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

288 THE GORDIAN KNOT.calculated that Antipater could hold head against any revoltingGreek force which might grow dangerous to Macedonia(as indeed he proved his ability to do at Megalopolis), andmeet a Persian invasion as well ; he no doubt looked to thefuture for success enough on land to outweigh any losses inthe -(Egean ; his operations imperatively called for many ofthe crews which manned the fleet for shore duty, let alone thefact that he had not funds enough to pay the men ; and it wasnot difficult, as the coming year showed, again to make himselfstrong at sea, when the demand should become moreurgent. If it was a mistake, it had happily not proven adisastrous one.To Gordium, then, the various columns of the Macedoniansconverged, and here the army was reunited. The columnwhich had made the winter campaign with Alexander fromthe south ; the column from Sardis, under Parmenio, with theartillery and train and heavy cavalry ; the newly married men,reporting on expiration of furlough, and bringing their contingentof recruits from Macedonia, all met and shook handsover the brilliant success of the first campaign ; all lookedforward to vastly greater victories and richer booty, as theypenetrated deeper into the territory of the wealthy Persianking. Their implicit belief in their leader made success anarticle of faith. The recruits were a welcome arrival ; theirnumber all but compensated for the losses incurred, and thedetails on garrison duty in the various cities captured.It was here in Gordium, in February or March, 333 B. C,that Alexander imposed upon the credulity of the Phrygiansby cutting or otherwise unloosing the famous knot of KingMidas, the performance of which feat was by the oracle saidto betoken that the successful man should be king of Asia.However the feat was accomplished, there is no doubt thatAlexander did succeed in making the populace believe that