The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1889-11-02


some Gpdhead, whose wings are darkness.
| touches with his immortal fire, so that they
! leap out III answering flame? Give me
sonaewhaI Of thy wisdom and open these
wonders to me, O my servant, for have
little knowledge Yet my heart is large.
and Z fain would fill it, tor have the vii
co,1ld but find the teacheT.'' III
Thereon, being right glad to find footing on
/ .safer shore. and marveIing somewhat to.
earn that Cleopatra had a place for lofty
| thoughts, 1 spoke and told her willingly
such things as are lawful. told her how
The sky is liquid mass pressing round the
,arth and resting on the elastic pillars OF.
;he air, and how above is the heavenly
ocean Nout, wherein the planets float like
ships as they rush upon their radiant way.
Many things told her, and among them
how through the certain, never-ceasing
movement Of the orbs of light the planet
that was called Donaou (Venus) when she
showed as the morning star, became the
planet Bonou when she came as the sweet
Star of Eve. [The motion of the planets
appears to have been familiar to the Egyp-
tians1. And, while I stood and spoke
watching the stars, she sat, her hands
,lasped upon her knee, and watched my
face
ssAhv' she broke in at length, ''and so
Venus is to be seen both in the morning and
the evening sky. Well, of truth, she is
everywhere, though best she loves the
night But thou lowest not THAT should use
these Latin names to thee. Come, we will
talk in the ancient tongue of khem, which
know right well; the first, mark thou, OF
all the Lagidae am I who know 1t. And
now,' she went on, speaking i'll mineown
| did but make her talk more sweet, "enough
Of stars, for, when all is said, they are but
tickle things, and perchance may even now
be storing up an evil hour for thee or me,
Or for us both together. Not but what !
love to hear thee speak Of them, for then
thy face doth lose that gloomy cloud OF
thought wherewith thou drapest it and
grows quick and human. Harmachis, thou
art too young for such a solemn trade; me-
| thinks that must find thee a better. Youth
comes but once; why waste it in these
musings? Time is it to think when we can
| no longer act Tell me how old art thou,
| Harmachis?'
81 am six and twenty years, 0 Queen" I
| answered, s'for I was born in the first
month of Shomou, in the summer season,
and on the third day of the month"
"Why, we are Of an age even to a day."
she cried, sstOr I, too, have six and twenty
years, and I, too, was born on the third day
of the first month Of Shomou Well, this
may we say-those who begot us need have
no shame. For if be the fairest woman
in Egypt, 1nethinks, Harmachis, that there
| is in Egypt no man more fair and strong
| than thou, aye, or more learned. Born on
| the same day, why, Ills manifest that we
were destined to stand together, / as the
~, ,na11Yc
one of the chief pillars of my throne, and
thus to work each others veal"
! Cor, perchance. each others VICE."
| answered, looking up; for her sweet
| speeches stung my ears, and brought more
| color to my face than I loved that she
should see therein. 4
''Nay, never talk of woe. Be seated here
by me, Harmachis, and let us talk, not as
! Queen and subject, but as friend to friend.
| Thou vast angered with me at the feast TO-
| night--was it not so?-in that. I Knocked
| thee with yonder wreaths Nay, twas but
| O. jest. Didst thou know how heavy is the
/ task of monarchs, and how wearisome are
| their hours, thou wouldst not be Wroth be.
causeI lit my dizziness with a jest. Oh,
| they weary me, those princes and those
! mobiles, and those stiff-necked, pompous
| Romans. To my face they vow themselves
| my slaves, and behind my back they mock
| me and proclaim me the servant Of their
| triumvirate, or their empire, Or their re-
| public, as the wheel Of fortune turns, and
each rises on it's round There is never q
man among them-nothing but fools, para
| sites and puppets-never a man since with
| their cowardly daggers they slew that
Caesar whom all the world in arms was not
strong enough to tame. And I must play
+L~ o%1,o : 1>r 1>rr
doing can keep Egypt from their grip
And for reward, what? Why, this is my
reward; that all men speak ill of me and-l
know Tiny subjects hate me! Yea, be,
lleve that woman though I be, they would
| murder me could they find a meansp' And
| she paused, covering her. eyes with he1
hand, and twas well, for her words pierced
! me so that shrank there upon the seat be
side her.
':They think i'll of me, I+know it; and call
! me wanton, who have never stepped aside
save once, when I loved the greatest man
of all the world, and at the touch Of love my
passion famed indeed, but burnt with
hailowed fame. These ribald Alexandrians
do swear that I poisoned Ptolemy, my
brother-whom, most unnaturally, the Ro-
| man Senate would have forced on me, his
sister, as husband but it is false; he
Slckened ana dleQ OF lever. And even SO
they say that would Stay Arsinoe, my sis
ter-who, indeed, would Stay me!-but that,
too, is false Though she will have none of
me, love my sister. Yea, they ali think
| i'll Of me w1thouta cause; even thou dost
think i'll of me, Harmachis. Oh, Harmachis,
before thou judgest, think what thing is
envy! that foul sickness Of the mind which
makes the jaundiced eye Of pettiness to see
all things distraught-to read evil written
! on the open face of good, and find impurity
in the whitest virgins soul. Think what
thing it is, Harmachis, to be set on high
above the gaping crowd of knaves who hate
thee for thy fortune and thy wit; who gnash
their teeth and shoot the arrows of their
lies from the cover Of their own obscure.
| ness, whence they have no wings to soar;
and whose hearts, quest it is to drag down
thy nobility to the level Of the grounding
and the fool! III
s'Be not, then, ready to think evil Of the
great, whose every word and act is searched
for error by a million angry eyes, and
| whose most tiny fault is trunpeted by
thousand threats, till the world shakes
with the echoes Of their sin Say not: otis
thus, its certainly thus x say. rather: Nay.
ms ~ NOT bo oth -