Book 23

So they lamented throughout the city; but the Achaeans,when they had come to the ships and the Hellespont,scattered each man to his own ship;but Achilles did not suffer the Myrmidons to scatter,but he spoke among his war-loving comrades:Myrmidons of the swift horses, my dear comrades,let us not yet unyoke the single-hoofed horses from beneath the chariots,but with the very horses and the chariots drawing nearlet us weep for Patroclus; for that is the honor of the dead.But when we have taken our fill of woeful lamentation,unyoking the horses we shall all dine here.So he spoke, and they cried out all together, and Achilles led them.Three times around the corpse they drove their fair-maned horsesweeping; and Thetis stirred in them the desire of lamentation.The sands were wet, and wet were the armor of menwith tears; for such longing had they for the marshaller of fear.And among them the son of Peleus led the shrill lament,laying his man-slaying hands upon the breast of his comrade:Hail to you, Patroclus, even in the halls of Hades;for all that I promised you before, I now fulfill:that I would drag Hector hither and give him to the dogs to devour raw,and before your pyre would cut the throats oftwelve splendid children of the Trojans, in my wrath that you are slain.So he spoke, and devised unseemly deeds against noble Hector,stretching him face down in the dust beside the bier of the son of Menoetius;and they took off their armor, each man,the gleaming bronze, and unyoked the loud-neighing horses,and sat down beside the ship of the swift-footed son of Aeacus,countless in number; and he served them a funeral feast to their hearts' content.Many a white ox bellowed around the ironas it was slaughtered, and many sheep and bleating goats;and many white-tusked boars, rich in fat,were singed and stretched across the flame of Hephaestus;and on every side around the corpse flowed blood in cupful streams.But the swift-footed lord, the son of Peleus,the kings of the Achaeans led to noble Agamemnon,hardly persuading him, angry at heart for his comrade.And when they came to the hut of Agamemnon,at once they ordered the clear-voiced heraldsto set a great tripod over the fire, if they could persuadethe son of Peleus to wash away the bloody gore.But he firmly refused, and swore an oath besides:No, by Zeus, who is highest and best of the gods,it is not right that water should come near my headbefore I lay Patroclus on the fire and heap up his tomband shear my hair; for never again will suchgrief come upon my heart while I am among the living.But for now let us yield to the hateful feast;and at dawn, lord of men Agamemnon, urgethat wood be brought and all things made ready, however fitting,for one who holds a corpse to go down beneath the misty darkness,so that the tireless fire may burn himquickly from our eyes, and the people turn again to their work.So he spoke, and they listened to him and obeyed.And eagerly they made ready the meal, each man,and feasted, and no heart lacked its equal share.But when they had put away the desire of drink and food,they went each to his hut to lie down;but the son of Peleus lay on the shore of the loud-resounding seagroaning heavily among the many Myrmidonsin an open place, where the waves washed up on the beach;when sweet sleep seized him, loosening the cares of his heart,poured around him; for his shining limbs were very wearyas he pressed on Hector toward windy Ilion.And there came to him the ghost of wretched Patroclus,in all things like him, in stature and lovely eyesand voice, and such garments as he wore about his body;and it stood above his head and spoke to him:You sleep, Achilles, and have forgotten me.While I lived you did not neglect me, but now that I am dead you do.Bury me as quickly as may be, that I may pass the gates of Hades.The ghosts, the phantoms of the dead, keep me far off,and they do not yet let me mingle beyond the river,but I wander thus aimlessly through the wide-gated house of Hades.And give me your hand; I mourn, for never againshall I return from Hades, once you have given me my share of fire.For no more shall we living men, apart from our dear comrades,sit and take counsel together; but hateful doomgaped wide to take me, even the doom appointed at my birth.And for you yourself, godlike Achilles, there is a fateto perish beneath the wall of the wealthy Trojans.And another thing I will tell you, and I will ask it, if you will obey:do not lay my bones apart from yours, Achilles,but together, as we were raised in your halls,when Menoetius brought me, a little child, from Opoeisto your house because of a grievous manslaughter,on the day when I killed the son of Amphidamas,a fool, not willingly, angered over a game of knucklebones.There horse-taming Peleus received me in his hallsand raised me kindly and named me your attendant.So too may a single coffin cover the bones of us both,a golden two-handled urn, which your lady mother gave you.And answering him, swift-footed Achilles said:Why have you come to me here, O head beloved,and laid all these commands upon me? And Iwill fulfill all, and obey as you bid me.But stand nearer to me; let us, though only for a moment, embracingone another take our fill of woeful lamentation.So he spoke and reached out with his dear handsbut did not catch him; the ghost went beneath the earth like smoke,gibbering; and Achilles sprang up in amazementand clapped his hands together, and spoke a piteous word:Alas, so there is even in the halls of Hadesa ghost and a phantom, but the mind is not in it at all.For all night long the ghost of wretched Patroclusstood over me, lamenting and mourning,and laid commands on me, and was wondrously like him.So he spoke, and stirred in them all the desire of lamentation;and while they mourned, rosy-fingered Dawn appearedaround the piteous corpse. But lord Agamemnonroused mules and men to bring woodfrom every side out of the huts; and a good man rose up,Meriones, the attendant of the kindly Idomeneus.And they went holding wood-cutting axes in their handsand well-twisted ropes; and the mules went ahead of them.And they went upward and downward, and sideways and crooked,but when they came to the ridges of many-fountained Ida,at once with the long-edged bronze they began to cutthe high-headed oaks, and these fell with a great crash;then the Achaeans split them andbound them to the mules; and the mules tore up the ground with their feet,eager for the plain, through the thick brushwood.And all the woodcutters carried logs; for so orderedMeriones, the attendant of the kindly Idomeneus.And they threw them down along the shore in a row, where Achillesmarked out a great tomb for Patroclus and for himself.But when they had cast down the measureless wood on every side,they sat down there in a body and waited. And Achillesat once ordered the war-loving Myrmidonsto gird on the bronze and to yoke each man his horsesbeneath the chariots; and they rose and put on their armor,and stepped up into the chariots, both warriors and charioteers,horsemen in front, and behind followed a cloud of footmencountless; and in the midst his comrades carried Patroclus.And they covered all the corpse with the hair they cutand threw upon it; and behind, noble Achilles held the head,grieving; for he was sending a blameless comrade to the house of Hades.And when they came to the place that Achilles had shown them,they laid him down, and quickly heaped up the abundant wood.Then again swift-footed noble Achilles thought of another thing;standing apart from the pyre he cut off his golden hair,which he had let grow long for the river Spercheius;and grieving he spoke, looking over the wine-dark sea:Spercheius, there in vain did my father Peleus vowthat I should return to my dear native landand cut my hair for you and sacrifice a holy hecatomb,and that he would sacrifice fifty uncastrated rams thereat your springs, where you have a precinct and a fragrant altar.So the old man prayed, but you did not fulfill his wish.But now, since I shall never return to my dear native land,let me give my hair to the hero Patroclus to carry with him.So speaking he placed the hair in the hands of his dear comrade,and stirred in them all the desire of lamentation.And the light of the sun would have set upon them mourningif Achilles had not spoken at once to Agamemnon, standing beside him:Son of Atreus, for you above all the host of the Achaeanswill obey your words; there is a limit even to grief.But now dismiss the men from the pyre, and tell themto prepare a meal; and we will care for all that concernsthis corpse, we who are most in sorrow for it; and let the chiefs stay with us.But when the lord of men Agamemnon heard this,at once he dismissed the host among the balanced ships,and the mourners remained there and heaped up the wood,and made the pyre a hundred feet this way and that,and on the top of the pyre they laid the corpse, grieving at heart.And many stout sheep and shambling curve-horned cattlethey flayed and prepared before the pyre; and from them allgreat-hearted Achilles took the fat and covered the corpsefrom head to foot, and piled the raw flesh about it.And he set two-handled jars of honey and oilleaning against the bier; and four high-necked horseshe eagerly threw upon the pyre, groaning greatly.Nine dogs had the lord had at his table,and of these he threw two upon the pyre, cutting their throats,and twelve noble sons of the great-hearted Trojanshe slew with the bronze, devising evil deeds in his heart;and he put into the pyre the iron might of fire, that it might feed there.Then he groaned aloud and called his dear comrade by name:Hail to you, Patroclus, even in the halls of Hades;for all that I promised you before, I now fulfill.Twelve noble sons of the great-hearted Trojans,all these the fire eats along with you; but Hector,the son of Priam, I will not give to the fire to devour, but to the dogs.So he spoke in threat; but the dogs did not come near him,for the daughter of Zeus, Aphrodite, kept the dogs awayday and night, and anointed him with rose-sweetambrosial oil, so that he might not be torn where he was dragged about.And over him Phoebus Apollo brought a dark cloudfrom heaven down to the plain, and covered all the placeas far as the corpse lay, lest the might of the sunshould wither the flesh about his sinews and limbs.Nor did the pyre of dead Patroclus burn;then again swift-footed noble Achilles thought of another thing;standing apart from the pyre he prayed to two winds,to Boreas and Zephyrus, and promised them good sacrifices;and many a time, pouring libations from a golden cup, he entreatedthem to come, so that the dead might blaze quickly in the fire,and the wood hasten to burn. And swiftly Iris,hearing his prayers, came as messenger to the winds.They were within, in a body, feasting at thebanquet of blustering Zephyrus; and Iris, running, stoodupon the stone threshold; and when the winds saw her with their eyes,they all sprang up, and each called her to himself.But she refused to sit down, and spoke a word:No seat for me; for I go again to the streams of Oceanus,to the land of the Ethiopians, where they make hecatombsto the immortals, so that I too may share in the sacred feast.But Achilles prays that Boreas and loud-shouting Zephyruscome, and he promises good sacrifices,so that you may rouse the pyre to burn, where liesPatroclus, for whom all the Achaeans groan aloud.So she spoke and departed, and the winds rosewith a wondrous din, driving the clouds before them.And swiftly they came to the sea and blew, and the wave rosebeneath their shrill breath; and they reached Troy's rich soil,and fell upon the pyre, and the wondrous fire roared aloud.And all night long they beat the flame upon the pyre together,blowing shrilly; and all night the swift Achilles,taking a two-handled cup from a golden mixing bowl,drew wine and poured it on the ground, and wet the earth,calling on the ghost of wretched Patroclus.As a father mourns for his son, burning his bones,a bridegroom who dying has grieved his wretched