CHAPTER XVI.
UP THE NILE.
Late at night Jethro again went up to the hiding-place on the hill.Chigron had just returned from another visit to the city. He said:
"The whole of the town is in an uproar. The news that Ptylus and hisson have been found slain has been received, and the excitement istremendous. The death by violence of two high priests of Osiriswithin so short a time is regarded as a presage of some terriblenational misfortune. That one should have been slain was an almostunprecedented act--an insult of a terrible kind to the gods; but thissecond act of sacrilege has almost maddened the people. Some regard itas a judgment of Osiris, and deem that it is a proof that, as a fewventured to whisper before, the death of Ameres was brought about byan intrigue among a party of the priests, headed by Ptylus. Others seein it a fresh proof of the anger of the god against Egypt.
"The king himself will, it is said, take part in services ofpropitiation in the temple of Osiris to-morrow; sacrifices are tobe offered, they say, in all the temples. A solemn fast will beproclaimed to-morrow, and all the people, high and low, are to shavetheir eyebrows and to display the usual signs of mourning. So far Ihave heard nothing as to the fact that two girls who were in the houseare discovered to be missing, but to-morrow, when those who were inthe house are questioned by the magistrates, this fact will doubtlesscome out, and the men will own that by the orders of Ptylus theycarried Mysa away at the time the attack on the house was made.
"At present, however, there is no question of women in the case; and Ican go down to the boat with the girls in company with Chigron withoutany fear whatever. But it is better that you should not be with uswhen we embark; for when the matter comes to be talked over, some onewho sees us embark might notice that our number tallies with that ofthe three persons present when Ptylus was killed, and the two missinggirls. Therefore Chigron's opinion is that it will be safer for you tostart at once and walk to Mita, a village twenty miles up the river.There the boat will lie up to-morrow night, and as soon as it is darkyou can come on board. I shall tell the boatmen that I expect you tojoin us there, as you have gone on ahead to transact some business forme in the neighborhood."
"That is certainly the best plan," Amuba agreed. "There are too manywho know Chebron by sight for it to be safe for him to go down to theboat here and embark in broad daylight. I will take two hours' sleepbefore I start; for as I did not sleep last night, and have walkedforty miles since I left the chariot, I feel in need of a littlerepose before I start again. I was foolish not to have slept thisafternoon, for I have since midday been hiding near; but there was somuch to think about that I had no inclination to do so, especially asI believed that we would have a night's rest here."
"I will wake you," Chebron said. "I have been asleep the better partof the day, having had nothing to do since we arrived here yesterdayevening."
Chebron sat watching the stars until he saw that they had made twohours' journey through the sky. Then he roused Amuba. Both now laidaside their garments as peasants and put on the attire prepared forthem as the sons of a small trader. Amuba had submitted, although withmuch disgust, to have his head shaved on the night following the deathof Ameres, and it was a satisfaction to him to put on a wig; for,accustomed as he was to see the bare heads of the peasants, it wasstrange and uncomfortable to him to be going about in the samefashion.
As soon as they were dressed they started, made their way down to thebank of the river above the town, and walked along the broad causewayby the stream until within a mile or two of their destination. Thenthey turned off toward a clump of trees which were visible by thefirst gleam of dawn a quarter of a mile away. Here they slept for somehours, and late in the afternoon returned to the side of the river andstrolled quietly along, watching the boats. Those in the middle of thestream were making their way down with the current lightly and easily,the crews often singing merrily, rejoicing over the approachingmeeting with their friends after an absence of many weeks. The boatsgoing up the stream were all close to the bank, the crews walkingalong the causeway and laboring at the towropes, for there was notenough wind to render the sails of any utility in breasting thestream. The craft were of various kinds, some shapeless and rudelyfashioned, used in conveying corn from the country higher up down toThebes, and now returning empty. Others were the fancifully paintedboats of the wealthy, with comfortable cabins and sails of many colorsrichly decorated and embroidered. These were carrying their owners upor down the river, between their country mansions and the city.
