auxiliaries which he could not protect when widely scattered, removed
into Bruttium the whole state of the Metapontines, summoned away from
their former habitations, and also such of the Lucanians as were under
his authority.
BOOK XXVIII.
_Successful operations against the Carthaginians in Spain,
under Silanus, Scipio's lieutenant, and L. Scipio, his
brother; of Sulpicius and Attalus, against Philip, king of
Macedonia. Scipio finally vanquishes the Carthaginians in
Spain, and reduces that whole country; passes over into
Africa, forms an alliance with Syphax, king of Numidia;
represses and punishes a mutiny of a part of his army;
concludes a treaty of friendship with Masinissa; returns to
Rome, and is elected consul; solicits Africa for his province,
which is opposed by Quintus Fabius Maximus; is appointed
governor of Sicily, with permission to pass over into Africa_.
1. At the time when Spain appeared to be relieved in proportion to the
degree in which the weight of the war was removed into Italy, by the
passage of Hasdrubal, another war sprang up there equal in magnitude
to the former. At this juncture, the Romans and Carthaginians thus
occupied Spain: Hasdrubal, son of Gisgo, had retired quite to the
ocean and Gades; the coast of our sea, and almost the whole of that
part of Spain which lies eastward, was subject to Scipio and the
Romans. The new general, Hanno, who had passed over from Africa, to
supply the place of the Barcine Hasdrubal, with a new army, and formed
a junction with Mago, having in a short time armed a large number
of men in Celtiberia, which lies in the midway between the two seas,
Scipio sent Marcus Silanus against him, with no more than ten thousand
infantry and five hundred horse. Silanus, by marching with all the
haste he could, (though the ruggedness of the roads, and narrow
defiles obstructed with thick woods, which are very frequent in Spain,
impeded him,) yet being guided by deserters from Celtiberia, natives
of that place, reached the enemy, anticipating not only messengers but
even all rumour of his coming. From the same source he ascertained,
when they were about ten thousand paces from the enemy, that they had
two camps, one on each side of the road in which they were marching;
that the Celtiberians, a newly-raised army, in number above nine
thousand, were on the left, and that the Carthaginian camp was
stationed on the right. The latter was secured and protected by
outposts, watches, and every kind of regular military guard, while the
former was disorderly and neglected, as belonging to barbarians, who
were raw soldiers, and were under the less apprehension, because they
were in their own country. Silanus, concluding that this was the camp
to be attacked first, ordered the troops to march as much as possible
towards the left, lest he should be observed from any point by the
Carthaginian outposts, and sending scouts in advance, pushed on
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