parents,so Achilles mourned as he burned his comrade's bones,crawling beside the pyre, groaning endlessly.And when the morning star came, bringing light to the earth,after whom saffron-robed Dawn spread over the sea,then the pyre grew faint, and the flame ceased.And the winds went back again to return homeacross the Thracian sea; and the sea groaned surging with their blast.And the son of Peleus, turning aside from the pyre,lay down weary, and sweet sleep fell upon him;and the others gathered in a body around the son of Atreus.The noise and din of them coming roused him,and he sat upright and spoke to them:Son of Atreus and you other best of all the Achaeans,first quench the whole pyre with flaming wine,as far as the might of the fire reached; and thenlet us gather the bones of Patroclus, son of Menoetius,distinguishing them well; they are easily known,for he lay in the middle of the pyre, but the others burnedapart, at the edge, horses and men all mingled.And those bones let us put in a golden bowl with a double layer of fat,until I myself am hidden in Hades.And I bid no great tomb to be labored over,but only a fitting one; afterward the Achaeansshall make it broad and high, you who are leftafter me among the many-benched ships.So he spoke, and they obeyed the swift-footed son of Peleus.First they quenched the pyre with flaming wine,as far as the flame had reached, and the deep ash fell;and weeping they gathered the white bones of their gentle comradeinto a golden bowl and a double layer of fat,and placing them in the hut they covered them with soft linen.And they marked out the tomb and set the foundationsaround the pyre; and at once they heaped up a mound of earth;and having heaped the tomb they went back. But Achilleskept the people there and seated them in a broad assembly,and brought prizes out from the ships: cauldrons and tripods,horses and mules and the sturdy heads of oxen,and fair-girdled women and gray iron.First for the swift horsemen he set splendid prizes:a woman to lead away, skilled in blameless handiwork,and a tripod with handles, of two-and-twenty measures,for the first place; and for the second he set a horsesix years old, unbroken, with a mule foal in its womb;and for the third he set down an unfired cauldron,a fair one holding four measures, still shining white;and for the fourth he set two talents of gold,and for the fifth an unfired two-handled bowl.And he stood upright and spoke a word among the Argives:Son of Atreus and you other well-greaved Achaeans,these prizes for horsemen lie ready in the assembly.If we were now contending for another man's sake, we Achaeans,then I myself would take the first prize and carry it to my hut.For you know how far my horses excel in valor;for they are immortal, and Poseidon gave themto my father Peleus, and he in turn gave them to me.But indeed I will stand aside with my single-hoofed horses;for they have lost the good fame of such a charioteer,a gentle one, who many a time poured glistening oilover their manes, after washing them in white water.So the two stand and mourn for him, and their manesare bowed to the ground, and the two stand grieving at heart.But do you others make ready through the host, whoever of the Achaeanstrusts in his horses and his well-jointed chariot.So spoke the son of Peleus, and the swift horsemen gathered.By far the first to rise was the lord of men Eumelus,the dear son of Admetus, who excelled in horsemanship;and after him rose the son of Tydeus, strong Diomedes,who drove beneath the yoke Trojan horses, which he had once takenfrom Aeneas, but Apollo had saved Aeneas himself.And after him rose the son of Atreus, fair-haired Menelaus,sprung of Zeus, and he led swift horses beneath the yoke,Aethe, Agamemnon's mare, and his own Podargus;Aethe had Anchisiades Echepolus given to Agamemnonas a gift, so that he need not follow him to windy Ilion,but might stay there and enjoy himself; for great wealthZeus had given him, and he dwelt in broad-chorused Sicyon;her he led beneath the yoke, straining for the race.And Antilochus fourth yoked his fair-maned horses,the splendid son of the over-bold lord Nestor,the son of Neleus; and his Pylian-bred horses,swift-footed, carried his chariot; and his father stood near himand spoke, thinking good thoughts for one who already understood:Antilochus, young as you are, Zeus and Poseidonhave loved you and taught you all kinds of horsemanship;so there is no great need for me to teach you.For you know well how to wheel around the turning post; but your horsesare the slowest at running; and so I think it will be trouble.Their horses are swifter, and they themselvesdo not know more than you how to plan.But come, dear son, cast every kind of cunning into your heart,so that the prizes do not escape you.It is by cunning, not by strength, that a woodcutter is much the better;and by cunning again a helmsman on the wine-dark seasteers a swift ship buffeted by the winds;and by cunning charioteer beats charioteer.He who, trusting in his horses and chariot,drives heedlessly and wheels too far this way and that,his horses wander over the course, and he cannot hold them;but he who knows tricks, driving lesser horses,always watching the turning post, wheels close by it, and does not forgethow he first stretched his horses with the oxhide reins,but holds them safely and watches the one in front.And I will tell you a sign, very clear, and it will not escape you.There stands a dry log, about a fathom above the ground,either of oak or of pine; it does not rot with rain,and two white stones are set on either side of itat the meeting of the road, and the course is smooth around it,either it is a tomb of a man long dead,or it was a turning post in the days of men of old,and now swift-footed noble Achilles has made it the turning point.Drive your chariot and horses right up against it, close by,but lean yourself in the well-woven chariota little to the left of them; and the right-hand horseurge on with a shout, and give him rein with your hands.And let your left-hand horse come right up to the post,so that the hub of the wheel seems to touch its edge,the rim of the wrought wheel; and avoid hitting the stone,lest you wound your horses and break the chariot,and it will be a joy to the others, but a reproach to you.But be on your guard, dear man, and watchful.For if you pass the post in your driving,there is no man who can catch you by a leap or pass you,not even if he drove behind you divine Arion,the swift horse of Adrastus, which was of the race of the gods,or the horses of Laomedon, which were reared here in greatness.So spoke Nestor, son of Neleus, and sat down againin his place, when he had told his son the limits of everything.And Meriones fifth yoked his fair-maned horses.And they stepped into the chariots, and cast lots into a helmet;Achilles shook it, and the lot of the son of Nestor,Antilochus, leapt out; and after him lord Eumelus drew his;and after him the son of Atreus, Menelaus famous with the spear;and after him Meriones drew the lot to drive; and last of allthe son of Tydeus, by far the best, drew the lot to drive his horses.And they stood in a row, and Achilles showed them the turning pointfar off in the smooth plain; and beside it he set a watcher,godlike Phoenix, the attendant of his father,to remember the running and to report the truth.And all together they raised their whips over their horsesand struck them with the reins, and shouted to them with wordseagerly; and the horses quickly sped across the plainswiftly, away from the ships; and beneath their breasts the duststood rising like a cloud or a tempest,and their manes streamed in the wind's breath.And the chariots sometimes drew near the much-nourishing earth,and sometimes leapt up into the air; and the driversstood in the chariots, and the heart of each beat fastas they strained for victory; and each called onhis own horses, and they flew on, raising dust on the plain.But when the swift horses were making the last turnback toward the gray sea, then the excellence of eachshowed itself, and at once the running stretched out the horses; and quickly thenthe swift-footed horses of the son of Pheres carried him out in front.And after them the male horses of Diomedes came up,Trojan horses, and they were not far behind, but very near;for they always seemed about to mount the chariot,and with their breath the back and broad shoulders of Eumeluswere warmed; for they flew with their heads laid upon him.And now he would have passed him, or made it a doubtful race,if Phoebus Apollo had not been angry with the son of Tydeus,who struck the shining whip from his hands.And from his eyes tears poured in his anger,because he saw the others going still and much stronger,while his own were hurt, running without the goad.Nor did Apollo escape the notice of Athena in his harmingof the son of Tydeus, but she swiftly rushed after the shepherd of the people,and gave him the whip, and put strength into his horses;and she went after the son of Admetus in anger,and the goddess broke the yoke of his horses; and his maresran apart from the road, and the chariot pole slid to the ground.And he himself was rolled out of the chariot beside the wheel,and his elbows were torn, and his mouth and nostrils,and his forehead was bruised above his brows; and his two eyesfilled with tears, and his rich voice was checked.And the son of Tydeus swerved and held his single-hoofed horses,leaping far ahead of the others; for Athenahad put strength into his horses and brought him glory.And after him fair-haired Menelaus, son of Atreus, drove.And Antilochus called to the horses of his father:Step out, you two; stretch as fast as you can.To be sure, I do not tell you to rival thosehorses of warlike Tydeus, to whom Athenahas now granted speed and given glory besides;but catch the horses of the son of Atreus, and do not fall behind,quickly, lest Aethe, though she is female, pour reproachupon you. Why do you fall behind, you who are braver?For I will speak plainly, and it shall surely be fulfilled:no care shall there be for you from Nestor, shepherd of the people,but he will kill you both at once with the sharp bronze,if through your neglect we carry off the lesser prize.But follow on and hurry as fast as you can;and I myself will contrive and planto slip past in the narrow road, and it will not escape me.So he spoke, and they in fear of the lord's rebukeran on the more for a little while; and quickly thenAntilochus, steadfast in battle, saw the narrowing of the hollow road.There was a gully in the ground, where winter waterhad broken through the road, and hollowed out all the place;there Menelaus kept his course, avoiding the wheel ruts.And Antilochus swerved and held his single-hoofed horsesoutside the road, and turning a little aside pursued him.And the son of Atreus was afraid and called to Antilochus:Antilochus, you drive recklessly; hold back your horses.The road is narrow, and it is soon wider for passing;lest you harm us both by meeting my chariot.So he spoke, but Antilochus drove on still much faster,urging them with the goad, as if he had not heard.And as far as the distance of a discus thrown from the shoulder,which a vigorous man hurls when he tries his youth,so far they ran on ahead; and the mares of the son of Atreusfell back; for he himself willingly gave up the driving,lest the single-hoofed horses should collide on the roadand overturn the well-woven chariots, and they themselvesshould fall in the dust, striving for victory.And fair-haired Menelaus spoke to him in reproach:Antilochus, no other mortal is more deadly than you.Away with you! We Achaeans did not think you truly sane.But not even so will you carry off the prize without an oath.So speaking he called to his horses and said:Do not hold back for me, and do not stand still grieving at heart.The feet and weary knees of those two will fail before yours,for both are bereft of youth.So he spoke, and they in fear of the lord's rebukeran on the more, and soon came near them.And the Argives, sitting