She ran to Hector, and with her, tender of heart and hand, Her son borne in his nurse's arms; when, like a heavenly sign Compact of many golden stars, the princely child did shine. Hector, though grief bereft his speech, yet smiled upon his joy. Andromache cried out, mix'd hands, and to the strength of Troy Thus wept forth her affection: "O noblest in desire! Thy mind inflamed with other's good will set thyself on fire. Nor pitiest thou my son, nor wife, that must thy widow be If now thou issue; all the field will only run on thee." "Nay," answered he; "but in this fire must Hector's trial shine; Here must his country, father, friends, be made in him divine. Yet such a stormy day shall come (in mind and soul I know), When sacred Troy shall shed her towers for tears of overthrow; When Priam, all his birth and power, shall in those tears be drown'd. But neither Troy's posterity so much my soul doth wound, Priam nor Hecuba herself, nor all my brother's woes, (Who, though so many, and so good must all be food for foes), As thy sad state; when some rude Greek shall lead thee weeping hence, These free days clouded, and a night of captive violence Loading thy temples, out of which thine eyes must never see, But spin the Greek wives webs of task, and their fetch-water be." This said, he reached to take his son; who of his arms afraid, And then the horse-hair plume, with which he was so overlaid, Nodded so horribly, he cling'd back to his nurse and cried. Laughter affected his great sire, who doff'd and laid aside His fearful helm, that on the earth cast round about its light; Then took and kiss'd his loving son. "Afflict me not, dear wife, With these vain griefs. He doth not live that can disjoin my life And this firm bosom, but my fate; and fate whose wings can fly? Noble, ignoble, fate controls. Once born, the best must die." II.--_Of the Battle by the Ships_ After this, Hector fought with Ajax, and neither had the better. And after that the Greeks set a rampart and a ditch about their ships. Also, Agamemnon would have bidden the Greeks depart altogether, but Diomedes withstood him. And in the fighting that followed, Agamemnon showed himself the best man among the Greeks, seeing that neither Achilles nor Diomedes joined the fray; and the Trojans had the better, driving the Greeks back to the rampart, and bursting through, so that they were like to have burnt the Greek ships where they lay, led on by Hector. To and fro swayed the tide of battle; for while Jove slept, Neptune and Juno gave force and courage to the Greeks, and the Trojans were borne back; Hector being sore hurt with a stone cast by Ajax. But Jove, awaking, restored Hector's strength, sending Apollo to him. Then Apollo and Hector led