DISSERTATION ON THE PASSAGE OF HANNIBAL OVER THE ALPS.

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The wonderful undertaking which it is the purpose of the following pages to investigate would naturally have attracted great attention, if considered only with reference to its general consequences, and to its particular effects on the great contest carried on between Rome and Carthage. For this march, which carried the war from a distant province to the very gates of the former, totally changed the character of the struggle, and compelled the Romans to fight for existence instead of territory.

These effects, however, are not the only reasons which have thrown so much interest on the passage of the Alps by Hannibal; for the doubt and uncertainty which have existed, even from very remote times, as to the road by which the passage

was effected, the numerous and distinguished writers who have declared themselves on different 'sides of the question, the variation between the two great historians of the transactions of those times, Polybius and Livy, all these things united, have involved the subject in difficulties which have increased its importance, and which have long exercised many able writers in vain attempts to elucidate them.

The relation of Polybius, who lived very soon after the transactions which he describes, and who had himself examined the country for the purpose of writing his history, would naturally appear the most authentic, on account of its early date, as well as of the internal evidence which it bears of truth. Unfortunately Polybius was writing to Greeks, and was therefore, as he himself tells, them, not anxious to introduce into his narrative names of places and of countries which they were little interested in, and which, if inserted, would rather have injured than assisted the unity of his story* In consequence of this, although

he has been remarkably careful in giving us the distances performed by the Carthaginian army in their march from the Pyrenees to the plains of Italy, as well as the time in which they were completed, he has been generally sparing of his proper names, and he has not positively stated in terms the name of that passage of the Alps through which Hannibal marched.

Now though the distances (which are positive) and the general description of the country, and the names of the nations (when these latter are mentioned) which the army passed through, afford, as we trust we shall shew, sufficient data to prove beyond all doubt that Hannibal passed by the Alpis Grata, or Little St. Bernard⁸,

^a The Alpis Graia, or Little St. Bernard, forms the communication between the valley of the Isere and that of Aoste. It is situated a little to the south of the Mont Blanc, and is the most northerly of the passages of that division of the Alps which run from north to south. The Alpis Cottia or Mont Genevre is situated to the south of the Mont Cenis and to the north of the Mont Viso, and forms the communication between Brian^n and Grenoble, and the valley of Susa, which leads down

yet as this is noVexpressly stated, Livy, who without acknowledgment has borrowed the greater part,of his own narrative from Polybius, has asserted that he went over the Alpis Cottia or Mont Genevre; and as Livy is much more read than Polybius, his account has obtained much more credit than it-deserves, and has been considered as almost decisive of the question. It i has been particularly adopted by all the fOFrench, writers upon the subject, and though they all differ from each other as to the .road which the army took to arrive at the passage, and further, although the account itself is absolutely inconsistent in many parts, yet the authority of so great a name has almost set criticism at defiance, and his commentators have endeavoured to reconcile his contradictions as well as

those who were in the habit of looking a little deeper than the surface, that Livy's

to Turin. As there are no post roads over either of these two passes, they- are but little frequented in comparison with the Mont Cenis and the Simplon.

account, which, even when taken by itself, was far from satisfactory, was, when compared with that of Polybius, with which it had been generally supposed to agree, very different in its conclusion; and this variation between them was so decided, that it was quite impossible that both could be right. Gibbon wasiso much struck with this variation, as well as with the respective characters of the two authors as historians, that he would have given up Livy at once, had he not been unable, from his ignorance of the passage alluded to by Polybius, to decide the question in his favour. The opinion of Gibbon appears also to have been very much influenced by that of D’Anville, an authority to be respected _n above all others for wonderful accuracy and depth of research in matters relating to ancient topography.

D’Anville however is guided in his opinion by the idea that the guides of Hannibal were Taurini, a mistake which is the more extraordinary, as Livy himself states them to be Boii, who were Gauls, and lived toi ,ivy, lib,

the north of the Mont Genevre, while the former were Ligurians, and their chief city was situated at the foot of that pass. Mr. Houldsworth, who had devoted much vide of his time and attention to subjects of this Anecdotes nature, appears to have detected Livy’s

Books. inconsistencies as well as Gibbon, and to have been of opinion that the army, crossed the Alps to the north of the Mont Genevre; but as he was, as well as Gibbon, unacquainted with the passage of the Little St. Bernard, he was unable to fix upon the exact spot.

It is to General Melville that the literary world has been indebted for the suggestion of this latter pass, and it is by this suggestion that a question so long doubtful has received a most satisfactory explanation. This gentleman on his return from the East Indies, where he had held a high military command, turned his whole attention to the investigation of the military antiquities of the Romans, and for this purpose he spent some years in travelling over France, Italy, and Germany, and he ex-

amined with great attention the countries which had been the scenes of the most celebrated battles and events recorded in Roman history. From his thorough knowledge of Polybius, he was early struck with the great authority that his narrative carried with it, and’he determined if possible to set at rest the much agitated question of the passage of the Alps by Hannibal. And as he perceived that no perusal of the historian, however close and attentive, no critical sagacity or discernment, could alone enable him to arrive at the truth, unless he verified the observations of his author on the same ground, and compared his descriptions with the same scenes, as those which that author had himself visited and examined, the General surveyed attentively all the known passages of the *

The result of all these observations was a firm conviction' that the passage of the Little St. Bernard was that by which Hannibal had crossed over into Italy, both

as being most probable in itself, and also as agreeing beyond all comparison more closely than any other with the description given by Polybius. The arguments and the evidence which will be brought forward in the following pages are directed to the confirmation of this opinion, and if they shall appear satisfactory, the General must be looked upon as the first who has solved this problem in history. It is not indeed meant that he was absolutely the first who made the Carthaginian army penetrate by that pass into Italy, since the oldest authority on this point, that of Cselius Anti-

pater, as we are prepared to shew, represents them as having taken that route; but it is affirmed that he was the first to revive an opinion concerning that passage, which, although existing in full force in the traditions of the country itself, appears to have been long laid aside as forgotten, and to have rested that opinion on arguments

^b Some account of the General’s life and discoveries will be found in the preface to the Work of M. De Luc,

General Melville never published any account of his observations, and they would most probably have been lost to the world, had he not found in M. DeXuc of Geneva, nephew of the late distinguished philosopher of that name, a person eminently qualified to undertake the task which he himself declined, and even materially to improve upon his labours. The very able and learned work .which that gentleman published at Geneva in 1818, entitled, Histoire dn Passage des Alpes par Annibal, contains a very full and clear report of the observations of General Melville, supported by argument^ and by evidence entirely original, and which must be admitted by every candid and judicious enquirer to be clear and conclusive. Had M. De Luc himself been enabled to follow the route which he describes, and to verify on the spot the whole of General Melville’s observations with his own eyes, and with the same discernment with which he has actually

who quotes from the Monthly Repertory of English Literature for October, 1812, examined a part of them, it would undoubtedly have been beyond the power of anv writer, however able, to add to or to perfect his work; but though various circumstances have prevented him from accomplishing this most desirable object, it is wonderful with how much clearness he has embodied the General’s remarks, and how well he has described a line of country with which he was not himself personally acquainted.

For clearness of description and for acuteness of argument, M. De Luc’s work cannot be sufficiently praised; and it was my intention, after I had read it, to employ myself in a translation of it. For the purpose of enabling myself to verify his remarks, I determined to undertake a journey along the whole road pointed out by M. De Luc, from the first ascent of the Alps to the termination of the march in the plains of Italy. This journey was performed in the Autumn of last year (1819) in company with a friend. We descended the Rhone from

Lyons to Vienne, and from thence struck off by the old Roman road across Dau-phiny, till we reached the Mont du Chat; crossing that mountain we descended upon Chambery and Montmeillan, and from thence went up the valley of the Isere to Scez, at the foot of the little St. Bernard. We crossed this mountain, and came through the valley of Aoste to Ivrea, and finally to Turin, by the capture of which Hannibal's passage of the Alps may be said to be finally terminated. The whole of the country through which we passed was beautiful, and will amply repay by its scenery alone the trouble of visiting it. The valleys of the Isere and of Aoste are extremely rich and populous, and cultivation is pushed almost to the very summit of the Alps.

We carried with us Polybius as well as the work of M. De Luc, and we were as fully satisfied of the general accuracy of the latter, as we were of our being in the exact road pointed out by the former. Still however much new light was thrown upon the subject in consequence of a personal examination, and many new facts were obtained. As also there are a few points in which I differ from M. De Luc, I have thought it upon the whole more advisable to publish the result of my observations in an original form, than to persist in my first „ resolution, of meirely translating the work of that gentleman. .

I beg leave at the same time to disclaim all the merit of originality upon this question ; and I feel so much indebted to M. De Luc for the greater part of the remarks contained in this work, that I shall be amply satisfied if I should be allowed the praise of an impartial examination of the ground with Polybius in my hand, together with a most earnest desire to arrive at the truth.

It may seem extraordinary, that the passage over the Little St. Bernard should hav£ so entirely escaped the observation of all modern writers upon this subject; but the almost total disuse into which it had fallen, in consequence of the establishment

of the road by the Echelles, which was constructed in 1670, and of that by the Mont Cenis, which now forms the great passage into Italy on that side, will sufficiently account for this circumstance. At present however, notwithstanding this disuse, there is a considerable intercourse between the valleys of Aoste and of the Isere, and the road along the latter is excellent as far as Scez.

The Tarentaise, into which yoil enter at Conflans, is a very populous country, and the inhabitants are remarkable for a spirit of independence, which makes them avoid much communication with their more civilized neighbours, though they axe among themselves extremely hospitable arid kind. The road over the St. Bernard itself, is at present impassable for carriages as far as La Tuille, but from thence to Aoste it is very tolerable, and from that town to Ivrea and Turin it is excellent. We passed through some very fine country in Dauphiny, and Vienne, the town from which we first set out, abounds in Roman

remains. The Roman road from Vienne to Ivrea appears to have been carried in almost the exact track of the modern one. We, employed eight days in going from Vienne to Turin, and found very little difficulty in obtaining means of conveyance. Although we were fully convinced of the justness of our opinion by this journey, yet in order to satisfy ourselves completely, we determined to return by the Mont Genevre to Brianpon and Grenoble. And this latter tour has enabled us to prove, I think beyond contradiction, that it is absolutely impossible for the Carthaginian army to have taken this road, at least if the authority of Polybius is to be considered of any weight in deciding the question.

It may be proper here to state briefly the precise road which I conceive Hannibal to have taken, and which we shall develope more at length hereafter. After crossing the Pyrenees at Bellegarde, he went to Nismes, through Perpignan, Narbonne, Beziers, and Montpellier, as nearly as possible in the exact track of the great Roman road. From Nismes he marched to the Rhone, which he crossed at Roquemaure, and then went up the river to Vienne, or possibly a little higher. From thence, marching across the flat country of Dau-phiny in order to avoid the angle which the river makes at Lyons, he rejoined it at St. Genis d’Aouste. He then crossed the Mont du Chat to Chambery, joined the Isere at Montmeillan, ascended it as far as Scez, crossed the Little St. Bernard, and descended upon Aoste and Ivrea by the banks of the Doria Baltea. After halting for some time at Ivrea, he marched upon Turin, which he took, and then prepared himself for ulterior operations against the Romans.

To establish any road at all, it was necessary to be guided exclusively either by Polybius or by Livy, for the accounts of these two historians cannot, as we shall shew hereafter, be possibly reconciled with each other. For reasons which will be stated in the Introduction, but principally because Livy’s account is inconsistent with

itself, I have taken Polybius as my guide. It. will be shewn, that the road which has just been laid down agrees in a most extraordinary manner with the one which he describes, especially as to the distances. It may indeed be safely said, that there is only one single point of difference between us, and that one relates to the plains of Italy, which are said to have been pointed out to the army from the summit of the Alps. As it will be shewn that these plains can be seen from no known passage whatever of the Alps, I trust that this variation will not be looked upon as material. In every thing else we agree.

M. De Luc’s arrangement of giving the substance of the Greek author at the head of each chapter has been adopted, and will be found convenient, but a literal translation of the whole has been added in the Appendix. .

After the establishment of my own theory, I have proceeded to remark upon the other routes which have been at diflfer-ent times, proposed. * The work of M. De

Luc was attacked soon after it appeared by two French gentlemen, who were anxious to defend their favourite Livy. The pamphlet of the first, M. Le Comte Fortia d’Urban, has been so completely refuted by the observations of the second, M. Letronne, that it has not been deemed necessary to take notice of it; but I have endeavoured to shew that this latter author has been himself equally mistaken in his own theory. . i • ,

The map which accompanies this work will, I have every reason to believe, be found correct. I have inserted in it the modern as well as the Roman roads, and I have given the ancient as well as modern names of towns; great care has been taken in laying down the chain of the Alps, and when I add, that it has been executed by Mr. Arrowsmith, I need say no more in its favour. Some plans of places interesting in the discussion will also be found; they were taken on the spot, and I believe I may answer for their accuracy.

D’Anville’s calculation, which is given in his Mesures Itineraires; he fixes the miles as follows :

The English mile . . . 826 The Geographical. . . 960 The Roman mile, according to Polybius, was divided into eight stadia ; and it is to be observed, that when miles are mentioned in this work, Roman miles are always meant, unless otherwise expressed.

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Chap. II. March from the place where the army passed the Rhone to the foot of the Alps.

Chap. III. Account of the different passages over the Mountains which inclose the Island. Mont du Chat described—Passage of the army over it, and arrival in the plain of Chambery. . . Chap. IV. March of the army from Bourget to Scez. Description of the country through which they passed. Roman road through it. Chap. V. Attack made on the army at the foot of the great chain of the Alps. Their ascent to the summit. Description of the Little St. Bernard. Encampment there.......

Chap. VI. Descent of the army. Description of the road. Arrival at Donas. Siege and capture of Turin. Conclusion of the march. . Chap. VII. Examination of Livy’s account. . . Chap. VIII. Examination of M. Letronne’s theory. Chap. IX. Examination of Folard, St. Simon, and

When it is declared in the very first outset of this enquiry, that the narration of Polybius is assumed as the entire basis and ground-work on which it rests, it immediately becomes necessary to lay before the reader the reasons which seem to place that historian's authority so much above that of every other competitor, and prove that he is the only safe and sure guide whom we can follow in our investigation : and though the enquiry may perhaps lead us into what may seem a minute examination of his character, as an historian and geographer; yet the issue of the question rests so materially on the credit due to his account, that we therefore hope to be pardoned for entering into it somewhat at greater length.

Of Polybius’s capacity and fitness to describe great military events, and particularly those of that memorable period, which, after a long and desperate struggle between the two great rivals, Rome and Carthage, secured to the former the empire of the world, we shall presently be assured, if we consider, what education he had received, what scenes and revolutions he had witnessed, and whence he derived those sources of knowledge, which could alone fit him for so important a task.

Bred in the school of Philopoemen, whose military genius shed a brilliant though transient lustre ov&r the decaying fortunes and glory of Greece, the son of Lycortas, who was himself a distinguished statesman and warrior, could have no better guide to train his youthful mind in the pursuit of knowledge, and direct him in the attainment of those qualities, which adorn alike the character of a general and politician. Born with no common talents, and under the auspices of a government which then alone raised its head against tyranny and oppression, arid struggled for the dying liberties of Greece, Polybius’s mind

could not fail of early developing itself, and laying up for a maturer age an ample store of valuable and diversified acquirements. While in the camp and field he . learned the duties of a captain and soldier, and made himself master of the art of tactics, and whole science of war; at home he became no less versed in all the branches of political knowledge, which the complicated divisions and dissensions of Greece then rendered so necessary to the education of one, whose services were to be exerted in the administration of his country, or in furthering its interests abroad in a diplomatic capacity.

At the age of twenty-four he accompanied his father in an embassy to Ptolemy Epiphanes, king of Egypt; on which occasion he seems so far to have conciliated the favour and esteem of that court by his merit and talents, that the successor of Ptolemy, upon sending to the Achseans for aid, according to the terms of their alliance, requested that Polybius, then in his thirty-seventh year, might have the com- 19. mand of the cavalry. .

The jealousy, however, with which the Roman Senate began to view the appearance of such talents and abilities in a ci-

introd * in ^^zen^{a countr}y> ^s0 fertile in genius and patriotism, soon summoned Polybius to

3. p. 284. R_omej already the capital of the world. It is to this removal, cruel and unjust no doubt, though honourable to the merit and virtues which it was meant to stifle in their growth, that we owe one of the noblest histories, if we may judge from the grandeur of the design and the remains preserved to us, that the world ever saw.

Transplanted to a soil, which afforded so much more scope to an expansive genius; to a field which could satisfy at once the wide views of the historian, warrior, statesman, and philosopher; he contemplated the scene before him as a citizen of the world, and consoling himself with the idea, that his country did but share the universal fate of nations, formed the project of describing the events and unfolding the causes which raised Rome to the pinnacle of power and glory, and laid the world at lier feet.

He arrived at Rome about thirty-five Voss, de years after Hannibal had been forced toi^-V-p* 19-quit Italy ; at a time when that city, though mistress of nations and empires, must have had the dangers, under which it had so nearly fallen, still fresh in its recollection.

The terrors which the name of the Carthaginian general had created were scarcely yet subsided; the wounds which he had inflicted were scarcely yet healed; so that every information, which regarded that great captain and his actions, might have been easily obtained from living witnesses, and actors on . that great theatre of war. A close acquaintance, with the most illustrious characters of Rome, among whom was young Scipio iEmilianus, at- Poiyb.

and merit; a keen and impartial judgment joined to unwearied research and patient investigation, placed within his reach documents of the most valuable and authentic nature; to their truth indeed the concurrent sentiment of antiquity, and the internal character of his works, bear ample See Casau-and unfeigned testimony. Probity, since-face, in

upon all his writings; to these he has sacrificed the ornaments of style, the beauties of description, and embellishments of art: and while history shall be appreciated as a genuine guide and instructor through life, so long will his works be preferred to the more polished but less authentic narratives of other historians.

It is natural to. suppose, that a character like that of Hannibal, which formed so prominent a feature in the period of history which Polybius meant to describe, could not fail of attracting a large portion of his attention. We should be led to expect, from so candid and impartial a writer, a true and fair account of that extraordinary man, who by his sole energy grappled with the gigantic power of Rome at her very threshold, and for a time stemmed the torrent that was destined to overflow the world. Viewing the second Punic war as the great struggle which decided the fate of the world, Polybius has omitted no previous information or circumstance, which might tend to bring his readers to a full and perfect conception of this momentous contest. The causes, pre-

tences, and motives, which led to the war, are examined, distinguished, and balanced with the utmost attention, and most scrupulous nicety; we have a sure guarantee of his adherence to truth and equity, from his daring, more than once, openly to charge the Romans with injustice and ambitious views; and we feel assured, that in him at least Greece had not yet deserved the epithet of false. In order to make his readers fully acquainted with the nature and character of this contest, he lays before them the resources of each nation and their allies; particularly of the Gauls, on whose assistance and cooperation Hannibal relied so much, in his invasion of Italy; their wars with the Romans, and inveterate hatred against that people, are detailed at length; their numbers, importance, and p₀iyb. geographical position, are defined with^hbn'^c‘^l7‘ clearness and precision ; no information, in short, is omitted, which could be deemed useful for the understanding of subsequent events.

But of all points connected with the history of the second Punic war, there is none which seems to have interested him so

deeply, or which he seems to have been at so much pains in elucidating and describing, as the journey of Hannibal from Spain into Italy; as being an event so interesting and memorable in itself, and displaying the character and talents of that great commander in so striking a point of view; and because accounts so romantic and improbable had been given of it by other writers, as to involve the whole transaction in doubt and mystery. _:

His ardent love of truth, and thirst for geographical knowledge, and every thing connected with military science, led Polybius to trace the march of the Carthaginian army from the Ebro to the Rhone, and subsequently over the Alps into Italy; by which means he has been able to ascertain with accuracy each position and locality, and obtain information, which must in vain have been sought for in any other manner: • he himself declares, that if there is any part of his history, on the accuracy and certainty of which he may speak with the

received the accounts which he delivers from persons who were living at the time

the events took place, and having travelled in the Alps, in order to obtain certain and precise information on this subject. His knowledge indeed of this chain of mountains, of the different passes that led through it from Italy into Gaul, and the numerous tribes that inhabited its valleys, seems to have been both extensive and accurate; since Strabo, who wrote moreHaries,

than a century and a half later, has notp-³¹⁹-scrupled to borrow from Polybius’s geographical works, now lost to us, much of his account concerning these mountains.

If now the character of Polybius be weighed with that of Livy, every impartial mind must easily discover, how far he surpasses the Roman writer in all the great points that determine the value and authority of an historian; nor can we institute a more just comparison between them than that with which Gibbon furnishes us, when examining this very question.

“ which events follow each other with ^<c rapidity, yet without hurry or confusion; “ and the continual beauty and energy of “ his style, which transports his readers - f from their closets to the scene of action. “ But here we have to do not with the ^f‘ orator, but with the witness. Considered “ in this view, Livy appears merely as a “ man of letters, covered with the dust of “ his library, little, acquainted with the art “ of war* careless in point of geography, “ and who lived two centuries after Hanni-“ baFs expedition.

“ In the whole of his recital, we may “ perceive rather a romantic picture, cal-“ culated to please the fancy, than a faith-“ ful and judicious history, capable of “ satisfying the understanding. The God “ who appeared to the Carthaginian ge-“ neral, the mountains accessible to him “ alone, the vinegar with which he split ^.the rocks, are fables which Livy relates “ without criticism, as without suspicion. “ We seem to read Homer describing the “ exploits of Achilles. In Polybius, on the “ other hand, we meet with nothing but “ unadorned simplicity and plain reason. “ A justness of thinking, rare in his age

“ and country, united with a sterility of “ fancy still more rare, made him prefer ⁶⁶ the truth, which he thoroughly knew, to ^<£ ornaments which he was perhaps more “ inclined to despise, because he felt him-“ self incapable of attaining them. He “ had examined attentively and skilfully “ with his own eyes the country between “ the Po and the Ebro, where he might “ collect the precious remains of tradition, “ which the period of sixty years had, not, “ been able to efface; and where he might “ converse with some of the old men of ⁴⁶ the country, who had in their youth ' ‘ either resisted Hannibal’s invasion, or “ followed his standard. His journey to “ those parts was undertaken with the “ express purpose of gaining information “ in the country itself, and of substituting, ^u instead of the fables which already over-“ flowed the public, a plain and authentic “ history of this famous expedition of the “Carthaginians. The work which has ⁶⁶ come down to us is the fruit of this ^u design. To finish the parallel, I must “ add, that Livy’s narrative cannot be re-“ conciled with itself any more than with

Here then it*seems natural to ask, why, since Polybius’s authority seems to rest on such, firm and indisputable grounds, and his account deserving of so much greater credit than that of any other writer, any question should have arisen respecting the event we are now examining, or the subject have ever been involved in doubt and obscurity ? The question here started will perhaps best be answered, if we reflect

^a Gibbon, however misled by Cluverius, conceived that Polybius took Hannibal over the Great St. Bernard: and being very naturally surprised at his choosing so circuitous a route, still wavered between the two opinions. ^<c On doit etre surpris/’ says M. De Luc, “ qu’il n’ait pas soupconne qu’il devoit y avoir entre le " Mont Genevre et le Grand St. Bernard, un autre ^t( passage, qui pourroit mieux convenir au recit de “ Polybe, et qu’il n’ait pas, en consequence, fait des ^<c recherches sur les voies Romaines, et meme sur les “ passages des Alpes frequentes avant que les Romains ^<c eussent ouvert leurs voies militaires an travers de ces “ montagnes.” Hist, du Pass, des Alpes, p. 274.

that he has followed in the geographical part of his history, and more particularly in his narrative of Hannibal’s march from Spain to the Tesino.

writing principally tor his countrymen, to whom Spain and Gaul and generally the western parts of Europe were but little known, and who would, as he says, derive as little information and instruction from the names of people and places with which they were unacquainted, as from mere sounds that strike the ear without satisfying the understanding; he conceives, that by dividing the heavens into four quarters, and considering the several parts of the earth as situated under one of these divisions, the mind is able to refer that which is less known to something of which it has a fixed and definite notion. Now how correct soever this principle may be, yet, in its application, Polybius, it must be confessed, is somewhat vague and indistinct ; to us indeed this must be apparent, who are possessed of such accurate methods of ascertaining the latitude and position of any place on the globe’s surface. Yet

will this sufficiently account for the omission of names both of places, people, and rivers, which had they been mentioned by Polybius would long ago have removed all doubt as to the precise point by which Hannibal entered Italy^b.

Still however, though the data which Polybius affords us in the solution of this question be few* yet, as we hope to shew, are they fully adequate to lead us to the truth ; and after all, the fault will be found to rest not with th£ historian, but with those commentators who have misconceived and misinterpreted his meaning. Had an enquiry been instituted at the first with the same zeal, and the same judicious mode of investigation* that it has been carried on by General Melville and M, De Luc, every difficulty would long ago have been cleared up, and much fruitless labour, and many

^b Here perhaps We may be allowed to remark, how little seems to have been done towards the improvement of geography by the Romans: and that while they paid scarcely any attention to that branch of knowledge, the Greeks from the earliest times seem to have pursued the science with ardour and success; as may be seen by the works of Herodotus, Eratosthenes, Polybius, Strabo, arid Ptolemy. .

a useless comment, have been spared. We must yet notice another, and not least fruitful source of error, which is the attempt so often made to reconcile the accounts of the two historians: this is more particularly the case with French writers, who lay great stress bn the authority of the Roman historian, and who have also bowed to the decision of their countryman, the Chevalier Folard, in his commentary on Polybius⁰. When we come to examine the narrative of Livy by itself, we shall then be best able to judge whether such an attempt can be attended with success. -

Sufficient seems now to have been said to establish the superior authority of Polybius on the question now before us, so that it only remains for us to trace the route according to his directions, and interpret his opinion in the fairest and most impartial manner that we are able.

^c Folard however, though he might be an able tactician, has in this question fallen into numberless errors, which will be pointed out in a more proper place.

we examine and comment upon Polybius’s narrative, to enquire into the knowledge which the Romans possessed, concerning the Alps in the earliest times; the roads which were made across them; and the different nations, which at different periods penetrated through them from Gaul or Germany to settle in Italy.

THE Romans could have been but little acquainted with the Alps before Hannibal’s expedition: their wars indeed with the Cisalpine Gauls had brought them to the foot of that vast chain; they must have known that these Barbarians, with whom they were contending, had come from another country, and crossed these mountains to settle in the fertile plains of Northern Italy ; their early connexion with Marseilles would also be the means of making them first acquainted with Transalpine Gaul; but their communication with that city was only open to them by sea, and they had never hitherto attempted to send their legions over the natural barrier of Italy. The savage and uncivilized state of the wild tribes, that from the

earliest times occupied these mountainous regions, would of course render private intercourse and communication with Gaul still more precarious and difficult. Tradition indeed declared, that Hercules had once penetrated with a large army into Italy, and had left more than one memorial of his passage over the Alps; but later times esteemed that to be one of the many fabulous tales, which had their rise in the poetical imagination and fancy of the Greeks. When Hannibal however had been driven from Italy, and Carthage conquered ; when Spain and Gaul had become Roman provinces; then the Alps were often crossed by Roman armies, and even travellers ventured to explore those regions of frost and snow; and trade and commerce found their way over those passes, which nature pointed out as affording the most convenient and easy communication.

^d The whole chain, extending from the Tyrrhenian sea to the head of the Adriatic, was then divided into eight different parts, to each of which a separate name was assigned; as, the Cottian, Pennine, Julian Alps, &c.

known and frequented: that emperor, either by the force of his arms, or conciliatory measures, finally subdued and civilized the fierce clans that occupied the Alpine districts; he caused roads to be constructed, and towns to be built in the heart of their mountains, and succeeded in establishing a free and easy communication between Italy and all the parts of his extensive empire.

Strabo informs us, that Polybius, whost™b.Geo_g. is the earliest authority on the subject, mentioned only four passages over the Alps^e. The first, through the Ligurians, close to the Tyrrhenian sea; that is, over the Maritime Alps, from Genoa through Monaco and Nice to Arles; this was already a Roman way in the time of Polybius, being the first made out of Italy, and

^e It seems but fair to state, with regard to this passage in Strabo, that it contains a positive assertion, that Hannibal took the second road, elra tjjv fo* Totvgiwv, >}v *Avvt-foykSsv, and therefore has been brought forward against the hypothesis here supported. But if we prove that Polybius takes Hannibal by another pass, it will follow, that these words are to be ascribed to Strabo, and not to Polybius. Strabo, who wrote in the time of Livy, would probably adopt the opinion of that historian.

The third through the Salassi, over the Graian Alp, or the little St. Bernard, to Vienne on the Rhone.

The last from Milan, through Como, by the Rhsetian Alps, Mont Splugen or Sep-timer, to Coire in the Grisons.

