centre had exposed his left to
an immensely preponderating force of the enemy. Parmenio kept out of
action as long as possible; but Mazaeus, who commanded the Persian right
wing, advanced against him, completely outflanked him, and pressed him
severely with reiterated charges by superior numbers.

Seeing the distress of Parmenio's wing, Simmias, who commanded the sixth
brigade of the phalanx, which was next to the left wing, did not advance
with the other brigades in the great charge upon the Persian centre, but
kept back to cover Parmenio's troops on their right flank, as otherwise
they would have been completely surrounded and cut off from the rest of
the Macedonian army. By so doing, Simmias had unavoidably opened a gap
in the Macedonian left centre; and a large column of Indian and Persian
horse, from the Persian right centre, had galloped forward through this
interval, and right through the troops of the Macedonian second line.
Instead of then wheeling round upon Parmenio, or upon the rear of
Alexander's conquering wing, the Indian and Persian cavalry rode
straight on to the Macedonian camp, overpowered the Thracians who were
left in charge of it, and began to plunder. This was stopped by the
phalangite troops of the second line, who, after the enemy's horsemen
had rushed by them, faced about, countermarched upon the camp, killed
many of the Indians and Persians in the act of plundering, and forced
the rest to ride off again.

Just at this crisis, Alexander had been recalled from his pursuit of
Darius by tidings of the distress of Parmenio and of his inability to
bear up any longer against the hot attacks of Mazaeus. Taking his
horse-guards with him, Alexander rode toward the part of the field where
his left wing was fighting; but on his way thither he encountered the
Persian and Indian cavalry on their return from his camp.

These men now saw that their only chance of safety was to cut their way
through, and in one huge column they charged desperately upon the
Macedonian regiments. There was here a close hand-to-hand fight, which
lasted some time, and sixty of the royal horse-guards fell, and three
generals, who fought close to Alexander's side, were wounded. At length
the Macedonian discipline and valor again prevailed, and a large number
of the Persian and Indian horsemen were cut down, some few only
succeeding in breaking through and riding away.

Relieved of these obstinate enemies, Alexander again formed h