CHAPTER XX.
The property of the freedman Pyrrhus was a flat rock in the northernpart of the harbour, scarcely larger than the garden of Didymus at theCorner of the Muses, a desolate spot where neither tree nor blade ofgrass grew. It was called the Serpent Island, though the inhabitantshad long since rid it of these dangerous guests, which lived in greatnumbers in the neighbouring cliffs. Not even the poorest crops wouldgrow in soil so hostile to life, and those who chose it for a home werecompelled to bring even the drinking-water from the continent.
This desert, around which hovered gulls, sea-swallows, and sea-eagles,had been for several weeks the abode of the fugitives, Dion and Barine.They still occupied the two rooms which had been assigned to them ontheir arrival. During the day the sun beat fiercely down upon the yellowchalky rock. There was no shade save in the house and at the foot ofa towering cliff in the southern part of the island, the fishermen'swatch-tower.
There were no works of human hands save a little Temple of Poseidon, analtar of Isis, the large house owned by Pyrrhus, solidly constructed byAlexandrian masons, and a smaller one for the freedman's married sonsand their families. A long wooden frame, on which nets were strung todry, rose on the shore. Near it, towards the north, in the open sea, wasthe anchorage of the larger sea-going ships and the various skiffs andboats of the fisher folk. Dionikos, Pyrrhus's youngest son, who wasstill unmarried, built new boats and repaired the old ones.
His two strong, taciturn brothers, with their wives and children, hisfather Pyrrhus, his wife and their youngest child, a daughter, Dione,a few dogs, cats, and chickens, composed the population of the SerpentIsland.
Such were the surroundings of the newly wedded pair, who had been rearedin the capital. At first many things were strange to them, but theyaccommodated themselves to circumstances with a good grace, and both hadadmitted to each other, long before, that life had never been so equableand peaceful.
During the first week Dion's wound and fever still harassed him, butthe prediction of Pyrrhus that the pure, fresh sea-air would benefit thesufferer had been fulfilled, and the monotonous days had passed swiftlyenough to the young bride in caring for the invalid.
The wife of Pyrrhus--"mother," as they all called her--had proved to bea skilful nurse, and her daughters-in-law and young Dione were faithfuland nimble assistants. During the time of anxiety and nursing, Barinehad formed a warm friendship for them. If the taciturn men avoided usinga single unnecessary word, the women were all the more ready to gossip;and it was a pleasure to talk to pretty Dione, who had grown up on theisland and was eager to hear about the outside world.
Dion had long since left his couch and the house, and each day lookedhappier, more content with himself and his surroundings. At first hisfeverish visions had shown him his dead mother, pointing anxiouslyat his new-made wife, as if to warn him against her. During hisconvalescence he remembered them and they conjured up the doubt whetherBarine could endure the solitude of this desolate cliff, whether shewould not lose the bright serenity of soul whose charm constantlyincreased. Would it be any marvel if she should pine with longing inthis solitude, and even suffer physically from their severe privations?
The perception that love now supplied the place of all which she hadlost pleased him, but he forbade himself to expect that this conditionof affairs could be lasting. Nothing save exaggerated self-conceitwould induce the hope. But he must have undervalued his own power ofattraction--or Barine's love--for with each passing week the cheerfulserenity of her disposition gained fresh steadfastness and charm. He,too, had the same experience; it was long since he had felt so vigorous,untrammelled, and free from care. His sole regret was the impossibilityof sharing the political life of the city at this critical period; andat times he felt some little anxiety concerning the fate and managementof his property, though, even if his estates were confiscated, hewould still retain a competence which he had left in the hands of atrustworthy money-changer. Barine shared everything that concerned him,even these moods, and this led him to tell her about the affairs of thecity and the state, in which she had formerly taken little interest, hisproperty in Alexandria and the provinces. With what glad appreciationshe listened, when she went out with him from the northern anchorageon the open sea, or sat during long winter evenings making nets, an artwhich she had learned from Dione!