Now if we take into consideration, that from Polybius’s account, Hannibal’s route seems to have been previously known and frequented, and that the four passes above named were all that the historian himself was acquainted with; it will be obvious that the object of our search must coincide with one of these, and consequently that our enquiry need not extend itself to such, as were in use only subsequently to the times of which we are now speaking^f. As no

^f Thus the Mons Penninus or Great St. Bernard appears to have been but little known in Caesar’s time, since he tells us, that the communication by that passage was attended with much difficulty and danger; and that he was the first to render it more practicable.

one however has ever contemplated the possibility of Hannibal’s having passed by the Maritime Alps, or the Grisons,_r there will in fact remain only two passes between which any doubt can lie, Mont Genevre and the’ Little St. Bernardso that we may now proceed to enquire into the earliest accounts which history affords us respecting these two mountains, according to the order in which they have been placed. * .

The first information we have relative to Mont Genevre, as a passage frequented by the Roman armies on their way to Gaul, is derived from Csesar, who seems to have crossed that mountain with part of his army at least, when proceeding from Italy to oppose a formidable inroad of the Hel-vetii into the Roman province. The account of his march is very concise, and from that circumstance, attended with a certain degree of obscurity. As the pas-

Caes. de Bell. Gall. lib. iii. c. 1. The Mont Cenis does not appear to have been known to the Romans; nor is it mentioned till the time of Charlemagne. Aimoinus, Franc. Rer. lib. iv. c. 60. et lib. v. c. 35. See also De Luc’s remarks on that mountain, p. 25.

sage is interesting, and seems to throw some light on the history of these mountains, we may perhaps be allowed to hazard some remarks upon it.

Caesar^ tells us, that having drawn together five legions, he set out on his march into Transalpine Gaul from Ocelum, which he terms the extreme point of the Cisalpine province. For the knowledge of this place, which has generally been mistaken, some supposing it to be Exilles, others Oulx, we are indebted to the sagacity and judicious researches of D’Anville, who has ascertained beyond a doubt that it must have occupied the position of Uxeau in the valley of Pragelas, near Fenestrelles. We learn also from Strabo, that, the next station on that road was Scincomagus, which D’Anville with equal felicity has discovered to be the Chamlat de Scinguin on the other side of the Col de Sestrieres ;

* —qua proximum iter in ulteriorem Galliam per Alpes erat, cum his quinque legionibus ire contendit. Ibi Centrones et Garoceli, et Caturiges, locis superi-oribus occupatis, itinere exercitum prohibere conantur. Compluribus his proeliis pulsis, ab Ocelo, quod est cite-rioris provinciae extremum, in fines Vocontiorum ulteri-oris provinciie die septimo pervenit: inde in Allobrogum fines. Caes. de Bell. Gall. lib. i. c. 11.

the road therefore must clearly have passed over that Col; and Caesar would then probably, for the first time, meet with that opposition from the mountaineers which he describes. It is however in reconciling the names of these people with the position of the Col de Sestrieres^h, that the main difficulty of the passage seems to consist.

Of the Centrones, who are here for the first time named in history, it is known for certain, that they inhabited the valley of the Upper Isere, or that part of Savoy which is called la Tarentaise; it is not therefore easy to conceive, how they could have taken part in an action, from the scene of which they were so remote. Of the Garo-celi or Graioceli next mentioned much less is known; it is conceived however, and with great probability, that they must have occupied that part of the chain, which lies between Mont Iseran and Mont Genevre; the latter belonging to the Caturiges, who are the last mentioned. The Garoceli thus placed between the Centrones and Catu- _Not. de riges, the latter occupying Brianpon and Lauie.

the valley of the Durance, as far as Embrun, must have inhabited the valleys in the vicinity of Mont Cenis and the ppper part of Maurienne. This seems further confirmed by old writings, in which the name of St. Jean de Maurienne appears as Sanctus Johannes Garocellius. It is not improbable, that Caesar might have sent part of his army through the country of the Centrones in the first instance, as also another division through that of the Garoceli. This explanation would obviate the difficulty of supposing the mountaineers, mentioned by Csesar, to have assembled on one point, from a line of such extent as that which lies between the little St. Bernard and Mont Genevre; a distance which even across the mountains, from the valley of the Isere to that of the Arc, and thence to the Mont Genevre, cannot be estimated at less than 60 miles. If we consider that Csesar had with him five legions, the difficulty of subsisting so large a force on one line in these mountains would sufficiently account for Caesar’s dividing it, and choosing to penetrate into Gaul by different points; besides it may be added, that the two first

routes would lead his troops immediately into the country of the Allobroges, the end of his march.

Ca3sar* however, with the greater part of his army, no doubt passed by the Mont Genevre, and there encountered the Catu-riges. Of his subsequent march we only gather, that on the seventh day from his quitting Ocelum he arrived on the borders of the Vocontii, and thence into the country ru • {J * I • • • • ' i I • t

It should be observed, that Caesar was then traversing the territory of Cottius, or more properly of Donnus his father, an Alpine chieftain, who had formed to himself a kind of principality among these mountains. Cottius is represented as lurking in the fastnesses of his Alps, and even defying the power of Rome, till the policy of Augustus thought it worth while to conciliate him with the title of King. This circumstance will explain why the road here mentioned should have crossed both the Col de Sestrieres and Mont Genevre, instead of proceeding by the valley of Susa; as the latter led through the heart of Cottius’s dominions, the former through a small part of them only; hence we find, that in later times when Cottius was become an ally, and these Alps had taken his name, the Col de Sestrieres was abandoned; the stations in the Itineraries being Fines, Segusio, ad Martis; that is, by Susa, Oulx, &c. Wcsse-ling. Itiner. p. 34*1. See the inscription on the arch at Susa, Theatr. Sab. vol. i. Strabo, lib. iv. p. 312. Pliny, iii. 20. Dio. Cass. lx. 24. Marcellinus xv. 10. Ovid. Eleg. Pont. vii.

of the Allobroges : he proceeded probably Wesseiing, _al₀n£ the Durance as far as Embrun, and

thence by Gap and Die to Valence, and so across the Isere into the territory of the Allobroges.

It appears then from this passage of Caesar, that the Romans had already at that time a military road over Mont Genevre; but when it was first opened we are not precisely informed; there is however good reason to believe, that this is the road to which Pompey alludes, as having first rendered it practicable for troops, when marching into Spain against Serto-rius^k: in a letter to the Senate, which has been preserved to us by Sallust, he says, “ Nomine modo imperii a vobis accepto, “ diebus XL exercitum paravi, hostesque in “ cervicibus jam Italise agentes, ab Alpibus saiiust. “ in Hispaniam submovi; per eas iter aliud

^k This conjecture seems strengthened by the fact, which Pliny mentions, of certain districts of Cottius’s dominions having been admitted among the municipal towns of Italy by a law of Pompey. Plin. lib. iii. c. 24, We know also from Pliny, that Pompey, in a trophy erected by him on the summit of the Pyrenees, boasted of having reduced in this very expedition 876 towns. Plin. lib. iii. p. 298. Strabo, lib. iii. p. 156.

“ atque Hannibal, nobis opportunius patc-“ feci¹/’ It certainly was esteemed to be the shortest passage into Gaul; and as to its being so, this account of Pompey agrees suabo, entirely with that of Caesar, Strabo, andp-'²⁸*-Ammianus Marcellinus. Hence we might fairly argue, that, in Pompey’s opinion at least, Hannibal had not passed by the Mont Genevre. But if we are to give credit to Livy, we must suppose the Mont Genevre to have been frequented in times greatly anterior to those of Pompey and Caesar; for this is the passage which that historian states most of the tribes of the Gauls to have chosen in their migrations into Italy. Now as the account of these transactions is of some consequence to the proper understanding of this enquiry, it may not be useless to examine awhile the history which Livy has given us of them.

He states, that the first passage of theL^iib.v. Gauls took place under the reign of Tar-

¹ Appian also tells us, that Pompey opened a road in the Alps different from that of Hannibal, between the sources of the Po and Rhone. Appian. bell, civil, lib. i.

Some have supposed that Pompey’s road might have passed by the Col d’Argenticre, and the valley of jhe Stura, but this never appears to have been in use. ;

quinius Priscus, and enumerates five distinct migrations, differing in that respect from Polybius, Diodorus Siculus, and Plutarch, who speak only of one. Of these he describes three, as proceeding over the Saltus Taurinus or Mont Genevre, and one by the Pennine Alps or the great St. Bernard; the fifth seems uncertain. Though the account of these transactions is given with sufficient detail of circumstance, we discover upon examination many points which tend to render the whole confused, and difficult to be explained or reconciled with true principles of geography. We are told, that Bellovesus a Celtic prince, with the superabundant population of the Bituriges, Arverni, Senones, JEdui, Am-barri, and other nations of Gaul, proceeded in quest of a country where they might settle; that he arrived among the Tricas-tini, and afterwards assisted the Phocaeans, who had just landed, and were preparing to found Marseilles, against the Salyes. He then with all his forces crossed the Alps by the Saltus Taurinus, and having defeated the Tuscans near the Ticinus, founded Milan. The Cenomanni come

next by the same pass, and found Brescia and Verona in the country of theLibui. The Salluvii are the third, and are followed by the Boii and Lingones, who cross over the Mons Penninus, and settle on the right bank of the Po.

The whole of this account, I say, presents difficulties 30 apparent and obvious/ as to throw no small doubt on the accuracy of Livy’s researches into these facts.

more properly to have been a German ^or^^enp;£_rⁿ‘ Helvetian tribe, and the Lingones, a people N°^_c^de of Gaul, who occupied part of Franche-Comt6 and Burgundy, are united together,^417, * and sent over the Pennine Alps, which according to Livy’s own account could not^^^xxi* have been passable even in Hannibal’s time, nor could it have been a pass frequented in Polybius’s time, since it is . not one of the four mentioned by Strabo upon his authority.

Again, the Cenomanni are made to occupy the territory of the Libui, or, as they ought more properly to be called, the Li-bicii, which certainly was not situated so far to the east as Brescira and Verona,

But the account of the first migration does not seem the least improbable. Here we have a vast multitude of the tribes inhabiting the central and south-eastern parts of Gaul, seemingly wandering from their native country at random, and quite uncertain whither they were bending their course: finally arriving at the Alps without even knowing that the country beyond was habitable, much less what was its fertility, resources, and population. Why they should have wandered so low as the Tricastini^m, and still lower even, to the vicinity of Marseilles, seems equally strange. Certainly there can be no reason, why the valley of the Durance, by which Livy must suppose them to have reached the Alps, should have been more early peopled and better known to the rest of Gaul than that of the Isere;

^m The position of the Tricastini is clearly marked by the little town of St. Paul trois Chateaux, about fifteen miles to the north of Orange on the Rhone; nor is there any authority for supposing them to have extended much beyond that district. See D’Anville, Notice de FAnc. Gaule, p. 100—G55.

so much its superior in extent and fertility, and situated so much nearer those parts of France, from which the migration we are speaking of took place. Again, if these tribes had penetrated into Italy by the saltus Taurinus, would they have wandered so far as Milan to establish themselves, and form a settlement, when such a position as that of Turin presented itself to them on their first arrival? How much more probable is it, that each tribe penetrated into Italy by the pass nearest to the point where it settled, and nearest also to that from whence it set out; thus the Salyes or Sal-luvii, and other Ligurians in Gaul, will be made to arrive in Italy by the Cottian Alps, ?^trab0^^b* and found Turin. The Arverni, iEdui, and ^Plin-¹i^b-^m*

Insubres penetrate through the country of the Allobroges and by the valley of the Isere, and reach Italy by the Graian Alp.

It will be seen by the inspection of D’An-ville’smapof ancient Gaul, that these people occupied the provinces of Auvergne, Bresse, the Lyonnois, and Bourbonnois, bordering on the country of the Allobroges or Dauphin and Savoy; and the Arverni, the most powerful of these tribes, are known to

have been early connected with the Allobroges. Hence it is probable that they must have had some communication with Italy before they set out on their expedition ; and this supposition agrees with Polybius’s account, who states, that these Gauls were urged to this attempt by the information they had received, of the extreme fertility of the plains possessed by the Tuscans. Pliny also mentions, that Helico, an Helvetian, on returning to his country from Italy, praised the wine of that country so much, that a migration was instantly determined on. Finally, the tribes which settled in the plains of Verona, Brescia, and Mantua, may have passed by the Rhsetian Alps, these being among the earliest frequented, according to the testimony of Polybius. *

. There is another tribe, which is described by Polybius as having come from the other side of the Alps, and the country near the Rhone, at the desire of the Insubres and Boii, to assist them in their wars against the Romans ; and whose king Viridomarus was killed by Marcellus in single combat ; these are called Gsesatae by Polybius, who

Polyb. lib. ii.c. 17.

Plin. lib. xii.c. 2.

Cluvfer. Ital. Antiq. p. 343, 4.

Polyb. lib. ii.

also informs us that they derived this name from their mercenary disposition¹¹. He also clearly intimates, that Hannibal followed the same route which this people had taken Poiyb. iib. to cross the Alps ; so that if we can ascer- ’ tain who these Gsesatae were, and from whence they came, we shall have another clue to guide us in our search. Now from the description given of this people by Polybius, in his second book, of their going to battle naked, their mercenary disposition and extreme ferocity, it appears they were not Gauls, but Germans who had crossed Cluv.Germ. the Rhine, and settled near the Rhone⁰. Lc^Uio.^hb* The Roman inscription in the Capitol indeed expressly states them to have been Germans:

ⁿ It is more probable, however, that they were so called from the gaesum or javelin which they used. See Voss, de vit. sermon.

⁰ The name of Gauls seems, to have been at this time indiscriminately applied to all Barbarians, whether of Celtic or Teutonic origin.

Claudius a Rheno trajectos arcuit hostes Bellica cui vasti parma relata ducis, Virdumari. genus hie Rheno jactabat ab ipso Nobilis e tectis fundere gsesa rotis.

Hb. i. c. 31. Gauls themselves, as the Sequani and Arverni, had in early times adopted the practice of hiring German mercenaries to assist them in their wars. It seems even that they had acquired permanent settle-

incursions into Italy by the Sequani, without whom, he adds, they could have effected nothing. The information derived from this passage of Strabo is most valuable, as pointing out the route by which the Gaesatae must have penetrated into Italy. Proceeding from the country of the Sequani, they would cross the Rhone near the present Fort de FEcluse, the same road which the Helvetii undoubtedly wished to take when they were opposed and defeated

directly through the Allobroges, by Cham-bery, to the valley of the Isere?, and up that river to the Graian Alp or the little St. Bernard.

A few observations yet remain to be made on the history of this last passage. Whence it derived the name of the Graian Alp must be left to conjecture, unless any credit be thought due to the fabulous story of Hercules’ expedition : but it is not improbable, that the Celtic term grau-Alp simier.

It is mentioned, I believe for the first time under that name, by Cornelius Nepos, com. Ne_P. in the life of Hannibal, and our opinion nib. _c. 22. derives no small support from his authority, seeing that he positively asserts this to have been the Carthaginian general's route.

^p Another road seems to have reached that valley from Geneva; it is marked in the Itineraries as branching off from Conflans ad Publicanos on the Isere by Casuaria Ceserieux, Bautae Annecy, to Geneva; this would perhaps be the most direct which the Gtesatae could take.

See D’Anville, Not. de l’Anc. Gaule, p. 212—145. Antonin. Itiner. Wesseling. p. 347.

ab Gallia sejungunt, quas nemo unquam “ cum exercitu ante praeter Herculem “ Graium transierat, (quo facto is hodie sal-“ tus Graius appellatur,) Alpicos conantes ■“ prohibere transitum concidit: loca pate-^u fecit, itinera muniit, effecitque ut ea ele-“ phantusornatus ire posset, qua an tea unus “ homo inermis vix poterat repere.”

This passage, however, appears to have been more early known under the name of Cremonis jugum ; and it is from Livy that we obtain that and another valuable piece of information relative to this mountain. That author, stating the different opinions that had been held respecting the passage by which Hannibal arrived in Italy, mentions that of Coelius, who supposed him to have passed by the Cremonis^q jugum : some however would read Centro-nis jugum ; but whether we read Cremonis or Centronis jugum it matters little, as the same mountain is meant in both cases:

^q It is worthy of notice, that the chain which forms the north side of this passage, and connects the little St. Bernard with the great chain of Mont Blanc, is now callcd the Cramont. See De Saussure's Voyages dans les Alpes, for a description of this mountain.

Livy telling us, that this pass led through the Salassi into the country of the Gauls; _Poi_yb.iib.ii. called Libui, or rather Libicii, who occupied

Vercellse Verceil, Laumellum Lomello, ciuver. and Ticinum Pavia. p!^a233.^ntiq’

The authority of Coelius Antipater, who lived in the time of the Gracchi, about 625 U. C. less than a century after Hannibal’s expedition, not only confirms the idea that the passage of the little St. Bernard was frequented in his time, but tends also materially to prove that this was Hannibal’s route; since his character for veracity, v_ai. Max. though nothing now remains of his writings, ¹⁰ ’ is established by ample and unquestionable ci_C.deOrat. testimony.

Brutus indeed esteemed his history of the second Punic war so much, that hecic. ad abridged it, as he is said to have done thatep/s. ’ of Polybius also: and Cicero, though he considered his style as rough and unpolished, always praises him for his ad-cic.de. herence to truth, and would have other writers learn accuracy from his example¹.

^r For a farther account of Ccelius Antipater, sec Voss, de Hist. Lat. lib. i. c. 8. Harles, Hist. Ling. Lat. i. 273.

In the time of Augustus, when a more extensive and active communication with the several parts of so vast an empire became necessary, we find that emperor, among other passages through the Alps which he laid open, or rendered more easy of access, constructing two regular ways

⁴⁴¹* Strabo however makes them both terminate at Lyons, and thus describes them : “ Of “ the ^passes which lead from Italy into . “ Gaul and the north country, one leads “ through the country of the Salassi, ter-“ minating at Lyons ; but this is twofold, “ the one passable for carriages, but longer, “ through the Centrones; the other steep “ and narrow, over the Mons Penninus.” And in another place he says, “ The “ country of the Salassi⁸ lies chiefly in a

• The Salassi resisted the Romans for a long time; though attacked as early as the year 609 U. C. they were not finally subdued till the reign of Augustus. They were contiguous to the Centrones to the north, and the Libicii to the south; their chief towns were Augusta Prsetoria Aoste, a colony founded by Augustus, and

“ deep valley, mountains closing it in on “ both sides ; it reaches also in some parts “ to the heights that overhang it. For “ those then who intend crossing these “ mountains, their road lies through the “ valley we have described. It then “ branches off, in one direction crossing “ over the Mons Penninus and the summit “ of the Alps, but this is not passable for ^u carriages; the other through the country “ of the Centrones is less steep.”

When Strabo says, that the road to Lyons by the Pennine Alp is shorter than by the Graian, he must be understood to mean, that the extent of mountainous country which it traverses is less; otherwise this statement is inadmissible. It is also clear from Strabo's account, that these passes were known and frequented before the works, which Augustus caused to be executed there, had been undertaken. Finally, since it has now been shewn that the passage of the little St. Bernard was known from the earliest times ; since it was the most central with respect to Gaul, and

afforded the most obvious and easy communication between that country and Insubria, from the extensive and fertile valleys which it connects; reason and probability concur in pointing it out as that by-which Hannibal's guides would conduct him. It remains therefore to prove, that Polybius’s narrative and description agree with the hypothesis here brought forward and maintained.

It has been shewn in the Introduction, that we meant to be guided entirely by Polybius in this investigation; and before we enter upon the march itself across the Alps, it may be right to relate summarily the circumstances which preceded the arrival of the army on the banks of the Rhone, as stated by that author.

He begins his thirty-fourth chapter by saying, p₀iyb. that Hannibal awaited atCarthagena the arrival LsT.' of certain emissaries, whom he expected from the Gauls; and it is observable, that from the circumstance of his mentioning the war in which this people had been engaged with the Romans, we can learn that the envoys whom he expected were to be sent by the Boii and lnsubrians.

For in the second book he uniformly mentions these two nations as the chiefs of the confederacy against the Roman arms, and the war in which they are engaged is concluded by the Pj>iy> capture of Milan. c. 34.

It is important thus early to observe upon this fact, in order to shew, that the object of Hannibal being to descend at first from the Alps amongst his allies, he would necessarily take a more northerly passage over the Alps than he would have pursued on his arrival at the Rhone, if the more southerly one of the maritime Alps or the Mont Genevre (Alpis Cottia) had been equally convenient for him.

It requires indeed some strong reasons to account for his turning directly to the northward after he crossed the Rhone, for there can be no doubt that these two last-mentioned passages were much nearer than the one which it is our intention to shew that he actually , did take^ « * •* » •> -1

Now vthe situation of the Insubres is well known; as. we find from Polybius that they possessed great part of the cquntry to the north Poiyb. lib.ii. of the Po, and as Milan was their capital, and the>nation? was a very powerful one, we, may conclude that they reached quite to the foot of the Alps both on the north and west. Polybius mentions the Laii and Lebecii as being settled on the western, bank of the. Po, after whom come the Insubres, that is, at the spot where the river,instead, of running S. and N. flows frorti W. to IL which is at Chivasso. The Boii, according to Polybius, were situated to, the S. E.

of the Insubrians, and to the south of the Po, though Pliny states them to have founded Lodi, vide The report of the envoys on their arrival being Notice de ia very favourable, Hannibal declared to the army his, intention of marching into Italy, and appointed a day for his departure. Finally, having arranged his affairs in Spain, he crossed the Pyrenees with 50,000 infantry, and 9000 c. 35. cavalry. The distances which he had to accomplish, and by which we are above all to be guided, are laid down in the thirty-ninth chapter;, the intermediate ones do not contain any thing material to our purpose.

From the Rhone, irogevopivoig vrag’ uvrov Tov irorcLfAov, ug Iff) roig ffviyug, to the.ascent of the Alps...... 1400 iib.iii e.39.

With respect to the first part of this journey, that from Emporium to the Rhone, Polybius observes that he is correct in his reckoning, because the Romans have carefully measured and marked it at every 8 stadia. It is evident from this, that he wishes us to understand that the army marched along that track which was afterwards the great Roman road from Emporium to Nismes. This road, according to D’Anville,

crossed the Pyrenees at Bellegarde, and turning to the right to Elne (Illiberis) passed through Perpignan, Narbonne, Beziers, a little to the north of Montpellier, Pont d’Ambrois, and Nismes, varying very little from the present great road. At Nismes (Nem'ausus) the Roman road divided into two parts, of which one went southerly to Arles, and the other west to Tarascon. M. De Luc conceives the army to have marched N. E. from Nismes, and to have arrived at the Rhone, and effected their passage a little above the town of Roquemaure, on a spot where, according to M. Martin de Bagnols, a very ancient passage of the river called L’Ardoise formerly existed^a. The Comte Fortia d’Urban, who has lately published a small tract upon this subject, agrees with M. De Luc, and cites D’Anville and Rollin together with M. de Mandajors, in support of his opinion. Various other authorities might be cited, but it will be

^a M. Martin de Bagnol, in a memoir inserted in the Travaux de l’Academie du Gard. 1811, fixes the spot from personal observations a league above Roquemaure; in this he agrees perfectly with M. De Luc, who had not however seen Mr. M’s work when he decided upon the same spot. In the march from the passage to the Isere, Hannibal proceeded at the rate of 20 miles a day, but he had only his cavalry and elephants Vegetius de with him., Vegetius seems to state the Roman day’s march at re Mihtan, ^ _mji_es> the modern average is 14 or 15.

more satisfactory to mention M. De Luc’s principal arguments, which appear to be conclusive on the subject. In the first place then the situation is printed out with great exactness by its distance from the vqtrog or Insula Allobrogum,* which is formed by the lsere and the Rhone.

From the crossing the Rhone to the arrival of the army at the vqtrog Polybius reckons 75 miles, for the whole distance to the foot of the Alps from the passage of the river being 1400 stadia or 175 miles, and„ the march along the river after entering the vytrog being 100, there c. remain 75 between the passage and the lsere. Now Roquemaure is at precisely that distance from Port l’lsere. Secondly, it is pointed out by the distance from the sea, which Polybius calls four days’ march. Supposing a day’s c march to be fixed at 15 miles, which is a fair average, for although we shall find that the Carthaginian army did not generally exceed 12 miles a day, yet an army unincumbered with baggage would be fully able to perform 15, this would give us a distance of 60 miles to the sea. From Roquemaure to the present eastern mouth of the Rhone, along the river, there are 64 miles, and it is supposed that the land has gained considerably on the sea in this quarter. M. De Luc on this account has looked for some high spot close to the sea, which might be taken

as a permanent land mark, and this he thinks he has found in the village of Foz, a little t6 the east of the eastern mouth Of the river. This village stands upon the first rising ground that bounds the great extent of flat country in the immediate vicinity of the mouths of the Rhone, all which country has been at some tittle or other overflowed. The mouths themselves have evidently varied considerably, and therefore M. De Luc is justified in fixing upon the first eminence out of the influence either of the river or of the sea. From Foz to Roquemaure the distance is not quite 60 miles; and it is observable that Polybius uses -the word <r%edov₉ almost four days’ march. Such is M. De Luc’s opinion, and it is entitled to great weight; but JD’Anville, in d’Anviiie, two very elaborate articles on the mbuths of the

Gauie, Art. Rhone, looks upon Jboz as the extremity Of the ana, and ¹ Fossa Mariana, a canal made by Marius to da^Sni.^Rh° avoid the difficulties which ships generally experienced at the neighbouring mouth of the river, from the accumulation of mud and sand.

The eastern mouth is, according to the Itineraries, 16 miles to the west of Foz, and 30 miles from Arles; from that town to Roquemaure in a straight line there are hardly 30 miles, but if you follow the river there are about 35. This would make rather more than the four days’ march at 15 miles a day: but Polybius in men-

tioning that distance speaks loosely ; and a$ the 75 miles from the Isere is a definitive numbeivwe must be guided absolutely by that, and b$ content with finding, which we d,Q both by ]\J. De Luc and by D’Anville, that Roquemaure is about four days’ march from the sea. If wq measure in a straight line the distance, we have about 54 miles, and these distances prove at least that no objection can be made to Roquemaure on account of its not fulfilling the condition of the passage being four days’ march from the sea. • <

Thirdly, another circumstance which tends to fix the passage at this place, is that of the river flowing here in a single stream, dirXy pvtrig is the expression of Polybius. The Rhone flows in this manner, uninterrupted by islands from Caderousse to Roquemaure, a distance of nearly a league; and, with the exception of a similar stream immediately below the island at Roquemaure, though for a much shorter distance, this circumstance does not occur for many miles up and down the river. > _f,₍_} o Fourthly,'the situation tallies also extremely well with the determination that Hannibal had taken, of leaving the sea behind him, and marching along the Rhone as if he was going to its source. For a little above Roquemaure the river makes a bend to the eastward, and di-

rectly crosses the line of march from Nismes to the sources of the Rhone; supposing that he marched directly to the source. And had he crossed the river below its junction with the Durance, he would have thrown himself far too much to the southward, and would have had that river to cross after his passage of the Rhone. Its liability to inundation, and the great breadth and instability of its bed, would have added considerably to his difficulties'⁵. It is easy too to understand, how the convenience of having a single stream to cross instead of one intersected by islands, would influence the choice of the spot in question in preference to any other. There is certainly a long tract of single stream in the river, after its junction with the Durance; but I have already given sufficient reasons for his not crossing below that point.

Finally, the distance from Emporium to Roquemaure agrees almost exactly with the 200 miles or 1600 stadia which are reckoned

^b Comte Fortia d’Urban, who agrees with M. De Luc on this point, lays much stress upon the existence of an old town called Courthezon, immediately opposite to Roquemaure, and upon the high road from Avignon to Lyons. “ Courthezon ^ff dont le nom est a peu pres le meme que le nom Gr6c de “ Carthage. II est vraisembable qu’il (Annibal) y s^journa, et “ que c’est ce qui a valu cette denomination a cette ancienne “ ville.” This however is somewhat fanciful.

by Polybius between .the first of these points and the passage of the river. For according to the Itineraries there are 176 miles from Emporium to Nismes, and 28 in a straight line from Nismes to Roquemaure, making a total of 204, which is as close an approximation as we can reasonably expect to find.

I have been particular in fixing the exact spot of the passage of the river, as it is from thence that the succeeding calculations will be made; and having once obtained an accurate point, we shall have little difficulty in proceeding.

The manner in which the passage itself was effected will be seen at large in Polybius, and Poiyb. lib. the description is so admirably given, that j^^1110,43' would be impossible to retain the spirit of it in an abridgment. M. De Luc places the island where Hanno passed with his detachment a little above the Pont St. Esprit, and opposite the village of La Palud, 25 miles from Roquemaure. The Rhone however is so full of islands above Caderousse, that it is difficult to fix on the precise spot, nor is it indeed material.

It was on the fifth day from their arrival at the Rhone that the army (with the exception of the elephants) passed over, and on the sixth Hannibal dispatched 500 Numidian horse towards the mouth of the river, in order to obtain some information respecting the Roman army.

