Found at
http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/De...fPersonnel.htm
The army of Alexander the Great, as it swept across the known world toppling kingdoms and collecting tribute, took its pay clerks and administrators with it. In a back office behind the luxurious tents of the leader and his generals, it's a fair bet there was a scribe bent over an abacus and a clay tablet, making sure the soldiers got their pay, and the spoils of war were shared out fairly.
Why didn't we think of that... I mean, who's ever crashed an abacus?
And then this gem of a quote...
It's all a far cry from clay tablets and the rattling beads of the abacus. Would Alexander have conquered a bigger slice of the world if JPA had been available to his scribes? Probably not.
No, I imagine he wouldn't...
Blunty