The Art Of War

The classic book of strategy written in the 6th Century BC,

EXCERPT: 

II. WAGING WAR
 
 
 1. Sun Tzu said:  In the operations of war,
    where there are in the field a thousand swift chariots,
    as many heavy chariots, and a hundred thousand
    mail-clad soldiers, with provisions enough to carry them
    a thousand li, the expenditure at home and at the front,
    including entertainment of guests, small items such as
    glue and paint, and sums spent on chariots and armor,
    will reach the total of a thousand ounces of silver per day.
    Such is the cost of raising an army of 100,000 men.
 
 2. When you engage in actual fighting, if victory
    is long in coming, then men's weapons will grow dull and
    their ardor will be damped.  If you lay siege to a town,
    you will exhaust your strength.
 
 3. Again, if the campaign is protracted, the resources
    of the State will not be equal to the strain.