s very fully to his messenger, and
gave him minute and careful instructions as to his manner of
communicating them.

The Carthaginian authorities were indeed watching very vigilantly, and
intelligence was brought to them, by their spies, of the arrival of
this stranger. They immediately took measures for arresting him. The
messenger, who was himself as vigilant as they, got intelligence of
this in his secret lurking-place in the city, and determined
immediately to fly. He, however, first prepared some papers and
placards, which he posted up in public places, in which he proclaimed
that Hannibal was far from considering himself finally conquered; that
he was, on the contrary, forming new plans for putting down his
enemies in Carthage, resuming his former ascendency there, and
carrying fire and sword again into the Roman territories; and, in the
mean time, he urged the friends of Hannibal in Carthage to remain
faithful and true to his cause.

The messenger, after posting his placards, fled from the city in the
night, and went back to Hannibal. Of course, the occurrence produced
considerable excitement in the city. It aroused the anger and
resentment of Hannibal's enemies, and awakened new encouragement and
hope in the hearts of his friends. Further than this, however, it led
to no immediate results. The power of the party which was opposed to
Hannibal was too firmly established at Carthage to be very easily
shaken. They sent information to Rome of the coming of Hannibal's
emissary to Carthage, and of the result of his mission, and then every
thing went on as before.

In the mean time, the Romans, when they learned where Hannibal had
gone, sent two or three commissioners there to confer with the Syrian
government in respect to their intentions and plans, and watch the
movements of Hannibal. It was said that Scipio himself was joined to
this embassy, and that he actually met Hannibal at Ephesus, and had
several personal interviews and conversations with him there. Some
ancient historian gives a particular account of one of these
interviews, in which the conversation turned, as it naturally would do
between two such distinguished commanders, on military greatness and
glory. Scipio asked Hannibal whom he considered the greatest military
hero that had ever lived. Hannibal gave the palm to Alexander the
Great, because he had penetrated, with comparatively a very small
number of Macedonian troops, into such remote regions, c