Her lute had been sent to her from the city, and what pleasure hersinging afforded her husband and herself; how joyously their hosts, oldand young, listened to the melody!
A few book-rolls had also come, and Dion enjoyed discussing theircontents with Barine. He himself read very little, for he was rarelyindoors during the day. The fourth week after his arrival he was able toaid, with arms whose muscles had been steeled in the pakestra, the menin their fishing, and Dionikos in his boat-building.
The close, constant, uninterrupted companionship of the married pairrevealed to each unexpected treasures in the other, which, perhaps,might have remained forever concealed in city life. Here each waseverything to the other, and this undisturbed mutual life soon inspiredthat blissful consciousness of inseparable union which usually appearsonly after years, as the fairest fruit of a marriage founded on love.
Doubtless there were hours when Barine longed to see her mother andothers who were dear to her, but the letters which arrived from time totime prevented this yearning from becoming a source of actual pain.
Prudence required them to restrict their intercourse with the city. But,whenever Pyrrhus went to market, letters reached the island deliveredat the fish auction in the harbour by Anukis, Charmian's Nubian maid, tothe old freedman, who had become her close friend.
So the time came when Dion could say without self-deception that Barinewas content in this solitude, and that his love and companionshipsupplied the place of the exciting, changeful life of the capital.Though letters came from her mother, sister, or Charmian, hergrandfather, Gorgias, or Archibius, not one transformed the wish toleave her desolate hiding-place into actual homesickness, but eachbrought fresh subjects for conversation, and among them many which, byarousing the interest of both, united them more firmly.
The second month of their flight a letter arrived from Archibius, inwhich he informed them that they might soon form plans for their return,for Alexas, the Syrian, had proved a malicious traitor. He had notperformed the commission entrusted to him of winning Herod to Antony'scause, but treacherously deserted his patron and remained with theKing of the Jews. When, with unprecedented shamelessness, he soughtOctavianus to sell the secrets of his Egyptian benefactor, he wasarrested and executed in his own home, Laodicea.
Now, their friend continued, Cleopatra's eyes as well as her husband'swere opened to the true character of Barine's most virulent accuser. Theinfluence of Philostratus, too, was of course destroyed by his brother'sinfamous deed. Yet they must wait a little longer; for Caesarion hadjoined the Ephebi, and Antyllus had been invested with the toga virilis.They could now undertake many things independently, and Caesarion oftenmade remarks which showed that he would not cease to lay plots forBarine.
Dion feared nothing from the royal boy on his own account, but for hiswife's sake he dared not disregard his friend's warning. This was hard;for though he still felt happy on the island, he longed to install thewoman he loved in his own house, and every impulse of his nature urgedhim to be present at the meetings of the Council in these fateful times.Therefore he was more than ready to risk returning to the city, butBarine entreated him so earnestly not to exchange the secure happinessthey enjoyed here for a greater one, behind which might lurk theheaviest misfortune, that he yielded. Another letter from Charmian soonproved the absolute necessity of continuing to exercise caution.
Even from the island they could perceive that everything known as festalpleasure was rife in Alexandria, and bore along in its mad revelry thecourt and the citizens. When the wind blew from the south, it broughtsingle notes of inspiring music or indistinct sounds of the wildestpopular rejoicing.
The
fisherman's daughter, Dione, often called them to the strand toadmire the galleys adorned with fabulous splendour, garlanded withflowers, and echoing with the music of lutes and the melody of songs.Sails of purple embroidered silk bore the vessels over the smooth tide.Once the watchers even distinguished, upon a barge richly adornedwith gilded carving, young female slaves who, with floating hair andtransparent sea-green robes, handled, in the guise of Nereids, lightsandal-wood oars with golden blades. Often the breeze bore to theisland the perfumes which surrounded the galleys, and on calm nights themagnificent ships, surrounded by the magical illumination of many-huedlamps, swept across the mirror-like surface of the waves, Among thevoyagers were gods, goddesses, and heroes who, standing or reclining inbeautiful groups, represented scenes from the myths and history. On thedeck of the Queen's superb vessel guests crowned with wreaths lay onpurple couches, under garlands of flowers, eating choice viands anddraining golden wine-cups.