It was half an hour after sunset when the two friends arrived atMita. Darkness falls quickly in Egypt after the sun has gone down, andtheir features could scarcely have been recognized had they been metby any one acquainted with them in the streets. The scene in thestreets of the little village was a busy one. Its distance from Thebesrendered it a general halting-place for the night of the boats whichhad left the capital early, and a great number of these were alreadymoored off the bank, while others were arriving in quick succession.The boatmen and passengers were busy making their purchases at theshops; fishermen, with well-filled baskets, were shouting the praisesof their fish; fowlers, with strings of ducks and geese hanging frompoles from their shoulders, were equally clamorous in offering themfor sale.
The shops of the fruiterers and bakers and those of the venders of thevegetables that formed so large a portion of the diet of the Egyptianswere all crowded, and the wine shops were doing a brisk business.
Chebron and Amuba made their way through the busy scene, keeping asharp lookout for Jethro, for they considered it certain that owing tothe early start the boat was to make it would have arrived there somehours before, and that he would be on the lookout for them. In a fewminutes they saw him looking into one of the shops. He started as theywent up to him and touched him, for he had not perceived them before.
"All well?" Amuba asked.
"Everything has gone off admirably. We got off without the slightesttrouble. But come on board at once; the girls are anxious about you,although I assured them that there was not the slightest risk of yourbeing discovered on your way here."
So saying, Jethro led the way to the boat, which was moored by thebank a hundred yards above the village, "in order," Jethro said, "thatthey could make an early start in the morning, and be off before therest of the boats were under way."
"Here are your brothers," Jethro said in a loud voice as he stepped onboard. "I found them dawdling and gossiping in the street, forgettingaltogether that you were waiting for your evening meal until they cameon board."
Both entered the cabin, which was about eight feet wide and twelvefeet long, but not high enough for them to stand upright. The floorwas spread with a thick carpet; cushions and pillows were arrangedalong each side, and thick matting hung from the top. In the daytimethis was rolled up and fastened, so that the air could play throughthe cabin and those within could look out at the river; but at presentit closed the openings and kept out both the night air and the glancesof passers-by. At the other end was a door opening into the smallercabin allotted to the girls. A lamp swung from the beams overhead.Mysa gave a cry of pleasure as they entered and was about to spring toher feet, when Jethro exclaimed:
"Mind your head, child! You are not accustomed to these low quartersyet."
"Thank the gods we are together again!" Mysa said as Chebron, afterembracing her, sat down on the cushion beside her. "I feel almosthappy now, in spite of the dreadful times that have passed."
"It does feel homelike here," Chebron said, looking round, "especiallyafter sleeping in the open air on the hard ground, as we have beendoing for the last month."
"I should hardly have known you, Amuba," Mysa said. "You do look sodifferent in your wig, and with your skin darkened."
"I must look horrible," Amuba replied rather ruefully.
"You don't look so nice," Mysa replied frankly. "I used at first tothink that short, wavy golden hair of yours was strange, and that youwould look better in a wig like other peop
le; but now I am sorry it isgone."
"Here is our meal," Jethro said as the hangings that served as a doorwere drawn aside, and one of the men entered bearing a dish of friedfish and another of stewed ducks, which he placed on the floor.
Jethro produced some cups and a jar of wine from a locker in thecabin, and then the men, by his orders, brought in a jar of water forthe use of the girls. Then sitting round the dishes they began theirmeal, Jethro cutting up the food with his dagger, and all helpingthemselves with the aid of their fingers and pieces of bread, thatserved them for the purpose of forks. Mysa had been accustomed alwaysto the use of a table; but these were only used in the abodes of therich, and the people in general sat on the ground to their meals.
"We have not begun our hardships yet," Mysa said, smiling. "I shouldnot mind how long this went on. I call this much better than living ina house; don't you, Ruth?"
"It is more natural to me than that great house of yours," Ruthreplied; "and of course to me it is far more homelike and comfortable.For I do not think I was a favorite among the other servants; theywere jealous of the kindness you showed me."
"There is one thing I wanted to say," Jethro said. "It is better thatwe should not call each other by our names, I am sure that the boatmenhave no suspicion here that we are other than what we seem to be; butthey can hardly help hearing our names, for all Egypt has rung withthem for the last month, and it would be well if we change them forthe present. You must of necessity call me father, since that is therelation I am supposed to bear to you. Amuba can become Amnis andChebron Chefu."
