The Pharaoh and the Priest: An Historical Novel of Ancient Egypt
Page 27
CHAPTER XXIII
In the city of Anu a series of feasts and amusements now followed. Theworthy nomarch brought the choicest wines from his cellars; from thethree neighboring provinces came the most beautiful dancers, the mostfamous musicians, the adroitest of jugglers. The prince's time wasoccupied thoroughly,--every morning reviews of troops and receptions;later feasts, spectacles, hunting, and feasts again.
But just when Ranuzer felt certain that the viceroy was tired ofquestions of administration and economy, the latter summoned him, andasked,--
"Thy province, worthiness, is among the richest in Egypt, is it not?"
"Yes, though we have had a number of hard years," replied Ranuzer; andagain his heart sank and his legs began to tremble.
"But this astonishes me," said the prince, "that year after year theincome of his holiness decreases. Canst thou not explain to me thecause of this?"
"Lord," said the nomarch, bending his head to the earth, "I see thatmy enemies have sown distrust in thy soul; whatever I might say,therefore, would not convince thee. Permit me not to speak. Better letscribes come with documents, which thou canst touch with thy hand andverify."
The prince was somewhat astonished at the unexpected outburst, but heaccepted the offer; nay, he was glad of it. He thought, of course,that the report of these scribes would explain to him the secret ofgovernment.
The next day, therefore, came the chief scribe of Hak, and with himhis assistants. They brought from ten to twenty rolls of papyruswritten on both sides. When unwound, they formed a strip three spansof a great hand in width and in length sixty paces. For the first timethe prince saw so gigantic a document, containing an inventory of oneprovince only and that for one year.
The chief scribe sat on the floor with his legs doubled under him, andbegan,--
"In the thirty-third year of the reign of his holinessMer-Amen-Rameses the Nile was late in its overflow. Earth-tillers,ascribing this misfortune to the black art of foreigners resident inthe province of Hak, fell to wrecking the houses of Hittites, Jews,and Phoenicians, during which time a number of persons were slain bythem. At command of his worthiness the nomarch, those guilty werebrought to the court; twenty-five earth-tillers, two masons, and fivesandal-makers were condemned to the quarries, one boatman wasstrangled--"
"What is that document?" interrupted the prince.
"It is the report of the court intended for the feet of his holiness."
"Put it aside, and read about the income of the treasury."
The assistants of the chief scribe folded the rejected document, andgave him others. Again the official began,--
"On the fifth day of the month Thoth six hundred measures of wheatwere brought to the granaries of the pharaoh; for these a receipt wasissued by the chief overseer.
"On the seventh day of Thoth the chief scribe discovered and verifieda statement that from the supply of the previous year one hundred andforty-eight measures of wheat had vanished. During the verificationtwo laborers stole a measure of grain and hid it among bricks. Whenthis was proven they were brought to judgment and sent to the quarriesfor raising their hands to the property of his holiness."
"But the hundred and forty-eight measures?" asked the heir.
"The mice ate them," replied the scribe, and read on.
"On the eighth day of Thoth twenty cows and eighty-four sheep weresent to the slaughter; these, at command of the overseer of oxen, wereissued to the Sparrow-Hawk regiment."
In this manner the viceroy learned day after day how much wheat,barley, beans, and lotus seed were weighed into the granaries, howmuch given out to the mills, how much stolen, and how many laborerswere condemned to the quarries for stealing. The report was sowearisome and chaotic that in the middle of the month Paofi the princegave command to stop reading.
"Tell me, chief scribe," said Rameses, "what dost thou understand fromthis? What dost thou learn from it?"
"Everything which thy worthiness commands."
And he began again at the beginning, but from memory,--
"On the fifth of the month Thoth they brought to the granaries of thepharaoh--"
"Enough!" cried the enraged prince; and he commanded the man todepart.
The scribes fell on their faces, gathered up their papyruses quickly,and bore them away in a twinkle.
The prince summoned the nomarch. He came with crossed hands, but witha calm face, for he had learned from the scribes that the viceroycould understand nothing from reports, and that he did not give ear tothem.
"Tell me, worthiness," began the heir, "do they read reports to thee?"
"Every day."
"And dost thou understand them?"
"Pardon, most worthy lord, but--could I manage a province if I did notunderstand?"
The prince was confused and fell to thinking. Could it be really thathe, Rameses, was the only incompetent? But in this case what wouldbecome of his power?
"Sit down," said he, after a while, indicating a chair to thenomarch. "Sit down and tell me how thou governest the province."
The dignitary grew pale, and the whites of his eyes turned upward.Rameses noticed this, and began explaining,--
"Do not think that I have not trust in thy wisdom. On the contrary, Iknow no man who could manage better. But I am young and curious toknow the art of government, so I beg thee to deal out to me crumbs ofthy knowledge. Thou art ruling the province--I know that. Now explainto me the process."
The nomarch drew breath and began,--
"I will relate, worthiness, the whole course of my life, so thou shaltknow how weighty my work is.
"In the morning I bathe, then I give offerings to the god Amut; next Isummon the treasurer, and ask him whether the taxes for his holinessare collected properly. When he answers yes, I praise him; when hesays that these and those people have not paid, I issue an order toimprison the disobedient. Then I summon the overseers of the royalgranaries, to learn how much grain has been delivered. If much, Ipraise them; if little, I issue an order to inflict stripes on theguilty.
"Later comes the chief scribe, and tells me which of the estates ofhis holiness needs troops, officials, and laborers, and I command tosend them in return for a receipt. When he gives out less, I praisehim; when more, I commence an investigation.
