The Cat of Bubastes: A Tale of Ancient Egypt

by G. A. Henty

  CHAPTER XII.

  THE DEATH OF AMERES.

  The days passed slowly at the farm. The lads went out listlessly towatch the cattle treading in the seed and the other operations on thelands, but they were too anxious as to what was going on in the cityto feel the slightest interest in the work of the farm. The second andfourth days after their coming, Jethro had paid them a short visit tosay that there was no change in the situation. The officer in commandof some troops whom the king had sent down to within a short distanceof the house had come down to the mob as they were shouting outsidethe gate, and threatened them with the severe displeasure of the kingunless they desisted from their demonstrations, but had been answeredwith shouts, "The gods are above all kings, and not even kings canprotect those who insult them." Amense, he said, on the occasion ofhis second visit, had left the house and taken up her abode with somerelations in the city, declaring that the anxiety and disgrace werekilling her. She had wished to take Mysa with her, but the girl hadpositively refused to leave her father; and as her mother seemedindifferent whether she went or stayed she had had her way. In aprivate talk with Amuba, Jethro said:

  "It is a relief to us all that she has gone; she was bad enough beforeyou went, but for the last three days she has been doing nothing butweep and bewail herself till the house has been well-nigh unbearable.Ameres goes backward and forward between his house and the temple,walking unmoved through those gathered near his door, who are for themost part quiet when he passes, being abashed by the presence of onewho has so long been held in high esteem among them. As for Mysa, sheseems to think only of her father. The Hebrew girl is a great comfortto her, for while the example of their mistress and the shouts of thepopulace have terribly scared the other maids, and they go about thehouse in fear and trembling, Ruth is quiet and self-contained as ifshe were again in her quiet cottage with her grandfather. She greatlycomforts and sustains Mysa, and Ameres said to me only this morningthat Mysa was fortunate indeed in that Chebron had furnished her withso brave and steadfast a companion at a time like this."

  On the evening of the fifth day Jethro came suddenly in at the house.The boys started to their feet as he entered, for they saw at oncethat something terrible had happened. His face was stained with blood,his breath came short, for he had run for the six intervening milesbetween the farm and the city at the top of his speed.

  "Quick, my lord!" he said, "there is not a moment to lose. The wholematter has been discovered, and ere long they will be here in pursuitof you."

  "What of my father?" Chebron exclaimed.

  "I will tell you all about it afterward, Chebron. There is no time fortalking now, his orders must be instantly carried out. Where are thefellows who are spying over you?"

  "One of them is probably seated outside at the entrance to the farm.You must have passed him as you entered," Amuba replied. "I have notseen more than one at a time since they first came."

  "Take up your arms and follow me," Jethro said, taking a heavy stafffrom the corner of the room, and, followed by the lads, he wentoutside the gate.

  It was now getting dark, and as they passed out a man standing nearapproached as if to see who they were. Without a word Jethro sprangforward and brought down the staff with tremendous force upon hishead, and he fell without a cry upon the road.

  "There is no fear of his giving the alarm," Jethro said grimly, andset off in a run in the direction of the city at a pace that taxed thepowers of Chebron to keep up with. Once or twice as he ran the boygasped out a question as to his father's safety, but Jethro did notappear to hear him, but kept on at a steady pace.

  Presently he stopped suddenly and listened. A vague, confused soundwas heard in front of them, and Jethro quitted the road and took hiscourse over the fields. Amuba heard the sound increase, and waspresently conscious that a crowd of people were passing along theroad.

  "It is well I managed to get through," Jethro said. "They would havemade short work of you both had they arrived at the farm and found youunprepared."

  Jethro did not return to the road, but kept on in an oblique linetoward the foot of the hills near the city.

  "Where are you going, Jethro?" Amuba asked at last.

  "I am going to Chigron, the embalmer. Ameres has arranged with him tohide you there for the present."

  The boys knew the place, for they had more than once been there towatch the process of embalming the bodies and preparing them forburial. It was an extensive establishment, for Chigron was one of themost celebrated embalmers of the day; and not only did he embalm, buthe kept with him men who performed the further processes required,namely, the wrapping up in the mummy cloths, and the construction ofthe great cases and the placing the bodies in them ready to be handedover to their friends. These were usually distinct and separatetrades, the embalmers generally returning the bodies to the friendsafter they had completed the process of embalming. Another set ofmen then prepared the corpse for burial, while the mummy-cases orsarcophagi were prepared by men of another trade. Of the three trades,that of the embalmers was held in by far the highest respect, the workbeing considered as sacred and the embalmers ranking and associatingwith the priests.