On the same day Magilus and the other chiefs of the country about the Po were introduced to the army, and the final intentions of the general were declared : and in the evening of the same day the Numidians returned, pursued by the Roman cavalry, who after examining the camp, went back in all haste to Publius. On the seventh day the infantry were ordered on their march up the Rhone, and the same day, and probably the succeeding one, were employed in bringing over the elephants. On the ninth day Hannibal himself followed the infantry with the cavalry and elephants, and in * three days after his departure the Roman consul arrived at the place from whence he had set out. This allows six days for * the return of the Roman cavalry with the account of the passage of the river by the Carthaginians, and for Publius’s own march after receiving the information, c 45. It is expressly stated by Polybius, that he (Publius) as well as his cavalry made all possible haste, which will account for their doing in six days the work of eight. We shall proceed in the next chapter to examine the road taken from the passage of the river to the foot of the Alps.

MARCH FROM THE PLACE WHERE THE ARMY PASSED THE RHONE TO THE FOOT OF THE ALPS. DESCRIPTION OF THE ISLAND.

Having ascertained in the preceding chapter the place where Hannibal crossed the Rhone, we shall begin the present with an abstract of the march from the passage to the foot of the Alps, as related by Polybius.

He led his army from the sea along the river c. 47. et towards its source to the eastward; and having^seq marched for four days, he came to a country called the vq<ro$, formed by the Rhone and the Isere on two sides, and the Alps which are almost inaccessible on the third; for this country is very similar both in shape and size to the Delta in Egypt. Here he found two brothers contending for the sovereignty of the country, and having joined the eldest, and placed him in possession of the throne, he proceeded along the river 800 stadia, (100 miles,) in ten days, and arrived at the very foot of the Alps. During this time the brother whom he had assisted was of the greatest use to him in supplying the army

with provisions, with shoes, and with arms, as well as in protecting the rear from the attacks of the Gauls, who were called the Allobroges; and while he traversed the flat country, these Allobroges, partly from fear of his own cavalry, and partly from fear of his escort, abstained 'from attacking him. When however his friends had left him, and he was arrived at the foot of the Alps, these barbarians occupied the heights and the passage, through which he must of necessity march, in great numbers, and compelled Hannibal to encamp in their front.

Such is the short statement of the proceedings of the army as far as the foot of the Alps, a distance of 1400 stadia, or 175 miles; and here we cannot possibly be mistaken in the direction that we are to take, and the road that we are to follow, as we are expressly told, that the march was along the river ntiga rov ‘zrorct'fAov, leaving the sea behind. It is important however here to remark upon an inaccuracy of Polybius with respect to the general course of the Rhone, from its source to its junction with the sea.

It will be seen, on reference to the forty-seventh chapter, that he describes the river as keeping one uniform direction from N. £. to S. W. and that he makes no mention whatever of the angle formed at Lyons. Nor is this much to be wondered at, when we consider the

ignorance of the ancients as to those parts of practical geography in which we have made such progress, as well as their total want of instruments to assist them in the measurement of angles. From the source to the embouchure, the river, if it flowed in a straight course, would certainly flow from N. E. to S. W. and with the exception of this error, it is clear from his description that our author must have been well acquainted with its general character. To return.

Having put himself at the head of the cavalry and elephants, Hannibal marched up the river for four successive days, till he arrived at the Island or vqros, a distance of 75 miles, (since from the Island to the Alps there are 100 miles,) and at the.rate of nearly nineteen miles c 50. a day, this average is much beyond the usual one, as will appear hereafter. The infantry had two days advance, and he joined them at the Isere, since it was there that he found the bro? thers. This would give twelve miles and a half a day for that part of the army, and as the baggage would be sent with them, the cavalry might perform nineteen miles without great difficulty, especially after the halt which had been made on the banks of the Rhone. The description of the island, at which the army arrived on the fourth day, is too clearly given to admit of any rational doubt, as to its situation ;c. 49.

for we are told that it was very populous, sro-XvoyrKogi and fertile in corn, similar in size, as well as figure, to the Delta, formed by the Rhone and Isere on two sides, and by inaccessible mountains on the third. In examining the Island on the map, we must bear in mind Polybius’s previous account of the general direction of the Rhone, and if we ornit the angle which it really forms at Lyons, we shall have an island nearly resembling the Delta both in size and form^c.

The country is at present particularly well calculated for corn, and extremely populous. The comparison which Polybius draws between it and the Delta may be easily accounted for by his personal knowledge of the latter, from his having been employed in Egypt, during his father’s embassy to Ptolemy Epiphanes. It is fortunate also for our purpose, that he should have been able to make use of so accurate an illustration, as the coincidence of size which he expressly mentions will prevent the possibility " ^m t' »

^c The length of* the Delta from N. to S. is about 90 English miles, and its breadth from Rosetta to Damietta about 70. From Lyons to Port FI sere there is a distance of about 70 miles, and the same along the river from Lyons to the Mont du Chat. From Port de 1’Isere to Grenoble 60 miles, and from Yenne to' Grenoble in a straight line 40 miles.¹ ■' ; ¹ * j-of any mistake, as to the actual position of the Island at which Hannibal arrived on the fourth day of his march. The mountains of which our author speaks, as inclosing the third side, begin at the northern extremity of the Lac du Bourget, and run in a southerly direction to the Guiers vif, which they, join between the Pont de Beauvoisin and the Echelles. From hence to the south they form a sort of bason* as will be seen by the map, running first S. E. to the-Fort Barraux, and the opening of the valley of the Gresivaudan; then S. W. along that valley to Grenoble; thence N. W. to Yoreppe and Voiron ; and then North, joining the first chain at the Pont de Beauvoisin. Within this bason stands the convent of the Grande Chartreuse; This chain forms the first step or lisiere of t the Alps. It is divided at the Fort de Barraux by the Isere from the great ridge, that runs from the Mount Cenis, .along the Mauri-enne and the valley of the Arc. The Mont du Chat, or northern part of it, is not so high as the, Jur^, butoto, the south * and in the neighbourhood of the Grande Chartreuse the height is, much mpre considerable. The passages through this chain will be pointed out hereafter; it will here be sufficient to give a general: idea of the country as it now appears. The waters flow for the most part , from E. to W. and fall into the Rhone between Lyons and Port l’Isere, each stream flows in a flat valley, and the hills which separate them are very low, and towards the north the country is quite flat. After passing Bourgoin upon the high road from Lyons to Chambery the features are bolder, and .the hills rise more and more, till we arrive at the Guiers vif, and. the foot of the chain of mountains already referred to. The whole country is extremely well cultivated, though subject to occasional inundations in the valleys, very populous, and towards the eastern part very picturesque, being well wooded, and some of the trees remarkably fine. It is extremely well calculated to support an army.

The manifest error contained in some editions of Polybius of "Agccgog, instead of ’Irdgug, has been corrected by Schweighaeuser. In the older editions it is SaJgas : and M. DeLuc assures us, that General Melville when at Rome consulted an ancient MS. of Polybius in the Vatican, in which he found the word ’I<rdga$. Polybius says also, that the two rivers which flow from the Island, flow from different Alps; this agrees with the Rhone and the Isere, but not with the Saone, which does not take its rise in the Alps at all. It is also worth notice, that in an old MS. of Livy, which M. de Mandajors saw at. Trinity College, Cambridge, the word

Bisarar was written in the 21st book, chap. 31, in the passage which-relates to this island, and where Ar&r. is generally read. Through this country then we have to march 100 miles along the river till we l*each the foot of tHe Alps ; and hereadifficulty presents itself; for in keeping constantly on tliS banks of the river, the 100 miles would be expended at that- part of the Rhone where the BOurbe on the S: and the Ain on the N, throw themselves into it* and where the country is entirely flat.'**'We must however remember, that Polybius was ignorant of the angle made'by the Rhone at Lybns^; and we cannot help seeing, that a march conducted the whole way altfrig the river from Port l’lsere to Yemle, whefe, the Alps begin," \vould have caused the army to have gone over almost twice as much ground; as they would' have traversed ‘ if they had struck across the flat country of the Island, and Avoided by that theans the angle of Lyons. We must therefore take the expression of along the river in this place in an enlarged Sense, and suppose that the ‘prince, who accompanied Hannibal, led him by the shortest road ‘ to the Alps: M/De Luc is of opinion, that they Quitted the Rhone at Vienne,C and rejoined it at St: Genis,- on th6 spot where the Guiers ^if falls'into it, and that they* followed the road which was afterwards«. con-

verted into a Roman one, that is, from Vienne to Bourgoin (Bergusium) and Augusta, now Aouste, to Etanna, now Yenne, and he is confirmed in this opinion, as the distance from Port de l’l sere by the Roman road to Vienne, and thence to Etanna, is 97 miles, and it is only at Etanna that we leave the Rhone altogether. Was Vienne then the capital of the country for which the brothers were contending? M. De Luc is of opinion, and I think with sufficient reason, that it was. Polybius gives us no date as to distances with respect to this capital; but the prince whom Hannibal assisted must have been master of no small * territory, since he was able to supply the Carthaginian army with arms and provisions to Notice de such an extent. Vienne, according to D’An-art. Vienne. ville, was one of the most considerable towns of the Allobroges. Strabo says, that the chief men of that nation having assembled there, had founded a city, the rest of the people being dispersed in the villages. Ptolemy also mentions this town, as being the only considerable one among the Allobroges ; and Polybius himself talks of the brothers as contending vmg rtjg (3curtXetoig, which implies a much higher command than the xctroi fAtgog jyepoveg, whom he mentions afterwards on the arrival of the army at the foot of the Alps. General Melville was

of opinion, that the army turned off at St. Rambert, and crossed the first chain of Alps at the Echelles, without ever rejoining the Rhone; but this march would not at all agree with the distances laid down by Polybius, which by leaving the river at Vienne, and rejoining it at St. Genis, we unite as much as possible the distances and the march along the river, which would in any other manner be incompatible with each other. The situation of Vienne is extremely strong, being placed at an angle of the river, and protected by some heights, which almost entirely surround it. There are here abundance of Roman antiquities, an amphitheatre, a triumphal arch, and a temple resembling the Maison Quarr6e at Nismes. The old town was much more considerable than the modern one, extending itself on the plain on the western side of the river, and having a bridge across, which is now destroyed. It will be seen by the map, that the river makes a turn to the east before it arrives at Vienne, and as there is a range of hills which prevent any road from following its banks to the north, it is probable that the army would on this spot turn off to the east, and cross the flat country. Jean Chorier, who has written on the antiquities of Vienne, which he calls the metropolis of the Allobroges, says, “ Les Gaulois, dont les Allobroges etoient une

“ illustre partie, ont parcu souvent avec honneur “ dans les arm6es des Carthaginois, toujours “ com'pos6es d’Etrangers. Annibal et son fr&re “ Asdrubalayant pris leur route par l’Allobrogie “ pour passer en Italie, y firent de nouvelles “ levies. 11s grossirent leurs armies et peutetre “ laiss6rent dans Vierine,^rqui 6toit la Metropole de ce peuple, quelques uns de leurs Capitaines, ^<c pour maintenir par leur presence la bonne “ intelligence de cette nation avec la leur. Ce “ pays etoit si connu des Carthaginois du tems ^a meriie d’Alexandre que le nom de Rhone fut “ impost par eux a Amilcar pour gratifier notre “ nation^d.” M. De Euc is of opinion, that the Roman road from Vienne to the Mont du Chat, was constructed by Domitius iEnobarbus in the year of Rome 631. This fact if proved'would be important, because it would suppose a previous road to have existed in the same direction; but it does not appear certain that this was the exaci road made after the Roman manner by Domitius, though it is very probable, for it was after his conquest of th& Allobroges and the Arverni that it was made. Be that as it may, the distances authorize tfs to conclude, that the

^d In the Guide de 1’Empire, (an account of France now in course of publication,) mention is made of a strong tradition

army marched in this direction; and this opinion is confirmed by a discovery which was made in/the »village of Passage; a little to the south of La Tour du Pin, and not above half a mile from the present great road from Lyons to Chambery. In the year; 1714 a farmer of that-village struck his plough ,against a large piece,of rock, under which he found after much labour a round plate of silver of 27 inches in diameter. This was deposited in the king’s library at Paris, where it now is/and where I saw it in the autumn of lastiyear. The surface is fluted, except in the centre, where is represented a* lion under a palm tree, below which is the leg and hoof of a goat. The exact resemblance which the lion and palm tree bear to all acknowledged Carthaginian medals, together with the singularity of the engraving, which is not in lines or in relief, according to the Roman manner, but in little points, render it very probable that this plate .was- a votive tablet, placed in that spot either by Hannibal himself, or by some Carthaginian general, who followed him on that road with reinforcements, and who would follow his steps exactly; for it is remarkable, that the army never appear to have been led out of their way, and although they were often attacked by the treachery of their guides, they never appear to have been deceived or misled in the road itself.

It will be seen, from the article on this subject inserted in the Appendix, that there was an old tradition in the country, that the name of Passage was derived from the march of the Carthaginians by that way. The situation of the village itself renders it not improbable that the tablet was deposited here as a votive offering. It stands on a long and high hill, from which you first discover the whole chain of Alps that close the Island. You come at once in sight of them from their very base, and few views can be more striking, as they appear to oppose here an insurmountable obstacle to any further progress. If Hannibal came by this road, it would be on this spot that he would first have his full and complete view of the barriers of Italy; and as Polybius has said once or twice that he was accustomed to sacrifice on great occasions, it is not unreasonable to suppose that he would do so here. The Roman road from Vienne to Chambery passed through Lavisco : now supposing Lavisco to be Chevelu, (a village at the foot of the Mont du Chat,) a fact which the relative distances from Chambery and Aouste will sufficiently prove, we shall have 98 miles from Port de l’lsere to Chevelu at the entrance of the passage over the Mont du Chat. This distance agrees as well with Polybius as it is possible to wish, and we may

encamp the army between that village and the others at the foot of the mountain at the end of the tenth day from the passage of the Isere, and the fourteenth from Hannibal’s leaving the place where he had passed the Rhone.

M. De Luc, whose general accuracy and research cannot be too much praised, has fallen into an error in conducting the army from St. De Luc, Genis along the banks of the Rhone by La^P’ ’ Balme to Yenne. This has been caused by his not having himself examined the ground, and from his supposing that the Roman road to Chambery from Aouste passed through Etanna or Yenne, whereas that road left Etanna to the left, and passed through Lavisco. There was however a road passing through Yenne which Jed from Aouste to Geneva. On our arrival at St. Genis we followed M. De Luc’s road along the river to La Balme, up to this place; though very closely pressed by a high hill on the right, the passage might be practicable ; but at La Balme the river is confined on both sides between two high rocks, which continue nearly to Yenne, and though the road is now very practicable, having been made in modern times with gunpowder, it would have been quite impossible to“ have passed that way formerly. It became therefore necessary to look for another passage, and we were convinced

upon'enquiry and; from observation, that the old road had passed; by St. Maurice, at the back'of the hill which flanks, the modern .road close* to therriver. This,way*by St. Maurice is now not much frequented, as it is very hilly, and intersected by several torrents, which (as the soil is< extremely# soft) .haye Wornj.themselves deep beds^/,which increase ,every y^ar. -The torrents are.all parallel to the chain of the Mont du Chat, and fall into _;tlie Rhone at. Yenne. The passage of that river, between twp. almost perpendicular rocks of great,height, for a. distance of about two tmiles from La Balme to Yenne, is .very magnificent. ’On the french side is a fort, called?Pierre Chatel, from which the view is beautiful, as.it (jommands the river to a great extent. . ,

The Prince of the Allobroges, who accompanied the army, probably lqft them at Aouste, where the Guiers.vif falls into the Rhone, and wherej the flat country pf the Island ends.; for Polybius seems to confine hi£ attendance to the plains; so that from herice,they, were to proceed, accompanied, only by those guides from the plains of the Po \\ho had crosse.d the mountains in ordej; to ask for their assistance, and by such others as they might obtain in the country, or who had perhaps been left with them by the Prince, when he returned to his own ^territories. With these guides th6j array proceeded to the passage of the Mont <Ju Chat. In the next .chapter, I shall give^ an, account of the different passages , which lead , out of the Island over those, mountains \yhich form,; aq*-cording to Polybius, the third side of it, andt I shall conclude the present one with some extracts, from my notes taken on the spot.

August 19, 1819. From Vienne to Bourgoin the road runs along a broad, valley with low flat hills, a raised causeway, probably * the remains of the Roman way. At Septeme, 7 miles from Vienne, (ad Septimum,) country quite open; pass Otier (ociavum) to Dieme, (deci-mum,) very well cultivated, clover, corn, fine walnut trees, lucerne, turnips, full of farm houses; before Bourgoin, small round hills of sand stone. To the north, high hills, under which the Rhone runs, so that its course is very visible. At Bourgoin join the great road from Lyons to Chambery, to Tour du Pin. Passage on the right, from hence a magnificent view of the Alps, shutting in the i>ij<ro$. To Aouste country bolder, hills more prolonged; at Aouste, (Augusta Allobrogum,) several Roman remains. The Guiers vif runs through it, and divides France from Savoy. The hills on the other side of the Rhone, which is about half a mile from Aouste, very high; from Aouste

cross the Guiers vif to St. Genis; from hence two roads to Yenne; one close to the river, a good and modem one; the other by St. Maurice, at the back of the hills which confine the other. The AustriansJ in coming from Savoy into France in 1815, took the latter, as the French commanded the modern road from Pierre Chatel. Yenne in a small plain, very rich; Rhone flowing close to it. The old Yenne, or Etanna, now destroyed, about a mile E. S. E. from it. Several Roman remains here, and a beautiful view of the Rhone and surrounding country. The Mont du Chat passage, E. by N. very high.

ACCOUNT OF THE DIFFERENT PASSAGES OVER THE MOUNTAINS WHICH INCLOSE THE ISLAND. MONT DU CHAT

We are to begin this chapter with an examination of the passages from the Island over the first chain of the Alps, in order to shew that we are justified in taking the army by the Mont du Chat®; which although not absolutely the shortest way, was certainly the earliest as well as the most frequented. The passages at the present day are, first, by Moirans to Voreppe and Grenoble, and thence up the Isere by the valley of the Gresivaudan to Montmeillan: second, the great post road from Les Echelles and the Pont de Beauvoisin by the Crotte to Chambery : third, the road of Aiguebellette, which passes through that place, to the south of the

^e While the description which Polybius gives of the chain of mountains, which closed the third side of the wra?, agrees admirably with the rugged barrier that extends from Grenoble to the Rhone, the expression oypfof, m um7v, *7r£wrx, evidently points out a passage through it; Lib. iii. c. 49.

lake of that name, to Chambery: fourth, the passage of the Mont de l’Epine by Novalese, which runs under the end of the highest crest of the Mont du Chat, and leads equally to Chambery: and, lastly, the passage of the Mont du Chat itself. By one of these it was necessary that Hannibal should pass, for if he had gone over the Rhone to the north, Polybius would have stated it; and such a step would have carried him entirely out of his way, and thrown him into that most mountainous and difficult country above Belley; if he had not crossed the Rhone, but continued along its banks, , he would have been equally too much to the north, and entangled in the country round Annecy, across which no road exists from west to east. 1 return therefore to the five passages above mentioned; and of these the one to the southward, although a Roman road, could not have been the one alluded to by Polybius, since if the army had intended to have taken this way, they would certainly not have marched 100 miles along the Rhone, but would have kept by the side of the Isere^f. The passage of the Echelles

^f The rocks also on the northern bank of the Isere came formerly so close to the river, that it would have been impossible to have turned them, so that the troops must have crossed the river, which is there very deep.

the second Duke of Savoy; and before his time it was passed by ladders, and is consequently out of the question. The two next, by Aigue-bellette and Novalese, pass directly over the crest of the mountains \ they are very seldom used, and are only practicable for mules, being very little more than foot pdths; the southern one by Aiguebellette comes from the Pont de Beauvoisin, and is therefore hardly near enough to the Rhone; but the NoValese road begins at St. Genis, and so fulfils that condition. It does not however approach so near to the distance of 800 stadia as the road by the Mont du Chat, since it is about 10 miles nearer. Now though D’Anviiie, D’Anville, in * his Notice de la Gaule, article LaSo**’ Lavisco, calls this road by Novalese, the Roman road from Aouste to Chambery; yet he was certainly mistaken in this particular. From the article in question it is evident that he was ignorant of the existence of the passage by the Mont du Chat; for in treating of Lavisco itself, which in the Itineraries is placed according to his own account at 14 miles from Augusta Allobrogum, (Aouste,) and 14 from Lemincum, (Chambery,) altogether *28 miles from Aouste to Chambery. he is vefy'much at a loss where to place⁵ it. The distance’by the only road with which he was acquainted, that of Novalese, being not more than 17 miles instead of 28, he

is reduced to the necessity of supposing an error in the Itineraries, and instead of 14 miles to read 8, i. e. a V for an X. Now even supposing this to be true, the village of Novalese, which is the place that Mr. -D’Anville points out as the old Lavisco, is nearer Chambery than Aouste, whereas it ought to be equidistant from both. But if we go by the Mont du Chat, there is no necessity to alter the Itineraries at all, for by this road the distance from Chambery to Aouste will be as nearly as possible 28 miles, and the village of Chevelu at the foot of the pass will be equidistant from both places. The distance from each place to Chevelu was, as nearly as I could judge from the time employed in performing it, 14 miles, and there are some very old remains at Chevelu which appear to be Roman buildings.

From the Itineraries alone then, unsupported by any other circumstances, we may fairly conclude that the fifth and last passage, that by the Mont du Chat, was the Roman road; but this opinion will be very much strengthened by an account of the present state of the road itself. The Mont du Chat extends almost directly north from the Mont de VEpine at its southern extremity, about 6 miles to the passage in question; beyond this passage it runs still to the north for about 5 miles more, to the channel by

which the waters of the Lac du Bourget are discharged into the Rhone. It is impossible to turn the mountain at this extremity, because it falls so perpendicularly into the Lake, that from Hautecombe to Bordeaux there is not even a foot-path, and a boat cannot even land upon it. To a person standing in the plain below this chain, at Yenne for instance, the Chevelu passage appears to be the only one by which the mountain can be crossed, for the intermediate part between Chevelu and the Mont de l’Epine is very high, and so perpendicular, as to be quite inaccessible. The Mont de l’Epine itself appears very rugged, and difficult of access, consisting of a great assemblage of naked rocks, forming altogether a pass of great breadth, which it would be the object of an invading army to avoid. The Chevelu pass, on the, other hand, being much lower than any other part of the mountain, presents every appearance of facility; ii bends inward^ in a half circle, and the road rises very gradually to the top : a small stream, which rises out of a little lake about half way up the mountain, runs very slowly down its side, and all the features of the place agree with the expression used by Polybius of evzuigot roiroi, through which alone the army could pass. From the village of Chevelu, which is at the foot of the steepest part of the

ascent of the mountain, it is about 2 miles to the top. On leaving Chevelu we find the remains of a fort; on the left, after this, the ascent is steeper. On the top of the mountain is a flat of about 300 yards: The passage is divided into two parts, by an immense rock of about 200 yards*in length; and nearly half that space iii breadth ; the great road rims to the S. of it, the rock standing E. and W. and a smaller road from some other villages runs on the N. side, and joins the great rbad'at the descent on the Lake of Boitfget.' The great road itself is by no means bad, and we passed it easily in a char drawn by two horses. The Austrians passed^,!bver it in force in 1815 with baggage and artillery. * The road oil the top is covered with stones, which have formed part of a temple that stood here, and of which the foundation still exists, and is very ’easily traced. The stones are well cut, many cornices being perfect, and we ft>uiid^Mthe itisdription. which has given rise to the idea tlfat the temple was dedicated to’ Mercury. From the stimmit the view is very fine. The Lac du Bourget is at your feet, and¹ thd rich v&lle^ in which Chambery Stands, together vrith the magnificent chain' of mountains that inclose the Is6r&r > Lyons-itself may be seen-from the summit of the Mont du Chat, which is however*considerably higher than the

passage. The great breadth of the road, the facility of the pass, the agreement of the position of Chevelu with the Lavisco of the Itineraries, and, above all, the temple, sufficiently prove this to be the Roman way; and if this pass were not in almost every way preferable to that by the Mont de l’Epine and Novalese, why should this latter road be still nothing but a mule track, when it certainly is much shorter than the former? The truth is, that the Chevelu.passage is pointed out at once to the most superficial observer, by the extreme facility of its ascent; while the other, from its great difficulty, has been always looked upon as almost impracticable. If then it be clearly established, that the Chevelu pass was the Roman way, and since it continued to be the great road into Savoy till the opening of the passage of the Echelles, we may fairly infer that it was the best and easiest, and therefore the fittest, for the Carthaginian army to take, especially if we find it agree, as it does in almost every particular, with the description of the passage by which they actually did penetrate, as given by Polybius; and for the purpose of establishing this agreement, it will now be necessary to return to our author. I have said, that the temple on the summit of the passage of the Mont du Chat was reported to be

dedicated to Mercury. 1 hardly think that the inscription bears out this opinion. M. Albanis de Beaumont, in his description des Alpes Grecques, calls this mountain the Mons Thuates, but without giving his authority. Now Theut and Thait in Armoric are the names of the deity

Di!s°viari ^W^° P^res^^ec* ^over highways, and who was and ^muc^ worshipped by the Gauls; hence Csesar Camden, says, that that people principally worshipped de Beib*^ar Mercury, who had the same office among the iib. 6. ’ Roman deities. The name therefore of Mons Thuates would argue a passage here of very high antiquity, and the temple, if really dedicated to Mercury, would tend strongly to the confirmation of this opinion. Let us now see how the passage agrees with the account given by Polybius: we left off our abstract of his ac_c. 4i. count at the place where Hannibal, finding the passage occupied by the Allobroges, encamped at the foot of it. We are told, that, finding from his spies that the enemy abandoned their position in the night, and only returned to it in the morning, he occupied the pass during the night with his light troops, so that he was able to carry the rest of the army through in the morning, as the Allobroges when they saw his position abstained from attacking him. When however they saw the extreme difficulty with which the cavalry and beasts of burden extri-

cated themselves from the bad road, they began an assault upon them, and that with so much success, that Hannibal was himself obliged to go to their assistance with his best troops. As he charged them from above, he succeeded at length in dispersing them, and immediately proceeded with all the men that he could collect to attack their chief town, which he took by assault, as the inhabitants had joined the Allobroges. Here he found great abundance of horses and beasts of burden, as well as a supply of corn and cattle fully sufficient for two or three days. So far Polybius: and it will be seen, on reference to the plan of the passage, that the rock which we have already described, and which stands in the middle of the pass, would, if occupied by troops, render it impossible for an attacking force to penetrate at all, and would most effectually secure the passage, especially as from the steepness of the sides of the rock it would be almost impossible to dislodge the occupants. This rock, as well perhaps as the higher part of the Mont du Chat itself on the S. of the pass, was in all probability the position occupied by the Allobroges first, and by Hannibal afterwards. It is worthy of observation, that Polybius uses the words ra s'eva when speaking of the position taken up by the light troops at night, but he invariably applies the term hvtryjugiut to the road

which the army were obliged to take on emerge ing from the pass itself, and during the attack of the Allobroges on the baggage and cavalry. It is perhaps too much to suppose that these phrases were intentionally so applied, arid yet if not intentional, they furnish.a singular.instance of apt though accidental illustration of the roadJt-self. For as soon as it quits the actual passage through the mountain, it descends in_; zigzags upon the,village of Bourdeaux and the.lake of Bourget, and in this part the mountain is ex* tremely steep, rocky, and precipitous. From hence to the village of Bourget, a distance of about four.miles and a half, the mountain slopes gradually downwards from its top, to within about 200 yards of the lake; after .which it becomes exceedingly rocky, and in many places plunges perpendicularly into its waters. The modern road runs at the foot of the slope, which is itself so steep, as to make it very difficult of ascent. Upon this slope the Barbarians would naturally station themselves, and the Carthaginian light troops might move along the top of it, when they saw the baggage in danger, and so charge down upon them. Polybius says positively, that the road was T^ay/ict, and zgvfAvcoSqg, and that the horses were carried down precipices; and this is exactly what would happen at this passage, under

similar circumstances. At Bourget, which is a town 6f some size and antiquity, the road quits the mountain, and crosses over a very rich plain to Chambery, about seven liiiles distant s. The fighting would continue till the troops reached the plain; and it is not too much to suppose that Hannibal was able to reach the town with ease before night, especially as no resistance was offered. The great quantity of supplies which the army found in this town supposes the existence of a most fertile country; and certainly no place at the entrance of the Alps_? with the exception perhaps of Grenoble, is so well qualified for maintaining a large army as Chambery. There is however a difficulty with respect to this town as to its distance from the Mont du Chat, which it is right to mention. Polybius says, that the Allobroges retired every night from the pass to a town in the neighbourhood, and returned in the morning. And it appears from the text, that the town which Hannibal took by assault, was the same to which they were accustomed to retire. Now although he might very easily, after the battle, march as far ; i ; ,‘t / '> t * ’ . .

as Chambery, it can hardly be supposed that the Barbarians should go so far every night and morning, especially as it was important that they should be at their posts early and late. M. De Luc has not noticed this difficulty, but it certainly is of great importance. There is a village called Yieux Chambery, a mile and a half nearer to Bourget than the modern town ; but even that will not be near enough for our purpose. It is possible that Bourget itself might be the town in question, for it is even now a large place; and this is rendered more probable by our knowledge, that the modern Chambery is not the Roman town, that being Lemenc, close to it. There is also Yieux Chambery and other villages between Bourget and Lemenc. For the protection of the passage of the Mont du Chat, Bourget is much more favourably situated, and it would have had all the advantages of the plain of Chambery for its supplies as a town, as well as all the advantages of its present situation for defence. From Bourget, the Allobroges could with the greatest ease have gone in the morning to the pass itself, and returned again at night. From all these considerations it is probable, that Bourget was the town in question. And here the army after its capture encamped for one day. If Chambery was decidedly the town mentioned by Polybius, it would furnish an argument in favour of the passage of the army by Novalese and the Mont de l’Epine; for the distance from the top of that passage to Chambery is not more than four miles, but the descent of the mountain on that side is not at all precipitous; and as the road goes over the ridge of the mountain, and comes down directly upon the plain, there would have been no opportunity for the Allobroges to have attacked the army on their descent; while on the Mont du Chat road their flank was constantly exposed. The general character of the Mont du Chat is extremely perpendicular and difficult on the French or west face of it, and more easy of ascent and sloping on the E. or Savoy side; it is cultivated on the latter, but not at all on the former, and it forms altogether a very striking feature in the country: as from the passage at Chevelu to the Mont de l’Epine there is a long straight naked ridge, of immense height, like a great screen, when it is viewed from Dauphiny; an appearance altogether so remarkable, that it cannot be mistaken. Supposing then Bourget to be the town of the Allobroges, we shall conclude this chapter with the arrival of the army in this place.

