were but two more who had been spectators of such an action, viz. Jupiter from mount Ida, and Neptune from Samothrace, when the Greeks and Trojans fought before Troy. I know not whether the fight of an hundred thousand men (for fo many there were) butchering one another, can adminifter a real pleafure; or whether fuch a pleasure is confiftent with the fentiments of humanity, fo natural to mankind. (n) The Carthaginians, after the battle was over, entreated Scipio to terminate their contefts with Mafiniffa. Accordingly he heard both parties, and the Carthaginians confented to yield up the territory of Emporium, which had been the firft caufe of their divifion; to pay Mafiniffa two hundred talents of filver down, and eight hundred more, at fuch times as fhould be agreed. But Mafiniffa infifting on the return of the exiles, they did no; come to any decifion. Scipio, after having paid his compliments, and returned thanks to Mafiniffa, fet out with the elephants, for which he had been fent. (o) The king, immediately after the battle was over, had blocked up the enemy's camp, which was pitched upon a hill, whither neither troops nor provifions could come to them. During this interval, there arrived deputies from Rome, with orders from the fenate to decide the quarrel, in cafe the king fhould be defeated; otherwife, to leave it undetermined, and to give the king the ftrongeft affurances of the continuation of their friendship; and this they did. In the mean time, the famine daily increased in the enemy's camp, which being heightened by the plague, occafioned a new calamity, and made dreadful havock. Being now reduced to the last extre mity, they furrendered to Mafiniffa, promifing to deliver up the deferters, to pay him five thousand talents of filver in fifty years, and restore the exiles, notwithstanding their oaths to the contrary. They all fubmitted to the ignominious ceremony of paffing under the yoke †, and were difmiffed, with only one fuit of clothes for each. Guluffa, to fatiate his vengeance for (0) Ibid. above-mentioned, left the Romans should fail beyond the Fair Promontory, that lay before Carthage; and become acquainted with a country, which migba induce them to attempt the conqueft of it. (n) App. de bell. Pun. p. 40. *The Emporium, or Emporia, was a country of Africa, on the Leffer Syr tis, in which Leptis flood. No part of the Carthaginian dominions was more fruitful than this. Polybius, 1. i. fays that the revenue that arofe from this + I's furent tous passes fous le joug & place, was fo confiderable, that all their subjugom mifi; a kind of gallows bopes were almoft founded on it iv ale ima e by two forked flicks, standing up(viz. their revenues from Emporia | right was refied and a spear laid Elxon ràs Merisas inmidas. To this across under u bi b vanquished enemies. was owing their care and state-jealousy | were obliged to pajs. Feitus, for the ill treatment, as we before obferved, he had met with ; fent out, against them, a body of cavalry, whom, from their great weakness, they could neither escape nor refift. So that of fifty-eight thousand men, very few returned to Carthage. The third PUNICK War. (p) The third Punick war, which was lefs confiderable than either of the former, with regard to the number and greatness of the battles, and its continuance, which was only four years, was still more remarkable with refpect to the fuccefs and event of it, as it ended in the total ruin and deftruction of Carthage. (q). The inhabitants of it, from their laft defeat, knew what they might naturally fear from the Romans, from whom they had always met with the moft rigorous treatment after they had addreffed them upon their difputes with Mafiniffa. To prevent the confequences of it, the Carthaginians, by a decree of the fenate, impeached Afdrubal, general of the army, and Carthalo commander of the auxiliary forces, as guilty of high-treafon, for being the authors of the war against the king of Numidia. They then fent a deputation to Rome, to enquire what opinion that republick entertained of their late proceedings, and what was defired of them. The deputies were coldly anfwered, that it was the bufinefs of the fenate and people of Carthage to know, what fatisfaction was due to the Romans. (r) A fecond deputation bringing them no clearer answer, they fell into the greatest dejection; and being feized with the ftrongelt terrors, upon recollecting their paft fufferings, they fancied the enemy was already at their gates, and imagined to themselves all the difmal confequences of long fiege, and of a city taken fword in hand. () In the mean time, the fenate debated at Rome, on the measures it would be proper for them to take; and the disputes between Cato and Scipio Nafica, who were of a quite different opinion on this fubject, were renewed The former, on his return from Africa, had declared in the ftrongest terms, that he had not found Carthage exhaufted of men or money, nor in that weak and humble ftate, as the Romans fuppofed it to be; but, on the contrary, that it was crouded with vigorous young men, abounded with immenfe quantities of gold and filver, and prodigious magazines of arms and all warlike (p) A. M. 3855. A. Carth. 697. A. Rom. 599. Ant. J. C. 149. Appian. p. 41. 42 (r) Plut. in vit. Cat. p. 252. * be foreign forces were commanded by leaders of their refpe&ive nations, who were all under the command of a ftores, (9) (s) lb. p. 352. Carthaginian officer, called by Appian ftores; and was fo haughty and confident on account of this force, that their hopes and ambition had no bounds. It is farther faid, that after he had ended his fpeech, he threw, out of the lappet of his robe, in the midst of the fenate, fome African figs; and, as the fenators admired their beauty and fize, (t) Know, fays he, that it is but three days fince these figs. were gathered. Such is the distance between the enemy and us. (u) Cato and Nafica had each of them their reasons for vot ing as they did. Nafica, obferving that the people rose to fuch a height of infolence, as threw them into exceffes of every kind; that their profperity had fwelled them with a pride which the fenate itself was not able to check; and that their power was become fo enormous, that they were able to draw the city, by force, into every mad defign they might undertake; Nafica, I fay, obferving this, was defirous that they should continue in fear of Carthage, in order that this might ferve as a curb to reftrain their audacious conduct. For it was his opinion, that the Carthaginians were too