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diff --git a/old/slmmb10.txt b/old/slmmb10.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 53857d8..0000000 --- a/old/slmmb10.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,12108 +0,0 @@ -**The Project Gutenberg Etext of Salammbo, by Gustave Flaubert** -#2 in our series by Gustave Flaubert - - -Copyright laws are changing all over the world, be sure to check -the copyright laws for your country before posting these files!! - -Please take a look at the important information in this header. -We encourage you to keep this file on your own disk, keeping an -electronic path open for the next readers. Do not remove this. - - -**Welcome To The World of Free Plain Vanilla Electronic Texts** - -**Etexts Readable By Both Humans and By Computers, Since 1971** - -*These Etexts Prepared By Hundreds of Volunteers and Donations* - -Information on contacting Project Gutenberg to get Etexts, and -further information is included below. 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FOR PUBLIC DOMAIN ETEXTS*Ver.04.29.93*END* - - - - - -Etext prepared by John Bickers, jbickers@templar.actrix.gen.nz - - - - - -SALAMMBO - -BY - -GUSTAVE FLAUBERT - - - -CHAPTER I - -THE FEAST - -It was at Megara, a suburb of Carthage, in the gardens of Hamilcar. -The soldiers whom he had commanded in Sicily were having a great feast -to celebrate the anniversary of the battle of Eryx, and as the master -was away, and they were numerous, they ate and drank with perfect -freedom. - -The captains, who wore bronze cothurni, had placed themselves in the -central path, beneath a gold-fringed purple awning, which reached from -the wall of the stables to the first terrace of the palace; the common -soldiers were scattered beneath the trees, where numerous flat-roofed -buildings might be seen, wine-presses, cellars, storehouses, bakeries, -and arsenals, with a court for elephants, dens for wild beasts, and a -prison for slaves. - -Fig-trees surrounded the kitchens; a wood of sycamores stretched away -to meet masses of verdure, where the pomegranate shone amid the white -tufts of the cotton-plant; vines, grape-laden, grew up into the -branches of the pines; a field of roses bloomed beneath the plane- -trees; here and there lilies rocked upon the turf; the paths were -strewn with black sand mingled with powdered coral, and in the centre -the avenue of cypress formed, as it were, a double colonnade of green -obelisks from one extremity to the other. - -Far in the background stood the palace, built of yellow mottled -Numidian marble, broad courses supporting its four terraced stories. -With its large, straight, ebony staircase, bearing the prow of a -vanquished galley at the corners of every step, its red doors -quartered with black crosses, its brass gratings protecting it from -scorpions below, and its trellises of gilded rods closing the -apertures above, it seemed to the soldiers in its haughty opulence as -solemn and impenetrable as the face of Hamilcar. - -The Council had appointed his house for the holding of this feast; the -convalescents lying in the temple of Eschmoun had set out at daybreak -and dragged themselves thither on their crutches. Every minute others -were arriving. They poured in ceaselessly by every path like torrents -rushing into a lake; through the trees the slaves of the kitchens -might be seen running scared and half-naked; the gazelles fled -bleating on the lawns; the sun was setting, and the perfume of citron -trees rendered the exhalation from the perspiring crowd heavier still. - -Men of all nations were there, Ligurians, Lusitanians, Balearians, -Negroes, and fugitives from Rome. Beside the heavy Dorian dialect were -audible the resonant Celtic syllables rattling like chariots of war, -while Ionian terminations conflicted with consonants of the desert as -harsh as the jackal's cry. The Greek might be recognised by his -slender figure, the Egyptian by his elevated shoulders, the Cantabrian -by his broad calves. There were Carians proudly nodding their helmet -plumes, Cappadocian archers displaying large flowers painted on their -bodies with the juice of herbs, and a few Lydians in women's robes, -dining in slippers and earrings. Others were ostentatiously daubed -with vermilion, and resembled coral statues. - -They stretched themselves on the cushions, they ate squatting round -large trays, or lying face downwards they drew out the pieces of meat -and sated themselves, leaning on their elbows in the peaceful posture -of lions tearing their prey. The last comers stood leaning against the -trees watching the low tables half hidden beneath the scarlet -coverings, and awaiting their turn. - -Hamilcar's kitchens being insufficient, the Council had sent them -slaves, ware, and beds, and in the middle of the garden, as on a -battle-field when they burn the dead, large bright fires might be -seen, at which oxen were roasting. Anise-sprinkled loaves alternated -with great cheeses heavier than discuses, crateras filled with wine, -and cantharuses filled with water, together with baskets of gold -filigree-work containing flowers. Every eye was dilated with the joy -of being able at last to gorge at pleasure, and songs were beginning -here and there. - -First they were served with birds and green sauce in plates of red -clay relieved by drawings in black, then with every kind of shell-fish -that is gathered on the Punic coasts, wheaten porridge, beans and -barley, and snails dressed with cumin on dishes of yellow amber. - -Afterwards the tables were covered with meats, antelopes with their -horns, peacocks with their feathers, whole sheep cooked in sweet wine, -haunches of she-camels and buffaloes, hedgehogs with garum, fried -grasshoppers, and preserved dormice. Large pieces of fat floated in -the midst of saffron in bowls of Tamrapanni wood. Everything was -running over with wine, truffles, and asafoetida. Pyramids of fruit -were crumbling upon honeycombs, and they had not forgotten a few of -those plump little dogs with pink silky hair and fattened on olive -lees,--a Carthaginian dish held in abhorrence among other nations. -Surprise at the novel fare excited the greed of the stomach. The Gauls -with their long hair drawn up on the crown of the head, snatched at -the water-melons and lemons, and crunched them up with the rind. The -Negroes, who had never seen a lobster, tore their faces with its red -prickles. But the shaven Greeks, whiter than marble, threw the -leavings of their plates behind them, while the herdsmen from Brutium, -in their wolf-skin garments, devoured in silence with their faces in -their portions. - -Night fell. The velarium, spread over the cypress avenue, was drawn -back, and torches were brought. - -The apes, sacred to the moon, were terrified on the cedar tops by the -wavering lights of the petroleum as it burned in the porphyry vases. -They uttered screams which afforded mirth to the soldiers. - -Oblong flames trembled in cuirasses of brass. Every kind of -scintillation flashed