The side of the mountain, immediately above the lake of Bourget, is covered with very fine and large old chesnut trees ; further on there

are vines. The lake is here of great depth, and is very beautiful. We were seven hours in going from Yenne to Chambery, in a char with two horses, but vve stopped for some time on the top of the passage. h . ' ^f : * ) q - . i! > iti '

MARCH OF THE ARMY PROM BOURGET TO SCEZ. DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY THROUGH WHICH THEY PASSED. ROMAN ROAD THROUGH IT.

WE have now entered upon the Alps themselves, in the passage of which the army employed fifteen days, the length of the march being 1200 stadia, or 150 miles; and if we have Poiyb. been correct in the reasoning by which we have been induced to encamp the army in the plain of Chambery at the end of the first day, we can hardly be liable to any mistake hereafter; for once at Chambery, the road must of necessity carry them to Montmeillan, and from thence up the Isere. Polybius says, that having halted one day after the action in the town which he had taken, and having procured ample supplies, the army set forward on their march, and proceeded in safety for some days; but on the fourth the inhabitants of the country through which he was passing came out to meet them with boughs and garlands, and notwithstanding all the suspicions of Hannibal, they Succeeded

in persuading him of their sincerity, by offering him hostages for their good conduct, and by supplying the troops with cattle in abundance. In consequence of this, he took some of them with him as guides for two days more, at the end of which those people having assembled a great force, attacked the army at the entrance of a ravine, difficult of access and precipitous. From the plain of Chambery to the point of attack we have six days, and this time, according to Polybius, brings us to the foot of the highest ridge of the Alps; for we shall find, in the fifty-third chapter, that Hannibal having passed the night of the sixth on the field of battle, put himself on the morning of the seventh at the head of the army, and led them forthwith to the summit of the Alps, which he reached early on that day, the seventh from Chambery, and the ninth from his passage of the Mont du Chat. Now although Polybius is extremely sparing of his description of the country through which the army passed, till they arrived at the foot of the highest chain; yet, as has been before observed, it is next to impossible that having once arrived at Chambery, they could take any other road but that of the little St. Bernard. It is true, that at present, the road by the Mont Cenis passes equally through Chajjnbery and Montmeilian,

and ascends the lsere for a short distance afterwards ; yet, as this road is not mentioned by Strabo, in his enumeration of the passages over the Alps, according to Polybius, it is clear that this latter author was unacquainted with it, which he certainly would not have been if Hannibal had passed over it. Strabo himself says nothing about it as of his own knowledge, and it was therefore unknown to the Romans; but even supposing this not to be the case, the river Arc, along which the Mont Cenis road runs, makes its way through a valley so rocky, and so barren of all cultivation, that no moderate quantity of troops (much less so large an army as that of Hannibal) could possibly find in it supplies sufficient for their subsistence, nor could the miserable inhabitants, who could be supported in this country, presume enough upon their strength to attack so great a number of troops. Finally; why should Hannibal, who was provided with guides, who must have known the best road, have gone by the worst, even if it had been known at that time, when the best lay equally open to him. The valley of the lsere, along which we suppose the army to have marched on their way to the little St. Bernard, is by far the richest, the most fertile, most cultivated, and most populous of all the valleys on the western side of the Alps. The vine grows

almost at the foot of the St. Bernard itself; and the great breadth of the valley, together with the extraordinary heat of the summers, enables them to grow sometimes three crops in the year. The sides of the mountains are cultivated almost to their summits, and are covered with farm houses; sb: that there would be no difficulty in obtaining supplies to any amount, especially cattle, of which they have great quantities, that are fed in the summer upon the tops of the mountains. Aldrig this fertile valley the army would naturally proceed ; and we shall find, that the time spent in passing through it agrees extremely well with the distance from the St. Bernard to the plain of Chambery, and the average number of miles, which troops, encumbered as they were with provisions and baggage, and marching in a single column, would perform in a day. The army would naturally follow the course of the river; and by that means would find themselves almost precisely in the track occupied at a later period by the great Roman road from Vienna to Augusta; and this Roman road ran as nearly as possible where the present one does, as may be proved both from the distances laid down in the Itineraries, and from some remains of it which have been found in various places. On the Roman road, according to the Itineraries, the first sta-

tionfrom Lemincum (Chambery)is Mantala, and the distance sixteen miles. The second, ad Pub-licanos or Conflans, at the same distance from Mantala. D’Anville, in his account of this road, Noticc de instead of making it join the Isere at Mont- Gauie^rt? meillan, and thence along its banks to Conflans, ^MantaIa* which would give thirty-two miles in the whole, and consequently agree exactly with the Itineraries, has supposed the existence of a road running directly east from Chambery, over some extremely high and very difficult mountains, and joining the Isere at a place called Man* taillet. This makes it necessary for him to suppose an error in the Itineraries as to the distance between Mantala, and ad Publicanos, (Conflans,) about which latter place there can be no doubt at all. M. De Luc has I think with more propriety placed Mantala at Bourg Evescal, which is sixteen miles from Chambery, by the Montmeillan road, and the same distance from Conflans. There is at present no road whatever across the mountains in the direction which D’Anville supposes, the chain being of a great height, Conflans, or rather PHopital, which is a sort of suburb attached to Conflans, a little to the north, and upon the river Arly, is ad Publicanos without any doubt.

This Latin name, according to D’Anville, designates a place where toll was taken for the pas-

sage of a bridge, or the entrance into a new territory; and l’Hopital marks the existence of an Hospitium or Stabulum, which would naturally be erected at such a place. Now the bridge for which toll would be taken would be the bridge over the Arly, which runs here into the Isere; and as this river formed the boundary between the territories of the Allobroges and Centrones, we have an additional reason for the payment of a toll in this place. From ad Publicanos, where the road entered the country of the Centrones, (the modern Tarentaise,) to Darantasia the capital, the Itineraries give sixteen miles, three to Oblimum, and thirteen to Darantasia. M. I. I. Roche, director of the royal saltworks at Moutiers, who has published a small treatise upon the Centrones, places Oblimum at La B&tie, a little more than three miles from I’Hopital, and derives the name from the large deposits of mud and sand which the Isere makes at its angle in this place. On the opposite side of the river, and at the same distance from l’Hopital, is a small village called St. Blaye, which may have taken its name from the Roman station. Darantasia, according to M. Roche, whose reasons are sufficiently, convincing, must be placed at the old town of Salins, now almost deserted, and a_: little to the south of Moutiers, which is more modern. The

road appears to have crossed to the left bank of the river about half way between Conflans and Moutiers, and to have repassed it at the village of Chentron or Centron, about five miles^* from Moutiers. From Darantasia the Itineraries give ten miles to Axuma, now Ayme, one of the chief towns of the Centrones, and, according to inscriptions discovered there, probably called Forum Claud ii, before the name of Axuma was finally given to it. It is true that Ptolemy mentions h roiig Tgulcug ’'AXnetri, Kev-rguvuv <&ogog KXayJ/a, ’A|/^a, meaning apparently two distinct places. Forum Claudii is however not marked in the Itineraries, and the inscriptions themselves seem to indicate that Ayne was first called Oppidum Centronum, then Forum Claudii, and lastly Axuma. The village of Centron has no remains of antiquities, and does not appear ever to have been much larger than it is at present, but its name is certainly derived from the Centrones. From Axuma to Bergintrum, now Bourg St. Maurice, eight miles; from thence to Scez two miles; making altogether from Chambery a distance of seventy miles, or, if we take it from Bourget, of seventy-seven miles, as the march of the army along the flat country of the Alps, from the first ascent at the Mont du Chat to the foot of the highest chain at Scez: this being performed

in six days, would be at the rate of thirteen miles a day, or perhaps rather more; for he must have reached Scez about the middle of the sixth day, as it was on that spot that he was attacked during his march by the mountaineers. Such at least is the distance by the Roman road, and the course of the army could not be materially different from it. Very little difficulty could be encountered during this part of the marchi and we find that Polybius makes mention of none whatever. From Chambery to Montmeillan the valley •' is large and very rich, and from thence to Conflans, though not so wide as the valley of the Gresivauclan, it is still very large. From the fort of Montmeillan, which commands both these valleys, the view is beautiful. The roads are altogether excellent, and generally bordered by fine walnut trees. At Freterive, a village a little beyond the place where Mantala probably stood, are several Roman inscriptions extremely perfect. We met however with none which related to the name of the place. Opposite to this village is the entrance of the Maurienne, and the valley which leads up the river Arc to the Mont Cenis. We saw vines every where, on the north side of the river, along which the modern road runs. The crops were very fine, and the land well cultivated. The valley is here about two miles broad, and the ground well calculated for the march of troops. For six miles before we arrive at Conflans, the road is quite straight, very fine and broad; the country covered with fine wood, where it is not under corn or vines. Walnuts and oaks. The old Roman way ran close to the river, and has been covered by its inundations; beyond Conflans the valley is much narrower* but widens again, and the mountains are very high on the sides of the river. Before Moustier it narrows exceedingly, and is very rocky : the old road passed on the southern side of the river: the town of Moustier stands in a little plain quite surrounded by mountains. There are here some very rich salt springs, and there are silver and lead mines near it, as well as a mineral spring of great celebrity. From hence the valley is at first narrow, but soon widens; the country still very populous, but the fertility such that they export great quantities of corn and much cattle. A great spirit of independence is observable every where; the people do not appear to want any thing from abroad, but are all of opinion, that they have amply sufficient for themselves. At Ayme a small river runs into the lsere, which turns several saw mills, and there is an appearance of great industry and prosperity in the town. Mr. Roche, to whose book I have already alluded,

quotes several inscriptions, to shew that this town was formerly the Forum Claudii of the Centrones, and that it was called Axima at a later period. In addition to the inscriptions are the following verses, which may perhaps not be thought misplaced here.

At 3 or 4 miles from St. Maurice, on turning a rock which comes down close to the river, you open upon a large plain, in which stands that town and Scez. The passage of the little St. Bernard is directly in front, and so marked, that it is impossible to mistake it; on both sides of it the mountains are very high, and covered with snow; and the passage itself seems low and practicable. A large gypsum rock, called universally La Roche blanche, stands at the entrance of it. The plain itself is cultivated, but near the passage firs alone are seen, all other trees having disappeared. From this plain the army would have to enter the defile of the passage of the

little St. Bernard in the middle of the sixth day. They had left the territory of the Allobroges at Conflans, and entered upon that of the.Cen-trones. The former were separated by the Isere, on the south from the Segalauni and Vocantii; to the east they bordered on the Medulli and Centrones; to the north on the Nantuates and, Helvetii; and to the west on the Segusiani, Ambarri, and Sequanis. The territory of the Centrones was according to .D’Anville very much w'hat the Tarentaise is now, and Pliny calls them borderers, that is, bordering on Italy. Ptolemy places them on the Graian Alps, and on that side they touched the Salassi, who inhabited the valley of Aoste. The army would reach Conflans in three days from Bourget, and it was on the fourth.day that the envoys met them. This circumstance is in itself sufficient to point out their entrance into the territories of another, people. Polybius describes these envoys as coming out to meet Hannibal, 0aXXov$ t%ovres zu) (rreQuvovg. Dom Vincent Thuillier, in his

⁸ The name of Acitavones, cited by Pliny in the trophy of the Alps, lib. iii. c. 20. is supposed by the best critics to be a mistake for Centrones, this people not being mentioned at any other time; and it is not likely that so great a tribe as the Centrones should have been omitted. Caesar first mentions them as having opposed his passage, vid. Introduction. D’Anville, Notice de la Gaule, Art. Centrones, p. 22 h

translation of this passage, has rendered Xovs, olive branches, a mistake which has induced the Marquis de St. Simon to carry the army as low as Barcelonnette, that being the only place to the north of the Durance where olive trees grow. On the fourth day the army would arrive very near Moustier, on the fifth between Ayme and St. Maurice, and on the middle of the sixth they would be at Scez; having arrived thus far without experiencing any difficulty from the want of supplies, and having been engaged in no action since the passage of the Mont du Chat. The great size of the army, drawing as it evidently did its resources from the country through which it passed, sufficiently proves, that this country must have been well cultivated, and consequently full of inhabitants; and this latter circumstance is confirmed by the host of barbarians, who hung upon his rear, and attacked him on his passage from Scez. No other of the known passages of the Alps can be at all compared with this one, in these two essential qualities; and it is only necessary to have passed through the Maurienne or Mont Cenis road, and the road from the Mont Genevre, along the Romanche to Grenoble, to be convinced, that a large army without magazines must have been starved in any attempt to get through them. It is upon this fact, which has

never been sufficiently considered before, that I am inclined to lay the greatest stress, and when united with the agreement of distances, it becomes almost irresistible. In the next chapter we shall enter upon the passage of the St. Bernard, and shall shew, that the situation of the pass corresponds as nearly as possible with the description given by Polybius of the spot where the army was attacked by the Centrones, on the middle of the sixth day of their march from Bourget and the plain of Chambery.

ATTACK MADE ON THE ARMY AT THE FOOT OF THE GREAT CHAIN OF THE ALPS. THEIR ASCENT TO THE SUMMIT. DESCRIPTION OF THE LITTLE ST. BERNARD. ENCAMPMENT THERE.

. 53. Polybius, in his relation of the attack made upon the army on their entrance into the defiles at the foot of the highest chain of the Alps, says, that they must all have perished, if Hannibal had not placed the baggage in the front, and the heavy armed troops in the rear. Still however the loss was very great, as the barbarians rolled rocks and stones upon them, so that he was obliged to pass the night with some of his best troops upon a certain ^R Xsvxoxsrgov o%vgov, by which manoeuvre he was enabled to protect the line of march. The night was almost spent before the army had entirely passed the defiles; and as the barbarians had by this time given up their attacks, Hannibal quitted his position, and putting himself at the head of the

column, led them on to the highest summit of the Alps. Here he encamped for two days, during which time he was joined by many stragglers, and horses that had been left behind ; he arrived at the summit on the ninth day, from his first ascent of the Mont du Chat.

It will be seen, on reference to the plan of the passage of the St. Bernard, that at Scez the I sere makes an angle. The valley through which it runs from the Mont Iseran being on the S. E. while that from Scez to Moustier is S. W. At this angle it is joined by the Reclus, which takes its rise in the mountain of the little St. Bernard. The modern road goes from Scez to Villars, and soon after crosses the Reclus, and goes up the side of the mountain to St. Germain, running from thence along the right bank of that stream, till it arrives very near its source, when it again crosses it, and joins the old road, which had always kept on the left bank; on this left bank, and just above the first bridge, by which the modern road crosses the Reclus, stands a high white rock of gypsum, called in the country universally La Roche blanche. The Reclus, whose course is N. E. and S. W. runs under its side, and is confined in a very deep and rocky channel. On the other side of the rock is a woody ravine, through which another small stream flows, which afterwards

comes down through Villars to Scez. The remains of the Roman road made by Augustus have been discovered in the neighbourhood of Yillars, and it probably went up this woody ravine in the manner laid down in the plan. The present road by St. Germain is quite modern. From the words used by Polybius <pd-guyya, nvoi dvirScirov %ai Kgyjpvudq, w^rhich apply extremely well to the bed of the Reclus. we might be tempted to suppose, that the , army had marched up this torrent; but this passage would have been so difficult, that I can hardly conceive it possible to have been accomplished. The Roman road, though very much exposed to the attacks of the barbarians, would have been more easy. As the two passages unite towards the source of the Reclus, it is possible that separate columns might have marched up each of them; but whether they took the line of the torrent, or the Roman road, or both, the position of the Roche blanche was eminently calculated for the defence of their march. From hence Hannibal commanded the whole plain of Scez, and was able to act against the enemy on the heights above St. Germain, as well as upon those on the flanks of the Roman road. General Melville and M. De Luc attach great importance to the fact of the existence of a white rock, in the exact spot on which, ac-

The expression itself occurs only twice in Polybius, and I am not aware that it is to be found in any other author. Literally translated, Xevxoxsrgov means a white rock ; but in the 10th book, chap. 27, where the word again occurs, it must be taken in the sense of a naked rock. Without therefore relying too much upon this coincidence, it is certainly worth remarking. M. De Luc has given a very animated description of General Melville’s passage De Lac, p. over this ground, and of his discovery of the Roche blanche, while he had his Polybius in his hand. It is quite certain that the rock in question is called universally by this name, and that there is a tradition among the inhabitants that a great battle had been fought at the foot of it.

Our guide, who was a very respectable inhabitant of Villar, talked as a matter of every day conversation of Hannibal, and of his march through the country at the time of the Saracens.

He assured us also that he had himself seen and handled very large bones of beasts, which had been taken out of the little stream that flows through the ravine, up which the Roman road passed. These bones, he said, were much larger than those of oxen; and when the little stream overflowed and washed away the soil, some of these bones were sometimes found.

He himself made no mention of elephants, and seemed ignorant what the bones were: some of them, he said, had been preserved, but we were unable to discover where. The extreme difficulty of the road will very easily account for the whole night spent on the march; but as the passage up to the top of the St. Bernard widens considerably towards the end, Hannibal might without difficulty, after the enemy had desisted from their attacks, get up to the head of the troops, and lead them to the plain on the summit of the mountain. It is remarkable here, as well as elsewhere, that no mention whatever is made of any attempt made by the guides to mislead the army. They appear to have been always upon the right road, and no delay occurs excepting that which arises from the badness of the way and the attacks of the enemy. When these attacks cease, they find their way to the summit, which, if we have been right in our original conception of their route, they could not well fail to do; for the pass, which is visible from a great distance, goes directly from Scez to the top of the St. Bernard, neither turning to the right nor to the left. I have before remarked, that it was impossible to mistake the passage of the Mont du Chat, and from thence the road along the Isere is so clear, that, even without guides, it could not be missed. The

road up the St. Bernard is visible from St. Maurice, and, being much lower than the surrounding mountains, seems to have been pointed out by nature before any artificial labour was bestowed on it. We were four hours and a half in going from Scez to the hospital at the top of the mountain by the modern road ; the Roman one is not so long. It had been in Bonaparte’s contemplation to carry a new road up the ravine where the Roman one passed, and we saw "races of the preparations that had been made for it. It is certain that this is altogether the easiest passage over the Alps; for although that of the Mont Genevre is lower, there is no getting from Brian$on into the plains without crossing some of the secondary chains, which are of ^reat height and difficulty, while the Isere affords an easy way to the very foot of the St. Bernard without any check at all. De Saussure, in his Voyages dans les Alpes, tom. 4, calls it, “ Le passage des Alpes le plus facile que je “ connoisse.” It was on the ninth day in the morning from the passage of the Mont du Chat, as we have already explained, that the army reached the summit; and this, according to Dr. Maskelyne, was about the 26th of October; for Polybius says that it was at the time of the setting of the Pleiades, and Gen. Melville consulted Dr. M. as to the time at which this took

place. The army halted on the summit for two days ; and there is in fact a plain here of about two miles and a half in length, which is fully capable of containing the number of troops which Hannibal had with him at this time. The plain is, according to De Saussure, 1125 toises above the level of the sea; it is well sheltered, and in the centre of it is a small lake. The river Doire takes its rise here. The hospital or convent is situated very near the entrance of it on the Savoy side, and is a small building formerly inhabited by a colony of monks from the great St. Bernard, but now by two men who reside there at the expence of the government. They have a supply of salt provisions and wine, and remain here all the winter. During the summer months the traffic is considerable, and mules are constantly passing. The carriage road ends at St. Maurice on the Savoy side, and at La Tuille on the Piemont side; and mules alone are used for the passage of the mountain. In 1815, however, a column of Austrians of six thousand men and ten pieces of cannon passed over it. These were in all probability the. same troops that we heard of at the Mont du Chat. They had put forward to have the road repaired; and when we crossed in August, 1819, we found that we should have had very little difficulty in passing with a light char.

This body of men marched in one day from Pont Serrant to Villars. Trees cease after the village of St. Germain. We saw hardly any snow on our passage on the 24th of August; the high mountains, however, on each side were covered with it. There is no cultivation on the summit, except that there is a little garden which adjoins the convent. We did not find the cold at all severe; and the thermometer, sheltered from the wind and sun, stood, at half-past nine a. m. at 54. About three quarters of a mile to the N. E. of the convent stands the Colonne de Joux, or Columna Jovis, a broken pillar of reddish granite % about twenty feet high, and seven in circumference. Though this is called the Column of Jupiter, it might have belonged to a temple of Hercules, which stood, according to Petronius, upon the Alpis Graia:

Alpibus aeriis, ubi Graio nomine pulsae Descendunt rapes, et se patiuntur adiri,

About three hundred yards to the N. E. of this column is a large circle of stones of eighty yards in diameter, exactly resembling what we call a druidical circle. The stones are very large, and in general so deeply sunk in the

^a De Saussure calls it Cipoline marble, but upon a very close inspection it appeared to be granite.

earth as not to be more than two or three feet above it. This is universally called the Circle of Hannibal; and the tradition of the country is, that he held a council of war in that circle. Our host at Scez had talked much of these stones, and our guide also; but as their testimony might not be wholly uninterested, we were satisfied on finding a large party of muleteers and country people assembled at the convent, who were all as well acquainted with the circle of Hannibal as our first informants: ,the name was constantly mentioned by them without any en_r quiry on our part. After arriving at the source of the Reclus, the road rises very slowly, and the ascent appears to be altogether so easy, that it is difficult to persuade oneself that one has arrived at the summit of the great chain of the Alps. The snow begins to fall in September, and the inhabitants said that their winter began at Michaelmas. The distance from Chevelu to the Alpis Graia is, by the Itineraries, ninety-two miles. The army employed eight days in performing this space, as they halted one day at Chambery, which gives a rate of eleven miles and half a day.

Polybius goes on,to tell us, in the fifty-fourth chapter, that as there was already much snow on the mountain, and the troops were beginning to sink under the hardships they had encountered, in order to raise their spirits Hannibal pointed out to them the plains around the Po, and the situation of Rome itself, and by these means succeeded in encouraging them a little.

This passage presents some difficulty, for it is undoubtedly certain, that from the plain on the summit of the little St. Bernard, it is quite impossible to see the country round the Po, or the situation of Rome itself. Fortunately however for our theory, it is equally certain that this country is alike invisible from all the other known passages of the Alps. The very circumstance of a passage over this enormous chain of mountains supposes a depression in the chain, for no man at>all acquainted with the country, or with the difficulties attendant upon a march through it, could for a moment suppose that the inhabitants themselves would attempt to scale the inaccessible precipices of the highest ridges; and if not the inhabitants, how much less would an army, encumbered, as it must be, by its baggage, aiid beasts of burden, take any way but that pointed out to them, by the very nature of the place, and the previous passage of the natives of the country. I have said, that the very circumstance of a passage supposes a breach in the main ridge, and if so, it will follow that the passage, from being lower than the surrounding mountains, must be effectually debarred from any extensive view; and the facts themselves agree with this reasoning, for nothing is visible from the Simplon, from the great Sfo Bernard, the Mont Cenis, or the Mont Genevre, any more than from the little St. Bernard. It is impossible even to command a view of any extent of the valleys themselves by which you descend, for it will be easy to see, by consulting a good map of tKe Alps, that the great chain is ¹ always flanked by smaller ones that run off from it at right angles, like the buttresses of a cathedral, and these are in their turn flanked by smaller ribs; so that as the main chain itself runs in many different directions, the valleys at the foot of it are necessarily very winding, and no one exists which maintains the same course for many miles together. But even if we allowed it for a moment to be possible for an army as large as that of Hannibal to climb over a part of the highest ridge of the Alps, which should be so high as to enable them to command a view of the plains round the Po, it w ould even then from the nature of the ground be absolutely impossible for them to encamp on this ridge. The passage itself however would be absolutely impracticable; and although the general accuracy of Polybius, and the implicit confidence which we have hitherto placed in him, must make us hesitate before we

abandon the strict literal reading of the account in question; yet as lie says in the very same sentence, and in the very same form of words, that Hannibal shewed the army the situation of Rome itself, as well as the plains round the Po, we may reasonably and fairly conclude, that the direction and bearings of these places is all that is meant: and that the general was satisfied with proving to the army that they had arrived at the summit of the Alps, and were now about to obtain the reward of their exertions by an easy and rapid descent into the plains of Italy. And this might well enough be done, as the waters begin to flow different ways on the plain itself of the St. Bernard: and the valley of La Tuille, which is not more than 650 toises above the level of the sea, and consequently 475 toises below the St. Bernard, is easily distinguishable from it.

M. De Luc supposes that he was able to shewDeLuc, them the valley of Aoste, as well as that of La^p‘ * Tuille; but this is not so. The direction of this last is N. E. and S. W. and the valley runs on in nearly the same direction as far as Pre St. Didier, where it makes a turn to the E. and runs in that line to Aoste. The account of Hannibal pointing out the plains of Italy to his soldiers has been given by Livy in a much more romantic manner, and his description, as

well as that of the general appearance of the Alps, decidedly prove, that he was himself totally ignorant of the subject upon which he was writing. This particular part has however been much dwelt upon, and has made a much greater impression than it deserves; so much so, as to have induced some French writers on the subject to carry the whole army to the top of the Mont Viso, from which there can be no doubt that they would command a most extensive view of Italy. If however that is the only object required, they would have attained their end much better by going to the summit of the Mont Blanc. But such marches for armies are inadmissible. The guides from the plains of the Po would lead the army by the passages to which they had themselves been accustomed, and as those passages are marked out by nature, they might remain unaltered to the present day, though from various circumstances they may be more or less frequented than formerly.

Civilization has afforded great additional incitements, and the progress of the arts and the discovery of gunpowder have given great additional facilities to our undertakings; but these have nevertheless been generally confined to the improvement of those passages which were already known, and which, having existed from

the first formation of the barriers which they were intended to penetrate, were pointed out by the hand of nature to the first inhabitants of these countries. If any other passage commanded a view of the plains, we might hesitate; but as none do, we must content ourselves with explaining the account of Polybius as well as we can. It is possible that Hannibal might have himself reached the summit of some of the very high mountains near the passage, from whence he might command a more extensive view; but I do not think it at all necessary to make such a supposition, and I think it much more probable, that he was satisfied with telling the army, that nothing now remained for them but to descend and enjoy the fruits of their labours. The account of this descent will form the subject of the next chapter, in which the march from the Mont du Chat to the plains of the Po and the Insubres will be concluded.

In the latter part of the fifty-fourth and in the fifty-fifth chapter we find, that on beginning their descent all attacks on the army by the barbarians had ceased ; notwithstanding which, their loss was nearly as great as in their ascent, for the road was extremely bad, and covered with snow, so that the men lost their way, and fell down precipices; and finally they came to a place where it was impossible to pass ; for the road, which for a distance of a stadium and half was very rugged and liable to be carried away, had actually been so in a very great degree ; so that having in vain endeavoured to turn this difficult passage, Hannibal was obliged to encamp at the commencement of it. He was unable to go by any other way, for a fresh fall of snow having covered the old snow of the year before, which by an accident of very unusual occurrence had remained unmelted, it became impossible for the men and horses to proceed.

