The Introduction, I.-IV. The author's declaration of his design, and
prefatory account of Jugurtha's family, V. Jugurtha's character, VI.
His talents excite apprehensions in his uncle Micipsa, VII. He is sent
to Numantia. His merits, his favor with Scipio, and his popularity in
the army, VIII. He receives commendation and advice from Scipio and is
adopted by Micipsa, who resolves that Jugurtha, Adherbal, and
Hiempsal, shall, at his death, divide his kingdom equally between
them, IX. He is addressed by Micipsa on his death-bed, X. His
proceedings, and those of Adherbal and Hiempsal, after the death of
Micipsa, XI. He murders Hiempsal, XII. He defeats Adherbal, and drives
him for refuge to Rome. He dreads the vengeance of the senate, and
sends embassadors to Rome, who are confronted with those of Adherbal
in the senate-house, XIII. The speech of Adherbal, XIV. The reply of
Jugurtha's embassadors, and the opinions of the senators, XV. The
prevalence of Jugurtha's money, and the partition of the kingdom
between him and Adherbal, XVI. A description of Africa, XVII. An
account of its inhabitants, and of its principal divisions at the
commencement of the Jugurthine war, XVIII., XIX. Jugurtha invades
Adherbal's part of the kingdom, XX. He defeats Adherbal, and besieges
him in Cirta, XXI. He frustrates the intentions of the Roman deputies,
XXII. Adherbal's distresses, XXIII. His letter to the senate, XXIV.
Jugurtha disappoints a second Roman deputation, XXV. He takes Cirta,
and puts Adherdal to death, XXVI. The senate determine to make war
upon him, and commit the management of it to Calpurnius, XXVII. He
sends an ineffectual embassy to the senate. His dominions are
vigorously invaded by Calpurnius, XXVIII. He bribes Calpurnius, and
makes a treaty with him, XXIX. His proceedings are discussed at Rome,
XXX. The speech of Memmius concerning them, XXXI. The consequences of
it, XXXII. The arrival of Jugurtha at Rome, and his appearance before
the people, XXXIII., XXXIV. He procures the assassination of Massiva,
and is ordered to quit Italy, XXXV. Albinus, the successor of
Calpurnius, renews the war. He returns to Rome, and leaves his brother
Aulus to command in his absence, XXXVI. Aulus miscarries in the siege
of Suthul, and concludes a dishonorable treaty with Jugurtha, XXXVII,
XXXVIII. His treaty is annulled by the senate. His brother, Albinus,
resumes the command, XXXIX. The people decree an inquiry into the
conduct of those who had treated with Jugurtha, XL. Consideration on
the popular and senatorial factions, XLI., XLII. Metellus assumes the
conduct of the war, XLIII. He finds the army in Numidia without
discipline, XLIV. He restores subordination, XLV. He rejects
Jugurtha's offers of submission, bribes his deputies, and marches into
the country, XLVI. He places a garrison in Vacca, and seduces other
deputies of Jugurtha, XLVII. He engages with Jugurtha, and defeats
him. His lieutenant, Rutilius, puts to flight Bomilcar, the general of
Jugurtha, XLVIII.-LIII. He is threatened with new opposition. He lays
waste the country. His stragglers are cut off by Jugurtha, LIV. His
merits are celebrated at Rome. His caution. His progress retarded, LV.
He commences the siege of Zama, which is reinforced by Jugurtha. His
lieutenant, Marius, repulses Jugurtha at Sicca, LVI. He is joined by
Marius, and prosecutes the siege. His camp is surprised, LVII., LVIII.
His struggles with Jugurtha, and his operations before the town, LIX.,
LX. He raises the siege, and goes into winter quarters. He attaches
Bomilcar to his interest, LXI. He makes a treaty with Jugurtha, who
breaks it, LXII. The ambition of Marius. His character. His desire of
the consulship, LXIII. His animosity toward Metellus. His intrigues to
supplant him, LXIV, LXV. The Vaccians surprise the Roman garrison, and
kill all the Romans but Turpilius, the governor, LXVI., LXVII.
Metellus recovers Vacca, and puts Turpilius to death, LXVIII., LXIX.
The conspiracy of Bomilcar, and Nabdalsa against Jugurtha, and the
discovery of it. Jugurtha's disquietude, LXX.-LXXII. Metellus makes
preparations for a second campaign. Marius returns to Rome, and is
chosen consul, and appointed to command the army in Numidia, LXXIII.
Jugurtha's irresolution. Metellus defeats him, LXXIV. The flight of
Jugurtha to Thala. The march of Metellus in pursuit of him, LXXV.
Jugurtha abandons Thala, and Metellus takes possession of it, LXXVI.
Metellus receives a deputation from Leptis, and sends a detachment
thither, LXXVII. The situation of Leptis, LXXVIII. The history of
the Philaeni, LXXIX. Jugurtha collects an army of Getulians, and gains
the support of Bocchus, King of Mauritania. The two kings proceed
toward Cirta, LXXX., LXXXI. Metellus marches against them, but hearing
that Marius is appointed to succeed him, contents himself with
endeavoring to alienate Bocchus from Jugurtha, and protracting the war
rather than prosecuting it, LXXXII., LXXXIII. The preparations of Marius
for his departure. His disposition toward the nobility. His popularity,
LXXXIV. His speech to the people, LXXXV. He completes his levies, and
arrives in Africa, LXXXVI. He opens the campaign, LXXXVII. The reception
of Metellus in Rome. The successes and plans of Marius. The applications
of Bocchus, LXXXVIII. Marius marches against Capsa, and takes it,
LXXXIX-XCI. He gains possession of a fortress which the Numidians thought
impregnable, XCII.-XCIV. The arrival of Sylla in the camp. His character,
XCV. His arts to obtain the favor of Marius and the soldiers, XCVI.
Jugurtha and Bocchus attack Marius, and are vigorously opposed, XCVII.,
XCVIII. Marius surprises them in the night, and routs them with great
slaughter, XCIX. Marius prepares to go into winter quarters. His
vigilance, and maintenance of discipline, C. He fights a second battle
with Jugurtha and Bocchus, and gains a second victory over them, CI. He
arrives at Cirta. He receives a deputation from Bocchus, and sends Sylla
and Manlius to confer with him, CII. Marina undertakes an expedition
Bocchus prepares to send ambassadors to Rome, who being stripped by
robbers, takes refuge in the Roman camp, and are entertained by Sylla
during the absence of Marius, CIII. Marius returns. The ambassadors
set out for Rome. The answer which they receive from the senate, CIV.
Bocchus desires a conference with Sylla; Sylla arrives at the camp of
Bocchus, CV.-CVII. Negotiations between Sylla and Bocchus, CVIII.,
CIX. The address of Bocchus to Sylla, CX. The reply of Sylla. The
subsequent transactions between them. The resolution of Bocchus to
betray Jugurtha, and the execution of it, CXI-CXIII. The triumph of
Marius, CXIV.
I. Mankind unreasonably complain of their nature, that, being weak and
short-lived, it is governed by chance rather than intellectual power;[1]
for, on the contrary, you will find, upon reflection, that there is
nothing more noble or excellent, and that to nature is wanting rather
human industry than ability or time.
The ruler and director of the life of man is the mind, which, when it
pursues glory in the path of true merit, is sufficiently powerful,
efficient, and worthy of honor,[2] and needs no assistance from
fortune, who can neither bestow integrity, industry, or other good
qualities, nor can take them away. But if the mind, ensnared by
corrupt passions, abandons itself[3] to indolence and sensuality, when
it has indulged for a season in pernicious gratifications, and when
bodily strength, time, and mental vigor, have been wasted in sloth,
the infirmity of nature is accused, and those who are themselves in
fault impute their delinquency to circumstances.[4]
If man, however, had as much regard for worthy objects, as he has
spirit in the pursuit of what is useless,[5] unprofitable, and even
perilous, he would not be governed by circumstances more than he would
govern them, and would attain to a point of greatness, at which,
instead of being mortal,[6] he would be immortalized by glory.
II. As man is composed of mind and body, so, of all our concerns and
pursuits, some partake the nature of the body, and some that of the
mind. Thus beauty of person, eminent wealth, corporeal strength, and
all other things of this kind, speedily pass away; but the illustrious
achievements of the mind are, like the mind itself, immortal.
Of the advantages of person and fortune, as there is a beginning,
there is also an end; they all rise and fall,[7] increase and decay.
But the mind, incorruptible and eternal, the ruler of the human race,
actuates and has power over all things,[8] yet is itself free from
control.
The depravity of those, therefore, is the more surprising, who,
devoted to corporeal gratifications, spend their lives in luxury and
indolence, but suffer the mind, than which nothing is better or
greater in man, to languish in neglect and inactivity; especially when
there are so many and various mental employments by which the highest
renown may be attained.
III. Of these occupations, however, civil and military offices,[9] and
all administration of public affairs, seem to me at the present time,
by no means to be desired; for neither is honor conferred on merit,
nor are those, who have gained power by unlawful means, the more
secure or respected for it. To rule our country or subjects[10] by
force, though we may have the ability, and may correct what is wrong,
is yet an ungrateful undertaking; especially as all changes in the
state lead to[11] bloodshed, exile, and other evils of discord; while
to struggle in ineffectual attempts, and to gain nothing, by wearisome
exertions, but public hatred, is the extreme of madness; unless when a
base and pernicious spirit, perchance, may prompt a man to sacrifice
his honor and liberty to the power of a party.
IV. Among other employments which are pursued by the intellect, the
recording of past events is of pre-eminent utility; but of its merits
I may, I think, be silent, since many have spoken of them, and since,
if I were to praise my own occupation, I might be considered as
presumptuously[12] praising myself. I believe, too, that there will be
some, who, because I have resolved to live unconnected with political
affairs, will apply to my arduous and useful labors the name of
idleness; especially those who think it an important pursuit to court
the people, and gain popularity by entertainments. But if such persons
will consider at what periods I obtained office, what sort of men[13]
were then unable to obtain it, and what description of persons have
subsequently entered the senate,[14] they will think, assuredly, that
I have altered my sentiments rather from prudence than from indolence,
and that more good will arise to the state from my retirement, than
from the busy efforts of others.
I have often heard that Quintus Maximus,[15] Publius Scipio,[16] and
many other illustrious men of our country, were accustomed to observe,
that, when they looked on the images of their ancestors, they felt
their minds irresistibly excited to the pursuit of honor.[17] Not,
certainly, that the wax,[18] or the shape, had any such influence;
but, as they called to mind their forefathers' achievements, such a
flame was kindled in the breasts of those eminent persons, as could
not be extinguished till their own merit had equaled the fame and
glory of their ancestors.
But, in the present state of manners, who is there, on the contrary,
that does not rather emulate his forefathers in riches and extravagance,
than in virtue and labor? Even men of humble birth,[19] who formerly
used to surpass the nobility in merit, pursue power and honor rather
by intrigue and dishonesty, than by honorable qualifications; as if
the praetorship, consulate, and all other offices of the kind, were
noble and dignified in themselves, and not to be estimated according
to the worth of those who fill them.
But, in expressing my concern and regret at the manners of the state,
I have proceeded with too great freedom, and at too great length. I
now return to my subject.