"And I will be Mytis," Mysa said. "What name will you take, Ruth?There is no Egyptian name quite like yours."
"It matters not what you call me," Ruth said.
"We will call you Nite," Mysa said. "I had a great friend of thatname, but she died."
"And there is one thing, Nite," Chebron said, "that I wish you tounderstand. Just now you spoke to me as my lord Chebron. That sort ofthing must not be any longer. We are all fugitives together, and Mysaand I have no longer any rank. Jethro and Amuba are of high rank intheir own country, and if we ever get safely to their own people theywill be nobles in the land, while we shall be but strangers, as he waswhen he and Jethro came into Egypt. Therefore any talk of rank amongus is but folly. We are fugitives, and my life is forfeited if I amdiscovered in my own land. Jethro is our leader and guardian, alike bythe will of our father and because he is older and wiser than any ofus. Amuba is as my elder brother, being stronger and braver and moreaccustomed to danger than I; while you and Mysa are sisters, inasmuchas you are both exiled from your own land, and are friendless, savefor each other and us."
"I am glad to hear you say that, brother," Mysa said. "I spoke to herlast night about it, for she would insist on treating me as if shewere still my servant; which is absurd, and not nice of her, when sheis going out with us to share our dangers only because she loves me.It is I rather who should look up to her, for I am very helpless, andknow nothing of work or real life, while she can do all sorts ofthings; besides, when we were captives it was she who was always braveand hopeful, and kept up my spirits when, I do think, if it had notbeen for her I should have died of grief and terror."
"By the way," Jethro said, "we have not heard yet how it was that youwere together. We heard of your being carried off, but old Lyptis toldme that no one had seen aught of you."
"They were all scared out of their senses," Ruth said scornfully. "Themen suddenly ran into the room and seized Mysa, and twisted a shawlround her head before she had time to call out. I screamed, and one ofthem struck me a blow which knocked me down. Then they carried heroff. I think I was stunned for a moment. When I recovered I found theywere gone. I jumped up and ran along the passage and through the hall,where the women were screaming and crying, and then out of the housethrough the garden, and out of the gate. Then I saw four men at ashort distance off carrying Mysa to a cart standing a hundred yardsaway. I ran up just as they laid her in it. One of them turned upon mewith a dagger. I said:
"'Let me go with her, and I will be quiet. If not, I will scream; andif you kill me, it will only set the people on your traces.'
"The men hesitated, and I ran past them and climbed into the cart, andthrew myself down by Mysa, and then they drove off."
"It was brave and good of you, Ruth," Jethro said, laying his hand onthe girl's shoulder; "but why did you not scream when you first cameout of the gate? It might have brought aid and prevented Mysa frombeing carried off."
"I thought of that," Ruth said, "but there were numbers of rough menstill coming in at the gate; and knowing how the people had beenstirred up to anger against us, I did not know what might happen if Igave the alarm. Besides, I was not sure at first that these men,although they seemed so rough and violent, were not really friends,who were taking away Mysa to save her from the popular fury."
"Yes, that might have been the case," Jethro agreed. "At any rate,child, you acted bravely and well. We were hoping all along that youwere with Mysa, for we knew what a comfort you would be to her. Only,as the women all declared you did not pass out after her, we didnot see how that could be. And now, Mytis and Nite, you had betterretire to your own cabin to rest; for though you have both kept upwonderfully, all this has been a great strain for you, and you areboth looking fagged and heavy-eyed. To-night you can sleep in comfort;for, for the present, I think that there is no occasion whatever forthe slightest anxiety."
It was some time before Jethro and his companions lay down to sleep.They talked long and earnestly of the journey that lay before them;and when they had exhausted this topic, Chebron said:
"Till now, Jethro, I have not asked you about my father's funeral.When is it to be? I have thought of it often, but as you did not speakI thought it better not to question you."
