disposition of his troops, and
thence advanced into the territory of the enemy. As he approached
the hostile city, he abstained from felling and firing alike, being
persuaded that to do so was only to create difficulties in his own
path, whether advancing or retreating; it would be time enough, when he
retired from Olynthus, to fell the trees and lay them as a barrier in
the path of any assailant in the rear.

(31) Lit. "sent out along with him the combined force of ten thousand
men," in ref to S. 20 above.

Being now within a mile or so (32) of the city he came to a halt. The
left division was under his personal command, for it suited him to
advance in a line opposite the gate from which the enemy sallied; the
other division of the allies stretched away to the right. The cavalry
were thus distributed: the Laconians, Thebans, and all the Macedonians
present were posted on the right. With his own division he kept Derdas
and his troopers, four hundred strong. This he did partly out of genuine
admiration for this body of horse, and partly as a mark of courtesy to
Derdas, which should make him not regret his coming.

(32) Lit. "ten stades."

Presently the enemy issued forth and formed in line opposite, under
cover of their walls. Then their cavalry formed in close order and
commenced the attack. Dashing down upon the Laconians and Boeotians they
dismounted Polycharmus, the Lacedaemonian cavalry general, inflicting a
hundred wounds on him as he lay on the ground, and cut down others, and
finally put to flight the cavalry on the right wing. The flight of these
troopers infected the infantry in close proximity to them, who in turn
swerved; and it looked as if the whole army was about to be worsted,
when Derdas at the head of his cavalry dashed straight at the gates of
Olynthus, Teleutias supporting him with the troops of his division.
The Olynthian cavalry, seeing how matters were going, and in dread
of finding the gates closed upon them, wheeled round and retired with
alacrity. Thus it was that Derdas had his chance to cut down man after
man as their cavalry ran the gauntlet past him. In the same way, too,
the infantry of the Olynthians retreated within their city, though,
owing to the closeness of the walls in their case, their loss was
trifling. Teleutias claimed the victory, and a trophy was duly erected,
after which he turned his back on Olynthus and devoted himself to
felling the fruit-trees. This was the camp