Alexander : a history of the origin and growth of the art of war from ...

114 RUSE OF AGESILAUS.terrain which was particularly suited to this arm ; and inlieu ofadvancing to Caria he directed his march into Phrygia.His manoeu\Tes here were much to the purpose, butfinding that horse was indispensable in a campaign in Asia,he returned to Ephesus for winter quarters, and while hereraised and equipped an excellent cavalry brigade. "Whenspring came Tissaphernes made every effort to divine thepurpose of Agesilaus. The Spartan king gave out that heshould march again into Phrygia. Tissaphernes understoodthis to be an effort to lead him away from Caria, and remainedon the Maeander plains, as before. But Agesilaus,having thus misled his adversary, was as good as his word,and advanced toward the Pactolus, where he met and defeateda large body of cavalry. Such methods of misleading anenemy have been most successfully practiced by all greatleaders.Tissaphernes followed him to Sardis ; but so frightenedwere his followers at the successes of Agesilaus that theyassassinated the satrap, and paid the Spartan king thirty talentsto march out of this satrapy into Phrygia. This he did,devastating the province, and wintering at Dascyllium. Herehe made large preparations for a campaign into Persia. ButPersian money excited intestine troubles in Greece, andAgesilaus was constrained to march towards home. He chosethe overland route which Xerxes had followed. He wasobliged to fight his way through Thessaly, and gave signs ofgreat ability by the manner in which he handled his cavalry,to him a new arm, against the Thessalian horse, then the bestin Greece. In Thessaly Agesilaus heard of the defeat ofthe Spartan fleet at Cindus. With consummate prudence, inorder to prevent demoralization in his ranks, he announced tohis army a brilliant victory. He then attacked the Thebansand their allies, and under the influence of the enthusiasm