A Captive of the Roman Eagles Part 1

A Captive of the Roman Eagles.

by Felix Dahn.

PREFACE.

The author of the romance "A Captive of the Roman Eagles"--published in Germany under the t.i.tle of "Bissula"--is one of the most distinguished novelists of the present day in his own country, and will doubtless be equally appreciated by Americans.

Like Dr. Georg Ebers, he has based his historical novels upon the solid foundation of earnest study. The field he has chosen is princ.i.p.ally the period of the conflicts between Germany and Rome, and the struggles for supremacy of the various peoples in the territory now occupied by Germany, Switzerland, and France, and he describes with vivid colors and dramatic power the life of those far-off days.

Professor Dahn is a native of Hamburg, but spent his childhood in Munich, always a centre of intellectual life, and, under the stimulus of its circle of writers, his poetic talent developed early. He studied law, philosophy, and history in Munich and Berlin. In 1862 he was made Professor in the University of Wurzburg, in 1872 in Konigsberg, and in 1888 he was called to a chair in the University of Breslau, where, in the intervals of his professional duties, he has devoted himself to his brilliant literary work.

The warm welcome accorded to my translations of the novels of Ebers, whose hold upon the affections of American readers has proved so enduring, inspires the hope that "A Captive of the Roman Eagles" may also receive a cordial recognition from our public.

MARY J. SAFFORD.

_Washington, D. C., June 10, 1902._

A CAPTIVE OF THE ROMAN EAGLES

BOOK ONE

THE FREE WOMAN

CHAPTER I.

Whoever has been at Friedrichshafen on beautiful Lake Constance, on a clear August day, and watched the sun setting in splendor behind the tops of the beeches of Manzell; whoever has seen the waves of the lake and the snow-capped peaks of the Alps from Sentis to the Allgau Mountains glow in the crimson light, while the notes of the Ave Maria float softly over forest, meadow, and water, will treasure the memory of the peaceful scene throughout his whole life. To this region the story of little Bissula leads us.

But in that period--the year 378--the whole northern sh.o.r.e of the "Venetus Lacus" (Lake Constance) looked somewhat desolate, and often by no means peaceful. The lowlands were covered with primeval forests and fens--only here and there a few scattered settlements appeared on patches of parched tilled land.

At that time the lake covered a much more extensive tract of country than now, and a still larger s.p.a.ce was occupied by a marshy territory between the water and the meadow, which being for the greater portion of the year a mere swamp afforded at the same time refuge and food to flocks of wild swans, herons, and countless smaller water-fowl.

This region had already been a considerable time in the possession of the Alemanni; but on the southern sh.o.r.e of the lake Rome still maintained her supremacy. This was with the special object of controlling the important roads leading from Gaul by way of Augst (Augusta Rauracorum) to Basle, Windisch (Vindonissa) to Arbon (Arbor Felix), Bregenz (Brigantium), and thence farther eastward, thus preserving the connection between the Western and Eastern portions of the Empire, and facilitating the movements of the troops. The men were sometimes forced to hasten from the Rhine to the Danube to meet the Goths in the East, and anon from the Danube to the Rhine to contend with the Franks on the lower, or the Alemanni on the upper portion of the stream.

This year also such a.s.sistance seemed necessary--this time in the eastern provinces, where the Gothic tribes, especially the Visigoths, fleeing before the Huns, had found refuge on Roman territory, but, driven to desperation by the ill-treatment of the Roman governor, had risen in arms.

True, Valens, the Emperor of the Eastern Empire, hoped to cope successfully with them alone; he would have been reluctant to share the fame of victory with his young nephew and fellow-ruler Gratia.n.u.s, lord of the Western portion. Yet, nevertheless, he had been compelled to ask the latter to hold himself in readiness to come to his uncle's a.s.sistance with his Gallic legions in the territory bordering on the Danube.

Gratia.n.u.s, however, thought that he could not leave Gaul and the Rhine until he had first punished the Alemanni for their recent incursions across the frontier, and--at least for a while--deterred them from making new inroads. At the same time he desired, in case the summons for help should arrive, to have traversed a portion of the long distance and thus be able to give his uncle aid more speedily. So, toward the end of July, he left his residence, Trier, with the larger portion of his troops, and marched by way of Zabern and Stra.s.sburg to the left bank of the Rhine near Augst and Basle. Here and at Windisch he formed two camps and kept the main body of his troops near him, busying himself in the reorganization of the province and eagerly awaiting news from the East.

The expedition against the Alemanni on the northern sh.o.r.e of the lake was entrusted to a small band of troops which, being able to move more swiftly, seemed better suited for the marches through swamp and forest and, moreover, amply sufficient in number; for the attack was directed against only the Linzgau, so called from the little river, which at the present time is still known as the Linz, or more frequently the Ach.

