CHAPTER XVIII.
The funeral rites over the body of the deceased Mukaukas were performedon the day after the morrow. Since the priesthood had forbidden the oldheathen practice of mummifying the dead, and even cremation had beenforbidden by the Antonines, the dead had to be interred soon afterdecease; only those of high rank were hastily embalmed and lay in statein some church or chapel to which they had contributed an endowment.Mukaukas George was, by his own desire, to be conveyed to Alexandriaand there buried in the church of St. John by his father's side; but thecarrier pigeon, by which the news of the governor's death had been sentto the Patriarch, had returned with instructions to deposit the body inthe family tomb at Memphis, as there were difficulties in the way of thefulfillment of his wishes.
Such a funeral procession had not been seen there within the memory ofman. Even the Moslem viceroy, the great general Amru, came over from theother side of the Nile, with his chief military and civil officers,to pay the last honors to the just and revered governor. Their brown,sinewy figures, and handsome calm faces, their golden helmets and shirtsof mail, set with precious stones--trophies of the war of destruction inPersia and Syria--their magnificent horses with splendid trappings, andthe authoritative dignity of their bearing made a great impressionon the crowd. They arrived with slow and impressive solemnity; theyreturned like a cloud driven before the storm, galloping homewards fromthe burial-ground along the quay, and then thundering and clatteringover the bridge of boats. Vivid and dazzling lightnings had flashedthrough the wreaths of white dust that shrouded them, as their goldarmor reflected the sun. Verily, these horsemen, each of them worthy tobe a prince in his pride, could find it no very hard task to subdue themightiest realms on earth.
Men and women alike had gazed at them with trembling admiration: most ofall at the heroic stature and noble dusky face of Amru, and at the sonof the deceased Mukaukas, who, by the Moslem's desire, rode at his sidein mourning garb on a fiery black horse.
The handsome youth, and the lordly, powerful man were a pair from whomthe women were loth to turn their eyes; for both alike were of nobledemeanor, both of splendid stature, both equally skilled in controllingthe impatience of their steeds, both born to command. Many a Memphitewas more deeply impressed by the head of the famous warrior, erect ona long and massive throat, with its sharply-chiselled aquiline noseand flashing black eyes, than by the more regular features and fine,slightly-waving locks of the governor's son--the last representative ofthe oldest and proudest race in all Egypt.
The Arab looked straight before him with a steady, commanding gaze;the youth, too, looked up and forwards, but turned from time to timeto survey the crowd of mourners. As he caught sight of Paula, among thegroup of women who had joined the procession, a gleam of joy passed overhis pale face, and a faint flush tinged his cheeks; his fixed outlookhad knit his brows and had given his features an expression of suchominous sternness that one and another of the bystanders whispered:
"Our gay and affable young lord will make a severe ruler."
The cause of his indignation had not escaped the notice either of hisnoble companion or of the crowd. He alone knew as yet that the Patriarchhad prohibited the removal of his father's remains to Alexandria; butevery one could see that the larger portion of the priesthood of Memphiswere absent from this unprecedented following. The Bishop alone marchedin front of the six horses drawing the catafalque on which the costlysarcophagus was conveyed to the burying-place, in accordance withancient custom:--Bishop Plotinus, with John, a learned and courageouspriest, and a few choristers bearing a crucifix and chanting psalms.
On arriving at the Necropolis they all dismounted, and the barefootedrunners in attendance on the Arabs came forward to hold the horses. Bythe tomb the Bishop pronounced a few warm words of eulogy, after whichthe thin chant of the choristers sounded trivial and meagre enough;but scarcely had they ceased when the crowd uplifted its many thousandvoices, and a hymn of mourning rang out so loud and grand that thisburial ground had scarcely ever heard the like. The remaining ceremonieswere hasty and incomplete, since the priests who were indispensable totheir performance had not made their appearance.
Amru, whose falcon eye nothing could escape, at once noted the omissionand exclaimed, in so loud and inconsiderate a voice that it could beheard even at some distance.
"The dead is made to atone for what the living, in his wisdom, did forhis country's good, hand-in-hand with us Moslems."
