44.
When intelligence was brought to Polyxenidas that the enemy were approaching, he rejoiced at an opportunity of engaging them, and drew out the left squadron towards the open sea, at the same time ordering the commanders of the ships to extend the right division towards the land.;
[2]
and then advanced to the fight, with his fleet in a regular line of battle. The Roman commander, on seeing this, furled his sails, lowered his masts, and, at the same time adjusting his rigging, waited for the ships which were coming up.
[3]
There were now about thirty in the line; and in order that his left squadron might form a front in like direction, he hoisted his top-sails, and stretched out into the deep, ordering the others
[4??]
to push forward, between him and the land, against the right squadron of the enemy. Eumenes brought up the rear; who, as soon as he saw the bustle of taking down the rigging begin, likewise brought up his ships with all possible speed.
[5]
All their ships were by this time in sight; two Carthaginian vessels, however, which advanced before the Romans, came across three be- [p. 1653]longing to the king.
[6]
As the numbers were unequal, two of the king's ships fell upon one, and, in the first place, swept away the oars from both its sides; the armed mariners then boarded, and killing some of its defenders and throwing others into the sea, took the ship.
[7]
The one which had engaged in an equal contest, on seeing her companion taken, before she could be surrounded by the three, fled back to the fleet.
[8]
Livius, fired with indignation, bore down with the praetorian ship against the enemy. The two which had overpowered the Carthaginian ship, in hopes of the same success against this one, advanced to the attack, on which he ordered the rowers on both sides to plunge their oars in the water, in order to hold the ship steady, and to throw grappling-irons into the enemy's vessels as they came up.
[9]
Having, by these means, rendered the business something like a fight on land, he desired his men to bear in mind the courage of Romans, and not to regard the slaves of a king as men. Accordingly, this single ship now defeated and captured the two, with more ease than the two had before taken one.
[10]
By this time the entire fleets were engaged and intermixed with each other. Eumenes, who had come up last, and after the battle was begun, when he
[11??]
saw the left squadron of the enemy thrown into disorder by Livius, directed his own attack against their right, where the contest was yet equal.
Livy. History of Rome by Titus Livius, books twenty-seven to thirty-six. literally translated, with notes and illustrations, by. Cyrus Edmonds. York Street, Covent Garden, London. Henry G. Bohn. John Child and son, printers, Bungay. 1850. 3.
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