Meanwhile Pentuer found a window through which came from the underground temple pensive hymns of the priestly chorus:

Chorus I. "Rise, as radiant as Isis, rise as Sotis rises on the firmament in the morning at the beginning of the established year."

Chorus II. "The god Amon-Ra was on my right and on my left. He himself gave into my hands dominion over all the world, thus causing the downfall of my enemies."

Chorus I. "Thou wert still young, Thou wert wearing braided hair, but in Egypt naught was done save at thy command no corner-stone was laid for an edifice unless Thou wert present."

Chorus II. "I came to Thee, ruler of the gods, great god, lord of the sun. Turn promises that the sun will appear, and that I shall be like him, and the Nile; that I shall reach the throne of Osiris, and shall possess it forever."

Chorus I. "Thou hast returned in peace, respected by the gods, O ruler of both worlds, Ra-Mer-Amen-Ramses. I assure to thee unbroken rule; kings will come to thee to pay tribute."

Chorus II. "O thou, Thou Osiris-Ramses! ever-living son of heaven, born of the goddess Nut, may thy mother surround thee with the mystery of heaven, and permit that Thou become a god, O thou, O Osiris-Ramses." [Tomb inscriptions]

"So then the holy father is dead," said Pentuer to himself.

He left the window and approached the place where the heir was sitting, sunk in imaginings.

The priest knelt before him, fell on his face, and exclaimed:

"Be greeted, O pharaoh, ruler of the world!"

"What dost Thou say?" cried the prince, springing up.

"May the One, the All-Powerful, pour down on thee wisdom and strength, and happiness on thy people."

"Rise, Pentuer! Then I then I."

Suddenly he took the arm of the priest and turned toward the Sphinx.

"Look at it," said he.

But neither in the face nor in the posture of the colossus was there any change. One pharaoh had stepped over the threshold of eternity; another rose up like the sun, but the stone face of the god or the monster was the same precisely. On its lips was a gentle smile for earthly power and glory; in its glance there was a waiting for something which was to come, but when no one knew.

Soon the messengers returned from the ferry with information that boats would be waiting there.

Pentuer went among the palms, and cried,

"Wake! wake!"

The watchful Asiatics sprang up at once, and began to bridle their horses. Tutmosis also rose, and yawned with a grimace.

"Brr!" grumbled he, "what cold! Sleep is a good thing! I barely dozed a little, and now I am able to go even to the end of the world, even again to the Soda Lakes. Brr! I have forgotten the taste of wine, and it seems to me that my hands are becoming covered with hair, like the paws of a jackal. And it is two hours to 'the palace yet.

"Happy are common men! One ragged rogue sleeps after another and feels no need of washing: he will not go to work till his wife brings a barley cake; while I, a great lord, must wander about, like a thief in the night, through the desert, without a drop of water to put to my lips."

The horses were ready, and Ramses mounted his own. Pentuer approached, took the bridle of the ruler's steed, and led, going himself on foot.

"What is this?" inquired the astonished Tutmosis.

He bethought himself quickly, ran up, and took Ramses' horse by the bridle on the other side. And so all advanced in silence, astonished at the bearing of the priest, though they felt that something important had happened.

After a few hundred steps the desert ceased, and a highroad through the field lay before the travelers.

"Mount your horses," said Ramses; "we must hurry."

"His holiness commands you to sit on your horses," cried Pentuer.

All were amazed. But Tutmosis recovered quickly, and placed his hand on his sword-hilt.

"May he live through eternity, our all-powerful and gracious leader Ramses!" shouted the adjutant.

"May he live through eternity!" howled the Asiatics, shaking their weapons.

"I thank you, my faithful warriors," answered their lord.

A moment later the mounted party was hastening toward the river.



CHAPTER L

We know not whether the prophets in the underground temple of the Sphinx saw the new ruler of Egypt when he halted at the foot of the pyramids, and gave information touching him at the palace, and if so how they did it. The fact is that when Ramses was approaching the ferry, the most worthy Herhor gave orders to rouse the palace servants, and when their lord was crossing the Nile all priests, generals, and civil dignitaries were assembled in the great hall of audience.

Exactly at sunrise Ramses XIII, at the head of a small escort, rode into the palace yard, where the servants fell on their faces before him, and the guard presented arms to the sound of drums and trumpets.

His holiness saluted the army and went to the bathing chambers, where he took a bath filled with perfumes. Then he gave permission to arrange his divine hair; but when the barber asked most submissively if the pharaoh commanded to shave his head and beard, the lord replied,

"There is no need. I am not a priest, but a warrior."

These words reached the audience-hall a moment later; in an hour they had gone around the palace; about midday they had passed through every part of the city of Memphis, and toward evening they were known in all the temples of the state, from Tami-n-hor and Sabue-Chetam on the north to Suunu and Pilak on the south.

At this intelligence the nomarchs, the nobility, the army, the people, and the foreigners were wild with delight, but the sacred order of priests mourned the more zealously the dead pharaoh.

When his holiness emerged from the bath he put on a warrior's short shirt with black and yellow stripes, and a yellow breast-piece; on his feet sandals fastened with thongs, and on his head a low helmet with a circlet. Then he girded on that Assyrian sword which he had worn at the battle of the Soda Lakes, and, surrounded by a great suite of generals, he entered with a clatter and clinking the audience-hall.

There the high priest Herhor stood before him, having at his side Sem, the holy high priest, Mefres, and others, and behind him the chief judges of Thebes and Memphis, some of the nearer nomarchs, the chief treasurer, also the overseers of the house of wheat, the house of cattle, the house of garments, the house of slaves, the house of silver and gold, and a multitude of other dignitaries.

Herhor bowed before Ramses, and said with emotion,

"Lord! it has pleased thy eternally living father to withdraw to the gods where he is enjoying endless delight. To thee, then, has fallen the duty of caring for the fate of the orphan kingdom.

"Be greeted, therefore, O lord and ruler of the world, and, holiness, may Thou live through eternity Cham-Sam-mereramen-Ramses-Neter-haq-an."

Those present repeated this salutation with enthusiasm. They expected the new ruler to show some emotion or feeling. To the astonishment of all he merely moved his brow and answered,

"In accordance with the will of his holiness, my father, and with the laws of Egypt, I take possession of government and will conduct it to the glory of the state and the happiness of the people."

He turned suddenly to Herhor and, looking him sharply in the eyes, inquired,

"On thy miter, worthiness, I see the golden serpent. Why hast Thou put that symbol of regal power on thy head?"

A deathlike silence settled on the assembly. The haughtiest man in Egypt had never dreamed that the young lord would begin rule by putting a question like that to the most powerful person in the state, more powerful, perhaps, than the late pharaoh.

But behind the young lord stood a number of generals; in the courtyard glittered the bronze-covered regiments of the guard; and crossing the Nile at that moment was an army wild from the triumph at the Soda Lakes, and enamored of its leader.

The powerful Herhor grew pale as wax, and the voice could not issue from his straitened throat.

"I ask your worthiness," repeated the pharaoh, calmly, "by what right is the regal serpent on thy miter?"

"This is the miter of thy grandfather, the holy Amenhotep," answered Herhor, in a low voice. "The supreme council commanded me to wear it on occasions."

"My holy grandfather," replied the pharaoh, "was father of the queen, and in the way of favor he received the right to adorn his miter with the ureus. But, so far as is known to me, his sacred vestment is counted among the relics of the temple of Amon."

Herhor had recovered.

"Deign to remember, holiness," explained he, "that for twenty-four hours Egypt has been deprived of its legal ruler. Meanwhile some one had to wake and put to sleep the god Osiris, to impart blessings to the people and render homage to the ancestors of the pharaoh."

"In such a grievous time the supreme council commanded me to wear this holy relic, so that the order of the state and the service of the gods might not be neglected. But the moment that we have a lawful and mighty ruler I set aside the wondrous relic."

Then Herhor took from his head the miter adorned with the ureus, and gave it to the high priest Mefres.

The threatening face of the pharaoh grew calm, and he turned his steps toward the throne.

Suddenly the holy Mefres barred the way, and said while bending to the pavement,

"Deign, holy lord, to hear my most submissive prayer."

But neither in his voice nor his eyes was there submission when, straightening himself, he continued,

"I have words from the supreme council of high priests."

"Utter them," said the pharaoh.

"It is known to thee, holiness, that a pharaoh who has not received ordination as high priest cannot perform the highest sacrifices; that is, dress and undress the miraculous Osiris."

"I understand," interrupted Ramses, "I am a pharaoh who has not received the ordination of high priest."

"For that reason," continued Mefres, "the supreme council begs thee submissively, holiness, to appoint a high priest to take thy place in religious functions."

When they heard these decided words, the high priests and civil dignitaries trembled and squirmed as if standing on hot stones, and the generals touched their swords as if involuntarily. The holy Mefres looked at them with unconcealed contempt, and fixed his cold glance again on the face of the pharaoh.

But the lord of the world showed no trouble even this time.

"It is well," said he, "that Thou hast reminded me, worthiness, of this important duty. The military profession and affairs of state do not permit me to occupy myself with the ceremonies of our holy religion, so I must appoint a substitute."

While speaking he looked around at the men assembled.

On the left of Herhor stood the holy Sem. Ramses glanced into his mild and honest face and inquired suddenly,

"Who and what art thou, worthiness?"

"My name is Sem; I am high priest of the temple of Ptah in Pi-Bast."

"Thou wilt be my substitute in religious ceremonies," said the pharaoh, pointing toward him with his finger.

A murmur of astonishment ran through the assembly.

After long meditation and counsels it would have been difficult to select a more worthy priest for that high office.

Herhor grew much paler than before; Mefres pressed his blue lips together tightly and dropped his eyelids.

A moment later the new pharaoh sat on his throne, which instead of feet had the carved figures of princes and the kings of nine nations.

Soon Herhor gave to the lord, on a golden plate, a white and also a red crown.

The sovereign placed the crowns on his own head in silence, while those present fell prostrate.

