"While Some Men Were
Employed In Building The Galleys, Others, Assembling Those Who Were To
Serve In The Fleet, Instructed Them In The Use Of The Oar After The
Following Manner:
They contrived benches on the shore in the same fashion
and order as they were to be in the
Galleys, and placing their seamen, with
their oars, in like manner on the benches, an officer, by signs with his
hand, instructed them how to dip their oars all at the same time, and how
to recover them out of the water. By this means they became acquainted with
the management of the oar; and as soon as the vessels were built and
equipped, they spent some time in practising on the water, what they had
learnt ashore."
The necessity of possessing a fleet adequate to cope with that of the
Carthaginians became more and more apparent; for though the Romans had
obtained possession of all the inland cities in Sicily, the Carthaginians
compensated for this by having the ascendancy by sea, and in the cities on
the coast. The Roman fleet was commanded by Cornelius Scipio, who put to
sea with seventeen ships, in order to secure at Messina reception and
security for the whole fleet; but his enterprise was unfortunate; for,
being deceived by false information, he entered the port of Lipara, where
he was blockaded by the enemy, and obliged to surrender. This partial loss,
however, was soon counterbalanced by a naval victory; for the remainder of
the Roman fleet, amounting to 103 sail, being encountered by a Carthaginian
fleet under Hannibal, who despising the Romans, had advanced to the contest
with only fifty galleys, succeeded in capturing or destroying the whole of
them.
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