Thus did they make their moan throughout the city, while the Achaeans
when they reached the Hellespont went back every man to his own ship.
But Achilles would not let the Myrmidons go, and spoke to his brave
comrades saying, "Myrmidons, famed horsemen and my own trusted friends,
not yet, forsooth, let us unyoke, but with horse and chariot draw
near to the body and mourn Patroclus, in due honour to the dead. When
we have had full comfort of lamentation we will unyoke our horses
and take supper all of us here."

On this they all joined in a cry of wailing and Achilles led them
in their lament. Thrice did they drive their chariots all sorrowing
round the body, and Thetis stirred within them a still deeper yearning.
The sands of the seashore and the men's armour were wet with their
weeping, so great a minister of fear was he whom they had lost. Chief
in all their mourning was the son of Peleus: he laid his bloodstained
hand on the breast of his friend. "Fare well," he cried, "Patroclus,
even in the house of Hades. I will now do all that I erewhile promised
you; I will drag Hector hither and let dogs devour him raw; twelve
noble sons of Trojans will I also slay before your pyre to avenge
you."

As he spoke he treated the body of noble Hector with contumely, laying
it at full length in the dust beside the bier of Patroclus. The others
then put off every man his armour, took the horses from their chariots,
and seated themselves in great multitude by the ship of the fleet
descendant of Aeacus, who thereon feasted them with an abundant funeral
banquet. Many a goodly ox, with many a sheep and bleating goat did
they butcher and cut up; many a tusked boar moreover, fat and well-fed,
did they singe and set to roast in the flames of Vulcan; and rivulets
of blood flowed all round the place where the body was lying.
Then the princes of the Achaeans took the son of Peleus to Agamemnon,
but hardly could they persuade him to come with them, so wroth was
he for the death of his comrade. As soon as they reached Agamemnon's
tent they told the serving-men to set a large tripod over the fire
in case they might persuade the son of Peleus 'to wash the clotted
gore from this body, but he denied them sternly, and swore it with
a solemn oath, saying, "Nay, by King Jove, first and mightiest of
all gods, it is not meet that water should touch my body, till I have
laid Patroclus on the flames, have built him a barrow, and shaved
my head- for so long as I live no such second sorrow shall ever draw
nigh me. Now, therefore, let us do all that this sad festival demands,
but at break of day, King Agamemnon, bid your men bring wood, and
provide all else that the dead may duly take into the realm of darkness;
the fire shall thus burn him out of our sight the sooner, and the
people shall turn again to their own labours."

Thus did he speak, and they did even as he had said. They made haste
to prepare the meal, they ate, and every man had his full share so
that all were satisfied. As soon as they had had had enough to eat
and drink, the others went to their rest each in his own tent, but
the son of Peleus lay grieving among his Myrmidons by the shore of
the sounding sea, in an open place where the waves came surging in
one after another. Here a very deep slumber took hold upon him and
eased the burden of his sorrows, for his limbs were weary with chasing
Hector round windy Ilius. Presently the sad spirit of Patroclus drew
near him, like what he had been in stature, voice, and the light of
his beaming eyes, clad, too, as he had been clad in life. The spirit
hovered over his head and said-
"You sleep, Achilles, and have forgotten me; you loved me living,
but now that I am dead you think for me no further. Bury me with all
speed that I may pass the gates of Hades; the ghosts, vain shadows
of men that can labour no more, drive me away from them; they will
not yet suffer me to join those that are beyond the river, and I wander
all desolate by the wide gates of the house of Hades. Give me now
your hand I pray you, for when you have once given me my dues of fire,
never shall I again come forth out of the house of Hades. Nevermore
shall we sit apart and take sweet counsel among the living; the cruel
fate which was my birth-right has yawned its wide jaws around me-
nay, you too Achilles, peer of gods, are doomed to die beneath the
wall of the noble Trojans.

"One prayer more will I make you, if you will grant it; let not my
bones be laid apart from yours, Achilles, but with them; even as we
were brought up together in your own home, what time Menoetius brought
me to you as a child from Opoeis because by a sad spite I had killed
the son of Amphidamas- not of set purpose, but in childish quarrel
over the dice. The knight Peleus took me into his house, entreated
me kindly, and named me to be your squire; therefore let our bones
lie in but a single urn, the two-handled golden vase given to you
by your mother."

And Achilles answered, "Why, true heart, are you come hither to lay
these charges upon me? will of my own self do all as you have bidden
me. Draw closer to me, let us once more throw our arms around one
another, and find sad comfort in the sharing of our sorrows."
He opened his arms towards him as he spoke and would have clasped
him in them, but there was nothing, and the spirit vanished as a vapour,
gibbering and whining into the earth. Achilles sprang to his feet,
smote his two hands, and made lamentation saying, "Of a truth even
in the house of Hades there are ghosts and phantoms that have no life
in them; all night long the sad spirit of Patroclus has hovered over
head making piteous moan, telling me what I am to do for him, and
looking wondrously like himself."

