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

IMPORTANCE OF ARIA. 439tively called southward, instead, into Zarangeia or Drangiana(so named from Lake Zarangaj or the Arian lake) whereBarsaentes, another of the murderers, was satrap. This wayhe accordingly headed.Conscious of his guilt and treachery,and not waiting for the vengeance he had invoked but dreadednone the less, Barsaentes fledtowards the Indus, or into Gedrosia.But he was taken by some adherents of the conqueror,and returned to Alexander, who put him to death.Admiral La Graviere figures that Alexander's columnmarched from Hecatompylos to a given point in Aria, a gooddeal over five hundred miles, in one hundred and ninety-eighthours, actual marching time.At ten hours a day, or twentydays, this would be at the rate of over twenty-five miles a day.Accurate or not, the figures are interesting, and it is certainthat the Macedonians were extraordinary marchers.It is probable that it was these untoward events in Alexander'smarch towards Bactria and hisconsequent countermarchto Aria which proved to him the necessity of caution,and determined him to put into practice the clean-cut strategywhich preceded and succeeded Issus and Arbela, and fully toprotect his rear before he proceeded on his way. Aria wasof the highest importance. In it were the cross-roads betweenIran, Turan and Ariana.Where the Ochus or Ariussuddenly turns north, the great army roads, from Ilyrcaniaand Parthia, from Margiana and Bactria, from Arachotia andIndia and the upj)er Cophen, meet and cross.At this point,about one hundred miles west of Artacoana, Alexanderfounded a city, Alexandria in Aria, and to-day among thepeople of this section dwells the remembrance of this wonderfulking.No doubt Alexander had made a study of the topographyof this region, as far as it could be made, and had locatedaswell as may be the roads and rivers, mountains and defiles,