Part 7 (1/2)

The Carthaginians had already taken their places at the ti down his lines toto his orders, noticed that a armour were a band with rusty shi+elds, and a bevy of horses which looked lean and ill-groo from the horses to their riders, he saw that their skins were broith the sun of the south and their faces weary No more was needed to tell him that reinforceht

He could do nothing during the day, but as soon as the night came he silently broke up his ca to put it between hiinian arht have gone ith it; but the large body of Gauls were totally untrained, and in their disappointive battle, seized on all the drink in the ca the roadside quite unable to uard across the Ro left for hily as he could

For hours they fought, and none could tell hoe by Nero decided it When the day was hopelessly lost, Hasdrubal, who had always been in the fiercest of the struggle, cheering and rallying his

Thus ended the battle of the Metaurus, the first pitched battle the Roinian arain for Apulia, bearing with him the head of Hasdrubal, which, as we have said, he caused to be flung into Hannibal's tent, staining for ever the laurels he had won

With the triumph of Nero, and his reception in the Rome which he had delivered, dates the last act of the second Punic war At the news of his brother's defeat, which was a great blow to him, Hannibal retreated into the most southern province of Italy His troops, whose love and loyalty never wavered, were largely con levies, and had not the steadiness and training of his old Libyans and Spaniards Never for onehis post till his country called hins of the tiht of war

Relieved by Nero's victory frohed it down, it was taking es, to help the poor who had been ruined during these years of strife, to _blot out_, he felt, the traces of the victories he had won And he had to watch it all and to know hih he still defied Roer, and knew that she still feared _him_

It was in the year 204 BC that Scipio entreated the senate to allow him to carry the war into Africa, which he had already visited, and where he had alreadythem the fa over his tribe

Fabius, now ninety, declared it was folly to take an are party agreed with hieneral, insisted that he should have his way; and after a long and fierce debate, the senate with almost inconceivable foolishness consented that Scipio should sail for Carthage, as he so much desired it, but that he must do so at the head of no more than thirty thousand or forty thousand men

That so practical and sensible a nation should not have reulus, and have known the dangers which n land, is truly surprising, and had Massinissa, with his priceless Numidian horse, not joined the Romans, Scipio's army would more than once have been almost certainly cut to pieces

When it beca the old town of Utica, the rich and pleasure-loving citizens of Carthage were filled with despair But this did not last long, for one of the leading men of the city, called Hanno, collected a small force, while Hasdrubal Gisco and Syphax the Numidian raised another, and between them both Scipio was forced to retreat If only Hannibal had been there----But Hannibal was still in Italy, and no tidings of the struggle had reached hih it was only the mild winter of North Africa, Scipio entrenched hiround, and Hasdrubal Gisco with Syphax inians, who had several times been defeated, noished to eneral was er chosen While discussing the terinian and Numidian huts were built solely of wood and reeds, covered with hastily woven athered from the woods and streams close by

'A spark would set theeneral to hiht orders were given to surround the caainst the walls In a few hted up with a fierce blaze, and the Carthaginians, wakened fro, were cut down on all sides before they could defend themselves This piece of wicked treachery may be said to have turned the scales in favour of Roreat plains,' when Hasdrubal was beaten and Syphax soon after fell into the hands of the enemy The Numidian chief was sent to Rome, and Sophonisba, his wife, took poison rather than bear the hu behind the triumphal car of the Roman victor

Massinissa obtained the reward pro of Nuain Scipio offered peace, and the terht to expect; but, favourable as they were, a few citizens were left to reject theinian navy was sent to Italy to suo froo was already dead, but his troops embarked immediately and joined Hannibal and his twenty-five thousand men who had landed in Africa

It was in this way that Hannibal came back to his native city, after an absence of thirty-six years When he had last seen it he had been a boy of nine, and the events that had since happened crowded into hishis recent defeats, he had 'left a na the sixteen years he had spent in Italy none had dared to ht; was it possible that at last his hour of triumph was at hand?

Now that Hannibal, whom they had deserted and betrayed, was really in Africa the weak and foolish citizens of Carthage sent orders to hiers 'confine their attention to other s to hi,' and withouta nuone over to Roht and day at this task when again his plans were spoilt by soe, who broke the truce which had beenso hies on the plain, and occupying the passes on a range of mountains where Hannibal had hoped to take up his position Baulked in this project, Hannibal sent to Scipio to beg for an interview, and tried to obtain for Carthage better terrant

'You have broken the truce by capturing the vessel containing the Roman envoys,' he said, 'and now you and your country must throw yourselves on our mercy, or else conquer us'