V. I am about to relate the war which the Roman people carried on with
Jugurtha, King of the Numidians; first, because it was great, sanguinary,
and of varied fortune; and secondly, because then, for the first time,
opposition was offered to the power of the nobility; a contest which
threw every thing, religious and civil, into confusion,[20] and was
carried to such a height of madness, that nothing but war, and the
devastation of Italy, could put an end to civil dissensions.[21] But
before I fairly commence my narrative, I will take a review of a few
preceding particulars, in order that the whole subject may be more
clearly and distinctly understood.
In the second Punic war, in which Hannibal, the leader of the
Carthaginians, had weakened the power of Italy more than any other
enemy[22] since the Roman name became great,[23] Masinissa, King of
the Numidians, being received into alliance by Publius Scipio, who,
from his merits was afterward surnamed Africanus, had performed for us
many eminent exploits in the field. In return for which services,
after the Carthaginians were subdued, and after Syphax,[24] whose
power in Italy was great and extensive, was taken prisoner, the Roman
people presented to Masinissa, as a free gift, all the cities and
lands that they had captured. Masinissa's friendship for us,
accordingly, remained faithful and inviolate; his reign[25] and his
life ended together. His son, Micipsa, alone succeeded to his kingdom;
Mastanabal and Gulussa, his two brothers, having been carried off by
disease. Micipsa had two sons, Adherbal and Hiempsal, and had brought
up in his house, with the same care as his own children, a son of his
brother Mastanabal, named Jugurtha, whom Masinissa, as being the son
of a concubine, had left in a private station.
VI. Jugurtha, as he grew up, being strong in frame, graceful in
person, but, above all, vigorous in understanding, did not allow
himself to be enervated by pleasure and indolence, but, as is the
usage of his country, exercised himself in riding, throwing the
javelin, and contending in the race with his equals in age; and,
though he excelled them all in reputation, he was yet beloved by all.
He also passed much of his time in hunting; he was first, or among the
first, to wound the lion and other beasts; he performed very much, but
spoke very little of himself.
Micipsa, though he was at first gratified with these circumstances,
considering that the merit of Jugurtha would be an honor to his
kingdom, yet, when he reflected that the youth was daily increasing in
popularity, while he himself was advanced in age, and his children but
young, he was extremely disturbed at the state of things, and revolved
it frequently in his mind. The very nature of man, ambitious of power,
and eager to gratify its desires, gave him reason for apprehension, as
well as the opportunity afforded by his own age and that of his children,
which was sufficient, from the prospect of such a prize, to lead astray
even men of moderate desires. The affection of the Numidians, too, which
was strong toward Jugurtha, was another cause for alarm; among whom, if
he should cut off such a man, he feared that some insurrection or war
might arise.
VII. Surrounded by such difficulties, and seeing that a man, so
popular among his countrymen, was not to be destroyed either by force
or by fraud, he resolved, as Jugurtha was of an active disposition,
and eager for military reputation, to expose him to dangers in the
field, and thus make trial of fortune. During the Numantine war,[26]
therefore, when he was sending supplies of horse and foot to the
Romans, he gave him the command of the Numidians, whom he dispatched
into Spain, hoping that he would certainly perish, either by an
ostentatious display of his bravery, or by the merciless hand of the
enemy. But this project had a very different result from that which he
had expected. For when Jugurtha, who was of an active and penetrating
intellect, had learned the disposition of Publius Scipio, the Roman
general, and the character of the enemy, he quickly rose, by great
exertion and vigilance, by modestly submitting to orders, and frequently
exposing himself to dangers, to such a degree of reputation, that he was
greatly beloved by our men, and extremely dreaded by the Numantines. He
was indeed, what is peculiarly difficult, both brave in action, and wise
in counsel; qualities, of which the one, from forethought, generally
produces fear, and the other, from confidence, rashness. The general,
accordingly, managed almost every difficult matter by the aid of
Jugurtha, numbered him among his friends, and grew daily more and more
attached to him, as a man whose advice and whose efforts were never
useless. With such merits were joined generosity of disposition, and
readiness of wit, by which he united to himself many of the Romans in
intimate friendship.
VIII. There were at that time, in our army, a number of officers, some
of low, and some of high birth, to whom wealth was more attractive
than virtue or honor; men who were attached to certain parties, and of
consequence in their own country; but, among the allies, rather
distinguished than respected. These persons inflamed the mind of
Jugurtha, of itself sufficiently aspiring, by assuring him, "that if
Micipsa should die, he might have the kingdom of Numidia to himself;
for that he was possessed of eminent merit, and that anything might be
purchased at Rome."
When Numantia, however, was destroyed, and Scipio had determined to
dismiss the auxiliary troops, and to return to Rome, he led Jugurtha,
after having honored him, in a public assembly, with the noblest
presents and applauses, into his own tent; where he privately
admonished him "to court the friendship of the Romans rather by
attention to them as a body, than by practicing on individuals;[27]
to bribe no one, as what belonged to many could not without danger be
bought from a few; and adding that, if he would but trust to his own
merits, glory and regal power would spontaneously fall to his lot;
but, should he proceed too rashly, he would only, by the influence of
his money, hasten his own ruin."
IX. Having thus spoken, he took leave of him, giving him a letter,
which he was to present to Micipsa, and of which the following was
the purport: "The merit of your nephew Jugurtha, in the war against
Numantia, has been eminently distinguished; a fact which I am sure
will afford you pleasure. He is dear to us for his services, and we
shall strive, with our utmost efforts, to make him equally dear to the
senate and people of Rome. As a friend, I sincerely congratulate you;
you have a kinsman worthy of yourself, and of his grandfather
Masinissa."
Micipsa, when he found, from the letter of the general, that what he
had already heard reported was true, being moved, both by the merit of
the youth and by the interest felt for him by Scipio, altered his
purpose, and endeavored to win Jugurtha by kindness. He accordingly,
in a short time,[28] adopted him as his son, and made him, by his
will, joint-heir with his own children.
A few years afterward, when, being debilitated by age and disease, he
perceived that the end of his life was at hand, he is said, in the
presence of his friends and relations, and of Adherbal and Hiempsal
his sons, to have spoken with Jugurtha in the following manner:
X. "I received you, Jugurtha, at a very early age, into my kingdom,[29]
at a time when you had lost your father, and were without prospects or
resources, expecting that, in return for my kindness, I should not be
less loved by you than by my own children, if I should have any. Nor
have my anticipations deceived me; for, to say nothing of your other
great and noble deeds, you have lately, on your return from Numantia,
brought honor and glory both to me and my kingdom; by your bravery,
you have rendered the Romans, from being previously our friends, more
friendly to us than ever; the name of our family is revived in Spain;
and, finally, what is most difficult among mankind, you have suppressed
envy by preeminent merit.[30]
And now, since nature is putting a period to my life, I exhort and
conjure you, by this right hand, and by the fidelity which you owe to
my kingdom,[31] to regard these princes, who are your cousins by
birth, and your brothers by my generosity, with sincere affection; and
not to be more anxious to attach to yourself strangers, than to retain
the love of those connected with you by blood. It is not armies, or
treasures,[32] that form the defenses of a kingdom, but friends, whom
you can neither command by force nor purchase with gold; for they are
acquired only by good offices and integrity. And who can be a greater
friend than one brother to another?[33] Or what stranger will you find
faithful, if you are at enmity with your own family? I leave you a
kingdom, which will be strong if you act honorably, but weak, if you
are ill-affected to each other; for by concord even small states are
increased, but by discord, even the greatest fall to nothing.
But on you, Jugurtha, who are superior in age and wisdom, it is
incumbent, more than on your brothers, to be cautious that nothing of
a contrary tendency may arise; for, in all disputes, he that is the
stronger, even though he receive the injury, appears, because his
power is greater, to have inflicted it. And do you, Adherbal and
Hiempsal, respect and regard a kinsman of such a character; imitate
his virtues, and make it your endeavor to show that I have not adopted
a better son[34] than those whom I have begotten."
XI. To this address, Jugurtha, though he knew that the king had spoken
insincerely,[35] and though he was himself revolving thoughts of a far
different nature, yet replied with good feeling, suitable to the
occasion. A few days afterward Micipsa died.
When the princes had performed his funeral with due magnificence, they
met together to hold a discussion on the general condition of their
affairs. Hiempsal, the youngest, who was naturally violent, and who
had previously shown contempt for the mean birth of Jugurtha, as being
inferior on his mother's side, sat down on the right hand of Adherbal,
in order to prevent Jugurtha from being the middle one of the three,
which is regarded by the Numidians as the seat of honor.[36] Being
urged by his brother, however, to yield to superior age, he at length
removed, but with reluctance, to the other seat.[37]
In the course of this conference, after a long debate about the
administration of the kingdom, Jugurtha suggested, among other
measures, "that all the acts and decrees made in the last five years
should be annulled, as Micipsa, during that period, had been enfeebled
by age, and scarcely sound in intellect."
Hiempsal replied, "that he was exceedingly pleased with the proposal,
since Jugurtha himself, within the last three years, had been adopted
as joint-heir to the throne." This repartee sunk deeper into the mind
of Jugurtha than any one imagined. From that very time, accordingly,
being agitated with resentment and jealousy, he began to meditate and
concert schemes, and to think of nothing but projects for secretly
cutting off Hiempsal. But his plans proving slow in operation, and his
angry feelings remaining unabated, he resolved to execute his purpose
by any means whatsoever.
XII. At the first meeting of the princes, of which I have just spoken,
it had been resolved, in consequence of their disagreement, that the
treasures should be divided among them, and that limits should be set
to the jurisdiction of each. Days were accordingly appointed for both
these purposes, but the earlier of the two for the division of the
money. The princes, in the mean time, retired into separate places of
abode in the neighborhood of the treasury. Hiempsal, residing in the
town of Thirmida, happened to occupy the house of a man, who, being
Jugurtha's chief lictor,[38] had always been liked and favored by his
master. This man, thus opportunely presented as an instrument,
Jugurtha loaded with promises, and induced him to go to his house, as
if for the purpose of looking over it, and provide himself with false
keys to the gates; for the true ones used to be given to Hiempsal,
adding, that he himself, when circumstances should call for his
presence, would be at the place with a large body of men. This
commission the Numidian speedily executed, and, according to his
instructions, admitted Jugurtha's men in the night, who, as soon as
they had entered the house, went different ways in quest of the
prince; some of his attendants they killed while asleep, and others as
they met them; they searched into secret places, broke open those that
were shut, and filled the whole premises with uproar and tumult.
Hiempsal, after a time, was found concealed in the hut of a
maid-servant,[39] where, in his alarm and ignorance of the locality,
he had at first taken refuge. The Numidians, as they had been ordered,
brought his head to Jugurtha.
XIII The report of so atrocious an outrage was soon spread through
Africa. Fear seized on Adherbal, and on all who had been subject to
Micipsa. The Numidians divided into two parties, the greater number
following Adherbal, but the more warlike, Jugurtha; who, accordingly,
armed as large a force as he could, brought several cities, partly by
force and partly by their own consent, under his power, and prepared
to make himself sovereign of the whole of Numidia. Adherbal, though he
had sent embassadors to Rome, to inform the senate of his brother's
murder and his own circumstances, yet, relying on the number of his
troops, prepared for an armed resistance. When the matter, however,
came to a contest, he was defeated, and fled from the field of battle
into our province,[40] and from thence hastened to Rome.
