[NOTE: There is a short list of bookmarks, or pointers, at the end of thefile for those who may wish to sample the author's ideas before making anentire meal of them. D. W. ]

A THORNY PATH

By Georg Ebers

Volume 2. 

CHAPTER V. 

The crowds on the road were now homeward bound, and they were all in suchwild, high spirits that, from what was to be seen and heard, it couldnever have been supposed that they had come from so mournful a scene. They took the road by the sea leading from the Nekropolis to Eleusis, wandering on in the glowing moonlight. 

A great procession of Greeks had been to Eleusis, to celebrate themysteries after the manner of the Greek Eleusis, on which that ofAlexandria was modeled. The newly initiated, and the elder adepts, whoseduty it was to superintend their reception, had remained in the temple;but the other mystics now swelled the train of those who were coming fromthe city of the dead. 

Here, indeed, Serapis took the place of Pluto, and much that was Greekhad assumed strange and Egyptian forms: even the order of the ceremonieshad been entirely changed; still, on the African, as on the Attic shore, the Greek cry went up, "To the sea, O mystics!" and the bidding toIakchos: "Be with us, O Iakchos!"

It could be heard from afar, but the voices of the shouters were alreadyweary, and most of the torches had burned low. The wreaths of ivy andmyrtle in their hair were limp; the singers of the hymn no longer kepttheir ranks; and even Iambe, whose jests had cheered the mourningDemeter, and whose lips at Eleusis had overflowed with witticisms, wasexhausted and silent. She still held in her hand the jar from which shehad given the bereaved goddess a reviving draught, but it was empty andshe longed for a drink. She was indeed a he: for it was a youth inwoman's dress who played the rollicking part of Iambe, and it wasAlexander's friend and comrade Diodoros who had represented the daughterof Pan and Echo, who, the legend said, had acted as slave in the house ofMetaneira, the Eleusinian queen, when Demeter took refuge there. Hissturdy legs had good reason to be as weary as his tongue, which had knownno rest for five hours. 

But he caught sight of the large vehicle drawn by four horses, in whichthe vast corn-measure, the kalathos, which Serapis wore as hisdistinguishing head-gear, had been conveyed to Eleusis. It was emptynow, for the contents had been offered to the god, and the four blackhorses had an easy task with the great wagon. No one had as yet thoughtof using it as a conveyance back to the town; but Diodoros, who was bothingenious and tired, ran after it and leaped up. Several now wanted tofollow his example, but he pushed them off, even thrusting at them with anewly lighted torch, for he could not be quiet in spite of his fatigue. In the midst of the skirmishing he perceived his friend and Melissa. 

His heart had been given to the gentle girl ever since they had beenplaymates in his father's garden, and when he saw her, walking alongdowncast, while her brother sported with his neighbor's daughters, hebeckoned to her, and, as she refused to accompany him in the wagon, henimbly sprang off, lifted her up in his arms, made strong by exercise inthe Palaestra, and gently deposited her, in spite of her struggles, onthe flat floor of the car, by the side of the empty kalathos. 

"The rape of Persephone!" he cried. "The second performance in one. Night!"

Then the old reckless spirit seized Alexander too. 

With as much gay audacity--as though he were free of every care andgrief, and had signed a compact with Fortune, he picked up pretty Ino, lifted her into the wagon, as Diodoros had done with his sister, andexclaiming, "The third performance!" seated himself by her side. 

His bold example found immediate imitators. "A fourth!" "A fifth!"cried one and another, shouting and laughing, with loud calls on Iakchos. 

The horses found it hard work, for all along the edge of the car, andround the kalathos of the great Serapis, sat the merry young couples inclose array. Alexander and Melissa soon were wreathed with myrtle andivy. In the vehicle and among the crowd there were none but radiant andfrolicsome faces, and no sound but triumphant revelry. 

Fatigue was forgotten; it might have been supposed that the sinistersisters, Care and Sorrow, had been banished from earth. 

There was a smile even on Melissa's sweet, calm face. At first her oldfriend's audacious jest had offended her maidenly coyness; but ifDiodoros had always loved her, so had she always loved him; and as otherwell-conducted girls had been content to have the like done to them, andher companion so confidently and roguishly sued for pardon, she gave hima smile which filled his heart with rapture, and said more than words. 

It was a comfort, too, to sit still and rest. 

She spoke but little, but even she forgot what troubled her when she felther friend's hand on hers, and he whispered to her that this was the mostdelightful night he had ever known, and that, of all the sweets the godshad created, she was to him the sweetest?

The blue sea spread before them, the full moon mirrored on its scarcelyheaving surface like a tremulous column of pure and shining silver. Themurmur of the ripples came up from the strand as soothing and inviting asthe song of the Nereids; and if a white crest of foam rose on a wave, shecould fancy it was the arm of Thetis or Galatea. There, where the bluewas deepest, the sea-god Glaukos must dwell, and his heart be gladdenedby the merry doings on shore. 

Nature is so great; and as the thought came to her that her heart was nottoo small to take its greatness in, even to the farthest horizon, itfilled her with glad surprise. 

And Nature was bountiful too. Melissa could see the happy and graciousface of a divinity in everything she looked upon. The immortals who hadafflicted her, and whom she had often bitterly accused, could be kind andmerciful too. The sea, on whose shining surface the blue vault of heavenwith the moon and stars rocked and twinkled, the soft breeze which fannedher brow, the new delicious longing which filled her heart-all she feltand was conscious of, was a divinity or an emanation of the divine. Mighty Poseidon and majestic Zeus, gentle Selene, and the sportivechildren of the god of winds, seemed to be strangely near her as she rodealong. And it was the omnipotent son of Kypris, no doubt, who stirredher heart to beat higher than it had ever done before. 

Her visit to her mother's grave, too, her prayer and her offerings there, had perhaps moved the spirit of the beloved dead to hover near her now asa guardian genius. 

Still, now and again the memory of something terrible passed over hersoul like a sweeping shadow; but what it was which threatened her andthose dear to her she did not see, and would not now inquire. What themorrow might bring should not cloud the enchantment of this hour. Foroh, how fair the world was, and how blessed might mortals be!

"Iakchos! Iakchos!" the voices about her shouted, and it sounded asgleeful as though the breasts of the revelers were overflowing withgladness; and as the scented curls of Diodoros bent over her head, as hishand closed on hers, and his whispered words of love were in her ear, shemurmured: "Alexander is right; the world is a banqueting-hall, and lifeis fair. "

"So fair!" echoed the youth, pensively. Then he shouted aloud to hiscompanions: "The world is a banqueting-hall! Bring roses, bring wine, that we may sacrifice to Eros, and pour libations to Dionysus. Light theflaming torches! Iakchos! come, Iakchos, and sanctify our gladfestival!"

"Come, Iakchos, come!" cried one and another, and soon the enthusiasticyouth's cry was taken up on all sides. But wine-skin and jar were longsince emptied. 

Hard by, below the cliff, and close to the sea, was a tavern, at the signof the Cock. Here cool drink was to be had; here the horses might rest-for the drivers had been grumbling bitterly at the heavy load added tothe car over the deep sand--and here there was a level plot, under theshade of a spreading sycamore, which had often before now served as afloor for the choric dance. 

The vehicle soon drew up in front of the whitewashed inn, surrounded onthree sides by a trellised arbor, overgrown with figs and vine. Theyoung couples sprang to the ground; and, while the host and his slavedragged up a huge wine-jar with two ears, full of the red juice of thegrape, fresh torches were lighted and stuck on poles or fastened to thebranches of the sycamore, the youths took their places eager for thedance, and suddenly the festal song went up from their clear throatsunbidden, and as though inspired by some mysterious power:

 Iakchos, come! oh, come, Iakchos! Hither come, to the scene of our revel, The gladsome band of the faithful. Shake the fragrant, berried garland, Myrtle-twined, that crowns thy love-locks, Shedding its odors! Tread the measure, with fearless stamp, Of this our reckless, rapturous dance, In holy rejoicing! Hand in hand, thrice beatified, Lo we thread the rhythmic, fanciful, Mystical mazes!

And the dance begins. Youths and maidens advance to meet each other withgraceful movements. Every step must be a thing of beauty, every bend andrising, while the double flutes play faster and faster, and the measuredrhythm becomes a wild whirl. They all know the dance, and the music is aguide to the feeling to be expressed; the dancing must be suited to it. Every gesture is a stroke of color which may beautify or mar the picture. Body and spirit are in perfect harmony, combining to represent thefeelings that stir the soul. It is a work of art, the art of the armsand feet. Even when passion is at the highest the guiding law isobserved. Nay, when the dancers fly wildly apart, they, not merely cometogether again with unerring certainty, but form in new combinationanother delightful and perfectly harmonious picture. 

"Seek and find" this dance might be called, for the first idea is torepresent the wandering of Demeter in search of her daughter Persephone, whom Pluto has carried off to the nether world, till she finds her andclasps her in her motherly arms once more. Thus does the earth bewailthe reaped fruit of the field, which is buried in the ground in thewinter sowing, to rise again in the spring; thus does a faithful heartpine during absence till it is reunited to the beloved one; thus do wemourn our dead till our soul is assured of their resurrection: and thisbelief is the end and clew to the mystery. 

All this grief and search, this longing and crying for the absent, thisfinal restoration and the bliss of new possession, is set forth by theyouths and damsels-now in slow and now in vehement action, but alwayswith infinite grace. 

Melissa threw her whole soul into the dance while Demeter was seeking thelost Persephone, her thoughts were with her brothers; and she laughed asheartily as any one at the jests with which Iambe cheered the strickenmother. And when the joy of meeting was to find expression, she need notthink of anything but the fact that the youth who held out his hand toher loved her and cared for her. In this, for the moment, lay the end ofall her longing and seeking, the fulfillment of every wish; and as thechorus shouted, "Iakchos!" again and again, her soul seemed to have takenwings. 

