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- Now the other gods and the armed warriors on the plain slept soundly,
- but Jove was wakeful, for he was thinking how to do honour to Achilles,
- and destroyed much people at the ships of the Achaeans. In the end
- he deemed it would be best to send a lying dream to King Agamemnon;
- so he called one to him and said to it, "Lying Dream, go to the ships
- of the Achaeans, into the tent of Agamemnon, and say to him word to
- word as I now bid you. Tell him to get the Achaeans instantly under
- arms, for he shall take Troy. There are no longer divided counsels
- among the gods; Juno has brought them to her own mind, and woe betides
- the Trojans."
- The dream went when it had heard its message, and soon reached the
- ships of the Achaeans. It sought Agamemnon son of Atreus and found
- him in his tent, wrapped in a profound slumber. It hovered over his
- head in the likeness of Nestor, son of Neleus, whom Agamemnon honoured
- above all his councillors, and said:-
- "You are sleeping, son of Atreus; one who has the welfare of his host
- and so much other care upon his shoulders should dock his sleep. Hear
- me at once, for I come as a messenger from Jove, who, though he be
- not near, yet takes thought for you and pities you. He bids you get
- the Achaeans instantly under arms, for you shall take Troy. There
- are no longer divided counsels among the gods; Juno has brought them
- over to her own mind, and woe betides the Trojans at the hands of
- Jove. Remember this, and when you wake see that it does not escape
- you."
- The dream then left him, and he thought of things that were, surely
- not to be accomplished. He thought that on that same day he was to
- take the city of Priam, but he little knew what was in the mind of
- Jove, who had many another hard-fought fight in store alike for Danaans
- and Trojans. Then presently he woke, with the divine message still
- ringing in his ears; so he sat upright, and put on his soft shirt
- so fair and new, and over this his heavy cloak. He bound his sandals
- on to his comely feet, and slung his silver-studded sword about his
- shoulders; then he took the imperishable staff of his father, and
- sallied forth to the ships of the Achaeans.
- The goddess Dawn now wended her way to vast Olympus that she might
- herald day to Jove and to the other immortals, and Agamemnon sent
- the criers round to call the people in assembly; so they called them
- and the people gathered thereon. But first he summoned a meeting of
- the elders at the ship of Nestor king of Pylos, and when they were
- assembled he laid a cunning counsel before them.
- "My friends," said he, "I have had a dream from heaven in the dead
- of night, and its face and figure resembled none but Nestor's. It
- hovered over my head and said, 'You are sleeping, son of Atreus; one
- who has the welfare of his host and so much other care upon his shoulders
- should dock his sleep. Hear me at once, for I am a messenger from
- Jove, who, though he be not near, yet takes thought for you and pities
- you. He bids you get the Achaeans instantly under arms, for you shall
- take Troy. There are no longer divided counsels among the gods; Juno
- has brought them over to her own mind, and woe betides the Trojans
- at the hands of Jove. Remember this.' The dream then vanished and
- I awoke. Let us now, therefore, arm the sons of the Achaeans. But
- it will be well that I should first sound them, and to this end I
- will tell them to fly with their ships; but do you others go about
- among the host and prevent their doing so."
- He then sat down, and Nestor the prince of Pylos with all sincerity
- and goodwill addressed them thus: "My friends," said he, "princes
- and councillors of the Argives, if any other man of the Achaeans had
- told us of this dream we should have declared it false, and would
- have had nothing to do with it. But he who has seen it is the foremost
- man among us; we must therefore set about getting the people under
- arms."
- With this he led the way from the assembly, and the other sceptred
- kings rose with him in obedience to the word of Agamemnon; but the
- people pressed forward to hear. They swarmed like bees that sally
- from some hollow cave and flit in countless throng among the spring
- flowers, bunched in knots and clusters; even so did the mighty multitude
- pour from ships and tents to the assembly, and range themselves upon
- the wide-watered shore, while among them ran Wildfire Rumour, messenger
- of Jove, urging them ever to the fore. Thus they gathered in a pell-mell
- of mad confusion, and the earth groaned under the tramp of men as
- the people sought their places. Nine heralds went crying about among
- them to stay their tumult and bid them listen to the kings, till at
- last they were got into their several places and ceased their clamour.
- Then King Agamemnon rose, holding his sceptre. This was the work of
- Vulcan, who gave it to Jove the son of Saturn. Jove gave it to Mercury,
- slayer of Argus, guide and guardian. King Mercury gave it to Pelops,
- the mighty charioteer, and Pelops to Atreus, shepherd of his people.
- Atreus, when he died, left it to Thyestes, rich in flocks, and Thyestes
- in his turn left it to be borne by Agamemnon, that he might be lord
- of all Argos and of the isles. Leaning, then, on his sceptre, he addressed
- the Argives.
