48 Alexander's Flight — His harangue to his men.

48 Alexander s Flight — His harangue to his men.

forward. Now, Darius sat on his throne and thought of Alexander
and how great his daring was. He saw a statue of gold
of Xerxes the Persian king, who sat below the high-seat in the
hall. And at once the statue broke and was all scattered assunder. And Darius seeing this was smitten with heaviness of heart and began to weep sorely and long. And he said: ' This foretokeneth the wasting of my life, and the utter downfall
of the Persian kingdom.' Alexander, however, coming to
the river Grancus, found it swollen, and leapt athwart it. But ere he was over the stream burst its banks, and swept his horse
away ; with great hardship Alexander escaped and met Eumulus, his lord. And thus he went back to his army and told them of Darius, how he had dealt with him, and the torch
with which he had fled away.

HOW ALEXANDER PUT HEART INTO HIS HOST ANEW.

And on the following day, he gathered his army, which told two hundred and twenty thousand of weaponed men. And he went up

*on a high place & comforthed his men and said un-to tham: 'The
multitude of the persienes,' quoth he, 'may noghte be euend to the
multitude of the greckes. For sewrly we are ma than thay. And
if thay were one hundredth sythes maa then wee, late noghte your
hertis faile tharefore. For I telle you a greete multitude of flyes may do na harme till a fewee waspes.' And when the
Oste
had herde thire wordes thay commendide him haleley wit a voyce.

Than the emperour Darius remowed his oste, and come to the
river of Graunt on the nyghte, and went ouer on the yss, and thar he luged hym. The Oste of Darius was wonder grete and strange. For thay hadd in thaire oste X ͫ cartes ordaynd
For the waerre, and grete multitude of Olyfantes, wit towres
of tree on tham, stuffed wit feghtyng men. And sone after appon a day thir twa kynges wit thaire ostes mett samen
on a faire felde, Darius wit his men, and Alexander wit
his men.