Les aventures du Capitaine Magon. English
Page 3
CHAPTER I.
WHY BODMILCAR, THE TYRIAN SAILOR, HATES HANNO, THE SIDONIAN SCRIBE.
I am Captain Mago, and Hiram,[1] King of Tyre, was well aware thatmy experience as a sailor was very great. It was in the third yearof his reign that he summoned me to his presence from Sidon,[2] thecity of fishermen, and the metropolis of the Phœnicians. He hadalready been told of my long voyages; how I had visited Malta; how Ihad traded to Bozrah,[3] the city founded by the Sidonians, but nowcalled Carthada[4] by the Tyrians; and how I had reached the remoteGades in the land of Tarshish.[5]
[1] Hiram I. reigned from 980 to 947 B.C.
[2] Sidon, or Zidon, in the Phœnician tongue means "fishery."
[3] Bostra, or Bozrah; hence Byrsa, the citadel.
[4] Carthage, or Kart-Khadecht, the new city.
[5] Tarshish, the Tartessus of the Greeks, Spain.
The star of Sidon was now on the wane. The ships of Tyre were fastoccupying the sea, and her caravans were covering the land. Amonarchy had been established by the Tyrians, and their king, withthe _suffects_[6] as his coadjutors, was holding sway over all theother cities of Phœnicia. The fortunes of Tyre were thus in theascendant: sailors and merchants from Sidon, Gebal, Arvad and Bybloswere continually enlisting themselves in the service of her powerfulcorporations.
[6] Suffect, or _choupheth_ (plural _chophettim_), the Hebrew and Phœnician magistrates preceding the monarchy.
When I had made my obeisance to King Hiram, he informed me that hisfriend and ally, David, King of the Jews, was collecting materialsfor the erection of a temple to his god Adonai (or _our Lord_) in thecity of Jerusalem, and that he was desirous of making his own royalcontribution to assist him. Accordingly he submitted to me that athis expense I should fit out a sufficient fleet, and should undertakea voyage to Tarshish, in order to procure a supply of silver, andany other rare or valuable commodity which that land could yield, toprovide embellishment for the sumptuous edifice.
Anxious as I was already to revisit Tarshish and the lands of theWest, I entered most eagerly into the proposal of the King, assuringhim that I should require no longer time for preparation than whatwas absolutely necessary to equip the ships and collect the crews.
It was still two months before the Feast of Spring, an annualfestival that marked the re-opening of navigation. This was aninterval sufficient for my purpose, for as the King directed me tocall first at Joppa, and to proceed thence to Jerusalem to receiveKing David's instructions, I had no need for the present to concernmyself about anything further than my ships and sailors, knowing thatI could safely trust to the fertile and martial land of Judæa toprovide me with provisions and soldiers.
The King was highly gratified at my ready acquiescence in hisproposition. He instructed his treasurer to hand over to me at oncea thousand silver shekels[7] to meet preliminary expenses, and gaveorders to the authorities at the arsenal to allow me to selectwhatever wood, hemp, or copper I might require.
[7] The silver shekel was the standard money of the Phœnicians, and was worth about 2_s._ It was a tenth part of a shekel of gold.
I took my leave of the King and rejoined Hanno my scribe and Himilcomy pilot, the latter of whom had been my constant associate on myprevious voyages. They were sitting on the side-bench at the greatgate of the palace, and had been impatiently awaiting my return,mutually speculating upon the reason that had induced the King tosend for us from Sidon, and naturally conjecturing that it mustrelate to some future enterprise and adventure. At the first glimpseof my excited countenance, revealing my delight, Hanno exclaimed:
"Welcome back, master; surely the King has granted you some eagerlonging of your heart!"
"True; and what do you suppose it is?" I asked.
"Perhaps a new ship to replace the one you lost in the Great Syrtes;and perhaps a good freight into the bargain. No son of Sidon couldcovet more than this."
"Yes, Hanno; this, and more beside," I answered. "But our goodfortune at once demands our vows; let us hasten to the temple ofAshtoreth,[8] and there let us render our thanks to the goddess, andsue for her protection and her favour to guard our vessels as we sailto Joppa. To Joppa we go; and onwards thence to Tarshish!"
[8] Astarte. The Aphrodite of the Greeks; the goddess of navigation, and the national deity of the Sidonians.