- "My friends," he said, "heroes, servants of Mars, the hand of heaven
- has been laid heavily upon me. Cruel Jove gave me his solemn promise
- that I should sack the city of Priam before returning, but he has
- played me false, and is now bidding me go ingloriously back to Argos
- with the loss of much people. Such is the will of Jove, who has laid
- many a proud city in the dust, as he will yet lay others, for his
- power is above all. It will be a sorry tale hereafter that an Achaean
- host, at once so great and valiant, battled in vain against men fewer
- in number than themselves; but as yet the end is not in sight. Think
- that the Achaeans and Trojans have sworn to a solemn covenant, and
- that they have each been numbered- the Trojans by the roll of their
- householders, and we by companies of ten; think further that each
- of our companies desired to have a Trojan householder to pour out
- their wine; we are so greatly more in number that full many a company
- would have to go without its cup-bearer. But they have in the town
- allies from other places, and it is these that hinder me from being
- able to sack the rich city of Ilius. Nine of Jove years are gone;
- the timbers of our ships have rotted; their tackling is sound no longer.
- Our wives and little ones at home look anxiously for our coming, but
- the work that we came hither to do has not been done. Now, therefore,
- let us all do as I say: let us sail back to our own land, for we shall
- not take Troy."
- With these words he moved the hearts of the multitude, so many of
- them as knew not the cunning counsel of Agamemnon. They surged to
- and fro like the waves of the Icarian Sea, when the east and south
- winds break from heaven's clouds to lash them; or as when the west
- wind sweeps over a field of corn and the ears bow beneath the blast,
- even so were they swayed as they flew with loud cries towards the
- ships, and the dust from under their feet rose heavenward. They cheered
- each other on to draw the ships into the sea; they cleared the channels
- in front of them; they began taking away the stays from underneath
- them, and the welkin rang with their glad cries, so eager were they
- to return.
- Then surely the Argives would have returned after a fashion that was
- not fated. But Juno said to Minerva, "Alas, daughter of aegis-bearing
- Jove, unweariable, shall the Argives fly home to their own land over
- the broad sea, and leave Priam and the Trojans the glory of still
- keeping Helen, for whose sake so many of the Achaeans have died at
- Troy, far from their homes? Go about at once among the host, and speak
- fairly to them, man by man, that they draw not their ships into the
- sea."
- Minerva was not slack to do her bidding. Down she darted from the
- topmost summits of Olympus, and in a moment she was at the ships of
- the Achaeans. There she found Ulysses, peer of Jove in counsel, standing
- alone. He had not as yet laid a hand upon his ship, for he was grieved
- and sorry; so she went close up to him and said, "Ulysses, noble son
- of Laertes, are you going to fling yourselves into your ships and
- be off home to your own land in this way? Will you leave Priam and
- the Trojans the glory of still keeping Helen, for whose sake so many
- of the Achaeans have died at Troy, far from their homes? Go about
- at once among the host, and speak fairly to them, man by man, that
- they draw not their ships into the sea."
- Ulysses knew the voice as that of the goddess: he flung his cloak
- from him and set off to run. His servant Eurybates, a man of Ithaca,
- who waited on him, took charge of the cloak, whereon Ulysses went
- straight up to Agamemnon and received from him his ancestral, imperishable
- staff. With this he went about among the ships of the Achaeans.
- Whenever he met a king or chieftain, he stood by him and spoke him
- fairly. "Sir," said he, "this flight is cowardly and unworthy. Stand
- to your post, and bid your people also keep their places. You do not
- yet know the full mind of Agamemnon; he was sounding us, and ere long
- will visit the Achaeans with his displeasure. We were not all of us
- at the council to hear what he then said; see to it lest he be angry
- and do us a mischief; for the pride of kings is great, and the hand
- of Jove is with them."
- But when he came across any common man who was making a noise, he
- struck him with his staff and rebuked him, saying, "Sirrah, hold your
- peace, and listen to better men than yourself. You are a coward and
- no soldier; you are nobody either in fight or council; we cannot all
- be kings; it is not well that there should be many masters; one man
- must be supreme- one king to whom the son of scheming Saturn has given
- the sceptre of sovereignty over you all."
- Thus masterfully did he go about among the host, and the people hurried
- back to the council from their tents and ships with a sound as the
- thunder of surf when it comes crashing down upon the shore, and all
- the sea is in an uproar.
- The rest now took their seats and kept to their own several places,
- but Thersites still went on wagging his unbridled tongue- a man of
- many words, and those unseemly; a monger of sedition, a railer against
- all who were in authority, who cared not what he said, so that he
- might set the Achaeans in a laugh. He was the ugliest man of all those
- that came before Troy- bandy-legged, lame of one foot, with his two
- shoulders rounded and hunched over his chest. His head ran up to a
- point, but there was little hair on the top of it. Achilles and Ulysses
- hated him worst of all, for it was with them that he was most wont
- to wrangle; now, however, with a shrill squeaky voice he began heaping
- his abuse on Agamemnon. The Achaeans were angry and disgusted, yet
- none the less he kept on brawling and bawling at the son of Atreus.
- "Agamemnon," he cried, "what ails you now, and what more do you want?
