CHAPTER XXV.
A great number of persons had collected during the night on the quaynear Nesptah's inn. The crowd was increasing every minute, and in spiteof the intense heat, not a Memphite could bear to stop within doors,Men, women and children were flocking to the scene of the festival; theycame in thousands from the neighboring towns, hamlets and villages,to witness the unprecedented sacrifice which was to put an end tothe misery of the land. Who had ever heard of such a marriage? What aprivilege, what a happiness, to be so fortunate as to see it!
The senate had not been idle and had done all in their power to surroundit with magnificence and to enable as many as possible to enjoythe pageant, which had been planned with a lavish hand and liberalmunificence.
Round the cove by Nesptah's inn a semi-circular wooden stand had beenconstructed, on which thousands found seats or standing-room. Stallsfurnished with hangings were erected in the middle of the tribune forthe authorities and their families as well as for the leading Arabofficials, and arm-chairs were placed in them for the Vekeel, for theKadi, for the head of the senate, for old Horapollo and also for theChristian priesthood, though it was well known that they would not bepresent at the ceremony.
The lower classes, who could not afford to pay for admission to theseseats, had established themselves on the banks of the river; wanderingdealers had followed them, and wherever the crowd was densest they haddisplayed their wares--light refreshments or solid food--on two-wheeledtrucks, or on little carpets spread on the ground. In the tribune itselfthe cries of the water-sellers were incessant as they offered filteredNile water and fruit syrups for sale.
The parched tops of the palms, where turtle doves, lapwings andsparrow-hawks were wont to perch, were crowded with the vagabond boys ofthe town, who whiled away the time by pulling the withered and diseaseddates from the great clumps and flinging them down on the bystandersbelow, till the guard took aim at them with their arrows and stopped thegame.
The centre of attraction to all eyes was a wooden platform or pontoon,built far out into the stream; from thence the bride was to be flunginto the watery embrace of the expectant bridegroom. Here the mastersof the ceremonies had put forth their best efforts, and it wasmagnificently decorated with hangings and handkerchiefs, palm-leaves andflags; with heavy garlands of tamarisk and willow, mingled with brightblossoms of the lotos and mallow, lilies and roses; with devicesemblematic of the province, and other gilt ornaments. Only the furthestend of it was unadorned and without even a railing, that there might benothing to intercept the view of the "marriage."
Three hours before noon none were absent but those whose places weresecured, and ere long curiosity brought them also to the spot. Thetown-watch found it required all their efforts to keep the front ranksof the people from being pushed into the river by those behind; indeed,this accident could not be everywhere guarded against; but, thanks tothe shallow state of the water, no one was the worse. But the cries ofthose who were in danger nevertheless drowned the music of the bandsperforming on raised platforms and the shouts of applause which roseon all sides to hail Horapollo--who was here, there, everywhere on hiswhite ass as brisk as a lad--or to greet some leading official.
And now and again loud cries of anguish were heard, or theclosely-packed throng parted with exclamations of horror. A citizen hadhad a sunstroke, or had been seized by the plague. Then the fugitivesdragged others away with them; screaming mothers trying to save theirlittle ones from the crush on one hand and the contagion on the other,oversetting one dealer's truck, smashing the eggs and cakes of another.A whole party were pushed into a deep but half-dried up water-course;the guardians of the peace flourished their staves, yelling and makingtheir victims yell in their efforts to restore order--but all thishardly affected the vast body of spectators, and suddenly peace reigned,the confusion subsided, the shrieks were silenced. Those who were doomedmight fall or die, be crushed or plague-stricken. Trumpet calls andsinging were heard approaching from the town: the procession, the Bridalprocession was coming! Not a man but would have perished rather than bedeprived of seeing a single act of this stupendous drama.
Those Arabs--what fools they were! Besides the Vekeel only three oftheir magnates were present, and those men whom no one knew. Even theKadi was nowhere to be seen; and he must have forbidden the Moslem womento come, for not a single veiled beauty of the harem was visible. Notone Egyptian woman would have failed to appear if the plague had notkept so many imprisoned in their houses. Such a thing would neverbe seen again; this day's doings would be a tale to tell to futuregreat-grandchildren!
The music and singing came nearer and nearer; and it did not indeedsound as if it were escorting a hapless creature to a fearful end. Blastafter blast rang out from the trumpets, filling the air with festivedefiance; cheerful bridal songs came nearer and nearer to the listeners,the shrill chorus of boys and maidens sounding above the deeper andstronger chant of youths and men of all ages; flutes piped a gayinvitation to gladness; the dull roar of drums muttered like the distantwaves in time to a march, broken by the clang of cymbals and the tinkleof bells hung around tambourines held high by girlish hands whichstruck, rattled and waved them above their flowing curls; lute playersdiscoursed sweet music on the strings; and as this vast tide of mingledtones came closer, behind it there was still more music and more song.