"Tarshish!" echoed the voice of Himilco, with a cry of ecstasy; andas he spoke he raised up his sole remaining eye towards the skies;he had lost the other in a naval fight. "Tarshish," he said again:"O ye gods, that rule the destinies of ships! ye stars,[9] that sooft have fixed my gaze in my weary watch on deck! here I offer toyou six shekels on the spot; 'tis all my means allow. But take meto Tarshish, and vouchsafe that I may come across the villain whoselance took out my eye, so that I may make him feel the point of myChalcidian sword below his ribs, and I vow that I will offer you insacrifice an ox, a noble ox, finer than Apis, the god of the idiotEgyptians."
[9] The stars in the constellation of Ursa Major were also tutelary deities of navigation; the pole-star by the Greeks being called "the Phœnician."
Hanno was less demonstrative. "For my part," he said, "I shall besatisfied if I can barter enough of the vile wine of Judæa, and thecheap ware of Sidon, to get a good return of pure white silver.I shall only be too pleased to build myself a mansion upon thesea-shore where I can enjoy my pleasure-boat as it glides along withits purple sails, and so to pass my days in ease and luxury."
"Remember, however," I replied, "that before you can get your lordlymansion, we shall again and again have to sleep under the open skyof the cheerless West; and before you arrive at all your luxury, youwill have to put up with many a coarse and meagre meal."
"All the more pleasant will be the retrospect," rejoined Hanno; "andwhen we come to recline upon our costly couches it will be a doublejoy to dwell upon our adventures, and relate them to our listeningguests."
Conversation of this character engaged us till we reached thecypress-grove, from which the temple of Ashtoreth upreared itssilver-plated roof. The setting sun was all aglow, and cast itsslanting rays upon the fabric, illuminating alike the heavy gildingand the radiant colours of the supporting pillars. Flocks ofconsecrated doves fluttered in the sacred grove, alighting ever andagain upon the gilded rods that connected one pillar with another.Groups of girls were frequently met, dressed in white, embroideredwith purple and silver, either hastening, pomegranates in theirhands, to make a votive offering at the shrine, or saunteringleisurely in the sacred gardens. Ever and again, as the temple-doorswere opened, there was caught the distant melody of the sistra,flutes, and tambourines, upon which the priests and priestesseswere celebrating the honour of their goddess. Such were the sounds,the modulated measures of the music mingled with the soft cooingsof the doves and the joyous laughter of the heedless maidens, thatcombined to make a mysterious murmur that could not fail to impressthe minds of such as us, rough mariners unaccustomed to anythingmore harmonious than the groanings of the waves, the creaking of ourships, and the howling of the wind.
I went with Himilco to consult the tariff of the sacrifices, whichwas exhibited, engraven on a tablet and affixed to the feet of ahuge marble dove at the right-hand entrance to the precincts of thetemple. As my own offering, I selected some fruit and cakes, thevalue of which did not exceed a shekel, and was just turning backto call Hanno, when I encountered a man in a dirty and threadbaresailor's coat, who was hurrying along, muttering bitter curses as hewent.
"Help me, Baal Chamaim, Lord of the heavens!" I involuntarilyexclaimed; "is not this Bodmilcar, the Tyrian?"
The man paused, and recognised me in a moment; and we exchanged thewarmest greetings.
Bodmilcar, whom I had thus unexpectedly met, had been one of myoldest associates. Many a time, alike in expeditions of war andcommerce, he had commanded a vessel by my side. He was likewisealready acquainted with Himilco, who consequently shared my surpriseand regret at meeting him in so miserable a plight.
"Wha
t ill fate has brought you to this?" was my impatient inquiry."At Tyre you used to be the owner of a couple of gaouls[10] and fourgood galleys; what has happened? What has brought it about that youshould be here in nothing better than a ragged kitonet?"[11]
[10] Gaoul, a round ship, employed in merchant service.
[11] Kitonet, a short tunic, worn by Phœnician sailors.
"Moloch's[12] heaviest curses be upon the Chaldeans!" ejaculatedBodmilcar. "May their cock-head Nergal[13] torture and burn and roastthem all! My story is soon told. I had a cargo of slaves. A finercargo was never under weigh. The hold of my Tyrian gaoul carriedCaucasian men as strong as oxen, and Grecian girls as lissome asreeds; there were Syrians who could cook, or play, or dress the hair;there were peasants from Judæa who could train the vine or cultivatethe field. Their value was untold."