Thus did he speak and his words set them all weeping and mourning
about the poor dumb dead, till rosy-fingered morn appeared. Then King
Agamemnon sent men and mules from all parts of the camp, to bring
wood, and Meriones, squire to Idomeneus, was in charge over them.
They went out with woodmen's axes and strong ropes in their hands,
and before them went the mules. Up hill and down dale did they go,
by straight ways and crooked, and when they reached the heights of
many-fountained Ida, they laid their axes to the roots of many a tall
branching oak that came thundering down as they felled it. They split
the trees and bound them behind the mules, which then wended their
way as they best could through the thick brushwood on to the plain.
All who had been cutting wood bore logs, for so Meriones squire to
Idomeneus had bidden them, and they threw them down in a line upon
the seashore at the place where Achilles would make a mighty monument
for Patroclus and for himself.

When they had thrown down their great logs of wood over the whole
ground, they stayed all of them where they were, but Achilles ordered
his brave Myrmidons to gird on their armour, and to yoke each man
his horses; they therefore rose, girded on their armour and mounted
each his chariot- they and their charioteers with them. The chariots
went before, and they that were on foot followed as a cloud in their
tens of thousands after. In the midst of them his comrades bore Patroclus
and covered him with the locks of their hair which they cut off and
threw upon his body. Last came Achilles with his head bowed for sorrow,
so noble a comrade was he taking to the house of Hades.

When they came to the place of which Achilles had told them they laid
the body down and built up the wood. Achilles then bethought him of
another matter. He went a space away from the pyre, and cut off the
yellow lock which he had let grow for the river Spercheius. He looked
all sorrowfully out upon the dark sea, and said, "Spercheius, in vain
did my father Peleus vow to you that when I returned home to my loved
native land I should cut off this lock and offer you a holy hecatomb;
fifty she-goats was I to sacrifice to you there at your springs, where
is your grove and your altar fragrant with burnt-offerings. Thus did
my father vow, but you have not fulfilled his prayer; now, therefore,
that I shall see my home no more, I give this lock as a keepsake to
the hero Patroclus."

As he spoke he placed the lock in the hands of his dear comrade, and
all who stood by were filled with yearning and lamentation. The sun
would have gone down upon their mourning had not Achilles presently
said to Agamemnon, "Son of Atreus, for it is to you that the people
will give ear, there is a time to mourn and a time to cease from mourning;
bid the people now leave the pyre and set about getting their dinners:
we, to whom the dead is dearest, will see to what is wanted here,
and let the other princes also stay by me."

When King Agamemnon heard this he dismissed the people to their ships,
but those who were about the dead heaped up wood and built a pyre
a hundred feet this way and that; then they laid the dead all sorrowfully
upon the top of it. They flayed and dressed many fat sheep and oxen
before the pyre, and Achilles took fat from all of them and wrapped
the body therein from head to foot, heaping the flayed carcases all
round it. Against the bier he leaned two-handled jars of honey and
unguents; four proud horses did he then cast upon the pyre, groaning
the while he did so. The dead hero had had house-dogs; two of them
did Achilles slay and threw upon the pyre; he also put twelve brave
sons of noble Trojans to the sword and laid them with the rest, for
he was full of bitterness and fury. Then he committed all to the resistless
and devouring might of the fire; he groaned aloud and callid on his
dead comrade by name. "Fare well," he cried, "Patroclus, even in the
house of Hades; I am now doing all that I have promised you. Twelve
brave sons of noble Trojans shall the flames consume along with yourself,
but dogs, not fire, shall devour the flesh of Hector son of Priam."

Thus did he vaunt, but the dogs came not about the body of Hector,
for Jove's daughter Venus kept them off him night and day, and anointed
him with ambrosial oil of roses that his flesh might not be torn when
Achilles was dragging him about. Phoebus Apollo moreover sent a dark
cloud from heaven to earth, which gave shade to the whole place where
Hector lay, that the heat of the sun might not parch his body.

Now the pyre about dead Patroclus would not kindle. Achilles therefore
bethought him of another matter; he went apart and prayed to the two
winds Boreas and Zephyrus vowing them goodly offerings. He made them
many drink-offerings from the golden cup and besought them to come
and help him that the wood might make haste to kindle and the dead
bodies be consumed. Fleet Iris heard him praying and started off to
fetch the winds. They were holding high feast in the house of boisterous
Zephyrus when Iris came running up to the stone threshold of the house
and stood there, but as soon as they set eyes on her they all came
towards her and each of them called her to him, but Iris would not
sit down. "I cannot stay," she said, "I must go back to the streams
of Oceanus and the land of the Ethiopians who are offering hecatombs
to the immortals, and I would have my share; but Achilles prays that
Boreas and shrill Zephyrus will come to him, and he vows them goodly
offerings; he would have you blow upon the pyre of Patroclus for whom
all the Achaeans are lamenting."