That was not the solemn coronation; it was merely taking possession of power.

When the priests had incensed the pharaoh and had sung a hymn to Osiris, imploring that god to pour all blessings on the sovereign, dignitaries of the civil power and of the army were permitted to kiss the lowest step of the throne. Then Ramses took a gold spoon, and, repeating a prayer which the holy Sem pronounced aloud, he incensed the statues of the gods arranged in line on both sides of the pharaoh's chapel.

"What am I to do now?" inquired he.

"Show thyself to the people," replied Herhor.

Through a gilded, widely opened door his holiness ascended marble steps to a terrace, and, raising his hands, faced in turn toward the four sides of the universe. The sound of trumpets was heard, and from the summits of pylons banners were hung out. Whoso was in a field, in a yard, on the street, fell prostrate; the stick, raised above the back of a beast or a slave, was lowered without giving the blow, and all criminals against the state who had been sentenced that day received grace.

Descending from the terrace the pharaoh inquired,

"Have I something more to do?"

"Refreshments and affairs of state are awaiting thee, holiness," replied Herhor.

"After that I may rest," said the pharaoh. "Where are the remains of his holiness, my father?"

"Given to the embalmers," whispered Herhor.

Tears filled the pharaoh's eyes, and his mouth quivered, but he restrained himself and looked down in silence. It was not proper that servants should see emotion in such a mighty ruler.

Wishing to turn the pharaoh's attention to another subject, Herhor asked,

"Wilt Thou be pleased, holiness, to receive the homage due from the queen, thy mother?"

"I? Am I to receive homage from my mother?" asked Ramses, with repressed voice.

"Hast Thou forgotten what the sage Eney said? Perhaps holy Sem will repeat those beautiful words to us."

"Remember," quoted Sem, "that she gave birth to thee and nourished thee in every manner."

"Speak further; speak!" insisted the pharaoh, striving always to command himself.

"Shouldst Thou forget that she would raise her hands to the god, and he would hear her complaint. She bore thee long beneath her heart, like a great burden, and gave thee birth when thy mouths had expired. She carried thee in her arms afterward, and during three years she put her breast into thy mouth. She reared thee, was not disgusted with thy uncleanness. And when Thou wert going to school and wert exercised in writing, she placed before thy teacher daily bread and beer from her own dwelling." [Authentic]

Ramses sighed deeply and said with calmness,

"So ye see that it is not proper that my mother should salute me. Rather I will go to her."

And he passed through a series of halls lined with marble, alabaster, and wood, painted in bright colors, carved and gilded; behind him went his immense suite. But when he came to the antechamber of his mother's apartments, he made a sign to leave him. When he had passed the antechamber, he stopped a while before the door, then knocked and entered quietly.

In a chamber with bare walls, where in place of furniture there stood only a low wooden couch and a broken pitcher holding water, all in sign of mourning, Queen Niort's, the mother of the pharaoh, was sitting on a stone. She was in a coarse shirt, barefoot; her face was smeared with mud from the Nile, and in her tangled hair there were ashes.

When she saw Ramses, the worthy lady inclined so as to fall at his feet. But the son seized her in his arms, and said with weeping,

"If thou, O mother, incline to the ground before me, I shall be forced to go under the ground before thee."

The queen drew his head to her bosom, wiped away his tears with the sleeve of her coarse shirt, and then, raising her hands, whispered,

"May all the gods, may the spirit of thy father and grandfather, surround thee with blessing and solicitude. O Isis, I have never spared offerings to thee, but today I make the greatest; I give my beloved son to thee. Let this kingly son become thy son entirely, and may his greatness and his glory increase thy divine inheritance."

The pharaoh embraced and kissed his mother repeatedly, then he seated her on the wooden couch and sat on the stone himself.

"Has my father left commands to me?" inquired he.

"He begged thee only to remember him, but he said to the supreme council, 'I leave you my heir, who is a lion and an eagle in one person; obey him, and he will elevate Egypt to incomparable power.'."

"Dost Thou think that the priests will obey me?"

"Remember," answered the queen, "that the device of the pharaoh is a serpent, and a serpent means prudence, which is silent, and no one knows when it will bite mortally. If Thou take time as thy confederate, Thou wilt accomplish everything."

"Herhor is tremendously haughty. Today he dared to put on the miter of the holy Amenhotep. Of course I commanded him to set it aside. I will remove him from the government, him and certain members of the supreme council."

The queen shook her head.

"Egypt is thine," said she, "and the gods have endowed thee with great wisdom. Were it not for that, I should fear terribly a struggle with Herhor."

"I do not dispute with him; I remove him."

"Egypt is thine," repeated the queen, "but I fear a struggle with the priests. It is true that thy father, who was mild beyond measure, has made those men insolent, but it is not wise to bring them to despair through severity. Besides, think of this: Who will replace them in counsel? They know everything that has been, that is, and that will be on earth and in heaven; they know the most secret thoughts of mankind, and they direct hearts as the wind directs tree leaves. Without them Thou wilt be ignorant not only of what is happening in Tyre and Nineveh, but even in Thebes and Memphis."

"I do not reject their wisdom, but I want service," answered the pharaoh. "I know that their understanding is great, but it must be controlled so that it may not deceive, and it must be directed lest it ruin the State. Tell me thyself, mother, what they have done with Egypt in the course of thirty years? The people suffer want, or are in rebellion; the army is small, the treasury is empty, and meanwhile two months' distance from us Assyria is increasing like dough containing leaven, and today is forcing on us treaties."

"Do as may please thee, but remember that the device of a pharaoh is a serpent, and a serpent is silence and discretion."

"Thou speakest truth, mother, but believe me, at certain times daring is better than prudence. The priests planned, as I know today, that the Libyan war should last entire years. I finished it in the course of a few days, and only because every day I took some mad but decisive step If I had not rushed to the desert against them, which by the way was a great indiscretion, we should have the Libyans outside Memphis at this moment."

"I know that Thou didst hunt down Tehenna, and that Typhon caught thee," said the queen. "O hasty child, Thou didst not think of me."

He smiled.

"Be of good heart," replied Ramses. "When the pharaoh is in battle, at his left and his right hand stands Amon. Who then can touch him?"

He embraced the queen once more and departed.



CHAPTER LI

THE immense suite of his holiness had remained in the hall of attendance, but as if split into two parts. On one side were Herhor, Mefres, and some high priests superior in years; on the other were all the generals, civil officials, and a majority of the younger priests.

The eagle glance of the pharaoh saw in one instant this division of dignitaries, and in the heart of the young sovereign joyous pride was kindled.

"And here I have gained a victory without drawing my sword," thought Ramses.

The dignitaries drew away farther and more distinctly from Herhor and Mefres, for no one doubted that the two high priests, till then the most powerful persons in the state, had ceased to possess the favor of the new pharaoh.

Now the sovereign went to the hall of refection, where he was astonished first of all by the multitude of serving priests and the number of the dishes.

"Have I to eat all this?" inquired he, without hiding his amazement.

The priest who inspected the kitchen explained to the pharaoh that the dishes not used by his holiness went as offerings to the dynasty. And while speaking he indicated the statues placed in line along the hall.

Ramses gazed at the statues, which looked as if no one had made them an offering; next at the priests, who were as fresh of complexion as if they had eaten everything presented; then he asked for beer, also the bread used by warriors, and garlic.

The elder priest was astonished, but he repeated the order to the younger one. The younger hesitated, but repeated the command to the serving men and women. The servants at the first moment did not believe their own ears, but a quarter of an hour later they returned terrified, and whispered to the priests that there was no warriors' bread nor garlic.

The pharaoh smiled and gave command that from that day forth there should not be a lack of simple food in his kitchen. Then he ate a pigeon, a morsel of wheaten cake, and drank some wine.

He confessed in spirit that the food was well prepared and the wine exquisite. He could not free himself from the thought, however, that the court kitchen must swallow immense sums of money.

Having burnt incense to his ancestors, the pharaoh betook himself to his cabinet to hear reports from ministers.

Herhor came first. He bent down before his lord much lower than he had when greeting him, and congratulated Ramses on his victory at the Soda Lakes with great enthusiasm.

"Thou didst rush," said he, "holiness, on the Libyans like Typhon on the miserable tents of wanderers through the desert. Thou hast won a great battle with very small losses, and with one blow of thy divine sword hast finished a war, the end of which was unseen by us common men."

The pharaoh felt his dislike toward the minister decreasing.

"For this cause," continued the high priest, "the supreme council implores thee, holiness, to appoint ten talents' reward to the valiant regiments. Do thou, as supreme chief, permit that to thy name be added 'The Victorious.'."

Counting on the youth of the pharaoh, Herhor exaggerated in flattery. Ramses recovered from his delight and replied on a sudden,

"What wouldst Thou add to my name had I destroyed the Assyrian army and filled our temples with the riches of Nineveh and Babylon?"

"So he is always dreaming of that?" thought the high priest.

The pharaoh, as if to confirm Herhor's fears, changed the subject.

"How many troops have we?" asked he.

"Here in Memphis?"

"No, in all Egypt."

"Thou hadst ten regiments, holiness," answered Herhor. "The worthy Nitager on the eastern boundary has fifteen. There are ten on the south, for Nubia begins to be disturbed; five are garrisoned throughout the country."

"Forty altogether," said Ramses, after some thought. "How many warriors in all?"

"About sixty thousand."

Ramses sprang up from his chair.

"Sixty thousand instead of one hundred and twenty thousand!" shouted he. "What does this mean? What have ye done with my army?"

"There are no means to maintain more men."

"O God!" said the Pharaoh, seizing his head. "But the Assyrians may attack us a month hence. We are disarmed."

"We have a preliminary treaty with Assyria," put in Herhor.

"A woman might give such an answer, but not a minister of war," said Ramses, with indignation. "What does a treaty mean when there is no army behind it: Today one half of the troops which King Assar commands would crush us."

"Deign to be at rest, holy lord. At the first news of Assyrian treason we should have half a million of warriors."

