[NOTE: There is a short list of bookmarks, or pointers, at the end of thefile for those who may wish to sample the author's ideas before making anentire meal of them. D. W. ]

UARDA

By Georg Ebers

Volume 6. 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

This eventful day had brought much that was unexpected to our friends inThebes, as well as to those who lived in the Necropolis. 

The Lady Katuti had risen early after a sleepless night. Nefert had comein late, had excused her delay by shortly explaining to her mother thatshe had been detained by Bent-Anat, and had then affectionately offeredher brow for a kiss of "good-night. "

When the widow was about to withdraw to her sleeping-room, and Nemu hadlighted her lamp, she remembered the secret which was to deliver Paakerinto Ani's hands. She ordered the dwarf to impart to her what he knew, and the little man told her at last, after sincere efforts at resistance--for he feared for his mother's safety--that Paaker had administeredhalf of a love-philter to Nefert, and that the remainder was still in hishands. 

A few hours since this information would have filled Katuti withindignation and disgust; now, though she blamed the Mohar, she askedeagerly whether such a drink could be proved to have any actual effect. 

"Not a doubt of it, " said the dwarf, "if the whole were taken, but Nefertonly had half of it. "

At a late hour Katuti was still pacing her bedroom, thinking of Paaker'sinsane devotion, of Mena's faithlessness, and of Nefert's altereddemeanor; and when she went to bed, a thousand conjectures, fears, andanxieties tormented her, while she was distressed at the change which hadcome over Nefert's love to her mother, a sentiment which of all othersshould be the most sacred, and the most secure against all shock. 

Soon after sunrise she went into the little temple attached to the house, and made an offering to the statue, which, under the form of Osiris, represented her lost husband; then she went to the temple of Anion, whereshe also prayed a while, and nevertheless, on her return home, found thather daughter had not yet made her appearance in the hall where theyusually breakfasted together. 

Katuti preferred to be undisturbed during the early morning hours, andtherefore did not interfere with her daughter's disposition to sleep farinto the day in her carefully-darkened room. 

When the widow went to the temple Nefert was accustomed to take a cup ofmilk in bed, then she would let herself be dressed, and when her motherreturned, she would find her in the veranda or hall, which is so wellknown to the reader. 

To-day however Katuti had to breakfast alone; but when she had eaten afew mouthfuls she prepared Nefert's breakfast--a white cake and a littlewine in a small silver beaker, carefully guarded from dust and insects bya napkin thrown over it--and went into her daughter's room. 

She was startled at finding it empty, but she was informed that Neferthad gone earlier than was her wont to the temple, in her litter. 

With a heavy sigh she returned to the veranda, and there received hernephew Paaker, who had come to enquire after the health of his relatives, followed by a slave, who carried two magnificent bunches of flowers, andby the great dog which had formerly belonged to his father. One bouquethe said had been cut for Nefert, and the other for her mother. 

 [Pictures on the monuments show that in ancient Egypt, as at the present time, bouquets of flowers were bestowed as tokens of friendly feeling. ]

Katuti had taken quite a new interest in Paaker since she had heard ofhis procuring the philter. 

No other young man of the rank to which they belonged, would have allowedhimself to be so mastered by his passion for a woman as this Paaker was, who went straight to his aim with stubborn determination, and shunned nomeans that might lead to it. The pioneer, who had grown up under hereyes, whose weaknesses she knew, and whom she was accustomed to look downupon, suddenly appeared to her as a different man--almost a stranger--asthe deliverer of his friends, and the merciless antagonist of hisenemies. 

These reflections had passed rapidly through her mind. Now her eyesrested on the sturdy, strongly-knit figure of her nephew, and it struckher that he bore no resemblance to his tall, handsome father. Often hadshe admired her brother-in-law's slender hand, that nevertheless could soeffectually wield a sword, but that of his son was broad and ignoble inform. 

While Paaker was telling her that he must shortly leave for Syria, sheinvoluntarily observed the action of this hand, which often wentcautiously to his girdle as if he had something concealed there; this wasthe oval phial with the rest of the philter. Katuti observed it, and hercheeks flushed when it occurred to her to guess what he had there. 

The pioneer could not but observe Katuti's agitation, and he said in atone of sympathy:

"I perceive that you are in pain, or in trouble. The master of Mena'sstud at Hermonthis has no doubt been with you--No? He came to meyesterday, and asked me to allow him to join my troops. He is very angrywith you, because he has been obliged to sell some of Mena's gold-bays. I have bought the finest of them. They are splendid creatures! Now hewants to go to his master 'to open his eyes, ' as he says. Lie down alittle while, aunt, you are very pale. "

Katuti did not follow this prescription; on the contrary she smiled, andsaid in a voice half of anger and half of pity:

"The old fool firmly believes that the weal or woe of the family dependson the gold-bays. He would like to go with you? To open Mena's eyes?No one has yet tried to bind them!"

Katuti spoke the last words in a low tone, and her glance fell. Paakeralso looked down, and was silent; but he soon recovered his presence ofmind, and said:

"If Nefert is to be long absent, I will go. "

"No--no, stay, " cried the widow. "She wished to see you, and must sooncome in. There are her cake and her wine waiting for her. "

With these words she took the napkin off the breakfast-table, held up thebeaker in her hand, and then said, with the cloth still in her hand:

"I will leave you a moment, and see if Nefert is not yet come home. "

Hardly had she left the veranda when Paaker, having convinced himselfthat no one could see him, snatched the flask from his girdle, and, witha short invocation to his father in Osiris, poured its whole contentsinto the beaker, which thus was filled to the very brim. A few minuteslater Nefert and her mother entered the hall. 

Paaker took up the nosegay, which his slave had laid down on a seat, andtimidly approached the young woman, who walked in with such an aspect ofdecision and self-confidence, that her mother looked at her inastonishment, while Paaker felt as if she had never before appeared sobeautiful and brilliant. Was it possible that she should love herhusband, when his breach of faith troubled her so little? Did her heartstill belong to another? Or had the love-philter set him in the place ofMena? Yes! yes! for how warmly she greeted him. She put out her hand tohim while he was still quite far off, let it rest in his, thanked himwith feeling, and praised his fidelity and generosity. 

Then she went up to the table, begged Paaker to sit down with her, brokeher cake, and enquired for her aunt Setchern, Paaker's mother. 

Katuti and Paaker watched all her movements with beating hearts. 

Now she took up the beaker, and lifted it to her lips, but set it downagain to answer Paaker's remark that she was breakfasting late. 

"I have hitherto been a real lazy-bones, " she said with a blush. Butthis morning I got up early, to go and pray in the temple in the freshdawn. You know what has happened to the sacred ram of Amion. It is afrightful occurrence. The priests were all in the greatest agitation, but the venerable Bek el Chunsu received me himself, and interpreted mydream, and now my spirit is light and contented. "

"And you did all this without me?" said Katuti in gentle reproof. 

"I would not disturb you, " replied Nefert. "Besides, " she addedcoloring, "you never take me to the city and the temple in the morning. "

Again she took up the wine-cup and looked into it, but without drinkingany, went on:

"Would you like to hear what I dreamed, Paaker? It was a strangevision. "

The pioneer could hardly breathe for expectation, still he begged her totell her dream. 

"Only think, " said Nefert, pushing the beaker on the smooth table, whichwas wet with a few drops which she had spilt, "I dreamed of the Neha-tree, down there in the great tub, which your father brought me fromPunt, when I was a little child, and which since then has grown quite atall tree. There is no tree in the garden I love so much, for it alwaysreminds me of your father, who was so kind to me, and whom I can neverforget!"

Paaker bowed assent. 

Nefert looked at him, and interrupted her story when she observed hiscrimson cheeks. 

"It is very hot! Would you like some wine to drink---or some water?"

With these words she raised the wine-cup, and drank about half of thecontents; then she shuddered, and while her pretty face took a comicalexpression, she turned to her mother, who was seated behind her and heldthe beaker towards her. 

"The wine is quite sour to-day!" she said. "Taste it, mother. "

Katuti took the little silver-cup in her hand, and gravely put it to herlips, but without wetting them. A smile passed over her face, and hereyes met those of the pioneer, who stared at her in horror. The pictureflashed before her mind of herself languishing for the pioneer, and ofhis terror at her affection for him! Her selfish and intriguing spiritwas free from coarseness, and yet she could have laughed with all herheart even while engaged in the most shameful deed of her whole life. She gave the wine back to her daughter, saying good-humoredly:

"I have tasted sweeter, but acid is refreshing in this heat. "

"That is true, " said the wife of Mena; she emptied the cup to the bottom, and then went on, as if refreshed, "But I will tell you the rest of mydream. I saw the Neha-tree, which your father gave me, quite plainly;nay I could have declared that I smelt its perfume, but the interpreterassured me that we never smell in our dreams. I went up to the beautifultree in admiration. Then suddenly a hundred axes appeared in the air, wielded by unseen hands, and struck the poor tree with such violence thatthe branches one by one fell to the ground, and at last the trunk itselfwas felled. If you think it grieved me you are mistaken. On thecontrary, I was delighted with the flashing hatchets and the flyingsplinters. When at last nothing was left but the roots in the tub ofearth, I perceived that the tree was rising to new life. Suddenly myarms became strong, my feet active, and I fetched quantities of waterfrom the tank, poured it over the roots, and when, at last, I could exertmyself no longer, a tender green shoot showed itself on the wounded root, a bud appeared, a green leaf unfolded itself, a juicy stem sproutedquickly, it became a firm trunk, sent out branches and twigs, and thesebecame covered with leaves and flowers, white, red and blue; then variousbirds came and settled on the top of the tree, and sang. Ah! my heartsang louder than the birds at that moment, and I said to myself thatwithout me the tree would have been dead, and that it owed its life tome. "

"A beautiful dream, " said Katuti; "that reminds me of your girlhood, whenyou would he awake half the night inventing all sorts of tales. Whatinterpretation did the priest give you?"

"He promised me many things, " said Nefert, "and he gave me the assurancethat the happiness to which I am predestined shall revive in fresh beautyafter many interruptions. "

"And Paaker's father gave you the Neha-tree?" asked Katuti, leaving theveranda as she spoke and walking out into the garden. 

"My father brought it to Thebes from the far cast, " said Paaker, inconfirmation of the widow's parting words. 

"And that is exactly what makes me so happy, " said Nefert. "For yourfather was as kind, and as dear to me as if he had been my own. Do youremember when we were sailing round the pond, and the boat upset, and youpulled me senseless out of the water? Never shall I forget theexpression with which the great man looked at me when I woke up in itsarms; such wise true eyes no one ever had but he. "

"He was good, and he loved you very much, " said Paaker, recalling, forhis part, the moment when he had dared to press a kiss on the lips of thesweet unconscious child. 

"And I am so glad, " Nefert went on, "that the day has come at last whenwe can talk of him together again, and when the old grudge that lay soheavy in my heart is all forgotten. How good you are to us, I havealready learned; my heart overflows with gratitude to you, when Iremember my childhood, and I can never forget that I was indebted to youfor all that was bright and happy in it. Only look at the big dog--poorDescher!--how he rubs against me, and shows that he has not forgotten me!Whatever comes from your house fills my mind with pleasant memories. "

"We all love you dearly, " said Paaker looking at her tenderly. 

"And how sweet it was in your garden!" cried Nefert. "The nosegay herethat you have brought me shall be placed in water, and preserved a longtime, as greeting from the place in which once I could play carelessly, and dream so happily. "

With these words she pressed the flowers to her lips; Paaker sprangforward, seized her hand, and covered it with burning kisses. 

Nefert started and drew away her hand, but he put out his arm to claspher to him. He had touched her with his trembling hand, when loud voiceswere heard in the garden, and Nemu hurried in to announce he arrival ofthe princess Bent-Anat. 

At the same moment Katuti appeared, and in a few minutes the princessherself. 

Paaker retreated, and quitted the room before Nefert had time to expressher indignation. He staggered to his chariot like a drunken man. Hesupposed himself beloved by Mena's wife, his heart was full of triumph, he proposed rewarding Hekt with gold, and went to the palace withoutdelay to crave of Ani a mission to Syria. There it should be brought tothe test--he or Mena. 

CHAPTER XXV. 

While Nefert, frozen with horror, could not find a word of greeting forher royal friend, Bent-Anat with native dignity laid before the widow herchoice of Nefert to fill the place of her lost companion, and desiredthat Mena's wife should go to the palace that very day. 

She had never before spoken thus to Katuti, and Katuti could not overlookthe fact that Bent-Anat had intentionally given up her old confidentialtone. 

