HISTORY OF ROME. ARGUMENTS. BOOK XXII. HANNIBAL, after a laborious march of four days and three nights, without repose, through the marshes, in which he lost an eye, arrives in Etruria-Caius Flaminius, consul, a man of rash and inconsiderate conduct, is involved, by the artifice of Hannibal, in a dangerous defile, and cut off with the greatest part of his army-Fabius Maximus created dictator, and sent against Hannibal; avoids fighting, and baffles Hannibal's efforts-The master of the horse, Marcus Minucius, excites general dissatisfaction against the dictator's dilatory conduct; is made equal to him in authority; engages the enemy with his half of the forces, and is saved from utter destruction by Fabius coming opportunely to his relief with the other half of the Roman army; acknowleges his misconduct, and puts himself again under the command of the dictator-Hannibal, shut up by Fabius in a valley at Cassilinum, extricates himself by a stratagem of tying firebrands to the horns of oxen-Emilius Paulus and Terentius Varro utterly defeated at Cannæ, the former being slain, with forty-five thousand men, of whom were eighty senators, and thirty who had served the office of consul, pretor, or edile-A project of abandoning Italy quashed by Publius Cornelius Scipio, a military tribune, who afterwards acquired the surname of Africanus - Prosperous events in Spain-The Romans enlist slaves; refuse to ransom the prisoners; go out in a body to meet Varro, and thank him for not despairing of the commonwealth. BOOK XXIII. The Campanians revolt to Hannibal-Hanno moves in the senate of Carthage to propose terms of peace to the Romans; his proposition strenuously opposed, and overruled by the Barcine faction-Marcellus defeats Hannibal in a battle at Nola-Hannibal's army enervated by luxurious living at Capua-Cassilinum besieged by the Carthaginians; is reduced to such extremity by famine, that the people eat the leathern covers of their shields, and even mice-One hundred and ninety-seven new members, from the equestrian order, added to the senate-Lucius Postumius, pretor, with his army, defeated by the Gauls, and slain-Cneius Scipio and Publius overcome Hasdrubal in Spain, and conquer that country-The remaining troops of the army vanquished at Cannæ, sent to Sicily, there to remain during the continuance of the war-An alliance formed between Philip, king of Macedonia, and Hannibal-Sempronius Gracchus, consul, defeats the Campanians-Successes of Titus Manlius in Sardinia; he takes prisoners, Hasdrubal, the general, Mago, and Hanno-Claudius Marcellus gives Hannibal's army a second defeat at Nola; and, at length, gives the Romans hopes of a favorable termination of the war. BOOK XXIV. Hieronymus, king of Syracuse, takes part with the Carthaginians; is put to death by his subjects, on account of his tyranny and cruelty-Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus, proconsul, with an army composed mostly of slaves, defeats the Carthaginian army under Hanno, at Beneventum; gives the slaves liberty-Most of the states in Sicily go over to the side of the Carthaginians-Claudius Marcellus, consul, besieges Syracuse-War declared against Philip king of Macedonia, who is surprised by night, and routed at Apollonia -Operations of the Scipios against the Carthaginians in Spain-Treaty of friendship with Syphax, king of Numidia; he is defeated by Masinissa, king of the Massylians-The Celtiberians join the Romans, and their troops are taken into pay the first instance of mercenaries serving in a Roman army. BOOK XXV. Publius Cornelius Scipio, afterwards called Africanus, elected edile before he had attained the age required by the lawThe citadel of Tarentum, in which the Roman garrison had taken refuge, betrayed to Hannibal-Games instituted in honor of Apollo, called Apollinarian-Quintus Fulvius and Appius Claudius, consuls, defeat Hanno the Carthaginian general-Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus betrayed by a Lucanian to Mago, and slain-Centenius Penula, who had been a centurion, asks the senate for the command of an army, promising to engage and vanquish Hannibal; is cut off with eight thousand men-Cneius Fulvius engages Hannibal, and is beaten, with the loss of sixteen thousand men slain; he himself escapes with only two hundred horsemen-Quintus Fulvius and Appius Claudius, consuls, lay siege to Capua -Syracuse taken by Claudius Marcellus, after a siege of three years-In the tumult occasioned by taking the city, Archimedes is killed, while intently occupied on some figures which he had drawn in the sand-Publius and Cornelius Scipio, after having performed many eminent services in Spain, are slain, together with nearly the whole of their armies, eight years after their arrival in that country; and the possession of that province would have been intirely lost, but for the valor and activity of Lucius Marcius, a Roman knight, who, collecting the scattered remains of the vanquished armies, utterly defeats the enemy, storming their two camps, killing thirty-seven thousand of them, and taking eighteen hundred, together with an immense booty. BOOK XXVI. Hannibal encamps on the banks of the Anio, within three miles of Rome-Attended by two thousand horsemen, he advances close to the Colline gate to take a view of the walls and situation of the city-On two successive days the hostile armies are hindered from engaging by the severity of the weather-Capua taken by Quintus Fulvius and Appius Claudius: the chief nobles die, voluntarily, by poisonQuintus Fulvius, having condemned the principal senators to death, at the moment they are actually tied to the stakes, receives dispatches from Rome, commanding him to spare their lives, which he postpones reading until the sentence is executed-Publius Scipio, offering himself for the service, is sent to command in Spain: takes New Carthage in one day-Successes in Sicily-Treaty of friendship with the Ætolians-War with Philip, king of Macedonia, and the Acarnanians. |