Page 337 - the-iliad

in Phrygia by the waters of the river Sangarius; in his like-
ness Jove’s son Apollo now spoke to Hector saying, ‘Hector,
why have you left off fighting? It is ill done of you. If I were
as much better a man than you, as I am worse, you should
soon rue your slackness. Drive straight towards Patroclus,
if so be that Apollo may grant you a triumph over him, and
you may rule him.’
With this the god went back into the hurly-burly, and
Hector bade Cebriones drive again into the fight. Apollo
passed in among them, and struck panic into the Argives,
while he gave triumph to Hector and the Trojans. Hector
let the other Danaans alone and killed no man, but drove
straight at Patroclus. Patroclus then sprang from his chariot
to the ground, with a spear in his left hand, and in his right
a jagged stone as large as his hand could hold. He stood still
and threw it, nor did it go far without hitting some one; the
cast was not in vain, for the stone struck Cebriones, Hec-
tor’s charioteer, a bastard son of Priam, as he held the reins
in his hands. The stone hit him on the forehead and drove
his brows into his head for the bone was smashed, and his
eyes fell to the ground at his feet. He dropped dead from his
chariot as though he were diving, and there was no more
life left in him. Over him did you then vaunt, O knight Pa-
troclus, saying, ‘Bless my heart, how active he is, and how
well he dives. If we had been at sea this fellow would have
dived from the ship’s side and brought up as many oysters
as the whole crew could stomach, even in rough water, for
he has dived beautifully off his chariot on to the ground. It
seems, then, that there are divers also among the Trojans.’

The Iliad