The pharaoh laughed in his face.

"What? How? Thou art mad, priest! Thou art groping among papyruses, but I have served seven years in the army, and there was almost no day which I did not pass in drill or maneuvers. How couldst Thou have an army of half a million in the course of a few months?"

"All the nobility would rise."

"What is thy nobility? Nobility is not an army. To form an army of half a million, at least a hundred and fifty regiments are needed, and we, as Thou thyself sayest, have forty. How could those men who today are herding cattle, ploughing land, making pots, or drinking and idling on their lands, learn the art of warfare? Egyptians are poor materials for an army. I know that, for I see them daily. A Libyan, a Greek, a Hittite, in boyhood even uses a bow and arrows and a sling; he handles a club perfectly; in a year he learns to march passably. But only in three years will an Egyptian march in some fashion. It is true that he grows accustomed to a sword and a spear in two years, but to cast missiles four years are too short a time for him. So in the course of a few months ye could put out not an army, but half a million of a rabble which the Assyrians would break to pieces in the twinkle of an eye. For, though the Assyrian regiments are poor and badly trained, an Assyrian knows how to hurl stones and shoot arrows; he knows how to cut and thrust, and, above all, he has the onrush of a wild beast, which is lacking in the mild Egyptians altogether. We break the enemy by this, that our trained and drilled regiments are like a battering ram: it is necessary to beat down one-half of our men before the column is injured. But when the column is broken, there is no Egyptian army."

"Thou speakest wisdom," said Herhor to the panting pharaoh. "Only the gods possess such acquaintance with things. I know that the forces of Egypt are too weak; that to create new ones many years of labor are needed. For this very reason I wish to conclude a treaty with Assyria."

"But ye have concluded it already!"

"For the moment. Sargon, in view of the sickness of thy father, and fearing thee, holiness, deferred the conclusion of a regular treaty till Thou shouldst ascend the throne."

The pharaoh fell into anger again.

"What?" cried he. "Then they think really of seizing Phoenicia! And do they suppose that I will sign the infamy of my reign? Evil spirits have seized all of you!"

The audience was ended. Herhor fell on his face this time, but while returning from his lord he considered in his heart,

"His holiness has heard the report, hence he does not reject my services. I have told him that he must sign a treaty with Assyria, hence the most difficult question is finished. He will come to his mind before Sargon returns to us. But he is a lion, and not even a lion, but a mad elephant. Still he became pharaoh only because he is the grandson of a high priest. He does not understand yet that those same hands which raised him so high."

In the antechamber the worthy Herhor halted, thought over something; at last instead of going to his own dwelling he went to Queen Niort's.

In the garden there were neither women nor children, but from the scattered villas came groans. Those were from women belonging to the house of the late pharaoh who were lamenting that sovereign who had gone to the west. Their sorrow, it seemed, was sincere.

Meanwhile the supreme judge entered the cabinet of the new pharaoh.

"What hast Thou to tell me, worthiness?" asked Ramses.

"Some days ago an unusual thing happened near Thebes," replied the judge. "A laborer killed his wife and three children and drowned himself in the sacred lake."

"Had he gone mad?"

"It seems that his act was caused by hunger."

The pharaoh grew thoughtful.

"A strange event," said he, "but I wish to hear of something else. What crimes happen most commonly in these days?"

The supreme judge hesitated.

"Speak boldly," said the pharaoh, now grown impatient, "and hide nothing from me. I know that Egypt has fallen into a morass; I wish to draw it out, hence I must know everything."

"The most usual crimes are revolts. But only common people revolt," added the judge, hastily.

"I am listening," said the pharaoh.

"In Kosem a regiment of masons and stone-cutters revolted recently; for some time needful supplies had been refused them. In Sechem earth- tillers killed a scribe who was collecting taxes. In Melcatis and Pi- Hebit also earth-tillers wrecked the houses of Phoenician tenants. At Kasa they refused to repair the canal, declaring that pay from the treasury was clue them for that labor. Finally in the porphyry quarries the convicts killed their overseers and tried to escape in a body to the seacoast."

"This news does not surprise me," replied the pharaoh. "But what dost Thou think?"

"It is necessary first of all to punish the guilty."

"But I think it necessary first of all to give laborers what belongs to them. A hungry ox will lie down; a hungry horse will totter on his feet and pant. How, then, can we ask a hungry man to work and not declare that he is suffering?"

"Then, holiness."

"Pentuer will open a council to investigate these matters," interrupted the pharaoh. "Meanwhile I have no desire to punish."

"In that case a general insurrection will break out," cried the judge, in alarm.

The pharaoh rested his chin on his hands and considered,

"Well," said he, after a while, "let the courts do their work, but as mildly as possible. And this very day Pentuer will assemble his council."

"In truth," added he, after a time, "it is easier to make a decision in battle than in the disorder which has mastered Egypt."

When the supreme judge had departed, the pharaoh summoned Tutmosis. He directed him to salute in the name of the sovereign the army returning from the Soda Lakes, and to distribute twenty talents among the officers and warriors.

Then he commanded Pentuer to come; meanwhile he received the chief treasurer.

"I wish to know," said he, "what the condition of the treasury is."

"We have," replied the dignitary, "at this moment twenty thousand talents of value in the granaries, stables, storehouses, and chests, while taxes are coming in daily."

"But insurrections are breaking out daily," added the pharaoh. "What is our general income and outgo?"

"On the army we expend yearly twenty thousand talents; on the court two to three thousand talents monthly."

"Well, what further? And public works?"

"At present they are carried on without expense," said the treasurer, dropping his head.

"And the income?"

"We have as much as we expend," whispered the official.

"Then we have forty or fifty thousand talents yearly. And where is the rest?"

"Mortgaged to the Phoenicians, to certain bankers, to merchants, and to the temples."

"Well, but there is besides the inviolable treasure of the pharaohs in gold, platinum, and jewels; how much is that worth?"

"That was taken and distributed ten years ago."

"For what purpose? To whom?"

"For the needs of the court, in gifts to nomarchs and to temples."

"The court had incomes from current taxes. But could presents exhaust the treasury of my father?"

"Osiris Ramses, thy father, holiness, was a bountiful lord and made great offerings."

"Is it possible? Were they so great? I wish to know about this," said the pharaoh, impatiently.

"Exact accounts are in the archives; I remember only general figures."

"Speak!"

"For example," answered the treasurer, hesitatingly, "Osiris Ramses in the course of his happy reign gave to the temples about one hundred towns, one hundred and twenty ships, two million head of cattle, two million bags of wheat, one hundred and twenty thousand horses, eighty thousand slaves, two hundred thousand kegs of beer and wine, three million loaves of bread, thirty thousand garments, thirty thousand vessels of honey, olives, and incense. Besides that, one thousand talents of gold, three thousand talents of silver, ten thousand of bronze, five hundred talents of dark bronze, six million garlands of flowers, twelve hundred statues of gods, and thirty thousand precious stones. [The gifts of Ramses III to the temples were incomparably greater] Other numbers I do not remember at the moment, but they are all recorded."

The pharaoh raised his hands with laughter, but after a time fell into anger, and cried, while striking the table with his fist,

"It is an unheard of thing that a handful of priests should use so much beer and bread, so many garlands and robes, while they have their own income, an immense income, which exceeds the wants of these holy men a hundred times."

"Thou hast been pleased, holiness, to forget that the priests support tens of thousands of poor; they cure an equal number of sick, and maintain a number of regiments at the expense of the temples."

"What do they want of regiments? Even the pharaohs use troops only in wartime. As to the sick, almost every man of them pays for himself, or works out what he owes the temple for curing him. And the poor? But they work for the temple: they carry water for the gods, take part in solemnities, and, above all, are connected with the working of miracles. It is they who at the gates of the temples recover reason, sight, hearing; their wounds are cured, their feet and hands regain strength, while the people looking at these miracles pray all the more eagerly and give offerings to gods the more bountiful.

"The poor are like the oxen and sheep of the temples: they bring in pure profit."

"But," the treasurer made bold to put in, "the priests do not expend all the offerings; they lay them up, and increase the capital."

"For what purpose?"

"For some sudden need of the state."

"Who has seen this capital?"

"I have seen it myself," said the dignitary. "The treasures accumulated in the labyrinth do not decrease; they increase from generation to generation, so that in case."

"So that the Assyrians might have something to take when they conquer Egypt, which is managed by priests so beautifully!" interrupted the pharaoh. "I thank thee, chief treasurer; I knew that the financial condition of Egypt was bad, but I did not suppose the state ruined. There are rebellions, there is no army, the pharaoh is in poverty; but the treasure in the labyrinth is increasing from generation to generation."

"If each dynasty, an entire dynasty, gave as many gifts to temples as my father has given, the labyrinth would have nineteen thousand talents of gold, about sixty thousand of silver, and so much wheat, and land, so many cattle, slaves, and towns, so many garments and precious stones, that the best accountant could not reckon them."

The chief treasurer was crushed when taking farewell of the sovereign. But the sovereign himself was not satisfied, for after a moment's thought it seemed to him that he had spoken too plainly with officials.



CHAPTER LII

THE guard in the antechamber announced Pentuer. The priest prostrated himself before the pharaoh, and said that he was waiting for commands.

"I do not wish to command," said Ramses, "but to beg thee. Thou knowest that in Egypt there are riots of laborers, artisans, even convicts. There are riots from the sea to the quarries. The only thing lacking is that my warriors should rebel and proclaim as pharaoh Herhor, for example."

"Live through eternity, holiness!" replied the priest. "There is not a man in Egypt who would not sacrifice himself for thee, and not bless thy name."

"Aha, if they knew," said the ruler, with anger, "how helpless the pharaoh is, and how poor he is, each nomarch would like to be the lord of his province. I thought that on inheriting the double crown I should signify something. But I have convinced myself during the first day that I am merely a shadow of the former rulers of Egypt; for what can a pharaoh be without wealth, without an army, and, above all, without faithful subjects? I am like the statues of the gods which they incense, and before which they place offerings. The statues are powerless and the offerings serve to fatten the priests. But, true, Thou art on their side."

