第 15 页

and disciplined as his body had been by constant exercise, his nerves

were not easily shaken, and soon recovered their tone, and when, early

in March, he rejoined his regiment, he was able to enter with zest and

energy into the preparations which Hannibal was making for the siege of

Saguntum. Difficult as this operation would be, the preparations

which were being made appeared enormous. Every week ships brought over

reinforcements of troops, and the Iberian contingents were largely

increased.

One day Malchus entered an apartment where his father and Hannibal were

talking earnestly together with a large map spread out before them. He

would have retired at once, but Hannibal called him in.

"Come in, Malchus, I would have no secrets from you. Although you are

young I know that you are devoted to Carthage, that you are brave and

determined. I see in you what I was myself at your age, but nine years

ago, and it may be that some day you will be destined to continue the

work which I am beginning. You, too, have commenced early, your training

has been severe. As your father's son and my cousin your promotion will

naturally be rapid. I will, therefore, tell you my plans. It is clear

that Rome and Carthage cannot both exist--one or the other must be

destroyed. It is useless to strike at extremities, the blow must be

dealt at the heart. Unfortunately our fleet is no longer superior to

that of Rome, and victories at sea, however important, only temporarily

cripple an enemy.

"It is by land the blow must be struck. Were the sea ours, I should say,

land troops in southern Italy, and continue to pour over reinforcements

until all the fighting men of North Africa are at the gates of Rome. But

without the absolute command of the sea this cannot be done. Therefore

I intend to make Spain our base, and to march through Southern Gaul over

the Alps into Italy, and there to fight the Romans on their own ground.

Already I have agents at work among the Gauls and the northern tribes of

Italy, who will, I trust, join me in the war against our common enemy.

The enterprise is a great one, but it is not impossible; if it succeeds,

Rome will be destroyed and Carthage will reign, without a rival,

mistress of the world. The plan was Hasdrubal's, but it has fallen to me

to carry it out."

"It is a grand plan indeed," Malchus exclaimed enthusiastically--"a

glorious plan, but the difficulties seem tremendous."

"Difficulties are made to be overcome by brave men," Hannibal said.

"The Alps are the greatest barrier, but my agents tell me that the

difficulties are not insuperable even for elephants. But before we start

we have Spain to subdue. Saguntum is under the protection of Rome, and

must be crushed, and all the country north of the Ebro conquered and

pacified. This done the passage of reinforcements to my army in Italy

will be easy. The Gauls will favour us, the mountains tribes will

be crushed or bought over, so that the route for the advance of

reinforcements, or for our retreat, if too hardly pressed, will be

always open. But all this is for yourself alone.

"My plans must not yet be known. Already our enemies in Carthage are

gaining in strength. Many of our adherents have been put to death and

the estates of others confiscated; but the capture of Saguntum will

restore our supremacy, and the enthusiasm which it will incite among the

populace will carry all before it. The spoils which will be taken there

will be sufficient to silence every murmur in Carthage. Now leave us,

Malchus, we have much to talk over and to arrange, and I have given you

plenty to think about for the present."

CHAPTER VIII: A PLOT FRUSTRATED

After leaving Hannibal, Malchus did not rejoin his comrades, but mounted

the hills behind the town and sat down there, looking over the sea, and

thinking over the vast plan which Hannibal's words had laid before him,

and to which his father had once alluded in his presence. Malchus

had been brought up by Hamilcar to regard Rome as the deadly enemy of

Carthage, but he had not till now seen the truth which Hannibal had

grasped, that it was a struggle not for empire only between the two

republics, but one of life and death--that Carthage and Rome could not

coexist, and that one or other of them must be absolutely destroyed.

This, indeed, was the creed of the Barcine party, and was, apart from

the minor questions of internal reforms, the great point on which they

differed from Hanno and the trading portion of the community, who were

his chief supporters. These were in favour of Carthage abandoning her

colonies and conquests, and devoting herself solely to commerce and the

acquisition of wealth. Believing that Rome, who would then have open

to her all Europe and Asia to conquer, would not grudge to Carthage the

northern seaboard of Africa, they forgot that a nation which is rich and

defenceless will speedily fall a victim to the greed of a powerful

and warlike neighbour, and that a conqueror never needs excuses for an

attack upon a defenceless neighbour.

Hitherto Malchus had thought only of a war with Rome made up of sea

fights and of descents upon Sicily and Sardinia. The very idea of

invading Italy and striking at Rome herself had never even entered his

mind, for the words of his father had been forgotten in the events

which followed so quickly upon them. The prospect which the words opened

seemed immense. First Northern Spain was to be conquered, Gaul to be

crossed, the terrible mountains of which he had heard from travellers

were next to be surmounted, and finally a fight for life and death to

be fought out on the plains of Italy. The struggle would indeed be a

tremendous one, and Malchus felt his heart beat fast at the thought that

he was to be an actor in it. Surely the history of the world told of no

greater enterprise than this. Even the first step which was to be taken,

a mere preliminary to this grand expedition, was a most formidable one.

Saguntum stood as an outpost of Rome. While Carthage had been advancing

from the south Rome had been pressing forward from the east along

the shores of the Mediterranean, and had planted herself firmly at

Marseilles, a port which gave her a foothold in Gaul, and formed a base

whence she could act in Spain. In order to check the rising power of

the Carthaginians there she had entered into a firm alliance with the

Saguntines, whose country occupied what is now the district of Valencia.

By the terms of the last treaty between the two republics each was

forbidden to make war upon tribes in alliance with their rivals, and

Saguntum being thus under the jurisdiction of Rome, an attack upon it

would be almost equivalent to a declaration of war.