To the ear the procession seemed endless, and the eye soon confirmed theimpression.
All were listening, gazing, watching to see the Bride and her escort.Every eye seemed compelled to turn in the same direction; and presentlythere came: first the trumpeters on spirited horses, and these rangedthemselves on each side of the road by the shore leading to the scene ofthe "marriage." In front of them the choir of women took their standto the left and, on the right, the men who had marched after them.All alike were arrayed in light sea-green garments, and loaded withlotos-flowers. The women's hair, twined with white blossoms, flowed overtheir shoulders; the men carried bunches of papyrus and reeds;--theyrepresented river gods that had risen from the stream.
Then came boys and bearded men, in white robes, with panther-skins ontheir shoulders, as the heathen priests had been wont to wear them. Theywere headed by two old men with long white beards, one holding a silvercup and the other a golden one, ready to fling them into the waves asa first offering, according to the practise of their forefathers, asHorapollo had described and ordered it. These went on to the pontoon,to its farthest end, and took their place on one side of the platformwhence the Bride was to be cast into the river. Behind them came a largetroop of flute-players and drummers, followed by fifty maidens holdingtambourines, and fifty men all dressed and carrying emblems as followersof Dionysus, or Osiris-Bacchus, who had been worshipped here in the timeof the Romans; with these came the drunken Silenus, goathoofed Satyrsand Pan, with his reed-pipes, all riding grey asses strangely bedaubedwith yellow.
Then followed giraffes, elephants, ostriches, antelopes, gazelles; evensome tamed lions and panthers were led past the wondering crowd; forthis had been done in the famous procession in honor of the secondPtolemy, described by Callixenus of Rhodes.
Next came a large car drawn by twelve black horses, and on it asymbolical group of Famine and Pestilence overthrown; they weresurrounded by shrieking black children, with pointed wings on theirshoulders and horns on their foreheads, bound to stakes to represent thehosts of hell--a performance which they tried to make at once ghastlyand droll.
On another car the Goddess of the Inundation was to be seen. She satamid sheaves, fruits, and garlands of vine; while round her were groupsof children with apples and corn, pomegranates and bunches of dates,wine-jars and cups in their hands.
Presently there appeared in a large shell, as though lounging in a bath,the goddess of health; she was drawn by eight snow-white horses, andheld in one hand a golden goblet and in the other a caduceus. After hercame the river-god Nile, the bridegroom of the marriage, studied fromthe famous statue carried away from Alexandria by the Romans: asplend
id and mighty bearded man, resting against an urn. Sixteen nakedchildren--the sixteen ells that the river must rise for its overflow tobless the land--played round his herculean form, and a bridal wreath oflotos-flowers crowned his flowing locks. This car, which was decoratedwith crocodiles, sheaves, dates, grapes, and shells, was hailed withshouts of enthusiasm; it was escorted by old men in the costume of theheathen priesthood.
Behind this came more music and singers, with a troop of young menand maidens led by lute-players singing. These too were dressed as thegenie, and nymphs of the river and were the groomsmen and bridesmaids inattendance on the betrothed.
The longer the procession lasted and the nearer the looked-for victimapproached, the more eagerly attent were the gazing multitude.
When this group of youths and maidens had gone by, there was hardly asound to be heard in the tribune and among the crowd. No one felt thefierce heat of the sun, no one heeded the thirst that parched everytongue; all eyes were bent in one direction; only the black Vekeel,whose colossal form towered up where he stood, occasionally sent asinister and anxious glance towards the town. He expected to see smokerising from the quarter near the prison, and suddenly his lips partedand he displayed his dazzlingly white teeth in a scornful laugh. Thatwhich he looked for had come to pass; the little grey cloud which hediscerned grew blacker, and then, in the heart of it, rose a crimsonglow which did not take its color from the sun. But of all thosethousands he was the only one who looked behind him and observed it.
The bride's attendants had by this time taken their station on thepontoon; here came another band of youths with panther skins on theirshoulders; and now--at last, at last--a car came swaying along, drawnby eight coal-black oxen dressed with green ostrich-feathers andwater-plants.
The car was shaded by a tall canopy, supported by four poles, againstwhich leaned four men in the robes of the heathen priesthood; thisawning was lavishly decorated with wreaths of lotos and reeds, andfenced about with papyrus, bulrushes, tall grasses and blossomingriver-weeds. Beneath it sat the queen of the festival--the Bride of theNile.
Robed in white and closely veiled, she was quite motionless. Her long,thick brown hair fell over her shoulders; at her feet lay a wreath, andrare rose-colored lotos-flowers were strewn on the car.