With this she left them, and the two winds rose with a cry that rent
the air and swept the clouds before them. They blew on and on until
they came to the sea, and the waves rose high beneath them, but when
they reached Troy they fell upon the pyre till the mighty flames roared
under the blast that they blew. All night long did they blow hard
and beat upon the fire, and all night long did Achilles grasp his
double cup, drawing wine from a mixing-bowl of gold, and calling upon
the spirit of dead Patroclus as he poured it upon the ground until
the earth was drenched. As a father mourns when he is burning the
bones of his bridegroom son whose death has wrung the hearts of his
parents, even so did Achilles mourn while burning the body of his
comrade, pacing round the bier with piteous groaning and lamentation.

At length as the Morning Star was beginning to herald the light which
saffron-mantled Dawn was soon to suffuse over the sea, the flames
fell and the fire began to die. The winds then went home beyond the
Thracian sea, which roared and boiled as they swept over it. The son
of Peleus now turned away from the pyre and lay down, overcome with
toil, till he fell into a sweet slumber. Presently they who were about
the son of Atreus drew near in a body, and roused him with the noise
and tramp of their coming. He sat upright and said, "Son of Atreus,
and all other princes of the Achaeans, first pour red wine everywhere
upon the fire and quench it; let us then gather the bones of Patroclus
son of Menoetius, singling them out with care; they are easily found,
for they lie in the middle of the pyre, while all else, both men and
horses, has been thrown in a heap and burned at the outer edge. We
will lay the bones in a golden urn, in two layers of fat, against
the time when I shall myself go down into the house of Hades. As for
the barrow, labour not to raise a great one now, but such as is reasonable.
Afterwards, let those Achaeans who may be left at the ships when I
am gone, build it both broad and high."

Thus he spoke and they obeyed the word of the son of Peleus. First
they poured red wine upon the thick layer of ashes and quenched the
fire. With many tears they singled out the whitened bones of their
loved comrade and laid them within a golden urn in two layers of fat:
they then covered the urn with a linen cloth and took it inside the
tent. They marked off the circle where the barrow should be, made
a foundation for it about the pyre, and forthwith heaped up the earth.
When they had thus raised a mound they were going away, but Achilles
stayed the people and made them sit in assembly. He brought prizes
from the ships-cauldrons, tripods, horses and mules, noble oxen, women
with fair girdles, and swart iron.

The first prize he offered was for the chariot races- a woman skilled
in all useful arts, and a three-legged cauldron that had ears for
handles, and would hold twenty-two measures. This was for the man
who came in first. For the second there was a six-year old mare, unbroken,
and in foal to a he-ass; the third was to have a goodly cauldron that
had never yet been on the fire; it was still bright as when it left
the maker, and would hold four measures. The fourth prize was two
talents of gold, and the fifth a two-handled urn as yet unsoiled by
smoke. Then he stood up and spoke among the Argives saying-

"Son of Atreus, and all other Achaeans, these are the prizes that
lie waiting the winners of the chariot races. At any other time I
should carry off the first prize and take it to my own tent; you know
how far my steeds excel all others- for they are immortal; Neptune
gave them to my father Peleus, who in his turn gave them to myself;
but I shall hold aloof, I and my steeds that have lost their brave
and kind driver, who many a time has washed them in clear water and
anointed their manes with oil. See how they stand weeping here, with
their manes trailing on the ground in the extremity of their sorrow.
But do you others set yourselves in order throughout the host, whosoever
has confidence in his horses and in the strength of his chariot."

Thus spoke the son of Peleus and the drivers of chariots bestirred
themselves. First among them all uprose Eumelus, king of men, son
of Admetus, a man excellent in horsemanship. Next to him rose mighty
Diomed son of Tydeus; he yoked the Trojan horses which he had taken
from Aeneas, when Apollo bore him out of the fight. Next to him, yellow-haired
Menelaus son of Atreus rose and yoked his fleet horses, Agamemnon's
mare Aethe, and his own horse Podargus. The mare had been given to
Agamemnon by echepolus son of Anchises, that he might not have to
follow him to Ilius, but might stay at home and take his ease; for
Jove had endowed him with great wealth and he lived in spacious Sicyon.
This mare, all eager for the race, did Menelaus put under the yoke.

Fourth in order Antilochus, son to noble Nestor son of Neleus, made
ready his horses. These were bred in Pylos, and his father came up
to him to give him good advice of which, however, he stood in but
little need. "Antilochus," said Nestor, "you are young, but Jove and
Neptune have loved you well, and have made you an excellent horseman.
I need not therefore say much by way of instruction. You are skilful
at wheeling your horses round the post, but the horses themselves
are very slow, and it is this that will, I fear, mar your chances.
The other drivers know less than you do, but their horses are fleeter;
therefore, my dear son, see if you cannot hit upon some artifice whereby
you may insure that the prize shall not slip through your fingers.
The woodman does more by skill than by brute force; by skill the pilot
guides his storm-tossed barque over the sea, and so by skill one driver
can beat another. If a man go wide in rounding this way and that,
whereas a man who knows what he is doing may have worse horses, but
he will keep them well in hand when he sees the doubling-post; he
knows the precise moment at which to pull the rein, and keeps his
eye well on the man in front of him. I will give you this certain
token which cannot escape your notice. There is a stump of a dead
tree-oak or pine as it may be- some six feet above the ground, and
not yet rotted away by rain; it stands at the fork of the road; it
has two white stones set one on each side, and there is a clear course
all round it. It may have been a monument to some one long since dead,
or it may have been used as a doubling-post in days gone by; now,
however, it has been fixed on by Achilles as the mark round which
the chariots shall turn; hug it as close as you can, but as you stand
in your chariot lean over a little to the left; urge on your right-hand
horse with voice and lash, and give him a loose rein, but let the
left-hand horse keep so close in, that the nave of your wheel shall
almost graze the post; but mind the stone, or you will wound your
horses and break your chariot in pieces, which would be sport for
others but confusion for yourself. Therefore, my dear son, mind well
what you are about, for if you can be first to round the post there
is no chance of any one giving you the goby later, not even though
you had Adrestus's horse Arion behind you horse which is of divine
race- or those of Laomedon, which are the noblest in this country."

