Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1902-04-05


and here the grain was teemed in
great yellow heaps, and each genera
| ton of those that were set over it
took pride IN adding to the accumu-
| lation.
In modern days it had been the Gus
tom among the younger and more
| forward of the priests to scott at this
| ancient provision, and to hold that
| treasure of gold or weapons or
! jewels would have more value and no
less of dignity; and more than once
| it had been a close thing lest these
| innovators should not be outvoted.
| But is it was, the old constitution
had happily been preserved, and now
in these years of trial the clan
reaped the benefit. And so with
| these granaries and series of great
| tanks and cisterns which held the
| rainfall, there was no chance Of Pho
renice reducing our stronghold by
mere close investment, even though
she sat down stubbornly before it for
a score of years.
But it was the paucity of men for
the defense which oppressed me most.
AS I took my way about the head of
the mountain, inspecting all points,
j the emptiness of the place smote me
like a succession of blows. The
! groves, once so trim, were now shaggy
and unpruned. Wind had whirled the
leaves in upon the temple floors, and
they lay there unswept. The college
of youths held no more than musty
smell to bear witness that men had
once been grown there. The homely
palaces of the higher priests, at one
time SO ardently sought after, lay
many of them empty, because not
even one candidate came forward
now to canvass for election.
! Evil thoughts surged up within me
as 1 saw these things, that were di-
rect promptings from the neither
gods. "There must be something
wanting" these tempters whispered,
] Gin a religion from which so many
of its priests fed at the first pinch of
persecution"
I did what could to thrust these
waverings resolutely behind me; but
from my brain; and so 1 made a COM
promise with myself: First, l would
! with the help that might be given me,
destroy this wanton Phorenice, and
regain the kingdom which had been
given me to my OWL proper rule; and
afterwards / would call a council of
the seven and council of the three,
and consider without prejudice if
| there was any matter in which our
ancient ritual could be amended to
suit the modern requirements. But
this should not be done till Phorenice
was dead and I was firmly planted in
her room. / would not be a party,
even to myself, to any plan which
smacked at all of surrender.
And there as I walked through the
| desolate groves and beside the cold
affairs, the high gods were pleased to
show their approval of my scheme,
and to give me opportunity to bind
myself to it with a solemn oath and
VOW. At that moment, from his dis
tant resting place in the east, our
Lord the Sun leaped up to begin an
other day. For long enough, from
where I stood below the crest of the
mountain, he himself would be in
visible. But the great light of his
glory spread far into the sky, and
against it the Ark of the Mysteries
Z doomed in black outline from the
highest crag where it rested, lonely
and terrible.
For anyone unauthorized to go
nearer than a thousand PAGES to this
meant instant death. On that day
when I was initiated as one of the
seven I had been permitted to go near
and once press my lips against its
ample curves; and the rank of my
degree gave me the privilege to re-
peat that salute once on each day
when a new year was born. But
and how it was entered, that was hid
den from the seven, even as it was
from the other priests and the. COM
mon people in the city below. Only
those who had been raised to the sub
lime elevation of the three had a
knowledge of the dreadful powers
which were stored within it.
i I went down on my knees where /
was, and Zaemon knelt beside me,
and together we recited the prayers
which had been said by the priests
from the beginning of time, giving
thanks to our great lord that he has
come to brighten another day. And
then, with my eyes fixed on the black
outline of the Ark of Mysteries /
vowed that, come what might, I at
/ least would be true servant of the
high gods to my hfe's end, and that
my whole strength should be spent
in restoring their worship and glory.
| ITO Be Continued