The reserve of her calm and maidenly nature broke down; in her ecstasyshe snatched from her shoulder the wreath of ivy with which Diodoros haddecked her, and waved it aloft. Her long hair had fallen loose in thedance and flowed wildly about her, and her shout of "Iakchos!" rang clearin the night air. 

The youth she loved gazed at her with ravished eyes, as at some miracle;she, heedless of the others, threw her arms round his neck, and, as hekissed her, she said once more, but loud enough now to be heard fromafar, "The world is a banqueting-hall!" and again she joined in the shoutof "Iakchos!" her eyes bright with excitement. Cups filled high withwine now circulated among the mad-cap mystics; even Melissa refreshedherself, handing the beaker to her lover, and Diodoros raised to hismouth that place on the rim which her lips had touched. 

"O life! fount of joys!" cried Diodoros, kissing her and pressing hercloser to him. "Come, Iakchos! Behold with envy how thankfully twomortals can bless the gift of life. But where is Alexander? To none butto our Andreas have I ever confided the secret I have borne in my heartsince that day when we went to the circus. But now! Oh, it is so muchhappiness for two hearts! My friend, too, must have part in it!"

At this Melissa clasped her hand to her brow, as though waking from adream. How hot she was from dancing, and the unusual strength of thewine and water she had drunk!

The danger impending over both her brothers came back to her mind. Shehad always been accustomed to think of others rather than herself, andher festal mood dropped from her suddenly, like a mantle of which thebrooch breaks. She vehemently shook herself free of her lover's embrace, and her eyes glanced from one to another in rapid search. 

There stood pretty Ino, who had danced the mazy measure with Alexander. Panting for breath, she stood leaning her weary head and tangled hairagainst the trunk of the tree, a wine-cup upside down in her right hand. It must be empty; but where was he who had emptied it?

Her neighbor's daughter would surely know. Had the reckless youthquarreled with the girl? No, no!

One of the tavern-keeper's slaves, Ino told her, had whispered somethingto Alexander, whereupon he had instantly followed the man into the house. Melissa knew that it could be no trivial matter which detained him there, and hurried after him into the tavern. 

The host, a Greek, and his buxom wife, affected not to know for whom shewas inquiring; but, perceiving the anxiety which spoke in every line ofthe girl's face, when she explained that she was Alexander's sister, theyat first looked at each other doubtingly, and then the woman, who hadchildren of her own, who fondly loved each other, felt her heart swellwithin her, and she whispered, with her finger on her lips: "Do not beuneasy, pretty maid; my husband will see him well through. "

And then Melissa heard that the Egyptian, who had alarmed her in theNekropolis, was the spy Zminis, who, as her old slave Dido had once toldher, had been a rejected suitor of her mother's before she had marriedHeron, and who was therefore always glad to bring trouble on all whobelonged to her father's house. How often had she heard of theannoyances in which this man had involved her father and Alexander, who were apt to be very short with the man!

This tale-bearer, who held the highest position as guardian of the peaceunder the captain of the night-watch, was of all men in the city the mosthated and feared; and he had heard her brother speaking of Caesar in atone of mockery which was enough to bring him to prison, to the quarries, nay, to death. Glaukias, the sculptor, had previously seen the Egyptianon the bridge, where he had detained those who were returning home fromthe city of the dead. He and his followers had already stopped the poetArgeios on his way, but the thyrsus staves of the Dionysiac revelers hadsomewhat spoiled the game for him and his satellites. He was probablystill standing on the bridge. Glaukias had immediately run back, at anyrisk, to warn Alexander. He and the painter were now in hiding, andwould remain in safety, come what might, in the cellar at the Cock, tillthe coast was clear again. The tavern-keeper strongly advised no one togo meddling with his wine-skins and jars. 

"Much less that Egyptian dog!" cried his wife, doubling her fist asthough the hated mischief-maker stood before her already. 

"Poor, helpless lamb!" she murmured to herself, as she lookedcompasionately at the fragile, town-bred girl, who stood gazing at theground as if she had been struck by lightning. She remembered, too, howhard life had seemed to her in her own young days, and glanced with prideat her brawny arms, which were able indeed to work and manage. 

But what now?

The drooping flower suddenly raised her head, as if moved by a spring, exclaiming: "Thank you heartily, thank you! But that will never do. IfZminis searches your premises he will certainly go into the cellar; forwhat can he not do in Caesar's name? I will not part from my brother. "

"Then you, too, are a welcome guest at the Cock, " interrupted the woman, and her husband bowed low, assuring her that the Cock was as much herhouse as it was his. 

But the helpless town-bred damsel declined this friendly invitation; forher shrewd little head had devised another plan for saving her brother, though the tavern-keepers, to whom she confided it in a whisper, laughedand shook their heads over it. Diodoros was waiting outside in anxiousimpatience; he loved her, and he was her brother's best friend. All thathe could do to save Alexander he would gladly do, she knew. On theestate which would some day be his, there was room and to spare to hidethe fugitives, for one of the largest gardens in the town was owned byhis father. His extensive grounds had been familiar to her from herchildhood, for her own mother and her lover's had been friends; andAndreas, the freedman, the overseer of Polybius's gardens andplantations, was dearer to her and her brothers than any one else inAlexandria. 

Nor had she deceived herself, for Diodoros made Alexander's cause hisown, in his eager, vehement way; and the plan for his deliverance seemeddoubly admirable as proceeding from Melissa. In a few minutes Alexanderand the sculptor were released from their hiding-place, and all furthercare for them was left to Diodoros. 

They were both very, craftily disguised. No one would have recognizedthe artists in two sailors, whose Phrygian caps completely hid theirhair, while a heavy fisherman's apron was girt about their loins; stillless would any one have suspected from their laughing faces thatimprisonment, if nothing worse, hung over them. Their change of garb hadgiven rise to so much fun; and now, on hearing how they were to besmuggled into the town, their merriment grew higher, and proved catchingto those who were taken into the secret. Only Melissa was oppressed withanxious care, in spite of her lover's eager consolation. 

Glaukias, a man of scarcely middle height, was sure of not beingrecognized, and he and his comrades looked forward to whatever mighthappen as merely an amusing jest. At the same time they had to balk thehated chief of the city guards and his menials of their immediate prey;but they had played them a trick or two ere now. It might turn outreally badly for Alexander; still, it was only needful to keep himconcealed till Caesar should arrive; then he would be safe, for theEmperor would certainly absorb all the thoughts and time of the captainof the night-watch and his chief officers. In Alexandria, anything oncepast was so soon forgotten! When once Caracalla was gone--and it was tobe hoped that he would not stay long--no one would ever think again ofany biting speech made before his arrival. 

The morning must bring what it might, so long as the present moment wasgay!

So, refreshed and cheered by rest and wine, the party of mystics preparedto set out again; and, as the procession started, no one who did not knowit had observed that the two artists, disguised as sailors, were, byMelissa's advice, hidden inside the kalathos of Serapis, which wouldeasily have held six, and was breast-high even for Alexander, who was atall man. They squatted on the floor of the huge vessel, with a jar ofwine between them, and peeped over now and then with a laugh at thegirls, who had again seated themselves on the edge of the car. 

When they were fairly on their way once more, Alexander and hiscompanions were so daring that, whenever they could do it unobserved, they pelted the damsels with the remains of the corn, or sprinkled themwith wine-drops. Glaukias had the art of imitating the pattering of rainand the humming of a fly to perfection with his lips; and when the girlscomplained of the tiresome insect buzzing in their faces, or declared, when a drop fell on them, that in spite of the blue and cloudless sky itwas certainly beginning to rain, the two men had to cover their mouthswith their hands, that their laughter might not betray them. 

Melissa, who had comforted Ino with the assurance that Alexander had beencalled away quite unexpectedly, was now sitting by her side, andperceived, of course, what tricks the men in the kalathos were playing;but, instead of amusing her, they only made her anxious. 

Every one about her was laughing and joking, but for her all mirth was atan end. Fear, indeed, weighed on her like an incubus, when the carreached the bridge and rattled across it. It was lined with soldiers andlictors, who looked closely at each one, even at Melissa herself. But noone spoke to her, and when the water lay behind them she breathed morefreely. But only for a moment; for she suddenly remembered that theywould presently have to pass through the gate leading past Hadrian'swestern wall into the town. If Zminis were waiting there instead of onthe bridge, and were to search the vehicle, then all would be lost, forhe had looked her, too, in the face with those strange, fixed eyes ofhis; and that where he saw the sister he would also seek the brother, seemed to her quite certain. Thus her presence was a source of peril toAlexander, and she must at any cost avert that. 

She immediately put out her hand to Diodoros, who was walking at herside, and with his help slipped down from her seat. Then she whisperedher fears to him, and begged him to quit the party and conduct her home. 

This was a surprising and delightful task for her lover. With a jestingword he leaped on to the car, and even succeeded in murmuring toAlexander, unobserved, that Melissa had placed herself under hisprotection. When they got home, they could tell Heron and Andreas thatthe youths were safe in hiding. Melissa could explain, to-morrowmorning, how everything had happened. Then he drew Melissa's arm throughhis, loudly shouted, "Iakchos!" and with a swift dance-step soonoutstripped the wagon. 

Not fifty paces beyond, large pine torches sent bright flames up skyward, and by their light the girl could see the dreaded gateway, with thestatues of Hadrian and Sabina, and in front of them, in the middle of theroad, a horseman, who, as they approached, came trotting forward to meetthem on his tall steed. His head towered above every one else in theroad; and as she looked up at him her heart almost ceased beating, forher eyes met those of the dreaded Egyptian; their white balls showedplainly in his brown, lean face, and their cruel, evil sparkle hadstamped them clearly on her memory. 

On her right a street turned off from the road, and saying in a low tone, "This way, " she led Diodoros, to his surprise, into the shadow. Hisheart beat high. Did she, whose coy and maidenly austerity before andafter the intoxication of the dance had vouchsafed him hardly a kind lookor a clasp of the hand-did she even yearn for some tender embrace aloneand in darkness? Did the quiet, modest girl, who, since she had ceasedto be a child, had but rarely given him a few poor words, long to tellhim that which hitherto only her bright eyes and the kiss of her pureyoung lips had betrayed?