The bishop had been sitting at her side, the first Christian priest,certainly, of all the swarms of monks and ecclesiastics in Memphis, whohad ever appeared at such a scene of heathen abomination. He was nowstanding, looking down at the crowd with a deeply knit brow and menacinggaze. What good had come of the penitential sermons in all thechurches, of his and his vicar's warnings and threats? In spite of allremonstrance he had mounted the car with the condemned victim, afteradministering the last consolations to her soul. It might cost him hislife, but he would keep his promise.
In her hand Paula held two roses: one was Orion's last greetingdelivered by Martina; the other Pulcheria had brought her early in themorning. Yesterday, in a lucid moment, her dying father had given herhis fondest blessing, little knowing what hung over her; to-day he hadnot come to himself, and had neither noticed nor returned her partingkiss. Quite unconscious, he had been moved from the prison out of doorsand to the house of Rufinus. Dame Joanna would not forego the privilegeof giving him a resting-place and taking care of him till the end.
Orion's last note was placed in Paula's hands just before she set out;it informed her that his task was now successfully ended. He had beentold that it was to-morrow, and not to-day, that the hideous act wouldbe accomplished; and it was a consolation to her to know that he wasspared the agony of following her in fancy in her fearful progress.
She had allowed the women who came to clothe her in bridal array toperform their task; among them was Emau, the chief warder's wife,and her overflowing compassion had done Paula good. But even in theprison-yard she had felt it unendurable to exhibit herself decked in herbridal wreaths to the gaping multitude; she had torn them from her andthrown them on the ground.
How long--how interminably long--had the road to the river appeared; butshe had never raised her eyes to look at the curious crowd, never ceasedlifting up her heart in prayer; and when her proud blood boiled, ordespair had almost taken possession of her, she had grasped the bishop'shand and he had never wearied of encouraging her and exhorting her tocling to love and faith, and not even yet abandon all hope.
Thus they at last reached the pontoon at whose further end life wouldbegin for her in another world. The shouts of the crowd were as loud,as triumphant, as expectant as ever; music and singing mingled with theroar of thousands of spectators; she allowed herself to be lifted fromthe car as though she were stunned, and followed the young men andmaidens who formed the bridal train, and in alternate choruses sang thefinest nuptial song of Sappho the fair Lesbian.
The bishop now made an attempt to address the people, but he was soonreduced to silence. So he once more joined Paula, and hand in hand theywent on to the pier.
All she had in her of strength, pride, and heroic courage she summonedto her aid to enable her to walk these last few paces with her headerect, and without tottering; she had gone half way along the woodenstructure, with a mien as lofty and majestic as though she were marchingto command the obedience of the mob, when hoofs came thundering afterher on the boards.
Old Horapollo, on his white ass, had overtaken her and stopped her onher road. Breathless, bathed in perspiration, scornful and triumphant,he desired her to remove her veil, and ordered the bishop to leave herand give up his place to the man who represented Father Nile--a giganticfarrier who followed him, somewhat embarrassed in his costume, but veryready to perform his part to the end.
The priest and Paula, however, refused to obey. At this the old man torethe veil from her face and signed to the Nile-God; he stepped forwardand assumed his rights, after bowing respectfully to the prelate--whowas forced to make way--and then led the Bride to the end of theplatform. Here the two elders who had headed the procession in honorof Bacchus, cast the gold cups as offerings into the river, and then alawyer, in the costume of a heathen priest, proceeded to expound, in awell-set speech, the meaning of this betrothal and sacrifice. He tookPaula's hand to place in that of the farrier, who made ready to cast herinto the river for which he stood proxy.
But an obstacle intervened before he could do so. A large and splendidbarge had drawn up close to the platform, and shouts were heard fromthe tribune and from the mob which had till now looked on in breathlesssuspense and profound silence:
"Susannah's barge!"
"Look at the Nile, look at the river!"
"It is the water-wagtail--Philammon's rich heiress!"
"A pretty sight!"
"Another Bride--a second Bride!"
And the gaze of the multitude was now, as one eye, fixed on Katharina.
Susannah's handsome barge had been passing up and down near the platformfor the last hour, and the guards on duty had several times desired thatit was to be kept at a distance from the scene of the "marriage;" butin vain; and they in their little boats were not strong enough to takeactive measures against the larger vessel manned by fifty rowers. Ithad now steered quite close to the pontoon, and the splendid gildingand carving, the tall deck-house supported on silver pillars, and thecrimson embroidered sails would have been a gorgeous feast for the eye,but that the black flag floating from the mast gave it a melancholy andgloomy aspect.
Within the cabin Katharina had made her waiting-women dress her inwhite and deck her with white flowers-myrtle, roses and lotos; but shevouchsafed no reply to their anxious enquiries.
