alexander crosses the hindu-koosh.
after the transaction of this business, he advanced against bactra and bessus, reducing the drangians and gadrosians493 to subjection on his march. he also re197duced the arachotians to subjection and appointed menon viceroy over them. he then reached the indians, who inhabit the land bordering on that of the arachotians. all these nations he reached marching through deep snow and his soldiers experiencing scarcity of provisions and severe hardship. learning that the areians had again revolted, in consequence of satibarzanes invading their land with 2,000 cavalry, which he had received from bessus, he despatched against them artabazus the persian with erigyius and caranus two of the companions, also ordering phrataphernes, viceroy of the parthians, to assist them in attacking the areians. an obstinately contested battle then took place between the troops of erigyius and caranus and those of satibarzanes; nor did the barbarians give way until satibarzanes, encountering erigyius, was struck in the face with a spear and killed. then the barbarians gave way and fled with headlong speed.
meantime alexander was leading his army towards mount caucasus,494 where he founded a city and named it alexandreia.495 having offered sacrifice here to the gods to whom it was his custom to sacrifice, he crossed mount caucasus, after appointing pro?xes, a persian, viceroy over the land, and leaving neiloxenus son of satyrus, one of the companions, with an army as superintendent. according to the account of aristobulus, mount caucasus is as lofty as any in asia, and most of it is bare, at any rate in that part where alexander crossed it. this range of mountains stretches out so far that they say even that mount taurus, which forms the boundary of cilicia and pamphylia, springs from it, as do other great 198ranges which have been distinguished from the caucasus by various names according to the position of each. aristobulus says that in this part of the caucasus nothing grew except terebinth trees and silphium;496 notwithstanding which, it was inhabited by many people, and many sheep and oxen graze there; because sheep are very fond of silphium. for if a sheep smells it even from a distance, it runs to it and feeds upon the flower. they also dig up the root, which is devoured by the sheep. for this reason in cyrene,497 some drive their flocks as far as possible away from the places where their silphium is growing; others even enclose the place with a fence, so that even if the sheep should approach it they would not be able to get within the enclosure. for the silphium is very valuable to the cyrenaeans.
bessus, accompanied by the persians who had taken part with him in the seizure of darius, and by 7,000 of the bactrians themselves and the daans who dwelt on this side the tanais,498 was laying waste the country at the foot of mount caucasus, in order to prevent alexander from marching any further, both by the desolation of the land between the enemy and himself and by the lack of provisions. but none the less did alexander keep up the march, though with difficulty, both on account of the deep snow and from the want of necessaries; but yet he persevered in his journey. when bessus was informed that alexander was now not far off, he crossed 199the river oxus,499 and having burnt the boats upon which he had crossed, he withdrew to nautaca500 in the land of sogdiana. he was followed by spitamenes and oxyartes, with the cavalry from sogdiana, as well as by the daans from the tanais. but the bactrian cavalry, perceiving that bessus had resolved to take to flight, all dispersed in various directions to their own abodes.