weak to fubdue the Romans; and, at the fame time, fo powerful, that it was not for the intereft of the Romans, to confider them in a contemptible light. With regard to Cato, he thought, that as his countrymen were become haughty and infolent by fuccefs, and plunged headlong into diffolution of every kind; nothing could be more dangerous, than for it to have a rival city, (to whom the Romans were odious ;) a city that till now had been powerful, but was become, even by its misfortunes, more wife and provident than ever; and therefore that it would not be fafe, to remove the fears of the inhabitants entirely with regard to a foreign power; fince they had, within their own walls, all the opportunities of indulging themselves in exceffes of every kind. To lay afide, for one inftant, the laws of equity, I leave the reader to determine, which of these two great men reafoned moft juftly, according to the maxims of found policy, and the true interest of a state. One undoubted circumftance is, that all hiftorians have obferved, that there was a fenfible change in the conduct and government of the Romans, immediately after the ruin of Carthage * : That vice no longer made its (t) Plin. l. xv. c. 18. Ubi Carthago, & æmula impe tii Romani ab ftirpe interiit, Fortuna fævire ac mifcere omnia cœpit, Salluft. in bell. Catilin. way («) Plut. ibid. in vita Cat. Ante Carthaginem deletam populus & fenatus Romanus placidè modefté- | gurtbino. que inter fe Remp, tractabant way into Rome with a timorous pace, and as it were by ftealth, but appeared barefaced, and feized, with astonishing rapidity, all orders of the republick: That fenators, plebeians, in a word, all conditions abandoned themselves to luxury and voluptuoufnefs, without having the leaft regard to, or fenfe of decency, which occafioned, as it must neceffarily, the ruin of the state. "The first Scipio, fays Paterculus, fpeaking of "the Romans, had laid the foundations of their future grandeur; and the laft, by his conquefts, had opened a "door to all manner of luxury and diffoluteness. For after "Carthage, which obliged Rome to ftand for ever on its "guard, by difputing empire with that city, had been totally "deftroyed; the depravity of manners was no longer flow in "its progrefs, but fwelled at once into the utmost excess of "corruption.' (w) Be that as it will, the fenate refolved to declare war against the Carthaginians; and the reafons or pretence urged for it were, their keeping up fhips, contrary to the tenor of treaties; their fending an army out of their territories, against a prince who was in alliance with Rome, and whofe fon they treated ill, at the time he was accompanied by a Roman ambaffador. (x) An event, that chance occafioned very fortunately, at the time that the fenate of Rome was debating on the affair of Carthage, contributed, doubtlefs, very much to make them take that refolution. This was the arrival of deputies from Utica, who came to furrender up themselves, their effects, their lands, and their city, into the hands of the Romans. Nothing could have happened more feasonably. Utica was the fecond city of Africa, vaftly rich, and had an equally fpacious and commodious port; it flood within fixty furlongs of Carthage, fo that it might ferve as a place of arms in the attack of that city. The Romans now hesitated no longer, but proclaimed war. M. Manilius and L. Marcius Cenforinus, the two confuls, were defired to fet out as foon as poffible. They had fecret orders from the fenate, not to end the war, but by the destruction of Carthage. The confuls immediately left Rome, and flopped at Lilybæum in Sicily. They had a confiderable fleet, on board of which were fourfcore thousand foot, and about four thoufand horfe. (w) App. p. 42. Pun. p. 42. The (*) A. M. 3856. A. Rom. 6co. App. bell. Potentiæ Romanorum prior Sei non gradu, fed præcipiti curfu à virpio viam aperuerat, luxuriæ pofterior tute defcitum, ad vitia tranfcurfum. aperuit. Quippe remoto Carthaginisel, Patere. 1, ii. c. 1. netu, fublataque imperii æmula, (y) The Carthaginians were not yet acquainted with the re folutions which had been taken at Rome. The anfwer brought back by their deputies, had only increased their fears, viz. It was the bufinefs of the Carthaginians, to confider what fatisfaction was due to them. This made them not know what courfe to take. At laft, they fent new deputies, whom they invested with full powers to act as they should fee fitting; and even (what the former wars could never make them ftoop to) to declare, that the Carthaginians gave up themfelves, and all they poffeffed, to the will and pleasure of the Romans. This, according to the import of the claufe, fe fuaque eorum arbitrio permittere, was fubmitting themfelves, without referve, to the power of the Romans, and becoming their vaffals. Nevertheless, they did not expect any great fuccefs from this condefcenfion, though fo very mortifying; becaufe, as the Uticans. had been before-hand with them on that occafion, this had deprived them of the merit of a ready and voluntary fubmiffion. The deputies, on, their arrival at Rome, were informed that war had been proclaimed, and that the army was fet out. The Romans had dispatched a courier to Carthage, with the decree of the fenate; and to inform that city, that the Roman fleet was failed. The deputies had therefore no time for deliberation, but delivered up themselves, and all they poffeffed, to the Romans. In confequence of this behaviour, they were anfwered, that fince they had at last taken a right ftep, the fenate granted them their liberty, the enjoyment of their laws, and all their territories, and other poffeffions, whether publick or private, provided that, within the space of thirty days, they should fend (as hoftages to Lilybæum) three hundred young Carthaginians of the firft diftinétion, and comply with. the orders of the confuls. This last condition filled them with inexpreffible anxiety: But the concern they were under, would not allow them to make the leaft reply, or to demand an explication; nor indeed would it have been to any purpose. They therefore fet out for Carthage, and there gave an account of their embaffy. (z) All the articles of the treaty were extremely fevere with regard to the Carthaginians; but the filence of the Romans, with respect to the cities, of which no notice was taken in the conceffions which that people was willing to make, perplexed them exceedingly. But all they had to do was to obey. After the many former and recent loffes the Carthaginians had fuftained, |