in the assembly, watched the horses;and the horses flew, raising dust across the plain.And first Idomeneus, leader of the Cretans, marked the horses;for he sat outside the assembly, on the highest vantage point;and though he was far off, hearing the driver's shouthe knew it, and marked the horse far-shining in front,which was in all else a bay, but on its foreheada white mark was set, round as the moon.And he stood upright and spoke a word among the Argives:O friends, leaders and counselors of the Argives,do I alone see the horses, or do you also?Other horses seem to me to be in front,and another charioteer is in my sight; and his mareshave been hurt somewhere on the plain, the mares that were better there.For I saw them the first to round the turning post,but now I cannot see them anywhere; and everywhere my eyesstrain as I look across the Trojan plain.Either the reins escaped the charioteer, and he could nothold them well around the post, and did not succeed in wheeling,and there I think he fell out and broke the chariot,and the mares ran off, when fury seized his heart.But stand up and look too; for I myselfcannot discern well; yet it seems to me that the manis an Aetolian by birth, and he rules among the Argives,the son of horse-taming Tydeus, strong Diomedes.And swift Ajax, son of Oileus, rebuked him shamefully:Idomeneus, why do you babble so? And the mareswith high-lifting feet are running far off across the great plain.You are not the youngest among the Argives by so much,nor do your eyes see the sharpest from your head;but you always babble with words; and you should notbe a babbler; for there are others better than you here.The mares are in front, the same as before,the mares of Eumelus, and he himself stands holding the reins.And the leader of the Cretans answered him in anger:Ajax, best at quarreling, foolish of mind, and in all things elsethe worst of the Argives, because your mind is harsh.Come now, let us wager a tripod or a cauldron,and let us both set the son of Atreus, Agamemnon, as witness,which horses are in front, so that you may know when you pay.So he spoke, and at once swift Ajax, son of Oileus, rose upangry, to answer with harsh words;and now the quarrel would have gone further for both of them,if Achilles himself had not risen and spoken a word:No longer now answer each other with harsh words,Ajax and Idomeneus, with evil words, for it is not fitting.And you would be angry with any other who did such things.But you, sitting in the assembly, keep watchingthe horses; and they will soon come here, strainingfor victory; and then each of you will knowthe horses of the Argives, which are second and which first.So he spoke, and the son of Tydeus came driving very near,and kept lashing from the shoulder; and his horsesheld themselves high, swiftly covering the course.And always the splashes of dust struck the charioteer,and the chariot, covered with gold and tin,ran on behind the swift-footed horses; and there was no greattrack of the wheel rims behind themin the fine dust; and the two sped flying on.And he stood in the middle of the assembly, and much sweat pouredfrom the horses' necks and from their chests to the ground.And he himself leapt from the shining chariot to the ground,and leaned his whip against the yoke; and stalwart Sthenelus did not delay,but eagerly took the prize,and gave the woman to his high-hearted comrades to lead awayand the handled tripod to carry; and he unyoked the horses.And after him Antilochus, son of Neleus, drove his horses,by cunning, not by speed, having passed Menelaus;but even so Menelaus kept his swift horses near.And as far as a horse stands from the wheel, which drawsits master over the plain, straining with the chariot,and its tail hairs at the tip touch the rim,and it runs very near, and there is no greatspace between them as it runs over the great plain,so far did Menelaus fall behind blameless Antilochus;and at first he had been left a discus-throw behind,but he quickly caught him; for the good strength was kindledof the horse of Agamemnon, fair-maned Aethe.And if the course had been longer for both of them,he would have passed him and made it no doubtful race.But Meriones, the good attendant of Idomeneus,was left behind by glorious Menelaus by the cast of a spear;for his fair-maned horses were the slowest,and he himself was the least skilled at driving a chariot in the assembly.And the son of Admetus came last of all,dragging his fair chariot and driving his horses before him.And seeing him, swift-footed noble Achilles pitied him,and standing among the Argives he spoke winged words:The last man drives the single-hoofed horses, and he is the best.But come now, let us give him a prize, as is fitting,the second prize; but let the son of Tydeus carry off the first.So he spoke, and they all approved, as he urged.And now he would have given him the horse, for the Achaeans approved,if Antilochus, son of great-hearted Nestor, had notstood up and answered Achilles, son of Peleus, with justice:Achilles, I will be very angry with you if you fulfillthis word; for you mean to take away my prize,thinking of him because his chariot and swift horses were hurt,though he himself is a good man; but he should haveprayed to the immortals; then he would not have come last in the driving.But if you pity him and he is dear to your heart,there is much gold for you in your hut, and bronzeand flocks, and maidservants and single-hoofed horses;take from these and give him a greater prize afterward,or even now at once, so that the Achaeans may praise you.But this one I will not give; let any man who wishesfight with me with his hands for her.So he spoke, and swift-footed noble Achilles smiled,rejoicing in Antilochus, because he was his dear comrade;and answering him he spoke winged words:Antilochus, if you now bid me give Eumelus something elsefrom my own house, I will do even that.I will give him the corselet, which I took from Asteropaeus,of bronze, around which a stream of shining tinis twined; and it will be worth a great price to him.So he spoke, and ordered his dear comrade Automedonto bring it from the hut; and he went and brought it,and put it in the hands of Eumelus; and he received it gladly.Then Menelaus also rose among them, grieving at heart,exceedingly angry with Antilochus; and a herald put a staff in his hand, and told the Argivesto be silent; and then the godlike man spoke among them:Antilochus, once wise, what have you done?You have shamed my valor, and hurt my horses,putting your own in front, though they were much worse.But come, leaders and counselors of the Argives,judge between the two of us in the middle, and not with favor,lest some one of the bronze-clad Achaeans say:Menelaus overcame Antilochus with liesand went off leading the horse, because his horses were much worse,though he himself was better in valor and strength.But come, I myself will judge, and I say no oneelse of the Danaans will find fault with me; for it will be straight.Antilochus, come here, Zeus-nourished, as is right,stand in front of your horses and chariot, and hold in your handsthe slender whip with which you drove before,and touching your horses, swear by the earth-holder, the earth-shaker,that you did not willingly hinder my chariot by deceit.And wise Antilochus answered him:Bear with me now; for I am much younger than you,lord Menelaus, and you are older and better.You know what the transgressions of a young man are;for his mind is quicker, and his counsel thin.So let your heart endure it; and I myself will give youthe horse that I took. And if you should ask from my houseanything else greater, I would wish at once, immediately,to give it to you, Zeus-nourished, rather than fallforever from your heart and be a sinner before the gods.So he spoke, and the son of great-hearted Nestor led the horseand put it in the hands of Menelaus; and his heartwas warmed, as when dew lies on the ears of cornin the growing field, when the furrows bristle;so, Menelaus, was your heart warmed within your breast.And speaking he addressed him with winged words:Antilochus, now I myself will yield to you,though angry, since you were not before foolish or light-minded,but now youth has overcome your mind.Another time avoid deceiving your betters.For no other man of the Achaeans would have soon persuaded me.But since you have suffered and toiled much,and your good father and brother for my sake,so I will obey your entreaty, and I will even give youmy own horse, so that these men too may knowthat my heart is never overbearing and harsh.So he spoke, and gave the horse to Noemon, his comrade,to lead away; and he then took the shining cauldron.And Meriones took up the two talents of goldas fourth, as he drove. And the fifth prize was left,the two-handled bowl; and this Achilles gave to Nestor,carrying it through the Achaean assembly, and standing beside him said:Take this now, and let it be a treasure for you too, old man,to be a memorial of the burial of Patroclus; for you will no moresee him among the Argives; and I give you this prizefreely; for you will no longer fight with your fists, nor wrestle,nor enter the javelin contest, nor runwith your feet; for harsh old age now presses on you.So speaking he put it in his hands; and he received it gladly,and speaking he addressed him with winged words:Yes indeed, my child, you have spoken all this rightly.For my limbs are no longer steady, my dear feet, nor do my handsleap lightly from my shoulders on either side.If only I were as young, and my strength as steady,as when the Epeians were burying lord Amarynceusat Buprasium, and his sons set up prizes for the king.There no man was my equal, neither of the Epeiansnor of the Pylians themselves nor of the great-hearted Aetolians.In boxing I beat Clytomedes, son of Oenops,and in wrestling Ancaeus of Pleuron, who rose against me;and in the footrace I outran Iphiclus, good as he was,and with the spear I outthrew Phyleus and Polydorus.Only the two sons of Actor passed me with their horses,putting theirs in front by numbers, grudging me the victory,because the greatest prizes were left there at stake.And they were twins; one drove steadily,drove steadily, and the other urged him with the whip.So I once was; but now let younger men facesuch deeds; and I must obey grievous old age,though then I shone among the heroes.But come, and honor your comrade with these funeral games.And this I gladly accept, and my heart rejoices,that you remember me always as gentle, and I am not forgotten,nor the honor in which it is fitting I be honored among the Achaeans.And may the gods give you a pleasant return for this.So he spoke, and the son of Peleus went away through the greatthrong of the Achaeans, when he had heard all the praise of the son of Neleus.Then he set out prizes for the painful boxing match;leading a mule, laborious, he tethered it in the assembly,six years old, unbroken, hardest to tame;and for the one defeated he set a two-handled cup.And he stood upright and spoke a word among the Argives:Son of Atreus and you other well-greaved Achaeans,two men, the best of these, we bidto put up their fists and strike; and to whomever Apollogrants endurance, and all the Achaeans know it,let him lead the laborious mule and go to his hut;and the one defeated will carry off the two-handled cup.So he spoke, and at once a man rose up, good and great,skilled in boxing, the son of Panopeus, Epeius,and he laid hold of the laborious mule and spoke:Let him come near who will carry off the two-handled cup.For no other of the Achaeans, I say, will lead away the muleby beating me with his fists, for I claim to be the best.Is it not enough that I fall short in battle? For it is not possiblein any way for a man to be skilled in all works.For I will speak plainly, and it shall surely be fulfilled:I will split his skin open and crush his bones together.And let his mourners stay here in a body,those who will carry him out, beaten beneath my hands.So he spoke, and they all became silent in stillness.And Euryalus alone