The bridge must have given way under the feet of the savage horde, unless the Gallic monsters, with brutal malice, had intentionally shattered it.
The first supposition, however, seemed to be the correct one, for as Hermon approached the canal he heard moans of pain.

One of the Gauls had apparently met with an accident in the fall of the bridge and been deserted by his comrades.

With the skill acquired in the wrestling school, Hermon descended into the canal to look for the wounded man, while his guide undertook to get the horses ashore.
The deep darkness considerably increased the difficulty of carrying out his purpose, but the young Greek went up to his neck in the water he could not become wetter than he was already.

So he remained in the ditch until he found the injured man whose groans of suffering pierced his compassionate heart.
He was obliged to release the luckless Gaul from the broken timbers of the bridge, and, when Hermon had dragged him out on the opposite bank of the canal, he made no answer to any question.

A falling beam had probably struck him senseless.
His hair, which Hermon's groping fingers informed him was thick and rough, seemed to denote a Gaul, but a full, long beard was very rarely seen in this nation, and the wounded man wore one.