Complete Works of Homer

by Homer

To whom Automedon, Diores' son:

  "Alcimedon, since none of all the Greeks

  May vie with thee, the mettle to control

  Of these immortal horses, save indeed,

  While yet he liv'd, Patroclus, godlike chief;

  But him stern death and fate have overta'en;

  Take thon the whip and shining reins, while I,

  Descending from the car, engage in fight."

  He said; and, mounting on the war-car straight,

  Alcimedon the whip and reins assum'd;

  Down leap'd Automedon; great Hector saw,

  And thus address'd AEneas at his side:

  "AEneas, prince and counsellor of Troy,

  I see, committed to unskilful hands,

  Achilles' horses on the battle-field:

  These we may hope to take, if such thy will;

  For they, methinks, will scarcely stand oppos'd,

  Or dare th' encounter of our joint assault."

  He said; Anchises' valiant son complied;

  Forward they went, their shoulders cover'd o'er

  With stout bull's-hide, thick overlaid with brass.

  With them both Chromius and Aretus went;

  And high their hopes were rais'd, the warriors both

  To slay, and make the strong-neck'd steeds their prize:

  Blind fools! nor destin'd scatheless to escape

  Automedon's encounter; he his pray'r

  To Jove address'd, and straight with added strength

  His soul was fill'd; and to Alcimedon,

  His trusty friend and comrade, thus he spoke:

  "Alcimedon, do thou the horses keep

  Not far away, but breathing on my neck;

  For Hector's might will not, I deem, be stay'd,

  Ere us he slay, and mount Achilles' car,

  And carry terror 'mid the Grecian host,

  Or in the foremost ranks himself be slain."

  Thus spoke Automedon, and loudly call'd

  On Menelaus and th' Ajaces both:

  "Ye two Ajaces, leaders of the host,

  And, Menelaus, with our bravest all,

  Ye on the dead alone your care bestow,

  To guard him, and stave off the hostile ranks;

  But haste, and us, the living, save from death;

  For Hector and AEneas hitherward,

  With weight o'erpow'ring, through the bloody press,

  The bravest of the Trojans, force their way:

  Yet is the issue in the hands of Heav'n;

  I hurl the spear, but Jove directs the blow."

  He said, and, poising, hurl'd the pond'rous spear;

  Full on Aretus' broad-orb'd shield it struck;

  Nor stay'd the shield its course; the brazen point

  Drove through the belt, and in his body lodg'd.

  As with sharp axe in hand a stalwart man,

  Striking behind the horns a sturdy bull,

  Severs the neck; he, forward, plunging, falls;

  So forward first he sprang, then backwards fell:

  And quiv'ring, in his vitals deep infix'd,

  The sharp spear soon relax'd his limbs in death.

  Then at Automedon great Hector threw

  His glitt'ring spear; he saw, and forward stoop'd,

  And shunn'd the brazen death; behind him far

  Deep in the soil infix'd, with quiv'ring shaft

  The weapon stood; there Mars its impulse stay'd.

  And now with swords, and hand to hand, the fight

  Had been renew'd; but at their comrade's call

  The two Ajaces, pressing through the throng,

  Between the warriors interpos'd in haste.

  Before them Hector and AEneas both,

  And godlike Chromius, in alarm recoil'd;

  Pierc'd through the heart, Aretus there they left;

  And, terrible as Mars, Automedon

  Stripp'd off his arms, and thus exulting cried:

  "Of some small portion of its load of grief,

  For slain Patroclus, is my heart reliev'd,

  In slaying thee, all worthless as thou art."

  Then, throwing on the car the bloody spoils,

  He mounted, hands and feet imbrued with blood,

  As 'twere a lion, fresh from his repast

  Upon the carcase of a slaughter'd bull.

  Again around Patroclus' body rag'd

  The stubborn conflict, direful, sorrow-fraught:

  From Heav'n descending, Pallas stirr'd the strife,

  Sent by all-seeing Jove to stimulate

  The warlike Greeks; so changed was now his will.

  As o'er the face of Heav'n when Jove extends

  His bright-hued bow, a sign to mortal men

  Of war, or wintry storms, which bid surcease

  The rural works of man, and pinch the flocks;

  So Pallas, in a bright-hued cloud array'd,

  Pass'd through the ranks, and rous'd each sev'ral man.

