As soon as the pledge was taken, Clearchus spoke: "And now, Ariaeus,"
he said, "since you and we have one expedition in prospect, will you 10
tell us what you think about the route; shall we return the way we
came, or have you devised a better?" He answered: "To return the same
way is to perish to a man by hunger; for at this moment we have no
provisions whatsoever. During the seventeen last stages, even on our
way hither, we could extract nothing from the country; or, if there
was now and again anything, we passed over and utterly consumed it. At
this time our project is to take another and a longer journey
certainly, but we shall not be in straits for provisions. The earliest
stages must be very long, as long as we can make them; the object is
to put as large a space as possible between us and the royal army;
once we are two or three days' journey off, the danger is over. The
king will never overtake us. With a small army he will not dare to dog
our heels, and with a vast equipment he will lack the power to march
quickly. Perhaps he, too, may even find a scarcity of provisions.
There," said he, "you asked for my opinion, see, I have given it."

Here was a plan of the campaign, which was equivalent to a stampede:
helter-skelter they were to run away, or get into hiding somehow; but
fortune proved a better general. For as soon as it was day they
recommenced the journey, keeping the sun on their right, and
calculating that with the westering rays they would have reached
villages in the territory of Babylonia, and in this hope they were not
deceived. While it was yet afternoon, they thought they caught sight
of some of the enemy's cavalry; and those of the Hellenes who were not
in rank ran to their ranks; and Ariaeus, who was riding in a wagon to
nurse a wound, got down and donned his cuirass, the rest of his party
following his example. Whilst they were arming themselves, the scouts,