ὡς ὥρμαινε μένων. ὁ δέ οἱ σχεδὸν ἦλθεν Ἀχιλλεὺς
ἶ̈σος Ἐνυαλίῳ κορυθάϊκι πτολεμιστῇ:
σείων Πηλιάδα μελίην κατα δεξιὸν ὦμον
δεινήν: ἀμφὶ δὲ χαλκὸς ἐλάμπετο, εἴκελος αὐγῇ
ἢ πυρὸς αἰθομένου. ἢ ἠελίου ἀνιόντος:
Ἕκτορα δ' ὡς ἐνόησεν, ἕλε τρόμος: οὐδ' ὰρ, ἔτ', ἔτλη
αὖθι μένειν. ὀπίσω δὲ πύλας λίπε. βῆ δὲ φοβηθείς:
Πηλείδης δ' ἐπόρουσε, ποσὶ κραιπνοῖσι πεποιθώς.
ἠΰτε κίρκος ὄρεσφιν ἐλαφρότατος πετεηνῶν
ῥηϊδίως οίμησε μετὰ τρήρωνα πέλειαν:
ἡ δέ θ' ὕπαιθα φοβεῖται, ὃ δ' ἐγγύθεν ὀξὺ λεληκὼς
ταρφέ' ἐπαΐσσει: ἑλέειν τέ, ἑ, θυμὸς ἀνώγει.
ὡς ἂρ ὅ γ' ἐμμεμαὼς. ἰ̈θὺς πέτετο. τρέσε δ' Ἕκτωρ
τεῖχος ὑπὸ Τρώων. λαιψηρὰ δὲ γούνατ' ἐνώμα:
οἱ δὲ παρα σκοπιὴν καὶ ἐρινεὸν ἠνεμόενταἠνεμόεσσαν:
τείχεος αἰὲν ὑπὲκ' κατ' αμαξιτὸν ἐσσεύοντο:
κρουνὼ δ' ἵ̈κανον καλλιρρόω: ἔνθα δὲ πηγαὶ
δοιαὶ ἀναΐσσουσι, Σκαμάνδρου δινήεντος:
ἡ μὲν γάρ θ' ὕδατι λιαρῶ ῥέει: ἀμφι δὲ καπνὸς
γίνεται ἐξ αὐτῆς, ὡς εὶ πυρὸς αἰθομένοιο:
ἡ δ' ἑτέρη θέρεϊ προρέει ἐικυῖα χαλάζῃ.
ἢ χιόνι ψυχρῇ, ἢ ἐξ ὕδατος κρυστάλλῳ:
ἔνθα δ' ἐπ' αὐτάων πλυνοὶ εὐρέες ἐγγὺς ἔασι.
καλοὶ. λαΐνεοι, ὅθι εἵματα σιγαλόεντα
πλύνεσκον Τρώων ἄλοχοι καλαί τε θύγατρες
τὸ πρὶν ἐπ' εἰρήνης, πρὶν ἐλθεῖν υἷας Ἀχαιῶν:
τῇ ῥα παραδραμέτην. φεύγων. ὁ δ' ὄπισθε διώκων:
πρόσθε μὲν ἐσθλὸς ἔφευγε. δίωκε δέ μιν μέγ' ἀμείνων
καρπαλίμως: ἐπεὶ οὐχ ἱ̈ερήϊον οὐδε βοείην:
ἀρνύσθην. ἅ, τε ποσσὶν ἀέθλια γίνεται ἀνδρῶν:
ἀλλὰ περὶ ψυχῆς θέον Ἕκτορος ἱπποδάμοιο:
ὡς δ' ὅτ' ἀεθλοφόροι περι τέρματα μώνυχες ἵ̈πποι
ῥίμφα μάλα τρωχῶσι. τὸ δὲ μέγα κεῖται ἄεθλον:
ἠ τρίπος, ἠὲ γυνὴ, ἀνδρὸς κατατεθνειῶτοςκατατεθνηῶτος:
ὡς τὼ, τρὶς, Πριάμοιο πόλιν περὶ δινηθήτην
καρπαλίμοισι πόδεσσι: θεοὶ δ' ἒς πάντες ὁρῶντο:
So he pondered as he abode, and nigh to him came Achilles, the peer of Enyalius, warrior of the waving helm, brandishing over his right shoulder the Pelian ash, his terrible spear; and all round about the bronze flashed like the gleam of blazing fire or of the sun as he riseth. But trembling gat hold of Hector when he was ware of him, neither dared he any more abide where he was, but left the gates behind him, and fled in fear; and the son of Peleus rushed after him, trusting in his fleetness of foot. As a falcon in the mountains, swiftest of winged things, swoopeth lightly after a trembling dove: she fleeth before him, and he hard at hand darteth ever at her with shrill cries, and his heart biddeth him seize her; even so Achilles in his fury sped straight on, and Hector fled beneath the wall of the Trojans, and plied his limbs swiftly. Past the place of watch, and the wind-waved wild fig-tree they sped, ever away from under the wall along the waggon-track, and came to the two fair-flowing fountains, where well up the two springs that feed eddying Scamander. The one floweth with warm water, and round about a smoke goeth up therefrom as it were from a blazing fire, while the other even in summer floweth forth cold as hail or chill snow or ice that water formeth. And there hard by the selfsame springs are broad washing-tanks, fair and wrought of stone, where the wives and fair daughters of the Trojans were wont to wash bright raiment of old in the time of peace, before the sons of the Achaeans came. Thereby they ran, one fleeing, and one pursuing. In front a good man fled, but one mightier far pursued him swiftly; for it was not for beast of sacrifice or for bull's hide that they strove, such as are men's prizes for swiftness of foot, but it was for the life of horse-taming Hector that they ran. And as when single-hooved horses that are winners of prizes course swiftly about the turning-points, and some—great prize is set forth, a tripod haply or a woman, in honour of a warrior that is dead; even so these twain circled thrice with swift feet about the city of Priam; and all the gods gazed upon them.