He drew her more closely to him in blissful expectation; but she shylyshrank from his touch, and before he could murmur a single word of loveshe exclaimed in terror, as though the hand of the persecutor werealready laid on her: "Fly, fly! That house will give us shelter. "

And she dragged him after her into the open doorway of a large building. Scarcely had they entered the dark vestibule when the sound of hoofs washeard, and the glare of torches dispelled the darkness outside. 

"Zminis! It is he--he is following us!" she whispered, scarcely able tospeak; and her alarm was well founded, for the Egyptian had recognizedher, and supposed her companion to be Alexander. He had ridden down thestreet with his torchbearers, but where she had hidden herself his keeneyes could not detect, for the departing sound of hoofs betrayed to thebreathless listeners that the pursuer had left their hiding-place farbehind him. Presently the pavement in front of the house which shelteredthem rang again with the tramp of the horse, till it died away at last inthe direction of Hadrian's gate. Not till then did Melissa lift her handfrom her painfully throbbing heart. 

But the Egyptian would, no doubt, have left his spies in the street, andDiodoros went out to see if the road was clear. Melissa remained alonein the dark entrance, and began to be anxious as to how she could explainher presence there if the inhabitants should happen to discover it; forin this vast building, in spite of the lateness of the hour, there stillwas some one astir. She had for some minutes heard a murmuring soundwhich reached her from an inner chamber; but it was only by degrees thatshe collected herself so far as to listen more closely, to ascertainwhence it came and what it could mean. 

A large number of persons must be assembled there, for she coulddistinguish several male voices, and now and then a woman's. A door wasopened. She shrank closer to the wall, but the seconds became minutes, and no one appeared. 

At last she fancied she heard the moving of benches or seats, and manyvoices together shouting she knew not what. Then again a door creaked onits hinges, and after that all was so still that she could have heard aneedle drop on the floor; and this alarming silence continued tillpresently a deep, resonant man's voice was audible. 

The singular manner in which this voice gave every word its full andequal value suggested to her fancy that something was being read aloud. She could distinctly hear the sentence with which the speech or readingbegan. After a short pause it was repeated somewhat more quickly, asthough the speaker had this time uttered it from his own heart. 

It consisted of these six simple words, "The fullness of the time wascome"; and Melissa listened no more to the discourse which followed, spoken as it was in a low voice, for this sentence rang in her ears as ifit were repeated by an echo. 

She did not, to be sure, understand its meaning, but she felt as thoughit must have some deep significance. It came back to her again andagain, like a melody which haunts the inward ear against our will; andher meditative fancy was trying to solve its meaning, when Diodorosreturned to tell her that the street was quite empty. He knew now wherethey were, and, if she liked, he could lead her by a way which would nottake them through the gate. Only Christians, Egyptians, and other commonfolks dwelt in this quarter; however, since his duty as her protector hadthis day begun, he would fulfill it to the best of his ability. 

She went with him out into the street, and when they had gone a littleway he clasped her to him and kissed her hair. 

His heart was full. He knew now that she, whom he had loved when shewalked in his father's garden in her little child's tunic, holding hermother's hand, returned his passion. Now the time was come for askingwhether she would permit him to beg her father's leave to woo her. 

He stopped in the shadow of a house near, and, while he poured out to herall that stirred his breast, carried away by tender passion, anddescribing in his vehement way how great and deep his love was, in spiteof the utter fatigue which weighed on her body and soul after so manyagitations, she felt with deep thankfulness the immense happiness ofbeing more precious than aught else on earth to a dear, good man. Love, which had so long lain dormant in her as a bud, and then openedso quickly only to close again under her alarms, unfolded once more andblossomed for him again--not as it had done just now in passionateecstasy, but, as beseemed her calm, transparent nature, with moderatedjoy, which, however, did not lack due warmth and winning tenderness. 

Happiness beyond words possessed them both. She suffered him to seal hisvows with kisses, herself offering him her lips, as her heart swelledwith fervent thanksgiving for so much joy and such a full measure oflove. 

She was indeed a precious jewel, and the passion of his stormy heart wastempered by such genuine reverence that he gladly kept within the boundswhich her maidenly modesty prescribed. And how much they had to say toeach other in this first opening of their hearts, how many hopes for thefuture found utterance in words! The minutes flew on and became hours, till at last Melissa begged him to quit the marble seat on which they hadso long been resting, if indeed her feet could still carry her home. 

Little as it pleased him, he did her bidding. But as they went on hefelt that she hung heavy on his arm and could only lift her little feetwith the greatest difficulty. The street was too dark for him to see howpale she was; and yet he never took his eyes off her dear but scarcelydistinguishable features. Suddenly he heard a faint whisper as in adream, "I can go no farther, " and at once led her back to the marbleseat. 

He first carefully spread his mantle over the stone and then wrapped herin it as tenderly as a mother might cover her shivering child, for acooler breeze gave warning of the coming dawn. He himself crept closeunder the wall by her side, so as not to be seen, for a long train ofpeople, with servants carrying lanterns before them, now came out of thehouse they had just left and down the street. Who these could be whowalked at so late an hour in such solemn silence neither of them knew. They certainly sent up no joyful shout of "Iakchos!" no wild lament; nocheerful laughter nor sounds of mourning were to be heard from the longprocession which passed along the street, two and two, at a slow pace. As soon as they had passed the last houses, men and women alike began tosing; no leader started them, nor lyre accompanied them, and yet theirsong went up as though with one voice. 

Diodoros and Melissa knew every note sung by the Greeks or Egyptians ofAlexandria, at this or any other festival, but this melody was strange tothem; and when the young man whispered to the girl, "What is it that theyare singing?" she replied, as though startled from sleep, "They are nomere mortals!"

Diodoros shuddered; he fancied that the procession was floating above theearth; that, if they had been indeed men of flesh and blood, their stepswould have been more distinctly audible on the pavement. Some of themappeared to him to be taller than common mortals, and their chant wascertainly that of another world than this where he dwelt. Perhaps thesewere daimons, the souls of departed Egyptians, who, after a midnightvisit to those they had left behind them, were returning to the rocktombs, of which there were many in the stony hills to which this streetled. They were walking toward these tombs, and not toward the gate; andDiodoros whispered his suspicion to his companion, clasping his hand onan amulet in the semblance of an eye, which his Egyptian nurse hadfastened round his neck long ago with an Anubic thread, to protect himagainst the evil-eye and magic spells. 

But Melissa was listening with such devout attention to the chant thatshe did not hear him. The fatigue which had reached such a painfulclimax had, during this peaceful rest, given way to a blissfulunconsciousness of self. It was a kind of happiness to feel no longerthe burden of exhaustion, and the song of the wanderers was like acradle-song, lulling her to sweet dreams. It filled her with gladness, and yet it was not glad, not even cheerful. It went to her heart, andyet it was not mournful-not in the least like the passionate lament ofIsis for Osiris, or that of Demeter bewailing her daughter. The emotionit aroused in her was a sweetly sorrowful compassion, which includedherself, her brothers, her father, her lover, all who were doomed tosuffering and death, even the utter stranger, for whom she had hithertofelt no sympathy. 

And the compassion bore within it a sense of comfort which she could notexplain, or perhaps would not inquire into. It struck her, too, now andthen, that the strain had a ring as of thanksgiving. It was, no doubt, addressed to the gods, and for that reason it appealed to her, and shewould gladly have joined in it, for she, too, was grateful to theimmortals, and above all to Eros, for the love which had been born in herheart and had found such an ardent return. She sighed as she listened toevery note of the chant, and it worked upon her like a healing draught. 

The struggle of her will against bodily fatigue, and finally against themental exhaustion of so much bliss, the conviction that her heavy, wearyfeet would perhaps fail to carry her home, and that she must seek sheltersomewhere for the night, had disturbed her greatly. Now she was quitecalm, and as much at ease as she was at home sitting with her father, herstitching in her hand, while she dreamed of her mother and her childhoodin the past. The singing had fallen on her agitated soul like the oilpoured by the mariner on the sea to still the foaming breakers. She feltit so. 

She could not help thinking of the time when she could fall asleep on hermother's bosom in the certainty that tender love was watching over her. The happiness of childhood, when she loved everything she knew-herfamily, the slaves, her father's birds, the flowers in the little garden, the altar of the goddess to whom she made offering, the very stars in thesky-seemed to come over her, and there she sat in dreamy lassitude, herhead on her lover's shoulder, till the last stragglers of the procession, who, were women, many of them carrying little lamps in their hands, hadalmost all gone past. 

Then she suddenly felt an eager jerk in the shoulder on which her headwas resting. 

"Look--look there!" he whispered; and as her eyes followed the directionof his finger, she too started, and exclaimed, "Korinna!--Did you knowher?"

"She had often come to my father's garden, " he replied, "and I saw herportrait in Alexander's room. These are souls from Hades that we haveseen. We must offer sacrifice, for those to whom they show themselvesthey draw after them. " At this Melissa, too, shuddered, and exclaimed inhorror: "O Diodoros, not to death! We will ask the priests to-morrowmorning what sacrifice may redeem us. Anything rather than the grave andthe darkness of Hades!--Come, I am strong again now. Let us get awayfrom hence and go home. "

"But we must go through the gate now, " replied the youth. "It is notwell to follow in the footsteps of the dead. "

Melissa, however, insisted on going on through the street. Terrified asshe was of the nether world and the disembodied souls, she would on noaccount risk falling into the hands of the horrible Egyptian, who mightcompel her to betray her brother's hiding-place; and Diodoros, who wasashamed to show her the fears which still possessed him, did as shedesired. 