  In Chigron's establishment the men of the three trades worked apartand separate from each other; and although Chigron was in fact at thehead of all, he personally superintended only the embalming, the menof the other trades being directed by their own masters, and it was asif the three establishments had been placed near each other simply forthe purpose of convenience.

  When they reached the house of Chigron Jethro went forward alone andknocked at the door. An attendant presented himself. "Give this ringto Chigron," Jethro said, "and say that the bearer of it would fainspeak to him here."

  In two or three minutes Chigron himself came out.

  "I have brought the lads hither in obedience to the order of Ameres,"Jethro said. "He told me that he had arranged the matter with you."

  "And Ameres himself?" Chigron asked.

  "He is no more," Jethro said. "The villains who sought his ruin havetriumphed, and a furious mob this afternoon broke into his house andmurdered him. Chebron does not know it yet, though he cannot butsuspect that something terrible has happened, as I would not answerhis questions, fearing that he might break down when his strength wasmost needed."

  The Egyptian uttered an exclamation of sorrow.

  "Fools and madmen!" he exclaimed; "in all the land none were moreworthy of honor than Ameres. He was just and generous, ever ready tobefriend those who needed his aid, calm in judgment, and powerful incouncil. Surely the gods must be angry with Egypt when they sufferedsuch a one to fall a victim to the passions of the mob. But where arethe lads? I myself will conduct them to the place I have alreadyprepared. The workers have all left, so there is no fear in passingthrough the house."

  At Jethro's call the lads came up.

  "Follow me, my lord," Chigron said to Chebron. "I have had everythingin readiness for your reception for some days. Would that your visithad been made on some more cheerful occasion."

  The embalmer led the way through the portion of the house occupied byhimself, then he entered a large apartment whose floor was coveredwith sawdust.

  Here on slabs of stone lay a number of bodies of those in the firststate of preparation, while in a still larger apartment behind were anumber of stone baths each long enough to contain a body. These wereoccupied by the corpses which had undergone their first state ofpreparation, and which were now lying covered with a strong solutionof salt and water. Beyond again were other chambers for the receptionof bodies embalmed by other processes than that of salt.

  Passing through a door at the rear the lads found themselves in theopen air again. Above them the hill rose in a precipitous rock.Chigron led the way along the foot of this for some little distance,and then stopped at a portal hewn in the rock itself. All this timehe had carried a lighted lamp, although the chambers in which the deadwere lying were illuminated with lamps hanging from the ceiling. Uponenteri
ng the portal and closing the door behind him he produced from aniche in the wall several other lamps, lighted them, and gave one toeach of his companions.

  "This," he said, "was cut by a wealthy inhabitant of Thebes centuriesago as a tomb for himself and his family. What happened to him I knownot, but the place was never used beyond this chamber, which has beenutilized for mummies of sacred animals. Beyond in the main chambereverything is as it was left by those who formed it. There I haveduring the last ten days privately stored up such articles as would benecessary for you, and I trust that you will not find yourselfuncomfortable."

  Upon entering the apartment, which was some twenty feet square, theyfound that the embalmer had not exaggerated what he had done. A tablewith several settles stood in the middle; three couches piled withrushes were placed against the wall. Mats had been laid down to coverthe floor and give warmth to the feet, and lamps ready for burningstood upon the table. In a corner stood two jars of wine, withdrinking vessels.

  "All is here except food," Chigron said. "That I could not prepareuntil I knew you were coming; but be assured that you shall be servedregularly. There is no fear of intrusion from any employed in theestablishment. They have no occasion to come out to the back of thehouse, and probably few know of the existence of this tomb. Should Ihave any ground for believing that there is danger, I will take othermeasures for your concealment. Should you need anything, do nothesitate to say so. I owe my position to the patronage of my lordAmeres, and there is nothing I would not do to insure the safety ofhis son. And now, my lord, I will retire, and will presently send youby a trusty servant the food of which I have no doubt that you standin need."

