by Georg Ebers
CHAPTER XXV.
While Nefert, frozen with horror, could not find a word of greeting forher royal friend, Bent-Anat with native dignity laid before the widowher choice of Nefert to fill the place of her lost companion, anddesired that Mena's wife should go to the palace that very day.
She had never before spoken thus to Katuti, and Katuti could notoverlook the fact that Bent-Anat had intentionally given up her oldconfidential tone.
"Nefert has complained of me to her," thought she to herself, "and sheconsiders me no longer worthy of her former friendly kindness."
She was vexed and hurt, and though she understood the danger whichthreatened her, now her daughter's eyes were opened, still the thoughtof losing her child inflicted a painful wound. It was this which filledher eyes with tears, and sincere sorrow trembled in her voice as shereplied:
"Thou hast required the better half of my life at my hand; but thou hastbut to command, and I to obey." Bent-Anat waved her hand proudly, asif to confirm the widow's statement; but Nefert went up to her mother,threw her arms round her neck, and wept upon her shoulder.
Tears glistened even in the princess's eyes when Katuti at last led herdaughter towards her, and pressed yet one more kiss on her forehead.
Bent-Anat took Nefert's hand, and did not release it, while sherequested the widow to give her daughter's dresses and ornaments intothe charge of the slaves and waiting-women whom she would send for them.
"And do not forget the case with the dried flowers, and my amulets, andthe images of the Gods," said Nefert. "And I should like to have theNeha tree which my uncle gave me."
Her white cat was playing at her feet with Paaker's flowers, whichshe had dropped on the floor, and when she saw her she took her up andkissed her.
"Bring the little creature with you," said Bent-Anat. "It was yourfavorite plaything."
"No," replied Nefert coloring.
The princess understood her, pressed her hand, and said while shepointed to Nemu:
"The dwarf is your own too: shall he come with you?"
"I will give him to my mother," said Nefert. She let the little man kissher robe and her feet, once more embraced Katuti, and quitted the gardenwith her royal friend.
As soon as Katuti was alone, she hastened into the little chapel inwhich the figures of her ancestors stood, apart from those of Mena. Shethrew herself down before the statue of her husband, half weeping, halfthankful.
This parting had indeed fallen heavily on her soul, but at the sametime it released her from a mountain of anxiety that had oppressed herbreast. Since yesterday she had felt like one who walks along the edgeof a precipice, and whose enemy is close at his heels; and the sense offreedom from the ever threatening danger, soon got the upperhand of hermaternal grief. The abyss in front of her had suddenly closed; the roadto the goal of her efforts lay before her smooth and firm beneath herfeet.
The widow, usually so dignified, hastily and eagerly walked down thegarden path, and for the first time since that luckless letter from thecamp had reached her, she could look calmly and clearly at the positionof affairs, and reflect on the measures which Ani must take in theimmediate future. She told herself that all was well, and that the timefor prompt and rapid action was now come.
When the messengers came from the princess she superintended thepacking of the various objects which Nefert wished to have, with calmdeliberation, and then sent her dwarf to Ani, to beg that he would visither. But before Nemu had left Mena's grounds he saw the out-runners ofthe Regent, his chariot, and the troop of guards following him.
Very soon Katuti and her noble friend were walking up and down in thegarden, while she related to him how Bent-Anat had taken Nefert fromher, and repeated to him all that she had planned and considered duringthe last hour.
"You have the genius of a man," said Ani; "and this time you do noturge me in vain. Ameni is ready to act, Paaker is to-day collecting histroops, to-morrow he will assist at the feast of the Valley, and thenext day he goes to Syria."
"He has been with you?" Katuti asked.
"He came to the palace on leaving your house," replied Ani, "withglowing cheeks, and resolved to the utmost; though he does not dreamthat I hold him in my hand."
