第16章 BOOK II(5)

And chiefest of them all is Thetis, wise With wisdom world-renowned; for in her bowers She sheltered Dionysus, chased by might Of murderous Lycurgus from the earth.

Yea, and the cunning God-smith welcomed she Within her mansion, when from heaven he fell.

Ay, and the Lightning-lord she once released From bonds. The all-seeing Dwellers in the Sky Remember all these things, and reverence My mother Thetis in divine Olympus.

Ay, that she is a Goddess shalt thou know When to thine heart the brazen spear shall pierce Sped by my might. Patroclus' death I avenged On Hector, and Antilochus on thee Will I avenge. No weakling's friend thou hast slain!

But why like witless children stand we here Babbling our parents' fame and our own deeds?

Now is the hour when prowess shall decide."

Then from the sheath he flashed his long keen sword, And Memnon his; and swiftly in fiery fight Closed they, and rained the never-ceasing blows Upon the bucklers which with craft divine Hephaestus' self had fashioned. Once and again Clashed they together, and their cloudy crests Touched, mingling all their tossing storm of hair.

And Zeus, for that he loved them both, inspired With prowess each, and mightier than their wont He made them, made them tireless, nothing like To men, but Gods: and gloated o'er the twain The Queen of Strife. In eager fury these Thrust swiftly out the spear, with fell intent To reach the throat 'twixt buckler-rim and helm, Thrust many a time and oft, and now would aim The point beneath the shield, above the greave, Now close beneath the corslet curious-wrought That lapped the stalwart frame: hard, fast they lunged, And on their shoulders clashed the arms divine.

Roared to the very heavens the battle-shout Of warring men, of Trojans, Aethiops, And Argives mighty-hearted, while the dust Rolled up from 'neath their feet, tossed to the sky In stress of battle-travail great and strong.

As when a mist enshrouds the hills, what time Roll up the rain-clouds, and the torrent-beds Roar as they fill with rushing floods, and howls Each gorge with fearful voices; shepherds quake To see the waters' downrush and the mist, Screen dear to wolves and all the wild fierce things Nursed in the wide arms of the forest; so Around the fighters' feet the choking dust Hung, hiding the fair splendour of the sun And darkening all the heaven. Sore distressed With dust and deadly conflict were the folk.

Then with a sudden hand some Blessed One Swept the dust-pall aside; and the Gods saw The deadly Fates hurling the charging lines Together, in the unending wrestle locked Of that grim conflict, saw where never ceased Ares from hideous slaughter, saw the earth Crimsoned all round with rushing streams of blood, Saw where dark Havoc gloated o'er the scene, Saw the wide plain with corpses heaped, even all Bounded 'twixt Simois and Xanthus, where They sweep from Ida down to Hellespont.

But when long lengthened out the conflict was Of those two champions, and the might of both In that strong tug and strain was equal-matched, Then, gazing from Olympus' far-off heights, The Gods joyed, some in the invincible son Of Peleus, others in the goodly child Of old Tithonus and the Queen of Dawn.

Thundered the heavens on high from east to west, And roared the sea from verge to verge, and rocked The dark earth 'neath the heroes' feet, and quaked Proud Nereus' daughters all round Thetis thronged In grievous fear for mighty Achilles' sake;

And trembled for her son the Child of the Mist As in her chariot through the sky she rode.

Marvelled the Daughters of the Sun, who stood Near her, around that wondrous splendour-ring Traced for the race-course of the tireless sun By Zeus, the limit of all Nature's life And death, the dally round that maketh up The eternal circuit of the rolling years.

And now amongst the Blessed bitter feud Had broken out; but by behest of Zeus The twin Fates suddenly stood beside these twain, One dark -- her shadow fell on Memnon's heart;

One bright -- her radiance haloed Peleus' son.

And with a great cry the Immortals saw, And filled with sorrow they of the one part were, They of the other with triumphant joy.

Still in the midst of blood-stained battle-rout Those heroes fought, unknowing of the Fates Now drawn so nigh, but each at other hurled His whole heart's courage, all his bodily might.

Thou hadst said that in the strife of that dread day Huge tireless Giants or strong Titans warred, So fiercely blazed the wildfire of their strife, Now, when they clashed with swords, now when they leapt Hurling huge stones. Nor either would give back Before the hail of blows, nor quailed. They stood Like storm-tormented headlands steadfast, clothed With might past words, unearthly; for the twain Alike could boast their lineage of high Zeus.

Therefore 'twixt these Enyo lengthened out The even-balanced strife, while ever they In that grim wrestle strained their uttermost, They and their dauntless comrades, round their kings With ceaseless fury toiling, till their spears Stood shivered all in shields of warriors slain, And of the fighters woundless none remained;

But from all limbs streamed down into the dust The blood and sweat of that unresting strain Of fight, and earth was hidden with the dead, As heaven is hidden with clouds when meets the sun The Goat-star, and the shipman dreads the deep.

As charged the lines, the snorting chariot-steeds Trampled the dead, as on the myriad leaves Ye trample in the woods at entering-in Of winter, when the autumn-tide is past.

Still mid the corpses and the blood fought on Those glorious sons of Gods, nor ever ceased From wrath of fight. But Eris now inclined The fatal scales of battle, which no more Were equal-poised. Beneath the breast-bone then Of godlike Memnon plunged Achilles' sword;

Clear through his body all the dark-blue blade Leapt: suddenly snapped the silver cord of life.

Down in a pool of blood he fell, and clashed His massy armour, and earth rang again.