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hendique Decium Magium, atque ante pedes destitutum U. C. 538. causam dicere jussit. Qui quum, manente ferocia animi, A. C. 216. negaret lege fœderis id cogi posse, tum injectæ catenæ, ducique ante lictorem in castra est jussus. Quoad capite aperto est ductus, concionabundus incessit, ad circumfusam undique multitudinem vociferans: Habetis libertatem, Campani, quam petistis. Foro medio, luce clara, viden'tibus vobis, nulli Campanorum secundus, vinctus ad 'mortem rapior. Quid violentius Capua capta fieret? Ite 'obviam Hannibali, exornate urbem, diemque adventus ejus consecrate, ut hunc triumphum de cive vestro spec'tetis.' Hæc vociferanti, quum moveri vulgus videretur, obvolutum caput est, ociusque rapi extra portam jussus. Ita in castra perducitur: extemploque impositus in navim, et Carthaginem missus; ne, motu aliquo Capuæ ex indignitate rei orto, senatum quoque pœniteret dediti principis: et, legatione missa' ad repetendum eum, ne aut negando rem, quam primam peterent, offendendi sibi novi socii; aut tribuendo, habendus Capuæ esset seditionis ac turbarum auctor. Navem Cyrenas detulit tempestas, quæ tum in ditione regum erant. Ibi quum Magius ad statuam Ptolemæi regis confugisset, deportatus a custodibus Alexandriam ad Ptolemæum, quum eum docuisset, contra jus fœderis vinctum se ab Hannibale esse, vinculis liberatur; permissumque, ut rediret, seu Romam seu Capuam mallet. 'Nec' Magius' Capuam sibi tutam' dicere'; et Romam eo tempore, quo inter Romanos Campanosque bellum sit, transfugæ magis, quam hospitis, fore domicilium. Nusquam malle, quam in regno ejus, vivere, quem vindicem atque auctorem habeat libertatis.'

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Divi

Dum hæc geruntur, Q. Fabius Pictor legatus a Delphis Romam rediit, responsumque ex scripto recitavit. quoque in eo erant, quibus quoque modo supplicaretur:

6 Id cogi posse.] If this phrase can be translated impersonally-and analogy would seem to favour such an interpretation-it would be a considerable improvement on the usual version; sc. "asserted that no such compulsion (or violence) could be used, consistently with the terms of the treaty."

7 Et, legatione missd.] "And lest, in case an embassy should be sent to demand his return; either his new allies must be offended by the refusal of their first request; or, by granting it, a mover of discontent and sedition be kept in Capua."

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11.

A. C. 216.

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U. C. 538. tum', 'Si ita faxitis, Romani, vestræ res meliores facilioresque erunt: magisque ex sententia respublica vestra vobis 'procedet, victoriaque duelli populi Romani erit. Pythio Apollini, republica vestra bene gesta servataque, lucris 'meritis donum mittitote, deque præda, manubiis, spoliisque honorem habetote: lasciviam3 a vobis prohibetote.' Hæc ubi ex Græco carmine interpretata recitavit, tum dixit, se oraculo egressum extemplo his omnibus divis rem divinam ture ac vino fecisse: jussumque ab templi 'antistite, sicut coronatus laurea1 corona et oraculum adisset, 'et rem divinam fecisset; ita coronatum navim ascendere, 'nec ante deponere eam, quam Romam pervenisset. Se, quæcunque imperata sint, cum summa religione ac dili'gentia exsecutum; coronam Romæ in aram Apollinis de'posuisse.' Senatus decrevit, ut eæ res divinæ supplicationesque primo quoque tempore cum cura fierent.

