CHAPTER VIII
A Plagiarist of Dreams
Being unable to sleep, I arose early to get the refreshment of a morningwalk. I passed quietly through the next room, where the doctor was stillsleeping soundly, out into the courtyard. I was scarcely outside when Iheard a familiar, excited barking, and Two-spot ran across the openspace toward me as fast as his four short legs and his very active tailwould carry him. His frantic jumping up toward me was extremely comical,for he sprang with more than twice the swiftness I was accustomed toseeing, almost to a level with my face, but he fell very slowly to theground with only one third the speed that he would have fallen on Earth.He could jump, with almost the agility of a flea, and yet he fell backdeliberately like a gas ball. He was evidently enjoying his muscles asmuch as I had mine. When he made a particularly high jump, I caught himin my hands and patted him fondly.
"So you didn't fly away with the projectile? Or, did you go with it, andis it safely back again, somewhere? How I wish you could speak mylanguage and tell me all you know! These different tongues are a greatbother, aren't they, Two-spot?"
He answered me volubly, but apart from the fact that he quite agreedwith me, I could not understand his message. Had I been able to, itmight have made a very great difference to me.
There was a beautiful, filmy snow on the ground, which had fallen duringthe night. It was scarcely more than a heavy hoar frost, and as the sunsprang up without any warning twilight, the snow melted and left thesurface damp and fresh. As I afterwards learned, this thin snow fellalmost every night of the year, except for the warmest month of summerwhen the grain ripened. There were hardly ever any violent storms orquick showers. The thin air made heavy clouds or severe atmosphericmovements impossible. But the coolness of night, after a day of feeblebut direct and tropical sunshine, precipitated the moisture in the formof those delightful feathers of darkness. I also learned that the monthswere distinguished by the time of night when this snow fell; for it wasprecipitated directly after sunset in the winter, but gradually laterinto the night as summer advanced, and finally just before daybreak. Themonth in which none fell at all was midsummer, of course. It hadscarcely finished falling this morning when I came out into it.
I sprang to the top of the wall, and was watching the quick rising ofthe Sun, and enjoying the sensation of looking fixedly at his orbwithout being dazzled, when I noticed that there was a dark notch in thelower left-hand part of his disc! Soon after I distinguished, somewhatfarther in, a faint and smaller dark spot. This must be the beginning ofthe double transit of the Earth and the Moon! I experienced a sensationof joy in finding the home planet again. I confess it had given me acurious shock not to be able to see it in the heavens. It was morecomfortable to have it back in the sky again, and at last I knew justwhere we were in the calendar. On Earth it was the third day of August,1892. The summer there was at its height, and all my friends were asbusy and as deeply immersed in their own affairs as if their little spothad no idea of coquetting with the Sun. Possibly a dozen pairs ofstudious eyes out of the teeming hundreds of millions on Earth wereturned Marsward. This led me to wonder what all-absorbing topics ofsport, politics, or war may fill the minds of the possible millionpeople on Venus, when the Earth is so much excited over one of theinfrequent and picturesque transits of that planet across the Sun.
But the doctor and Zaphnath must know of this! I hastened into theante-chamber and called out,--
"Come, get up! I have already discovered two very significant thingsthis morning."
"What are they?" he asked wearily between yawns.
"Two-spot and the Earth!" I exclaimed. "The former crossed my path inthe courtyard, and the latter is just now crossing the Sun. Where is thetelescope? quick!"
The doctor was not long in propping it up by the east window, and I wentto look for a servant. By repeating the word "Zaphnath" several times, Imade him understand that we wished the attendance of the young ruler,and he started for him.
By this time the notch was almost a complete circle of dark shadowwithin the lower edge of the Sun. The smaller spot, one-fourth thediameter, was forging ahead like a herald to clear the way. Zaphnathsoon arrived, for he lived in another part of the Palace. He quietlypressed his cheek to mine, but in my excitement I had seized his hand,and with a pressure which must have hurt his shrinking flesh, Iexclaimed,--
"This is the day of thy greatness, O Zaphnath, for, behold, the BlueStar is already upon the face of the Day-Giver!" I led him hastily tothe telescope, and explained to him that the smaller forward spot wascaused by a moon like Phobos, and that the Earth was really a roundball, like the Sun. He looked intently for a long time, and then turningabout to me he said,--
"It is well ye left just when ye did, for the fire of the Day-Giver hathby this time burned every living thing upon your star! See how shehastens through his hot flames."
I attempted to explain that the Earth was more than twice as far fromthe Sun as she was from us; but he believed the evidence of his eyes,and I had to give it up in despair.
"I pray thee, bring this Larger Eye to the Council Chamber. I mustsummon all the wise men at once to behold this wonder. How long will itcontinue?"
The doctor told me it might last almost two hours; but I found itimpossible to convey any idea of this period of time to Zaphnath, untilI told him that it would continue half the time of the crossing ofPhobos, who had just risen dimly in the west.
We made a quick breakfast on fruit like grapes and a wheaten gruel, andhastened to the chamber where we had been received the day before.Zaphnath was already there, and so were eleven of the grey-beards. Wedid not wait for the twelfth, but Zaphnath led the doctor to the placeat the centre of their oval table, which thus filled all the seats. Thenthe young ruler ascended his throne and thus addressed them:--
"While ye have tossed and tumbled in an idle slumber, two things ofgrave importance have happened touching you. The Pharaoh, acting upon myurgent advices, hath appointed this grey-beard from the Blue Star to beyour chief; and now the Blue Star herself hath re-appeared upon thevery face of the Day-Giver, even as these, her people, told us yesterdaythat she must do."
