Ab urbe condita

At last he thought out an ingenious and original plan, one, too, which has since been adopted by many of our own generals as well as those of other countries and which is even practised to-day. He ordered the packsaddles to be taken off the mules and two pieces of coloured cloth placed on their backs.[*](This would give them the appearance of cavalry saddles.)

The muleteers were then furnished with arms, some taken from the prisoners and others belonging to the invalided soldiers, and after thus equipping about a thousand of them and

distributing a hundred of the cavalry amongst them he ordered them to ascend the mountains which overlooked the camp and conceal themselves in the woods, and remain there motionless till they received the signal from him.

As soon as it grew light the Dictator extended his lines along the lower slopes of the mountain in order that the enemy might have to form their front facing the mountain.

The arrangements for creating a groundless alarm were now completed, and that groundless alarm proved almost more serviceable than an actual increase of strength would have been. At first the leaders of the Gauls did not believe that the Romans would come down on to the plain, but when they saw them suddenly descending, they rushed on to meet them, eager for the encounter, and the battle commenced before the signal had been given by the commanders.

The Gauls directed their fiercest attack upon the Roman right, and the Dictator's presence with that division alone prevented the attack from succeeding.

When he saw the men wavering he called out sharply to Sextius and asked him if this was the way in which he had pledged his soldiers to fight. “Where,” he cried, “are the shouts of the men who clamoured for arms? Where are their threats of going into battle without their commander's orders?

Here is the commander, calling loudly to them to fight, and himself fighting in the forefront of the battle; who out of all those who were just now going to lead the way was following him? Braggarts in camp, cowards in battle!” They felt the truth of what they heard, and they were so stung by a sense of shame that they rushed on the enemy's weapons without any thought of danger.

They charged like madmen and threw the enemy's lines into confusion, and a cavalry attack which followed turned the confusion into rout.