So held they colloquy. Meanwhile the space Betwixt the galleys and the trench and wall Was crowded close with steeds and shielded men; For Hector, son of Priam, terrible As Mars the lightning-footed, drave them on Before him. Jove decreed him such renown. And now would he have given that noble fleet To the consuming flame, if Juno, queen Of heaven, had not beheld, and moved the heart Of Agamemnon to exhort the Greeks That they should turn and combat. With quick steps He passed beside the fleet, among the tents, Bearing in his strong hand his purple robe, And climbed the huge black galley which had brought Ulysses to the war⁠—for in the midst It lay, and thence the king might send his voice To either side, as far as to the tents Of Ajax and Achilles, who had moored Their galleys at the different extremes Of the long camp, confiding in their might Of arm and their own valor. Thence he called, With loud, clear utterance, to the Achaian host:⁠—