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[The Chinese of this last sentence is a little lacking in

precision, but the mental picture we are required to draw is

probably that of an army advancing towards a given rendezvous in

separate columns, each of which has orders to be there on a fixed

date. If the general allows the various detachments to proceed at

haphazard, without precise instructions as to the time and place

of meeting, the enemy will be able to annihilate the army in

detail. Chang Yu's note may be worth quoting here: "If we do not

know the place where our opponents mean to concentrate or the day

on which they will join battle, our unity will be forfeited

through our preparations for defence, and the positions we hold

will be insecure. Suddenly happening upon a powerful foe, we

shall be brought to battle in a flurried condition, and no mutual

support will be possible between wings, vanguard or rear,

especially if there is any great distance between the foremost

and hindmost divisions of the army."]