"It is painful to me," answered Pentuer, "that Thou speakest thus, holiness, on the first day of thy reign. If news of this were to go over Egypt!"

"To whom can I tell what pains me?" interrupted Ramses. "Thou art my counselor; I was saved by thee, or at least Thou hadst the wish to save my life, not of course to publish to the world that which is happening in the ruler's heart, which heart I open before thee. But Thou art right."

He walked up and down in the chamber, and said after a while in a tone considerably calmer,

"I have appointed thee chief of a council which is to investigate the causes of those ever-recurring riots in Egypt. I wish that only the guilty be punished, and that justice be done those who are injured."

"May the god support thee with his favor," whispered the priest. "I will do what Thou commandest. But the causes of the riots I know already."

"What are they?"

"More than once have I spoken of them to thee, holiness. The toiling people are hungry; they have too much work, and they pay too many taxes. He who worked formerly from sunrise till sunset must begin now an hour before sunrise and finish an hour after sunset. It is not long since a common man might go every tenth day to visit the graves of his mother and father, speak with their shades, and make them offerings. But today no one goes, for no one has time to go."

"Formerly a working man ate three wheat cakes in the course of the day; at present he has not even barley bread. Formerly labor on the canals, dams, and roads was deducted from the taxes; now the taxes are paid independently while public works are carried on without wages. These are the causes of riots."

"I am the poorest noble in the kingdom!" cried the pharaoh, while he tugged at his own hair. "Any landowner gives his cattle proper food and rest; but all men who work for me are tired and hungry."

"What am I to do, then, tell Thou who hast begged me to improve the lot of the workers?"

"Wilt Thou command me to tell, lord?"

"I will beg, I will command, as Thou wishest. Only speak wisely."

"Blessed be thy rule, O true son of Osiris," answered the priest. "This is what it is proper to do: Command, lord, first of all, that pay be given for labor on public works, as was the case formerly."

"Of course."

"Next command that field labor last only from sunrise till sunset. Then direct, as during the divine dynasties, that people rest every seventh day; not every tenth, but every seventh day. Then command that landowners shall not have the right to mortgage earth-tillers, or scribes the right to beat and torture them according to fancy.

"And finally, give the tenth part, or even the twentieth part of the land as property to the workers, so that no one may take it away or mortgage it. Let each family have as much land in extent as the pavement of this room, and it will not be hungry. Give the people desert sands as property, and in a few years gardens will be growing on them."

"Thou speakest beautifully," interrupted the pharaoh; "but what Thou sayest is what Thou seest in thy heart, not in the world. Men's plans, though the best, are not always in accord with the natural course of things."

"I have seen such changes and their result, holiness," answered Pentuer.

"At certain temples various trials have been made at curing the sick, teaching children, rearing cattle, cultivating plants, and reforming men, and the following has happened: When they gave a lean and lazy man good food, and rest every seventh day, the man became sturdy, willing to work, and he dug more land than before. A laborer who receives wages is more cheerful and does more work than a slave, even though beaten with whips of iron. Well-nourished people have more children than hungry and overworked ones; the children of free men are healthy and strong; those of slaves are fragile, gloomy, inclined to stealing and to lying. Men have convinced themselves that land tilled by its owner gives one half more grain and vegetables than land tilled by captives.

"I will tell a most curious thing to thee, holiness: When they play on musical instruments to ploughmen, the men and the oxen work better, more quickly, and tire themselves less than when there is no music. All this has been verified at our temples."

The pharaoh smiled.

"I must," said he, "have music on my lands and in the quarries. But if the priests convince themselves of such wonders as Thou art relating, why act as they do on their own estates?"

Pentuer dropped his head.

"Because," replied he, sighing, "not all priests are sages, not all have noble hearts."

"That is it!" exclaimed the pharaoh.

"And now tell me, Thou who art a son of earth tillers, and knowest that among priests there are fools and rioters, tell me, why Thou art unwilling to serve me in a struggle against the priesthood? Thou knowest that I cannot improve the lot of the working man unless first I teach the priests obedience to my orders."

Pentuer wrung his hands.

"O lord," replied he, "a struggle with the priesthood is godless and dangerous. More than one pharaoh began it, and was unable to finish."

"Because he was not supported by sages like thee!" burst out Ramses. "And, indeed, I shall never understand why wise and honest priests bind themselves to a band of rogues, such as the majority of this class are."

Pentuer shook his head and began slowly, "During thirty thousand years the sacred order of priests has nursed Egypt and made the country the wonder of the world, which it is at present. And how have the priests, in spite of their faults, been able to do this? Because they are the lamp in which burns the light of wisdom.

"This lamp may be foul, even malodorous; still it preserves the divine fire, without which darkness and savagery would prevail among people.

"Thou speakest, lord, of a struggle with the priesthood," continued Pentuer. "How can that profit me? If Thou lose I shall be unhappy, for Thou wilt not improve the lot of the worker. And if Thou win? May I not live to that! for shouldst Thou break the lamp, who knows whether Thou wouldst not put out the fire of wisdom which for thousands of years has illuminated Egypt and mankind.

"These, lord, are the reasons why I will not take part in thy struggle with the sacred order of priests. I feel that the struggle is approaching, and I suffer because such a worm as I am unable to prevent it. But I will not participate, for I should have to betray either thee, or the God, the creator of wisdom."

While hearing these words the pharaoh walked up and down the chamber in thought.

"Aa!" said he, without anger, "do as may please thee. Thou art not a warrior, hence I cannot reproach thee with lack of valor. But Thou canst not be my adviser, though I beg thee to form a council to investigate the riots of working men, and, when I summon thee, declare what thy wisdom enjoins."

Pentuer knelt down in taking farewell of his lord.

"In every case," added the pharaoh, "know this, that I have no desire to quench the divine light. Let the priests guard wisdom in their temples, but let them not make my army useless, let them not conclude shameful treaties, and let them not steal," he said this excitedly, "the treasures of the pharaohs.

"Can they think that I will stand at their gates, like a beggar, asking that they deign to give me funds to restore the state which is ruined by their stupid and villainous management? Ha, ha! Pentuer, I should not ask the gods for that which is my power and my right Thou mayst go."

The priest, withdrawing with his face toward the pharaoh, went out backward with obeisance, and when in the doorway he fell with his face on the pavement.

The pharaoh remained alone.

"Mortal men," thought he, "are like children. Herhor is wise: he knows that Egypt in case of war would need half a million of warriors; he knows that those troops need training, and still he has decreased the number of the regiments.

"The chief treasurer also is wise, but it seems to him quite in order that all the treasure of the pharaohs should go to the labyrinth.

"Finally here is Pentuer. What a strange person he is! He wants me to give earth-tillers food, land, and ever-recurring holidays. All this would decrease my income, which even now is insufficient. But if I say to him: help me to take the pharaoh's treasures from the priesthood, he calls that godlessness and the quenching of light in Egypt. Strange man, he would be glad to turn the state bottom upwards, so far as relates to the good of earth tillers, but he would not venture to seize a high priest and lead him forth to prison. With the utmost composure he commands me to renounce half my income, but I am sure that he would not dare to take a copper uten out of the labyrinth."

The pharaoh smiled, and again he meditated.

"Each man wants to be happy himself; but if Thou wish to give happiness to all men, each one will seize thy hand as he would if Thou wert drawing an aching tooth from him.

"Therefore a pharaoh must have decision. Therefore my divine father did ill when he neglected the workers and trusted beyond bounds in the priesthood. He left me a grievous inheritance, but I will improve it.

"At the Soda Lakes there was also a difficult question, more difficult than this one. Here are only gabblers and timid cowards; there stood armed men ready to go to death.

"One battle will open our eyes more widely than tens of years in peaceful management. Whoso says to himself, 'I will burst through this hindrance,' will burst through it. But he who hesitates must yield."

Darkness came. In the palace the watches were changed, and in the remoter halls torches were lighted. But no one dared enter the sovereign's chamber unless commanded.

Ramses, wearied by sleeplessness, by the journey of the day previous, by the occupations of that day, dropped into an armchair. It seemed to him that he had been pharaoh for centuries, and he could not believe that one day had not passed since he had been at the pyramids.

"One day? Impossible!"

Then he thought that perhaps the spirits of the former pharaohs had settled in the heart of their heir. It must be so, for otherwise whence could such a feeling of age or remoteness settle down in him? And why did governing the state seem today a simple thing, while two months before he was alarmed when he thought that he could not govern.

"One day?" repeated he, in spirit. "But I am a thousand years in this palace!"

Suddenly he heard a repressed voice,

"My son! O son!"

The pharaoh sprang up from his chair.

"Who art thou?" exclaimed he.

"I am, I Hast Thou forgotten me already?"

"O my son," said the voice again, "respect the will of the gods if Thou wish to receive their blessed assistance O respect the gods, for without their assistance the greatest power on earth is as dust and shadows O respect the gods if Thou wish that the bitterness of thy faults should not poison my existence in the happy region of the West."

The voice ceased, Ramses ordered to bring a light. One door of the room was closed, at the other a guard stood. No stranger could enter there.

Anger and alarm tore the pharaoh's heart. "What was that? Had the shade of his father spoken indeed to him, or was that voice only a new priestly trick?"

But if the priests, notwithstanding thick walls, could speak to him from a distance, they could overhear him. And then he, the lord of the world, was like a wild beast caged in on all sides.

It is true that in the palace of the pharaoh secret listening was common. Ramses had thought, however, that his cabinet was safe, and that the insolence of priests had stopped at the threshold of the supreme ruler.

"But if that was a spirit?"

He did not wish to sup, but betook himself to rest. It seemed to him that he could not sleep; but weariness won the victory over irritation.

In a few hours bells and a light woke him. It was midnight and the astrologer priest came to make a report on the position of the heavenly bodies. The pharaoh heard the report, and said at the end of it,

"Couldst thou, revered prophet, make thy report to the worthy Sem hereafter? He is my substitute in matters touching religion."