Thus speaking they entered the veranda, in which Nemu had remained, andhe now hid himself as usual behind the ornamental shrubs to overhearthem. They sat down near each other, by Nefert's breakfast table, andAni asked Katuti whether the dwarf had told her his mother's secret.Katuti feigned ignorance, listened to the story of the love-philter, andplayed the part of the alarmed mother very cleverly. The Regent wasof opinion, while he tried to soothe her, that there was no reallove-potion in the case; but the widow exclaimed:
"Now I understand, now for the first time I comprehend my daughter.Paaker must have poured the drink into her wine, for she had no soonerdrunk it this morning than she was quite altered her words to Paaker hadquite a tender ring in them; and if he placed himself so cheerfully atyour disposal it is because he believes himself certainly to be belovedby my daughter. The old witch's potion was effectual."
"There certainly are such drinks--" said Ani thoughtfully. "But willthey only win hearts to young men! If that is the case, the old woman'strade is a bad one, for youth is in itself a charm to attract love. IfI were only as young as Paaker! You laugh at the sighs of a man--sayat once of an old man! Well, yes, I am old, for the prime of life liesbehind me. And yet Katuti, my friend, wisest of women--explain to me onething. When I was young I was loved by many and admired many women, butnot one of them--not even my wife, who died young, was more to me thana toy, a plaything; and now when I stretch out my hand for a girl, whosefather I might very well be--not for her own sake, but simply to servemy purpose--and she refuses me, I feel as much disturbed, as much a foolas-as that dealer in love-philters, Paaker."
"Have you spoken to Bent-Anat?" asked Katuti.
"And heard again from her own lips the refusal she had sent me throughyou. You see my spirit has suffered!"
"And on what pretext did she reject your suit?" asked the widow.
"Pretext!" cried Ani. "Bent-Anat and pretext! It must be owned that shehas kingly pride, and not Ma--[The Goddess of Truth]--herself is moretruthful than she. That I should have to confess it! When I think ofher, our plots seem to me unutterably pitiful. My veins contain, indeed,many drops of the blood of Thotmes, and though the experience of lifehas taught me to stoop low, still the stooping hurts me. I have neverknown the happy feeling of satisfaction with my lot and my work; forI have always had a greater position than I could fill, and constantlydone less than I ought to have done. In order not to look alwaysresentful, I always wear a smile. I have nothing left of the face I wasborn with but the mere skin, and always wear a mask. I serve him whosemaster I believe I ought to be by birth; I hate Rameses, who, sincerelyor no, calls me his brother; and while I stand as if I were the bulwarkof his authority I am diligently undermining it. My whole existence is alie."
"But it will be truth," cried Katuti, "as soon as the Gods allow you tobe--as you are--the real king of this country."
"Strange!" said Ani smiling, Ameni, "this very day, used almost exactlythe same words. The wisdom of priests, and that of women, have much incommon, and they fight with the same weapons. You use words instead ofswords, traps instead of lances, and you cast not our bodies, but oursouls, into irons."
"Do you blame or praise us for it?" said the widow. "We are in any casenot impotent allies, and therefore, it seems to me, desirable ones."
"Indeed you are," said Ani smiling. "Not a tear is shed in the land,whether it is shed for joy or for sorrow, for which in the firstinstance a priest or a woman is not responsible. Seriously, Katuti--innine great events out of ten you women have a hand in the game. You gavethe first impulse to all that is plotting here, and I will confess toyou that, regardless of all consequences, I should in a few hours havegiven up my pretensions to the throne, if that woman Bent-Anat had said'yes' instead of 'no.'"
"You make
me believe," said Katuti, "that the weaker sex are giftedwith stronger wills than the nobler. In marrying us you style us, 'themistress of the house,' and if the elders of the citizens grow infirm,in this country it is not the sons but the daughters that must betheir mainstay. But we women have our weaknesses, and chief of these iscuriosity.--May I ask on what ground Bent-Anat dismissed you?"