On other nights the illumination of the shore of the Bruchium renderedit as bright as day. The huge dome of the Serapeum on the Rhakotis,covered with lamps, towered above the flat roofs of the city like thestarry firmament of a smaller world which had descended to earth. Everytemple and palace was transformed into a giant candelabrum, and therows of lamps on the quay stretched like tendrils of light from thedazzlingly illuminated marble Temple of Poseidon to the palace atLochias, steeped in radiance.
When Pyrrhus or one of his sons returned from market they described thefestivals and shows, banquets, races, and endless pleasure excursionsarranged by the court, which made the citizens fairly hold their breath.It was a prosperous time for the fishermen; the Queen's cooks took alltheir wares and paid a liberal price.
January had come, when another letter arrived from Charmian. Dion andBarine had watched in vain for any unusual events on Cleopatra's birthday, but on Antony's, a few days later, there was plenty of music andshouting, and in the evening an unusually magnificent illumination.
Two days after, this letter was delivered to Pyrrhus by his dusky friendAnukis.
Her inquiry whether he thought it prudent to convey visitors to hisguests was answered in the negative, for since Octavianus had been inAsia, the harbour swarmed with the boats of spies, and a single act ofimprudence might bring ruin.
Charmian's letter, too, was even better calculated to curb Dion'sincreasing desire to return home than the fisherman's warning.
True, the beginning contained good news of Barine's relatives, andthen informed Dion that his uncle, the Keeper of the Seal, was fairlyrevelling in bliss. His inventive gifts were taxed more than ever. Everyday brought a festival, every night magnificent banquets. One spectacle,excursion, or hunting party followed another. In the theatres, theOdeum, the Hippodrome, no more brilliant performances, races, navalbattles, gladiatorial struggles, and combats between beasts had beengiven, even before Actium. Dion himself had formerly attended theentertainments of those who belonged to the court circle, the society of"Inimitable Livers." It had been revived again, but Antony called themthe "Comrades of Death." This was significant. Every one knows thatthe end is drawing near, and imitates the Pharaoh to whom the oraclepromised six years of life, and who convicted it of falsehood and madethem twelve by carousing during the night also.
The Queen's meeting with her husband, which she had previously reported,had been magnificent. "At that time," she wrote, "we hoped that a morenoble life would begin, and Mark Antony, awakened and elevated byhis rekindled love, would regain his former heroic power; but we weremistaken; Cleopatra, it is true, toiled unceasingly, but her lover withhis enormous bunch of roses gave the signal for the maddest revelrywhich the imagination of the wildest devotee of pleasure could conceive.The performances of the 'Inimitable Livers' were far surpassed by thoseof the 'Comrades of Death'."
"Antony is at their head, and he, whose giant frame resists eventhe most unprecedented demands, succeeds in stupefying himself andforgetting the impending ruin. When he comes to us after a night ofrevelry his eyes sparkle as brightly, his deep voice has as clear aring, as at the beginning of the banquet. The Queen is his goddess; andwho could remain unmoved when the giant bows obediently to the nod ofhis delicate sovereign, and devises and offers the most unprecedentedthings to win a smile from her lips? The changeful, impetuous wooingof youth lies far behind him, but his homage, which the Ephebi of todaywould perhaps term antiquated, has always seemed to me as if a mountainwere bending before a star. The stranger who sees her in his companybelieves her a happy woman. Amid the fabulous radiance of the festalarray, when all who surround her admire, worship, and strew flowers inher path, one might believe that the old sunny days had returned; butwhen we are alone, how rarely I see her smile! Then she plans for thetomb which, under Gorgias's direction, is rapidly rising, and considerswith him the best method of rendering it an inaccessible place ofretreat.