"I was glad you did not," Jethro replied. "It will be in about tendays' time. As I believed you guessed, Chigron is embalming him; theprocess will not be completed for another four days, and, as you know,the relatives do not see the corpse after it is in the hands of theembalmer until it is swathed and in the coffin. Chigron has done somuch that must have been against his conscience that I did not likehim to be asked to allow you to break through that custom, which tohim is a sort of religion; beside, dear lad, I thought it better foryourself not to renew your griefs by gazing on a lifeless face.
"During the last month you have fortunately had so much to distractyour thoughts that you have not had time to dwell upon your loss.Moreover, you have needed all your strength and your energy for yoursearch for your sister, and right sure am I that your father, who wasas sensible as he was wise--and the two things do not always gotogether--would be far better pleased to see you energetic and activein your search for your sister and in preparation for this new life onwhich we are entering, than in vain regrets for him; therefore, lad,for every reason I thought it better to keep silent upon the subject.It may be a satisfaction, however, for you to know that everythingwill be done to do honor to the dead.
"The king and all the great men of Egypt will be present, and Thebeswill turn out its thousands to express its grief for the deed done bya section of its population. Had it not been for the express commandsof your father I should have thought that it might have been worthwhile for you to present yourself on that occasion and it may be thatfor once even the fanatics would have been satisfied to have pardonedthe offense of the son because of the wrong done to the father.However, this affair of Ptylus puts that out of the question, for whenit is generally known that Mysa was carried off when Ptylus was slain,public opinion will arrive at the truth and say that the fugitives ofwhom they were in search, the slayers of the sacred cat, were therescuers of the daughter of Ameres and the slayers of the highpriest."
"You are right, Jethro, it will be better for me not to have seen myfather; I can always think of him now as I saw him last, which is athousand times better than if he dwelt in my memory as he lies in thecere-clothes in the embalming room of Chigron. As to what
you sayabout my appearing at the funeral, I would in no case have done it; Iwould a thousand times rather live an exile or meet my death at thehands of savages than crave mercy at the hands of the mob of Thebes,and live to be pointed at all my life as the man who had committed theabhorred offense of killing the sacred cat."
The conversation in the cabin had all been carried on in an undertone;for although through an opening in the curtains they could see thecrew--who had been eating their meal by the light of a torch ofresinous wood, and were now wrapped up in thick garments to keep offthe night dew--chatting merrily together and occasionally breakinginto snatches of song, it was prudent to speak so that not even achance word should be overheard. The boatmen, indeed, were in highspirits. Their home lay far up near the borders of Upper Egypt, and itwas seldom indeed that they obtained a job which gave them the chanceof visiting their friends. Thus the engagement was most satisfactoryto them, for although their leader had haggled over the terms, he andthey would gladly have accepted half the rate of pay rather than letsuch an opportunity slip. As Chebron finished speaking they werepreparing for the night by laying down a few mats on the boards of thefore deck. Then they huddled closely together, pulled another mat ortwo over them, extinguished the torch, and composed themselves tosleep.
"We will follow their example; but a little more comfortably, I hope,"Jethro said.
The cushions and pillows were arranged, the lamp turned low, and in ashort time all on board the boat were sound asleep. No ray of lighthad entered the cabin when Amuba was awakened by a movement of theboat, caused by a stir among the crew. He felt his way to the door andthrew back the hangings and looked out; there was a faintgreenish-yellow light in the east, but the stars were still shiningbrightly.
"Good-morning, young master!" the captain said. "I hope you have sleptwell."
"So well that I could hardly believe it was morning," Amuba replied."How long will it be before you are off?"
"We shall be moving in ten minutes; at present there is not lightenough to see the shore."
"Chefu, are you awake?"
"Yes," Chebron answered sleepily, "I am awake; thanks to your talking.If you had lain quiet we might have slept for another hour yet."
"You have had plenty of sleep the last twenty-four hours," Amubaretorted. "Take a cloth and let us land and run along the banks for amile, and have a bath before the boat comes along."
"It is very cold for it," Chebron said.
"Nonsense! the water will refresh you."
"Come along, Chefu," Jethro said, "your brother is right; a dip willrefresh us for the day."
