Their missiles exhausted, the enemy warmed to their work and made 18 an angry charge.  Thanks to their great height and their very long spears they could thrust from some distance at our men, who were floundering and slipping about in the marsh.  While this went on, a column[530] of Batavi swam across from the dam which, as we described above,[531] had been built out into the Rhine.  This started a panic and the line of our auxiliaries began to be driven back.  Then the legions took up the fight and equalized matters by staying the enemy’s wild charge.  Meanwhile a Batavian deserter approached Cerialis, avowing that he could take the enemy in the rear if the cavalry were sent round the edge of the swamp:  the ground was solid there, and the Cugerni, whose task it was to keep watch, were off their guard.  Two squadrons of horse were sent with the deserter, and succeeded in outflanking the unsuspecting enemy.  The legions in front, when the din told them what had happened, redoubled their efforts.  The Germans were beaten and fled to the Rhine.  This day might have brought the war to an end, had the Roman fleet[532] arrived in time.  As it was, even the cavalry were prevented from pursuit by a sudden downpour of rain shortly before nightfall.

On the next day the Fourteenth legion were sent to join Annius 19 Gallus[533] in Upper Germany, and their place in Cerialis’ army was filled by the Tenth from Spain.  Civilis was reinforced by the Chauci.[534] Feeling that he was not strong enough to hold the Batavian capital,[535] he took whatever was portable with him, burnt everything else, and retired into the island.  He knew that the Romans had not enough ships to build a bridge, and that they had no other means of getting across.  He also destroyed the mole built by Drusus Germanicus.[536] As the bed of the Rhine here falls towards Gaul, his removal of all obstacles gave it free course; the river was practically diverted, and the channel between the Germans and the island became so small and dry as to form no barrier between them.  Tutor and Classicus also crossed the Rhine,[537] together with a hundred and thirteen town-councillors from Trier, among whom was Alpinius Montanus, who, as we have already seen,[538] had been sent by Antonius Primus into Gaul.  He was accompanied by his brother.  By arousing sympathy and by offering presents, the others, too, were all busy raising reinforcements among these eagerly adventurous tribes.

The war was far from being over.  Dividing his forces, Civilis 20 suddenly made a simultaneous attack on all four Roman garrisons—­the Tenth at Arenacum, the Second at Batavodurum, and the auxiliary horse and foot at Grinnes and at Vada.[539] Civilis himself, Verax his nephew, Classicus and Tutor each led one of the attacking parties.  They could not hope all to be successful, but reckoned that, if they made several ventures, fortune would probably favour one or the other.  Besides, Cerialis, they