Anabasis

The Greeks, however, viewing them all with suspicion, proceeded by themselves, with their own guides. And the two parties encamped in every case a parasang or more from one another, and kept guard each against the other, as though against enemies—a fact which at once occasioned suspicion.

Sometimes, moreover, when Greeks and barbarians were getting firewood from the same place or collecting fodder or other such things, they would come to blows with one another, and this also occasioned ill-will.

After travelling three stages they reached the so called wall of Media,[*](See note on Xen. Anab. 1.7.15. The Greeks had twice already, once on the advance and again on the retreat, crossed the original line of this wall. Now, turning to the eastward (see the map), they reach it at a point where it is still standing, and pass within it, i.e. to the south-eastern, or Babylonian, side of it.) and passed within it. It was built of baked bricks, laid in asphalt, and was twenty feet wide and a hundred feet high; its length was said to be twenty parasangs, and it is not far distant from Babylon.

From there they proceeded two stages, eight parasangs, crossing on their way two canals, one by a stationary bridge and the other by a bridge made of seven boats. These canals issued from the Tigris river, and from them, again, ditches had been cut that ran into the country, at first large, then smaller, and finally little channels, such as run to the millet fields in Greece.Then they reached the Tigris river, near which was a large and populous city named Sittace, fifteen stadia from the river.

The Greeks accordingly encamped beside this city, near a large and beautiful park, thickly covered with all sorts of trees, while the barbarians had crossed the Tigris before encamping, and were not within sight of the Greeks.

After the evening meal Proxenus and Xenophon chanced to be walking in front of the place where the arms were stacked, when a man came up and asked the outposts where he could see Proxenus or Clearchus—he did not ask for Menon, despite the fact that he came from Ariaeus, Menon’s friend.

And when Proxenus said I am the one you are looking for, the man made this statement: I was sent here by Ariaeus and Artaozus, who were faithful to Cyrus and are friendly to you; they bid you be on your guard lest the barbarians attack you during the night, for there is a large army in the neighbouring park.

They also bid you send a guard to the bridge over the Tigris river, because Tissaphernes intends to destroy it during the night, if he can, so that you may not cross, but may be cut off between the river and the canal.

Upon hearing these words they took him to Clearchus and repeated his message. And when Clearchus heard it, he was exceedingly agitated and full of fear.