Ἀτρείδης δ' ἄχεϊ μεγάλῳ βεβολημένος ῆτορ.
φοίτα, κηρύκεσσι λιγυφθόγγοισι κελεύων
κλήδην εἰς ἀγορὴν κικλήσκειν ἄνδρα ἕκαστον.
μὴ δὲ βοᾶν: αὐτὸς δὲ μετα πρώτοισι πονεῖτο:
ΐζον δ' εἰν ἀγορῇ τετιηότες: ἀν δ' Ἀγαμέμνων.
ἵ̈στατο δάκρυ χέων ὥς τε κρήνη μελάνυδρος,
ἥ τε κατ' αἰγίλιπος πέτρης δνοφερὸν χέει ὕδωρ.
ὡς ὃ βαρὺ στενάχων ἔπε' Ἀργείοισι μετηύδᾱ:
ὦ φίλοι: Ἀργείων ἡγήτορες ἠδὲ μέδοντες:
Ζεύς με μέγα Κρονίδης ἄτῃ ἐνέδησε βαρείῃ:
σχέτλιος: ὃς πρὶν μέν μοι, ὑπέσχετο καὶ κατένευσεν
Ἴ¨λιον ἐκπέρσαντ' εὐτείχεον ἀπονέεσθαι:
νῦν δὲ κακὴν ἀπάτην βουλεύσατο. καί με κελεύει
δυσκλέᾰ Ἄργος ϊκέσθαι: ἐπεὶ πολὺν ὤλεσα λαόν:
οὕτω που Διῒ μέλλει ὑπερμενέϊ φίλον εἶναι:
ὃς δὴ πολλάων πολίων κατέλυσε κάρηνα
ἠδ`' ἔτι καὶ λύσει. τοῦ γὰρ κράτος ἐστὶ μέγιστον:
ἀλλ' ἄγεθ'. ὡς ἂν ἐγὼ εἴπω. πειθώμεθα πάντες:
φεύγωμεν σὺν νηυσὶ φίλην ἐς πατρίδα γαῖαν:
οὐ γὰρ ἔτι Τροίην αἱρήσομεν εὐρυάγυιαν:
But the son of Atreus, stricken to the heart with sore grief, went this way and that, bidding the clear-voiced heralds summon every man by name to the place of gathering, but not to shout aloud; and himself he toiled amid the foremost. So they sat in the place of gathering, sore troubled, and Agamemnon stood up weeping even as a fountain of dark water that down over the face of a beetling cliff poureth its dusky stream; even so with deep groaning spake he amid the Argives, saying: "My friends, leaders and rulers of the Argives, great Zeus, son of Cronos, hath ensnared me in grievous blindness of heart, cruel god! seeing that of old he promised me, and bowed his head thereto, that not until I had sacked well-walled Ilios should I get me home; but now hath he planned cruel deceit, and biddeth me return inglorious to Argos, when I have lost much people. So, I ween, must be the good pleasure of Zeus supreme in might, who hath laid low the heads of many cities, yea, and shall lay low; for his power is above all. Nay, come, even as I shall bid let us all obey: let us flee with our ships to our dear native land; for no more is there hope that we shall take broad-wayed Troy."
