THE ELEVENTH PAPYRUS

But it was well that the thing was done when it was well-done. For, a few months later, the occasion for departure occurred.

Now I had been very diligently studying such magic of the Tanitic priests as I did not know, to fill up the interval until Amenemhat should be moved by the blessed gods to deliver his message. And, among other matters where improvement seemed desirable, it was put into my mind to try a new method of imbalming the dear remains of the dead, which method (I believed and believe) not only prevents the mummy from shrivelling and going black or dry or discoloured in any way, but also preserves the exact freshness of appearance and condition which it had enjoyed while used as the temporary vesture of the soul, excepting the condition of life. But, because I found it unwise to make my experiments on the corpses of persons who had spoiled the pristine beauty of their bodies by over-long or over-arduous usage, I and Amenemhat preferred those of such acolyths of the temples whose souls well-plumed Thoth had been directed to escort elsewhere without first afflicting their forms with loathsome diseases. But, because all the temples of Tanis supplied no more than two such corpses within the month, Amenemhat sent both wind-messages and ibis-messages to other temples of other cities stating our needs. And, when we had treated without emptying eight well-made blooming bodies, with imperishable quintessences of unmentionable virtue and inconceivable fragrance, then we anointed them nine times in every part, under the nine proper stars, using a liquid unguent, preservative, which perseveres through all time and disgusts worms. But the fame of our handicraft went abroad, so that all the hierarchies of Khem desired to have their dead acolyths mummied in the new manner for the benefit of the temples. For which cause, it happened that I went to Alexandria in my barge to inspect a corpse so perfect that I brought it away with me, intending to treat it; and, on my return, I became imbroiled in the streets of Tanis after this wise.

The priests attending Amenemhat had taken the beautiful body from my barge and were gone on their way to the temple of Isis. But I remained behind during a little while, inspecting the diligence of my slaves, well-shaven, performing prescribed purifications. And anon, later in the evening, I proceeded by quiet by-ways toward the temple where Amenemhat awaited me. But, on my way, I encountered a troop of land mercenaries, blameless Sithonians and Mygdonians, escorting the litter of one of the Lagidai, a brother of the Pharoah’s favourite wife. And they were rudely brushing everyone from their path, not being at all affable. But by chance, a certain aged philosopher, Melkas by name, who taught daily in the porch of the Serapion, was about to cross the road. His eyes were dim, his step infirm, his pace tardy and grave. Wherefore, I tried to help him into the shadow of a portico; and did so, but not before a Sithonian, seeing the length of my arms, had yelled at me, clipping the Argive tongue, “Ho, there, Ape-man, stand aside before thy betters!”

But instantly divine anger inflamed my lordly mind. And boldly affronting the mocker, I broke the crust of his blameless face to pulpy fragments with fist-blows, as a bear in springtime breaks a delicate egg. But the puny prince in the litter ordered his guards to seize me; and half-a-dozen rash Mygdonians hastened with an obedient start to obey. Then, indeed, the fierce and frolicsome joy of Saint Aldate’s or the Cowley Empire on a Saturday night⁠[33] came upon me, so that I delayed not, but I simply smashed the first four faces using my left fist and my right like flails or sledge-hammers; and, snatching a falling shield and mightily sweeping with it, I shattered the shins of the others as they came on. Now, when they saw these things, the shrieking slaves fled, having dropped the litter. But I, by this time, had got into my stride, becoming very methodical in my fury: for which cause I determined to leave nothing important undone. Wherefore, I butted the prince out of his tangled curtains, and rolled him about with my feet in a pool of foul slime which happened to be near by. And, all things necessary having been accomplished, I went upon my way with a calm and holy mind. Nor did I bestow another thought to the matter. And indeed no one gave me news of it: for the city, in those last days of the Lagidaian dynasty, was a scene of incessant disorder; and a few messes more or less, found in the streets at dawn, were by no means uncommon. But, after four days, Amenemhat suddenly interrupted my studies, crying: “Fly, O Nicholas, to the secret chamber in the shrine: for the Pharoah’s mercenaries are upon thee.”

Thus he spoke. But I proceeded, without more ado, to the secret door; and, when I stamped on the right, it slid ajar, so that I could squeeze by, and sidle sideways along the narrow passage which led to the secret chamber. Now this secret chamber was a very wily one; and it was constructed after this manner: by the hollowing-out of one of the pillars which surrounded the shrine, but the pillar itself was (like all the others) carved into the similitude of an important god. And, inside the hollow of it (from the secret crypt beneath the temple floor in which I was), there ascended a very narrow ladder of twisted linen threads leading up into the secret chamber in the skull of the god. But, at the top of the ladder, there was contrived a small seat like a saddle, so ordained that anyone sitting thereon in the skull, having pulled up the ladder, was very much separated from earth-walking men; and might (at will) speak through the orifice of the god’s mouth quite safely, and also might see plainly all which happened in the temple, looking downward. And the place was used in the following manner. For the priests of the temple, being seated on the saddle and speaking awfully through the mouth of the god, delivered themselves of oracles imparted to them by the Divine Ones, or of revelations which they obtained in their trances or by sacred magic on account of a religious reason. Such, then, was the secret chamber.