The Egyptians were most particular about bathing and washing. The heatand dust of the climate rendered cleanliness an absolute necessity,and all classes took their daily bath--the wealthy in baths attachedto their houses, the poor in the water of the lakes or canals. Jethroand the two lads leaped ashore and ran briskly along the bank forabout a mile, stripped and took a plunge into the river, and weredressed again just as the boat came along with the four men towingher, and the captain steering with an oar at the stern. It was lightenough now for him to distinguish the faces of his passengers, and hebrought the boat straight alongside the bank. In a few minutes thegirls came out from their cabin, looking fresh and rosy.
"So you have been bathing?" Mysa said. "We heard what you were saying,and we have had our bath too."
"How did you manage that?" Chebron asked.
"We went out by the door at the other side of our cabin in our woollenrobes, on to that little platform on which the man is standing tosteer, and poured jars of water over each other."
"And you both slept well?"
"Yes, indeed, and without waking once till we heard Amnis call you toget up."
"You disturbed everyone, you see, Amnis," Chebron said.
"And a very good thing too," Amuba laughed. "If we had not had ourbath when we did, we should not have got an opportunity all day. Nowwe all feel fresh."
"And ready for something to eat," Mysa put in.
"What would you like, Mytis?" Ruth asked. "I am a capital cook, youknow, and I don't suppose the men will be preparing their breakfastfor a long time yet."
"I think that will be a very good plan, Mytis," Jethro said; "but wewill divide the labor between us. The two boys shall stir up thebrands smoldering on the flat stone hearth forward, I will clean andget ready some fish, Nite shall cook them, while Mytis shall, underher directions, make us some cakes and put them into the hot ashes tobake. We shall have to shift for ourselves later on. There is nothinglike getting accustomed to it. Of course the men will cook theprincipal meals, but we can prepare little meals between times. It isastonishing how many times you can eat during the day when you are inthe open air."
In half an hour the meal, consisting of the fish, light dough-cakes,which Mysa had with much amusement prepared under Ruth's directions,and fruit, was ready. The latter consisted of grapes and melons. Themeal was greatly enjoyed, and by the time it was finished the sun wasalready some distance up the sky. For an hour the party sat on thedeck forward watching the boats coming down the stream and thevillages on the opposite shore; but as the sun gained power they wereglad to enter into the cabin. The mats were rolled up now to allow afree passage of air, and as they sat on the cushions they could lookout on both sides.
Day after day passed quietly and smoothly. The men generally towed theboat from sunrise until eleven o'clock in the day; then they mooredher to the bank, prepared a meal, and after eating it went ashore ifthere were trees that afforded a shade there, or if not, spread outsome mats on poles over the boat and slept in their shade till threeo'clock. Then they towed until sunset, moored her for the night,cooked their second meal, talked and sang for an hour or two, and thenlay down for the night. Sometimes the wind blew with sufficientstrength to enable the boat to stem the stream close inshore by meansof the sail alone; then the boatmen were perfectly happy and spenttheir day in alternate eating and sleeping. Generally the passengerslanded and walked alongside of the boat for an hour or two after theyhad had their early breakfast, and again when the heat of the day wasover; it made a change, and at the same time kept their muscles in astate of health and activity.
"We may have to make long journeys on foot," Jethro said, "and themore we can accustom ourselves to walking the better."
The time passed so quietly and pleasantly that both Mysa and Chebronat times blamed themselves for feeling as light hearted as they did;but when the latter once said so to Jethro he replied:
"Do not be uneasy on that score. Remember that in the first place itis a comfort to us all that you and your sister are cheerfulcompanions. It makes the journey lighter for us. In the next place,good spirits and good health go together; and although, at present,our life is an easy one, there will be need for health and strengthpresently. This flight and exile are at present blessings rather thanmisfortunes to you. Just as Amuba's captivity following so closelyupon the death of his father and mother was to him."
"I can hardly believe," Mysa said, "that we are really going upon adangerous expedition. Everything is so pleasant and tranquil. The dayspass without any care or trouble. I find it difficult to believe thatthe time is not very far off when we shall have to cross deserts, andperhaps to meet savage beasts and wild people, and be in danger of ourlives."
