, whichever way they turned their eyes--in front lay the river so
difficult to ford; over, on the other side, a new enemy threatening to
bar the passage; on the hills behind, the Carduchians ready to fall
upon their rear should they once again attempt to cross. Thus for this
day and night they halted, sunk in perplexity. But Xenophon had a
dream. In his sleep he thought that he was bound in fetters, but
these, of their own accord, fell from off him, so that he was loosed,
and could stretch his legs as freely as he wished (2). So at the first
glimpse of daylight he came to Cheirisophus and told him that he had
hopes that all things would go well, and related to him his dream.

(2) It is impossible to give the true sense and humour of the passage
in English, depending, as it does, on the double meaning of
{diabainein} (1) to cross (a river), (2) to stride or straddle (of
the legs). The army is unable to cross the Centrites; Xenophon
dreams that he is fettered, but the chains drop off his legs and
he is able to stride as freely as ever; next morning the two young
men come to him with the story how they have found themselves able
to walk cross the river instead of having to swim it. It is
obvious to Xenophon that the dream is sent from Heaven.

The other was well pleased, and with the first faint gleam of dawn the
generals all were present and did sacrifice; and the victims were
favourable in the first essay. Retiring from the sacrifice, the
generals and officers issued an order to the troops to take their
breakfasts; and while Xenophon was taking his, two young men came
running up to him, for every one knew that, breakfasting or supping,
he was always accessible, or that even if asleep any one was welcome
to awaken him who had anything to say bearing on the business of war. 10
What the two young men had at this time to say was that they had been
collecting brushwood for fire, and had presently espied on the
opposite side, in among some rocks which came down to the river's
brink, an old man and some women and little girls depositing, as it
would appear, bags of clothes in a cavernous rock. When they saw them,
it struck them that it was safe to cross; in any case the enemy's
cavalry could not approach at this point. So they stripped naked,
expecting to have to swim for it, and with their long knives in their
hands began crossing, but going forward crossed without being wet up
to the fork.