"She decided everything, down to the carving on the stone sarcophagi. Inaddition, there are to be rooms and chambers in the lower story for thereception of her treasures. Beneath them she has had corridors made forthe pitch and straw which, if the worst should come, are to be lighted.She will then give to the flames the gold and silver, gems and jewels,ebony and ivory, the costly spices--in short, all her valuables. Thepearls alone are worth many kingdoms. Who can blame her if she prefersto destroy them rather than leave them for the foe."
"The garden in which you grew up, Barine, is now the scene of the happy,busy life led by Alexander and the twins. There, under my brother'sguidance, they frolic, build, and dig. Cleopatra goes to it whenever shelongs for repose after the pursuit of pleasures which have lost theirzest.
"When, the day before yesterday, Antony, crowned with ivy as the newDionysus, drove up the Street of the King in the golden chariot drawnby tamed lions, to bring her, the new Isis, from the Lochias in a lotusflower made of silver and white paste, drawn by four snow-white steeds,she pointed to the glittering train and said: 'Between the quiet of thephilosopher's garden, where I began my life and still feel most at ease,and the grave, where nothing disturbs my last repose, stretches theStreet of the King, with this deafening tumult, this empty splendour. Itis mine.'
"O child, it was very different in former days! She loved Mark Antonywith passionate ardour. He was the first man in the world, and yet hebowed before the supremacy of her will. The longing of the awakeningheart, the burning ambition which already kindled the soul of the child,had alike found satisfaction, and the world beheld how the mortal woman,Cleopatra, for her lover and herself, could steep this meagre lifewith the joys of the immortals. He was grateful for them, and the mostgenerous of men laid at the feet of the 'Great Queen of the East' themight of Rome and the kings of two quarters of the globe.
"These years were spent by both in one long revel. His marriage withOctavia brought the first awakening. It was hard and painful. He had notdeserted Cleopatra for a woman's sake, but on account of his endangeredpower and sovereignty. But the unloved Octavia constrained him to lookup to her with respectful admiration--nay, she became dear to him.
"A fierce battle for him and his heart arose between the two. It wasfought with very different weapons, and Cleopatra conquered. Therevel, the dream began again. Then came Actium, the disenchantment, theawakening, the fall, the flight from the world. Our object was not tolet him relapse into intoxication, to rouse the hero's strengthand courage from their slumber, render him for love's sake afellow-combatant in the common cause.
"But he had become accustomed to see in her the giver of ecstasy. Theonly thing that he still desired was to drain the cup of pleasure in hersociety till all was over. She sees this, grieves over it, and leaves nomeans of rousing him to fresh energy untried; yet how rarely he rallieshis powers to earnest labour!
"While she is fortifying the mouths of the Nile and the frontiers of thecountry, building ship after ship, arming and negotiating, she can notresist him when he summons her to new pleasures.
"Though so many of the traits which rendered him great and noble
havevanished, she can not give up the old love and clings steadfastly tohim because, because--I know not why. A woman's loving heart does notquestion motives and laws. Besides, he is the father of her childrenand, in playing with them, he regains the old joyousness of mood soenthralling to the heart.
"Since Archibius has taken charge of them, they can dispense withEuphronion, their tutor. The clever man knows Rome, Octavianus, andthose who surround him, so he was chosen as an envoy. His object was toinduce the conqueror to transfer the sovereignty of Egypt to the boysAntonius Helios, and Alexander, but Caesar vouchsafed no answer to themediator in Antony's affairs--nay, did not even grant him an audience.
"To Cleopatra Octavianus promised friendly treatment, and the fulfilmentof her wish concerning the boys if--and now came the repetition of theold demand--she would put Antony out of the world or deliver him intohis hands.
"This demand, which contains base treachery, was impossible for hernoble soul. Since she had resolved to build the tomb, granting it becameimpossible, yet Octavianus made every effort to tempt her to the basedeed. True, the death of this one man would have spared much bloodshed.The Caesar knows how to choose his tools. He sent here as negotiator aclever young man, who possessed great charms of mind and person. No planto prejudice the Queen against her husband and persuade her to committhe treachery was left untried. He went so far as to assure Cleopatrathat in former years she had won the Caesar's heart, and that hestill loved her. She accepted these assurances at their true value andremained steadfast.