Jugurtha, having thus accomplished his purposes,[41] and reflecting,
at leisure, on the crime which he had committed, began to feel a dread
of the Roman people, against whose resentment he had no hopes of
security but in the avarice of the nobility, and in his own wealth. A
few days afterward, therefore, he dispatched embassadors to Rome, with
a profusion of gold and silver, whom he directed, in the first place,
to make abundance of presents to his old friends, and then to procure
him new ones; and not to hesitate, in short; to effect whatever could
be done by bribery.
When these deputies had arrived at Rome, and had sent large presents,
according to the prince's direction, to his intimate friends,[42] and
to others whose influence was at that time powerful, so remarkable a
change ensued, that Jugurtha, from being an object of the greatest
odium, grew into great regard and favor with the nobility; who, partly
allured with hope, and partly with actual largesses, endeavored, by
soliciting the members of the senate individually, to prevent any
severe measures from being adopted against him. When the embassadors
accordingly, felt sure of success, the senate, on a fixed day, gave
audience to both parties[43]. On that occasion, Adherbal, as I have
understood, spoke to the following effect:
XIV. "My father Micipsa, Conscript Fathers, enjoined me, on his
death-bed, to look upon the kingdom of Numidia as mine only by
deputation;[44] to consider the right and authority as belonging to
you; to endeavor, at home and in the field, to be as serviceable to
the Roman people as possible; and to regard you as my kindred and
relatives:[45] saying that, if I observed these injunctions. I should
find, in your friendship, armies, riches, and all necessary defenses
of my realm. By these precepts I was proceeding to regulate my conduct,
when Jugurtha, the most abandoned of all men whom the earth contains,
setting at naught your authority, expelled me, the grandson of Masinissa,
and the hereditary[46] ally and friend of the Roman people, from my
kingdom and all my possessions.
Since I was thus to be reduced to such an extremity of wretchedness,
I could wish that I were able to implore your aid, Conscript Fathers,
rather for the sake of my own services than those of my ancestors; I
could wish, indeed, above all, that acts of kindness were due to me
from the Romans, of which I should not stand in need; and, next to
this,[47] that, if I required your services, I might receive them as
my due. But as integrity is no defense in itself, and as I had no
power to form the character of Jugurtha,[48] I have fled to you,
Conscript Fathers, to whom, what is the most grievous of all things, I
am compelled to become a burden before I have been an assistance.
Other princes have been received into your friendship after having
been conquered in war, or have solicited an alliance with you in
circumstances of distress; but our family commenced its league with
the Romans in the war with Carthage, at a time when their faith was a
greater object of attraction than their fortune. Suffer not, then, O
Conscript Fathers, a descendent of that family to implore aid from you
in vain. If I had no other plea for obtaining your assistance but my
wretched fortune; nothing to urge, but that, having been recently a
king, powerful by birth, by character, and by resources, I am now
dishonored, afflicted,[49] destitute, and dependent on the aid of
others, it would yet become the dignity of Rome to protect me from
injury, and to allow no man's dominions to be increased by crime. But
I am driven from those very territories which the Roman people gave to
my ancestors, and from which my father and grandfather, in conjunction
with yourselves, expelled Syphax and the Carthaginians. It is what you
bestowed that has been wrested from me; in my wrongs you are insulted.
Unhappy man that I am! Has your kindness, O my father Micipsa, come
to this, that he whom you made equal with your children, and a sharer
of your kingdom, should become, above all others,[50] the destroyers
of your race? Shall our family, then, never be at peace? Shall we
always be harassed with war, bloodshed, and exile? While the
Carthaginians continued in power, we were necessarily exposed to all
manner of troubles; for the enemy were on our frontiers; you, our
friends, were at a distance; and all our dependence was on our arms.
But after that pest was extirpated, we were happy in the enjoyment of
tranquillity, as having no enemies but such as you should happen to
appoint us. But lo! on a sudden, Jugurtha, stalking forth with
intolerable audacity, wickedness, and arrogance, and having put to
death my brother, his own cousin, made his territory, in the first
place, the prize of his guilt; and next, being unable to ensnare me
with similar stratagems, he rendered me, when under your rule I
expected any thing rather than violence or war, an exile, as you see,
from my country and my home, the prey of poverty and misery, and safer
any where than in my own kingdom.
I was always of opinion, Conscript Fathers, as I had often heard my
father observe, that those who cultivated your friendship might indeed
have an arduous service to perform, but would be of all people the
most secure. What our family could do for you, it has done; it has
supported you in all your wars; and it is for you to provide for our
safety in time of peace. Our father left two of us, brothers; a third,
Jugurtha, he thought would be attached to us by the benefits conferred
upon him; but one of us has been murdered, and I, the other, have
scarcely escaped the hand of lawlessness.[51] What course can I now
take? Unhappy that I am, to what place, rather than another, shall I
betake myself? All the props of our family are extinct; my father, of
necessity, has paid the debt of nature; a kinsman, whom least of all
men it became, has wickedly taken the life of my brother; and as for
my other relatives, and friends, and connections, various forms of
destruction have overtaken them. Seized by Jugurtha, some have been
crucified, and some thrown to wild beasts, while a few, whose lives
have been spared, are shut up in the darkness of the dungeon, and drag
on, amid suffering and sorrow, an existence more grievous than death
itself.
If all that I have lost, or all that, from being friendly, has become
hostile to me,[52] remained unchanged, yet, in case of any sudden
calamity, it is of you that I should still have to implore assistance,
to whom, from the greatness of your empire, justice and injustice in
general should be objects of regard. And at the present time, when I
am exiled from my country and my home, when I am left alone, and
destitute of all that is suitable to my dignity, to whom can I go, or
to whom shall: I appeal, but to you? Shall I go to nations and kings,
who, from our friendship with Rome, are all hostile to my family?
Could I go, indeed, to any place where there are not abundance of
hostile monuments of my ancestors? Will any one, who, has ever been at
enmity with you, take pity upon me?
Masinissa, moreover, instructed us, Conscript Fathers, to cultivate
no friendship but that of Rome, to adopt no new leagues or alliances,
as we should find, in your good-will, abundance of efficient support;
while, if the fortune of your empire should change, we must sink
together with it. But, by your own merits, and the favor of the gods,
you are great and powerful; the whole world regards you with favor and
yields to your power; and you are the better able, in consequence, to
attend to the grievances of your allies. My only fear is, that private
friendship for Jugurtha, too little understood, may lead any of you
astray; for his partisans, I hear, are doing their utmost in his
behalf, soliciting and importuning you individually, to pass no
decision against one who is absent, and whose cause is yet untried;
and saying that I state what is false, and only pretend to be an
exile, when I might, if I pleased, have remained still in my kingdom.
But would that I could see him,[53] by whose unnatural crime I am thus
reduced to misery, pretending as I now pretend; and would that, either
with you or with the immortal gods, there may at length arise some
regard for human interests; for then assuredly will he, who is now
audacious and triumphant in guilt, be tortured by every kind of
suffering, and pay a heavy penalty for his ingratitude to my father,
for the murder of my brother, and for the distress which he has
brought upon myself.
And now, O my brother, dearest object of my affection, though thy
life has been prematurely taken from thee, and by a hand that should
have been the last to touch it, yet I think thy fate a subject for
rejoicing rather than lamentation, for, in losing life, thou hast not
been cut off from a throne, but from flight, expatriation, poverty,
and all those afflictions which now press upon me. But I, unfortunate
that I am, cast from the throne of my father into the depths of
calamity, afford an example of human vicissitudes, undecided what
course to adopt, whether to avenge thy wrongs, while I myself stand in
need of assistance, or to attempt the recovery of my kingdom, while my
life or death depends on the aid of others.[54]
Would that death could be thought an honorable termination to my
misfortunes, that I might not seem to live an object of contempt, if,
sinking under my afflictions, I tamely submit to injustice. But now I
can neither live with pleasure, nor can die without disgrace.[55] I
implore you, therefore, Conscript Fathers, by your regard for
yourselves,[56] for your children, and for your parents, and by the
majesty of the Roman people, to grant me succor in my distress, to
arrest the progress of injustice, and not to suffer the kingdom of
Numidia, which is your own property, to sink into ruin[57] through
villainy and the slaughter of our family."
XV. When the prince had concluded his speech, the embassadors of
Jugurtha, depending more on their money than their cause, replied, in
a few words, "that Hiempsal had been put to death by the Numidians for
his cruelty; that Adherbal, commencing war of his own accord, complained,
after he was defeated, of being unable to do injury; and that Jugurtha
entreated the senate not to consider him a different person from what
he had been known to be at Numantia, nor to set the assertions of his
enemy above his own conduct."
Both parties then withdrew from the senate-house, and the senate
immediately proceeded to deliberate. The partisans of the embassadors,
with a great many others, corrupted by their influence, expressed
contempt for the statements of Adherbal, extolled with the highest
encomiums the merits of Jugurtha, and exerted themselves as
strenuously, with their interest and eloquence, in defense of the
guilt and infamy of another, as they would have striven for their own
honor. A few, however, on the other hand, to whom right and justice
were of more estimation than wealth, gave their opinion that Adherbal
should be assisted, and the murder of Hiempsal severely avenged. Of
all these the most forward was Aemilius Scaurus,[58] a man of noble
birth and great energy, but factious, and ambitious of power, honor,
and wealth; yet an artful concealer of his own vices. He, seeing that
the bribery of Jugurtha was notorious and shameless, and fearing that,
as in such cases often happens, its scandalous profusion might excite
public odium, restrained himself from the indulgence of his ruling
passion.[59]
XVI. Yet that party gained the superiority in the senate, which
preferred money and interest to justice. A decree was made, "that ten
commissioners should divide the kingdom, which Micipsa had possessed,
between Jugurtha and Adherbal." Of this commission the leading person
was Lucius Opimius,[60] a man of distinction, and of great influence
at that time in the senate, from having in his consulship, on the
death of Caius Gracchus and Marcus Fulvius Flaccus, prosecuted the
victory of the nobility over the plebeians with great severity.
Jugurtha, though he had already counted Scaurus among his friends at
Rome, yet received him with the most studied ceremony, and, by
presents and promises, wrought on him so effectually, that he
preferred the prince's interest to his own character, honor, and all
other considerations. The rest of the commissioners he assailed in a
similar way, and gained over most of them; by a few only integrity was
more regarded than lucre. In the division of the kingdom, that part of
Numidia which borders on Mauretania, and which is superior in
fertility and population, was allotted to Jugurtha; of the other part,
which, though better furnished with harbors and buildings, was more
valuable in appearance than in reality, Adherbal became the possessor.
XVII. My subject seems to require of me, in this place, a brief
account of the situation of Africa, and of those nations in it with
whom we have had war or alliances. But of those tracts and countries,
which, from their heat, or difficulty of access, or extent of desert,
have been but little visited, I can not possibly give any exact
description. Of the rest I shall speak with all possible brevity.
In the division of the earth, most writers consider Africa as a third
part; a few admit only two divisions, Asia and Europe,[61] and include
Africa in Europe. It is bounded, on the west, by the strait connecting
our sea with the ocean;[62] on the east, by a vast sloping tract,
which the natives call the Catabathmos.[63] The sea is boisterous, and
deficient in harbors; the soil is fertile in corn, and good for
pasturage, but unproductive of trees. There is a scarcity of water
both from rain and from landsprings. The natives are healthy, swift of
foot, and able to endure fatigue. Most of them die by the gradual
decay of age,[64] except such as perish by the sword or beasts of
prey; for disease finds but few victims. Animals of a venomous nature
they have in great numbers.