"You know so much that you may know all," replied Ani. "She admittedme to speak to her alone. It was yet early, and she had come from thetemple, where the weak old prophet had absolved her from uncleanness;she met me, bright, beautiful and proud, strong and radiant as aGoddess, and a princess. My heart throbbed as if I were a boy, and whileshe was showing me her flowers I said to myself: 'You are come to obtainthrough her another claim to the throne.' And yet I felt that, if sheconsented to be mine, I would remain the true brother, the faithfulRegent of Rameses, and enjoy happiness and peace by her side before itwas too late. If she refused me then I resolved that fate must takeits way, and, instead of peace and love, it must be war for the crownsnatched from my fathers. I tried to woo her, but she cut my wordsshort, said I was a noble man, and a worthy suitor but--"
"There came the but."
"Yes--in the form of a very frank 'no.' I asked her reasons. She beggedme to be content with the 'no;' then I pressed her harder, till sheinterrupted me, and owned with proud decision that she preferred someone else. I wished to learn the name of the happy man--that she refused.Then my blood began to boil, and my desire to win her increased; but Ihad to leave her, rejected, and with a fresh, burning, poisoned wound inmy heart."
"You are jealous!" said Katuti, "and do you know of whom?"
"No," replied Ani. "But I hope to find out through you. What I feel itis impossible for me to express. But one thing I know, and that isthis, that I entered the palace a vacillating man--that I left it firmlyresolved. I now rush straight onwards, never again to turn back. Fromthis time forward you will no longer have to drive me onward, but ratherto hold me back; and, as if the Gods had meant to show that they wouldstand by me, I found the high-priest Ameni, and the chief pioneer Paakerwaiting for me in my house. Ameni will act for me in Egypt, Paaker inSyria. My victorious troops from Ethiopia will enter Thebes to-morrowmorning, on their return home in triumph, as if the king were at theirhead, and will then take part in the Feast of the Valley. Later we willsend them into the north, and post them in the fortresses which protectEgypt against enemies coming from the east Tanis, Daphne, Pelusium,Migdol. Rameses, as you know, requires that we should drill the serfs ofthe temples, and send them to him as auxiliaries. I will send him halfof the body-guard, the other half shall serve my own purposes. Thegarrison of Memphis, which is devoted to Rameses, shall be sent toNubia, and shall be relieved by troops that are faithful to me. Thepeople of Thebes are led by the priests, and tomorrow Ameni will pointout to them who is their legitimate king, who will put an end to the warand release them from taxes. The children of Rameses will be excludedfrom the solemnities, for Ameni, in spite of the chief-priest of Anion,still pronounces Bent-Anat unclean. Young Rameri has been doing wrongand Ameni, who has some other great scheme in his mind, has forbiddenhim the temple of Seti; that will work on the crowd! You know how thingsare going on in Syria: Rameses has suffered much at the hands of theCheta and their allies; whole legions are weary of eternally lyingin the field, and if things came to extremities would join us; but,perhaps, especially if Paaker acquits himself well, we may be victoriouswithout fighting. Above all things now we must act rapidly."
"I no longer recognize the timid, cautious lover of delay!" exclaimedKatuti.
"Because now prudent hesitation would be want of prudence," said Ani.
"And if the king should get timely information as to what is happeninghere?" said Katuti.
"I said so!" exclaimed Ani; "we are exchanging parts."
"You are mistaken," said Katuti. "I also am for pressing forwards; butI would remind you of a necessary precaution. No letters but yours mustreach the camp for the next few weeks."
"Once more you and the priests are of one mind," said Ani laughing; "forAmeni gave me the same counsel. Whatever letters are sent across thefrontier between Pelusium and the Red Sea will be detained. Only myletters--in which I complain of the piratical sons of the desert whofall upon the messengers--will reach the king."
"That is wise," said the widow; "let the seaports of the Red Seabe watched too, and the public writers. When you are king, you candistinguish those who are affected for or against you."
Ani shook his head and replied:
"That would put me in a difficult position; for it I were to punishthose who are now faithful to their king, and exalt the others, I shouldhave to govern with unfaithful servants, and turn away the faithfulones. You need not color, my kind friend, for we are kin, and myconcerns are yours."
Katuti took the hand he offered her and said:
"It is so. And I ask no further reward than to see my father's houseonce more in the enjoyment of its rights."
