them so by surprise that they fled in alarm, he gained a bloodless
victory, without the drawing of a sword from its scabbard. Any
advantage that a modern general would gain in this way was not
open to an ancient general, particularly when invading the country
of a people like the Germans, mere savages, who knew no more of
such arts of warfare, as guarding roads and sending out scouts,
than Red Indians, Maoris and Hottentots of the present time. Sir
Garnet Wolseley, making his way to Coomassie, as a crow would fly,
is just about the manner in which we may be sure that Germanicus
made his way into Germany--as straight as he could go. But
military history is not the forte of the author of the Annals. He
knew it and avoided it as much as he could,--very unlike Tacitus,
who, practically acquainted with military as well as civil
affairs, writes with an obvious liking, of combats and civil wars,
and, according to military authorities competent to pass an
opinion, shows everywhere familiarity with battles, marches,
management of armies and conduct of generals.

One cannot understand how Tacitus, whose youth was passed in a
camp, should not have known the whole minutiae about the Roman
army; and that he should, with respect to its ensigns, exhibit
extraordinary ignorance. The fact stood thus:--the legions had
"signa," or standards; the "socii," or allies, that is, the
Latins, had "vexilla," or flags; so, perhaps, had the Romans when
marching under arms to a new settlement, or "colony"; but,
certainly, soldiers raised in the provinces had no ensigns at all,
neither standards nor flags; yet in the first book of the Annals
we hear of some "maniples," or "infantry companies" of the legions
that had been raised in Pannonia, when the news reached them of
the breaking out of a mutiny in the camp, tearing to pieces their