from the gem-incrusted dishes. The crateras with -their borders of convex mirrors multiplied and enlarged the images of -things; the soldiers thronged around, looking at their reflections -with amazement, and grimacing to make themselves laugh. They tossed -the ivory stools and golden spatulas to one another across the tables. -They gulped down all the Greek wines in their leathern bottles, the -Campanian wine enclosed in amphoras, the Cantabrian wines brought in -casks, with the wines of the jujube, cinnamomum and lotus. There were -pools of these on the ground that made the foot slip. The smoke of the -meats ascended into the foliage with the vapour of the breath. -Simultaneously were heard the snapping of jaws, the noise of speech, -songs, and cups, the crash of Campanian vases shivering into a -thousand pieces, or the limpid sound of a large silver dish. - -In proportion as their intoxication increased they more and more -recalled the injustice of Carthage. The Republic, in fact, exhausted -by the war, had allowed all the returning bands to accumulate in the -town. Gisco, their general, had however been prudent enough to send -them back severally in order to facilitate the liquidation of their -pay, and the Council had believed that they would in the end consent -to some reduction. But at present ill-will was caused by the inability -to pay them. This debt was confused in the minds of the people with -the 3200 Euboic talents exacted by Lutatius, and equally with Rome -they were regarded as enemies to Carthage. The Mercenaries understood -this, and their indignation found vent in threats and outbreaks. At -last they demanded permission to assemble to celebrate one of their -victories, and the peace party yielded, at the same time revenging -themselves on Hamilcar who had so strongly upheld the war. It had been -terminated notwithstanding all his efforts, so that, despairing of -Carthage, he had entrusted the government of the Mercenaries to Gisco. -To appoint his palace for their reception was to draw upon him -something of the hatred which was borne to them. Moreover, the expense -must be excessive, and he would incur nearly the whole. - -Proud of having brought the Republic to submit, the Mercenaries -thought that they were at last about to return to their homes with the -payment for their blood in the hoods of their cloaks. But as seen -through the mists of intoxication, their fatigues seemed to them -prodigious and but ill-rewarded. They showed one another their wounds, -they told of their combats, their travels and the hunting in their -native lands. They imitated the cries and the leaps of wild beasts. -Then came unclean wagers; they buried their heads in the amphoras and -drank on without interruption, like thirsty dromedaries. A Lusitanian -of gigantic stature ran over the tables, carrying a man in each hand -at arm's length, and spitting out fire through his nostrils. Some -Lacedaemonians, who had not taken off their cuirasses, were leaping -with a heavy step. Some advanced like women, making obscene gestures; -others stripped naked to fight amid the cups after the fashion of -gladiators, and a company of Greeks danced around a vase whereon -nymphs were to be seen, while a Negro tapped with an ox-bone on a -brazen buckler. - -Suddenly they heard a plaintive song, a song loud and soft, rising and -falling in the air like the wing-beating of a wounded bird. - -It was the voice of the slaves in the ergastulum. Some soldiers rose -at a bound to release them and disappeared. - -They returned, driving through the dust amid shouts, twenty men, -distinguished by their greater paleness of face. Small black felt caps -of conical shape covered their shaven heads; they all wore wooden -shoes, and yet made a noise as of old iron like driving chariots. - -They reached the avenue of cypress, where they were lost among the -crowd of those questioning them. One of them remained apart, standing. -Through the rents in his tunic his shoulders could be seen striped -with long scars. Drooping his chin, he looked round him with distrust, -closing his eyelids somewhat against the dazzling light of the -torches, but when he saw that none of the armed men were unfriendly to -him, a great sigh escaped from his breast; he stammered, he sneered -through the bright tears that bathed his face. At last he seized a -brimming cantharus by its rings, raised it straight up into the air -with his outstretched arms, from which his chains hung down, and then -looking to heaven, and still holding the cup he said: - -"Hail first to thee, Baal-Eschmoun, the deliverer, whom the people of -my country call Aesculapius! and to you, genii of the fountains, -light, and woods! and to you, ye gods hidden beneath the mountains and -in the caverns of the earth! and to you, strong men in shining armour -who have set me free!" - -Then he let fall the cup and related his history. He was called -Spendius. The Carthaginians had taken him in the battle of Aeginusae, -and he thanked the Mercenaries once more in Greek, Ligurian and Punic; -he kissed their hands; finally, he congratulated them on the banquet, -while expressing his surprise at not perceiving the cups of the Sacred -Legion. These cups, which bore an emerald vine on each of their six -golden faces, belonged to a corps composed exclusively of young -patricians of the tallest stature. They were a privilege, almost a -sacerdotal distinction, and accordingly nothing among the treasures of -the Republic was more coveted by the Mercenaries. They detested the -Legion on this account, and some of them had been known to risk their -lives for the inconceivable pleasure of drinking out of these cups. - -Accordingly they commanded that the cups should be brought. They were -in the keeping of the Syssitia, companies of traders, who had a common -table. The slaves returned. At that hour all the members of the -Syssitia were asleep. - -"Let them be awakened!" responded the Mercenaries. - -After a second excursion it was explained to them that the cups were -shut up in a temple. - -"Let it be opened!" they replied. - -And when the slaves confessed with trembling that they were in the -possession of Gisco, the general, they cried out: - -"Let him bring them!" - -Gisco soon appeared at the far end of the garden with an escort of the -Sacred Legion. His full, black cloak, which was fastened on his head -to a golden mitre starred with precious stones, and which hung all -about him down to his horse's hoofs, blended in the distance with the -colour of the night. His white beard, the radiancy of his head-dress, -and his triple necklace of broad blue plates beating against his -breast, were alone visible. - -When he entered, the soldiers greeted him with loud shouts, all -crying: - -"The cups! The cups!" - -He began by declaring that if reference were had to their courage, -they were worthy of them. - -The crowd applauded and howled with joy. - -HE knew it, he who had commanded them over yonder, and had returned -with the last cohort in the last