§3.1Interim conflata sunt illa bella, quae ad internicionem post Alexandri mortem gesta sunt, omnesque concurrerunt ad Perdiccam opprimendum.
In the meantime, those wars which were waged to the death after Alexander's death were stirred up, and all rushed together to crush Perdiccas.
quem etsi infirmum videbat, quod unus omnibus resistere cogebatur, tamen amicum non deseruit neque salutis quam fidei fuit cupidior.
Although Eumenes saw that he was weak, because he alone was being compelled to resist everyone, yet he did not desert his friend, nor was he more desirous of safety than of loyalty.
§3.2praefecerat hunc Perdiccas ei parti Asiae, quae inter Taurum montem iacet atque Hellespontum, et illum unum opposuerat Europaeis adversariis; ipse Aegyptum oppugnatum adversus Ptolemaeum erat profectus.
Perdiccas had put him in charge of that part of Asia which lies between Mount Taurus and the Hellespont, and had opposed him alone to the European adversaries; he himself had set out against Ptolemy to attack Egypt.
§3.3Eumenes cum neque magnas copias neque firmas haberet, quod et inexercitatae et non multo ante erant contractae, adventare autem dicerentur Hellespontumque transisse Antipater et Crateros magno cum exercitu Macedonum, viri cum claritate tum usu belli praestantes §3.4(Macedones vero milites ea tum erant fama, qua nunc Romani feruntur: etenim semper habiti sunt fortissimi, qui summi imperii potirentur): Eumenes intellegebat, si copiae suae cognossent, adversus quos ducerentur, non modo non ituras, sed simul cum nuntio dilapsuras.
Eumenes, since he had neither large nor strong forces, because they were both untrained and had been assembled not long before, while on the other hand Antipater and Crateros, men preeminent both in renown and in experience of war, were said to be approaching and to have crossed the Hellespont with a great army of Macedonians— (indeed, the Macedonian soldiers at that time had the same reputation which the Romans are now reported to have; for they were always held to be the bravest, who should possess the supreme empire)—Eumenes understood that, if his forces should find out against whom they were being led, they would not only not go, but would disperse at the same time as the news.
§3.5itaque hoc ei visum est prudentissimum, ut deviis itineribus milites duceret, in quibus vera audire non possent, et iis persuaderet se contra quosdam barbaros proficisci.
Therefore, this seemed to him the most prudent course: to lead the soldiers through out-of-the-way routes, in which they could not hear the truth, and to persuade them that they were marching against certain barbarians.
§3.6atque tenuit hoc propositum et prius in aciem exercitum eduxit proeliumque commisit, quam milites sui scirent, cum quibus arma conferrent.
And he maintained this purpose, and led his army into line of battle and joined battle before his soldiers knew with whom they were crossing swords.
effecit etiam illud locorum praeoccupatione, ut equitatu potius dimicaret, quo plus valebat, quam peditatu, quo erat deterior.
He also accomplished this by preoccupying positions, so that he fought with cavalry, in which he was stronger, rather than with infantry, in which he was weaker.