The Iliad of Homer


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Stiff with amaze the pale beholders stand,  
And own the terrors of the almighty hand!  
So lies great Hector prostrate on the shore;  
His slacken'd hand deserts the lance it bore;  
His following shield the fallen chief o'erspread;  
Beneath his helmet dropp'd his fainting head;  
His load of armour, sinking to the ground,  
Clanks on the field, a dead and hollow sound.  
Loud shouts of triumph fill the crowded plain;  
Greece sees, in hope, Troy's great defender slain:  
All spring to seize him; storms of arrows fly,  
And thicker javelins intercept the sky.  
In vain an iron tempest hisses round;  
He lies protected, and without a wound.(238)  
Polydamas, Agenor the divine,  
The pious warrior of Anchises' line,  
And each bold leader of the Lycian band,  
With covering shields (a friendly circle) stand,  
His mournful followers, with assistant care,  
The groaning hero to his chariot bear;  
His foaming coursers, swifter than the wind,  
Speed to the town, and leave the war behind.  
When now they touch'd the mead's enamell'd side,  
Where gentle Xanthus rolls his easy tide,  
With watery drops the chief they sprinkle round,  
535  


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533 534 535 536 537

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1 245 490 735 980