26.42
After
kindling the spirits of his men by this speech, he crossed the Ebro with
25,000 infantry and 2500 cavalry, leaving M. Silanus in charge of the
country north of the Ebro with 3000 infantry and 300 cavalry. As the
Carthaginian armies had all taken different routes, some of his staff urged
him to attack the one which was nearest, but he thought that if he did that
there would be a danger of their all concentrating against him, and he would
be no match for the three together. He decided to begin with an attack on
New Carthage, a city not only rich in its own resources, but also with the
enemy's war-stores, their arms, their war-chest and hostages drawn from
every part of Spain. It possessed an additional advantage in its situation, as it
afforded a convenient base for the invasion of Africa, and commanded a
harbour capable of holding any fleet however large, and, as far as I know,
the only one of the kind on that part of the coast which abuts on our sea. No
one knew of his intended march except C. Laelius, who was sent round with
his fleet and instructed to regulate the pace of his vessels so that he might
enter the harbour at the same time that the army showed itself. Seven days
after leaving the Ebro, the land and sea forces reached New Carthage
simultaneously. The Roman camp was fixed opposite the north side of the
city, and to guard against attacks from the rear was strengthened by a double
rampart; the front was protected by the nature of the ground. The following
is the situation of New Carthage. There is a bay about half-way down the
coast of Spain, opening to the south-west and stretching inland about
two-and-a-half miles. A small island at the mouth of the harbour forms a
breakwater and shelters it from all winds, except those from the south-west.
From the innermost part of the bay stretches a promontory on the slopes of
which the city stands, surrounded on the east; and south by the sea. On the
west it is enclosed by a shallow sheet of water which extends northward and
varies in depth with the rise and fall of the tide. A neck of land about a
quarter of a mile in length connects the city with the mainland. The Roman
commander did not throw an earthwork across this isthmus, though it would
have cost him very little trouble to do so; whether it was that he wished to
impress the enemy with his confidence in his strength, or because he wished
to have an unimpeded retirement in his frequent advances against the city.