  To noble Menelaus, Atreus' son,

  Who close beside her stood, the Goddess first,

  The form of Phoenix and his pow'rful voice

  Assuming, thus her stirring words address'd:

  "On thee, O Menelaus, foul reproach

  Will fasten, if Achilles' faithful friend

  The dogs devour beneath the walls of Troy;

  Then hold thou firm, and all the host inspire."

  To whom thus Menelaus, good in fight:

  "O Phoenix, aged warrior, honour'd sire,

  If Pallas would the needful pow'r impart,

  And o'er me spread her aegis, then would I

  Undaunted for Patroclus' rescue fight,

  For deeply by his death my heart is touch'd;

  But valiant Hector, with the strength of fire

  Still rages, and destruction deals around:

  For Jove is with him, and his triumph wills."

  He said: the blue-ey'd Goddess heard with joy

  That, chief of all the Gods, her aid he sought.

  She gave fresh vigour to his arms and knees,

  And to his breast the boldness of the fly,

  Which, oft repell'd by man, renews th' assault

  Incessant, lur'd by taste of human blood;

  Such boldness in Atrides' manly breast

  Pallas inspir'd: beside Patroclus' corpse

  Again he stood, and pois'd his glitt'ring spear.

  There was one Podes in the Trojan ranks,

  Son of Eetion, rich, of blameless life,

  Of all the people most to Hector dear,

  And at his table oft a welcome guest:

  Him, as he turn'd to fly, beneath the waist

  Atrides struck; right through the spear was driv'n;

  Thund'ring he fell; and Atreus' son the corpse

  Dragg'd from the Trojans 'mid the ranks of Greece.

  Then close at Hector's side Apollo stood,

  Clad in the form of Phaenops, Asius' son,

  Who in Abydos dwelt; of all th' Allies

  Honour'd of Hector most, and best belov'd;

  Clad in his form, the Far-destroyer spoke:

  "Hector, what other Greek will scare thee next?

  Who shrink'st from Menelaus, heretofore

  A warrior deem'd of no repute; but now,

  Alone, he robs our Trojans of their dead;

  And in the foremost ranks e'en now hath slain

  Podes, thine own good friend, Eetion's son."

  He said; dark grief o'erclouded Hector's brow,

  As to the front in dazzling arms he sprang.

  Then Saturn's son his tassell'd aegis wav'd,

  All glitt'ring bright; and Ida's lofty head

  In clouds and darkness shrouded; then he bade

  His lightning flash, his volleying thunder roar,

  That shook the mountain; and with vict'ry crown'd

  The Trojan arms, and panic-struck the Greeks.

  The first who turn'd to fly was Peneleus,

  Boeotian chief; him, facing
still the foe,

  A spear had slightly on the shoulder struck,

  The bone just grazing: by Polydamas,

  Who close before him stood, the spear was thrown.

  Then Hector Leitus, Aloctryon's son,

  Thrust thro' the wrist, and quell'd his warlike might;

  Trembling, he look'd around, nor hop'd again

  The Trojans, spear in hand, to meet in fight;

  But, onward as he rush'd on Leitus,

  Idomeneus at Hector threw his spear:

  Full on his breast it struck; but near the head

  The sturdy shaft was on the breastplate snapp'd:

  Loud was the Trojans' shout; and he in turn

  Aim'd at Idomeneus, Deucalion's son,

  Upstanding on his car; his mark he miss'd,

  But Coeranus he struck, the charioteer

  And faithful follower of Meriones,

  Who with him came from Lyctus' thriving town:

  The chief had left on foot the well-trimm'd ships;

  And, had not Coeranus his car in haste

  Driv'n to the rescue, by his fall had giv'n

  A Trojan triumph; to his Lord he brought

  Safety, and rescue from unsparing death;

  But fell, himself, by Hector's murd'rous hand.

  Him Hector struck between the cheek and ear,

  Crashing the teeth, and cutting through the tongue.

