M A C E D O N. 
A fupply of horfes being now arrived, tlie Macedonian 
cavalry were remounted. Alexander continued his march 
to Maracanda, the capital of Sogdia, from whence he ad- 
yancedto the river Iaxartes. Here he performed great 
exploits againft the Scythians ; from wliom, however, 
though he overcame them, his army buffered much ; and 
the revolted Sogdians, being headed by Spitamenes, gave 
him a great deal of trouble. Here lie married Roxana 
the daughter of Oxyartes, a prince of the country whom 
he had fubdued. But, during thefe expeditions, the king 
greatly difgufted his army by the murder of his friend 
Clytus in a drunken quarrel at a banquet, and by his ex¬ 
travagant vanity in claiming divine honours. See Alex¬ 
ander, vol. i. 
At laft he arrived at the river Indus, where Htepheftion 
and Perdiccas had already provided a bridge of boats for 
the paffage of the army. The king refrelhed his troops 
for thirty days in the countries on the other fide of the 
river, which were thofe of his friend and ally Taxiles, 
who gave him thirty elephants, and joined his arm}* now 
with feven hundred Indian horfe, to which, when they 
were to enter upon aClion, he afterwards added five thou- 
fand foot. The true reafon of this feems to have been his 
enmity to Porus, a famous Indian prince, whofe territo¬ 
ries lay on the other fide of the river Hydafpes. During 
this recefs, the king facrificed with great folemnity; re¬ 
ceiving alfo ambaffadors from Ambilurus, a very potent 
prince, and from Doxareas, who was likewil'e a king in 
thofe parts, with tenders of their duty, and confiderable 
prefents. Thefe ceremonies over, Alexander appointed 
Philip Aridaeus his brother governor of Taxila, (as Taxiles 
was to accompany him in his expedition againft Porus,) 
and put a Macedonian garrifon into the place, becaufe he 
intended to ereCl an hofpital there for the cure of his fick 
and wounded foldiers. He then ordered the veffels, of 
which his bridge had been compofed when he palled the 
Indus, to be taken to pieces, that they might be brought 
to the Hydafpes, where he was informed that Porus with 
a great army lay encamped to hinder his paffage. When 
be approached the banks of this river with his army and 
the auxiliaries under the command of Taxiles, he found 
that the people he had to do with were not fo eafy- to be 
fubdued as the Perfians and other Afiatics. The Indians 
were not only tall and robuft, but alfo a very hardy and 
well-difciplined people ; and their king Porus was a prince 
of high fpirit, invincible courage, and great conduct. 
It was about the fummer folltice when Alexander reached 
the Hydafpes, and confequently its waters were broader, 
deeper, and more rapid, than at any other time; for in 
India the rivers fwell as the fun’s increafing heat melts 
the fnow, and fubiide again as winter approaches. Alex¬ 
ander therefore had every difficulty to ftruggle with. Porus 
had made his difpofitions fo judicioufly, that Alexander 
found it impoffible to pra&ife upon him as he had done 
upon others, and to pafs the river in this view: where¬ 
fore he Was conftrained to divide his army into fmall par¬ 
ties, and to praCtife other arts, in order to get the better 
of fo vigilant a prince. This he did at length fuccefs- 
fully : he croffed the river, defeated Porus and took him 
prifoner; (fee. the article Greece, vol. viii. p.94.5,6.) 
but immediately gave him his liberty, and reftored him 
shortly after to his kingdom, to which he annexed pro¬ 
vinces almoft equal to it in value. Neither was Alexander 
a lofer by his munificence ; for Porus remained his true 
friend and conltant ally. 
