leaving the detachment
which had captured the citadel, with Pleminius in command, to protect the
city, he returned with the troops he had brought to Messana. After their
secession from Rome the Locrians had met with such tyrannical and brutal
treatment from the Carthaginians, that they could have submitted to ordinary
ill-usage not only with patience but almost with cheerfulness. But, as a
matter of fact, Pleminius so far surpassed Hamilcar, his soldiers so far
surpassed the Carthaginians in criminality and greed that they seemed to be
rivalling one another in vice, not in courage. Nothing that can make the
power of the strong hateful to the weak and defenceless was left undone by
the general and his men in their conduct towards the townsmen.
Unspeakable outrages were inflicted on their persons, their wives and their
children. Their rapacity did not shrink even from sacrilege; not content with
plundering the other temples it is recorded that they laid hands on the
treasury of Proserpine, which had always been undisturbed, except by
Pyrrhus, and even he restored the plunder and made a costly offering to
expiate his sacrilegious deed. As on that occasion the king's ships, tempest
tossed and shattered, brought to land nothing that was uninjured, except the
sacred money of the goddess, so now by a disaster of a different kind the
same money drove all who were contaminated by the violation of her temple
to such a pitch of frenzy that general was turned against general, and soldier
against soldier in all the madness of mortal strife.
29.9
Pleminius
was in supreme command, and he had with him the troops he had brought
from Regium, the rest were under the military tribunes. One of his men was
running off with a silver cup which he had stolen from a house, and the
owners were running after him. He happened to meet Sergius and Matienus,
the military tribunes, who ordered the cup to be taken from him. A dispute
arose, angry shouts were raised, and at last a regular fight began between the
soldiers of Pleminius and those of the military tribunes. As first one and then
another ran up and joined his own side, the number and noise of the
combatants went on increasing. Pleminius' party were worsted and ran to
their commander with loud and angry shouts, showing him their wounds and
blood-stained armour, and repeating the insulting language which had been
used about him in the quarrel. He was furious, and rushing out of his house
summoned the tribunes before him, and ordered them to be stripped and the
rods got ready. This took some time, for they struggled and appealed for
help to their men, who, excited by their recent victory, ran up from all parts
as though they had been summoned to arms to repel an attack. When they
saw the persons of their tribunes actually outraged by the rods they were
kindled into ungovernable fury, and without the slightest respect for the
majesty of office or even for humanity, they grossly maltreated the lictors,
and then having separated Pleminius from his men and hemmed him in, they
slit his nose and ears and left him half dead. All this was reported to Scipio at
Messana, and a few days later he came in a six-banked galley to Locri, where
he held a formal enquiry into the causes of the disturbance. Pleminius was
acquitted and retained his post; the tribunes were declared to be guilty and
thrown into chains with a view to their being sent to Rome. Scipio then
returned to Messana, and from there proceeded to Syracuse. Pleminius was
beside himself with rage. He considered that Scipio had treated his wrongs
far too lightly, and that the only man who could assess the penalty was the
man who had suffered the outrage. The tribunes were dragged before him,
and after undergoing every torture which the human body can endure, were
put to death. Even then his cruelty was not satiated and he ordered the
bodies to be cast forth unburied. He exercised the same savage cruelty upon
the leading citizens of Locri, who he learnt had gone to Scipio to complain
of his misconduct. The shocking proofs he had already given of his lust and
greed amongst the allies of Rome were now multiplied in his fury, and the
shame and odium they created recoiled not only on him but on his
commander-in-chief as well.
29.10
The
date of the elections was approaching, when a despatch was received from
the consul P. Licinius. In it he stated that both he and his army were
suffering from serious illness, and they could not have held their position if
the enemy had not been visited with equal or even greater severity. As,
therefore, he could not himself come, he would, if the senate approved,
nominate Quintus Caecilius Metellus as Dictator to conduct the elections. He
suggested that it would be advisable in the public interest for Q. Caecilius'
army to be disbanded, as there was no immediate use for them now that
Hannibal had gone into winter quarters and the epidemic had attacked their
camp with such violence that unless they were soon disbanded, not a single
man, judging from appearances, would survive. The senate left it to the
consul to take such steps as he thought most consistent with his duty to the
commonwealth. About this time the citizens were much exercised by a
religious question which had lately come up. Owing to the unusual number
of showers of stones which had fallen during the year, an inspection had
been made of the Sibylline Books, and some oracular verses had been
discovered which announced that whenever a foreign foe should carry war
into Italy he could be driven out and conquered if the Mater Idaea were
brought from Pessinus to Rome. The discovery of this prediction produced
all the greater impression on the senators because the deputation who had
taken the gift to Delphi reported on their return that when they sacrificed to
the Pythian Apollo the indications presented by the victims were entirely
favourable, and further, that the response of the oracle was to the effect that
a far grander victory was awaiting Rome than the one from whose spoils
they had brought the gift to Delphi. They regarded the hopes thus raised as
confirmed by the action of Scipio in demanding Africa as his province as
though he had a presentiment that this would bring the war to an end. In
order, therefore, to secure all the sooner the victory which the Fates the
omens and the oracles alike foreshadowed, they began to think out the best
way of transporting the goddess to Rome.
29.11
Up to
that time the Roman people had no allies amongst the communities in Asia.
They had not forgotten however, that when they were suffering from a
serious epidemic they had sent to fetch Aesculapius from Greece though
they had no treaty with that country, and now that King Attalus had formed
a friendly league with them against their common enemy, Philip, they hoped
that he would do what he could in the interest of Rome. Accordingly, they
decided to send a mission to him; those selected for the purpose being M.
Valerius Laevinus who had been twice consul and had also been in charge of
the operations in Greece, M. Caecilius Metellus an ex-praetor, S. Sulpicius
Galba, formerly aedile, and two who had been quaestors, Cnaeus Tremellius
Flaccus and M. Valerius Falto. It was arranged that they should sail with five
quinqueremes in order that they might present an appearance worthy of the
people of Rome when they visited those states which were to be favourably
impressed with the greatness of the Roman name. On their way to Asia the
commissioners landed at Delphi, and at once went to consult the oracle and
ascertain what hopes it held out to them and their country of accomplishing
their task. The response which they are said to have received was that they
would attain their object through King Attalus and when they had conveyed
the goddess to Rome they were to take care that the best and noblest men in
Rome should accord her a fitting reception. They went on to the royal
residence in Pergamum, and here the king gave them a friendly welcome and
conducted them to Pessinus in Phrygia. He then handed over to them the
sacred stone which the natives declared to be "the Mother of the Gods," and
bade them carry it to Rome. M. Valerius Falto was sent on in advance to
announce that the goddess was on her way, and that the best and noblest
man in Rome must be sought out to receive her with all due honour. The
consul commanding in Bruttium nominated Q. Caecilius Metellus as Dictator
to conduct the elections and his army was disbanded; L. Veturius Philo was
Master of the Horse. The new consuls were M. Cornelius Cethegus and P.
Sempronius Tuditanus; the latter was elected in his absence as he was
commanding in Greece. Then followed the election of praetors, those elected
being Tiberius Claudius Nero, M. Marcius Ralla, L. Scribonius Libo and M.
Pomponius Matho. When the elections were over, the Dictator resigned his
office. The Roman Games were celebrated three times, the Plebeian Games,
seven times. The curule aediles were the two Cornelii, Cnaeus and Lucius.
Lucius was in charge of the province of Spain; he was elected in his absence,
and though absent, discharged the duties of his office. Tiberius Claudius
Asellus and M. Junius Pennus were the plebeian aediles. The temple of
Virtus near the Porta Capena was dedicated by M. Marcellus this year; it had
been vowed by his father at Clastidium in Gaul seventeen years previously.
M. Aemilius Regillus, Flamen of Mars, died this year.
29.12
Little
attention had been paid to affairs in Greece for the last two years. As a
result, Philip, finding that the Aetolians had been abandoned by the Romans
to whom alone they looked for help, compelled them to sue for peace and
accept whatever terms he chose. Had he not devoted all his strength to
secure this result as soon as possible, his operations against them would have
been interrupted by the proconsul P. Sempronius who had succeeded
Sulpicius and commanded a force of 10,000 infantry, 1000 cavalry and 35
ships of war, a considerable force to bring to the assistance of our allies.
Hardly had the peace been concluded when news reached the king that the
Romans were at Dyrrachium and that the Parthini and neighbouring tribes
had risen and were besieging Dimallum. The Romans had diverted their force
to this place, for as the Aetolians had concluded the treaty with the king
without their consent, they showed their resentment by refusing the help
which they were sent to give them. On receiving this intelligence Philip,
anxious to prevent the movement from spreading, hastened to Apollonia.
Sempronius had withdrawn to this place after sending Laetorius with a
portion of his force and fifteen ships to Aetolia to see how matters stood
there and, if possible, upset the peace. Philip ravaged the country round
Apollonia, and brought his forces up to the city in order to give the Romans
an opportunity of fighting. As, however, he saw that they kept within their
walls, and feeling doubtful as to his ability to attack the place, he withdrew
into his kingdom. An additional motive for his retirement was his desire to
establish peace with them as he had with the Aetolians, or if not peace at all
events a truce, and consequently he avoided irritating them by further
hostilities.