"Nefert has complained of me to her, " thought she to herself, "and sheconsiders me no longer worthy of her former friendly kindness. "

She was vexed and hurt, and though she understood the danger whichthreatened her, now her daughter's eyes were opened, still the thought oflosing her child inflicted a painful wound. It was this which filled hereyes with tears, and sincere sorrow trembled in her voice as she replied:

"Thou hast required the better half of my life at my hand; but thou hastbut to command, and I to obey. " Bent-Anat waved her hand proudly, as ifto confirm the widow's statement; but Nefert went up to her mother, threwher arms round her neck, and wept upon her shoulder. 

Tears glistened even in the princess's eyes when Katuti at last led herdaughter towards her, and pressed yet one more kiss on her forehead. 

Bent-Anat took Nefert's hand, and did not release it, while she requestedthe widow to give her daughter's dresses and ornaments into the charge ofthe slaves and waiting-women whom she would send for them. 

"And do not forget the case with the dried flowers, and my amulets, andthe images of the Gods, " said Nefert. "And I should like to have theNeha tree which my uncle gave me. "

Her white cat was playing at her feet with Paaker's flowers, which shehad dropped on the floor, and when she saw her she took her up and kissedher. 

"Bring the little creature with you, " said Bent-Anat. "It was yourfavorite plaything. "

"No, " replied Nefert coloring. 

The princess understood her, pressed her hand, and said while she pointedto Nemu:

"The dwarf is your own too: shall he come with you?"

"I will give him to my mother, " said Nefert. She let the little man kissher robe and her feet, once more embraced Katuti, and quitted the gardenwith her royal friend. 

As soon as Katuti was alone, she hastened into the little chapel in whichthe figures of her ancestors stood, apart from those of Mena. She threwherself down before the statue of her husband, half weeping, halfthankful. 

This parting had indeed fallen heavily on her soul, but at the same timeit released her from a mountain of anxiety that had oppressed her breast. Since yesterday she had felt like one who walks along the edge of aprecipice, and whose enemy is close at his heels; and the sense offreedom from the ever threatening danger, soon got the upperhand of hermaternal grief. The abyss in front of her had suddenly closed; the roadto the goal of her efforts lay before her smooth and firm beneath herfeet. 

The widow, usually so dignified, hastily and eagerly walked down thegarden path, and for the first time since that luckless letter from thecamp had reached her, she could look calmly and clearly at the positionof affairs, and reflect on the measures which Ani must take in theimmediate future. She told herself that all was well, and that the timefor prompt and rapid action was now come. 

When the messengers came from the princess she superintended the packingof the various objects which Nefert wished to have, with calmdeliberation, and then sent her dwarf to Ani, to beg that he would visither. But before Nemu had left Mena's grounds he saw the out-runners ofthe Regent, his chariot, and the troop of guards following him. 

Very soon Katuti and her noble friend were walking up and down in thegarden, while she related to him how Bent-Anat had taken Nefert from her, and repeated to him all that she had planned and considered during thelast hour. 

"You have the genius of a man, " said Ani; "and this time you do not urgeme in vain. Ameni is ready to act, Paaker is to-day collecting histroops, to-morrow he will assist at the feast of the Valley, and the nextday he goes to Syria. "

"He has been with you?" Katuti asked. 

"He came to the palace on leaving your house, " replied Ani, "with glowingcheeks, and resolved to the utmost; though he does not dream that I holdhim in my hand. "

Thus speaking they entered the veranda, in which Nemu had remained, andhe now hid himself as usual behind the ornamental shrubs to overhearthem. They sat down near each other, by Nefert's breakfast table, andAni asked Katuti whether the dwarf had told her his mother's secret. Katuti feigned ignorance, listened to the story of the love-philter, andplayed the part of the alarmed mother very cleverly. The Regent was ofopinion, while he tried to soothe her, that there was no real love-potionin the case; but the widow exclaimed:

"Now I understand, now for the first time I comprehend my daughter. Paaker must have poured the drink into her wine, for she had no soonerdrunk it this morning than she was quite altered her words to Paaker hadquite a tender ring in them; and if he placed himself so cheerfully atyour disposal it is because he believes himself certainly to be belovedby my daughter. The old witch's potion was effectual. "

"There certainly are such drinks--" said Ani thoughtfully. "But willthey only win hearts to young men! If that is the case, the old woman'strade is a bad one, for youth is in itself a charm to attract love. If Iwere only as young as Paaker! You laugh at the sighs of a man--say atonce of an old man! Well, yes, I am old, for the prime of life liesbehind me. And yet Katuti, my friend, wisest of women--explain to me onething. When I was young I was loved by many and admired many women, butnot one of them--not even my wife, who died young, was more to me than atoy, a plaything; and now when I stretch out my hand for a girl, whosefather I might very well be--not for her own sake, but simply to serve mypurpose--and she refuses me, I feel as much disturbed, as much a fool as-as that dealer in love-philters, Paaker. "

"Have you spoken to Bent-Anat?" asked Katuti. 

"And heard again from her own lips the refusal she had sent me throughyou. You see my spirit has suffered!"

"And on what pretext did she reject your suit?" asked the widow. 

"Pretext!" cried Ani. "Bent-Anat and pretext! It must be owned thatshe has kingly pride, and not Ma--[The Goddess of Truth]--herself is moretruthful than she. That I should have to confess it! When I think ofher, our plots seem to me unutterably pitiful. My veins contain, indeed, many drops of the blood of Thotmes, and though the experience of life hastaught me to stoop low, still the stooping hurts me. I have never knownthe happy feeling of satisfaction with my lot and my work; for I havealways had a greater position than I could fill, and constantly done lessthan I ought to have done. In order not to look always resentful, Ialways wear a smile. I have nothing left of the face I was born with butthe mere skin, and always wear a mask. I serve him whose master Ibelieve I ought to be by birth; I hate Rameses, who, sincerely or no, calls me his brother; and while I stand as if I were the bulwark of hisauthority I am diligently undermining it. My whole existence is a lie. "

"But it will be truth, " cried Katuti, "as soon as the Gods allow you tobe--as you are--the real king of this country. "

"Strange!" said Ani smiling, Ameni, this very day, used almost exactlythe same words. The wisdom of priests, and that of women, have much incommon, and they fight with the same weapons. You use words instead ofswords, traps instead of lances, and you cast not our bodies, but oursouls, into irons. "

"Do you blame or praise us for it?" said the widow. "We are in any casenot impotent allies, and therefore, it seems to me, desirable ones. "

Indeed you are, " said Ani smiling. "Not a tear is shed in the land, whether it is shed for joy or for sorrow, for which in the first instancea priest or a woman is not responsible. Seriously, Katuti--in nine greatevents out of ten you women have a hand in the game. You gave the firstimpulse to all that is plotting here, and I will confess to you that, regardless of all consequences, I should in a few hours have given up mypretensions to the throne, if that woman Bent-Anat had said 'yes' insteadof 'no. '"

"You make me believe, " said Katuti, "that the weaker sex are gifted withstronger wills than the nobler. In marrying us you style us, 'themistress of the house, ' and if the elders of the citizens grow infirm, in this country it is not the sons but the daughters that must be theirmainstay. But we women have our weaknesses, and chief of these iscuriosity. --May I ask on what ground Bent-Anat dismissed you?"

"You know so much that you may know all, " replied Ani. "She admitted meto speak to her alone. It was yet early, and she had come from thetemple, where the weak old prophet had absolved her from uncleanness; shemet me, bright, beautiful and proud, strong and radiant as a Goddess, anda princess. My heart throbbed as if I were a boy, and while she wasshowing me her flowers I said to myself: 'You are come to obtain throughher another claim to the throne. ' And yet I felt that, if she consentedto be mine, I would remain the true brother, the faithful Regent ofRameses, and enjoy happiness and peace by her side before it was toolate. If she refused me then I resolved that fate must take its way, and, instead of peace and love, it must be war for the crown snatchedfrom my fathers. I tried to woo her, but she cut my words short, said Iwas a noble man, and a worthy suitor but--"

"There came the but. "

"Yes--in the form of a very frank 'no. ' I asked her reasons. She beggedme to be content with the 'no;' then I pressed her harder, till sheinterrupted me, and owned with proud decision that she preferred someone else. I wished to learn the name of the happy man--that she refused. Then my blood began to boil, and my desire to win her increased; but Ihad to leave her, rejected, and with a fresh, burning, poisoned wound inmy heart. "

"You are jealous!" said Katuti, "and do you know of whom?"

"No, " replied Ani. "But I hope to find out through you. What I feel itis impossible for me to express. But one thing I know, and that is this, that I entered the palace a vacillating man--that I left it firmlyresolved. I now rush straight onwards, never again to turn back. Fromthis time forward you will no longer have to drive me onward, but ratherto hold me back; and, as if the Gods had meant to show that they wouldstand by me, I found the high-priest Ameni, and the chief pioneer Paakerwaiting for me in my house. Ameni will act for me in Egypt, Paaker inSyria. My victorious troops from Ethiopia will enter Thebes to-morrowmorning, on their return home in triumph, as if the king were at theirhead, and will then take part in the Feast of the Valley. Later we willsend them into the north, and post them in the fortresses which protectEgypt against enemies coming from the east Tanis, Daphne, Pelusium, Migdol. Rameses, as you know, requires that we should drill the serfs ofthe temples, and send them to him as auxiliaries. I will send him halfof the body-guard, the other half shall serve my own purposes. Thegarrison of Memphis, which is devoted to Rameses, shall be sent to Nubia, and shall be relieved by troops that are faithful to me. The people ofThebes are led by the priests, and tomorrow Ameni will point out to themwho is their legitimate king, who will put an end to the war and releasethem from taxes. The children of Rameses will be excluded from thesolemnities, for Ameni, in spite of the chief-priest of Anion, stillpronounces Bent-Anat unclean. Young Rameri has been doing wrong andAmeni, who has some other great scheme in his mind, has forbidden him thetemple of Seti; that will work on the crowd! You know how things aregoing on in Syria: Rameses has suffered much at the hands of the Chetaand their allies; whole legions are weary of eternally lying in thefield, and if things came to extremities would join us; but, perhaps, especially if Paaker acquits himself well, we may be victorious withoutfighting. Above all things now we must act rapidly. "

"I no longer recognize the timid, cautious lover of delay!" exclaimedKatuti. 

"Because now prudent hesitation would be want of prudence, " said Ani. 

"And if the king should get timely information as to what is happeninghere?" said Katuti. 

"I said so!" exclaimed Ani; "we are exchanging parts. "

"You are mistaken, " said Katuti. "I also am for pressing forwards; butI would remind you of a necessary precaution. No letters but yours mustreach the camp for the next few weeks. "

"Once more you and the priests are of one mind, " said Ani laughing;'for Ameni gave me the same counsel. Whatever letters are sent acrossthe frontier between Pelusium and the Red Sea will be detained. Only myletters--in which I complain of the piratical sons of the desert who fallupon the messengers--will reach the king. "

"That is wise, " said the widow; "let the seaports of the Red Sea bewatched too, and the public writers. When you are king, you candistinguish those who are affected for or against you. "

Ani shook his head and replied:

"That would put me in a difficult position; for it I were to punish thosewho are now faithful to their king, and exalt the others, I should haveto govern with unfaithful servants, and turn away the faithful ones. Youneed not color, my kind friend, for we are kin, and my concerns areyours. "

Katuti took the hand he offered her and said:

"It is so. And I ask no further reward than to see my father's houseonce more in the enjoyment of its rights. "

"Perhaps we shall achieve it, " said Ani; "but in a short time if--if--Reflect, Katuti; try to find out, ask your daughter to help you to theutmost. Who is it that she--you know whom I mean--Who is it that Bent-Anat loves?"

The widow started, for Ani had spoken the last words with a vehemencevery foreign to his usual courtliness, but soon she smiled and repeatedto the Regent the names of the few young nobles who had not followed theking, and remained in Thebes. "Can it be Chamus?" at last she said, "he is at the camp, it is true, but nevertheless--"

At this instant Nemu, who had not lost a word of the conversation, camein as if straight from the garden and said:

"Pardon me, my lady; but I have heard a strange thing. "

"Speak, " said Katuti. 