Dum hæc Romæ atque in Italia geruntur, nuntius victoriæ ad Cannas Carthaginem venerat Mago Hamilcaris filius: non ex ipsa acie a fratre missus, sed retentus aliquot dies in recipiendis civitatibus Bruttiorum, quæque deficiebant. Is, quum ei senatus datus esset, res gestas in Italia a fratre exponit: Cum sex imperatoribus eum, quorum 'quattuor consules, duo dictator ac magister equitum fue'rint, cum sex consularibus exercitibus acie conflixisse : 'occidisse supra ducenta millia hostium: supra quinqua'ginta millia cepisse. Ex quattuor consulibus duos occi'disse; ex duobus saucium alterum, alterum, toto exercitu 'amisso, vix cum quinquaginta hominibus effugisse. Ma'gistrum equitum, quæ consularis potestas sit, fusum fugatumque: dictatorem, quia se in aciem nunquam commi'serit, unicum haberi imperatorem". Bruttios Apulosque,

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&c.

Tum.] "After which, it said,"

2 Lucris meritis.] (sc. ex) "from the benefits realized."

3 Lasciviam.] " 'Arrogance, presumption, insolent exultation."

4 Coronatus laured.] Would express the idea sufficiently without corond, which appears to have been originally a marginal note.

It was the usual practice of all who consulted oracles to wear those crowns. 5 Non ex ipsa acie.] "Not directly (or immediately) from the field."

6 Quæque deficiebant.] (sc. quæcunque.) "Such of them as were becoming disaffected."

7 Cum sex imperatoribus, &c.] "That he had met in the field six commanders, of whom four were Consuls," (more properly seven, of whom five were Consuls; Tib. Sempronius is omitted ;) "two, a Dictator and Master of Horse: that of the four Consuls, two (Flaminius and P. Æmilius) had fallen; of the other two, one had been wounded (Scipio), and the other (Ter. Varro) had scarcely escaped (from Canna) with fifty men.'

8 Quæ consularis potestas sit.] "Which is an office of consular rank.' 9 Unicum haberi imperatorem.] "Was considered an eminent (matchless) general."

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partim Samnitium ac Lucanorum defecisse ad Poenos: U. C. 538. Capuam, quod caput, non Campaniæ modo, sed, post A. C. 216. afflictam rem Romanam Cannensi pugna, Italiæ sit, Han'nibali se tradidisse. Pro his tantis totque victoriis, verum 'esse, grates deis immortalibus agi haberique.' Ad fidem deinde tam lætarum rerum effundi in vestibulo curiæ jussit annulos aureos1, qui tantus acervus fuit, ut, metientibus dimidium super tres modios explesse, sint quidam auctores. Fama tenuit, quæ propior vero est, haud plus fuisse modio. Adjecit deinde verbis, quo majoris cladis indicium esset, neminem, nisi equitem, atque eorum ipsorum primores, id gerere insigne. Summa fuit orationis, Quo propius spem 'belli perficiendi sit, eo magis omni ope juvandum Hanni'balem esse. Procul enim ab domo militiam esse, in media 'hostium terra: magnam vim frumenti, pecuniæ, absumi3; 'et tot acies, ut hostium exercitus delesse, ita victoris etiam copias parte aliqua minuisse. Mittendum igitur supple'mentum esse; mittendam in stipendium pecuniam fru'mentumque tam bene meritis de nomine Punico mili'tibus.'

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Secundum hæc dicta Magonis lætis omnibus, Himilco, vir factionis Barcinæ, locum Hannonis increpandi esse ratus, Quid est, Hanno?' inquit, etiam nunc pœnitet 'belli suscepti adversus Romanos? Jube dedi Hannibalem: 'veta in tam prosperis rebus grates diis immortalibus agi. 'Audiamus Romanum senatorem in Carthaginiensium 'curia.' Tum Hanno: Tacuissem hodie, Patres conscripti,

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1 Annulos aureos.] This incident is very closely paralleled by one in modern history. After the battle of Courtrai between the French and Flemish armies, in the time of Philip Le Bel (13th century), four thousand pairs of gold spurs were gathered on the field, attesting the almost total destruction of the chivalry of France. The action is popularly known as "the battle of the spurs."