The maid who fastened the flowers on her bosom could feel her mistress'sheart beating under her hand, and the lotos-blossoms which drooped fromher shoulder rose and fell as though they were already rocking on thewaves of the Nile. Her lips, too, never ceased moving, and her cheekswere as pale as death.
"What is she going to do?" her attendants asked each other.
Her mother dead only yesterday, and now she chose to be
present at thisceremonial, desiring the steersman to run close to the platform and keepnear to it, where all the world could see her. But she evidently wishedto display herself to the people in all her finery and be admired, forshe presently went up on the roof of the deck-house. And she lookedlovely, as lovely as a guileless angel, as she mounted the stepswith childlike diffidence-timidly, but with wide open eyes, as thoughsomething grand was awaiting her there--something she had long yearnedfor with her whole heart.
Anubis had to help her up the last steps, for her knees gave way; butonce at the top she sent him down again to remain below with the others,as she wished to be alone. The lad was accustomed to obey; and Katharinanow stepped on a seat close to the side of the boat, turned to Paula,whom she was now rapidly approaching, and held out to her and the bishoptwo tall lily-stems covered with splendid blossoms. At the very momentwhen the farrier was measuring by eye the distance between the platformand the barge, and had judged it impossible to cast the Bride into thestream till the vessel had moved on, Katharina cried out:
"Reverend Father John--and all of you! Take me, me and not the daughterof Thomas! It is I, not she--I am the true Bride of the Nile. Of my ownfree will--hear me, John!--of my own free will I am ready to give mylife for my hapless land and the misery of the people, and the patriarchsaid that such a sacrifice as mine would be acceptable to Heaven.Farewell! Pray for me!--Lord have mercy upon me! Mother, dear Mother, Iam coming to you!"
Then she called to the steersman: "Put out from the platform!" and assoon as a few strokes of the oars had carried the barge into the deeperchannel she stepped nimbly on to the edge of the bulwark, dropped thelilies into the river, and then with a smile, her head gracefully benton one side and her skirt modestly held round her, she slipped into thewater.
The waves closed over her; but she was a good swimmer and could not helpcoming once to the surface. Her expression was that of a bather enjoyingthe cool fresh water that laved and gurgled round her. Perhaps thewild storm of applause, the mingled cries of horror, compassion andthanksgiving that went up from the assembled thousands once more reachedher ear--but she dived head foremost to rise no more.
The "River-God," a good-hearted man, who in his daily life could neverhave let a fellow-creature drown under his very eyes, forgot his part,released Paula, and sprang after Katharina, as did Anubis and a fewboatmen; but they could not reach her, and the boy, who found swimmingdifficult with his crippled leg followed the girl to whom his youngheart was wholly devoted to a watery death.
Her speech had reached no ears but those to whom it was addressed; butbefore she was lost in the waters Bishop John turned to the people, tookPaula's hand--and she felt free once more when her terrible bridegroomhad deserted her--and holding up the Crucifix which hung at his girdlehe shouted loudly:
"Behold the desires of our holy Father Benjamin, by whom God himselfspeaks to you, have met with fulfilment. A pure and noble Jacobitemaiden, of her own free and beautiful impulse, has sacrificed herselfafter the example of the Saviour, for the sufferings of her nation,before your eyes. This one," and he drew Paula to him, "this one isfree; the Nile has had his victim!"
But almost before he had done speaking--before the people could proclaimtheir vote--Horapollo had rushed at him and interrupted him. He haddismounted from his ass during the earlier part of the proceedings, and,not to let his prey escape, he now came between Paula and the bishop,grasped her dress and cried to the chorus of youths:
"Come on--at once! One of you take the part of the Nile-God--into theriver with the Bride!" The bishop however forced himself between thespeaker and the girl to protect her. But Horapollo flew into a fury andrushed at the prelate to snatch away the image of the Saviour, whileJohn exclaimed in a voice of ominous thunder: "Anathema!"
This word of fear roused the Christian blood in the Egyptians; thesacrilegious attempt stirred the zeal which they had proved in many astruggle, and which had only been kept under by an effort during thesetimes of trouble: the leader of the choir dragged the old man away andtook part with the bishop. Others followed his example, while several,on the contrary, sided with old Horapollo who clung tightly to Paula,preferring to die himself rather than allow her to escape his hatred andvengeance.