But it was a comfort to him in this horror of death, which had come overhim now for the first time in his life, to kiss the maid once more, andhold her warm hand in his as they walked on; while the strange chant ofthe nocturnal procession still rang in her ears, and now and then thewords recurred to her mind which she had heard in the house where thedeparted souls had gathered together:

"The fullness of the time was come. "

Did this refer to the hour when the dead came to the end of their life onearth; or was there some great event impending on the city and itsinhabitants, for which the time had now come? Had the words anything todo with Caesar's visit? Had the dead come back to life to witness thescenes which they saw approaching with eyes clearer than those ofmortals?

And then she remembered Korinna, whose fair, pale face had been strangelylighted up by the lamp she carried; and, again, the Magian's assurancethat the souls of the departed were endowed with every faculty possessedby the living, and that "those who knew" could see them and conversewith them. 

Then Serapion had been right in saying this; and her hand trembled in herlover's as she thought to herself that the danger which now threatenedPhilip was estrangement from the living through intercourse with thedead. Her own dead mother, perhaps, had floated past among thesewandering souls, and she grieved to think that she had neglected to lookfor her and give her a loving greeting. Even Diodoros, who was notgenerally given to silent meditation, had his own thoughts to pursue; andso they walked on in silence till suddenly they heard a dull murmur ofvoices. This startled them, and looking up they saw before them therocky cliffs in which the Egyptians long since, and now in later timesthe Christians, had hewn caves and tombs. From the door of one of these, only a few paces beyond where they stood, light streamed out; and as theywere about to pass it a large dog barked. Immediately on this a man cameout, and in a rough, deep voice asked them the pass-word. Diodoros, seized with sudden terror of the dark figure, which he believed to be arisen ghost, took to his heels, dragging Melissa with him. The dog flewafter them, barking loudly; and when the youth stooped to pick up a stoneto scare him off, the angry brute sprang on him and dragged him down. 

Melissa screamed for help, but the gruff voice angrily bade her besilent. Far from obeying him, the girl shouted louder than ever; andnow, out of the entrance to the cave, close behind the scene of thedisaster, came a number of men with lamps and tapers. They were the samedaimons whose song she had heard in the street; she could not bemistaken. On her knees, by the side of her lover as he lay on theground, she stared up at the apparitions. A stone flew at the dog toscare him off, and a second, larger than the first, whisked past her andhit Diodoros on the head; she heard the dull blow. At this a cold handseemed to clutch her heart; everything about her melted into onewhirling, colorless cloud. Pale as death, she threw up her arms toprotect herself, and then, overcome with terror and fatigue, with afaint cry of anguish she lost consciousness. 

When she opened her eyes again her head was resting in the lap of a kind, motherly woman, while some men were just bearing away the senseless formof Diodoros on a bier. 

CHAPTER VI. 

The sun had risen an hour since. Heron had betaken himself to hisworkshop, whistling as he went, and in the kitchen his old slave Argutiswas standing over the hearth preparing his master's morning meal. Hedropped a pinch of dill into the barley-porridge, and shook his gray headsolemnly. 

His companion Dido, a Syrian, whose wavy white hair contrasted strangelywith her dark skin, presently came in, and, starting up, he hastilyinquired, "Not in yet?"

"No, " said the other woman, whose eyes were full of tears. "And you knowwhat my dream was. Some evil has come to her, I am certain; and whenthe master hears of it--" Here she sobbed aloud; but the slave reprovedher for useless weeping. 

"You never carried her in your arms, " whimpered the woman. 

"But often enough on my shoulder, " retorted the Gaul, for Argutis was anative of Augusta Trevirorum, on the Moselle. "Assoon as the porridge isready you must take it in and prepare the master. "

"That his first fury may fall on me!" said the old woman, peevishly. "I little thought when I was young!"

"That is a very old story, " said Argutis, "and we both know what themaster's temper is. I should have been off long ago if only you couldmake his porridge to his mind. As soon as I have dished it I will go toseek Alexander--there is nothing to prevent me--for it was with him thatshe left the house. "

At this the old woman dried her tears, and cried "Yes, only go, and makehaste. I will do everything else. Great gods, if she should be broughthome dead! I know how it is; she could bear the old man's temper andthis moping life no longer, and has thrown herself into the water. 

"My dream, my dream! Here--here is the dish, and now go and find the boy. Still, Philip is the elder. "

"He!" exclaimed the slave in a scornful tone. "Yes, if you want to knowwhat the flies are talking about! Alexander for me. He has his headscrewed on the right way, and he will find her if any man in Egypt can, and bring her back, alive or dead. "

"Dead!" echoed Dido, with a fresh burst of sobs, and her tears fell inthe porridge, which Argutis, indeed, in his distress of mind hadforgotten to salt. 

While this conversation was going on the gemcutter was feeding his birds. Can this man, who stands there like any girl, tempting his favorites tofeed, with fond words and whistling, and the offer of attractivedainties, be the stormy blusterer of last night? There is not a coaxingname that he does not lavish on them, while he fills their cups withfresh seed and water; and how carefully he moves his big hand as hestrews the little cages with clean sand! He would not for worlds scarethe poor little prisoners who cheer his lonely hours, and who have longsince ceased to fear him. A turtle-dove takes peas, and a hedge-sparrowpicks ants' eggs from his lips; a white-throat perches on his left handto snatch a caterpillar from his right. The huge man was in his gardensoon after sunrise gathering the dewy leaves for his feathered pets. Buthe talks and plays longest with the starling which his lost wife gavehim. She had bought it in secret from the Bedouin who for many years hadbrought shells for sale from the Red Sea, to surprise her husband withthe gift. The clever bird had first learned to call her name, Olympias;and then, without any teaching, had picked up his master's favoritelament, "My strength, my strength!"

Heron regarded this bird as a friend who understood him, and, like him, remembered the never-to-be-forsaken dead. For three years had the gemcutter been a widower, and he still thought more constantly and fondly ofhis lost wife than of the children she had left him. Heron scratched thebird's knowing little head, saying in a tone which betrayed his pity bothfor himself and his pet "Yes, old fellow, you would rather have a softwhite finger to stroke you down. I can hear her now, when she would callyou 'sweet little pet, ' or 'dear little creature. ' We shall neither of usever hear such gentle, loving words again. Do you remember how she wouldlook up with her dear sweet face--and was it not a lovely face?--whenyou called her by her name 'Olympias'? How many a time have her rosylips blown up your feathers, and cried, 'Well done, little fellow!'--Ay, and she would say 'Well done' to me too, when I had finished apiece of work well. Ah, and what an eye she had, particularly for art!But now well, the children give me a good word too, now that her lips aresilent!"

"Olympias!" cried the bird loudly and articulately, and the clouds thatshadowed the gem-cutter's brow lifted a little, as with an affectionatesmile he went on:

"Yes, yes; you would be glad, too, to have her back again. You call hernow, as I did yesterday, standing by her grave--and she sends you herlove. 

"Do you hear, little one? Peck away at the old man's finger; he knowsyou mean it kindly, and it does not hurt. I was all alone out there, andSelene looked down on us in silence. There was rioting and shouting allround, but I could hear the voice of our dead. She was very near me, andher sad soul showed me that she still cared for me. I had taken a jar ofour best wine of Byblos under my cloak; as soon as I had poured oil onher gravestone and shed some of the noble liquor, the earth drank it upas though it were thirsty. Not a drop was left. Yes, little fellow, sheaccepted the gift; and when I fell on my knees to meditate on her, shevouchsafed replies to many of my questions. 

"We talked together as we used--you know. And we remembered you, too; Igave you her love. 

"You understand me, little fellow, don't you? And, I tell you, bettertimes are coming now. "

He turned from the bird with a sharp movement of annoyance, for theslave-woman came in with the bowl of barley-porridge. 

"You!" exclaimed Heron, in surprise. "Where is Melissa?"

"She will come presently, " said the old woman, in a low and doubtfultone. 

"Oh, thanks for the oracle!" said the artist, ironically. 

"How you mock at a body!" said the old woman. "I meant--But eat first--eat. Anger and grief are ill food for an empty stomach. "

Heron sat down to the table and began to eat his porridge, but hepresently tossed away the spoon, exclaiming:

"I do not fancy it, eating by myself. "

Then, with a puzzled glance at Dido, he asked in a tone of vexation:

"Well, why are you waiting here? And what is the meaning of all thatnipping and tugging at your dress? Have you broken another dish? No?Then have done with that cursed head-shaking, and speak out at once!"

"Eat, eat, " repeated Dido, retreating to the door, but Heron called herback with vehement abuse; but when she began again her usual complaint, "I never thought, when I was young--" Heron recovered the good temper hehad been rejoicing in so lately, and retorted: "Oh! yes, I know, I havethe daughter of a great potentate to wait on me. And if it had onlyoccurred to Caesar, when he was in Syria, to marry your sister, I shouldhave had his sister-in-law in my service. But at any rate I forbidhowling. You might have learned in the course of thirty years, that I donot eat my fellow-creatures. So, now, confess at once what is wrong inthe kitchen, and then go and fetch Melissa. " The woman was, perhaps, wise to defer the evil moment as long as possible. Matters might soonchange for the better, and good or evil could come only from without. So Dido clung to the literal sense of her master's question, andsomething note-worthy had actually happened in the kitchen. She drew adeep breath, and told him that a subordinate of the night-watch had comein and asked whether Alexander were in the house, and where his painting-room was. 

"And you gave him an exact description?" asked Heron. 

But the slave shook her head; she again began to fidget with her dress, and said, timidly:

"Argutis was there, and he says no good can come of the night-watch. Hetold the man what he thought fit, and sent him about his business. "

At this Heron interrupted the old woman with such a mighty blow of hisfist on the table that the porridge jumped in the bowl, and he exclaimedin a fury:

"That is what comes of treating slaves as our equals! They begin tothink for themselves. A stupid blunder can spoil the best day! Thecaptain of the night-watch, I would have you to know, is a very greatman, and very likely a friend of Seleukus's, whose daughter Alexanderhas just painted. The picture is attracting some attention. --Attention?What am I saying? Every one who has been allowed to see it is quitecrazy about it. Everything else that was on show in the embalmers' hallwas mere trash by comparison. Often enough have I grumbled at the boy, who would rather be anywhere than here; but, this time, I had some groundfor being proud to be his father! And now the captain of the watch sendshis secretary, or something of the kind, no doubt, in order to have hisportrait, or his wife's or daughter's--if he has one--painted by theartist who did Korinna's; and his own father's slave--it drives me madto think of it--makes a face at the messenger and sends him all astray. I will give Argutis a lesson! But by this time, perhaps--Just go andfetch him in. " With these words Heron again dropped his spoon, wiped hisbeard, and then, seeing that Dido was still standing before him as thoughspellbound, twitching her slave's gray gown, he repeated his order insuch angry tones--though before he had spoken to her as gently as if shewere one of his own children--that the old woman started violently andmade for the door, crouching low and whimpering bitterly. 