[12] Baal Moloch, the sun god.
[13] Nergal, the Chaldean god of fire and war, always represented with a cock's head.
"And tell me, friend Bodmilcar," I inquired, "where are they now? Didthey not yield you the countless shekels on which you reckoned?"
"Now! where are they now?" shrieked out the excited man; "they areevery one upon their way to some cursed city of the Chaldeans, on theother side of Rehoboth. Instead of shekels I have got plenty of kicksand plenty of bruises, of which I shall carry the marks on my bodyfor a long time to come. The naval suffect gave me a few zeraas,[14]just to relieve my distress, and had it not been for that, I shouldnot have had a morsel of bread to keep life in me. It is now threedays since I arrived in Tyre, and to get here I have been continuallywalking, till my feet are so swollen I can hardly move."
[14] Zeraas, small copper coin.
"You mean you have walked here?" said Himilco, compassionately. "Butsurely you might have found a boat of some sort to bring you?"
"Boat!" growled Bodmilcar, almost angrily; "when did boats begin tojourney overland? Did I not tell you I came from Rehoboth in the landof those cursed Chaldeans? But hear me out, and you will sympathisewith my misfortune. I started first of all along the coast, buyingslaves from the Philistines, and corn and oil from the Jews. I wentacross to Greece, and made some profitable dealings there. I chancedupon a few wretched little Ionian barques, and secured some plunderso. Then I conceived the project of going through the straits, andI succeeded beyond my hopes in getting iron, and, what is more, ingetting slaves from Caucasus. My fortune was made. I was proceedinghome, when just as we neared the Phasis, on the Chalybean coast, somealien gods--for sure I am that neither Melkarth nor Moloch wouldso have dealt with a Tyrian sailor--some alien gods, I say, sentdown a frightful storm. With the utmost peril I contrived to savemy crew and all my human cargo; but the bulk of my goods was gone,and my poor vessels were shattered hopelessly. There was but oneresource; I had no alternative but to convey my salvage in the bestway I could across Armenia and Chaldea by land, consoling myself withthe expectation of finding a market for the slaves along the road.But once again the gods were cruelly adverse. We were attacked by atroop of Chaldeans; fifty armed men could not protect a gang of fourhundred slaves, who, miserable wretches as they were, could not beinduced by blows or prayers to lift up a hand in their own defence.The result was that we were very soon overpowered, and that, togetherwith all my party, I was made a prisoner. The Chaldeans proposed tosell us to the King of Nineveh, and I had the pleasure of findingmyself part and parcel of my own cargo."
"But, anyhow, here you are. How did you contrive to get out of yourdilemma?" I asked my old comrade.
Bodmilcar raised the skirt of his patched and greasy kitonet, anddisplayed a long knife with an ivory handle hanging from his belt.
"They forgot to search me," he said, "and omitted to bind me. Thevery first night on which there was no moonlight I was entertaininga couple of rascals who had charge of me, by telling them wonderfultales about Libyan serpents, and about the men of Tarshish who hadmouths in the middle of their chests, and eyes at the tips of theirfingers; openmouthed, they were lost in amazement at the lies I waspouring into their ears, and were entirely off their guard. I seizedmy opportunity; and having first thrust my knife into the belly ofone of them, I cut the throat of the other and made my escape. I tookto my heels, and, Moloch be praised! the rascals failed to find atrace of me. But now that I am here, the gods only know what is tobecome of me. If I fail to get service as a pilot, I must enter as acommon sailor in some Tyrian ship."
"No need of that, Bodmilcar," I exclaimed; "you have made yourappearance just at a lucky moment. All praise to Ashtoreth! you arejust the man I want. I have a commission from the King to fit outships for Tarshish; I am captain of the expedition, and here at onceI can appoint you my second in command. My pilot is Himilco; and hereis Hanno, my scribe; we are on our way to the temple of the goddess,and are going in her presence to draw up the covenants."
"Joy, joy, dear Mago!" ejaculated Bodmilcar; "may the gods begracious to you, and repay your goodness! I shall not regret mydisaster at the hands of the Chaldeans, if it ends in a voyage toTarshish with you. Only let Melkarth vouchsafe us a good ship, andwith Himilco to guide our course, we cannot fail to prosper, eventhough our voyage be to the remotest confines of the world."
