M A C E D O N. 
29 
were neceflary; caufing them to be relieved by frefh troops 
as often as there was occafion ; then, having given his laft 
inftrudlions to Nearchus, he departed with the reft: of the 
army, in order to march back to Babylon. 
Before the king’s departure, many of his friends ad- 
vifed him againft the route which he intended to take. 
They told him, that nothing could be more rafh or dan¬ 
gerous than this refolution. They acquainted him, that 
the country through which he was to travel was a wild 
uncultivated defert ; that Semiramis, when (lie led her 
foldiers this way out of India, brought home but twenty 
of them ; and that Cyrus, attempting to do the fame, re¬ 
turned with only feven. But all this was fo far from de¬ 
terring Alexander, that it more than ever determined him 
to purfue no other road. As foon, therefore, as he had 
put things in order, he marched at the head of a fufficient 
body of troops to reduce the Oritae, who had never vouch¬ 
safed either to make their fubmiflion or to court his friend- 
fhip. Their territories lay on the other fide of the river 
called Arabis, which Alexander crofted fo fpeedily, that 
they had no intelligence of his march; whereupon moft 
of them quitted their country, and fled into the defects. 
Their capital he found fo well fltuated, that he refolved 
to take it out of their hands, and to caufe a new and no¬ 
ble city to be founded there, the care of which he com¬ 
mitted to Hephteftion. Then he received the deputies of 
the Oritae and Gedrofi ; and, having affured them, that if 
the people returned to their villages they fliould be kindly 
treated, and having appointed Apollophenes prefldent of 
the Oritae, and left a conliderable body of troops under 
Leonatus to fecure their obedience, he began his march 
through Gedroiia. In this march his troops fuffered in¬ 
credible hardfhips. The road was very uncertain and 
troublefome, on account of its lying through deep and 
loofe fands, rifing in many places into hillocks, which 
forced the foldiers to climb, at the fame time that it funk 
under their feet; there were no towns, villages, nor places 
of refrethment, to be met with ; fo that, after exceflive 
marches, they were forced to encamp among thefe dry 
lands. As to provifions, they hardly met with any dur¬ 
ing their whole march. The foldiers were therefore 
obliged to kill their beads of carriage; and fitch as were 
fent to bring corn from the fea-fide, were fo grievoully 
diftrefled, that, though it was fealed with the king’s fig- 
net, they cut open the bags, choofing rather to die a vio¬ 
lent death for difobedience than perilh by.hunger. When 
the king, however, was informed of this, he freely par¬ 
doned the offenders ; he was alfo forced to accept the ex- 
cufes that were daily made for the lofs of mules, horfes, 
&c. which were in truth eaten by the foldiers, and their 
carriages broken in pieces to avoid further trouble. As 
for water, their want of it was a great misfortune; and 
yet their finding it in plenty was fometimes a greater; 
for, as by the firft they periftied with third, fo by the lat¬ 
ter they were burlt, thrown into dropfies, and rendered 
incapable of travel. Frequently they met with no water 
for the whole day together; fometimes they were disap¬ 
pointed of it at night; in which cafe, if they were able, 
they marched on ; fo that it was common with them to 
travel thirty, forty, or even fixty, miles without encamp¬ 
ing. Numbers through thefe hardihips were obliged to 
lag in the rear ; and of thefe many were left behind, and 
periflied. Their miferies, however, they fuftained with 
incredible patience, being encouraged by the example of 
their king s who, on this occafion, fuftered as great hard¬ 
fhips as the meaneft foldier in his army. At laft they ar¬ 
rived at the capital of Gedroiia, where they refrefhed 
themfelves,and ftaid fome time; after which they marched 
into Caramania; which being a very plentiful country, 
they there made themfelves ample amends for the hard¬ 
fhips and fatigues they had fuftained. 
During Alexander’s ftay in Caramania, he redreffed the 
injuries of his people, who had been grievoully oppreffed 
by their governors during his abfence. Here alfo lie was 
joined by his admiral Nearchus, who brought him an ac- 
Fol. XIV 7 . No. 954.. 
count that all under his command were in perfefl fafety, 
and in excellent condition ; with which the king was 
highly pleafed, and bellowed on him lingular marks of 
his favour. Alexander next fet out for Perfia, where 
great diforders had been committed during his abfence. 
