At dawn the Achaian leaders resolved to try again the fortunes of war.
They were encouraged by the exploit of Ulysses and Diomede, and Jupiter
sent down Eris, the goddess of strife, to incite them to ardor for
battle. The goddess stood on the ship of Ulysses, which was in the
center of the fleet, and shouted so loud that she was heard all over the
Greek camp.
Loud was the voice, and terrible, in which
She shouted from her station to the Greeks,
And into every heart it carried strength,
And the resolve to combat manfully,
And never yield. The battle now to them
Seemed more to be desired than the return
To their dear country in their roomy ships.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XI.
Then began the greatest battle of the siege. So numerous were the
exploits of heroes in this mighty conflict that the account of it
occupies nearly eight books of the Iliad.
Agamemnon led the Grecian warriors during the earlier part of the day.
He was arrayed in brilliant armor, his breastplate being of gold and
bronze and tin.
Ten were its bars of tawny bronze, and twelve
Were gold, and twenty tin; and on each side
Were three bronze serpents stretching toward the neck.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XI.
His sword, glittering with golden studs, hung from his shoulder in a
silver sheath, and in his hands he bore two great spears, brass-tipped
and sharp. As he went forth to meet the foe, Juno and Minerva made a
sound as of thunder in the sky, "honoring the king of Mycenæ, rich in
gold." Thus did the Argive chief enter the field at the head of his
warriors.
The Trojans were already on the ground, their great leader, Hector, clad
in shining brazen armor, giving his commands, now in the front and now
in the rear. Like wolves rushing to combat the two hosts sprang against
each other, and soon the battle raged furiously, the heroes on both
sides fighting with equal valor.
They of Troy
And they of Argos smote each other down,
And neither thought of ignominious flight.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XI.
But about midday the Greeks prevailed against the Trojans, and drove
them back to the city gates. Agamemnon slew with his sword two of King
Priam's sons, Iʹsus and Anʹti-phus, and with his spear he struck down
many of the Trojan heroes.
[Illustration: IRIS.
_Painting by Watts._]
Hector had not yet taken part in the battle; Jupiter having sent him an
order by the messenger Iris not to begin fighting until Agamemnon should
retire wounded from the field. This soon happened. The king was wounded
in the arm by the Trojan chief Coʹon, whose brother, I-phidʹa-mas,
Agamemnon had slain. These two chiefs were sons of the venerable
Antenor. But Agamemnon, before withdrawing, rushed upon Coön and slew
him also. Then, leaping into his chariot, he ordered his charioteer to
drive him quickly to his ships, for he was suffering much from the pain
of his wound.
Hector, seeing the flight of the Greek leader, called loudly to the
Trojans to advance upon their foes, at the same time setting them the
example.
Himself, inspired
With fiery valor, rushed among the foes
In the mid-battle foremost, like a storm
That swoops from heaven, and on the dark-blue sea
Falls suddenly, and stirs it to its depths.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XI.
The fortune of battle now turned in favor of the men of Troy. Nine
warrior princes of the Greeks were struck down, one after another, by
the sword of Hector. The brave Diomede, wounded by an arrow from the bow
of Paris, was obliged to retire to his tent. A spear hurled by the
Trojan chief, Soʹcus, pierced the corselet of Ulysses, and wounded him
in the side. But the Trojan did not long survive this exploit, for as he
turned to flee, Ulysses sent a javelin through his body, felling him
lifeless to the earth. A serious misfortune had almost happened to the
Greeks at the hand of Paris, who shot a triple barbed arrow at the hero
and physician, Machaon, wounding him in the shoulder. The life of the
great son of Æsculapius being worth many men, Idomeneus cried to Nestor
to come and take him away in his chariot.
"Haste, mount thy chariot; let Machaon take
A place beside thee; urge thy firm-paced steeds
Rapidly toward the fleet; a leech like him,
Who cuts the arrow from the wound and soothes
The pain with balms, is worth a host to us."
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XI.
Many of their leaders being now disabled, the Greeks were driven from
the field and forced to take refuge behind their fortifications. At the
trench a terrible conflict took place. The Trojan warriors made efforts
to pass it in their chariots, while the Greeks fought with desperate
fury to force the invaders back. Many heroes on both sides were wounded
and many slain.
