JOSHUA.

Auckland Star, Volume XXI, Issue 259, 1 November 1890, Page 1 (Supplement)

JOSHUA.

A STORY OF

Egyptian - Israelitish Life.

By GEORGE EBERS, Author of " "An Egyptian Princess," Now First Poblisukd. (Copyright 1889 by S. S. McClure). CHAPTER XX.—(Continued.) Jushua had burled the dog which had come up with him againsta rock; tho other he had driven off by plunging a stone ab him bill ho rotreabed whining into a thicket. He bad seen nothing of any pursuers neither thab night nor all tho nexb day. Ab lasb he reached a high road and came up with some country-folk, who told him which way the king's army had marched. Then, aboub midday, being overcome by fatigue, he had gone to sleep in the shade of a sycamore, and when he woke the sun wds near sinking. He wa3 dreadfully hungry, eohe had pulled a few turnips in a field as ho passed by ; but the owner had immediately coino forward from a water-course at hand, and it was with difficulty that he had escaped from his pursuit. During part of the next day ho "had kepb to tho high road, and had rested ab lasb by a well on tho way, for ho knew that wild beasts shun much frequented spots. After sunrise ho had sob forth again, following the road tho army had taken, and had como upon ibs traces everywhere. Shortly before noon when he was quite exhausted and eick wibh fasting, he came to a villaeo lying closo to the fertile tract watered by tho Sefci canal, and had considered whether ifc would nob be well to sell his gold bracoleb to purchase some good nourishment, and keep some silver and copper coin for future need ; but he had feared being taken for a thief and cast into prison again, for the thorns had been his raiment, and his sandals had long since droppod from his feeb. He had thougbb fchafc his misery must movo even the hard-hearted to pity, so he had knocked at a door and begged, bitter aB ib had been to him. However, he got nothing from the peasant bub a scornful admonition that such a strong young follow as he might work for his living, and leave begging to tho weak and old. A second had threatened him with a thrashing ; however, when he had gone some way further, iooling very crestfallen, a young woman, who had seen him at the niggard's door, camo after him and put a cake of bread with a few dates into his hand, hastily telling him that the village had been heavily taxed in the course of Pharaoh's progress, or sho would have given him something better. No banquet had ever before tasted so sweeb to him as tlu3 un-looked-for gift, which he ate by the next well; but ho did not confess to Kasana that ib had been embittered by tho doubfc as to vvhothor ho should oboy Joshua's counsel and return to his own people, or follow his heart's desire which drew him to her. He had started again, sti'.l undecided, bub fate seemed to have taken tho matter into her own hands. After he had walked on about half an hour longor, on reaching tho odgo of tho desert he had come upon a youth of about his own age, sitting by the waysido and moaning as he held ono of his feet in both hands. He had gono up to him at his call, and to his surprise had recognised him as Hornocht's runner and messenger, with whom he had often spoken. 4 Apoo ! our nimble Nubian !' interrupted tbo lady ; and Ephraim wenb on to tell her that this messenger had been sent to carry a letter to Prince Siptah in all haste, aDd tho swift-footed lad, who was wont to outrun his master's horses, would have flown like an arrow, and have reached his destination in two hours, if ha had not trodden on a fragment of brokon glass, a bottle crushed by some chariot wheel, and Che cub was dreadfully deep. 4 And you helped him ?' asked Kasana. 1 Could I do otherwise ?' was the answer. 'Ho bad half-blod to death and was as pale as a sheet. So I carried him to the nearosb canal and washed tho gaping wound, and applied some ointment he had with him.'

