illage of Clastidium, where the Romans had
collected a great stock of corn. There, whilst they were preparing for
an assault, a hope of the town being betrayed to them was held out:
Dasius, a Brundusian, the governor of the garrison, having been
corrupted for four hundred pieces of gold, (no great bribe truly,)
Clastidium is surrendered to Hannibal. It served as a granary for the
Carthaginians while they lay at the Trebia. No cruelty was used
towards the prisoners of the surrendered garrison, in order that a
character for clemency might be acquired at the commencement of his
proceedings.

49. While the war by land was at a stand beside the Trebia, in the
mean time operations went on by land and sea around Sicily and the
islands adjacent to Italy, both under Sempronius the consul, and
before his arrival. Twenty quinqueremes, with a thousand armed men,
having been sent by the Carthaginians to lay waste the coast of Italy,
nine reached the Liparae, eight the island of Vulcan, and three the
tide drove into the strait. On these being seen from Messana, twelve
ships sent out by Hiero king of Syracuse, who then happened to be at
Messana, waiting for the Roman consul, brought back into the port of
Messana the ships taken without any resistance. It was discovered from
the prisoners that, besides the twenty ships, to which fleet they
belonged, and which had been despatched against Italy, thirty-five
other quinqueremes were directing their course to Sicily, in order to
gain over their ancient allies: that their main object was to gain
possession of Lilybaeum, and they believed that that fleet had been
driven to the islands Aegates by the same storm by which they
themselves had been dispersed. The king writes these tidings,
according as they had been received, to Marcus Aemilius the praetor,
whose province Sicily was, and advises him to occupy Lilybaeum with a
strong garrison. Immediately the lieutenants, generals, and tribunes,
with the praetor, were despatched to the different states, in order
that they might keep their men on vigilant guard; above all things it
was commanded, that Lilybaeum should be secured: an edict having been
put forth that, in addition to such warlike preparations, the crews
should carry down to their ships dressed provisions for ten days, so
that no one when the signal was given might delay in embarking; and
that those who were stationed along the whole coast should look out
from their watch-towers for th