- Your tents are filled with bronze and with fair women, for whenever
- we take a town we give you the pick of them. Would you have yet more
- gold, which some Trojan is to give you as a ransom for his son, when
- I or another Achaean has taken him prisoner? or is it some young girl
- to hide and lie with? It is not well that you, the ruler of the Achaeans,
- should bring them into such misery. Weakling cowards, women rather
- than men, let us sail home, and leave this fellow here at Troy to
- stew in his own meeds of honour, and discover whether we were of any
- service to him or no. Achilles is a much better man than he is, and
- see how he has treated him- robbing him of his prize and keeping it
- himself. Achilles takes it meekly and shows no fight; if he did, son
- of Atreus, you would never again insult him."
- Thus railed Thersites, but Ulysses at once went up to him and rebuked
- him sternly. "Check your glib tongue, Thersites," said be, "and babble
- not a word further. Chide not with princes when you have none to back
- you. There is no viler creature come before Troy with the sons of
- Atreus. Drop this chatter about kings, and neither revile them nor
- keep harping about going home. We do not yet know how things are going
- to be, nor whether the Achaeans are to return with good success or
- evil. How dare you gibe at Agamemnon because the Danaans have awarded
- him so many prizes? I tell you, therefore- and it shall surely be-
- that if I again catch you talking such nonsense, I will either forfeit
- my own head and be no more called father of Telemachus, or I will
- take you, strip you stark naked, and whip you out of the assembly
- till you go blubbering back to the ships."
- On this he beat him with his staff about the back and shoulders till
- he dropped and fell a-weeping. The golden sceptre raised a bloody
- weal on his back, so he sat down frightened and in pain, looking foolish
- as he wiped the tears from his eyes. The people were sorry for him,
- yet they laughed heartily, and one would turn to his neighbour saying,
- "Ulysses has done many a good thing ere now in fight and council,
- but he never did the Argives a better turn than when he stopped this
- fellow's mouth from prating further. He will give the kings no more
- of his insolence."
- Thus said the people. Then Ulysses rose, sceptre in hand, and Minerva
- in the likeness of a herald bade the people be still, that those who
- were far off might hear him and consider his council. He therefore
- with all sincerity and goodwill addressed them thus:-
- "King Agamemnon, the Achaeans are for making you a by-word among all
- mankind. They forget the promise they made you when they set out from
- Argos, that you should not return till you had sacked the town of
- Troy, and, like children or widowed women, they murmur and would set
- off homeward. True it is that they have had toil enough to be disheartened.
- A man chafes at having to stay away from his wife even for a single
- month, when he is on shipboard, at the mercy of wind and sea, but
- it is now nine long years that we have been kept here; I cannot, therefore,
- blame the Achaeans if they turn restive; still we shall be shamed
- if we go home empty after so long a stay- therefore, my friends, be
- patient yet a little longer that we may learn whether the prophesyings
- of Calchas were false or true.
- "All who have not since perished must remember as though it were yesterday
- or the day before, how the ships of the Achaeans were detained in
- Aulis when we were on our way hither to make war on Priam and the
- Trojans. We were ranged round about a fountain offering hecatombs
- to the gods upon their holy altars, and there was a fine plane-tree
- from beneath which there welled a stream of pure water. Then we saw
- a prodigy; for Jove sent a fearful serpent out of the ground, with
- blood-red stains upon its back, and it darted from under the altar
- on to the plane-tree. Now there was a brood of young sparrows, quite
- small, upon the topmost bough, peeping out from under the leaves,
- eight in all, and their mother that hatched them made nine. The serpent
- ate the poor cheeping things, while the old bird flew about lamenting
- her little ones; but the serpent threw his coils about her and caught
- her by the wing as she was screaming. Then, when he had eaten both
- the sparrow and her young, the god who had sent him made him become
- a sign; for the son of scheming Saturn turned him into stone, and
- we stood there wondering at that which had come to pass. Seeing, then,
- that such a fearful portent had broken in upon our hecatombs, Calchas
- forthwith declared to us the oracles of heaven. 'Why, Achaeans,' said
- he, 'are you thus speechless? Jove has sent us this sign, long in
- coming, and long ere it be fulfilled, though its fame shall last for
- ever. As the serpent ate the eight fledglings and the sparrow that
- hatched them, which makes nine, so shall we fight nine years at Troy,
- but in the tenth shall take the town.' This was what he said, and
- now it is all coming true. Stay here, therefore, all of you, till
- we take the city of Priam."
- On this the Argives raised a shout, till the ships rang again with
- the uproar. Nestor, knight of Gerene, then addressed them. "Shame
- on you," he cried, "to stay talking here like children, when you should
- fight like men. Where are our covenants now, and where the oaths that
- we have taken? Shall our counsels be flung into the fire, with our
- drink-offerings and the right hands of fellowship wherein we have
- put our trust? We waste our time in words, and for all our talking
- here shall be no further forward. Stand, therefore, son of Atreus,
- by your own steadfast purpose; lead the Argives on to battle, and
- leave this handful of men to rot, who scheme, and scheme in vain,
- to get back to Argos ere they have learned whether Jove be true or
- a liar. For the mighty son of Saturn surely promised that we should
- succeed, when we Argives set sail to bring death and destruction upon
- the Trojans. He showed us favourable signs by flashing his lightning
- on our right hands; therefore let none make haste to go till he has
- first lain with the wife of some Trojan, and avenged the toil and
- sorrow that he has suffered for the sake of Helen. Nevertheless, if
- any man is in such haste to be at home again, let him lay his hand
- to his ship that he may meet his doom in the sight of all. But, O
- king, consider and give ear to my counsel, for the word that I say
- may not be neglected lightly. Divide your men, Agamemnon, into their
- several tribes and clans, that clans and tribes may stand by and help
- one another. If you do this, and if the Achaeans obey you, you will
- find out who, both chiefs and peoples, are brave, and who are cowards;
- for they will vie against the other. Thus you shall also learn whether
- it is through the counsel of heaven or the cowardice of man that you
- shall fail to take the town."
