Mexico weekly ledger., 1890-03-13
.. Softly we tread, our measured footsteps fall
Within the sanctunry seven-foid,

INC S1uCbhkIy DCVSu-IS&as E
Soft on the dead thai iiveth are We calling.
Return, Osiris, from thy kingdom cold,
Return to them that worship thee of old"
. And then, when the sacred music ceased,
Esaforetime or the setting of the majesty
ef Rattle high priest raised the status Of
the living God and held 1t on high before
the multitude. With o joyful shout OF
"osiris, our hopel Osirisi Ossrisi' the
people tore the black ~wrappings from their
dress, showing the white robes beneath,
and, as one man, bowed before the God.
Then they went to feast, each at his home;
but / stayed in the court OF the temple.
Presently a priest Of the temple drew near,
and asked me Of my business; and Ian
swered him that I came from Alexandria,
and would be led before the council of the
high priest, for I knew that the holy priests
were gathered together debating the tidings
from Alexandria. Thereon the man left
and the high priests, hearing that / was
from Alexandria, ordered that I should be
led into their presence in the second hall Of
columns-and so I was led in.
It was already dark, and between the
great pillars lights were set, as on that
night when l was crowned Pharaoh OF the
upper and the lower land. There, too, was
the long line Of d~ignitaries seated in their
carven chairs and taking counsel together.
All was the same. The same cold images
Of kings and Gods gazed with the same
empty eyes from the everlasting walls.
Ay-morei Among those gathered there
were five of the very men who, as leaders
Of the great plot, had sat here to see me
crowned, being the only consplrators who
had escaped the vengeance Of Cleopatra
and the clutching hand Of time. Itook my
stand on the spot where once I had been
epnrrnad and mazda mo rpadv for fha last
act Of shame, with such bitterness OF heart
as can not be written.
"Why, it is the physician Olympus" said
one-"he who lived a hermit in the tombs
Of Tape, and who but lntely was Of the
| household of Cleopatra. Is it, then, true
that the queen is dead by her " hand,
physicianf"
"Yea, holy sirs, I am that physician; also
Cleopatra is dead by my hand.n
"By thy hands Why, how thisa
though well she is dead, forsooth, the wick
ed wantoni'
"Your pardon, sirs, and I will tell you all,
| for I am come hither to that end. Per
chance among you there may be some
| methinks / see some-who nigh eleven years
ago were gathered in this hall to secretly
| crown one Harmachis, Pharaoh of Khemf'
sit is true" they said ''but how nowest
thou these things, thou, Olympusa"
"Of the rest of those seven-and-thirty no
bles,' I went on, making no answer, fare
~two-and-thirty missing. Some are dead. as
| Amenemhat is dead; some IRE slain, as
Sepa is slain; and some, p~erchance, yet Ia
Dor as slaves within the mines, or live afar,
fearing vengeance"
ssIt is So" they said; '!alas | it is so. Har.
maehis, the accursed, betrayed the plot, and
| sold himself to the wanton Cleopatra"
tsIt is So" I went on, lifting up my head
"Harmachis betrayed the plot land sold him.
self to Cleopatra; and, holy sirs-I ana thai
Hdrmaehis." The priests and dignitaries
gazed astonished. Some rose and spoke
some said naught. 81 am that Harmachis
I am that traitor, trebly stepped In crime
a traitor to my Gods, q traitor to my coun
try, a traitor to my oath. leone hither tc
say that I have done this. I have executed
the divine vengeance On her who ruined me
and gave Egypt to the Roman. And now
that, after years Of toll and patient waiting
this Is accomplished by my wisdom and the
help of the angry Gods, behold, I come
with all my shame pon my head, to de-
clare the thing I am, and take the traitors
guerdonl"
"Mindest thou of the doom Of him who
hath broke the oath that may not be brokelr
asked he who first had spoken, in heavy
tones.
81 know it WELL" I answered; II court
that awful DOOM"
3Tell US more Of this matter, thou who
vast Harmachis."
So, in cold, clear words, I laid bare all my
shame, keeping back nothing, and ever as ]
spoke / saw their faces grow more hard, aut
knew that for me there was no mercy, no,
did I ask it; nor had I asked, could it have
beer granted. When, at last, I had done
they put me aside while they took counsel
Then they drew me forth again, and the
eldest among them, a man very old and ven
cradle, the priest of the temple of the divine
Hatshepu at Tape, spoke in icy accents:
"Thou, Harmachis, We have considered
this matter. Thou hast sinned the three
fold deadly sin. On thy head lies the bur
den Of the woe Of Khem, this day enthrallet
hast offered the deadly insult, and thou has
broken thy holy oath. For all Of thss'
sins there is, as well thou knowest, but on,
reward, aud that reward is thine. Naugh
can it weigh in the balance of our justic,
that thou host slain her who was thy caus.
of stumbling; naught that thou CONTEST b
name myself the vilest thing who eve
stood within these walls. On thee, also
must fall the curse Of Menka-ra, thou false
priesti thou forsworn patriotl tho,
Pharaoh, shameful and d~iscrownedi Here
where we set the double crown upon tn,
head, we doom thee to the doomi Go Il
thy dungeon, and await the falling Of it
strokei Go remembering what tho1
highest have been and what thou art, an.
may those Gods who, through thy evil dc
ing, shall ~perchance ere long cease to b
worshiped within these holy temples, Civ
to thee that mercy which we denyi Lea
him forthl''
So they took me and led me FORTH VIII
bowed head I went, looking not up, and ye
Ifelt their eyes burn upon my face. Oh
surely, Of all my shames, this Is the heavi
est.