But the lower part of the hollow pillar being dark, a studio of spiders, a thoroughfare of mice, and an abode of most holy beetles, I made haste to ascend to the saddle, pulling the ladder after me. And, being there conveniently insconced, I perceived Amenemhat hurriedly entering the temple by the priest’s door; and, having seated himself in his proper pulpit, he instantly began to intone the litanies, beginning in the middle so that an interrupter (I suppose) might imagine that he had been thus occupied for some time. He, therefore shook the sacred sistrum, saying:

“Homage to thee, O lord of the star-gods in An and of heavenly beings in Khez-aba, O thou god Unti more glorious than those gods hidden in Annu:

“Homage to thee, O Heru, thou dweller in both horizons, who, enormously striding, stridest over heaven, thou dweller in both horizons:

“Homage to thee, O soul of everlastingness, O soul who dwellest in Tattu, O Un-nefer son of Nut, thou lord of Akert:

“Homage to thee, in thy dominion over Tattu, the feathery crown is stablished on thy head, thou art the one whose strength is in himself:

“Homage to thee, O lord of the acacia-tree, who settest the boat upon its sledge, who turnest back the ill-working friend, who causest the eye to rest:

“Homage to thee, mighty in thy moment, great god dwelling in An-rut-f, lord of eternity, creator of everlastingness, lord of Sutenhenen:

“Homage to thee, who restest upon right and truth, O lord of Abtu whose limbs are joined to Ta-sertet, to whom fraud and guile are hateful:

“Homage to thee in thy boat, who bringest Hapi from his source, on whose body light shineth, O dweller in Nek-hen:

“Homage to thee, O creator of the gods, O king of the north and of the south, O Osiris, O victor, O lord and ruler of the world in thy gracious seasons.”

And, having met with no interruption at the time when he finished these beautiful imprecations, Amenemhat shook the sacred sistrum more loudly, and went on with the Address to the Rudders, saying:

“Hail, thou lovely power, thou lovely rudder of the northern heavens:

“Hail, thou pilot of the world, thou lovely rudder of the western heavens:

“Hail, thou shining one who livest with the gods in visible forms, thou lovely rudder of the eastern heavens:

“Hail, thou dweller in the temple of those with shiny faces, thou lovely rudder of the southern heavens.”

And, because the expected intrusion of profane persons was still delayed, when he had chaunted these strophes, Amenemhat shook the sacred sistrum very slowly and very solemnly, and continued with the Invocation of the Triads, thus:

“Hail, ye gods who are above the earth, ye pilots of the netherworld:

“Hail, ye mother-gods, who are above the earth, and in the netherworld, and in the house of Osiris:

“Hail, ye pilot-gods of Tasert, who are above the earth, and in the netherworld, and with the followers of Ra in the train of Osiris——”

But, when he had intoned these words, the quiet rattling of the sistrum and the monotonous drone of his voice were drowned by the clanking of arms, and by the blameless cries of mercenaries, appearing at the cedar portal of the temple. Whom Amenemhat, reverend of mien and very hierarchic, sternly confronted from his pulpit, saying: “Who dareth thus to intrude upon the sacrosanct shrine of Mother Isis?”

But the answer came from one, whom I (from my secret station) perceived to be an Argive of noble aspect, large of limb, and handsome, and very gorgeously apparelled in golden mail with adornments of chrysoliths and the plumage of yellow cock-parrots. He responded to Amenemhat, saying: “I am called Agesilopodes, son of Golygosthenes, and I am a captain of the Pharoah’s guard.”

“And what doth Agesilopodes, servant of the Pharoah, seek in these holy precints?” Amenemhat continued.

“I seek the person of one Ape-man, whose trail we have pursued hither:” the Khrysaspid affirmed.

“Thou seest,” said the priest indifferently, “how many persons are present occupying our pews.”

“I see but thee:” quoth the captain: “but nevertheless I must search in the shadows of all the most secret recesses.”

“The rule,” said Amenemhat, “is that the sons of Khem may have free access to this oratory of our Lady of the Marshes, but not aliens, undesirable or otherwise.”

“But the Ape-man whom I seek is guilty of sacrilege.”

“Even in that case, he would have secure sanctuary here, unless he be pursued by the Pharoah’s own sigil.”

“Revere it:” said the captain, exhibiting his warrant.

Amenemhat had a prostration at the sight of the royal but tipsy flute-player’s cartouche. But, having (by his wiles) caused the mercenaries to persuade themselves that they were on a bootless quest, he permitted the search to be made. Makedonians and Thrakians marched slowly round the temple, casting fierce glances into every dark place: but Amenemhat seated himself again in his pulpit, his knees closed and his palms upon them, his head up and his eyes fixed, as a hierarch who engages in holy meditation while expecting the imposition of his mitre.

But I devised a new and perfectly frightful wile. For, having taken three wax-matches from my box, and having frayed out the half of each match, wrapping the frayed part round the head loosely, as the men of my future race were wont to do when they desired to kindle tobacco in a gale of wind, then, indeed, I kindled them; and I dropped them, one by one and horribly flaming, from the god’s mouth on to the plumed casques of mercenaries who (by chance) were walking just below. And their horse-hair crests instantly shrivelled with appalling stenches, in flashes of fire which singed the soldiers’ hairy faces, terribly, inexplicably: so that they fled, fearfully yelling, having a most hideous tale, about gods who vomit fire, to narrate to their awful comrades in their barracks.

In this manner, I dismissed well-greaved mercenaries (the most righteous of men) from the temple of Isis at Tanis.

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