- And Agamemnon answered, "Nestor, you have again outdone the sons of
- the Achaeans in counsel. Would, by Father Jove, Minerva, and Apollo,
- that I had among them ten more such councillors, for the city of King
- Priam would then soon fall beneath our hands, and we should sack it.
- But the son of Saturn afflicts me with bootless wranglings and strife.
- Achilles and I are quarrelling about this girl, in which matter I
- was the first to offend; if we can be of one mind again, the Trojans
- will not stave off destruction for a day. Now, therefore, get your
- morning meal, that our hosts join in fight. Whet well your spears;
- see well to the ordering of your shields; give good feeds to your
- horses, and look your chariots carefully over, that we may do battle
- the livelong day; for we shall have no rest, not for a moment, till
- night falls to part us. The bands that bear your shields shall be
- wet with the sweat upon your shoulders, your hands shall weary upon
- your spears, your horses shall steam in front of your chariots, and
- if I see any man shirking the fight, or trying to keep out of it at
- the ships, there shall be no help for him, but he shall be a prey
- to dogs and vultures."
- Thus he spoke, and the Achaeans roared applause. As when the waves
- run high before the blast of the south wind and break on some lofty
- headland, dashing against it and buffeting it without ceasing, as
- the storms from every quarter drive them, even so did the Achaeans
- rise and hurry in all directions to their ships. There they lighted
- their fires at their tents and got dinner, offering sacrifice every
- man to one or other of the gods, and praying each one of them that
- he might live to come out of the fight. Agamemnon, king of men, sacrificed
- a fat five-year-old bull to the mighty son of Saturn, and invited
- the princes and elders of his host. First he asked Nestor and King
- Idomeneus, then the two Ajaxes and the son of Tydeus, and sixthly
- Ulysses, peer of gods in counsel; but Menelaus came of his own accord,
- for he knew how busy his brother then was. They stood round the bull
- with the barley-meal in their hands, and Agamemnon prayed, saying,
- "Jove, most glorious, supreme, that dwellest in heaven, and ridest
- upon the storm-cloud, grant that the sun may not go down, nor the
- night fall, till the palace of Priam is laid low, and its gates are
- consumed with fire. Grant that my sword may pierce the shirt of Hector
- about his heart, and that full many of his comrades may bite the dust
- as they fall dying round him."
- Thus he prayed, but the son of Saturn would not fulfil his prayer.
- He accepted the sacrifice, yet none the less increased their toil
- continually. When they had done praying and sprinkling the barley-meal
- upon the victim, they drew back its head, killed it, and then flayed
- it. They cut out the thigh-bones, wrapped them round in two layers
- of fat, and set pieces of raw meat on the top of them. These they
- burned upon the split logs of firewood, but they spitted the inward
- meats, and held them in the flames to cook. When the thigh-bones were
- burned, and they had tasted the inward meats, they cut the rest up
- small, put the pieces upon spits, roasted them till they were done,
- and drew them off; then, when they had finished their work and the
- feast was ready, they ate it, and every man had his full share, so
- that all were satisfied. As soon as they had had enough to eat and
- drink, Nestor, knight of Gerene, began to speak. "King Agamemnon,"
- said he, "let us not stay talking here, nor be slack in the work that
- heaven has put into our hands. Let the heralds summon the people to
- gather at their several ships; we will then go about among the host,
- that we may begin fighting at once."
- Thus did he speak, and Agamemnon heeded his words. He at once sent
- the criers round to call the people in assembly. So they called them,
- and the people gathered thereon. The chiefs about the son of Atreus
- chose their men and marshalled them, while Minerva went among them
- holding her priceless aegis that knows neither age nor death. From
- it there waved a hundred tassels of pure gold, all deftly woven, and
- each one of them worth a hundred oxen. With this she darted furiously
- everywhere among the hosts of the Achaeans, urging them forward, and
- putting courage into the heart of each, so that he might fight and
- do battle without ceasing. Thus war became sweeter in their eyes even
- than returning home in their ships. As when some great forest fire
- is raging upon a mountain top and its light is seen afar, even so
- as they marched the gleam of their armour flashed up into the firmament
- of heaven.