The soft-hearted tyrant was really sorry for the faithful old servant hehad bought a generation since for the home to which he had brought hisfair young wife, and he began to speak kindly to her, as he hadpreviously done to the birds. 

This comforted the old woman so much that again she could not helpcrying; but, notwithstanding the sincerity of her tears, being accustomedof old to take advantage of her master's moods, she felt that now was thetime to tell her melancholy story. First of all she would at any ratesee whether Melissa had not meanwhile returned; so she humbly kissed thehem of his robe and hurried away. 

"Send Argutis to me!" Heron roared after her, and he returned to hisbreakfast with renewed energy. 

He thought, as he ate, of his son's beautiful work, and the foolish self-importance of Argutis, so faithful, and usually, it must be owned, soshrewd. Then his eyes fell on Melissa's vacant place opposite to him, and he suddenly pushed away his bowl and rose to seek his daughter. 

At this moment the starling called, in a clear, inviting tone, "Olympias!" and this cheered him, reminding him of the happy hour hehad passed at his wife's grave and the good augury he had had there. The belief in a better time at hand, of which he had spoken to the bird, again took possession of his sanguine soul; and, fully persuaded thatMelissa was detained in her own room or elsewhere by some triflingmatter, he went to the window and shouted her name; for hers, too, openedon to the garden. 

And it seemed as though the dear, obedient girl had come at his bidding, for, as he turned back into the room again, Melissa was standing in theopen door. 

After the pretty Greek greeting, "Joy be with you, " which she faintlyanswered, he asked her, as fractiously as though he had spent hours ofanxiety, where she had been so long. But he was suddenly silent, for hewas astonished to see that she had not come from her room, but, as herdress betrayed, from some long expedition. Her appearance, too, had noneof the exquisite neatness which it usually displayed; and then--what astate she was in! Whence had she come so early in the day?

The girl took off the kerchief that covered her head, and with a faintgroan pushed her tangled hair off her temples, and her bosom heaved asshe panted out in a weary voice: "Here I am! But O, father, what a nightI have spent!"

Heron could not for a minute or two find words to answer her. 

What had happened to the girl? What could it be which made her seem sostrange and unlike her self? He gazed at her, speechless, and alarmed bya hundred fearful suspicions. He felt as a mother might who has kissedher child's fresh, healthy lips at night, and in the morning finds themburning with fever. 

Melissa had never been ill from the day of her birth; since she haddonned the dress of a full-grown maiden she had never altered; day afterday and at all hours she had been the same in her quiet, useful, patientway, always thinking of her brothers, and caring for him rather than forherself. 

It had never entered into his head to suppose that she could alter; andnow, instead of the gentle, contented face with faintly rosy cheeks, hesaw a pallid countenance and quivering lips. What mysterious fire hadthis night kindled in those calm eyes, which Alexander was fond ofcomparing to those of a gazelle? They were sunk, and the dark shadowsthat encircled them were a shock to his artistic eye. These were theeyes of a girl who had raved like a maenad the night through. Had shenot slept in her quiet little room; had she been rushing with Alexanderin the wild Bacchic rout; or had something dreadful happened to his son?

Nothing could have been so great a relief to him as to rave and rage aswas his wont, and he felt strongly prompted to do so; but there wassomething in her which moved him to pity or shyness, he knew not which, and kept him quiet. He silently followed her with his eyes while shefolded her mantle and kerchief in her orderly way, and hastily gatheredtogether the stray, curly locks of her hair, smoothed them, and boundthem round her head. 

Some one, however, must break the silence, and he gave a sigh of reliefwhen the girl came up to him and asked him, in a voice so husky as togive him a fresh shock:

"Is it true that a Scythian, one of the nightwatch, has been herealready?"

Then he broke out, and it really did him good to give vent to hisrepressed feelings in an angry speech:

"There again--the wisdom of slaves! The so-called Scythian brought amessage from his master. 

"The captain of the night-watch--you will see--wishes to honor Alexanderwith a commission. "

"No, no, " interrupted the girl. "They are hunting my brother down. I thank the gods that the Scythian should have come; it shows thatAlexander is still free. "

The gem-cutter clasped his bushy hair in both hands, for it seemed to himthat the room was whirling round. But his old habits still got thebetter of him; he roared out with all the power of his mighty lungs:"What is that? What do you say? What has Alexander done? Where haveyou--both of you-been?" With two long strides the angry man came closeup to the terrified girl; the birds fluttered in their cages, and thestarling repeated his cries in melancholy tones. Heron stood still, pushing his fingers through his thick gray hair, and with a sharp laughexclaimed: "I came away from her grave full of fresh hopes for betterdays, and this is how they are fulfilled! I looked for fame, and I finddisgrace! And you, hussy! where have you spent this night--where haveyou come from? I ask you once more!"

He raised his fist and shook it close in front of Melissa's eyes. 

She stood before him as pale as death, and with wide-open eyes, fromwhich the heavy tears dropped slowly, one by one, trickling down hercheeks as if they were tired. Heron saw them, and his rage melted. He staggered to a seat like a drunken man, and, hiding his face in hishands, moaned aloud, "Wretch, wretch that I am!" But his child's softhand was laid on his head; warm, girlish lips kissed his brow; andMelissa whispered beseechingly: "Peace, father, peace. All may yet bewell. I have something to tell you that will make you glad too; yes, I am sure it will make you glad. "

Her father shrugged his shoulders incredulously, but wanted to knowimmediately what the miracle was that could smooth his brow. Melissa, however, would not tell him till it came in its place in her story. Sohe had to submit; he drew his seat up to the table, and took up a lump ofmodeling-wax to keep his restless fingers employed while he listened. She, too, sat down; she could scarcely stand. 

At first he listened calmly to her narrative; and when she told himof Alexander's jest at Caesar's expense his face brightened. HisAlexandrian blood and his relish for a biting speech got the upper hand;he gave a sounding slap on his mighty leg, and exclaimed: "A cursed goodthought! But the boy forgot that when Zeus only lamed his son it wasbecause he is immortal; while Caesar's brother was as feeble a mortal asCaracalla himself is said to be at this day. "

He laughed noisily; but it was for the last time that morning; for hardlyhad he heard the name of Zminis, and learned that it was he who had overheard Alexander, than he threw down the wax and started to his feet inhorror, crying:

"That dog, who dared to cast his eyes on your mother, and persecuted herlong after she had shown him the door! That sly mischief-maker! Manya time has he set snares in our path. If he succeeds in tightening thenoose into which the boy has so heedlessly thrust his head--But firsttell me, has he caught him already, or is Alexander still at liberty?"

But no one, not even Argutis, who was still out on the search, could tellhim this; and he was now so greatly disturbed that, during the rest ofMelissa's narrative, he perpetually paced the room, interrupting her nowand then with questions or with outbursts of indignation. And then itoccurred to him that he ought himself to seek his son, and he occupiedhimself with getting ready to go out. 

Even when she spoke of the Magian, and his conviction that those who knoware able to hold intercourse with the souls of the dead, he shrugged hisshoulders incredulously, and went on lacing his sandals. But whenMelissa assured him that not she alone, but Diodoros with her, had seenthe wandering soul of the departed Korinna in the train of ghosts, hedropped the straps he had bound round his ankle, and asked her who thisMagian was, and where he might be found. However, she knew no more thanthat his name was Serapion, and she briefly described his dignifiedpresence. 

Heron had already seen the man, and he seemed still to be thinking ofhim, when Melissa, with a blush and downcast eyes, confessed that, assoon as he was well again, Diodoros was coming to her father to ask herof him in marriage. 

It was a long story before she came at last to her own concerns, but itwas always her way not to think of herself till every one else had hadhis due. 

But what about her father? Had she spoken inaudibly, or was he reallyunable to-day to be glad? or what ailed him, that he paid no heed to thenews which, even for him, was not without its importance, but, without aword of consent or disapproval, merely bade her go on with her story?

Melissa called him by name, as if to wake a man from sleep, and askedwhether it were indeed possible that he really felt no pleasure in thehappy prospect that lay before her, and that she had confessed to him. And now Heron lent an ear, and gave her to understand the satisfaction ofhis fatherly heart by kissing her. This news, in fact, made up for muchthat was evil, for Diodoros was a son-in-law after his own heart, and notmerely because he was rich, or because his mother had been so great afriend of Olympias's. No, the young man's father was, like himself, oneof the old Macedonian stock; he had seen his daughter's lover grow tomanhood, and there was not in the city a youth he could more heartilywelcome. This he freely admitted; he only regretted that when she shouldset up house with her husband on the other side of the lake, he (Heron)would be left as lonely as a statue on its pedestal. His sons hadalready begun to avoid him like a leper!

Then, when he heard of what had befallen Diodoros, and Melissa went onto say that the people who had thrown the stone at the dog wereChristians, and that they had carried the wounded youth into a large, clean dwelling, where he was being carefully attended when she had lefthim, Heron broke out into violent abuse. They were unpatrioticworshipers of a crucified Jew, who multiplied like vermin, and onlywanted to turn the good old order of things upside down. But this timethey should see--the hypocrites, who pretended to so much humanity, andthen set ferocious dogs on peaceful folk!--they should learn that theycould not fall on a Macedonian citizen without paying for it. 