Concerning the original inhabitants of Africa, the settlers that
afterward joined them, and the manner in which they intermingled, I
shall offer the following brief account, which, though it differs from
the general opinion, is that which was interpreted to me from the Punic
volumes said to have belonged to King Hiempsal[65], and which the
inhabitants of that country believe to be consistent with fact. For
the truth of the statement, however, the writers themselves must be
responsible.
XVIII. Africa, then, was originally occupied by the Getulians and
Libyans,[66] rude and uncivilized tribes, who subsisted on the flesh
of wild animals, or, like cattle, on the herbage of the soil. They
were controlled neither by customs, laws, nor the authority of any
ruler; they wandered about, without fixed habitations, and slept in
the abodes to which night drove them. But after Hercules, as the
Africans think, perished in Spain, his army, which was composed of
various nations,[67] having lost its leader, and many candidates
severally claiming the command of it, was speedily dispersed. Of its
constituent troops, the Medes, Persians, and Armenians,[68] having
sailed over into Africa, occupied the parts nearest to our sea.[69]
The Persians, however, settled more toward the ocean,[70] and used the
inverted keels of their vessels for huts, there being no wood in the
country, and no opportunity of obtaining it, either by purchase or
barter, from the Spaniards; for a wide sea, and an unknown tongue,
were barriers to all intercourse. These, by degrees, formed
intermarriages with the Getulians; and because, from constantly trying
different soils, they were perpetually shifting their abodes, they
called themselves NUMIDIANS.[71] And to this day the huts of the
Numidian boors, which they call _mapalia_, are of an oblong shape,
with curved roofs; resembling the hulls of ships.
The Medes and Armenians connected themselves with the Libyans, who
dwelled near the African sea; while the Getulians lay more to the
sun,[72] not far from the torrid heats; and these soon built
themselves towns,[73] as, being separated from Spain only by a strait,
they proceeded to open an intercourse with its inhabitants. The name
of Medes the Libyans gradually corrupted, changing it, in their
barbarous tongue, into Moors.[74]
Of the Persians[75] the power rapidly increased; and at length, the
children, through excess of population, separating from the parents,
they took possession, under the name of Numidians, of those regions
bordering on Carthage which are now called Numidia. In process of
time, the two parties,[76] each assisting the other, reduced the
neighboring tribes, by force or fear, under their sway; but those who
had spread toward our sea, made the greater conquests: for the Lybians
are less warlike than the Getulians[77] At last nearly all lower
Africa[78] was occupied by the Numidians; and all the conquered tribes
were merged in the nation and name of their conquerors.
XIX. At a later period, the Phoenicians, some of whom wished to lessen
their numbers at home, and others, ambitious of empire, engaged the
populace, and such as were eager for change, to follow them, founded
Hippo,[79] Adrumetum, Leptis,[80] and other cities, on the sea-coast;
which, soon growing powerful, became partly a support, and partly an
honor, to their parent state. Of Carthage I think it better to be
silent, than to say but little; especially as time bids me hasten to
other matters.
Next to the Catabathmos,[81] then, which divides Egypt from Africa,
the first city along the sea-coast[82] is Cyrene, a colony of
Theraeans;[83] after which are the two Syrtes,[84] with Leptis[85]
between them; then the Altars of the Philaeni,[86] which the
Carthaginians considered the boundary of their dominion on the side of
Egypt; beyond these are the other Punic towns. The other regions, as
far as Mauretania, the Numidians occupy; the Moors are nearest to
Spain. To the south of Numidia,[87] as we are informed, are the
Getulians, of whom some live in huts, and others lead a vagrant and
less civilized life; beyond these are the Ethiopians; and further on,
regions parched by the heat of the sun.
At the time of the Jugurthine war, most of the Punic towns, and the
territories which Carthage had lately possessed,[88] were under the
government of Roman praetors; a great part of the Getulians, and
Numidia as far as the river Mulucha, were subject to Jugurtha; while
the whole of the Moors were governed by Bocchus, a king who knew
nothing of the Romans but their name, and who, before this period,
was as little known to us, either in war or peace. Of Africa and its
inhabitants I have now said all that my narrative requires.
XX. When the commissioners, after dividing the kingdom, had left
Africa, and Jugurtha saw that, contrary to his apprehensions, he had
obtained the object of his crimes; he then being convinced of the
truth of what he had heard from his friends at Numantia, "that all
things were purchasable at Rome," and being also encouraged by the
promises of those whom he had recently loaded with presents, directed
his views to the domain of Adherbal. He was himself bold and warlike,
while the other, at whose destruction he aimed, was quiet, unfit for
arms, of a mild temper, a fit subject for injustice, and a prey to
fear rather than an object of it. Jugurtha, accordingly, with a
powerful force, made a sudden irruption into his dominions, took
several prisoners, with cattle and other booty, set fire to the
buildings, and made hostile demonstrations against several places with
his cavalry. He then retreated, with all his followers, into his own
kingdom, expecting that Adherbal, roused by such provocation, would
avenge his wrongs by force, and thus furnish a pretext for war. But
Adherbal, thinking himself unable to meet Jugurtha in the field, and
relying on the friendship of the Romans more than on the Numidians,
merely sent embassadors to Jugurtha to complain of the outrage; and,
although they brought back but an insolent reply, yet he resolved to
endure any thing rather than have recourse to war, which, when he
attempted it before, had ended in his defeat. By such conduct the
eagerness of Jugurtha was not at all allayed; for he had now, indeed,
in imagination, possessed himself of all Adherbal's dominions. He
therefore renewed hostilities, not, as before, with a predatory band,
but at the head of a large army which he had collected, and openly
aspired to the sovereignty of all Numidia. Wherever he marched, he
ravaged the towns and the fields, drove off booty, and raised
confidence in his own men and dismay among the enemy.
XXI. Adherbal, when he found that matters had arrived at such a point,
that he must either abandon his dominions, or defend them by force of
arms, collected an army from necessity, and advanced to meet Jugurtha.
Both armies took up[89] their position near the town of Cirta[90], at
no great distance from the sea; but, as evening was approaching,
encamped without coming to an engagement. But when the night was far
advanced, and twilight was beginning to appear[91], the troops of
Jugurtha, at a given signal, rushed into the camp of the enemy, whom
they routed and put to flight, some half asleep and others resuming
their arms. Adherbal, with a few of his cavalry, fled to Cirta; and,
had there not been a number of Romans[92] in the town, who repulsed
his Numidian pursuers from the walls, the war between the two princes
would have been begun and ended on the same day.
Jugurtha proceeded to invest the town, and attempted to storm it with
the aid of mantelets, towers, and every kind of machines; being
anxious above all things, to take it before the ambassadors could
arrive at Rome, who, he was informed, had been dispatched thither by
Adherbal before the battle was fought. But as soon as the senate heard
of their contention, three young men[93] were sent as deputies into
Africa, with directions to go to both of the princes, and to announce
to them, in the words of the senate and people of Rome, "that it was
their will and resolution that they should lay down their arms, and
settle their disputes rather by arbitration than by the sword; since
to act thus would be to the honor both of the Romans and themselves."
XXII. These deputies soon arrived in Africa, using the greater
dispatch, because, while they were preparing for their journey, a
report was spread at Rome of the battle which had been fought, and of
the siege of Cirta; but this report told much less than the truth[94]
Jugurtha, having given them an audience, replied, "that nothing was of
greater weight with him, nothing more respected, than the authority of
the senate; that it had been his endeavor, from his youth, to deserve
the esteem of all men of worth; that he had gained the favor of
Publius Scipio, a man of the highest eminence, not by dishonorable
practices, but by merit; that, for the same good qualities, and not
from want of heirs to the throne, he had been adopted by Micipsa; but
that, the more honorable and spirited his conduct had been, the less
could his feelings endure injustice; that Adherbal had formed designs
against his life on discovering which, he had counteracted his malice;
that the Romans would act neither justly nor reasonably, if they
withheld from him the common right of nations;[96] and, in conclusion,
that he would soon send embassadors to Rome to explain the whole of
his proceedings." On this understanding, both parties separated. Of
addressing Adherbal the deputies had no opportunity.
XXIII. Jugurtha, as soon as he thought that they had quitted Africa,
surrounded the walls of Cirta, which, from the nature of its
situation, he was unable to take by assault, with a rampart and a
trench; he also erected towers, and manned them with soldiers; he made
attempts on the place, by force or by stratagem, day and night; he
held out bribes, and some times menaces, to the besieged; he roused
his men, by exhortations, to efforts of valor, and resorted, with the
utmost perseverance, to every possible expedient.
Adherbal, on the other hand, seeing that his affairs were in a
desperate condition, that his enemy was determined on his ruin, that
there was no hope of succor, and that the siege, from want of
provisions, could not long be protracted, selected from among those
who had fled with him to Cirta, two of his most resolute supporters,
whom he induced, by numerous promises, and an affecting representation
of his distress, to make their way in the night, through the enemy's
lines, to the nearest point of the coast, and from thence to Rome.
XXIV. The Numidians, in a few days executed their commission; and a
letter from Adherbal was read in the senate, of which the following
was the purport:
"It is not through my own fault, Conscript Fathers, that I so often
send requests to you; but the violence of Jugurtha compels me; whom so
strong a desire for my destruction has seized, that he pays no
regard[96] either to you or to the immortal gods; my blood he covets
beyond every thing. Five months, in consequence, have I, the ally and
friend of the Roman people, been besieged with an armed force; neither
the remembrance of my father Micipsa's benefits, nor your decrees, are
of any avail for my relief; and whether I am more closely pressed by
the sword, or by famine, I am unable to say.
From writing further concerning Jugurtha, my present condition deters
me; for I have experienced, even before,[97] that little credit is
given to the unfortunate. Yet I can perceive that his views extend
further than to myself, and that he does not expect to possess, at the
same time, your friendship and my kingdom; which of the two he thinks
the more desirable, must be manifest to every one. For, in the first
place, he murdered my brother Hiempsal; and, in the next, expelled me
from my dominions; which, however, may be regarded as our own wrongs,
and as having no reference to you. But now he occupies your kingdom
with an army; he keeps me, whom you appointed a king over the
Numidians, in a state of blockade; and in what estimation he holds the
words of your embassadors, my perils may serve to show. What then is
left, except your arms, that can make an impression upon him?
I could wish, indeed, that what I now write, as well as the complaints
which I lately made before the senate, were false, rather than that my
present distresses should confirm the truth of my statements. But
since I am born to be an example of Jugurtha's villainy, I do not now
beg a release from death or distress, but only from the tyranny of an
enemy, and from bodily torture. Respecting the kingdom of Numidia,
which is your own property, determine as you please, but if the memory
of my grandfather Masinissa is still cherished by you, deliver me, I
entreat you, by the majesty of your empire, and by the sacred ties of
friendship, from the inhuman hands of Jugurtha."
XXV. When this letter was read, there were some who thought that an
army should be dispatched into Africa, and relief afforded to
Adherbal, as soon as possible; and that the senate, in the mean time,
should give judgment on the conduct of Jugurtha, in not having obeyed
the embassadors. But by the partisans of Jugurtha, the same that had
before supported his cause, effectual exertions were made to prevent
any decree from being passed; and thus the public interest, as is too
frequently the case, was defeated by private influence.