At this moment the clang of bells was heard from the town with aterrific and unaccountable uproar, and a young man was seen forcing hisway through the throng, a naked sword in his hand, and in spite of historn garments, his wild hair, and his blackened face, he was at oncerecognized as Orion. Every one made way for him, for he rushed on like amadman; as he reached the pontoon and took in at a glance what wasgoing forward there, he sprang past the mummers with mighty leaps to theplatform, pushing aside sundry groups of fighting champions; and beforethe principal actors were aware of his presence, he had snatched Paulafrom the old man's clutch, and called her by her name. She sank on hisbreast half-fainting with terror, surprise and unspeakable rapture, andhe clasped her to him with his left arm, while the flashing sword in hisright hand and his flaming looks warned all bystanders that it wouldbe as wise to attack a lioness defending her young as to defy thisdesperate man, who was prepared to face death with the woman he loved.
His push had sent Horapollo tottering to some distance; and when theold man had pulled himself together, to throw himself once more onhis victim, he found himself the centre of a fight. A wild troop hadfollowed Orion and beset the struggling mob, whom they presently droveover the edge of the pontoon into the river, and with them Horapollo.Most of these saved themselves by swimming, but the old man sank, andnothing more was seen of him but his clenched fist, which rose in menacefor some minutes above the waters.
Meanwhile the Vekeel had become aware of what was going forward on theplatform; he leaped in fury from his seat to restore order, intendingto seize Orion whom he fancied he had seen, or, if necessary to cut himdown with his own hand.
But a vast multitude stopped his progress, for a fearful horde ofreleased prisoners with Orion at their head had come rushing down to thescene of the festival yelling: "Fire! the prison is burning, the town isin flames!"
Every one who could run fled at once to Memphis to save his house, hispossessions and those dear to him. Like a flock of doves scared bythe scream of a hawk, like autumn leaves driven before the wind, themultitude dispersed. They hurried back to the town in wild tumult andinextricable confusion, jumping into the festal cars, cutting loose thehorses from that of the goddess of health, to mount them and ride home,overthrowing everything that stood in their way and dragging back theVekeel who was striving, sword in hand, to get to the pontoon.
The smoke and flames of the city were rising every moment, and actedlike magic in spurring the flying crowd to reach their homes in time.But, before Obada had succeeded in his efforts, the pushing throng wereonce more brought to a standstill; horses were heard approaching. Densemasses of dust hid them and their riders; but it was certainly an armedtroop that was coming clattering onwards, for flashing gleams wereseen here and there through the dull clouds that shrouded them, thereflection of the sun's bright rays from polished and glitteringhelmets, breast-plates, and sabres.
Now they were visible even where the Vekeel was. Foremost rode the Kadi,and just as he came up with Obada he sprang from the saddle on to thewooden structure, and with a loud cry of: "Free-saved!" in which allthe joy of his heart found utterance, he stretched out both his hands toPaula, who was advancing towards the shore clinging closely to Orion.
Othman did not observe the Vekeel, who was but a few paces distant.The words "Free!" "Saved!" from the supreme judge, gave the negro tounderstand that a pardon must have arrived for his youthful foe, andthis of course implied the condemnation of his own proceedings. All hishopes were wrecked, for this meant that Omar still ruled and that theattempt on the Khaliff's life had failed. Dismissal, punishment or deathmust be his doom, when Amru should return. Still, he would not succumbtill the instrument of his ruin had preceded him to the grave. Takingthe Kadi by surprise he thrust him asid
e, and prepared to deal a fearfulblow that should fell Orion before he himself should fall. But thecaptain of the body-guard, who had followed Othman, had watched hismovements: Swift as lightning he rose in his saddle and swung hiscimeter, which cut deep into the Vekeel's neck. With a hideous curseObada let his arm drop, and fell struggling for his last breath at thefeet of the newly united couple.
The populace afterwards declared that his blood was not red like that ofother men, but black like his skin and his soul. They had good cause tocurse his memory, for his villainy had reduced more than half Memphis toashes that day, and brought the city to beggary.
He had hired two venial wretches to set fire to the prison while thefestival was proceeding, with a view to suffocating Orion in his cell;but the gang were detected and all the prisoners were released in time.Thus the young man had been able to reach the scene of the ceremonial atthe head of his fellow-captives. The fire, however, had gained the upperhand in the deserted town. It had spread from house to house along thesun-scorched streets, and next day nothing remained of the city of thePyramids but the road along the shore, and a few wretched alleys.The ancient Capital of the Pharaohs was reduced to a village, and thehouseless residents moved across to the eastern bank, to people asMoslems the newly-founded town of Fostat, or sought a home on Christianterritory.
Among the houses that had escaped was that of Rufinus, and thither theKadi escorted Orion and Paula. It was to serve as their prison till thereturn of Amru, and there they spent delightful days in the society oftheir friends, and there Thomas was so happy as to clasp his children tohis heart once more, and bless them before he died.
A few minutes before the Kadi had reached the scene of the festival twocarrier pigeons had arrived, each bearing the Arab governor's commandsthat the sacrifice of Paula was at any rate to be stopped, and her lifespared till his return. He also reserved the right of deciding Orion'sfate.