- They were like great flocks of geese, or cranes, or swans on the plain
- about the waters of Cayster, that wing their way hither and thither,
- glorying in the pride of flight, and crying as they settle till the
- fen is alive with their screaming. Even thus did their tribes pour
- from ships and tents on to the plain of the Scamander, and the ground
- rang as brass under the feet of men and horses. They stood as thick
- upon the flower-bespangled field as leaves that bloom in summer.
- As countless swarms of flies buzz around a herdsman's homestead in
- the time of spring when the pails are drenched with milk, even so
- did the Achaeans swarm on to the plain to charge the Trojans and destroy
- them.
- The chiefs disposed their men this way and that before the fight began,
- drafting them out as easily as goatherds draft their flocks when they
- have got mixed while feeding; and among them went King Agamemnon,
- with a head and face like Jove the lord of thunder, a waist like Mars,
- and a chest like that of Neptune. As some great bull that lords it
- over the herds upon the plain, even so did Jove make the son of Atreus
- stand peerless among the multitude of heroes.
- And now, O Muses, dwellers in the mansions of Olympus, tell me- for
- you are goddesses and are in all places so that you see all things,
- while we know nothing but by report- who were the chiefs and princes
- of the Danaans? As for the common soldiers, they were so that I could
- not name every single one of them though I had ten tongues, and though
- my voice failed not and my heart were of bronze within me, unless
- you, O Olympian Muses, daughters of aegis-bearing Jove, were to recount
- them to me. Nevertheless, I will tell the captains of the ships and
- all the fleet together.
- Peneleos, Leitus, Arcesilaus, Prothoenor, and Clonius were captains
- of the Boeotians. These were they that dwelt in Hyria and rocky Aulis,
- and who held Schoenus, Scolus, and the highlands of Eteonus, with
- Thespeia, Graia, and the fair city of Mycalessus. They also held Harma,
- Eilesium, and Erythrae; and they had Eleon, Hyle, and Peteon; Ocalea
- and the strong fortress of Medeon; Copae, Eutresis, and Thisbe the
- haunt of doves; Coronea, and the pastures of Haliartus; Plataea and
- Glisas; the fortress of Thebes the less; holy Onchestus with its famous
- grove of Neptune; Arne rich in vineyards; Midea, sacred Nisa, and
- Anthedon upon the sea. From these there came fifty ships, and in each
- there were a hundred and twenty young men of the Boeotians.
- Ascalaphus and Ialmenus, sons of Mars, led the people that dwelt in
- Aspledon and Orchomenus the realm of Minyas. Astyoche a noble maiden
- bore them in the house of Actor son of Azeus; for she had gone with
- Mars secretly into an upper chamber, and he had lain with her. With
- these there came thirty ships.
- The Phoceans were led by Schedius and Epistrophus, sons of mighty
- Iphitus the son of Naubolus. These were they that held Cyparissus,
- rocky Pytho, holy Crisa, Daulis, and Panopeus; they also that dwelt
- in Anemorea and Hyampolis, and about the waters of the river Cephissus,
- and Lilaea by the springs of the Cephissus; with their chieftains
- came forty ships, and they marshalled the forces of the Phoceans,
- which were stationed next to the Boeotians, on their left.
- Ajax, the fleet son of Oileus, commanded the Locrians. He was not
- so great, nor nearly so great, as Ajax the son of Telamon. He was
- a little man, and his breastplate was made of linen, but in use of
- the spear he excelled all the Hellenes and the Achaeans. These dwelt
- in Cynus, Opous, Calliarus, Bessa, Scarphe, fair Augeae, Tarphe, and
- Thronium about the river Boagrius. With him there came forty ships
- of the Locrians who dwell beyond Euboea.
- The fierce Abantes held Euboea with its cities, Chalcis, Eretria,
- Histiaea rich in vines, Cerinthus upon the sea, and the rock-perched
- town of Dium; with them were also the men of Carystus and Styra; Elephenor
- of the race of Mars was in command of these; he was son of Chalcodon,
- and chief over all the Abantes. With him they came, fleet of foot
- and wearing their hair long behind, brave warriors, who would ever
- strive to tear open the corslets of their foes with their long ashen
- spears. Of these there came fifty ships.
- And they that held the strong city of Athens, the people of great
- Erechtheus, who was born of the soil itself, but Jove's daughter,
- Minerva, fostered him, and established him at Athens in her own rich
- sanctuary. There, year by year, the Athenian youths worship him with
- sacrifices of bulls and rams. These were commanded by Menestheus,
- son of Peteos. No man living could equal him in the marshalling of
- chariots and foot soldiers. Nestor could alone rival him, for he was
- older. With him there came fifty ships.
- Ajax brought twelve ships from Salamis, and stationed them alongside
- those of the Athenians.
- The men of Argos, again, and those who held the walls of Tiryns, with
- Hermione, and Asine upon the gulf; Troezene, Eionae, and the vineyard
- lands of Epidaurus; the Achaean youths, moreover, who came from Aegina
- and Mases; these were led by Diomed of the loud battle-cry, and Sthenelus
- son of famed Capaneus. With them in command was Euryalus, son of king
- Mecisteus, son of Talaus; but Diomed was chief over them all. With
- these there came eighty ships.