This was the home of the Lentian Alemanni, who lived on the northern and western sh.o.r.es of the lake and, during that very spring, had harried the Roman frontier. The command of the expedition had been entrusted to experienced generals who had chosen their own force of foot and horse, while a large baggage train conveyed the provisions and the remainder of the luggage. In all, there were probably more than three thousand men.

According to the old victorious Roman strategy--whose success was proved by the conquest of nearly half the world known at that day--this small force was to a.s.sail the foe from several directions at once, the same as in great campaigns, as if seized by claws, a favorite comparison in Roman military literature. Part of the troops--the cavalry, several squadrons of cataphractarii (mailed riders, who were completely sheathed in armor), cohorts of the Twenty-Second Legion, picked German mercenaries, Batavians (they were considered the best of all the foreign soldiers), and lastly the flower of the Imperial Guard, foot-soldiers, mainly Illyrians and Thracians, were to march northward from Windisch, cross the Rhine, move along the old road to the north, then, suddenly turning eastward, skirt the western sh.o.r.e of the lake to gain its northern side, thus penetrating the whole Linzgau from the west to the east, halting at an appointed place in the heart of the enemy's country and awaiting the second division. Meanwhile this second body was to march along the great highway bordering the southern sh.o.r.e from Windisch to Arbon, cross the lake in boats, land on the northern sh.o.r.e, and pa.s.s through the Linzgau from east to west till they reached the first division.

Thus the escape of the Barbarians, whose tilled lands would all be laid waste, would be cut off both eastward and westward. Those who attempted flight southward in their boats across the lake would be intercepted by the Roman Bodensee[1] Fleet. Year after year, the last time that very March, the most brilliant reports of its strength and prowess had been sent to Gaul. The remnant of the foe remaining after the a.s.sault from two or three directions were to be driven by the united bands as far as possible into the inhospitable northern forests, or forced into the Danube.

The place of meeting appointed for both divisions was the lofty hill, half a league north of Friedrichshafen, whence at the present day the church of Berg dominates the lowlands. At that time it was known as the Idisenhang,--the hill of the wood-G.o.ddesses. The Roman ships, in crossing directly from Arbon, were obliged to run into the bay of what we know as Friedrichshafen. For the land forces the leaders hoped to find a pa.s.sable route along the remains of an old military road, which formerly--in Rome's better days--had extended also around the northern sh.o.r.e of the lake. This steep hill, affording an unimpeded view in every direction and dominating the whole neighborhood, was a model of the positions where the Roman eagle was fain to alight for a brief rest during its flights in quest of prey. Here a camp was to be formed, whence the land of the Barbarians would be ravaged by small bodies of troops in every direction, while the strong fortified camp should maintain the connection with the lake, the fleet, and the southern sh.o.r.e, until the whole enterprise was completed and the Romans could return to the Emperor at Windisch.

CHAPTER II.

The experienced commanders had executed their tasks swiftly, skilfully, and successfully. Arbon, the strongly fortified station of the great military road, had, it is true, been repeatedly attacked, plundered, and set on fire by the Alemanni in swift forays from the lake, but never permanently occupied; they did not like to dwell in cities.

A few years previously Valentinian, Gratia.n.u.s's warlike father and predecessor, had repaired and strengthened the old walls, increased the garrison, filled the store-houses with provisions, especially grain, and stationed in the harbor a number of ships. These, though neither so numerous nor so stately as those of the Venetian Fleet in the prouder days of Rome, were quite sufficient to prevent the Barbarians from an attack by water, nay, they constantly threatened them with a landing on the northern sh.o.r.e.

The commander of the division intended for this fleet, the Comes of Britannia, Nannienus, a man skilled in nautical matters and an excellent officer, had reached the harbor fortification with his troops very quickly by the excellent road from Windisch. The other column needed a much longer time for its wearisome march, turning finally eastward before it again reached the sh.o.r.e of the lake.

Caution was the first requisite during this advance through the pathless land of the Barbarians; and no measure of prudence was omitted by the well-trained, circ.u.mspect leaders. Natives of the country who were perfectly familiar with the region acted as guides; though the southern sh.o.r.e was inhabited exclusively by Roman colonists, they guarded carefully against treachery from that quarter. Hors.e.m.e.n, lightly armed Celtic archers, the Keltae and Petulantes, and Germans familiar with woodland warfare--the Batavians--formed the van and rearguards. In the centre were the heavily armed foot-soldiers of the Imperial Guard, protecting the traders and sutlers, luggage, camp equipage, and provisions. They moved along the ruinous old road, as near the sh.o.r.e as the marshy ground permitted, in order to keep in view of the lake, that they might discover any attempt at an attack by the Barbarians in their boats, and also not lose sight of the opposite sh.o.r.e occupied by the Romans.