  Chebron said a few words in thanks, but he was too anxious and full ofgrief to say more. Directly Chigron had left he turned to Jethro.

  "Now, Jethro, tell me all; I am prepared for the worst. My dear fatheris no more. Is it not so?"

  "It is too true, Chebron," Jethro replied. "Your noble father has beenkilled by a base and cowardly mob urged on by some villains of thepriesthood."

  Chebron threw himself down on one of the couches and wept bitterly,while Amuba was almost as deeply affected, for Ameres had behaved tohim with the kindness of a father. It was not until the followingmorning that Chebron was sufficiently recovered to ask Jethro torelate to him the details of his father's death.

  "I was in the garden," Jethro began. "Mysa and Ruth were in a boat onthe pond, and I was towing them when I heard a tumult at the gate. Ipulled the boat ashore, and hurried them up to the house and told Mysato retire to her apartment, and that she was not to leave it whatevernoise she might hear, that being her father's command. Then I went outto the gate. Just as I got there it fell in, and a crowd of peoplerushed through. As there were only myself and two or three of thegardeners who had run up we could do nothing to stop them. Just asthey reached the house your father came out into the portico and said,'Good people, what will you have?'

  "Those in front of him were silent a moment, abashed by his presenceand the calm manner in which he spoke, but others behind set up thecry 'Where is the sacred cat? We will find it!' while others againshouted out 'Down with the impious priest!' Ameres replied, 'You cansearch the place if you will; though, indeed, it seems that you neednot my permission, seeing that you have taken the matter into your ownhands. Only I pray you enter not the house. There are the ladies of myfamily and other women there, and I swear to you that neither alivenor dead is the cat to be found there.'

  "The cry was raised, 'Let us search the garden!' In all this it struckme that there were two parties among the mob, the one ignorant andbigoted, believing really that an offense had been committed againsttheir gods; the other, men who kept in the background, but who werethe moving spirits. I was not pleased when I saw the crowd so readilyabandon the idea of searching the house and scatter themselves overthe garden, for it seemed to me that from one of the gardeners orothers they might have obtained some sort of clew that might put themon the road to discovery. I saw that several among the crowd had withthem dogs trained for the chase, and this made me more uneasy. I toldone of the men to run at once and summon the troops, and then followedthe crowd.

  "I was the more uneasy to see that without wasting time in searchingelsewhere they made straight to the inclosure where the animals werekept. No sooner did they get there than they began to search, urgingon the dogs to assist them. Suddenly I started, for there was a touchupon my shoulder, and looking round I saw Ameres. 'Remember myinstructions, Jethro,' he said in a quiet voice; 'I commit Chebron toyour charge.'

  "'Oh, my lord!' I exclaimed, 'why are you here? The troops are but ashort distance away. Why do you not place yourself under theirprotection?'

  "'Because I have done no wrong, Jethro,' he replied calmly. 'I havenot offended the gods, nor have I ever wronged one of my countrymen.Why should I fly?'

  "At this moment there was a yell of rage among the crowd, and I knewthat one of those accursed hounds must have smelled the dead cat andscratched the earth from over it. Then I heard a voice cry above therest, 'See! even now the wounds are manifest; it has been pierced byan arrow, even as I told you. The sacred cat has been slain!' Then thecrowd turned. 'Fly, Jethro,' Ameres said. 'It is my last command.'

  "But even then I could not obey him. There was death in the eyes ofthose who were rushing toward him shouting 'Down with the despiser ofthe gods! Down with the slayer of the sacred cat!' and seeing that, Irushed at them. After that all was confusion. I had caught up a stafffrom the portico as I passed, and with it I struck right and left.Many fell, I know, before they closed with me. Blows were showeredupon me, and the staff then fell from my hands, but I fought with mynaked fists. Several times I was beaten down, but each time I roseagain. Then, as in a dream, I seemed to hear your father's command, 'Icommit Chebron to your care,' and I burst my way through them andthrew myself upon a group standing further on, but I saw as I brokethrough them that I could do nothing there.

  "Your father lay on the ground looking as calm and peaceful as when hehad spoken to me but five minutes before; but his white garments werestained with blood, and the half of a dagger stood up just over hisheart. There was no time to see more. His last command was to beobeyed, and shaking off those who tried to hold me, and evading theblows aimed at me with their knives, I fled. As I rushed out throughthe gate I saw the troops I had sent for coming toward the house. Butthey were too late now; besides, some of my pursuers were closebehind me, and so without a pause I took the road to the farm. I thinkthat is all I have to tell you."

