[Sidenote: B.C. 203 (_a.u._ 551)] After this Gnaeus Scipio[37] and Gaius Servilius became consuls, and during their year of office the Carthaginians, having got the worst of it in the struggle, felt a desire to arrange terms of peace and furthermore both Hannibal and Mago were driven out of Italy. It was the consuls who made a stand against Hannibal and Mago, while Scipio was inflicting damage upon Libya and assailing the cities. Meantime [Sidenote: FRAG. 56^52] HE HAD CAPTURED A CARTHAGINIAN VESSEL, BUT RELEASED IT WHEN THEY FEIGNED TO HAVE BEEN COMING ON AN EMBASSY TO HIM. HE KNEW, TO BE SURE, THAT IT WAS ONLY A PRETEXT, BUT PREFERRED TO AVOID THE POSSIBILITY OF IT BEING SAID AGAINST HIM THAT HE HAD DETAINED ENVOYS. AND IN THE CASE OF SYPHAX, WHO WAS STILL ENDEAVORING TO NEGOTIATE A RECONCILIATION ON THE TERMS THAT SCIPIO SHOULD SAIL FROM LIBYA AND HANNIBAL FROM ITALY, HE RECEIVED HIS PROPOSITION NOT IN A TRUSTFUL MOOD, BUT TO THE END THAT HE MIGHT RUIN HIM. For on the excuse afforded by the postponed truce he sent various bodies of soldiers at various times into the Carthaginian camp and into that of Syphax; and when they had carefully inspected everything on the side of their opponents, he put aside the treaty on a plausible pretext, which was the more readily found because Syphax had been detected in a plot against Masinissa. And Scipio went by night to where their two camps were located, not very far apart, and secretly set fire to Hasdrubal's camp at many points at once. It rapidly blazed up--for their tents had been made of corn-stalks and leafy branches--and the Carthaginians fared badly. The followers of Syphax in attempting to aid them encountered the Romans, who closed in the place, and were themselves destroyed; and their own camp was set on fire in addition, and in it many men and horses perished. The Romans escaped injury during the rest of the night following the exploit, but just after daylight Spaniards who had lately arrived as an accession to the Carthaginian alliance fell upon them unexpectedly and killed a large number. [Footnote 37: Dio probably wrote _Caepio_ here.]