342 CONSTRICTOR BOA. 



with terror, and unequal to the conflict, en- 

 gulphed several of them in its enormous mouth, 

 and killed others by wi idling round them with its 

 spires, and bruising them \\ith the strokes ot' its 

 tail : and some were even destroyed by the pesti- 

 lential eliliivia proceeding from its breath: it 

 cawed so much trouble to Regulus, that he found 

 it necessary to contest the possession of the river 

 with it by employing the whole force of his army; 

 during which a considerable number of soldiers 

 Mere lost, while the serpent could neither be van- 

 quished nor wounded ; the strong armour of its 

 scales easily repelling the force of all the weapons 

 that were directed against it ; upon which re- 

 course was had to battering engines, with which 

 the animal was attacked in the manner of a forti- 

 fied tower, and was thus at length overpowered. 

 Several discharges were made against it without 

 success, till its back being broken by an immense 

 stone, the formidable monster began to lose its 

 powers, and was yet with difficulty destroyed ; 

 after having diffused such a horror among the 

 army, that they confessed they would rather attack 

 Carthage itself than such another monster: nor 

 could the camp continue any longer in the same 

 station, but was obliged to fly ; the water and 

 the whole adjacent region being tainted \\ith the 

 pestiferous effluvia. A most mortifying humilia- 

 tion to human pride! Here at least was an in- 

 stance of a whole Roman army, under the com- 

 mand of Regulus, and universally victorious both 

 by sea and land, opposed by a single snake, which 



