Homer
c.800 BC
THE ILIAD
translated by Samuel Butler
BOOK XXIII
THUS did they make their moan throughout the city, while
the Achaeans when they reached the Hellespont went back every man to his own
ship. But Achilles would not let the Myrmidons go, and spoke to his brave
comrades saying, "Myrmidons, famed horsemen and my own trusted friends, not yet,
forsooth, let us unyoke, but with horse and chariot draw near to the body and
mourn Patroclus, in due honour to the dead. When we have had full comfort of
lamentation we will unyoke our horses and take supper all of us here."
On this they all joined in a cry of wailing and Achilles
led them in their lament. Thrice did they drive their chariots all sorrowing
round the body, and Thetis stirred within them a still deeper yearning. The
sands of the seashore and the men's armour were wet with their weeping, so great
a minister of fear was he whom they had lost. Chief in all their mourning was
the son of Peleus: he laid his bloodstained hand on the breast of his friend.
"Fare well," he cried, "Patroclus, even in the house of Hades. I will now do all
that I erewhile promised you; I will drag Hector hither and let dogs devour him
raw; twelve noble sons of Trojans will I also slay before your pyre to avenge
you."
As he spoke he treated the body of noble Hector with
contumely, laying it at full length in the dust beside the bier of Patroclus.
The others then put off every man his armour, took the horses from their
chariots, and seated themselves in great multitude by the ship of the fleet
descendant of Aeacus, who thereon feasted them with an abundant funeral banquet.
Many a goodly ox, with many a sheep and bleating goat did they butcher and cut
up; many a tusked boar moreover, fat and well-fed, did they singe and set to
roast in the flames of Vulcan; and rivulets of blood flowed all round the place
where the body was lying.
Then the princes of the Achaeans took the son of Peleus to
Agamemnon, but hardly could they persuade him to come with them, so wroth was he
for the death of his comrade. As soon as they reached Agamemnon's tent they told
the serving-men to set a large tripod over the fire in case they might persuade
the son of Peleus to wash the clotted gore from this body, but he denied them
sternly, and swore it with a solemn oath, saying, "Nay, by King Jove, first and
mightiest of all gods, it is not meet that water should touch my body, till I
have laid Patroclus on the flames, have built him a barrow, and shaved my
head--for so long as I live no such second sorrow shall ever draw nigh me. Now,
therefore, let us do all that this sad festival demands, but at break of day,
King Agamemnon, bid your men bring wood, and provide all else that the dead may
duly take into the realm of darkness; the fire shall thus burn him out of our
sight the sooner, and the people shall turn again to their own labours."
Thus did he speak, and they did even as he had said. They
made haste to prepare the meal, they ate, and every man had his full share so
that all were satisfied. As soon as they had had enough to eat and drink, the
others went to their rest each in his own tent, but the son of Peleus lay
grieving among his Myrmidons by the shore of the sounding sea, in an open place
where the waves came surging in one after another. Here a very deep slumber took
hold upon him and eased the burden of his sorrows, for his limbs were weary with
chasing Hector round windy Ilius. Presently the sad spirit of Patroclus drew
near him, like what he had been in stature, voice, and the light of his beaming
eyes, clad, too, as he had been clad in life. The spirit hovered over his head
and said--
"You sleep, Achilles, and have forgotten me; you loved me
living, but now that I am dead you think for me no further. Bury me with all
speed that I may pass the gates of Hades; the ghosts, vain shadows of men that
can labour no more, drive me away from them; they will not yet suffer me to join
those that are beyond the river, and I wander all desolate by the wide gates of
the house of Hades. Give me now your hand I pray you, for when you have once
given me my dues of fire, never shall I again come forth out of the house of
Hades. Nevermore shall we sit apart and take sweet counsel among the living; the
cruel fate which was my birth-right has yawned its wide jaws around me--nay, you
too Achilles, peer of gods, are doomed to die beneath the wall of the noble
Trojans.
"One prayer more will I make you, if you will grant it; let
not my bones be laid apart from yours, Achilles, but with them; even as we were
brought up together in your own home, what time Menoetius brought me to you as a
child from Opoeis because by a sad spite I had killed the son of Amphidamas--not
of set purpose, but in childish quarrel over the dice. The knight Peleus took me
into his house, entreated me kindly, and named me to be your squire; therefore
let our bones lie in but a single urn, the two-handled golden vase given to you
by your mother."
And Achilles answered, "Why, true heart, are you come
hither to lay these charges upon me? will of my own self do all as you have
bidden me. Draw closer to me, let us once more throw our arms around one
another, and find sad comfort in the sharing of our sorrows."
He opened his arms towards him as he spoke and would have
clasped him in them, but there was nothing, and the spirit vanished as a vapour,
gibbering and whining into the earth. Achilles sprang to his feet, smote his two
hands, and made lamentation saying, "Of a truth even in the house of Hades there
are ghosts and phantoms that have no life in them; all night long the sad spirit
of Patroclus has hovered over head making piteous moan, telling me what I am to
do for him, and looking wondrously like himself."
