Erant nobiscum duae legiones Magnentiacae recens e Galliis ductae (ut praediximus) virorum fortium et pernicium, ad planarios conflictus aptorum, ad eas vero belli artes quibus stringebamur, non modo inhabiles, sed contra nimii turbatores, qui cum neque in machinis neque in operum constructione iuvarent, aliquotiens stolidius erumpentes, dimicantesque fidentissime minuto numero revertebant, tantum proficientes, quantum in publico (ut aiunt) incendio, aqua unius hominis manu adgesta.
There were with us two Magnentian legions, recently brought from Gaul (as I have said) and composed of brave, active men, experienced in battle in the open field, but to the sort of warfare to which we were constrained they were not merely unsuited, but actually a great hindrance; for whereas they were of no help with the artillery or in the construction of fortifications, they would sometimes make reckless sallies and after fighting with the greatest confidence return with diminished numbers, accomplishing just as much as would the pouring of a single handful of water (as the saying is) upon a general conflagration.
final_alignments\Ammianus_Marcellinus_Book19.json