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

THE FLYING WINGS. 373and Balacrus' javelin-nien, the latter opposite thechariots inthe centre of Darius' army. The special duty impressed onMenidas was to ride round and take the Persians in flank ifthey tried to surround this Macedonian wing.On the left was a similar flying wing in which were theThracians under Sitalces, theGreek auxiliary cavalry underCceranus, the Odryssian cavalry under Agatho.In front ofall these stood the cavalry of the Greek mercenaries underAndromachus. The exact description of this formation, exceptingthat of the main line, is difficult to decipher fromArrian, and impossible from the other ancient authorities.Diodorus calls it a semicircle. We know better what thesereserve troops, or part of them did during the battle, and thissuffices. The accompanying chart satisfies quite closely thestatements of the several authorities, and suits Alexander'smanoeuvres as developed by Arrian from Ptolemy and Aristobuluswith reasonable accuracy. It is moreover consistentwith itself, and the successive manoeuvres as shown by thecharts accord with all the ancient authorities.The baggage, prisoners and camp followers had been leftin the stockade in charge of the Thracian infantry. Herealso was the family of Darius. The heavier part of the trainwas in the first camp seven miles to the rear. Alexander'swhole force numbered seven thousand cavalry and forty thousandinfantry, plus some few Asiatics.The latter were useless.They were not engaged, nor do they appear in line.Alexander had passed the night in unusually careful discussionof plans for the morrow's battle. He is representedby some historians as having been exceedingly apprehensiveas to the situation, by Curtius as alternately haunted by fearand hope. This is not Alexander. It is more probable thatthe king did not become in any degree anxious. It was notcharacteristic of him. He belonged to the type of man a