[177] Sicca--It stood on the banks of the Bagradas, at some distance from the coast, and contained a celebrated Temple of Venus. Val. Max., ii. 6. D'Anville thinks it the same as the modern _Kef._ [178] LVII. Javelins--_Pila._ This _pilum_ may have been, as Müller suggests, similar to the _falarica_ which Livy (xxi. 8) says that the Saguntines used against their besiegers. _Falarica erat Saguntinis, missile telum hastili abiegno--id, sicut in pilo, quadratum stuppa circumligabant, linebantque pice:--quod cum medium accensum mitteretur_, etc. Of Sallust's other words, in the latter part of this sentence, the sense is clear, but the readings of different editors are extremely various. Cortius and Gerlach have _sudes, pila praeterea picem sulphure et taedâ mixtam ardentia mittere:_ but it can scarcely be believed that Sallust wrote _picem--taedâ mixtam._ Havercamp gives _pice et sulphure taedam mixtam ardentia mittere,_ which has been adopted by Kritzius and Dietsch, except that they have changed _ardentia,_ on the authority of some of the manuscripts, into _ardenti_. [179] LIX. And thus, with the aid of the light-armed foot, almost succeeded in giving the enemy a defeat--_Ita expeditis peditibus suis hostes paene victos dare._ Cortius, Kritzius, and Allen, concur in regarding _expeditis peditibus_ as an ablative of the instrument, i.e. as equivalent to _per expeditos pedites_ and _victos dare_ as nothing more than _vincere._ This appears to be the right mode of explanation; but most of the translators, French as well as English, have taken _expeditis peditibus_ as a dative, and given to the passage the sense that "the cavalry delivered up the enemy, when nearly conquered, to be dispatched by the light-armed foot." [180] LX. Attacks, or preparations for defense, were made in all quarters--_Oppugnare aut parare omnibus locis._ There is much discussion among the critics whether these verbs are to be referred to the besiegers or the besieged. Cortius and Gerlach attribute _oppugnare_ to the Romans, and _parare_ to the men of Zama; a distinction which Kritzius justly condemns. There can be little doubt that they are spoken of both parties equally. [181] LXI. The rest of his forces--in that part of our province nearest to Numidia--_Caeterum exercitum in provinciam, quae proxima est Numidiae, hiemandi gratiâ collocat._ "The words _quae proxima est Numidiae_ Cortius would eject as superfluous and spurious. But it is to be understood that Metellus did not distribute his troops through the whole of the province, but in that part which is nearest to Numidia, in order that they might be easily assembled in case of an attack of the enemy or any other emergency. There is, therefore, no need to read with the Bipont edition and Müller, _qua proxima,_ etc. though this is in itself not a bad conjecture." _Kritzius_.