At this juncture one of the light infantry came up to Xenophon; he had been, he said, a slave at Athens, and he wished to tell him that he recognised the speech of these people.  “I think,” said he, “that this must be my native country, and if there is no objection I will have a talk with them.”  “No objection at all,” replied Xenophon, “pray talk 5 to them, and ask them first, who they are.”  In answer to this question they said, “they were Macrones.”  “Well, then,” said he, “ask them why they are drawn up in battle and want to fight with us.”  They answered, “Because you are invading our country.”  The generals bade him say:  “If so, it is with not intention certainly of doing it or you any harm:  but we have been at war with the king, and are now returning to Hellas, and all we want is to reach the sea.”  The others asked, “Were they willing to give them pledges to that effect?” They replied:  “Yes, they were ready to give and receive pledges to that effect.”  Then the Macrones gave a barbaric lance to the Hellenes, and the Hellenes a Hellenic lance to them:  “for these,” they said, “would serve as pledges,” and both sides called upon the gods to witness.

After the pledges were exchanged, the Macrones fell to vigorously hewing down trees and constructing a road to help them across, mingling freely with the Hellenes and fraternising in their midst, and they afforded them as good as market as they could, and for three days conducted them on their march, until they had brought them safely to the confines of the Colchians.  At this point they were confronted by a great mountain chain, which however was accessible, and on it the Colchians were drawn up for battle.  In the first instance, the Hellenes drew up opposite in line of battle, as though they were minded to assault the hill in that order; but afterwards the generals determined to hold a council of war, and consider how to make the fairest fight.

Accordingly Xenophon said:  “I am not for advancing in line, but advise to form companies by columns.  To begin with, the line,” he urged, “would be scattered and thrown into disorder at once; for we shall find the mountain full of inequalities, it will be pathless here and easy to traverse there.  The mere fact of first having formed in line, and then seeing the line thrown into disorder, must exercise a disheartening effect.  Again, if we advance several deep, the enemy will none the less overlap us, and turn their superfluous numbers to account as best they like; while, if we march in shallow order, we may fully expect our line to be cut through and through by the thick rain 11 of missiles and rush of men, and if this happen anywhere along the line, the whole line will equally suffer.  No; my notion is to form columns by companies, covering ground sufficient with spaces between the companies to allow the last companies of each flank to be outside the enemy’s flanks.  Thus we shall with our extreme companies be outside the enemy’s line, and the best men