An embassy was, however, dispatched into Africa, consisting of men of
advanced years, and of noble birth, and who had filled the highest
offices of the state; among whom was Marcus Scaurus, already mentioned,
a man who had held the consulship, and who was at that time chief of
the senate[98]. These embassadors, as their business was an affair of
public odium, and as they were urged by the entreaties of the Numidians,
embarked in three days; and having soon arrived at Utica, sent a letter
from thence to Jugurtha, desiring him "to come to the province as
quickly as possible, as they were deputed by the senate to meet him."
Jugurtha, when he found that men of eminence, whose influence at Rome
he knew to be powerful, were come to put a stop to his proceedings,
was at first perplexed, and distracted between fear and cupidity. He
dreaded the displeasure of the senate, if he should disobey the
embassadors; while his eager spirit, blinded by the lust of power,
hurried him on to complete the injustice which he had begun. At length
the evil incitements of ambition prevailed[99]. He accordingly drew
his army round the city of Cirta, and endeavored, with his utmost
efforts, to force an entrance; having the strongest hopes, that, by
dividing the attention of the enemy's troops, he should be able, by
force or artifice, to secure an opportunity of success. When his
attempts, however, were unavailing, and he found himself unable, as
he had designed, to get Adherbal into his power before he met the
embassadors, fearing that, by further delay, he might irritate
Scaurus, of whom he stood in great dread, he proceeded with a small
body of cavalry into the Province. Yet, though serious menaces were
repeated to him in the name of the senate, because he had not desisted
from the siege, nevertheless, after spending a long time in conference,
the embassadors departed without making any impression upon him.
XXVI. When news of this result was brought to Cirta, the Italians[100],
by whose exertions the city had been defended, and who trusted that, if
a surrender were made, they would be able, from respect to the greatness
of the Roman power, to escape without personal injury, advised Adherbal
to deliver himself and the city to Jugurtha, stipulating only that his
life should be spared, and leaving all other matters to the care of the
senate. Adherbal, though he thought nothing less trustworthy than the
honor of Jugurtha, yet, knowing that those who advised could also compel
him if he resisted, surrendered the place according to their desire.
Jugurtha immediately proceeded to put Adherbal to death with torture,
and massacred all the inhabitants that were of age, whether Numidians
or Italians, as each fell in the way of his troops.
XXVII. When this outrage was reported at Rome, and became a matter of
discussion in the senate, the former partisans of Jugurtha applied
themselves, by interrupting the debates and protracting the time,
sometimes exerting their interest, and sometimes quarreling with
particular members, to palliate the atrocity of the deed. And had not
Caius Memmius, one of the tribunes of the people elect, a man of
energy, and hostile to the power of the nobility, convinced the people
of Rome that an attempt was being made, by the agency of a small
faction, to have the crimes of Jugurtha pardoned, it is certain that
the public indignation against him would have passed off under the
protraction of the debates; so powerful was party interest, and the
influence of Jugurtha's money. When the senate, however, from
consciousness of misconduct, became afraid of the people, Numidia and
Italy, by the Sempronian law,[101] were appointed as provinces to the
succeeding consuls, who were declared to be Publius Scipio Nasica[102],
and Lucius Bestia Calpurnius[103]. Numidia fell to Calpurnius, and Italy
to Scipio. An army was then raised to be sent into Africa; and pay, and
all other necessaries of war, were decreed for its use.
XXVIII. When Jugurtha received this news, which was utterly at
variance with his expectations, as he had felt convinced that all
things were purchasable at Rome, he sent his son, with two of his
friends, as deputies to the senate, and directed them, like those whom
he had sent on the murder of Hiempsal, to attack every body with
bribes. Upon the approach of these deputies to Rome, the senate was
consulted by Bestia, whether they would allow them to be admitted
within the gates; and the senate decreed, "that, unless they came to
surrender Jugurtha's kingdom and himself, they must quit Italy within
the ten following days." The consul directed this decree to be
communicated to the Numidians, who consequently returned home without
effecting their object.
Calpurnius, in the mean time, having raised an army, chose for his
officers men of family and intrigue, hoping that whatever faults he
might commit, would be screened by their influence; and among these
was Scaurus, of whose disposition and character we have already
spoken. There were, indeed, in our consul Calpurnius, many excellent
qualities, both mental and personal, though avarice interfered with
the exercise of them; he was patient of labor, of a penetrating
intellect, of great foresight, not inexperienced in war, and extremely
vigilant against danger and surprise.
The troops were conducted through Italy to Rhegium, from thence to
Sicily, and from Sicily into Africa; and Calpurnius's first step,
after collecting provisions, was to invade Numidia with spirit, where
he took many prisoners, and several towns, by force of arms.
XXIX. But when Jugurtha began, through his emissaries, to tempt him
with bribes, and to show the difficulties of the war which he had
undertaken to conduct, his mind, corrupted with avarice, was easily
altered. His accomplice, however, and manager in all his schemes, was
Scaurus; who, though he had at first, when most of his party were
corrupted, displayed violent hostility to Jugurtha, yet was afterward
seduced, by a vast sum of money, from integrity and honor to injustice
and perfidy. Jugurtha, however, at first sought only to purchase a
suspension of hostilities, expecting to be able, during the interval,
to make some favorable impression, either by bribery or by interest,
at Rome; but when he heard that Scaurus was co-operating with
Calpurnius, he was elated with great hopes of regaining peace, and
resolved upon a conference with them in person respecting the terms of
it. In the mean time, for the sake of giving confidence [104] to
Jugurtha, Sextus the quaestor was dispatched by the consul to Vaga,
one of the prince's towns; the pretext for his journey being the
receiving of corn, which Calpurnius had openly demanded from Jugurtha's
emissaries, on the ground that a truce was observed through their delay
to make a surrender. Jugurtha then, as he had determined, paid a visit
to the consul's camp, where, having made a short address to the council,
respecting the odium cast upon his conduct, and his desire for a
capitulation, he arranged other matters with Bestia and Scaurus in
secret; and the next day, as if by an evident majority of voices[105],
he was formally allowed to surrender. But, as was demanded in the
hearing of the council, thirty elephants, a considerable number of
cattle and horses, and a small sum of money, were delivered into the
hands of the quaestor. Calpurnius then returned to Rome to preside at
the election of magistrates[106], and peace was observed throughout
Numidia and the Roman army.
XXX. When rumor had made known the affairs transacted in Africa, and
the mode in which they had been brought to pass, the conduct of the
consul became a subject of discussion in every place and company at
Rome. Among the people there was violent indignation; as to the
senators, whether they would ratify so flagitious a proceeding, or
annul the act of the consul, was a matter of doubt. The influence of
Scaurus, as he was said to be the supporter and accomplice of Bestia,
was what chiefly restrained the senate from acting with justice and
honor. But Caius Memmius, of whose boldness of spirit, and hatred to
the power of the nobility, I have already spoken, excited the people
by his harangues, during the perplexity and delay of the senators, to
take vengeance on the authors of the treaty; he exhorted them not to
abandon the public interest or their own liberty; he set before them
the many tyrannical and violent proceedings of the nobles, and omitted
no art to inflame the popular passions. But as the eloquence of
Memmius, at that period, had great reputation and influence I have
thought proper to give in full[107] one out of many of his speeches;
and I take, in preference to others, that which he delivered in the
assembly of the people, after the return of Bestia, in words to the
following effect:
XXXI. "Were not my zeal for the good of the state, my fellow-citizens,
superior to every other feeling, there are many considerations which
would deter me from appearing in your cause; I allude to the power of
the opposite party, your own tameness of spirit, the absence of all
justice, and, above all, the fact that integrity is attended with more
danger than honor. Indeed, it grieves me to relate, how, during the
last fifteen years[108], you have been a sport to the arrogance of an
oligarchy; how dishonorably, and how utterly unavenged, your defenders
have perished[109]; and how your spirit has become degenerate by sloth
and indolence; for not even now, when your enemies are in your power,
will you rouse yourselves to action, but continue still to stand in
awe of those to whom you should be a terror.
Yet, notwithstanding this state of things, I feel prompted to make an
attack on the power of that faction. That liberty of speech[110],
therefore, which has been left me by my father, I shall assuredly
exert against them; but whether I shall use it in vain, or for your
advantage, must, my fellow-citizens, depend upon yourselves. I do not,
however, exhort you, as your ancestors have often done, to rise in
arms against injustice.
There is at present no need of violence, no need of secession; for
your tyrants must work their fall by their own misconduct.
After the murder of Tiberius Gracchus, whom they accused of aspiring
to be king, persecutions were instituted against the common people of
Rome; and after the slaughter of Caius Gracchus and Marcus Fulvius,
many of your order were put to death in prison. But let us leave these
proceedings out of the question; let us admit that to restore their
rights to the people, was to aspire to sovereignty; let us allow that
what can not be avenged without shedding the blood of citizens, was
done with justice. You have seen with silent indignation, however, in
past years, the treasury pillaged; you have seen kings, and free
people, paying tribute to a small party of Patricians, in whose hands
were both the highest honors and the greatest wealth; but to have
carried on such proceedings with impunity, they now deem but a small
matter; and, at last, your laws and your honor, with every civil and
religious obligation[111], have been sacrificed for the benefit of
your enemies. Nor do they, who have done these things, show either
shame or contrition, but parade proudly before your faces, displaying
their sacerdotal dignities, their consulships, and some of them their
triumphs, as if they regarded them as marks of honor, and not as
fruits of their dishonesty. Slaves, purchased with money[112], will
not submit to unjust commands from their masters; yet you, my
fellow-citizens, who are born to empire, tamely endure oppression.
But who are these that have thus taken the government into their
hands? Men of the most abandoned character, of blood-stained hands, of
insatiable avarice, of enormous guilt, and of matchless pride; men by
whom integrity, reputation, public spirit[113], and indeed every
thing, whether honorable or dishonorable, is converted to a means of
gain. Some of them make it their defense that they have killed
tribunes of the people; others, that they have instituted unjust
prosecutions; others, that they have shed your blood; and thus, the
more atrocities each has committed, the greater is his security; while
your oppressors, whom the same desires, the same aversions, and the
same fears, combine in strict union (a union which among good men is
friendship, but among the bad confederacy in guilt), have excited in
you, through your want of spirit, that terror which they ought to feel
for their own crimes.
But if your concern to preserve your liberty were as great as their
ardor to increase their power of oppression, the state would not be
distracted as it is at present; and the marks of favor which proceed
from you[114], would be conferred, not on the most shameless, but on
the most deserving. Your forefathers, in order to assert their rights
and establish their authority, twice seceded in arms to Mount
Aventine; and will not you exert yourselves, to the utmost of your
power, in defense of that liberty which you received from them? Will
you not display so much the more spirit in the cause, from the
reflection that it is a greater disgrace to lose[115] what has been
gained, than not to have gained it at all?
But some will ask me, 'What course of conduct, then, would you advise
us to pursue?' I would advise you to inflict punishment on those who
have sacrificed the interests of their country to the enemy; not,
indeed, by arms, or any violence (which would be more unbecoming,
however, for you to inflict than for them to suffer), but by
prosecutions, and by the evidence of Jugurtha himself, who, if he has
really surrendered, will doubtless obey your summons; whereas, if he
shows contempt for it, you will at once judge what sort of a peace or
surrender it is, from which springs impunity to Jugurtha for his
crimes, immense wealth to a few men in power, and loss and infamy to
the republic.
