repelled him. As the afternoon advanced, the Persian assailants
began to retire; for they were always in the habit of taking up their
night-post at a distance of near seven miles from the Grecian position;
being very apprehensive of nocturnal attack in their camp, when their
horses were tied by the leg and without either saddle or bridle. As
soon as they had departed, the Greeks resumed their march, and made so
much advance during the night, that the Persians did not overtake them
either on the next day or the day after.

On the ensuing day, however, the Persians, having made a forced march by
night, were seen not only in advance of the Greeks, but in occupation of
a spur of high and precipitous ground overhanging immediately the road
whereby the Greeks were to descend into the plain. When Cheirisophus
approached, he at once saw that descent was impracticable in the face of
an enemy thus posted. He therefore halted, sent for Xenophon from the
rear, and desired him to bring forward the light-armed foot-soldiers to
the van. But Xenophon, though he obeyed the summons in person and
galloped his horse to the front, did not think it prudent to move the
light-armed foot-soldiers from the rear, because he saw Tissaphernes,
with another portion of the army, just coming up; so that the Grecian
army was at once impeded in front, and threatened by the enemy closing
upon them behind. The Persians on the high ground in front could not be
directly assailed. But Xenophon observed, that on the right of the
Grecian army, there was an accessible mountain summit yet higher, from
whence a descent might be made for a flank attack upon the Persian
position. Pointing out this summit to Cheirisophus, as affording the
only means of dislodging the troops in front, he urged that one of them
should immediately hasten with a detachment to take possession of it and
offered to Cheirisophus the choice either of going, or staying with the
army. "Choose for yourself," said Cheirisophus. "Well then (said
Xenophon), I will go; since I am the younger of the two." Accordingly,
at the head of a select detachment from the van and centre of the army,
he immediately commenced his flank march up the steep ascent to this
highest summit. So soon as the enemy saw their purpose, they also
detached troops on their side, hoping to get to the summit first; and
the two detachments were seen mounting at the same time, each struggling
with the utmost efforts to get before t