St. Tammany farmer., 1906-06-02

A"oAou upoH moses Tor speaking tnus
against their sacred river had not the
KING by gesture held them back anc
bade them be silent.
And the fish that is in the river shall
die, and the river shall stink; and thou
and thy people shall loathe to- drink o.
the water"
Ihe words rang out clear and sharp
and, as Moses ceased speaking, an op-
pressive silence brooded over the grea,
assembly of people, like the ominous
calm which precedes the storm. Every
eye was riveted upon the king, but with
an 1mperious air and a sternness which
made those about him tremble, he
roared:
Enough of this. Let the ceremonies
proceed. The god of the great river
awaits our homage" and motioning to
the priests they again struck up the
chant:
Hail, o Nile, thou comest forth over
this land; thou comest in peace, giving
life to Egypt, O hidden god!"
AS the words, 20 hidden god," were
spoken Moses placed the rod in Aaron's s
hand and the latter stepped to the wa
ter's edge and smote the river
Instantly the sparkling waters of the
Nile were transformed before the vision
Of the king and all the people. Instead
of the silvery sheen they beheld with
horror their sacred river take on the
hue of blood.
The priests stopped their chant, and
from the ghastly sight of the river the
eyes of all turned towards the king in
quiringly. What could he say to this?
What could he DO to show that the god
of the Nile was more powerful than the
God of the Hebrews in whose name this
wonder had been performed? The first
look of horror and CONSERVATION passed
from the face of Pharaoh and an express
sion of imperious disdain took its place
and he commanded that his magicians
and sorcerers be brought.
Z Now there was in the garden where
the king and people had gathered a
beautiful artificial lake in the center of
which great fountain played, throw
ing up its crystal spray like showers Of
flashing diamonds. To this body Of
water now all turned as the magicians
of Pharaoh gathered upon its brink
that they might try by their enchant-
ments to perform a wonder like that
which Moses and Aaron had just
wrought Intently the vast assemblage
waited while the incarnation was be-
ing said and then the magicians struck
the waters and called upon their gods.
But there was no change. The waters
still lay silver white and the fountains
spray flashed and sparkled in the bright
sunlight.
So intense was the suspense that peo-
pie scarcely breathed. Were Pharaoh's
magicians defeated? The people
turned to look in the direction of their
king, and by way of answer he thun-
dered:
LET James and Jambres be brought.
The gods of Egypt will speak through
them"
Hastily messengers were sent to the
temple to summon the chiefest OF
Pharaoh's sorcerers, and while the peo-
pie waited they took up the cry of
James, Jambres," and kept up the
tumult until there came an answering
call from the opposite shore of the lake |
and the royal barge was seen approach
Ing swiftly.
AS it drew near the shore and an
,hored, James and Jambres were seen
in the bow. Waving the peo
pie to silence, they called to the king.
saying: --.
'tEet not the king be troubled The |
god of the Nile is angry at the action |
of Moses and Aaron this day, and that |
The king may know that 1t is not the
god of the Hebrews who has done this
,hings let the waters here be turned to
blood"
AS they finished, they leaned out over
he lake and chanted their mysterious
phrases and even while they were
speaking, the waters were seen to SLOW
y change from the blush tinge, which
the perfect blue of the sky
lbove, to the deep, dark, blood-red hue
which but short time before had been
loted upon the waters of the Nile.
A shout Of triumph broke from the
hroats of the multitude, which was
quickly hushed as they looked out over
he lake before them and saw its sur
ace covered with the sacred gold and
liver fish placed there in token of the
avor of the gods upon Pharaon's daily
'isits thither.
Pharaoh noted the look and con-
cious of the silence turned and spoke
, James and Jambres who stood near
i'm, and these two, lifting their voices
trong and clear SO that all the multi
ude could hear, shouted:
But even the gods of Egypt are will.
ng to sacrifice the sacred fish Of the
oyal gardens If but the god of Moses
nd Aaron may be dishonored. Who
, the god Of the Hebrews that we
hould listen to him? Begone, Moses
nd Aaron, to thy people and tell them
hat Pharaoh will not let them CO."
Tired Of the Monotony.
Bishop Doane, of Albany, paused for
moment in an earnest discussion of