Thus did he speak and his words set them all weeping and
mourning about the poor dumb dead, till rosy-fingered morn appeared. Then King
Agamemnon sent men and mules from all parts of the camp, to bring wood, and
Meriones, squire to Idomeneus, was in charge over them. They went out with
woodmen's axes and strong ropes in their hands, and before them went the mules.
Up hill and down dale did they go, by straight ways and crooked, and when they
reached the heights of many-fountained Ida, they laid their axes to the roots of
many a tall branching oak that came thundering down as they felled it. They
split the trees and bound them behind the mules, which then wended their way as
they best could through the thick brushwood on to the plain. All who had been
cutting wood bore logs, for so Meriones squire to Idomeneus had bidden them, and
they threw them down in a line upon the seashore at the place where Achilles
would make a mighty monument for Patroclus and for himself.
When they had thrown down their great logs of wood over the
whole ground, they stayed all of them where they were, but Achilles ordered his
brave Myrmidons to gird on their armour, and to yoke each man his horses; they
therefore rose, girded on their armour and mounted each his chariot--they and
their charioteers with them. The chariots went before, and they that were on
foot followed as a cloud in their tens of thousands after. In the midst of them
his comrades bore Patroclus and covered him with the locks of their hair which
they cut off and threw upon his body. Last came Achilles with his head bowed for
sorrow, so noble a comrade was he taking to the house of Hades.
When they came to the place of which Achilles had told them
they laid the body down and built up the wood. Achilles then bethought him of
another matter. He went a space away from the pyre, and cut off the yellow lock
which he had let grow for the river Spercheius. He looked all sorrowfully out
upon the dark sea, and said, "Spercheius, in vain did my father Peleus vow to
you that when I returned home to my loved native land I should cut off this lock
and offer you a holy hecatomb; fifty she-goats was I to sacrifice to you there
at your springs, where is your grove and your altar fragrant with
burnt-offerings. Thus did my father vow, but you have not fulfilled his prayer;
now, therefore, that I shall see my home no more, I give this lock as a keepsake
to the hero Patroclus."
As he spoke he placed the lock in the hands of his dear
comrade, and all who stood by were filled with yearning and lamentation. The sun
would have gone down upon their mourning had not Achilles presently said to
Agamemnon, "Son of Atreus, for it is to you that the people will give ear, there
is a time to mourn and a time to cease from mourning; bid the people now leave
the pyre and set about getting their dinners: we, to whom the dead is dearest,
will see to what is wanted here, and let the other princes also stay by me."
When King Agamemnon heard this he dismissed the people to
their ships, but those who were about the dead heaped up wood and built a pyre a
hundred feet this way and that; then they laid the dead all sorrowfully upon the
top of it. They flayed and dressed many fat sheep and oxen before the pyre, and
Achilles took fat from all of them and wrapped the body therein from head to
foot, heaping the flayed carcases all round it. Against the bier he leaned
two-handled jars of honey and unguents; four proud horses did he then cast upon
the pyre, groaning the while he did so. The dead hero had had house-dogs; two of
them did Achilles slay and threw upon the pyre; he also put twelve brave sons of
noble Trojans to the sword and laid them with the rest, for he was full of
bitterness and fury. Then he committed all to the resistless and devouring might
of the fire; he groaned aloud and called on his dead comrade by name. "Fare
well," he cried, "Patroclus, even in the house of Hades; I am now doing all that
I have promised you. Twelve brave sons of noble Trojans shall the flames consume
along with yourself, but dogs, not fire, shall devour the flesh of Hector son of
Priam."
Thus did he vaunt, but the dogs came not about the body of
Hector, for Jove's daughter Venus kept them off him night and day, and anointed
him with ambrosial oil of roses that his flesh might not be torn when Achilles
was dragging him about. Phoebus Apollo moreover sent a dark cloud from heaven to
earth, which gave shade to the whole place where Hector lay, that the heat of
the sun might not parch his body.
Now the pyre about dead Patroclus would not kindle.
Achilles therefore bethought him of another matter; he went apart and prayed to
the two winds Boreas and Zephyrus vowing them goodly offerings. He made them
many drink-offerings from the golden cup and besought them to come and help him
that the wood might make haste to kindle and the dead bodies be consumed. Fleet
Iris heard him praying and started off to fetch the winds. They were holding
high feast in the house of boisterous Zephyrus when Iris came running up to the
stone threshold of the house and stood there, but as soon as they set eyes on
her they all came towards her and each of them called her to him, but Iris would
not sit down. "I cannot stay," she said, "I must go back to the streams of
Oceanus and the land of the Ethiopians who are offering hecatombs to the
immortals, and I would have my share; but Achilles prays that Boreas and shrill
Zephyrus will come to him, and he vows them goodly offerings; he would have you
blow upon the pyre of Patroclus for whom all the Achaeans are lamenting."