But perhaps you are not yet weary of the tyranny of these men;
perhaps these times please you less than those[116] when kingdoms,
provinces, laws, rights, the administration of justice, war and peace,
and indeed every thing civil and religious, was in the hands of an
oligarchy; while you, that is, the people of Rome, though unconquered
by foreign enemies, and rulers of all nations around, were content
with being allowed to live; for which of you had spirit to throw off
your slavery? For myself, indeed, though I think it most disgraceful
to receive an injury without resenting it, yet I could easily allow
you to pardon these basest of traitors, because they are your
fellow-citizens, were it not certain that your indulgence would end in
your destruction. For such is their presumption, that to escape
punishment for their misdeeds will have but little effect upon them,
unless they be deprived, at the same time, of the power of doing
mischief; and endless anxiety will remain for you, if you shall have
to reflect that you must either be slaves or preserve your liberty by
force of arms.
Of mutual trust, or concord, what hope is there? They wish to be
lords, you desire to be free; they seek to inflict injury, you to
repel it; they treat your allies as enemies, your enemies as allies.
With feelings so opposite, can peace or friendship subsist between
you? I warn, therefore, and exhort you, not to allow such enormous
dishonesty to go unpunished. It is not an embezzlement of the public
money[117] that has been committed; nor is it a forcible extortion of
money from your allies; offenses which, though great, are now, from
their frequency, considered as nothing; but the authority of the
senate, and your own power, have been sacrificed to the bitterest of
enemies, and the public interest has been betrayed for money, both at
home and abroad; and unless these misdeeds be investigated, and
punishment be inflicted on the guilty, what remains for us but to live
the slaves of those who committed them? For those who do what they
will with impunity are undoubtedly kings.[118]
I do not, however, wish to encourage you, O Romans, to be better
satisfied at finding your fellow-citizens guilty than innocent, but
merely to warn you not to bring ruin on the good, by suffering the bad
to escape. It is far better, in any government, to be unmindful of a
service than of an injury; for a good man, if neglected, only becomes
less active; but a bad man, more daring. Besides, if the crimes of the
wicked are suppressed,[119] the state will seldom need extraordinary
support from the virtuous."
XXXII. By repeating these and similar sentiments, Memmius prevailed on
the people to send Lucius Cassius,[120] who was then praetor, to
Jugurtha, and to bring him, under guarantee of the public faith[121],
to Rome, in order that, by the prince's evidence, the misconduct of
Scaurus and the rest, whom they charged with having taken bribes,
might more easily be made manifest.
During the course of these proceedings at Rome, those whom Bestia had
left in Numidia in command of the army, following the example of their
general, had been guilty of many scandalous transactions. Some, seduced
by gold, had restored Jugurtha his elephants; others had sold him his
deserters; others had ravaged the lands of those at peace with us; so
strong a spirit of rapacity, like the contagion of a pestilence, had
pervaded the breasts of all.
Cassius, when the measure proposed by Memmius had been carried, and
while all the nobility were in consternation, set out on his mission
to Jugurtha, whom, alarmed as he was, and despairing of his fortune,
from a sense of guilt, he admonished "that since he had surrendered
himself to the Romans, he had better make trial of their mercy than
their power." He also pledged his own word, which Jugurtha valued not
less than that of the public, for his safety. Such, at that period,
was the reputation of Cassius.
XXXIII. Jugurtha, accordingly, accompanied Cassius to Rome, but
without any mark of royalty, and in the garb, as much as possible, of
a suppliant[122]; and, though he felt great confidence on his own
part, and was supported by all those through whose power or villainy
he had accomplished his projects, he purchased, by a vast bribe, the
aid of Caius Baebius, a tribune of the people, by whose audacity he
hoped to be protected against the law, and against all harm.
An assembly of the people being convoked, Memmius, although they were
violently exasperated against Jugurtha, (some demanding that he should
be cast into prison, others that, unless he should name his
accomplices in guilt, he should be put to death, according to the
usage of their ancestors, as a public enemy), yet, regarding rather
their character than their resentment, endeavored to calm their
turbulence and mitigate their rage; and assured them that, as far as
depended on him, the public faith should not be broken. At length,
when silence was obtained, he brought forward Jugurtha, and addressed
them. He detailed the misdeeds of Jugurtha at Rome and in Numidia, and
set forth his crimes toward his father and brothers; and admonished
the prince, "that the Roman people, though they were well aware by
whose support and agency he had acted, yet desired further testimony
from himself; that, if he disclosed the truth, there was great hope
for him in the honor and clemency of the Romans; but if he concealed
it, he would certainly not save his accomplices, but ruin himself and
his hopes forever."
XXXIV. But when Memmius had concluded his speech, and Jugurtha was
expected to give his answer, Caius Baebius, the tribune of the people,
whom I have just noticed as having been bribed, enjoined the prince to
hold his peace[123]; and though the multitude, who formed the
assembly, were desperately enraged, and endeavored to terrify the
tribune by outcries, by angry looks, by violent gestures, and by every
other act to which anger prompts[124], his audacity was at last
triumphant. The people, mocked and set at naught, withdrew from the
place of assembly; and the confidence of Jugurtha, Bestia, and the
others, whom this investigation had alarmed, was greatly augmented.
XXXV. There was at this period in Rome a certain Numidian named
Massiva, a son of Gulussa and grandson of Masinissa, who, from having
been, in the dissensions among the princes, opposed to Jugurtha, had
been obliged, after the surrender of Cirta and the murder of Adherbal,
to make his escape out of Africa. Spurius Albinus, who was consul with
Quintus Minucius Rufus the year after Bestia, prevailed upon this man,
as he was of the family of Masinissa, and as odium and terror hung
over Jugurtha for his crimes, to petition the senate for the kingdom
of Numidia. Albinus, being eager for the conduct of a war, was
desirous that affairs should be disturbed[125], rather than sink into
tranquillity; especially as, in the division of the provinces, Numidia
had fallen to himself, and Macedonia to Minucius.
When Massiva proceeded to carry these suggestions into execution,
Jugurtha, finding that he had no sufficient support in his friends, as
a sense of guilt deterred some, and evil report or timidity others,
from coming forward in his behalf, directed Bomilcar, his most
attached and faithful adherent, to procure by the aid of money, by
which he had already effected so much, assassins to kill Massiva; and
to do it secretly if he could; but, if secrecy should be impossible,
to cut him off in any way whatsoever. This commission Bomilcar soon
found means to execute; and, by the agency of men versed in such
service, ascertained the direction of his journeys, his hours of
leaving home, and the times at which he resorted to particular places
[126], and, when all was ready, placed his assassins in ambush. One of
their number sprung upon Massiva, though with too little caution, and
killed him; but being himself caught, he made, at the instigation of
many, and especially of Albinus the consul, a full confession.
Bomilcar was accordingly committed for trial, though rather on the
principles of reason and justice than in accordance with the law of
nations[127], as he was in the retinue of one who had come to Rome on
a pledge of the public faith for his safety. But Jugurtha, though
clearly guilty of the crime, did not cease to struggle against the
truth, until he perceived that the infamy of the deed was too strong
for his interest or his money. For which reason, although, at the
commencement of the proceedings[128], he had given fifty of his
friends as bail for Bomilcar, yet, thinking more of his kingdom than
of the sureties, he sent him off privately into Numidia; for he feared
that if such a man should be executed, his other subjects would be
deterred from obeying him[129]. A few days after, he himself departed,
having been ordered by the senate to quit Italy. But, as he was going
from Rome, he is said, after frequently looking back on it in silence,
to have at last exclaimed, "That it was a venal city, and would soon
perish, if it could but find a purchaser!"[130]
XXXVI. The war being now renewed, Albinus hastened to transport
provisions, money, and other things necessary for the army, into
Africa, whither he himself soon followed, with the hope that, before
the time of the comitia, which was not far distant, he might be able,
by an engagement, by capitulation, or by some other method, to bring
the contest to a conclusion.
Jugurtha, on the other hand, tried every means of protracting the war,
continually inventing new causes for delay; at one time he promised to
surrender, at another he feigned distrust; he retreated when Albinus
attacked him, and then, lest his men should lose courage, attacked in
return, and thus amused the consul with alternate procrastinations of
war and of peace.
There were some, at that time, who thought that Albinus understood
Jugurtha's object, and who believed that so ready a protraction of the
war, after so much haste at the commencement, was to be attributed
less to tardiness than to treachery. However this might be, Albinus,
when time passed on, and the day of the comitia approached, left his
brother Aulus in the camp as propraetor[131], and returned to Rome.
XXXVII. The republic, at this time, was grievously distracted by the
contentions of the tribunes. Two of them, Publius Lucullus and Lucius
Annius, were struggling against the will of their colleagues, to
prolong their term of office; and this dispute put off the comitia
throughout the year[132]. In consequence of this delay, Aulus, who, as
I have just said, was left as propraetor in the camp, conceiving hopes
either of finishing the war, or of extorting money from Jugurtha by
the terror of his army, drew out his troops in the month of January,
from their winter-quarters into the field, and by forced marches,
during severe weather, made his way to the town of Suthul, where
Jugurtha's treasures were deposited. And though this place, both from
the inclemency of the season, and from its advantageous situation,
could neither be taken nor besieged; for around its walls, which were
built on the edge of a steep hill[133], a marshy plain, flooded by the
rains of winter, had been converted into a lake; yet Aulus, either as
a feint to strike terror into Jugurtha, or blinded by avarice, began
to move forward his vineae[134], to cast up a rampart, and to hasten
all necessary preparations for a siege.
XXXVIII. Jugurtha, seeing the propraetor's vanity and ignorance,
artfully strengthened his infatuation; he sent him, from time to time,
deputies with submissive messages, while he himself, as if desirous to
escape, led his army away through woody defiles and cross-roads. At
length he succeeded in alluring Aulus, by the prospect of a surrender
on conditions, to leave Suthul, and pursue him, as if in full retreat,
into the remoter parts of the country. Meanwhile, by means of skillful
emissaries, he tampered night and day with our men, and prevailed on
some of the officers, both of infantry and cavalry, to desert to him
at once, and upon others to quit their posts at a given signal, that
their defection might thus be less observed[135]. Having prepared
matters according to his wishes, he suddenly surrounded the camp of
Aulus, in the dead of night, with a vast body of Numidians. The Roman
soldiers were alarmed with an unusual disturbance; some of them seized
their arms, others hid themselves, others encouraged those that were
afraid; but consternation prevailed every where; for the number of the
enemy was great, the sky was thick with clouds and darkness, the
danger was indiscernible, and it was uncertain whether it were safer
to flee or to remain. Of those whom I have just mentioned as being
bribed, one cohort of Ligurians, with two troops of Thracian horse,
and a few common soldiers, went over to Jugurtha; and the chief
centurion[136] of the third legion allowed the enemy an entrance at
the very post which he had been appointed to defend, and at which all
the Numidians poured into the camp. Our men fled disgracefully, the
greater part having thrown away their arms, and took possession of a
neighboring hill. Night, and the spoils of the camp, prevented the
enemy from making full use of this victory. On the following day,
Jugurtha, coming to a conference with Aulus, told him, "that though he
held him hemmed in by famine and the sword, yet that, being mindful of
human vicissitudes, he would, if they would make a treaty with him,
allow them to depart uninjured; only that they must pass under the
yoke, and quit Numidia within ten days." These terms were severe and
ignominious; but, as death was the alternative[137], peace was
concluded as Jugurtha desired.