  Chebron was weeping bitterly, and Amuba, who was himself deeplyaffected, went over to him.

  "Console yourself, Chebron. I know what you are feeling now, but donot blame yourself too greatly for this calamity. You know what yourfather said--that it was but an accident, and that it was doubtlessthe will of the great God that your arrow should fly as it did; and hehimself declared that he believed that all this was but the result ofconspiracy, and that, as we heard in the temple, there were mendetermined to take his life."

  A few minutes later the embalmer entered bringing them food. He saw atonce that Chebron had been informed of the fate that had befallen hisfather.

  "Have you heard aught of what is passing in the city?" Amuba askedhim.

  "Yes," Chigron answered; "naught else is talked about. Many of thoseconcerned in the deed escaped either by the entrance before thesoldiers arrived there, or over the walls; but many were seized, andare now in prison for their sacrilegious deed in raising their handagainst the person of the high priest of Osiris. There were tumults inthe city during the night, many maintaining that the deed was welldone, others the contrary.

  "Those who had been taken all declared that they had been informed byone who said he knew it for certain that the cat was buried in theinclosure, and that it had been slain by you and my young lord here,as you had been seen going with your bows and arrows to the inclosureand were there for some time, after which the cat was never seenagain. The general opinion is t
hat though the prisoners taken will bepunished--some with flogging, some with death--your lives are alsoassuredly forfeited, and that even the friendship of the king for yourfather would not avail to protect you, for that he, like others, mustobey the law, and that the law of Egypt is that whomsoever shall takethe life of a cat shall be slain."

  "I am perfectly willing to die," Chebron said; "and my greatest regretnow is that I did not follow my first impulse and denounce myself asthe accidental killer of the cat. No blame could have then beenattached to my father or to any but myself."

  "The disgrace would have fallen upon your whole family," the embalmersaid; "for those nearly related to one who performed an impious actionmust needs suffer with him. Not that I blame you, Chebron; for I knowthat your father did not do so. He told me when he arranged that Ishould, if needs be, furnish you with a hiding-place, that althoughyou might need a refuge it would be for no fault of your own. I do notunderstand how he could have said so, seeing the terrible guilt ofeven accidentally taking the life of a cat, and specially of this cat,which was sacred above all others in the land. Still I know yourfather's wisdom equaled his goodness; and although I own that I cannotunderstand his saying, I am content to accept it, and will do all inmy power to save you. Doubtless the search after you will be a hotone, but we must hope for the best."

  "I will go out and see what is doing," Jethro said. "It may be that itwill be more safe to move away at once than to remain here."

  "In that case," the embalmer said, "you will need to be disguisedbefore you start. It is known that Ameres had two fair-skinned slaves,and that one of them was concerned with my young lord here in thematter; also that the other, after fighting furiously in the garden,and, as I heard, slaying several of his master's enemies, managed tomake his escape. Fortunately I have the materials at hand. We usepaints and stains in abundance for the sere clothes of the dead andthe decorations of their coffins, and I can easily make you as dark asany of our people. That, with one of my wigs and Egyptian garments,will alter you so that, so long as you do not look any one fairly inthe face, there will be no fear whatever of your discovery; but youmust not look up, for even when I have blackened your lashes thelightness of your eyes would at once betray you."

  In half an hour Jethro was transformed into a middle-class citizen ofThebes, and started on his mission of inquiry. During the day someofficials came to the establishment and made many inquiries after themissing lads. Not contented with denials, they went through the wholebuildings, examining all the chambers closely.

  "It is known," they said to Chigron, "that they several times camehere, and that Ameres was a patron of yours. It is our duty to searchany house where shelter might have been given them, though we canhardly believe that any one would hold communication, far less receiveinto this house, persons guilty of such an act of sacrilege as theyhave been. However, there is no chance of their escaping us. Messageshave been sent all over Egypt. Moreover, as they had no horses theycannot have gone far. Yours is the first house we have searched, forthe servants all say the same--that the son of Ameres was frequentlyhere."

