CHAPTER XXXI
CONCLUSION
In the midst of this the paupers and the hags talked earnestlytogether. Some of those who had been nearest in rank to the late ChiefPauper and Chief Hag were conspicuous in the debate. All looked at meand at Almah, and pointed toward the sun, which was wheeling alongbehind the distant mountain crest, showing a golden disc. Then theypointed to the dead bodies; and the hags took the Chief Hag, and thepaupers the Chief Pauper, and laid them side by side on the centralaltar. After this a hag and a pauper advanced toward us, each carryingthe sacrificial knife which had belonged to the deceased.
The hag spoke first, addressing Almah, in accordance with the Kosekincustom, which requires women to take the precedence in many things.
"Take this," she said, "O Almah, consort of Atam-or, and Co-ruler ofClouds and Darkness. Henceforth you shall be Judge of Death to thewomen of the Kosekin."
She then handed Almah the sacrificial knife of the Chief Hag, whichAlmah took in silence.
Then the pauper presented me with the sacrificial knife of the ChiefPauper, with the following words:
"Take this, O Atam-or, Father of Thunder and Ruler of Clouds andDarkness. Henceforth you shall be Judge of Death to the men of theKosekin, and Sar Tabakin over the whole nation."
I received the knife in silence, for I had nothing to say; but nowAlmah spoke, as was fitting for her to do, since with the Kosekin thewomen must take the precedence; and here it was expected that sheshould reply in behalf of both of us.
So Almah, holding the sacrificial knife, stood looking at them, fullof dignity, and spoke as follows:
"We will take this, O Kosekin, and we will reward you all. We willbegin our reign over the Kosekin with memorable acts of mercy. Thesetwo great victims shall be enough for the Mista Kosek of thisseason. The victims designed for this sacrifice shall have to denythemselves the blessing of death, yet they shall be rewarded in otherways; and all the land from the highest to the lowest shall havereason to rejoice in our rule.
"To all you hags and paupers we grant the splendid and unparalleledboon of exile to Magones. There you can have all the suffering whichheart can wish, and inevitable death. To all classes and ranks inthe whole nation we promise to grant a diminution in their wealth byone-quarter. In the abundance of our mercy we are willing ourselves tobear the burden of all the offerings that may be necessary in order toaccomplish this. All in the land may at once give up one-quarter oftheir whole wealth to us."
At this the hags and paupers gave a horrible yell of applause.
"As rulers of Light and Darkness, we will henceforth govern the nationin the light as well as in the dark. We will sacrifice ourselves sofar to the public good as to live in the light, and in open palaces.We will consent to undergo the pains of light and splendor, to endureall the evils of luxury, magnificence, and boundless wealth, for thegood of the Kosekin nation. We will consent to forego the right ofseparation, and agree to live together, even though we love oneanother. Above all, we will refuse death and consent to live. Can anyrulers do more than this for the good of their people?"
Another outburst of applause followed.
"In three joms," continued Almah, "all you hags and paupers shall besent to exile and death on Magones. As for the rest of the Kosekin,hear our words. Tell them from us that the laborers shall all beelevated to the rank of paupers, the artisans shall be made laborers,the tradesmen artisans, the soldiers tradesmen, the Athons soldiers,the Kohens Athons, and the Meleks Kohens. There shall be no Meleks inall the land. We, in our love for the Kosekin, will henceforth be theonly Meleks. Then all the misery of that low station will rest on us;and in our low estate as Meleks we shall govern this nation in loveand self-denial. Tell them that we will forego the sacrifice andconsent to live; that we will give up darkness and cavern gloom andlive in light. Tell them to prepare for us the splendid palaces of theMeleks, for we will take the most sumptuous and magnificent of themall. Tell all the people to present their offerings. Tell them that weconsent to have endless retinues of servants, soldiers, followers, andattendants. Tell them that with the advent of Almah and Atam-or a newera begins for the Kosekin, in which every man may be as poor as helikes, and riches shall be unknown in the land."
These extraordinary words seemed to fill the paupers with rapture.Exclamations of joy burst from them; they prostrated themselves in anirrepressible impulse of grateful admiration, as though such promisescould only come from superior beings. Then most of them hurried downto communicate to the people below the glorious intelligence. Soon itspread from mouth to mouth, and all the people were filled with thewildest excitement.