4 1 put it in his pocket a year ago, in a small pot,' said fche nurse, who, being easily moved, was wiping her eyes; and Ephraim confirmed fche fact, for Apoo had mentioned ib wifch gratitude. Then he went on : ' And I tore my tunic into strips, and bound it up as best I might, Bufc he urged me all the while to make haste, and held oub tho token and tho roll which his master had entrusted to him, and, knowing nothing of the misfortunes which had befallen me, he charged me to carry the letter to fche prince in his stead. Oh ! how gladly I understook to do so, and the second mile was not onded when I reached the camp. The letter is in the prince's hands and here am I. I can sco by your face thab you are well pleased. As for me—so happy as I am to sit here at your feet and gaze up at you, po thankful as I am to you for having listened to me so patiently, surely no one ever was in this world ! And if they pub me in chains I will *bear ib quietly if only you remain kind. My woes have been co many 1 I have neither father nor mother— no one to love me. Only you. I love none but you, and you will nob repel me, will you ?' ... He spoke the last words like one in -a frenzy. Carried away by his passion, and incapable, after the terrible strain of the last days and hours, of governing the overwhelming storm of his feelings, the lad sobbed aloud. Ho was scarcely past childhood yet, he had only himself to trust to, he had been torn and severed from all that had ever upheld and controlled him, and, like a young-bird taking refuge under its mother's wings, he hid his face in Kasana's lap, weeping violently. Deep compassion came over the tenderhearted young woman, and her eyes, too, were moist. She gently laid her hand on his hair ; and as she felt the shudder which ran through the boy's whole frame, she raised hia head in both handp, kissed his forehead and cheeks, and smiling through tears, as sho looked into his face, said : ' You poor, foolish boy ! Why should I not be kind,or ever repel you ? Your uncle is the man dearest to me in the world, and you are like his son. To serve him and you I have already consented to do thab which I had always utterly loathed, refused, Bub now, come whab may, and whatever others may think or say of" me, I will not care if only I can eucceed in doing fchab for which I will give my life and all I hold mosfc dear! Only wait, poor, vehement boy,' and again she kissed his cheeks. ' I shall finda way for you, too ! Now, enough of this.' She spoke firmly, and tbe words were enough to check tho lad's excited mood. Bufc suddenly she sprang up. crying in terrified haste :' ' Fly, fly, begone instantly!' A man's footstep approaching the tent and a warning word from the waiting woman had brought the brief command to Kasana's lips, and Ephraim's keen ear told him what bad roused her fear 3, and drove 1 him forthwith into the dark chamber, where he could satisfy himself that a moment's hesitation would have betrayed him. The curtain of the tent was lifted and a man walked straight through the arjterooin to the lighted apartment where Kasana—for that, too. he could hear—greeted some new guest only too warmly, and as though surprised at his coming co late. The waiting woman snatched up her own mantle to throw over the lad's bare shoulders, and she whispered to him: 'Linger near the tent some time before sunrise, but do not come in till I call you if you

love your life. You have neither father nor mother, and ray. child Kasana—a loving heart is hers, a heart of gold—she is the best of all that is good; bub whether she is fib bo guide a foolish scapegrace who burns for her like straw is quite another matter. As I listened to your story I thought of many things, and as I mean well by you I will tell you something : You have an uncle who is the noblest of men. I know what men are, and so far my Kasana is righfc. Do his bidding, ib will be for good. Obey him ! And if his orders take you far from here and Kasana, so much the better for yon. We walk in dangerous places, and if ib wero nofc for Joshua's sake I should have done everything in my power to hold her back. But for him—well, I am an old woman, but for thab man even I would go through fire and water. I grieve more than I can say for thab pure, sweeb child, and for you who are so like whab my own son was ; bub I say once more, obey your uncle, boy, or you will come to an evil end, and thab would be a pity indeed !' Then, without waiting for a reply, she pushed him towards ono of the openings in the canvas wall of the tent, and waited till Ephraim had wriggled out. Then she dried her eyes and went back into the lighted room as though by chanco ; bub Kasana and her belated visitor had matters to discuss which allowed of no witness, and her'dead child'only suffered her to light her own little lamp at the three-armed candelabrum, and then sent her to bed.

Sha submitted; bub in the darkened room, where her bed stood not far from her mistress', she lay down, and then covering her face with her hands, wept in silence.

