Page:The geography of Strabo (1854) Volume 1.djvu/301

 B. iv. c. in. 3. GAUL. THE LYONNAISE. 287 are said to be related to the_JfomajisAand they were the first to enter into friendship and alliance with them. On the other side of the Saone dwell the Sequani, who have for long been at enmity with the Romans and ^Edui, having frequently allied themselves with the Germans in their in- cursions into Italy. It was then that they proved their strength, for united to them the Germans were powerful, but when separated, weak. As for the jEdui, their alliance with the Romans naturally rendered them the enemies of the Sequani, 2 but the enmity was increased by their contests concerning the river which divides them, each nation claiming the Sapne ex- clusively for themselves, and likewise the jtolls on Yes_seis passing. However, at the present time, the whole of it is under the dominion of the Romans. '6. The n"rsF~ofall the nations dwelling on the Rhine are the Helvetii, amongst whom are the sources of that river in Mount Adula, 3 which forms part_of^the Alps. From this mountain, but in an opposite direction, likewise proceeds the Adda, which flows towards Cisalpine Gaul, and fills lake Larius, 4 near to which stands [the city of] Como ; thence it discharges itself into the Po, of which we shall speak after- wards. The Rhine also nows into vast marshes and a great lake, 5 which borders on the Rhaeti and Vindelici, 6 who dwell partly in the Alps, and partly beyond the Alps. Asinius says that the length of this river is 6000 stadia, but 'such is not the case, for taken in a straight line it does not much exceed half that length, and 1000 stadia is quite sufficient to allow for its sinuosities. In fact this river is so rapid that it is difficult to throw bridges across it, although after its descent from the mountains it is borne the remainder of the way through level plains ; now how could it maintain its rapidity and vehemence, if in addition to this level channel, we suppose it also to have long and frequent tortuosities ? Asinius like- 1 Caesar, Tacitus, and other writers, also speak ojF_this relationship of itH th e Romans. Lit " As for The ^Edui on these accounts indeed." 3 The sources of the Rhine take their rise in Mount St. Gothard and Mount Bernardin, while the Adda rises in the glaciers of the Valteline. Adula, however, may have been the name of the Rhaetian Alps. 4 The Lake of Como. 5 The Lake of Constance. 6 The Rheeti occupied the Tirol ; the Vindelici that portion of Bavaria south of the Danube.