The astrologer wondered greatly at the indifference of his lord to affair? of the heavens.

"Art them pleased, holiness," inquired he, "to refuse those indications which the stars give to rulers?"

"Do they give them?" asked the pharaoh. "Tell what they promise me."

Clearly the astrologer had looked for the question, so he answered directly,

"The horizon is darkened for the moment. The lord of light has not come yet to the road of truth which leads to knowledge of the divine will. But sooner or later he will find both long life and a happy reign filled with glory."

"Aha! I thank thee, holy man. And as soon as I know what to seek I will accommodate myself to the indication. But again I beg thee to communicate henceforth with the holy Sem. He is my substitute, but shouldst Thou read anything in the stars Thou wilt tell me of it in the morning."

The priest left the bedchamber shaking his head.

"They have roused me from sleep!" said Ramses, dissatisfied.

"An hour ago Queen Niort's, most greatly to be revered, commanded me, holiness, to ask of thee an interview," said an adjutant, suddenly.

"Now? At midnight?" asked the pharaoh.

"Her exact words were that at midnight Thou wouldst wake, holiness."

The pharaoh meditated, then answered the adjutant that ha would wait for the queen in the golden hall. He thought that there no one could overhear them.

Ramses threw a mantle over his shoulders, put on sandals unfastened and commanded to light the golden hall brightly. Then he went out, directing the servants not to go with him.

He found Niort's in the hall; she was wearing coarse linen garments in sign that she was mourning. When she saw the pharaoh she wished to drop on her knees, but her son raised the queen and embraced her.

"Has something important happened, mother, that Thou art working at this hour?" inquired Ramses.

"I was not asleep I was praying," replied the queen. "O my son, Thou hast divined wisely that the affair is important. I have heard the sacred voice of thy father."

"Indeed!" said the pharaoh, feeling that anger was filling him.

"Thy ever-living father," continued the queen, "told me, full of sadness, that Thou wert entering on a way of error. Thou refusest with contempt the ordination of high priest, and treatest badly the servants of divinity."

"'Who will remain with Ramses,' said thy father, 'if he angers the gods and the priests desert him? Tell him tell him,' repeated the revered shade, 'that in this way he will ruin Egypt, himself, and the dynasty.'"

"Oho!" said the pharaoh, "then they threaten me thus from the first day of my reign. My mother, a dog barks loudest when he is afraid; so threats are of evil omen, but only for the priesthood."

"But thy father said this," repeated the anxious lady.

"My immortal father and my holy grandfather," said the pharaoh, "being pure spirits know my heart, and see the woeful condition of Egypt. But since my heart wishes to raise the state by stopping abuses they would not prevent me from carrying out my measures."

"Then dost Thou not believe that the spirit of thy father gives thee counsel?" asked the queen, with rising terror.

"I know not. But I have the right to suppose that those voices of spirits, which are heard in various comers of our palace, are some trick of the priesthood. Only priests can fear me, never the gods, and spirits. Therefore it is not spirits which are frightening us, mother."

The queen fell to thinking; it was clear that her son's words impressed her. She had seen many miracles in her life and some of them had seemed to her suspicious.

"In that case," said she, with a sigh, "Thou art not cautious, my son. This afternoon Herhor visited me; he was very much dissatisfied with the audience. He said that it was thy wish to remove the priests from thy court."

"But of what use are priests to me? Are they to cause great outgo in my kitchen and cellar? Or, perhaps, to hear what I say, and see what I do?"

"The whole country will revolt," interrupted the queen, "if the priests declare that Thou art an unbeliever."

"The country is in revolt now. But the priests are the cause of it," replied the pharaoh. "And touching the devotion of the Egyptian people I begin to have another idea. If Thou knew, mother, how many lawsuits there are in Lower Egypt for insults to the gods, and in Upper Egypt for robbing the dead, Thou wouldst be convinced that for our people the cause of the priests has ceased to be holy."

"This is through the influence of foreigners, especially Phoenicians, who are flooding Egypt," cried the lady.

"All one through whose influence; enough that Egypt no longer considers either statues or priests as superhuman. And wert thou, mother, to hear the nobility, the officers, the warriors talk, Thou wouldst understand that the time has come to put the power of the pharaoh in the place of priestly power, unless all power is to fall in this country."

"Egypt is thine," sighed the queen. "Thy wisdom is uncommon, so do as may please thee. But act Thou with caution oh, with caution! A scorpion even when killed may still wound an unwary conqueror."

They embraced and the pharaoh returned to his bedchamber. But, in truth, he could not sleep that time.

He understood clearly that between him and the priesthood a struggle had begun, or rather something repulsive which did not even deserve the name struggle, and which at the first moment he, the leader, could not manage. For where was the enemy? Against whom was his faithful army to show itself? Was it against the priests who fell on their faces before him? Or against the stars which said that the pharaoh had not entered yet on the true way? What and whom was he to vanquish? Was it, perhaps, those voices of spirits which were raised amid darkness? Or was it his own mother, who begged him in terror not to dismiss priests from state offices?

The pharaoh writhed on his bed while feeling his helplessness. Suddenly the thought came to him: "What care I for an enemy which yields like mud in a hand grasp? Let them talk in empty halls, let them be angry at my godlessness. I will issue orders, and whoso will not carry them out is my enemy; against him I will turn courts, police, and warriors."



CHAPTER LIII

So in the month Hator, after thirty-four years of rule, died the Pharaoh Mer-Amen-Ramses XII, the ruler of two worlds, the lord of eternity, the giver of life and every happiness.

He died because he felt that his body was growing weak and useless. He died because he was yearning for his eternal home and he wished to confide the cares of earthly rule to hands that were more youthful. Finally he died because he wished to die, for such was his will. His divine spirit flew away, like a falcon which, circling for a time above the earth, vanishes at last in blue expanses.

As his life had been the sojourn of an immortal in the region of evanescence, his death was merely one among moments in the existence of the superhuman.

Ramses XII woke about sunrise; leaning on two prophets, surrounded by a chorus of priests, he went to the chapel of Osiris. There, as usual, he resurrected the divinity, washed and dressed it, made offerings, and raised his hands in prayer. Meanwhile the priests sang:

Chorus I. "Honor to thee who raisest thyself on the horizon and coursest across the sky."

Chorus II. "The pathway of thy sacredness is the prosperity of those on whose faces thy rays fall."

Chorus I. "Would that I might go as Thou goest, O sun! without halting."

Chorus II. "Mighty wanderer in space, Thou who hast no lord, for thee hundreds of millions of years are merely the twinkle of an eye."

Chorus I. "Thou goest down, but endurest. Thou multipliest hours, days, and nights, and remainest in solitude according to thy own laws."

Chorus II. "Thou dost illumine the earth, offering thy own self with thy own hands, when under the form of Ra Thou comest up on the horizon."

Chorus I: "O star, emerging great, through thy light, Thou thyself formest thy own limbs."

Chorus II. "And, not begotten of any, Thou givest birth to thyself on the horizon." [Authentic hymn]

At this point the pharaoh spoke:

"O Thou radiant in the heavens! Permit that I enter eternity. Let me join the revered and perfect shadows of the upper land. Let me, together with them, behold thy rays in the morning, and in the evening, when Thou joinest thy mother Nut. And when Thou turnest thy face to the West let my hands join while praying in honor of life, which is going to sleep beyond the mountains." [Authentic]

Thus spoke the pharaoh with upraised hands, surrounded by a cloud of incense. All at once he ceased, and dropped into the arms of the priests behind him.

He was no longer living.

Intelligence of the pharaoh's death flew through the palace like lightning. Servants left their occupations, overseers ceased to watch over their slaves, the guard was roused; all entrances were occupied.

In the main court a throng began to gather; cooks, cellarers, equerries, women of his holiness, and their children. Some inquired: "Is this true?" Others wondered that the sun shone in heaven, but all cried at once in heaven-piercing voices,

"O our lord! O our father! O beloved! Can it be that Thou hast gone from us? Oh it is true, he is going to Abydos! To the West, to the West, to the land of the just ones! The place which Thou hast loved groans and weeps for thee!" [Authentic]

Terrible uproar was heard throughout all the courts, throughout the whole park. It was echoed from the eastern hills, on the wings of the wind it flew across the Nile, and disturbed the city of Memphis.

Meanwhile, the priests, amid prayers, placed the body of the deceased in a rich closed litter. Eight stood at the poles of the litter; four took ostrich feather fans in their hands, others censers, and they prepared to go forth.

At this moment Queen Niort's ran in, and, seeing the remains in the litter, threw herself at the feet of the dead pharaoh.

"O my husband! O my brother! O my beloved!" cried she, carried away with weeping. "O beloved, remain with us, remain in thy house, withdraw not from this place on earth in which Thou art dwelling!" [Authentic.]

"In peace, in peace, to the West," sang the priests. "O mighty sovereign, go in peace to the West."

"Misfortune," said the queen, "Thou art hastening to the ferry to pass to the other shore! O priests, O prophets, hasten not, leave him; for ye will return to your houses, but he will go to the land of eternity."

"In peace, in peace to the West," sang the priestly chorus. "If it please the god, when the day of eternity comes, we shall see thee, O sovereign! For now Thou art going to the land which brings all men together."

At a sign given by the worthy Herhor, the attendants drew the queen from the feet of the pharaoh, and led her by force to her chambers.

The litter, borne by priests, moved on, and in it the sovereign, dressed and surrounded, as if living. On the right, and on the left, before and behind him, went generals, treasurers, judges, chief scribes, the bearers of the mace and the bow, and above all a throng of priests of various dignities.

In the courtyard, the servants fell on their faces, groaning and weeping, but the troops presented arms and the trumpets sounded, as if to greet a living pharaoh.

Between Memphis and the "Tableland of Mummies," lay a peculiar division of the city. All its buildings were devoted to the dead, and it was inhabited only by dissectors and embalmers.