- Those who held the strong city of Mycenae, rich Corinth and Cleonae;
- Orneae, Araethyrea, and Licyon, where Adrastus reigned of old; Hyperesia,
- high Gonoessa, and Pellene; Aegium and all the coast-land round about
- Helice; these sent a hundred ships under the command of King Agamemnon,
- son of Atreus. His force was far both finest and most numerous, and
- in their midst was the king himself, all glorious in his armour of
- gleaming bronze- foremost among the heroes, for he was the greatest
- king, and had most men under him.
- And those that dwelt in Lacedaemon, lying low among the hills, Pharis,
- Sparta, with Messe the haunt of doves; Bryseae, Augeae, Amyclae, and
- Helos upon the sea; Laas, moreover, and Oetylus; these were led by
- Menelaus of the loud battle-cry, brother to Agamemnon, and of them
- there were sixty ships, drawn up apart from the others. Among them
- went Menelaus himself, strong in zeal, urging his men to fight; for
- he longed to avenge the toil and sorrow that he had suffered for the
- sake of Helen.
- The men of Pylos and Arene, and Thryum where is the ford of the river
- Alpheus; strong Aipy, Cyparisseis, and Amphigenea; Pteleum, Helos,
- and Dorium, where the Muses met Thamyris, and stilled his minstrelsy
- for ever. He was returning from Oechalia, where Eurytus lived and
- reigned, and boasted that he would surpass even the Muses, daughters
- of aegis-bearing Jove, if they should sing against him; whereon they
- were angry, and maimed him. They robbed him of his divine power of
- song, and thenceforth he could strike the lyre no more. These were
- commanded by Nestor, knight of Gerene, and with him there came ninety
- ships.
- And those that held Arcadia, under the high mountain of Cyllene, near
- the tomb of Aepytus, where the people fight hand to hand; the men
- of Pheneus also, and Orchomenus rich in flocks; of Rhipae, Stratie,
- and bleak Enispe; of Tegea and fair Mantinea; of Stymphelus and Parrhasia;
- of these King Agapenor son of Ancaeus was commander, and they had
- sixty ships. Many Arcadians, good soldiers, came in each one of them,
- but Agamemnon found them the ships in which to cross the sea, for
- they were not a people that occupied their business upon the waters.
- The men, moreover, of Buprasium and of Elis, so much of it as is enclosed
- between Hyrmine, Myrsinus upon the sea-shore, the rock Olene and Alesium.
- These had four leaders, and each of them had ten ships, with many
- Epeans on board. Their captains were Amphimachus and Thalpius- the
- one, son of Cteatus, and the other, of Eurytus- both of the race of
- Actor. The two others were Diores, son of Amarynces, and Polyxenus,
- son of King Agasthenes, son of Augeas.
- And those of Dulichium with the sacred Echinean islands, who dwelt
- beyond the sea off Elis; these were led by Meges, peer of Mars, and
- the son of valiant Phyleus, dear to Jove, who quarrelled with his
- father, and went to settle in Dulichium. With him there came forty
- ships.
- Ulysses led the brave Cephallenians, who held Ithaca, Neritum with
- its forests, Crocylea, rugged Aegilips, Samos and Zacynthus, with
- the mainland also that was over against the islands. These were led
- by Ulysses, peer of Jove in counsel, and with him there came twelve
- ships.
- Thoas, son of Andraemon, commanded the Aetolians, who dwelt in Pleuron,
- Olenus, Pylene, Chalcis by the sea, and rocky Calydon, for the great
- king Oeneus had now no sons living, and was himself dead, as was also
- golden-haired Meleager, who had been set over the Aetolians to be
- their king. And with Thoas there came forty ships.
- The famous spearsman Idomeneus led the Cretans, who held Cnossus,
- and the well-walled city of Gortys; Lyctus also, Miletus and Lycastus
- that lies upon the chalk; the populous towns of Phaestus and Rhytium,
- with the other peoples that dwelt in the hundred cities of Crete.
- All these were led by Idomeneus, and by Meriones, peer of murderous
- Mars. And with these there came eighty ships.
- Tlepolemus, son of Hercules, a man both brave and large of stature,
- brought nine ships of lordly warriors from Rhodes. These dwelt in
- Rhodes which is divided among the three cities of Lindus, Ielysus,
- and Cameirus, that lies upon the chalk. These were commanded by Tlepolemus,
- son of Hercules by Astyochea, whom he had carried off from Ephyra,
- on the river Selleis, after sacking many cities of valiant warriors.
- When Tlepolemus grew up, he killed his father's uncle Licymnius, who
- had been a famous warrior in his time, but was then grown old. On
- this he built himself a fleet, gathered a great following, and fled
- beyond the sea, for he was menaced by the other sons and grandsons
- of Hercules. After a voyage. during which he suffered great hardship,
- he came to Rhodes, where the people divided into three communities,
- according to their tribes, and were dearly loved by Jove, the lord,
- of gods and men; wherefore the son of Saturn showered down great riches
- upon them.
