ch ground they occupied."

[20] "And the Egyptians?" Cyrus said, "how are they drawn up? I noticed
you said, 'all except the Egyptians.'"

"The Egyptians," he answered, "are drawn up in companies of ten
thousand, under their own officers, a hundred deep, and a hundred
broad: that, they insisted, was their usual formation at home. Croesus,
however, was very loth to let them have their own way in this: he wished
to outflank you as much as possible." "Why?" Cyrus asked, "what was his
object?" "To encircle you, I imagine, with his wings." "He had better
take care," said Cyrus, "or his circle may find itself in the centre.
[21] But now you have told us what we most needed to know, and you,
gentlemen," said he to the officers, "on leaving this meeting, you will
look to your weapons and your harness. It often happens that the lack
of some little thing makes man or horse or chariot useless. To-morrow
morning early, while I am offering sacrifice, do you take your breakfast
and give your steeds their provender, so that when the moment comes to
strike you may not be found wanting. And then you, Araspas, must hold
the right wing in the position it has now, and the rest of you who
command a thousand men must do the same with your divisions: it is no
time to be changing horses when the race is being run; and you will send
word to the brigadiers and captains under you to draw up the phalanx
with each company two deep." (Now a company consisted of four-and-twenty
men.)

[22] Then one of the officers, a captain of ten thousand, said:

"Do you think, Cyrus, that with so shallow a depth we can stand against
their tremendous phalanx?"

"But do you suppose," rejoined he, "that any phalanx so deep that the
rear-ranks cannot close with the enemy could do much either for friend
or foe? [23] I myself," he added, "would rather this heavy infantry of
theirs were drawn up, not a hundred, but ten thousand deep: we should
have all the fewer to fight. Whereas with the depth that I propose, I
believe we shall not waste a man: every part of our army will work with
every other. [24] I will post the javelin-men behind the cuirassiers,
and the archers behind them: it would be absurd to place in the van
troops who admit that they are not made for hand-to-hand fighting;
but with the cuirassiers thrown in front of them they will stand firm
enough, and harass the enemy over the heads of our own men with their
arrows and their darts. And every stroke that