“As for the forces at Brundusium, Gabinius, refusing to follow the orders brought by Postumius, with all that would follow him, went the way of Illyricum by land, taking such long marches that his men being quite tired the inhabitants of the country cut them all in pieces, for which Cæsar could not yet be revenged, being engaged in affairs of more importance. Antony shipped away the rest, and having the wind right aft, passed in sight of Apollonia with a merry gale; but about noon the wind beginning to slacken, they were discovered by twenty of Pompey’s galleys, who made up towards them; they were fearful lest the stems of the long ships running on board them should pierce through and sink them. However, they were preparing to fight, every man laying hold of his sling, his javelin, or arms of the like nature; when on a sudden there sprung up a fresher gale than the former; so that Antony, setting his low sails, went spooning away before, whilst the others, not able to bear sail, were tossed to and fro where the winds and waves pleased, and at length driven into the narrows and cast upon lee shores where there was neither port nor harbour. Thus Antony safely recovered the port of Nymphæum without losing more than two ships, which unfortunately running upon the flats were taken by the enemies.
“Cæsar having now with him all his forces as well as Pompey, they pitched their camps in sight of each other upon eminences where each entrenched themselves, raising out forts, which were often attacked by one party and the other, one general still striving to block up the other’s army and cut them off from provisions, so that there happened many skirmishes. In this new mode of making war, as Cæsar’s men one day proved the weaker in a fort assailed by the enemy, a centurion called Scæva, famous before for many gallant actions, being wounded in an eye, leaped from the rampart, and making a sign with his hand for silence, as if he had something to say, he called to one of the centurions of the contrary party, a man of reputation, to whom he said, ‘Save the life of one of thy own quality, save the life of thy friend; send somebody to lead me by the hand, thus wounded as I am.’ Whereupon two soldiers stepping in to receive him as a runaway, he slew one before he suspected the deceit, and knocked the other down. He did this action out of the pure despair he was in of being able to defend the place; but it succeeded better than he imagined, for this happy success so raised the courage of his companions that they repulsed the enemy and remained masters of the fort. Minucius, who commanded, had a great share in the glory as well as in the danger of this assault, for ’tis said that his buckler was six and twenty times pierced through, and he was wounded in the eye as well as Scæva; so Cæsar honoured them both with many military recompenses.
“Meantime he had formed intelligence in Dyrrhachium, and upon hopes the place would be delivered to him, he came with a small company to the gate which is near the temple of Diana; but his design being discovered, came off again without doing anything. The same winter Scipio, father-in-law to Pompey, bringing him another army out of Syria, was set upon in Macedon by C. Calvisius, whom he defeated, and slew him a whole legion, fourscore soldiers only escaping. There came now no more provisions to Cæsar by sea, Pompeius being the stronger, wherefore the soldiers were forced to make bread of a certain kind of herb, pieces of which being by some runaways brought to Pompey, thinking it would be to him a joyful present. Instead of rejoicing at it, ‘What sort of beasts,’ said he, ‘have we to deal with?’ Cæsar now pinched with necessity drew together his forces, resolving to engage Pompey whether he would or no; but Pompey being now possessed of several good forts, kept close in his trenches, which so much troubled Cæsar that he undertook a work almost impossible, and scarcely credible, which was to enclose all the forts Pompey had with a trench drawn from the sea, judging that though his design took not effect, he should gain the reputation of a man capable of great things; for this trench must have been twelve hundred furlongs in length. Pompey on his part, drew lines and trenches directly opposite to Cæsar’s works; thus one eluded the enterprises of the other.
“At length there happened a great fight between them, wherein Pompey bravely repulsing Cæsar’s men and having put them to flight, pursued them to their very camp. Many colours they took and had taken the eagle of a legion, if the standard-bearer who carried it had not thrown it with all his force into the trenches, that he might preserve it for Cæsar; for the Roman soldiery have a great respect for their standards. Cæsar with other companies came to the relief of those that fled, but so terrified were these too, that as soon as they beheld Pompey at a distance, though they were near the camp, it was not possible for Cæsar to stop them, nor to make them go in again, nor so much as to hearken to him; the soldiers fled away in disorder without shame, without reason, or without anything to oblige them to it; Cæsar might well run up and down, and with reproaches show them that Pompey was yet a great way off. This hindered them not from throwing down their arms and flying, or else standing still, silent and immovable, fixing their eyes upon the ground with shame and confusion, so great was that panic fear that possessed them. There was an ensign who, as his general would have stopped him, presented him the point of his javelin, but he was upon the spot punished by the gods as he deserved. Those who escaped into the camp were so cast down that they kept no guard at the gates nor lined the rampire, but the trenches were left without any to defend them. All men believed that Pompey might have thrown himself into the camp with the flyers, and so have made an end of the war, if Labienus (for God would have it so) had not persuaded him rather to pursue those he had routed, then march up to the trenches; him therefore he believed, whether it were that he was not in such haste as to make an end of all at once, or that seeing the camp defenceless, he feared some ambuscade, or else being victorious, scorned that little advantage. Going therefore to charge those that were still abroad, he made yet a great slaughter, so that in two engagements in one day he gained twenty-eight colours, and twice lost the opportunity of ruining his enemy beyond redress. And Cæsar himself stuck not to say that that day the war had been ended, had his enemy known how to make use of his victory.
“Pompey after this glorious success wrote largely of it to the kings and commonalties; and conceived hopes that in a short time Cæsar’s army, either oppressed by famine or terrified with disgrace, would yield themselves to him; especially the tribunes, fearful of being punished for a fault they knew themselves guilty of. But they and all the soldiers touched with repentance as by divine inspiration, confessed themselves criminals; and afflicted themselves the more, that their general spoke kindly to them, and granted them pardon before they asked it: they would not forgive themselves; but with a wonderful change desired, as a punishment of their fault, they might be decimated according to the custom of their ancestors, but he would by no means admit it; which increased their shame the more that they should be guilty of such cowardice in prejudice of the best man of the world, and who most deserved their faith and their services.
“They besought him that at least he would punish the ensigns, who had been the cause of this rout; for in flying they had only followed their colours; and seeing Cæsar could not resolve to do that, but with much ado would consent to the punishment of a few, his moderation begot in the mind of the soldiers a general joy.
“They began all with one voice to cry out that he should lead them against the enemy, that by gaining a new victory they might wipe away their infamy; and in the sight of their general they swore by whole companies one to the other, never to return from the fight but victorious. Wherefore his friends advised him to take the army at their words, and make trial of them upon this height of repentance before their zeal grew cooler; but he answered them before all the multitude that he would choose a time more proper to show them the enemy; exhorting them then to remember the good will they now protested, and in private he told his confidants that it was convenient to let that fear which so late a loss had imprinted be worn a little out of the minds of the soldiery; and by temporising, let the fierceness of his enemies heightened by their late victory, be likewise a little cooled: He confessed withal he had committed a great fault in coming to a camp so near Dyrrhachium, where Pompey had all things in abundance; whereas if he had drawn himself farther off, they might have met with equal difficulties.
“After having discoursed in this manner, he came to Apollonia, and from thence privately by night took his march towards Thessaly; and on the way, coming to a little city called Gomphi, that refused to open their gates, he took it by storm and gave the plunder to his soldiers; who having long endured scarcity, fed now beyond measure, and filled themselves with wine, especially the Alamanni, whose drunkenness made them ridiculous to all the rest: so that here again in all appearance Pompey lost a fair occasion of victory by not pursuing an enemy he despised; but lying still, whilst in seven days’ march he got into Thessaly, and encamped near Pharsalia.”[c]