rose against him, a godlike man,the son of Mecisteus, son of lord Talaus,who once came to Thebes at the burial of fallen Oedipus,and there beat all the Cadmeans.And the famous son of Tydeus cared for him,encouraging him with words, and greatly wished him victory.He threw down a loincloth for him first, and thengave him well-cut straps of a wild ox's hide.And the two, girded, went into the middle of the assembly,and raising their hands with sturdy arms together,they fell upon each other, and their heavy hands mingled.And there was a dreadful grinding of jaws, and sweat pouredfrom every limb; and noble Epeius rushed in,and struck him on the cheek as he looked about; and no longerdid he stand long; for his shining limbs gave way beneath him.And as when a fish leaps up beneath the ripple of the North Windon a seaweed-covered beach, and the dark wave covers it,so he leapt up when struck; but great-hearted Epeiuscaught him with his hands and set him upright; and his dear comrades stood about,who led him through the assembly, dragging his feet,spitting thick blood and letting his head fall to one side;and they brought him, wandering in mind, and set him among them,and themselves went and fetched the two-handled cup.And the son of Peleus at once set out other prizes, for the third contest,showing to the Danaans a contest of painful wrestling:for the winner a great cauldron, fit for the fire,which the Achaeans valued at twelve oxen among themselves;and for the man defeated he set out a woman in the middle,who knew many works, and they valued her at four oxen.And he stood upright and spoke a word among the Argives:Rise up, you two who will make trial of this contest too.So he spoke, and then great Telamonian Ajax rose up,and many-counseled Odysseus rose also, knowing tricks.And the two, girded, went into the middle of the assembly,and took each other in their arms with sturdy hands,like two rafters, which a famous carpenter has joined togetherfor the roof of a high house, to keep off the fury of the winds.And their backs creaked from their bold hands,dragged tight; and the sweat ran down their backs,and thick welts rose along their sides and shoulders,stained red with blood; and they alwaysstrained for victory and the well-wrought tripod.Nor could Odysseus throw him down and bring him to the ground,nor could Ajax, for the strong might of Odysseus held him.But when they were tiring the well-greaved Achaeans,then great Telamonian Ajax spoke to him:Zeus-born son of Laertes, many-counseled Odysseus,either lift me up, or I will lift you; and all this will be Zeus's care.So speaking he lifted him; but Odysseus did not forget his trick:he struck him behind on the hollow of the knee and found the mark, and loosed his limbs,and threw him backward; and Odysseus fell upon his chest.And the people looked on and wondered.And second, much-enduring noble Odysseus lifted him,and moved him a little from the ground, but did not lift him,but bent his knee; and both fell to the groundclose to one another, and were defiled with dust.And now they would have leapt up and wrestled a third time,if Achilles himself had not risen and checked them:No longer press on, and do not wear yourselves out with pains;the victory is for both; take equal prizesand go, so that the other Achaeans may also contend.So he spoke, and they listened to him and obeyed,and wiping off the dust they put on their tunics.And the son of Peleus at once set out other prizes for the footrace:a silver mixing bowl, well wrought, and it heldsix measures, but in beauty it surpassed all on the earthby far, for the skilled Sidonians had made it well,and Phoenician men had brought it over the misty sea,and put it in the harbors, and gave it as a gift to Thoas;and the son of Priam, Lycaon, gave the price for itto the hero Patroclus, Euneus, son of Jason.And Achilles set it as a prize in honor of his comrade,for whoever should be the lightest on his swift feet;and for the second he set a great ox, rich in fat,and for the last he set half a talent of gold.And he stood upright and spoke a word among the Argives:Rise up, you who will make trial of this contest too.So he spoke, and at once swift Ajax, son of Oileus, rose up,and many-counseled Odysseus rose, and then the son of Nestor,Antilochus; for he was the best of all the young men on his feet.And they stood in a row, and Achilles showed them the turning point.And their course stretched out from the starting post; and quickly thenthe son of Oileus was in front; and after him rushed noble Odysseus,very near, as close as a weaving rod is tothe breast of a well-girded woman, which she pulls well with her hands,drawing the spool out past the warp, and holds it closeto her breast; so close did Odysseus run, and behind himhe kept striking his footprints before the dust could spread over them,and noble Odysseus breathed down upon his head,always running fast; and all the Achaeans shouted,urging him on as he strained for victory, and they called to him as he hurried.But when they were making the final turn of the course, at once Odysseusprayed to bright-eyed Athena in his heart:Hear me, goddess, and come as a good helper to my feet.So he spoke in prayer; and Pallas Athena heard him,and made his limbs light, his feet and his hands above.But when they were about to spring upon the prize,then Ajax slipped as he ran, for Athena tripped him,there where the dung of the bellowing oxen had been poured out,the oxen that swift-footed Achilles had killed for Patroclus;and his mouth and nostrils were filled with ox dung;and much-enduring noble Odysseus lifted the bowl,as he came in first; but glorious Ajax took the ox.And he stood holding the horn of the wild ox in his hands,spitting out the dung, and said among the Argives:Alas, so the goddess has hurt my feet, she who even beforehas stood by Odysseus like a mother and helped him.So he spoke, and they all laughed sweetly at him.And then Antilochus carried off the last prize,smiling, and spoke a word among the Argives:I will speak to you all, my friends, who know it: even nowthe immortals honor older men.For Ajax is a little older than I am,but this one is of an earlier generation, and of earlier men still;and they say he is a gray-haired old man; and it is hardfor the Achaeans to contend with him on his feet, except for Achilles.So he spoke, and honored the swift-footed son of Peleus.And Achilles answered him with words and said:Antilochus, your praise will not be spoken in vain,but I will add half a talent of gold for you.So speaking he put it in his hands, and he received it gladly.And the son of Peleus brought and set in the assemblya long-shadowed spear, and a shield and a helmet,the armor of Sarpedon, which Patroclus had taken from him.And he stood upright and spoke a word among the Argives:Two men, the best of these, we bidto put on their armor and take the skin-cutting bronzeand try each other in front of the host.Whichever one first reaches the other's fair skin,and touches the inward parts through the armor and the dark blood,to him I will give this silver-studded sword,a fair Thracian one, which I took from Asteropaeus;and the armor let them both carry off as common spoil;and we will set before them a good feast in the huts.So he spoke, and then great Telamonian Ajax rose up,and the son of Tydeus rose, strong Diomedes.And when they had armed themselves on either side of the host,the two came into the middle, eager to fight,glaring terribly; and wonder held all the Achaeans.But when they were near, coming on against each other,three times they sprang at each other, three times they rushed near.Then Ajax struck the round shieldof his foe, but did not reach the skin; for the corselet guarded within;and the son of Tydeus then kept aiming over the great shieldwith the point of his shining spear at the neck.And then the Achaeans, fearing greatly for Ajax,told them to stop and take equal prizes.And to the son of Tydeus the hero gave the great sword,carrying it with its sheath and its well-cut baldric.And the son of Peleus set out a lump of self-melted iron,which formerly the great strength of Eetion used to hurl;but swift-footed noble Achilles slew him,and carried the iron on his ships with his other possessions.And he stood upright and spoke a word among the Argives:Rise up, you who will make trial of this contest too.Even if his rich fields are very far away,he will have it for five turning yearsto use; for neither shepherd nor plowmanwill go into the city lacking iron, but it will supply them.So he spoke, and then war-steadfast Polypoetes rose up,and the strong might of godlike Leonteus rose,and Ajax, son of Telamon, and noble Epeius rose.And they stood in order, and noble Epeius took the lump,and whirled and threw it; and all the Achaeans laughed.And second Leonteus threw, the branch of Ares;and third great Telamonian Ajax threw itfrom his sturdy hand, and passed the marks of all.But when war-steadfast Polypoetes took the lump,as far as a herdsman throws his crook,and it flies spinning through the herd of cattle,so far he threw beyond the whole assembly; and they shouted.And the comrades of strong Polypoetes roseand carried the king's prize to the hollow ships.And he set out for the archers the gray iron,and he set down ten axes, and ten half-axes,and he stood up the mast of a dark-prowed shipfar off on the sand, and tied a trembling doveby the foot with a thin cord, and told themto shoot at it; and whoever hit the trembling dove,let him carry off all the axes and go home;and whoever hit the cord, missing the bird,he is the lesser, but he will carry off the half-axes.So he spoke, and then the might of lord Teucer rose up,and Meriones rose, the good attendant of Idomeneus.And they took lots and shook them in a bronze helmet,and Teucer by lot drew the first place; at once he shotan arrow mightily, and did not promise the lordthat he would sacrifice a famous hecatomb of first-born lambs.He missed the bird; for Apollo grudged him that;but he struck the cord beside its foot, where the bird was tied;and the bitter arrow cut the cord clean through.And the bird then darted toward the sky, and the cordwas let down to the ground; and the Achaeans shouted.And Meriones eagerly drew the bow from his hand;for he had long held the arrow, as he aimed.And at once he promised to far-shooting Apollothat he would sacrifice a famous hecatomb of first-born lambs.And high under the clouds he saw the trembling dove;and as it circled he struck it in the middle beneath the wing,and the arrow went clean through; and it stuck back in the groundin front of Meriones' foot; but the bird,sitting on the mast of the dark-prowed ship,let its neck hang down, and its thick feathers fell away.And swiftly the life flew from its limbs, and it fellfar from it; and the people looked on and wondered.And Meriones took up all ten axes,and Teucer carried the half-axes to the hollow ships.And the son of Peleus brought and set in the assemblythe long-shadowed spear, and an unfired cauldronworth an ox, flowered with ornament;and the two spearmen rose up:the son of Atreus, wide-ruling Agamemnon rose,and Meriones rose, the good attendant of Idomeneus.And swift-footed noble Achilles spoke among them:Son of Atreus; for we know how far you surpass all,and how in strength and in throws you are the best.But take this prize and go to the hollow ships,and let us give the spear to the hero Meriones,if you are willing in your heart; for I myself bid it.So he spoke, and the lord of men Agamemnon did not disobey;and he gave the bronze spear to Meriones; and the herogave the very beautiful prize to the herald Talthybius.