With this she left them, and the two winds rose with a cry
that rent the air and swept the clouds before them. They blew on and on until
they came to the sea, and the waves rose high beneath them, but when they
reached Troy they fell upon the pyre till the mighty flames roared under the
blast that they blew. All night long did they blow hard and beat upon the fire,
and all night long did Achilles grasp his double cup, drawing wine from a
mixing-bowl of gold, and calling upon the spirit of dead Patroclus as he poured
it upon the ground until the earth was drenched. As a father mourns when he is
burning the bones of his bridegroom son whose death has wrung the hearts of his
parents, even so did Achilles mourn while burning the body of his comrade,
pacing round the bier with piteous groaning and lamentation.
At length as the Morning Star was beginning to herald the
light which saffron-mantled Dawn was soon to suffuse over the sea, the flames
fell and the fire began to die. The winds then went home beyond the Thracian
sea, which roared and boiled as they swept over it. The son of Peleus now turned
away from the pyre and lay down, overcome with toil, till he fell into a sweet
slumber. Presently they who were about the son of Atreus drew near in a body,
and roused him with the noise and tramp of their coming. He sat upright and
said, "Son of Atreus, and all other princes of the Achaeans, first pour red wine
everywhere upon the fire and quench it; let us then gather the bones of
Patroclus son of Menoetius, singling them out with care; they are easily found,
for they lie in the middle of the pyre, while all else, both men and horses, has
been thrown in a heap and burned at the outer edge. We will lay the bones in a
golden urn, in two layers of fat, against the time when I shall myself go down
into the house of Hades. As for the barrow, labour not to raise a great one now,
but such as is reasonable. Afterwards, let those Achaeans who may be left at the
ships when I am gone, build it both broad and high."
Thus he spoke and they obeyed the word of the son of Peleus.
First they poured red wine upon the thick layer of ashes and quenched the fire.
With many tears they singled out the whitened bones of their loved comrade and
laid them within a golden urn in two layers of fat: they then covered the urn
with a linen cloth and took it inside the tent. They marked off the circle where
the barrow should be, made a foundation for it about the pyre, and forthwith
heaped up the earth. When they had thus raised a mound they were going away, but
Achilles stayed the people and made them sit in assembly. He brought prizes from
the ships--cauldrons, tripods, horses and mules, noble oxen, women with fair
girdles, and swart iron.
The first prize he offered was for the chariot races--a
woman skilled in all useful arts, and a three-legged cauldron that had ears for
handles, and would hold twenty-two measures. This was for the man who came in
first. For the second there was a six-year old mare, unbroken, and in foal to a
he-ass; the third was to have a goodly cauldron that had never yet been on the
fire; it was still bright as when it left the maker, and would hold four
measures. The fourth prize was two talents of gold, and the fifth a two-handled
urn as yet unsoiled by smoke. Then he stood up and spoke among the Argives
saying--
"Son of Atreus, and all other Achaeans, these are the
prizes that lie waiting the winners of the chariot races. At any other time I
should carry off the first prize and take it to my own tent; you know how far my
steeds excel all others--for they are immortal; Neptune gave them to my father
Peleus, who in his turn gave them to myself; but I shall hold aloof, I and my
steeds that have lost their brave and kind driver, who many a time has washed
them in clear water and anointed their manes with oil. See how they stand
weeping here, with their manes trailing on the ground in the extremity of their
sorrow. But do you others set yourselves in order throughout the host, whosoever
has confidence in his horses and in the strength of his chariot."
Thus spoke the son of Peleus and the drivers of chariots
bestirred themselves. First among them all uprose Eumelus, king of men, son of
Admetus, a man excellent in horsemanship. Next to him rose mighty Diomed son of
Tydeus; he yoked the Trojan horses which he had taken from Aeneas, when Apollo
bore him out of the fight. Next to him, yellow-haired Menelaus son of Atreus
rose and yoked his fleet horses, Agamemnon's mare Aethe, and his own horse
Podargus. The mare had been given to Agamemnon by Echepolus son of Anchises,
that he might not have to follow him to Ilius, but might stay at home and take
his ease; for Jove had endowed him with great wealth and he lived in spacious
Sicyon. This mare, all eager for the race, did Menelaus put under the yoke.
Fourth in order Antilochus, son to noble Nestor son of
Neleus, made ready his horses. These were bred in Pylos, and his father came up
to him to give him good advice of which, however, he stood in but little need. "Antilochus,"
said Nestor, "you are young, but Jove and Neptune have loved you well, and have
made you an excellent horseman. I need not therefore say much by way of
instruction. You are skilful at wheeling your horses round the post, but the
horses themselves are very slow, and it is this that will, I fear, mar your
chances. The other drivers know less than you do, but their horses are fleeter;
therefore, my dear son, see if you cannot hit upon some artifice whereby you may
insure that the prize shall not slip through your fingers. The woodman does more
by skill than by brute force; by skill the pilot guides his storm-tossed barque
over the sea, and so by skill one driver can beat another. If a man go wide in
rounding this way and that, whereas a man who knows what he is doing may have
worse horses, but he will keep them well in hand when he sees the doubling-post;
he knows the precise moment at which to pull the rein, and keeps his eye well on
the man in front of him. I will give you this certain token which cannot escape
your notice. There is a stump of a dead tree--oak or pine as it may be--some six
feet above the ground, and not yet rotted away by rain; it stands at the fork of
the road; it has two white stones set one on each side, and there is a clear
course all round it. It may have been a monument to some one long since dead, or
it may have been used as a doubling-post in days gone by; now, however, it has
been fixed on by Achilles as the mark round which the chariots shall turn; hug
it as close as you can, but as you stand in your chariot lean over a little to
the left; urge on your right-hand horse with voice and lash, and give him a
loose rein, but let the left-hand horse keep so close in, that the nave of your
wheel shall almost graze the post; but mind the stone, or you will wound your
horses and break your chariot in pieces, which would be sport for others but
confusion for yourself. Therefore, my dear son, mind well what you are about,
for if you can be first to round the post there is no chance of any one giving
you the go-by later, not even though you had Adrestus's horse Arion behind
you--a horse which is of divine race--or those of Laomedon, which are the
noblest in this country."