The towers and battlements were steeped in blood
Of heroes,--Greeks and Trojans.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XII.
At last Hector took up a large stone and hurled it with tremendous force
against one of the gates. It tore off the strong hinges, and shattered
the massive beams, so mighty was the blow. Then through the wide opening
the Trojan leader sprang into the Grecian camp, brandishing two spears
in his hands, and calling on his men to follow. Promptly they obeyed.
Some rushed in by the gateway, and some over the wall, while the
terrified Greeks fled in disorder and dismay to their ships.
So far none of the gods had taken part in the battle. But Neptune now
resolved to come to the rescue of the Greeks, having observed that
Jupiter, though still seated in his sacred inclosure on Mount Ida, was
no longer watching the conflict.
On Troy no more
He turned those glorious eyes, for now he deemed
That none of all the gods would seek to aid
Either the Greeks or Trojans in the strife.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XIII.
The ocean god, however, resolved to make the attempt. From the wooded
height of Samothrace he had been viewing the fight, and had seen that
the Achaian army and fleet were threatened with destruction. Quickly,
therefore, descending to the sea, he plunged down to his golden mansion
beneath the waves, and there put on his armor and mounted his chariot.
He yoked his swift and brazen-footed steeds,
With manes of flowing gold, to draw his car,
And put on golden mail, and took his scourge,
Wrought of fine gold, and climbed the chariot-seat,
And rode upon the waves. The whales came forth
From their deep haunts, and frolicked round his way:
They knew their king. The waves rejoicing smoothed
A path, and rapidly the coursers flew;
Nor was the brazen axle wet below.
And thus they brought him to the Greecian fleet.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XIII.
Arrived at the fleet, Neptune assumed the shape and voice of the
soothsayer Calchas, and, going amongst the Grecian leaders, urged them
to battle. With his scepter he touched the two Ajaxes, thereby giving
more than mortal strength to their limbs, and filling their breasts with
valor. Thus encouraged the Greek heroes turned fiercely upon the
Trojans, and again great feats of war were performed by the chiefs on
both sides. Hector, Paris, Helenus, Deiphʹo-bus, and Æneas fought in
front of the Trojan lines, while Menelaus, Idomeneus, Teucer, the two
Ajaxes, and An-tilʹo-chus, the son of Nestor, bravely led the conflict
at the head of the Greeks.
All along the line
The murderous conflict bristled with long spears.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XIII.
Juno rejoiced exceedingly at seeing the monarch of the ocean aiding the
Greeks, but she much feared that Jupiter might notice him, and order him
off the field. This he would be sure to do, if he should again turn his
eyes on the battle. Juno therefore went to the island of Lesʹbos, where
Somʹnus, the god of sleep, resided, and she entreated that deity to
hasten to Mount Ida, and cause her royal spouse to fall into a deep
slumber. Somnus consented, and having done as Juno desired, he hurried
down to the Grecian fleet with a message to Neptune.
"Now, Neptune, give the Greeks thy earnest aid,
And though it be but for a little space,
While Jupiter yet slumbers, let them win
The glory of the day; for I have wrapt
His senses in a gentle lethargy."
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XIV.
Hearing these words, Neptune rushed to the front of the Greek lines and
again urged the leaders to stand bravely against the enemy. Then,
grasping in his hand a sword "of fearful length and flashing blade like
lightning," he led them on to battle.
And now the warriors of both sides were once more in deadly conflict.
Hector cast a spear at Ajax, but the weapon struck where two belts
crossed upon the hero's breast, overlapping each other, and he escaped
unhurt. Then the son of Telamon struck at the Trojan leader. His weapon
was a heavy stone, one of many that lay around, which were used as props
for the ships. The missile, hurled with giant force and true aim, smote
the Trojan on the breast and felled him like a tree struck by lightning.
As when beneath
The stroke of Father Jupiter an oak
Falls broken at the root, . . . . . .
So dropped the valiant Hector to the earth
Amid the dust; his hand let fall the spear;
His shield and helm fell with him, and his mail
Of shining brass clashed round him.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XIV.
With shouts of triumph the Greeks rushed forward, hoping to slay the
fallen warrior, and despoil him of his armor. But his comrades, Æneas
and A-geʹnor and Sarpedon and many others, crowded around him, and
protected him with their shields. He was then carried to the bank of the
Xanthus and bathed in its waters, which revived him a little.
