Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-08-10
ANCIENT EGYPTIANS.
NOTIONS OF THE PEOPLE WHO
BUILT THE PYRAMIDS.

Their Theory Concerning "Douhies''-0ri-
gin of the Practice of Embaimius.
Bodies of Stone or wood-why EStp-
tians Are So Frequently Mutilated.
The oldest form the ancient Egyptians at
tributed to the soul WAS that Of shadow-a
double born with each person, and following
him through the various stages of life, grow
ing as he grew and declining as he declined.
They applied this theory not only to human
beings, but also to gods and animals. trees
and stores Everybody and everything was
held to have its double. even beds, chairs and
knives. The component particles Of these
doubles were SO minute and subtle that or
binary people could not perceive them. Only
q special order of priests or seers, gifted or
trained for the purpose, could identify the
doubles Of the gods. and obtain from them 3
knowledge of past and future events. The
doubles of men and inanimate objects re-
manned securely hidden from sight in the or
binary course of life. Still, they sometimes
left the body, endowed with color and voice,
and went away to manifest themselves at q
distance, after the manner Of modern ghosts.
THE DOUBLES" AFTER DEATH.
After death the doubles maintained not
only the characteristics of the particular
man they had been associated with while i'll
the flesh, but were subjected to tho common
wants and pains of humanity-to hunger
and thirst, to heat and cold to fatigue and
ilness-with the aggravation that, whereas
the living have ways and means Of self pro-
lection against the evils which befall them,
tho dead are utterly destitute. Ii left to
themselves they were doomed to roam about
the places they had inhabited, and feed upon
the refuse Of houses, with certainty Of per-
ishing after prolonging their miserable ex-
istence for a short time II properly at
tended to-if provided with food and other
necessaries-they had q fair chance to live
on and on for an indefinite period They
did not become immortal; 1.-The splendid in
vention Of Immortality" as a prominent
American statesman has called it, was I'M
known in primitive Egypt; but at least they
often had facilities for survival that were al
most equivalent to Immortality, as is pointed
out by Mr.. G. Maspero, in an interesting
contribution to The Princeton Review, enti-
tied Egyptian Souls and Their Worlds
from which the facts in this article are
mainly derived 1t Is easy to believe that
the germ OF the latter conviction of another
notion Of a double--a soul apart from tho
body-which might continue its existence,
under favorable conditions, for an unlimited
time.
Since the double was perfect image OF
the being to which it bod been linked at
birth, it was natural that it should remain
near where the corpse was buried, and par
ticipate in its destinies Having grown with
the body, it ought logically to decay with the
body and thus there was reason TO believe
that the natural term OF its existence after
the body's death might be measured by the
time required for the human frame to disin-
tegrate completely. Therefore, the Egyptian
savants decided the best means OF arresting
the decomposition Of the soul was TO stop
the decomposition Of the flesh, and to this,
Mr.. Maspero suggests, we probably owe the
practice Of enbalming. The drying up and
hardening Of the mummy enabled it to last
for centuries and to serve as a kind of stay
for its double.
STONE OR WOODEN BODIES
But this expesiieDt was not wholly sat,5-
factory, since even the best Of murnmies
could not endure forever-and then what
would become Of Ire doublei The only way
they found out OF this difficulty was To pro
vide stons or wooden bodies against the pos
sibility Of the mummy Inoldering away.
Most Of the statues discovered in Egyptian
toubs, Mr.. Msspero assures as, were only
bodies for the doubles Of the men buried IN
them To prevent them froE being broken
TO pieces or carried away, they walled them
up in dark cells-sorne standing, some sitting,
Some squatting, according to taste or con-
veuience; and al were as Ike the model as
srt could make them, that tie soul might
more easily adapt itself TO them
There was no limit 70 the number Of such
eHs1es but the piety or wealth of the suIviv-
ing relatives; the more numerous they verc
the better it was for the dead. One statue
was, after all, only ono chance Of perpetGisy,
and 9, 8, 10 or % statues gave tn double 50
many chances moro. The statues n The te,,-
pies had the same meaning as tbose In the
tornbs; the doubles Of kings or gosts-no. tbs
whole, but certain partic.s@-were 1xed upon
them By prayers and conservation, and ani-
mated them Thus it was tnA. toey vere abis
70 move bead CT arms, 20 answer ques.3oas,
and 70 give forth oracieA Statues were no.
nero works Of art. they were things alive,
and are even TO this dsy, Mr.. AasJcro de
clarrs, OILY The double Of old has turned into /
q bad gy4ris In modern Egypt, and hauuts /.
the sf,oe where it was revered ages ago as o |
sa.nsiy soQl or god Il u wont 70 frizhten /
men cut u thesr ritz, 70 drive them Taving /
mad, and sometimes 20 kin them Bot IL 1
losss is power when toe body Q: Etone with /
witch IL coasor.s has been rnutila:st That
Is the reason, Mr.. Aaspero informs Is, Why 1
20 many statues II ou- museums display .
broken nose or a battered cheek; the .ella- 4
been who found them defacnd tbeEa n ozSsr 1
10 lame tbe double IN then and prv-ea. u 1
from doins any harm Ito tomb -.s tee
house Of tie double, and there % certain 4
days the family bruagk. pro~ssions Of Al /
kinds-a custom which ultimately s,oS ;hs /
form Of offerings that were zrsere painted CT
carved limitations Of nsiural rrss. AID drink
-Gaohy- Democrat
An Artistic woznan's shr~vdnsA