XXXIX. When this affair was made known at Rome, consternation and
dismay pervaded the city; some were concerned for the glory of the
republic; others, ignorant of war, trembled for their liberty. But
all were indignant at Aulus, and especially those who had been
distinguished in the field, because, with arms in his hands, he had
sought safety in disgrace rather than in resistance. The consul
Albinus, apprehending, from the delinquency of his brother, odium and
danger to himself, consulted the senate on the treaty which had been
made, but, at the same time, raised recruits for the army, sent for
auxiliaries to the allies and Latins, and made general preparations
for war. The senate, as was just, decreed, "that no treaty could be
made without their own consent and that of the people."
The consul, though he was hindered by the influence of the tribunes
from taking with him the force which he had raised, set out in a few
days for the province of Africa, where the whole army, being
withdrawn, according to the agreement, from Numidia, had gone into
winter-quarters. When he arrived there, although he longed to pursue
Jugurtha, and diminish the odium that had fallen on his brother, yet,
when he saw the state of the troops, whom, besides the flight and
relaxation of discipline, licentiousness, and debauchery had
corrupted, he determined, under all the circumstances of the
case[138], to attempt nothing.
XL. At Rome, in the mean time, Caius Mamilius Limetanus, one of the
tribunes, proposed that the people should pass a bill for instituting
an inquiry into the conduct of those by whose influence Jugurtha had
set at naught the decrees of the senate, as well as of those who,
whether as embassadors or commanders, had received money from him, or
who had restored to him his elephants and deserters, or had made any
compacts with the enemy relative to peace or war. To this bill some,
who were conscious of guilt, and others, who apprehended danger from
the jealousy of parties, secretly raised obstructions through the
agency of friends, and especially of men among the Latins and Italian
allies[139], since they could not openly resist it, without admitting
that these and similar practices met their approbation. But as to the
people, it is incredible what eagerness they displayed, and with what
spirit they approved, voted, and passed the bill, though rather from
hatred to the nobility, against whom these severe measures were
directed, than from concern for the republic; so violent was the fury
of party.
While the rest of the delinquents were in trepidation, Marcus Scaurus
[140], whom I have previously noticed as Bestia's lieutenant,
contrived, amid the exultation of the populace, the dismay of his own
party, and the continued agitation in the city, to have himself
elected one of the three commissioners who were appointed by the bill
of Mamilius to carry it into execution. But the investigation,
notwithstanding, was conducted [141] with great rigor and violence,
under the influence of common rumor and popular caprice; for the
insolence of success, which had often distinguished the nobility, on
this occasion characterized the people.
XLI. The prevalence of parties among the people, and of factions in
the senate, and of all evil practices attendant on them, had its
origin at Rome, a few years before, during a period of tranquillity,
and amid the abundance of all that mankind regarded as desirable. For,
before the destruction of Carthage, the senate and people managed the
affairs of the republic with mutual moderation and forbearance; there
were no contests among the citizens for honor or ascendency; but the
dread of an enemy kept the state in order. When that fear, however,
was removed from their minds, licentiousness and pride, evils which
prosperity loves to foster, immediately began to prevail; and thus
peace, which they had so eagerly desired in adversity, proved, when
they had obtained it, more grievous and fatal than adversity itself.
The patricians carried their authority, and the people their liberty,
to excess; every man took, snatched, and seized[142] what he could.
There was a complete division into two factions, and the republic was
torn in pieces between them. Yet the nobility still maintained an
ascendency by conspiring together; for the strength of the people,
being disunited and dispersed among a multitude, was less able to
exert itself. Things were accordingly directed, both at home and in
the field, by the will of a small number of men, at whose disposal
were the treasury, the provinces, offices, honors, and triumphs; while
the people were oppressed with military service and with poverty, and
the generals divided the spoils of war with a few of their friends.
The parents and children of the soldiers,[143] meantime, if they
chanced to dwell near a powerful neighbor, were driven from their
homes. Thus avarice, leagued with power, disturbed, violated, and
wasted every thing, without moderation or restraint; disregarding
alike reason and religion, and rushing headlong, as it were, to its
own destruction. For whenever any arose among the nobility[144], who
preferred true glory to unjust power, the state was immediately in a
tumult, and civil discord spread with as much disturbance as attends a
convulsion of the earth.
XLII. Thus when Tiberius and Caius Gracchus, whose forefathers had
done much to increase the power of the state in the Punic and other
wars, began to vindicate the liberty of the people, and to expose the
misconduct of the few, the nobility, conscious of guilt, and seized
with alarm, endeavored, sometimes by means of the allies and
Latins[145], and sometimes by means of the equestrian order, whom the
hope of coalition with the patricians had detached from the people, to
put a stop to the proceedings of the Gracchi; and first they killed
Tiberius, and a few years after Caius, who pursued the same measures
as his brother, the one when he was tribune, and the other when he was
one of a triumvirate for settling colonies; and with them they cut off
Marcus Fulvius Flaccus. In the Gracchi, indeed, it must be allowed
that, from their ardor for victory, there was not sufficient prudence.
But to a reasonable man it is more agreeable to submit[146] to
injustice than to triumph over it by improper means. The nobility,
however, using their victory with wanton extravagance, exterminated
numbers of men by the sword or by exile, yet rather increased, for the
time to come, the dread with which they were regarded, than their real
power. Such proceedings have often ruined powerful states; for of two
parties, each strives to suppress the other by any means whatever, and
take vengeance with undue severity on the vanquished.
But were I to attempt to treat of the animosities of parties, and of
the morals of the state, with minuteness of detail, and suitably to
the vastness of the subject, time would fail me sooner than matter. I
therefore return to my subject.
XLIII. After the treaty of Aulus, and the disgraceful flight of our
army, Quintus Metellus and Marcus Silanus, the consuls elect, divided
the provinces between them; and Numidia fell to Metellus, a man of
energy, and, though an opponent of the popular party, yet of a
character uniformly irreproachable[147]. He, as soon as he entered on
his office, regarded all other things as common to himself and his
colleague[148], but directed his chief attention to the war which he
was to conduct. Distrusting, therefore, the old army, he began to
raise new troops, to procure auxiliaries from all parts, and to
provide arms, horses, and other military requisites, besides
provisions in abundance, and every thing else which was likely to be
of use in a war varied in its character, and demanding great
resources. To assist in accomplishing these objects, the allies and
Latins, by the appointment of the senate, and different princes[149]
of their own accord, sent supplies; and the whole state exerted itself
in the cause with the greatest zeal. Having at length prepared and
arranged every thing according to his wishes, Metellus set out for
Numidia, attended with sanguine expectations on the part of his
fellow-citizens, not only because of his other excellent qualities,
but especially because his mind was proof against gold; for it was
through the avarice of our commanders, that, down to this period, our
affairs in Numidia had been ruined, and those of the enemy rendered
prosperous.
XLIV. When he arrived in Africa, the command of the army was resigned
to him by Albinus, the proconsul[150]; but it was an army spiritless
and unwarlike; incapable of encountering either danger or fatigue;
more ready with the tongue than with the sword; accustomed to plunder
our allies, while itself was the prey of the enemy; unchecked by
discipline, and void of all regard to its character. The new general,
accordingly, felt more anxiety from the corrupt morals of the men,
than confidence or hope from their numbers. He determined, however,
though the delay of the comitia had shortened his summer campaign, and
though he knew his countrymen to be anxious for the result of his
proceedings, not to commence operations, until, by a revival of the
old discipline, he had brought the soldiers to bear fatigue. For
Albinus, dispirited by the disaster of his brother Aulus and his army,
and having resolved not to leave the province during the portion of
the summer that he was to command, had kept the soldiers, for the most
part, in a stationary camp[151], except when stench, or want of
forage, obliged them to remove. But neither had the camp been
fortified[152], nor the watches kept, according to military usage;
every one had been allowed to leave his post when he pleased. The
camp-followers, mingled with the soldiers, wandered about day and
night, ravaging the country, robbing the houses, and vying with each
other in carrying off cattle and slaves, which they exchanged with
traders for foreign wine[153] and other luxuries; they even sold the
corn, which was given them from the public store, and bought bread
from day to day; and, in a word, whatever abominations, arising from
idleness and licentiousness, can be expressed or imagined, and even
more, were to be seen in that army.
XLV. But I am assured that Metellus, in these difficult circumstances,
no less than in his operations against the enemy, proved himself a
great and wise man; so just a medium did he observe between an
affectation of popularity and an excessive enforcement of discipline.
His first measure was to remove incentives to idleness, by a general
order that no one should sell bread, or any other dressed provisions,
in the camp; that no sutlers should follow the army; and that no
common soldier should have a servant, or beast of burden, either in a
camp or on a march. He made the strictest regulations, too, with
regard to other things.[154] He moved his camp daily, exercising the
soldiers by marches across the country; he fortified it with a rampart
and a trench, exactly as if the enemy had been at hand; he placed
numerous sentinels[155] by night, and went the rounds with his
officers; and, when the army was on the march; he would be at one time
in the front, at another in the rear, and at another in the center, to
see that none quitted their ranks, that the men kept close to their
standards, and that every soldier carried his provisions and his arms.
Thus by preventing rather than punishing irregularities, he in a short
time rendered his army effective.
XLVI. Jugurtha, meantime, having learned from his emissaries how
Metellus was proceeding, and having heard, when he was in Rome, of the
integrity of the consul's character, began to despair of his plans,
and at length actually endeavored to effect a capitulation. He
therefore sent deputies to the consul with proposals of submission,
stipulating only for his own life and that of his children, and
offering to surrender every thing else to the Romans. But Metellus had
already learned by experience, that the Numidians were a faithless
race, of unsettled disposition, and fond of change; and he accordingly
applied himself to each of the deputies separately, and after
gradually sounding them, and finding them proper instruments for his
purpose, prevailed on them, by large promises, to deliver Jugurtha
into his hands; bringing him alive, if they could, or dead, if to take
him alive was impracticable. In public, however, he directed that such
an answer should be given to the king as would be agreeable to his
wishes.
A few days afterward, he led the army, which was now vigorous and
resolute, into Numidia, where, instead of any appearance of war, he
found the cottages full of people, and the cattle and laborers in the
fields, while the officers of Jugurtha came from the towns and
villages[156] to meet him, offering to supply him with corn, to convey
provisions for him, and to do whatever might be required of them.
Metellus, notwithstanding, made no diminution in the caution with
which he marched, but kept as much upon the defensive as if an enemy
had been at hand; and he dispatched scouts to explore the country,
thinking that these signs of submission were but pretense, and that
the Numidians were watching an opportunity for treachery. He himself,
with some light-armed cohorts, and a select body of slingers and
archers, advanced always in the front; while Caius Marius, his
lieutenant-general, at the head of the cavalry, had charge of the
rear. The auxiliary horse, distributed among the tribunes of the
legions and prefects of the cohorts, he placed on the flanks, so that,
with the aid of the light troops mixed with them, they might repel the
enemy whenever an approach should be made. For such was the subtlety
of Jugurtha, and such his knowledge of the country and the art of war,
that it was doubtful whether he was more formidable absent or present,
offering peace or threatening hostilities.
XLVII. There lay, not far from the route which Metellus was pursuing,
a city of the Numidians named Vaga, the most celebrated place for
trade in the whole kingdom, in which many Italian merchants were
accustomed to reside and traffic. Here the consul, to try the
disposition of the inhabitants, and, should they allow him, to take
advantage of the situation of the place[157], established a garrison,
and ordered the people to furnish him with corn, and other necessaries
for war; thinking, as circumstances indeed suggested, that the
concourse of merchants, and frequent arrival of supplies[158], would
add strength to his army, and further the plans which he had already
formed.
