[99] They all cried out, "Let us go forward!" and urged him to lead them on immediately. Cassius was delighted with their spirit, and again proclaimed silence and again addressed them, saying: "May the gods who preside over just wars and over good faith reward your zeal, fellow-soldiers. How far superior we are to the enemy in everything that the human foresight of generals can provide let me tell you. We are equal to them in the number of legions, although we have left behind us the large detachments needed in many places. In cavalry and ships we greatly surpass them, as also in auxiliaries from kings and nations as far as the Medes and Parthians. Besides this we have to deal only with an enemy in front, while Pompeius is cooperating with us in Sicily in their rear, and in the Adriatic Murcus and Ahenobarbus with a large fleet and abundance of small craft, besides two legions of soldiers and a body of archers, are cruising hither and thither harassing them in various ways, while both land and sea in our rear are cleared of enemies. As regards money, which some call the sinews of war,1 they are destitute. They cannot pay what they have promised their army. The proceeds of the proscription have not met their expectation, because no good man will buy lands entailed with hate. Nor can they obtain resources elsewhere from Italy, exhausted as it is by civil strife, exactions, and proscriptions. Thanks to abundant foresight, we have plenty for the present, so that we can give you more shortly, and there are other large sums on the road collected from the nations behind us.
The Civil Wars. Appian. Horace White. London. MACMILLAN AND CO., LTD. 1899.
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