The high and mighty princess Bent-Anat, the daughter of Rameses, is saidto have an open love-affair with a young priest of the House of Seti. "

"You barefaced scoundrel!" exclaimed Ani, and his eyes sparkled withrage. "Prove what you say, or you lose your tongue. "

"I am willing to lose it as a slanderer and traitor according to thelaw, " said the little man abjectly, and yet with a malicious laugh; "butthis time I shall keep it, for I can vouch for what I say. You both knowthat Bent-Anat was pronounced unclean because she stayed for an hour andmore in the house of a paraschites. She had an assignation there withthe priest. At a second, in the temple of Hatasu, they were surprised bySeptah, the chief of the haruspices of the House of Seti. "

"Who is the priest?" asked Ani with apparent calmness. 

"A low-born man, " replied Nemu, "to whom a free education was given atthe House of Seti, and who is well known as a verse-maker and interpreterof dreams. His name is Pentaur, and it certainly must be admitted thathe is handsome and dignified. He is line for line the image of thepioneer Paaker's late father. Didst thou ever see him, my lord?"

The Regent looked gloomily at the floor and nodded that he had. ButKatuti cried out; "Fool that I am! the dwarf is right! I saw how sheblushed when her brother told her how the boys had rebelled on hisaccount against Ameni. It is Pentaur and none other!"

"Good!" said Ani, "we will see. "

With these words he took leave of Katuti, who, as he disappeared inthe garden, muttered to herself: "He was wonderfully clear and decidedto-day; but jealousy is already blinding him and will soon make him feelthat he cannot get on without my sharp eyes. "

Nemu had slipped out after the Regent. 

He called to him from behind a fig-tree, and hastily whispered, while hebowed with deep respect:

"My mother knows a great deal, most noble highness! The sacred Ibis

 [Ibis religiosa. It has disappeared from Egypt There were two varieties of this bird, which was sacred to Toth, and mummies of both have been found in various places. Elian states that an immortal Ibis was shown at Hermopolis. Plutarch says, the ibis destroys poisonous reptiles, and that priests draw the water for their purifications where the Ibis has drunk, as it will never touch unwholesome water. ]

wades through the fen when it goes in search of prey, and why shouldstthou not stoop to pick up gold out of the dust? I know how thou couldstspeak with the old woman without being seen. "

"Speak, " said Ani. 

"Throw her into prison for a day, hear what she has to say, and thenrelease her--with gifts if she is of service to you--if not, with blows. But thou wilt learn something important from her that she obstinatelyrefused to tell me even. "

"We will see!" replied the Regent. He threw a ring of gold to the dwarfand got into his chariot. 

So large a crowd had collected in the vicinity of the palace, that Aniapprehended mischief, and ordered his charioteer to check the pace of thehorses, and sent a few police-soldiers to the support of the out-runners;but good news seemed to await him, for at the gate of the castle he heardthe unmistakable acclamations of the crowd, and in the palace court hefound a messenger from the temple of Seti, commissioned by Ameni tocommunicate to him and to the people, the occurrence of a great miracle, in that the heart of the ram of Anion, that had been torn by wolves, hadbeen found again within the breast of the dead prophet Rui. 

Ani at once descended from his chariot, knelt down before all the people, who followed his example, lifted his arms to heaven, and praised the Godsin a loud voice. When, after some minutes, he rose and entered thepalace, slaves came out and distributed bread to the crowd in Ameni'sname. 

"The Regent has an open hand, " said a joiner to his neighbor; "only lookhow white the bread is. I will put it in my pocket and take it to thechildren. "

"Give me a bit!" cried a naked little scamp, snatching the cake of breadfrom the joiner's hand and running away, slipping between the legs of thepeople as lithe as a snake. 

"You crocodile's brat!" cried his victim. "The insolence of boys getsworse and worse every day. "

"They are hungry, " said the woman apologetically. "Their fathers aregone to the war, and the mothers have nothing for their children butpapyrus-pith and lotus-seeds. "

"I hope they enjoy it, " laughed the joiner. "Let us push to the left;there is a man with some more bread. "

"The Regent must rejoice greatly over the miracle, " said a shoemaker. "It is costing him something. "

"Nothing like it has happened for a long time, " said a basket-maker. "And he is particularly glad it should be precisely Rui's body, which thesacred heart should have blessed. You ask why?--Hatasu is Ani'sancestress, blockhead!"

"And Rui was prophet of the temple of Hatasu, " added the joiner. 

"The priests over there are all hangers-on of the old royal house, that I know, " asserted a baker. 

"That's no secret!" cried the cobbler. "The old times were better thanthese too. The war upsets everything, and quite respectable people gobarefoot because they cannot pay for shoe-leather. Rameses is a greatwarrior, and the son of Ra, but what can he do without the Gods; and theydon't seem to like to stay in Thebes any longer; else why should theheart of the sacred ram seek a new dwelling in the Necropolis, and in thebreast of an adherent of the old--"

"Hold your tongue, " warned the basket-maker. "Here comes one of thewatch. "

"I must go back to work, " said the baker. "I have my hands quite fullfor the feast to-morrow. "

"And I too, " said the shoemaker with a sigh, "for who would follow theking of the Gods through the Necropolis barefoot. "

"You must earn a good deal, " cried the basket-maker. "We should dobetter if we had better workmen, " replied the shoemaker, "but all thegood hands are gone to the war. One has to put up with stupidyoungsters. And as for the women! My wife must needs have a new gownfor the procession, and bought necklets for the children. Of course wemust honor the dead, and they repay it often by standing by us when wewant it--but what I pay for sacrifices no one can tell. More than halfof what I earn goes in them--"

"In the first grief of losing my poor wife, " said the baker, "I promiseda small offering every new moon, and a greater one every year. Thepriests will not release us from our vows, and times get harder andharder. And my dead wife owes me a grudge, and is as thankless as shewas is her lifetime; for when she appears to me in a dream she does notgive me a good word, and often torments me. "

"She is now a glorified all-seeing spirit, " said the basket-maker's wife, "and no doubt you were faithless to her. The glorified souls know allthat happens, and that has happened on earth. "

The baker cleared his throat, having no answer ready; but the shoemakerexclaimed:

"By Anubis, the lord of the under-world, I hope I may die before my oldwoman! for if she finds out down there all I have done in this world, andif she may be changed into any shape she pleases, she will come to meevery night, and nip me like a crab, and sit on me like a mountain. "

"And if you die first, " said the woman, "she will follow you afterwardsto the under-world, and see through you there. "

"That will be less dangerous, " said the shoemaker laughing, "for then Ishall be glorified too, and shall know all about her past life. Thatwill not all be white paper either, and if she throws a shoe at me I willfling the last at her. "

"Come home, " said the basket-maker's wife, pulling her husband away. "You are getting no good by hearing this talk. "

The bystanders laughed, and the baker exclaimed:

"It is high time I should be in the Necropolis before it gets dark, andsee to the tables being laid for to-morrow's festival. My trucks areclose to the narrow entrance to the valley. Send your little ones to me, and I will give them something nice. Are you coming over with me?"

"My younger brother is gone over with the goods, " replied the shoemaker. "We have plenty to do still for the customers in Thebes, and here am Istanding gossiping. Will the wonderful heart of the sacred ram beexhibited to-morrow do you know?"

"Of course--no doubt, " said the baker, "good-bye, there go my cases!"

CHAPTER XXVI. 

Notwithstanding the advanced hour, hundreds of people were crossing overto the Necropolis at the same time as the baker. They were permitted tolinger late on into the evening, under the inspection of the watch, because it was the eve of the great feast, and they had to set out theircounters and awnings, to pitch their tents, and to spread out theirwares; for as soon as the sun rose next day all business traffic would bestopped, none but festal barges might cross from Thebes, or such boats asferried over pilgrims--men, women, and children whether natives orforeigners, who were to take part in the great procession. 

In the halls and work-rooms of the House of Seti there was unusual stir. The great miracle of the wonderful heart had left but a short time forthe preparations for the festival. Here a chorus was being practised, there on the sacred lake a scenic representation was being rehearsed;here the statues of the Gods were being cleaned and dressed, [The dressing and undressing of the holy images was conducted in strict accordance with a prescribed ritual. The inscriptions in the seven sanctuaries of Abydos, published by Alariette, are full of instruction as to these ordinances, which were significant in every detail. ]

and the colors of the sacred emblems were being revived, there thepanther-skins and other parts of the ceremonial vestments of the priestswere being aired and set out; here sceptres, censers and other metal-vessels were being cleaned, and there the sacred bark which was to becarried in the procession was being decorated. In the sacred groves ofthe temple the school-boys, under the direction of the gardeners, wovegarlands and wreaths to decorate the landing-places, the sphinxes, thetemple, and the statues of the Gods. Flags were hoisted on the brass-tipped masts in front of the pylon, and purple sails were spread togive shadow to the court. 

The inspector of sacrifices was already receiving at a side-door thecattle, corn and fruit, offerings which were brought as tribute to theHouse of Seti, by citizens from all parts of the country, on the occasionof the festival of the Valley, and he was assisted by scribes, who keptan account of all that was brought in by the able-bodied temple-servantsand laboring serfs. 

Ameni was everywhere: now with the singers, now with the magicians, whowere to effect wonderful transformations before the astonished multitude;now with the workmen, who were erecting thrones for the Regent, theemissaries from other collegiate foundations--even from so far as theDelta--and the prophets from Thebes; now with the priests, who werepreparing the incense, now with the servants, who were trimming thethousand lamps for the illumination at night--in short everywhere; hereinciting, there praising. When he had convinced himself that all wasgoing on well he desired one of the priests to call Pentaur. 

After the departure of the exiled prince Rameri, the young priest hadgone to the work-room of his friend Nebsecht. 

The leech went uneasily from his phials to his cages, and from his cagesback to his flasks. While he told Pentaur of the state he had found hisroom in on his return home, he wandered about in feverish excitement, unable to keep still, now kicking over a bundle of plants, now thumpingdown his fist on the table; his favorite birds were starved to death, hissnakes had escaped, and his ape had followed their example, apparently inhis fear of them. 

"The brute, the monster!" cried Nebsecht in a rage. He has thrown overthe jars with the beetles in them, opened the chest of meal that I feedthe birds and insects upon, and rolled about in it; he has thrown myknives, prickers, and forceps, my pins, compasses, and reed pens all outof window; and when I came in he was sitting on the cupboard up there, looking just like a black slave that works night and day in a corn-mill;he had got hold of the roll which contained all my observations on thestructure of animals--the result of years of study-and was looking at itgravely with his head on one side. I wanted to take the book from him, but he fled with the roll, sprang out of window, let himself down to theedge of the well, and tore and rubbed the manuscript to pieces in a rage. I leaped out after him, but he jumped into the bucket, took hold of thechain, and let himself down, grinning at me in mockery, and when I drewhim up again he jumped into the water with the remains of the book. "

"And the poor wretch is drowned?" asked Pentaur. 

"I fished him up with the bucket, and laid him to dry in the sun; but hehad been tasting all sorts of medicines, and he died at noon. Myobservations are gone! Some of them certainly are still left; however, I must begin again at the beginning. You see apes object as much to mylabors as sages; there lies the beast on the shelf. "

Pentaur had laughed at his friend's story, and then lamented his loss;but now he said anxiously:

"He is lying there on the shelf? But you forget that he ought to havebeen kept in the little oratory of Toth near the library. He belongs tothe sacred dogfaced apes, [The dog faced baboon, Kynokephalos, was sacred to Toth as the Moongod. Mummies of these apes have been found at Thebes and Hermopolis, and they are often represented as reading with much gravity. Statues of them have been found to great quantities, and there is a particularly life-like picture of a Kynokephalos in relief on the left wall of the library of the temple of Isis at Philoe. ]

and all the sacred marks were found upon him. The librarian gave himinto your charge to have his bad eye cured. "

"That was quite well, " answered Nebsecht carelessly. 

"But they will require the uninjured corpse of you, to embalm it, " saidPentaur. 

"Will they?" muttered Nebsecht; and he looked at his friend like a boywho is asked for an apple that has long been eaten. 

"And you have already been doing something with it, " said Pentaur, in atone of friendly vexation. 

The leech nodded. "I have opened him, and examined his heart. '

"You are as much set on hearts as a coquette!" said Pentaur. "What isbecome of the human heart that the old paraschites was to get for you?"

Nebsecht related without reserve what the old man had done for him, andsaid that he had investigated the human heart, and had found nothing init different from what he had discovered in the heart of beasts. 

"But I must see it in connection with the other organs of the humanbody, " cried he; "and my decision is made. I shall leave the House ofSeti, and ask the kolchytes to take me into their guild. If it isnecessary I will first perform the duties of the lowest paraschites. "

Pentaur pointed out to the leech what a bad exchange he would be making, and at last exclaimed, when Nebsecht eagerly contradicted him, "Thisdissecting of the heart does not please me. You say yourself that youlearned nothing by it. Do you still think it a right thing, a finething--or even useful?"