"Antony at first paid no heed to the intriguer. But when he learned whatmeans he employed, and especially how he made use of the surrender ofone of Caesar's murderers, which he himself had long regretted, to brandhim as an ungrateful traitor, he would not have been Mark Antony if hehad accepted it quietly. He was completely his old self when he orderedthe smooth fellow--who, however, had come as the ambassador of themighty victor--to be scourged, sent him back to Rome, and wrote aletter to Octavianus, in which he complained of the man's arrogance andpresumption, adding--spite of my heavy heart I can not help smiling whenI think of it--that misfortune had rendered him unusually irritable;yet if his action perhaps displeased Caesar, he might treat his freedmanHipparchus, who was in his power, as he had served Thyrsus!
"You see that his gay arrogance has not deserted him. Trouble slips awayfrom him as rain is shaken from the coarse military cloak which he worein the Parthian war, and therefore it cannot exert its purifying power.
"When we consider that, a few years ago, this man, as it were, doubledhimself when peril was most threatening, his conduct now, on the eve ofthe decisive struggle, is intelligible only to those who know him as wedo. If he fights, he will no longer do so to save himself, or evento conquer, but to die an honourable death. If he still enjoys thepleasures offered, he believes that he can thus mitigate for himself theburden of defeat, and diminish the grandeur of the conqueror's victory.In the eyes of the world, at least, a man who can still revel likeAntony is only half vanquished. Yet the lofty tone of his mindwas lowered. The surrender of the murderer of Caesar--his name wasTurullius--proves it.
"And this, Barine--tell your husband so--this is what fills me withanxiety and compels me to entreat you not to think of returning homeyet.
"Antony is now the jovial companion of his son, and permits Antyllus toshare all his own pleasures. Of course, he heard of Caesarion's passion,and is disposed to help the poor fellow. He has often said that nothingwould better serve to rouse the dreamer from torpor than your charmingvivacity. As the earth could scarcely have swallowed you up, you wouldbe found; he, too, should be glad to hear you sing again. I know thatsearch will be made for you.
"How imperiously this state of affairs requires you to exercise cautionneeds no explanation. On the other hand, you may find comfort in thetidings that Cleopatra intends to send Caesarion with his tutor Rhodonto Ethiopia, by way of the island of Philae. Archibius heard throughTimagenes that Octavianus considers the son of Caesar, whose face sowonderfully resembles his father's, a dangerous person, and this opinionis the boy's death-warrant. Antyllus, too, is going on a journey. Hisdestination is Asia, where he is to seek to propitiate Octavianus andmake him new offers. As you know, he was betrothed to his daughterJulia. The Queen ceased long ago to believe in the possibility ofvictory, yet, spite of all the demands of the 'Comrades of Death' andher own cares, she toils unweariedly in preparing for the defence ofthe country. She is doubtless the only member of that society who thinksseriously of the approaching end.
"Now that the tomb is rising, she ponders constantly upon death. She,who was taught by Epicurus to strive for freedom from pain and is sosensitive to the slightest bodily suffering, is still seeking a pathwhich, with the least agony, will lead to the eternal rest for which shelongs. Iras and the younger pupils of Olympus are aiding her. Theold man furnishes all sorts of poisons, which she tries upon variousanimals--nay, recently even on criminals sentenced to death. All theseexperiments seem to prove that the bite of the uraeus serpent, whoseimage on the Egyptian crown symbolizes the sovereign's instant powerover life and death, stills the heart most swiftly and with the leastsuffering.
"How terrible these things are! What pain it causes to see the being oneloves most, the mother of the fairest children, so cruelly heighten theanguish of parting, choose death, as it were, for a constant companion,amid the whirl of the gayest amusements! She daily looks all his terrorsin the face, yet with proud contempt turns her back upon the bridgewhich might perhaps enable her for a time to escape the monster. This isgrand, worthy of her, and never have I loved her more tenderly.
