[158] Frequent arrival of supplies—Commeatum. "Frumenti et omnium rerum quarum in bello usus est, largam copiam." Kritzius. I follow the text of Cortius (retaining the words juvaturum ecercitum) which Kritzius sufficiently justifies. There is a variety of readings, but all much the same in sense.
[159] Extraordinary earnestness—Impensius modo. Cortius and Kritzius interpret this modo as the ablative case of modus; i. e. quam modus erat, or supra modum; but Dietsch and Burnouf question the propriety of this interpretation, and consider the modo to be the same as that in tantummodo, dummodo, etc. The same expression occurs again in c. 75.
[160] XLVIII. Running parallel with the stream—Tractu pari. It may be well to illustrate this and the following chapter by a copy of the lines which Cortius has drawn, "to excite," as he says, "the imagination of his readers:"
River Muthul, flowing from the south
—————————————————————————
I Hill on
North I which
<—————- I I Jugurtha
I I posted
I I himself
—————————————————————————
Range of hills, parallel I with the Muthul
I
I Route of Metellus
I
[161] XLIX. In a transverse direction—Transverso itinere. It lay on the flank of the Romans as they marched toward the river, in dextero latere, c.49, fin.
[162] Well acquainted with the country—Prudentes. "Periti loci et regionis." _Cortius._Or it may mean knowing what they were to do, while the enemy would be imperiti, surprised and perplexed.
[163] Would crown—Confirmaturum. Would establish, settle, put the last hand to them.
[164] Was seen—Conspicitur. This is the reading adopted by Cortius, Müller, and Allen, as being that of all the manuscripts. Havercamp, Kritzius, and Dietsch admitted into their texts, on the sole authority of Donatus ad Ter. Eun. ii. 3, conspicatur, i.e. (Metellus) catches sight of the enemy. The latter reading, perhaps, makes a better connection.
[165] Rendering it uncertain—Incerti. Presenting such an appearance that a spectator could not be certain what they were.
[166] He drew up these in the right wing—in three lines—In dextero latere triplicibus subsidiis aciem instruxit. In the other passages in which Sallust has the word subsidia (Cat. c. 59), he uses it for the lines behind the front. Thus he says of Catiline, Octo cohortes in fronte constituit; reliqua signa in subsidiis arctiùs collocat; and of Petreius, Cohortes veteranas—in fronte; post eas reliquum exercitum in subsidiis locat. But whether he uses the word in the same sense here; whether we might, as Cortius thinks (whom Gerlach and Dietsch follow), call the division of Metellus's troops quadruple instead of triple, or whether he arranged them as De Brosses and others suppose, in the usual disposition of Hastati, Principes, and Triarii, who shall place beyond dispute? The probability, however, if Sallust is consistent with himself in his use of the word, lies with Cortius. Gerlach refers to Caesar, De Bell, Civ., iii. 89: "Celeriter ex tertiâ acie singulas cohortes detraxit, atque ex his quartam instituit; but this does not illustrate Sallust's use of the word subsidia: Caesar forms a fourth acies; Metellus draws up one acies triplicibus subsidia".