galley! - -"True! True!" said they. - -Nevertheless, Gisco continued, the Republic had respected their -national divisions, their customs, and their modes of worship; in -Carthage they were free! As to the cups of the Sacred Legion, they -were private property. Suddenly a Gaul, who was close to Spendius, -sprang over the tables and ran straight up to Gisco, gesticulating and -threatening him with two naked swords. - -Without interrupting his speech, the General struck him on the head -with his heavy ivory staff, and the Barbarian fell. The Gauls howled, -and their frenzy, which was spreading to the others, would soon have -swept away the legionaries. Gisco shrugged his shoulders as he saw -them growing pale. He thought that his courage would be useless -against these exasperated brute beasts. It would be better to revenge -himself upon them by some artifice later; accordingly, he signed to -his soldiers and slowly withdrew. Then, turning in the gateway towards -the Mercenaries, he cried to them that they would repent of it. - -The feast recommenced. But Gisco might return, and by surrounding the -suburb, which was beside the last ramparts, might crush them against -the walls. Then they felt themselves alone in spite of their crowd, -and the great town sleeping beneath them in the shade suddenly made -them afraid, with its piles of staircases, its lofty black houses, and -its vague gods fiercer even than its people. In the distance a few -ships'-lanterns were gliding across the harbour, and there were lights -in the temple of Khamon. They thought of Hamilcar. Where was he? Why -had he forsaken them when peace was concluded? His differences with -the Council were doubtless but a pretence in order to destroy them. -Their unsatisfied hate recoiled upon him, and they cursed him, -exasperating one another with their own anger. At this juncture they -collected together beneath the plane-trees to see a slave who, with -eyeballs fixed, neck contorted, and lips covered with foam, was -rolling on the ground, and beating the soil with his limbs. Some one -cried out that he was poisoned. All then believed themselves poisoned. -They fell upon the slaves, a terrible clamour was raised, and a -vertigo of destruction came like a whirlwind upon the drunken army. -They struck about them at random, they smashed, they slew; some hurled -torches into the foliage; others, leaning over the lions' balustrade, -massacred the animals with arrows; the most daring ran to the -elephants, desiring to cut down their trunks and eat ivory. - -Some Balearic slingers, however, who had gone round the corner of the -palace, in order to pillage more conveniently, were checked by a lofty -barrier, made of Indian cane. They cut the lock-straps with their -daggers, and then found themselves beneath the front that faced -Carthage, in another garden full of trimmed vegetation. Lines of white -flowers all following one another in regular succession formed long -parabolas like star-rockets on the azure-coloured earth. The gloomy -bushes exhaled warm and honied odours. There were trunks of trees -smeared with cinnabar, which resembled columns covered with blood. In -the centre were twelve pedestals, each supporting a great glass ball, -and these hollow globes were indistinctly filled with reddish lights, -like enormous and still palpitating eyeballs. The soldiers lighted -themselves with torches as they stumbled on the slope of the deeply -laboured soil. - -But they perceived a little lake divided into several basins by walls -of blue stones. So limpid was the wave that the flames of the torches -quivered in it at the very bottom, on a bed of white pebbles and -golden dust. It began to bubble, luminous spangles glided past, and -great fish with gems about their mouths, appeared near the surface. - -With much laughter the soldiers slipped their fingers into the gills -and brought them to the tables. They were the fish of the Barca -family, and were all descended from those primordial lotes which had -hatched the mystic egg wherein the goddess was concealed. The idea of -committing a sacrilege revived the greediness of the Mercenaries; they -speedily placed fire beneath some brazen vases, and amused themselves -by watching the beautiful fish struggling in the boiling water. - -The surge of soldiers pressed on. They were no longer afraid. They -commenced to drink again. Their ragged tunics were wet with the -perfumes that flowed in large drops from their foreheads, and resting -both fists on the tables, which seemed to them to be rocking like -ships, they rolled their great drunken eyes around to devour by sight -what they could not take. Others walked amid the dishes on the purple -table covers, breaking ivory stools, and phials of Tyrian glass to -pieces with their feet. Songs mingled with the death-rattle of the -slaves expiring amid the broken cups. They demanded wine, meat, gold. -They cried out for women. They raved in a hundred languages. Some -thought that they were at the vapour baths on account of the steam -which floated around them, or else, catching sight of the foliage, -imagined that they were at the chase, and rushed upon their companions -as upon wild beasts. The conflagration spread to all the trees, one -after another, and the lofty mosses of verdure, emitting long white -spirals, looked like volcanoes beginning to smoke. The clamour -redoubled; the wounded lions roared in the shade. - -In an instant the highest terrace of the palace was illuminated, the -central door opened, and a woman, Hamilcar's daughter herself, clothed -in black garments, appeared on the threshold. She descended the first -staircase, which ran obliquely along the first story, then the second, -and the third, and stopped on the last terrace at the head of the -galley staircase. Motionless and with head bent, she gazed upon the -soldiers. - -Behind her, on each side, were two long shadows of pale men, clad in -white, red-fringed robes, which fell straight to their feet. They had -no beard, no hair, no eyebrows. In their hands, which sparkled with -rings, they carried enormous lyres, and with shrill voice they sang a -hymn to the divinity of Carthage. They were the eunuch priests of the -temple of Tanith, who were often summoned by Salammbo to her house. - -At last she descended the galley staircase. The priests followed her. -She advanced into the avenue of cypress, and walked slowly through the -tables of the captains, who drew back somewhat as they watched her -pass. - -Her hair, which was powdered with violet sand, and combined into the -form of a tower, after the fashion of the Chanaanite maidens, added to -her height. Tresses of pearls were fastened to her temples, and fell -to the corners of her mouth, which was as rosy as a half-open -pomegranate. On her breast was a collection of luminous stones, their -variegation imitating the scales of the murena. Her arms were adorned -with diamonds, and issued naked from her sleeveless tunic, which was -starred with red flowers on a perfectly black ground. Between her -ankles she wore a golden chainlet to regulate her steps, and her large -dark purple mantle, cut of an unknown material, trailed behind her, -making, as it were, at each step, a broad wave which followed her. - -The priests played nearly stifled chords on their lyres from time to -time, and in the intervals of the music might be heard the tinkling of -the little golden chain, and the regular patter of her papyrus -sandals. - -No one as yet was acquainted with her. It was only known that she led -a retired life, engaged in pious practices. Some soldiers had seen her -in the night on the summit of her palace kneeling before the stars -amid the eddyings from kindled perfuming-pans. It was the moon that -had made her so pale, and there was something from the gods that -enveloped her like a subtle vapour. Her eyes seemed to gaze far beyond -terrestrial space. She bent her head as she walked, and in her right -hand she carried a little ebony lyre. - -They heard her murmur: - -"Dead! All dead! No more will you come obedient to my voice as when, -seated on the edge of the lake, I used to through seeds of the -watermelon into your mouths! The mystery of Tanith ranged in the -depths of your eyes that were more limpid than the globules of -rivers." And she called them by their names, which were those of the -months--"Siv! Sivan! Tammouz, Eloul, Tischri, Schebar! Ah! have pity -on me, goddess!" - -The soldiers thronged about her without understanding what she said. -They wondered at her attire, but she turned a long frightened look -upon them all, then sinking her head beneath her shoulders, and waving -her arms, she repeated several times: - -"What have you done? what have you done? - -"Yet you had bread, and meats and oil, and all the malobathrum of the -granaries for your enjoyment! I had brought oxen from Hecatompylos; I -had sent hunters into the desert!" Her voice swelled; her cheeks -purpled. She added, "Where, pray, are you now? In a conquered town, or -in the palace of a master? And what master? Hamilcar the Suffet, my -father, the servant of the Baals! It was he who withheld from Lutatius -those arms of yours, red now with the blood of his slaves! Know you of -any in your own lands more skilled in the conduct of battles? Look! -our palace steps are encumbered with our victories! Ah! desist not! -burn it! I will carry away with me the genius of my house, my black -serpent slumbering up yonder on lotus leaves! I will whistle and he -will follow me, and if I embark in a galley he will speed in the wake -of my ship over the foam of the waves." - -Her delicate nostrils were quivering. She crushed her nails against -the gems on her bosom. Her eyes drooped, and she resumed: - -"Ah! poor Carthage! lamentable city! No longer hast thou for thy -protection the strong men of former days who went beyond the oceans to -build temples on their shores. All the lands laboured about thee, and -the sea-plains, ploughed by thine oars, rocked with thy harvests." -Then she began to sing the adventures of Melkarth, the god of the -Sidonians, and the father of her family. - -She told of the ascent of the mountains of Ersiphonia, the journey to -Tartessus, and the war against Masisabal to avenge the queen of the -serpents: - -"He pursued the female monster, whose tail undulated over the dead -leaves like a silver brook, into the forest, and came to a plain where -women with dragon-croups were round a great fire, standing erect on -the points of their tails. The blood-coloured moon was shining within -a pale circle, and their scarlet tongues, cloven like the harpoons of -fishermen, reached curling forth to the very edge of the flame." - -Then Salammbo, without pausing, related how Melkarth, after -vanquishing Masisabal, placed her severed head on the prow of his -ship. "At each throb of the waves it sank beneath the foam, but the -sun embalmed it; it became harder than gold; nevertheless the eyes -ceased not to weep, and the tears fell into the water continually." - -She sang all this in an old Chanaanite idiom, which the Barbarians did -not understand. They asked one another what she could be saying to -them with those frightful gestures which accompanied her speech, and -mounted round about her on the tables, beds, and sycamore boughs, they -strove with open mouths and craned necks to grasp the vague stories -hovering before their imaginations, through the dimness of the -theogonies, like phantoms wrapped in cloud. - -Only the beardless priests understood Salammbo; their wrinkled hands, -which hung over the strings of their lyres, quivered, and from time to -time they would draw forth a mournful chord; for, feebler than old -women, they trembled at once with mystic emotion, and with the fear -inspired by men. The Barbarians heeded them not, but listened -continually to the maiden's song. - -None gazed at her like a young Numidian chief, who was placed at the -captains' tables among soldiers of his own nation. His girdle so -bristled with darts that it formed a swelling in his ample cloak, -which was fastened on his temples with a leather lace. The cloth -parted asunder as it fell upon his shoulders, and enveloped his -countenance in shadow, so that only the fires of his two fixed eyes -could be seen. It was by chance that he was at the feast, his father -having domiciled him with the Barca family, according to the custom by -which kings used to send their children into the households of the -great in order to pave the way for alliances; but Narr' Havas had -lodged there fox six months without having hitherto seen Salammbo, and -now, seated on his heels, with his head brushing the handles of his -javelins, he was watching her with dilated nostrils, like a leopard -crouching among the bamboos. - -On the other side of the tables was a Libyan of colossal stature, and -with short black curly hair. He had retained only his military jacket, -the brass plates of which were tearing the purple of the couch. A -necklace of silver moons was tangled in his hairy breast. His face was -stained with splashes of blood; he was leaning on his left elbow with -a smile on his large, open mouth. - -Salammbo had abandoned the sacred rhythm. With a woman's subtlety she -was simultaneously employing all the dialects of the Barbarians in -order to appease their anger. To the Greeks she spoke Greek; then she -turned to the Ligurians, the Campanians, the Negroes, and listening to -her each one found again in her voice the sweetness of his native -land. She now, carried away by the memories of Carthage, sang of the -ancient battles against Rome; they applauded. She kindled at the -gleaming of the naked swords, and cried aloud with outstretched arms. -Her lyre fell, she was silent; and, pressing both hands upon her -heart, she remained for some minutes with closed eyelids enjoying the -agitation of all these men. - -Matho, the Libyan, leaned over towards her. Involuntarily she -approached him, and impelled by grateful pride, poured him a long -stream of wine into a golden cup in order to conciliate the