OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.

377

When we recollect the complete armour of theRoman soldiers, their discipline, exercises, evo-lutions, fortified camps, and military engines, itappears a just matter of surprise, how the nakedand unassisted valour of the barbarians coulddare to encounter in the field the strength of thelegions, and the various troops of the auxilia-ries, which seconded their operations. The con-test was too unequal, till the introduction ofluxury had enervated the vigour, and a spirit ofdisobedience and sedition had relaxed the dis-cipline, of the Roman armies. The introduc-tion of barbarian auxiliaries in those armies,was a measure attended with very obvious dan-gers, as it might gradually instruct the Germans in the arts of war and of policy. Althoughthey were admitted in small numbers, and withthe strictest precaution, the example of Civiliswas proper to convince the Romans, that thedanger was not imaginary, and that their pre-cautions were not always sufficient.' Duringthe civil wars that followed the death of Nero ,that artful and intrepid Batavian, whom his ene-mies condescended to compare with Hannibaland Sertorius / formed a great design of free-dom and ambition. Eight Batavian cohorts,renowned in the wars of Britain and Italy , re-paired to his standard. He introduced an army

' The relation of this enterprise occupies a great part of the fourthand fifth books of the History of Tacitus , and is more remarkable forits eloquence than perspicuity. Sir Henry Saville has observed seve-ral inaccuracies.

f Tacit . Hist, iv, 13. Like them he had lost an eye.

CHAP.

IX.