“I fancy that the Greek and Latin authors wrote the wrong word now and then, and never noticed it. That is not the view of textual critics and editors: they ascribe all errors to the men who copied out the manuscripts. But this limits them to errors that might arise in copying, and thus restricts the choice of emendations far too much. Take such an emendation as _Isara_ for _Arar_ in Livy, xxi. 31. This makes Livy say that the river was the Isère, not the Saône; but the context requires him to say it was the Durance, otherwise he would be saying ‘right’ instead of ‘left’ a few lines further on. A copyist might easily write _arar_ for _isara_, so this emendation is accepted, although it does not suit. “Such emendations are deceitful things. In this case they make Livy say the Isère, and make Polybios say it also, iii. 49, though he says something else; and then Members of the Alpine Club go saying that the river must have been the Isère, since Livy and Polybios agree in saying that it was. Other folk may say it does not matter what the river was; but that is a reason for leaving the whole thing alone, not for getting it wrong. If you take it up at all, you should not risk the sort of snubbing that Westbury gave the herald after cross-examination--‘Go away, you silly man: you don’t even understand your own silly science.’” That brought me letters from Members of the Alpine Club and from a former President who is a champion of the Isère route. And this is my reply. CECIL TORR. YONDER WREYLAND, LUSTLEIGH, DEVON. POSTSCRIPT. I fear there is much repetition in the following pages, but I have a reason for it. The same facts recur in different contexts; and I have sometimes thought it better to re-state a fact than merely give cross-references. [Illustration: _Proposed route_ ¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯ _Alternatives_ -------- 1. SIMPLON 2. GREAT SAINT BERNARD 3. LITTLE SAINT BERNARD 4. MONT CENIS 5. MONT GENÈVRE 6. COL DE LA TRAVERSETTE 7. COL D’ARGENTIÈRE] [Illustration] 1. Polybios, of course, is far the best authority. He was born in Hannibal’s lifetime; and he mentions (iii. 48. 12) that before he wrote his account of Hannibal’s passage of the Alps, he went over the ground himself to make quite sure. 2. As he writes in Greek, he gives the distances in stades--nine stades make an English mile--and (iii. 39. 6–10) he reckons 2600 stades from Cartagena to the Ebro, 1600 from there to Ampurias, at the Mediterranean end of the Pyrenees, 1600 from there to the crossing (_diabasis_) of the Rhone, 1400 along the river from its crossing to the ascent (_anabolê_) of the Alps, and 1200 across the Alps into Italy.