When the Greeks saw Hector borne away as if dead, they fought with
increased valor, and soon drove the Trojans back across the trench,
slaying many of their chiefs.
Meanwhile Jupiter, awaking from his slumber, and looking down upon the
battlefield, beheld the men of Troy put to flight, and Neptune at the
head of the pursuing Greeks. Turning angrily upon Juno, who was at his
side, he rebuked her in severe words, for he now saw the trick that had
been played upon him. He reminded her of how he had punished her on a
former occasion for her ill treatment of his son Hercules.
"Dost thou forget
When thou didst swing suspended, and I tied
Two anvils to thy feet, and bound a chain
Of gold that none could break around thy wrists?
Then didst thou hang in air amid the clouds,
And all the gods of high Olympus saw
With pity. They stood near, but none of them
Were able to release thee."
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XV.
Juno pleaded that it was not at her request that Neptune had gone to the
aid of the Greeks. He had done that without consulting her. She indeed,
she said, would rather advise Neptune to obey the command of the king of
heaven and submit to his will.
The anger of the father of the gods was appeased by Juno's mild words.
Then he bade her hasten to Olympus and send the messenger Iris down to
order Neptune to leave the battle. He bade her also to direct Apollo to
restore Hector's strength and prepare him for the fight. But he
explained to Juno why he wished that for the present the Trojans should
be victorious. It was because he had promised Thetis that the Greeks
should be punished for the wrong Agamemnon had done to her son. Yet the
time would come, he said, when the great Hector would be slain by the
hand of Achilles, and when by Minerva's aid the lofty towers of Troy
would be overthrown. Juno was therefore glad to obey the command of her
royal spouse.
As the thought of man
Flies rapidly, when, having traveled far,
He thinks, "Here would I be, I would be there,"
And flits from place to place, so swiftly flew
Imperial Juno to the Olympian mount.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XV.
There she informed Iris and Apollo of the will of Father Jove. Forthwith
the two gods hastened to Mount Ida to receive their orders from Jupiter
himself. The orders were quickly given. Then with the speed of the winds
the messenger of heaven and the god of the silver bow darted down from
Ida's top to the plain of Troy.
Neptune, on hearing of the command of Jupiter, was at first unwilling to
obey. Jupiter, he said, had no authority over him.
"We are three brothers,
The sons of Saturn,--Jupiter and I,
And Pluto, regent of the realm below.
Three parts were made of all existing things,
And each of us received his heritage.
The lots were shaken; and to me it fell
To dwell forever in the hoary deep,
And Pluto took the gloomy realm of night,
And lastly, Jupiter the ample heaven
And air and clouds. Yet doth the earth remain,
With high Olympus, common to us all.
Therefore I yield me not to do his will,
Great as he is; and let him be content
With his third part."
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XV.
But Iris advised Neptune to obey, reminding him that Jupiter had power
of punishing those who offended him. At last Neptune yielded, and,
quitting the Grecian army, took his way to the sea, and plunged beneath
the waves to his palace in the ocean depths.
Meanwhile Apollo hastened to the side of the Trojan prince, who was
still weak from the blow of Ajax. Quickly the god restored the hero's
strength and breathed fresh courage into his breast. Then he commanded
Hector to hasten forward and lead his warriors against the enemy. In an
instant the Trojan prince was on his feet, hurrying to the front. When
the Greek chiefs saw him they were astonished as well as terrified, for
they had thought him dead, and now they believed he had been rescued
from death by some god. They resolved, however, to fight bravely, and so
they stood firmly together. Hector meanwhile advanced, Apollo moving
before him with the shield of Jupiter, the terrible aegis, which Jupiter
had given him to shake before the Greeks and fill their hearts with
fear.
"Hector led
The van in rapid march. Before him walked
Phœbus, the terrible aggis in his hands,
Dazzlingly bright within its shaggy fringe,
By Vulcan forged, the great artificer,
And given to Jupiter, with which to rout
Armies of men. With this in hand he led
The assailants on."
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XV.
Against an attack so led the bravery of the Greeks was of little avail.