The troops were therefore employed in clearing away the snow and repairing the road, and in a day the cavalry and baggage were enabled to pass; the horses were then sent down to the plains below, and distributed in the pastures. In three days more they succeeded with great difficulty in making a road for the elephants, who were by this time almost starved. After this he collected his whole army, and descended to the plains, which he reached after a march of three days; and entered boldly into the country round the Po, and the territory of the lnsubrians, having saved *20,000 infantry and 6000 cavalry. After this account follow three chapters of no importance, and then in the sixtieth chapter we are told, that he encamped for some time at the foot of the Alps, in order to recruit the strength of his soldiers, of whom he had lost J 8,000 infantry and more than 2000 cavalry in the passage of the Alps, for he passed the Rhone with more than 46,000 men. After this, finding that the Taurini were at war with the Insubres his allies, he made overtures of reconciliation to them, which not being accepted, he attacked their capital, and taking it after a siege of three days, put the inhabitants to the sword; in consequence of which, the neighbouring r people immediately entered

into treaties with him, so that he was enabled to undertake further and more brilliant operations.

- It will not be necessary to follow Polybius any further, and in fact the descent of the Alps ceases at his arrival in the plains of the lnsu-brians; but it is essential to insert that part which relates to the capture of Turin, in order to explain the error into which those writers have fallen, who have supposed Hannibal to have arrived first among the Taurini.

The road downwards from the St. Bernard passes through a valley by the side of the Doire, which takes its rise on the plain, for about 5 miles, till it arrives at Pont Serrant; here this stream is joined by another, which comes down from the Glacier de l’Oratoire, in a very deep and formidable ravine. The road crosses it by a wooden bridge, and the army would probably have crossed below its junction with the Doire, where the ground is easier. The ravine itself might have formed one of the numerous precipices, into which the soldiers fell from missing their way. Shortly after the road reaches La Tuille, a large and well built village, standing in a small plain tolerably well cultivated. Here the Doire is joined by the Baltique, which flows from the Ruitor, a very high snowy mountain

to the eastward, which forms one part of the central chain of the Alps. It now becomes a stream of some size, and takes the name of the Doria Baltea. The modern road runs along this river as far as Ivr6e; and it is clear from the Itineraries, that the Roman road went the same way except in a few instances, where it was carried along the tops of the mountains instead of the banks of the river. On leaving La Tuille the river turns to the north, and enters a very narrow passage between two rocks; from hence it runs on to Pr6 St. Didier in a direction almost parallel to the A116e Blanche, and the back of the Mont Blanc; being divided from them by the long chain of the Cramont, in all probability the Cremonis jugum of Livy. After Lib. 21. La Tuille, the Artolica of the Itineraries, the modem road crosses from the left or W. to the right or E. bank of the river, and recrosses it about three miles lower down. The old road remained constantly on the left bank, and was obliged to be abandoned in consequence of the numerous avalanches, which always fall from a pointed rock that overhangs it, and which in the winter frequently carried it away. It is very remarkable, that that part of the old road which was most exposed to these accidents is about 300 yards in length, a distance agreeing almost exactly with the stadium and a half of

Polybius^a; and it appears, that from the very nature of the ground it must always have been so exposed; for, as will be seen by the plan, it is situated at the bend of the river, and immediately under one of the highest points of the Crain ont, and that chain of mountains which forms the S. E. side of the Allee Blanche. From this point the ground slopes rapidly down to the river in a concave or funnel shaped direction, the mouth of the funnel ending at the river, so that an avalanche from the top would be necessarily confined within the limits of the bend, and within the space of three hundred yards. It appears, from the reports of the inhabitants, that this passage is peculiarly subject to avalanches; and it happens also, that, owing to the narrowness of the bed of the river in this spot, and the precipitous nature of the rocks on both sides of it, the snow which is brought down in this manner from the Cramont, and which falls in immense masses into it, remains sometimes unmelted during the whole of the summer, and forms a natural bridge over the torrent for a considerable distance. This event happens so rarely, as to be, in the words of Polybius, tdsov zee) nccgnKkctypivov: but it does sometimes take place; for M. De Saussure, in the year 1792,

^a The stadium is equal to 125 passus, or 625 Roman feet; a stadium and a half will therefore be 937j Roman feet.

at which time he passed over this road, says, speaking of this precise spot, “ Le chemin est “ bon et assez large, mais sur line corniche “ ties elev6e au dessus de laTuille. On voit “ la sous ses pieds des amas de neige qui se “ sont conserves depuis l’hiver, et qui forment “ des ponts sur ce, torrent.” Our guide told us that the same thing had happened in 1816, at which time the snow formed a complete bridge over the river. I took great pains to ascertain whether the snow ever remained unmelted the whole year round in any other part of the road, and I was assured that such an event never took place; nor would it occur in this spot, were it not entirely sheltered from the sun by the extreme narrowness of the ravine and the great height of the mountains on both sides. It may perhaps be thought, that the coincidence of the distance of a stadium and a half between the present day and the time of Polybius is too exact; and that in the course of 2000 years the appearance of the defile must have undergone some more material alterations; but the funnelshaped construction of this part of the passage has prevented the avalanches from extending themselves; and although masses of rock may have fallen from the highest points, there appears to have been no mark of any change in the lower part of the hollow. M. De Luc, in the appendix to his work, has inserted a very curious paper upon the effects of torrents on rocks, in which he proves very satisfactorily, that it requires an immense time for a river flowing over rocks to make much impression upon them, and that in consequence it will be long before the appearance of a valley can be materially altered. From De Saussure’s account it is clear that he passed by the modern road; but General Melville, who passed in 1775, went by the old one, which was not then abandoned: it was at that time made with trunks of trees, and his guide informed him that it was generally carried away in the spring by the avalanches.

M. De Luc has supposed, that the road taken by the General was on the right bank of the river, instead of the left. This is one of the very few errors into which that gentleman has fallen, and it is one which he would have corrected immediately, if he had himself had an opportunity of visiting the spot. It is clear that General Melville passed by the old road, as the modern one is not exposed to avalanches.

It appears from the Itineraries, that Artolica (La Tuille) was six miles from Alpis Graia, or the summit of the St. Bernard; and we find, from the narrative of Polybius, that it was on the first day’s descent that the army arrived at

the impassable spot: and this would agree very well with the distance of this difficult pass, which is about half a mile beyond La Tuille, and where the army evidently arrived in good time, as an attempt was made to turn it before they encamped for the night. There appears here to be a little obscurity in Polybius on the subject of the new snow which had fallen on the old, and which prevented them from proceeding ; for it does not appear quite certain to which of the roads the difficulties occasioned by the new snow falling upon the old are to be referred. If these difficulties prevented the army from turning the pass, then they must have endeavoured to cross the river, and to pass on the other side, or on the snow itself, which formed a road over the bed of the torrent ; and as the banks are precipitous, and the bed very deep, the men and horses would suffer dreadfully in the attempt. If, on the contrary, these difficulties apply to the road itself, then it is possible that Hannibal might have endeavoured to turn the ravine altogether by a road which runs at the back of the rocks which are on the right bank of the river, and which afterwards ascends the chain of mountains that form the south side of the valley of Aoste, and crossing them falls into that valley opposite to the town of Morges, a little below Pre St. Didier,

As this road takes its way at first through a very deep and hollow ravine, it would be very liable to be choked up, and rendered impassable by a great fall of . snow. It is now very little used, and the descent by it into the valley of Aoste is almost impracticable.

In whatever way the attempt to turn the pass was made, the troops were finally obliged to encamp at the entrance of it, and in all probability in the plain on. which La Tuille itself is situated. The next day was employed in making a road good enough for the passage of the cavalry, and three more days in constructing one for the elephants. During these three last days, the infantry and cavalry would probably move down the valley towards Aoste, with a view to the more easily obtaining supplies ; for although there are very fine pastures and a small plain at Pr6 St. Didier, the country grows much richer towards Aoste, and no large number either of men or horses could have remained long at the former place. From La Tuille to Arebrigium, or Pre St. Didier, the Itineraries give six miles, and from thence to Aoste twenty-five, or thirty from the difficult pass. The troops were now in a friendly country, and no inconvenience could be apprehended from the dispersion of the army in different quarters, as might be found most convenient for their subsistence. The valley from Pr6 St. Didier to Aoste is, with the exception of one short part of it, rich, and well cultivated. There are some large villages and vineyards begin shortly after the road leaves the former place; in many places it is very wide, and orchards and meadows are in great abundance. At Pre St. Didier a road turns off to Corma-yeur and the Allee Blanche at the back of the Mont Blanc. Here is a warm spring, much celebrated, and in the summer very much frequented. It appears however to have no mineral qualities whatever, and to be nothing more than pure hot water. The situation of the village is very striking: surrounded as it is by enormous mountains, and standing in the middle of the most beautiful meadows and trees, the verdure of which is made more vivid by the contrast with the nakedness of the rocks that overhang them, and the magnificent glaciers which descend from the sides of Mont Blanc, into the Allee Blanche. The elephants might get down to Pr6 St. Didier on the evening of the fourth day, and supposing this to be the case, the whole army would be assembled between Aoste and that village by the end of the fifteenth day from Chevelu, or Lavisco, the ascent of the Mont du Chat. The descent from the St Bernard probably commenced on the

eleventh day; for although they arrived on the ninth, and stayed two days, yet as they reached the summit early on the ninth, that day must be reckoned as one of the two. One day for the passage of the cavalry makes twelve, and three for the elephants fifteen; and this is the c. 56. number of days which, according to Polybius, he employed in passing the Alps; “ having ⁴⁴ performed the passage of the Alps in fifteen “ days, he descended boldly into the country “ of the Insubrians, and the plains about the “ PoThis statement is however rather inconsistent with the account in the beginning of this very same chapter, which says, that having assembled his army after the passage of that difficult piece of road, which had delayed him for four days, he descended, and reached the plains in three days’ march from the broken ground, which would give eighteen days instead of fifteen. Are we then to consider the

• passage of the Alps as terminated at Pre St. Didier, or at the commencement of the plains of the Po, and the real termination of those mountains ? It is a question of importance, because it is necessary for us to know where our distance of a hundred and fifty miles, which Polybius gives as the amount of the passage of the Alps, is to terminate. I think that there can be very little doubt that we must read

eighteen days instead of fifteen, and that the hundred and fifty miles are to be completed at the commencement of the plain, and at the spot where the army was encamped, in order to recover from its fatigues, that is, at the end of the valley of Ivree ; and 1 am confirmed in this opinion by the words that Polybius himself makes use of in the sixtieth chapter, in which he says, that having entered Italy, he encamped vk avrqv rqv ircigageiciv rZv ”Ahirew; and indeed c. 60. the enumeration he makes of the losses sustained by the army, and the recapitulation of the march, is not made, till after the fact of their having reached the plains has been stated ; and there can be no doubt upon his own shewing, that eighteen days must have elapsed before this event took place. It is possible that he might have intended to leave out of the account the three days employed in making the road for the elephants ; but I think it more probable that he meant, that in fifteen days the chief dif- * ficulties of the passage were overcome, and that he entered into a friendly country. The hundred and fifty miles cannot however be considered as concluded, till the whole passage was actually finished; and till the army were distributed into quarters. The roc ^regt rov Uddov c. 39. srsS/a are the full termination of the march, and appear to be always so considered in all

the places where they are mentioned, and from them no further communication of distances is made. It remains therefore to see how the hundred and fifty miles agree with the arrival at the plains, and the final place of encampment. As Polybius says that the encampment took place at the very foot of the Alps, we must place it between Donas and Ivr6e. For the valley of Aoste ends at Donas, a little below the Fort du Bard, and about fourteen Roman miles and a half from Ivr6e. The Itineraries give a hundred and twenty-nine miles from Lavisco to Aoste, and forty-six from thence to lvr6e, making a sum of a hundred and seventy-five miles, from which deducting fourteen miles and a half, (the distance from Donas to Ivree,) there remain a hundred and sixty miles and a half for the passage, instead of a hundred and fifty, as stated by Polybius. And it is further to be observed, that the distance from Pre St. Didier to Aoste is in all the best modern maps fixed at twenty, instead of twenty-five Roman miles, as stated in the Itineraries ^b. This would reduce the difference to

^b This difference may be explained by the fact of the Roman road from Vr6 St. Didier going over the tops of the mountains, instead of along the valley, and so lengthening the distance. Hannibal would naturally keep in the valley for the sake of subsistence.

only five miles between our calculation, and that of Polybius; and this is certainly as close an approach as can be expected in so great an extent of country, especially as our author does not and cannot speak with so much certainty with respect to this distance, as he does with respect to those which were already marked out by the Romans in his own time. For the passage of the Alps by the little St. Bernard was only made practicable for carriages in the time of Augustus. Donas^c may be fairly called the entrance of the Alps, for two secondary chains of mountains, which run off at right angles from

^c Here the road has been literally cut and chiselled in the rock, which closes in to the very edge of the river. Tradition assigns this very remarkable work to Hannibal, and this pass indeed has been known for centuries among the natives as that of the Carthaginian army. There can be but little doubt that this is what Appian alludes to as the (»)* vvv xaXovri 'AmZov.') Luitprand of Pavia, a Lombard writer, and Paulus Jovius, have gone so far as to state, that an inscription recording his passage was visible in the rock. But this opinion is refuted by the writer of the Theatrum Sabaudiae, in the Art. entitled, Via quam dicunt Annibalis in rupe excisa. We are there told, that the inscription which really exists records the passage of Tomaso Grimaldi, a noble Genoese, in 1474. This writer concludes by expressing his belief, that this work was executed in the time of Augustus. Theatr. Sabaud. vol. i. p. 54. Though we searched for an inscription, we could discover none whatever.

the main chain, meet here, and form a very narrow pass, that closes the valley of Aoste as with a door. The first of these, the Mont Soana, comes in an easterly direction from the Mont Is6ran, and the other runs south from the Mont Cervin. The descent, which is rapid the whole way from Aoste, here ceases almost entirely; and between St. Martin and Ivree there are no mountains, but only a wide valley with hills on each side, and Ivr6e itself is completely detached, and stands in the plains. If we had supposed the army to have taken the road by Aiguebellette or the Mont de l’Epine, instead of the Mont du Chat by Chevelu, the distance would have: b6en shortened by thirteen miles, which would bring* the army very near Ivr6e : but this is'not necessary, for there is no obstacle whatever betweenDonas and Ivr6e,and the valley * such a& it is scarcely rises at all: with respect to the real termination therefore of the Alps, we may safely place it at Donas; and another reason which wilt prevent us from pushing it further is the distance to be performed by the army in their descent of three days; after the passage of the rocks near La Tuille. From Pr6 St. Didier to Donas we have a little more than fifty Roman miles, which makes about seventeen miles a day, too long a march certainly for troops in the fatigued and shattered condition of the Carthaginian army* In point of fact however,' the cavalry and infantry had six days instead of three to' perform this march in, since they had three clear days during the time that the road was preparing for the elephants ; and as the country was now friendly, these animals might have followed the army by shorter distances, and as they were much exhausted, have arrived at Donas a day or two later. It is sufficient for our purpose to shew, that W was quite possible for the main body of the army to reach Donas without any difficulty. It is quite impossible that the whole army could have been assembled at Pre St. Didier, as subsistence could not be found for them, and they must therefore necessarily have extended themselves along the valley towards Aoste. The modern road between these two places is in some places cut into the rocks on the side of the valley, and is sometimes difficult, but generally speaking the bottom of the valley itself is by no means bad, and towards Aoste it widens considerably, and is very rich. There are many very large vil-¹ lages in it, and it is extremely populous. This valley was occupied by the Salassi, of whom Polybius says nothing, but who were probably

a branch of the Insubres, since they were friendly to the Carthaginians ^e. At Villeneuve, a few miles above Aoste, we found several Roman inscriptions in very good preservation, and the town is large and the valley wide here. Aoste itself (Augusta Pretoria) is a well built town, remarkable for its triumphal arch, which remains very perfect. There are also the remains of an amphitheatre. From Aoste to Chatillon the beauty of the country exceeds any thing I have ever seen. The vegetation most abundant. The chesnut trees, are of great age, and approach in size almost to those celebrated ones on Mount Etna. The valley which is very wide swarms with farm houses and small villages, and the roads are excellent. Fine springs of water gush from the rocks on each side, and the luxuriance of the crops shew that we have reached Italy. Towards Verres the valley becomes narrower, and at Donas, as has already been observed, it is almost entirely closed by the mountains which meet there. Nothing can be more picturesque than the effects produced by them. Here you emerge from the high Alps, and descend gradually upon Ivree, through a

^e Ptolemy ranks them under the Insubres as well as the Libicii. Cluver. Ital. Ant.

wide valley, bounded by much lower heights; and at Ivr6e you find yourself completely in the plain, which you see perfectly from St. Martin, a little below Donas. At this place then, if our reasoning be conclusive, the army would arrive on the eighteenth day from Chevelu, or about the fourth of November; and they were immediately encamped at the very foot of the mountains ; and by no other known passage over the Alps, excepting the great St. Bernard, could Hannibal have descended among the Insubrians ; and the distances alone, setting aside all the other reasons, put the great St. Bernard out of the question. It is remarkable that all the writers who have written in favour of the Mont Genevre, have totally overlooked this passage, and have relied upon the Taurini, among whom he came indeed, as Polybius tells us, but not till after he had recruited his troops among the Insubrians. There can be no doubt who these latter were; Livy himself tells us, that Milan was their capital, and both he and Polybius say expressly that they were at war with the Taurini. According to the best authors, these nations were divided by the Orca, to the south of which river were those nations whp were Ligurians, and to the

north the Gauls. The former had been subdued and were friendly, the latter, from constant

wars, were still hostile to the Romans^f. In the forty-fourth chapter Polybius expressly states, that the envoys,sent from the plains about the Po were Gauls;. and as they were to accompany and even to guide the army over the,Alps, they would naturally bring them first into* their Own country, in order that they might recover from the fatigues of the march. M. De Luc closes the 150 miles at Aoste, but in my opinion incorrectly; for even if we put dates and distances out of the question, it is impossible to say that the pl ain of Aoste is the country which borders on the Po, since it is separated from the real plains near Ivree by a long valley of 30 niiles in length. The error has arisen from not taking into consideration the three days of descent in addition to the fifteen first employed in the passage. In consequence of this, M. De Luc.has been unable to > make his distances agree with .those of, Polybius as accurately as they Qught to do. This gentleman has concluded his work with the battle of the Ticino, and has, corrected a very gross error of M. Folard, who in defiance of all authority has made the battle take place on the right bank of the river , f ' . '[ '• •/ * > < ' Mi cl _t O i.ii ¹

> > . • * * * * . < f ^f In Polybius’s account of the war between the Gauls and

instead of the left. It is not necessary for us to carry thie discussion further than the capture of Turin, which was effected after a siege of three days, and which terrified the neighbouring district into submission. The circumstance of this attack is in itself a sufficient proof, that lie did not descend by the Mont Genevre; for we know that the Insubres were his allies/and that they were at war with the Taurini :* how can it then be supposed, that these last would have suffered the Carthaginians to encamp in perfect tranquillity at the foot of the Alps, and consequently almost at the very gates of their city, while they themselves knew that they were in alliance with their enemies, and while they were in such a state of weakness and disorganization, that it would have been impossible for them to have opposed any resistance to a well combined attack? and would Hannibal, on entering a territory whose inclinations towards him were at least doubtful, have dispersed his army, and left himself entirely without defence, in the manner described by Polybius ? Among the Insubrians, on the contrary, he was at liberty to recruit his forces without any fears; and what was more natural than that he should turn his arms first against the enemies of those allies, to whom he had been so much indebted, especially as by defeating them he secured the neu-

trality at least, if not the more active cooperation, of the country in their neighbourhood. More especially as the Ligurians occupied a large district in the north of Italy, and were a powerful tribe, whom it became necessary therefore to conciliate or awe into submission by force. We find indeed from Livy, that after the capture of Turin, Hannibal was joined by a large body of that nation. Here then we may close this branch of the discussion, in which we have endeavoured to confine ourselves strictly to Polybius, and to make the road, by which we have supposed the army to march, agree with his account. It now remains for us to examine the hypothesis of other writers who have treated on this subject, and to shew that they all disagree with our author, and that some of them are absolutely inconsistent with themselves ; as Livy is the source of all the opinions in favour of the Mont Genevre, we shall examine his account in the following chapter.

M. DE LUC, in his very ingenious refutation of Livy by a comparison with Polybius, has introduced the parallel passages of the two authors, and has by this means shewn how closely the Latin historian has generally copied the Greek one, as well as the new matter which he has introduced ; but as this comparison may be easily made, we shall, in order to avoid needless repetitions, confine ourselves to those passages where he forsakes his original; for that Polybius was that original, cannot be doubted by any one who will take the trouble of reading the two accounts together.

And* first, it may be noticed as somewhat singular, that he never once, in the whole course of his narrative, acknowledges that he is indebted to Polybius. Again, the total want of all computation of distance, though Polybius prefaces his account with a very exact detail on this head, must strike every observer as

being the result, if not of design, at least of great negligence and inaccuracy.

Having brought Hannibal from the Pyrenees to the Rhone, and made him cross that river at the same point and under the same circumstances which Polybius describes, Livy tells us^a, that on the day after Hannibal had harangued his army, he set forward along the Rhone, and up the stream towards the interior of Gaul; not that this was his nearest way to the Alps, but because he conceived that the farther he retired from the sea, the less probability there would be of his encountering the Romans, with whom he was not desirous of fighting before he reached Italy.

Now we in vain look in Polybius for such a comment on Hannibal’s movement up the Rhone; on the contrary we are assured, that it must have formed part of the original plan: this appears plainly from the thirty-ninth chapter of the third book, in which the distances are enumerated from the passage of the Rhone to the arrival of the army into Italy; and which proves beyond a doubt, that the march up the

Gallise petit: non quia rectior ad Alpes via esset, sed quantum a mari recessteset minus obvium fore Romanum cre-dens: cum quo priusquam in Italiam ventum foret, non erat in animo manus conserere. Liv. lib. xxi. cap. 31. ed. Crevier.

Rhone was not forced upon Hannibal by the approach of Scipio, but must have been undertaken according to his previous design and plan. Polybius has expressly declared, that Ppiyb. m>. Hannibal had formed the whble plan of^vhis 31—13. march long beforehand. He had well ascertained, previously to setting out, all the difficulties and dangers which must necessarily attend so bold and arduous an undertaking ; he had well enquired into the nature of the country and places through which he was to pass, as well as the character and disposition of its inhabitants ; above all, he relied on the guides of the country,'fM<rwiyypgioiu who had advanced to the passage of the Rhone to meet him, and who, as they'were to sha^e his good or dll fortune, were necessarily devoted to his cause. . Are we then to suppose, that the unexpected appearance of the Roman consul at the •<' mouth of the Rhone, at a distance of four days’ march from >the Carthaginian camp, could have the effect of totally deranging such a well-digested plan, of altering combinations so deliberately made, of counteracting measures so maturely weighed and organized ? or rather must we not attribute this comment of Livy to the necessity under which he found himself, of giving some explanation of the deviation here assumed from the course he supposes Hannibal intended to follow ?

I repeat, that nothing of this sort is to be found in Polybius. The only measure which, in his account, seems to imply apprehension on the Carthaginian general’s part, is the prudent precaution of placing the cavalry and elephants in the rear in his march towards the north, after the passage of the Rhone.

But allowing for a moment the truth of Livy’s assertion, and supposing Hannibal to have originally intended to proceed to the Alps by the shortest way, qua rectior ad Alpes via esset^b, how are we to account for his crossing the Rhone so much above the Durance, along whose banks,he might have marched with as much facility, and as little molestation from the enemy, as along the Rhone ? If no reason can be assigned, it follows, that it never entered into his determination to proceed that way.

Livy^c, however, goes on to tell us, that Hannibal in four days arrived at the country called the Insula, which we have seen so accurately

^b The Roman way followed the Durance from Cabellio, Cavaillon, to Apta Julia, Apt; Segustero. Sisteron; Ebro-dunum, Embrun, to Brigantio, Brian^on, and the Mont Genevre. Wesseling. Vet. Rom. Itiner. p. 34>2, 3.

^c Quartis castris ad Insulam pervenit: ibi Isara Rhoda-nusque amnes, diversis ex Alpibus decurrentes, agri aliquan-tum amplexi, confluunt in unum. Mediis campis Insula.' nomen inditum; incolunt prope Allobroges, gens jam inde null& Gallic^ gente opibus aut famft inferior.

described by Polybius. The Roman historian merely informs us, that this name is given to a certain portion of territory encompassed by the Isere^(l and Rhone, at their junction; thus omitting all mention of the mountainous barrier which closed the third side, as well as of its extent and fertility. This difference between the two accounts is as striking as its reason is manifest. Polybius evidently describes a country in which the operations he details are carried on, and consequently wishes to make his readers as well acquainted with its situation as possible ; while Livy necessarily omits a .detail which would be in evident contradiction with the route he had in view. Nor is the latter more correct or exact in the position which he assigns to the Allobroges. “ Hard by,” says he, “ live “ the Allobrogessurely not near the Insula, as Crevier well observes, but in it. [t certainly is in the Insula that Polybius places the scene of those transactions, in which Hannibal settled the disputes between the two brothers, by securing to the elder the possession of the throne. These are allowed by Livy to be Allobroges:

i } > 'ht* : 1 * ^d Though most of the MSS. read Arar/it iV clear that it ought to be Isara. One MS. reads Bisarar, which gives the true reading Ibi Isara. ' > I

torian the general facts, he still amplifies and adorns the narrative in a manner peculiar to himself. He. then proceeds to state ⁶, that Hannibal, having settled the disputes, did not continue his march by the direct route, but inclined to the Jeft towards the Tricastini ; that is, he did not take the road which would have brought him to Vienne and the Mont du Chat, by still continuing his march along the Rhone, but he sought to regain the road which led to the Cottian Alp in the best and shortest manner he could. If in. this account, however, Livy is consistent with his plan and hypothesis, he is not equally so; with reason and Polybius. With reason, because it seems absurd to imagine that Hannibal should cros3 the Isere either with the whole or part of his army, to waste time of so much value, in settling.a dispute, with which he could have no concern, had his arrival in the country not formed a natural incident in his march. With Polybius, because his silence as to all deviation, nay, rather his positive declaration to the contrary, from the computation of

- * ,ii/' i ^c Sedatis certaminibus Allobrogum, quum jam Alpes pe-teret, non rect& regione iter instituit; sed ad laevam in Tri-castinos flexit: inde per extremam oram Vocontiorum agri tetendit in Tricorios: haud usquam impedit& vi&, priusquam ad Druentiam flumen pervenit. Is et ipse Alpinus aihnis, longe omnium Galliae fluminum difficillimus transitu est, kc.

the march along the Rhone, prevents us from supposing he could at all have entertained the idea.

Let us, however, see how the Carthaginian army is to arrive at the Mont Genevre. from the left bank of the lsere, if it be contended that it did not cross that river.

It will surely not be by returning to the Tri-castini; that is nearly the very point from which they had set out after the passage of the Rhone. Nor is it possible to conceive how the Tricas-tini, the people of St. Paul-trois-Chateau, could have been to the left of the Carthaginian army as it moved from the_; lsere. There is sufficient reason, therefore, for supposing the passage to be corrupt ; and, if a conjecture might be allowed in a difficulty, which seems scarcely to admit of a more reasonable explanation, I should be inclined to suppose that these words, ad laevam in Tricastinos flexit, are in their wrong place, and ought to have formed part of the passage quoted from the beginning of the same chapter^f. This will at least enable us to obviate what is so repugnant to reason and common sense.

^f This passage might then stand thus : Postero die pro-fectus adverse ripA. Rhodani, ad loevam in Tricastinos flectit et mediterranea Galliae petit.

In this return from the Insula towards the Durance, one would be inclined to imagine that Livy must have had in view the road laid down in the Itineraries, as leading from Valentia Valence on the Rhone, and near its junction with the Isere, by Dea Yocontiorum (Die), and the Mons Seleucus (Mont Saleon), to Yapincum (Gap), and Eburodunum (Embrun), on the Durance. This road we have before alluded to in examining Caesar’s march over the Mont Genevre, and it would certainly conduct Hannibal through the Vocontii; but the question is, where to find the Tricorii, whom D’Anville would place in the valley of the Drac, a river which joins the Isere near Grenoble, while M. de Yalois, without sufficient authority I conceive, supposes their capital to be Vapincum or Gap. It must be observed also, that D’Anville founds all his reasoning on this passage of Livy, and that he imagines the northern extremity of the territory of the Vocontii to be here meant. The question is evidently one of great intricacy, and which must be left to geographers to settle s. But by

^g Cluverius conceives that some vestiges of the ancient name may yet be traced in the town of Cors or Corps, situated near the source of the Drac, and is therefore inclined to place this nation in the valley of that river. (Cluver. Ital. Antiq. p. 372.) His authority has been followed in the annexed map. ‘

which ever route we suppose Hannibal according to Livy to have reached the Durance, they will be found to agree but little with the description given by Polybius, of a plain country Poiyb. through which Hannibal passed without molestation, being protected by his cavalry and the friendly escort of the Allobroges. We have also seen, that Polybius expressly stated the country which he then traversed to be that of the Allobroges ; so that unless we suppose that denomination to have extended also to the Vocontii, who are mentioned earlier than the iUlobroges in the Roman history ^h, and consequently must have been a distinct people, we shall have here evidence sufficiently decisive; that the routes described by the two historians are perfectly different.