"It will be a long time first, Mytis. It will be months before wearrive at Meroe, the capital of the next kingdom, which lies at thejunction of the two great arms of this river. Up to that point I donot think there will be dangers, though there may be some littledifficulty, for they say there are tremendous rapids to be passed.It is only lately that the king overran Meroe, defeated its armies,and forced it to pay tribute, but as there is a considerable tradecarried on with that country I do not think there is any danger ofmolestation. It is on leaving Meroe that our difficulties willcommence; for, as I hear, the road thence to the east through thecity of Axoum, which is the capital of the country named Abyssinia,passes through a wild land abounding
with savage animals; and again,beyond Axoum the country is broken and difficult down to the sea.
"Chigron told me, however, that he had heard from a native of Meroewho had worked for him that there is a far shorter road to the seafrom a point at which the river takes a great bend many hundreds ofmiles below the capital. When we get higher up we can of course makeinquiries as to this. I hope that it may prove to be true, for if soit will save us months of travel."
Several large towns were passed as they journeyed upward. Hermonthis,standing on the western bank, by which they were traveling, was thefirst passed. Then came Esneh, with grand temples dedicated to Knephand Neith, and standing where the Nile Valley opens to a width of fivemiles. Then they passed Eilithya, standing on the eastern bank, withmany temples rising above it, and with the sandstone rock behind itdotted with the entrances to sepulchers.
A few miles higher up they passed Edfu. Above this the valleygradually narrowed, the hills closing in until they rose almostperpendicularly from the edge of the stream. Here were templeserected especially for the worship of the Nile and of his emblem thecrocodile. It appeared to the Egyptians the most appropriate place forthe worship of the river, which seemed here to occupy the whole widthof Egypt. Here, too, were vast quarries, from which the stone wasextracted for the building of most of the temples of Upper Egypt.
Sixteen miles higher Ombi was passed, with its great temple in honorof the crocodile-headed god Sebak. Along this part of the river thecountry was comparatively barren and the villages small and farapart. In the narrow places the river at times ran so rapidly that itwas necessary to hire a number of peasants to assist the boatmen todrag the boat against the stream, and the progress made each day wasvery slight.
Four days after leaving Ombi they arrived at Syene,[A] by far thelargest town they had come to since leaving Thebes. This brought thefirst stage of their journey to an end. Hitherto they had beentraveling along a tranquil river, running strongly at times, butsmooth and even. Before them they had a succession of cataracts andrapids to pass, and a country to traverse which, although oftensubjugated, was continually rising against the power of Egypt.
[A] The modern Assouan.
At Syene they remained for three days. They would gladly have pushedon without delay, for although the Egyptian authority extended furtherup the river, Syene was the last town where the governor would concernhimself with the affairs of Egypt, or where fugitives from justicewere likely to be arrested. However, as it was customary to giveboatmen a few days of repose after their labor, and before undertakingthe still more severe work which lay before them, Jethro thought itbetter to avoid any appearance of haste.
There was much to be seen that was new to them at Syene. A great tradewas carried on with Meroe. Most of the merchants engaged in it dwelthere, buying on the one hand the products of Upper and Lower Egypt andsending or taking them up the river, and on the other hand buying theproducts of Meroe and dispatching them to Thebes. The streets werefilled with a mingled population. Egyptians with their spotlessgarments and tranquil mien; merchants absorbed in business; officersand soldiers in large numbers, for Syene was an important militarystation; officials belonging to the great quarries near, and gangs ofslaves of many nationalities working under their orders.
Wild-looking figures moved among the crowd, their garments, thrownloosely round them, affording a striking contrast to the cleanness ofthose of the Egyptians, while their unkempt hair was in equally strongcontrast to the precise wigs of the middle-class Egyptians and thebare heads of the lower class. Their skins, too, were much darker incolor, though there was considerable variation in this respect. Amongthem were a sprinkling of men of entirely different type, almost blackin hue, with thicker lips and flatter features. These were Ethiopians,whose land lay beyond that of Meroe and who had also felt the weightand power of the arms of Egypt.
"These people of Meroe," Amuba said, "are very similar in features tothe Egyptians, Chebron. And their tongue is also not unlike yours; Ican understand their speech."