  "He was not here very frequently," Chigron replied, "though hecertainly came sometimes, and was interested in watching the variousprocesses."

  Chebron had, in fact, been several times to the embalmer's. Amuba hadaccompanied him, although he himself would have preferred stayingaway, for to him the whole scene was repulsive. Chebron's temperamentdiffered, however, widely from that of his friend. The dead weresacred in Egypt, and all the rites and ceremonies connected with thembore a religious character. They had no fear of death, and deemed itbut a sleep that would last three thousand years. It was for thisreason that the bodies of human beings and the sacred animals were socarefully embalmed and laid away either in massive tombs or rock-hewncaverns.

  They believed, and as has been proved rightly, that the remains socarefully prepared would endure for that time, and thought that whenthe spirit returned to it it would resume its former shape in allparticulars. Thus the dead of all ranks were embalmed; the process,however, in the case of the wealthy differing widely from that towhich the bodies of the poorer classes were submitted. There were manykinds of embalming, varying according to the means of the family ofthe deceased. The process employed for the wealthy was a long andexpensive one. First, an official called a scribe marked on the sideof the corpse where an aperture should be made; this was cut byanother person, who after doing so fled, pursued with execrations andpelted with stones, as although necessary the operation was considereda dishonorable one and as an injury to a sacred body.

  Through this aperture the embalmers removed the whole of the internalorgans, which, after being cleansed and embalmed in spices, weredeposited in four vases, which were subsequently placed in the tombwith the coffins. Each of these vases contained the parts sacred to aseparate deity. The body was then filled with aromatic resin andspices, and rubbed for thirty days with a mixture of the sameingredients. In the case of the very wealthy the whole body was thengilded; in other cases only the face and portions of the body. Theskin of the mummy so preserved is found to be of an olive color, dryand flexible as if tanned; the features are preserved and appear asduring life, and the teeth, hair of the head, and eyebrows are wellpreserved.

  In some cases, instead of the aromatic resin, the bodies were filledwith bitumen; in others saltpeter was used, the bodies being soaked init for a long time and finally filled with resin and bitumen. In thesecond quality of mummies, those of persons of the middle class, theincision was not made, but resin or bitumen was used and the bodiessoaked in salt for a long time. In the case of the poorer classes thebodies were simply dipped into liquid pitch. None of these, however,were treated in the establishment of Chigron, who operated only uponthe bodies of the wealthy.

  After the preparation was complete the body passed from the hands ofthe embalmers into those of another class, who enveloped it in itscoverings. These were linen bandages, which in the case of the richwere sometimes a thousand yards in length. It was then inclosed in asort of case fitting closely to the mummied body. This case was richlypainted, covered in front with a network of beads and bugles arrangedin a tasteful form, the face being overlaid with thick gold leaf andthe eyes made of enamel. This again was placed in other cases,sometimes three or four in number, all similarly ornamented withpainting and gilding, and the whole inclosed in a sarcophagus orcoffin of wood or stone, profusely decorated with painting andsculpture. It was then handed over to the family of the deceased, andafterward taken in solemn procession across the sacred lake, followedby the mourning relatives throwing dust upon their heads.

  Every Egyptian city had a lake of this kind, either natural orartificial. Notice was given beforehand to the judges and public ofthe day on which the funeral would take place, and these assembled atthe side of the lake, where the decorated boat in readiness for thepassage was lying. Before the coffin could be placed upon the boat itwas lawful for any person present to bring forward his accusationagainst the deceased. If it could be proved that he had led an evillife the judge declared that the body was deprived of the accustomedsepulture. If the accuser failed to establish his charge he wassubject to the heaviest penalties. If there was no accuser or if theaccusation was not proved the judge declared the dead man innocent.The body was placed in the boat and carried across the lake, and theneither taken to the family catacombs or to the room specially preparedfor its reception in the house of the deceased.

  The greatest grief and shame were felt by the family of those deprivedof the right of sepulture, for they believed that thereby he wasexcluded from the mansions of the blessed, and that in the course ofthe transmigrations through which his spirit would pass before itagain returned to a human form, it might be condemned to inhabit thebody of an unclean animal.