army. - -"Drink!" she said. - -He took the cup, and was carrying it to his lips when a Gaul, the same -that had been hurt by Gisco, struck him on the shoulder, while in a -jovial manner he gave utterance to pleasantries in his native tongue. -Spendius was not far off, and he volunteered to interpret them. - -"Speak!" said Matho. - -"The gods protect you; you are going to become rich. When will the -nuptials be?" - -"What nuptials?" - -"Yours! for with us," said the Gaul, "when a woman gives drink to a -soldier, it means that she offers him her couch." - -He had not finished when Narr' Havas, with a bound, drew a javelin -from his girdle, and, leaning his right foot upon the edge of the -table, hurled it against Matho. - -The javelin whistled among the cups, and piercing the Lybian's arm, -pinned it so firmly to the cloth, that the shaft quivered in the air. - -Matho quickly plucked it out; but he was weaponless and naked; at last -he lifted the over-laden table with both arms, and flung it against -Narr' Havas into the very centre of the crowd that rushed between -them. The soldiers and Numidians pressed together so closely that they -were unable to draw their swords. Matho advanced dealing great blows -with his head. When he raised it, Narr' Havas had disappeared. He -sought for him with his eyes. Salammbo also was gone. - -Then directing his looks to the palace he perceived the red door with -the black cross closing far above, and he darted away. - -They saw him run between the prows of the galleys, and then reappear -along the three staircases until he reached the red door against which -he dashed his whole body. Panting, he leaned against the wall to keep -himself from falling. - -But a man had followed him, and through the darkness, for the lights -of the feast were hidden by the corner of the palace, he recognised -Spendius. - -"Begone!" said he. - -The slave without replying began to tear his tunic with his teeth; -then kneeling beside Matho he tenderly took his arm, and felt it in -the shadow to discover the wound. - -By a ray of the moon which was then gliding between the clouds, -Spendius perceived a gaping wound in the middle of the arm. He rolled -the piece of stuff about it, but the other said irritably, "Leave me! -leave me!" - -"Oh no!" replied the slave. "You released me from the ergastulum. I am -yours! you are my master! command me!" - -Matho walked round the terrace brushing against the walls. He strained -his ears at every step, glancing down into the silent apartments -through the spaces between the gilded reeds. At last he stopped with a -look of despair. - -"Listen!" said the slave to him. "Oh! do not despise me for my -feebleness! I have lived in the palace. I can wind like a viper -through the walls. Come! in the Ancestor's Chamber there is an ingot -of gold beneath every flagstone; an underground path leads to their -tombs." - -"Well! what matters it?" said Matho. - -Spendius was silent. - -They were on the terrace. A huge mass of shadow stretched before them, -appearing as if it contained vague accumulations, like the gigantic -billows of a black and petrified ocean. - -But a luminous bar rose towards the East; far below, on the left, the -canals of Megara were beginning to stripe the verdure of the gardens -with their windings of white. The conical roofs of the heptagonal -temples, the staircases, terraces, and ramparts were being carved by -degrees upon the paleness of the dawn; and a girdle of white foam -rocked around the Carthaginian peninsula, while the emerald sea -appeared as if it were curdled in the freshness of the morning. Then -as the rosy sky grew larger, the lofty houses, bending over the -sloping soil, reared and massed themselves like a herd of black goats -coming down from the mountains. The deserted streets lengthened; the -palm-trees that topped the walls here and there were motionless; the -brimming cisterns seemed like silver bucklers lost in the courts; the -beacon on the promontory of Hermaeum was beginning to grow pale. The -horses of Eschmoun, on the very summit of the Acropolis in the cypress -wood, feeling that the light was coming, placed their hoofs on the -marble parapet, and neighed towards the sun. - -It appeared, and Spendius raised his arms with a cry. - -Everything stirred in a diffusion of red, for the god, as if he were -rending himself, now poured full-rayed upon Carthage the golden rain -of his veins. The beaks of the galleys sparkled, the roof of Khamon -appeared to be all in flames, while far within the temples, whose -doors were opening, glimmerings of light could be seen. Large -chariots, arriving from the country, rolled their wheels over the -flagstones in the streets. Dromedaries, baggage-laden, came down the -ramps. Money-changers raised the pent-houses of their shops at the -cross ways, storks took to flight, white sails fluttered. In the wood -of Tanith might be heard the tabourines of the sacred courtesans, and -the furnaces for baking the clay coffins were beginning to smoke on -the Mappalian point. - -Spendius leaned over the terrace; his teeth chattered and he repeated: - -"Ah! yes--yes--master! I understand why you scorned the pillage of the -house just now." - -Matho was as if he had just been awaked by the hissing of his voice, -and did not seem to understand. Spendius resumed: - -"Ah! what riches! and the men who possess them have not even the steel -to defend them!" - -Then, pointing with his right arm outstretched to some of the populace -who were crawling on the sand outside the mole to look for gold dust: - -"See!" he said to him, "the Republic is like these wretches: bending -on the brink of the ocean, she buries her greedy arms in every shore, -and the noise of the billows so fills her ear that she cannot hear -behind her the tread of a master's heel!" - -He drew Matho to quite the other end of the terrace, and showed him -the garden, wherein the soldiers' swords, hanging on the trees, were -like mirrors in the sun. - -"But here there are strong men whose hatred is roused! and nothing -binds them to Carthage, neither families, oaths nor gods!" - -Matho remained leaning against the wall; Spendius came close, and -continued in a low voice: - -"Do you understand me, soldier? We should walk purple-clad like -satraps. We should bathe in perfumes; and I should in turn have -slaves! Are you not weary of sleeping on hard ground, of drinking the -vinegar of the camps, and of continually hearing the trumpet? But you -will rest later, will you not? When they pull off your cuirass to cast -your corpse to the vultures! or perhaps blind, lame, and weak you will -go, leaning on a stick, from door to door to tell of your youth to -pickle-sellers and little children. Remember all the injustice of your -chiefs, the campings in the snow, the marchings in the sun, the -tyrannies of discipline, and the everlasting menace of the cross! And -after all this misery they have given you a necklace of honour, as -they hang a girdle of bells round the breast of an ass to deafen it on -its journey, and prevent it from feeling fatigue. A man like you, -braver than Pyrrhus! If only you had wished it! Ah! how happy will you -be in large cool halls, with the sound of lyres, lying on flowers, -with women and buffoons! Do not tell me that the enterprise is -impossible. Have not the Mercenaries already possessed Rhegium and -other fortified places in Italy? Who is to prevent you? Hamilcar is -away; the people execrate the rich; Gisco can do nothing with the -cowards who surround him. Command them! Carthage is ours; let us fall -upon it!" - -"No!" said Matho, "the curse of Moloch weighs upon me. I felt it in -her eyes, and just now I saw a black ram retreating in a temple." -Looking around him he added: "But where is she?" - -Then Spendius understood that a great disquiet possessed him, and did -not venture to speak again. - -The trees behind them were still smoking; half-burned carcases of apes -dropped from their blackened boughs from time to time into the midst -of the dishes. Drunken soldiers snored open-mouthed by the side of the -corpses, and those who were not asleep lowered their heads dazzled by -the light of day. The trampled soil was hidden beneath splashes of -red. The elephants poised their bleeding trunks between the stakes of -their pens. In the open granaries might be seen sacks of spilled -wheat, below the gate was a thick line of chariots which had been -heaped up by the Barbarians, and the peacocks perched in the cedars -were spreading their tails and beginning to utter their cry. - -Matho's immobility, however, astonished Spendius; he was even paler -than he had recently been, and he was following something on the -horizon with fixed eyeballs, and with both fists resting on the edge -of the terrace. Spendius crouched down, and so at last discovered at -what he was gazing. In the distance a golden speck was turning in the -dust on the road to Utica; it was the nave of a chariot drawn by two -mules; a slave was running at the end of the pole, and holding them by -the bridle. Two women were seated in the chariot. The manes of the -animals were puffed between the ears after the Persian fashion, -beneath a network of blue pearls. Spendius recognised them, and -restrained a cry. - -A large veil floated behind in the wind. - - - -CHAPTER II - -AT SICCA - -Two days afterwards the Mercenaries left Carthage. - -They had each received a piece of gold on the condition that they -should go into camp at Sicca, and they had been told with all sorts of -caresses: - -"You are the saviours of Carthage! But you would starve it if you -remained there; it would become insolvent. Withdraw! The Republic will -be grateful to you later for all this condescension. We are going to -levy taxes immediately; your pay shall be in full, and galleys shall -be equipped to take you back to your native lands." - -They did not know how to reply to all this talk. These men, accustomed -as they were to war, were wearied by residence in a town; there was -difficulty in convincing them, and the people mounted the walls to see -them go away. - -They defiled through the street of Khamon, and the Cirta gate, -pell-mell, archers with hoplites, captains with soldiers, Lusitanians -with Greeks. They marched with a bold step, rattling their heavy -cothurni on the paving stones. Their armour was dented by the -catapult, and their faces blackened by the sunburn of battles. Hoarse -cries issued from their thick bears, their tattered coats of mail -flapped upon the pommels of their swords, and through the holes in the -brass might be seen their naked limbs, as frightful as engines of war. -Sarissae, axes, spears, felt caps and bronze helmets, all swung -together with a single motion. They filled the street thickly enough -to have made the walls crack, and the long mass of armed soldiers -overflowed between the lofty bitumen-smeared houses six storys high. -Behind their gratings of iron or reed the women, with veiled heads, -silently watched the Barbarians pass. - -The terraces, fortifications, and walls were hidden beneath the crowd -of Carthaginians, who were dressed in garments of black. The sailors' -tunics showed like drops of blood among the dark multitude, and nearly -naked children, whose skin shone beneath their copper bracelets, -gesticulated in the foliage of the columns, or amid the branches of a -palm tree. Some of the Ancients were posted on the platform of the -towers, and people did not know why a personage with a long beard -stood thus in a dreamy attitude here and there. He appeared in the -distance against the background of the sky, vague as a phantom and -motionless as stone. - -All, however, were oppressed with the same anxiety; it was feared that -the Barbarians, seeing themselves so strong, might take a fancy to -stay. But they were leaving with so much good faith that the -Carthaginians grew bold and mingled with the soldiers. They -overwhelmed them with protestations and embraces. Some with -exaggerated politeness and audacious hypocrisy even sought to induce -them not to leave the city. They threw perfumes, flowers, and pieces -of silver to them. They gave them amulets to avert sickness; but they -had spit upon them three times to attract death, or had enclosed -jackal's hair within them to put cowardice into their hearts. Aloud, -they invoked Melkarth's favour, and in a whisper, his curse. - -Then came the mob of baggage, beasts of burden, and stragglers. The -sick groaned on the backs of dromedaries, while others limped along -leaning on broken pikes. The drunkards carried leathern bottles, and -the greedy quarters of meat, cakes, fruits, butter wrapped in fig -leaves, and snow in linen bags. Some were to be seen with parasols in -their hands, and parrots on their shoulders. They had mastiffs, -gazelles, and panthers following behind them. Women of Libyan race, -mounted on asses, inveighed against the Negresses who had forsaken the -lupanaria of Malqua for the soldiers; many of them were suckling -children suspended on their bosoms by leathern thongs. The mules were -goaded out at the point of the sword, their backs bending beneath the -load of tents, while there were numbers of serving-men and water- -carriers, emaciated, jaundiced with fever, and filthy with vermin, the -scum of the Carthaginian populace, who had attached themselves to the -Barbarians. - -When they had passed, the gates were shut behind them, but the people -did not descend from the walls. The army soon spread over the breadth -of the isthmus. - -It parted into unequal masses. Then the lances appeared like tall -blades of grass, and finally all was lost in a train of dust; those of -the soldiers who looked back towards Carthage could now only see its -long walls with their vacant battlements cut out against the edge of -the sky. - -Then the Barbarians heard a great shout. They thought that some from -among them (for they did not know their own number) had remained in -the town, and were amusing themselves by pillaging a temple. They -laughed a great deal at the idea of