"You, too, must think of her kindly. She deserves it. A noble heartwhich sees itself forced to pity a foe, easily forgives; and was sheever your enemy?
"I have written a long, long letter to solace your seclusion from theworld and relieve my own heart. Have patience a little while longer. Thetime is not far distant when Fate itself will release you from exile.How often your relatives, Archibius and Gorgias, whom I now seefrequently in the presence of the Queen, long to visit you!--but they,too, believe that it might prove a source of danger."
The warnings in this letter were confirmed by another from Archibius,and soon after they heard that Caesarion had really sailed up the Nilefor Ethiopia with his tutor Rhodon, and Antyllus had been sent to Asiato visit Octavianus. The latter had received him, it is true; but senthim home without making any pledges.
These tidings were not brought by letter, but by Gorgias himself, whosevisit surprised them one evening late in March.
Rarely had a guest received a more joyous welcome. When he entered thebare room, Barine was making a net and telling the fisherman's daughterDione the story of the wanderings of Ulysses. Dion, too, listenedattentively, now and then correcting or explaining her descriptions,while carving a head of Poseidon for the prow of a newly built boat.
As Gorgias unexpectedly crossed the threshold, the dim light of the lampfed by kiki-oil seemed transformed into sunshine. How brightly theireyes sparkled, how joyous were their exclamations of welcome andsurprise! Then came questions, answers, news! Gorgias was obliged toshare the family supper, which had only waited the return of the fatherwho had brought the guest.
The fresh oysters, langustae, and other dishes served tasted moredelicious to the denizen of the city than the most delicious banquetsof the "Comrades of Death" to which he was now frequently invited by theQueen.
All that Pyrrhus said voluntarily and told his sons in reply to theirquestions was so sensible and related to matters which, because theywere new to Gorgias, seemed so fascinating that, when Dion's good winewas served, he declared that if Pyrrhus would receive him he, too, wouldsearch for pursuers and be banished here.
When the three again sat alone before the plain clay mixing vessel itseemed to the lonely young couple as if the best part of the city lifewhich they had left behind had found its way to them, and what did theynot have to say to one another! Dion and Barine talked of their hermitlife, G
orgias of the Queen and the tomb, which was at the same time atreasure chamber. The slanting walls were built as firmly as if theywere intended to last for centuries and defy a violent assault. Thecentre of the lower story was formed by a lofty hall of vast dimensions,in whose midst were the large marble sarcophagi. Men were working busilyupon the figures in relief intended for the decoration of the sides andlids. This hall, whose low arched ceiling was supported by three pairsof heavy columns, was furnished like a reception-room. The couches,candelabra, and altars were already being made. Charmian had kept thefugitives well informed. In the subterranean chambers at the side of thehall, and in the second story, which could not be commenced until theceiling was completed, store-rooms were to be made, and below andbeside them were passages for ventilation and the storage of combustiblematerials.
Gorgias regretted that he could not show his friend the hall, which wasperhaps the handsomest and most costly he had ever created. Thenoblest material-brown porphyry, emerald-green serpentine, and the darkvarieties of marble-had been used, and the mosaic and brass doors, whichwere nearing completion, were masterpieces of Alexandrian art. To haveall this destroyed was a terrible thought, but even more unbearable wasthat of its object--to receive the body of the Queen.
Again rapturous admiration of this greatest and noblest of women ledGorgias to enthusiastic rhapsodies, until Dion exercised his office ofsoberer, and Barine asked tidings of her mother, her grandparents,and her sister. There was nothing but good news to be told. True, thearchitect had to wage a daily battle with the old philosopher, whotermed it an abuse of hospitality to remain so long at his friend's withhis whole family; but thus far Gorgias had won the victory, even againstBerenike, who wished to take her father and his household to her ownhome.
Cleopatra had purchased the house and garden of Didymus at thricetheir value, the architect added. He was now a wealthy man, and hadcommissioned him to build a new mansion. The land facing the sea andnear the museum had been found, but the handsome residence would not becompleted until summer. The dry Egyptian air would have permitted himto roof it sooner, but there were many of Helena's wishes--most of themvery sensible ones--to be executed.