  As none from the lowest to the very highest rank could escape theordeal of public accusation after death, there can be little doubtthat this ceremony exercised a most wholesome effect upon the life ofthe Egyptians,
and was most efficacious in repressing tyranny,cruelty, and vice of all kinds among them. Even the most powerfulkings were restrained by the knowledge that should they give cause ofcomplaint to their subjects they were liable after death to be accusedand deprived of the right of lying in the mighty tombs they had socarefully prepared for their reception.

  Chebron's brain, therefore, while he was watching the process ofembalming, was busy with thoughts and fancies as to the future of thespirit that had inhabited the body he looked at. Had it already passedinto the body of some animal? Was it still disconnected and searchingfor an abode? Through what changes would it pass and how long would bethe time before it returned to this human tenement? For the threethousand years was believed to be the shortest period of transitionthrough the various changes in the case of the man of the purest andmost blameless life, while in other cases the period was vastlyextended.

  As Amuba was not gifted with a strong imagination, and saw in thewhole matter merely the preservation of a body which in his opinionhad much better have been either buried or placed on a funeral pileand destroyed by fire, these visits to the embalmers had constitutedthe most unpleasant part of his duties as Chebron's companion.

  Jethro had anticipated when he left that his visit to the city wouldbe of short duration, and that he should return in an hour at thelatest; but as the day passed and night fell without his return thelads became exceedingly anxious, and feared that something serious hadtaken place to detain him. Either his disguise had been detected andhe had been seized by the populace, or some other great misfortunemust have befallen him.

  It had been arranged indeed that they should that night have startedupon their journey, and Jethro after his return was to have made out alist of such articles as he deemed necessary for their flight, andthese Chigron had promised to purchase for him. Their plans, however,were completely upset by his nonappearance, and late in the afternoonChigron himself went down into the city to ascertain, if he could, ifJethro had been discovered, for his name had been associated with thatof the boys. It was not believed indeed that he had taken any actualpart in the slaying of the cat, but it was deemed certain from hisclose connection with them, and his disappearance shortly before thetime they had suddenly left the farm, that he was in league with them.Chigron returned with the news that so far as he could learn nothinghad been heard of Jethro.

  No other subject was talked of in the city but the event of theprevious day, and the indignation of the people was equally dividedbetween the murderers of Ameres and the slayers of the sacred cat. Theboys were full of grief and perplexity. To Amuba Jethro had taken theplace of an elder brother. He had cheered him in the darkest moment ofhis life and had been his friend and companion ever since, and thethought that ill might have befallen him filled him with sorrow. Withthis was mingled an intense anxiety as to the future. Without Jethro'sstrong arm and advice how was this terrible journey to beaccomplished?

  Chebron was in no state either to act or plan. A deep depression hadseized upon him; he cared not whether he escaped or not, and wouldindeed have hailed detection and death as boons. Intense, therefore,was Amuba's relief when late in the evening a footstep was heard inthe outer chamber, and Jethro entered. He sprang to his feet with acry of gladness.

  "Oh, Jethro! thank the gods you have returned. I have sufferedterribly on your account. What has happened to you, and so longdelayed your return here?"

  "There is fresh trouble," Jethro replied in a stern voice.

  "Fresh trouble, Jethro? In what way?" And even Chebron, who hadscarcely sat up languidly on his couch on Jethro's entrance, looked upwith some interest for Jethro's answer.

  "Mysa has been carried off," he replied grimly.

  Chebron sprang to his feet. He was devoted to his sister, and for amoment this new calamity effaced the remembrance of those which hadpreceded it.

  "Mysa carried off!" he exclaimed at the same moment as Amuba. "Who hasdone it?--when was it done?--how did you learn it?" were questionswhich broke quickly from the lads.

  "On leaving here I went as arranged down into the city," Jethroreplied. "There was no difficulty in learning what there was to learn,for all business seemed suspended and the streets were full of groupsof people talking over the events of yesterday. The whole city isshaken by the fact that two such terrible acts of sacrilege as theslaying of the sacred cat of Bubastes and the murder of a high priestof Osiris should have taken place within so short a time of eachother. All prophesy that some terrible calamity will befall the land,and that the offended gods will in some way wreak their vengeance uponit. A royal order has been issued enjoining all men to search for andarrest every person concerned in the murder of Ameres, and doubtlessthe severest penalties will be dealt to them. The same decree ordersyour arrest wherever found, and enjoins upon all officials throughoutthe kingdom to keep a strict watch in the towns and villages, toexamine any strangers who may present themselves, and to send hitherbound in chains all young men who may fail to give a satisfactoryaccount of themselves. Sacrifices will be offered up at all thetemples throughout the land to appease the wrath of the gods.Messengers have been dispatched in all directions in the provinces,and all seemed to consider it certain that in a few hours ourhiding-place would be discovered. All made sure that we had madeeither for the seacoast or the desert on one side or the other, and asthe messengers would reach the coast long before we could do so, itwas considered impossible for us to get through unnoticed.

  "Then I went to the house, not intending to go in, but simply to seeif those in the neighborhood had heard any further news. The gateswere open, and quite a crowd of people were passing in and out togratify their curiosity by gazing on the scene. Relying upon mydisguise I went in with the rest. None entered the house, for a guardof soldiers had been stationed there. I passed round at the back andpresently Lyptis, the old female slave, came out to fetch water. Ispoke to her in my assumed character, but she only shook her head andmade no reply. Then believing that she, like all the others in thehouse, was attached to the family and could be trusted, I spoke to herin my natural voice, and she at once knew me. I made a sign to her tobe silent and withdrew with her alone to some bushes. The tears werestreaming down her face.

  "'Oh, Jethro!' she exclaimed, 'did the gods ever before hurl suchcalamities upon a household? My dear master is dead; my lord Chebronis hunted for as men hunt for a wild beast; my dear young mistress,Mysa, is missing!'

  "'Missing!' I exclaimed. 'What do you mean?'

  "'Have you not heard it?' she said.

  "'I have heard nothing!' I cried. 'Tell me all!'

  "'Just after the gates were beaten down and the crowd rushed alonginto the garden, four men burst into the house and ran from chamber tochamber until they entered that of my young mistress. We heard ascream, and a moment later they came out again bearing a figureenveloped in a wrapping. We strove to stop them, but there were naughtbut women in the house. They struck two of us to the ground, andrushed out. Some of us ran out into the garden crying for aid, butthere we saw a terrible scene. A great struggle was going on, andpresently you broke forth, covered with blood and wounds, and ranswiftly past. None heeded us or our cries.

  "'When the soldiers arrived we told the officer what had happened; butit was too late then, and nothing could be done. Had there been aguard over the house all these things would never have happened.'

  "I asked her if she could describe to me the appearance of the men.She said that they were attired as respectable citizens, but that fromtheir language and manner she believed that they were ruffians of thelowest class.

  "For a time I was so overwhelmed with this news that I could think ofnothing, but went out and roamed through the streets. At last Ibethought me of the girl Ruth. She was with Mysa at the time, andmight, if questioned, be able to tell me more than the old woman haddone. I therefore returned, but had to wait for three hours before oldLyptis came out again.

  "'I want to speak to Ruth,' I said. 'Send her out to me.'

  "'Ruth
has gone,' she said.

  "'Gone!' I repeated. 'Where and whither?'

  "'That we know not. It was not until hours after Mysa was carried offthat any one thought of her. We were too overwhelmed with grief at thedeath of our dear lord and the loss of Mysa to give a thought to theyoung Israelite. Then one asked, where was she? No one had noticedher. We went to Mysa's chamber, thinking that the villains who carriedour young mistress off might have slain her; but there were no signsof her there.'

  "'But she was with Mysa, was she not,' I asked, 'when the attack wasmade? Did she not pass in with her when she came in from the garden?'

  "'Yes,' she replied, 'they came in together and passed through us; forwe gathered in the front chamber, being greatly frightened at theclamor at the gate. As they passed us our young mistress said, 'Keepsilent; what is the use of screaming and crying?''

  "I asked if she was sure Ruth was not carried off as well as Mysa.

  "'Quite sure,' she said. 'One bore a figure and the other threecleared the way.'"

  "'And that was the last time,' I asked, 'that any of you saw theIsraelite?'

  "'It was,' she answered. 'She must have passed out by the door at theend of the passage, which she might well have done without beingobserved by any of us.'

  "This was a new mystery. Why Ruth should have fled I could not guess,because as soon as the soldiers appeared there was no more danger inremaining. Besides, I did not think Ruth was one to shrink fromdanger. However, there was no more to be learned, and I again wentout into the streets."