Page:Xenophon by Alexander Grant.djvu/77

Rh to debate whether they should continue their journey homewards by sea or by land; and some proposed and actually carried the resolution that they should levy a tribute of £2300 or more upon the city that had received them so kindly. Both Cheirisophus and Xenophon absolutely refused to have anything to do with making such an unjust demand on a friendly Greek city. The soldiers thereupon sent three persons of their own nomination to convey their resolutions to the people of Heraclea. The demands and the threats of these envoys merely had the effect of causing the Heracleans to close their gates and put themselves in a state of defence. The army, thus baffled, broke out into fresh dissensions and insubordination. The Arcadians and Achæans, who made up above half the force, separated themselves from the rest and chose their own generals. And thus the chief command of Cheirisophus came to an end on the sixth or seventh day after he had been chosen. Some two thousand of the troops attached themselves to Xenophon, and the army was broken up into three divisions. Moving still to the west, these three divisions separately (one in ships and two by land) reached Calpe, a harbour in Bithynia, not far from the Bosphorus. Here each of the two other divisions got into trouble in marauding expeditions, and were severally rescued by the division under Xenophon. Here also Cheirisophus died of fever, and Xenophon became virtually, though not nominally, the commander-in-chief. And the soldiers passed a resolution that no one, under pain of death, should again propose to divide the army.