"I do not trouble myself about it, " replied Nebsecht. "Whether myobservations seem good or evil, right or heinous, useful or useless, I want to know how things are, nothing more. "

"And so for mere curiosity, " cried Pentaur, "you would endanger theblissful future of thousands of your fellow-men, take upon yourself themost abject duties, and leave this noble scene of your labors, where weall strive for enlightenment, for inward knowledge and truth. "

The naturalist laughed scornfully; the veins swelled angrily in Pentaur'sforehead, and his voice took a threatening tone as he asked:

"And do you believe that your finger and your eyes have lighted on thetruth, when the noblest souls have striven in vain for thousands of yearsto find it out? You descend beneath the level of human understanding bymadly wallowing in the mire; and the more clearly you are convinced thatyou have seized the truth, the more utterly you are involved in the toilsof a miserable delusion. "

"If I believed I knew the truth should I so eagerly seek it?" askedNebsecht. "The more I observe and learn, the more deeply I feel my wantof knowledge and power. "

"That sounds modest enough, " said the poet, "but I know the arrogance towhich your labors are leading you. Everything that you see with your owneyes and touch with your own hand, you think infallible, and everythingthat escapes your observation you secretly regard as untrue, and pass bywith a smile of superiority. But you cannot carry your experimentsbeyond the external world, and you forget that there are things which liein a different realm. "

"I know nothing of those things, " answered Nebsecht quietly. 

"But we--the Initiated, " cried Pentaur, "turn our attention to them also. Thoughts--traditions--as to their conditions and agency have existedamong us for a thousand years; hundreds of generations of men haveexamined these traditions, have approved them, and have handed them downto us. All our knowledge, it is true, is defective, and yet prophetshave been favored with the gift of looking into the future, magic powershave been vouchsafed to mortals. All this is contrary to the laws of theexternal world, which are all that you recognize, and yet it can easilybe explained if we accept the idea of a higher order of things. Thespirit of the Divinity dwells in each of us, as in nature. The naturalman can only attain to such knowledge as is common to all; but it is thedivine capacity for serene discernment--which is omniscience--that worksin the seer; it is the divine and unlimited power--which is omnipotence--that from time to time enables the magician to produce supernaturaleffects!"

"Away with prophets and marvels!" cried Nebsecht. 

"I should have thought, " said Pentaur, "that even the laws of naturewhich you recognize presented the greatest marvels daily to your eyes;nay the Supreme One does not disdain sometimes to break through thecommon order of things, in order to reveal to that portion of Himselfwhich we call our soul, the sublime Whole of which we form part--Himself. Only today you have seen how the heart of the sacred ram--"

"Man, man!" Nebsecht interrupted, "the sacred heart is the heart of ahapless sheep that a sot of a soldier sold for a trifle to a hagglinggrazier, and that was slaughtered in a common herd. A proscribedparaschites put it into the body of Rui, and--and--" he opened thecupboard, threw the carcase of the ape and some clothes on to the floor, and took out an alabaster bowl which he held before the poet--"themuscles you see here in brine, this machine, once beat in the breast ofthe prophet Rui. My sheep's heart wilt be carried to-morrow in theprocession! I would have told you all about it if I had not promised theold man to hold my tongue, and then--But what ails you, man?" Pentaurhad turned away from his friend, and covered his face with his hands, and he groaned as if he were suffering some frightful physical pain. Nebsecht divined what was passing in the mind of his friend. Like achild that has to ask forgiveness of its mother for some misdeed, he wentclose up to Pentaur, but stood trembling behind him not daring to speakto him. 

Several minutes passed. Suddenly Pentaur raised his head, lifted hishands to heaven, and cried:

"O Thou! the One!--though stars may fall from the heavens in summernights, still Thy eternal and immutable laws guide the never-restingplanets in their paths. Thou pure and all-prevading Spirit, thatdwellest in me, as I know by my horror of a lie, manifest Thyself in me--as light when I think, as mercy when I act, and when I speak, as truth--always as truth!"

The poet spoke these words with absorbed fervor, and Nebsecht heard themas if they were speech from some distant and beautiful world. He wentaffectionately up to his friend, and eagerly held out his hand. Pentaurgrasped it, pressed it warmly, and said:

"That was a fearful moment! You do not know what Ameni has been to me, and now, now!"

He hardly had ceased speaking when steps were heard approaching thephysician's room, and a young priest requested the friends to appear atonce in the meeting-room of the Initiated. In a few moments they bothentered the great hall, which was brilliantly lighted. 

Not one of the chiefs of the House of Seti was absent. 

Ameni sat on a raised seat at a long table; on his right hand was oldGagabu, on his left the third Prophet of the temple. The principals ofthe different orders of priests had also found places at the table, andamong them the chief of the haruspices, while the rest of the priests, all in snow-white linen robes, sat, with much dignity, in a largesemicircle, two rows deep. In the midst stood a statue of the Goddessof truth and justice. 

Behind Ameni's throne was the many-colored image of the ibis-headed Toth, who presided over the measure and method of things, who counselled theGods as well as men, and presided over learning and the arts. In a nicheat the farther end of the hall were painted the divine Triad of Thebes, with Rameses I. And his son Seti, who approached them with offerings. The priests were placed with strict regard to their rank, and the orderof initiation. Pentaur's was the lowest place of all. 

No discussion of any importance had as yet taken place, for Ameni wasmaking enquiries, receiving information, and giving orders with referenceto the next day's festival. All seemed to be well arranged, and promiseda magnificent solemnity; although the scribes complained of the scarceinflux of beasts from the peasants, who were so heavily taxed for thewar, and although that feature would be wanting in the procession whichwas wont to give it the greatest splendor--the presence of the king andthe royal family. 

This circumstance aroused the disapprobation of some of the priests, whowere of opinion that it would be hazardous to exclude the two children ofRameses, who remained in Thebes, from any share in the solemnities of thefeast. 

Ameni then rose. 

"We have sent the boy Rameri, " he said, "away from this house. Bent-Anatmust be purged of her uncleanness, and if the weak superior of the templeof Anion absolves her, she may pass for purified over there, where theylive for this world only, but not here, where it is our duty to preparethe soul for death. The Regent, a descendant of the great deposed raceof kings, will appear in the procession with all the splendor of hisrank. I see you are surprised, my friends. Only he! Aye! Great thingsare stirring, and it may happen that soon the mild sun of peace may riseupon our war-ridden people. "

"Miracles are happening, " he continued, "and in a dream I saw a gentleand pious man on the throne of the earthly vicar of Ra. He listened toour counsel, he gave us our due, and led back to our fields our serfsthat had been sent to the war; he overthrew the altars of the strangegods, and drove the unclean stranger out from this holy land. "

"The Regent Ani!" exclaimed Septah. 

An eager movement stirred the assembly, but Ameni went on:

"Perhaps it was not unlike him, but he certainly was the One; he had thefeatures of the true and legitimate descendants of Ra, to whom Rui wasfaithful, in whose breast the heart of the sacred ram found a refuge. To-morrow this pledge of the divine grace shall be shown to the people, and another mercy will also be announced to them. Hear and praise thedispensations of the Most High! An hour ago I received the news that anew Apis, with all the sacred marks upon him, has been found in the herdsof Ani at Hermonthis. "

Fresh excitement was shown by the listening conclave. Ameni let theirastonishment express itself freely, but at last he exclaimed:

"And now to settle the last question. The priest Pentaur, who is nowpresent, has been appointed speaker at the festival to-morrow. He haserred greatly, yet I think we need not judge him till after the holy day, and, in consideration of his former innocence, need not deprive him ofthe honorable office. Do you share my wishes? Is there no dissentientvoice? Then come forward, you, the youngest of us all, who are so highlytrusted by this holy assembly. "

Pentaur rose and placed himself opposite to Ameni, in order to give, as he was required to do, a broad outline of the speech he proposedto deliver next day to the nobles and the people. 

The whole assembly, even his opponents, listened to him with approbation. Ameni, too, praised him, but added:

"I miss only one thing on which you must dwell at greater length, andtreat with warmer feeling--I mean the miracle which has stirred our soulsto-day. We must show that the Gods brought the sacred heart--"

"Allow me, " said Pentaur, interrupting the high-priest, and lookingearnestly into those eyes which long since he had sung of--"Allow me toentreat you not to select me to declare this new marvel to the people. "

Astonishment was stamped on the face of every member of the assembly. Each looked at his neighbor, then at Pentaur, and at last enquiringly atAmeni. The superior knew Pentaur, and saw that no mere whimsical fancy, but some serious motive had given rise to this refusal. Horror, almostaversion, had rung in his tone as he said the words 'new marvel. 'He doubted the genuineness of this divine manifestation!

Ameni gazed long and enquiringly into Pentaur's eyes, and then said: "Youare right, my friend. Before judgment has been passed on you, before youare reinstated in your old position, your lips are not worthy to announcethis divine wonder to the multitude. Look into your own soul, and teachthe devout a horror of sin, and show them the way, which you must nowtread, of purification of the heart. I myself will announce themiracle. "

The white-robed audience hailed this decision of their master withsatisfaction. Ameni enjoined this thing on one, on another, that;and on all, perfect silence as to the dream which he had related to them, and then he dissolved the meeting. He begged only Gagabu and Pentaur toremain. 

As soon as they were alone Ameni asked the poet "Why did you refuse toannounce to the people the miracle, which has filled all the priests ofthe Necropolis with joy?"

"Because thou hast taught me, " replied Pentaur, "that truth is thehighest aim we can have, and that there is nothing higher. "

"I tell you so again now, " said Ameni. "And as you recognize thisdoctrine, I ask you, in the name of the fair daughter of Ra. Do youdoubt the genuineness of the miracle that took place under our veryeyes?"

"I doubt it, " replied Pentaur. 

"Remain on the high stand-point of veracity, " continued Ameni, "and tellus further, that we may learn, what are the scruples that shake thyfaith?"

"I know, " replied the poet with a dark expression, "that the heart whichthe crowd will approach and bow to, before which even the Initiatedprostrate themselves as if it had been the incarnation of Ra, was tornfrom the bleeding carcass of a common sheep, and smuggled into thekanopus which contained the entrails of Rui. "

Ameni drew back a step, and Gagabu cried out "Who says so? Who can proveit? As I grow older I hear more and more frightful things!"

"I know it, " said Pentaur decidedly. "But I can, not reveal the name ofhim from whom I learned it. "

"Then we may believe that you are mistaken, and that some impostor isfooling you. We will enquire who has devised such a trick, and he shallbe punished! To scorn the voice of the Divinity is a sin, and he wholends his ear to a lie is far from the truth. Sacred and thrice sacredis the heart, blind fool, that I purpose to-morrow to show to the people, and before which you yourself--if not with good will, then by compulsion--shall fall, prostrate in the dust. 

"Go now, and reflect on the words with which you will stir the souls ofthe people to-morrow morning; but know one thing--Truth has many forms, and her aspects are as manifold as those of the Godhead. As the sun doesnot travel over a level plain or by a straight path--as the stars followa circuitous course, which we compare with the windings of the snakeMehen, --so the elect, who look out over time and space, and on whom theconduct of human life devolves, are not only permitted, but commanded, tofollow indirect ways in order to reach the highest aims, ways that you donot understand, and which you may fancy deviate widely from the path oftruth. You look only at to-day, we look forward to the morrow, and whatwe announce as truth you must needs believe. And mark my words: A liestains the soul, but doubt eats into it. "

Ameni had spoken with strong excitement; when Pentaur had left the room, and he was alone with Gagabu, he exclaimed:

"What things are these? Who is ruining the innocent child-like spirit ofthis highly favored youth?"

"He is ruining it himself, " replied Gagabu. "He is putting aside the oldlaw, for he feels a new one growing up in his own breast. "

"But the laws, " exclaimed Ameni, "grow and spread like shadowy woods;they are made by no one. I loved the poet, yet I must restrain him, elsehe will break down all barriers, like the Nile when it swells too high. And what he says of the miracle--"

"Did you devise it?"

"By the Holy One--no!" cried Ameni. 

And yet Pentaur is sincere, and inclined to faith, " said the old mandoubtfully. 

"I know it, " returned Ameni. "It happened as he said. But who did it, and who told him of the shameful deed?"

Both the priests stood thoughtfully gazing at the floor. 

Ameni first broke the silence. 