CHAPTER XXI. Ephraim crept round tho tenb ho had quitted, pressing ono ear against the canvas wall. He very cautiously undid a few stitches in one of the seam._, and so could see as well as hear what was going "on in tho lady's sitting-room. The storm kept everyone within shelter who was not compelled by service to r.urn oub, and Ephraim had the less reason to fear discovery because tho spot where ha crouched was in deep shade. The old nurse's cloak was wrapped about him, and though a shudder again and again ran through his young limbs, it was bitter grief thab caused ifc and anguish of soul. He saw Kasana's head resting on tho breast of a prince, a greafc and powerful lover, and the capricious false one did not even forbid the bold suitor when his lips sought hers for the kisses he desired. She owed no faith to Ephrahn, indeed, bub her heart was his uncle's ;* she preferred him above all men, sho had declared herself ready to endure the worst to procure his freedom, and now he saw with his own eyes that she was false and faithless, and giving to anobher that which by right was Joshua's alone. To Ephraim himself she had shown favour—the mere crumbs which fell from Joshua's table, and even thab as ho confessed with a blush, was a robbery from his uncle; and he felb himself injured, wounded and betrayed, and on fire with jealousy in behalf of his uncle, whom he honoured, nay, and loved, though he had contravened his wishes.

And Joshua ? He, like Ephraim himself, and like thab princely personage,like everyone in short, musb love her in spite of his strange demeanour at the wayside well ; it could nob possibly be otherwise ; and she, safo from tho vengeance of tho unhappy prisoner, was abandoning herself with cowardly baseness to the caresses of another !

Siptah, as he had learnfc from their last meeting, was his uncle's foe ; and for him, of all mon, she was betraying the man she loved. Through the ,slit in the he could see all thab went on within, but he closed his eyes to avoid seeing many things. More often, indeed, the odious spectacle riveted his gaze with a mysterious spell, and then he longed to tear the tent wider, to fell the loathed foe, and speak words of stern reproof to tho faithless woman in Joshua'B name. The fierce passion which had possessed him was suddenly turned to hatred and scorn. From the happiest of human beings, as he had deemed himself, he had become the mosb miserable ; such a fall from the highesb bliss bo fche deepesb woe, none before him, he believed, had ever known. The old nurse had spokeu truly, there could be nothing in store for him ab Kasana's hands bub misery and despair. Once he had started to fly, bub then the bewitching sound of her silvery laugh fell on his ear, and a mysterious power held him rooted to the spot to listen a little longer. At firsb the rush of blood tingled so fiercely in his ears that he was quite incapable of following the dialogue within. By degrees, however, he had gathered the purport of whole sentences, and now he losb nob a word that was spoken. Ib waa indeed of fche greabesb interest, though ifc enabled him to look into an abyss which seemed to yawn ab his feet. Kasana by no means yielded to her audacious wooer on every point, bub this only drew him on to insist passionately on her entire surrender, body and soul; and what he offered in return was indeed the highest reward —a place aa queen at his side onthethroneofEgypt, for which he was plotting, Thatmuch hedistinctly uttered, buball else was hard to follow ; for the vehement lover was in haste, and frequently interrupted his incoherent sentences to assure Kasana of his unalterable devotion, or to mollify her when the audacity of his pretensiorfi roused her fears or her disgust. Presently he spoke of the letter which Ephraim had brought, and after he had read ib aloud and explained it to her, the boy perceived, with slight shudder, thab he himself had now become an accomplice in the most detestable of crimes. For a moment he felt prompted to betray the traitors, and deliver them into the hands of the sovereign whose overthrow bhey were plotting. But he cast this idea from him, and only indulged in the comforting reflection—the first that had come to him during this dreadful experience—thab he held Kasana and her prince in his clutch like beetles on a thread. This raised his spirits and restored his lost confidence and courage, The baser the schemes he now overheard, the greater and more surely grew his recovered sense of the value of truth and right. He remembered likewise an admonition of his uncle's : 4 Give no man, greab or small, cause to regard you witb anything but respect, and then you may hold your head as high as the proudest hero in his purple tunic and gilfc breastplate.' As he lay trembling with fever on his bed in Kasana's houso he had repeated the words many times, but fche miseries of captivity had banished it from his mind. Not till "he found himself in the chamberlain's tent, when the slave had held the mirror thab he might see himself bathed and anointed, had it recurred as a passing thought; but now ib wholly possessed his soul. And, strangely enough,- the royal traitor within the tent wore, in facb, a purple tunic and gilb armour, and looked indeed a hero ; bub he could nofc hold hia head high, for fche deed he purposed could only succeed in twilight secrecy; ib was like the work of the loathsome mole which turns up the earth in darkness. The hateul three, falsehood, treachery and perjury, were Siptah's tools, ahd she whom he had chosen to be his accomplice was the woman —ab the bottom of his soul he was ashamed to own it—tbe woman for whose sake he had been ready to sacrifice all he held sacred, worthy and dear. These hideous things, which he had been taught to flee from, were bub the rungs of the ladder by which that wicked man honed to mount to high estate. Ephraitnsawib; all the prince's plot lay before him as an open book. The roll the lad had brought to the camp had contained three letters. One was from the conspirators in Tanis ; tbe others from Siptah's mother. Sh& wrote thab she