Hanno, who meanwhile had joined us, took out from his girdle someink and some reeds, with a little stone to sharpen them, and havingseated himself upon the temple steps, proceeded to draw up thearticles which appointed me admiral of the expedition, Bodmilcarvice-admiral, and Himilco pilot-in-chief. Himilco and myself bothaffixed our seals to the document, and Bodmilcar was proceeding to doso likewise, feeling mechanically for his seal, which he rememberedafterwards that the Chaldeans had stolen. I gave him twenty shekelsto buy another, and to provide him with a new outfit of clothes.Then, with Himilco, I proceeded to make my oblation of fruits andcakes to Ashtoreth; and in the highest spirits we made our way to theharbour, where our light vessel, the _Gadita_, was awaiting us.
HANNO PROCEEDED TO DRAW UP THE ARTICLES. _To face page 8._]
Early next morning we set vigorously to work. I drew out the plans ofmy vessels upon papyrus sheets. My own _Gadita_ was to be kept as alight vessel; but I resolved to have a large _gaoul_ constructed as atransport to carry the merchandise, and two barques to act as tendersto the gaoul, which would draw too much water to approach very nearthe shore. As an escorting convoy I chose two large double-deckedgalleys,[15] manned by fifty oarsmen, similar to those recentlyinvented at Sidon. At this period, the Tyrians had three of thesegalleys in port; they were very rapid in their course, and drew verylittle water; they were armed with strong beaks at the prow; wereworked both by oars and sails, and were adapted either for war orcommerce.
[15] For details of the construction of these galleys, see notes at the end of the Volume.
I determined to use cedar for the keel and sides of my vessel, andoak from Bashan, in Judæa, for the masts and yards. I discarded theancient method of making my sails of Galilean reeds or papyrus-fibre,preferring to have them woven out of our excellent Phœnician hemp,which the people of Arvad and Tyre are skilful in twisting into avery substantial texture. It was of the same material that I resolvedto make my ropes.
As I was going through the arsenal, and wondering at the accumulatedmass of copper, I espied a little store of the beautiful white tinobtained from the Celts in the distant islands of the far north-west.Previously to my own voyage those islands had been all but unknown,and I believe that I may say that my own investigation of them hasconferred as great a benefit upon the Phœnicians as they hadreaped two hundred years before by the discovery of the silver minesof Tarshish.
The sight of the copper determined me upon carrying out a plan whichI had for some time been contemplating. It occurred to me that ifthe keel and flanks under water were protected with copper in thesame way as the prows had hitherto been, the solidity of the vesselwould be greatly increased, and the wood would be far less liable todecay. Accordingly, I made up my mind to protect the prows of thegalleys with a hard al
loy of copper and tin, and to sheathe the keelsand flanks of all the four vessels with plates of wrought copper.The copper of Cyprus I rejected as being too soft and spongy for mypurpose, and that of Libanus as far too brittle; but the firm yetductile Cilician metal suited me admirably, and Khelesh-baal, therenowned Tyrian founder, set to work at once to forge me some largesheets, three cubits[16] long by two wide.
[16] The common cubit is about 16 inches.
The King had placed 200 workmen at my disposal; and, in order thatI might better superintend their operations, I took a lodging withmy three friends in a house at the corner of the Street of Caulkers,just opposite the arsenal, and there from my window upon the fourthfloor I could well overlook the men working in the docks below. Idirected Hanno to make out a list of the goods we should require forbarter, and he and Himilco chiefly busied themselves in collectingthe things together; whilst Bodmilcar, with two of my sailors, keptperambulating the neighbourhood of the harbour, succeeding tolerablywell in securing recruits for my crew from amongst the seamen whowere loitering about the quays, with tilted hats, looking out foremployment.
On the first day of the month Nisan,[17] just four weeks after I hadundertaken my commission, I returned home for my evening meal, andfound my companions in hot dispute.
[17] Nisan; part of March and April.
"How now!" I cried, on entering the room; "what's this? What is themeaning of this angry contention?"
"I am telling Bodmilcar," said Hanno, "that he has about as muchbrains as a bullock, and about as much elegance as a Bactrian camel."
