Stooping their heads low-bent to toss their staves, They fiercely opened both battalions, Cleave, break, and raging tempest-like o'erturn Whate'er makes head to meet them in this humour. Our men-at-arms (in brief) begin to fly, And neither prayers, entreaty, nor example Of any of their leaders left alive Had power to stay them in this strange career; Straggling, as in the fair Calabrian fields, When wolves, for hunger ranging fro' the wood, Make forth amongst the flock, that scattered flies Before the shepherd, that resistless lies. CORNELIA. O cruel fortune! MESSENGER. None resisting now, The field was filled with all confusion, Of murder, death, and direful massacres. The feeble bands, that yet were left entire, Had more desire to sleep than seek for spoil. No place was free from sorrow; everywhere Lay armed men, o'ertrodden with their horses; Dismember'd bodies drowning in their blood, And wretched heaps lie mourning of their maims, Whose blood, as from a sponge, or bunch of grapes Crush'd in a wine-press, gusheth out so fast, As with the sight doth make the sound aghast. Some should you see that had their heads half-cloven, And on the earth their brains lie trembling. Here one new-wounded helps another dying. Here lay an arm, and there a leg lay shiver'd. Here horse and man (o'erturned) for mercy cried, With hands extended to the merciless, That stopp'd their ears, and would not hear a word, But put them all (remorseless) to the sword. He that had hap to 'scape, doth help afresh To reinforce the side whereon he serv'd. But seeing that there the murd'ring enemy, Pesle-mesle[380] pursued them like a storm of hail, They 'gan retire, where Juba was encamp'd; But there had Cæsar eftsoons tyrannis'd: So that, despairing to defend themselves, They laid aside their armour, and at last Offer'd to yield unto the enemy; Whose stony heart, that ne'er did Roman good, Would melt with nothing but their dearest blood. And Scipio thy father, when he beheld His people so discomfited and scorn'd: When he perceived the labour profitless, To seek by new-encouraging his men To come upon them with a fresh alarm: And when he saw the enemies pursuit, To beat them down as fierce as thund'ring flints, And lay them level with the charged earth, Like ears of corn with rage of windy show'rs, Their battles scatter'd and their ensigns taken; And (to conclude) his men dismay'd to see The passage chok'd with bodies of the dead, (Incessantly lamenting th' extreme loss And suspirable death of so brave soldiers) He spurs his horse, and (breaking through the press) Trots to the haven, where his ships he finds, And (hopeless) trusteth to the trustless winds. Now had he thought to have arriv'd in Spain,