The Epirotes were by this time tired of the long-continued war and
after sounding the Romans sent envoys to Philip with proposals for a general
settlement and assuring him that there was no doubt as to its being arranged
if he would confer with Sempronius. The king was by no means averse from
the proposal, and readily consented to visit Epirus. Phoenice, an important
city in Epirus, was chosen as the place of meeting, and there the king, after a
preliminary interview with Aeropus, Dardas and Philip, the chief magistrates
of the Epirotes, met Sempronius. There were present at the conference
Amynander, king of the Athamanians, as well as the chief magistrates of the
Epirotes and Acarnanians. The Epirote magistrate, Philip, opened the
discussion by appealing to the king and the Roman general to put a stop to
the war out of consideration for the Epirotes. The conditions of peace as
stated by Sempronius were that the Parthini together with the towns of
Dimallum, Bargullum and Eugenium should belong to Rome, and Atintania
should be annexed by Macedon, if Philip obtained the sanction of the senate
to the arrangement. When the terms were settled the king included Prusias,
king of Bithynia, and also the Achaeaus, the Boeotians, the Thessalians, the
Acarnanians and the Epirotes as parties to the agreement. The Romans on
their side extended its provisions to the Ilienses, King Attalus, Pleuratus,
Nabis, tyrant of the Lacedaemonians, the Eleans, the Messenians and the
Athenians. The clauses were then reduced to writing and duly sealed. A two
months' armistice was agreed upon to allow of envoys being sent to Rome to
obtain from the Assembly the ratification of the treaty. All the tribes voted
for it; they were glad to be relieved for the time from the pressure of other
wars now that their efforts were directed towards Africa. After the
conclusion of peace, P. Sempronius left for Rome to take up the duties of his
consulship.
29.13
P.
Sempronius and M. Cornelius entered upon their consulship in the fifteenth
year of the Punic War. To the latter was decreed the province of Etruria with
the standing army there; Sempronius received Bruttium and had to enrol
fresh troops. Of the praetors, M. Marcius took over the City jurisdiction, L.
Scribonius Libo was charged with the jurisdiction over aliens and also the
administration of Gaul, Sicily fell to M. Pomponius Matho, and Sardinia to
Tiberius Claudius Nero. P. Scipio had his command extended for twelve
months with the army and fleet which he already had. P. Licinius was to
remain in Bruttium with two legions as long as the consul thought it
advisable for him to retain his command there. M. Livius and Sp. Lucretius
were also to retain the legions with which they had been protecting Gaul
against Mago. Cnaeus Octavius was to hand over his legion and the
command in Sardinia to Nero and take charge of a fleet of forty ships for the
protection of the coast within the limits fixed by the senate. The remains of
the army of Cannae, amounting to two legions, were assigned to M.
Pomponius, the praetor commanding in Sicily. T. Quinctius was to hold
Tarentum and C. Hostilius Tubulus Capua with the existing garrisons -both
with the rank of propraetor. With regard to the command in Spain it was left
to the people to decide upon the two proconsuls who were to be sent into
that province and they were unanimous in retaining L. Cornelius Lentulus
and L. Manlius Acidinus in command there. The consuls proceeded with the
enlistment, as ordered by the senate, for the purpose of raising fresh legions
for Bruttium and bringing the other armies up to full strength.
29.14
Although Africa had not been officially
placed among the provinces -the senators, I think, kept it secret to prevent
the Carthaginians from getting information beforehand -the citizens fully
expected that Africa would be the scene of hostilities this year, and that the
end of the Punic War was not far off. In this state of excitement men's minds
were filled with superstition and the ready credence given to announcement
of portents increased their number. Two suns were said to have been seen;
there were intervals of daylight during the night; a meteor was seen to shoot
from east to west; a gate at Tarracina and at Anagnia a gate and several
portions of the wall were struck by lightning; in the temple of Juno Sospita
at Lanuvium a crash followed by a dreadful roar was heard. To expiate these
portents special intercessions were offered for a whole day, and in
consequence of a shower of stones a nine days' solemnity of prayer and
sacrifice was observed. The reception of Mater Idaea was also being
anxiously discussed. M. Valerius, the member of the deputation who had
come in advance, had reported that she would be in Italy almost immediately
and a fresh messenger had brought word that she was already at Tarracina.
The attention of the senate was engrossed by a very difficult question; they
had to decide who was the best and noblest man in the State. Every one felt
that to gain this distinction would be for him a real victory, far outweighing
any official position or honourable distinction which either patricians or
plebeians could confer. Of all the great and good men in the State they
adjudged the best and noblest to be P. Scipio, the son of the Cnaeus Scipio
who had fallen in Spain; a young man not yet old enough to be quaestor.
What special merits of his induced the senate to come to this conclusion I
should have been glad to record for posterity had the writers who lived
nearest to those days handed them down. As it is I will not obtrude my
conjectures upon a matter hidden in the mists of antiquity.
P. Scipio was ordered to go to Ostia, accompanied by all the
matrons, to meet the goddess. He was to receive her as she left the vessel,
and when brought to land he was to place her in the hands of the matrons
who were to bear her to her destination. As soon as the ship appeared off the
mouth of the Tiber he put out to sea in accordance with his instructions,
received the goddess from the hands of her priestesses, and brought her to
land. Here she was received by the foremost matrons of the City, amongst
whom the name of Claudia Quinta stands out pre-eminently. According to
the traditional account her reputation had previously been doubtful, but this
sacred function surrounded her with a halo of chastity in the eyes of
posterity. The matrons, each taking their turn in bearing the sacred image,
carried the goddess into the temple of Victory on the Palatine. All the
citizens flocked out to meet them, censers in which incense was burning
were placed before the doors in the streets through which she was borne,
and from all lips arose the prayer that she would of her own free will and
favour be pleased to enter Rome. The day on which this event took place
was 12th April, and was observed as a festival; the people came in crowds to
make their offerings to the deity; a lectisternium was held and Games were
constituted which were known afterwards as the Megalesian.
29.15
Whilst
steps were being taken to complete the drafts for the legions in the
provinces, some of the senators suggested that the time had come to deal
with a state of things, which, however they might have put up with it at a
time of critical emergency, was intolerable now that the goodness of the
gods had removed their fears. Amid the close attention of the House they
stated that "the twelve Latin colonies which refused to furnish soldiers when
Q. Fabius and Q. Fulvius were our consuls have now for almost six years
been enjoying an exemption from military service, as though an honourable
distinction had been conferred upon them. In the meanwhile our good and
faithful allies have, as a reward for their fidelity and devotion, been
completely exhausted by the levies which they have raised year after year."
These words not only recalled to the memory of the senate a fact which they
had almost forgotten, but they called forth a strong feeling of resentment.
Accordingly, they insisted on taking this as the first business before the
House, and made the following decree: "The consuls shall summon to Rome
the chief magistrates and the ten leading councillors of each of the offending
colonies, namely, Nepete, Sutrium, Ardea, Cales, Alba, Carseoli, Sora,
Suessa, Setia, Cerceii, Narnia, and Interamna. They shall order each colony
to supply a contingent of infantry twice as numerous as the largest they have
raised since the Carthaginians appeared in Italy, and 120 cavalry in addition.
In case any colony cannot make up the required number of mounted men
they shall be allowed to substitute three foot-soldiers for each horseman
deficient. Both the cavalry and infantry are to be selected from the wealthiest
citizens, and sent wherever reinforcements are required outside the limits of
Italy. If any of them refuse to comply with this demand, we order that the
magistrates and representatives of that colony be detained, and no audience
of the senate shall be granted until they have done what is required of them.
In addition to these requirements a property tax of one tenth per cent. shall
be imposed on those colonies to be paid annually, and the assessment shall
be made similarly to the one in force in Rome. The Roman censors are to
supply the censors of the colonies with the necessary schedule of
instructions, and the latter must bring their lists to Rome and verify their
accuracy on oath before going out of office."
In pursuance of this resolution of the senate the magistrates and
chief councillors of those colonies were summoned to Rome. When the
consuls ordered them to furnish the necessary supplies of men and money
they broke out into loud and angry remonstrances. It was impossible, they
said, for so many soldiers to be raised, they would have the utmost difficulty
in getting as many as they were bound to supply under the old conditions.
They entreated that they might be allowed to appear and plead their cause
before the senate, and protested that they had done nothing to justify this
ruinous treatment. Even if it meant death to them, no fault which they might
have committed, no angry threats on the part of Rome could make them
raise more men than they possessed. The consuls were inflexible and ordered
the representatives to remain in Rome whilst the magistrates returned home
to levy the men. They were told that unless the required number of men was
brought to Rome the senate would grant them no audience. As there was no
hope of approaching the senate and begging for more favourable treatment,
they proceeded with the enlistment throughout the twelve colonies, and it
presented no difficulty owing to the increase in the number of men of
military age through the long exemption.