The most difficult task was a.s.signed to the left wing which, at the north of the central division and the old road, was to force a pa.s.sage through forest and mora.s.s in a line parallel with that of the main body, and protect it from any flank a.s.sault of the foe; for should the latter suddenly burst from an ambush in the impenetrable woods and fall upon the column extended in marching order, the whole body, thus taken by surprise, might be scattered and driven into the marshes and the lake.

But the resistance offered by forest and fen to the progress of the troop seemed destined to remain the sole opposition which the Romans were to encounter; for the latter had not met a single human being since they quitted the southern sh.o.r.e of the lake and the stations along the road there. There were no villages of the Alemanni in this region: the ground was occupied by farms, and the houses (called "Schwaigen") were miles apart. The few lonely dwellings which they pa.s.sed during a march of several days had been abandoned. A mysterious silence, boding destruction, seemed to brood over the empty wooden buildings.

Everywhere, just before the time of ripening, the grain--oats, barley, and spelt--had been cut and partly burnt; the latter mode was the quicker, and the grain of the Alemanni should not serve their foe even as fodder for his horses. The cattle had been driven away; the kennels of the faithful farm watch, almost always found at the gates, were also empty; the hay and straw were removed from the barns, which were usually connected with the houses and very often formed part of them.

Slowly, with frequent halts, advancing with difficulty, the Romans a.s.signed to the care of the provisions in charge of the troops or the sutlers and their wives struggled forward for several days, each night carefully establishing a well-fortified camp. From the western end of the lake, where it ran into a stretch of marshy ground densely overgrown by rushes, and meadows with sedges waving in the wind, they marched toward the east. Thus, by a toilsome march, they had reached the foot of the steep hill now crowned by the stately castle of Meersburg.

The long August day, during which frequent showers of rain had fallen, though the sky had not been always clouded, was drawing to a close.

Again the sun shone brilliantly through a rift, gilding the whole chain of mountain peaks of the Bernese Alps to the Allgau heights; the Sentis glowed in crimson splendor, solemnly, like a king of the mountain giants who had drawn his radiant mantle around his proud shoulders.

The Roman column halted cautiously at the foot of the steep hill, whose rocky sides fell abruptly to the lake and the valley on the west, while the summit, at that time densely covered with trees and bushes, presented a gloomy, threatening aspect. The oak-leaves and pine-needles were dripping with rain, and wherever the sun did not shine on them, looked dark-green, almost black.

Two officers, whose high rank was betokened by the gold and silver ornaments on their equipments, now flashing brightly in the rays of the setting sun, rode slowly toward the hill. Before them, bound by the right and left arms respectively to the stirrups of two mounted soldiers, walked a guide. A few pioneers with axes and spades surrounded the leaders, and a little band of Batavian spearmen followed. One of the officers, a stately man about thirty-five, now checked his heavy Spanish barb and bent forward, his clear-cut bronzed features wearing a keenly watchful expression.

"If I have ever known and fought with Germans," he said with a strong Illyrian accent, "they are hiding in the woods on yonder hill-top, which is a natural fortress. Halt, I beg, Prefect Praetor of Gaul. We'll go no farther without reconnoitring. Forward, my brave Batavians.

Rignomer, take six men and climb up among the underbrush. But be wary!

And you, Brinno, trumpeter, give the signal of warning the instant you discover the foe."

The other officer, a man much his senior, smiled as the order was executed. "You are over-cautious, Saturninus. Always erring on the side of prudence!"

"We cannot be over-cautious against this foe, my n.o.ble friend. Had not the Barbarians occupied this fortress erected by the G.o.ds of their native land, all courage to offer resistance must have deserted them."

"And it evidently _has_ abandoned them. All taste for war was thoroughly extirpated by the departed hero, Valentinian, and our bold young Emperor, his son. My pupil!" he added complacently. "I am quite sure that all danger to the Empire from the Germans is over."

His companion silently shook his head. Just at that moment a captain of the mailed hors.e.m.e.n, a man numbering about five and twenty years, dashed forward from the centre of the Roman column. Tangled locks hung from beneath his helmet, and his features were ign.o.ble in form and disagreeable in expression.

"Must we cross that accursed cliff. Tribune?" he exclaimed, abruptly checking his horse.

"We must," replied the Illyrian quietly. "I have just learned that our left wing has again found the mora.s.s in the forest bottomless, and is approaching along this, our only road. And the waves of the lake are dashing at our right."

The young man cast a doubtful glance at the cliff. "H'm," he muttered, "it will cost us many men. But that's no misfortune," he added, "we have more than enough Barbarians in our pay; if they fall fighting against other Barbarians, there will simply be fewer of the beasts."