"And am I to endure this insolence from a young stripling?" criedBodmilcar, angrily; "am I to put up with it from a fresh-waterlubber, who will cry like a baby at the first gust of wind, andimplore us to put him on shore again? He has lived among women andscribblers till he has no more pluck in him than a garden-tortoise."
HANNO CAUGHT UP A LARGE PITCHER. _To face page 11._]
"I confess," rejoined Hanno, sarcastically, "that I have not hadyour experience; I have not had the advantage of being pounced uponby the Chaldeans, or of being thrashed by my own slaves. But let mesay, I am twenty, and that I hope the first time you find me funkingthe sea, you will pitch me overboard like an old sandal. Anyhow,I have had a voyage as far as Chittim;[18] I have been amongst theIonians, and can speak their language ten times better than any oneamong you."
[18] Chittim, the classical _Citium_, a Phœnician colony in Cyprus.
"Talk to me about the Ionians," shouted Bodmilcar in a fury, "and Iwill break every bone in your precious skin."
And, as he spoke, he laid his hand upon his knife; but Hanno, withoutflinching for a moment, caught up a large pitcher that was standingon the table.
"Steady, steady!" interposed Himilco, "or you will be spilling allthe nectar;"[19] and whilst I laid a firm grasp upon Bodmilcar's arm,he rescued the pitcher, and deposited it safely in the corner of theroom.
[19] Nectar; the sweet and perfumed wine of the Phœnicians, said by the Greeks to be the drink of the gods.
Then addressing myself to the two excited combatants, I said: "Nowthen, I cannot permit this altercation; you are both under my orders,and you must both submit; conduct yourselves amicably, or it shall bethe worse for him that disturbs the peace. But what is the meaning ofthis chatter about the Ionians?"
Hanno held out his hand to me, in token of submission, expressed hisregret for having given offence to Bodmilcar, and assured me that hehad only spoken in jest.
"You see now," I said to Bodmilcar, "Hanno is not your subordinate,and you are bound to treat him as your equal. However, what is itthat he has said to offend you so grievously?"
Bodmilcar seemed abashed; he stood twirling his beard, and withoutraising his eyes, said:
"Amongst the slaves that the Chaldeans captured, there was one Ioniangirl that I thought to make my wife. I spoke of her to Hanno, buthe only jeered me; he told me that the girl had gone off with theChaldeans of her own accord, merely to get out of reach of me; andhis provocation made me angry."
"Nay, nay," said Hanno: "I did not want to make him angry; it wasa thoughtless joke; he was somewhat old, I said, for so young abride, and Ionian girls generally like the perfume of flowers and thefragrance of sweet spices better than the smell of tar."
"It was wrong of you," I said, as sternly as I could, though I reallyfelt inclined to laugh.
To my suggestion that they should make up their quarrel with mutualpledges over a cup of wine, Hanno eagerly responded, "With all myheart, and Ashtoreth give me my deserts if ever wilfully I offend hisgrey hairs again;" but Bodmilcar took the proffered hand coldly, andwith evident constraint.
Seeing that all immediate peril of a smash was over, Himilco broughtforward his pitcher again from its place of safety. I heard nothingmore of the disagreement; but I could not help noticing thatBodmilcar was never again the same in his demeanour towards Hanno,and that he did not speak to him any more than he could avoid.
About a week later, as I was in the arsenal for the purpose ofselecting the ropes for the rigging, Himilco came running to me toinform me that one of the King's servants had arrived with a messagethat was to be delivered to myself. I went to meet the messenger. Hewas a tall Syrian eunuch with frizzled hair and painted face, arrayedin a long embroidered robe, and wearing large gold earrings after thefashion of his country. He held a long cane surmounted by a goldenpomegranate, and spoke with a languid lisp.
"Are you Captain Mago, the King's naval officer?" he asked, as heeyed me from head to foot.
Receiving my reply, he continued: "I am Hazael, of the royalhousehold; here on my finger you may see the signet which empowersme to exercise my authority. The purpose of my visit is to inspectthe vessels you are building; but specially my object is to giveinstructions that proper accommodation shall be provided for myself,and for a slave that I have to conduct from my master to Pharaoh,King of Egypt. Two proper berths must be prepared; and the King'sorders are that you are to remit us to Egypt after you have visitedJerusalem."