29.16
Another matter which had been lost sight
of for a similar length of time was brought up by M. Valerius Laevinus. It
was only just and right, he said, that the sums which were contributed by
private individuals in the year when he and M. Claudius were the consuls
should at last be repaid. No one ought to be surprised that he was
particularly anxious for the State to meet its obligations honourably, for,
apart from the fact that it specially concerned the consul for that year, it was
he himself who advocated these contributions at a time when the treasury
was exhausted, and the plebeians were unable to pay their war-tax. The
senators were glad to be reminded of the incident, and the consuls were
instructed to submit a resolution to the House. They made a decree that the
loans should be repaid in three instalments, the first, immediately by the
consuls then in office, the second and third by the consuls who should be in
office in two and four years' time, respectively. A subject was afterwards
brought up which absorbed all other interests, namely the terrible state of
things at Locri. Up to that time nothing had been heard of it, but since the
arrival of the delegates it had become generally known. Deep resentment
was felt at the criminal conduct of Pleminius, but still more at the partiality
or the indifference shown by Scipio. The delegates from Locri, presenting a
picture of grief and misery, approached the consuls, who were on their
tribunals in the comitium, and holding out in Greek fashion olive-branches as
tokens of suppliants prostrated themselves on the ground with tears and
groans. In reply to the consuls' enquiry as to who they were, they stated that
they were Locrians, and that they had experienced at the hands of Pleminius
and his Roman soldiers such treatment as the Roman people would not wish
even the Carthaginians to undergo. They craved permission to appear before
the senate and unfold their tale of woe.
29.17
An
audience was granted them, and the senior delegate addressed the senate in
the following terms: "Whatever importance, senators, you attach to our
complaints must, I am well aware, depend very largely upon your knowing
accurately the circumstances under which Locri was betrayed to Hannibal,
and after the expulsion of his garrison was again brought under your
suzerainty. For if our senate and people were in no way responsible for the
defection, and it can be shown that our return to your obedience was
brought about not only with our full consent, but even by our own efforts
and courage, then you will feel all the more indignation at such shameful
outrages having been inflicted by your officer and soldiers upon good and
faithful allies. I think, however, that we ought to put off for another time any
explanation of our double change of sides, for two reasons. One is that the
matter ought to be discussed when P. Scipio is present, as he recaptured
Locri and was an eyewitness of all our acts, both good and bad, and another
reason is that, however bad we may be, we ought not to have suffered as we
have done. We do not deny, senators, that when we had the Carthaginian
garrison in our citadel we had to submit to many acts of insolence and
cruelty at the hands of Hamilcar and his Numidians and Africans, but what
were they compared with what we are going through today? I pray, senators,
that you will not take offence at what I am most reluctantly compelled to
say. The whole world is waiting in feverish expectation to see whether you
or the Carthaginians are to be the lords of the earth. If the choice between
Roman and Punic supremacy depended upon the way in which the
Carthaginians have treated us Locrians as compared with what we are
suffering today from your soldiers, there is not one of us who would not
prefer their rule to yours. And yet in spite of all this, see what our feeling
towards you has been. When we were suffering comparatively slight injuries
from the Carthaginians we betook ourselves to your commander; now that
we are suffering from your troops injuries worse than any enemy would
inflict it is before you and no one else that we lay our complaint. If you,
senators, do not show any regard for our misery, there is nothing left which
we can pray for, even to the immortal gods themselves."
Q. Pleminius was sent with a body of troops to recover Locri from
the Carthaginians and was left with his troops in the city. In this officer of
yours -the extremity of misery gives me courage to speak freely -there is
nothing human except his face and appearance, there is no trace of the
Roman save in his garb and speech; he is a wild beast, a monster such as
were fabled to haunt the waters which divide us from Sicily, to the
destruction of navigators. If he were content with wreaking his own villainy
and lust and rapacity upon your allies, we might fill up this one gulf, deep as
it is, by patient endurance, but as it is, he has been so eager to spread
licentiousness and wickedness indiscriminately that he has made every
centurion and every private soldier into a Pleminius. They all alike rob,
plunder, beat, wound, kill, outrage matrons, maidens and boys torn from
their parent's arms. Each day witnesses a fresh storm, a fresh sack of our
city; everywhere, day and night, it is echoing with the shrieks of women who
are being seized and carried off. Any one who knows what is going on might
wonder how we are able to endure it all, or why they have not become
weary of their crimes. I cannot go into details, nor is it worth your while to
hear what each of us has suffered; I will give you a general description.
There is not a single house in Locri, I venture to assert, not a single
individual who has escaped ill-treatment; there is no form of villainy or lust
or rapacity which has not been practiced upon everyone who was a suitable
victim. It is difficult to decide which is the worst misfortune for a city, to be
captured by an enemy in war, or to be crushed by force and violence by a
sanguinary tyrant. All the horrors which attend the capture of a city we have
suffered and are suffering to the utmost; all the tortures which ruthless and
cruel tyrants inflict on their down-trodden subjects Pleminius has inflicted on
us, our children and our wives."
29.18
"There
is one matter about which our religious instincts compel us to make a special
complaint, and we should be glad if you would hear what has happened, and
if you so decide, take steps to clear your State from the taint of sacrilege.
We have seen with what pious care you not only worship your own gods,
but even recognise those of other nations. Now there is in our city a shrine
sacred to Proserpine, and I believe some rumours of the sanctity of that
temple reached your ears during your war with Pyrrhus. On his return
voyage from Sicily he touched at Locri and added to the atrocities which he
had committed against us for our loyalty to you by plundering the treasury of
Proserpine, which up to that day had never been disturbed. He placed the
money on board his fleet, and continued his journey overland. What
happened, senators? The very next day his fleet was shattered by a terrible
storm and the ships which were carrying the sacred gold were all cast ashore
on our coast. Taught by this great disaster that there are gods after all, the
arrogant monarch gave orders for all the money to be collected and carried
back to Proserpine's treasury. In spite of this nothing ever prospered with
him afterwards, he was driven out of Italy and in a foolhardy attempt to
enter Argos by night he met with an ignoble and dishonourable death. Your
commander and the military tribunes had heard of this incident and of
countless others which were related to them not so much to increase the
feeling of dread as to give proofs of the direct and manifest power of the
goddess, a power which we and our ancestors had often experienced.
Notwithstanding this, they dared to lay sacrilegious hands on that inviolate
treasure and to attains themselves and their houses and your soldiers with the
guilt of their unhallowed plunder. We implore you therefore, senators, by all
you hold sacred, not to employ these men in any military service till you have
expiated their crime, lest their sacrilege should be atoned for, not by their
blood alone but also by disaster to the commonwealth.
Even now the wrath of the goddess is not slow to visit your officers
and soldiers. Frequently have they already engaged in pitched battles;
Pleminius leading the one side, the military tribunes the other. They have
fought quite as furiously with one another as they ever fought with the
Carthaginians, and in their frenzy would have given Hannibal an opportunity
of recapturing Locri if we had not sent for Scipio. Do not suppose that
whilst the guilt of sacrilege drove the soldiers mad, the goddess did not
manifest her wrath by punishing the leaders. It is just here where she
manifested it most clearly. The tribunes were beaten with rods by their
superior officer, afterwards he was caught unawares by them and, in addition
to being hacked all over, his nose and ears were sliced off and he was left for
dead. At length, recovering from his wounds, he placed the tribunes in irons
and then, after flogging them and subjecting them to all the tortures that are
inflicted on slaves, he put them to death and after they were dead forbade
them to be buried. In this way is the goddess inflicting retribution upon the
despoilers of her temple, nor will she cease to vex them with every kind of
madness until the sacred hoard has once more been deposited in the shrine.
Once when our ancestors were hard pressed in the war with Croto, they
decided, as the temple was outside the city walls, to carry the treasure into
the city. A voice was heard at night proceeding from the shrine and uttering
a warning: 'Lay no hand upon it! The goddess will protect her temple.'
Deterred by religious fears from moving the treasure, they wanted to build a
wall round the temple. After it had been carried up some distance it suddenly
collapsed. Often in the past has the goddess protected her temple and the
seat of her presence, or else as at the present time she has exacted a heavy
atonement from those who have violated it. But our wrongs she cannot
avenge, nor can any one but you, senators; it is your honour that we invoke
and your protection beneath which we seek shelter. To allow Locri to remain
under that commander and those troops is, as far as we are concerned, the
same as handing us over for punishment to all the rage of Hannibal and his
Carthaginians. We do not ask you to accept what we say at once, in the
absence of the accused or without hearing his defence. Let him appear, let
him hear the charges against him, and let him rebut them. If there be any
single crime that one man can be guilty of towards another, which that man
has failed to commit against us, then we are willing to go through all our
sufferings, if it is in our power to do so, once more, and ready to pronounce
him void of all offence towards gods and men."
