a stag had been slain without a thank-offering? Or can it have been the mail-clad Lord of War that was wroth for dishonour to his aiding spear,180 and took vengeance by nightly wiles?
ant. Never of thine own heart, son of Telamon, wouldst thou have gone so far astray as to fall upon the flocks. Yea, when the gods send madness, it must come; but may Zeus and Phoebus avert the evil rumour of the Greeks!
And if the great chiefs charge thee falsely in the furtive rumours which they spread, or sons of the wicked line of Sisyphus,190 forbear, O my king, forbear to win me an evil name, by still keeping thy face thus hidden in the tent by the sea.
ep. Nay, up from thy seat, wheresoever thou art brooding in this pause of many days from battle, making the flame of mischief blaze up to heaven! But the insolence of thy foes goes abroad without fear in the breezy glens, while all men mock with taunts most grievous; and my sorrow passes not away.200
Enter Tecmessa.
Te. Mariners of Ajax, of the race that springs from the Erechtheidae, sons of the soil,—mourning is our portion who care for the house of Telamon afar. Ajax, our dread lord of rugged might, now lies stricken with a storm that darkens the soul.
Ch. And what is the heavy change from the