"Pentaur came in with Nebsecht, " he exclaimed, "and they are intimatefriends. Where was the leech while I was staying in Thebes?"

"He was taking care of the child hurt by Bent-Anat--the child of theparaschites Pinem, and he stayed there three days, " replied Gagabu. 

"And it was Pinem, " said Ameni, "that opened the body of Rui! Now Iknow who has dimmed Pentaur's faith. It was that inquisitive stutterer, and he shall be made to repent of it. For the present let us think ofto-morrow's feast, but the day after I will examine that nice couple, andwill act with iron severity. "

"First let us examine the naturalist in private, " said Gagabu. "He is anornament to the temple, for he has investigated many matters, and hisdexterity is wonderful. "

"All that may be considered Ameni said, interrupting the old enough tothink of at present. "

"And even more to consider later, " retorted Gagabu. "We have entered ona dangerous path. You know very well I am still hot-headed, though I amold in years, and alas! timidity was never my weakness; but Rameses is apowerful man, and duty compels me to ask you: Is it mere hatred for theking that has led you to take these hasty and imprudent steps?"

"I have no hatred for Rameses, " answered Ameni gravely. "If he did notwear the crown I could love him; I know him too, as well as if I were hisbrother, and value all that is great in him; nay I will admit that he isdisfigured by no littleness. If I did not know how strong the enemy is, we might try to overthrow him with smaller means. You know as well asI do that he is our enemy. Not yours, nor mine, nor the enemy of theGods; but the enemy of the old and reverend ordinances by which thispeople and this country must be governed, and above all of those who arerequired to protect the wisdom of the fathers, and to point out the rightway to the sovereign--I mean the priesthood, whom it is my duty to lead, and for whose rights I will fight with every weapon of the spirit. In this contest, as you know, all that otherwise would be falsehood, treachery, and cunning, puts on the bright aspect of light and truth. As the physician needs the knife and fire to heal the sick, we must dofearful things to save the community when it is in danger. Now you willsee me fight with every weapon, for if we remain idle, we shall sooncease to be the leaders of the state, and become the slaves of the king. "

Gagabu nodded assent, but Ameni went on with increasing warmth, and inthat rhythmical accent in which, when he came out of the holy of holies, he was accustomed to declare the will of the Divinity, "You were myteacher, and I value you, and so you now shall be told everything thatstirred my soul, and made me first resolve upon this fearful struggle. Iwas, as you know, brought up in this temple with Rameses--and it was verywise of Seti to let his son grow up here with other boys. At work and atplay the heir to the throne and I won every prize. He was quite mysuperior in swift apprehension--in keen perception--but I had greatercaution, and deeper purpose. Often he laughed at my laborious efforts, but his brilliant powers appeared to me a vain delusion. I became one ofthe initiated, he ruled the state in partnership with his father, and, when Seti died, by himself. We both grew older, but the foundation ofour characters remained the same. He rushed to splendid victories, overthrew nations, and raised the glory of the Egyptian name to a giddyheight, though stained with the blood of his people; I passed my life inindustry and labor, in teaching the young, and in guarding the laws whichregulate the intercourse of men and bind the people to the Divinity. Icompared the present with the past: What were the priests? How had theycome to be what they are? What would Egypt be without them? There isnot an art, not a science, not a faculty that is not thought out, constructed, and practised by us. We crown the kings, we named the Gods, and taught the people to honor them as divine--for the crowd needs a handto lead it, and under which it shall tremble as under the mighty hand ofFate. We are the willing ministers of the divine representative of Ra onthe throne, so long as he rules in accordance with our institutions--asthe One God reigns, subject to eternal laws. He used to choose hiscounsellors from among us; we told him what would benefit the country, heheard us willingly, and executed our plans. The old kings were thehands, but we, the priests, were the head. And now, my father, whathas become of us? We are made use of to keep the people in the faith, for if they cease to honor the Gods how will they submit to kings? Setiventured much, his son risks still more, and therefore both have requiredmuch succor from the Immortals. Rameses is pious, he sacrificesfrequently, and loves prayer: we are necessary to him, to waft incense, to slaughter hecatombs, to offer prayers, and to interpret dreams--but weare no longer his advisers. My father, now in Osiris, a worthier high-priest than I, was charged by the Prophets to entreat his father to giveup the guilty project of connecting the north sea by a navigable channelwith the unclean waters of the Red Sea. 

 [The harbors of the Red Sea were in the hands of the Phoenicians, who sailed from thence southwards to enrich themselves with the produce of Arabia and Ophir. Pharaoh Necho also projected a Suez canal, but does not appear to have carried it out, as the oracle declared that the utility of the undertaking would be greatest to foreigners. ]

"Such things can only benefit the Asiatics. But Seti would not listen toour counsel. We desired to preserve the old division of the land, butRameses introduced the new to the disadvantage of the priests; we warnedhim against fresh wars, and the king again and again has taken the field;we had the ancient sacred documents which exempted our peasantry frommilitary service, and, as you know, he outrageously defies them. Fromthe most ancient times no one has been permitted to raise temples in thisland to strange Gods, and Rameses favors the son of the stranger, and, not only in the north country, but in the reverend city of Memphis andhere in Thebes, he has raised altars and magnificent sanctuaries, in thestrangers' quarter, to the sanguinary false Gods of the East. "

 [Human sacrifices, which had been introduced into Egypt by the Phoenicians, were very early abolished. ]

"You speak like a Seer, " cried old Gagabu, "and what you say is perfectlytrue. We are still called priests, but alas! our counsel is littleasked. 'You have to prepare men for a happy lot in the other world, 'Rameses once said; 'I alone can guide their destinies in this. '"

"He did say so, " answered Ameni, "and if he had said no more than that hewould have been doomed. He and his house are the enemies of our rightsand of our noble country. Need I tell you from whom the race of thePharaoh is descended? Formerly the hosts who came from the east, andfell on our land like swarms of locusts, robbing and destroying it, werespoken of as 'a curse' and a 'pest. ' Rameses' father was of that race. When Ani's ancestors expelled the Hyksos, the bold chief, whose childrennow govern Egypt, obtained the favor of being allowed to remain on thebanks of the Nile; they served in the armies, they distinguishedthemselves, and, at last, the first Rameses succeeded in gaining thetroops over to himself, and in pushing the old race of the legitimatesons of Ra, weakened as they were by heresy, from the throne. I mustconfess, however unwillingly, that some priests of the true faith--amongthem your grandfather, and mine--supported the daring usurper who clungfaithfully to the old traditions. Not less than a hundred generations ofmy ancestors, and of yours, and of many other priestly families, havelived and died here by the banks of the Nile--of Rameses race we haveseen ten, and only know of them that they descend from strangers, fromthe caste of Amu! He is like all the Semitic race; they love to wander, they call us ploughmen, --[The word Fellah (pl. Fellahin) means ploughman]--and laugh to scorn the sober regularity with which we, tilling the darksoil, live through our lives to a tardy death, in honest labor both ofmind and body. They sweep round on foraying excursions, ride the saltwaves in ships, and know no loved and fixed home; they settle downwherever they are tempted by rapine, and when there is nothing more to begot they build a house in another spot. Such was Seti, such is Rameses!For a year he will stop in Thebes, then he must set out for wars instrange lands. He does not know how to yield piously, or to take adviceof wise counsellors, and he will not learn. And such as the father is, so are the children! Think of the criminal behavior of Bent-Anat!"

"I said the kings liked foreigners. Have you duly considered theimportance of that to us? We strive for high and noble aims, and havewrenched off the shackles of the flesh in order to guard our souls. Thepoorest man lives secure under the shelter of the law, and through usparticipates in the gifts of the spirit; to the rich are offered thepriceless treasures of art and learning. Now look abroad: east and westwandering tribes roam over the desert with wretched tents; in the south adebased populace prays to feathers, and to abject idols, who are beatenif the worshipper is not satisfied. In the north certainly there arewell regulated states, but the best part of the arts and sciences whichthey possess they owe to us, and their altars still reek with theloathsome sacrifice of human blood. Only backsliding from the right ispossible under the stranger, and therefore it is prudent to withdraw fromhim; therefore he is hateful to our Gods. And Rameses, the king, is a stranger, by blood and by nature, in his affections, and in hisappearance; his thoughts are always abroad--this country is too small forhim--and he will never perceive what is really best for him, clear as hisintellect is. He will listen to no guidance, he does mischief to Egypt, and therefore I say: Down with him from the throne!"

"Down with him!"--Gagabu eagerly echoed the words. Ameni gave the oldman his hand, which trembled with excitement, and went on more calmly. 

"The Regent Ani is a legitimate child of the soil, by his father andmother both. I know him well, and I am sure that though he is cunningindeed, he is full of true veneration, and will righteously establish usin the rights which we have inherited. The choice is easy: I havechosen, and I always carry through what I have once begun! Now you knowall, and you will second me. "

"With body and soul!" cried Gagabu. 

"Strengthen the hearts of the brethren, " said Ameni, preparing to go. "The initiated may all guess what is going on, but it must never bespoken of. "

CHAPTER XXVII. 

The sun was up on the twenty-ninth morning of the second month of theover-flow of the Nile, [The 29th Phaophi. The Egyptians divided the year into three seasons of four months each. Flood-time, seed-time and Harvest. (Scha, per and schemu. ) The 29th Phaophi corresponds to the 8th November. ]

and citizens and their wives, old men and children, freemen and slaves, led by priests, did homage to the rising day-star before the door of thetemple to which the quarter of the town belonged where each one dwelt. 

The Thebans stood together like Huge families before the pylons, waitingfor the processions of priests, which they intended to join in order tomarch in their train round the great temple of the city, and thence tocross with the festal barks to the Necropolis. 

To-day was the Feast of the Valley, and Anion, the great God of Thebes, was carried over in solemn pomp to the City of the Dead, in order thathe--as the priests said--might sacrifice to his fathers in the otherworld. The train marched westward; for there, where the earthly remainsof man also found rest, the millions of suns had disappeared, each ofwhich was succeeded daily by a new one, born of the night. The youngluminary, the priests said, did not forget those that had beenextinguished, and from whom he was descended; and Anion paid them thismark of respect to warn the devout not to forget those who were passedaway, and to whom they owed their existence. 

"Bring offerings, " says a pious text, "to thy father and thy mother whorest in the valley of the tombs; for such gifts are pleasing to the Gods, who will receive them as if brought to themselves. Often visit thy dead, so that what thou dost for them, thy son may do for thee. "

The Feast of the Valley was a feast of the dead; but it was not amelancholy solemnity, observed with lamentation and wailing; on thecontrary, it was a cheerful festival, devoted to pious and sentimentalmemories of those whom we cease not to love after death, whom we esteemhappy and blest, and of whom we think with affection; to whom too thethrong from Thebes brought offerings, forming groups in the chapel-liketombs, or in front of the graves, to eat and drink. 

Father, mother and children clung together; the house-slaves followedwith provisions, and with torches, which would light up the darkness ofthe tomb and show the way home at night. 

Even the poorest had taken care to secure beforehand a place in one ofthe large boats which conveyed the people across the stream; the bargesof the rich, dressed in the gayest colors, awaited their owners withtheir households, and the children had dreamed all night of the sacredbark of Anion, whose splendor, as their mothers told them, was hardlyless than that of the golden boat in which the Sun-God and his companionsmake their daily voyage across the ocean of heaven. The broad landingplace of the temple of Anion was already crowded with priests, the shorewith citizens, and the river with boats; already loud music drowned thedin of the crowds, who thronged and pushed, enveloped in clouds of dust, to reach the boats; the houses and hovels of Thebes were all empty, andthe advent of the God through the temple-gates was eagerly expected; butstill the members of the royal family had not appeared, who were wont onthis solemn day to go on foot to the great temple of Anion; and, in thecrowd, many a one asked his neighbor why Bent-Anat, the fair daughter ofRameses, lingered so long, and delayed the starting of the procession. 

The priests had begun their chant within the walls, which debarred theouter world from any glimpse into the bright precincts of the temple; theRegent with his brilliant train had entered the sanctuary; the gates werethrown open; the youths in their short-aprons, who threw flowers in thepath of the God, had come out; clouds of incense announced the approachof Anion--and still the daughter of Rameses appeared not. 

Many rumors were afloat, most of them contradictory; but one wasaccurate, and confirmed by the temple servants, to the great regret ofthe crowd--Bent-Anat was excluded from the Feast of the Valley. 

She stood on her balcony with her brother Rameri and her friend Nefert, and looked down on the river, and on the approaching God. 