This division was the forecourt as it were, of the cemetery proper, the bridge which joined living society with the city of endless rest. To this place were brought corpses, and mummies were made of them; here families stipulated with priests, touching the cost of funerals. Here were prepared sacred books and bandages, coffins, implements, vessels, and statues for the departed.

This district was a couple of thousand yards from Memphis. It was surrounded by a long wall provided with gates here and there.

The retinue bearing the remains of the pharaoh halted before the richest gate, and one of the priests knocked at it.

"Who is there?" inquired those within.

"Osiris-Mer-Amen-Ramses, the lord of two worlds, has come and desires that ye prepare him for his eternal journey," replied the priests.

"Is it possible that he, the sun of Egypt, is quenched? That he is dead who himself was breath and life?"

"Such was his will," answered a priest. "Receive, then, the lord with due honor and render all service to him, as is befitting, lest punishments meet you in this and the coming life."

"We will do as ye say," said a voice from within.

The priests left the litter, and went away hurriedly, so that the evil odor of remains accumulated in that place should not fall on them. Only civil officials under the lead of the supreme judge and treasurer remained there.

'After they had waited a considerable time, the gate opened, and from ten to twenty persons showed themselves. They wore priestly garments and their faces were covered.

"We give you," said the judges, on seeing them, "the body of our lord and yours. Do with it what the rules of religion enjoin, and omit nothing, so that the great deceased may not experience unquiet in that world through your fault."

The treasurer added,

"Use gold, silver, malachite, jasper, emerald, turquoise, and the most rare kinds of incenses for this lord, so that nothing be lacking that he may have whatever is best. I, the treasurer, say this to you. And if the wretch should be found who, instead of noble metals, gives counterfeit, and instead of genuine stones, gives Phoenician glass, let him remember that his hands will be cut off and his eyes dug out."

"It will be as ye wish," replied one of the veiled priests.

Others raised the litter and bore it to the interior of the district of the dead.

"Thou art going in peace to Abydos! Mayst Thou go in peace to the Theban West. To the West, to the West, to the land of the just ones!"

The gate closed, the supreme judge, the treasurer, and the officials accompanying them returned to the palace.

The hooded priests bore the litter to an immense building where only the remains of pharaohs were embalmed, or those of high dignitaries who had gained the exceptional favor of a pharaoh.

The priests stopped in the antechamber, where stood the golden boat on wheels, and took the corpse from the litter.

"Look ye!" cried one of the cowled priests, "are they not criminals? The pharaoh died in the chapel of Osiris, so he must have been in ceremonial costume, while here oh! instead of gold ornaments bronze; the chain is bronze, too, and on his breast false jewels!"

"True," said another. "I am curious to know who fitted him out thus: priests, or scribes?"

"Surely priests. Oh, would that your hands withered, ye scoundrels! And some wretch they are all such dared command us to give the deceased what was best."

"It was not they, but the treasurer."

"They are all rogues."

Thus discoursing, the embalmers took from the deceased his garments of a pharaoh, put on him a gown of cloth of gold and bore the remains to the boat.

"Thanks to the gods," said one of the cowled men, "we have a new pharaoh. He will bring the priests to order. What they have taken with their hands they will bring back with their mouths."

"Uuu! they say that he will be a shrewd ruler," put in another. "He is friendly with the Phoenicians; he passes time willingly with Pentuer, who is not of priestly family, but of such poor people as we. But the army, they say the army would let itself be burnt and drowned for the new pharaoh."

"Besides, he conquered the Libyans most gloriously a few days ago."

"Where is he now, that new pharaoh?" asked another. "In the desert? I am afraid that misfortune may meet him before he comes back to us."

"What will any one do to him when he has an army behind him? May I not live to an honest burial if the young lord will not treat the priests as a buffalo treats growing wheat."

"O Thou fool!" interrupted an embalmer who had been silent till that moment. "The pharaoh conquer the priests!"

"Why not?"

"But hast Thou ever seen that a lion tore down a pyramid?"

"Nonsense!"

"Or that a buffalo tossed it apart?"

"Of course he cannot toss it."

"Or that a tempest overturned it."

"What has this man begun at today?"

"Well, I tell thee that sooner will a lion, a buffalo, or a tempest overturn the great pyramid than the pharaoh put an end to the priesthood. Even if that pharaoh were a lion, a buffalo, and a tempest in one person."

"Hei ye, there!" cried men from above. "Is the corpse ready?"

"Yes, yes; but its jaw has fallen," answered they at the entrance.

"All one give it up here, for Isis must go to the city an hour from now."

After a while the golden boat with the dead pharaoh was raised by means of ropes to an internal balcony.

From the entrance it went into a great hall, painted in the color of the sky, and ornamented with golden stars. Through the whole length of the hall, from one wall to the other, was fixed a balcony in the form of an arch the ends of which were one story high and the centre a story and a half.

The hall represented the dome of heaven, the balcony the road of the sun in the sky. The late pharaoh was to represent Osiris, or the sun, which passes from the east to the west.

On the pavement of the hall stood a throng of priests and priestesses who, while waiting for the solemnity, conversed about indifferent subjects.

"Ready!" cried they from the balcony.

Conversation ceased. Above was heard the sound of a metal plate beaten thrice and on the balcony appeared the golden boat of the sun in which the late pharaoh was advancing.

Below sounded the hymn in honor of the sun:

"Behold he appears in a cloud to separate the sky from the earth, and later to connect them.

"Hidden unceasingly in all things, he alone lives, in him all things exist through eternity."

The boat moved gradually upward on the balcony; finally it halted at the highest point.

Then at the lower end of the arch appeared a priestess, arrayed as the goddess Tsis, with her son Horus, and with equal slowness she began to ascend. That was an image of the moon, which follows the sun.

Now the boat from the top of the arch began to go toward the west, and the chorus below sang again:

"The god incarnate in all things, the spirit of Shu in all gods. He is the body of a living person, the creator of the tree which bears fruit, the causer of fertilizing overflows. Without him nothing lives in the earthly circle." [Authentic hymn.]

The boat vanished at the western termination of the balcony, Isis and Horus stopped at the summit of the arch. A crowd of priests ran to the boat, took out the corpse of the pharaoh and placed it on a marble table, as Osiris to rest after his toils of the day.

Now to the dead man came the dissector, dressed as the god Typhon. On his head were a horrid mask and a red tangled wig, on his shoulders the skin of a wild boar, and in his hand an Ethiopian stone knife.

With this knife he began quickly to cut off the soles of the dead pharaoh's sandals.

"What art Thou doing, O Typhon, to thy sleeping brother?" asked Isis from the balcony.

"I am scraping the feet of my brother Osiris, so that he may not befoul heaven with earthly dust," replied the dissector dressed as Typhon.

When he had cut off the soles, the dissector took a bent wire, thrust it into the nostrils of the deceased and began to extract his brains. Next he made an opening in his body, and through that opening drew out quickly the heart, lungs, and viscera.

During this time the assistants of Typhon brought four great urns adorned with the heads of the gods Hape, Emset, Duamut and Quebhsneuf, and in each of those urns he placed some internal organ of the deceased pharaoh.

"But what art Thou doing, O brother Typhon?" inquired Isis a second time.

"I am purifying my brother Osiris of earthly things, so that he may become more beautiful," replied the dissector.

At the side of the marble table was a vat of water with soda in solution. The dissectors, when they had cleaned the body, put it into the vat where it was to soak seventy days.

Meanwhile Isis, when she had passed over the entire vault, approached the chamber where the dissectors had cleaned the pharaoh's body. She looked at the marble table, and, seeing that it was empty, inquired in terror,

"Where is my brother? Where is my divine consort?"

Thereupon thunder roared, trumpets and bronze plates sounded; the dissector disguised as Typhon burst into laughter, and cried,

"O beautiful Isis, who in company with the stars delightest the night, thy consort exists not. Never again will the radiant Osiris sit in the golden boat, never again will that sun appear on the firmament. I have done this, I, Set, and I have hidden him so deeply that none of the gods, nor all the gods together will find him."

At these words the goddess rent her garments, she groaned and tore her hair. Again sounded trumpets, thunder, and plates; among the priests and priestesses an uproar began, then shouting and curses. Suddenly all rushed at Typhon crying,

"Cursed spirit of darkness! Thou rousest the whirlwinds of the desert, Thou rousest the sea, darkenest the light of day! Mayst Thou fall into the pit from which the father of the gods himself could not free thee. Cursed! Cursed Set! May thy name be a disgust and a terror!"

While cursing in this way they all attacked Typhon with fists and clubs; the red-haired god fled, and rushed at last out of the building.

Again the bronze plates sounded thrice, and the solemnity was ended.

"Well, that is enough!" cried the senior priest to the assembly which had begun to fight in earnest. "Thou, Isis, mayest return to the city, but the rest of us must go to other departed ones who are waiting for our services. We must not neglect the ordinary dead, for it is unknown how much they will pay us for this one."

"Not much indeed!" interrupted the embalmer. "People say that there is nothing in the treasury, while the Phoenicians threaten to cease lending unless new rights are given them."

"May death destroy all those Phoenicians! Soon a man will be forced to beg a barley cake of them; even now they have snatched away everything."

"But unless they lend the pharaoh money we shall get nothing for the funeral."

Conversation ceased gradually, and those present left the heavenly hall. Only at the vat where the body of the pharaoh lay steeping was a guard left.

All this solemnity, representing the legend of the slaying of Osiris (the sun) by Typhon (the god of night and crime), served to open and clean the body of the pharaoh, and in this way prepare it for the embalming proper.

During seventy days the departed must lie in a solution of soda, in memory, it seems, of this, that the wicked Typhon had sunk the body of his brother in the Soda Lakes. During all these days a priestess, dressed as Isis, came to the heavenly hall, morning and evening. There, groaning and tearing her hair, she inquired of all present whether any one had seen her divine consort and brother.

