οἱ δ' ἄρα Μηθώμην καὶ Θαυμακίην ἐνέμοντο
καὶ Μελίβοιαν ἔχον: καὶ Ὀλιζῶνα τρηχεῖαν.
τῶν δὲ Φιλοκτήτης ἦρχεν τόξων εὖ εἰδὼς
ἑπτὰ νεῶν: ἐρέται δ' ἐν ἑκάστῃ πεντήκοντα
ἐμβέβασαν. τόξων εῦ εἰδότες ῗφι μάχεσθαι:
ἀλλ' ὁ μὲν ἐν νήσῳ κεῖτο κρατὲρ' ἄλγεα πάσχων
Λήμνῳ ἐν ἠγαθέῃ: ὅθι μιν λίπον υἷες Ἀχαιῶν
ἕλκεϊ μοχθίζοντα κακῷ ὀλοόφρονος ὕδρου:
ἔνθ' ὅ γε κεῖτ' ἀχέων: τάχα δὲ, μνήσεσθαι ἔμελλον
Ἀργεῖοι παρὰ νηυσὶ Φιλοκτήταο ἄνακτος:
οὐδὲ μὲν οὐδ' οἱ ἄναρχοι ἔσαν. πόθεόν γε μὲν ἀρχὸν:
ἀλλὰ Μέδων κόσμησεν Ὀϊλῆος νόθος υἱός:
τόν ῥ' ἔτεκεν Ῥήνη ὑπ' Ὀϊλῆϊ πτολιπόρθῳ:
And they that dwelt in Methone and Thaumacia, and that held Meliboea and rugged Olizon, these with their seven ships were led by Philoctetes, well-skilled in archery, and on each ship embarked fifty oarsmen well skilled to fight amain with the bow. But Philoctetes lay suffering grievous pains in an island, even in sacred Lemnos, where the sons of the Achaeans had left him in anguish with an evil wound from a deadly water-snake. There he lay suffering; yet full soon were the Argives beside their ships to bethink them of king Philoctetes. Howbeit neither were these men leaderless, though they longed for their leader; but Medon marshalled them, the bastard son of Oïleus, whom Rhene bare to Oïleus, sacker of cities.
