In the archonship of Anticles at Athens, the Romans installed as consuls Lucius Cornelius and Quintus Popillius.2 In this year Alexander secured replacements from the Persians equal to the number of these soldiers whom he had released, and assigned a thousand of them to the bodyguards3 stationed at the court. In all respects he showed the same confidence in them as in the Macedonians. [2] At this time Peucestes arrived with twenty thousand Persian bowmen and slingers. Alexander placed these in units with his other soldiers, and by the novelty of this innovation created a force blended and adjusted to his own idea.4 [3]
Since there were by now sons of the Macedonians born of captive women, he determined the exact number of these. There were about ten thousand, and he set aside for them revenues sufficient to provide them with an upbringing proper for freeborn children, and set over them teachers to give them their proper training.5
After this he marched with his army from Susa, crossed the Tigris, and encamped in the villages called Carae. [4] Thence for four days he marched through Sittacene and came to the place called Sambana.6 There he remained seven days and, proceeding with the army, came on the third day to the Celones, as they are called. There dwells here down to our time a settlement of Boeotians who were moved in the time of Xerxes's campaign, but still have not forgotten their ancestral customs. [5] They are bilingual and speak like the natives in the one language, while in the other they preserve most of the Greek vocabulary, and they maintain some Greek practices.7
After a stay of some days he resumed his march at length and diverging from the main road8 for the purpose of sight-seeing he entered the region called Bagistane, a magnificent country covered with fruit trees and rich in everything which makes for good living. [6] Next he came to a land which could support enormous herds of horses, where of old they say that there were one hundred and sixty thousand horses grazing, but at the time of Alexander's visit there were counted only sixty thousand.9 After a stay of thirty days he resumed the march and on the seventh day came to Ecbatana of Media. [7] They say that its circuit is two hundred and fifty stades. It contains the palace which is the capital of all Media and store-houses filled with great wealth.
Here he refreshed his army for some time and staged a dramatic festival, accompanied by constant drinking parties among his friends. [8] In the course of these, Hephaestion drank very much, fell ill, and died. The king was intensely grieved at this and entrusted his body to Perdiccas to conduct to Babylon, where he proposed to celebrate a magnificent funeral for him.10