"As to your directions about berths," I replied, utterly astonishedat his cool effrontery, "you must permit me to remind you that onboard ship the captain, with his pilot under him, invariably allotsthe place for every passenger."
"Be it so," rejoined the eunuch; "yet it is imperative that separateapartments, tapestried and carpeted suitably, should be provided formyself and for the royal slave. Impossible for us to live in contactwith the rough and tarry seamen."
I felt a strong inclination to let Hazael experience how he relishedlying full length upon a heap of rubbish that was close at hand; butI controlled my indignation and said:
"I will contrive something. I will either make a partition in acorner of the hold, or put up a cabin of planks upon the deck; butwhatever is done must not interfere with the working of the ship.When I have made the provision in space, I leave you to fit andfurnish as you please; but mark you this, your curtains and carpetswill be ruined in the first tempest that we get. However, that isyour concern, not mine."
"Each of the cabins," complacently continued the eunuch, "must betwelve cubits by six; there must be six benches of sandal-wood andivory; the bedsteads must be inlaid; the windows must be framed andfitted perfectly."
"Fitted!" I rejoined: "have I not told you already that you mayfurnish and adorn the cabins as you will: their size, their positionmust rest with me: in such matters my authority is supreme. You maytell your royal master from me that adequate accommodation shallbe provided, but that with my arrangements no one is at liberty tointerfere."
The eunuch looked aghast at my temerity; but he seemed somehow tocomprehend that I was not to be trifled with. He muttered a few wordsto the effect that I had better see that everything was duly done,and without a word or gesture of leave-taking, turned on his heel andsauntered leisurely away. I watched him for a moment, and turning toHimilco, who had been near enough to overhear the conversation, Isaid:
"Unless I r
eckon badly, that fellow will give us some trouble beforewe have done with him."
"Ah, no; I'll take care of that," said Himilco. "Sooner than thepainted hound should interfere with us too much, I'd have a rope tohis heels, and he should dangle, head in the water, all the way fromJoppa to Tarshish. 'Tis not for us to permit ourselves to be treatedlike dogs."
"No," said I; "but maybe, all will go well; Moloch will be ourguardian; and once at sea we shall not fail to secure the protectionof our Ashtoreth. To tell you the truth, I am really far moreapprehensive about Hanno's pranks with Bodmilcar."
"We must hope for the best," replied Himilco. "Bodmilcar will be onboard the gaoul, and we will contrive for Hanno to come with us inone of the galleys."
"True," I assented; "it is indispensable that they should beseparated. But with regard to this eunuch's requirements; I hardlysee whether it will be better to provide the cabins in the gaoul,as being the more roomy, or to have them under my own supervision.Plague upon the slave and eunuch both!"
At that moment Hanno come up, with his roll of papyrus in his hand,and caught the tenor of our conversation.
"A slave and an eunuch to go!" he exclaimed. "Surely the charge ofthem ought to fall to _my_ lot. Such duties ever belong to a scribe.Besides, I have made some progress in the studies of a magician;and better even than a magician I could humour their fancies, andunderstand their likes and dislikes."
I expressed my opinion that they would have enough of magicians inEgypt whither they were going, and resolved that I would keep themunder my own eye.
"There's an end then to all my pretty scheme of teaching themcalligraphy, rhetoric, and what not," said Hanno, smiling. "I mustfall back, I see, upon my own accounts."
He unfolded his roll, and submitted to me his reckoning of the amountthat would be requisite to pay our sailors and our oarsmen, at thesame time handing me his statement of the sums that had already beenexpended in the purchase of the goods for barter.
The outlay far exceeded the golden talent, the thousand shekels,which the King had advanced. He had, however, commissioned me tospare no expense, and had promised to meet all reasonable demands, sothat I felt no uneasiness, but sent Hanno straight to the palace toexhibit the accounts and to ask for a further grant. The request wasmost generously met.
Meanwhile, Himilco and I continued to employ ourselves in havingplanks of fir from Senir[20] fitted to the flanks of our vessels, andin rigging our heavy masts of oak with yard-arms of cedar.
[20] Senir, in Libanus, now Djebel Sannin.
