CHAPTER IX.

ALEXANDER’S TACTICS.—HIS SPEECH TO THE OFFICERS.

When Alexander had received all this information from the Persian

scouts who had been captured, he remained four days in the place where

he had received the news; and gave his army rest after the march. He

meanwhile fortified his camp with a ditch and stockade, as he intended

to leave behind the baggage and all the soldiers who were unfit for

fighting, and to go into the contest accompanied by his warriors

carrying with them nothing except their weapons. Accordingly he took

his forces by night, and began the march about the second watch, in

order to come into collision with the foreigners at break of day. As

soon as Darius was informed of Alexander’s approach, he at once drew

out his army for battle; and Alexander led on his men drawn up in like

manner. Though the armies were only sixty stades[399] from each other,

yet they were not in sight of each other, for between the hostile

forces some hills intervened. But when Alexander was only thirty stades

distant from the enemy, and his army was already marching down from the

hills just mentioned, catching sight of the foreigners, he caused his

phalanx to halt there. Calling a council of the Companions, generals,

cavalry officers, and leaders of the Grecian allies and mercenaries,

he deliberated with them, whether he should at once lead on the

phalanx without delay, as most of them urged him to do; or, whether,

as Parmenio thought preferable, to pitch their tents there for the

present, to reconnoitre all the ground, in order to see if there was

anything there to excite suspicion or to impede their progress, or if

there were ditches or stakes firmly fixed in the earth out of sight,

as well as to make a more accurate survey of the enemy’s tactical

arrangements. Parmenio’s opinion prevailed, so they encamped there,

drawn up in the order in which they intended to enter the battle. But

Alexander took the light infantry and the cavalry Companions and went

all round, reconnoitring the whole country where he was about to fight

the battle. Having returned, he again called together the same leaders,

and said that they did not require to be encouraged by him to enter the

contest; for they had been long before encouraged by their own valour,

and by the gallant deeds which they had already so often achieved. He

thought it expedient that each of them individually should stir up

his own men separately; the infantry captain the men of his company,

the cavalry captain his own squadron, the brigadiers their various

brigades, and each of the leaders of the infantry the phalanx entrusted

to him. He assured them that in this battle they were going to fight,

not as before, either for Coele-Syria, Phoenicia, or Egypt, but for

the whole of Asia. For he said this battle would decide who were to

be the rulers of that continent. It was not necessary for him to stir

them up to gallant deeds by many words, since they had this valour by

nature; but they should see that each man took care, so far as in him

lay, to preserve discipline in the critical moment of action, and to

keep perfect silence when it was expedient to advance in silence. On

the other hand, they should see that each man uttered a sonorous shout,

where it would be advantageous to shout, and to raise as terrible a

battle-cry as possible, when a suitable opportunity occurred of raising

the battle-cry. He told them to take care to obey his orders as quickly

as possible, and to transmit the orders they had received to the ranks

with all rapidity; each man remembering that both as an individual

and in the aggregate he was increasing the general danger if he was

remiss in the discharge of his duty, and that he was assisting to gain

a victory if he zealously put forth his utmost exertions.