A source-book of ancient history - The Search For Mecca

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The Battle of Marathon 165
of each one of them to command for the day came round,
gave over their command to Miltiades; and he, accepting
it, would not yet however bring about a battle, until his
own turn to command had come.
And when it came round to him, then the Athenians The order of
battle,
were drawn up for battle in the order which here follows :
On the right wing the polemarch Callimachus was leader
(for the custom of the Athenians was this,
that the polemarch
should have the right wing); and he leading, next
after him came the tribes in order as they were numbered
one after the other, and last were drawn up the Plataeans
occupying the left wing; for ever since this battle, when the
Athenians offer sacrifices in the solemn assemblies which
are made at the four-yearly festiv^s, the herald of the
Athenians prays thus, "that blessings may come to the
Athenians and to the Plataeans both." On this occasion
however, when the Athenians were being drawn up at
Marathon, something of this kind was done:— their army
being made equal in length of front to that of the Medes,
came to be drawn up in the middle with a depth of but
a few ranks, and here their army was weakest, while each
wing was strengthened with numbers.
And when they had been arranged in their places and The charge,
the sacrifices proved favorable, then the Athenians were ib. 112.
let go, and they set forth at a run to attack the barbarians.
Now the space between the armies was not less than eight
furlongs; and the Persians seeing them advancing to the
attack at a run, made preparations to receive them; and
in their minds they charged the Athenians with madness
which must be fatal,
seeing that they were few and yet
were pressing forward at a run, having neither cavalry
nor archers. Such was the thought of the barbarians;
but the Athenians, when all in a body they had joined
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