29.19
At the
close of the delegate's speech, Q. Fabius enquired whether they had laid their
complaints before Scipio. They stated in reply that they had sent a
deputation to him, but he was fully occupied with his preparations for war
and had either sailed or was going to sail in a very few days for Africa. They
had had proof of the high favour in which Pleminius stood with his
commander-in-chief, for after investigating the circumstances which led to
the dispute between him and the military tribunes Scipio had thrown the
tribunes into chains and allowed his subordinate to retain his command
though he was equally or even more guilty. They were then ordered to
withdraw, and in the discussion which followed both Pleminius and Scipio
were very severely handled by the leaders of the House, especially by
Quintus Fabius. He declared that Scipio was born to destroy all military
discipline. It was the same in Spain; more men had been lost there in mutiny
than in battle. His conduct was that of some foreign tyrant, first indulging the
licence of the soldiers and then punishing them. Fabius closed his attack with
the following drastic resolution: "I move that Pleminius be brought to Rome
to plead his cause in chains, and if the charges which the Locrians have
brought against him are substantiated, that he be put to death in prison and
his property confiscated. With regard to Publius Scipio, as he has left his
province without orders, I move that he be recalled, and that it be referred to
the tribunes of the plebs to bring in a bill before the Assembly to relieve him
of his command. As to the Locrians, I move that they be brought back into
the House, and that we assure them in reply to their complaint that the
senate and the people alike disapprove of what has been done, and that we
recognise them as good and trusty allies and friends. And, further, that their
wives and children and all that has been taken away from them be restored,
and that all the money abstracted from Proserpine's treasury be collected,
and double the amount put back. The question of expiation must be referred
to the pontifical college, who must decide what expiatory rites are to be
observed, what deities are to be propitiated and what victims are to be
sacrificed in cases where sacred treasures have been violated. The soldiers at
Locri must be transferred to Sicily and four Latin cohorts sent to garrison
the place." Owing to the heated debate between Scipio's supporters and
opponents the votes could not be collected that day. Not only had he to bear
the odium of Pleminius' criminal brutality towards the Locrians, but the
Roman commander was even taunted with his style of dress as being
un-Roman and even unsoldierly. It was asserted that he walked about the
gymnasium in a Greek mantle and Greek slippers and spent his time amongst
rhetoricians and athletes and that the whole of his staff were enjoying the
attractions of Syracuse and living a life of similar self-indulgence and
effeminacy. They had completely lost sight of Hannibal and the
Carthaginians; the entire army was demoralised and out of hand; like the one
formerly at Sucro or the one now at Locri, they were more dreaded by their
allies than by the enemy.
29.20
Though there was sufficient truth in these
charges to give them an air of probability, Q. Metellus carried the majority
with him. Whilst agreeing with the rest of Fabius' speech, he dissented from
what he said about Scipio. Scipio, he said, had only the other day been
chosen by his fellow-citizens, young as he was, to command the expedition
which was to recover Spain, and after he had recovered it, was elected
consul to bring the Punic War to a close. All hopes were now centered in
him as the man who was destined to subjugate Africa and rid Italy of
Hannibal. How, he asked, could they with any propriety order him to be
peremptorily recalled, like another Q. Pleminius, without being heard in his
defence, especially when the Locrians admitted that the cruelties of which
they complained took place at a time when Scipio was not even on the spot
and when nothing could be definitely brought against him, beyond undue
leniency or shrinking from cruelty in sparing his subordinate officers? He
moved a resolution that M. Pomponius, the praetor to whom Sicily had been
allotted, should depart for his province in three days' time; that the consuls
should select at their discretion ten members of the senate who would
accompany the praetor, as well as two tribunes of the plebs and one of the
aediles. With these as his assessors he should conduct an investigation, and if
the acts of which the Locrians complained should prove to have been done
under the orders or with the consent of Scipio, they should order him to quit
his province. If he had already landed in Africa, the tribunes and the aedile
with two of the ten senators whom the praetor considered fittest for the task
should proceed thither, the tribunes and the aedile to bring Scipio back and
the two senators to take command of the army until a fresh general arrived.
If on the other hand M. Pomponius and his ten assessors ascertained that
what had been done was neither by the orders nor with the concurrence of
Scipio, he was to retain his command and carry on the war as he proposed.
This resolution proposed by Metellus was adopted by the senate, and the
tribunes of the plebs were asked to arrange which of them should accompany
the praetor. The pontifical college was consulted as to the necessary
expiations for the desecration and robbery of Proserpine's temple. The
plebeian tribunes who accompanied the praetor were M. Claudius Marcellus
and M. Cincius Alimentus. A plebeian aedile was assigned to them so that in
case Scipio refused to obey the praetor or had already landed in Africa, the
tribunes might, by virtue of their sacrosanct authority, order the aedile to
arrest him and bring him back with them. They decided to go to Locri first
and then on to Messana.
29.21
As to
Pleminius two stories are current. One is to the effect that when he heard of
the decision arrived at in Rome he started to go into exile at Naples, and on
his way was met by Q. Metellus, one of the ten senators, who arrested him
and brought him back to Regium. According to the other account Scipio
himself sent an officer with thirty men of highest rank amongst his cavalry
and threw Pleminius and the prime movers of the outbreak into chains. They
were all handed over by Scipio's orders or those of the officer to the people
of Regium for safe keeping. The praetor and the rest of the commission, on
their arrival at Locri, made the religious question their first care, in
accordance with their instructions. All the sacred money in the possession of
Pleminius and his soldiers was collected together, and together with what
they had brought with them was placed in the temple, and then expiatory
sacrifices were offered. After this the praetor summoned the troops to
assembly, and issued an order of the day threatening severe punishment to
any soldier who stayed behind in the city or carried away anything that did
not belong to him. He then ordered the standards to be borne outside the
city, and fixed his camp in the open country. The Locrians were given full
liberty to take whatever they recognised as their own property, and make a
claim for whatever could not be found. Above all he insisted upon the
immediate restoration of all free persons to their homes, any one who
neglected to restore them would be very severely punished.
The praetor's next business was to convene an assembly of the
Locrians, and here he announced that the senate and people of Rome gave
them back their constitution and their laws. Whoever wished to prosecute
Pleminius or any one else was to follow the praetor to Regium. If their
government wished to charge Scipio with either ordering or approving of the
crimes against gods and men which had been perpetrated in Locri they were
to send representatives to Messana, where, with the aid of his assessors, he
should hold an enquiry. The Locrians expressed their gratitude to the praetor
and the other members of the commission, and to the senate and people of
Rome. They announced their intention of prosecuting Pleminius, but as to
Scipio, "though he had not been much troubled about the injuries inflicted on
their city, they would rather have him their friend than their enemy. They
were quite convinced that it was neither by the orders nor with the approval
of P. Scipio that such infamous crimes were committed; his fault was that he
either reposed too much confidence in Pleminius or felt too much distrust in
the Locrians. Some men are so constituted that whilst they would not have
crimes committed they lack the resolution to inflict punishment when they
have been committed." The praetor and his council were greatly relieved at
not having to call Scipio to account; Pleminius and thirty-two others they
found guilty and sent them in chains to Rome. The commission then went to
Scipio to find out by personal observation whether there was any truth in the
common rumours about Scipio's style of dress and love of pleasure, in order
to be able to report to Rome.
29.22
Whilst
they were on their way to Syracuse Scipio prepared to justify himself, not by
words but by acts. He gave orders for the whole of the army to muster at
Syracuse and the fleet to be prepared for action as though he had to engage
the Carthaginians that day both by land and sea. When the commission had
landed he received them courteously, and the following day he invited them
to watch the maneuvers of his land and sea forces, the troops performing
their evolutions as in battle, whilst the ships in the harbour engaged in a
sham sea-fight. Then the praetor and the commissioners were taken for a
tour of inspection round the arsenals and magazines and the other
preparations for war, and the impression made by the whole and by each
separate detail was such as to convince them that if that general and that
army could not conquer Carthage, no one ever could. They bade him sail for
Africa with the blessing of heaven, and fulfil as speedily as possible the hopes
and expectations in which the centuries had unanimously chosen him as their
consul. They left in such joyous spirits that they seemed to be taking back
the announcement of a victory, and not simply reporting the magnificent
preparations for war. Pleminius and his fellow criminals were thrown into
prison as soon as they reached Rome. When they were first brought before
the people by the tribunes the minds of all were too full of the sufferings of
the Locrians to leave any room for pity. But after they had been brought
forward several times the feeling against them became gradually less
embittered, the mutilation which Pleminius had suffered and the thought of
the absent Scipio who had befriended him disposed the populace in his
favour. However, before the trial was over he died in prison. Clodius
Licinius in the Third Book of his Roman History says that Pleminius bribed
some men to set fire to various parts of the City during the Games which
Scipio Africanus was celebrating, in fulfilment of a vow, during his second
consulship, to give him an opportunity of breaking out of gaol and making
his escape. The plot was discovered, and he was by order of the senate
consigned to the Tullianum. No proceedings took place with regard to
Scipio except in the senate, where all the commissioners and the tribunes
spoke in such glowing terms of the general and his fleet and army that the
senate resolved that an expedition should start for Africa as soon as possible.
They gave Scipio permission to select from the armies in Sicily what troops
he would like to take with him, and what he would leave in occupation of
the island.
29.23
During
these occurrences in Rome, the Carthaginians had established look-out
stations on all the headlands and waited anxiously for the news which each
successive courier brought; the whole winter was passed in a state of alarm.
