From this place they marched through Media six desert stages--thirty 27
parasangs--to the villages of Parysatis, Cyrus's and the king's
mother. These Tissaphernes, in mockery of Cyrus, delivered over to the
Hellenes to plunder, except that the folk in them were not to be made
slaves. They contained much corn, cattle, and other property. From
this place they advanced four desert stages--twenty parasangs--keeping
the Tigris on the left. On the first of these stages, on the other
side of the river, lay a large city; it was a well-to-do place named
Caenae, from which the natives used to carry across loaves and cheeses
and wine on rafts made of skins.



V

After this they reached the river Zapatas[1], which is four hundred 1
feet broad, and here they halted three days. During the interval
suspicions were rife, though no act of treachery displayed itself.
Clearchus accordingly resolved to bring to an end these feelings of
mistrust, before they led to war. Consequently, he sent a messenger to
the Persian to say that he desired an interview with him; to which the
other readily consented. As soon as they were met, Clearchus spoke as
follows: "Tissaphernes," he said, "I do not forget that oaths have
been exchanged between us, and right hands shaken, in token that we
will abstain from mutual injury; but I can see that you watch us
narrowly, as if we were foes; and we, seeing this, watch you narrowly
in return. But as I fail to discover, after investigation, that you
are endeavouring to do us a mischief--and I am quite sure that nothing
of the sort has ever entered our heads with regard to you--the best
plan seemed to me to come and talk the matter over with you, so that,