The position of the city was one of great strength. It stood on an

almost isolated rock at the foot of a spur of the mountains which

formed an amphitheatre behind it. Around it extended a rich and fertile

country, the sea was less than a mile from its walls, and the Romans

could thus quickly send succour to their allies. The rock on which the

town stood was well nigh inaccessible, falling sheer down from the foot

of the walls, and was assailable only on the western side, where the

rocks sloped gradually down to the plain. Here the walls were extremely

strong and lofty, and were strengthened by a great tower which dominated

the whole slope. It would be difficult to form approaches, for the rock

was bare of soil and afforded no cover of any kind.

Hitherto the Carthaginian generals had scrupulously respected the

territory of the Saguntines, but now that the rest of Spain was subdued

it was necessary to reduce this advanced post of Rome--this open door

through which Rome, now mistress of the sea, could at any moment pour

her legions into the heart of Spain.

The Saguntines were not ignorant of the danger which threatened them.

They had again and again sent urgently to Rome to demand that a legion

should be stationed there for their protection. But Rome hesitated at

despatching a legion of troops to so distant a spot, where, in case of a

naval reverse, they would be isolated and cut off.

Hannibal had not far to look for an excuse for an attack upon Saguntum.

On the previous year, while he had been engaged in his campaign

against the Carpatans, the Saguntines, taking advantage of his critical

position, had made war upon the town of Torbola, an ally of Carthage.

Torbola had implored the assistance of Hannibal, and he was now

preparing to march against Saguntum with his whole force without waiting

for the arrival of spring. His preparations had been silently made. The

Saguntines, although uneasy, had no idea of any imminent danger, and

the Carthaginian army collected in and around Carthagena were in entire

ignorance that they were about to be called upon to take the field.

"What say you, Malchus?" Hannibal asked that evening. "It is time now

that I gave you a command. As my near relative it is fitting that you

should be in authority. You have now served a campaign, and are eligible

for any command that I may give you. You have shown yourself prompt in

danger and worthy to command men. Which would you rather that I should

place under you--a company of these giant Gauls, of the steady Iberians,

of the well disciplined Libyans, or the active tribesmen of the desert?

Choose which you will, and they shall be yours."

Malchus thought for some time.

"In the day of battle," he said at last, "I would rather lead Gauls,

but, in such a march as you have told me you are meditating, I would

rather have a company of Numidian footmen to act as scouts and feel

the way for the army. There would not, perhaps, be so much glory to be

obtained, but there would be constant work and excitement, and this will

be far better than marching in the long column of the army."

"I think your choice is a good one," Hannibal replied. "Such a corps

will be needed to feel the way as we advance, to examine the roads and

indicate that by which the column had best move, and to guard against

ambushes and surprises. Tomorrow I will inspect the Numidian footmen

and will put them through their exercises. We will have foot races and

trials of skill with the bow, and I will bid their officers pick me out

two hundred of the most active and vigourous among them; these you

shall have under your command. You can choose among your comrades of the

guards one whom you would like to have as your lieutenant."

"I will take Trebon," Malchus said; "we fought side by side through the

last campaign. He is prompt and active, always cheerful under fatigue,

and as brave as a lion. I could not wish a better comrade."

"So be it," Hannibal replied, "henceforth you are captain of the

advanced company of the army. Remember, Malchus, that the responsibility

is a great one, and that henceforward there must be no more boyish

tricks. Your company will be the eyes of the army, and upon your

vigilance its safety, when we once start upon our expedition, will in

no slight degree depend. Remember, too, that you have by your conduct to

justify me in choosing my young kinsman for so important a post."

The next day the Numidians were put through their exercises, and by

nightfall the two hundred picked men were chosen from their ranks and

were placed by Hannibal under the command of Malchus. Trebon was greatly

pleased when he found himself appointed as lieutenant of the company.

Although of noble family his connections were much less influential

than those of the majority of his comrades, and he had deemed himself

exceptionally fortunate in having been permitted to enter the chosen

corps of the Carthaginian cavalry, and had not expected to be made an

officer for years to come, since promotion in the Carthaginian army was

almost wholly a matter of family influence.

"I am indeed obliged to you, Malchus," he said as he joined his friend

after Hannibal had announced his appointment to him. "The general told

me that he had appointed me at your request. I never even hoped that

such good fortune would befall me. Of course I knew that you would

speedily obtain a command, but my people have no influence whatever.

The general says that your company are to act as scouts for the army,

so there will be plenty of opportunity to distinguish ourselves.

Unfortunately I don't see much chance of fighting at present. The

Iberian tribesmen had such a lesson last autumn that they are not likely

for a long time to give us further trouble."

"Do not make yourself uneasy on that score, Trebon," Malchus said, "I

can tell you, but let it go no further, that ere long there will be

fighting enough to satisfy even the most pugnacious."

One evening Malchus had left the club early. Full as he was of the

thoughts of the tremendous struggle which was soon to begin between the

great antagonists, he wearied of the light talk of his gay comrades. The

games of chance, to which a room in the club was allotted, afforded him

no pleasure; nor had he any interest in the wagering which was going

on as to the merits of the horses which were to run in the races on the

following day. On leaving the club he directed his footsteps towards the

top of the hill on which Carthagena stood, and there, sitting alone

on one of the highest points, looked over the sea sparkling in the

moonlight, the many vessels in the harbour and the lagoons stretching

inland on each side of the city.

He tried to imagine the course that the army was to follow, the terrible

journey through the snow covered passes of that tremendous range of

mountains of which he had heard, the descent into the plains of Italy,

and the first sight of Rome. He pictured to himself the battles which

would have to be fought by the way, and above all, the deadly conflict

which would take place before Rome could be carried by assault, and the

great rival of Carthage be humbled to the dust. Then he pictured the

return of the triumphant expedition, the shouting multitudes who would