Ἔνθ' οὐκ ὰν βρίζοντα ἴ̈δοις Ἀγαμέμνονα δῖον
οὐδὲ καταπτώσσοντ'. οὐδ' οὐκ ἐθέλοντα μάχεσθαι.
ἀλλὰ μάλα σπεύδοντα μάχην ἐς κυδιάνειραν:
ἵππους μὲν γὰρ ἔασε καὶ ἅρματα ποικίλα χαλκῷ:
καὶ τοὺς μὲν θεράπων ἀπάνευθ' ἔχε φυσιόωντας
Εὐρυμέδῶν. υἱὸς Πτολεμαίου Πειραΐδαο:
τῷ μάλα πολλ`' ἐπέτελλε παρισχέμεν, ὁππότε κέν μιν
γυῖα λάβῃ κάματος, πολέας διακοιρανέοντα:
αὐτὰρ ὃ πεζὸς ἐὼν ἐπεπωλεῖτο στίχας ἀνδρῶν:
καί ῥ' οὓς μὲν σπεύδοντας ἴ̈δοι Δαναῶν ταχυπώλων.
τοὺς μάλα θαρσύνεσκε παριστάμενος, ἐπέεσσιν:
Ἀργεῖοι: μή πω τι μεθείετε θουριδος ἀλκῆς:
οὐ γὰρ ἐπὶ ψευδέσσι πατὴρ Ζευς ἔσσετ' ἀρωγός:
ἀλλ' οἵ περ πρότεροι ὑπερόρκια δηλήσαντο.
τῶν ἤτοι αὐτῶν τέρενα χρόα γῦπες έδονται:
ἡμεῖς δ' αὖτ' ἀλόχους τε φίλας καὶ νήπια τέκνα
ἄξομεν ἐν νήεσσιν, ἐπὴν πτολίεθρον ἕλωμεν:
Then wouldst thou not have seen goodly Agamemnon slumbering, nor cowering, nor with no heart for fight, but full eager for battle where men win glory. His horses and his chariot adorned with bronze he let be, and his squire, Eurymedon, son of Peiraeus' son Ptolemaeus, kept the snorting steeds withdrawn apart; and straitly did Agamemnon charge him to have them at hand, whenever weariness should come upon his limbs, as he gave commands throughout all the host; but he himself ranged on foot through the ranks of warriors. And whomsoever of the Danaans with swift steeds he saw eager, to these would he draw nigh, and hearten them earnestly, saying: "Ye Argives, relax ye no whit of your furious valour; for father Zeus will be no helper of lies; nay, they that were the first to work violence in defiance of their oaths, their tender flesh of a surety shall vultures devour, and we shall bear away in our ships their dear wives and little children, when we shall have taken their citadel."