- And Nireus brought three ships from Syme- Nireus, who was the handsomest
- man that came up under Ilius of all the Danaans after the son of Peleus-
- but he was a man of no substance, and had but a small following.
- And those that held Nisyrus, Crapathus, and Casus, with Cos, the city
- of Eurypylus, and the Calydnian islands, these were commanded by Pheidippus
- and Antiphus, two sons of King Thessalus the son of Hercules. And
- with them there came thirty ships.
- Those again who held Pelasgic Argos, Alos, Alope, and Trachis; and
- those of Phthia and Hellas the land of fair women, who were called
- Myrmidons, Hellenes, and Achaeans; these had fifty ships, over which
- Achilles was in command. But they now took no part in the war, inasmuch
- as there was no one to marshal them; for Achilles stayed by his ships,
- furious about the loss of the girl Briseis, whom he had taken from
- Lyrnessus at his own great peril, when he had sacked Lyrnessus and
- Thebe, and had overthrown Mynes and Epistrophus, sons of king Evenor,
- son of Selepus. For her sake Achilles was still grieving, but ere
- long he was again to join them.
- And those that held Phylace and the flowery meadows of Pyrasus, sanctuary
- of Ceres; Iton, the mother of sheep; Antrum upon the sea, and Pteleum
- that lies upon the grass lands. Of these brave Protesilaus had been
- captain while he was yet alive, but he was now lying under the earth.
- He had left a wife behind him in Phylace to tear her cheeks in sorrow,
- and his house was only half finished, for he was slain by a Dardanian
- warrior while leaping foremost of the Achaeans upon the soil of Troy.
- Still, though his people mourned their chieftain, they were not without
- a leader, for Podarces, of the race of Mars, marshalled them; he was
- son of Iphiclus, rich in sheep, who was the son of Phylacus, and he
- was own brother to Protesilaus, only younger, Protesilaus being at
- once the elder and the more valiant. So the people were not without
- a leader, though they mourned him whom they had lost. With him there
- came forty ships.
- And those that held Pherae by the Boebean lake, with Boebe, Glaphyrae,
- and the populous city of Iolcus, these with their eleven ships were
- led by Eumelus, son of Admetus, whom Alcestis bore to him, loveliest
- of the daughters of Pelias.
- And those that held Methone and Thaumacia, with Meliboea and rugged
- Olizon, these were led by the skilful archer Philoctetes, and they
- had seven ships, each with fifty oarsmen all of them good archers;
- but Philoctetes was lying in great pain in the Island of Lemnos, where
- the sons of the Achaeans left him, for he had been bitten by a poisonous
- water snake. There he lay sick and sorry, and full soon did the Argives
- come to miss him. But his people, though they felt his loss were not
- leaderless, for Medon, the bastard son of Oileus by Rhene, set them
- in array.
- Those, again, of Tricca and the stony region of Ithome, and they that
- held Oechalia, the city of Oechalian Eurytus, these were commanded
- by the two sons of Aesculapius, skilled in the art of healing, Podalirius
- and Machaon. And with them there came thirty ships.
- The men, moreover, of Ormenius, and by the fountain of Hypereia, with
- those that held Asterius, and the white crests of Titanus, these were
- led by Eurypylus, the son of Euaemon, and with them there came forty
- ships.
- Those that held Argissa and Gyrtone, Orthe, Elone, and the white city
- of Oloosson, of these brave Polypoetes was leader. He was son of Pirithous,
- who was son of Jove himself, for Hippodameia bore him to Pirithous
- on the day when he took his revenge on the shaggy mountain savages
- and drove them from Mt. Pelion to the Aithices. But Polypoetes was
- not sole in command, for with him was Leonteus, of the race of Mars,
- who was son of Coronus, the son of Caeneus. And with these there came
- forty ships.
- Guneus brought two and twenty ships from Cyphus, and he was followed
- by the Enienes and the valiant Peraebi, who dwelt about wintry Dodona,
- and held the lands round the lovely river Titaresius, which sends
- its waters into the Peneus. They do not mingle with the silver eddies
- of the Peneus, but flow on the top of them like oil; for the Titaresius
- is a branch of dread Orcus and of the river Styx.
- Of the Magnetes, Prothous son of Tenthredon was commander. They were
- they that dwelt about the river Peneus and Mt. Pelion. Prothous, fleet
- of foot, was their leader, and with him there came forty ships.
- Such were the chiefs and princes of the Danaans. Who, then, O Muse,
- was the foremost, whether man or horse, among those that followed
- after the sons of Atreus?
- Of the horses, those of the son of Pheres were by far the finest.
- They were driven by Eumelus, and were as fleet as birds. They were
- of the same age and colour, and perfectly matched in height. Apollo,
- of the silver bow, had bred them in Perea- both of them mares, and
- terrible as Mars in battle. Of the men, Ajax, son of Telamon, was
- much the foremost so long as Achilles' anger lasted, for Achilles
- excelled him greatly and he had also better horses; but Achilles was
- now holding aloof at his ships by reason of his quarrel with Agamemnon,
- and his people passed their time upon the sea shore, throwing discs
- or aiming with spears at a mark, and in archery. Their horses stood
- each by his own chariot, champing lotus and wild celery. The chariots
- were housed under cover, but their owners, for lack of leadership,
- wandered hither and thither about the host and went not forth to fight.