When Nestor had made an end of counselling his son he sat down in
his place, and fifth in order Meriones got ready his horses. They
then all mounted their chariots and cast lots.- Achilles shook the
helmet, and the lot of Antilochus son of Nestor fell out first; next
came that of King Eumelus, and after his, those of Menelaus son of
Atreus and of Meriones. The last place fell to the lot of Diomed son
of Tydeus, who was the best man of them all. They took their places
in line; Achilles showed them the doubling-post round which they were
to turn, some way off upon the plain; here he stationed his father's
follower Phoenix as umpire, to note the running, and report truly.

At the same instant they all of them lashed their horses, struck them
with the reins, and shouted at them with all their might. They flew
full speed over the plain away from the ships, the dust rose from
under them as it were a cloud or whirlwind, and their manes were all
flying in the wind. At one moment the chariots seemed to touch the
ground, and then again they bounded into the air; the drivers stood
erect, and their hearts beat fast and furious in their lust of victory.
Each kept calling on his horses, and the horses scoured the plain
amid the clouds of dust that they raised.

It was when they were doing the last part of the course on their way
back towards the sea that their pace was strained to the utmost and
it was seen what each could do. The horses of the descendant of Pheres
now took the lead, and close behind them came the Trojan stallions
of Diomed. They seemed as if about to mount Eumelus's chariot, and
he could feel their warm breath on his back and on his broad shoulders,
for their heads were close to him as they flew over the course. Diomed
would have now passed him, or there would have been a dead heat, but
Phoebus Apollo to spite him made him drop his whip. Tears of anger
fell from his eyes as he saw the mares going on faster than ever,
while his own horses lost ground through his having no whip. Minerva
saw the trick which Apollo had played the son of Tydeus, so she brought
him his whip and put spirit into his horses; moreover she went after
the son of Admetus in a rage and broke his yoke for him; the mares
went one to one side the course, and the other to the other, and the
pole was broken against the ground. Eumelus was thrown from his chariot
close to the wheel; his elbows, mouth, and nostrils were all torn,
and his forehead was bruised above his eyebrows; his eyes filled with
tears and he could find no utterance. But the son of Tydeus turned
his horses aside and shot far ahead, for Minerva put fresh strength
into them and covered Diomed himself with glory.

Menelaus son of Atreus came next behind him, but Antilochus called
to his father's horses. "On with you both," he cried, "and do your
very utmost. I do not bid you try to beat the steeds of the son of
Tydeus, for Minerva has put running into them, and has covered Diomed
with glory; but you must overtake the horses of the son of Atreus
and not be left behind, or Aethe who is so fleet will taunt you. Why,
my good fellows, are you lagging? I tell you, and it shall surely
be- Nestor will keep neither of you, but will put both of you to the
sword, if we win any the worse a prize through your carelessness,
fly after them at your utmost speed; I will hit on a plan for passing
them in a narrow part of the way, and it shall not fail me."

They feared the rebuke of their master, and for a short space went
quicker. Presently Antilochus saw a narrow place where the road had
sunk. The ground was broken, for the winter's rain had gathered and
had worn the road so that the whole place was deepened. Menelaus was
making towards it so as to get there first, for fear of a foul, but
Antilochus turned his horses out of the way, and followed him a little
on one side. The son of Atreus was afraid and shouted out, "Antilochus,
you are driving recklessly; rein in your horses; the road is too narrow
here, it will be wider soon, and you can pass me then; if you foul
my chariot you may bring both of us to a mischief."

But Antilochus plied his whip, and drove faster, as though he had
not heard him. They went side by side for about as far as a young
man can hurl a disc from his shoulder when he is trying his strength,
and then Menelaus's mares drew behind, for he left off driving for
fear the horses should foul one another and upset the chariots; thus,
while pressing on in quest of victory, they might both come headlong
to the ground. Menelaus then upbraided Antilochus and said, "There
is no greater trickster living than you are; go, and bad luck go with
you; the Achaeans say not well that you have understanding, and come
what may you shall not bear away the prize without sworn protest on
my part."

Then he called on his horses and said to them, "Keep your pace, and
slacken not; the limbs of the other horses will weary sooner than
yours, for they are neither of them young."