  Headlong he fell to earth, and dropp'd the reins:

  These, stooping from the car, Meriones

  Caught up, and thus Idomeneus address'd:

  "Ply now the lash, until thou reach the ships:

  Thyself must see how crush'd the strength of Greece."

  He said; and tow'rd the ships Idomeneus

  Urg'd his fleet steeds; for fear was on his soul.

  Nor did not Ajax and Atrides see

  How in the Trojans' favour Saturn's son

  The wav'ring scale of vict'ry turn'd; and thus

  Great Ajax Telamon his grief express'd:

  "O Heav'n! the veriest child might plainly see

  That Jove the Trojans' triumph has decreed:

  Their weapons all, by whomsoever thrown,

  Or weak, or strong, attain their mark; for Jove

  Directs their course; while ours upon the plain

  Innocuous fall. But take we counsel now

  How from the fray to bear away our dead,

  And by our own return rejoice those friends

  Who look with sorrow on our plight, and deem

  That we, all pow'rless to resist the might

  Of Hector's arm, beside the ships must fall.

  Would that some comrade were at hand, to bear

  A message to Achilles; him, I ween,

  As yet the mournful tidings have not reach'd,

  That on the field his dearest friend lies dead.

  But such I see not; for a veil of cloud

  O'er men and horses all around is spread.

  O Father Jove, from, o'er the sons of Greece

  Remove this cloudy darkness; clear the sky,

  That we may see our fate, and die at least,

  If such thy will, in th' open light of day."

  He said, and, pitying, Jove beheld his tears;

  The clouds he scatter'd, and the mist dispers'd;

  The sun shone forth, and all the field was clear;

  Then Ajax thus to Menelaus spoke:

  "Now, Heav'n-born Menelaus, look around

  If haply 'mid the living thou mayst see

  Antilochus, the noble Nester's son;

  And bid him to Achilles bear in haste

  The tidings, that his dearest friend lies dead."

  He said, nor did Atrides not comply;

  But slow as moves a lion from the fold,

  Which dogs and youths with ceaseless toil hath worn,

  Who all night long have kept their watch, to guard

  From his assault the choicest of the herd;

  He, hunger-pinch'd, hath oft th' attempt renew'd,

  But nought prevail'd; by spears on ev'ry side,

  And jav'lins met, wielded by stalwart hands,

  And blazing torches, which his courage daunt;

  Till with the morn he sullenly withdraws;

  So from Patroclus, with reluctant step

  Atrides mov'd; for much he fear'd the Greeks

  Might to the Trojans, panic-struck, the dead

  Abandon; and departing, he besought

  The two Ajaces and Meriones:

  "Ye two Ajaces, leaders of the Greeks,

  And thou, Meriones, remember now

  Our lost Patroclus' gentle courtesy,

  How kind and genial was his soul to all,

  While yet he liv'd — now sunk, alas! in death."

  Thus saying, Menelaus took his way,

  Casting his glance around on ev'ry side,

  Like to an eagle, fam'd of sharpest sight

  Of all that fly beneath the vault of Heav'n;

  Whom, soaring in the clouds, the crouching hare

  Eludes not, though in leafiest covert hid;

  But swooping down, he rends her life away:

  So, Menelaus, through the ranks of war

  Thy piercing glances ev'ry way were turn'd,

  If Nestor's son, alive, thou mightst descry;

  Him on the field's extremest left he found,

  Cheering his friends, and urging to the fight;

  He stood beside him, and address'd him thus:

  "Antilochus, come hither, godlike friend,

  And woful tidings hear, which would to Heav'n

  I had not to impart; thyself thou seest

  How Jove hath heap'd disaster on the Greeks,

  And vict'ry giv'n to Troy; but one has fallen,

  Our bravest, best! Patroclus lies in death;

  And deeply must the Greeks his loss deplore.

  But haste thee to the ships, to Peleus' son

  The tidings bear, if haply he may save

  The body of Patroclus from the foe;

  His naked body, for his arms are now

  The prize of Hector of the glancing helm."