Mary and Rustem had met Amru at Berenice, on the Egyptian coast ofthe Red Sea. This decaying sea-port was connected with Medina by apigeon-post, and in reply to his viceroy's enquiry with reference to thevictim about to be offered by the despairing Egyptians to the Nile, Omarhad sent a reply which had been immediately forwarded to the Kadi.
The burning of their town had brought new and fearful suffering on thestricken Memphites, and notwithstanding Katharina's death the Nile stilldid not rise. The Kadi therefore once more summoned a meeting of allthe inhabitants from both sides of the river, three days after theinterrupted marriage-festival. It was held under the palms by Nesptah'sinn, and there he proclaimed to the multitude, Moslem and Christian,by means of the Arab herald and Egyptian interpreter, what the Khaliffcommanded him to declare, namely: that God, the One, the All-merciful,scorned human sacrifice. In this firm conviction he, Omar, would beseechAllah the Compassionate, and he sent a letter which was to be cast intothe river in his name.
And this letter was addressed:
"To the River of Egypt." And its contents were as follows:
"If thou, O River, flowest of thyself, then swell not; but if it be God,the One, the Compassionate, that maketh thee to flow, then we entreatthe All-merciful that he will bid thee rise!"
"That which is not of God," wrote Amru in the letter which enclosedOmar's, "what shall it profit men? But all things created are by Him,and so is your noble river. The Most High will hearken to Omar's prayersand ours, and I therefore command that all of you--Moslems, Christians,and Jews, shall gather together in the Mosque on the other side of theNile which I have built to the glory of the All-merciful, and that youthere lift up your souls in one great common prayer, to the end that Godmay hear you and take pity on your sufferings!"
And the Kadi bid all the people to go across the Nile and they obeyedhis bidding. Bishop John called on his clergy and marched at their head,leading the Christians; the priests and elders of the Jews led theirpeople next to the Jacobites; and side by side with these the Moslemsgathered in the magnificent pillared sanctuary of Amru, where the threecongregations of different creeds lifted up, their hearts and eyes andvoices to the pitying Father in Heaven.
And this very Mosque of Amru has more than once been the scene of thesame sublime spectacle; even within the lifetime and before the eyesof the narrator of this tale have Moslems, Christians, and Jews unitedthere in one pious prayer, which must have been acceptable indeed in theears of the Lord.
Not long after the letter from the Khaliff Omar had been cast into theNile, and the prayer of the united assembly had gone up to Heaven fromthe Mosque of Armu, a pigeon came in announcing a sudden rise in thewaters at the cataracts; and after some still anxious but hopeful daysof patience, the Nile swelled higher and yet higher, overflowed itsbanks, and gave the laborer a right to look forward to a rich harvest;and then, when a heavy storm of rain had laid the choking dust, theplague, too, disappeared.
Just when the river was beginning to rise perceptibly Amru returned;bringing in his train little Mary and Rustem, Philippus the leech andHaschim, who had joined the governor's caravan at Djidda.
In the course of their journey they received news of all that had beenhappening at Memphis, and when the travellers were approaching theirlast night-quarters, and the Pyramids were already in sight, thegovernor said to little Mary:
"What do you say little one? Do we not owe the Memphites the treat of asplendid marriage festival?"
"No, my lord, two," replied the child.
"How is that?" laughed Amru, "You are too young and do not count yet,and I know no other maiden in Memphis whose wedding I should care toprovide for."
"But there is a man towards whom you feel most kindly, and who lives aslonely as a recluse. I should like to see him married, and at the sametime as Orion and Paula. I mean our good friend Philippus."
"The physician? And is he still unwed?" asked Amru in surprise; for noMoslem of the leech's age and position could remain unmarried withoutexposing himself to the contempt of his fellow-believers. "He is awidower then!"
"No," replied Mary. "He has never yet found a wife to suit him; but Iknow one created on purpose for him by God himself!"
"You little Khatbe!"--[A professional go-between]--cried the governor."Well, settle the matter, and it shall be no fault of mine if the secondwedding lacks magnificence."
"And we will have a third!" interrupted the child, clapping her handsand laughing. "My worthy escort Rustem....
"The colossus! Why, child, to you all things are possible! Have youfound a wife for him too?"
"No, he found Mandane for himself without my help."
"It is the same thing!" cried the governor jovially. "I will provide forher. But that must satisfy you, or else all those unbelievers whom weare settling here will drive us Moslem Arabs out of the land."
The great man had often held such discourse as this with the child sinceshe had entered his tent at Berenice, there to lay before him the caseof the couple she loved, and for whom she had taken on herself greatrisk and hardship; she had pleaded so eloquently, so kindly, and withsuch fervent and pathetic words, that Amru had at once made up hismind to grant her everything that lay in his power. Mary had done him aservice, too, by bringing him the information she could give him, forit enabled him to avert perils which threatened the interests of theCrescent, and also to save the children of two men he honored--the sonof the Mukaukas, and the daughter of Thomas--from imminent danger.