- Thus marched the host like a consuming fire, and the earth groaned
- beneath them when the lord of thunder is angry and lashes the land
- about Typhoeus among the Arimi, where they say Typhoeus lies. Even
- so did the earth groan beneath them as they sped over the plain.
- And now Iris, fleet as the wind, was sent by Jove to tell the bad
- news among the Trojans. They were gathered in assembly, old and young,
- at Priam's gates, and Iris came close up to Priam, speaking with the
- voice of Priam's son Polites, who, being fleet of foot, was stationed
- as watchman for the Trojans on the tomb of old Aesyetes, to look out
- for any sally of the Achaeans. In his likeness Iris spoke, saying,
- "Old man, you talk idly, as in time of peace, while war is at hand.
- I have been in many a battle, but never yet saw such a host as is
- now advancing. They are crossing the plain to attack the city as thick
- as leaves or as the sands of the sea. Hector, I charge you above all
- others, do as I say. There are many allies dispersed about the city
- of Priam from distant places and speaking divers tongues. Therefore,
- let each chief give orders to his own people, setting them severally
- in array and leading them forth to battle."
- Thus she spoke, but Hector knew that it was the goddess, and at once
- broke up the assembly. The men flew to arms; all the gates were opened,
- and the people thronged through them, horse and foot, with the tramp
- as of a great multitude.
- Now there is a high mound before the city, rising by itself upon the
- plain. Men call it Batieia, but the gods know that it is the tomb
- of lithe Myrine. Here the Trojans and their allies divided their forces.
- Priam's son, great Hector of the gleaming helmet, commanded the Trojans,
- and with him were arrayed by far the greater number and most valiant
- of those who were longing for the fray.
- The Dardanians were led by brave Aeneas, whom Venus bore to Anchises,
- when she, goddess though she was, had lain with him upon the mountain
- slopes of Ida. He was not alone, for with him were the two sons of
- Antenor, Archilochus and Acamas, both skilled in all the arts of war.
- They that dwelt in Telea under the lowest spurs of Mt. Ida, men of
- substance, who drink the limpid waters of the Aesepus, and are of
- Trojan blood- these were led by Pandarus son of Lycaon, whom Apollo
- had taught to use the bow.
- They that held Adresteia and the land of Apaesus, with Pityeia, and
- the high mountain of Tereia- these were led by Adrestus and Amphius,
- whose breastplate was of linen. These were the sons of Merops of Percote,
- who excelled in all kinds of divination. He told them not to take
- part in the war, but they gave him no heed, for fate lured them to
- destruction.
- They that dwelt about Percote and Practius, with Sestos, Abydos, and
- Arisbe- these were led by Asius, son of Hyrtacus, a brave commander-
- Asius, the son of Hyrtacus, whom his powerful dark bay steeds, of
- the breed that comes from the river Selleis, had brought from Arisbe.
- Hippothous led the tribes of Pelasgian spearsmen, who dwelt in fertile
- Larissa- Hippothous, and Pylaeus of the race of Mars, two sons of
- the Pelasgian Lethus, son of Teutamus.
- Acamas and the warrior Peirous commanded the Thracians and those that
- came from beyond the mighty stream of the Hellespont.
- Euphemus, son of Troezenus, the son of Ceos, was captain of the Ciconian
- spearsmen.
- Pyraechmes led the Paeonian archers from distant Amydon, by the broad
- waters of the river Axius, the fairest that flow upon the earth.
- The Paphlagonians were commanded by stout-hearted Pylaemanes from
- Enetae, where the mules run wild in herds. These were they that held
- Cytorus and the country round Sesamus, with the cities by the river
- Parthenius, Cromna, Aegialus, and lofty Erithini.
- Odius and Epistrophus were captains over the Halizoni from distant
- Alybe, where there are mines of silver.
- Chromis, and Ennomus the augur, led the Mysians, but his skill in
- augury availed not to save him from destruction, for he fell by the
- hand of the fleet descendant of Aeacus in the river, where he slew
- others also of the Trojans.
- Phorcys, again, and noble Ascanius led the Phrygians from the far
- country of Ascania, and both were eager for the fray.
- Mesthles and Antiphus commanded the Meonians, sons of Talaemenes,
- born to him of the Gygaean lake. These led the Meonians, who dwelt
- under Mt. Tmolus.
- Nastes led the Carians, men of a strange speech. These held Miletus
- and the wooded mountain of Phthires, with the water of the river Maeander
- and the lofty crests of Mt. Mycale. These were commanded by Nastes
- and Amphimachus, the brave sons of Nomion. He came into the fight
- with gold about him, like a girl; fool that he was, his gold was of
- no avail to save him, for he fell in the river by the hand of the
- fleet descendant of Aeacus, and Achilles bore away his gold.
- Sarpedon and Glaucus led the Lycians from their distant land, by the
- eddying waters of the Xanthus.
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