this, and then continued their -journey. - -They were rejoiced to find themselves, as in former days, marching all -together in the open country, and some of the Greeks sang the old song -of the Mamertines: - - "With my lance and sword I plough and reap; I am master of the - house! The disarmed man falls at my feet and calls me Lord and - Great King." - -They shouted, they leaped, the merriest began to tell stories; the -time of their miseries was past. As they arrived at Tunis, some of -them remarked that a troop of Balearic slingers was missing. They were -doubtless not far off; and no further heed was paid to them. - -Some went to lodge in the houses, others camped at the foot of the -walls, and the townspeople came out to chat with the soldiers. - -During the whole night fires were seen burning on the horizon in the -direction of Carthage; the light stretched like giant torches across -the motionless lake. No one in the army could tell what festival was -being celebrated. - -On the following day the Barbarian's passed through a region that was -covered with cultivation. The domains of the patricians succeeded one -another along the border of the route; channels of water flowed -through woods of palm; there were long, green lines of olive-trees; -rose-coloured vapours floated in the gorges of the hills, while blue -mountains reared themselves behind. A warm wind was blowing. -Chameleons were crawling on the broad leaves of the cactus. - -The Barbarians slackened their speed. - -They marched on in isolated detachments, or lagged behind one another -at long intervals. They ate grapes along the margin of the vines. They -lay on the grass and gazed with stupefaction upon the large, -artificially twisted horns of the oxen, the sheep clothed with skins -to protect their wool, the furrows crossing one another so as to form -lozenges, and the ploughshares like ships' anchors, with the -pomegranate trees that were watered with silphium. Such wealth of the -soil and such inventions of wisdom dazzled them. - -In the evening they stretched themselves on the tents without -unfolding them; and thought with regret of Hamilcar's feast, as they -fell asleep with their faces towards the stars. - -In the middle of the following day they halted on the bank of a river, -amid clumps of rose-bays. Then they quickly threw aside lances, -bucklers and belts. They bathed with shouts, and drew water in their -helmets, while others drank lying flat on their stomachs, and all in -the midst of the beasts of burden whose baggage was slipping from -them. - -Spendius, who was seated on a dromedary stolen in Hamilcar's parks, -perceived Matho at a distance, with his arm hanging against his -breast, his head bare, and his face bent down, giving his mule drink, -and watching the water flow. Spendius immediately ran through the -crowd calling him, "Master! master!" - -Matho gave him but scant thanks for his blessings, but Spendius paid -no heed to this, and began to march behind him, from time to time -turning restless glances in the direction of Carthage. - -He was the son of a Greek rhetor and a Campanian prostitute. He had at -first grown rich by dealing in women; then, ruined by a shipwreck, he -had made war against the Romans with the herdsmen of Samnium. He had -been taken and had escaped; he had been retaken, and had worked in the -quarries, panted in the vapour-baths, shrieked under torture, passed -through the hands of many masters, and experienced every frenzy. At -last, one day, in despair, he had flung himself into the sea from the -top of a trireme where he was working at the oar. Some of Hamilcar's -sailors had picked him up when at the point of death, and had brought -him to the ergastulum of Megara, at Carthage. But, as fugitives were -to be given back to the Romans, he had taken advantage of the -confusion to fly with the soldiers. - -During the whole of the march he remained near Matho; he brought him -food, assisted him to dismount, and spread a carpet in the evening -beneath his head. Matho at last was touched by these attentions, and -by degrees unlocked his lips. - -He had been born in the gulf of Syrtis. His father had taken him on a -pilgrimage to the temple of Ammon. Then he had hunted elephants in the -forests of the Garamantes. Afterwards he had entered the service of -Carthage. He had been appointed tetrarch at the capture of Drepanum. -The Republic owed him four horses, twenty-three medimni of wheat, and -a winter's pay. He feared the gods, and wished to die in his native -land. - -Spendius spoke to him of his travels, and of the peoples and temples -that he had visited. He knew many things: he could make sandals, boar- -spears and nets; he could tame wild beasts and could cook fish. - -Sometimes he would interrupt himself, and utter a hoarse cry from the -depths of his throat; Matho's mule would quicken his pace, and others -would hasten after them, and then Spendius would begin again though -still torn with agony. This subsided at last on the evening of the -fourth day. - -They were marching side by side to the right of the army on the side -of a hill; below them stretched the plain lost in the vapours of the -night. The lines of soldiers also were defiling below, making -undulations in the shade. From time to time these passed over -eminences lit up by the moon; then stars would tremble on the points -of the pikes, the helmets would glimmer for an instant, all would -disappear, and others would come on continually. Startled flocks -bleated in the distance, and a something of infinite sweetness seemed -to sink upon the earth. - -Spendius, with his head thrown back and his eyes half-closed, inhaled -the freshness of the wind with great sighs; he spread out his arms, -moving his fingers that he might the better feel the cares that -streamed over his body. Hopes of vengeance came back to him and -transported him. He pressed his hand upon his mouth to check his sobs, -and half-swooning with intoxication, let go the halter of his -dromedary, which was proceeding with long, regular steps. Matho had -relapsed into his former melancholy; his legs hung down to the ground, -and the grass made a continuous rustling as it beat against his -cothurni. - -The journey, however, spread itself out without ever coming to an end. -At the extremity of a plain they would always reach a round-shaped -plateau; then they would descend again into a valley, and the -mountains which seemed to block up the horizon would, in proportion as -they were approached, glide as it were from their positions. From time -to time a river would appear amid the verdure of tamarisks to lose -itself at the turning of the hills. Sometimes a huge rock would tower -aloft like the prow of a vessel or the pedestal of some vanished -colossus. - -At regular intervals they met with little quadrangular temples, which -served as stations for the pilgrims who repaired to Sicca. They were -closed like tombs. The Libyans struck great blows upon the doors to -have them opened. But no one inside responded. - -Then