Still, for a long time their attitude was marked by inaction.  Finally they fell to fighting again.  The following may serve as a general description of the contest.  Antiochus put the chariots in front, with the elephants next, and behind these the slingers and the archers.  But the Romans anticipated the charge of the chariots by a charge of their own and with a great clamor they rushed straight at them and repulsed them, so that most of these vehicles turned in the direction of the elephants.  In their backward career they threw their own contingent into confusion,—­for their erratic course terrified and dispersed the men marshaled close to them,—­and a heavy rain which now came up rendered weak the detachment of archers and slingers.  A heavy, all-enveloping mist succeeded, which was of no hindrance to the Romans, who had the upper hand and were fighting at close range; but in the case of their opponents, who were in dread and employed cavalry and archers for the most part, it made it out of the question to see which way to shoot their arrows and caused them to stumble over one another, like men in the dark.  Nevertheless Antiochus developed sufficient power, by means of his armored cavalry, to rout the antagonists directly confronting him and to advance in pursuit of them as far as their camp.  Indeed, he would have taken it, had not Marcus AEmilius Lepidus, who was charged with guarding it, killed the first Romans that came in after they had refused to heed his exhortations to check their flight.  As a result the rest of the party turned back and the commander himself made a sortie with members of the garrison who were free from the prevailing demoralization, and their united efforts repulsed Antiochus.  While this action was taking place, Zeuxis had assailed the ramparts in another quarter, had succeeded in getting within them, and continued to pillage until Lepidus became aware of it and came to the rescue of his own interests.  At the same time Scipio captured the camp of Antiochus, wherein he found many human beings, many horses, baggage animals, silver and gold coins, elephants, and a number of precious objects besides.  Antiochus after this defeat at once retired into Syria, and the Asiatic Greeks made common cause with the Romans.

After this, upon overtures made by Antiochus, an armistice was arranged.  Africanus was well disposed toward him for his son’s sake, and the consul, too, did not want to leave the victory to be grasped by his successor, now approaching; consequently they laid upon Antiochus conditions no more severe than those they had originally set, before the battle. [Sidenote:  B.C. 189 (a.u. 565)] Indeed, Gnaeus Manlius who succeeded them in office was not pleased with the agreement reached, and he made additional demands upon the king, requiring him besides to give hostages, one of whom should be his son Antiochus, and to deliver up all the deserters, among whom was Hannibal.  Antiochus reluctantly yielded obedience on all points: