The Gladiators. A Tale of Rome and Judæa
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CHAPTER VII
THE ATTAINDER
John of Gischala would never have obtained the ascendency he enjoyed inJerusalem, had he not been as well versed in the sinuous arts of intrigue,as in the simpler stratagems of war. After confronting his rival in theCouncil, and sustaining in public opinion the worst of the encounter, hewas more than ever impressed with the necessity of ruining Eleazar at anyprice; therefore, keeping a wary eye upon all the movements of theZealots, he held himself ready at every moment to take advantage of thefirst false step on the part of his adversary.
Eleazar, with the promptitude natural to his character, had commenced arepair of the defences, almost before his emissary was admitted to theRoman camp, thinking it needless to await the decision of Titus, eitherfor or against his proposal. Labouring heart and soul at the works, withall the available force he could muster, he left John and his party incharge of the Great Gate, and it happened that his rival was present therein person, when Calchas was brought back to the city by the Roman guard ofhonour Titus had ordered for his safe-conduct--a compliment his brothernever expected, and far less desired. Eleazar made sure his messengerwould be permitted to return the way he came, and that his owncommunications with the enemy would remain a secret from the besieged.
John saw his opportunity, and availed himself of it on the instant. Nosooner had Calchas placed his foot once more within the town, than hishead was covered, so that he might not be recognised; and he was carriedoff by a guard of John's adherents, and placed in secure ward, their chiefadroitly arresting him by a false name, for the information of thepopulace, lest the rumour should reach Eleazar's ears. He knew his rival'sreadiness of resource, and determined to take him by surprise. Then herent his garment, and ran bareheaded through the streets towards theTemple, calling with a great voice, "Treason! Treason!" and sending roundthe fragments of his gown amongst the senators, to convoke them in hasteupon a matter of life and death, in their usual place of deliberation. Sorapidly did he take his measures that the Outer Court was already filledand the Council assembled, ere Eleazar, busied with his labours at thewall far off, opposite the Tower of Antonia, knew that they had beensummoned. Covered with sweat and dust, he obeyed at once the behest of theLevite who came breathlessly to require his presence, as an elder ofIsrael; but it was not without foreboding of evil that he observed theglances of suspicion and mistrust shot at him by his colleagues when hejoined them. John of Gischala, with an affectation of extreme fairness,had declined to enter upon the business of the State, until this, thelatest of her councillors, had arrived; but he had taken good care, bymeans of his creatures, to scatter rumours amongst the Senate, and evenamongst the Zealots themselves, deeply affecting the loyalty of theirchief.
No sooner had Eleazar, still covered with the signs of his toil, taken hisaccustomed station, than John stood forth in the hall and spoke out in aloud, clear voice.
"Before the late troublous times," said he, "and when every man in Judaeaate of his own figs from his own fig-tree, and trod out his own grapes inhis own vineyard; when we digged our wells unmolested, and our women drewwater unveiled, and drank it peacefully at sundown; when our childrenplayed about our knees at the door, and ate butter and honey, and cakesbaked in oil; when the cruse was never empty, and the milk mantled in themilking-vessels, and the kid seethed in the pot--yea, in the pleasant time,in the days of old, it chanced that I was taking a prey in the mountain bythe hunter's craft, in the green mountain, even the mountain of Lebanon.Then at noon I was wearied and athirst, and I laid me down under a goodlycedar and slept, and dreamed a dream. Behold, I will discover to theelders my dream and the interpretation thereof.
"Now the cedar under which I lay was a goodly cedar, but in my dream itseemed that it reached far into the heavens, and spread its roots abroadto the springs of many waters, and sheltered the birds of the air in itsbranches, and comforted the beasts of the field with its shade. Then therecame a beast out of the mountain--a huge beast with a serpent between itseyes and horns upon its jaws--and leaned against the cedar, but the treeneither bent nor broke. So there came a great wind against the cedar--amighty wind that rushed and roared through its branches, till it rocked toand fro, bending and swaying to the blast--but the storm passed away, andthe goodly tree stood firm and upright as before. Again the face of heavenwas darkened, and the thunder roared above, and the lightning leaped fromthe cloud, and smote upon the cedar, and rent off one of its limbs with agreat and terrible crash; but when the sky cleared once more, the tree wasa fair tree yet. So I said in my dream, 'Blessed is the cedar among thetrees of the forest, for destruction shall not prevail against it.'
"Then I looked, and behold, the cedar was already rotting, and its armswere withered up, and its head was no longer black, for a little worm, andanother, and yet another were creeping from within the bark, where theyhad been eating at its heart. Then one drew near bearing fagots on hisshoulders, and he builded the fagots round the tree, and set a light tothem, and burned them with fire, and the worms fell out by myriads fromthe tree, and perished in the smoke.
"Then said he unto me, 'John of Gischala, arise! The cedar is the HolyCity, and the beast is the might of the Roman Empire, and the storm andthe tempest are the famine and the pestilence, and none of these shallprevail against it, save by the aid of the enemies from within. Purge themtherefore with fire, and smite them with the sword, and crush them, evenas the worm is crushed beneath thy heel into the earth!'