"Perhaps we shall achieve it," said Ani; "but in a short timeif--if--Reflect, Katuti; try to find out, ask your daughter to help youto the utmost. Who is it that she--you know whom I mean--Who is it thatBent-Anat loves?"
The widow started, for Ani had spoken the last words with a vehemencevery foreign to his usual courtliness, but soon she smiled and repeatedto the Regent the names of the few young nobles who had not followed theking, and remained in Thebes. "Can it be Chamus?" at last she said, "heis at the camp, it is true, but nevertheless--"
At this instant Nemu, who had not lost a word of the conversation, camein as if straight from the garden and said:
"Pardon me, my lady; but I have heard a strange thing."
"Speak," said Katuti.
"The high and mighty princess Bent-Anat, the daughter of Rameses, issaid to have an open love-affair with a young priest of the House ofSeti."
"You barefaced scoundrel!" exclaimed Ani, and his eyes sparkled withrage. "Prove what you say, or you lose your tongue."
"I am willing to lose it as a slanderer and traitor according to thelaw," said the little man abjectly, and yet with a malicious laugh; "butthis time I shall keep it, for I can vouch for what I say. You both knowthat Bent-Anat was pronounced unclean because she stayed for an hour andmore in the house of a paraschites. She had an assignation there withthe priest. At a second, in the temple of Hatasu, they were surprised bySeptah, the chief of the haruspices of the House of Seti."
"Who is the priest?" asked Ani with apparent calmness.
"A low-born man," replied Nemu, "to whom a free education was givenat the House of Seti, and who is well known as a verse-maker andinterpreter of dreams. His name is Pentaur, and it certainly must beadmitted that he is handsome and dignified. He is line for line theimage of the pioneer Paaker's late father. Didst thou ever see him, mylord?"
The Regent looked gloomily at the floor and nodded that he had. ButKatuti cried out; "Fool that I am! the dwarf is right! I saw how sheblushed when her brother told her how the boys had rebelled on hisaccount against Ameni. It is Pentaur and none other!"
"Good!" said Ani, "we will see."
With these words he took leave of Katuti, who, as he disappeared inthe garden, muttered to herself: "He was wonderfully clear and decidedto-day; but jealousy is already blinding him and will soon make him feelthat he cannot get on without my sharp eyes."
Nemu had slipped out after the Regent.
He called to him from behind a fig-tree, and hastily whispered, while hebowed with deep respect:
"My mother knows a great deal, most noble highness! The sacred Ibis
[Ibis religiosa. It has disappeared from Egypt There were two varieties of this bird, which was sacred to Toth, and mummies of both have been found in various places. Elian states that an immortal Ibis was shown at Hermopolis. Plutarch says, the ibis destroys poisonous reptiles, and that priests draw the water for their purifications where the Ibis has drunk, as it will never touch unwholes
ome water.]
wades through the fen when it goes in search of prey, and why shouldstthou not stoop to pick up gold out of the dust? I know how thou couldstspeak with the old woman without being seen."
"Speak," said Ani.
"Throw her into prison for a day, hear what she has to say, and thenrelease her--with gifts if she is of service to you--if not, with blows.But thou wilt learn something important from her that she obstinatelyrefused to tell me even."
"We will see!" replied the Regent. He threw a ring of gold to the dwarfand got into his chariot.
So large a crowd had collected in the vicinity of the palace, that Aniapprehended mischief, and ordered his charioteer to check the paceof the horses, and sent a few police-soldiers to the support of theout-runners; but good news seemed to await him, for at the gate of thecastle he heard the unmistakable acclamations of the crowd, and in thepalace court he found a messenger from the temple of Seti, commissionedby Ameni to communicate to him and to the people, the occurrence of agreat miracle, in that the heart of the ram of Anion, that had been tornby wolves, had been found again within the breast of the dead prophetRui.
Ani at once descended from his chariot, knelt down before all thepeople, who followed his example, lifted his arms to heaven, and praisedthe Gods in a loud voice. When, after some minutes, he rose and enteredthe palace, slaves came out and distributed bread to the crowd inAmeni's name.