Hannibal having reached Embrun, would there certainly find the Durance, but not such as it is described by the Roman historian, whose exaggerated account of the ravages of this Alpine torrent, and the difficulties attending its passage, can only agree, as M. De Luc well observes, with the latter part of its course, after it has re-

^h M. Fulvius Flaccus triumphed over the Ligurians and Vocontii, A. U. C. 629; ^one year before, C. Domitius iEno-barbus obtained a similar honour for a victory over the Allobroges. Fasti. Capit. apud Pigh. Liv. Suppl. Freins. 1. lx. c. 39.

Hannibal, continues Livy¹, having crossed the Durance, at length reaches the Alps; we are besides informed, that his line of march from that river lay chiefly through a plain country, and that he accomplished it without molestation. The reader will remember, that these were precisely the circumstances, if we except all mention of the Durance, under which Polybius brought the Carthaginian army to the foot of the Alps ; the dvuCoXti ruv ²AXireav. But such a description will be found to agree but little with the country to which Livy has now conducted them. In the valley of the Durance they would be engaged in the very midst of the Alps; and if we consider Embrun as the first point where they would find the Durance, they would be within a few miles only of Brian<jon^k, at the foot of Mont Genevre or the central chain.

The surprise which this circumstance must create in the mind of the reader, who has given

his attention to the subject, is not at all likely * to be abated upon finding that Livy here again takes up Polybius’s account, at the very point where that historian has brought the Carthaginian army to the foot of the first range of the Alps. The description, however, which Livy gives of the defile, at the entrance of which Hannibal found his progress opposed by the Barbarians, whom he calls mountaineers¹, is very different from that of Polybius, which was found to agree so well with the passage of the Mont du Chat. Livy’s fine and wintery description can only apply to the central and snowy chain, and even then will scarcely suit the Mont Genevre; which though forming part of the primitive range, is in elevation far below the point of eternal snow, not exceeding 950 toises, or 6000 feet above the level of the sea. •

Here then we find ourselves entangled and bewildered in difficulties, from which it seems impossible to extract any sense or truth; and we may in fact conclude, that whether we have been correct or not in our explanation of Polybius’s account, it is impossible to attach any credit whatever to that of Livy. We must also

¹ C. 32. Erigentibus in primos agmen clivos adparuerunt inminentes tumulos insidentes montani.

•conclude, that the latter having adopted a fixed plan, and being determined to bring Hannibal into Italy by the Mont Genevre, he has endear voured to force and twist the narrative of the Greek historian, whom he did not understand, to his views, without considering whether the circumstances of distance, time, or place, would be found to tally. He in fact presents us with a lively example of those writers, whose ac-Poiyb. count of this expedition Polybius censures as ^m‘ ° ‘ so improbable and void of reason; and who like the tragic writers would want a god or some other machine to extricate their hero from his difficulties.

Let us however proceed in our comparison. Hannibal having occupied the defile during the night, when the mountaineers retired to their homes, is attacked next morning during the descent; he succeeds however in routing his assailants, and finally capturing their city or strong hold™, and the adjoining villages.

Now as we are compelled to place the scene of action on the Mont Genevre, we are consequently obliged to suppose that Hannibal was there opposed by the Segusini, or the people of the valley of Susa, and contiguous to the

^m Castellum inde, quod caput ejus regionis erat, viculos-que circumjectos capit.

Caturiges", on whose territory the army would have marched from Embrun to Brian^on. The town which fell into the hands of the victor could therefore be no other than Cezanne at the foot of the mountain on the Italian side, though it never could have been of sufficient importance to deserve the title of caput re-gionis ; nor could the wretched valley in which it stands ever have furnished the supplies, which must have been required to subsist so numerous an army. If Hannibal from this place continued his march, as he naturally would along the Doria Susana, he would have reached Turin in six days at least, without meeting with any other mountain to obstruct his passage; this cannot however be the route which Livy has in view, since he follows⁰ Polybius in nearly all the circumstances which that writer applied to Hannibal’s march after having passed the first defile; and which we found to agree

so well with the passage of the little St. Bernard. Let us however suppose that the Carthaginian army would attempt to proceed by the Col de Sestrieres, as the Roman armies certainly did, before a free passage was allowed them through Cottius’s dominions p, we shall still find a perfect disagreement between that route and the Roman historian’s account. Cezanne is situated at the foot of the Col de Sestrieres as well as the Mont Genevre; so that a person setting out from thence, might easily pass the former mountain in one day; whereas from Livy’s account Hannibal was nine days in reaching the summit of the Alps'¹, from the town he captured; so that it is impossible on either supposition to reconcile Livy’s narrative with truth. -

Yet has it been contended, that Livy could never have meant to place the first defile or the entrance of the Alps at the Mont Genevre, but that we must look for this entrance of the Alps before the army reached the Durance. Now this supposition is entirely contradicted by the text of the author, and can only be ad-

^q C. 35. Nono die in jugum Alpium perventum est, per in via pleraque et errores, quos aut ducentium fra us, aut, ubi fides iis non esset, teraere initae valles a conjectantibus iter, faciebant.

mitted by implying a manifest error in his narrative: still we will allow for a moment, that Hannibal might have been attacked by the Caturiges^r on his crossing into their country from that of the Tricorii, and that he reached the Mont Genevre on the ninth day. We shall yet be able to shew that this mountain can no more be conceived to be the second than it was the first passage: that it differs in short entirely from Livy’s own description, and from that of Polybius. Having visited this mountain as well as the little St. Bernard, during the summer of 1819, with a view to this question, I shall here present the reader with the result of my observations.

The town of Brian^on is situated in a valley from w^rhich three others branch off in different directions; that of the Guisanne to the N. W. the fertile valley of Neuwache to the N. and the valley of the Durance, which descends from Mont Genevre, to the S. W. The. foot of this mountain is little more than two miles from the town; the valley that leads to it is at present defended by the numerous and formidable forts of Brian^on, but it is too wide to admit of an army suffering from any attack made from the

^r This is the supposition of General Frederic Guillaume, in his Hist, des Campagnes d’Hannibal, Milan. 1812,

heights on either side with such missiles as the mountaineers could have used. The present beautiful road over the Mont Genevre, constructed by French engineers under the reign of Buonaparte, ascends the right bank of the Durance ; the old road could be traced for a considerable way on the left bank, but still it would be too remote from the mountains on that side to render any attack from that quarter at all formidable. The mountains themselves are too high and difficult of access to favour this supposition : in fine, this valley is much too considerable to answer the notion conveyed by the iii. terms (paguyyu rim dixrQuTcv %cu Kgyjpvadii, in Polybius, or the angustiorem viam ex parte al-xi. tera subjectam jugo insuper imminenti, in Livy.

Polyb. 1. c. 52.

Liv. 1. c. 34.

The modern road runs for some time in a N. direction, towards the valley of Neuwache, and then winds round the mountain which separates this valley from that of the Durance. The old road keeps constantly on the left bank of the river, which is here however but a very inconsiderable stream. The ascent on that side seems by no means abrupt, and presents no difficult passage or defile, till within a short distance of the summit, where the heights close in on both sides considerably, and form a passage not unlike that of the Mont du Chat. The summit itself is a long and wide plain, tolerably

well cultivated in parts. The large village of Bourg Mont Genevre is situated nearly in the centre: the heights themselves on either side of the plain do not rise to a thousand feet above its level, and are covered to the top with abundance of large fir trees. This description, it will easily be seen, essentially differs from Polybius’s account of the high summit on which Hannibal arrived on the ninth day. We are there told, that the summit was so far from being cultivated, that it was destitute of all vegetation ; and unless a great change in the climate and temperature of the Alps be supposed to have taken place since that time, this must be allowed to present a strong argument against Livy’s hypothesis. The temperature indeed of some valleys may have been improved to a certain degree by superior cultivation; in others also, where the snows and glaciers advance and recede at stated periods like the ebb and flow of the sea, some variation may well be conceived ; but these effects are but partial, and the general features of Alpine scenery and vegetation can have undergone but little change since the days of Polybius ; for that author, when combating the false notions and exaggerated accounts which certain writers gave of the Alps, states, that even in those early times they were inhabited by many and numerous tribes. And if the present state of the Mont Ge-

nevre differs from the account given by Polybius of the summit of the Alps, much more does it vary from Livy, who describes not only the summit, but all parts of these mountains as covered with snow and stiff with frost.

The plain of the Mont Genevre is about three miles in length, and at its termination on the Italian side the descent is very rapid, arid in zig-zag down a steep ravine, which affords a passage for the waters of the Doria Susana. The old road still keeps on the same side, which becomes now the right bank of the river. This part of the descent is known by the name of the Tourniquet; and supposing this to represent the difficulties encountered by the Carthaginian army previous to their reaching the point rendered impassable by the falling away of the road and old snow, we shall find ourselves at Cezanne, without meeting a single spot which could agree with the last mentioned circumstance. Upon repeated enquiries indeed, we invariably received the same answer, that there was not one point on which snow was known to remain all the year round. The valley of the Doria is indeed so wide, even long before reaching Cezanne, that it renders such a supposition altogether untenable.

1 should also observe, that from no part of the passage can a view of Italy be obtained; for the chain of the Col de Sestrieres entirely blocks up the valley of Fenestrelles to the east, while Mont Cenis and the mountains of Mauri-enne equally obstruct the view to the north, by the, valley of Exilles and Susa. At Cezanne the descent terminates; and from thence to Turin there is not one point which would present any difficulty, much less where we might expect to find in autumn snow of the preceding year. Though the valley of Cezanne is cultivated in some degree, it is altogether poor and barren, nor at all to be compared with the environs of St. Didier in the Val d’Aoste. As far as Exilles, indeed, there are no pastures, the river Doria covering the whole plain with stones or morass. There yet remain a few circumstances to be pointed out, in which Livy’s narrative differs from that of Polybius. Of the story of the vinegar used in softening rocks^r, it is difficult to say whence it derived its origin, and whether there is in reality any foundation for it: certain it is, that Polybius never leads us to suppose that such an expedient was resorted to by Hannibal. It is quite improbable that

^r C. 37. Inde ad rupem muniendam, per quam unam via esse poterat, milites ducti, quum caedendum esset saxum, arboribus circa immanibus dejectis detruncatisque, struem ingentem lignorum faciunt: eamque (quum et vis venti apta faciendo igni coorta esset) succendunt, ardentiaque saxa infuso aceto putrefaciunt. •

the Carthaginian army should have had any supply of that acid ; or if they had, that it could produce any effect on primitive rock. There is also a manifest contradiction in this story of Livy; for while he tells us that Hannibal made an immense fire to heat the rock, he forgets that elsewhere he has informed us, that the summit of the Alps is naked, and destitute of trees⁸. M. De Luc also very justly notices another strange error into which Livy has fallen with respect to this rock, when he represents the road as having fallen away, and formed a precipice of a thousand feet high; whereas in Polybius this slip of the road is clearly stated to have taken place not in respect to height, but length¹. By this alteration, the operation which Hannibal’s soldiers had to perform, and which is so naturally stated in the Greek historian, in Livy becomes absurd and unintelligible.

Livy states besides, that Hannibal allowed his troops three days rest after their fatigues during this work"; and yet he allows it is generally agreed, that the Carthaginian army per* C. 37. Nuda enim fere cacumina sunt, et, si quid est pabuli, obruunt nives.

¹ C. 36. Natura locus jam ante praeceps, recenti lapsu terrae in pedum mille admodum altitudinem abruptus erat.

^u Ibi junienta in pabulum missa, et quies muniendo fessis hominibus data triduo. Ibid. .

formed their march through the Alps in fifteen days, when by his own calculation the number of days amounts to nineteen.

1 must remark, however, that the same inconsistency, as it should seem, equally attaches to Polybius; and that the only difference, in fact, between them, as to the days spent among the Alps, is not in their number, but in the manner in which they are said to have been passed by the army. Polybius’s three additional days are spent in reaching the plains from the last difficult pass; according to Livy they are days of rest, allowed to the army after their fatigues. He also represents the Carthaginians as having been exposed to many errors and wanderings, from the treachery of their guides or the rashness of their leaders. In this circumstance he again differs from Polybius, whose silence on so important a point cannot but be construed as a refutation of the fact.

Livy having finally brought Hannibal into Italy, expresses his surprise that it should ever have been matter of doubt in what direction Hannibal crossed the Alps³. He with reason

rejects the popular opinion, which considered the great St. Bernard as that passage, from the false idea of its having derived the name of Mons Penninus from the term Pceni, when it evidently was so called from the worship of the Celtic god Pen. But his reasons for rejecting the opinion of L. Caelius Antipater, who affirmed, in his history of the second Punic war, that Hannibal had passed by the Cremonis jugiim, are not equally valid. He seems to allow that this passage might have been frequented at that time, but maintains that it could not have been that of Hannibal, as it would not have brought him directly upon the Taurini, but the Libuan Gauls. Now it is agreed, says he, on all hands, that he arrived a,mong the Taurini after crossing the Alps. Certainly not, according to Polybius, who states positively, that having refreshed his troops by a few days’ halt, he entered boldly into the country of the Insubres. ptoi.Geog. Now the Libui are reckoned by Ptolemy under the Insubres, so that Polybius and Caelius may

Gallos deduxissent. Nec verisimile est, ea turn ad Galliam patuisse itinera; utique, quae ad Peninum ferunt, obsepta gentibus semigermanis fuissent. neque, Hercule, montibus his (si quem forte id movit) ab transitu Pcenorum ullo Ver-agri, incola) jugi ejus, norunt nomen inditum; sed ab eo, quem, in summo sacratum vertice, Peninum montani appellant.

Livy, however, rejects the account of Cselius on the authority of L. Cincius Alimentus⁷, an early Roman historian, who became Hannibal’s prisoner, and had an opportunity of hearing that general state, that from the passage of the Rhone to his arrival among the Taurini, he had lost 36,000 men, besides a vast number of horses and beasts of burthen. However confused and perplexed the passage undoubtedly is, the meaning seems evidently to be, that Hannibal’s whole loss, from, the time of his crossing the Rhone to his arrival among the Taurini, amounted to the number above stated.

“ nibal wished to give an idea of the losses he a. p. iss. “had sustained in passing the mountains, in “ consequence of battles, cold, and fatigue. He “ begins, therefore, from his crossing the Rhone,

“ and ends at his arrival in the territory of the “ Taurini; since it was really in their country,

“ and by taking their capital, that he began his “ operations in Italy. Their territory, there-

“ fore, formed the limit between things totally “ distinct—his losses in Italy, and those in the “ Alps. It was not necessary that the country “ of the Taurini should be the first place of “ Italy into which he descended from the Alps ; “ it sufficed that it was the first where he fought “ a battle. The former explanation is adopted “ by Livy, but the latter appears to me very “ capable of being defended. It deprives the “ Latin historian of what appears to him a de-“ cisive proof ; it even turns this decisive proof “ against himself, by laying open the source of “ his mistake. The argument upon which Livy “ builds is not only refuted, but destroyed ; “ and the authority of Polybius subsists alone “ and unrivalled.”

It appears from Livy’s account, if we leave out all mention of what he has copied from Polybius, and read it with reference to itself alone, that Hannibal crossed the Rhone at Roquemaure; that he then, frightened by the Romans, marched up to the Island of the Allobroges ; that he then returned through the Vo-contii and Tricorii till he reached the Durance, a distance of nine days’ march from the summit of the Alps; and that he then crossed the Mont Genevre, and descended among the Taurini. This marching and countermarching would alone be sufficient to make us suspect his accuracy ; but when we find that he follows Polybius step by step tb the Insula, then drops him during the return to the Durance, and then takes him up again in the same place where he had left off, beginning afresh from the Durance, as Polybius does from the Isere; that after this he follows him word for word, with the exception of his own exaggeration, through a country which it is clear he knew nothing about, since the country described by Polybius is as different as possible from the road between the Durance and the Mont Genevre; and when finally he brings him out with an enfeebled army among a hostile people; what can we conclude but that the Latin author is not only totally unworthy of credit, but that he was also so ignorant of geography and of the country he was describing, as not to be able even to make out a credible or intelligible account of his own hypothesis. The exaggerations with respect to the appearance of the Alps; the descent of a whole army, with baggage and elephants, down a precipice one thousand feet high; the flat country described as existing in the most rugged, barren, and mountainous part of the Alps; the misstatement as to the character of the Durance; ought in themselves to make us reject his

authority \ and at all events he ought not for a moment to be placed in competition with an author, who, besides being totally free from all the faults of his rival, has a just claim to our belief, from having himself visited the countries which he so accurately describes.

In the last chapter we have endeavoured to shew, that the account of Livy, although copied almost literally in many parts from that of Polybius, was on the whole quite inconsistent with it, and that this inconsistency was produced by the determination of the Roman historian to carry the army over the Mont Genevre. And it seems clear, that if Livy had not written at all upon the subject, the facts mentioned by Polybius, first, that the army marched along the river a distance of J 75 miles, till they arrived at the foot of the Alps; and, secondly, that they descended among the lnsubrians, would be quite sufficient, if not to establish the passage by the little St. Bernard, at least to exclude that by the Mont Genevre.

As, however, Livy, an author of so great and in many respects so deserved a reputation, had positively stated this latter to be the road which Hannibal followed, it became necessary for

writers upon the subject to choose between the two authorities; and we have, we trust, given sufficient reasons why that of Polybius should be preferred. I say, that it became necessary to choose, for it appeared absolutely impossible to reconcile the two accounts with each other by any reasonable means. That, however,

And accordingly in the Journal des S^avans for January, 1819, appeared a critique on M. De Luc’s book, by Mons. Letronne, a French scholar of reputation, who has found no difficulty whatever, in that which has appeared impossible to inferior powers.

Mons. L. maintains, in the first place, that Livy is in all respects quite, correct in his account of this transaction; and he quotes the passage in Strabo, to which we have already alluded*, in order to prove that Polybius had, in his own writings, actually stated that the Carthaginian army passed by the Mont Genevre; or, which amounts almost to the same thing, that they had descended amongst the Taurini. Enough has been.said in the Introduction to shew, that the words in this passage, $v*Avvi€ag dirfhOcVy are. an interpolation of^Stra-

bo’s, and are not to be considered as the original words of Polybius ; and even if our reasoning on this point should not be conclusive, the words are at all events doubtful; whereas the kcct^s roXf/syjgag sig rot, iregbrov TLoidov neStct, zee) to tuv *1 (TofAQgav ’l0vog, in the fifty-sixth chapter, are most decidedly the very words of Polybius, extracted from his own writings, and therefore as such to be depended upon. M. Letronne, however, who has attacked- M. De Luc very Severely for his omission of the former passage, himself passes over the latter one without any mention whatever, and prefers taking his author at secondhand in Strabo, to reading him in his own words. Although it is far from my intention to charge M. L. with bad faith, it certainly behoved him to be extremely careful not to lay himself open to the charge of a wilful omission of the text of his author, at the very moment when he was accusing M. De Luc of the very same fault. It seems, besides, altogether to have escaped him, that Polybius in his own story mentions the attack upon Turin as having taken place long after Hannibal had reached the plains, and not till the army had completely recovered from their fatigues. So far indeed is he from having noticed this fact in Polybius, that he positively quotes him as his authority for saying, that the Taurini were the first people"'

whom Hannibal met with on his descent from the Alps; and this authority he finds in the sixtieth chapter: D’Ailleurs c6tte circonstance ^b est tout a fait en harmonie avec ce que Polybe raconte plus bas ; savoir, que les Taurini furent les premiers peuples qu’Annibal rencontra k la hk descente des Alpes.

If by this violence committed on the text of one of his authors, M. L. was in any degree assisted in his hypothesis, some excuse might be found for him ; but the admission of his premises only throws him into much greater difficulties for the purpose of arriving at his conclusion, as we shall find on examining the manner in which he pursues his construction of the Greek text.

After allowing with M. De Luc that the army crossed the Rhone near Roquemaure^c,

^b The circumstance of the passage in Strabo, when he says that the army passed by the Mont Geneyre.

^c Notwithstanding the passage at Roquemaure, M. L. holds with Livy that the subsequent march to the northward was made for the purpose of running away from the Roman army: and he again quotes Polybius in support of this opinion. As it might be difficult to discover the passage from which this support is to be obtained, it may be right to state, that the whole authority is contained in the word i&s; which important word, according to M. L. has been hitherto neglected by translators. Le mot a et6 pass£ par les

and agreeing entirely as to the situation of the Insula Allobrogum, he arrives at the banks of the Isere on the fourth day : here, however, he stops, and does not cross that river; and for this also he has the authority of Polybius,

*gog rriv KuXovfAwriv Nq<rov₉ and a little further, Tgog yv dtyixojAsvoS) which means that he only came to the Island, and did not enter it. As however the words which immediately follow, zuTuXotSafv h ctvry Ivo dieXQovg, give us to understand, that the operations in which Hannibal assisted the elder of the contending princes took place within the Island, he is of opinion that they were performed by a detachment of the main army which was sent for that purpose across the Isere ; but for this opinion he does not produce any authority. Now with great deference to M. Letronne, I conceive that the last-mentioned Greek words clearly point out that the whole army crossed over into the Island; and from the whole of the subsequent passage I collect, that the co-operation was effected, not by a detachment, but by the whole army. To this I might add, that the accurate description of the Island, its fertility, extent,

traducteursj il importe cependant, parcequ’il montre avec quelle h&te Annibal vouloit s’dloigner des Romains. Journal des S^avans, Jan. 1819, p- 26.

population, and topography, all concur in proving that the operations did take place within its limits’¹; but one decisive reason supersedes the necessity of all the.rest; Hannibal must have entered the Island, since he was to march for 800 stadia along the Rhone from his arrival at the Isere. Against this argument, however, M. Le-tronne is prepared with a reply, to which if the praise of accuracy be denied, that of extraordinary ingenuity must certainly be'allowed. It is true, says M. L. that Hannibal had hitherto marched up the Rhone, and the words vuga, rov voroifAov, which immediately followed the name of that river, could apply to nothing else; but. when Polybius was describing the Island, the Isere was the river last mentioned, by parity of reasoning therefore, nugci rov Korotkov now applies to the Isere. This solution is, I repeat, extremely ingenious ; but 1 think that we have great reason to complain of Polybius, for having given us so little warning of this transition. M. L. cannot however lay claim to the originality of this idea; for Professor Sch weighseuser had already anticipated him in a note to the third book of Polybius, c. 50. vol. v. p, 596.

^d No mention is made by M. Letronne of the assistance afforded to the army by the prince of the Allobroges, nor of the protection given by him to them while they were marching through his territories.

The learned Professor however, at the end of his note, which is a long one, finally abandons this idea, because he plainly sees, that Polybius has expressly stated, c. 39, Hannibal to have marched 1400 stadia along the Rhone, till he came to the Alps. This consideration, which has staggered the Professor,-has had no effect upon M. Letronne, who has found an expedient even in this extremity. For according to him, the expression of Polybius, ’Ano Jg rjjg 'bio&turiug rov 'Podctvov TrogevofAsvots clvtov rov itorapov,

implies only, that this was the general direction of the route at the first setting out, and not that the 1400 stadia were to be measured along the river. Hannibal therefore does not cross the Isere, but marches along its banks on the south side in order to complete the 100 miles, which are to be expended before he can reach the Alps. Unfortunately on this occasion, M. L. who lays great stress on his authorities, and who even derives proofs from passages which to common minds appear to bear a totally different interpretation, M. L. I say, has on this occasion forgotten to remember, that Polybius positively states the army to have marched these 100 miles through a plain country, h rolg IriTridoig, c. 50: now such a country between Valence and Grenoble I challenge M. L. to find. Some of the highest of the secondary chains of the Alps take their rise immediately to the south of the lsere, and very much lower down the river than Grenoble; and in fact that town, which ought according to M. L.’s march to be in the midst of plains, is, as every body who has seen it well knows, surrounded by some of the highest mountains in France. There never was any Roman road on the south bank of that part of the lsere between Valence and Grenoble, and the road which now exists there is barely passable, and nothing more than a mere communication from one village to another. It is indeed only laid down in maps of a very large scale. The great road runs to the north of the river, and the Roman road only joined it at Moirans. But even allowing M. Letronne to march through an impassable country along the banks of that iroTccpog, which was the Rhone, and which he has now converted into the lsere; this march, if he keeps close to his river, must at last conduct him to the little St. Bernard by the valley of the Gresi-vaudan, which runs from Montmeillan to Grenoble, a valley so rich, and so broad and magnificent, that if Hannibal had once arrived in it, he never could have abandoned it. So' that if his original intention had been to march along the Isere, it is also clear that it was equally his intention to go by the little St. Bernard.

M. L. is therefore very little advanced in his undertaking, and it would have been very difficult for him to have escaped out of this strait, had he not fortunately found the river Drac just before his arrival at Grenoble; which river as it comes from the southward, would, if followed up to its source, at length put the army into the right road to the Mont Genevre. The tforapog therefore, which from the Rhone had become the Isere, is now to undergo another change, and to be called the Drac.

The reason given by M. L. for the march along this latter river ought not to be omitted; “ II remonta ce torrent (le Drac) que sa largeur “ dut lui faire prendre pour la meme riviere que “ Tlsere.” That is to say, Hannibal, guided by the people of the country^c, who knew the roads,

^e I say guided by . the people of the country, because as he had not yet arrived at the foot of the Alps, according to M. L. he must still have been accompanied by the troops of the prince of the Allobroges, whom he had reinstated in Iiis capital.

follows the Isere as long as it is impracticable, and as soon as it becomes easy, he abandons it, and marches up the banks of the equally impracticable Drac, along which there is no road whatever, either ancient , or modern. M. Letronne, in his perusal of Polybius, seems to have neglected the excellent advice given by that author to those historians, who, from a desire of astonishing their readers, fall into one or other of two errors most contrary to the genius of history, ipevdoXoyetv, or yguQeiv uvrolg. Finally, the entrance of the Alps is placed at St. Bonnet, a small town near the source of the Drac, and on the great road from Gap to Grenoble. It is necessary for M. L. to make this the entrance of the Alps, because his 100 miles terminate here; for.as to its being really the entrance of the Alps, he might as well apply that term to Brian^on itself, the one being situated in as mountainous a country as the other. Polybius has stated, that the army marched through the territory of the Allobroges. Now though it is quite notorious, that this nation never extended itself along the Drac to the southward, M. Letronne says, that as in Polybius’s time nobody knew any thing about them, they might as well have lived on the Drac as any where else. In this manner has Polybius been reconciled with Livy; but putting the latter

entirely out of the question, is it possible for a moment to admit an explanation of the Greek historian, so utterly contrary to all rules of grammar, as well as of common sense. Let us now see how the inconsistencies of M. L.’s favourite author Livy are accounted for. And first with respect to the “ ad laevam in Tricasti-“ nos flexit,” the vexata quaestio of the commentators. Nothing is easier,; ad laevam refers to the position of the historian himself, “ on “ auroit du sentir que cet historien en disant ^u ‘ flexit ad laevam/ parle relativement a sa “ position en Italie, ce qui est assez ordinaire Joum. des

“ aux auteurs anciens.” But allowing Hannibal 33. ’ to turn to Livy’s left hand, how is he, according to M. Letronne’s hypothesis, to arrive among the Tricastini, who are to be found in the neighbourhood of St. Paul-trois-Chateaux on the Rhone ! From this situation, in defiance of all authorities ancient and modern, they are brought up to the N. E. and placed on the Drac and Isere. No difficulty now occurs; we march, still following Livy across the Vocontii. and Tricorii, and arrive at the foot of the Alps at St. Bonnet. Here however we ought to get to theDurance, at which river when we have arrived, we are according to Livy to pass through a flat country for some days, and then finally to reach

the Alps; and as this difficulty might have finally vanquished M. L. he has wisely omitted to notice it at all; he therefore marches to the Mont Genevre, and descends by Suze upon Rivoli. After this examination, we may without any unfairness quote M. L.’s own words to M. De Luc. “ Ce n’est pas par de telles “ raisons qu’on peut se flatter d’6claircir defi-“ nitivement un point d’histoire.” The result indeed of our observations appears to be, that M. L. is quite wrong in his interpretation of Polybius, and still more so in that of Livy; so that the only point in which he makes his two authors agree, is in their common variance from his own hypothesis In consequence of the article in the Journal des Scavans for January 1819, M. De Luc published an answer to M. Letronne, which is remarkable for its clearness of argument, and its temperance; to this M. L. replied in the Journ. des Scavans for Dec. 1819. In this reply he discovers, that the snow, which had remained, according to Polybius, unmelted during the whole summer, was in reality only the snow which had fallen about a month before ; and he assures us “ que les Carthaginois “ purent la prendre pour de la vieille neige restee “ la depuis l’annee precedente.” M. L. also treats all the accessory proofs, such as the plate

Journ. des Scavans, p. 29.

Jan. 1819.

of silver and the ’htvKomrgov¹, and the tradition respecting the via Annibalis, with great contempt, and he even furnishes M. De Luc gratuitously with another fact of the discovery of some medals, supposed to be Carthaginian, at Aoste. Finally he says, that as all these little facts agree equally well with the passage by the great St. Bernard, which is manifestly absurd, they cannot possibly be of any importance when applied to the little St. Bernard. These little facts, however, are merely brought in as corroborative of the general argument, and no weight could possibly be attached to them if they stood alone. General Melville and M. De Luc may perhaps have attached rather too much importance to them, but if they were thrown on one side entirely, the main argument founded on the text of Polybius, on the concurrence of distances, and on the moral as well as physical probabilities, which all unite in favour of the little St. Bernard, would remain completely uninjured and unchanged s.