At the expiration of that time of mourning, Horus, the son and heir of Osiris, with his suite appeared in the hall, and they were the first to see the vat with the solution.

"Might we look here for the remains of my father and brother?" asked Horus.

So they searched and found; amid the immense delight of the priests, with sounds of music, they removed the body of the pharaoh from the strengthening bath.

The body was put into a stone cylinder through which passed a hot breeze for a number of days, and, when the body was dried they gave it to the embalmers.

Now began the most important ceremonies, which were performed by the supreme priests of the court of the dead:

The body of the departed, turned head southward, they washed with consecrated water and the interior with palm wine. On the pavement, which was sprinkled with ashes, sat wailing women who tore their hair and scratched their faces; they bewailed the late pharaoh. Around the couch where the body lay were assembled priests dressed as gods. These were Isis naked with a crown of the pharaohs, the youthful Horns, Anubis with a jackal head, bird-headed Tot with tablets in his hands, and many others.

Under the inspection of this worthy assembly, specialists began to fill the body with strongly odorous plants and sawdust, they even poured in odorous resin, all amid prayers. Then in his eye-sockets they inserted glass eyes set in bronze. After that the whole body was sprinkled with powdered soda.

Another priest appeared now who explained to those present that the body of the departed was the body of Osiris, that his qualities were the qualities of Osiris. "The magic qualities of his left temple are the qualities of the god Turn and his right eye is the eye of the god Turn, whose rays pierce through darkness. His left eye is the eye of Horus, which dazzles every living creature; the upper lip that of Isis, and the lower that of Nefthys. The neck of the departed is the goddess, his hands are divine spirits, his fingers the heavenly serpents, sons of the goddess Setkit. His sides are the two feathers of Amon, his back the backbone of Sib, his belly is the good Nue." [Maspero]

Another priest spoke,

"A mouth was given me for speaking, feet for walking, hands to overturn my enemies. I rise from the dead, I exist, I open heaven; I do what has been commanded me in Memphis." [Authentic]

Meanwhile on the neck of the departed they hung a scarab made of a precious stone, on which was this inscription: "O my heart, heart which I received from my mother, which I had when I was on earth, O heart do not rise against me and do not give evil witness in the day of judgment." [Authentic]

Next priests wound around each arm and foot, each finger and toe of the dead, strips on which were written prayers and spells. Those strips they fastened with gum and balsam. On the breast and on the neck they placed complete manuscripts of the Book of the Dead with the following meditations which the priests read aloud over the body,

"I am he before whom no god puts an obstacle.

"Who is that?

"He is Turn on his shield, he is Ra on his shield, which rises in the east of heaven.

"I am Yesterday and I know Tomorrow.

"Who is he?

"Yesterday is Osiris, Tomorrow is Ra on the day when he annihilates the enemies of the Lord who is above all and when he consecrates his son Horus. In other words, in the day when his father Ra meets the coffin of Osiris. He conquers the gods at command of Osiris, the lord of the mountain Amenti.

"What is that?

"Amenti is a creation of the soul of the gods, at command of Osiris, the lord of the mountain.

"In other words, Amenti is that impulse roused by Ra. Every god who arrives there carries on a battle. I know the great god who dwells there.

"I am from my country, I come from my city, I destroy evil, I set aside that which is not good, I remove uncleanness from myself, I betake myself to the country of dwellers in heaven, I enter through the mighty gate.

"O ye comrades, give me a hand, for I shall be one of you." ["Book of the Dead."]

When every member of the departed was covered with prayer bandages, and furnished with amulets, when he had a sufficient supply of meditations to find the way in the region of the gods, it was proper to think of a document which would open the gate of that region. For between the tomb and heaven forty-two terrible judges were waiting for the dead man; these, under presidency of Osiris, examined his earthly life. Only when the heart of the departed, weighed in the scales of justice, appeared equal to the goddess of truth, when the god Dutes, who writes on his tablets the deeds of the dead, considered it just, only then did Horus take the soul by the hand and lead it before the throne of Osiris.

So that the dead might be able to justify himself before the court it was necessary to wrap the mummy in a papyrus on which was written a general confession. While they were winding him in this document the priest spoke clearly and with emphasis, so that the dead might not forget:

"Lords of truth, I bring thee truth itself. I have not done evil to any man treacherously. I have not made any one near me unfortunate. I have not permitted myself any lewdness or abusive word in the house of veracity. I have had no intimacy with evil. I have committed nothing bad. As a superior I have not commanded my subordinates to work beyond their strength. No one through my fault has become afraid, poor, suffering, or unhappy. I have done nothing of any kind which the gods would despise. I have not tormented a slave. I have not killed him with hunger. I have not forced tears from him. I have not slain. I have not commanded to kill a slave treacherously. I have not lied, I have not plundered the property of temples. I have not decreased incomes devoted to the gods. I have not taken away the bread or the bandages of mummies. I have not committed sin with the priest of my district. I have not taken from him or decreased his property. I have not used false weights. I have not snatched away an infant from the breast of its nurse. I have never committed anything bestial. I have not caught in nets birds devoted to the gods. I have not hindered the inundation of water. I have not turned away the course of canals. I have not quenched fire at a time that was improper, I have not stolen from the gods offerings which they had chosen. I am pure I am pure I am pure." ["Book of the Dead." This is one of the loftiest documents left us by antiquity.]

When the departed was able, thanks to the Book of the Dead to help himself in the region of eternity, and above all when he knew how to justify himself before the court of the forty-two gods, the priests furnished him still further with an introduction to this book, and explained to him orally its immense importance. In view of this the embalmers who surrounded the fresh mummy of the pharaoh withdrew and a high priest of that quarter came and whispered into the ear of the departed:

"Know that through the possession of this book Thou shalt belong to the living and attain to great significance among gods. Know that, thanks to it, no one will dare to oppose thee. The gods themselves will approach thee and embrace thee, for Thou wilt belong to their company.

"Know that this book informs thee of what was at the beginning. No man has uttered it, no eye has seen it, no ear has heard it. This book is truth itself, but no one has ever known it. Let it be seen only through thee and through him who will behold thee in it. Add to it no commentary which thy memory or imagination might suggest to thee. It is written entirely in the hall where the departed are embalmed. It is a great secret which no common man knows, not one in the world.

"This book will be thy nourishment in the lower region of spirits, it will give thy soul means of sojourn on the earth, it will give it life eternal, and effect this, that no one will have power over thee." ["Book of the Dead."]

The remains of the pharaoh were arrayed in costly garments, with a gold mask on the face, with bracelets on the wrists, and with rings on the hands, which were crossed on the breast. Under the head was put a support of ivory, such as Egyptians were accustomed to sleep on. Finally the body was enclosed in three coffins: one of paper covered with inscriptions, one of cedar which was gilt, and one of marble. The form of the first two corresponded accurately to the form of the body; even the sculptured face was like the original, though smiling.

After a stay of three months in the quarter of the dead the mummy of the pharaoh was ready for a solemn funeral; therefore it was taken back to the palace.



CHAPTER LIV

During seventy days, in the course of which the revered remains were steeping in the solution of soda, Egypt was in mourning.

The temples were closed; there were no processions. All music ceased; no feasts were given. Dancing women became wailers; instead of dancing they tore their hair; this also brought them income.

No one drank wine, no one ate meat. The highest dignitaries went in coarse garments and barefoot. No one shaved (with the exception of priests); the most devoted did not wash, they smeared their faces with mud, and scattered ashes on their hair.

From the Mediterranean to the first cataract of the Nile, from the Libyan desert to the peninsula of Sinai reigned sadness and silence. The sun of Egypt had quenched, had gone to the West, the giver of life and gladness had deserted his servants.

In the highest circles the most fashionable conversation touched the universal sorrow, which was communicated even to nature.

"Hast Thou not observed," said one dignitary to another, "that the days are shorter and darker?"

"I did not wish to unburden myself of this before thee," replied the other, "but it is so in reality. I have even noticed that fewer stars shine at night, and that the full moon lasts a shorter time, and the new moon longer than usual."

"The shepherds say that cattle at pasture will not eat, they only bellow."

"And I have heard from hunters that lions are reduced by weeping; they do not attack deer, for lions eat no meat at present."

"A terrible time! Come to me this evening and we will drink a glass of mourning liquor which my cellarer has invented."

"Thou hast, I suppose, dark beer of Sidon?"

"May the gods forbid that at this time we should use drinks which rejoice people. The liquor which my cellarer has invented is not beer; it is more like wine mixed with musk and fragrant plants."

"A very proper drink when our lord is sojourning in the quarter of the dead, where the odor of musk and embalming herbs is always prevalent."

Thus during seventy days did dignitaries mortify themselves.

The first quiver of delight ran through Egypt when it was announced from the quarter of the dead that the body of the sovereign had been taken from the soda bath, and that embalmers and priests were performing ceremonies over it.

That day for the first time people cut their hair and whoso had the wish washed himself. But in fact there was no need of mortification, since Horus had found the remains of Osiris. The ruler of Egypt, thanks to the art of embalmers, had received life, and, thanks to the prayers of the priests and the Book of the Dead, he had become equal to the gods.

From that moment on, the late pharaoh, Mer-Amen-Ramses, was called "Osiris" officially; unofficially, he had been called that since his death.

The innate joyfulness of the Egyptian people began to gain the victory over mourning, especially among warriors, artisans, and laborers. Delight took on, among common people, forms which at times were inappropriate. Reports began to circulate, it was unknown where they had originated, that the new pharaoh, whom the whole people loved instinctively, intended to occupy himself with improving the condition of earth-tillers, laborers, and even captives. For this cause it happened, an unheard-of thing, that masons, cabinet makers, potters, instead of drinking quietly and speaking of their own occupation, or family interests, dared to complain in dramshops, not only of taxes, but even to complain of the power of the priesthood. And earth-tillers, instead of devoting time free of labor to prayers and the memory of their ancestors, told one another how well it would be if each man had some bit of land as his own, and could rest one day in seven.