They formed an alliance with King Syphax, a step which they considered
would materially aid in protecting Africa against invasion, for it was in
reliance upon his cooperation that the Roman general would attempt a
landing Hasdrubal Gisgo had, as we have already mentioned, formed ties of
hospitality with the king when on his departure from Spain he met Scipio at
his court. There was some talk of a closer connection through the king's
marriage with Hasdrubal's daughter, and with a view to realising this project
and fixing a day for the nuptials -for the girl was of a marriageable age -Hasdrubal paid Syphax a visit. When he saw that the prince was passionately
desirous of the match -the Numidians are of all barbarians the most ardent
lovers -he sent for the maiden from Carthage and hastened on the wedding.
The gratification felt at the match was heightened by the action of the king in
strengthening his domestic tie with Carthage by a political alliance. A treaty
was drawn up and ratified on oath between Carthage and the king, in which
the contracting parties bound themselves to have the same friends and the
same enemies. Hasdrubal, however, had not forgotten the treaty which
Scipio had formed with Syphax, nor the capricious and fickle character of
the barbarians with whom he had to deal, and his great feat was that if once
Scipio landed in Africa this marriage would prove a very slight restraint upon
the king. So whilst the king was in the first transports of passion and
obedient to the persuasive endearments of his bride, he seized the
opportunity of inducing Syphax to send envoys to Scipio advising Scipio not
to sail to Africa on the faith of his former promises, as he was now
connected with a Carthaginian family through his marriage with Hasdrubal's
daughter; Scipio would remember meeting her father at his court. They were
to inform Scipio that he had also made a formal alliance with Carthage, and
it was his wish that the Romans should conduct their operations against
Carthage at a distance from Africa as they had hitherto done. Otherwise he
might be involved in the dispute and compelled to support one side and
abandon his alliance with the other. If Scipio refused to keep clear of Africa,
and led his army against Carthage, Syphax would feel himself under the
necessity of fighting in defence of the land of his birth, and in defence of his
wife's native city and her father and her home.
29.24
Furnished with these instructions the
king's envoys repaired to Syracuse to interview Scipio. He recognised that
he was deprived of the valuable support which he had hoped for in his
African campaign, but he decided to send the envoys back at once before
their mission became generally known. He gave them a letter for the king in
which he reminded him of the personal ties between them, and the alliance he
had formed with Rome, and solemnly warned him against breaking those ties
or violating the solemn engagements he had undertaken, and so offending
the gods who had witnessed and would avenge them. The visit of the
Numidians could not, however, be kept secret, for they strolled about the
city and were seen at headquarters, and there was a danger of the real object
of their visit becoming all the more widely known through the efforts made
to conceal it, and of the army being discouraged at the prospect of having to
fight the king and the Carthaginians at the same time. To prevent this Scipio
determined to keep them from the truth by preoccupying their minds with
falsehood. The troops were summoned to assembly and Scipio told them
that there must be no further delay. The friendly princes were urging him to
start for Africa as soon as possible; Masinissa himself had already gone to
Laelius to complain of the way in which time was being wasted, and now
Syphax had sent envoys to express his surprise at the delay and to demand
that the army should be sent to Africa or, if there was a change of plan, that
he should be informed of it in order that he might take measures to safeguard
himself and his kingdom. As therefore all the preparations were completed
and circumstances did not admit of any further delay, it was his intention to
order the fleet to Lilybaeum, to muster the whole of his infantry and cavalry
there and on the very first day which promised a favourable voyage set sail,
with the blessing of heaven, for Africa. He then wrote to M. Pomponius
requesting him, if he thought it advisable, to come to Lilybaeum that they
might consult together as to what legions should be selected and what ought
to be the total strength of the invading force. Orders were also sent all round
the coast for every transport vessel to be requisitioned and brought to
Lilybaeum. When the whole of the military and naval forces in Sicily were
assembled there, the town could not afford accommodation for all the men,
nor could the harbour hold all the ships, and such enthusiasm prevailed in all
ranks that it seemed as though instead of marching to war they were to reap
the fruits of a victory already won. This was particularly the case with the
survivors of Cannae, who felt quite certain that under no other leader would
they be able to do such service for the commonwealth as would put an end
to their ignominious condition. Scipio was far from despising these men, he
was quite aware that the defeat at Cannae was not brought about by any
cowardice on their part, and he knew, too, that there were no soldiers in the
Roman army who had had such a long experience in every kind of fighting,
and in the conduct of sieges. They formed the fifth and sixth legions. After
announcing to them that he would take them with him to Africa, he
inspected them man by man, and those whom he did not consider suitable he
left behind, replacing them from the men whom he had brought from Italy. In
this way he brought up the strength of each legion to 6200 men and 300
cavalry. He selected the Latin contingent also, both horse and foot, out of
the army of Cannae.
29.25
As to
the number of troops put on board there is considerable divergence among
the authorities. I find that some state it to have amounted to 10,000 infantry
and 2200 cavalry; others give 16,000 infantry and 1600 cavalry; others again
double this estimate and put the total of infantry and cavalry at 32,000 men.
Some writers give no definite number, and in a matter so uncertain I prefer
to include myself amongst them. Coelius declines, it is true, to give any
definite number, but he exaggerates to such an extent as to give the
impression of a countless multitude; the very birds, he says, fell to the
ground stunned by the shouting of the soldiers, and such a mighty host
embarked that it seemed as though there was not a single man left in either
Italy or Sicily. To avoid confusion Scipio personally superintended the
embarkation. C. Laelius who was in command of the fleet had previously
sent all the seamen to their posts and kept them there while the soldiers went
on board. The praetor, M. Pomponius, was responsible for the shipping of
the stores; forty-five days' provisions, including fifteen days' supply of
cooked food, were put on board. When all were now on board, boats were
sent round to take off the pilots and captains and two men from each ship
who were to assemble in the forum and receive their orders. When all were
present, his first enquiry was as to the supply of water for the men and
horses, whether they had put on board sufficient to last as long as the corn.
They assured him that there was water in the ships sufficient to last for
forty-five days. He then impressed upon the soldiers the necessity of keeping
quiet and maintaining discipline and not interfering with the sailors in the
discharge of their duties. He further informed them that he and Lucius Scipio
would command the right division of twenty ships of war, whilst C. Laelius,
prefect of the fleet, in conjunction with M. Porcius Cato, who was quaestor
at the time, would be in charge of the left line containing the same number,
and would protect the transports. The warships would show single lights at
night, the transports would have two, while the commander's ship would be
distinguished by three lights. He gave the pilots instructions to make for
Emporia. This was an extremely fertile district, and supplies of all kinds were
to be found there in abundance. The natives, as usually happens in a fruitful
country, were unwarlike, and would probably be overpowered before
assistance could reach them from Carthage. After issuing these orders he
dismissed them to their ships, and on the morrow at the given signal they
were, with the blessing of heaven, to set sail.
29.26
Many
Roman fleets had put out from Sicily and from that very port, but not even
during the First Punic War -in the present war the majority were simply
raiding expeditions -had any afforded a more striking picture at its
departure. And yet, if you only take into account the number of vessels, it
must be remembered that two consuls with their respective armies had left
that port on a previous occasion and the warships in their fleets were almost
as numerous as the transports with which Scipio was now making his
passage, for in addition to the forty ships of war he was carrying his army in
four hundred transports. Several causes conspired to invest the occasion
with unique interest. The Romans regarded the present war as a more
serious one than the former because it was going on in Italy, and had
involved the destruction of so many armies with their generals. Scipio, again,
had become the most popular general of his time for his gallant deeds of
arms, and his unvarying good fortune had immensely raised his reputation as
a soldier. His design of invading Africa had never before been attempted by
any commander, and it was generally believed that he would succeed in
drawing Hannibal away from Italy and finish the war on African soil. A vast
crowd of spectators had gathered in the harbour; besides the population of
Lilybaeum, all the deputations from the different cities in the island who had
come to pay their respects to Scipio as well as those who had accompanied
M. Pomponius, the governor of the province, were present. The legions
which were to remain in Sicily also marched down to bid their comrades
God-speed, and the throng which crowded the harbour was as grand a
spectacle to those afloat as the fleet itself was to those ashore.
29.27
When
the moment for departure came, Scipio ordered the herald to proclaim
silence throughout the fleet and put up the following prayer: "Ye gods and
goddesses of sea and land, I pray and beseech you to vouchsafe a favourable
issue to all that has been done or is being done now or will be done hereafter
under my command. May all turn out happily for the burghers and plebs of
Rome, for our allies of the Latin name, for all who have the cause of Rome
at heart, and for all who are marching beneath my standard, under my
auspices and command, by land or sea or stream. Grant us your gracious
help in all our doings, crown our efforts with success. Bring these my
soldiers and myself safe home again, victorious over our conquered foes,
adorned with their spoils, loaded with booty and exulting in triumph. Enable
us to avenge ourselves on our enemies and grant to the people of Rome and
to me the power to inflict exemplary chastisement on the city of Carthage,
and to retaliate upon her all the injury that her people have sought to do to
us." As he finished he threw the raw entrails of the victim into the sea with
the accustomed ritual. Then he ordered the trumpeter to sound the signal for
departure, and as the wind which was favourable to them freshened they
were quickly carried out of sight. In the afternoon they were enveloped in so
thick a fog that they had difficulty in keeping their ships from fouling one
another, and as they got out to sea the wind dropped. During the night a
similar fog prevailed, which dispersed after sunrise, and at the same the wind
freshened. At last they descried land, and a few minutes later the pilot
informed Scipio that they were not more than five miles from the coast of
Africa, and that the headland of Mercurius was plainly visible. If he would
give orders for him to steer for it, the man assured him, the whole of the fleet
would soon be in port. When he caught sight of land Scipio offered a prayer
that this first view of Africa might bring good to himself and to the republic.
