Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1890-02-07
FRENCH WAR sEIp.

1t is singular fact that there existed:
IN the time of Julius Caesar type of YES
sci used in the northwest of France and
Britannia, which was decidedly superior
to the Roman vessels of every class.
Cesar, in the third book of the Gallo
campaigns, describes them with some
detail, and it is evident that they aston
ished him and terrified Brutus, who wcs
the officer in charge of the Roman fleet.
1t is clear that there was considerable
discussion rs to the power of the Roman
vessels to cope with them, and if we read
between the lines, which must be done
with Cesar, for he is far from ingenious
III ms statements, we shall come to the
conclusion that perfect information was
obtained about these vessels, and n reru-
lar plan formed before the campaign was
opened against the Vencti Caesar de-
scribes these vessels us being of great
height and of immense strength, so that
the archcrs and singers on the Roman
triremes could do nothing when the fleets
should come to close quarters. Aud the
Drazen prows were also powerlcss, be-
cause OF the extraordinary solitlity of
these ships, whose knees Caesar de-
cribed rs being a foot thick And they
we're boltcd, he writes, to the other
beams with iron spikes MS thick as the
iorefinger. They were propelled by sails,
which must hav. been lug sails, like.
those still used in the English Channel b1
French fishermen and by the boatmen of
the channel islands, and their anchors.
were provided with iron chains instead
of ropes. Cesar got the best IF this
fleet by his quick wittedness. He.
ordered tower of wood rugged upon his
triremes over the head of the oarsmen,
and placed upon them numerous engines
calle' scorpions for throwing out darts.
Then when the vessels closed he had
legionaries who were armed with sicklcs
fastened to long poles, Will, which they
cut the rigging of the encmy's ships, So
that their lug sails dropped to the deck
and they remained m"tonless on the
water. The trircmcs then rowcd all !,
around them and poured in u raging fire,
from the scorpions, besides clouds of
arrow: aud stones from the archers and
singers. But so thoroughly frightened
had been the great Julius that he.
massacrcd all Of the Government of the
Seneti he could find and sold the entire
nation into slavery.
When we read Of stout oak ships, and
iron spikes as big as the forcngcr, and
iron chain cables it is impossible not to
believe that this unfortunate nation was
in correspondence with some other nation
vastly more advanced than itself Had
such type been elaborated either in.
Britannia or the French Brittany, there
would have been corresponding civil-
zation, which would have made the :
Veneti more than match for Cesar and
his ferocious, gore-loving legions. The
deduction is inevitable that the iron OBJ
ects used in the construction of these
vessels came from II foreign source.>
What was that source? Hitherto this
passage III Caesars Commentaries" has
been I'm enigma, but ii is certain that
there were mt that time ships of Il supc-
rior type to anything recorded in history,
and that the vessels of lie Veneti were
but poor copies Of them GAicago Times