So they mourned throughout the city; but the Achaeans,once they had reached the ships and the Hellespont,scattered, each man to his own ship,but Achilles did not let the Myrmidons scatter;instead he spoke to his war-loving companions:Myrmidons with your swift horses, my trusty companions,let us not yet unyoke the single-hoofed horses from the chariots,but going closer with the horses themselves and the chariotslet us weep for Patroclus; for that is the honor owed the dead.But when we have had our fill of wretched grieving,we will unyoke the horses and all eat here.So he spoke, and they all cried out together, and Achilles led them.Three times around the body they drove their well-maned horses,weeping; and Thetis stirred up in them the desire to mourn.The sand grew wet, and wet grew the armor of the menwith tears; so great was their longing for the driver of terror.And among them the son of Peleus began the shrill lament,laying his man-killing hands on his companion's chest:Greetings to you, Patroclus, even in the house of Hades;for everything I promised you before, I now carry out:that I would drag Hector here and give him to the dogs to eat raw,and in front of the pyre I would cut the throats oftwelve fine children of the Trojans, angry because you were killed.So he spoke, and planned shameful treatment for noble Hector,stretching him face down beside the bier of the son of Menoetius in the dirt;and they took off their armor, each man,the gleaming bronze, and unyoked the loud-neighing horses,and sat down beside the ship of the swift-footed son of Aeacus,in countless numbers; and he served them a funeral feast to their liking.Many white oxen bellowed around the ironas they were slaughtered, and many sheep and bleating goats;and many white-tusked pigs, glossy with fat,were singed and stretched out through the flame of Hephaestus;and all around the body the blood ran in cupful streams.But the swift-footed lord, the son of Peleus,the kings of the Achaeans led toward noble Agamemnon,persuading him with difficulty, angry in his heart over his companion.And when they came to the hut of Agamemnon,at once they ordered the clear-voiced heraldsto set a great tripod over the fire, in case they could persuadethe son of Peleus to wash off the bloody gore.But he stubbornly refused, and swore an oath besides:No, by Zeus, who is highest and best of the gods,it is not right for water to come near my headuntil I lay Patroclus on the fire and heap up his tomband cut my hair, since no second grief like thiswill ever come to my heart as long as I am among the living.But for now let us give in to this hateful meal;at dawn, Agamemnon, lord of men, urgethat wood be brought and everything made ready that is fittingfor one who holds a dead man to go down under the murky darkness,so that the tireless fire may burn himquickly from our sight, and the people turn back to their work.So he spoke, and they listened to him closely and obeyed.And eagerly they prepared the meal, each group,and feasted, and no one's heart went short of an equal share.But when they had set aside their desire for drink and food,they went each to his hut to lie down;but the son of Peleus lay on the shore of the loud-resounding sea,groaning heavily among the many Myrmidons,in an open spot, where the waves washed up on the beach;when sweet sleep caught him, loosening the worries of his heart,poured over him; for his shining limbs were very tiredfrom chasing Hector toward windy Ilion.And the ghost of wretched Patroclus came to him,in everything like him, in stature and handsome eyesand voice, and it wore the kind of clothes he used to wear on his body;and it stood above his head and spoke to him:You are asleep, Achilles, and you have forgotten me.While I was alive you did not neglect me, but now that I am dead you do.Bury me as quickly as possible, so I may pass the gates of Hades.The ghosts, the images of the dead, keep me far away,and they do not yet let me mix with them beyond the river,but I wander aimlessly through the wide-gated house of Hades.And give me your hand; I am grieving, for never againwill I come back from Hades, once you have given me my share of the fire.For we will no longer, we living men, far from our dear companions,sit together and make plans; instead hateful doomswallowed me up, the doom that was my lot from birth.And for you yourself there is a fate, godlike Achilles,to die beneath the wall of the prosperous Trojans.And I will tell you something else, and I will ask it, in case you obey:do not put my bones apart from yours, Achilles,but together, just as we were raised in your house,when Menoetius brought me, a small child, from Opoeisto your home because of a terrible killing,on the day when I killed the son of Amphidamas,foolishly and unwillingly, angered over a game of knucklebones.There horse-taming Peleus took me in at his houseand raised me carefully and called me your servant.So too may one single coffin cover the bones of us both,a golden two-handled urn, which your lady mother gave you.And answering him, swift-footed Achilles said:Why have you come here to me, beloved head,and given me all these commands? And Iwill do it all, and obey as you tell me.But stand closer to me; even for a moment, let us two embraceeach other and take our fill of wretched grieving.So he spoke and reached out with his dear handsbut did not catch him; the ghost went under the earth like smoke,shrieking; and Achilles sprang up in shockand clapped his hands together and spoke a pitiful word:Alas, so there really is, even in the house of Hades,a ghost and an image, but there is no mind in it at all.For all night long the ghost of wretched Patroclusstood over me, grieving and mourning,and gave me all kinds of commands, and it looked exactly like him.So he spoke, and stirred up in them all the desire to mourn;and while they were mourning, rosy-fingered Dawn appearedaround the pitiful body. But lord Agamemnonroused mules and men to bring woodfrom every direction out of the huts; and a good man rose up,Meriones, the servant of the kindly Idomeneus.And they went holding woodcutting axes in their handsand well-twisted ropes; and the mules went ahead of them.And they went up and down, sideways and at angles,but when they came to the ridges of many-springed Ida,at once they began cutting the high-headed oaks with the long-edged bronze,hurrying; and the trees fell with a great crash;then the Achaeans split them apart andtied them to the mules; and the mules tore up the ground with their feet,eager for the plain, through the thick underbrush.And all the woodcutters carried logs; for so orderedMeriones, the servant of the kindly Idomeneus.And they threw them down along the shore in a row, where Achilleshad marked out a great tomb for Patroclus and for himself.But when they had thrown down the endless wood all around,they sat down right there and waited in a group. And Achillesat once ordered the war-loving Myrmidonsto strap on the bronze and each to yoke his horsesunder the chariots; and they rose and put on their armor,and climbed up into the chariots, both fighters and drivers,horsemen in front, and behind came a cloud of foot soldiers,countless; and in the middle his companions carried Patroclus.And they covered the whole body with the hair that they cutand threw on it; and behind, noble Achilles held the head,grieving; for he was sending a blameless companion to the house of Hades.And when they reached the place that Achilles had shown them,they set him down, and quickly piled up the abundant wood.Then swift-footed noble Achilles thought of something else;standing apart from the pyre he cut off his golden hair,which he had grown long for the river Spercheius;and grieving he spoke, looking out over the wine-dark sea:Spercheius, it was in vain that my father Peleus prayed to youthat I should return home to my dear native landand cut my hair for you and offer a sacred hecatomb,and that he would sacrifice fifty uncastrated rams thereat your springs, where you have a precinct and a smoking altar.So the old man prayed, but you did not fulfill his wish.But now, since I am not returning to my dear native land,let me give my hair to the hero Patroclus to carry with him.So he spoke and put the hair into the hands of his dear companion,and stirred up in them all the desire to mourn.And the light of the sun would have gone down on them as they mourned,if Achilles had not at once spoken to Agamemnon, standing beside him:Son of Atreus, since the people of the Achaeans will obey your wordsmost of all, there is a limit even to grief;so now break up the men from the pyre and tell themto prepare a meal; and we will take care of everythingthat concerns this body, those of us who grieve for it most; and let the leaders stay with us.But when Agamemnon, lord of men, heard this,at once he broke up the people among the balanced ships,and the mourners stayed there and piled up the wood,and made the pyre a hundred feet long each way,and on top of the pyre they laid the body, grieving at heart.And many sturdy sheep and shambling curved-horned cattlethey skinned and prepared in front of the pyre; and from them allgreat-hearted Achilles took the fat and covered the body,from head to foot, and piled the raw flesh around it.And he put two-handled jars of honey and oilleaning against the bier; and four high-necked horseshe eagerly threw on the pyre, groaning loudly.The lord had nine dogs that ate at his table,and of these he threw two on the pyre after cutting their throats,and twelve good sons of great-hearted Trojanshe killed with the bronze, planning evil deeds in his heart;and he put the iron force of fire into the pyre, so that it might feed.Then he wailed aloud and called his dear companion by name:Greetings to you, Patroclus, even in the house of Hades;for everything I promised you before, I now carry out.Twelve good sons of great-hearted Trojans,all of them the fire eats along with you; but Hector,the son of Priam, I will not give to the fire to eat, but to the dogs.So he spoke in a threat; but the dogs did not come near him,for the daughter of Zeus, Aphrodite, kept the dogs awayday and night, and she anointed him with rose-sweetambrosial oil, so that it would not tear him as it dragged him around.And over him Phoebus Apollo brought a dark cloudfrom the sky down to the plain, and it covered the whole placeas far as the body lay, so that the force of the sunwould not dry the flesh around his sinews and limbs.Nor did Patroclus's pyre burn, since he was dead;then again swift-footed noble Achilles thought of something else;standing apart from the pyre he prayed to two winds,to Boreas and Zephyrus, and promised them fine sacrifices;and many times, pouring libations from a golden cup, he begged themto come, so that the dead man might burn quickly in the fireand the wood might rush to be consumed. And quickly Iris,hearing his prayers, came as a messenger to the winds.They were inside together, feasting atthe banquet of gusty Zephyrus; and Iris came running and stoodon the stone threshold; and when they saw her with their eyes,they all sprang up and each called her to himself.But she refused to sit down and spoke a word:No seat for me; for I am going back to the streams of Oceanus,to the land of the Ethiopians, where they offer hecatombsto the immortals, so that I too may share in the sacred feast.But Achilles is praying that Boreas and loud Zephyruscome, and he promises fine sacrifices,so that you may rouse the pyre to burn, the one in which liesPatroclus, for whom all the Achaeans groan aloud.So she spoke and left, and the winds rose upwith a wondrous roar, driving the clouds before them.And quickly they reached the sea and blew, and a wave rosebeneath their shrill breath; and they reached fertile Troy,and fell on the pyre, and the wondrous fire roared loud.And all night long they threw the flame on the pyre together,blowing shrilly; and all night the swift Achilles,taking a two-handled cup from a golden mixing bowl,dipped out wine and poured it on the ground, and soaked the earth,calling on the ghost of wretched Patroclus.As a father mourns when he burns the bones of his son,a bridegroom, who by dying has grieved his wretched parents,so Achilles mourned as he burned his companion's bones,crawling beside the pyre, groaning without pause.And when the morning star came, bringing light to the earth,after which saffron-robed Dawn spread across the sea,then