The horses feared the rebuke of their master, and went faster, so
that they were soon nearly up with the others.

Meanwhile the Achaeans from their seats were watching how the horses
went, as they scoured the plain amid clouds of their own dust. Idomeneus
captain of the Cretans was first to make out the running, for he was
not in the thick of the crowd, but stood on the most commanding part
of the ground. The driver was a long way off, but Idomeneus could
hear him shouting, and could see the foremost horse quite plainly-
a chestnut with a round white star, like the moon, on its forehead.
He stood up and said among the Argives, "My friends, princes and counsellors
of the Argives, can you see the running as well as I can? There seems
to be another pair in front now, and another driver; those that led
off at the start must have been disabled out on the plain. I saw them
at first making their way round the doubling-post, but now, though
I search the plain of Troy, I cannot find them. Perhaps the reins
fell from the driver's hand so that he lost command of his horses
at the doubling-post, and could not turn it. I suppose he must have
been thrown out there, and broken his chariot, while his mares have
left the course and gone off wildly in a panic. Come up and see for
yourselves, I cannot make out for certain, but the driver seems an
Aetolian by descent, ruler over the Argives, brave Diomed the son
of Tydeus."

Ajax the son of Oileus took him up rudely and said, "Idomeneus, why
should you be in such a hurry to tell us all about it, when the mares
are still so far out upon the plain? You are none of the youngest,
nor your eyes none of the sharpest, but you are always laying down
the law. You have no right to do so, for there are better men here
than you are. Eumelus's horses are in front now, as they always have
been, and he is on the chariot holding the reins."

The captain of the Cretans was angry, and answered, "Ajax you are
an excellent railer, but you have no judgement, and are wanting in
much else as well, for you have a vile temper. I will wager you a
tripod or cauldron, and Agamemnon son of Atreus shall decide whose
horses are first. You will then know to your cost."

Ajax son of Oileus was for making him an angry answer, and there would
have been yet further brawling between them, had not Achilles risen
in his place and said, "Cease your railing Ajax and Idomeneus; it
is not you would be scandalised if you saw any one else do the like:
sit down and keep your eyes on the horses; they are speeding towards
the winning-post and will be bere directly. You will then both of
you know whose horses are first, and whose come after."

As he was speaking, the son of Tydeus came driving in, plying his
whip lustily from his shoulder, and his horses stepping high as they
flew over the course. The sand and grit rained thick on the driver,
and the chariot inlaid with gold and tin ran close behind his fleet
horses. There was little trace of wheel-marks in the fine dust, and
the horses came flying in at their utmost speed. Diomed stayed them
in the middle of the crowd, and the sweat from their manes and chests
fell in streams on to the ground. Forthwith he sprang from his goodly
chariot, and leaned his whip against his horses' yoke; brave Sthenelus
now lost no time, but at once brought on the prize, and gave the woman
and the ear-handled cauldron to his comrades to take away. Then he
unyoked the horses.

Next after him came in Antilochus of the race of Neleus, who had passed
Menelaus by a trick and not by the fleetness of his horses; but even
so Menelaus came in as close behind him as the wheel is to the horse
that draws both the chariot and its master. The end hairs of a horse's
tail touch the tyre of the wheel, and there is never much space between
wheel and horse when the chariot is going; Menelaus was no further
than this behind Antilochus, though at first he had been a full disc's
throw behind him. He had soon caught him up again, for Agamemnon's
mare Aethe kept pulling stronger and stronger, so that if the course
had been longer he would have passed him, and there would not even
have been a dead heat. Idomeneus's brave squire Meriones was about
a spear's cast behind Menelaus. His horses were slowest of all, and
he was the worst driver. Last of them all came the son of Admetus,
dragging his chariot and driving his horses on in front. When Achilles
saw him he was sorry, and stood up among the Argives saying, "The
best man is coming in last. Let us give him a prize for it is reasonable.
He shall have the second, but the first must go to the son of Tydeus."

Thus did he speak and the others all of them applauded his saying,
and were for doing as he had said, but Nestor's son Antilochus stood
up and claimed his rights from the son of Peleus. "Achilles," said
he, "I shall take it much amiss if you do this thing; you would rob
me of my prize, because you think Eumelus's chariot and horses were
thrown out, and himself too, good man that he is. He should have prayed
duly to the immortals; he would not have come in fast if he had done
so. If you are sorry for him and so choose, you have much gold in
your tents, with bronze, sheep, cattle and horses. Take something
from this store if you would have the Achaeans speak well of you,
and give him a better prize even than that which you have now offered;
but I will not give up the mare, and he that will fight me for her,
let him come on."

Achilles smiled as he heard this, and was pleased with Antilochus,
who was one of his dearest comrades. So he said-

"Antilochus, if you would have me find Eumelus another prize, I will
give him the bronze breastplate with a rim of tin running all round
it which I took from Asteropaeus. It will be worth much money to him."

He bade his comrade Automedon bring the breastplate from his tent,
and he did so. Achilles then gave it over to Eumelus, who received
it gladly.