2 Summa fuit orationis.] "The

burden of his address."

3 Magnam vim frumenti, &c. absumi.] "Great quantities of provisions, &c. were in course of expenditure (the consumption of provisions, &c. was large); and all those battles, while they had exterminated the armies of the enemy, had also, to some extent, diminished the forces of the conqueror." The motive that urged Hannibal to call for reinforcements was apparently the sound policy of maintaining if not a pre

ponderance, at least a fair proportion
of native troops in his army, increased
as it must have been by his new
alliances. It was on the same prin-
ciple that young Scipio, on a later
occasion, when drafting the crews
of eighteen Carthaginian galleys into
his own fleet, distributed them in
such a manner, that they never formed
more than one third of the comple-
ment of any ship. On the subject
of foreign and auxiliary troops, it
may not be uninteresting to quote a
maxim of Lord Bacon from an old
translation: "All examples," he
says, "shew, that whatsoever estate
or prince doth rest upon them, he
may spread his feathers for a time,
but he will mew them soon after."

4 Patres conscripti.] Here, as in
the following chapter (sc. bello Pu-
nico), the historian inadvertently
attributes to a Carthaginian Senator
a form of words suited only to a
Roman. It may not perhaps be very

U. C. 538.
A. C. 216.

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ne quid in communi omnium gaudio, minus lætum quod esset vobis, loquerer. Nunc interroganti senatori, pœniteatne me adhuc suscepti adversus Romanos belli, si reticeam, aut superbus, aut obnoxius videar: quorum alterum est hominis alienæ libertatis obliti; alterum suæ. Respondeam igitur Himilconi, non desisse pœnitere me belli, neque desiturum ante invictum vestrum imperato'rem incusare, quam finitum aliqua tolerabili conditione 'bellum videro: nec mihi pacis antiquæ desiderium ulla 'alia res, quam pax nova, finiet. Itaque ista, quæ modo Mago jactavit, Himilconi ceterisque Hannibalis satellitibus jam læta sunt. Mihi possunt læta esse', quia res 'bello bene gestæ, si volumus fortuna uti, pacem nobis 'æquiorem dabunt. Nam si prætermittimus hoc tempus, 'quo magis dare, quam accipere, possumus videri pacem, vereor, ne hæc quoque lætitia luxuriet nobis, ac vana 'evadat. Quæ tamen nunc quoque qualis est? Occidi 'exercitus hostium: mittite milites mihi. Quid aliud rogares, si esses victus? Hostium cepi bina castra, prædæ 'videlicet plena et commeatuum: frumentum et pecuniam ' date. Quid aliud, si spoliatus, si exutus castris esses, peteres? Et, ne omnia ipse mirer', (mihi quoque enim, quo'niam respondi Himilconi, interrogare jus fasque est) velim seu Himilco, seu Mago respondeat; quum ad internecionem Romani imperii pugnatum ad Cannas sit, constetque ' in defectione totam Italiam esse; primum ecquis Latini 'nominis populus defecerit ad nos? deinde ecquis homo, 'ex quinque et triginta tribubus, ad Hannibalem transfu

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incorrect to address the Punic Senate
as Patres of some sort; but in speak-
ing of the war between the two
countries, Hanno should have called
it, according to all analogy, 'the
Roman war.' The Carthaginian
Senate consisted of one hundred
members, who were also members
of the several committees (of five
each) which superintended the dif
ferent departments of the Govern-
ment, and were analogous to our
Secretaries of State. The assembly
resembled the Venetian Senate, as a
jealous and exclusive oligarchy, more
than any other supreme council of
any period. About the time of this
second Punic war, however, a demo-
cratic spirit was beginning to shew
itself under the auspices of the Bar-
cine family, and would probably have
eventually prevailed, but for the
total extinction of Carthaginian

nationality by the Romans.