He found, on his return home, that the Vekeel's crimes far exceeded hisworst fears. Obada's proceedings had begun to undermine that respect forArab rule and Moslem justice which Amru had done his utmost to secure.It was only by a miracle that Orion had escaped his plots, for he hadthree times sent assassins to the prison, and it was entirely owing tothe watchful care of pretty Emau's husband that the youth had been ableto save himself in the fire. Obada had done all this to clear out of hispath the hated man whose statements and impeachments might ruin him.The wretch had met a less ignominious death than his judges wouldhave granted him. The wealth found hoarded in his
dwelling was sentto Medina; and even Orion was forced to see the vast sums of which theNegro had plundered his treasury, appropriated by the Arabs. The Arabgovernor thought it only right to inflict this penalty for the sharehe had taken in the rescue of the nuns; and the young man submittedwillingly to a punishment which restored him and his bride to freedom,and enabled Amru to apply a larger proportion of the revenues of hisnative land for its own benefit.
The Khaliff Omar, however, never received these moneys, whichconstituted far more than half of Orion's patrimony. The Prophet'struest friend, the wise and powerful ruler, fell by the assassin'shand, and the world now learnt that the Vekeel had been one of the chiefconspirators and had been spurred on to the rashest extremes by hisconfidence of success.
Amru received the son of the Mukaukas as a father might; after examiningthe result of his labors he found it far superior to his own efforts inthe same direction, and he charged Orion to carry out the new divisionof the country, which he confirmed excepting in a few details.
"Perform your duty and do your utmost in the future to go on as you havebegun!" cried Amru; and the young man replied:
"In this bitter and yet happy interval I have become clear on manypoints."
"And may I ask on what?" asked the governor. "I would gladly hear."
"I have discovered, my lord," replied Orion, "that there is no suchthing as happiness or unhappiness in the sense men give to the words.Life appears to each of us as we ourselves paint it. Hard times whichcome into our lives from outside are often no more than a brief nightfrom which a brighter day presently dawns--or the stab of a surgeon'sknife, which makes us sounder than before. What men call grief is, timeswithout number, a path to greater ease; whereas the ordinary happinessof mankind flows, swiftly as running waters, down from that delightfulsense of ease. Like a ship, which, when her rudder is lost, is morelikely to ride out the storm on the high seas than near the shelteringcoast, so a man who has lost himself may easily recover himself andhis true happiness in the wildest turmoil of life, but rarely and withdifficulty if his existence runs calmly on. All other blessings arecomparatively worthless if we are not upheld by the consciousness offulfilling the task of life in faithful earnest, and of cheerfullydealing with the problems it sets before us. The lost one was foundas soon as he placed his whole being and faculties at the service of ahigher duty, with God in his heart and before his eyes. I have learntfrom my own experience, and from Paula's good friends, to striveuntiringly after what is right, and to find my own weal in that ofothers.
"The sense of lost liberty is hard to bear; but leave me love, and giveme room and opportunity to prove my best powers in the service of thecommunity, even in a prison--and though I cannot be perfectly happy, forthat is impossible without freedom--I will be far happier than such anidle and useless spendthrift of time and abilities as I used to be amongthe dissipations of the capital."
"Then enjoy the consciousness of duty well performed, with liberty andlove," replied the governor. "And believe me, my friend, your father inParadise will no more grudge you all that is loveliest and best than Ido. You are on the road where every curse is turned to blessing."
The three marriages which Amru had promised to provide for, werecelebrated with due splendor.
That of Orion and Paula was a day never to be forgotten by the gay worldof Memphis. Bishop John performed the ceremony, and the young couple atonce took possession of the beautiful house left them by Katharina, thereal Bride of the Nile. If it could have been granted to her to readPaula's and Orion's hearts, and see how they held her in remembrance,she would have found that to them she was no longer the childishwater-wagtail, and that they knew how to value the sacrifice of heryoung life.
Their first beloved guest, who went with them to their new home, waslittle Mary, and she remained their dearest companion till she marriedhappily. The governess, Eudoxia, to whom also Orion offered an asylum,accompanied Mary to her own delightful home; and there at last Maryclosed her old friend's eyes, after the good woman had brought up herlittle ones, not like a hireling but as a true mother.
The Patriarch Benjamin, too, who was led by many considerations--and notleast by Katharina's will to remain on good terms with the son of theMukaukas, was a visitor to the youthful pair. Neither he nor the Churchever had reason to repent his alliance with Orion; and when Paulapresented her husband with a son, the prelate offered to be his sponsor,and named him George after his grandfather.
