The World's Desire

  Now it chanced that the camel of Rei the Priest fell down from wearinessas it journeyed swiftly back to Tanis. But Rei sped forward on foot, andcame to the gates of Tanis, sorely wearied, towards the evening of thatday. When he heard the wailing of the women, he asked of a passer-bywhat new evil had fallen upon Khem, and learned the death of Pharaoh.Then Rei knew by whose hand Pharaoh was dead, and grieved at heart,because she whom he had served and loved--Meriamun the moon-child--was amurderess. At first he was minded to go up before the Queen and puther to an open shame, and then take his death at her hands; but when heheard that Meriamun had summoned all the women of Tanis to meet her inthe Temple of Osiris, he had another thought. Hurrying to that placewhere he hid in the city, he ate and drank. Then he put off his beggar'srags, and robed himself afresh, and over all drew the garment of an agedcrone, for this was told him, that no man should be suffered to enterthe Temple. Now the day was dying, and already the western sky was red,and he hurried forth and mingled with the stream of women who passedtowards the Temple gates.

  "Who then slew Pharaoh?" asked one; "and why does the Queen summon us tomeet her?"

  "Pharaoh is slain by the witchcraft of the False Hathor," answeredanother; "and the Queen summons us that we may take counsel how to berid of the Hathor."

  "Tell not of the accursed Hathor," said a third; "my husband and mybrother are dead at her hands, and my son died in the death of thefirst-born that she called down on Khem. Ah, if I could but see her rentlimb from limb I should seek Osiris happily."

  "Some there be," quoth a fourth, "who say that not the Hathor, but theGods of those Apura brought the woes on Khem, and some that Pharaoh wasslain by the Queen's own hand, because of the love she bears to thatgreat Wanderer who came here a while ago."

  "Thou fool," answered the first; "how can the Queen love one who wouldhave wrought outrage on her?"

  "Such things have been," said the fourth woman; "perchance he wrought nooutrage, perchance she beguiled him as women may. Yes, yes, such thingshave been. I am old, and I have seen such things."

  "Yea, thou art old," said the first. "Thou hast no child, no husband,no father, no lover, and no brother. Thou hast lost none who are dear tothee through the magic of the Hathor. Speak one more such slander onthe Queen, and we will fall upon thee and tear thy lying tongue from itsroots."

  "Hush," said the second woman, "here are the Temple gates. By Isis didany ever see such a multitude of women, and never a man to cheer them, adreary sight, indeed! Come, push on, push on or we shall find no place.Yea, thou soldier--we are women, all women, have no fear. No need tobare our breasts, look at our eyes blind with weeping over the dead.Push on! push on!"

  So they passed by the guards and into the gates of the Temple, and withthem went Rei unheeded. Already it was well-nigh filled with women.Although the sun was not yet dead, torches were set about to lightenthe gloom, and by them Rei saw that the curtains before the Shrine weredrawn. Presently the Temple was full to overflowing, the doors were shutand barred, and a voice from behind the veil cried:

  "_Silence!_"

  Then all the multitude of women were silent, and the light of thetorches flared strangely upon their shifting upturned faces, as firesflare over the white sea-foam. Now the curtains of the Shrine of Osiriswere drawn aside slowly, and the light that burned upon the altarstreamed out between them. It fell upon the foremost ranks of women, itfell upon the polished statue of the Osiris. On the knees of Osiris satthe body of Pharaoh Meneptah, his head resting against the breast ofthe God. Pharaoh was wrapped about with winding clothes like the marblestatue of the God, and in his cold hands were bound the crook, thesceptre, and the scourge, as the crook, the sceptre, and the scourgewere placed in the hands of the effigy of the God. As was the statue ofthe God, so was the body of Pharaoh that sat upon his knees, and coldand awful was the face of Osiris, and cold and awful was the face ofMeneptah the Osirian.

  At the side, and somewhat in front of the statue of the God, a thronewas placed of blackest marble, and on the throne sat Meriamun the Queen.She was glorious to look on. She wore the royal robes of Khem, thedouble-crown of Khem fashioned of gold, and wreathed with the uraeussnakes, was set upon her head; in her hand was the crystal cross ofLife, and between her mantle's purple folds gleamed the eyes of hersnake girdle. She sat awhile in silence speaking no word, and all thewomen wondered at her glory and at dead Pharaoh's awfulness. Then atlength she spoke, low indeed, but so clearly that every word reached thelimits of the Temple hall.

  "Women of Tanis, hear me, the Queen. Let each search the face of each,and if there be any man among your multitude, let him be draggedforth and torn limb from limb, for in this matter no man may hear ourcounsels, lest following his madness he betray them."

  Now every woman looked upon her neighbour, and she who was next to Reilooked hard upon him so that he trembled for his life. But he crouchedinto the shadow and stared back on her boldly as though he doubted ifshe were indeed a woman, and said no word. When all had looked, and noman had been found, Meriamun spoke again.