Numbers of their warriors were slain, and the rest fled back to their
camp, pursued by Hector and his triumphant hosts. This time the Trojans
were not hindered by the trench or the wall, for Apollo with his mighty
feet trampled down the earth banks, and overthrew the great wall as
easily as a child at play on the beach overthrows a tiny mound of sand.
Then a fierce struggle took place, the Greeks fighting with desperate
fury to defend their ships, which the Trojans, with lighted torches in
their hands, tried to set on fire. At one of the galleys there was a
terrific conflict. Hector, having grasped the vessel by the stern,
called to his men to bring on their flaming brands, while the mighty
Ajax stood on the rowers' bench, ready with his long spear to strike the
assailants back.
On the blade of that long spear
The hero took them as they came, and slew
In close encounter twelve before the fleet.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XV.
But at last the brave son of Telamon was forced to give way, Hector
having cut his spear shaft in two by a stroke of his huge sword. Then
the Trojans hurled forward their blazing torches, and the ship was soon
wrapped in flames. The Greeks were now in the greatest peril. No hope
seemed left to them to save their fleet from destruction. But help came
from an unexpected quarter. Patroclus, the friend and companion of
Achilles, had been watching the terrible conflict at the ships. As soon
as he saw the vessel on fire he hurried to the tent of the Myrmidonian
chief, and with tears in his eyes implored him to have pity on his
perishing countrymen.
"The Greeks," said he, "are sorely pressed. Their bravest leaders are
wounded, while you sit here, giving way to your wrath. If you will not
yourself go to their rescue, at least permit me to lead the Myrmidons to
battle, and let me wear your armor. The Trojans at the sight of it may
think I am Achilles, and be so terrified that our people may have a
little breathing time."
To this proposal Achilles assented, but he warned Patroclus not to
pursue the Trojans too far, lest he might meet his death at the hands of
one of the gods. "Rescue our good ships," said he, "but when you have
driven the enemy from the fleet, return hither."
With joy and eager haste Patroclus put on the armor of Achilles. Then
the great chief himself marshaled his Myrmidons in battle array, after
which he addressed them, bidding them fight valiantly. The occasion, he
said, had now come which they had so long desired, for they had often
blamed him because he had kept them from joining their countrymen in the
field. Fierce and fearless these Myrmidons were, and over two thousand
strong.
Achilles, dear to Jupiter, had led
Fifty swift barks to Ilium, and in each
Were fifty men, companions at the oar.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVI.
Patroclus now mounted the chariot of Achilles, with the brave
Au-tomʹe-don as charioteer, a hero next in valor to the renowned son of
Peleus himself. There were three horses in the team, Xanthus and
Baʹli-us, both of immortal breed, and fleet as the wind, and Pedʹa-sus,
which, though of mortal stock, was a match for the others in speed.
Like in strength, in swiftness and in grace,
A mortal courser match'd the immortal race.
POPE, _Iliad_, Book XVI.
Great was the terror of the Trojans when they beheld the Myrmidons march
forth to battle.
Every heart grew faint
With fear; the close ranks wavered; for they thought
That the swift son of Peleus at the fleet
Had laid aside his wrath, and was again
The friend of Agamemnon. Eagerly
They looked around for an escape from death.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVI.
[Illustration: AUTOMEDON AND THE HORSES OF ACHILLES.
_Painting by Regnault._]
The Greek fleet was soon out of danger, for Patroclus and his Myrmidons,
having furiously attacked the Trojans, quickly drove them away from the
burning vessel and put out the fire. Having thus saved the ships, the
Myrmidonian warriors, aided by the other Greeks, then drove the Trojans
with great slaughter from the camp into the plain, and on towards the
walls of the city.
In that scattered conflict of the chiefs
Each Argive slew a warrior.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVI.
Even the mighty Hector was not able to stop the flight of the
panic-stricken Trojans, who seemed for the moment to have lost all their
courage, so great was their fear at the name of Achilles. The hero
Sarpedon at the head of his brave Lycians attempted to turn back the
onset of the Myrmidons, and he sought out their leader to engage him in
single combat. Both warriors sprang from their chariots at the same
moment, and rushed at each other, hurling their spears. Twice Sarpedon
missed his foe, but one of the weapons killed Pedasus, the horse of
"mortal stock." The leader of the Myrmidons cast his javelin with truer
aim, for it pierced the Lycian chief right in the breast, and the hero
fell like a tall pine tree falling in the forest at the last blow of the
woodman's ax.