But Menelaus got up in a rage, furiously angry with Antilochus. An
attendant placed his staff in his hands and bade the Argives keep
silence: the hero then addressed them. "Antilochus," said he, "what
is this from you who have been so far blameless? You have made me
cut a poor figure and baulked my horses by flinging your own in front
of them, though yours are much worse than mine are; therefore, O princes
and counsellors of the Argives, judge between us and show no favour,
lest one of the Achaeans say, 'Menelaus has got the mare through lying
and corruption; his horses were far inferior to Antilochus's, but
he has greater weight and influence.' Nay, I will determine the matter
myself, and no man will blame me, for I shall do what is just. Come
here, Antilochus, and stand, as our custom is, whip in hand before
your chariot and horses; lay your hand on your steeds, and swear by
earth-encircling Neptune that you did not purposely and guilefully
get in the way of my horses."

And Antilochus answered, "Forgive me; I am much younger, King Menelaus,
than you are; you stand higher than I do and are the better man of
the two; you know how easily young men are betrayed into indiscretion;
their tempers are more hasty and they have less judgement; make due
allowances therefore, and bear with me; I will of my own accord give
up the mare that I have won, and if you claim any further chattel
from my own possessions, I would rather yield it to you, at once,
than fall from your good graces henceforth, and do wrong in the sight
of heaven."

The son of Nestor then took the mare and gave her over to Menelaus,
whose anger was thus appeased; as when dew falls upon a field of ripening
corn, and the lands are bristling with the harvest- even so, O Menelaus,
was your heart made glad within you. He turned to Antilochus and said,
"Now, Antilochus, angry though I have been, I can give way to you
of my own free will; you have never been headstrong nor ill-disposed
hitherto, but this time your youth has got the better of your judgement;
be careful how you outwit your betters in future; no one else could
have brought me round so easily, but your good father, your brother,
and yourself have all of you had infinite trouble on my behalf; I
therefore yield to your entreaty, and will give up the mare to you,
mine though it indeed be; the people will thus see that I am neither
harsh nor vindictive."

With this he gave the mare over to Antilochus's comrade Noemon, and
then took the cauldron. Meriones, who had come in fourth, carried
off the two talents of gold, and the fifth prize, the two-handled
urn, being unawarded, Achilles gave it to Nestor, going up to him
among the assembled Argives and saying, "Take this, my good old friend,
as an heirloom and memorial of the funeral of Patroclus- for you shall
see him no more among the Argives. I give you this prize though you
cannot win one; you can now neither wrestle nor fight, and cannot
enter for the javelin-match nor foot-races, for the hand of age has
been laid heavily upon you."

So saying he gave the urn over to Nestor, who received it gladly and
answered, "My son, all that you have said is true; there is no strength
now in my legs and feet, nor can I hit out with my hands from either
shoulder. Would that I were still young and strong as when the Epeans
were burying King Amarynceus in Buprasium, and his sons offered prizes
in his honour. There was then none that could vie with me neither
of the Epeans nor the Pylians themselves nor the Aetolians. In boxing
I overcame Clytomedes son of Enops, and in wrestling, Ancaeus of Pleuron
who had come forward against me. Iphiclus was a good runner, but I
beat him, and threw farther with my spear than either Phyleus or Polydorus.
In chariot-racing alone did the two sons of Actor surpass me by crowding
their horses in front of me, for they were angry at the way victory
had gone, and at the greater part of the prizes remaining in the place
in which they had been offered. They were twins, and the one kept
on holding the reins, and holding the reins, while the other plied
the whip. Such was I then, but now I must leave these matters to younger
men; I must bow before the weight of years, but in those days I was
eminent among heroes. And now, sir, go on with the funeral contests
in honour of your comrade: gladly do I accept this urn, and my heart
rejoices that you do not forget me but are ever mindful of my goodwill
towards you, and of the respect due to me from the Achaeans. For all
which may the grace of heaven be vouchsafed you in great abundance."

Thereon the son of Peleus, when he had listened to all the thanks
of Nestor, went about among the concourse of the Achaeans, and presently
offered prizes for skill in the painful art of boxing. He brought
out a strong mule, and made it fast in the middle of the crowd- a
she-mule never yet broken, but six years old- when it is hardest of
all to break them: this was for the victor, and for the vanquished
he offered a double cup. Then he stood up and said among the Argives,
"Son of Atreus, and all other Achaeans, I invite our two champion
boxers to lay about them lustily and compete for these prizes. He
to whom Apollo vouchsafes the greater endurance, and whom the Achaeans
acknowledge as victor, shall take the mule back with him to his own
tent, while he that is vanquished shall have the double cup."

As he spoke there stood up a champion both brave and great stature,
a skilful boxer, Epeus, son of Panopeus. He laid his hand on the mule
and said, "Let the man who is to have the cup come hither, for none
but myself will take the mule. I am the best boxer of all here present,
and none can beat me. Is it not enough that I should fall short of
you in actual fighting? Still, no man can be good at everything. I
tell you plainly, and it shall come true; if any man will box with
me I will bruise his body and break his bones; therefore let his friends
stay here in a body and be at hand to take him away when I have done
with him."

