CHAPTER III. Herald. He who knoweth of an unpunished crime, let him stand forth, and call to the assembly for vengeance ! Member (rises, his face covered). Vengeance! vengeance! Rod. Accuser, come before the altar, and swear to the truth of thine accusation. Accuser (his hand on the altar). I swear. SCOTT. A LARGE Concourse of spectators was assembled near the Sacred Lake, belonging to the nomade or district of Memphis. The spot wore a sombre and melancholy appearance, which was partly its natural aspect, and partly had been produced by artificial means, in accordance with the taste of the Egyptians, the most deeply imaginative people that the world has ever seen. The sullen sheet of water was broken only by a few rocky islets, not one of which bore the slightest trace of vegetation; and the level shores in all directions looked wild and desolate; not a tree any where raising its head, save a few cypresses, whose foliage deepened rather than relieved the general gloom. Beyond, on the further shore, rose the Royal Sepulchres, built of black marble, and presenting to the eye one long, unbroken line, varied neither by tower nor pillar. On the nearer bank was moored the bark used to convoy the sacred boat of the dead across the water, and the ferryman in his sable garb stood ready at the stern. Higher up on the bank were ranged the judges, forty-two in number, in a deep semicircle, with the president at the upper end. At a short distance was seated another group, consisting of the principal witnesses, among whom Amenoth and his three companions might be descried. All were arrayed in mourning garments, and silence, unbroken by the slightest sound, notwithstanding the long delay in the arrival of the procession, pervaded the assembly. So. still was the entire scene, that a casual spectator might have half believed it to be a pictured representation, rather than a real concourse of living men. At length, when the shadows of twilight were beginning to render less distinct the distant outline of the royal tombs, a faint dull tramp, as if of many feet moving solemnly at a considerable distance, broke the profound silence of the spot; and presently a long train, preceded by torches that cast a red and pitchy light around them, wound its way slowly to the place of rendezvous. In front appeared a number of servitors carrying fruits and flowers to decorate the altars of the dead, and leading animals to be offered as sacrifices. After these came cars containing the sacred closets, in which the mummies of the deceased queen's ancestors had been kept between the times of their embalming and interment. Then followed another train of servants, bearing jewels and ornaments to be deposited in the tomb along with the corpse. These were succeeded by the empty chariot of the dead, with its team of D horses in funereal trappings, and the charioteer walking on foot at their side. Next appeared the baris, or consecrated boat, having the eye of Osiris, the judge of the dead, painted on its prow and rudder. It was supported on a sledge drawn by oxen, and surrounded by a crowd of hired mourners in loose and disordered dresses, wailing and lamenting, beating their breasts and casting dust on their heads in token of sorrow. Last in the procession were the near kindred of the queen, Sesak himself walking first as chief mourner, deeply muffled in his flowing robes, and preserving, like the rest, a profound silence. In this manner the cortege slowly advanced, without interruption, winding round the level shores of the lake; until the sledge, with its mournful freight, had reached the spot where the ferry-boat was anchored. But as the slaves in charge of the sacred bark proceeded to lift it from its stand, in order to launch it on the waters, two priests of Osiris stepped forward with uplifted wands, and in the customary form commanded them to forbear. "Ye who have brought this body hither," they said, "to be conveyed across the Waters of the Dead, declare the name and title of the deceased, in order that this court here assembled may determine whether or not he be entitled to enter the society of the Everlasting Gods, and partake of their blessedness, or be justly condemned to exile from their presence." An officer, dressed in a funeral garb, and having his hair and beard closely shaven, the chamberlain of the late queen, stepped forward. "Venerable judges," he said, " she who here awaiteth your doom was called in life Tahpenes, the daugh ter of Rhamses, wife of Vennephes, late monarch of this land, and mother of him who now sways its sceptre. Sixty and five years did she pass on earth; and now the ever-blessed Osiris hath claimed her for his own. Wherefore, we crave permission to bear her across the Lake of the Dead, that she may rest in the Sepulchres of her fathers. As he concluded, the presiding judge rose in his place. "Men of Egypt," he said, " and dwellers on the shores of the mighty river, lo! Tahpenes, the daughter of Rhamses, claims at our hands judgment as to her past life; whether she shall be accounted worthy to enter the company of the happy dead, or be excluded therefrom as unworthy. Wherefore, if any can bear witness to the deeds she hath done in the body, whether these be good or evil, let them appear before us, and speak without restraint; remembering only the dictates of truth and justice; for with the dead there is no distinction of rank or riches." Thus summoned, several persons, consisting chiefly of the household of the deceased, came forward, one by one, and gave their testimony to her virtues, and her strict observance of all religious ordinances. After these a man presented himself, whose dress and appearance were different from those of the Egyptians, and who announced himself to be an ambassador from Jeroboam, king of the ten tribes of Israel, who, hearing of the death of the queen of Egypt, had sent to offer his witness in her favour, in grateful remembrance of the hospitality and kindness she had extended to him in his adversity, when an outcast and fugitive from his native land. arose. A long pause succeeded, and the president again "So far as we have heard," said he, "the testimony offered hath been most favourable to the dead; and if no more be advanced, our sentence cannot but be one of acquittal: but as we sit here to do justice in the name of the Ever-Blessed Gods, I charge all present that they conceal and keep nothing back, lest they make us, the judges of truth and justice, to pronounce an unrighteous sentence." As he resumed his seat, an old man arose, and walked slowly and unwillingly to the spot where the witnesses had given their evidence. "Who art thou?" said the presiding judge; "and what knowest thou of the dead?" "I am Phares, the son of Araph," was the reply, "and I come forward, though reluctantly, in obedience to thy summons, to charge her who lieth here with violence and injustice." A slight stir was heard in the vast assembly as these words were uttered, while all turned with interest to look more closely at the speaker. Sesak himself made a step or two forward. The twilight had gradually deepened during the previous proceedings; but the light of the torches which fell full upon the old man's figure, made it clearly distinguishable by all. 66 Speak, witness," said the judge, "and declare her crime." "Venerable judges," resumed Phares, "in my earlier years I was enamoured of a damsel, called Paranis, the daughter of Theron. Her father, a husbandman like myself, dwelt near the summer palace of Queen Tahpenes. One of his fields lay so close to the royal garden, that he could see and hear all that passed |