"In the afternoon come Phoenician merchants, to whom I sell wheat andbring money to the treasury of the pharaoh. Afterward I pray andconfirm the sentences of the court; toward evening the police informme of what has happened. No longer ago than the day before yesterdaypeople from my province fell upon the territory Ka and desecrated astatue of the god Sebak. I was delighted in heart, for that god is notour patron; still I condemned some of the guilty to strangulation,some of them to the quarries, and all to receive stripes.
"Hence peace and good habits prevail in my province, and the taxesflow in daily."
"Though the income of the pharaoh has decreased here also," addedRameses.
"Thou speakest truth, lord," sighed the worthy nomarch. "The priestssay that the gods are angry with Egypt because of the influx offoreigners; but I see that even the gods do not contemn gold andprecious stones brought by Phoenicians."
At that moment the priest Mentezufis, preceded by an officer inwaiting, entered the hall to beg the prince and the nomarch to apublic devotion. Both dignitaries consented, and the nomarch exhibitedso much piety that the prince was astonished. When Ranuzer left thecompany with obeisances, Rameses said to the priest,--
"Since with me, holy prophet, thou takest the place of the mostvenerable Herhor, I beg thee to explain one thing which fills my heartwith anxiety--"
"Shall I be able to explain?" asked the prophet.
"Thou wilt answer me, for thou art filled with wisdom, of which thouart the servant. But consider what I say-- Thou knowest why hisholiness sent me hither."
"He sent thee, prince, to become familiar with the wealth of thecountry and its institutions," said Mentezufis.
"I am obeying. I examine the nomarchs, I look at
the country and thepeople. I listen to reports of scribes, but I understand nothing; thispoisons my life and astounds me.
"When I have to do with the army, I know everything,--how manysoldiers there are, how many horses, chariots, which officers drink orneglect their service, and which do their duty. I know, too, what todo with an army. When on a plain there is a hostile corps, I must taketwo corps to beat it. If the enemy is in a defensive position, Ishould not move without three corps. When the enemy is undisciplinedand fights in unordered crowds against a thousand, I send five hundredof our soldiers and beat him. When the opposing side has a thousandmen with axes, and I a thousand, I rush at them and finish thosetroops, if I have a hundred men with slings in addition.
"In the army, holy father," continued Rameses, "everything is asvisible as the fingers on my hand, and to every question an answer isready which my mind comprehends. Meanwhile in the management of aprovince I not only see nothing, but there is such confusion in myhead that more than once I forget the object of my journey.
"Answer me, therefore, sincerely, as a priest and an officer: Whatdoes this mean? Are the nomarchs deceiving me, or am I incompetent?"
The holy prophet fell to thinking.
"Whether they attempt to deceive thee, worthiness," answered he, "Iknow not, for I have not examined their acts. It seems to me, however,that they explain nothing, because they themselves comprehend nothing.The nomarchs and their scribes," continued the priest, "are likedecurions in an army; each one knows his ten men and reports on them.Each commands those under him. But the decurion knows not the generalplan made by leaders of the army. The nomarchs and the scribes writedown everything that happens in their province, and lay those reportsat the feet of the pharaoh. But only the supreme council extracts fromthem the honey of wisdom."
"But that honey is just what I need," said the prince. "Why do I notget it?"
Mentezufis shook his head.
"Wisdom of the state," said he, "belongs to the priesthood; thereforeonly the man who is devoted to the gods can obtain it. Meanwhile,worthiness, though reared by priests, thou pushest thyself away fromthe temples decisively."
"How is that? Then, if I do not become a priest, will ye not explainto me?"
"There are things, worthiness, which thou mayest know even now, aserpatr, there are others which thou wilt know when thou art thepharaoh. There are still others which only a high priest may know."
"Every pharaoh is a high priest," interrupted the prince.
"Not every pharaoh. Besides, even among high priests there are gradesof difference."
"Then," cried the enraged heir, "ye hide the order of the state fromme, and I shall not be able to carry out the commands of my father?"
"What the prince needs may be known," answered Mentezufis, quietly,"for thou hast the inferior priestly consecration. Those things,however, are hidden behind the veil in temples, which no one will dareto draw aside without due preparation."
"I will draw it."
"May the gods defend Egypt from such a misfortune!" replied thepriest, as he raised both his hands. "Dost thou not know, worthiness,that a thunderbolt would kill any man who without the neededceremonies should touch the veil? Were the prince to take to thetemple any slave or condemned criminal and let him stretch out hishand, the man would die that same instant."
"For ye would kill him."
"Each one of us would die just like an ordinary criminal were he toapproach the altar sacrilegiously. In presence of the gods, my prince,a pharaoh or a priest means as little as a slave."
"What am I to do, then?" asked Rameses.
"Seek an answer to thy trouble in the temple, after thou hast purifiedthyself by prayers and fasting," answered the priest. "While Egypt isEgypt, no ruler has gained wisdom of state in another way."
"I will meditate over this," said the prince. "Though I see from thywords that the most venerable Mefres, and thou, holy prophet, wish toinvolve me in ceremonies as ye have involved my father."
"Not at all. Worthiness, if thou as pharaoh would limit thyself tocommanding the army, thou mightst take part in ceremonies a few timesa year merely, for on other occasions the high priest would be thysubstitute. But if thou wish to learn the secrets of temples, thoumust honor the gods, for they are the fountain of wisdom."