44.40
When
he had finished there was silence; some had been brought round to his view;
others were afraid of giving needless offence by criticising the neglect of an
opportunity which, to whatever it might be due, could not be remedied.
Even on this day neither the consul nor the king was prepared to engage.
The king would not be able to attack them as they were yesterday, wearied
with their march, deploying hurriedly into line and not in battle order; the
consul held back because neither wood nor fodder had been brought into the
newly-formed camp, and a large proportion of his troops had left the camp
to collect these from the fields near. Against the intention of both
commanders Fortune, who overrides the plans of men, brought about a
conflict. There was a river, not a large one, near the enemy's camp from
which both the Romans and the Macedonians drew their water, protected by
detachments stationed on either bank. On the Roman side were two cohorts,
Marrucinians and Paelignians, and two squadrons of Samnite horse under the
command of M. Sergius Silus. Another body was stationed in front of the
camp under C. Cluvius; these consisted of Firman, Vestinian and Cremensian
troops, and two squadrons of cavalry from Placentia and Aeserna. Whilst all
was quiet at the river, neither side offering any provocation, a mule broke
loose about three o'clock in the afternoon from the men in charge and
escaped to the opposite bank. Three soldiers went after it through the water,
which was up to their knees. Two Thracians were dragging the beast out of
the river back to their own bank, when they were followed by some Romans,
who killed one of them, recaptured the mule, and went back to their posts.
There were 800 Thracians guarding the enemy's bank. A few of these,
enraged at seeing a comrade killed before their eyes, ran across the river in
pursuit of those who slew him; then more joined in and at last the whole
body, and with them the . . .