Then a fierce conflict took place over the body, the Greeks seeking to
obtain possession of the warrior's armor, which they did after many on
both sides had been slain in the struggle. The body itself was sent by
Apollo, at Jupiter's command, to Lycia, that the hero's kinsmen there
might perform funeral rites in his honor.
In robes of heaven
He clothed him, giving him to Sleep and Death,
Twin brothers, and swift bearers of the dead,
And they, with speed conveying it, laid down
The corpse in Lycia's broad and opulent realm.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVI.
Jupiter thus honored Sarpedon because the hero was his own son. He would
have saved him from the spear of Patroclus, but the Fates had decreed
that Sarpedon should die in the battle, and the decrees of the Fates
were not to be set aside even by Jove himself.
Patroclus, too, was doomed to fall in the conflict of the day, and the
moment was now at hand. Forgetting the warning Achilles had given him,
he pursued the Trojans up to the very gates of the city. Then he
attempted to scale the wall, but he was driven back by Apollo, who spoke
to him in threatening voice, saying that not by him should Troy be
taken, nor by his chief, though mightier far than he. Hastily Patroclus
withdrew from the walls, fearing the wrath of the archer god, but he
continued to deal death among the Trojans as they came within reach of
his weapons.
At last Hector, urged by Apollo, rushed forward in his chariot to
encounter Patroclus. The Myrmidon leader lifted a large stone, and flung
it with all his force at the Trojan chief as he approached. It missed
Hector, but killed Ce-briʹo-nes, his charioteer, and while they fought
over the body, each helped by brave comrades, many more on both sides
were laid in the dust. Again the archer god interfered, this time coming
unseen behind Patroclus, and striking him with his open palm between the
shoulders. The hero staggered under the blow, his huge spear was
shattered in his hands, and his shield dropped to the ground. Then
Eu-phorʹbus, a Dardanian chief, hurried forward, and with his lance
wounded him in the back. Thus disarmed and almost overpowered, Patroclus
turned to seek refuge in the ranks of his friends. As he was retreating,
Hector rushed upon him, and thrusting a spear deep into his body, gave
the brave warrior his death wound.
The hero fell
With clashing mail, and all the Greeks beheld
His fall with grief.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVI.
Then there was a long and terrific fight around the corpse of the fallen
champion. The description of it occupies a whole book of the Iliad. The
armor Patroclus wore was, as we have seen, the rich armor of Achilles,
and the Trojans were eager to get possession of it. They wished also to
get possession of the hero's body, that his friends might not have the
satisfaction of performing the usual funeral rites in his honor.
Menelaus was the first to stand guard over the body, and Euphorbus was
the first to fall in the fight. Hector had gone in pursuit of the
charioteer, Automedon, thinking to slay him, and capture the immortal
horses of Achilles. But Apollo warned him against the attempt.
"Hector, thou art pursuing what thy feet
Will never overtake, the steeds which draw
The chariot of Achilles. Hard it were
For mortal man to tame them or to guide,
Save for Achilles, goddess-born. Meanwhile
Hath warlike Menelaus, Atreus' son,
Guarding the slain Patroclus, overthrown
Euphorbus, bravest of the Trojan host."
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVII.
Hearing these words Hector hastened back to where the corpse of the
Greek hero was lying. When Menelaus saw him approaching, he withdrew,
and hurried off to seek help, for he feared to encounter the terrible
Trojan leader. Then Hector stripped Patroclus of the splendid armor of
Achilles, and he was about dragging away the body, but just at that
moment Ajax rushed up. Hector now retreated, leaping into his chariot
and giving the glittering armor to his friends to be carried away to
Troy.
For thus fleeing from the fight the Trojan chief was severely rebuked by
Glauʹcus, a Lycian warrior, who had been the comrade of the brave
Sarpedon. Glaucus wished to get the body of Patroclus so that with it he
might ransom Sarpedon's armor from the Greeks. Hector answered Glaucus,
saying that he feared not the battle's fury, as he would presently show.
Then he put on the armor of Achilles and he called to the Trojans to
follow him, promising a rich reward to the warrior who should carry off
the body for which they were going to fight.