the pyre died down and the flame stopped.And the winds went back again to return homeacross the Thracian sea; and the sea groaned as it surged with their blast.And the son of Peleus, turning aside from the pyre,lay down exhausted, and sweet sleep rushed over him;and the others gathered in a group around the son of Atreus.The noise and din of them coming woke him,and he sat up straight and spoke to them:Son of Atreus, and you other best of all the Achaeans,first put out the whole pyre with flaming wine,as much as the force of the fire reached; and then after thatlet us gather the bones of Patroclus, son of Menoetius,picking them out carefully; they are easy to tell apart,for he lay in the middle of the pyre, while the others burnedapart, at the edge, horses and men all mixed together.And those bones let us put in a golden bowl with a double layer of fat,until I myself am hidden in Hades.And I do not order a very large tomb to be built,only a fitting one; afterward the Achaeansare to make it broad and high, you who are leftbehind me among the many-benched ships.So he spoke, and they obeyed the swift-footed son of Peleus.First they put out the pyre with flaming wine,as far as the flame had reached, and the deep ash fell;and weeping they gathered the white bones of their kindly companioninto a golden bowl and a double layer of fat,and after putting them in the hut they covered them with soft linen.And they traced out the tomb and laid out the foundationsaround the pyre; and at once they heaped up a mound of earth,and after heaping the tomb they went back. But Achillesheld the people there and seated them for a broad assembly,and brought prizes out from the ships: cauldrons and tripods,horses and mules and the sturdy heads of cattle,and fair-girdled women and gray iron.First for the swift horsemen he set out splendid prizes:a woman to lead away, skilled in blameless work,and a tripod with handles, holding twenty-two measures,for the first place; and for the second he set a horse,six years old, unbroken, pregnant with a mule foal;and for the third he set down a cauldron never put on the fire,a fine one holding four measures, still white as it was;and for the fourth he set two talents of gold,and for the fifth he set a two-handled bowl, never fired.And he stood up straight and spoke a word among the Argives:Son of Atreus, and you other well-greaved Achaeans,these prizes for horsemen lie ready in the assembly.If we were competing now for someone else's sake, we Achaeans,then I myself would take the first prize and carry it to my hut.For you know how far my horses surpass in excellence;for they are immortal, and Poseidon gave themto my father Peleus, and he in turn handed them to me.But I for my part will stay out of it, along with my single-hoofed horses;for they have lost the good reputation of such a driver,a gentle one, who many times poured glistening oilover their manes after washing them in clear water.So the two stand and mourn for him, and their manesare bowed down to the ground, and the two stand grieving at heart.But you others get ready throughout the army, whoever of the Achaeanstrusts in his horses and his well-jointed chariot.So spoke the son of Peleus, and the swift horsemen gathered.By far the first to rise was Eumelus, lord of men,the dear son of Admetus, who excelled at horsemanship;and after him rose the son of Tydeus, strong Diomedes,and he yoked Trojan horses, which he had once takenfrom Aeneas, though Apollo had rescued Aeneas himself.And after him rose the son of Atreus, fair-haired Menelaus,born of Zeus, and he brought swift horses under the yoke,Aethe, Agamemnon's mare, and his own Podargus;Aethe had been given to Agamemnon by Echepolus, son of Anchises,as a gift, so that he would not follow him to windy Ilion,but might stay there and enjoy himself; for Zeus had given himgreat wealth, and he lived in broad-chorused Sicyon;her he brought under the yoke, straining for the race.And Antilochus was fourth, and yoked his well-maned horses,the splendid son of the very bold lord Nestor,the son of Neleus; and his Pylian-bred horses,swift-footed, carried his chariot; and his father stood near himand spoke, thinking good thoughts for one who understood them himself:Antilochus, young as you are, Zeus and Poseidonhave loved you and taught you every kind of horsemanship;so there is no great need for me to teach you.For you know well how to wheel around the turning post; but your horsesare the slowest at running; and so I think there will be trouble.Their horses are swifter, and they themselvesdo not know more than you about making plans.But come now, dear son, put every kind of cleverness in your heart,so that the prizes do not slip away from you.It is by cleverness, not strength, that a woodcutter is much better;and it is by cleverness that a helmsman on the wine-dark seasteers a swift ship buffeted by the winds;and it is by cleverness that one charioteer beats another.But whoever trusts in his horses and his chariotand drives carelessly, wheeling too far this way and that,his horses wander over the course, and he cannot control them;but whoever knows tricks, driving weaker horses,always watching the turning post, wheels close by it, and he does not forgethow he first stretched his horses with the oxhide reins,but he holds them safely and watches the one in front.And I will tell you a sign, a very clear one, and it will not escape you.There stands a dry piece of wood, about a fathom above the ground,either oak or pine; it does not rot with rain,and two white stones are set on either side of itat the meeting of the road, and the course is smooth around it,either it is the tomb of a man long dead,or it was made a turning post by men of earlier times,and now swift-footed noble Achilles has made it the turning point.Drive your chariot and horses right up against it, close,but lean yourself in the well-woven chariota little to the left of them; and the horse on the righturge on with a shout, and give him rein with your hands.And let your left-hand horse come right up to the post,so it seems the hub is about to reach the very edgeof the wheel you made; and avoid hitting the stone,in case you somehow wound the horses and smash the chariot,and it will be a joy to the others, and a disgrace to you yourself.So be on your guard, dear man, and watchful.For if you drive past the post and get ahead,there is no one who could catch you by a leap or pass you,not even if he drove behind you noble Arion,the swift horse of Adrastus, which was of the race of the gods,or the horses of Laomedon, which were reared here as fine ones.So spoke Nestor, son of Neleus, and sat down againin his place, once he had told his son the limits of everything.And Meriones was fifth, and yoked his well-maned horses.And they climbed into the chariots and threw in lots;Achilles shook them, and out leapt the lot of the son of Nestor,Antilochus; and after him lord Eumelus drew his;and after him the son of Atreus, Menelaus famous for the spear;and after him Meriones drew the right to drive; and last of allthe son of Tydeus, by far the best, drew the right to drive his horses.And they stood in a row, and Achilles showed them the turning pointfar off in the smooth plain; and beside it he set a watcher,godlike Phoenix, the servant of his father,so that he would remember the race and report the truth.And all together they raised their whips over their horsesand struck them with the reins, and shouted to them with wordseagerly; and they quickly sped across the plainswiftly, away from the ships; and under their chests the duststood rising like a cloud or a storm,and their manes streamed in the wind's breath.And the chariots sometimes came close to the much-nourishing earth,and sometimes leapt up into the air; and the driversstood in the chariots, and each man's heart poundedas they strained for victory; and each called out tohis own horses, and they flew on, raising dust across the plain.But when the swift horses were finishing the last turnback toward the gray sea, then the excellence of eachshowed itself, and at once the horses' running stretched out; and quickly thenthe swift-footed horses of the son of Pheres carried him ahead.And after them came up the male horses of Diomedes,Trojan horses, and they were not far away, but very near;for they always seemed about to climb onto the chariot,and with their breath the back and broad shoulders of Eumelusgrew warm; for they flew with their heads laid on him.And now he would have passed him, or made the race a tie,if Phoebus Apollo had not been angry with the son of Tydeus,who struck the shining whip out of his hands.And tears poured from his eyes in his anger,because he saw the others going on, and going much faster,while his own were held back, running without the goad.Nor did Apollo escape Athena's notice in the harm he didto the son of Tydeus, but she quickly hurried after the shepherd of the people,and gave him the whip and put strength into his horses;and she went after the son of Admetus in anger,and the goddess broke his horse yoke; and his maresran off to the side of the road, and the pole dragged on the ground.And he himself rolled out of the chariot beside the wheel,and his elbows were scraped, and his mouth and nostrils,and his forehead was bruised above his brows; and his two eyesfilled with tears, and his rich voice was cut off.And the son of Tydeus swerved and held his single-hoofed horses,leaping far ahead of the others; for Athenahad put strength into his horses and brought him glory.And after him fair-haired Menelaus, son of Atreus, drove.And Antilochus called out to his father's horses:Step out, you two; stretch as fast as you can.To be sure, I do not tell you to compete with thosehorses of warlike Tydeus, to whom Athenahas now granted speed and given glory besides;but catch the horses of the son of Atreus, and do not fall behind,quickly, in case Aethe, though she is a female, pours disgraceon you both. Why are you falling behind, when you are the better?For I will say it plainly, and it will surely come true:there will be no care for you from Nestor, shepherd of the people,but he will kill you both at once with the sharp bronze,if through your neglect we carry off the worse prize.So follow on and hurry as fast as you can;and I myself will work out and planhow to slip past in the narrow road, and it will not escape me.So he spoke, and they, afraid of their lord's rebuke,ran harder for a short time; and quickly thenAntilochus, steadfast in battle, saw the narrow part of the hollow road.There was a gully in the ground, where winter waterhad broken through the road, and it hollowed out the whole place;there Menelaus kept his course, avoiding the wheel ruts.And Antilochus swerved and held his single-hoofed horsesoutside the road, and turning a little aside kept chasing.And the son of Atreus was afraid and shouted to Antilochus:Antilochus, you are driving recklessly; hold back your horses.The road is narrow, and it soon gets wider for passing;in case you hurt us both by running into my chariot.So he spoke, but Antilochus drove on still much harder,pressing them with the goad, as if he had not heard.And as far as the range of a discus thrown from the shoulder,which a vigorous man throws when he tests his youth,so far they ran ahead; and the mares of the son of Atreusdropped back; for he himself willingly gave up the driving,in case the single-hoofed horses collided on the roadand overturned the well-woven chariots, and they themselvesfell in the dust, hurrying for victory.And fair-haired Menelaus spoke to him, scolding:Antilochus, no other mortal is more destructive than you.Get out of here! We Achaeans did not think you truly sensible.But even so you will not carry off the prize without an oath.So he spoke and called out to his horses and said:Do not hold back for my sake, and do not stand still grieving at heart.The feet and tired knees of those two will give out before yours,for both are past their youth.So he spoke, and they, afraid of their lord's