Liv. 21.4.1Paucī ac ferme optimus quisque Hannōnī adsentiēbantur;A few, and those as a rule the best men, agreed with Hanno; Liv. 21.4.1sed, ut plērumque fit, maior pars meliōrem vīcit.but, as usually happens, the larger party prevailed over the better. Liv. 21.4.1Missus Hannibal in Hispāniam prīmō statim adventū omnem exercitum in sē convertit: Hamilcarem iuvenem redditum sibi veterēs mīlitēs crēdere, eundem vigōrem in vultū vimque in oculīs habitum ōris līneāmentaque intuērī.Sent to Spain, Hannibal turned the whole army towards himself from the very moment of his arrival: the veteran soldiers believed that Hamilcar had been given back to them as a young man; they saw the same vigour in his face, the same force in his eyes, the same expression and features. Liv. 21.4.2Dein brevī effēcit, ut pater in sē minimum mōmentum ad favōrem conciliandum esset.Then in a short time he brought it about that his father counted for very little in winning him favour. Liv. 21.4.2Numquam ingenium idem ad rēs dīversissimās, pārendum atque imperandum, habilius fuit.Never was the same nature more apt for the most opposite things, obeying and commanding.
Liv. 21.4.3Itaque haud facile discernerēs, utrum imperātōrī an exercituī cārior esset: neque Hasdrubal alium quemquam praeficere mālle, ubi quid fortiter ac strēnue agendum esset, neque mīlitēs aliō duce plūs cōnfīdere aut audēre.And so you could not easily have told whether he was dearer to the general or to the army: Hasdrubal preferred to put no one else in charge whenever anything was to be done with courage and energy, nor did the soldiers have more confidence or daring under any other leader. Liv. 21.4.5Plūrimum audāciae ad perīcula capessenda plūrimum cōnsiliī inter ipsa perīcula erat.He had the greatest boldness in taking on dangers, the greatest judgement in the midst of the dangers themselves. Liv. 21.4.5Nūllō labōre aut corpus fatīgārī aut animus vincī poterat.No toil could tire his body or overcome his spirit. Liv. 21.4.6Calōris ac frīgoris patientia pār;His endurance of heat and cold was the same; Liv. 21.4.6cibī pōtiōnisque dēsīderiō nātūrālī, nōn voluptāte modus fīnītus;the measure of his food and drink was set by natural need, not by pleasure; Liv. 21.4.6vigiliārum somnīque nec diē nec nocte discrīmināta tempora: id, quod gerendīs rēbus superesset, quiētī datum;his times for waking and sleeping were not marked off by day or night: whatever was left over from his work was given to rest; Liv. 21.4.7ea neque mollī strātō neque silentiō accersīta;and that rest was not sought on a soft bed or in silence; Liv. 21.4.7multī saepe mīlitārī sagulō opertum humī iacentem inter custōdiās statiōnēsque mīlitum cōnspēxērunt.many often saw him, covered with a soldier's cloak, lying on the ground among the sentries and outposts of the soldiers.
Liv. 21.4.8Vestītus nihil inter aequālēs excellēns;His dress in no way stood out among his peers; Liv. 21.4.8arma atque equī cōnspiciēbantur.his arms and horses drew all eyes. Liv. 21.4.8Equitum peditumque īdem longē prīmus erat;He was by far the foremost of both horsemen and foot-soldiers alike; Liv. 21.4.8prīnceps in proelium ībat, ultimus cōnsertō proeliō excēdēbat.he was first to go into battle, last to leave it once battle was joined. Liv. 21.4.9Hās tantās virī virtūtēs ingentia vitia aequābant: inhūmāna crūdēlitās, perfidia plūs quam Pūnica, nihil vērī, nihil sānctī, nūllus deum metus, nūllum iūs iūrandum, nūlla religiō.These great virtues of the man were matched by enormous vices: inhuman cruelty, treachery worse than Punic, no truth, nothing sacred, no fear of the gods, no regard for oaths, no religious scruple. Liv. 21.4.10Cum hāc indole virtūtum atque vitiōrum trienniō sub Hasdrubale imperātōre meruit nūllā rē, quae agenda videndaque magnō futūrō ducī esset, praetermissā.With this nature, compounded of virtues and vices, he served for three years under Hasdrubal's command, passing over nothing that ought to be done or seen by one who was to be a great general.