For never before had such a thing been known, and never had suchself-sacrifice been imagined or thought possible, as that the rulersof the Kosekin could consent to be rich when they might be paupers; tolive together when they might be separate; to dwell in the light whenthey might lurk in the deepest cavern gloom; to remain in life whenthey might have the blessing of death. Selfishness, fear of death,love of riches, and love of luxury, these were all unintelligible tothe Kosekin, as much as to us would be self-abnegation, contempt ofdeath, voluntary poverty, and asceticism. But as with us self-denyingrulers may make others rich and be popular for this, so here among theKosekin a selfish ruler might be popular by making others poor. Hencethe words of Almah, as they were made known, gave rise to the wildestexcitement and enthusiasm, and the vast multitude poured forth theirfeelings in long shouts of rapturous applause.
Amid this the bodies of the dead were carried down from the pyramid,and were taken to the Mista Kosek in a long and solemn procession,accompanied by the singing of wild and dismal chants.
And now the sun, rolling along behind the icy mountain crest, rosehigher and higher every moment, and the bright light of a long daybegan to illumine the world. There sparkled the sea, rising far awaylike a watery wall, with the horizon high up in the sky; there rosethe circle of giant mountains, sweeping away till they were blendedwith the horizon; there rose the terraces of the amir, all glowingin the sunlight, with all its countless houses and cavern-openings andarching trees and pointing pyramids. Above was the canopy of heaven,no longer black, no longer studded with stars or glistening withthe fitful shimmer of the aurora, but all radiant with the glorioussunlight, and disclosing all the splendors of the infinite blue. Atthat sight a thrill of joy passed through me. The long, long nightat last was over; the darkness had passed away like some hideousdream; the day was here--the long day that was to know no shadowand no decline--when all this world should be illuminated by theever-circling sun--a sun that would never set until his long courseof many months should be fully run. My heart swelled with rapture,my eyes filled with tears. "O Light!" I cried; "O gleaming, goldenSunlight! O Light of Heaven!--light that brings life and hope to man!"And I could have fallen on my knees and worshipped that rising sun.
But the light which was so glorious to us was painful and distressingto the Kosekin. On the top of the pyramid the paupers crouched,shading their eyes. The crowd below began to disperse in alldirections, so as to betake themselves to their coverts and to thecaverns, where they might live in the dark. Soon nearly all were goneexcept the paupers at the foot of the pyramid, who were awaiting ourcommands, and a crowd of Meleks and Athons at a distance. At a gesturefrom me the few paupers near us descended and joined those below.
Almah and I were alone on the top of the pyramid.
I caught her in my arms in a rapture of joy. This revulsion from thelowest despair--from darkness and from death back to hope and lightand life--was almost too much to endure. We both wept, but our tearswere those of happiness.
"You will be all my own now," said I, "and we can fly from thishateful land. We can be united--we can be married--here before westart--and you will not be cruel enough to refuse. You will consent,will you not, to be my wife before we fly from the Kosekin?"
At this Almah's face became suffused with smiles and blushes. Herarms were about me, and she did not draw away, but looked up
in sweetconfusion and said,
"Why, as to that--I--I cannot be more your--your wife than I am."
"What do you mean?" I exclaimed, in wonder. "My wife!"
Her eyes dropped again, and she whispered:
"The ceremony of separation is with the Kosekin the most sacred formof marriage. It is the religious form; the other is merely the civilform."
This was unintelligible, nor did I try to understand it. It was enoughto hear this from her own sweet lips; but it was a strange feeling,and I think I am the only man since Adam that ever was married withoutknowing it.
"As to flight," continued Almah, who had quite adopted the Kosekinfashion, which makes women take the lead--"as to flight, we need nothurry. We are all-powerful now, and there is no more danger. We mustwait until we send embassies to my people, and when they are ready toreceive us, we will go. But now let us leave this, for our servantsare waiting for us, and the light is distressing to them. Let us go tothe nearest of our palaces and obtain rest and food."
Here Featherstone stopped, yawned, and laid down the manuscript.
"That's enough for to-day," said he; "I'm tired, and can't read anymore. It's time for supper."
A Strange Manuscript Found in a Copper Cylinder Page 31