rebuke,ran harder, and soon came close to them.And the Argives, sitting in the assembly, watchedthe horses; and they flew on, raising dust across the plain.And first Idomeneus, leader of the Cretans, noticed the horses;for he sat outside the assembly, on the highest lookout point;and though he was far away, he heard the driver's shoutand knew it, and he noticed the horse standing out in front,which was otherwise a bay, but on its foreheadthere was a white mark, round as the moon.And he stood up straight and spoke a word among the Argives:Friends, leaders and rulers of the Argives,do I alone see the horses, or do you as well?Other horses seem to me to be in front,and a different driver appears to me; and his mareswere somehow hurt out on the plain, the ones that were better there.For I saw them the first to round the turning point,but now I cannot see them anywhere; and my eyesare straining in every direction as I look across the Trojan plain.Either the reins escaped the driver, and he could nothold them well around the post, and he failed when he turned,and there I think he fell out and smashed the chariot,and the mares ran off, when panic seized his heart.But stand up and look too; for I myselfcannot make it out well; but it seems to me the manis an Aetolian by birth, and he rules among the Argives,the son of horse-taming Tydeus, strong Diomedes.And swift Ajax, son of Oileus, rebuked him shamefully:Idomeneus, why do you babble so much? And the mareswith high-lifting feet are running far off across the great plain.You are not the youngest among the Argives by that much,nor do your eyes see the sharpest out of your head;but you always babble with words; and you should notbe a babbler; for there are better men here than you.The mares are in front, just as before,the mares of Eumelus, and he himself is there holding the reins.And the leader of the Cretans answered him in anger:Ajax, best at quarreling, foolish of mind, and in all things elsethe worst of the Argives, because your mind is harsh.Come on then, let us two wager a tripod or a cauldron,and let us both make Agamemnon, son of Atreus, the witness,which horses are in front, so you may know when you pay up.So he spoke, and at once swift Ajax, son of Oileus, rose up,angry, to answer with harsh words;and now the quarrel between the two of them would have gone further,if Achilles himself had not stood up and spoken a word:Do not answer each other anymore now with harsh words,Ajax and Idomeneus, with evil words, for it is not fitting.And you would be angry at anyone else who did such things.But you, sitting in the assembly, keep watchingthe horses; and they will soon come here, strainingfor victory; and then each of you will knowthe horses of the Argives, which are second and which are first.So he spoke, and the son of Tydeus came driving very near,and kept lashing from the shoulder; and his horsesraised themselves high, swiftly covering the course.And always the splashes of dust hit the driver,and the chariot, covered with gold and tin,ran on behind the swift-footed horses; and there was no greattrack of the wheel rims left behindin the fine dust; and the two sped on flying.And he stood in the middle of the assembly, and much sweat pouredfrom the horses' necks and from their chests to the ground.And he himself jumped from the shining chariot to the ground,and leaned his whip against the yoke; and stalwart Sthenelus did not delay,but eagerly took the prize,and gave the woman to his high-hearted companions to lead awayand the handled tripod to carry; and he unyoked the horses.And after him Antilochus, son of Neleus, drove his horses,by cunning, not by speed, having passed Menelaus;but even so Menelaus kept his swift horses near.And as far as a horse stands away from the wheel, which drawsits master over the plain, straining with the chariot,and the tips of its tail hairs touch the rim,and it runs very close, and there is no greatspace between them as it runs over the great plain,that is how far Menelaus fell behind blameless Antilochus;and at first he had been left behind by a discus throw,but he quickly caught him; for the good strength was kindledof the horse of Agamemnon, fair-maned Aethe.And if the course had been longer for the two of them,he would have passed him and not made it a tie.But Meriones, the good servant of Idomeneus,was left behind by glorious Menelaus by a spear's throw;for his fair-maned horses were the slowest,and he himself was the least skilled at driving a chariot in the assembly.And the son of Admetus came last of all,dragging his fine chariot and driving his horses ahead of him.And seeing him, swift-footed noble Achilles pitied him,and standing among the Argives he spoke winged words:The last man drives the single-hoofed horses, and he is the best.But come now, let us give him a prize, as would be fitting,the second prize; but let the son of Tydeus carry off the first.So he spoke, and they all approved, just as he urged.And he would have given him the horse, for the Achaeans approved,if Antilochus, son of great-hearted Nestor, had notstood up and answered Achilles, son of Peleus, justly:Achilles, I will be very angry with you if you carry outthis word; for you mean to take away my prize,thinking about him because his chariot and swift horses were ruined,although he is a good man himself; but he should haveprayed to the immortals; then he would not have come last in the driving.But if you pity him and he is dear to your heart,there is plenty of gold for you in your hut, and bronzeand flocks, and there are maidservants and single-hoofed horses;take from these and give him a greater prize afterward,or even right now, so that the Achaeans may praise you.But this one I will not give; let any man who wishesfight me with his hands for her.So he spoke, and swift-footed noble Achilles smiled,happy for Antilochus, because he was his dear companion;and answering him he spoke winged words:Antilochus, if you now tell me to give Eumelus something elsefrom my own house, I will do even that.I will give him the breastplate that I took from Asteropaeus,of bronze, around which a stream of shining tinis twined; and it will be worth a great price to him.So he spoke, and ordered his dear companion Automedonto bring it from the hut; and he went and brought it,and put it in the hands of Eumelus; and he took it gladly.Then Menelaus too rose among them, grieving at heart,furiously angry with Antilochus; and a herald put a staff in his hand, and told the Argivesto be quiet; and then the godlike man spoke among them:Antilochus, who used to be sensible, what have you done?You have shamed my excellence, and you harmed my horses,putting yours in front, though they were much worse.But come, leaders and rulers of the Argives,judge between the two of us in the middle, and not with favor,in case some one of the bronze-clad Achaeans says:Menelaus overcame Antilochus with liesand went off leading the horse, because his horses were much worse,though he himself was better in excellence and strength.But come, I myself will judge, and I say no oneelse of the Danaans will find fault with me; for it will be fair.Antilochus, come here, Zeus-nourished, as is right,stand in front of your horses and chariot, and hold in your handsthe slender whip with which you were driving before,and touching your horses, swear by the earth-holder, the earth-shaker,that you did not willingly block my chariot by trickery.And sensible Antilochus answered him:Bear with me now; for I am much younger than you,lord Menelaus, and you are older and better.You know what kind of excesses a young man commits;for his mind is quicker, and his judgment thin.So let your heart endure it; and I myself will give youthe horse that I took. And if you should ask for anything elsegreater from my house, I would want to give it to youat once, right now, Zeus-nourished, rather than fallforever out of your heart and be a sinner before the gods.So he spoke, and the son of great-hearted Nestor led the horseand put it in the hands of Menelaus; and his heartwas warmed, as when dew lies on the ears of grainin the growing crop, when the fields bristle;so, Menelaus, your heart was warmed within your breast.And speaking he addressed him with winged words:Antilochus, for now I myself will yield to you,though angry, since you were not before senseless or light-minded,but now youth has overcome your mind.Another time, avoid deceiving your betters.For no other man of the Achaeans would have soon persuaded me.But since you have suffered and toiled a lot,and your good father and brother for my sake,so I will obey your plea, and I will even give youmy own horse, so that these men too may knowthat my heart is never overbearing and harsh.So he spoke, and gave the horse to Noemon, his companion,to lead away; and he then took the shining cauldron.And Meriones took up the two talents of goldas fourth, as he drove. And the fifth prize was left,the two-handled bowl; and Achilles gave it to Nestor,carrying it through the Achaean assembly, and standing beside him he said:Take this now, and let it be a keepsake for you too, old man,to be a memorial of Patroclus's burial; for you will no longersee him among the Argives; and I give you this prizefreely; for you will no longer fight with your fists, nor wrestle,nor go into the javelin contest, nor runon your feet; for harsh old age now presses on you.So he spoke and put it in his hands; and he took it gladly,and speaking he addressed him with winged words:Yes indeed, my child, you have spoken all this rightly.For my limbs are no longer steady, my dear feet, nor do my handsleap lightly from my shoulders on either side.If only I were as young, and my strength as steady,as when the Epeians were burying lord Amarynceusat Buprasium, and his sons set up prizes for the king.There no man was my equal, neither of the Epeiansnor of the Pylians themselves nor of the great-hearted Aetolians.In boxing I beat Clytomedes, son of Oenops,and in wrestling Ancaeus of Pleuron, who stood up against me;and in the footrace I outran Iphiclus, good as he was,and with the spear I outthrew Phyleus and Polydorus.Only the two sons of Actor got past me with their horses,putting theirs in front by numbers, grudging me the victory,because the greatest prizes were left at stake there.And they were twins; one drove steadily,drove steadily, and the other urged him on with the whip.So I once was; but now let younger men take onsuch deeds; and I must obey wretched old age,though back then I stood out among the heroes.But come, and honor your companion with these funeral games.And this I gladly accept, and my heart rejoices,that you remember me always as kindly, and I am not forgotten,or the honor in which it is fitting that I be honored among the Achaeans.And may the gods give you a pleasing return for this.So he spoke, and the son of Peleus went away through the greatcrowd of the Achaeans, when he had heard all the praise of the son of Neleus.Then he set out prizes for the painful boxing match;leading a hard-working mule, he tied it in the assembly,six years old, unbroken, the hardest to tame;and for the one who lost he set a two-handled cup.And he stood up straight and spoke a word among the Argives:Son of Atreus, and you other well-greaved Achaeans,two men, the best of these, we call onto raise their fists and strike; and to whomever Apollogrants endurance, and all the Achaeans know it,let him lead the hard-working mule and go to his hut;and the one who is beaten will carry off the two-handled cup.So he spoke, and at once a man rose up, good and big,skilled in boxing, the son of Panopeus, Epeius,and he took hold of the hard-working mule and spoke:Let him come near who will carry off the two-handled cup.For no other of the Achaeans, I say, will lead away the muleby beating me with his fists, since I claim to be the best.Is it not enough that I fall short in battle? For it is not possiblein any way for a man to be skilled in every kind of work.For I will say it plainly, and it will surely come true:I