"The Regent has an open hand," said a joiner to his neighbor; "only lookhow white the bread is. I will put it in my pocket and take it to thechildren."
"Give me a bit!" cried a naked little scamp, snatching the cake of breadfrom the joiner's hand and running away, slipping between the legs ofthe people as lithe as a snake.
"You crocodile's brat!" cried his victim. "The insolence of boys getsworse and worse every day."
"They are hungry," said the woman apologetically. "Their fathers aregone to the war, and the mothers have nothing for their children butpapyrus-pith and lotus-seeds."
"I hope they enjoy it," laughed the joiner. "Let us push to the left;there is a man with some more bread."
"The Regent must rejoice greatly over the miracle," said a shoemaker."It is costing him something."
"Nothing like it has happened for a long time," said a basket-maker."And he is particularly glad it should be precisely Rui's body, whichthe sacred heart should have blessed. You ask why?--Hatasu is Ani'sancestress, blockhead!"
"And Rui was prophet of the temple of Hatasu," added the joiner.
"The priests over there are all hangers-on of the old royal house, thatI know," asserted a baker.
"That's no secret!" cried the cobbler. "The old times were better thanthese too. The war upsets everything, and quite respectable people gobarefoot because they cannot pay for shoe-leather. Rameses is a greatwarrior, and the son of Ra, but what can he do without the Gods; andthey don't seem to like to stay in Thebes any longer; else why shouldthe heart of the sacred ram seek a new dwelling in the Necropolis, andin the breast of an adherent of the old--"
"Hold your tongue," warned the basket-maker. "Here comes one of thewatch."
"I must go back to work," said the baker. "I have my hands quite fullfor the feast to-morrow."
"And I too," said the shoemaker with a sigh, "for who would follow theking of the Gods through the Necropolis barefoot."
"You must earn a good deal," cried the basket-maker. "We should dobetter if we had better workmen," replied the shoemaker, "but allthe good hands are gone to the war. One has to put up with stupidyoungsters. And as for the women! My wife must needs have a new gown forthe procession, and bought necklets for the children. Of course we musthonor the dead, and they repay it often by standing by us when we wantit--but what I pay for sacrifices no one can tell. More than half ofwhat I earn goes in them--"
"In the first grief of losing my poor wife," said the baker, "I promiseda small offering every new moon, and a greater one every year. Thepriests will not release us from our vows, and times get harder andharder. And my dead wife owes me a grudge, and is as thankless as shewas is her lifetime; for when she appears to me in a dream she does notgive me a good word, and often torments me."
"She is now a glorified all-seeing spirit," said the basket-maker'swife, "and no doubt you were faithless to her. The glorified souls knowall that happens, and that has happened on earth."
The baker cleared his throat, having no answer ready; but the shoemakerexclaimed:
"By Anubis, the lord of the under-world, I hope I may die before my oldwoman! for if she finds out down there all I have done in this world,and if she may be changed into any shape she pleases, she will come tome every night, and nip me like a crab, and sit on me like a mountain."
"And if you die first," said the woman, "she will follow you afterwardsto the under-world, and see through you there."
"That will be less dangerous," said the shoemaker laughing, "for thenI shall be glorified too, and shall know all about her past life. Thatwill not all be white paper either, and if she throws a shoe at me Iwill fling the last at her."
"Come home," said the basket-maker's wife, pulling her husband away."You are getting no good by hearing this talk."
The bystanders laughed, and the baker exclaimed:
"It is high time I should be in the Necropolis before it gets dark, andsee to the tables being laid for to-morrow's festival. My trucks areclose to the narrow entrance to the valley. Send your little ones to me,and I will give them something nice. Are you coming over with me?"
"My younger brother is gone over with the goods," replied the shoemaker."We have plenty to do still for the customers in Thebes, and here amI standing gossiping. Will the wonderful heart of the sacred ram beexhibited to-morrow do you know?"
"Of course--no doubt," said the baker, "good-bye, there go my cases!"