He then gave orders for the fleet to make for an anchorage further south.
They went before the wind which was still in the same quarter, but a fog
which came up about the same time as on the day before blotted out the
view of the land and made the wind fall. As night came on everything
became obscure, and to avoid all risk of the ships coming into collision or
being driven ashore it was decided to cast anchor. When it grew light, the
wind again freshened from the same quarter, and the dispersal of the fog
revealed the entire coastline of Africa. Scipio enquired the name of the
nearest headland, and on learning that was called Pulchrum ("Cape
Beautiful") he remarked, "I accept the omen, steer for it." The fleet brought
up there and the whole of the force was landed. This description of the
voyage as favourable and unaccompanied by any confusion or alarms rests
upon the statements of numerous Greek and Latin authorities. According to
Coelius, though the fleet was not actually submerged by the waves, it was
exposed to every possible danger from sea and sky, and was at last driven
from the African coast to the island of Aegimurus, and from here with great
difficulty succeeded in getting on the right course. He adds that as the ships
were leaking badly and all but sinking, the soldiers took to the boats without
orders just as though they were shipwrecked and escaped to land without
arms and in the utmost disorder.
29.28
When
the disembarkation was completed, the Romans measured out a site for their
camp on some rising ground close by. The sight of a hostile fleet, followed
by the bustle and excitement of the landing, created consternation and alarm,
not only in the fields and farms on the coast, but in the cities as well. Not
only were the roads filled everywhere by crowds of men and troops of
women and children, but the peasantry were driving their live stock inland,
so that you would say that Africa was being suddenly depopulated. The
terror which these fugitives created in the cities was greater even than what
they themselves felt, especially in Carthage, where the confusion was almost
as great as if it had been actually captured. Since the days of the consuls M.
Atilius Regulus and L. Manlius, almost fifty years ago, they had never seen a
Roman army other than those employed on raiding expeditions, who picked
up what they could in the fields and always got back to their ships before the
countrymen could assemble together to meet them. This made the
excitement and alarm in the city all the greater. And no wonder, for there
was neither an effective army nor a general whom they could oppose to
Scipio. Hasdrubal, the son of Gisgo, was by far the most prominent man in
the State, distinguished alike by his birth, his military reputation and his
wealth, and now by his connection with royalty. But the Carthaginians had
not forgotten that he had been defeated and routed in several battles by this
very Scipio, and that as a general he was no more a match for him than the
irregular levies which made up his force were a match for the army of Rome.
There was a general call to arms, as though they were anticipating an
immediate assault; the gates were hastily closed, troops stationed on the
walls, outposts and sentinels posted, and the night was passed under arms.
The next day, a body of cavalry, 1000 strong, who had been sent down to
the sea to reconnoitre and harass the Romans during the disembarkation,
came upon the Roman outposts. Scipio, meanwhile, after sending the fleet to
Utica, had advanced a short distance from the shore and seized the nearest
heights, where he stationed some of his cavalry as outposts; the rest he sent
to plunder the fields.
29.29
In the
skirmish which ensued, the Romans killed some of the enemy in the actual
fighting, but the greater number were slain in the pursuit, amongst them the
young Hanno, who was in command. Scipio ravaged the surrounding fields
and captured a fairly opulent city in the immediate neighbourhood. In
addition to the plunder which was at once put on board the transports and
sent to Sicily, he made prisoners of some 8000 men, freemen and slaves.
What cheered the whole army most of all at the outset of their campaign was
the arrival of Masinissa, who, according to some writers, was accompanied
by a mounted force of 200 men; most authorities, however, assert that it
numbered 2000. As this monarch was by far the greatest of his
contemporaries and rendered most important service to Rome, it may be
worth while to digress from the order of our narrative and give a brief
account of the various fortunes he experienced in the loss and subsequent
recovery of the throne of his ancestors. Whilst he was fighting for the
Carthaginians in Spain, his father Gala died. In accordance with the
Numidian custom the crown passed to the late king's brother Oezalces, a
man advanced in years. He died not long afterwards and the elder of his two
sons, Capussa -the other was quite a boy -succeeded to the throne. But as
he wore the crown by right of descent rather than through any influence or
authority he possessed with his subjects, a certain Mazaetullus prepared to
dispute his claim. This man was also of royal blood and belonged to a family
which had always been foes to the reigning house, and had kept up a
constant struggle with varying fortunes against the occupants of the throne.
He succeeded in rousing his countrymen, over whom, owing to the king's
unpopularity, he had considerable influence, and taking the field against him,
compelled him to fight for his crown. Capussa fell in the action, together
with many of his principal supporters; the whole of the Maesulian tribe
submitted to Mazaetullus. He would not, however, accept the title of king,
this he bestowed on the boy Lacumazes, the sole survivor of the royal house.
and contented himself with the modest title of Protector. With a view to an
alliance with Carthage he married a Carthaginian lady of noble birth, a niece
of Hannibal's, and widow of Oezalces. He also sent envoys to Syphax and
renewed the old ties of hospitality with him, thus securing on all sides
support for the coming struggle with Masinissa.
29.30
On
hearing of his uncle's death, followed by that of his cousin, Masinissa left
Spain for Mauretania. Baga was king at the time, and Masinissa, by his
earnest and humble entreaties, obtained from him a force of 4000 Moors to
serve as an escort as he could not induce him to supply enough for warlike
operations. With this escort he reached the frontiers of Numidia, having sent
messengers in advance to his father's friends and his own. Here about 500
Numidians joined him, and, as had been arranged, his escort of Moors
returned to their king. His adherents were fewer than he expected, too few,
in fact, with which to venture on so great an enterprise. Thinking, however,
that by active personal effort he might collect a force which would enable
him to achieve something, he advanced to Thapsus, where he met
Lacumazes, who was on his way to Syphax. The king's escort retreated
hurriedly into the town, and Masinissa captured the place at the first assault.
Some of the royal troops surrendered, others who offered resistance were
killed, but the great majority escaped with their boy-king in the confusion
and continued their journey to Syphax. The news of this initial success, slight
though it was, brought the Numidians over to Masinissa, and from the fields
and hamlets on all sides the old soldiers of Gala flocked to his standard and
urged the young leader to win back his ancestral throne. Mazaetullus had
considerably the advantage in point of numbers; he had the army with which
he had defeated Capussa as well as some of the troops who had gone over to
him after the king's death, and Lacumazes had brought very large
reinforcements from Syphax. His total force amounted to 15,000 infantry
and 10,000 cavalry, but, though so inferior in both arms, Masinissa engaged
him. The courage of the veterans and the skill of their commander, trained as
he had been in the wars in Spain, carried the day; the king and the Protector
with a mere handful of Masaesulians escaped into Carthaginian territory.
Thus Masinissa won back the throne of his ancestors. As he saw, however,
that a much more serious contest awaited him with Syphax, he thought it
best to effect a reconciliation with his cousin, and sent to the boy to assure
him that if he would place himself in Masinissa's hands he would experience
the same honourable treatment that Oezalces received from Gala. He also
pledged his word to Mazaetullus that he should not suffer for what he had
done, and, more than that, that all his property should be restored to him.
Both Lacumazes and Mazaetullus preferred a moderate share of fortune at
home to a life of exile, and in spite of all the efforts of the Carthaginians
went over to Masinissa.
29.31
.Hasdrubal happened to be on a visit to
Syphax at the time. The Numidian did not consider it a matter of much
importance to him whether the Maesulian throne was occupied by
Lacumazes or Masinissa, but Hasdrubal warned him that he was making a
very great mistake if he supposed that Masinissa would be content with the
same frontiers as his father Gala. "That man," he said, "possessed much more
ability and much more force of character than any one of that nation had
hitherto shown. In Spain he had often exhibited to friends and foes alike
proofs of a courage rare amongst men. Unless Syphax and the Carthaginians
stifled that rising flame, they would soon be involved in a conflagration
which nothing could check. As yet his power was weak and insecure, he was
nursing a realm whose wounds had not yet closed." By continually urging
these considerations, Hasdrubal persuaded him to move his army up to the
frontiers of Maesulia and fix his camp on territory which he claimed as
beyond question forming part of his dominions, a claim which Gala had
contested not only by argument, but by force of arms. He advised him in
case any one offered opposition -and he only wished they would -to be
prepared to fight; if they for fear of him retired he must advance into the
heart of the kingdom. The Maesulii would either submit to him without a
struggle or they would find themselves hopelessly outmatched in arms.