"By the Patriarch's orders," replied Orion, and his voice quavered,while the veins in his forehead swelled with rage. "But I swear, by myfather's soul, that as surely as there is a just God, it shall be anevil day for Benjamin when he closes the gate of Heaven against thisnoblest of noble souls."
"We carry the key of ours under our own belt," replied the general,striking his deep chest, while he smiled consciously and with a kindlyeye on the young man. "Come and see me on Saturday, my young friend; Ihave something to say to you! I shall expect you at sundown at my houseover there. If I am not at home by dusk, you must wait for me."
As he spoke he twisted his hand in his horse's mane and Orion preparedto assist him to mount; but the Arab, though a man of fifty, was tooquick for him. He flung himself into the saddle as lightly as a youth,and gave his followers the signal for departure.
Paula had been standing close to the entrance of the tomb with DameNeforis, and she had heard every word of the dialogue between the twomen. Pale, as she beheld him, in costly but simple, flowing, mourningrobes, stricken by solemn and manly indignation, it was impossiblethat she should not confess that the events of the last days had had apowerful effect on the misguided youth.
When Paula had led the grief-worn but tearless widow to her chariot,and had then returned home with Perpetua, the image of the handsome andwrathful youth as he lifted his powerful arm and tightly-clenched fistand shook them in the air, still constantly haunted her. She had notfailed to observe that he had seen her standing opposite to him by theopen tomb and she had been able to avoid meeting his eye; but her hearthad throbbed so violently that she still felt it quivering, she had notsucceeded in thinking of the beloved dead with due devotion.
Orion, as yet, had neither come near her in her peaceful retreat, norsent any messenger to deliver her belongings, and this she thought verynatural; for she needed no one to tell her how many claims there must beon his time.
But though, before the funeral, she had firmly resolved to refuse to seehim if he came, and had given her nurse fall powers to receive from hishand the whole of her property, after the ceremony this line of conductno longer struck her as seemly; indeed, she considered it no more thanher duty to the departed not to repel Orion if he should crave herforgiveness.
And there was another thing which she owed to her uncle. She desired tobe the first to point out to Orion, from Philip's point of view, thatlife was a post, a duty; and then, if his heart seemed opened to thisadmonition, then--but no, this must be all that could pass betweenthem--then all must be at an end, extinct, dead, like the fires in asunken raft, like a soap-bubble that the wind has burst, like an echothat has died away--all over and utterly gone.
And as to the counsel she thought of offering to the man she had oncelooked up to? What right had she to give it? Did he not look like a manquite capable of planning and living his own life in his own strength?Her heart thirsted for him, every fibre of her being yearned to see himagain, to hear his voice, and it was this longing, this craving to whichshe gave the name of duty, connecting it with the gratitude she owed tothe dead.
She was so much absorbed in these reflections and doubts that shescarcely heard all the garrulous old nurse was saying as she walked byher side.
Perpetua could not be easy over such a funeral ceremony as this; sodifferent to anything that Memphis had been wont to see. No priests, aprocession on horseback, mourners riding, and among them the son evenof the dead--while of old the survivors had always followed the body onfoot, as was everywhere the custom! And then a mere chirping o
f cricketsat the tomb of such illustrious dead, followed by the disorderlysqualling of an immense mob--it had nearly cracked her ears! However,the citizens might be forgiven for that, since it was all in honor oftheir departed governor!--this thought touched even her resolute heartand brought the tears to her eyes; but it roused her wrath, too, for hadshe not seen quite humble folk buried in a more solemn manner and withworthier ceremonial than the great and good Mukaukas George, who hadmade such a magnificent gift to the Church. Oh those Jacobites! Theyonly were capable of such ingratitude, only their heretical prelatecould commit such a crime. Every one in the Convent of St. Cecilia, fromthe abbess down to the youngest novice, knew that the Patriarch had sentword by a carrier pigeon forbidding the Bishop to allow the priests totake part in the ceremony. Plotinus was a worthy man, and he had beenhighly indignant at these instructions; it was not in his power tocontravene them; but at any rate he had led the procession in person,and had not forbidden John's accompanying him. Orion, however, had notlooked as though he meant to brook such an insult to his father orlet it pass unpunished. And whose arm was long enough to reach thePatriarch's throne if not.... But no, it was impossible! the merethought of such a thing made her blood run cold. Still, still.... Andhow graciously the Moslem leader had talked with him!--Merciful Heaven!If he were to turn apostate from the holy Christian faith, like somany reprobate Egyptians, and subscribe to the wicked doctrines ofthe Arabian false prophet! It was a tempting creed for shameless men,allowing them to have half a dozen wives or more without regarding itas a sin. A man like Orion could afford to keep them, of course; for theabbess had said that every one knew that the great Mukaukas was a veryrich man, though even the chief magistrate of the city could not fullysatisfy himself concerning the enormous amount of property left. Well,well; God's ways were past finding out. Why should He smother one underheaps of gold, while He gave thousands of poor creatures too little tosatisfy their hunger!
