Kitap 3
3.9
For the Greeks had no horsemen, and their foot-soldiers were not able to overtake the enemy’s foot-soldiers—since the latter had a long start in their flight—within a short distance; and a long pursuit, far away from the main Greek army, was not possible.
3.10
Again, the barbarian horsemen even while they were in flight would inflict wounds by shooting behind them from their horses; and whatever distance the Greeks might at any time cover in their pursuit, all that distance they were obliged to fall back fighting.
3.11
The result was that during the whole day they travelled not more than twenty-five stadia. They did arrive, however, towards evening at the villages.i.e. those mentioned in Xen. Anab. 1.2.34.Here again there was despondency. And Cheirisophus and the eldest of the generals found fault with Xenophon for leaving the main body of the army to undertake a pursuit, and thus endangering himself without being able, for all that, to do the enemy any harm.
3.12
When Xenophon heard their words, he replied that they were right in finding fault with him, and that the outcome bore witness of itself for their view. But, he continued, I was compelled to pursue when I saw that by keeping our places we were suffering severely and were still unable to strike a blow ourselves.
3.13
As to what happened, however, when we did pursue, you are quite right: we were no better able to inflict harm upon the enemy, and it was only with the utmost difficulty that we effected our own withdrawal.
3.14
Let us thank the gods, therefore, that they came, not with a large force, but with a handful, so that without doing us any great damage they have revealed our needs.