Early in the previous morning Bek-en-Chunsu, the old high-priest of thetemple of Anion had pronounced her clean, but in the evening he had cometo communicate to her the intelligence that Ameni prohibited her enteringthe Necropolis before she had obtained the forgiveness of the Gods of theWest for her offence. 

While still under the ban of uncleanness she had visited the temple ofHathor, and had defiled it by her presence; and the stern Superior of theCity of the Dead was in the right--that Bek-en-Chunsu himself admitted--in closing the western shore against her. Bent-Anat then had recourse toAni; but, though he promised to mediate for her, he came late in theevening to tell her that Ameni was inexorable. The Regent at the sametime, with every appearance of regret, advised her to avoid an openquarrel, and not to defy Ameni's lofty severity, but to remain absentfrom the festival. 

Katuti at the same time sent the dwarf to Nefert, to desire her to joinher mother, in taking part in the procession, and in sacrificing in herfather's tomb; but Nefert replied that she neither could nor would leaveher royal friend and mistress. 

Bent-Anat had given leave of absence to the highest members of herhousehold, and had prayed them to think of her at the splendid solemnity. 

When, from her balcony, she saw the mob of people and the crowd of boats, she went back into her room, called Rameri, who was angrily declaiming atwhat he called Ameni's insolence, took his hands in hers, and said:

"We have both done wrong, brother; let us patiently submit to theconsequences of our faults, and conduct ourselves as if our father werewith us. "

"He would tear the panther-skin from the haughty priest's shoulders, "cried Rameri, "if he dared to humiliate you so in his presence;" andtears of rage ran down his smooth cheeks as he spoke. 

"Put anger aside, " said Bent-Anat. "You were still quite little the lasttime my father took part in this festival. "

"Oh! I remember that morning well, " exclaimed Rameri, "and shall neverforget it. "

"So I should think, " said the princess. "Do not leave us, Nefert--youare now my sister. It was a glorious morning; we children were collectedin the great hall of the King, all in festival dresses; he had us calledinto this room, which had been inhabited by my mother, who then had beendead only a few months. He took each of us by the hand, and said heforgave us everything we might have done wrong if only we were sincerelypenitent, and gave us each a kiss on our forehead. Then he beckoned usall to him, and said, as humbly as if he were one of us instead of thegreat king, 'Perhaps I may have done one of you some injustice, or havekept you out of some right; I am not conscious of such a thing, but if ithas occurred I am very sorry'--we all rushed upon him, and wanted to kisshim, but he put us aside smiling, and said, 'Each of you has enjoyed anequal share of one thing, that you may be sure--I mean your father'slove; and I see now that you return what I have given you. ' Then hespoke of our mother, and said that even the tenderest father could notfill the place of a mother. He drew a lovely picture of the unselfishdevotion of the dead mother, and desired us to pray and to sacrifice withhim at her resting-place, and to resolve to be worthy of her; not only ingreat things but in trifles too, for they make up the sum of life, ashours make the days, and the years. We elder ones clasped each other'shands, and I never felt happier than in that moment, and afterwards by mymother's grave. " Nefert raised her eyes that were wet with tears. 

"With such a father it must be easy to be good, " she said. 

"Did your mother never speak good words that went to your heart on themorning of this festival?" asked Bent-Anat. 

Nefert colored, and answered: "We were always late in dressing, and thenhad to hurry to be at the temple in time. "

"Then let me be your mother to-day, " cried the princess, "and yours too, Rameri. Do you not remember how my father offered forgiveness to theofficers of the court, and to all the servants, and how he enjoined us toroot out every grudge from our hearts on this day? 'Only stainlessgarments, ' he said, 'befit this feast; only hearts without spot. ' So, brother, I will not hear an evil word about Ameni, who is most likelyforced to be severe by the law; my father will enquire into it all anddecide. My heart is so full, it must overflow. Come, Nefert, give me akiss, and you too, Rameri. Now I will go into my little temple, in whichthe images of our ancestors stand, and think of my mother and the blessedspirits of those loved ones to whom I may not sacrifice to-day. "

"I will go with you, " said Rameri. 

"You, Nefert--stay here, " said Bent-Anat, "and cut as many flowers as youlike; take the best and finest, and make a wreath, and when it is readywe will send a messenger across to lay it, with other gifts, on the graveof your Mena's mother. "

When, half-an-hour later, the brother and sister returned to the youngwife, two graceful garlands hung in Nefert's bands, one for the grave ofthe dead queen, and one for Mena's mother. 

"I will carry over the wreaths, and lay them in the tombs, " cried theprince. 

"Ani thought it would be better that we should not show ourselves to thepeople, " said his sister. "They will scarcely notice that you are notamong the school-boys, but--"

"But I will not go over as the king's son, but as a gardener's boy--"interrupted the prince. "Listen to the flourish of trumpets! the Godhas now passed through the gates. "

Rameri stepped out into the balcony, and the two women followed him, andlooked down on the scene of the embarkation which they could easily seewith their sharp young eyes. 

"It will be a thinner and poorer procession without either my father orus, that is one comfort, " said Rameri. "The chorus is magnificent; herecome the plume-bearers and singers; there is the chief prophet at thegreat temple, old Bek-en-Chunsu. How dignified he looks, but he will notlike going. Now the God is coming, for I, smell the incense. "

With these words the prince fell on his knees, and the women followed hisexample--when they saw first a noble bull in whose shining skin the sunwas reflected, and who bore between his horns a golden disk, above whichstood white ostrich-feathers; and then, divided from the bull only by afew fan-bearers, the God himself, sometimes visible, but more oftenhidden from sight by great semi-circular screens of black and whiteostrich-feathers, which were fixed on long poles, and with which thepriests shaded the God. 

His mode of progress was as mysterious as his name, for he seemed tofloat slowly on his gorgeous throne from the temple-gates towards thestream. His seat was placed on a platform, magnificently decorated withbunches and garlands of flowers, and covered with hangings of purple andgold brocade, which concealed the priests who bore it along with a slowand even pace. 

As soon as the God had been placed on board his barge, Bent-Anat and hercompanions rose from their knees. 

Then came some priests, who carried a box with the sacred evergreen treeof Amon; and when a fresh outburst of music fell on her ear, and a cloudof incense was wafted up to her, Bent-Anat said: "Now my father should becoming. "

"And you, " cried Rameri, "and close behind, Nefert's husband, Mena, withthe guards. Uncle Ani comes on foot. How strangely he has dressedhimself like a sphinx hind-part before!"

"How so?" asked Nefert. 

"A sphinx, " said Rameri laughing, it has the body of a lion, and the headof a man, [There were no female sphinxes in Egypt. The sphinx was called Neb, i. E. , the lord. The lion-couchant had either a man's or a rams head. ]

and my uncle has a peaceful priest's robe, and on his head the helmet ofa warrior. "

"If the king were here, the distributor of life, " said Nefert, "you wouldnot be missing from among his supporters. "

"No indeed!" replied the prince, "and the whole thing is altogetherdifferent when my father is here. His heroic form is splendid on hisgolden throne; the statues of Truth and justice spread their wings behindhim as if to protect him; his mighty representative in fight, the lion, lies peacefully before him, and over him spreads the canopy with theUrmus snake at the top. There is hardly any end to the haruspices, thepastophori with the standards, the images of the Gods, and the flocks andherds for sacrifice. Only think, even the North has sent representativesto the feast, as if my father were here. I know all the different signson the standards. Do you recognize the images of the king's ancestors, Nefert? No? no more do I; but it seemed to me that Ahmes I. , whoexpelled the Hyksos--from whom our grandmother was descended--headed theprocession, and not my grandfather Seti, as he should have done. Herecome the soldiers; they are the legions which Ani equipped, and whoreturned victorious from Ethiopia only last night. How the people cheerthem! and indeed they have behaved valiantly. Only think, Bent-Anat andNefert, what it will be when my father comes home, with a hundred captiveprinces, who will humbly follow his chariot, which your Mena will drive, with our brothers and all the nobles of the land, and the guards in theirsplendid chariots. "

"They do not think of returning yet!" sighed Nefert. While more andmore troops of the Regent's soldiers, more companies of musicians, andrare animals, followed in procession, the festal bark of Amon startedfrom the shore. 

It was a large and gorgeous barge of wood, polished all over and overlaidwith gold, and its edge was decorated with glittering glass-beads, whichimitated rubies and emeralds; the masts and yards were gilt, and purplesails floated from them. The seats for the priests were of ivory, andgarlands of lilies and roses hung round the vessel, from its masts andropes. 

The Regent's Nile-boat was not less splendid; the wood-work shone withgilding, the cabin was furnished with gay Babylonian carpets; a lion's-head formed the prow, as formerly in Hatasu's sea-going vessels, and twolarge rubies shone in it, for eyes. After the priests had embarked, andthe sacred barge had reached the opposite shore, the people pressed intothe boats, which, filled almost to sinking, soon so covered the wholebreadth of the river that there was hardly a spot where the sun wasmirrored in the yellow waters. 

"Now I will put on the dress of a gardener, " cried Rameri, "and crossover with the wreaths. "

"You will leave us alone?" asked Bent-Anat. 

"Do not make me anxious, " said Rameri. 

"Go then, " said the princess. "If my father were here how willingly Iwould go too. "

"Come with me, " cried the boy. "We can easily find a disguise for youtoo. "

"Folly!" said Bent-Anat; but she looked enquiringly at Nefert, whoshrugged her shoulders, as much as to say: "Your will is my law. "

Rameri was too sharp for the glances of the friends to have escaped him, and he exclaimed eagerly:

"You will come with me, I see you will! Every beggar to-day flings hisflower into the common grave, which contains the black mummy of hisfather--and shall the daughter of Rameses, and the wife of the chiefcharioteer, be excluded from bringing garlands to their dead?"

"I shall defile the tomb by my presence, " said Bent-Anat coloring. 

"You--you!" exclaimed Rameri, throwing his arms round his sister's neck, and kissing her. "You, a noble generous creature, who live only to easesorrow and to wipe away tears; you, the very image of my father--unclean!sooner would I believe that the swans down there are as black as crows, and the rose-wreaths on the balcony rank hemlock branches. Bek-en-Chunsupronounced you clean, and if Ameni--"

"Ameni only exercises his rights, " said Bent-Anat gently, "and you knowwhat we have resolved. I will not hear one hard word about him to-day. "

"Very well! he has graciously and mercifully kept us from the feast, "said Rameri ironically, and he bowed low in the direction of theNecropolis, "and you are unclean. Do not enter the tombs and the templeson my account; let us stay outside among the people. The roads overthere are not so very sensitive; paraschites and other unclean folks passover them every day. Be sensible, Bent-Anat, and come. We will disguiseourselves; I will conduct you; I will lay the garlands in the tombs, wewill pray together outside, we will see the sacred procession and thefeats of the magicians, and hear the festive discourse. Only think!Pentaur, in spite of all they have said against him, is to deliver it. The temple of Seti wants to do its best to-day, and Ameni knows very wellthat Pentaur, when he opens his mouth, stirs the hearts of the peoplemore than all the sages together if they were to sing in chorus! Comewith me, sister. "

"So be it then, " said Bent-Anat with sudden decision. 

Rameri was surprised at this quick resolve, at which however he wasdelighted; but Nefert looked anxiously at her friend. In a moment hereyes fell; she knew now who it was that her friend loved, and the fearfulthought--"How will it end?" flashed through her mind. 

CHAPTER XXVIII. 

An hour later a tall, plainly dressed woman crossed the Nile, with adark-skinned boy and a slender youth by her side. The wrinkles on herbrow and cheeks agreed little with her youthful features; but it wouldhave been difficult to recognize in these three the proud princess, thefair young prince, and the graceful Nefert, who looked as charming asever in the long white robe of a temple-student. 

They were followed by two faithful and sturdy head-servants from amongthe litter-bearers of the princess, who were however commanded to appearas though they were not in any way connected with their mistress and hercompanions. 

The passage across the Nile had been accomplished but slowly, and thusthe royal personages had experienced for the first time some of the manydifficulties and delays which ordinary mortals must conquer to attainobjects which almost fly to meet their rulers. No one preceded them toclear the river, no other vessel made way for them; on the contrary, alltried to take place ahead of them, and to reach the opposite shore beforethem. 