will split his skin open and smash his bones together.And let his mourners stay here together,the ones who will carry him out, beaten down by my hands.So he spoke, and they all fell silent in stillness.And Euryalus alone rose against him, a godlike man,the son of Mecisteus, son of lord Talaus,who once came to Thebes for the burial of fallen Oedipus,and there he beat all the Cadmeans.And the famous son of Tydeus looked after him,encouraging him with words, and he greatly wanted him to win.He threw down a loincloth for him first, and thengave him well-cut straps of a wild ox's hide.And the two, girded up, went into the middle of the assembly,and raising their hands with sturdy arms together,they fell on each other, and their heavy hands tangled.And there was a terrible grinding of jaws, and sweat pouredfrom every limb; and noble Epeius rushed in,and struck him on the cheek as he looked around; and he did notstand much longer; for his shining limbs gave way beneath him.And as when a fish leaps up under the ripple of the North Windon a seaweed-covered beach, and the dark wave covers it,so he leapt up when struck; but great-hearted Epeiuscaught him with his hands and set him upright; and his dear companions stood around,and they led him through the assembly, dragging his feet,spitting thick blood and letting his head loll to one side;and they brought him, dazed, and sat him down among them,and they themselves went and fetched the two-handled cup.And the son of Peleus at once set out other prizes, for the third contest,showing the Danaans a contest of painful wrestling:for the winner a great cauldron, fit for the fire,which the Achaeans valued at twelve oxen among themselves;and for the man who lost he set out a woman in the middle,who knew many kinds of work, and they valued her at four oxen.And he stood up straight and spoke a word among the Argives:Stand up, you two who will also try this contest.So he spoke, and then great Telamonian Ajax rose up,and many-counseled Odysseus rose up too, knowing tricks.And the two, girded up, went into the middle of the assembly,and took hold of each other in their arms with sturdy hands,like two roof beams that a famous carpenter has joined togetherfor the roof of a high house, to keep off the force of the winds.And their backs creaked from their bold hands,pulled tight; and the sweat ran down their backs,and thick welts rose along their ribs and shoulders,stained red with blood; and they constantlystrained for victory and the well-wrought tripod.Nor could Odysseus trip him and bring him to the ground,nor could Ajax, for the strong power of Odysseus held him.But when they were tiring out the well-greaved Achaeans,then great Telamonian Ajax spoke to him:Zeus-born son of Laertes, many-counseled Odysseus,either lift me up, or I will lift you; and all this will be Zeus's concern.So he spoke and lifted him; but Odysseus did not forget his trick:he struck him from behind on the back of the knee and hit the spot, and his limbs gave way,and he threw him backward; and Odysseus fell on his chest.And the people looked on and were amazed.And second, much-enduring noble Odysseus lifted him,and moved him a little off the ground, but did not lift him,but bent his knee; and both fell to the groundclose together, and were dirtied with dust.And now they would have jumped up and wrestled a third time,if Achilles himself had not stood up and stopped them:Do not push on anymore, and do not wear yourselves out with pain;the victory is for both of you; take equal prizesand go, so that the other Achaeans can also compete.So he spoke, and they listened to him closely and obeyed,and wiping off the dust they put on their tunics.And the son of Peleus at once set out other prizes for the footrace:a silver mixing bowl, well made, and it heldsix measures, but in beauty it surpassed everything on earthby far, since the skilled Sidonians had made it well,and Phoenician men had brought it across the misty sea,and put it in the harbors, and gave it as a gift to Thoas;and the son of Priam, Lycaon, had given the price for itto the hero Patroclus, Euneus, son of Jason.And Achilles set it as a prize in honor of his companion,for whoever should be the lightest on his swift feet;and for the second he set a big ox, rich in fat,and for the last he set half a talent of gold.And he stood up straight and spoke a word among the Argives:Stand up, you who will also try this contest.So he spoke, and at once swift Ajax, son of Oileus, rose up,and many-counseled Odysseus rose up, and then the son of Nestor,Antilochus; for he was the fastest of all the young men on his feet.And they stood in a row, and Achilles showed them the turning point.And their course stretched out from the starting line; and quickly thenthe son of Oileus was in front; and after him rushed noble Odysseus,very near, as close as a weaving rod is tothe breast of a well-girded woman, which she pulls well with her hands,drawing the spool out past the warp, and holds it closeto her breast; that is how close Odysseus ran, and behind himhe kept stepping in his footprints before the dust could settle over them,and noble Odysseus breathed down on his head,always running fast; and all the Achaeans shouted,urging him on as he strained for victory, and they called to him as he hurried.But when they were making the final turn of the course, at once Odysseusprayed to bright-eyed Athena in his heart:Hear me, goddess, and come as a good helper to my feet.So he spoke in prayer; and Pallas Athena heard him,and made his limbs light, his feet and his hands too.But when they were about to spring for the prize,then Ajax slipped as he ran, for Athena tripped him,there where the dung of the bellowing oxen had been poured out,the oxen that swift-footed Achilles had killed for Patroclus;and his mouth and nostrils filled with ox dung;and much-enduring noble Odysseus picked up the bowl,since he got there first; but glorious Ajax took the ox.And he stood holding the horn of the wild ox in his hands,spitting out the dung, and said among the Argives:Alas, so the goddess ruined my feet, she who even beforehas stood by Odysseus like a mother and helped him.So he spoke, and they all laughed pleasantly at him.And then Antilochus carried off the last prize,smiling, and spoke a word among the Argives:I will say this to you all, my friends, who know it: even nowthe immortals honor older men.For Ajax is a little older than I am,but this one is from an earlier generation, and from earlier men still;and they say he is gray with age; and it is hardfor the Achaeans to compete with him on his feet, except for Achilles.So he spoke, and honored the swift-footed son of Peleus.And Achilles answered him with words and said:Antilochus, your praise will not be spoken in vain,but I will add half a talent of gold for you.So he spoke and put it in his hands, and he took it gladly.And the son of Peleus brought and set in the assemblya long-shadowed spear, and a shield and a helmet,the armor of Sarpedon, which Patroclus had taken from him.And he stood up straight and spoke a word among the Argives:Two men, the best of these, we call onto put on their armor and take the flesh-cutting bronzeand test each other in front of the crowd.Whichever one first reaches the other's fair skin,and touches the innards through the armor and the dark blood,to him I will give this silver-studded sword,a fine Thracian one, which I took from Asteropaeus;and the armor let them both carry off as common spoil;and we will set a good meal before them in the huts.So he spoke, and then great Telamonian Ajax rose up,and the son of Tydeus rose up, strong Diomedes.And when they had armed themselves on either side of the crowd,the two came into the middle, eager to fight,glaring terribly; and amazement held all the Achaeans.But when they were near, coming on against each other,three times they sprang at each other, three times they rushed in close.Then Ajax struck the shield that was even all around,but did not reach the skin; for the breastplate guarded him inside;and the son of Tydeus then kept aiming over the great shieldat his neck with the point of his shining spear.And then the Achaeans, greatly fearing for Ajax,told them to stop and take equal prizes.And to the son of Tydeus the hero gave the great sword,carrying it with its sheath and its well-cut strap.And the son of Peleus set out a lump of raw-melted iron,which the great strength of Eetion used to throw before;but swift-footed noble Achilles killed him,and carried the iron on his ships along with his other possessions.And he stood up straight and spoke a word among the Argives:Stand up, you who will also try this contest.Even if his rich fields are very far away,he will have it for five turning yearsto use; for neither shepherd nor plowmanwill go to town lacking iron, but it will supply them.So he spoke, and then war-steadfast Polypoetes rose up,and the strong might of godlike Leonteus rose up,and Ajax, son of Telamon, and noble Epeius rose up too.And they stood in a row, and noble Epeius took the lump,and whirled and threw it; and all the Achaeans laughed.And second Leonteus threw it, the branch of Ares;and third great Telamonian Ajax threw itfrom his sturdy hand, and he passed everyone's marks.But when war-steadfast Polypoetes took the lump,as far as a herdsman throws his crook,and it flies spinning through the herd of cattle,that far he threw beyond the whole assembly; and they shouted.And the companions of strong Polypoetes stood upand carried the king's prize to the hollow ships.And he set out for the archers the gray iron,and he set down ten axes, and ten half-axes,and he stood up the mast of a dark-prowed shipfar off on the sand, and tied a trembling doveby the foot with a thin cord, and told themto shoot at it; and whoever hit the trembling dove,let him carry off all the axes and go home;and whoever hit the cord and missed the bird,he is the lesser man, but he will carry off the half-axes.So he spoke, and then the might of lord Teucer rose up,and Meriones rose up, the good servant of Idomeneus.And they took lots and shook them in a bronze helmet,and Teucer by lot drew the first place; at once he shotan arrow with all his strength, and he did not promise the lordthat he would offer a famous hecatomb of first-born lambs.He missed the bird; for Apollo grudged him that;but he hit the cord beside its foot, where the bird was tied;and the bitter arrow cut the cord clean through.And the bird then darted toward the sky, and the cordwas let down to the ground; and the Achaeans shouted.And Meriones eagerly drew the bow from his hand;for he had been holding the arrow a long time, as he aimed.And at once he promised to far-shooting Apollothat he would offer a famous hecatomb of first-born lambs.And high under the clouds he saw the trembling dove;and as it circled he struck it in the middle under the wing,and the arrow went clean through; and it stuck back in the groundin front of Meriones's foot; but the bird,sitting on the mast of the dark-prowed ship,let its neck hang down, and its thick feathers fell away.And quickly the life flew from its limbs, and it fellfar from them; and the people looked on and were amazed.And Meriones picked up all ten axes,and Teucer carried the half-axes to the hollow ships.And the son of Peleus brought and set in the assemblythe long-shadowed spear, and a cauldron that had never felt fireworth an ox, decorated with flowers;and the two spearmen rose up:the son of Atreus, wide-ruling Agamemnon, rose up,and Meriones rose up, the good servant of Idomeneus.And swift-footed noble Achilles spoke among them:Son of Atreus; for we know how far you surpass everyone,and how in strength and in spear throws you are the best.But take this prize and go to the hollow ships,and let us give the spear to the hero Meriones,if you are willing in your heart; for I myself urge it.So he spoke, and Agamemnon, lord of men, did not disobey;and he gave the bronze spear to Meriones; and the herogave the very beautiful prize to the herald Talthybius.