Page:Heresies of Sea Power (1906).djvu/79

Rh troops. The fleet of Carthage was employed to keep Africa free from invasion and so leave him a free hand.

2. A party at Carthage were opposed to making Hannibal too strong, for political reasons.

3. Uncertainty as to his whereabouts and the risk of reinforcements landed in Italy being cut off before they could join him.

Before the battle of Cannse, the only effect of Roman Sea Power is to be found in the last difficulty, and that can more easily be attributed to military causes than to naval ones.

After Cannoe, Hannibal needed men, for since Italy failed to join him it became necessary for him to annihilate Eome with his own army. To this one party in the Carthaginian Senate demurred.

Eventually, however, 12,000 men, a quite insufficient reinforcement, were collected by his youngest brother Mago, and these were under orders to proceed by sea to Italy, when events in Spain necessitated the diversion of the force thither. Success was achieved and the brothers, Hasdrubal first and Mago subsequently, proceeded to Italy by way of the Alps, neither meeting with much loss on the march. At the Metaurus Hasdrubal was out-manoeuvred and entirely defeated Hannibal was then left isolated pending the arrival of Mago.

The Roman victory on the Metaurus is attributed by Captain Mahan to the fact that Scipio sent some