  "Hearken, women of Tanis, hearken to your sister and your Queen. Woeupon woe is fallen on the head of Khem. Plague upon plague hath smittenthe ancient land. Our first-born are dead, our slaves have spoiled usand fled away, our hosts have been swallowed in the Sea of Weeds, andbarbarians swarm along our shores like locusts. Is it not so, women ofTanis?"

  "It is so, O Queen," they answered, as with one voice.

  "A strange evil hath fallen on the head of Khem. A false Goddess is cometo dwell within the land; her sorceries are great in the land. Month bymonth men go up to look upon her deadly beauty, and month by month theyare slain of her sorceries. She takes the husband from his marriage bed;she draws the lover from her who waits to be a bride; the slave fliesto her from the household of his lord; the priests flock to her from thealtars of the Gods--ay, the very priests of Isis flock forsworn from thealtars of Isis. All look upon her witch-beauty, and to each she shows analtered loveliness, and to all she gives one guerdon--Death! Is it notso, women of Tanis?"

  "Alas! alas! it is so, O Queen," answered the women as with one voice.

  "Woes are fallen on you and Khem, my sisters, but on me most of all arewoes fallen. My people have been slain, my land--the land I love--hasbeen laid waste with plagues; my child, the only one, is dead in thegreat death; hands have been laid on me, the Queen of Khem. Think on it,ye who are women! My slaves are fled, my armies have been swallowed inthe sea; and last, O my sisters, my consort, my beloved lord, mightyPharaoh, son of great Rameses Miamun, hath been taken from me! Look!look! ye who are wives, look on him who was your King and my mostbeloved lord. There he sits, and all my tears and all my prayers may notsummon one single answering sigh from that stilled heart. The curse hathfallen on him also. He too hath been smitten silently with everlastingsilence. Look! look! ye who are wives, and weep with me, ye who are leftwidowed."

  Now the women looked, and a great groan went up from all that multitude,while Meriamun hid her face with the hollow of her hand. Then again shespoke.

  "I have besought the Gods, my sisters; I have dared to call down themajesty of the Gods, who speak through the lips of the dead, and I havelearnt whence these woes come. And this I have won by my prayers, thatye who suffer as I suffer shall learn whence they come, not from mymortal lips, indeed, but from the lips of the dead that speak with thevoice of the Gods."

  Then, while the women trembled, she turned to the body of Pharaoh, whichwas set upon the knees of Osiris, and spoke to it.

  "Dead Pharaoh! great Osirian, ruling in the Underworld, hearken to menow! Hearken to me now, thou Osiris, Lord of the West, first of thehosts of Death. Hearken to me, Osiris, and be manifest through the lipsof him who was great on earth. Speak through his cold lips, speak withmortal accents, that these people may hear and understand. By the spiritthat is in me, who am yet a dweller on the earth, I charge thee speak.Who is the source of the woes of Khem? Say, Lord of the dead, who arethe living evermore?"

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sp; Now the flame on the altar died away, and dreadful silence fell uponthe Temple, gloom fell upon the Shrine, and through the gloom the goldencrown of Meriamun, and the cold statue of the Osiris, and the white faceof dead Meneptah gleamed faint and ghost-like.

  Then suddenly the flame of the altar flared as flares the summerlightning. It flared full on the face of the dead, and lo! the lipsof the dead moved, and from them came the sound of mortal speech. Theyspake in awful accents, and thus they spoke:

  "_She who was the curse of Achaeans, she who was the doom of Ilios; shewho sits in the Temple of Hathor, the Fate of man, who may not be harmedof Man, she calls down the wrath of the Gods on Khem. It is spoken!_"

  The echo of the awful words died away in the silence. Then fear tookhold of the multitude of women because of the words of the Dead, andsome fell upon their faces, and some covered their eyes with theirhands.

  "Arise, my sisters!" cried the voice of Meriamun. "Ye have heard notfrom my lips, but from the lips of the dead. Arise, and let us forth tothe Temple of the Hathor. Ye have heard who is the fountain of our woes;let us forth and seal it at its source for ever. Of men she may not beharmed who is the fate of men, from men we ask no help, for all men areher slaves, and for her beauty's sake all men forsake us. But we willplay the part of men. Our women's milk shall freeze within our breasts,we will dip our tender hands in blood, ay, scourged by a thousand wrongswe will forget our gentleness, and tear this foul fairness from itshome. We will burn the Hathor's Shrine with fire, her priests shallperish at the altar, and the beauty of the false Goddess shall melt likewax in the furnace of our hate. Say, will ye follow me, my sisters, andwreak our shames upon the Shameful One, our woes upon the Spring of Woe,our dead upon their murderess?"

  She ceased, and then from every woman's throat within the great Templethere went up a cry of rage, fierce and shrill.

  "We will, Meriamun, we will!" they screamed. "To the Hathor! Lead usto the Hathor's Shrine! Bring fire! Bring fire! Lead us to the Hathor'sShrine!"