Barine and Dion glanced significantly at each other; but the architect,perceiving it, exclaimed: "Your mute language is intelligible enough,and I confess that for five months Helena has seemed to me the mostattractive of maidens. I see, too, that she has some regard for me. Butas soon as I stand before her--the Queen, I mean--and hear her voice, itseems as if a tempest swept away every thought of Helena, and it is notin my nature to deceive any one. How can I woo a girl whom I so deeplyhonour--your sister, Barine--when the image of another rules my soul?"
Dion reminded him of his own words that the Queen was loved only as agoddess and, without waiting for his reply, turned the conversation toother topics.
It was three hours after midnight when Pyrrhus warned Gorgias that itwas time for departure. When the fisherman's fleetest boat was at lastbearing him back to the city he wondered whether girls who, beforemarriage, lived like Helena in undisturbed seclusion, would reallybe better wives and more content with every lot than the much-courtedBarine, whom Dion had led from the gayest whirl of life in the capitalto the most desolate solitude.
This delightful evening was followed by a day of excitement and graveanxiety. It had been necessary to conceal the young couple from thecollector's officials, who took from Pyrrhus part of his last year'ssavings, and the large new boat which he used to go out on the open sea.The preparations for war required large sums; all vessels suitable forthe purpose were seized for the fleet, and all residents of the city andcountry shared the same fate as Pyrrhus.
Even the temple treasures were confiscated, and yet no one could helpsaying to himself that the vast sums which, through these pitilessextortions, flowed into the treasury, were used for the pleasures of thecourt as well as for the equipment of the fleet and the army.
Yet so great was the people's love for the Queen, so high their regardfor the independence of Egypt, so bitter their hate of Rome, that therewas no rebellion.
How earnestly Cleopatra, amid all the extravagant revels, from which shecould not too frequently absent herself, toiled to advance the militarypreparations, could be seen even by the exiles from their cliff; forwork in two dock-yards was continued day and night, and the harbour wasfilled with vessels. Ships of war were continually moving to andfro, and from the Serpent Island they witnessed constantly, often bystarlight, the drilling of the oarsmen and of whole squadrons upon theopen sea. Sometimes a magnificent state galley appeared, on whose deckwas Antony, who inspected the hastily equipped fleet to make the newlyrecruited sailors one of those kindling speeches in which he was amaster hard to surpass. Two sons of Pyrrhus were now numbered in thecrews of the recently built war ships. They had been impressed intothe service in April, and though Dion had placed a large sum at theirfather's disposal to secure their release, the attempt was unsuccessful.
So there had been sorrow and tears in the contented little colony ofhuman beings on the lonely cliff, and when Dionysus and Dionichos had aday's leave of absence to visit their relatives, they complained ofthe cruel haste with which the young men were drilled and wearied toexhaustion, and spoke of the sons of citizens and peasants who had beendragged from their villages, their parents, and their business to betrained for seamen. There was great indignation among them, and theylistened only too readily to the agitators who whispered how much betterthey would have fared on the galleys of Octavianus.
Pyrrhus entreated his sons not to join any attempt at mutiny; the women,on the contrary, would have approved anything which promised to releasethe youths from their severe service, and their bright cheerfulnesswas transformed into anxious depression. Barine, too, was no longer thesame. She had lost her joyous activity, her eyes were often wet withtears, and she moved with drooping head as if some heavy care oppressedher.
Was it the heat of April, with its desert winds, which had brought thetransformation? Had longing for the changeful, exciting life of formerdays at last overpowered her? Was solitude becoming unendurable? Was herhusband's love no longer sufficient to replace the many pleasures shehad sacrificed?--No! It could not be that; never had she gazed with moredevoted tenderness into Dion's face than when entirely alone with himin shady nooks. She who in such hours looked the very embodiment ofhappiness and contentment, certainly was neither ill nor sorrowful.