When at last they reached the landing-place, the procession had alreadypassed on to the temple of Seti; Ameni had met it with his chorus ofsingers, and had received the God on the shore of the Nile; the prophetsof the Necropolis had with their own hands placed him in the sacred Sam-bark of the House of Seti, which was artistically constructed of cedarwood and electrum set with jewels; thirty pastophori took the preciousburden on their shoulders, and bore it up the avenue of Sphinxes--whichled from the river to the temple--into the sanctuary of Seti, where Amonremained while the emissaries from the different provinces depositedtheir offerings in the forecourt. On his road from the shore kolchyteshad run before him, in accordance with ancient custom, strewing sand inhis path. 

In the course of an hour the procession once more emerged into the openair, and turning to the south, rested first in the enormous temple ofAnienophis III. , in front of which the two giant statues stood assentinels--they still remain, the colossi of the Nile valley. Farther tothe south it reached the temple of Thotmes the Great, then, turninground, it clung to the eastern face of the Libyan hills--pierced withtombs and catacombs; it mounted the terraces of the temple of Hatasu, andpaused by the tombs of the oldest kings which are in the immediateneighborhood; thus by sunset it had reached the scene of the festivalitself, at the entrance of the valley in which the tomb of Setitt hadbeen made, and in whose westernmost recesses were some of the graves ofthe Pharaohs of the deposed race. 

This part of the Necropolis was usually visited by lamp-light, and underthe flare of torches, before the return of the God to his own temple andthe mystery-play on the sacred lake, which did not begin till midnight. 

Behind the God, in a vase of transparent crystal, and borne high on apole that all the multitude might see it, was the heart of the sacredram. 

Our friends, after they had laid their wreaths on the magnificent altarsof their royal ancestors without being recognized, late in the afternoonjoined the throng who followed the procession. They mounted the easterncliff of the hills close by the tomb of Mena's forefathers, which aprophet of Amon, named Neferhotep--Mena's great-grandfather--hadconstructed. Its narrow doorway was besieged by a crowd, for within thefirst of the rock-chambers of which it consisted, a harper was singing adirge for the long-since buried prophet, his wife and his sister. Thesong had been composed by the poet attached to his house; it was gravenin the stone of the second rock-room of the tomb, and Neferhotep had lefta plot of ground in trust to the Necropolis, with the charge ofadministering its revenues for the payment of a minstrel, who every-yearat the feast of the dead should sing the monody to the accompaniment ofhis lute. 

 [The tomb of Neferhotep is well preserved, and in it the inscription from which the monody is translated. ]

The charioteer well knew this dirge for his ancestor, and had often sungit to Nefert, who had accompanied him on her lute; for in their hours ofjoy also--nay especially--the Egyptians were wont to remember their dead. 

Now the three companions listened to the minstrel as he sang:

 "Now the great man is at rest, Gone to practise sweeter duties. Those that die are the elect Since the Gods have left the earth. Old men pass and young men come; Yea, a new Sun rises daily When the old sun has found rest In the bosom of the night. 

 "Hail, O Prophet! on this feast day Odorous balsams, fragrant resins Here we bring--and offer garlands, Throwing flowers down before thee, And before thy much-loved sister, Who has found her rest beside thee. 

 "Songs we sing, and strike the lyre To thy memory, and thine honor. All our cares are now forgotten, Joy and hope our breasts are filling; For the day of our departure Now draws near, and in the silence Of the farther shore is rest. "

When the song ceased, several people pressed into the little oratory toexpress their gratitude to the deceased prophet by laying a few flowerson his altar. Nefert and Rameri also went in, and when Nefert hadoffered a long and silent prayer to the glorified spirits of her dead, that they might watch over Mena, she laid her garland beside the grave inwhich her husband's mother rested. 

Many members of the court circle passed close to the royal party withoutrecognizing them; they made every effort to reach the scene of thefestival, but the crowd was so great that the ladies had several times toget into a tomb to avoid it. In each they found the altar loaded withofferings, and, in most, family-parties, who here remembered their dead, with meat and fruits, beer and wine, as though they were departedtravellers who had found some far off rest, and whom they hoped sooner orlater to see again. 

The sun was near setting when at last the princess and her companionsreached the spot where the feast was being held. Here stood numbers ofstalls and booths, with eatables of every sort, particularly sweet cakesfor the children, dates, figs, pomegranates, and other fruits. Underlight awnings, which kept off the sun, were sold sandals and kerchiefs ofevery material and hue, ornaments, amulets, fans, and sun-shades, sweetessences of every kind, and other gifts for offerings or for the toilet. The baskets of the gardeners and flower-girls were already empty, but themoney-changers were full of business, and the tavern and gambling boothswere driving a brisk trade. 

Friends and acquaintances greeted each other kindly, while the childrenshowed each other their new sandals, the cakes they had won at the games, or the little copper rings they had had given to them, and which must nowbe laid out. The largest crowd was gathered to see the magicians fromthe House of Seti, round which the mob squatted on the ground in acompact circle, and the children were good-naturedly placed in the frontrow. 

When Bent-Anat reached the place all the religious solemnity was ended. 

There stood the canopy under which the king and his family were used tolisten to the festal discourse, and under its shade sat to-day the RegentAni. They could see too the seats of the grandees, and the barrierswhich kept the people at a distance from the Regent, the priests, and thenobles. 

Here Ameni himself had announced to the multitude the miracle of thesacred heart, and had proclaimed that a new Apis had been found among theherds of the Regent Ani. 

His announcement of these divine tokens had been repeated from mouth tomouth; they were omens of peace and happiness for the country through themeans of a favorite of the Gods; and though no one said it, the dullestcould not fail to see that this favorite was none other than Ani, thedescendant of the great Hatasu, whose prophet had been graced by thetransfer to him of the heart of the sacred rain. All eyes were fixed onAni, who had sacrificed before all the people to the sacred heart, andreceived the high-priest's blessing. 

Pentaur, too, had ended his discourse when Bent-Anat reached the scene ofthe festival. She heard an old man say to his son:

"Life is hard. It often seems to me like a heavy burden laid on our poorbacks by the cruel Gods; but when I heard the young priest from the Houseof Seti, I felt that, after all, the Immortals are good, and we have muchto thank them for. "

In another place a priest's wife said to her son:

"Could you see Pentaur well, Hor-Uza? He is of humble birth, but hestands above the greatest in genius and gifts, and will rise to highthings. "

Two girls were speaking together, and one said to the other:

"The speaker is the handsomest man I ever saw, and his voice sounds likesoft music. "

"And how his eyes shone when he spoke of truth as the highest of allvirtues!" replied the other. "All the Gods, I believe, must dwell inhim. "

Bent-Anat colored as these words fell on her ear. It was growing dark, and she wished to return home but Rameri wished to follow the processionas it marched through the western valley by torch-light, so that thegrave of his grandfather Seti should also be visited. The princessunwillingly yielded, but it would in any case have been difficult toreach the river while every one was rushing in the opposite direction; sothe two ladies, and Rameri, let themselves be carried along by the crowd, and by the time the daylight was gone, they found themselves in thewestern valley, where to-night no beasts of prey dared show themselves;jackals and hyenas had fled before the glare of the torches, and thelanterns made of colored papyrus. 

The smoke of the torches mingled with the dust stirred by a thousandfeet, and the procession moved along, as it were, in a cloud, which alsoshrouded the multitude that followed. 

The three companions had labored on as far as the hovel of theparaschites Pinem, but here they were forced to pause, for guards droveback the crowd to the right and left with long staves, to clear a passagefor the procession as it approached. 

"See, Rameri, " said Bent-Anat, pointing out the little yard of the hutwhich stood only a few paces from them. "That is where the fair, whitegirl lives, whom I ran over. But she is much better. Turn round; there, behind the thorn-hedge, by the little fire which shines full in your(her? D. W. ) face--there she sits, with her grandfather. "

The prince stood on tip-toe, looked into the humble plot of ground, andthen said in a subdued voice "What a lovely creature! But what is shedoing with the old man? He seems to be praying, and she first holds ahandkerchief before his mouth, and then rubs his temples. And howunhappy she looks!"

"The paraschites must be ill, " replied Bent-Anat. "He must have had toomuch wine down at the feast, " said Rameri laughing. "No doubt of it!Only look how his lips tremble, and his eyes roll. It is hideous--helooks like one possessed. "

 [It was thought that the insane were possessed by demons. A stele admirably treated by F. De Rouge exists at Paris, which relates that the sister-in law of Rameses III. , who was possessed by devils, had them driven out by the statue of Chunsu, which was sent to her in Asia. ]

"He is unclean too!" said Nefert. 

"But he is a good, kind man, with a tender heart, " exclaimed the princesseagerly. "I have enquired about him. He is honest and sober, and I amsure he is ill and not drunk. "

"Now she is standing up, " said Rameri, and he dropped the paper-lanternwhich he had bought at a booth. "Step back, Bent-Anat, she must beexpecting some one. Did you ever see any one so very fair, and with sucha pretty little head. Even her red hair becomes her wonderfully; butshe staggers as she stands--she must be very weak. Now she has sat downagain by the old man, and is rubbing his forehead. Poor souls! look howshe is sobbing. I will throw my purse over to them. "

"No, no!" exclaimed Bent-Anat. "I gave them plenty of money, and thetears which are shed there cannot be staunched with gold. I will sendold Asnath over to-morrow to ask how we can help them. Look, here comesthe procession, Nefert. How rudely the people press! As soon as the Godis gone by we will go home. "

"Pray do, " said Nefert. "I am so frightened!" and she pressed tremblingto the side of the princess. 

"I wish we were at home, too, " replied Bent-Anat. 

"Only look!" said Rameri. "There they are. Is it not splendid? Andhow the heart shines, as if it were a star!"

All the crowd, and with them our three friends, fell on their knees. 

The procession paused opposite to them, as it did at every thousandpaces; a herald came forward, and glorified, in a loud voice, the greatmiracle, to which now another was added--the sacred heart since the nighthad come on had begun to give out light. 

Since his return home from the embalming house, the paraschites had takenno nourishment, and had not answered a word to the anxious questions ofthe two frightened women. He stared blindly, muttered a fewunintelligible words, and often clasped his forehead in his hand. A fewhours before he had laughed loud and suddenly, and his wife, greatlyalarmed, had gone at once to fetch the physician Nebsecht. 

During her absence Uarda was to rub her grandfather's temples with theleaves which the witch Hekt had laid on her bruises, for as they had onceproved efficacious they might perhaps a second time scare away the demonof sickness. 

When the procession, with its thousand lamps and torches, paused beforethe hovel, which was almost invisible in the dusk, and one citizen saidto another: "Here comes the sacred heart!" the old man started, andstood up. His eyes stared fixedly at the gleaming relic in its crystalcase; slowly, trembling in every limb, and with outstretched neck hestood up. 

The herald began his eulogy of the miracle. 

Then, while all the people were prostrate in adoration, listeningmotionless to the loud voice of the speaker, the paraschites rushed outof his gate, striking his forehead with his fists, and opposite thesacred heart, he broke out into a mad, loud fit of scornful laughter, which re-echoed from the bare cliffs that closed in the valley. 

Horror full on the crowd, who rose timidly from their knees. 

Ameni, who too, was close behind the heart, started too and looked roundon the author of this hideous laugh. He had never seen the paraschites, but he perceived the glimmer of his little fire through the dust andgloom, and he knew that he lived in this place. The whole case struckhim at once; he whispered a few significant words to one of the officerswho marched with the troops on each side of the procession; then he gavethe signal, and the procession moved on as if nothing had happened. 

The old man tried with still more loud and crazy laughter to reach andseize the heart, but the crowd kept him back; and while the last groupspassed on after the priests, he contrived to slip back as far as the doorof his hovel, though much damaged and hurt. 

There he fell, and Uarda rushed out and threw herself over the old man, who lay on the earth, scarcely recognizable in the dust and darkness. 

"Crush the scoffer!"

"Tear him in pieces!"

"Burn down the foul den!"

"Throw him and the wench into the fire!" shouted the people who had beendisturbed in their devotions, with wild fury. 

Two old women snatched the lanterns froth the posts, and flung them atthe unfortunate creatures, while an Ethiopian soldier seized Uarda by thehair, and tore her away from her grandfather. 

At this moment Pinem's wife appeared, and with her Pentaur. She hadfound not Nebsecht, but Pentaur, who had returned to the temple after hisspeech. She had told him of the demon who had fallen upon her husband, and implored him to come with her. Pentaur immediately followed her inhis working dress, just as he was, without putting on the white priest'srobe, which he did not wish to wear on this expedition. 

