The Early History of India, from 600 B.C. to the Muhammadan Conquest, including the Invasion of Alexander the Great c12.42

c12.42

The task before the assailants was an arduous one, for the crowning mass of rock did not, like most eminences, slope gradually to the summit, but rose abruptly in the form of a steep cone. Examination of the ground showed that a direct attack was impossible until some of the surrounding ravines should be filled up. Plenty of timber being available in the adjoining forests, Alexander resolved to use this material to form a pathway. He himself threw the first trunk into the ravine, and his act was greeted with a loud cheer signifying the keenness of the troops, who could not shrink from any labour, however severe, to which their king was the first to put his hand.