Scipio Crosses the Ticinus
About the same day Publius Scipio, having now
crossed the Padus, and being resolved to make
a farther advance across the Ticinus, ordered
those who were skilled in such works to construct a bridge across this latter river; and then summoned
a meeting of the remainder of his army and addressed them:
dwelling principally on the reputation of their country and of
the ancestors' achievements. But he referred particularly to
their present position, saying, "that they ought to entertain no
doubt of victory, though they had never as yet had any experience of the enemy; and should regard it as a piece of
extravagant presumption of the Carthaginians to venture to face
Romans, by whom they had been so often beaten, and to
whom they had for so many years paid tribute and been all
but slaves. And when in addition to this they at present
knew thus much of their mettle,—that they dared not face
them, what was the fair inference to be drawn for the future?
Their cavalry, in a chance encounter on the Rhone with those
of Rome, had, so far from coming off well, lost a large number
of men, and had fled with disgrace to their own camp; and the
general and his army, as soon as they knew of the approach
of his legions, had beat a retreat, which was exceedingly like a
flight, and, contrary to their original purpose, had in their
terror taken the road over the Alps. And it was evident that
Hannibal had destroyed the greater part of his army; and that
what he had left was feeble and unfit for service, from the
hardships they had undergone: in the same way he had
lost the majority of his horses, and made the rest useless from
the length and difficult nature of the journey. They had, therefore, only to show themselves to the enemy." But, above all,
he pointed out that "his own presence at their head ought to
be special encouragement to them: for that he would not have
left his fleet and Spanish campaign, on which he had been sent,
and have come to them in such haste, if he had not seen on
consideration that his doing so was necessary for his country's
safety, and that a certain victory was secured to him by it."
The weight and influence of the speaker, as well as their
belief in his words, roused great enthusiasm among the men;
which Scipio acknowledged, and then dismissed them with the
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additional injunction that they should hold themselves in readiness to obey any order sent round to them.