looked for his speedy return, and informed!] him thab Aarsu, the Syrian, the captain of j the foreign troops, now in charge of the. palace, and all in the women's house, were! prepared to hail him king. When the high! priest of Amon, who was at the same timej the judge, high steward and keeper Of tha< seal, should proclaim him, he would be' king, and could mount the throne un-| opposed, for the palace was open to him. If Pharaoh should return, the body-; guards were ready to take him prisoner, and clear him out of the way—as Siptah,; who did nob love half measures, had secretly] commanded, while Baie had voted for hia; being kept in mild captivity. • Tho thing to be feared was tha premature reappearance of Seti, Meneph-; tab's younger son, now at Thebes ; for now; thab ins elder brothsr was dead, he had; become hoir to the throne, and pigeons had* arrived yesterday with letters announcing; thab he was on his way. Thus Siptah and! the powerful priest who was to proclaim him; musb make the best speed they could. The necessary precaution had also been taken to prevent any possible resistance on tho part of bhe army; as soon as tho Hebrews were destroyed, the larger portion of the troops were to be withdrawn lorth-j with into the garrisons they had left; .the; body-guard were attached to Siptah, and! the rest, who would escorb the royal party,; back to tho capital, could, if it camo to the worst, easily be overpowered by Aarsu and ; his mercenaries. 'Nothing now remains for me to do.'j cried the prince, stretching himself with; evident enjoyment, like a man who had; successfully achieved a difficult under~| taking, ' bub to make my way back to Tanis and Baie a few hours hence,' to let myself bo crowned and pro-! claimed in the temple of Amon, aw&, . nally make my entry into the'palaca of the Pharaohs. The rest is all a matter o£; course. Seti, who is called heir to tha crown, is a3 weak a creature as his father*] and will bend to the accomplished fact, toj necessity and force. The captain of tha body-guard will take care that Menephtak' never enters the palace again.' > The prince's mother had written a second; letter addressed to Pharaoh himself, to; justify Siptah and the high priests in re-i turning to the capital in all haste, without; exposing themselves to the imputationof J cowardice in leaving the army immediately; before a battle. Although she had never in; her life been in better health, she declared) with hypocritical prayers and lamentations that her hours wero numbered, and im-i plored the king to release her son and Baia; forthwith from their duties, that she mighto; be allowed to bless her only child before she! died. She had many sins on her conscience,! and none but the high priest had ib in hia' power to intercede for her for the mercy of j tho gods. Without his mediation she musb: depart in despair. This letter, too, the vila traitor had read, and had pronounced it a masterpiece of woman's cunning, rubbing his hands with a glee as he spoke. Treason, murder, dissimulation, base; deceit, a mockery of all the most sacredl feelings, everything foul and mean, were to ; be Siptah's aids to mounting fche throne, and though Kasana had wrupg her banda| and shed some tears when he told her tha* Pharaoh was to be put out of the way, she: grew calmer as the prince represented to! her that her own father approved of whati be had decided on to save Egypb from the] hand of the king who waa bringing th«; land to ruin.

