The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1852-03-23
MISCELLANEOUS.
R4arassibnl and Nauosco,,


extraordinary parallcism between the
campaigns, the military conduct, and
tho fortunes of Hannibal and Napol
con. That paralcism is strikinyly
touched upon by Arnold. Twice, u
hc says" in history, has there been
witnessed the struggle otthc highest in.
dividual genius against the resources
and institutions OF Il great nation: and
i'll both cases the nation has been
victorious. For seventeen years Ham
nibal strovc against Rome; for six
teen years Napoleon Bonaparte strove
against England, the effects of the
FIRST ended i'll Iama, those of the sec
ol,d in Watcrloo.' The extraoriil-
AIRY similitudc Of the genius, conduct,
and military character OF these two
giants in arms, is far from ending with
this general resemblance. Almost
from point to point their destnics are
similar. At the age OF twenty six,
Hannibal was elected to the su
prcinc command Of the Carthagcni-
IN armies. eild thenccforih, to the close
of the wnr; he disposed at his will The
resources. and held IN the hollow OF
his hand the councils Of his country.
At tho age Of twcnty-six, Napoleon
assumed the command of the army OF
Italy, and from thence his fortunes and
his will were those Of France. The
scenes Of the glory Of both were
the Alps and Italy. Both lad the
faculty of seeing at Il glance where
the; blow must be planted, which
should cripple the enemy; both de-
livcrcd that blow instantanrously and
irresistibly. Both had the same re-
lance OH their cavalry as an arm of
scrvicc--llannibal winning by il
all his greatest victories, and Napol-
con insisting to the AS: ,ha, cavalry. in
equal force, equally led, must conquer
infantry. ,IlSsaataiE Fl II -Ael- el--cl:rry
leader in the field. whom,he personally
encountered, save The very last; and
there is probably no one 50 oTrrjuliccd
as.to assert at this day that either
Hannibal or Napoleon found in his con
qucror superior in strategy or mill
tary genius. Nor does the similarity
end even here; tor both found their
final vnnIuishcrs in generals made
i'll Spain by conflicts with their uwu
licutcnalits, who were in no wise su-
ycrior to other emnc,.t leaders OF
their enemy. and both ultimately
persisted miscrlbiy. in exile, victims to
the countries which they had kept SO
long i'll awe and perturbation.
AS men of genius greatness,
shall observe only, that no single
act OF l1a'mibal's ever subscrvcd to
amy selfish motive, or ministcrrd to
his own aggrandizcmcnt; and that
lio single act of Napolcon's did not
SO. The consideration OF self would
seem never to have occurred to the
one, to have been ever present to the
other. Both were imatics for glory:
the one because his own was his co,ll-
try's; the other because his countrv's
was his own. Both were accused by
their enemies OF great moral crimes
and turpitudc and both, in the main.
unjuStly. 1t is one of the sad
truths concerning warfare, but no less
II truth; that, in playing the game Of
war, with nations for playthings, and
the world for il field, cxpediency must
be in Il great degree the moral rule
and that, if the game is to be played
at all, the sutlrrimgs or the lives OF
individuals, even if those individuals
be counted by thousands, must not
be considered, where the suiltrings or
the lives of millions are in question.
The sin lies in playing the game
at all, not i'll the details or the practice
of the play. Both these great men
were stern and mrclcnting in carving
out the lines which they held il
true policy to lay down; neither, SO
far as history shows, was tainted in
the least degree by anything rcscm-
bling persona! cruelty. Both have
been accused ofiaithlcssncss-a charge
never in any case to be much regarded.
rs brought between nations: formations
are ever prompt to dcclaim loudly,
when the losers, against deeds, the like
of which themselves commit readily
when the winners. In the case of
IJnnnabal, the Romans Plmic faith is
to this day the proverb for entire faith
lcSSncSS. llHu inc Ercnch writers
alone made the worlds annals Of
the late great struggle, "pcriidious
Albion" had gone down a by-word
to all ages. Had the English held
the like station, the utter tnithcSsncss
Of Napoleon would have become pro
verbal with prosperity.
TIE FIRST PASSAGE OF TIE Airs.
Hannibal, in the meantime, says
the historian, had plunged into the
passes of the Alps, in so far rs We can
Judge, by the valley Of the Iscrc, with
lhiry-seven elephants, in addition to
the force of infantry and cavalry, fifty
thousand foot and nine thousand horse
Now, it appears to me, that to com
pare Napoleon's passage OF the Alps
with that cf lanlsbal, is much as il