When Nestor had made an end of counselling his son he sat
down in his place, and fifth in order Meriones got ready his horses. They then
all mounted their chariots and cast lots. Achilles shook the helmet, and the lot
of Antilochus son of Nestor fell out first; next came that of King Eumelus, and
after his, those of Menelaus son of Atreus and of Meriones. The last place fell
to the lot of Diomed son of Tydeus, who was the best man of them all. They took
their places in line; Achilles showed them the doubling-post round which they
were to turn, some way off upon the plain; here he stationed his father's
follower Phoenix as umpire, to note the running, and report truly.
At the same instant they all of them lashed their horses,
struck them with the reins, and shouted at them with all their might. They flew
full speed over the plain away from the ships, the dust rose from under them as
it were a cloud or whirlwind, and their manes were all flying in the wind. At
one moment the chariots seemed to touch the ground, and then again they bounded
into the air; the drivers stood erect, and their hearts beat fast and furious in
their lust of victory. Each kept calling on his horses, and the horses scoured
the plain amid the clouds of dust that they raised.
It was when they were doing the last part of the course on
their way back towards the sea that their pace was strained to the utmost and it
was seen what each could do. The horses of the descendant of Pheres now took the
lead, and close behind them came the Trojan stallions of Diomed. They seemed as
if about to mount Eumelus's chariot, and he could feel their warm breath on his
back and on his broad shoulders, for their heads were close to him as they flew
over the course. Diomed would have now passed him, or there would have been a
dead heat, but Phoebus Apollo to spite him made him drop his whip. Tears of
anger fell from his eyes as he saw the mares going on faster than ever, while
his own horses lost ground through his having no whip. Minerva saw the trick
which Apollo had played the son of Tydeus, so she brought him his whip and put
spirit into his horses; moreover she went after the son of Admetus in a rage and
broke his yoke for him; the mares went one to one side of the course, and the
other to the other, and the pole was broken against the ground. Eumelus was
thrown from his chariot close to the wheel; his elbows, mouth, and nostrils were
all torn, and his forehead was bruised above his eyebrows; his eyes filled with
tears and he could find no utterance. But the son of Tydeus turned his horses
aside and shot far ahead, for Minerva put fresh strength into them and covered
Diomed himself with glory.
Menelaus son of Atreus came next behind him, but Antilochus
called to his father's horses. "On with you both," he cried, "and do your very
utmost. I do not bid you try to beat the steeds of the son of Tydeus, for
Minerva has put running into them, and has covered Diomed with glory; but you
must overtake the horses of the son of Atreus and not be left behind, or Aethe
who is so fleet will taunt you. Why, my good fellows, are you lagging? I tell
you, and it shall surely be--Nestor will keep neither of you, but will put both
of you to the sword, if we win any the worse a prize through your carelessness.
Fly after them at your utmost speed; I will hit on a plan for passing them in a
narrow part of the way, and it shall not fail me."
They feared the rebuke of their master, and for a short
space went quicker. Presently Antilochus saw a narrow place where the road had
sunk. The ground was broken, for the winter's rain had gathered and had worn the
road so that the whole place was deepened. Menelaus was making towards it so as
to get there first, for fear of a foul, but Antilochus turned his horses out of
the way, and followed him a little on one side. The son of Atreus was afraid and
shouted out, "Antilochus, you are driving recklessly; rein in your horses; the
road is too narrow here, it will be wider soon, and you can pass me then; if you
foul my chariot you may bring both of us to a mischief."
But Antilochus plied his whip, and drove faster, as though
he had not heard him. They went side by side for about as far as a young man can
hurl a disc from his shoulder when he is trying his strength, and then
Menelaus's mares drew behind, for he left off driving for fear the horses should
foul one another and upset the chariots; thus, while pressing on in quest of
victory, they might both come headlong to the ground. Menelaus then upbraided
Antilochus and said, "There is no greater trickster living than you are; go, and
bad luck go with you; the Achaeans say not well that you have understanding, and
come what may you shall not bear away the prize without sworn protest on my
part."
Then he called on his horses and said to them, "Keep your
pace, and slacken not; the limbs of the other horses will weary sooner than
yours, for they are neither of them young."