He indignantly refused to hear Melissa's assurance that none of theChristians had set the dog on her lover; she, however, maintained stoutlythat it was merely by an unfortunate accident that the stone had hitDiodoros and cut his head so badly. She would not have quitted her loverbut that she feared lest her prolonged absence should have alarmed herfather. 

Heron at last stood still for a minute or two, lost in thought, and thenbrought out of his chest a casket, from which he took a few engravedgems. He held them carefully up to the light, and asked his daughter:"If I learn from Polybius, to whom I am now going, that they have alreadycaught Alexander, should I venture now, do you think, to offer a coupleof choice gems to Titianus, the prefect, to set him free again? He knowswhat is good, and the captain of the watch is his subordinate. "

But Melissa besought him to give up the idea of seeking out Alexander inhis hiding-place; for Heron, the gem-cutter, was known to every one, andif a man-at-arms should see him he would certainly follow him. Asregarded the prefect, he would not apprehend any one this day, for, asher father knew, Caesar was to arrive at Alexandria at noon, and Titianusmust be on the spot to meet him with all his train. 

"But if you want to be out of doors and doing, " she added, "go to seePhilip. Bring him to reason, and discuss with him what is to be done. "

She spoke with firm decision, and Heron looked with amazement at thegiver of this counsel. Melissa had hitherto cared for his comfort insilence, without expressing any opinions of her own, and submitting to bethe lightning-conductor for all his evil tempers. He did not rate hergirlish beauty very high, for there were no ugly faces in his family norin that of his deceased Olympias. And all the other consolations sheoffered him he took as a matter of course--nay, he sometimes made them aground of complaint; for he would occasionally fancy that she wanted toassume the place of his beloved lost wife, and he regarded it as a dutyto her to show his daughter, and often very harshly and unkindly, how farshe was from filling her mother's place. 

Thus she had accustomed herself to do her duty as a daughter, with quietand wordless exactitude, looking for no thanks; while he thought he wasdoing her a kindness merely by suffering her constant presence. That heshould ever exchange ideas with his daughter, or ask her opinion, wouldhave seemed to Heron absolutely impossible; yet it had come to this, andfor the second time this morning he looked in her face with utteramazement. 

He could not but approve her warning not to betray Alexander's hiding-place, and her suggestion that he should go to see his eldest soncoincided with an unspoken desire which had been lurking in his mindever since she had told him of her having seen a disembodied soul. Thepossibility of seeing her once more, whose memory was dearer to him thanall else on earth, had such a charm, that it moved him more deeply thanthe danger of his son, who was, nevertheless, very dear to his strangelytempered heart. 

So he answered Melissa coolly, as if he were telling her of a decisionalready formed:

"Of course! I meant to see Philip too; only--" and he paused, foranxiety about Alexander again came to the front--" I can not bear toremain in such uncertainty about the boy. "

At this instant the door opened. The new-comer was Andreas, the man towhom Diodoros had advised Alexander to apply for protection and counsel;and Melissa greeted him with filial affection. 

He was a freedman in her lover's family, and was the steward and managerof his master's extensive gardens and lands, which were under hisabsolute control. No one could have imagined that this man had ever beena slave; his face was swarthy, but his fine black eyes lighted it up witha glance of firm self reliance and fiery energy. It was the look of aman who might be the moving spirit of one of those rebellions which werefrequent in Alexandria; there was an imperious ring in his voice, anddecision in the swift gestures of his hardened but shapely hands. 

For twenty years, indeed, he had ruled over the numerous slaves ofPolybius, who was an easy-going master, and an invalid from gout in hisfeet. He was at this time a victim to a fresh attack, and had thereforesent his confidential steward into the town to tell Heron that heapproved of his son's choice, and that he would protect Alexander frompursuit. 

All this Andreas communicated in few and business-like words; but he thenturned to Melissa, and said, in a tone of kindly and affectionatefamiliarity: "Polybius also wishes to know how your lover is being caredfor by the Christians, and from hence I am going on to see our sick boy. "

"Then ask your friends, " the gem-cutter broke in, to keep less ferociousdogs for the future. "

"That, " replied the freedman, "will be unnecessary, for it is not likelythat the fierce brute belongs to the community whose friendship I amproud to claim; and, if it does, they will be as much grieved over thematter as we can be. "

"A Christian would never do another an ill turn!" said Heron, with ashrug. 

"Never, so far as justice permits, " replied Andreas, decisively. Thenhe inquired whether Heron had any message or news to send to his son; andwhen the gem-cutter replied that he had not, the freedman was about togo. Melissa, however, detained him, saying:

"I will go with you if you will allow me. "

"And I?" said Heron, irritably. "It seems to me that children arelearning to care less and less what their fathers' views and requirementsmay be. I have to go to Philip. Who knows what may happen in myabsence? Besides--no offense to you, Andreas--what concern has mydaughter among the Christians?"

"To visit her lover, " replied Andreas, sharply. And he added, morequietly: "It will be a pleasure to me to escort her; and your Argutis isa faithful fellow, and in case of need would be of more use here than aninexperienced girl. I see no reasonable ground for detaining her, Heron. I should like afterwards to take her home with me, across the lake; itwould be a comfort to Polybius and soothe his pain to have his favoritewith him, his future daughter. --Get ready, my child. "

The artist had listened with growing anger, and a swift surge of ragemade him long to give the freedman a sharp lesson. But when his glaringeye met the Christian's steady, grave gaze, he controlled himself, andonly said, with a shrug which sufficiently expressed his feeling that hewas surrendering his veto against his better judgment, addressing himselfto Melissa and ignoring Andreas:

"You are betrothed, and of age. Go, for aught I care, in obedience tohim whose wishes evidently outweigh mine. Polybius's son is your masterhenceforth. "

He folded his mantle, and when the girl hastened to help him he allowedher to do it; but he went on, to the freedman: "And for aught I care, youmay take her across the lake, too. It is natural that Polybius shouldwish to see his future daughter. But one thing I may ask for myself: Youhave slaves and to spare; if anything happens to Alexander, let me hearof it at once. "

He kissed Melissa on the head, nodded patronizingly to Andreas, and leftthe house. 

His soft-hearted devotion to a vision had weakened his combativeness;still, he would have yielded less readily to a man who had once been aslave, but that the invitation to Melissa released him of her presencefor a while. 

He was not, indeed, afraid of his daughter; but she need not know that hewanted Philip to make him acquainted with Serapion, and that through hismediation he hoped at least to see the spirit of the wife he mourned. When he was fairly out of the house he smiled with satisfaction like aschool-boy who had escaped his master. 

CHAPTER VII. 

Melissa, too, had a sense of freedom when she found herself walking bythe side of Andreas. 

In the garden of Hermes, where her father's house stood, there were fewsigns of the excitement with which the citizens awaited Caesar's arrival. Most of those who were out and about were going in the oppositedirection; they meant to await the grand reception of Caracalla at theeastern end of the city, on his way from the Kanopic Gate to the Gate ofthe Sun. Still, a good many--men, women and children--were, likethemselves, walking westward, for it was known that Caesar would alightat the Serapeum. 

They had scarcely left the house when Andreas asked the girl whether shehad a kerchief or a veil in the basket the slave was carrying behind her;and on her replying in the affirmative, he expressed his satisfaction;for Caracalla's soldiery, in consequence of the sovereign's weakeneddiscipline and reckless liberality, were little better than an unbridledrabble. 

"Then let us keep out of their way, " urged Melissa. 

"Certainly, as much as possible, " said her companion. "At any rate, letus hurry, so as to get back to the lake before the crowd stops the way. 

"You have passed an eventful and anxious night, my child, and are tired, no doubt. "

"Oh, no!" said she, calmly; "I had some wine to refresh me, and some foodwith the Christians. "

"Then they received you kindly?"

"The only woman there nursed Diodoros like a mother; and the men wereconsiderate and careful. My father does not know them; and yet--Well, you know how much he dislikes them. "

"He follows the multitude, " returned Andreas, "the common herd, who hateeverything exceptional, everything that disturbs their round of life, orstartles them out of the quietude of their dull dreams. Woe to those whocall by its true name what those blind souls call pleasure and enjoymentas serving to hasten the flight of time--not too long at the most; woe tothose who dare raise even a finger against it!"

The man's deep, subdued tones were strongly expressive of the wrathwithin him; and the girl, who kept close to his side, asked with eageranxiety, "Then my father was right when he said that you are a member ofthe Christian body?"

"Yes, " he replied, emphatically; and when Melissa curiously inquiredwhether it were true that the followers of the crucified God hadrenounced their love for home and country, which yet ought to be dear toevery true man, Andreas answered with a superior smile, that even thefounder of the Stoa had required not only of his fellow-Greeks but of allhuman beings, that they should regulate their existence by the same laws, since they were brethren in reason and sense. 

"He was right, " added Andreas, more earnestly, "and I tell you, child, thetime is not far off when men shall no longer speak of Roman and Greek, ofEgyptian and Syrian, of free men and slaves; when there shall be but onenative land, but one class of life for all. Yea, the day is beginning todawn even now. The fullness of the time is come!"

Melissa looked up at him in amazement, exclaiming: "How strange! I haveheard those words once to-day already, and can not get them out of myhead. Nay, when you confirmed my father's report, I made up my mind toask you to explain them. "

"What words?" asked Andreas, in surprise. "The fullness of the time iscome. "

"And where did you hear them?"

"In the house where Diodoros and I took refuge from Zminis. "

"A Christian meeting-house, " replied Andreas, and his expressive facedarkened. "But those who assemble there are aliens to me; they followevil heresies. But never mind--they also call themselves Christians, and the words which led you to ponder, stand to me at the very gate ofthe doctrine of our divine master, like the obelisks before the door ofan Egyptian temple. Paul, the great preacher of the faith, wrote them tothe Galatians. They are easy to understand; nay, any one who looks abouthim with his eyes open, or searches his own soul, can scarcely fail tosee their meaning, if only the desire is roused in him for somethingbetter than what these cursed times can give us who live in them. "

"Then it means that we are on the eve of great changes?"