Orion's son, too, inherited the office of Mukaukas, when he came toman's estate, from his father who was appointed to it, but under a newArab title, shortly after his marriage.
Ere long, however, Orion, as the highest Christian authority in hisnative land, had to change his place of residence and leave Memphis,which was doomed to ruin, for Alexandria. From thence his power extendedover the whole Nile-valley, and he devoted himself to his charge with somuch zeal, fidelity, justice, and prudence, that his name was rememberedwith veneration and affection by generations long after.
Paula was the pride and joy of his life, and they lived together indevoted union to an advanced age. He regarded it as one of the duties ofhis life, to care for the woman who had made him what he was from a lostand reprobate creature, and to fill every day of her life with joy. Whenhe built his palace at Alexandria, he graced it with the inscriptionthat had been engraved on Thomas' ring: "God hath set the sweat of man'sbrow before virtue."
Philippus and his Pulcheria also found a new home in Alexandria. He hadno long wooing to do; for when, on his return, the girl of whom he hadthought constantly during his long journeying, met him for the firsttime in her mother's house and held out both her hands with trustfulwarmth of welcome, he clasped her to him and would not release her tillJoanna had given them her maternal blessing. The widow lived in theleech's house with her children and grandchildren, and often visitedher husband's grave. At length she was laid to rest by him and hissoft-hearted mother, in the cemetery of Alexandria.
Rustem, made a rich man by Orion, became a famous breeder of horses andcamels in his own country, while Mandane ruled mildly but prudently overhis possessions--which he never shared with others, though he remaineda Masdakite till he died. The first daughter his wife bore him was namedMary, and the first boy Haschim; but she would not agree to Rustem'sproposal that the second should be called Orion; she preferred to givehim the name of Rufinus, and his successors were Rustem and Philippus.
The senator and his wife were only too glad to quit Egypt. Martina,however, had the satisfaction of assisting at the marriage of herdear Heliodora on the shores of the Nile; not, indeed, to her "GreatSesostris," but to her nephew Narses, who by the young widow's devotedcare was restored, if not to perfect vigor, at any rate to veryendurable good health.
Paula's wedding gift to her was the great emerald, which had meanwhilebeen brought back again to Memphis. Justinus and Martina always remainedon terms of cordial friendship with the young Mukaukas and his wife:Nilus lived long after to perform his duties with industry and judgment;and whenever Haschim came to Alexandria there was a contest betweenOrion and Philippus, for neither would yield him to the other. ButPhilip could no longer envy his former rival the wife he had won. He hadnot, indeed, ceased to admire her; but at the same time he would say:"My comfortable little Pulcheria has not her match; our rooms would betoo small for Paula, but they suit my golden-haired girl best."
He remained unselfishly devoted to his work till the end, and, when hesaw Orion wearing himself out in energetic toil, he would often say: "Heknows now what life demands, and acts accordingly; and that is why hegrows no older, and his laugh is as winning and gay as ever. It is anhonor to be called friend by a woman who like the Bride of the Nile.saved herself from certain death, and a man who, like the youngMukaukas, has freed himself from the heaviest of all curses."
To this day the Bride of the Nile is not forgotten. Before the riverbegins to rise on the Night of Dropping the inhabitants of the town ofCairo, which grew up after the ruin of Memphi
s, on the eastern shore bythe side of Fostat, erect a figure of clay, representing a maiden form,which they call Aroosa or the Bride.
ETEXT EDITOR'S BOOKMARKS:
A knot can often be untied by daylight Abandon to the young the things we ourselves used most to enjoy Ancient custom, to have her ears cut off Caught the infection and had to laugh whether she would or no Gave them a claim on your person and also on your sorrows Hatred and love are the opposite ends of the same rod He was made to be plundered How could they find so much pleasure in such folly In whom some good quality or other may not be discovered Life is not a banquet Life is a function, a ministry, a duty Love has two faces: tender devotion and bitter aversion Of two evils it is wise to choose the lesser Old age no longer forgets; it is youth that has a short memory Prepared for the worst; then you are armed against failure Sea-port was connected with Medina by a pigeon-post Self-interest and egoism which drive him into the cave So hard is it to forego the right of hating Spoilt to begin with by their mothers, and then all the women Talk of the wolf and you see his tail Temples of the old gods were used as quarries The man who avoids his kind and lives in solitude Thin-skinned, like all up-starts in authority Those who will not listen must feel Use their physical helplessness as a defence Who can hope to win love that gives none Who can take pleasure in always seeing a gloomy face? Women are indeed the rock ahead in this young fellow's life You have a habit of only looking backwards
Thank you for reading books on BookFrom.Net Share this book with friends