Just at this point the belated wise man came straggling in, a slowsurprise growing upon him when he saw that his seat was taken. Zaphnaththen turned, addressing him,--
"Thou hast not heard, O lazy idler in the lap of morning, what I havejust spoken to thy brothers? Then go thou to yonder Larger Eye and speaktruthfully to these grey-beards all that thou seest."
I adjusted the instrument, and placed him in the proper position to see.He looked long and carefully, then left the instrument and looked withthe unaided eye. Coming back he gazed again, and finally spoke veryslowly, as if resigning his life with the words:--
"I am old, and my sight deceiveth me, O my brothers, for when I gazeinto this mysterious instrument the Day-Giver suddenly groweth verylarge, and hath two blots of shadow upon the upper half of hisbrightness. But when I look with my proper eyes, he keeps his size, andthere are still spots upon him, but they are upon his lower side."
I explained to Zaphnath that the telescope made things look wrong sideup, just as it made them look larger, and I focussed it upon the Gnomonsto convince the wise man of this. Then the youth spoke to him again:--
"The Pharaoh hath appointed this grey-beard from the Blue Star to bechief of all the wise men, and as there can be but twelve, thou art nolonger one. Unto thee, however, is given the duty of teaching ourlanguage to the chief. See that thou doest it well, for the lives of allof you, having now been forfeited by the law, are in his hands. But solong as his wisdom spares you, ye shall live."
As there was now a lull, I saw an opportunity for my plan which I hadnot yet found time to explain to the doctor. I translated to him as Iproceeded, however,--
"Tell me, O Zaphnath, is it the custom here to relate dreams to the wisemen for interpretation? I had last night a most peculiar one, and I willgive this golden coin to whomsoever is able to explain its meaning
." Allthe great eyes opened wide and round at beholding the eagle I held up toview. So large a piece of gold must have been uncommon. The youthreplied,--
"It is, in truth, an obsolete formality to submit dreams to the wisemen, for they have interpreted none since I came into Kem. But let ushear it; if they cannot make it known, mayhap I can do so."
"I dreamed that I stood by the great river which runneth just withoutthy city walls, and I saw coming up out of the water, as if they hadbeen fishes, seven familiar beasts, such as I have not seen since I cameto Kem. Knowest thou here such large, useful animals, each having a longtail and four legs, and whose peaceful habit is to eat the grass of thefields, which, having digested, the female yieldeth back in a whitefluid very fit to drink?"
"It is kine thou meanest," answered Zaphnath. "In truth there are butfew within the city, but they are well known, for in the land of myfather my people do naught but to breed and raise them and send themhither for ploughing in the fields. At the season of planting thou shaltsee many of them."
"I saw seven kine, most sleek and plump of flesh, feeding in a greenmeadow by the river; but suddenly there came up out of the water in thesame manner two lean and shrunken kine, whose withered bones rattledagainst their dry skins, they were so poor and hungry. And they stayednot to eat the grass of the meadow, but fell upon and devoured theirfatter sisters----"
"Saidst thou two?" interrupted Zaphnath.
"Two of the lean and shrunken, but they ate the fat-fleshed, which wereseven," I answered, watching Zaphnath and the wise men closely, for hewas translating to them phrase by phrase as I spoke. He faltered when Idescribed the eating up of the fat cattle; there were wondering andinquiring looks among the wise men and a constant chattering in Kemish.I waited patiently for some time, then waving my coin I demanded,--
"Can none of the grey-beards declare the meaning to me?"
There were more consultations among themselves and with Zaphnath, andpresently he said,--
"Before the wise men can declare thy dream, they demand to know whetherthe lean kine only slaughtered the sleek ones, or if they ate themwholly up? And were they filled and satisfied when they had eaten theirfatter sisters?"
"In truth, I forgot to say that they devoured the fat kine wholly andcompletely, yet it could not be known that they had eaten anything, theywere still so lean and ill-favoured."
This caused even a greater chattering than before, and the youth finallyasked,--
"Didst thou dream aught more, or is this all?"
"Truly I had another dream, but it was different. I thought that all thewheat in the field grew upon one stalk in seven great kernels; then ashrivelled and withered stalk began to spring up; when suddenly arapping on my door awakened me, and I dreamed no more."
The effect which this produced was most curious. Blank surprise, hiddencunning, anxious debating and uneasy hesitation, succeeded each otheramong the wise men. I watched it with great interest, and perceived thedoctor's satisfaction, but I again demanded the interpretation.
"Know, then, O dreamer," answered Zaphnath, "that we understand not onlythe import of all that thou hast dreamed, but even what thou wouldsthave dreamed hadst thou not been wakened! But, in spite of thy handsomeoffer, it doth not appear fit or proper to us that the interpretation ofit should be made known to thee. Tell me, however, hast thou hadconversation with any other person in Kem, save with me and with thewise men?"
"Thou knowest well, O Zaphnath, that I speak not the Kemish tongue, andcan understand or communicate only through thy interpretation. I havespoken with no one on all of Ptah except through thee, and if thou wiltnot declare my dream I care not, for while ye have been debating amongyourselves I have learned its meaning!"
"Thou understandest it already!" he exclaimed. "Pray tell us, then, howthou hast learned it."
"The chief wise man hath declared it to me in my own tongue!" Iexclaimed, with a meaning look toward the doctor, who had been speakingto me to urge caution. "He saith that the seven sleek kine are theKemish people, and the two lean and ill-favoured are we two from theEarth--for are not thy people larger and plumper than we!--and the sevendenoteth their much greater number. But the dream meaneth that we two,poor and hungry, might eat up all your people and become their masters."
There was still more delighted jabbering and excited comment. ThenZaphnath arose, and turning graciously to the doctor said to him,--
"Thy marvellous interpretation, O chief grey-beard, is most correct andwise, and it hath wholly eaten ours up! We quite agree with thy superiorwisdom, for thou only hast read the dream aright!"