"Yes!" cried Andreas, "only the word you use is too feeble. The old dullsun must set, to rise again with greater glory. "

Ill at ease, and by no means convinced, Melissa looked her excitedcompanion in the face as she replied:

"Of course I know, Andreas, that you speak figuratively, for the sunwhich lights the day seems to me bright enough; and is not everythingflourishing in this gay, busy city? Are not its citizens under theprotection of the law? Were the gods ever more zealously worshiped?Is my father wrong when he says that it is a proud thing to belong to themightiest realm on earth, before whose power barbarians tremble; a greatthing to feel and call yourself a Roman citizen?"

So far Andreas had listened to her with composure, but he hereinterrupted, in a tone of scorn "Oh, yes! Caesar has made your father, and your neighbor Skopas, and every free man in the country a Romancitizen; but it is a pity that, while he gave each man his patent ofcitizenship, he should have filched the money out of his purse. "

"Apion, the dealer, was saying something to that effect the other day, and I dare say it is true. But I can not be persuaded against theevidence of my own eyes, and they light on many good and pleasant things. If only you had been with us to the Nekropolis yesterday! Every man washonoring the gods after his own manner. Some, indeed, were grave enough;still, cheerfulness won the day among the people. Most of them were fullof the god. I myself, who generally live so quietly, was infected as themystics came back from Eleusis, and we joined their ranks. "

"'Till the spy Zminis spoiled your happiness and imperiled your brother'slife for a careless speech. "

"Very true!"

"And what your brother heedlessly proclaimed, " Andreas went on, withflashing eyes, "the very sparrows twitter on the house-tops. It is thetruth. The sovereign of the Roman Empire is a thousand times a murderer. Some he sent to precede his own brother, and they were followed by all--twenty thousand, it is said--who were attached to the hapless Geta, orwho even spoke his name. This is the lord and master to whom we oweobedience whom God has set over us for our sins. And when this wretch inthe purple shall close his eyes, he, like the rest of the criminals whohave preceded him on the throne, will be proclaimed a god! A noblecompany! When your beloved mother died I heard you, even you, revile thegods for their cruelty; others call them kind. It is only a question ofhow they accept the blood of the sacrificed beasts, their own creatures, which you shed in their honor. If Serapis does not grant some fool thething he asks, then he turns to the altar of Isis, of Anubis, of Zeus, of Demeter. At last he cries to Sabazios, or one of the new deities ofOlympus, who owe their existence to the decisions of the Roman Senate, and who are for the most part scoundrels and villains. There certainlynever were more gods than there are now; and among those of whom themyths tell us things strange enough to bring those who worship them intocontempt, or to the gallows, is the countless swarm of good and evildaimons. Away with your Olympians! They ought to reward virtue andpunish vice; and they are no better than corruptible judges; for you knowbeforehand just what and how much will avail to purchase their favors. "

"You paint with dark colors, " the girl broke in. "I have learned fromPhilip that the Pythagoreans teach that not the sacrifice, but the spiritof the offering, is what really matters. "

"Quite right. He was thinking, no doubt, of the miracle-monger of Tyana, Apollonius, who certainly had heard of the doctrine of the Redeemer. Butamong the thousand nine hundred and ninety, who here bring beasts to thealtar, who ever remembers this? Quite lately I heard one of our gardenlaborers ask how much a day he ought to sacrifice to the sun, his god. I told him a keration--for that is what the poor creature earns for awhole day's work. He thought that too much, for he must live; so the godmust be content with a tithe, for the taxes to the State on his earningswere hardly more. "

"The divinity ought no doubt to be above all else to us, " Melissaobserved. "But when your laborer worships the sun, and looks for itsbenefits, what is the difference between him and you, or me, or any ofus, though we call the sun Helios or Serapis, or what not?"

"Yes, yes, " replied Andreas. "The sun is adored here under manydifferent names and forms, and your Serapis has swallowed up not onlyZeus and Pluto, but Phoebus Apollo and the Egyptian Osiris and Ammon, andRa, to swell his own importance. But to be serious, child, our fathersmade to themselves many gods indeed, of the sublime phenomena and powersof Nature, and worshiped them admiringly; but to us only the namesremain, and those who offer to Apollo never think of the sun. With mylaborer, who is an Arab, it is different. He believes the light-givingglobe itself to be a god; and you, I perceive, do not think him whollywrong. But when you see a youth throw the discus with splendid strength, do you praise the discus, or the thrower?"

"The thrower, " replied Melissa. "But Phoebus Apollo himself guides hischariot with his divine hands. "

"And astronomers, " the Christian went on, "can calculate for years tocome exactly where his steeds will be at each minute of the time. So noone can be more completely a slave than he to whom so many mortals praythat he will, of his own free-will, guide circumstances to suit them. I, therefore, regard the sun as a star, like any other star; and worshipshould be given, not to those rolling spheres moving across the sky inprescribed paths, but to Him who created them and guides them by fixedlaws. I really pity your Apollo and the whole host of the Olympian gods, since the world has become possessed by the mad idea that the gods anddaimons may be moved, or even compelled, by forms of prayer andsacrifices and magic arts, to grant to each worshiper the particularthing on which he may have set his covetous and changeable fancy. "

"And yet, " exclaimed Melissa, "you yourself told me that you prayed formy mother when the leech saw no further hope. Every one hopes for amiracle from the immortals when his own power has come to an end!Thousands think so. And in our city the people have never been morereligious than they are now. The singer of the Ialemos at the feast ofAdonis particularly praised us for it. "

"Because they have never been more fervently addicted to pleasure, andtherefore have never more deeply dreaded the terrors of hades. The greatand splendid Zeus of the Greeks has been transformed into Serapis here, on the banks of the Nile, and has become a god of the nether world. Mostof the ceremonies and mysteries to which the people crowd are connectedwith death. They hope that the folly over which they waste so many hourswill smooth their way to the fields of the blest, and yet they themselvesclose the road by the pleasures they indulge in. But the fullness oftime is now come; the straight road lies open to all mankind, called asthey are to a higher life in a new world, and he who follows it may awaitdeath as gladly as the bride awaits the bridegroom on her marriage day. Yes, I prayed to my God for your dying mother, the sweetest and bestof women. But what I asked for her was not that her life might bepreserved, or that she might be permitted to linger longer among us, but that the next world might be opened to her in all its glory. "

At this point the speaker was interrupted by an armed troop which thrustthe crowd aside to make way for the steers which were to be slaughteredin the Temple of Serapis at the approach of Caesar. There were severalhundred of them, each with a garland about its, neck, and the handsomestwhich led the train had its horns gilded. 

When the road was clear again, Andreas pointed to the beasts, andwhispered to his companion "Their blood will be shed in honor of thefuture god Caracalla. He once killed a hundred bears in the arena withhis own hand. But I tell you, child, when the fullness of time is come, innocent blood shall no more be shed. You were speaking with enthusiasmof the splendor of the Roman Empire. But, like certain fruit-trees inour garden which we manure with blood, it has grown great on blood, onthe life-juice of its victims. The mightiest realm on earth owes itspower to murder and rapine; but now sudden destruction is coming on theinsatiate city, and visitation for her sins. "

"And if you are right--if the barbarians should indeed destroy the armiesof Caesar, " asked Melissa, looking up in some alarm at the enthusiast, "what then?"

"Then we may thank those who help to demolish the crumbling house!" criedAndreas, with flashing eyes. 

"And if it should be so, " said the girl, with tremulous anxiety, "whatuniversal ruin! What is there on earth that could fill its place? Ifthe empire falls into the power of the barbarians, Rome will be madedesolate, and all the provinces laid waste which thrive under herprotection. "

"Then, " said Andreas, "will the kingdom of the Spirit arise, in whichpeace and love shall reign instead of hatred and murder and wars. Thereshall be one fold and one Shepherd, and the least shall be equal with thegreatest. "

"Then there will be no more slaves?" asked Melissa, in growingamazement. 

"Not one, " replied her companion, and a gleam of inspiration seemed tolight up his stern features. "All shall be free, and all united in loveby the grace of Him who hath redeemed us. "

But Melissa shook her head, and Andreas, understanding what was passingin her mind, tried to catch her eye as he went on:

"You think that these are the impossible wishes of one who has himselfbeen a slave, or that it is the remembrance of past suffering andunutterable wrong which speaks in me? For what right-minded man wouldnot desire to preserve others from the misery which once crushed him toearth with its bitter burden?--But you are mistaken. Thousands of free-born men and women think as I do, for to them, too, a higher Power hasrevealed that the fullness of time is now come. He, the Greatest andBest, who made all the woes of the world His own, has chosen the poorrather than the rich, the suffering rather than the happy, the babesrather than the wise and prudent; and in his kingdom the last shall befirst--yea, the least of the last, the poorest of the poor; and they, child, are the slaves. "

He ended his diatribe with a deep sigh, but Melissa pressed the handwhich held hers as they walked along the raised pathway, and said:"Poor Andreas! How much you must have gone through before Polybius setyou free!"

