Iliad by Homer - Join iZDOT

Homer’s Iliad
short time while Jove is still sleeping. I have sent him into a sweet
slumber, and Juno has beguiled him into going to bed with her.”
Sleep now departed and went his ways to and fro among mankind,
leaving Neptune more eager than ever to help the Danaans. He
darted forward among the first ranks and shouted saying,
“Argives, shall we let Hector son of Priam have the triumph of
taking our ships and covering himself with glory? This is what he
says that he shall now do, seeing that Achilles is still in dudgeon at
his ship; We shall get on very well without him if we keep each
other in heart and stand by one another. Now, therefore, let us all
do as I say. Let us each take the best and largest shield we can lay
hold of, put on our helmets, and sally forth with our longest spears
in our hands; will lead you on, and Hector son of Priam, rage as he
may, will not dare to hold out against us. If any good staunch
soldier has only a small shield, let him hand it over to a worse
man, and take a larger one for himself.”
Thus did he speak, and they did even as he had said. The son of
Tydeus, Ulysses, and Agamemnon, wounded though they were, set
the others in array, and went about everywhere effecting the
exchanges of armour; the most valiant took the best armour, and
gave the worse to the worse man. When they had donned their
bronze armour they marched on with Neptune at their head. In his
strong hand he grasped his terrible sword, keen of edge and
flashing like lightning; woe to him who comes across it in the day
of battle; all men quake for fear and keep away from it.
Hector on the other side set the Trojans in array. Thereon Neptune
and Hector waged fierce war on one another- Hector on the Trojan
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