"To him who from the field will drag and bring
The slain Patroclus to the Trojan knights,
Compelling Ajax to give way,--to him
I yield up half the spoil; the other half
I keep, and let his glory equal mine."
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVII.
With Hector at their head the Trojans now rushed forward. Ajax, seeing
them advance, bade Menelaus summon the other Greek warriors to help in
defending the body of their countryman. Quickly they were called and
quickly they came. Then hand to hand and sword to sword both armies
fought, and the battle raged furiously round the corpse of Patroclus.
They of Ilium strove
To drag it to the city, they of Greece,
To bear it to the fleet.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVII.
At last Menelaus and a brother warrior lifted up the body and bore it
away towards the trench. The Trojans followed, but the two Ajaxes turned
around and, facing the pursuers, fought with heroic bravery to hold them
back.
Thus, in hot pursuit
And close array, the Trojans following strook
With swords and two-edged spears; but when the twain
Turned and stood firm to meet them, every cheek
Grew pale, and not a single Trojan dared
Draw near the Greeks to combat for the corse.
Thus rapidly they bore away the dead
Toward their good galleys from the battlefield.
Onward with them the furious battle swept.
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVII.
Meanwhile Antilochus, the son of Nestor, was sent from the field to
carry to Achilles the sad news of the death of Patroclus. The chief was
just then sitting near his ships thinking over the event which he feared
had already happened, for the shouts of the Greeks as they fled from the
plain pursued by the Trojans, had reached his ears. Upon learning the
tidings brought by Antilochus, the hero burst into a fit of grief,
tearing his hair, throwing himself on the earth, and uttering loud
lamentations. His goddess mother, Thetis, in her father's palace beneath
the waves, heard his cries. She hastened up, attended by a number of sea
nymphs, and, embracing her son, inquired the cause of his grief.
Achilles told her of the death of his dear friend, and then said:
"No wish
Have I to live or to concern myself
In men's affairs, save this: that Hector first,
Pierced by my spear, shall yield his life, and pay
The debt of vengeance for Patroclus slain."
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVIII.
The weeping mother, wishing to save her son, told him of the fate which
had decreed that his own death should soon follow that of Hector.
"Ah then, I see thee dying, see thee dead!
When Hector falls, thou diest."
POPE, _Iliad_, Book XVIII.
But the warning of Thetis was in vain. "Let my death come," said he,
"when the gods will it. I shall have revenge on Hector, by whose hand my
friend has been slain."
Seeing that she could not induce him to alter his purpose, his mother
reminded him that his bright armor had been seized by the Trojans. She
bade him therefore not go to battle until she should bring him new armor
made by Vulcan, which she promised to do early next morning. Then she
commanded the other nymphs to return to their ocean home, and she
herself ascended to Olympus, to ask the god of smiths to forge
glittering armor for her son.
Meantime the fight over the body of Patroclus still continued. The
Greeks were now driven to their ships, and in danger of being totally
defeated. Three times Hector seized the body by the feet, to drag it
away, and three times the mighty Ajaxes forced him back. Still again he
seized it, and this time he would have borne it away, had not Juno sent
Iris down to Achilles to bid him hasten to the relief of his friends.
"But how," he asked, "can I go forth to the battle, since the enemy have
my arms?" Iris answered:
"Go thou to the trench, and show thyself
To them of Troy, that, haply smit with fear,
They may desist from battle."
BRYANT, _Iliad_, Book XVIII.
Then the goddess Minerva spread a golden cloud around the head of
Achilles, and she kindled in it a bright flame that streamed upward to
the sky. And the hero went out beyond the wall, and stood beside the
trench, and he shouted in a voice loud as a trumpet sound,--a shout that
carried dismay into the ranks of the Trojans.
The hearts of all who heard that brazen voice
Were troubled, and their steeds with flowing manes
Turned backward with the chariots,--such the dread
Of coming slaughter.
. . . . . . . .
Thrice o'er the trench Achilles shouted; thrice
The men of Troy and their renowned allies
Fell into wild disorder. Then there died,
Entangled midst the chariots, and transfixed
By their own spears, twelve of their bravest chiefs.
The Greeks bore off Patroclus from the field
With eager haste, and placed him on a bier,
And there the friends that loved him gathered round
Lamenting.