  He said; and at his words Antilochus

  Astounded stood; long time his tongue in vain

  For utt'rance strove; his eyes were fill'd with tears,

  His cheerful voice was mute; yet not the less

  To Menelaus' bidding gave his care:

  Swiftly he sped; but to Laodocus,

  His comrade brave, who waited with his car

  In close attendance, first consign'd his arms;

  Then from the field with active limbs he flew,

  Weeping, with mournful news, to Peleus' son.

  Nor, noble Menelaus, did thy heart

  Incline thee to remain, and aid thy friends,

  Where from their war-worn ranks the Pylian troops

  Deplor'd the absence of Antilochus;

  But these in godlike Thrasymedes' charge

  He left; and to Patroclus hast'ning back,

  Beside th' Ajaces stood, as thus he spoke:

  "Him to Achilles, to the ships, in haste

  I have despatch'd; yet fiercely as his wrath

  May burn tow'rd Hector, I can scarce expect

  His presence here; for how could he, unarm'd,

  With Trojans fight? But take we counsel now

  How from the field to bear away our dead,

  And 'scape ourselves from death by Trojan hands."

  Whom answer'd thus great Ajax Telamon:

  "Illustrious Menelaus, all thy words

  Are just and true; then from amid the press,

  Thou and Meriones, take up in haste,

  And bear away the body; while behind

  We two, in heart united, as in name,

  Who side by side have still been wont to fight,

  Will Hector and his Trojans hold at bay."

  He said; they, lifting in their arms the corpse,

  Uprais'd it high in air; th
en from behind

  Loud yell'd the Trojans, as they saw the Greeks

  Retiring with their dead; and on they rush'd,

  As dogs that in advance of hunter youths

  Pursue a wounded boar; awhile they run,

  Eager for blood; but when, in pride of strength,

  He turns upon them, backward they recoil,

  This way and that in fear of death dispers'd:

  So onward press'd awhile the Trojan crowd,

  With thrust of swords, and double-pointed spears;

  But ever as th' Ajaces turn'd to bay,

  Their colour chang'd to pale, not one so bold

  As, dashing on, to battle for the corpse.

  Thus they, with anxious care, from off the field

  Bore tow'rd the ships their dead; but on their track

  Came sweeping on the storm of battle, fierce,

  As, on a sudden breaking forth, the fire

  Seizes some populous city, and devours

  House after house amid the glare and blaze,

  While roar the flames before the gusty wind;

  So fiercely pressed upon the Greeks' retreat

  The clatt'ring tramp of steeds and armed men.

  But as the mules, with stubborn strength endued,

  That down the mountain through the trackless waste

  Drag some huge log, or timber for the ships;

  And spent with toil and sweat, still labour on

  Unflinching; so the Greeks with patient toil

  Bore on their dead; th' Ajaces in their rear

  Stemming the war, as stems the torrent's force

  Some wooded cliff, far stretching o'er the plain;

  Checking the mighty river's rushing stream,

  And flinging it aside upon the plain,

  Itself unbroken by the strength of flood:

  So firmly, in the rear, th' Ajaces stemm'd

  The Trojan force; yet these still onward press'd,

  And, 'mid their comrades proudly eminent,

  Two chiefs, AEneas, old Anchises' son,

  And glorious Hector, in the van were seen.

  Then, as a cloud of starlings or of daws

  Fly screaming, as they see the hawk approach,

  To lesser birds the messenger of death;

  So before Hector and AEneas fled,

  Screaming, forgetful of their warlike fame,

  The sons of Greece; and scatter'd here and there

  Around the ditch lay store of goodly arms,

  By Greeks abandon'd in their hasty flight.

  Yet still, unintermitted, rag'd the war.

  ARGUMENT.

  THE GRIEF OF ACHILLES, AND NEW ARMOUR MADE HIM BY VULCAN.

  The news of the death of Patroclus is brought to Achilles by Antilochus. Thetis hearing his lamentations, comes with all her sea- nymphs to comfort him. The speeches of the mother and son on this occasion. Iris appears to Achilles by command of Juno, and orders him to show himself at the head of the intrenchments. The sight of him turns the fortune of the day, and the body of Patroclus is carried off by the Greeks. The Trojans call a council, where Hector and Polydamas disagree in their opinions; but the advice of the former prevails, to remain encamped in the field. The grief of Achilles over the body of Patroclus.