Thefe alfo he redreffed, and caufed the governor to be 
crucified ; appointing in his room Peuceftus, who faved 
his life when he fought fingly againft a whole garrifon at 
Malli. The new governor was no fooner inverted with 
his dignity, than he laid afide the Macedonian garb, and 
put on that of the Medes ; being the only one of Alex¬ 
ander’s captains, who, by complying with the manners of 
the people he governed, gained their affeflion. 
While Alexander vilited the different parts of Perfia, 
he took a view, among the reft, of the ruins of Perfepolis, 
where he is faid to have expreffed great forrow for the de- 
ftru&ion he had formerly occafioned. From Perfepolis 
he marched to Sufa, where he gave an extraordinary loofe 
to pleafure ; refolving to make himfelf and his followers 
(ome amends for the difficulties they had hitherto under¬ 
gone ; propofing at the fame time fo effedually to unite 
his newly-conquered with his hereditary fubjeCls, that the 
jealoufies and fears which had hitherto tormented both 
fliould no longer fubfift. With this view he married two 
wives of the blood royal of Perfia ; viz. Barfine, or Statira, 
the daughter of Darius, and Paryfatis the daughter of 
Ochus. Drypetis, another daughter of Darius, he gave 
to Hephreftion; Amaftrine, the daughter of Oxyartes the 
brother of Darius, married Craterus ; and to the reft of his 
friends, to the number of eighty, he gave other women of 
the greateft quality. All thefe marriages were celebrated 
at once, Alexander himlelf bellowing fortunes upon them ; 
he directed likewife to take account of the number of his 
officers and foldiers who had married Afiatic wives; and, 
though they appeared to be ten t'noufand, yet he gratified 
each of them according to his rank. He next refolved to 
pay the debts of his army, and thereupon iffued an edict 
direfling every man to regiller his name and the fum he 
owed ; with which the foldiers complying flowly, from 
an apprehenfion that there was fome delign againft them. 
Alexander ordered tables heaped with money to be fet in all 
quarters of the camp, and caufed every man’s debts to be 
paid on his bare word, without even making any entry of 
his name; though the whole fum came to twenty thoufand 
talents. On fuch as had diflinguiflied themfelves in an 
extraordinary manner, he bellowed crowns of gold. Peu¬ 
ceftus had the firft; Leonatus the fecond; Nearchus the 
third; Oneficritus the fourth; Iiephsellion the fifth; and 
the reft of his guards had each of them one. After this 
he made other difpofitions for conciliating, as he fuppofed, 
the differences among all his fubjefls. He reviewed the 
thirty thoufand youths, whom at his departure for India 
he had ordered to be taught Greek and the Macedonian 
difcipline ; exprefling high fatisfaflion at the fine appear¬ 
ance they made, which rendered them worthy of the 
appellation he beftowed on them, viz. that of Epigoni, i. e. 
fucceffors. He promoted alfo, without any diffindlion of 
nation, all thofe who had ferved him faithfully and valiantly 
in the Indian war. When all thefe regulations were made, 
he gave the command of his heavy-armed troops to He- 
phaellion, and ordered him to march directly to the banks 
of the Tigris, while in the mean time a fleet was equipped 
for carrying the king and the troops he retained with him 
down to the ocean. 
Thus ended the exploits of Alexander; the greateft con¬ 
queror that ever the world faw, at lealt with relpeft to the 
rapidity of his conquefis. In twelve years time he had 
brought under his fubjeiftion Egypt, Libya, Afia Minor, 
Syria, Phoenicia, Paleftine, Babylonia, Perfia, with part of 
India and Tartary. Still, however, he meditated greater 
things. He had now got a great tafle in maritime affairs ; 
and is faid to have planned a voyage to the coafls of Ara¬ 
bia and Ethiopia, and thence round the whole continent 
of Africa to the flraits of Gibraltar. But of this there 
is no great certainty ; though that he intended to fubdue 
I the 