Encouraged by these representations Syphax commenced war with
Masinissa, and in the very first battle defeated and routed the Maesulians.
Masinissa with a few horsemen escaped from the field and fled to a mountain
range called by the natives Bellum. Several households with their
tent-wagons and cattle -their sole wealth -followed the king; the bulk of the
population submitted to Syphax. The mountain district which the fugitives
had taken possession of was grassy and well watered, and as it afforded
excellent pasturage for cattle it provided ample sustenance for men who
lived on flesh and milk. From these heights they harried the whole country
round, at first in stealthy nocturnal incursions, and afterwards in open
brigandage. They ravaged the Carthaginian territory mainly, because it
offered more plunder and depredation was a safer work there than amongst
the Numidians. At last they reached such a pitch of audacity that they carried
their plunder down to the sea and sold it to traders who brought their ships
up for the purpose. More Carthaginians fell or were made prisoners in these
forays than often happens in regular warfare. The authorities at Carthage
complained loudly of all this to Syphax and pressed him to follow up these
remnants of the war. Angry as he was, however, he hardly thought it part of
his duties as a king to hunt down a robber at large on the mountains.
29.32
Boncar, one of the king's officers, a keen
and energetic soldier, was selected for the task. He was supplied with 4000
infantry and 200 horsemen and he had a good prospect of gaining rewards if
he brought back Masinissa's head, or -what would afford measureless
gratification -captured him alive. Making a surprise attack on the plunderers
when they were suspecting no danger, he cut off an enormous number of
men and cattle from their armed escort and drove Masinissa himself with a
few followers up to the summit of the mountain. He now regarded serious
hostilities as at an end, and after despatching his capture of men and cattle to
the king, sent back also the bulk of his troops whom he considered
unnecessary for what remained of the fighting, retaining only 500 infantry
and 200 mounted men. With these he hastened in pursuit of Masinissa who
had left the heights and, catching him in a narrow valley, he blocked both
entrances and inflicted a very severe loss on the Maesulii. Masinissa with not
more than fifty troopers got away through steep mountain tracks unknown
to his pursuers. Boncar, however, kept on his track and overtook him in the
open country near Clupea where he surrounded him so completely that the
whole party were killed with the exception of four who with Masinissa,
himself wounded, slipped out of his hands during the fray. Their flight was
observed and the cavalry were sent in pursuit. They spread over the plain,
some making a short cut to head off the five fugitives, whose flight brought
them to a large river. Dreading the enemy more than the river, they spurred
their horses without a moment's hesitation into the water, and the rapid
current carried them down stream. Two were drowned before their pursuers'
eyes, and it was believed that Masinissa had perished. He, however, with the
two survivors, landed amongst the bush on the other side. This was the end
of Boncar's pursuit, as he would not venture into the river and did not
believe that there was any one now left for him to follow. He returned to the
king with the baseless story of Masinissa's death, and messengers were sent
to carry the good news to Carthage. The report soon spread throughout
Africa, and affected men's minds in very different ways. Masinissa was
resting in a secret cave and treating his wound with herbs, and for some days
kept himself alive on what his two troopers brought in from their forays. As
soon as his wound was sufficiently healed to allow him to bear the
movements of the horse he started with extraordinary boldness on a fresh
attempt to recover his kingdom. During his journey he did not collect more
than forty horsemen, but when he reached the Maesulii and made his identity
known, his appearance created intense excitement. His former popularity and
the unhoped-for delight of seeing him safe and sound, after they had believed
him dead, had such an effect that in a few days 6000 infantry and 4000
cavalry had gathered round his standard. He was now in possession of his
kingdom, and began to devastate the tribes who were friendly to Carthage,
and the territory of the Maesulii, which formed part of the dominions of
Syphax. Having thus provoked Syphax into hostilities, Masinissa took up a
position on some mountain heights between Cirto and Hippo, a situation
which was every way advantageous.
29.33
Syphax looked upon the struggle as too
serious a one to be entrusted to his lieutenants. He placed one division of his
army under his son Vermina with instructions to march round the back of the
mountain and attack the enemy in the rear while he himself occupied his
attention in front. Vermina started in the night as he was to fall on the enemy
unawares; Syphax broke camp and marched out in broad daylight with the
obvious intention of giving regular battle. When sufficient time had elapsed
for Vermina to reach his objective, Syphax led his men over a part of the
mountain which afforded a gentle slope and made straight for the enemy,
trusting to his superiority in numbers and the success of the attack in the
rear. Masinissa prepared to meet the attack with confidence owing to his
vastly superior position. The battle was fiercely and for a long time evenly
contested; Masinissa had the advantage of the ground and finer soldiers,
Syphax, that of great superiority in numbers. His masses of men, which had
been formed into two divisions, one pressing the enemy in front, the other
surrounding his rear, gave Syphax a decisive victory. Flight was impossible
as they were hemmed in on both sides, and almost the whole force of
infantry and cavalry were killed or made prisoners. Some two hundred
horsemen had gathered as a bodyguard round Masinissa, and he divided
them into three troops with orders to cut their way through at different
points and after they had got clear away to rejoin him at a spot he named. He
himself charged through the enemy and escaped in the direction he intended,
but two of the troops found escape impossible, one surrendered, the other
after an obstinate resistance was buried beneath the enemy's missiles.
Masinissa found Vermina almost at his heels, but by continually doubling
first to one side and then to the other he eluded his pursuit until at last he
forced him to abandon the exhausting and hopeless chase. Accompanied by
sixty troopers he reached the Lesser Syrtis. Here, in the proud consciousness
of his many heroic efforts to recover his father's throne, he passed his time
between the Carthaginian Emporia and the tribe of the Garamantes until the
appearance of Scipio and the Roman fleet in Africa. This leads me to believe
that when Masinissa came to Scipio it was with a small rather than with a
large body of troops; the former would be much more suitable to the
fortunes of an exile, the latter to those of a reigning prince.
29.34
After
the loss of their cavalry corps and its commander, the Carthaginians raised a
fresh force which they placed under Hamilcar's son Hanno. They had sent
repeated messages to both Hasdrubal and Syphax and at last sent a special
embassy to each of them, appealing to Hasdrubal to succour his native city
which was all but invested, and imploring Syphax to come to the aid of
Carthage and indeed of the whole of Africa. Scipio at the time was
encamped about a mile from Utica, having moved up from the coast where
for a few days he had occupied an intrenched position close to his fleet. The
mounted troops which had been supplied to Hanno were by no means strong
enough to harass the enemy or even to protect the country from his
depredations, and his first and most pressing task was to increase its
strength. Though he did not reject recruits from other tribes, his levy
consisted mainly of Numidians, by far the finest cavalry in Africa. When he
had brought his corps up to about 4000 men, he took possession of a town
called Salaeca, about fifteen miles from the Roman camp. This was reported
to Scipio, and he exclaimed, "What? Cavalry in houses in the summer! Let
there be more of them as long as they have such a leader!" Realising that the
less energy the enemy showed, the less hesitation ought he himself to show,
he instructed Masinissa and his cavalry to ride up to the enemy's quarters and
draw them into action: when their whole force was engaged and he was
being outnumbered he was to retire slowly, and when the moment arrived
Scipio would come to his support. The Roman general waited until
Masinissa had had sufficient time to draw the enemy, and then followed with
his cavalry, his approach being concealed by some low hills which
fortunately flanked his route.
Masinissa, in accordance with his instructions, rode right up to the
gates and, when the enemy appeared, retired as though afraid to meet him;
this simulated fear made the enemy all the more confident, until he was
tempted into a rash pursuit. The Carthaginians had not yet all emerged from
the city, and their general had more than enough to do in forcing some who
were heavy with wine and sleep to seize their weapons and bridle their
horses and preventing others from rushing out of the gates in scattered
disorder, with no attempt at formation and even without their standards. The
first who incautiously galloped out fell into Masinissa's hands, but they soon
poured out in a compact body and in greater numbers, and the fighting
became more equal. At last, when the whole of the Carthaginian cavalry
were in the field, Masinissa could not longer bear the weight of their attack.
His men did not, however, take to flight but retired slowly before the
enemy's charges until their commander had brought them as far as the rising
ground which concealed the Roman cavalry. Then these latter charged from
behind the hill, horses and men alike fresh, and threw themselves, in front
and flank and rear, upon Hanno and his Africans, who were tired out with
the fight and the pursuit. Masinissa at the same time wheeled round and
recommenced fighting. About 1000 who were in the front ranks, unable to
effect a retreat, were surrounded and killed, amongst them Hanno himself;
the rest, appalled at their leader's death, fled precipitately, and were pursued
by the victors for more than thirty miles. As many as 2000 were either killed
or made prisoners, and it is pretty certain that amongst them there were not
less than 200 Carthaginians, including some of their wealthiest and noblest
families
29.35
On the
very day on which this action was fought, it happened that the ships which
had carried the plunder to Sicily returned with supplies, as though they had
divined that they would have to carry back a second cargo of spoils of war.