The horses feared the rebuke of their master, and went
faster, so that they were soon nearly up with the others.
Meanwhile the Achaeans from their seats were watching how
the horses went, as they scoured the plain amid clouds of their own dust.
Idomeneus captain of the Cretans was first to make out the running, for he was
not in the thick of the crowd, but stood on the most commanding part of the
ground. The driver was a long way off, but Idomeneus could hear him shouting,
and could see the foremost horse quite plainly--a chestnut with a round white
star, like the moon, on its forehead. He stood up and said among the Argives,
"My friends, princes and counsellors of the Argives, can you see the running as
well as I can? There seems to be another pair in front now, and another driver;
those that led off at the start must have been disabled out on the plain. I saw
them at first making their way round the doubling-post, but now, though I search
the plain of Troy, I cannot find them. Perhaps the reins fell from the driver's
hand so that he lost command of his horses at the doubling-post, and could not
turn it. I suppose he must have been thrown out there, and broken his chariot,
while his mares have left the course and gone off wildly in a panic. Come up and
see for yourselves, I cannot make out for certain, but the driver seems an
Aetolian by descent, ruler over the Argives, brave Diomed the son of Tydeus."
Ajax the son of Oileus took him up rudely and said, "Idomeneus,
why should you be in such a hurry to tell us all about it, when the mares are
still so far out upon the plain? You are none of the youngest, nor your eyes
none of the sharpest, but you are always laying down the law. You have no right
to do so, for there are better men here than you are. Eumelus's horses are in
front now, as they always have been, and he is on the chariot holding the
reins."
The captain of the Cretans was angry, and answered, "Ajax
you are an excellent railer, but you have no judgement, and are wanting in much
else as well, for you have a vile temper. I will wager you a tripod or cauldron,
and Agamemnon son of Atreus shall decide whose horses are first. You will then
know to your cost."
Ajax son of Oileus was for making him an angry answer, and
there would have been yet further brawling between them, had not Achilles risen
in his place and said, "Cease your railing, Ajax and Idomeneus; is it not you
would be scandalised if you saw any one else do the like: sit down and keep your
eyes on the horses; they are speeding towards the winning-post and will be bere
directly. You will then both of you know whose horses are first, and whose come
after."
As he was speaking, the son of Tydeus came driving in,
plying his whip lustily from his shoulder, and his horses stepping high as they
flew over the course. The sand and grit rained thick on the driver, and the
chariot inlaid with gold and tin ran close behind his fleet horses. There was
little trace of wheel-marks in the fine dust, and the horses came flying in at
their utmost speed. Diomed stayed them in the middle of the crowd, and the sweat
from their manes and chests fell in streams on to the ground. Forthwith he
sprang from his goodly chariot, and leaned his whip against his horses' yoke;
brave Sthenelus now lost no time, but at once brought on the prize, and gave the
woman and the ear-handled cauldron to his comrades to take away. Then he unyoked
the horses.
Next after him came in Antilochus of the race of Neleus,
who had passed Menelaus by a trick and not by the fleetness of his horses; but
even so Menelaus came in as close behind him as the wheel is to the horse that
draws both the chariot and its master. The end hairs of a horse's tail touch the
tyre of the wheel, and there is never much space between wheel and horse when
the chariot is going; Menelaus was no further than this behind Antilochus,
though at first he had been a full disc's throw behind him. He had soon caught
him up again, for Agamemnon's mare Aethe kept pulling stronger and stronger, so
that if the course had been longer he would have passed him, and there would not
even have been a dead heat. Idomeneus's brave squire Meriones was about a
spear's cast behind Menelaus. His horses were slowest of all, and he was the
worst driver. Last of them all came the son of Admetus, dragging his chariot and
driving his horses on in front. When Achilles saw him he was sorry, and stood up
among the Argives saying, "The best man is coming in last. Let us give him a
prize for it is reasonable. He shall have the second, but the first must go to
the son of Tydeus."
Thus did he speak and the others all of them applauded his
saying, and were for doing as he had said, but Nestor's son Antilochus stood up
and claimed his rights from the son of Peleus. "Achilles," said he, "I shall
take it much amiss if you do this thing; you would rob me of my prize, because
you think Eumelus's chariot and horses were thrown out, and himself too, good
man that he is. He should have prayed duly to the immortals; he would not have
come in last if he had done so. If you are sorry for him and so choose, you have
much gold in your tents, with bronze, sheep, cattle and horses. Take something
from this store if you would have the Achaeans speak well of you, and give him a
better prize even than that which you have now offered; but I will not give up
the mare, and he that will fight me for her, let him come on."
Achilles smiled as he heard this, and was pleased with
Antilochus, who was one of his dearest comrades. So he said--
"Antilochus, if you would have me find Eumelus another
prize, I will give him the bronze breastplate with a rim of tin running all
round it which I took from Asteropaeus. It will be worth much money to him."
He bade his comrade Automedon bring the breastplate from
his tent, and he did so. Achilles then gave it over to Eumelus, who received it
gladly.
