70 THE HORSE IN HISTORY 



most trustworthy of our early historians that by 

 about the end of the third century B.C., at latest, 

 the Gauls of northern Italy had become a race of 

 horsemen ; that by about the middle of the second 

 century B.C. the majority of the Transalpine 

 Gauls had done the same ; and that by Caesar's 

 time even the Belgic tribes of the Continent 

 had practically abandoned the war chariot that 

 the Romans had deemed so helpful. 



Apparently the horses employed by the 

 Roman warriors were of a better stamp than 

 those which belonged to the Gauls of Northern 

 Italy. 



It is well known that Caesar's opinion of the 

 value of chariots in war was, to say the least, 

 rather inflated. His description of the action of 

 war chariots during an engagement is of itself 

 almost sufficient to prove this. 



"At the first onset," he writes, "they [the 

 warriors] drove the cars in all directions, hurled 

 their javelins, and by the din and clatter of 

 horses and wheels commonly threw the ranks 

 of the enemy into disorder. 



"Then, making their way amongst the squad- 

 rons of the enemy's cavalry, they leaped down 

 from the chariots and fought on foot. 



" Little by little the charioteers withdrew out 

 of the fight and placed their chariots in such a 

 way that if they were hard pressed by the enemy 

 they could readily retreat to their own side. 



