Invention: The Master-key to Progress

by Bradley A. Fiske

At this time, Italy and the lands of Africa and Asia on which Alexander had impressed the civilization of Greece, were prosperous and well-governed; but beyond those countries only barbarous customs prevailed, and only a primitive civilization reigned. The lands that lay north and northwest of Italy, throughout all Gaul, were inhabited by savage tribes that were in a state of continual war with each other. In the southern and middle parts the effects of Roman civilization might be dimly seen; but in the southwestern part, and in the north, especially among the German tribes on the Rhine, and the Belgæ near the North Sea, a condition of virtually pure savagery prevailed.

Into such a country Cæsar marched, at the head of a body of men wholly inferior in numbers to those they were to meet, not superior to them in courage or physical strength, but considerably superior to them in discipline, and vastly superior in the weapons and methods that had gradually been invented, with the progress of civilization. Thus, while the Roman machine was superior as a machine to any that the Gauls could bring to bear, it was smaller; so that the question to be decided was whether the superior excellence of the Roman machine was great enough to balance its inferiority in size. Looking back from our vantage ground on the history of the campaigns that followed, we feel inclined to answer the question in the negative, unless we consider Cæsar himself a part of the machine. It is true that the campaigns were decided in favor of the Roman machine; but there seems little ground for doubting that they would not have been so decided, if the genius of Cæsar had not managed the Roman machine and made improvements from time to time.

Cæsar had had little experience as a soldier, but his habits of life and traits of character were of the military kind. As the campaigns progressed, his courage, equanimity and rapidity of thought and action were continually displayed;—yet not to such a degree as to put him in a higher class than many other generals of history, or to account wholly for his marvellous successes. One peculiar ability, however, he possessed and exercised in a degree greater than any other general of history: and it was by the exercise of that ability that his most extraordinary victories were achieved, and his generalship especially distinguished from the generalship of others. That ability was inventiveness.

His first contact was with the Swiss (Helvetii), who were about to leave the barrenness of their mountain lands, and march west to the fertile lands beyond. As this would take them through Roman territory and tend to drive the Gauls into Italy, open Switzerland to occupation by the Germans, and point a road thence for them also into Italy, Cæsar hastened to the Rhône River, destroyed the bridge which they would naturally go over, and forbade the Swiss to attempt to cross the river. The Swiss pleaded with Cæsar to permit them to cross. As Cæsar realized that the Swiss were too greatly superior in force to be kept back, unless he could strengthen himself in some way, he asked time for reflection, and told them to return in two weeks. When the Swiss returned at the end of that time, their astonished eyes disclosed to them the fact that Cæsar had constructed walls and trenches and forts at every point where a passage could reasonably be attempted.

It may be objected that walls and trenches and forts were not new, and that therefore Cæsar invented nothing. This may be admitted as an academic proposition; but nevertheless, it was clearly the ingenious and wholly unexpected construction of certain appliances by Cæsar that opposed the barbarous Swiss with barriers which they could not pass. It may even be argued with much reason that the conception and successful execution of Cæsar's plan as a whole constituted an invention, even though the material used was old. Certain it is that a situation was created which did not exist before, and that it was the creation of this situation, and not the exercise of strength or courage, that was the determining factor in stopping the Swiss. Froude says of Cæsar, "He was never greater than in unlooked-for difficulties. He never rested. He was always inventing some new contrivance."

Cæsar realized fully the value in war of mechanical appliances, and took careful measures before he left Italy to supply his army adequately with them, and also with men trained to use them. Besides the fighting men strictly considered, Cæsar took a considerable number of engineers with him, and expert men for building bridges, and doing mechanical work of many kinds. The ingenious and frequent use that Cæsar made of these men and of mechanical appliances was the most powerful single factor that contributed to his success.

The Swiss departing from Switzerland by another route, Cæsar pursued them, and defeated a fourth of them in a battle on the banks of a river which the other three-fourths had crossed. He then built a bridge over the river and sent his army across. This feat alarmed the Swiss more than their defeat; because Cæsar had built the bridge and sent his army across in one day, whereas they had consumed twenty days in merely crossing. The Swiss pleaded to be allowed to proceed; but Cæsar was obdurate. A battle followed, in which the Swiss, though greatly superior in numbers and reinforced by 15,000 allies, were decisively beaten; not because of inferior courage or warlike skill, but by reason of inferior equipments, mechanical appliances and weapons.

Cæsar's next battle was with the Germans. It was won, if not precisely with inventiveness, at least with "brains." He learned that the German matrons had declared, after certain occult proceedings, that Heaven forbade them to fight before the new moon. Apprehending his opportunity, he advanced his forces right up to the German camp, thereby forcing them as valiant soldiers to come out and fight. Fight they did, but under an obvious psychological disadvantage, and with the natural result.

In this battle, as in others between the Romans and the barbarians, it was noticeable that although their first onslaught was fine, the barbarians seemed to be at a loss afterwards,—if anything unexpected occurred, or if any reverse was sustained; whereas the Romans—and especially Cæsar himself—never behaved so well as when threatened with disaster. This may be expressed by saying that the barbarians, as compared with the Romans, were wholly inferior in the inventiveness needed to devise a new plan quickly.

Not long afterward, Cæsar advanced against the town of Noviodunum. He soon saw that he could not take it by storm; and so he brought forward his mechanical siege appliances. The psychological effect of these on the barbarians was so tremendous that they at once pleaded for terms of surrender.