"And the interpretation of the dream hath remained with me to this day,for is it not thus even now when the Roman is at the gate, as it hath everbeen with the Holy City in the times of old? When the Assyrian came upagainst her, was not his host greater in number than the sands of theseashore? But he retired in discomfiture from before her, because she wastrue to herself. Would Nebuzaradan have put his chains on our people'sneck, and Gedaliah scorned to accept honour from the conqueror, and to payhim tribute? When Pompey pitched his camp at Jericho and surrounded theHoly City with his legions, did not Aristobulus play the traitor and offerto open the gate? and when the soldiers mutinied, and prevented so black atreason, did not Hyrcanus, who was afterwards high-priest, assist thebesiegers from within, and enable them to gain possession of the town? Inlater days, Herod, indeed, who was surnamed the Great, fortified Jerusalemlike a soldier and a patriot; but even Herod, our warrior king, soiled hishands with Roman gold, and bowed his head to the Roman yoke. Will you tellme of Agrippa's wall, reared by the namesake and successor of the mightymonarch? Why was it never finished? Can you answer me that? I trow ye knowtoo well; there was fear of displeasing Caesar, there was the old shamefultruckling to Rome. This is the leaven that leaveneth all our leaders; thisis the palsy that withereth all our efforts. Is not the chief who defendedJotapata now a guest in the tent of Titus? Is not Agrippa the younger astaunch adherent of Vespasian? Is he not a mere procurator of the Empire,for the province, forsooth, of Judaea? And shall we learn nothing from ourhistory? Nothing from the events of our own times, from the scenes weourselves witness day by day? Must the cedar fall because we fail todestroy the worms that are eating at its core? Shall Jerusalem bedesecrated because we fear to denounce the hand that would deliver her tothe foe? We have a plague-spot in the nation. We have an enemy in thetown. We have a traitor in the Council, Eleazar Ben-Manahem! I bid theestand forth!"
There is an instinct of danger which seems to warn the statesman like themariner of coming storms, giving him time to trim his sail, while they areyet below the horizon. When the assembled Senate turned their startledlooks on Eleazar, they beheld a countenance unmoved by the suddenness andgravity of the accusation, a bearing that denoted, if not consciousinnocence, at least a fixed resolution to wear its semblance without ashadow of weakness or fear. Pointing to his dusty garments, and the stainsof toil upon his hands and person, he looked round frankly among theelders, rather, as it seemed, appealing to the Senate than answering hisaccuser, in his reply
.
"These should be sufficient proofs," said he, "if any were wanting, thatEleazar Ben-Manahem hath not been an instant absent from his post. I havebut to strip the gown from my breast, and I can show yet deeper marks toattest my loyalty and patriotism. I have not grudged my own blood, nor theblood of my kindred, and of my father's house, to defend the walls ofJerusalem. John of Gischala hath dealt with you in parables, but I speakto you in the plain language of truth. This right hand of mine is hardenedwith grasping sword and spear against the enemies of Judah; and I wouldcut it off with its own fellow, ere I stretched it forth in amity to theRoman or the heathen. Talk not to me of thy worms and thy cedars! John ofGischala, man of blood and rapine--speak out thine accusation plainly, thatI may answer it!"
John was stepping angrily forward, when he was arrested by the voice of avenerable long-bearded senator.
"It is not meet," said the sage, "that accuser and accused should bandywords in the presence of the Council. John of Gischala, we summon thee tolay the matter at once before the Senate, warning thee that an accusationwithout proofs will but recoil upon the head of him who brings itforward."
John smiled in grim triumph.
"Elders of Israel," said he, "I accuse Eleazar Ben-Manahem of offeringterms to the enemy."
Eleazar started, but recovered himself instantaneously. It was war to theknife, as well he knew, between him and John. He must not seem to hesitatenow when his ascendency amongst the people was at such a crisis. He tookthe plunge at once.
"And I reply," he exclaimed indignantly, "that rather than make terms withthe Roman, I would plunge the sword into my own body."
A murmur of applause ran through the assembly at this spiriteddeclaration. The accused had great weight amongst the nobility and thenational party in Jerusalem, of which the Council chiefly consisted. CouldEleazar but persevere in his denial of communication with Titus, he musttriumph signally over his adversary; and, to do him justice, there was nowbut little personal ambition mingled with his desire for supremacy. He wasa fanatic, but he was a patriot as well. He believed all things werelawful in the cause of Jerusalem, and trusting to the secret way by whichCalchas had left the city for the Roman camp, and by which he felt assuredhe must have returned, as, thanks to John's precautions, nothing had beenheard of his arrival at the Great Gate and subsequent arrest, he resolvedto persevere in his denial, and trust to his personal influence to carrythings with a high hand.