5 Aut superbus, aut obnoxius.] "Either supercilious or servile." 6 Aliqua tolerabili conditione.] "On some reasonable terms."

7 Mihi possunt læta esse.] "To me too they are capable of being gratifying, inasmuch as," &c.

8 Ne hæc quoque lætitia, &c.] "Lest this exultation also may become extravagant, and pass away (end) in disappointment."

9 Quæ tamen.] "And yet even

now what does it mean ?"

1 Ne omnia ipse mirer.] "Not to be singular in considering every thing strange." These arguments of Hanno are sophistical; for it is quite possible that the crisis of a victory may be that in which a general will most need supplies, to maintain his position.

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gerit?' Quum utrumque Mago negasset: Hostium qui- U. C. 538. 'dem ergo,' inquit, adhuc nimis multum superest. Sed, A. C. 216. multitudo ea quid animorum, quidve spei habeat, scire 'velim.' Quum, id nescire, Mago diceret; Nihil facilius 'scitu est,' inquit. Ecquos legatos ad Hannibalem Ro'mani miserunt de pace? Ecquam denique mentionem 'pacis Romæ factam esse, allatum ad vos est?' Quum id quoque negasset, Bellum igitur,' inquit, tam integrum' 'habemus, quam habuimus, qua die Hannibal in Italiam 'est transgressus. Quam varia victoria priore Punico bello fuerit, plerique, qui meminerimus, supersumus. Nun

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quam terra marique magis prosperæ res nostræ visæ sunt, quam ante consules C. Lutatium et A. Postumium3 'fuerunt. Lutatio et Postumio consulibus devicti ad E'gates insulas sumus. Quod si (id quod dii omen avertant) nunc quoque fortuna aliquid variaverit; tum pacem spe'ratis, quum vincemur, quam nunc, quum vincimus, dat nemo? Ergo, si quis de pace consulet, seu deferenda hostibus, seu accipienda, habeo, quid sententiæ dicam : si 'de iis, quæ Mago postulat, refertis, nec victoribus mitti attinere puto, et frustrantibus nos falsa atque inani spe 'multo minus censeo mittenda esse.' Haud multos movit Hannonis oratio. Nam et simultas cum familia Barcina leviorem auctorem faciebat, et occupati animi præsenti lætitia nihil, quo vanius fieret gaudium suum, auribus admittebant: debellatumque mox fore, si anniti paullulum voluissent, rebantur. Itaque ingenti consensu fit senatusconsultum, ut Hannibali quattuor Numidarum millia in supplementum mitterentur, et quadraginta elephanti, et argenti mille quinquaginta talenta. Dictatorque cum

2 Tam integrum.] "As entire (as much of the war before us) as," &c.

3 Ante consules C. Lutatium et A. Postumium.] "Before the Consulship of C. Lutatius and A. Posthumius." Immediately before that decisive period, the Romans, drained of their last men and money, had been maintaining a fruitless blockade at Lilybæum, and Hamilcar Barca, from his fortified camp at Panormus (on Monte Pellegrino), not only commanded all the coast of Sicily, but made occasional descents on the shores of Bruttium, Lucania, and Campania.

Ergo, si quis de pace consulet, &c.] "For my part, if any one is going to put a question concerning peace to be offered to or accepted from the enemy, I have my vote

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ready; but, if your question relates
to the demands of Mago, I do not
think it necessary that they should
be granted to conquerors; and I am
much farther from thinking that
they should be granted to men who
mock us with an unfounded and
empty hope."

Argenti mille quinquaginta ta-
lenta.] This reading has been sub-
stituted with good effect for that of
the older editions, multa talenta;
which was, most probably, a cor-
ruption of mille quingenta talenta.
The latter number would be written
MVcta, which, in Mss. might have
been easily mistaken for multa.

6 Dictatorque. Here again, probably for want of the special name, Livy employs the nearest analogous phrase.

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