"Our oldest books," Amuba said, "say that we are kindred people, andare Asiatic rather than African in our origin. The people of Meroe saythat their far-back ancestors came from Arabia, and first spreadingalong the western shore of the Red Sea, ascended to the high lands anddrove out the black people who inhabited them.
"As to our own origin, it is vague; but my father has told me that theopinion among those most skilled in the ancient learning is that wetoo came from Arabia. We were not all one people, that is certain; andit is comparatively of recent years, though a vast time as far ashuman lives go, that the people of the Thebaid--that is, of UpperEgypt--extended their dominion over Lower Egypt and made the wholecountry one nation. Even now, you know, the king wears two crowns--theone of Upper Egypt, the other of the lower country. Along the shoresof the Great Sea to the west are Libyans and other peoples similar inrace to ourselves. My father considered that the tribes which firstcame from Asia pressed on to the west, driving back or exterminatingthe black people. Each fresh wave that came from the east pushed theothers further and further, until at last the ancestors of the peopleof Lower Egypt arrived and settled there.
"In Meroe the temples and religion are similar to our own. Whetherthey brought that religion from Arabia, or whether we planted it thereduring our various conquests of the country, I cannot tell you; butcertain it is that there is at present but little more differencebetween Upper Egypt and Meroe than there is between Upper Egypt andthe Delta."
"And beyond Meroe the people are all black like those we see here?"
"So I believe, Amuba. Our merchants penetrate vast distances to thesouth exchanging our products for gold and ivory, and everywhere theyfind the country inhabited by black people living in wretchedvillages, without, as it seems, any government, or law, or order,waging war with each other and making slaves, whom they also sell toour merchants. They differ so wholly from us that it is certain thatwe cannot come from the same stock. But they are strong and active andmake excellent slaves. Lying between Meroe and the sea, the countrycalled Abyssinia is also inhabited by a race of Arab blood, butdiffering more from us than those of Meroe.
"They have great towns, but I do not think that their religion is thesame as ours; our traders say that their language can be understood bythem, although more rough and unpolished. I have heard my father saythat he considered that all the country lying east of the Nile, and ofits eastern branch that rises in Abyssinia and is called the Tacazze,belongs to Asia rather than to Africa."
The party found that the death by violence of two successive highpriests of Osiris was one of the principal topics of conversationin Syene, but none appeared to think that there was the remotestprobability of any concerned in those occurrences making for thesouth. However, Jethro thought it prudent that the whole party shouldnot land together, and therefore Amuba and Chebron usually went oneway and he with the girls another. They paid visits to the sacredisland of Ebo opposite the town, and to the quarries of Phile, fourmiles away. Here they saw the gangs of slaves cutting colossalstatues, obelisks, and shrines from the solid rock.
First the outline was traced on the rock, then the surrounding stonewas removed with chisels and wedges, and at last the statue or obeliskwas itself severed from the rock. Then it was hewn and sculptured bythe masons, placed on rollers and dragged by hundreds of men down tothe landing-place below the rapids, and these placed on rafts to befloated down the river to its destination. They saw many of thesemasses of stone in all stages of manufacture. The number of slavesemployed was enormous, and these inhabited great buildings erectednear the quarries, where also were barracks for the troops who keptguard over them.
Watching the slaves at their painful labor, Jethro and Amuba were bothfilled with gratitude at the good fortune that had placed them withAmeres instead of sending them to pass their lives in such unceasingand monotonous toil. Among the slaves were several whom, by theircomplexion and appearance, they judged to be Rebu. As at first allthose brought to Egyp
t had been distributed among the priests andgreat officers, they supposed that either from obstinacy, misconduct,or from attempts to escape they had incurred the displeasure of theirmasters, and had been handed over by them for the service of thestate.
Had the slaves been in the hands of private masters, Jethro and Amuba,who were filled with pity at seeing their countrymen in such a state,would have endeavored to purchase them and take them with them upontheir journey. This was out of the question now, nor was it possibleto hold any communication with them, or to present them with a smallsum of money to alleviate their misery without exciting suspicion. Thewhole party were heartily glad when on the morning of the fourth dayafter their arrival the boat was pushed off from the shore and thework of ascending the rapids began.