nce, it was necessary to rest the men at intervals for as much
as three days at a time. The great drag upon rapidity of movement was
the baggage-train, which consisted ordinarily of a vast multitude of
camels, horses, asses, mules, oxen, etc., in part carrying burthens upon
their backs, in part harnessed to carts laden with provisions, tents,
and other necessaries. The train also frequently comprised a number of
litters, in which the wives or female companions of the chief men were
luxuriously conveyed, amid a crowd of eunuchs and attendants, and with
all the cumbrous paraphernalia of female wardrobes. Roads, it must be
remembered, did not exist; rivers were not bridged, except occasionally
by boats; the army marched on the natural ground along an established
line of route which no art had prepared for the passage of man or beast.
Portions of the route would often be soft and muddy; the carts and
litters would become immovable, their wheels sinking into the mire up
to the axles; all the efforts of the teams would be unavailing; it must
have been imperative to halt the main line, and employ the soldiers in
the release of the vehicles, which had to be lifted and carried forward
till the ground was sufficiently firm to bear them. When a river crossed
the line of route, a ford had to be sought, boats procured, or rafts
extemporized. The Persians were skilful in the passage of streams, to
which they became accustomed in their first campaigns under Cyrus; but
the march was necessarily retarded by these and similar obstacles, and
we cannot be surprised that the average rate of movement was slow.

As evening approached the Persians sought a suitable place for their
camp. An open plain was preferred for the purpose, and the vicinity of
water was a necessity. If an enemy was thought to be at hand, a ditch
was rapidly dug, and the earth thrown up inside; or if the soil was
sandy, sacks were filled with it, and the camp was protected with
sand-bags. Immediately within the rampart were placed the _gerrhophori_,
or Persians armed with large wicker shields. The rest of the soldiers
had severally their appointed places, the position assigned to the
commander-in-chief being the centre. All the army had tents, which were
pitched so as to face the east. The horses of the cavalry were tethered
and hobbled in front of the tents of their owners.

The Persians disliked encamping near to their enemy. They preferred an
interval of seven or eigh