In the midst of these proceedings, Jugurtha, with extraordinary
earnestness[159], sent deputies to sue for peace, offering to resign
every thing to Metellus, except his own life and that of his children.
These, like the former, the consul first reduced to treachery, and
then sent back; the peace which Jugurtha asked, he neither granted nor
refused, but waited, during these delays, the performance of the
deputies' promises. XLVIII. Jugurtha, on comparing the words of
Metellus with his actions, perceived that he was assailed with his own
artifices; for though peace was offered him in words, a most vigorous
war was in reality pursued against him; one of his strongest cities
was wrested from him; his country was explored by the enemy, and the
affections of his subjects alienated. Being compelled, therefore, by
the necessity of circumstances, he resolved to try the fortune of a
battle. Having, with this view, informed himself of the exact route of
the enemy, and hoping for success from the advantage of the ground, he
collected as large a force of every kind as he could, and, marching by
cross-roads, got in advance of Metellus' army.
There was, in that part of Numidia, of which, on the division of the
kingdom, Adherbal had become possessor, a river named Muthul, flowing
from the south; and, about twenty miles from it, was a range of
mountains running parallel with the stream[160], wild and
uncultivated; but from the center of it stretched a kind of hill,
reaching to a vast distance, covered with wild olives, myrtles, and
other trees, such as grow in a dry and sandy soil. The plain, which
lay between the mountains and the Muthul, was uninhabited from want of
water, except the parts bordering on the river, which were planted
with trees, and full of cattle and inhabitants.
XLIX. On this hill, which I have just mentioned, stretching in a
transverse direction[161], Jugurtha took post with his line drawn out
to a great length. The command of the elephants, and of part of the
infantry, he committed to Bomilcar, and gave him instructions how to
act. He himself, with the whole of the cavalry and the choicest of the
foot, took his station nearer to the range of mountains. Then, riding
round among the several squadrons and battalions, he exhorted and
conjured them to call to mind their former prowess and triumphs, and
to defend themselves and their country from Roman rapacity; saying
that they would have to engage with those whom they had already
conquered and sent under the yoke, and that, though their commander
was changed, there was no alteration in their spirit. He added, that
he had provided for his men every thing becoming a general; that he
had chosen the higher ground, where they, being well acquainted with
the country[162], would contend with adversaries ignorant of it; nor
would they engage, inferior in numbers and skill, with a larger or
more experienced force; and that they should, therefore, be ready,
when the signal should be given, to fall vigorously on the Romans, as
that day would either crown[163] all their labors and victories, or be
a prelude to the most grievous calamities. He also addressed himself,
individually, to any one whom he had rewarded with money or honors for
military desert, reminding him of his favors, and pointing him out as
an example to the rest; and finally he excited all his men, some in
one way and some in another, by threats or entreaties, according to
the different dispositions of each.
Metellus, who was still ignorant of the enemy's position, was now
seen[164] descending the mountain with his army. He was at first
doubtful what the strange appearance before him indicated; for the
Numidians, both cavalry and infantry, had taken post among the wood,
not entirely concealing themselves, by reason of the lowness of the
trees, yet rendering it uncertain[165] what they were, as both
themselves and their standards were screened as well by the nature of
the ground as by artifice; but soon perceiving that there were men in
ambush, he halted awhile, and, having altered the arrangement of his
troops, he drew up those in the right wing, which was nearest to the
enemy, in three lines[166]; he distributed the slingers and archers
among the infantry, posted all the cavalry on the flanks, and having
made a brief address, such as time permitted, to his men, he led them
down, with the front changed into a flank[167], toward the plain.
L. But when he observed that the Numidians remained quiet, and did not
offer to descend from the hill, he became apprehensive that his army,
from the season of the year and the scarcity of water, might be
overcome with thirst, and therefore sent Rutilius, one of his
lieutenant-generals, with the light-armed cohorts and a detachment of
cavalry, toward the river, to secure ground for an encampment,
expecting that the enemy, by frequent charges and attacks on his
flank, would endeavor to impede his march, and, as they despaired of
success in arms, would try the effect of fatigue and thirst on his
troops.
He then continued to advance by degrees, as his circumstances and the
ground permitted, in the same order in which he had descended from the
range of mountains. He assigned Marius his post behind the front
line[168], and took on himself the command of the cavalry on the left
wing, which, on the march, had become the van[169].
When Jugurtha perceived that the rear of the Roman army had passed his
first line, he took possession of that part of the mountain from which
Metellus had descended, with a body of about two thousand infantry,
that it might not serve the enemy, if they were driven back, as a
place of retreat, and afterward as a post of defense; and then,
ordering the signal to be given, suddenly commenced his attack. Some
of his Numidians made havoc in the rear of the Romans, while others
assailed them on the right and left wings; they all advanced and
charged furiously, and every where threw the consul's troops into
confusion. Even those of our men who made the stoutest resistance,
were baffled by the enemy's versatile method of fighting, and wounded
from a distance, without having the power of wounding in return, or of
coming to close combat; for the Numidian cavalry, as they had been
previously instructed by Jugurtha, retreated whenever a troop of
Romans attempted to pursue them, but did not keep in a body, or
collect themselves into one place, but dispersed as widely as
possible. Thus, being superior in numbers, if they could not deter the
Romans from pursuing, they surrounded them, when disordered, on the
rear or flank, or, if the hill seemed more convenient for retreat than
the plain, the Numidian horses, being accustomed to the brushwood,
easily made their way among it, while the difficulty of the ascent,
and want of acquaintance with the ground, impeded those of the Romans.
LI. The aspect of the whole struggle[170] was indeed various,
perplexing, direful, and lamentable; the men, separated from their
comrades, were partly fleeing, partly pursuing; neither standards nor
ranks were regarded, but wherever danger pressed, there they made a
stand and defended themselves; arms and weapons, horses and men,
enemies, and fellow-countrymen, were all mingled in confusion; nothing
was done by direction or command, but chance ordered every thing.
Though the day, therefore, was now far advanced, the event of the
contest was still uncertain. At last, however, when all were faint
with exertion and the heat of the day, Metellus, observing that the
Numidians were less vigorous in their charges, drew his troops
together by degrees, restored order among them, and led four cohorts
of the legions against the enemy's infantry, of whom a great number,
overcome with fatigue, had seated themselves on the high ground. He at
the same time entreated and exhorted his men not to lose courage, nor
to suffer a flying enemy to be victorious; adding that they had
neither camp nor citadel to which they could flee, but that their only
dependence was on their arms. Nor was Jugurtha, in the mean time,
inactive; he rode round among his troops, cheered them, renewed the
contest, and, at the head of a select body, made every possible effort
for victory; supporting his own men, charging such of the enemy as
wavered, and repressing with missiles such as he saw remaining
unshaken.
LII. Thus did these two commanders, both eminent men, maintain the
contest against each other. In personal ability they were equal, but
in circumstances unequal. Metellus had resolute troops, but a
disadvantageous position; Jugurtha had every thing in his favor except
men. At last the Romans, seeing that they had no place of refuge, that
the enemy allowed no opportunity for a regular engagement, and that
the evening was fast approaching, forced their way, according to the
orders which were given, up the hill. The Numidians were thus driven
from their position, routed, and put to flight; a few of them were
slain, but their speed, and the enemy's ignorance of the country[171],
saved the greater number of them.
Meanwhile Bomilcar, who, as I have said before, was appointed by
Jugurtha over the elephants and a part of the infantry, having seen
Rutilius pass by him, led down his men gradually into the plain, and
while Rutilius hastened to the river, to which he had been dispatched,
quietly drew them up in such order as circumstances required; not
omitting, at the same time, to watch every movement of the enemy. When
he learned that Rutilius had taken his position, and seemed free from
apprehension of danger, and heard, at the same time, an increasing
noise where Jugurtha was engaged, fearing lest the lieutenant-general,
taking the alarm, should go to the support of his countrymen in
difficulties, he, in order to intercept his march, increased the
extent of his lines, which, from distrust of the bravery of his men,
he had previously condensed, and advanced in this order toward
Rutilius' camp.
LIII. The Romans, on a sudden, observed a vast cloud of dust, which,
as the ground, thickly covered with brushes, obstructed their view,
they at first supposed to be only sand raised by the wind; but at
length, when they saw that it continued uniform, and approached nearer
and nearer as the line advanced, they understood the real cause of it,
and, hastily seizing their arms, drew up, as their commander directed,
before the camp. When the enemy came up, both sides rushed to the
encounter with loud shouts. But the Numidians maintained the contest
only as long as they trusted for support to their elephants; for, when
they saw the animals entangled in the boughs of the trees, and
dispersed or surrounded by the enemy, they betook themselves to
flight, and most of them, having thrown away their arms, escaped, by
favor of the hill, or of the night, which was now coming on, without
injury. Of the elephants, four were taken, and the rest, to the number
of forty, were killed.
The Romans, though fatigued and exhausted[172] with their march, the
construction of their camp, and the engagement, yet, as Metellus was
longer in coming than they expected, advanced to meet him in regular
and steady order. The subtlety of the Numidians, indeed, allowed them
neither rest nor relaxation. But as the two parties drew together, in
the obscurity of the night, each occasioned, by a noise like that of
enemies approaching, alarm and trepidation in the other; and, had not
parties of horse, sent forward from both sides, ascertained the truth,
a fatal disaster was on the point of happening from the mistake.
However, in place of fear, joy quickly succeeded; the soldiers met
with mutual congratulations, relating their adventures, or listening
to those of others, and each extolling his own achievements to the
skies. For thus it is with human affairs; in success, even cowards may
boast; while defeat lowers the character even of heroes.
LIV. Metellus remained four days in the same camp. He carefully
provided for the recovery of the wounded, rewarded, in military
fashion, such as had distinguished themselves in the engagements, and
praised and thanked them all in a public address; exhorting them to
maintain equal resolution in their future labors, which would be less
arduous, as they had fought sufficiently for victory, and would now
have to contend only for spoil. In the mean time he dispatched
deserters, and other eligible persons, to ascertain where Jugurtha
was, or what he was doing; whether he had but few followers, or a
large army; and how he conducted himself under his defeat. The prince,
he found, had retreated to places full of wood, well defended by
nature, and was there collecting an army, which would be more numerous
indeed than the former, but inactive and inefficient, as being
composed of men better acquainted with husbandry and cattle than with
war. This had happened from the circumstance, that, in case of flight,
none of the Numidian troops, except the royal cavalry, follow their
king; the rest disperse, wherever inclination leads them; nor is this
thought any disgrace to them as soldiers, such being the custom of the
people.
Metellus, therefore, seeing that Jugurtha's spirit was still
unsubdued; that a war was being renewed, which could only be
conducted[173] according to the prince's pleasure; and that he was
struggling with the enemy on unequal terms, as the Numidians suffered
a defeat with less loss than his own men gained a victory, he resolved
to manage the contest, not by pitched battles or regular warfare, but
in another method. He accordingly marched into the richest parts of
Numidia, captured and burned many fortresses and towns, which were
insufficiently or wholly undefended, put the youth to the sword, and
gave up every thing else as plunder to his soldiers. From the terror
caused by these proceedings, many persons were given up as hostages to
the Romans; corn, and other necessaries, were supplied in abundance;
and garrisons were admitted wherever Metellus thought fit.