traversed. But after a week's hard marching the column had overcome the
greater part of the difficulty, had crossed the Sierras and gained the
plateau, which with a gradual fall slopes west down to the Atlantic, and
was for the most part covered with a dense growth of forests. They now
to their satisfaction overtook the main body of the army, and their
marches would be somewhat less severe, for hitherto they had each day
traversed extra distances to make up for the two days' loss in starting.
Here Malchus for the first time saw the bands of Gaulish mercenaries.

The Spanish troops had excited the admiration and astonishment of the
Carthaginians by their stature and strength; but the Gauls were a still
more powerful race. They belonged to the tribes which had poured down
over the Apennines, and occupied the northern portion of Spain long
anterior to the arrival of the Carthaginians. Their countenances were
rugged, and as it seemed to Malchus, savage. Their colour was much
lighter than that of any people he had yet seen. Their eyes were blue,
their hair, naturally fair or brown, was dyed with some preparation
which gave it a red colour.

Some wore their long locks floating over their shoulders, others tied
it in a knot on the top of their heads. They wore a loose short trouser
fastened at the knee, resembling the baggy trousers of the modern Turks.
A shirt with open sleeves came halfway down their thighs, and over
it was a blouse or loose tunic decorated with ornaments of every
description, and fastened at the neck by a metal brooch. Their helmets
were of copper, for the most part ornamented with the horns of stags or
bulls. On the crest of the helmet was generally the figure of a bird
or wild beast. The whole was surmounted by immense tufts of feathers,
something like those of our Highland bonnets, adding greatly to the
height and apparent stature of the wearers.

The Gauls had a passion for ornaments, and adorned their persons with a
profusion of necklaces, bracelets, rings, baldricks, and belts of gold.
Their national arms were long heavy pikes--these had no metal heads,
but the points were hardened by fire; javelins of the same
description--these before going into battle they set fire to, and hurled
blazing at the enemy--lighter darts called mat ras saunions, pikes
with curved heads, resembling the halberds of later times; and straight
swords. Hannibal, however, finding the inconvenience of this diversity
of weapon