^f M. L. observes with respect to this word, that it occurs frequently, “ ce mot, qui revient plusieurs fois:” it only recurs in the tenth book already quoted, never again in Polybius, and in no other author that 1 am acquainted with.

8 We finish our quotations from the Journal des S^avans, with advising M. L. to revise the following: “ Nous pensons “ ([lie M. De Luc doit cesser de regarder comme impossible “ la conciliation de Folybe avec Tite Live."

We cannot after all take our leave of M. Letronne, (who although blind to the errors of his own route, has shewn much quickness in detecting the absurdities of others,) without thanking him for taking the trouble of refuting General Frederic Guillaume, who has abandoned the Rhone altogether, and M. Le Comte Fortia d’Urban, who, because he possessed some property near Orange, places the Insula Allobrogum close to that town, and calls the Eygues the Isaras. It remains for us to say a word concerning the Chevalier de Folard, the Marquis de St. Simon, and our countryman Mr. Whitaker, though last, not least, who has carried the army over the great St. Bernard.

XHE Chevalier de Folard, having determined, it seems, to lead Hannibal by the Cottian Alp, and yet being compelled to follow Polybius, the author he was commenting upon, as far as this hypothesis would allow, has struck out for the Carthaginian army a route which no one has ever I believe. contemplated but Tiimself, and which it is only necessary to hear described in order to be satisfied, if not of its utter impracticability, at least of its discrepancy from the accounts of both the original historians whom we have examined. The Chevalier seems indeed to disdain all the rules of criticism, and wishes his readers to understand that he means to be guided solely by his knowledge of the country through which he supposes the Carthaginian army to have passed; a knowledge which several campaigns in the Alps and Piedmont had furnished him with. He supposes HanK

nibal to have arrived at Romans, on the Isere, at some distance from its junction with the Rhone, without having any intention of crossing that river. He easily gets rid of the difficulty which the march of 800 stadia further up the Rhone would place in his way, by rejecting that passage in Polybius altogether as a blunder of some copier. He styles these 800 stadia “ une imagination, une faute des copistes, dont “ Poly be se moqueroit s’il mettoit la tete hors

It is impossible to argue according to the rules of criticism with one who so boldly rejects them all; but we will be content to dispute the question on M. de Folard’s own grpund, and, laying aside both Polybius and Livy, to debate the point from our own knowledge of this singular route. 'The Chevalier supposes Hannibal to have .folio wed the right bank of the Isere, as far as Grenoble, there to have crossed the Drac, and followed this river till its junction with the Roraanche. Hannibal, according to M. de Folard, now leaves the Drac, and follows this third river in its course through the mountainous country of Oysans, the territory Of the an, ! • ' 1 * r

* Histoire de Polybe, traduite du Grec par Dom Vincent Thuillier, avec un commentaire par M. de Folard, &c. tom. iv. p. 73. Amsterdam, 1729. * ;.

cient Uceni. Thus much indeed it is fair to state in favour of the Chevaliers opinion, that the route he has adopted, however difficult and improbable for an army to take, is yet distinctly marked in the Itineraries as a road known to the Romans, and used by them^b.

As far as the Bourg d’Oysans, though the Romanche is confined between high and perpendicular rocks, the road is yet sufficiently good and practicable; the Bourg itself is situated in a charming plain or bason, which the receding mountains allow to extend to some distance on each bank of the river. But about two miles further up the river, and a little beyond the point where it receives the impetuous ** > ^b This road is laid down in the Tabula Theodosiana as leading from Vienne, by Cularo, (Grenoble,) to the Alpis Gottia. The stations, which have been marked in the annexed map, are Catorissium, (Bourg d’Oysans,) Mellosedum, (Mizouin, or Mont de Lens,) Durotincum, (Villars d’Arene,) Stabatio, (Monastier de Briangon.) The whole distance, in the Itineraries, amounts to 42 miles; but this falls short of the real distance by at least 20 miles. D’Anville is therefore inclined to suppose, that some station has been omitted between Cularo and Catorissium. See D’Anv. Not. de l'Anc. Gaule, Art. Catorissium. The entrance of the Alps being placed at the Mont de Lens, we should have from thence to Brian^on about 32 miles, from Brian^on to Turin 65 miles, making a total of 97 or 100 miles; which falls short of Polybius’s distance by 50 miles. .

Verizon, which issues from the valley of Venos, the bed of the Romanche is closely confined between exceedingly high and rugged mountains, which scarcely afford a passage to the waters of the roaring torrent. The old road here left the river to scale the almost perpendicular heights of the Mont de Lens, being cut, as Mr. Folard allows, like a staircase in the rock; and was even then so difficult and impracticable, that it was thought proper within a few years to carry the road, after incredible pains and labour, close along the banks of the river. This astonishing enterprise, which is one of the last great works performed under the reign of the late French Emperor, is but little known, not in this country only, but even in France; yet in the boldness of the undertaking, the sublime grandeur of its scenery, the extent of the excavations which have been made, it surpasses both the pass of Bramante in the road to the Mont Cenis, and that of Gondo on the Simplon⁰.

The old road seems clearly to have been a Roman work, of which several traces are yet distinctly seen on the Mont de Lens; this is

^c The route here described is laid down in the Guide de l’Empire as the second road from Lyons to Turin, by Grenoble and Briangon. Buonaparte meant it for a military road, as affording the shortest communication with Italy.

probably the Mellosedum of the Itineraries; but before this the valley never could have been practicable for an army. It is, however, by this pass that M. de Folard supposes Hannibal to have led his troops; nay, farther, he conceives that this was the route which the Gauls had constantly followed in their expeditions into Italy. The difficulties, however, of M. de Fo-lard’s route only begin with the Mont de Lens; for the valley of the Romanche, beyond that passage, presents nothing but a scene of the utmost wildness and desolation; mountains of slate and schist, that crumble into ruins, leave not a trace of vegetation; and behind these rise lofty peaks covered with glaciers, from which numberless torrents descend into the Romanche, and fill the bed of that river with rubbish and huge fragments of rock. The Romanche rises at the foot of the Col du Lautaret, a pass, the height of which is little inferior to that of the little St. Bernard, and much above that of the Mont Genevre, but which certainly presents no difficulty. It is here that M. de Folard supposes Hannibal to have been attacked for the first time; but whence these desolate regions could have supplied a number of inhabitants sufficient for this enterprise, cannot well be devised : nor does the valley of the Guisanne, on the other side of the Col du Lautaret, contain

any town which can be supposed to represent that which Hannibal took after having defeated the Allobroges.

It will not, I think, be necessary to follow M. de Folard any farther; the absurdity of his hypothesis is too manifest to require it;.I will only notice the strange wanderings by which he leads Hannibal over the Col de Sestrieres, and also the Col de la JFenetre, for the express pmv pose, as it seems, of bringing the Carthaginian army to the heights of Balbotet^d, which he much insists on, as being the only spot from which a view of the plain can be obtained. But is this a sufficient reason for bringing an army out of the track which common sense would point out to them; since they had only to follow the river, which descends from the CqI de Sestrieres, in order to arrive, in the open plains 3 Those who would lead the Carthaginian army to the peak of Rocca Melone, or the summit of Monte Viso, would have as much reason on their side. Let us hear the Marquis de St. Simon, who maintains the latter opinion :

the Marquis, “ quelle route Annibal s’est ouvert “ pour arriver a la sommit6 des Alpes, je ne le “ perds pas plus de vue qu’un chasseur qui des “ hauteurs, laisse sa rheute parcourir les routes “ et les fourr^es d’un bois a l’entree de laquelle “ il la conduite ; il ne la voit plus, mais il Pen* “ tend aii loin, et la rejoint aussit6t quelle quitte “ les fonds. Je me retrouve de meme avec An-“ nibal sur le Mont Viso, sans m’inquieter de “ tous les detours ou la fraude de ses guides; “ son peu de confiance eii eux et son manque de “ connoissance de l’interieur des montagnes, a

M» De Luc has bestowed one entire chapter 011 the refutation of Mr. Whitaker, who, in two large volumes 8vo. has taken much pains to shew that Hannibal went by the great St. Bernard. M/De Luc’s objections to this writer’s hypothesis are so decisive and convincing, that it is scarcely necessary to say any thing further on the subject. It is strange, that, with the assistance of General Melville’s notes and observations to direct him in his researches, Mr. Whitaker should have preferred to support an opinion/ which has not one valid argument or plausible reason to recommend it. He seems

^e Hist, de la guerre des Alpes, ou Camp, de 1744. par M. le Marquis de St. Simon, Aide de Camp du Prince de Conti. Amsterdam, 1770.

to have thought, that learning, of which it cannot be denied that he has given proof, was to supply the place of personal observation, and that wild theories could supersede that knowledge which must be derived from experience and judicious investigation. Mr. Whitaker is often so blinded by the predilection with which his hypothesis has inspired him, that when he finds the text of Polybius at variance with it, he does not scruple to throw all the blame on the historian, and to charge him with committing gross errors and / mistakes.

By the help of such reasoning Mr. W. has little difficulty in proving, that by the Insula Allobrogum is meant a little island on which part of Lyons stands, but which to other eyes bears little resemblance to the Delta of Egypt, as mentioned by Polybius. It is thus that the Druentia of Livy is metamorphosed into the Arve, and the entrance of the Alps placed at Martigny, without any indication of the route by which Hannibal was to reach that place, which is not at the entrance, but in the heart of those mountains. I presume not to follow Mr. W. in his strange peregrinations through the valley of Bagnes; this is a labyrinth from which no clue could possibly extricate us. Any one who has visited that valley, rendered so unfortunately celebrated by the late dreadful

■- inundation of the Drance, must be satisfied that nothing under a demi-god could disengage Hannibal from thence, when once involved in those pathless and desolate regions. But the strongest objection after all arises from the computation of distances, of which Mr. W. takes no account whatsoever. From Lyons to Geneva, along the Rhone, there are 120 miles; from thence to Martigny 80; in all full 200 miles, which is more than double the distance that Polybius gives. From Martigny to Ivrea, by the great St. Bernard, there are not 100 miles, while the passage of the Alps themselves, in Polybius, is enumerated at 150. This final argument is at once conclusive against Mr. Whitaker, as well as all those writers who have inclined to the great St. Bernard.

Having thus gone through the various hypotheses of those writers, who have maintained that the Carthaginian army marched by the Mont Genevre or the great St. Bernard, it has I trust been shewn, that neither of these roads can be made to agree with the plain text of Polybius; and if we lay the Greek author aside, and with the followers of Livy take the Latin one alone for our guide, how does it happen that among the host of writers upon this subject, no two of them agree upon the road which the army took in order to reach the Mont Genevre.

This fact alone would be sufficient to throw great doubt and suspicion upon the account given by Livy, as, if he had expressed himself with tolerable clearness, these variations could hardly have occurred. Perhaps; however, Livy has been unfortunate in his supporters, for they have generally been either scholars or military men; the former of whom have remained at home in their closets, and have contented themselves with marching on their maps, without any real knowledge of the actual state of the country, and without appearing to be aware, that a large" army encumbered with baggage cannot pass like an individual over pathless mountains, and heights almost inaccessible, and still less through countries totally incapable of affording them subsistence; but that on the contrary, a long march through a difficult country, and under an able general, is always planned beforehand, and not left to accident; that the easiest roads are fixed upon; and that if magazines cannot be provided beforehand, the line of march is conducted as much as possible through a country, where the population is large enough, and where the fertility and cultivation are sufficient, to ensure subsistence for the troops. Can it be reasonably supposed, that a general, endowed with the talents of Hannibal, would engage himself arid forty thousand men, upon whom not only his own reputa^ tion, but the safety and even the existence of his country depended, in a long chain of mountains of which he could personally know neither the extent nor the resources, without having long before fixed upon his plan of operations? and could he, as some authors have imagined, have trusted blindly to his good fortune to extricate him from defiles, which he would in that case have rashly entered without knowing to what place they led, or whether there was any issue at all from them ? The most rational and easy way to penetrate through a very extended chain of mountains, is to trace the rivers which flow from them up to their sources, for subsistence and population are generally to be found on their banks, and the road is usually more easy, and the ascent more gradual; and accordingly in the road which we have proposed, we have only to pass over two mountains, the Mont du Chat, and the little St. Bernard; while to effect a communication between the Isere and the Durance, chains of mountains are to be crossed, in many places of nearly as great a height as the little St. Bernard itself, and a country is to be traversed, where the inhabitants are so poor as to be unable to do more than subsist themselves. It is impossible for a writer totally unacquainted with the

Alps, and with the supplies necessary for a large army, to be aware of the difficulties attendant upon its progress; and the most learned scholar will be often incapable of thoroughly understanding his author, unless he join some practice with his theory.

On the other hand, this subject has been examined by military men, who, writing only as such, have either altogether neglected the old writers, or have from ignorance of the language in which they are written fallen into mistakes equally prejudicial to the advancement of truth, and to the right solution of the difficulties in which the subject is involved. Some of those, who from their acquaintance with the country ought to have been particularly well qualified to assist in the investigation, have unfortunately formed their theories before they had consulted their authorities, and have carried Hannibal over the Alps by the same roads, and in the same manner, in which they themselves would have marched from Spain to Italy; and certainly if the question were to be decided upon mere probability, and if we had 110 other data whatever to go upon than the single fact of his having gone from the one country to the other, I should be more inclined to trust to the speculations of men, w ho pursue the same career that he did, than to those of writers, who are practically unacquainted with military matters: but here the case is different, for we have several certain foundations on which to build, and the scholar will be more probably right as to these than the military man. For the question to be discussed is not what road was the best, or what was the shortest from Spain to Italy, but what road Hannibal did actually take as reported by the oldest historians; and of these the oldest extant united in himself the two pursuits, which best qualified him to describe this march, since he was a man of letters as well as a soldier, and since above all he had himself gone over the ground, while the exploits of Hannibal were still fresh in the recollection of the inhabitants. To him then, as uniting the advantages of both, the scholar and the soldier should turn; and if they had originally consulted him instead of Livy, the honour of the discovery of the passage by the little St. Bernard would probably not have been reserved to so late a date as the time of General Melville, and the question would have been decided long ago. In confirmation of Polybius as an old historian we have also Cselius, who lived very soon after him, and to whose character for accuracy, truth, and research, such ample testimonials have been given in the Introduction. If then we have made our line of march agree with that laid down by Polybius, we can have no better assurance of our being in tbe right; and at all events if we ourselves be in the wrong as to the author, whom we have endeavoured faithfully to interpret and to follow, we may hope that we have not failed in the arguments that we have used to restore him to the high rank, which he ought to hold as an authority upon this point; and to raise him to that place, so long and so improperly usurped by Livy. With respect to our own hypothesis, it is perfectly true that we have but few data upon which to ground the turning off at Vienna, and the march across the Insula to St. Genis D’Aouste. The Roman road is however something, for that was in all probability founded upon some ancient road of the country, and the Carthaginian silver tablet found at Passage furnishes an additional confirmation ; it is however very possible that the army might have marched a little higher up the river, though it is improbable that they would lose time by keeping always close to its banks, when much might be saved by cutting off the angles. We have little also to urge as to. the absolute certainty of the passage by the Mont du Chat instead of the Mont de l’Epine, or the passage of Aiguebellette, except the superior facility of the former, and its better agreement with the text of Polybius, to say nothing of its much greater apparent antiquity. Upon these points the reader will judge for himself in their proper places, but these axe, after all, trifling matters, and make no difference whatever.in the general argument; nor can it be said, that we are in any one single point at issue with our author except in the view of Italy, which, as he gives us to understand is to be seen, from the summit of the Alps crossed by Hannibal. We have however shewn, that this view exists on no known passage whatever^f, and this discordance therefore, proves no more against us. than it does against every other writer on the same subject. In every thing else we agree in description of the country, and in distances, which, taken altoge* ther, form the most certain data to reason upon. The causes, military and political, which induced Hannibal to take the road described by Polybius, agree perfectly well with the one fixed on by us; for he could not have taken a road

^f It has, it is true, been supposed by some writers, that Hannibal must have gone to JBalbotet on the Col de Fenes-trelles, because that is the only place from whence the Alps are visible; but Balbotet, which is close to Fenestrelles, is so near to the plains around the Po, that it would not require a march of three days to reach them, besides which it cannot by any possibility be made out to be the summit of the Alps.

better calculated than the little St. Bernard to effect the objects which he had in view. It is true, that, with the exception of the great St. Bernard, it was the longest, but it enabled him to descend among the Insubrians, his friends, which could not be accomplished by any shorter road ; he was to be guided by the ambassadors from the Gauls, who lived, as we have shewn, in the Milanese, and who therefore would take him by the road they best knew, and through their own allies. He was, in a military point of view, to choose that line of march which was easiest, and best suited for the subsistence of his army: and in these two points, the latter of which is always kept in view by Polybius, the valleys of the Isere and of Aoste are eminently superior to all the others of the Alps ; so much so, that even at the present moment, if time were not an object, and if the improved means of transporting subsistence, which modern armies enjoy, were put aside, an army might cross the Alps with greater general facility, and with much less individual suffering, by this passage than by any other. The only two parts of the road that are bad are the Mont du Chat and the little St. Bernard itself; and a little labour would put these two places into very good order.

our author, this theory is supported by a great number of facts, which though when taken singly they may appear unimportant, are yet collectively of great strength; such as the silver tablet, the universal tradition of the inhabitants, and others of that nature. It is also consistent with itself, which is a quality that must be denied to many others; and if we may judge by the attack made on it by M. Letronne, it is not open to any very powerful objections; certainly to none that I am at present aware of.

It is impossible to conclude this dissertation, without again expressing my obligations to M. De Luc. It is to him that the theory of General Melville owes all its developement; and it was most fortunate for the literary reputation of the General, that he communicated his notes to M. De L. as well as to Mr. Whitaker, who appears to have been totally unaware of the value of the treasure confided to him. To all who may feel interested in this question, I most earnestly recommend the perusal of M. De Luc’s work; and I am most happy in being able once more to bear testimony to the uniform good faith, diligence, accuracy, and talent displayed in his remarks.

Should the arguments brought forward by that gentleman and by myself fail in producing conviction, I would advise an inspection of the

ground itself, in a visit to the places themselves; as, independently of the great interest attached to the question which has been here discussed, this passage is decidedly the . most beautiful of all. The valleys of Aoste and of the Isere are superior to all others in Alpine scenery, and their beauty alone will amply repay the trouble of visiting them. Although these valleys are not much frequented by strangers, yet ,their great population, and the constant intercourse they maintain with each other, will always ensure to the traveller the means of transporting himself with ease from place to place. It is easy to go from Geneva to Scez, at the foot of the little St. Bernard, in three days; and when once there, the two valleys may be thoroughly examined in a week. To those, however, who are unable or unwilling to undertake this journey, I trust that the arguments brought forward in the preceding pages in favour of the passage by the little St. Bernard will appear sufficiently conclusive to set the question fairly, if not finally, at rest*;'and if so, 1 feel that I cannot .better conclude this dissertation, than by referring all the honour of the discovery to General Melville, in the words of M. De Luc, whose modesty on this occasion, and whose uniform delicacy and unwillingness to bring forward his own merits, deserve the highest praise.

“ Si ce fiddle et judicieux historien,” (speaking of Polybius,) “ revenoit au monde, et qu’il “ vit cornbien toutes les peines qu’il s’est don-“ nees pour ne laisser rien d’incertain sur la “ route d’Annibal, ont ete inutiles, il demande-“ roit a quoi servent tous les progr&s que les “ modernes ont faits dans la g^ographie. II “ seroit surpris qu’au milieu de ces progres et “ avec les donnees qu’il foumissoit pour ne pas “ se tromper, on fut tomb6 dans un si grand “ nombre d’erreurs ; il verroit que l’exactitude “ et la justesse d’esprit sont des qualit6s aussi “ rares a present qu’elles l’6toient de son “temps; il seroit 6tonn6 qu’un Ecossois, (le “ General Melville,) un habitantde laCaledonie, “ de ce pays le plus recule des pays soumis par “ les Romains, eut rfesolu cette question si sou-“ vent agit6e sans succ&s, question que les ha-“ bitans des Alpes, et des pays qui sont a leur “ pied, que les militaires meme qui ont fait la “ guerre dans ces pays, avoient 6te hors d’6tat “ de rfesoudre.”

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Hannibal having taken every precaution for the security of Africa and Spain, now awaited and expected the arrival of those persons who had been sent to him by the Gauls; for he had made exact enquiries with respect to the fertility of the country at the foot of the Alps, and near the Po; the number of its inhabitants, and their courage in war; but above all, he had ascertained their hatred against the Romans from the former war, of which we gave an account in the preceding book, in order to make our readers better acquainted with the events now,to be related.

Hannibal therefore entertained much hope from this circumstance, and sent diligently to the chiefs of the Gauls, both those who dwelt on the other side of the Alps, and those who inhabited these mountains themselves ; making large offers and promises; for he conceived that he should alone be able to raise a war in Italy against the Romans, by succeeding in passing the difficult places that intervened, and arriving in the country above mentioned, and obtaining the assistance and co-operation of the Gauls in his future projects.

These emissaries having therefore arrived, and having announced the good will and expectation of the Gauls, and declared that the passage of the Alps was indeed very laborious and difficult, but not at all impossible, Hannibal drew together his troops from their winter quarters at the commencement of spring.

News had also lately arrived from Carthage, which much elated him, and inspired him with confidence in the good will of his fellow citizens; so that he now openly

exhorted his troops to prepare for a war with the Romans, laying before them in what manner the Romans had ventured to ask, that he and all the principal officers of the army should be given up to them: he explained to them also the fertility of the country in which they would arrive, arid the good will and friendship of the Gauls towards them. Upon the army’s testifying their eagerness and zeal, he praised their spirit; and having

From the pillars of Hercules to the Pyrenees there are 8000 stadia; from the pillars to Carthagena, whence Hannibal set out, the distance is 3000 stadia; from thence to the river Ebro there are 2600 staclia; from the Ebro to'Emporium 16*00: for all these distances have been measured in steps, and divided at intervals of eight stadia accurately by the Romans. From the passage of. the Rhone, for those who proceed along the river as if towards its source, to the first ascent of the Alps on the way to Italy, there are 1400 stadia. There

remains the passage of these mountains, a distance of about 1200 stadia; upon crossing these mountains Hannibal would enter Italy by those plains which are adjacent to the Po. / _; . ^

prepared to effect a passage where the, river was one entire stream, being then encamped about four days journey from the sea; and having by every means conciliated the people who inhabited the banks of the river, he purchased from them all their canoes and boats in sufficient quantity for his purpose; for these people who dwell on the Rhone are much in the habit of trading to the sea: he besides received from them a quantity of timber for constructing canoes; so that in two days he had got together a vast supply of vessels to carry over the army; each one striving to stand in no need of his neighbour, but to put in himself all hope of effecting a passage.

Meanwhile a numerous body of Barbarians was collected on the opposite bank, to prevent the passage of the Carthaginians; upon the sight of whom, Hannibal, judging that in his present situation it was not possible for him to cross the river by force in the face of so numerous a body of enemies, nor to remain there, lest he should be attacked on all sides, at the approach of the third night sent off a detachment of his army, with natives as guides, and under the orders of Hanno the son of Bomilcar. These having marched up the river

for 200 stadia, came to a place where it is divided by an island; there they halted, and having cut down timber from a neighbouring forest, they partly used it in constructing boats, and partly fastened it together for rafts, of which they soon made a sufficient number for their present purpose; on these they then crossed over without any opposition, and having taken up a strong position, they waited there that day to rest from their fatigues, and also to be ready to execute, those orders which should be issued to them. Hannibal also did the same with the remainder of his army; his greatest difficulty being how to carry over his elephants, of which he had thirty-seven.

At the approach of the fifth night, those troops who had crossed over at day-break, began their march along the river against those Barbarians who were opposed to Hannibal. The latter having his forces now prepared, proceeded to carry them across the river; having filled the larger vessels with the cavalry armed with targets, and the canoes with light infantry. The larger vessels were placed higher up and along the stream, and below them the smaller boats; that the force of the current might be broken by the former, and so render. the passage of the canoes more secure. It had been devised also, to draw the horses as they swam from the sterns of the larger vessels, one man being able to manage three or four on each side of the vessel by means of ropes, so that a great. body of horse was carried over in the very first crossing.

But the Barbarians, seeing the attempt made by their enemies, hurried out of their intrenchments in a scattered and tumultuous manner, persuaded that they could easily prevent the passage of the Carthaginians. But Hannibal, as soon as he saw on the opposite side his troops now advancing, and signifying their approach by smoke, as had been agreed upon, gave orders for the whole army to embark, and for those who were appointed to the larger vessels, to force their passage across the stream. This being speedily executed, and those who were in the larger boats vying with each other in loud cries, and struggling against the rapidity of the stream ; and both armies standing on each bank of the river; the Carthaginians anxious for and exhorting their men with their shouts, and the Barbarians opposite raising their war song, and daring them to come on; the scene was such as would be likely to create no small dread and anxiety in the minds of the spectators.

At this moment, the Barbarians having quitted their tents, the Carthaginian detachment that had crossed the river falls on them suddenly and by surprise; some proceed to set the camp of the enemy on fire, but the greater part attack those who were guarding the passage.

The Barbarians being thus unexpectedly attacked, part of them hastened to defend their camp, while the rest made head against their assailants. Hannibal, perceiving that every thing succeeded according to his plans, immediately collected his troops as they crossed,

and having exhorted them, attacked the Barbarians. The Gauls however being drawn up in no order, and taken by surprise, were soon routed and put to flight.

The Carthaginian general having now made himself master of the passage and defeated his enemies, immediately took measures for bringing over the remainder of his army; and this being speedily accomplished, he encamped that night close to the river: but on the morrow, hearing that the Roman fleet had arrived at the mouth of the river, he formed a party of 500 Numidian horse, and sent them to observe where the enemy was, and what was their force and design ; at the same time he appointed proper persons for bringing across the elephants. He then called together a meeting of his forces and introduced ,among them Magilus and the petty chiefs of the Gauls, who had come to him from the plains of the Po, and made known to his army by means of an interpreter what had been determined upon by them.

Among the circumstances calculated to inspire them with confidence, these were the principal: first, the presence of those men who incited them to the war, and undertook to assist them against the Romans; and next, the promise which they made of conducting them through places, in which they, would lack nothing, and at the same time reach Italy speedily and with safety, was most persuasive; as well as the account they gave of the fertility and extent of the country inta which they were to arrive, and the zeal of its inhabitants, who would assist them in their battles with the Romans.

The Gauls having made this statement, retired. Then Hannibal liimself came forward, and began first by reminding his troops of’their former achievements; in which, though often engaged in difficult and arduous enterprizes, they had never once failed, in consequence of their having followed his advice and direction. He then exhorted them to be confident also in this undertaking, seeing that they had already accomplished the most'important part of their task, since they had effected the passage of the river, and had beheld with their own eyes the zeal and good will of their allies; wherefore he conceived that they ought to have no anxiety with respect to the details of their operations, as that would be his concern; but by their obedience to his commands to shew tlieir worth, and act consistently with their former exploits.

The troops having testified by their acclamations great zeal and alacrity, he praised their spirit, and having offered vows to the Gods in behalf of all, he dismissed them, with orders to refresh themselves, and to get ready with all diligence, as the departure would take place on the morrow.

The meeting had just broken up, when the Nu-midians, who had been sent forward on the look out, arrived, having lost the greater part of their trOop, and the rest having taken to a hasty flight; for having fallen in not far from their own camp with a party of Roman horse, who had been sent out by Publius Scipio on the same duty, they had fought on both.sides with such animosity, that about 140 Romans and Gauls had fallen, and about 200 of the Numidians. The Romans afterwards in pursuit came up to the Carthaginian intrench-ment, and having made their observations, hastened back to inform their commander of the enemy's presence. Upon arriving at the camp they made their report; Publius Scipio then immediately ordered the heavy baggage on board, and breaking up from his encampment, marched with all his force up the river, being very eager to bring the enemy to an engagement. > .

But Hannibal on the morrow of the assembly, at day-break, drew out the whole of his cavalry towards the sea, to form his rear guard, and pleading out the infantry from the camp, he sent them forward on their march. He himself waited for the elephants. and the men who had been left with them.