But Menelaus got up in a rage, furiously angry with
Antilochus. An attendant placed his staff in his hands and bade the Argives keep
silence: the hero then addressed them. "Antilochus," said he, "what is this from
you who have been so far blameless? You have made me cut a poor figure and
baulked my horses by flinging your own in front of them, though yours are much
worse than mine are; therefore, O princes and counsellors of the Argives, judge
between us and show no favour, lest one of the Achaeans say, 'Menelaus has got
the mare through lying and corruption; his horses were far inferior to
Antilochus's, but he has greater weight and influence.' Nay, I will determine
the matter myself, and no man will blame me, for I shall do what is just. Come
here, Antilochus, and stand, as our custom is, whip in hand before your chariot
and horses; lay your hand on your steeds, and swear by earth-encircling Neptune
that you did not purposely and guilefully get in the way of my horses."
And Antilochus answered, "Forgive me; I am much younger,
King Menelaus, than you are; you stand higher than I do and are the better man
of the two; you know how easily young men are betrayed into indiscretion; their
tempers are more hasty and they have less judgement; make due allowances
therefore, and bear with me; I will of my own accord give up the mare that I
have won, and if you claim any further chattel from my own possessions, I would
rather yield it to you, at once, than fall from your good graces henceforth, and
do wrong in the sight of heaven."
The son of Nestor then took the mare and gave her over to
Menelaus, whose anger was thus appeased; as when dew falls upon a field of
ripening corn, and the lands are bristling with the harvest--even so, O
Menelaus, was your heart made glad within you. He turned to Antilochus and said,
"Now, Antilochus, angry though I have been, I can give way to you of my own free
will; you have never been headstrong nor ill-disposed hitherto, but this time
your youth has got the better of your judgement; be careful how you outwit your
betters in future; no one else could have brought me round so easily, but your
good father, your brother, and yourself have all of you had infinite trouble on
my behalf; I therefore yield to your entreaty, and will give up the mare to you,
mine though it indeed be; the people will thus see that I am neither harsh nor
vindictive."
With this he gave the mare over to Antilochus's comrade
Noemon, and then took the cauldron. Meriones, who had come in fourth, carried
off the two talents of gold, and the fifth prize, the two-handled urn, being
unawarded, Achilles gave it to Nestor, going up to him among the assembled
Argives and saying, "Take this, my good old friend, as an heirloom and memorial
of the funeral of Patroclus--for you shall see him no more among the Argives. I
give you this prize though you cannot win one; you can now neither wrestle nor
fight, and cannot enter for the javelin-match nor foot-races, for the hand of
age has been laid heavily upon you."
So saying he gave the urn over to Nestor, who received it
gladly and answered, "My son, all that you have said is true; there is no
strength now in my legs and feet, nor can I hit out with my hands from either
shoulder. Would that I were still young and strong as when the Epeans were
burying King Amarynceus in Buprasium, and his sons offered prizes in his honour.
There was then none that could vie with me neither of the Epeans nor the Pylians
themselves nor the Aetolians. In boxing I overcame Clytomedes son of Enops, and
in wrestling, Ancaeus of Pleuron who had come forward against me. Iphiclus was a
good runner, but I beat him, and threw farther with my spear than either Phyleus
or Polydorus. In chariot-racing alone did the two sons of Actor surpass me by
crowding their horses in front of me, for they were angry at the way victory had
gone, and at the greater part of the prizes remaining in the place in which they
had been offered. They were twins, and the one kept on holding the reins, and
holding the reins, while the other plied the whip. Such was I then, but now I
must leave these matters to younger men; I must bow before the weight of years,
but in those days I was eminent among heroes. And now, sir, go on with the
funeral contests in honour of your comrade: gladly do I accept this urn, and my
heart rejoices that you do not forget me but are ever mindful of my goodwill
towards you, and of the respect due to me from the Achaeans. For all which may
the grace of heaven be vouchsafed you in great abundance."
Thereon the son of Peleus, when he had listened to all the
thanks of Nestor, went about among the concourse of the Achaeans, and presently
offered prizes for skill in the painful art of boxing. He brought out a strong
mule, and made it fast in the middle of the crowd--a she-mule never yet broken,
but six years old--when it is hardest of all to break them: this was for the
victor, and for the vanquished he offered a double cup. Then he stood up and
said among the Argives, "Son of Atreus, and all other Achaeans, I invite our two
champion boxers to lay about them lustily and compete for these prizes. He to
whom Apollo vouchsafes the greater endurance, and whom the Achaeans acknowledge
as victor, shall take the mule back with him to his own tent, while he that is
vanquished shall have the double cup."
As he spoke there stood up a champion both brave and great
stature, a skilful boxer, Epeus, son of Panopeus. He laid his hand on the mule
and said, "Let the man who is to have the cup come hither, for none but myself
will take the mule. I am the best boxer of all here present, and none can beat
me. Is it not enough that I should fall short of you in actual fighting? Still,
no man can be good at everything. I tell you plainly, and it shall come true; if
any man will box with me I will bruise his body and break his bones; therefore
let his friends stay here in a body and be at hand to take him away when I have
done with him."