Of the army, and especially foreign regiments, nothing was to be said. Those men imagined that they were the most noted class in Egypt, and if they were not, they would soon be, after some fortunate war in the near future.

But the nomarchs, the nobility living on estates, and above all, the high priests of various temples mourned their deceased lord with solemnity, though they might have rejoiced, since the pharaoh had become Osiris.

Taking things as they were, the new ruler had interfered with no one thus far, hence the cause of grief for dignitaries lay in those same reports which delighted common people. The nomarchs and the nobility grieved at the thought that their earth-tillers might be idle fifty days in a year, and, what was worse, possess land, though even of an extent on which a tomb might be erected. Priests grew pale and gritted their teeth when they saw the management of Ramses XIII and the way in which he treated them.

In fact, immense changes had taken place in the pharaoh's palace.

The pharaoh had transferred his residence to one of the wing buildings, in which almost all the chambers were occupied by generals. In the cellars Greek warriors were quartered, on the first story the guard, in the chambers along the wall, Ethiopians. Guard around the building was kept by Asiatics, and near the chambers of his holiness was quartered that squadron from which were selected the warriors who had accompanied their lord when he hunted Tehenna through the desert.

What was worse, his holiness, in spite of the recent rebellion of the Libyans restored to them his favor; he condemned none to punishment, and gave them his confidence.

That corps of priests who had been in the main palace remained with him it is true, and performed religious ceremonies under the direction of his worthiness Sera. But as the priests did not accompany the pharaoh to meals, to dinners and suppers, their food was far from exquisite.

In vain did the holy men declare that they must feed the representatives of nineteen dynasties, and a multitude of gods. The treasurer, noting the intention of the pharaoh, answered that flowers and perfumes were sufficient for gods and ancestors, and that prophets like themselves, as morality commanded, should eat barley cakes and drink beer or water. To support these rude theories the treasurer referred to the example of Sem, the holy high priest, who lived like a penitent, and what was worse, he told them that his holiness, with the generals, had a military kitchen.

In view of this, the priests of the palace began to consider whether they had not better leave the stinted house of the pharaoh and go to their own dwellings at temples where their duties would be easier, and where hunger would not twist their entrails.

They would have done this before, had not the worthy Herhor and Mefres commanded them to remain in their places.

But the position of Herhor near the new pharaoh was not favorable. The all-powerful minister, who had till of late almost never left the chambers of the pharaoh, sat now alone in his villa, and frequently he did not see the new ruler for ten days in succession. He was still minister of war, but he gave out almost no orders. The pharaoh himself settled all military questions. He alone read reports of generals; he alone decided doubtful questions, while his adjutants took from the minister of war the necessary documents.

If his worthiness Herhor was ever called before the sovereign it was only to be reprimanded.

Nevertheless, all dignitaries acknowledged that the new pharaoh worked with great diligence.

Ramses XIII rose before sunrise, he bathed and burnt incense before the statue of Osiris. Immediately afterward he heard the reports of the supreme judge, the chief scribe of the granaries and stables in the whole country, the high treasurer, finally, the chief of his palaces. This last dignitary suffered most, for there was no day when his lord did not tell him that the court cost too much, and kept too many persons.

In the palace dwelt several hundred women of the late pharaoh with a corresponding number of servants and children. The chief of the palace, being reproached continually, dismissed from day to day a number of persons, and limited the allowances of others. At the end of a month, therefore, all the ladies of the court ran weeping and wailing to Queen Niort's, and begged her to rescue them.

The worthy lady betook herself to the pharaoh, and, falling on her face, begged him to take compassion on the women of his father, and not let them die in destitution.

The pharaoh listened to her with frowning brows and commanded the chief of the court not to extend his saving farther. But at the same time he told the most worthy lady that after the funeral of his father the women would be removed from the palace and sent to the country.

"Our court," said he, "costs about thirty thousand talents yearly, or once and a half as much as the whole army. I cannot expend such a sum without ruining myself and the kingdom."

"Do as may please thee," answered the queen. "Egypt is thine. But I fear that the persons rejected from the court will become thy enemies."

At this he took his mother by the hand, led her to the window, and pointed to a forest of spears held by infantry drilling in the courtyard.

This act of the pharaoh produced an unexpected effect. The queen's eyes, which a moment before gleamed with pride, were filled with tears. All at once she bent and kissed her son's hand, saying with emotion,

"Thou art, indeed, the son of Isis and Osiris, and I did well when I yielded thee to the goddess. Egypt at last has a ruler."

From that time the worthy lady never appealed to her son in any question. And when she was asked for protection, she answered,

"I am the servant of his holiness and I advise you to carry out his commands without resistance. All he does comes from inspiration of the gods. And who can oppose the gods?"

After breakfast the pharaoh was occupied in affairs of the ministry of war, and the treasury; about three in the afternoon, surrounded by a great suite, he went to the troops encamped outside Memphis, and reviewed them.

Indeed, the greatest changes had taken place in the military condition.

In less than two months his holiness had organized five new regiments, or rather he had reestablished those disbanded during the reign of his father. He dismissed officers addicted to drunkenness and gambling, also those who tortured warriors.

Into the military bureaus, where priests alone had held office, he introduced his most capable adjutants, who very soon mastered important documents relative to the army. He commanded to make a list of all men in the state who belonged to the military order, but who for years had not fulfilled any duty. He opened two new schools, one for the education of officers, and one for children of twelve years, and renewed a custom then in abeyance, that youths in the army should receive breakfast only after three hours' marching in line and in column.

Finally, no division of the army was permitted to dwell in villages, all must live in camps or in barracks. Each regiment had its fixed field of exercise, where for whole days the warriors hurled stones from slings or shot arrows from bows at marks from one to two hundred yards distant.

A command was issued to all families of military rank that the men should exercise themselves in hurling missiles under direction of officers and decurions of the army. The command was carried out straightway, therefore Egypt looked like a camp in no longer than two months after the death of the twelfth Ramses. For even village or city children, who before had played as scribes and priests, now, imitating their elders, began to play as warriors. So on every square and in every garden, from morning till evening, stones and arrows were whistling, and the courts were filled with complaints about bodily injuries.

Egypt was transformed, as it were, and in spite of complaints a great movement reigned in it, and all because of the new ruler.

The pharaoh himself was pleased and his pride increased, seeing that the whole state arranged itself to his wishes.

But a moment arrived when he became gloomy.

On the very day that the embalmers took the body of Ramses XII from the soda bath, the chief treasurer, when making his usual report, said to the pharaoh,

"I know not what to do. We have two thousand talents in the treasury, and for the funeral of the dead pharaoh we need at least one thousand."

"How, two thousand?" asked Ramses, with astonishment. "When I assumed power Thou didst tell me that we had twenty thousand."

"We have expended eighteen."

"In two months?"

"Our outlays are enormous."

"True, but new taxes come in every day."

"The taxes, I know not why, have decreased again, and do not come in so plentifully as I expected. But they too are expended. Be pleased to remember, holiness, that we have five new regiments; hence, about eight thousand men have left their occupations and live at the cost of the treasury."

The pharaoh grew thoughtful.

"We must," said he, "make a new loan. Come to an understanding with Herhor and Mefres, so that the temples may lend to us."

"I have spoken with them. The temples will lend us nothing."

"The prophets are offended," said the pharaoh, smiling. "In that case we must call in unbelievers. Send to me Dagon."

Toward evening the pharaoh's banker came. He fell on the pavement before Ramses and offered him a golden goblet set with jewels.

"Now I can die!" said Dagon, "since my most gracious sovereign has mounted the throne."

"But before thy death, find me a few thousand talents," said his holiness to the kneeling banker.

The Phoenician was alarmed. Could he feign great embarrassment?

"Rather command me, holiness, to seek pearls in the Nile, for I shall perish at once, and my lord will not suspect me of ill-will toward him. But to find such a sum today!"

Ramses XIII was astounded.

"How is this?" inquired he. "Then have the Phoenicians no money for me?"

"Our blood, our lives, our children we will give thee, holiness. But money where can we find it?

"Formerly the temples gave us loans at fifteen or twenty per cent yearly, but since, as heir to the throne, Thou wert in the temple of Hator at Pi-Bast the priests have refused us every credit.

"If they could they would expel us from Egypt, or, more gladly, they would destroy us. Ah, what we suffer because of them. The earth-tillers do what they like and whenever they like. As rent they give us what drops from their noses. If we strike one of them they rebel to the last man, and if an unfortunate Phoenician goes for redress to a court he either loses his case or pays terribly.

"Our hours in this land are numbered," wailed Dagon.

The pharaoh frowned.

"I will take up these matters," answered he, "and the courts will give thee justice. Meanwhile, I need about five thousand talents."

"Where shall we get them, O lord?" groaned out Dagon. "Find us purchasers, holiness, and we will sell all our property movable and immovable, only to carry out thy commands. But where are the purchasers? There are none except the priests, who would value our property at a trifle, and then not pay ready money."

"Send to Tyre, to Sidon," interrupted Ramses. "Each of those cities might lend, not five, but a hundred thousand talents."

"Tyre and Sidon!" repeated Dagon. "Today all Phoenicia is collecting gold and jewels to pay the Assyrians. Envoys of King Assar are circling about through our country and they say that if we pay a liberal sum yearly the King and the satraps not only will not oppress us, but will offer us more profits than those which we have now in Egypt, O holiness, through thy favor."

The pharaoh grew pale and set his teeth. The banker noted this and added, quickly,

"But why should I waste thy time, holiness, with my stupid talk? Here in Memphis is Prince Hiram; he perhaps will explain all this to my lord far better than I can, for he is a sage and a member of the supreme council in our cities."

"Send him hither quickly," replied Ramses, "for thy conversation with me, Dagon, is not that of a banker, but of a wailing woman at a funeral."

The Phoenician touched the floor once again with his forehead, and inquired,

"What if the worthy Hiram cannot come immediately? It is late now, it is true. But he is in such fear of the priests that he would rather come at night to do homage, O holiness."