By the end of this torrent of words the two women had reached the house;and not till then was Paula clear in her own mind: Away, away with thepassion which still strove for the mastery, whether it were in deedhatred or love! For she felt that she could not rightly enjoy herrecovered freedom, her new and quiet happiness in the pretty home sheowed to the physician's thoughtful care, till she had finally given upOrion and broken the last tie that had bound her to his house.
Could she desire anything more than what the present had to offer her?She had found a true haven of rest where she lacked for nothing that shecould desire for herself after listening to the admonitions ofPhilip pus. Round her were good souls who felt with and for her, manyoccupations for which she was well-fitted, and which suited her tastes,with ample opportunities of bestowing and winning love. Then, a fewsteps through pleasant shades took her to the convent where she couldevery day attend divine service among pious companions of her own creed,as she had done in her childhood. She had longed intensely for such foodfor the spirit, and the abbess--who was the widow of a distinguishedpatrician of Constantinople and had known Paula's parents--could supplyit in abundance. How gladly she talked to the girl of the goodness andthe beauty of those to whom she owed her being and whom she had so earlylost! She could pour out to this motherly soul all that weighed on herown, and was received by her as a beloved daughter of her old age.
And her hosts--what kind-hearted though singular folks! nay, in theirway, remarkable. She had never dreamed that there could be on earth anybeings at once so odd and so lovable.
First there was old Rufinus, the head of the house, a vigorous, haleold man, who, with his long silky, snow-white hair and beard, lookedsomething like the aged St. John and something like a warrior growngrey in service. What an amiable spirit of childlike meekness he had,in spite of the rough ways he sometimes fell into. Though inclined to becontradictory in his intercourse with his fellow-men, he was merry andjocose when his views were opposed to theirs. She had never met a morecontented soul or a franker disposition, and she could well understandhow much it must fret and gall such a man to live on,--day after day,appearing, in one respect at any rate, different from what he reallywas. For he, too, belonged to her confession; but, though he sent hiswife and daughter to worship in the convent chapel, he himself wascompelled to profess himself a Coptic Christian, and submit to thenecessity of attending a Jacobite church with all his family on certainholy days, averse as he was to its unattractive form of worship.
Rufinus possessed a sufficient fortune to secure him a comfortablemaintenance; and yet he was hard at work, in his own way, from morningtill night. Not that his labors brought him any revenues; on thecontrary, they led to claims on his resources; every one knew that hewas a man of good means, and this would have certainly involved himin persecution if the Patriarch's spies had discovered him to be aMelchite, resulting in exile and probably the confiscation of his goods.Hence it was necessary to exercise caution, and if the old man couldhave found a purchaser for his house and garden, in a city where therewere ten times as many houses empty as occupied, he would long sincehave set out with all his household to seek a new home.
Most aged people of vehement spirit and not too keen intellect, adopta saying as a stop-gap or resting-place, and he was fond of using twophrases one of which ran: "As sure as man is the standard of all things"and the other--referring to his house--"As sure as I long to be quit ofthis lumber." But the lumber consisted of a well-built and very spaciousdwellinghouse, with a garden which had commanded a high price inearlier times on account of its situation near the river. He himselfhad acquired it at very small cost shortly before the Arab incursion,and--so quickly do times change--he had actually bought it from aJacobite Christian who had been forced by the Melchite Patriarch Cyrus,then in power, to fly in haste because he had found means to convert hisorthodox slaves to his confession.