They all held their peace, and no man rose save Euryalus
son of Mecisteus, who was son of Talaus. Mecisteus went once to Thebes after the
fall of Oedipus, to attend his funeral, and he beat all the people of Cadmus.
The son of Tydeus was Euryalus's second, cheering him on and hoping heartily
that he would win. First he put a waistband round him and then he gave him some
well-cut thongs of ox-hide; the two men being now girt went into the middle of
the ring, and immediately fell to; heavily indeed did they punish one another
and lay about them with their brawny fists. One could hear the horrid crashing
of their jaws, and they sweated from every pore of their skin. Presently Epeus
came on and gave Euryalus a blow on the jaw as he was looking round; Euryalus
could not keep his legs; they gave way under him in a moment and he sprang up
with a bound, as a fish leaps into the air near some shore that is all bestrewn
with sea-wrack, when Boreas furs the top of the waves, and then falls back into
deep water. But noble Epeus caught hold of him and raised him up; his comrades
also came round him and led him from the ring, unsteady in his gait, his head
hanging on one side, and spitting great clots of gore. They set him down in a
swoon and then went to fetch the double cup.
The son of Peleus now brought out the prizes for the third
contest and showed them to the Argives. These were for the painful art of
wrestling. For the winner there was a great tripod ready for setting upon the
fire, and the Achaeans valued it among themselves at twelve oxen. For the loser
he brought out a woman skilled in all manner of arts, and they valued her at
four oxen. He rose and said among the Argives, "Stand forward, you who will
essay this contest."
Forthwith uprose great Ajax the son of Telamon, and crafty
Ulysses, full of wiles, rose also. The two girded themselves and went into the
middle of the ring. They gripped each other in their strong hands like the
rafters which some master-builder frames for the roof of a high house to keep
the wind out. Their backbones cracked as they tugged at one another with their
mighty arms--and sweat rained from them in torrents. Many a bloody weal sprang
up on their sides and shoulders, but they kept on striving with might and main
for victory and to win the tripod. Ulysses could not throw Ajax, nor Ajax him;
Ulysses was too strong for him; but when the Achaeans began to tire of watching
them, Ajax said to Ulysses, "Ulysses, noble son of Laertes, you shall either
lift me, or I you, and let Jove settle it between us."
He lifted him from the ground as he spoke, but Ulysses did
not forget his cunning. He hit Ajax in the hollow at back of his knee, so that
he could not keep his feet, but fell on his back with Ulysses lying upon his
chest, and all who saw it marvelled. Then Ulysses in turn lifted Ajax and
stirred him a little from the ground but could not lift him right off it, his
knee sank under him, and the two fell side by side on the ground and were all
begrimed with dust. They now sprang towards one another and were for wrestling
yet a third time, but Achilles rose and stayed them. "Put not each other
further," said he, "to such cruel suffering; the victory is with both alike,
take each of you an equal prize, and let the other Achaeans now compete."
Thus did he speak and they did even as he had said, and put
on their shirts again after wiping the dust from off their bodies.
The son of Peleus then offered prizes for speed in
running--a mixing-bowl beautifully wrought, of pure silver. It would hold six
measures, and far exceeded all others in the whole world for beauty; it was the
work of cunning artificers in Sidon, and had been brought into port by
Phoenicians from beyond the sea, who had made a present of it to Thoas. Eueneus
son of Jason had given it to Patroclus in ransom of Priam's son Lycaon, and
Achilles now offered it as a prize in honour of his comrade to him who should be
the swiftest runner. For the second prize he offered a large ox, well fattened,
while for the last there was to be half a talent of gold. He then rose and said
among the Argives, "Stand forward, you who will essay this contest."
Forthwith uprose fleet Ajax son of Oileus, with cunning
Ulysses, and Nestor's son Antilochus, the fastest runner among all the youth of
his time. They stood side by side and Achilles showed them the goal. The course
was set out for them from the starting-post, and the son of Oileus took the lead
at once, with Ulysses as close behind him as the shuttle is to a woman's bosom
when she throws the woof across the warp and holds it close up to her; even so
close behind him was Ulysses--treading in his footprints before the dust could
settle there, and Ajax could feel his breath on the back of his head as he ran
swiftly on. The Achaeans all shouted applause as they saw him straining his
utmost, and cheered him as he shot past them; but when they were now nearing the
end of the course Ulysses prayed inwardly to Minerva. "Hear me," he cried, "and
help my feet, O goddess." Thus did he pray, and Pallas Minerva heard his prayer;
she made his hands and his feet feel light, and when the runners were at the
point of pouncing upon the prize, Ajax, through Minerva's spite slipped upon
some offal that was lying there from the cattle which Achilles had slaughtered
in honour of Patroclus, and his mouth and nostrils were all filled with cow
dung. Ulysses therefore carried off the mixing-bowl, for he got before Ajax and
came in first. But Ajax took the ox and stood with his hand on one of its horns,
spitting the dung out of his mouth. Then he said to the Argives, "Alas, the
goddess has spoiled my running; she watches over Ulysses and stands by him as
though she were his own mother." Thus did he speak and they all of them laughed
heartily.
