ter, and Apollo sent a plague upon the Greeks in their camp.
Calchas told them it was because of Chryseis, and they forced Agamemnon
to give her safely back to her father. His pride, however, was hurt, and
he said he must have Briseis in her stead, and sent and took her from
Achilles. In his wrath Achilles declared he would not fight any more for
the Greeks, and his mother Thetis begged Jupiter to withdraw his aid from
them likewise, that they might feel the difference.

The Trojans went out to attack them, and when they were drawn up in
battle array, old Priam made Helen come and sit by him on the battlements
over the gateway, to tell him who all the chiefs were. It was proposed
that, instead of causing the death of numbers who had nothing to do with
the quarrel, Menelaus and Paris should fight hand-to-hand for Helen; and
they began; but as soon as Venus saw that her favourite Paris was in
danger, she came in a cloud, snatched him away, and set him down in
Helen's chamber, where his brother Hector found him reclining at his
ease, on coming to upbraid him for keeping out of the battle, where so
many better men than he were dying for his crime. Very different were
Hector's ways. He parted most tenderly with his wife Andromache, and his
little son Astyanax, who was so young that he clung crying to his nurse,
afraid of his father's tall helmet and horsehair crest. Hector took the
helmet off before he lifted the little one in his arms and prayed to the
gods for him.

Each day the Trojans gained, though one day Jupiter forbade any of the
gods or goddesses to interfere, and on another he let them all go down
and fight for their own parties. He was himself impartial; but one day
Juno managed to borrow Venus' girdle, which made her so charming that
nothing could resist her, and she lulled him to sleep. During that time
the Greeks prevailed again, but this only lasted till Jupiter awoke, and
then the Trojans gained great success. All the Greek heroes were
disabled one after another, and Hector and his men broke through the
rampart they had made round their camp, and were about to burn the ships,
when Patroclus, grieved at finding all his friends wounded, came to
Achilles with an entreaty that he might be allowed to send out the
Myrmidons, and try to save the ships. Achilles consented, and dressed
Patroclus in his own armour. Then all gave way before the fresh
Myrmidons led by Patroclus, and the Trojans were chased bac