Page 211 - the-iliad

damus and Hypeirochus.
And now the son of Saturn as he looked down from Ida
ordained that neither side should have the advantage, and
they kept on killing one another. The son of Tydeus speared
Agastrophus son of Paeon in the hip-joint with his spear.
His chariot was not at hand for him to fly with, so blindly
confident had he been. His squire was in charge of it at some
distance and he was fighting on foot among the foremost
until he lost his life. Hector soon marked the havoc Diomed
and Ulysses were making, and bore down upon them with
a loud cry, followed by the Trojan ranks; brave Diomed was
dismayed when he saw them, and said to Ulysses who was
beside him, ‘Great Hector is bearing down upon us and we
shall be undone; let us stand firm and wait his onset.’
He poised his spear as he spoke and hurled it, nor did he
miss his mark. He had aimed at Hector’s head near the top
of his helmet, but bronze was turned by bronze, and Hector
was untouched, for the spear was stayed by the visored helm
made with three plates of metal, which Phoebus Apollo had
given him. Hector sprang back with a great bound under
cover of the ranks; he fell on his knees and propped himself
with his brawny hand leaning on the ground, for darkness
had fallen on his eyes. The son of Tydeus having thrown his
spear dashed in among the foremost fighters, to the place
where he had seen it strike the ground; meanwhile Hec-
tor recovered himself and springing back into his chariot
mingled with the crowd, by which means he saved his life.
But Diomed made at him with his spear and said, ‘Dog, you
have again got away though death was close on your heels.

10 The Iliad