hyself with the
people for war, nor to go to ambuscade with the chiefs of the Greeks;
for this always appears to thee to be death. Certainly it is much better
through the wide army of the Achaeans, to take away the rewards of
whoever may speak against thee. A people-devouring king [art thou],
since thou rulest over fellows of no account; for assuredly, son of
Atreus, thou [otherwise] wouldst have insulted now for the last time.
But I will tell thee, and I will further swear a great oath: yea, by
this sceptre, which will never bear leaves and branches, nor will bud
again, after it has once left its trunk on the mountains; for the axe
has lopped it all around of its leaves and bark; but now the sons of the
Greeks, the judges, they who protect the laws [received] from Jove, bear
it in their hands; and this will be a great oath to thee; surely will a
longing desire for Achilles come upon all the sons of the Achaeans at
some future day, and thou, although much grieved, wilt be unable to
assist them, when many dying shall fall by the hand of man-slaying
Hector. Then enraged, wilt thou inwardly fret thy soul, that thou didst
in no way honour the bravest of the Greeks."

[Footnote 30: Epimerism. Hom. in Cramer's Anecdott. vol. i. p.
24. [Greek: atarteros, e para ten aten, o semainei ten blaxen,
ateros].--Hesych. [Greek: blaxros, ateros].]

Thus spoke the son of Peleus; and he cast upon the earth his sceptre
studded with golden nails, and sat down. But on the other hand, the son
of Atreus was enraged; therefore to them arose the sweet-voiced
Nestor,[31] the harmonious orator of the Pylians, from whose tongue
flowed language sweeter than honey. During his life two generations of
articulately-speaking men had become extinct, who, formerly, were reared
and lived with him in divine Pylus, but he was now ruling over the
third; who, wisely counselling, addressed them, and said:

[Footnote 31: I must refer the reader to a most happy sketch of
Nestor's exploits and character in Crete's Hist, of Greece, vol.
i. p. 153.]

"O gods! surely a great sorrow comes upon the Grecian land. Verily,
Priam would exult, and the sons of Priam, and the other Trojans, would
greatly rejoice in their souls, if they were to hear these things of you
twain contending: you who in council and in fighting surpass the Greeks.
But be persuaded; for ye are both younger than I am. For already, in
former times, I have associated with men braver