The letter from the prince's mother to; Pharaoh—the mother who was spurring onher own son to ruthless crime—wa3 thelastr thing Ephraim stayed to hear; for thai young Hebrew, accustomed to regard the 1 bond between parents, and children aaj reverend and pure beyond all others, waa! moved by it to such a sudden frenzy that ho| raised his fist, and as he sprang away ha muttered a word of scorn and abuse.. Thus ho did not hear how Kasana made the prince pledge his word that, if he rose ta power, he would grant her her first request*; It should coat him neither money norlahds ßj : and merely afford her the privilege of show,' ing mercy ab the dictate of her heart-! for events were impending which musb pro-) yoke the wrath of the gods, and she onljj implored to be allowed to mitigate it. |

Ephraim could not bear to see or to heatjj any more of this revolting scene. Now,,;, for the first time, he began to understand! what danger he had run of allowing him-! self to be drawn into this slough, and be-] coming a losb and reprobate wretch j 4 but surely, he thought, he coulcl never have been so base, so abom-] inable as these two. Once more ha, remembered his uncle's words, and he threw* back his haughty head, and his deep chesbj swelled as though he would assure himself:.; of his own unbroken strength ; and he saidto himself, as he drew a deep breath, that he was fit for better things than being;; wasted on a bad woman, even if, like Kasana, she were fche fairest and mosb be-! witching creature under heaven. away ! far from the snare which might have, led him to murder and every kind of evil. .

Fully determined to return to his own, people, be made his way to the entrance to the camp ; but he had gone only a fewj steps when he stopped, and a glance at tha. sky showed him it waa not more than twoj hours past midnight. All was still. Only) from the pen where the king's horses were enclosed he heard now and then the. rattle of harness or the blow/>f a hoof. IB he attempted at this hour to make hia! escape be must certainly be detected and! detained ; prudence enjoined him to curb his impatience for a little while, and as ho;,, looked about him hia eye fell on the ehams berlain's tent, t from which the old slave came out to look for his master, who was* still awaiting Siptah's return in the' prince's quarter. This old man had; been kind before to Ephraim, and] he now with friendly urgency bade him enter the tenfc and rest, for youthJ said he, requires sleep. Ephraim, accepted 1 the well-meant invitation, for he now be-! gan to feel how badly his feet ached. Hardly! had he stretched himself on the mat—thai old slave having spread bis owit for him—j when he felt as if hia limbs were dropping) off; however, he thought he should hers have time and peace for reflection. \

He began by thinking of the future and) his uncle's injunctions. That he must)! forthwith rejoin his people was quite clear,! and if they escaped alive from Pharaoh's! host, let the rest do what they would, hial first duty would be to collect his his servants and his younger friends,' and hasten ab their head to the mines to strike off Joshua's chains, and con-j duct him home to his old father -and hial people who needed him co sorely. He' fancied he could see himself with his sling: at his girdle and a batble-axe in his hand] marching on in front of the rest, when! sleep overpowered him, and wrapped tha, weary youth in oblivion so deep and sweeo i that nob even a dream approached his pil-: low, and the old slave had to shake him ia. order to rouse him at daybreak. , The camp was already astir; tents were" being taken down, assea and loaded, horses combed and shod, chariots' cleaned, weapons and vessels polished, and| the firsb meal of the day distributed and eaten. Meanwhile trumpet-calls rang out on one hand, words of command on tha other, and from the eastern side of the camp: rose the chant of priests devoutly greeting; the new-born god of day. j Active servants now brought out a gilb chariot in front ot the splendid purple tenh, next) to Kasana's, and another not lesa' splendid followed. Prince Siptah and tha high priest had received permission fromj Pharaoh to return to Tania, at the desire of| a dying woman. Shortly after Ephraim. took leave of the friendly slave, charging,' him to return the cloak to Kasaria's nurse,, and to tell her that the messenger had fol-i lowed her advice and her uncle's; Then hat set forth on his journey. (To be Continued.) .