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In
249 it was known that the Carthaginians were going to send out a fleet
to reinforce the garrison of the crucial base of Lilybaeum. The Roman
fleet was commanded by , son of the man who had started the war fifteen
years earlier. The Carthaginians had a fleet at Drepana, twenty- five
miles north of Lilybaeum, and Pulcher resolved to attack it before the
Carthaginian reinforcements could arrive. At the battle of Drepana,
Pulcher was soundly defeated by superior Carthaginian seamanship and
lost 93 ships.
He
was tried for incompetence in Rome and fined heavily. (This was unusual
for the Romans, who normally realized that defeats had to be expected).
The story arose that Pulcher was defeated for impiety. The Romans kept
sacred chickens in cages to determine the attitude of the gods: if they
ate, the gods favored battle (hence if the chickens were not kept well
fed, a favorable omen could usually be gotten). Pulcher's chickens were
apparently sea-sick and refused to eat. He is said to have thrown them
overboard, saying "If they won't eat, let them drink." The gods were
not amused.
This incident had an interesting consequence.
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