Dion, on the contrary, held his head high early and late, and appearedas proud and self-conscious as though life was showing him its fairestface. Yet he had heard that his estates had been sequestrated, and thathe owed it solely to the influence of Archibius and his uncle, that hisproperty, like that of so many others, had not been added to the royaltreasures. But what disaster could he not have speedily vanquished inthese days?
A great joy--the greatest which the immortals can bestow upon humanbeings--was dawning for him and his young wife, and in May the women onthe island shared her blissful hope.
Pyrrhus brought from the city an altar and a marble statue of Ilythyia,the Goddess of Birth, called by the Romans Lucina, which his friendAnukis had given him, in Charmian's name, for the young wife. Shehad again spoken of the serpents which lived in such numbers in theneighbouring islands, and her question whether it would be difficult tocapture one alive was answered by the freedman in the negative.
The image of the goddess and the altar were erected beside the othersanctuaries, and how often the stone was anointed by Barine and thewomen of the fisherman's family!
Dion vowed to the goddess a beautiful temple on the cliff and in thecity if she would be gracious to his beloved young wife.
When, in June, the noonday sun blazed most fiercely, the fishermanbrought to the cliff Helena, Barine's sister, and Chloris, Dion's nurse,who had been a faithful assistant of his mother, and afterwards managedthe female slaves of the household.
How joyously and gratefully Barine held out her arms to her sister!Her mother had been pr
evented from coming only by the warning that herdisappearance would surely attract the attention of the spies. And thelatter were very alert; for Mark Antony had not yet given up thepursuit of the singer, nor had the attorney Philostratus recalled theproclamation offering two talents for the capture of Dion, and both thelatter's palace and Berenike's house were constantly watched.
It seemed more difficult for the quiet Helena to accommodate herself tothis solitude than for her gayer-natured sister. Plainly as she showedher love for Barine, she often lapsed into reverie, and every eveningshe went to the southern side of the cliff and gazed towards the city,where her grandparents doubtless sorely missed her, spite of the carefulattention bestowed upon them in Gorgias's house.
Eight days had passed since her arrival, and life in this wildernessseemed more distasteful than on the first and the second; the longingfor her grandparents, too, appeared to increase; for that day she hadgone to the shore, even under the burning rays of the noonday sun, togaze towards the city.
How dearly she loved the old people!
But Dion's conjecture that the tears sparkling in Helena's eyes when sheentered their room at dusk were connected with another resident of thecapital, spite of his wife's indignant denial, appeared to be correct;for, a short time after, clear voices were heard in front of the-house,and when a deep, hearty laugh rang out, Dion started up, exclaiming,"Gorgias never laughs in that way, except when he has had some unusualpiece of good fortune!"
He hurried out as he spoke, and gazed around; but, notwithstanding thebright moonlight, he could see nothing except Father Pyrrhus on his wayback to the anchorage.
But Dion's ears were keen, and he fancied he heard subdued voices onthe other side of the dwelling. He followed the sound without delayand, when he turned the corner of the building, stopped short inastonishment, exclaiming as a low cry rose close before him:
"Good-evening, Gorgias! I'll see you later. I won't interrupt you."
A few rapid steps took him back to Barine, and as he whispered, "I sawHelena out in the moonlight, soothing her longing for her grandparentsin Gorgias's arms," she clapped her hands and said, smiling:
"That's the way one loses good manners in this solitude. To disturb thefirst meeting of a pair of lovers! But Gorgias treated us in the sameway in Alexandria, so he is now paid in his own coin."
The architect soon entered the room, with Helena leaning on his arm.Hour by hour he had missed her more and more painfully, and on theeighth day found it impossible to endure life's burden longer withouther. He now protested that he could approach her mother and grandparentsas a suitor with a clear conscience; for on the third day after Helena'sdeparture the relation between him and the Queen had changed. InCleopatra's presence the image of the granddaughter of Didymus becameeven more vivid than that of the peerless sovereign had formerly beenin Helena's. Outside of the pages of poetry he had never experiencedlonging like that which had tortured him during the past few days.