Page:History of Greece Vol IX.djvu/122

 100 HISTORY OF GREECE. taken at the Great Zab at the moment when he perfidiously seized Klearchus and his colleagues, the Greeks would hardly have reached the northern bank of that river. In the face of such ob- stacles, the Greeks, nevertheless, attempted the passage of the Kentrites, seeing a regular road on the other side. But the river was two hundred feet in breadth (only half the breadth of the Zab), above their breasts in depth, extremely rapid, and with a bottom full of slippery stones ; insomuch that they could not hold their shields in the proper position, from the force of the stream, while if they lifted the shields above their heads, they were ex- posed defenceless to the arrows of the satrap's troops. After vari- ous trials, the passage was found impracticable, and they were obh'ged to resume their encampment on the left bank. To their great alarm they saw the Karduchians assembling on the hills in their rear, so that their situation, during this day and night, ap- peared nearly desperate. In the night, Xenophon had a dream, the first, which he has told us, since his dream on the terrific night after the seizure of the generals, but on this occasion, of augury more unequivocally good. He dreamed that he was bound in chains, but that his chains on a sudden dropped off spontaneously ; on the faith of which, he told Cheirisophus at daybreak that he had good hopes of preservation ; and when the generals offered sacrifice, the victims were at once favorable. As the army were taking their morning meal, two young Greeks ran to Xenophon with the auspicious news that they had accidentally found another ford near half a mile up the river, where the water was not even up to their middle, and where the rocks came so close on the right bank that the enemy's horse could offer no opposition. Xenophon, starting from his meal in delight, immediately offered libations to those gods who had revealed both the dream to himself in the night, and the unexpected ford afterwards to these youths ; two revelations which he ascribed to the same gods. 1 Presently they marched in their usual order, Cheirisophus com- manding the van and Xenophon the rear, along the river to the newly-discovered ford ; the enemy marching parallel with them on the opposite bank. Having reached the ford, halted, and grounded arms, Cheirisophus placed a wreath on his head, took it off again, 1 Xen. Anab. iv, 3, 6-13.