They all held their peace, and no man rose save Euryalus son of Mecisteus,
who was son of Talaus. Mecisteus went once to Thebes after the fall
of Oedipus, to attend his funeral, and he beat all the people of Cadmus.
The son of Tydeus was Euryalus's second, cheering him on and hoping
heartily that he would win. First he put a waistband round him and
then he gave him some well-cut thongs of ox-hide; the two men being
now girt went into the middle of the ring, and immediately fell to;
heavily indeed did they punish one another and lay about them with
their brawny fists. One could hear the horrid crashing of their jaws,
and they sweated from every pore of their skin. Presently Epeus came
on and gave Euryalus a blow on the jaw as he was looking round; Euryalus
could not keep his legs; they gave way under him in a moment and he
sprang up with a bound, as a fish leaps into the air near some shore
that is all bestrewn with sea-wrack, when Boreas furs the top of the
waves, and then falls back into deep water. But noble Epeus caught
hold of him and raised him up; his comrades also came round him and
led him from the ring, unsteady in his gait, his head hanging on one
side, and spitting great clots of gore. They set him down in a swoon
and then went to fetch the double cup.

The son of Peleus now brought out the prizes for the third contest
and showed them to the Argives. These were for the painful art of
wrestling. For the winner there was a great tripod ready for setting
upon the fire, and the Achaeans valued it among themselves at twelve
oxen. For the loser he brought out a woman skilled in all manner of
arts, and they valued her at four oxen. He rose and said among the
Argives, "Stand forward, you who will essay this contest."

Forthwith uprose great Ajax the son of Telamon, and crafty Ulysses,
full of wiles rose also. The two girded themselves and went into the
middle of the ring. They gripped each other in their strong hands
like the rafters which some master-builder frames for the roof of
a high house to keep the wind out. Their backbones cracked as they
tugged at one another with their mighty arms- and sweat rained from
them in torrents. Many a bloody weal sprang up on their sides and
shoulders, but they kept on striving with might and main for victory
and to win the tripod. Ulysses could not throw Ajax, nor Ajax him;
Ulysses was too strong for him; but when the Achaeans began to tire
of watching them, Ajax said to ulysses, "Ulysses, noble son of Laertes,
you shall either lift me, or I you, and let Jove settle it between
us."

He lifted him from the ground as he spoke, but Ulysses did not forget
his cunning. He hit Ajax in the hollow at back of his knee, so that
he could not keep his feet, but fell on his back with Ulysses lying
upon his chest, and all who saw it marvelled. Then Ulysses in turn
lifted Ajax and stirred him a little from the ground but could not
lift him right off it, his knee sank under him, and the two fell side
by side on the ground and were all begrimed with dust. They now sprang
towards one another and were for wrestling yet a third time, but Achilles
rose and stayed them. "Put not each other further," said he, "to such
cruel suffering; the victory is with both alike, take each of you
an equal prize, and let the other Achaeans now compete."

Thus did he speak and they did even as he had said, and put on their
shirts again after wiping the dust from off their bodies.

The son of Peleus then offered prizes for speed in running- a mixing-bowl
beautifully wrought, of pure silver. It would hold six measures, and
far exceeded all others in the whole world for beauty; it was the
work of cunning artificers in Sidon, and had been brought into port
by Phoenicians from beyond the sea, who had made a present of it to
Thoas. Eueneus son of jason had given it to Patroclus in ransom of
Priam's son Lycaon, and Achilles now offered it as a prize in honour
of his comrade to him who should be the swiftest runner. For the second
prize he offered a large ox, well fattened, while for the last there
was to be half a talent of gold. He then rose and said among the Argives,
"Stand forward, you who will essay this contest."

Forthwith uprose fleet Ajax son of Oileus, with cunning Ulysses, and
Nestor's son Antilochus, the fastest runner among all the youth of
his time. They stood side by side and Achilles showed them the goal.
The course was set out for them from the starting-post, and the son
of Oileus took the lead at once, with Ulysses as close behind him
as the shuttle is to a woman's bosom when she throws the woof across
the warp and holds it close up to her; even so close behind him was
Ulysses- treading in his footprints before the dust could settle there,
and Ajax could feel his breath on the back of his head as he ran swiftly
on. The Achaeans all shouted applause as they saw him straining his
utmost, and cheered him as he shot past them; but when they were now
nearing the end of the course Ulysses prayed inwardly to Minerva.
"Hear me," he cried, "and help my feet, O goddess." Thus did he pray,
and Pallas Minerva heard his prayer; she made his hands and his feet
feel light, and when the runners were at the point of pouncing upon
the prize, Ajax, through Minerva's spite slipped upon some offal that
was lying there from the cattle which Achilles had slaughtered in
honour of Patroclus, and his mouth and nostrils were all filled with
cow dung. Ulysses therefore carried off the mixing-bowl, for he got
before Ajax and came in first. But Ajax took the ox and stood with
his hand on one of its horns, spitting the dung out of his mouth.
Then he said to the Argives, "Alas, the goddess has spoiled my running;
she watches over Ulysses and stands by him as though she were his
own mother." Thus did he speak and they all of them laughed heartily.