Not all the authorities state that two Carthaginian generals of the same name
were killed in two separate actions, they were afraid, I think, of being misled
into repeating the same incident twice over. Coelius at all events, and
Valerius tell us that Hanno was taken prisoner. Scipio distributed amongst
the cavalry and their officers rewards proportioned to the service each had
rendered; Masinissa was distinguished above the rest by some splendid
presents. After placing a strong garrison in Salaeca he continued his advance
with the rest of his army, and not only stripped the fields along his line of
march, but captured various towns and villages as well, spreading terror far
and wide. After a week's marching he returned to camp with a long train of
men and cattle and all sorts of booty, and the ships were sent off for the
second time heavily loaded with the spoils of war. He now abandoned his
plundering expeditions and devoted all his strength to an attack on Utica,
intending if he took it to make that the base of his future operations. His
naval contingent was employed against the side of the city which faced the
sea, while his land army operated from some rising ground which
commanded the walls. Some artillery and siege engines he had brought with
him, and some had been sent with the supplies from Sicily, new ones were
also being constructed in an arsenal where a large number of artisans trained
in this work were assembled. Under the pressure of such a vigorous
investment all the hopes of the people of Utica rested on Carthage, and all
the hopes of the Carthaginians rested on Hasdrubal and on whatever
assistance he could obtain from Syphax. In their anxiety for relief everything
seemed to be moving too slowly. Hasdrubal had been doing his utmost to
obtain troops, and had actually assembled a force of 30,000 infantry and
3000 cavalry, but he did not venture to move nearer the enemy till Syphax
joined him. He came with 50,000 infantry and 10,000 cavalry, and with their
united forces they at once advanced from Carthage and took up a position
not far from Utica and the Roman lines. Their approach led to one important
result at least: after prosecuting the siege of Utica with all the resources at
his command Scipio abandoned any further attempts on the place, and as
winter was coming on he constructed an intrenched camp on a tongue of
land which projected into the sea and was connected by a narrow isthmus
with the mainland. He enclosed the military and naval camps within the same
lines. The legions were stationed in the middle of the headland; the ships,
which had been beached, and their crews occupied the northern side; the low
ground on the south side was allotted to the cavalry. Such were the incidents
in the African campaign down to the end of the autumn.
29.36
In
addition to the corn which had been accumulated from the plunder of all the
country round, and the supplies which had been conveyed from Sicily and
Italy, a large quantity was sent by the propraetor Cnaeus Octavius which he
had obtained from Ti. Claudius, the governor of Sardinia. The existing
granaries being all full, new ones were built. The army was in need of
clothing and Octavius received instructions to confer with the governor as to
whether any could be made and despatched from that island. The matter was
promptly attended to and in a short time 1200 togas and 12,000 tunics were
sent off. During this summer the consul P. Sempronius, who was
commanding in Bruttium, was marching near Croto when he fell in with
Hannibal. An irregular battle ensued, as both armies were in column of
march and did not deploy into line. The Romans were repulsed, and though
it was more of a melee than a battle no fewer than 1200 of the consul's army
were killed. They retreated in confusion to their camp, but the enemy did not
venture to attack it. The consul, however, marched away in the silence of the
night after despatching a message to the proconsul P. Licinius to bring up his
legions. With their united forces the two commanders marched back to meet
Hannibal. There was no hesitation on either side, the consul's confidence was
restored by the doubling of his strength, and the enemy's courage was raised
by his recent victory. P. Sempronius stationed his own legions in front, those
of P. Licinius were placed in reserve. At the commencement of the battle the
consul vowed a temple to Fortuna Primigenia in case he routed the enemy,
and his prayer was granted. The Carthaginians were routed and put to flight,
above 4000 were killed, nearly 300 were made prisoners and 40 horses and
11 standards were captured. Daunted by his failure, Hannibal withdrew to
Croto. Etruria, at the other end of Italy, was almost wholly in sympathy with
Mago, hoping to effect a revolution with his help. The consul M. Cornelius
kept his hold on the province more by the terror created by his judicial
proceedings than by force of arms. He conducted the investigations which
the senate had commissioned him to make without any respect of persons,
and many Etrurian nobles who had personally interviewed Mago or been in
correspondence with him about the defection of their cantons were brought
up and condemned to death; others knowing themselves to be equally guilty
went into exile and were sentenced in their absence. As their persons were
beyond arrest, their property only could be confiscated as an earnest of their
future punishment.
29.37
While
the consuls were thus occupied in their widely separated spheres of action,
the censors, M. Livius and C. Claudius, were busy in Rome. They revised
the roll of senators, and Q. Fabius Maximus was again chosen as Leader of
the House. Seven names were struck off the roll, but none of them had ever
filled a curule chair. The censors insisted upon the exact fulfilment of the
contracts which had been made for the repair of public buildings, and they
made additional contracts for the construction of a road from the Forum
Boarium to the temple of Venus with public seats on each side of it and also
for the building of a temple to Mater Magna on the Palatine. They also
imposed a new tax in the shape of a duty on salt. In Rome and throughout
Italy it had been sold at a sextans, and the contractors were bound to sell it
at the old price in Rome but allowed to charge a higher price in the country
towns and markets. It was commonly believed that one of the censors had
devised this tax to spite the people because he had once been unjustly
condemned by them, and it was said that the rise in the price of salt pressed
most heavily on those tribes who had been instrumental in procuring his
condemnation. It was owing to this that Livius got the name of Salinator.
The lustrum was closed later than usual because the censors had sent
commissioners into the provinces to ascertain the number of Roman citizens
who were serving in the armies. Including these, the total number as shown
in the census amounted to 214,000. The lustrum was closed by C. Claudius
Nero. This year, for the first time, a return was furnished of the population
of the twelve colonies, the censors of the colonies themselves furnishing the
lists so that the military strength and financial position of each might be
permanently recorded in the archives of the State. Then followed the revision
of the equites. It so happened that both the censors had government horses.
When they came to the Pollian tribe, which contained the name of M. Livius,
the usher hesitated about citing the censor himself. "Cite M. Livius,"
exclaimed Nero and then, whether it was that the old enmity still survived or
that he was pluming himself upon an ill-timed strictness, he turned to Livius
and ordered him to sell his horse as he had been condemned by the verdict of
the people. When they were going through the Arniensian tribe and came to
his colleague's name, Livius ordered C. Claudius Nero to sell his horse for
two reasons, first because he had borne false witness against him, and
secondly because he had not been sincere in his reconciliation with him. Thus
at the close of their censorship a dispute arose equally discreditable to both,
each besmirching the other's good name at the cost of his own.
After C. C. Nero had made the usual affidavit that he had acted in
accordance with the laws, he went up to the treasury and amongst the names
of those whom he left disfranchised he placed that of his colleague. He was
followed by M. Livius who took still more dramatic action. With the
exception of the Maecian tribe, who had neither condemned him nor
afterwards, in spite of his condemnation, made him either consul or censor,
Livius reduced to the status of aerarii the whole of the remaining tribes of
the Roman people on the ground that they had condemned an innocent man,
and afterwards had made him consul and censor. He argued that they must
admit that either they were acting wrongfully as judges in the first instance,
or afterwards as electors. Amongst the thirty-four tribes, C. C. Nero, he
said, would be disfranchised, and if there were any precedent for
disfranchising the same man twice he would have inserted his name specially.
This rivalry between the censors in affixing a stigma on each other was
deplorable, but the sharp lesson administered to the people for their
inconstancy was just what a censor ought to have given and befitted the
seriousness of the times. As the censors had fallen into disfavour one of the
tribunes of the plebs, Cnaeus Baebius, thought it a good opportunity for
advancing himself at their expense, and appointed a day for their
impeachment. The project was defeated by the unanimous vote of the senate,
who were determined that the censorship should not for the future be at the
mercy of popular caprice.
29.38
During
the summer Clampetia in Bruttium was taken by storm by the consul;
Consentia, Pandosia and some other unimportant places surrendered
voluntarily. As the time for the elections was approaching it was thought
best to summon Cornelius from Etruria as there were no active hostilities
there, and he conducted the elections. The new consuls were Cnaeus
Servilius Caepio and Caius Servilius Geminus. At the election of praetors
which followed, those returned were P. Cornelius Lentulus, P. Quintilius
Varus, P. Aelius Paetus and P. Villius Tappulus; the last two were plebeian
aediles at the time. When the elections were over the consul returned to
Etruria. Some deaths took place among the priests this year, and
appointments were made to fill the vacancies. Tiberius Veturius Philo was
appointed Flamen of Mars in place of M. Aemilius Regillus who died in the
preceding year. M. Pomponius Matho, who had been both augur and keeper
of the Sacred Books, was succeeded by M. Aurelius Cotta in the latter office
and as augur by Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus, a very young man, a very
unusual thing at that time in appointments to the priesthood. Golden chariots
were placed in the Capitol by the curule aediles, C. Livius and M. Servilius
Geminus. The Roman Games were celebrated for two days by the aediles P.
Aelius and P. Villius. There was also a feast in honour of Jupiter on the
occasion of the Games.
End of Book 29