Antilochus carried off the last prize and smiled as he said
to the bystanders, "You all see, my friends, that now too the gods have shown
their respect for seniority. Ajax is somewhat older than I am, and as for
Ulysses, he belongs to an earlier generation, but he is hale in spite of his
years, and no man of the Achaeans can run against him save only Achilles."
He said this to pay a compliment to the son of Peleus, and
Achilles answered, "Antilochus, you shall not have praised me to no purpose; I
shall give you an additional half talent of gold." He then gave the half talent
to Antilochus, who received it gladly.
Then the son of Peleus brought out the spear, helmet and
shield that had been borne by Sarpedon, and were taken from him by Patroclus. He
stood up and said among the Argives, "We bid two champions put on their armour,
take their keen blades, and make trial of one another in the presence of the
multitude; whichever of them can first wound the flesh of the other, cut through
his armour, and draw blood, to him will I give this goodly Thracian sword inlaid
with silver, which I took from Asteropaeus, but the armour let both hold in
partnership, and I will give each of them a hearty meal in my own tent."
Forthwith uprose great Ajax the son of Telamon, as also
mighty Diomed son of Tydeus. When they had put on their armour each on his own
side of the ring, they both went into the middle eager to engage, and with fire
flashing from their eyes. The Achaeans marvelled as they beheld them, and when
the two were now close up with one another, thrice did they spring forward and
thrice try to strike each other in close combat. Ajax pierced Diomed's round
shield, but did not draw blood, for the cuirass beneath the shield protected
him; thereon the son of Tydeus from over his huge shield kept aiming continually
at Ajax's neck with the point of his spear, and the Achaeans alarmed for his
safety bade them leave off fighting and divide the prize between them. Achilles
then gave the great sword to the son of Tydeus, with its scabbard, and the
leathern belt with which to hang it.
Achilles next offered the massive iron quoit which mighty
Eetion had erewhile been used to hurl, until Achilles had slain him and carried
it off in his ships along with other spoils. He stood up and said among the
Argives, "Stand forward, you who would essay this contest. He who wins it will
have a store of iron that will last him five years as they go rolling round, and
if his fair fields lie far from a town his shepherd or ploughman will not have
to make a journey to buy iron, for he will have a stock of it on his own
premises."
Then uprose the two mighty men Polypoetes and Leonteus,
with Ajax son of Telamon and noble Epeus. They stood up one after the other and
Epeus took the quoit, whirled it, and flung it from him, which set all the
Achaeans laughing. After him threw Leonteus of the race of Mars. Ajax son of
Telamon threw third, and sent the quoit beyond any mark that had been made yet,
but when mighty Polypoetes took the quoit he hurled it as though it had been a
stockman's stick which he sends flying about among his cattle when he is driving
them, so far did his throw out-distance those of the others. All who saw it
roared applause, and his comrades carried the prize for him and set it on board
his ship.
Achilles next offered a prize of iron for archery--ten
double-edged axes and ten with single edges: he set up a ship's mast, some way
off upon the sands, and with a fine string tied a pigeon to it by the foot; this
was what they were to aim at. "Whoever," he said, "can hit the pigeon shall have
all the axes and take them away with him; he who hits the string without hitting
the bird will have taken a worse aim and shall have the single-edged axes."
Then uprose King Teucer, and Meriones the stalwart squire
of Idomeneus rose also, They cast lots in a bronze helmet and the lot of Teucer
fell first. He let fly with his arrow forthwith, but he did not promise
hecatombs of firstling lambs to King Apollo, and missed his bird, for Apollo
foiled his aim; but he hit the string with which the bird was tied, near its
foot; the arrow cut the string clean through so that it hung down towards the
ground, while the bird flew up into the sky, and the Achaeans shouted applause.
Meriones, who had his arrow ready while Teucer was aiming, snatched the bow out
of his hand, and at once promised that he would sacrifice a hecatomb of
firstling lambs to Apollo lord of the bow; then espying the pigeon high up under
the clouds, he hit her in the middle of the wing as she was circling upwards;
the arrow went clean through the wing and fixed itself in the ground at
Meriones' feet, but the bird perched on the ship's mast hanging her head and
with all her feathers drooping; the life went out of her, and she fell heavily
from the mast. Meriones, therefore, took all ten double-edged axes, while Teucer
bore off the single-edged ones to his ships.
Then the son of Peleus brought in a spear and a cauldron
that had never been on the fire; it was worth an ox, and was chased with a
pattern of flowers; and those that throw the javelin stood up--to wit the son of
Atreus, king of men Agamemnon, and Meriones, stalwart squire of Idomeneus. But
Achilles spoke saying, "Son of Atreus, we know how far you excel all others both
in power and in throwing the javelin; take the cauldron back with you to your
ships, but if it so please you, let us give the spear to Meriones; this at least
is what I should myself wish."
King Agamemnon assented. So he gave the bronze spear to
Meriones, and handed the goodly cauldron to Talthybius his esquire.
