nd left Hasdrubal and his
army wandering in confusion along the steep bank, and seeking in vain
for a spot where the stream could be safely crossed. At last they
halted; and when day dawned on them, Hasdrubal found that great numbers
of his men, in their fatigue and impatience, had lost all discipline and
subordination, and that many of his Gallic auxiliaries had got drunk,
and were lying helpless in their quarters. The Roman cavalry was soon
seen coming up in pursuit, followed at no great distance by the legions,
which marched in readiness for an instant engagement. It was hopeless
for Hasdrubal to think of continuing his retreat before them. The
prospect of immediate battle might recall the disordered part of his
troops to a sense of duty, and revive the instinct of discipline. He
therefore ordered his men to prepare for action instantly, and made the
best arrangement of them that the nature of the ground would permit.

Heeren has well described the general appearance of a Carthaginian army.
He says: "It was an assemblage of the most opposite races of the human
species from the farthest parts of the globe. Hordes of half-naked Gauls
were ranged next to companies of white-clothed Iberians, and savage
Ligurians next to the far-travelled Nasamones and Lotophagi.
Carthaginians and Phoenici-Africans formed the centre, while innumerable
troops of Numidian horsemen, taken from all the tribes of the Desert,
swarmed about on unsaddled horses, and formed the wings; the van was
composed of Balearic slingers; and a line of colossal elephants, with
their Ethiopian guides, formed, as it were, a chain of moving fortresses
before the whole army."

Such were the usual materials and arrangements of the hosts that fought
for Carthage; but the troops under Hasdrubal were not in all respects
thus constituted or thus stationed. He seems to have been especially
deficient in cavalry, and he had few African troops, though some
Carthaginians of high rank were with him. His veteran Spanish infantry,
armed with helmets and shields, and short cut-and-thrust swords, were
the best part of his army. These and his few Africans he drew up on his
right wing, under his own personal command. In the centre he placed his
Ligurian infantry, and on the left wing he placed or retained the Gauls,
who were armed with long javelins and with huge broadswords and targets.
The rugged nature of the ground in front and on the flank of this part
of his line made him