Alexander, Itill unfated with conqueft, now prepared to 
pafs the Hyphaiis. The chief realon which induced him to 
think of this expedition was, the information he had re¬ 
ceived of the ftate of the countries beyond that river. He 
was told that they were in themfelves rich and fruitful ; 
that their inhabitants were not only a very martiai people, 
but very civilized ; that they were governed by a nobility, 
who were themfelves fubjeCt to the laws; and that, as they 
lived in happinefs and freedom, it was likely they would 
iiglu obftinately in defence of thofe bleffmgs, He was 
farthertold, that among thefe nations there were the largeft, 
ftrongeft, and moll ufeful, elephants bred and tamed; and 
was therefore fired with an earneft defire to reduce fuch a 
bold and brave people under his rule, and of attaining to 
the poffefiion of the many valuable things that were faid 
to be amongft them. As exorbitant, however, as his per- 
fonal ambition was, be found it impoffible to in.fufe an.y 
part of it into the minds of his foldiers; who were fo far 
from wilhing to triumph over new and remote countries, 
that they were highly defirous of leaving thofe that they 
had already conquered. When, therefore, they were in¬ 
formed of the king’s intentions, they privately confulted 
together in the camp about the fituation of their own af¬ 
fairs. At this consultation, the graved and belt of the 
foldiers lamented that they were made ufe of by their 
king, not as lions, who fall fiercely upon thofe who have 
injured them ; but as maftiffs,. who fly upon and tear thofe 
who are pointed out to them as enemies. The reft were 
not fo modelt; but expreffed themfelves roundly againft 
the king’s humour for leading them from battle to battle, 
from fiege to fiege, and from river to river; protecting 
that they would follow him no further, nor lavilh away 
their lives any longer to ptirchafe fame for him. 
Alexander was a man of too much penetration not to be 
early in perceiving that his troops were very uneafy. He 
therefore harangued them from his tribunal; but, though 
his eloquence was great, and the love his army had tor 
him very ftrong, they did not relent. For fome time the 
foldiers remained l'ullen and filent; and at laft turned 
their eyes on Ccenus, an old and experienced general, 
whom Alexander loved, and in whom the army put great 
confidence. He had the generality to undertake their 
caufe; and told Alexander frankly, “ That men endured 
toil in hopes of repofe ; that the Macedonians were already 
much reduced in their numbers ; that, of thofe who re¬ 
mained, the greater part were invalids; and that they ex¬ 
pected, in confideration of their former fervices, that he 
would now lead them back, to their native country : an 
aft which, of all others, would moll contribute to his 
own great defigns ; fince it would encourage the youth of 
Macedon, and even of all Greece, to follow him in what¬ 
ever new expedition he pleafed to undertake.” The king 
was far from being pleafed with this fpeech of Ccenus^ 
and much lefs with the difpofition of his army, which 
continued in a deep filence. He therefore difmiffed the 
affembly; but next day called another, wherein he told 
the foldiers plainly, that he would not be driven from his 
purpofe; that he would proceed in his conquelts with 
fuch as Ihould follow him voluntarily ; as for the reft, he 
would not detain them, but would leave them at liberty 
to go home to Macedon, where they might publiffi, “ that 
they had left their king in the mid It of his enemies.’'’ 
Even this expedient had no fuccefs; his army was fo 
thoroughly tired with long marches and defperate battles, 
that they were determined to go no further, either for fair 
fpeeches or foul. Upon this Alexander retired to his 
tent, where he refufed to fee his friends, and put on the 
fame gloomy temper that reigned among his troops. For 
three days things remained in this fituation. At laft the 
king fuddenly appeared ; and, as if he had been fully de¬ 
termined to purlue his firft defign, he gave orders for fa- 
crificing for the good fuccefs of his new undertaking, 
Ariftander the augur reported, that the omens were al¬ 
together inaufpicious; upon which the king faid, that, 
fince his proceeding farther was neither pleafing to the 
gods nor grateful to his army, he would return. When 
this was rumoured among the army, they ali'embled in 
great numbers about the royal tent, fainting the king 
with loud acclamations, wilhing him fuccefs in all his fu¬ 
ture defigns; giving him at the lame time hearty thanks, 
for that “ he, who was invincible by his enemies, had ful¬ 
lered himfelf to be overcome by his friends.” 
A Hop being thus put to the conquefts of Alexander, 
he determined to make the Hyphaiis the boundary of hi® 
dominions * and, having erected twelve altars of extra¬ 
ordinary 
