1The next day the Carthaginians filled with their column the stretch of road that lay between the two camps. 2Although the Romans had taken their stand right under their rampart, on ground undoubtedly more favourable, the Carthaginian nevertheless came up with his light troops and cavalry to provoke the enemy. 2The Carthaginians fought piecemeal, by dashing forward and falling back; 2the Roman line held its ground. 3The fighting was slow, and more to the dictator's liking than to Hannibal's; two hundred fell on the Roman side, eight hundred of the enemy. 4Hannibal now seemed to be shut in, with the road to Casilinum blocked, since, while Capua and Samnium and so many wealthy allies at their rear were bringing up supplies to the Romans, the Carthaginian would have to winter among the rocks of Formiae and the sands and marshes of Liternum, amid bristling forests.
5Nor did it escape Hannibal that he was being attacked with his own arts. 5Therefore, since he could not get out by way of Casilinum, and had to make for the mountains and cross the ridge of Callicula, so that the Roman might nowhere attack his column while it was hemmed in by the valleys, he devised a trick for the eyes, terrifying in appearance, to baffle the enemy, and decided to steal up to the mountains at nightfall. 6The preparation of the deceitful plan was as follows: torches gathered from the fields all round, and bundles of rods and dry brushwood, are tied to the horns of oxen, many of which, broken and unbroken, he was driving along among the rest of the plunder from the countryside; 8about two thousand oxen were made ready; 8and Hasdrubal was given the task of driving that herd at night towards the mountains with their horns set alight, above all, if he could, over the passes held by the enemy.