The elephants were brought over in the following manner. Having made a great number of rafts, they joined two of these together strongly, and made them fast to the land on the bank: the breadth of the two thus united being about fifty feet. They then fastened two more to the extremity of these, which advanced out into the river: they secured also that side which was

against the stream, by cables from the land fastened to some trees which grew on the bank, in order that they might not be forced away by the strength of the current. Having made this raft in the form of a bridge about two hundred feet in length, they added to the end of it two other larger floats very firmly joined together, but fastened to the rest in such a manner, that the cables by which they were held might easily be cut asunder. They fixed also many ropes to these, by means of which the boats that were to tow them across might keep them from being carried down the stream ; and thus resisting the current, convey the elephants on them to the other side. They next spread a great quantity of earth upon the rafts, laying it on till they had rendered them level* and similar in colour with the road on the land that led to the passage. The elephants being accustomed to obey the Indians till they approached the water, but never daring to venture in, they first led forward two female elephants along the rafts, when the rest presently followed. Upon reaching the extreme rafts, the cables which fastened them to the rest were cut, and they were instantly towed by the boats towards the other side. At this, the elephants being thrown into great disorder, turned every way, and rushed to every part of the raft. But being surrounded on all sides by water, their fears subsided, and they were constrained to remain where they stood. In this manner were the greater part of the elephants brought over, two rafts being thus continually fitted to the rest. Some however through fear threw themselves into the stream in

the midst of the passage. The Indians who conducted these all perished; but the beasts themselves escaped; for owing to the strength and size, of their trunks they were able to raise these above the water, and breathe through them; and thus discharging the water as it entered theii: mouth, they .held out, and for the most part walked across, the river, their feet resting on th6 ground.

The elephants having now been brought across, Hannibal placed them and his cavalry in the rear, and set forward on his march along the river, proceeding from the sea in an easterly direction, as if he were marching towards the central parts of Europe.

Gulph, inclining to the west, in that part of the Alps which stretches towards the north : it then flows towards the southwest, and falls into the Sardinian sea; it runs for a considerable space through* a valley, the north side of which is inhabited by the Ardyes Celtic; but on the south it is bounded by the ridge of the Alps, which face the north. The chain of mountains here described separates the plains of the Po, concerning which we have already spoken at length, from the valley of the Rhone, beginning at Marseilles,' and reaching to the extremity of the Adriatic Giulph.

These were then the mountains which Hannibal was to cross, upon quitting the banks of the Rhone, in order to enter Italy.

But some of those who have written an account of this passage, wishing to astonish their readers by marvellous’ descriptions of these places, are fallen unawares into two defects most contrary to all real history. They are compelled to give false accounts, and also to contradict themselves. For having presented Hannibal to our view, as a general unequalled for his daring and foresight, they at the same time shew him to have been the most inconsiderate of men. In the next place, not being able to bring the matter to an end, nor to extricate themselves from these falsehoods, they introduce the gods and sons of gods into a narrative of real facts. They suppose the Alps to be so steep and rugged, that it were impossible not merely for cavalry, or armies with elephants, but even for infantry lightly equipped, to surmount them; and represent them besides as so destitute of inhabitants, that unless some god or. hero had met Hannibal and pointed out the way to him, both he and his army would have been brought to such distress, as must have ended in their total destruction. Such then is the dilemma into which these writers have confessedly fallen.

For in the first place, what general would appear so void of counsel, or so destitute of sense, as Hannibal; if, leading so great an army, and placing in it all his hopes of success, he had neither ascertained by what way, or through what countries he was to proceed, nor, in short, where or whither he was going: if finally he should appear to have attempted, not what was barely practicable, but absolutely the reverse; and yet when no general, however desperate his situation, would think of leading his forces into a country, of which he had no previous knowledge, this is the conduct which these writers ascribe to Hannibal, who then entertained the full and undiminished hope of succeeding in his enterprize. In like manner, what they relate with. regard to the desert state of these places, their steepness and difficulty of access, equally convicts them of falsehood. They indeed seem never to have heard, that the Gauls who live near the Rhone had more than once, and not long before the passage of Hannibal, crossed the Alps with numerous armies; had engaged with the Romans, and assisted the Gauls who live near the Po, as we have before shewn. And besides they are not aware, that the Alps are inhabited by a numerous race of people; but from their ignorance in these several matters, they are obliged to assert, that some hero made his appearance amongst the Carthaginians, and pointed out the way to them; in this circumstance they naturally follow the example of tragic writers, who in their catastrophes have continually recourse to some god or machine, because they lay down at first plots which are contrary to truth and reason. So these historians are compelled to make use of a similar expedient, and cause both heroes and gods to appear, after they have laid down in the beginning facts so improbable and so inconsistent with truth. For

surd a beginning. But the truth is, Hannibal did not in any wise act as these writers affirm; but conducted his enterprize with consummate judgment; for he had accurately ascertained the excellent nature of the country in which he was to arrive, and the hostile disposition of its inhabitants towards the Romans; and he had for guides and conductors through the difficult passes that lay in the way, natives of the country, men who were to partake of the same hopes with himself. But I speak with confidence on this subject, because I have made enquiries from persons who lived at the time these transactions took place; and have visited the ground, and journeyed besides through the Alps, for the purpose of inspecting these places, and gaining some accurate information respecting them.

Meanwhile, however, Publius the Roman general coming up to the place where the Carthaginians had crossed the river, three days after they had broken up their camp, and finding the enemy gone, his surprise as might be expected was extreme; having felt assured that they would never attempt to pass into Italy by that way, on account of the multitude and unsettled disposition of the barbarous nations that lay,in that direction. Perceiving however that they had made the attempt, lie hastened back to his ships, and upon his arrival imme_r diately embarked his forces; and having sent his brother to conduct the operations in Spain, he himself set sail for Italy; desirous of marching with the utmost

speed through Tyrrlicnia; sp as to reach the Alps before the enemy could have succeeeded in passing those mountains.

But Hannibal having marched for four successive days, from the passage of the Rhone, came to a place called the Island, a country very populous and fertile in corn; it derives its appellation from this circumstance; The Rhone on one hand, and a river called the Isara on the other, flowing on both sides of it, form the land into an angle at their junction; it nearly resembles the Delta of Egypt in extent and shape, except that the sea forms one of the sides of the latter, and connects the branches of the river that inclose it; but the third side of the former is terminated by a chain of mountains extremely rugged and steep, not to say inaccessible. On his arrival in this country he found two brothers contending for the sovereignty, and in arms against each other; when upon the elders requesting his aid and cooperation in securing for him the throne, he readily acceded to the proposal; as it was then already evident what advantage he was likely to secure to himself from such a measure. Having therefore joined his forces with him, and driven out the other brother, he received in return no small assistance from the victor.

For he not only abundantly supplied the army with corn and other necessaries, but very seasonably exchanged for new ones whatever arms were old and worn out; he besides furnished a great part of the forces with new clothing, and especially with shoes, which proved of infinite service to them in their march through the mountains. But above all, as they must have passed through the country of the Gauls, named Allobroges, with some degree of apprehension, he protected their rear with his forces during their march, and secured them from all attack till they drew near to the foot of the Alps.

When Hannibal had marched for ten days along the Rhone, a distance of about 800 stadia, and was preparing to ascend the Alps, he then found himself in a situation pregnant with extreme difficulty and danger; for as long as the army remained in the plain, all the chiefs of the Allobroges had refrained from .molesting it in its progress, partly through fear of the cavalry, and partly also of the Barbarians that followed in the rear.

But when the latter had returned to their own country, and the army was now entering the difficult passes, the chiefs of the Allobroges collected a numerous body of men, and seized upon the defiles through which Hannibal and his army were necessarily obliged to pass.

Now if they had conducted their plan with secrecy, they must have utterly destroyed the Carthaginian army; but their intentions becoming evident, this plot, though it caused a considerable loss to the Carthaginians, proved no less destructive to themselves. For when the Carthaginian general had observed that they had occupied the most advantageous posts, he halted and

encamped at the foot of the heights; whilst he sent forward some of the Gauls that served him as guides to spy out the design and plan of the enemy. These having obeyed his orders* Hannibal learnt that during the day the Barbarians kept a .careful guard at their post, but that when night came they retired to a neighbouring town. Upon this information Hannibal prepared his measures, and adopted the following plan; he led on his forces in open sight, and having brought them up close to the entrance of the defile, he encamped within a short distance of the enemy; as’night came on, he ordered firSs to be lighted; when'leaving the greater part of his arririy there, he himself with a select body of his bravest troops, lightly equipped for the occasion, penetrated through thfe defiles' during the night/ and seized upon those posts which the enemy had deserted; they having retired according to their usual practice to their city.

When this had been executed, and morning came, the Barbarians, perceiving what had taken place, at first desisted from forming any enterprize; but afterwards, observing the beasts of burthen and the cavalry slowly and with difficulty extricating themselves from the difficult places, they were urged by that circumstance to make an attack upon them during the march. Upon this determination they assailed the Carthaginians on several points at once, and caused them a severe loss,-especially in,horses and beasts of burthen ; not so much

indeed from the assailants, as owing to the nature of the ground; for as the way by which they were advancing was not only rough and narrow, but also precipitous, many of the beasts that were loaded with «the baggage, from the least shock and confusion, were carried together with their loads down the precipices; and this disorder was chiefly caused by the wounded horses ; for some, rendered unmanageable by the pain, fell against the beasts of burthen; others, rushing forwards and overthrowing every thing they encountered in sO difficult a road, created the utmost confusion and alarm.

Hannibal observing this, and reflecting that even though the troops should escape, the loss of the baggage must be attended with the ruin of the army, advances to their aid with the detachment which had occupied the heights during the night; as i he made his attack from higher ground, he destroyed many,of the enemy, not however without suffering equally in return; for the disorder of the march was much increased by the conflict and clamour of these fresh troops, But when however the greater part of the Allobroges had perished in the combat, and the rest had been forced to fly for shelter to,their homes, then only,;,the remainder of the beasts of burthen and cavalry with great toil and difficulty succeeded in emerging from the pass. Hannibal having then drawn together all the troops he could collect after the engagement, proceeded to. assault the town from whence the enemy had made their attack, and finding it almost deserted, because the inhabitants had

been all induced to go forth in quest of booty, he easily became master of it; and from thence derived many important advantages both for his immediate as well as future wants.

For his present supply he obtained a vast number of horses and beasts of burthen and captives, and besides, a quantity of corn and cattle sufficient to maintain the army with ease for two or three days; he also infused such terror into the neighbouring people, that none of those who dwelt near the ascent of the mountains would easily be induced to form any enterprize against him. •

Having then pitched his camp in that place and remained there one day, he again set out on his march, and proceeded for some time in perfect safety; but on the fourth day he again became exposed to imminent danger. For the people who dwelt round the passage, having conspired together to deceive him, came out to meet him, with boughs and garlands; for this is the symbol of peace with nearly all barbarous nations, as the Caduceus is among the Greeks. But Hannibal, cautious of giving hastily credit to these assurances, questioned them minutely as to their purpose and intentions altogether. They assured him that they were well aware of the capture of the neighbouring town, and the destruction of those who had made an attack upon him ; they also expressly declared that they were come for that purpose, as being desirous of neither doing or suffering any injury, and offered to deliver into his hands some of their people as hostages.

Hannibal remained long in doubt, and mistrusted this declaration; but when he had reflected, that if he should accept their offers, it would .render this people more cautious and gentle in their conduct; but were he to reject them, it would force them to become his avowed enemies; he assented to their proposal, and pretended to enter into an alliance of amity with them : but when these Barbarians had given their hostages, and furnished the army with cattle in great abundance, and altogether had put themselves into his hands without any reserve, Hannibal was induced in some degree to lay aside his suspicions, and even employ them as guides to conduct the army through the remaining defiles. When the Carthaginians then had proceeded for two days under the conduct of these guides, the Barbarians having meanwhile assembled together in great numbers, made a sudden attack upon the Carthaginians, as they were passing through a ravine very difficult of access, and closed in by steep and rugged heights.

Here then must Hannibal and his whole army have been infallibly destroyed, had not he still been in some degree on his guard, and, foreseeing the possibility of such an attack, placed his baggage and cavalry in the van, while he kept his heavy infantry in the rear; for as these closed the march, they prevented a heavier

loss, by sustaining the shock of the Barbarians; notwithstanding however a vast number of men, beasts of burthen, and horses perished. For the Barbarians having the advantage of the ground, and advancing along the sides of the mountains, as the army proceeded on its way, by rolling rocks upon them, and hurling stones, spread the utmost disorder and confusion throughout their ranks; insomuch that Hannibal was'forced with one. half of his army to bivouac that night close to a certain naked rock, strong from its’position; whence he could protect his baggage and cavalry, now separated from him; nor was it till the whole night had been spent, that they were at length enabled to emerge from this ravine. .

But the following day, the enemy being now retired, Hannibal rejoined his baggage and cavalry, and led on the army to the highest summits of the Alps, having no longer to encounter any numerous body of the Barbarians, but harrassed 011 different³ points by straggling parties, that fell.either on his advance or rear, as opportunity was offered them, and carried off some of the baggage. On these' occasions the elephants were of the greatest service, for wherever they presented themselves in the march, the enemy never ventured to advance, being struck with terror at the sight of these beasts.

Having reached the summit of the mountains on the ninth day, Hannibal pitched his camp, and remained there for two days, desirous of resting the troops he had brought thus far safe;, and also that he might wait for those who chanced to have been left behind; during this time many of the horses? that had broken loose through fright, and beasts of burthen that had thrown off their loads, having followed the traces of the army, contrary to expectation rejoined the camp.

There was already snow collected on the summit of the. mountains, as it was'nOw near the setting of the Pleiades; wherefore seeing his troops in a state of great dejection from the hardships they had suffered, and those that still r awaited them, Hannibal sought by drawing them together to raise their,drooping spirits. The sight of Italy was the readiest expedient he had for this purpose, for it is so close beneath these mountains, that when viewed together the Alps appear as the citadel of Italy.

Pointing out therefore, to his soldiers the plains adjacent to the Po, and reminding them of the friendly disposition of their inhabitants the Gauls towards them, and shewing them the place where Rome itself was situated, he in some degree revived their courage. On the morrow they decamped, and began the descent, no longer exposed to theattack of any enemy, except a few lurking marauders; but from the nature of the ground and the quantity of ’show their loss was scarce lesg than what they had experienced during the ascent.

For the descent was not only narrow and steep, but the snow rendering it'impossible to distinguish where they placed their steps;* whenever they turned out of

the proper track, they were inevitably lost in some precipice. Still however they bore up against these hardships, as being now used to such distress. At last they came to a place, where it was neither possible for the elephants or beasts of* burthen to pass, owing to the narrowness of the road, which was extremely broken, and liable to be carried away for the distance of a stadium and a half; and this had actually taken place very recently in a more than usual degree; so that the troops again felt their spirits sink, and gave way to the utmost gloom and despondency. Hannibal at first endeavoured to avoid this obstacle by taking a circuitous route, but a fresh fall of snow having rendered this impracticable, he abandoned that design.

For an accident of a peculiar and unusual nature had taken place, a quantity of snow which had remained unmelted since the last winter was now covered with fresh; this last was easily penetrated by the feet from its being recent, and consequently soft, and of no considerable depth. But when the men had trodden through this, and reached that which lay beneath and was firm, they made no longer any impression: but they slid forwards on both their feet, as it happens to those who tread on a muddy and slippery surface. But what next followed was still more distressing; as they could have no hold on the snow beneath, whenever they fell, they struggled to raise themselves with their hands or knees; but the ground being very steep, they were sure to slide forward with greater force, carrying with them whatsoever they held to for support. The beasts of burthen also, when they endeavoured to rise from their fall, broke through the surface of the lower snow, and remained there with their loads as it were wedged in, both through their weight, and the firm nature of the old snow. Having therefore desisted from this attempt, Hannibal encamped near this narrow ledge, and having caused the snow to be cleared away, he set his army about propping up and reconstructing the road; a task attended with great labour and difficulty. In the space of a day however sufficient progress was made to allow a passage for the beasts of burthen and horses; when these were immediately led down to the plains which were free from snow, and sent to pasture. He then ordered the Numidians to proceed further in the repairs of the road, relieving each other during the work; when after much labour and toil during three days they succeeded in making the elephants pass, these animals being now almost worn out with famine; for the summits and higher points of the Alps are entirely naked and destitute of vegetation, from being constantly covered with snow both winter and summer; but the middle regions on both sides abound in wood and trees, and arc altogether habitable.

Hannibal having now collected his whole force, descended, and in three days more from the time that he had passed over the broken way, reached the plain, having lost many of his soldiers, as well from the attacks of the enemy, as in passing rivers, during the course of the march; many likewise in the precipices and defiles of the Alps; and a still greater number of horses and beasts of burthen. Finally, having completed his journey in five months from Carthagena, and spent fifteen days in crossing the Alps, he descended boldly into the plains that are near the Po, and the territory of the Insubrians, having saved of his infantry not more than 12000 Africans and 8000 Spaniards; of his cavalry only 6000; as he himself declares, in an account of the number of his force engraved* on a column at Lacinium.

Hannibal having now entered Italy with the forces above mentioned, encamped at the foot of the Alps, and turned all his attention at first to recruit and refresh his army. For the troops had not only suffered extreme hardships from the difficulties of the way, both in the ascent and descent of the mountains, but they were besides reduced to the utmost distress from the want of necessary provisions, and neglect of their persons, during their journey. Many indeed seemed to have lost all energy and courage from want and continued sufferings. For it was not easy to convey provisions necessary for the support of so many thousands through a country of so difficult an access, and those which they brought with them had been for the most part lost, together with

the beasts that carried them. So that his army, which after the passage of the Rhone amounted to 38000 foot, and more than 8000 horse, was now reduced to nearly half that number, from the losses it had sustained in the passage of the mountains; and these from being exposed to such repeated sufferings, both in appearance and condition, were brought to a state more resembling that of wild beasts than human beings.

HannibaPs whole care was therefore directed to the best means of reviving the spirits,of his troops, and restoring the men and horses to their former vigour, and condition.

When therefore, his troops were sufficiently recovered from their fatigues, he first of all invited the Taurini, who dwell at the foot of, the Alps, to enter into an alliance with him, they, being then at war with the Insubrians, and but ill affected towards the Carthaginians: upon their refusal, he surrounded their chief city, and took it after a siege of three days, putting to the sword all who had'opposed to him ; by this measure he spread such terror among the neighbouring Barbarians, that they, all came immediately and submitted at discretion. Now the remainder of the Gauls who inhabited these plains were desirous according to their first intention of joining the Carthaginians; but the Roman legions having already passed through most of their country, and thus prevented f them, they^ were forced to remain quiet; some indeed were compelled to join the Romans, >

without loss of time to move forward, and achieve something, for the purpose of giving confidence to those who were desirous of making common cause with him.

EXTRACT FROM THE HISTOIRE DE L\A.CAD. DES INSCRIPTIONS^ RELATING TO THE SILVER TABLET FOUND AT PASSAGE IN DAUPHINY, AND NOW PRESERVED IN THE KING’S LIBRARY AT PARIS.

En 1714?, un fermier de la Terre du Passage en Dau-phine, Diocese de Vienne, faisant ses labours au lever du Soleil eut sa Charrue accrochee par une grosse pierre, dont l^branlement rendit quelque son ; il employa le reste de la journ6e a Penlever, et en etant venu X bout, il trouva dessous un grand bouclier d’argent, de vingt sept pouces do diametre, et du poids de quarante-trois marcs. M.Gallien de Chabons Seigneur du lieu, et Conseiller au Parlement de Grenoble, etoit heu-reusement alors au cMteau du Passage; le fermier lui porta le soir m£me le bouclier, dont il fut si-charm£, que sur le champ il lui donna quittance d’une ann6e entiere de sa ferme, lui recommendant seulement le secret de la d£couverte et de la recompense; ensuite il renferma precieusement ce bouclier, qu’il appelloit une Table de Sacrifice, dans une armoire de la Sacristie de sa Cha-pelle, et l*on n’en eut connoissance qu’apries sa mort. Alors ses heritiers apprirent toute Phistoire par son

livre de raison, on il avoit £crit que si jamais on se defaisoit de cette antiquite, il falloit que ce fut pour avoir en echange un fonds capable d’entretenir honnete-ment un chapelain au ch&teau du Passage : ils resolurent de suivre cette vue; ils envoyerentle Bouclier, toujours appelle Table de Sacrifice, a M. de Boze, pour syavoir s’il conviendroit au Cabinet du Roi, Sa Majesty, l’agrea ; Elle le.fit payer le double de sa valeur intrinseque et il fut place a cote de celui de Scipion.

Ce second Bouclier votif, qui est tres entier et Ires conserve, est de la meme forme, c’est a dire, exactement rond, a peu pres de la meme grandeur et du m£me poids que le precedent, mais il n’est pas a beaucoup pres aussi charge de figures et d’ornements. On y a seulement represente au centre, un lion sous un palmier, et ou bas dans une espece d’Exergue les membres epars de divers animaux, sur-tout de sangliers. De ce centre partent des rayons d’une ciselure simple et noble, qui s’elevant ct s’elargissant dans une juste proportion, viennent aboutir a la circonference de tout le bouclier, et forment en ce genre un tres agreable coup d’ceil. _t

M. de Boze l’ayant fait voir a rAcademie,on ne balan9a pas a y reconnoitre un ouvrage Carthaginois; le rapport de la gravure de ce bouclier avec celle des medailles de Carthage, Tauroit seul indique, mais le lion et le palmier, symboles ordinaires de cette Ville fameuse, ache-voient dc le determiner. De la les conjectures prenant leur essor, on alia jusqu’a soup9onner que le bouclier pourroit bien avoir appartenu a Annibal, et £tre une offrande qu’il auroit faite apres son.passage du Rhone a quelque Divinite des environs comme a celle des Vocon-tiens, “ Dea Vocontiorum,” si celebre dans l’histoire, et dont on trouve un si grand nombre de monuments en Dauphine. On observa que son Temple etoit precise-ment dans le canton ou la d£couverte s’6toit faite, et que suivant l’ancienne tradition du pays, la terre du Passage avoit retenu, ce nom, du passage d’Annibal avec son armee, lorsqu’il la menoit en Italie: on ajouta que si les Grccs et les Romains avoient coutume'd’offrirtaux Dieux, des Boucliers votifs pour leur demander des succes ou pour les en remercier; cet linage n’etoit pas moins ordinaire aux Carthaginois, comme on la deja vu par Texemple d’Asdrubal frere d’Annibal, dans les depouilles de qui on trouva ce bouclier d^rgent, du poids de cent trente huit livres, qui fut mis au Capitole. On remarqua encore que si le lion etoit un des symboles de Carthage, il etoit devenu par excellence celui d’Annibal, a qui on en avoit donnele surnom, et qu’Amilcar son pere avoit co&tume de dire de ses enfans, que c’etoient des lions quil nourrissoit pour la destruction de Rome et de ses Allies. (Tom. ix. p. 155.)

EXTRACT FROM THE THEATRUM SABAUDIyE, RELATING TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE CONVENT ON THE LITTLE ST. BERNARD.

Non satis fuit eximio Viro Dei, Bernardo, quae dix-imus in Monte Jovis^a fecisse, .nisi id ipsum in supradicto monte qui ex Salassis in Centrones sive ex Augustensi Valle in Tarentasiensis ducit, preestitisset. Is, cum Mons Columnae Jovis diceretur accepta denominatione a Marmore& Column^ cujus in sum mo eminebat Lapis Carbunculus seu Pyropus quem Jovis oculum dicebant, ut fert veterum traditio^b, non modo dejecta column^, quod idem in Monte Jovis seque prsestiterat, Daemones Viatoribus similiter insidientes inde ejecit, verum etiam aliam Hospitalem domum, sub eorundem Regularium ordinis sui Canonicorum regimine, perpetuo ad viatores excipiendos inhabitandam, inibi aedificavit j quae quia minoris molis est, minoreque Religiosorum numero habitatur, Minoris Sancti Bernardi, vulgo, le Petit St. Bernard apud Gallos, San Bernardo il piccolo apud Italos, nomen obtinuit.

It has not been thought necessary to insert a map of the road taken by the army from Ampurias to Nismes, as it appears from the 39th chapter of Polybius that he supposes them to have marched' in the track of the great Roman road⁰, which formed the communication between those two places. It may however be satisfactory to give the Roman stations, and their distances from each other, as marked in the Antonine Itinerary. The distances are given generally as corrected by D’Anville, since without these corrections they are in some places manifestly wrong.

^cD’Anville supposes this to have been the Via Domitia. See his Notice sur La Gaule, art. Forum Domitii.

The distance is stated by Polybius at 200 miles, so that here is an excess of 7, which is certainly not considerable. The Roman road quitted the present post road at Boulon, and went to the eastward to Elne (Illiberis) and Roussillon (Ruscino), a town now destroyed, on the river Tet, a little below Perpignan. It then rejoined the great modern road, and went in the same direction till a few miles beyond BezierS, when it turned off to the E. to St, Thybery, on the river Herault, and proceeded in a straight line to Soustantion, which is about three miles to the N. E. of Montpellier. It crossed the Vidourle above the bridge of Lunel by a bridge at Ambrussum, the remains of which are now called Pont Ambrois, from thence to Nismes. The distance from Emporium to Juncaria is not in the Itinerary, but I have stated it according to its actual amount.

From the passage of the Rhone to the foot of the Alps, or from * Roquemaure to St. Jean de Chevelu (Lavisco), there is a distance of 175 miles, according to Polybius. The Antonine Itinerary gives no road between Valence and Grange, but the Itinerarium Hiero-solymitanum gives^r thirty-eight miles from Arausione (Orange) to Acuno* (Anconne), a small village a little above Montelimart, and thirty-two miles from Acuno to Valentia (Valence), in all seventy miles from Orange to Valence. The real distance is not quite so great. From Valentia. we take up the Antonine Itinerary again, coming from Milan by the Mont Genevre or Cottian

Alps to Vienne, where we fall in with the road from Milan by the Graian Alps or little St. Bernard.

This gives 14 miles too much, but on the other hand a considerable deduction is to be made from, the three last stations Jn the Itinerary. The distance from

St. Maurice to Pre St. Didier is not so much as 24 miles, and five miles are to be deducted from the stage from Pre St. Didier to Aoste, which is not above 20. The same number is also to be taken from the stage between Aoste and Verres. These deductions will reduce the excess to about the distance required of 150 miles. We left Pr6 St.’Didier on the twenty-fifth of August, at least an hour after day-break, and went at a very slow foot’s pace to Aoste, stopping to bait on the way. We stayed/some time at Aoste, and reached Verres just as it became dark, stopping to bait on the road* ;This we could certainly not have done had it been 50 miles. «j I .. u I . • »j» • * >

Hannibal crossed the Pyrenees with 50,000 infantry and 9,000 cavalry, and arrived in Italy with 20,000 infantry and 6,000 cavalry, having lost 33,000 men in the march, and it is remarkable that this number differs very little from that reported by Livy on the authority of Cincius Alimentus. Lib. xxi. c. 38. The passage is a little corrupt, but there can be little doubt of his alluding Co the; total loss during the march, and not only among the, Taurini.

The march was completed in five.months from Cartha-gena, which he left early in «"June, and arrived at the plains of the.Po in the first days of November in the year B. G. 218, and U. C. 534,

( Polybius states ^the amount of the army on the authority of an inscription made by Hannibal himself, and found at Lacinium.

The most extraordinary passage of the Alps in modern times is that by Francis 1. in his invasion of Italy in 1515. As the Swiss troops had, occupied the great roads, he was obliged to make the most extraordinary efforts to carry his army over mountains which had never before been passed except by the people of the country. The main body, of the army appears to have gone from Mont Dauphin by the rock of St. Paul into the valley of Barcelorinette, and then by the Col de L’Argentiere into .the valley of La Sture, and so to the Marquisate of Saluzzo. The' reader may consult Mons. Sismondi’s Histoire des Republiques Italiennes on this subject, as well as Paulus Jovius and Guicciardini. Leger, in his Histoire des Eglises Vaudoises, affirms, that Francis caused a passage^ to: be cut through Mont Viso for this purpose; and it is certain that in one of the best maps of that country, that of Buonaparte’s Campaigns by Bacler D’Albe, we find on the summit of the. Mont Viso the words.Traversette, Trou faite ^a de mairi.d’homme.” Mention is made of the piercing a rock t called Pied de Pore both by Varillas, and by Paulus Jovius, the former of whom attributes the merit of this enterprise to Navarre, and the latter to Trivulzio; but this rock appears to have been situated in the valley of La Sture^ and none, of the historians of the time say any thing of a passage cut through the Mont Viso. The whole march is extremely- curious, and well, worth examination. ' i ' ' •

<D\

*«

C. 38. Id quum inter omnes constet, eo magis miror ambigi, quanam Alpes transient: et vulgo credere, Penino atqufc inde nomen et jugo Alpium inditum, transgressum. Ccelius, per Cremonis jugum dicit transisse: qui ambo saltus eum non in Taurinos, seel per Salassos montanos ad Libuos

Page	line
Introd. 12.	8. after account insert appears to be
12.	27. for an read au
15.	2. for least read less
29.	27. for Brescira read Brescia
4.	8. for West read East
7.	23. for and read or
19.	5. for which read while
20.	1. for parcu read paru
48.	14. for Gresivauclan read Gresivaudan
SO.	15. for magnes read magnas
51.	5. for Vocantii read Vocontii
52.	19,20. for his, him, his read their, them, their
60.	26. for put read sent
61.	20. for rapes read rapes
66.	19. for might read must
95.	12. for Chateau read Chateaux
158.	19. for Celtic read Celtae
182.	19. for faite read fait

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