lished at a fearful cost, for of the fifty
thousand men whom he had led from the city there remained only eight
thousand Iberians or Spaniards, twelve thousand Libyans, and six
thousand cavalry, though, strange to say, not one elephant had been
lost.

It was well indeed for the Carthaginians that Scipio was not awaiting
them at the foot of the Alps, but was making his way northwards from
Pisa to the strong fortress of Placentia on the Po.

* * * * *

Among the friendly Gallic tribe of the Insubres, to whom Hannibal was
united by the bond of hate of Rome, the troops rested and slept, and the
horses and elephants grew fat once more. The men had had no time to
think of themselves during those terrible weeks, and their health had
suffered from the bitter cold and the wet clothes, which were often
frozen on them. To add to this, their food had been as scanty as their
labour had been hard, for most of their stores lay buried under the
snows of the Alps. But in the rich, well-watered plains of Italy, 'the
country and the inhabitants being now less rugged,' as the historian
Livy tells us, they soon recovered their strength, and besieged and took
by assault the city of Turin, capital of the territory of the Taurini,
who were always at war with the Gallic allies of Hannibal.

With two Roman armies so near at hand the Gauls did not dare to join him
in any great numbers, though they would gladly have flocked to his
standard. Rome itself was filled with consternation at the news that
Hannibal, whom they had expected to fight in Spain, was really in Italy,
and hastily recalled the troops intended for Carthage, which were still
at the Sicilian town of Lilybaeum. On receipt of the order, the general
Tiberius instantly sailed with part of the men for Rome, and ordered the
rest of the legions to proceed to Rimini on the Adriatic, bidding each
man swear that he would reach the city by bedtime on a certain day.

If you look at the map and see the distance they had to go, you will be
amazed that they kept their oaths, and arrived at Rimini in four weeks,
marching daily sixteen miles.

* * * * *

Meanwhile Scipio was encamped in Placentia, and Hannibal, who had no
time to lose in besieging such a strong position, was doing his best to
tempt his enemy into the plain, where his own cavalry could have room to
manoeuvre. But instead of remaining in Placentia, and allowing
Hann