When they drew near to the paraschites' hovel, he perceived the tumultamong the people, and, loud above all the noise, heard Uarda's shrill cryof terror. He hurried forward, and in the dull light of the scatteredfire-brands and colored lanterns, he saw the black hand of the soldierclutching the hair of the helpless child; quick as thought he gripped thesoldier's throat with his iron fingers, seized him round the body, swunghim in the air, and flung him like a block of stone right into the littleyard of the hut. 

The people threw themselves on the champion in a frenzy of rage, but hefelt a sudden warlike impulse surging up in him, which he had never feltbefore. With one wrench he pulled out the heavy wooden pole, whichsupported the awning which the old paraschites had put up for his sickgrandchild; he swung it round his head, as if it were a reed, drivingback the crowd, while he called to Uarda to keep close to him. 

"He who touches the child is a dead man!" he cried. "Shame on you!--falling on a feeble old man and a helpless child in the middle of a holyfestival!"

For a moment the crowd was silent, but immediately after rushed forwardwith fresh impetus, and wilder than ever rose the shouts of:

"Tear him to pieces! burn his house down!"

A few artisans from Thebes closed round the poet, who was notrecognizable as a priest. He, however, wielding his tent-pole, felledthem before they could reach him with their fists or cudgels, and downwent every man on whom it fell. But the struggle could not last long, for some of his assailants sprang over the fence, and attacked him in therear. And now Pentaur was distinctly visible against a background offlaring light, for some fire-brands had fallen on the dry palm-thatch ofthe hovel behind him, and roaring flames rose up to the dark heavens. 

The poet heard the threatening blaze behind him. He put his left handround the head of the trembling girl, who crouched beside him, andfeeling that now they both were lost, but that to his latest breath hemust protect the innocence and life of this frail creature, with hisright hand he once more desperately swung the heavy stake. 

But it was for the last time; for two men succeeded in clutching theweapon, others came to their support, and wrenched it from his hand, while the mob closed upon him, furious but unarmed, and not without greatfear of the enormous strength of their opponent. 

Uarda clung to her protector with shortened breath, and trembling like ahunted antelope. Pentaur groaned when he felt himself disarmed, but atthat instant a youth stood by his side, as if he bad sprung from theearth, who put into his hand the sword of the fallen soldier--who laynear his feet--and who then, leaning his back against Pentaur's, facedthe foe on the other side. Pentaur pulled himself together, sent out abattle-cry like some fighting hero who is defending his last stronghold, and brandished his new weapon. He stood with flaming eyes, like a lionat bay, and for a moment the enemy gave way, for his young ally Rameri, had taken a hatchet, and held it up in a threatening manner. 

"The cowardly murderers are flinging fire-brands, " cried the prince. "Come here, girl, and I will put out the pitch on your dress. "

He seized Uarda's hand, drew her to him, and hastily put out the flame, while Pentaur protected them with his sword. 

The prince and the poet stood thus back to back for a few moments, whena stone struck Pentaur's head; he staggered, and the crowd were rushingupon him, when the little fence was torn away by a determined hand, atall womanly form appeared on the scene of combat, and cried to theastonished mob:

"Have done with this! I command you! I am Bent-Anat, the daughter ofRameses. "

The angry crowd gave way in sheer astonishment. Pentaur had recoveredfrom the stunning blow, but he thought he must be under some illusion. He felt as if he must throw himself on his knees before Bent-Anat, buthis mind had been trained under Ameni to rapid reflection; he realized, in a flash of thought, the princess's position, and instead of bowingbefore her he exclaimed:

"Whoever this woman may be, good folks, she is not Bent-Anat theprincess, but I, though I have no white robe on, am a priest of Seti, named Pentaur, and the Cherheb of to-day's festival. Leave this spot, woman, I command you, in right of my sacred office. "

And Bent-Anat obeyed. 

Pentaur was saved; for just as the people began to recover from theirastonishment just as those whom he had hurt were once more inciting themob to fight just as a boy, whose hand he had crushed, was crying out:"He is not a priest, he is a sword's-man. Down with the liar!"

A voice from the crowd exclaimed:

"Make way for my white robe, and leave the preacher Pentaur alone, he ismy friend. You most of you know me. "

"You are Nebsecht the leech, who set my broken leg, " cried a sailor. 

"And cured my bad eye, " said a weaver. 

"That tall handsome man is Pentaur, I know him well, " cried the girl, whose opinion had been overheard by Bent-Anat. 

"Preacher this, preacher that!" shouted the boy, and he would haverushed forward, but the people held him back, and divided respectfully atNebsecht's command to make way for him to get at those who had been hurt. 

First he stooped over the old paraschites. 

"Shame upon you!" he exclaimed. --You have killed the old man. "

"And I, " said Pentaur, "Have dipped my peaceful hand in blood to save hisinnocent and suffering grandchild from a like fate. "

"Scorpions, vipers, venomous reptiles, scum of men!" shrieked Nebsecht, and he sprang wildly forward, seeking Uarda. When he saw her sittingsafe at the feet of old Hekt, who had made her way into the courtyard, hedrew a deep breath of relief, and turned his attention to the wounded. 

"Did you knock down all that are lying here?" he whispered to hisfriend. 

Pentaur nodded assent and smiled; but not in triumph, rather in shame;like a boy, who has unintentionally squeezed to death in his hand a birdhe has caught. 

Nebsecht looked round astonished and anxious. "Why did you not say whoyou were?" he asked. "Because the spirit of the God Menth possessedme, " answered Pentaur. "When I saw that accursed villain there with hishand in the girl's hair, I heard and saw nothing, I--"

"You did right, " interrupted Nebsecht. "But where will all this end?"

At this moment a flourish of trumpets rang through the little valley. The officer sent by Ameni to apprehend the paraschites came up with hissoldiers. 

Before he entered the court-yard he ordered the crowd to disperse; therefractory were driven away by force, and in a few minutes the valley wascleared of the howling and shouting mob, and the burning house wassurrounded by soldiers. Bent-Anat, Rameri, and Nefert were obliged toquit their places by the fence; Rameri, so soon as he saw that Uarda wassafe, had rejoined his sister. 

Nefert was almost fainting with fear and excitement. The two servants, who had kept near them, knit their hands together, and thus carried herin advance of the princess. Not one of them spoke a word, not evenRameri, who could not forget Uarda, and the look of gratitude she bidsent after him. Once only Bent-Anat said:

"The hovel is burnt down. Where will the poor souls sleep to-night?"

When the valley was clear, the officer entered the yard, and found there, besides Uarda and the witch Hekt, the poet, and Nebsecht, who was engagedin tending the wounded. 

Pentaur shortly narrated the affair to the captain, and named himself tohim. 

The soldier offered him his hand. 

"If there were many men in Rameses' army, " said he, who could strike sucha blow as you, the war with the Cheta would soon be at an end. But youhave struck down, not Asiatics, but citizens of Thebes, and, much as Iregret it, I must take you as a prisoner to Ameni. "

"You only do your duty, " replied Pentaur, bowing to the captain, whoordered his men to take up the body of the paraschites, and to bear it tothe temple of Seti. 

"I ought to take the girl in charge too, " he added, turning to Pentaur. 

"She is ill, " replied the poet. 

And if she does not get some rest, " added Nebsecht, "she will be dead. Leave her alone; she is under the particular protection of the princessBent-Anat, who ran over her not long ago. "

"I will take her into my house, " said Hekt, "and will take care of her. Her grandmother is lying there; she was half choked by the flames, butshe will soon come to herself--and I have room for both. "

"Till to-morrow, " replied the surgeon. "Then I will provide anothershelter for her. "

The old woman laughed and muttered: "There are plenty of folks to takecare of her, it seems. "

The soldiers obeyed the command of their leader, took up the wounded, andwent away with Pentaur, and the body of Pinem. 

Meanwhile, Bent-Anat and her party had with much difficulty reached theriver-bank. One of the bearers was sent to find the boat which waswaiting for them, and he was enjoined to make haste, for already theycould see the approach of the procession, which escorted the God on hisreturn journey. If they could not succeed in finding their boat withoutdelay, they must wait at least an hour, for, at night, not a boat thatdid not belong to the train of Amon--not even the barge of a noble--mightventure from shore till the whole procession was safe across. 

They awaited the messenger's signal in the greatest anxiety, for Nefertwas perfectly exhausted, and Bent-Anat, on whom she leaned, felt hertrembling in every limb. 

At last the bearer gave the signal; the swift, almost invisible bark, which was generally used for wild fowl shooting, shot by--Rameri seizedone end of an oar that the rower held out to him, and drew the littleboat up to the landing-place. 

The captain of the watch passed at the same moment, and shouting out, "This is the last boat that can put off before the passage of the God!"

Bent-Anat descended the steps as quickly as Nefert's exhausted statepermitted. The landing-place was now only dimly lighted by dulllanterns, though, when the God embarked, it would be as light as day withcressets and torches. Before she could reach the bottom step, withNefert still clinging heavily to her arm, a hard hand was laid on hershoulder, and the rough voice of Paaker exclaimed:

"Stand back, you rabble! We are going first. " The captain of the watchdid not stop him, for he knew the chief pioneer and his overbearing ways. Paaker put his finger to his lips, and gave a shrill whistle that soundedlike a yell in the silence. 

The stroke of oars responded to the call, and Paaker called out to hisboatmen:

"Bring the boat up here! these people can wait!" The pioneer's boat waslarger and better manned than that of the princess. 

"Jump into the boat!" cried Rameri. 

Bent-Anat went forward without speaking, for she did not wish to makeherself known again for the sake of the people, and for Nefert's; butPaaker put himself in her way. 

"Did I not tell you that you common people must wait till we are gone. Push these people's boat out into the stream, you men. "

Bent-Anat felt her blood chill, for a loud squabble at once began on thelanding-steps. 

Rameri's voice sounded louder than all the rest; but the pioneerexclaimed:

"The low brutes dare to resist? I will teach them manners! Here, Descher, look after the woman and these boys!"

At his call his great red hound barked and sprang forward, which, as ithad belonged to his father, always accompanied him when he went with hismother to visit the ancestral tomb. Nefert shrieked with fright, but thedog at once knew her, and crouched against her with whines ofrecognition. 

Paaker, who had gone down to his boat, turned round in astonishment, andsaw his dog fawning at the feet of a boy whom he could not possiblyrecognize as Nefert; he sprang back, and cried out:

"I will teach you, you young scoundrel, to spoil my dog with spells--orpoison!"

He raised his whip, and struck it across the shoulders of Nefert, who, with one scream of terror and anguish, fell to the ground. 

The lash of the whip only whistled close by the cheek of the poorfainting woman, for Bent-Anat had seized Paaker's arm with all her might. 

Rage, disgust, and scorn stopped her utterance; but Rameri had heardNefert's shriek, and in two steps stood by the women. 

"Cowardly scoundrel!" he cried, and lifted the oar in his hand. Paakerevaded the blow, and called to the dog with a peculiar hiss:

"Pull him down, Descher. "

The hound flew at the prince; but Rameri, who from his childhood, hadbeen his father's companion in many hunts and field sports, gave thefurious brute such a mighty blow on the muzzle that he rolled over with asnort. 

Paaker believed that he possessed in the whole world no more faithfulfriend than this dog, his companion on all his marches across deserttracts or through the enemy's country, and when he saw him writhing onthe ground his rage knew no bounds, and he flew at the youngster with hiswhip; but Rameri--madly excited by all the events of the night, full ofthe warlike spirit of his fathers, worked up to the highest pitch by theinsults to the two ladies, and seeing that he was their only protector--suddenly felt himself endowed with the strength of a man; he dealt thepioneer such a heavy blow on the left hand, that he dropped his whip, andnow seized the dagger in his girdle with his right. 

Bent-Anat threw herself between the man and the stripling, who was hardlymore than a boy, once more declared her name, and this time her brother'salso, and commanded Paaker to make peace among the boatmen. Then she ledNefert, who remained unrecognized, into the boat, entered it herself withher companions, and shortly after landed at the palace, while Paaker'smother, for whom he had called his boat, had yet a long time to waitbefore it could start. Setchem had seen the struggle from her litter atthe top of the landing steps, but without understanding its origin, andwithout recognizing the chief actors. 

The dog was dead. Paaker's hand was very painful, and fresh rage wasseething in his soul. 

"That brood of Rameses!" he muttered. "Adventurers! They shall learnto know me. Mena and Rameses are closely connected--I will sacrificethem both. "

ETEXT EDITOR'S BOOKMARKS:

Her white cat was playing at her feetHuman sacrifices, which had been introduced into Egypt by the PhoeniciansThe dressing and undressing of the holy imagesThought that the insane were possessed by demonsUse words instead of swords, traps instead of lances