"There hath been a communication made from his own house, and by one ofhis own family, to the Roman commander," urged John, but with a certainair of deference and hesitation, for he perceived the favourableimpression made on the Council by his adversary, and he was crafty enoughto know the advantage of reserving his convincing proofs for the last, andtaking the tide of opinion at the turn.
"I deny it," said Eleazar firmly. "The children of Ben-Manahem have nodealings with the heathen!"
"It is one of the seed of Ben-Manahem whom I accuse," replied John, stilladdressing himself to the elders. "I can prove he hath been seen going toand fro, between the camp and the city."
"His blood be on his own head!" answered Eleazar solemnly.
He had a vague hope that after all they might but have intercepted somepoor half-starved wretch whom the pangs of hunger had driven to the enemy.John looked back amongst his adherents crowding in the gate that ledtowards the Temple.
"I speak not without proofs," said he; "bring forward the prisoner!"
There was a slight scuffle amongst the throng, and a murmur which subsidedalmost immediately as two young men appeared in the court, leading betweenthem a figure, having its hands tied, and a mantle thrown over its head.
"Eleazar Ben-Manahem!" said John, in a loud, clear voice that seemed toring amongst the porticoes and pinnacles of the overhanging Temple, "standforth, and speak the truth! Is not this man thy brother?"
At the same moment, the mantle was drawn from the prisoner's head,revealing the mild and placid features of Calchas, who looked round uponthe Council, neither intimidated nor surprised. The Senate gazed in eachother's faces with concern and astonishment: John seemed, indeed, in afair way of substantiating his accusation against the man they mosttrusted in all Jerusalem. The accuser continued, with an affectation ofcalm unprejudiced judgment, in a cool and dispassionate voice--
"This man was brought to the Great Gate to-day, under a guard of honour,direct from the Roman camp. I happened to be present, and the captain ofthe gate handed him over at once to me. I appeal to the Council whether Iexceeded my duty in arresting him on the spot, permitting him nocommunication with anyone in the town until I had brought him before themin this court. I soon learned that he was the brother of Eleazar, one ofour most distinguished leaders, to whom more than to any other the defenceof the city has been entrusted, who knows better than anyone our weaknessand the extremity of our need. By my orders he was searched, and on hisperson was found a scroll, purporting to be from no less a person than thecommander of the Tenth Legion, an officer second only in authority toTitus himself, and addressed to one Esca, a Gentile, living in the veryhouse, and I am informed a member of the very family, of Eleazar Ben-Manahem, this elder in Judah, this chief of the Zealots, this member ofthe Senate, this adviser in Council, this man whose right hand is hardenedwith sword and spear, but who would cut it off with his left, rather thanthat it should traffic with the enemy! I demand from the Council an orderfor the arrest of Esca, that he too may be brought before it, andconfronted with him whose bread he eats. From the mouth of threeoffenders, our wise men may peradventure elicit the truth. If I have erredin my zeal let the Senate reprove me. If Eleazar can purge himself from myaccusation, let him defile my father's grave, and call me liar and villainto my very beard!"
The Senate, powerfully affected by John's appeal, and yet unable tobelieve in the treachery of one who had earned their entire confidence,seemed at a loss how to act. The conduct of the accused, too, afforded noclue whereby to judge of his probable guilt or innocence. His cheek wasvery pale, and once he stepped forward a pace, as if to place himself athis brother's side. Then he halted and repeated his former words, "Hisblood be on his own head," in a loud and broken voice, turning away thewhile, and glaring round upon the senators like some fierce animal takenin the toils. Calchas, too, kept his eyes fixed on the ground; and morethan one observer remarked that the brothers studiously abstained fromlooking each other in the face. There was a dead silence for severalseconds. Then the senator who had before spoken, raised his hand tocommand attention, and thus addressed the Council--
"This is a grave matter, involving as it does not only the life and deathof a son of Judah, but the honour of one of our noblest houses, and thesafety, nay, the very existence of the Holy City. A grave matter, and onewhich may not be dealt with, save by the highest tribunal in the nation.It must be tried before our Sanhedrim, which will assemble for the purposewithout delay. Those of us here present who are members of that augustbody, will divest their minds of all they have heard in this place to-day,and proceed to a clear and unbiassed judgment of the matters that shall bethen brought before them. Nothing has been yet proved against Eleazar Ben-Manahem, though his brother, and the Gentile who has to answer the sameaccusation, must be kept in secure ward. I move that the Council,therefore, be now dissolved, holding itself ready, nevertheless, seeingthe imminent peril of the times, to reassemble at an hour's notice, forthe welfare of Judah, and the salvation of the Holy City."
Even while he ceased speaking, and ere the grave senators broke up,preparing to depart, a wail was heard outside the court that chilled thevery heart of each, as it rose and fell like a voice from the other world,repeating ever and again, in wild unearthly tones, in solemn warning--
"Woe to Jerusalem! Woe to the Holy City! Sin, and sorrow, and desolation!Woe to the Holy City! Woe to Jerusalem!"