He was a most accomplished horseman,
and a master (_peritissimus_) in the use of arms. But, notwithstanding,
his skill in horsemanship, it seems that, when he accompanied his army
on marches, he walked oftener than he rode; no doubt, with a view to
the benefit of his example, and to express that sympathy with his
soldiers which gained him their hearts so entirely. On other
occasions, when travelling apart from his army, he seems more
frequently to have rode in a carriage than on horseback. His purpose
in making this preference must have been with a view to the transport
of luggage. The carriage which he generally used was a _rheda_, a sort
of gig, or rather curricle, for it was a four-wheeled carriage, and
adapted (as we find from the imperial regulations for the public
carriages, &c.,) to the conveyance of about half a ton. The mere
personal baggage which Caesar carried with him, was probably
considerable, for he was a man of the most elegant habits, and in all
parts of his life sedulously attentive to elegance of personal
appearance. The length of journeys which he accomplished within a
given time, appears even to us at this day, and might well therefore
appear to his contemporaries, truly astonishing. A distance of one
hundred miles was no extraordinary day's journey for him in a _rheda_,
such as we have described it.
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