And Every One In Turn Is Responsible Only
To The Officer Immediately Over Him; And The Discipline And Order That
Comes Of This Method Is Marvellous, For They Are A People Very Obedient To
Their Chiefs.
Further, they call the corps of 100,000 men a Tuc; that of
10,000 they call a Toman;
The thousand they call...; the hundred Guz;
the ten....[NOTE 2] And when the army is on the march they have always 200
horsemen, very well mounted, who are sent a distance of two marches in
advance to reconnoitre, and these always keep ahead. They have a similar
party detached in the rear, and on either flank, so that there is a good
look-out kept on all sides against a surprise. When they are going on a
distant expedition they take no gear with them except two leather bottles
for milk; a little earthenware pot to cook their meat in, and a little
tent to shelter them from rain.[NOTE 3] And in case of great urgency they
will ride ten days on end without lighting a fire or taking a meal. On
such an occasion they will sustain themselves on the blood of their
horses, opening a vein and letting the blood jet into their mouths,
drinking till they have had enough, and then staunching it.[NOTE 4]
They also have milk dried into a kind of paste to carry with them; and
when they need food they put this in water, and beat it up till it
dissolves, and then drink it. [It is prepared in this way; they boil the
milk, and when the rich part floats on the top they skim it into another
vessel, and of that they make butter; for the milk will not become solid
till this is removed. Then they put the milk in the sun to dry. And when
they go on an expedition, every man takes some ten pounds of this dried
milk with him. And of a morning he will take a half pound of it and put it
in his leather bottle, with as much water as he pleases. So, as he rides
along, the milk-paste and the water in the bottle get well churned
together into a kind of pap, and that makes his dinner.[NOTE 5]]
When they come to an engagement with the enemy, they will gain the victory
in this fashion. [They never let themselves get into a regular medley, but
keep perpetually riding round and shooting into the enemy. And] as they do
not count it any shame to run away in battle, they will [sometimes pretend
to] do so, and in running away they turn in the saddle and shoot hard and
strong at the foe, and in this way make great havoc. Their horses are
trained so perfectly that they will double hither and thither, just like a
dog, in a way that is quite astonishing. Thus they fight to as good
purpose in running away as if they stood and faced the enemy, because of
the vast volleys of arrows that they shoot in this way, turning round upon
their pursuers, who are fancying that they have won the battle.
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