Our work progressed to our entire satisfaction. The _Gadita_ wasrepaired and entirely refitted; the figure-head, an immense horse,was illuminated with dazzling enamel eyes; the sides of the vesselwere painted red upon a black ground; and twelve shields of bronze,each glowing in the centre with a polished copper boss, were hungoutside.
After everything had been completed, I obtained permission forthe _Gadita_ to be conducted with great ceremony, to the music oftrumpets and cymbals, into the basin of the harbour. For the occasionthe naval suffect lent me a large purple sail, reserved expressly forstate festivities; twelve armed sailors, lance in hand, stood behindthe shields of bronze; and twenty-two oarsmen, plying their oarsin regular cadence, made the ship glide swiftly through the water.Gisgo, the helmsman, from his station in the stern, deftly wieldedthe tiller, according to the directions of Himilco, whose place wasat the prow. Bodmilcar, Hanno, and myself were upon the poop. We wereall of us in state attire, and were conscious of a keen enjoyment ofthe admiring gaze of the crowds of sailors who thronged, not only theadjacent quays, but the terraces of the arsenal and of the admiraltypalace, and watched our manœuvres. The naval suffect was himselfone of the spectators; he was seated at the grand entrance of thepalace, just above the flight of steps that led down to his officialwharf. So pleased he was with the appearance of the _Gadita_, thathe invited all the officers to sup with him in the evening, and senta sheep, a large jar of wine, two baskets of bread, a supply of figsand raisins, and twelve cheeses, for the entertainment of our sailors.
Arrived at the palace, we passed up the narrow staircases and dimcorridors of the eastern tower, and found ourselves in a largeround room with a lofty dome, from the centre of which there hunga polished copper lamp. The suffect paid us many compliments; and,on learning that we should be ready for our outfit within ten days,he gave me permission to go next morning and to choose whatever armswould be requisite for the expedition.
After our entertainment we embarked from the suffect's private wharf,intending to return, all of us, to our own quarters on shore; butall at once Bodmilcar declared himself so enamoured of the _Gadita_,that he resolved to sleep alone on board. As our boat was silentlythreading its way along the canal that intersected the mainland,cutting off an island by its course, Hanno commenced singing in aforeign language. My attention was arrested, and I asked him whatlanguage it was. He replied that it was Ionian, and expressed hissurprise that I did not understand it.
"No," I answered; "it is strange to me. I have sailed but rarelyalong those coasts. But haven't you done with the Ionians yet?"
"Oh, Bodmilcar is not here to get in a rage, and we have not got theslave amongst us to be affected by any songs of mine."
"The slave!" I exclaimed with wonder. "I did not imagine that theslave would care for your songs. Is she an Ionian?"
Hanno laughed, and made me no answer; but after a while he yielded tomy persuasion, and made me acquainted with all he knew.
"Hazael the eunuch," he said, "is a chattering fool. When I wentto the palace I saw him, and wormed out of him that the slave inquestion had been brought from some Chaldean merchants, and that shehad been originally carried away from her own country by a Tyrianpirate, so that the whole truth was not hard to guess."
"Not a word of this," I said; "not a word to Bodmilcar. More thanever it makes me resolve to have both eunuch and slave on board myown galley; otherwise I foresee there will be no end of mischief.Neither you nor Himilco must breathe a syllable until we have seenour unwelcome passengers securely landed at their destination."
Each promised faithfully to preserve the strictest reticence: Hanno,for his part, vehemently asseverating that if a word upon the mattershould escape him, he would forthwith cut off his tongue, and devotehimself to Horus, the Egyptian god of silence.
As we now reached our lodging, the conversation dropped, and for thenext few days we were far too much engaged in active duties to thinkany further of what had transpired.
I gave my own personal superintendence to the weaving of all thesails, which were made strictly after the directions prescribed bythe goddess Tannat.[21] I saw that my ropes were well twisted andthoroughly tarred; and I arranged the benches for my oarsmen withsuch compactness that there was only an interval of a hand's breadthbetween the seat of the rower on the upper tier and the head of theman in the tier below.
[21] The Grecian _Tamith_; according to the Phœnician legend, she was the inventor of sails.
To give extra strength to the masts and yards, I had them bound atregular distances with bands of ox-hide, and finally I had the entirehulls plated with sheets of copper, fastened together with bolts ofbronze.
Never had prouder ships been launched upon the Great Sea.[22]
[22] The Mediterranean.