It was Philippus who had persuaded his accomplished and experiencedfriend to come to Memphis; he had clung to him faithfully, and theyassisted each other in their works.
Rufinus' wife, a frail, ailing little woman, with a small face andrather hollow cheeks, who must once have been very attractive andengaging, might have passed for his daughter; she was, in fact, twentyyears younger than her husband. It was evident that she had sufferedmuch in the course of her life, but had taken it patiently and all forthe best. Her restless husband had caused her the greatest troubleand alarms, and yet she exerted herself to the utmost to make his lifepleasant. She had the art of keeping every obstacle and discomfort outof his way, and guessed with wonderful instinct what would help him,comfort him, and bring him joy. The physician declared that her stoopingattitude, her bent head, and the enquiring expression of her bright,black eyes were the result of her constant efforts to discover even astraw that might bring harm to Rufinus if his callous and restless footshould tread on it.
Their daughter Pulcheria, was commonly called "Pul" for short, to savetime, excepting when the old man spoke of her by preference as "the poorchild." There was at all times something compassionate in his attitudetowards his daughter; for he rarely looked at her without asking himselfwhat could become of this beloved child when he, who was so much older,should have closed his eyes in death and his Joanna perhaps should soonhave followed him; while Pulcheria, seeing her mother take such care ofher father that nothing was left for her to do, regarded herself as themost superfluous creature on earth and would have been ready at any timeto lay down her life for her parents, for the abbess, for her faith, forthe leech; nay, and though she had known her for no more than two days,even for Paula. However, she was a very pretty, well-grown girl, withgreat open blue eyes and a dreamy expression, and magnificent red-goldhair which could hardly be matched in all Egypt. Her father had longknown of her desire to enter the convent as a novice and become anursing sister; but though he had devoted his whole life to a similarimpulse, he had more than once positively refused to accede to herwishes, for he must ere long be gathered to his fathers and then hermother, while she survived him, would want some one else to wear
herselfout for.
Just now "Pul" was longing less than usual to take the veil; for she hadfound in Paula a being before whom she felt small indeed, and to whomher unenvious soul, yearning and striving for the highest, could look upin satisfied and rapturous admiration. In addition to this, there wereunder her own roof two sufferers needing her care: Rustem, the woundedMasdakite, and the Persian girl. Neforis, who since the fearful hour ofher husband's death had seemed stunned and indifferent to all the claimsof daily life, living only in her memories of the departed, had beenmore than willing to leave to the physician the disposal of these twoand their removal from her house.
In the evening after Paula's arrival Philippus had consulted with hisfriends as to the reception of these new guests, and the old manhad interrupted him, as soon as he raised the question of pecuniaryindemnification, exclaiming:
"They are all very welcome. If they have wounds, we will make them heal;if their heads are turned, we will screw them the right way round; iftheir souls are dark, we will light up a flame in them. If the fairPaula takes a fancy to us, she and her old woman may stay as long as itsuits her and us. We made her welcome with all our hearts; but, onthe other hand, you must understand that we must be free to bid herfarewell--as free as she is to depart. It is impossible ever to knowexactly how such grand folks will get on with humble ones, and as sureas I long to be quit of this piece of lumber I might one day take itinto my head to leave it to the owls and jackals and fare forth, staffin hand.--You know me. As to indemnification--we understand each other.A full purse hangs behind the sick, and the sound one has ten times morethan she needs, so they may pay. You must decide how much; only--for thewomen's sake, and I mean it seriously--be liberal. You know what I needMammon for; and it would be well for Joanna if she had less need toturn over every silver piece before she spends it in the housekeeping.Besides, the lady herself will be more comfortable if she contributes topay for the food and drink. It would ill beseem the daughter of Thomasto be down every evening under the roof of such birds of passage as weare with thanks for favors received. When each one pays his sharewe stand on a footing of give and take; and if either one feels anyparticular affection to another it is not strangled by 'thanks' or 'takeit;' it is love for love's sake and a joy to both parties."
"Amen," said the leech; and Paula had been quite satisfied by herfriend's arrangements.
By the next day she felt herself one of the household, though she everyhour found something that could not fail to strike her as strange.