Antilochus carried off the last prize and smiled as he said to the
bystanders, "You all see, my friends, that now too the gods have shown
their respect for seniority. Ajax is somewhat older than I am, and
as for Ulysses, he belongs to an earlier generation, but he is hale
in spite of his years, and no man of the Achaeans can run against
him save only Achilles."

He said this to pay a compliment to the son of Peleus, and Achilles
answered, "Antilochus, you shall not have praised me to no purpose;
I shall give you an additional half talent of gold." He then gave
the half talent to Antilochus, who received it gladly.

Then the son of Peleus brought out the spear, helmet and shield that
had been borne by Sarpedon, and were taken from him by Patroclus.
He stood up and said among the Argives, "We bid two champions put
on their armour, take their keen blades, and make trial of one another
in the presence of the multitude; whichever of them can first wound
the flesh of the other, cut through his armour, and draw blood, to
him will I give this goodly Thracian sword inlaid with silver, which
I took from Asteropaeus, but the armour let both hold in partnership,
and I will give each of them a hearty meal in my own tent."

Forthwith uprose great Ajax the son of Telamon, as also mighty Diomed
son of Tydeus. When they had put on their armour each on his own side
of the ring, they both went into the middle eager to engage, and with
fire flashing from their eyes. The Achaeans marvelled as they beheld
them, and when the two were now close up with one another, thrice
did they spring forward and thrice try to strike each other in close
combat. Ajax pierced Diomed's round shield, but did not draw blood,
for the cuirass beneath the shield protected him; thereon the son
of Tydeus from over his huge shield kept aiming continually at Ajax's
neck with the point of his spear, and the Achaeans alarmed for his
safety bade them leave off fighting and divide the prize between them.
Achilles then gave the great sword to the son of Tydeus, with its
scabbard, and the leathern belt with which to hang it.

Achilles next offered the massive iron quoit which mighty Eetion had
erewhile been used to hurl, until Achilles had slain him and carried
it off in his ships along with other spoils. He stood up and said
among the Argives, "Stand forward, you who would essay this contest.
He who wins it will have a store of iron that will last him five years
as they go rolling round, and if his fair fields lie far from a town
his shepherd or ploughman will not have to make a journey to buy iron,
for he will have a stock of it on his own premises."

Then uprose the two mighty men Polypoetes and Leonteus, with Ajax
son of Telamon and noble Epeus. They stood up one after the other
and Epeus took the quoit, whirled it, and flung it from him, which
set all the Achaeans laughing. After him threw Leonteus of the race
of Mars. Ajax son of Telamon threw third, and sent the quoit beyond
any mark that had been made yet, but when mighty Polypoetes took the
quoit he hurled it as though it had been a stockman's stick which
he sends flying about among his cattle when he is driving them, so
far did his throw out-distance those of the others. All who saw it
roared applause, and his comrades carried the prize for him and set
it on board his ship.

Achilles next offered a prize of iron for archery- ten double-edged
axes and ten with single eddies: he set up a ship's mast, some way
off upon the sands, and with a fine string tied a pigeon to it by
the foot; this was what they were to aim at. "Whoever," he said, "can
hit the pigeon shall have all the axes and take them away with him;
he who hits the string without hitting the bird will have taken a
worse aim and shall have the single-edged axes."

Then uprose King Teucer, and Meriones the stalwart squire of Idomeneus
rose also, They cast lots in a bronze helmet and the lot of Teucer
fell first. He let fly with his arrow forthwith, but he did not promise
hecatombs of firstling lambs to King Apollo, and missed his bird,
for Apollo foiled his aim; but he hit the string with which the bird
was tied, near its foot; the arrow cut the string clean through so
that it hung down towards the ground, while the bird flew up into
the sky, and the Achaeans shouted applause. Meriones, who had his
arrow ready while Teucer was aiming, snatched the bow out of his hand,
and at once promised that he would sacrifice a hecatomb of firstling
lambs to Apollo lord of the bow; then espying the pigeon high up under
the clouds, he hit her in the middle of the wing as she was circling
upwards; the arrow went clean through the wing and fixed itself in
the ground at Meriones' feet, but the bird perched on the ship's mast
hanging her head and with all her feathers drooping; the life went
out of her, and she fell heavily from the mast. Meriones, therefore,
took all ten double-edged axes, while Teucer bore off the single-edged
ones to his ships.

Then the son of Peleus brought in a spear and a cauldron that had
never been on the fire; it was worth an ox, and was chased with a
pattern of flowers; and those that throw the javelin stood up- to
wit the son of Atreus, king of men Agamemnon, and Meriones, stalwart
squire of Idomeneus. But Achilles spoke saying, "Son of Atreus, we
know how far you excel all others both in power and in throwing the
javelin; take the cauldron back with you to your ships, but if it
so please you, let us give the spear to Meriones; this at least is
what I should myself wish."

King Agamemnon assented. So he gave the bronze spear to Meriones,
and handed the goodly cauldron to Talthybius his esquire.