He only nodded, and they both remained silent till they found themselvesin a quiet side street. Then the girl looked up at him inquiringly, andbegan again:

"And now you hope for a second Spartacus? Or will you yourself lead arebellion of the slaves? You are the man for it, and I can be secret. "

"If it has to be, why not?" he replied, and his eyes sparkled with astrange fire. But seeing that she shrank from him, a smile passed overhis countenance, and he added in a soothing tone: "Do not be alarmed, mychild; what must come will come, without another Spartacus, or bloodshed, or turmoil. And you, with your clear eyes and your kind heart, would youfind it difficult to distinguish right from wrong, and to feel for thesorrows of others--? Yes, perhaps! For what will not custom excuseand sanctify? You can pity the bird which is shut into a cage too smallfor it, or the mule which breaks down under too heavy a load, and thecruelty which hurts them rouses your indignation. But for the man whoma terrible fate has robbed of his freedom, often through the fault ofanother, whose soul endures even greater torments than his despised body, you have no better comfort than the advice which might indeed serve aphilosopher, but which to him is bitter mockery: to bear his woes withpatience. He is only a slave, bought, or perhaps inherited. Which ofyou ever thinks of asking who gave you, who are free, the right toenslave half of all the inhabitants of the Roman Empire, and to rob themof the highest prerogative of humanity? I know that many philosophershave spoken of slavery as an injustice done by the strong to the weak:but they shrugged their shoulders over it nevertheless, and excused it asan inevitable evil; for, thought they, who will serve me if my slave isregarded as my equal? You only smile at this confusion of the meditativerecluses, but you forget"--and a sinister fire glowed in his eyes--"thatthe slave, too, has a soul, in which the same feelings stir as in yourown. You never think how a proud man may feel whose arm you brand, andwhose very breath of life is indignity; or what a slave thinks who isspurned by his master's foot, though noble blood may run in his veins. All living things, even the plants in the garden, have a right tohappiness, and only develop fully in freedom, and under loving care; andyet one half of mankind robs the other half of this right. The sum totalof suffering and sorrow to which Fate had doomed the race is recklesslymultiplied and increased by the guilt of men themselves. But the cry ofthe poor and wretched has gone up to heaven, and now that the fullness oftime is come, 'Thus far, and no farther, ' is the word. No wildrevolutionary has been endowed with a giant's strength to burst the bondsof the victims asunder. No, the Creator and Preserver of the world senthis Son to redeem the poor in spirit, and, above all, the brethren andthe sisters who are weary and heavy laden. The magical word which shallbreak the bars of the prisons where the chains of the slaves are heard isLove. . . . But you, Melissa, can but half comprehend all this, "he added, interrupting the ardent flow of his enthusiastic speech. "You can not understand it all. For you, too, child, the fullness oftime is coming; for you, too, freeborn though you are, are, I know, oneof the heavy laden who patiently suffer the burden laid upon you. Youtoo--But keep close to me; we shall find it difficult to get through thisthrong. "

It was, in fact, no easy matter to get across the crowd which was pouringnoisily down the street of Hermes, into which this narrow way led. However, they achieved it, and when Melissa had recovered her breath in aquiet lane in Rhakotis, she turned to her companion again with thequestion, "And when do you suppose that your predictions will befulfilled?"

"As soon as the breeze blows which shall shake the overripe fruit fromthe tree. It may be tomorrow, or not yet, according to the long-suffering of the Most High. But the entire collapse of the world inwhich we have been living is as certain to come as that you are walkinghere with me!"

Melissa walked on with a quaking heart, as she heard her friend's tone ofconviction; he, however, was aware that the inmost meaning of his wordswas sealed to her. To his inquiry, whether she could not rejoice in thecoming of the glorious time in store for redeemed humanity, she answered, tremulously:

"All you hope for is glorious, no doubt, but what shall lead to it mustbe a terror to all. Were you told of the kingdom of which you speak byan oracle, or is it only a picture drawn by your imagination, a vision, and the offspring of your soul's desire?"

"Neither, " said Andreas, decidedly; and he went on in a louder voice:"I know it by revelation. Believe me, child, it is as certainly true asthat the sun will set this night. The gates of the heavenly Jerusalemstand open, and if you, too, would fain be blessed--But more of thislater. Here we are at our journey's end. "

They entered the Christian home, where they found Diodoros, on acomfortable couch, in a spacious, shady room, and in the care of afriendly matron. 

But he was in an evil case. The surgeon thought his wound a serious one;for the heavy stone which had hit him had injured the skull, and theunhappy youth was trembling with fever. His head was burning, and it waswith difficulty that he spoke a few coherent words. But his eyesbetrayed that he recognized Melissa, and that it was a joy to him to seeher again; and when he was told that Alexander had so far escaped, abright look lighted up his countenance. It was evidently a comfort tohim to gaze on Melissa's pretty face; her hand lay in his, and heunderstood her when she greeted him from her father, and spoke to himof various matters; but the lids ere long closed over his aching eyes. 

Melissa felt that she must leave him to rest. She gently released hishand from her grasp and laid it across his breast, and moved no more, excepting to wipe the drops from his brow. Solemn stillness had reignedfor some time in the large, clean house, faintly smelling of lavender;but, on a sudden, doors opened and shut; steps were heard in theanteroom, seats were moved, and a loud confusion of men's voices becameaudible, among them that of Andreas. 

Melissa listened anxiously to the heated discussion which had alreadybecome a vehement quarrel. She longed to implore the excited wranglersto moderate their tones, for she could see by her lover's quivering lipsthat the noise hurt him; but she could not leave him. 

The dispute meanwhile grew louder and louder. The names of Montanus andTertullian, Clemens and Origen, fell on her ear, and at last she heardAndreas exclaim in high wrath: "You are like the guests at a richlyfurnished banquet who ask, after they have well eaten, when the meat willbe brought in. Paraclete is come, and yet you look for another. "

He was not allowed to proceed; fierce and scornful contradictionchecked his speech, till a voice of thunder was heard above the rest:

"The heavenly Jerusalem is at hand. He who denies and doubts the callingof Montanus is worse than the heathen, and I, for one, cast him off asneither a brother nor a Christian!"

This furious denunciation was drowned in uproar; the anxious girl heardseats overturned, and the yells and shouts of furious combatants; thesuffering youth meanwhile moaned with anguish, and an expression of acutepain was stamped on his handsome features. Melissa could bear it nolonger; she had risen to go and entreat the men to make less noise, whensuddenly all was still. 

Diodoros immediately became calmer, and looked up at the girl asgratefully as though the soothing silence were owing to her. She couldnow hear the deep tones of the head of the Church of Alexandria, andunderstood that the matter in hand was the readmission into thiscongregation of a man who had been turned out by some other sect. Somewould have him rejected, and commended him to the mercy of God; others, less rigid, were willing to receive him, since he was ready to submit toany penance. 

Then the quarrel began again. High above every other voice rose theshrill tones of a man who had just arrived from Carthage, and who boastedof personal friendship with the venerable Tertullian. The listening girlcould no longer follow the connection of the discussion, but the samenames again met her ear; and, though she understood nothing of thematter, it annoyed her, because the turmoil disturbed her lover's rest. 

It was not till the sick-nurse came back that the tumult was appeased;for, as soon as she learned how seriously the loud disputes of herfellow-believers were disturbing the sick man's rest, she interferedso effectually, that the house was as silent as before. 

The deaconess Katharine was the name by which she was known, and in a fewminutes she returned to her patient's bedside. 

Andreas followed her, with the leech, a man of middle height, whoseshrewd and well-formed head, bald but for a little hair at the sides, was set on a somewhat ungainly body. His sharp eyes looked hither andthither, and there was something jerky in his quick movements; still, their grave decisiveness made up for the lack of grace. He paid no heedto the bystanders, but threw himself forward rather than bent over thepatient, felt him, and with a light hand renewed his bandages; and thenhe looked round the room, examining it as curiously as though he proposedto take up his abode there, ending by fixing his prominent, round eyes onMelissa. There was something so ruthlessly inquisitive in that look thatit might, under other circumstances, have angered her. However, as itwas, she submitted to it, for she saw that it was shrewd, and she wouldhave called the wisest physician on earth to her lover's bedside if shehad had the power. 

When Ptolemaeus--for so he was called--had, in reply to the question, "who is that?" learned who she was, he hastily murmured: "Then she can donothing but harm here. A man in a fever wants but one thing, and that isperfect quiet. "

And he beckoned Andreas to the window, and asked him shortly, "Has thegirl any sense?"

"Plenty, " replied the freedman, decisively. 

"As much, at any rate, as she can have at her age, " the other retorted. "Then it is to be hoped that she will go without any leave-taking ortears. That fine lad is in a bad way. I have known all along what mightdo him good, but I dare not attempt it alone, and there is no one inAlexandria. . . . But Galen has come to join Caesar. If he, oldas he is--But it is not for the likes of us to intrude into Caesar'squarters--Still--"

He paused, laying his hand on his brow, and rubbing it thoughtfully withhis short middle finger. Then he suddenly exclaimed: "The old man wouldnever come here. But the Serapeum, where the sick lie awaiting divine ordiabolical counsel in dreams--Galen will go there. If only we couldcarry the boy thither. "

"His nurse here would hardly allow that, " said Andreas, doubtfully. 

"He is a heathen. " replied the leech, hotly. "Besides, what has faith todo with the injury to the body? How many Caesars have employed Egyptianand Jewish physicians? The lad would get the treatment he needs, and, Christian as I am, I would, if necessary, convey him to the Serapeum, though it is of all heathen temples the most heathen. I will findout by hook or by crook at what time Galen is to visit the cubicles. To-morrow, or next day at latest; and to-night, or, better still, to-morrow morning before sunrise, I will have the youth carried there. If the deaconess refuses--"

"And she will, " Andreas put in. 

"Very well. --Come here, maiden, " he beckoned to Melissa, and went on loudenough for the deaconess to hear: "If we can get your betrothed to theSerapeum early to-morrow, he may probably be cured; otherwise I refuse tobe responsible. Tell your friends and his that I will be here beforesunrise to-morrow, and that they must provide a covered litter and goodbearers. "

He then turned to the deaconess, who had followed him in silence, withher hands clasped like a deserter, laid his broad, square hand on hershoulder, and added:

"So it must be, Widow Katharine, Love endures and suffers all things, andto save a neighbor's life, it is well to suffer in silence even thingsthat displease us. I will explain it all to you afterwards. Quiet, onlyperfect quiet--No melancholy leave-taking, child! The sooner you are outof the house the better. "

He went back again to the bed, laid his hand for a moment on the sickman's forehead, and then left the room. 

Diodoros lay still and indifferent on the couch. Melissa kissed him onthe brow, and withdrew without his observing it, her eyes full of tears. 

ETEXT EDITOR'S BOOKMARKS:

For what will not custom excuse and sanctify?