nation to carry an army into Italy by way of the
Alps, instead of transporting them by galleys over the sea, has always
been regarded as one of the greatest undertakings of ancient times. He
hesitated for some time whether he should go down the Rhone, and meet
and give battle to Scipio, or whether he should leave the Roman army
to its course, and proceed himself directly toward the Alps and
Italy. The officers and soldiers of the army, who had now learned
something of their destination and of their leader's plans, wanted to
go and meet the Romans. They dreaded the Alps. They were willing to
encounter a military foe, however formidable, for this was a danger
that they were accustomed to and could understand; but their
imaginations were appalled at the novel and awful images they formed
of falling down precipices of ragged rocks, or of gradually freezing,
and being buried half alive, during the process, in eternal snows.

Hannibal, when he found that his soldiers were afraid to proceed,
called the leading portions of his army together, and made them an
address. He remonstrated with them for yielding now to unworthy fears,
after having successfully met and triumphed over such dangers as they
had already incurred. "You have surmounted the Pyrenees," said he,
"you have crossed the Rhone. You are now actually in sight of the
Alps, which are the very gates of access to the country of the enemy.
What do you conceive the Alps to be? They are nothing but high
mountains, after all. Suppose they are higher than the Pyrenees, they
do not reach to the skies; and, since they do not, they can not be
insurmountable. They _are_ surmounted, in fact, every day; they are
even inhabited and cultivated, and travelers continually pass over
them to and fro. And what a single man can do, an army can do, for an
army is only a large number of single men. In fact, to a soldier, who
has nothing to carry with him but the implements of war, no way can be
too difficult to be surmounted by courage and energy."

After finishing his speech, Hannibal, finding his men reanimated and
encouraged by what he had said, ordered them to go to their tents and
refresh themselves, and prepare to march on the following day. They
made no further opposition to going on. Hannibal did not, however,
proceed at once directly toward the Alps. He did not know what the
plans of Scipio might be, who, it will be recollected, was below him,
on the Rhone, with the Roman army. He