Germ. 6.1Nē ferrum quidem superest, sīcut ex genere tēlōrum colligitur.Not even iron is plentiful, as is gathered from the kind of weapons they have. Germ. 6.1Rārī gladiīs aut maiōribus lanceīs ūtuntur: hastās vel ipsōrum vocābulō frameās gerunt angustō et brevī ferrō, sed ita ācrī et ad ūsum habilī, ut eōdem tēlō, prōut ratiō poscit, vel comminus vel ēminus pugnent.Few use swords or larger lances: they carry spears, or 'frameae' in their own word, with a narrow and short iron head, but so sharp and so handy in use that they fight with the same weapon, as circumstances demand, either at close quarters or at a distance. Germ. 6.2Et eques quidem scūtō frameāque contentus est, peditēs et missilia spargunt, plūraque singulī, atque in immēnsum vibrant, nūdī aut sagulō levēs.The horseman, indeed, is content with a shield and a framea, while the foot soldiers also shower missiles, several apiece, and hurl them to an immense distance, being naked or lightly clad in a short cloak. Germ. 6.2Nūlla cultūs iactātiō: scūta tantum lēctissimīs colōribus distinguunt.There is no display of finery: only their shields they mark out with carefully chosen colours.
Germ. 6.3Paucīs lōrīcae, vix ūnī alterīve cassis aut galea.Few have breastplates, and hardly one or two a helmet of metal or of leather. Germ. 6.3Equī nōn fōrmā, nōn vēlōcitāte cōnspicuī.Their horses are not remarkable for beauty, nor for speed. Germ. 6.3Sed nec variāre gȳrōs in mōrem nostrum docentur: in rēctum aut ūnō flexū dextrōs agunt, ita coniūnctō orbe ut nēmō posterior sit.Nor are they taught to wheel in varied circles in our fashion: they drive them straight ahead or with a single turn to the right, in a circle so closed up that no one is left behind. Germ. 6.4In ūniversum aestimantī plūs penes peditem rōboris;To one who judges on the whole, there is more strength in the infantry; Germ. 6.4eōque mīxtī proeliantur, aptā et congruente ad equestrem pugnam vēlōcitāte peditum, quōs ex omnī iuventūte dēlēctōs ante aciem locant.and so they fight intermingled, the speed of the foot soldiers being well suited and matched to the cavalry battle, and these, picked from all the young men, they station in front of the line.
Germ. 6.5Dēfīnītur et numerus: centēnī ex singulīs pāgīs sunt, idque ipsum inter suōs vocantur, et quod prīmō numerus fuit, iam nōmen et honor est.Their number too is fixed: there are a hundred from each district, and by this very name they are called among their own people, and what was at first a number is now a title and an honour. Germ. 6.6Aciēs per cuneōs compōnitur.The battle line is drawn up in wedges. Germ. 6.6Cēdere locō, dummodo rūrsus īnstēs, cōnsiliī quam formīdinis arbitrantur.To give ground, provided you press on again, they consider a mark of strategy rather than of fear. Germ. 6.6Corpora suōrum etiam in dubiīs proeliīs referunt.They carry back the bodies of their fallen even in indecisive battles. Germ. 6.6Scūtum relīquisse praecipuum flāgitium, nec aut sacrīs adesse aut concilium inīre ignōminiōsō fās, multīque superstitēs bellōrum īnfāmiam laqueō fīniērunt.To have abandoned one's shield is the greatest disgrace, and it is not lawful for a man so disgraced to attend the sacred rites or to enter the council, and many survivors of wars have ended their infamy with a noose.