He sent him back word that he did not understand why Caesar should interfere between him and his conquered province.
"The Aeduans," said he, "tried the fortune of war with me, and were overcome; and they must abide the issue.

The Romans manage their conquered provinces as they judge proper, without holding themselves accountable to any one.

I shall do the same with mine.

All that I can say is, that so long as the Aeduans submit peaceably to my authority, and pay their tribute, I shall not molest them; as to your threat that you shall not disregard their complaints, you must know that no one has ever made war upon me but to his own destruction, and, if you wish to see how it will turn out in your case, you may make the experiment whenever you please." [Sidenote: Preparations for war.] Both parties immediately prepared for war.

Ariovistus, instead of waiting to be attacked, assembled his army, crossed the Rhine, and advanced into the territories from which Caesar had undertaken to exclude him.
[Sidenote: Panic in the Roman army.] As Caesar, however, began to make his arrangements for putting his army in motion to meet his approaching enemy, there began to circulate throughout the camp such extraordinary stories of the terrible strength and courage of the German soldiery as to produce a very general panic.
So great, at length, became the anxiety and alarm, that even the officers were wholly dejected and discouraged; and as for the men, they were on the very eve of mutiny.
[Sidenote: Caesar's address.] When Caesar understood this state of things, he called an assembly of the troops, and made an address to them.