Hannibal Attacks the Vaccaei
Next summer he set out on another expedition against the Vaccaei, in which he took Salmantica by
note
assault, but only succeeded in storming Arbucala, owing to the size of the town and the number
and valour of its inhabitants, after a laborious siege. After this
he suddenly found himself in a position of very great danger
on his return march: being set upon by the Carpesii, the
strongest tribe in those parts, who were joined also by neighbouring tribes, incited principally by refugees of the Olcades,
but roused also to great wrath by those who escaped from
Salmantica. If the Carthaginians had been compelled to give
these people regular battle, there can be no doubt that they
would have been defeated: but as it was, Hannibal, with
admirable skill and caution, slowly retreated until he had put the
Tagus between himself and the enemy; and thus giving battle
at the crossing of the stream, supported by it and the elephants,
of which he had about forty, he gained, to every one's surprise,
a complete success. For when the barbarians attempted to
force a crossing at several points of the river at once, the
greater number of them were killed as they left the water by
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the elephants, who marched up and down along the brink of
the river and caught them as they were coming out. Many of
them also were killed in the river itself by the cavalry, because
the horses were better able than the men to stand against the
stream, and also because the cavalry were fighting on higher
ground than the infantry which they were attacking. At
length Hannibal turned the tables on the enemy, and, recrossing the river, attacked and put to flight their whole army, to
the number of more than a hundred thousand men. After
the defeat of this host, no one south of the Iber rashly ventured
to face him except the people of Saguntum. From that town
Hannibal tried his best to keep aloof; because, acting on the
suggestions and advice of his father Hamilcar, he did not wish
to give the Romans an avowed pretext for war until he had
thoroughly secured the rest of the country.