the cultivation became more rare. They suddenly entered upon -belts of sand bristling with thorny thickets. Flocks of sheep were -browsing among the stones; a woman with a blue fleece about her waist -was watching them. She fled screaming when she saw the soldiers' pikes -among the rocks. - -They were marching through a kind of large passage bordered by two -chains of reddish coloured hillocks, when their nostrils were greeted -with a nauseous odour, and they thought that they could see something -extraordinary on the top of a carob tree: a lion's head reared itself -above the leaves. - -They ran thither. It was a lion with his four limbs fastened to a -cross like a criminal. His huge muzzle fell upon his breast, and his -two fore-paws, half-hidden beneath the abundance of his mane, were -spread out wide like the wings of a bird. His ribs stood severally out -beneath his distended skin; his hind legs, which were nailed against -each other, were raised somewhat, and the black blood, flowing through -his hair, had collected in stalactites at the end of his tail, which -hung down perfectly straight along the cross. The soldiers made merry -around; they called him consul, and Roman citizen, and threw pebbles -into his eyes to drive away the gnats. - -But a hundred paces further on they saw two more, and then there -suddenly appeared a long file of crosses bearing lions. Some had been -so long dead that nothing was left against the wood but the remains of -their skeletons; others which were half eaten away had their jaws -twisted into horrible grimaces; there were some enormous ones; the -shafts of the crosses bent beneath them, and they swayed in the wind, -while bands of crows wheeled ceaselessly in the air above their heads. -It was thus that the Carthaginian peasants avenged themselves when -they captured a wild beast; they hoped to terrify the others by such -an example. The Barbarians ceased their laughter, and were long lost -in amazement. "What people is this," they thought, "that amuses itself -by crucifying lions!" - -They were, besides, especially the men of the North, vaguely uneasy, -troubled, and already sick. They tore their hands with the darts of -the aloes; great mosquitoes buzzed in their ears, and dysentry was -breaking out in the army. They were weary at not yet seeing Sicca. -They were afraid of losing themselves and of reaching the desert, the -country of sands and terrors. Many even were unwilling to advance -further. Others started back to Carthage. - -At last on the seventh day, after following the base of a mountain for -a long time, they turned abruptly to the right, and there then -appeared a line of walls resting on white rocks and blending with -them. Suddenly the entire city rose; blue, yellow, and white veils -moved on the walls in the redness of the evening. These were the -priestesses of Tanith, who had hastened hither to receive the men. -They stood ranged along the rampart, striking tabourines, playing -lyres, and shaking crotala, while the rays of the sun, setting behind -them in the mountains of Numidia, shot between the strings of their -lyres over which their naked arms were stretched. At intervals their -instruments would become suddenly still, and a cry would break forth -strident, precipitate, frenzied, continuous, a sort of barking which -they made by striking both corners of the mouth with the tongue. -Others, more motionless than the Sphynx, rested on their elbows with -their chins on their hands, and darted their great black eyes upon the -army as it ascended. - -Although Sicca was a sacred town it could not hold such a multitude; -the temple alone, with its appurtenances, occupied half of it. -Accordingly the Barbarians established themselves at their ease on the -plain; those who were disciplined in regular troops, and the rest -according to nationality or their own fancy. - -The Greeks ranged their tents of skin in parallel lines; the Iberians -placed their canvas pavilions in a circle; the Gauls made themselves -huts of planks; the Libyans cabins of dry stones, while the Negroes -with their nails hollowed out trenches in the sand to sleep in. Many, -not knowing where to go, wandered about among the baggage, and at -nightfall lay down in their ragged mantles on the ground. - -The plain, which was wholly bounded by mountains, expanded around -them. Here and there a palm tree leaned over a sand hill, and pines -and oaks flecked the sides of the precipices: sometimes the rain of a -storm would hang from the sky like a long scarf, while the country -everywhere was still covered with azure and serenity; then a warm wind -would drive before it tornadoes of dust, and a stream would descend in -cascades from the heights of Sicca, where, with its roofing of gold on -its columns of brass, rose the temple of the Carthaginian Venus, the -mistress of the land. She seemed to fill it with her soul. In such -convulsions of the soil, such alternations of temperature, and such -plays of light would she manifest the extravagance of her might with -the beauty of her eternal smile. The mountains at their summits were -crescent-shaped; others were like women's bosoms presenting their -swelling breasts, and the Barbarians felt a heaviness that was full of -delight weighing down their fatigues. - -Spendius had bought a slave with the money brought him by his -dromedary. The whole day long he lay asleep stretched before Matho's -tent. Often he would awake, thinking in his dreams that he heard the -whistling of the thongs; with a smile he would pass his hands over the -scars on his legs at the place where the fetters had long been worn, -and then he would fall asleep again. - -Matho accepted his companionship, and when he went out Spendius would -escort him like a lictor with a long sword on his thigh; or perhaps -Matho would rest his arm carelessly on the other's shoulder, for -Spendius was small. - -One evening when they were passing together through the streets in the -camp they perceived some men covered with white cloaks; among them was -Narr' Havas, the prince of the Numidians. Matho started. - -"Your sword!" he cried; "I will kill him!" - -"Not yet!" said Spendius, restraining him. Narr' Havas was already -advancing towards him. - -He kissed both thumbs in token of alliance, showing nothing of the -anger which he had experienced at the drunkenness of the feast; then -he spoke at length against Carthage, but did not say what brought him -among the Barbarians. - -"Was it to betray them, or else the Republic?" Spendius asked himself; -and as he expected to profit by every disorder, he felt grateful to -Narr' Havas for the future perfidies of which he suspected him. - -The chief of the Numidians remained amongst the Mercenaries. He -appeared desirous of attaching Matho to himself. He sent him fat -goats, gold dust, and ostrich feathers. The Libyan, who was amazed at -such caresses, was in doubt whether to respond to them or to become -exasperated at them. But Spendius pacified him, and Matho allowed -himself to be ruled by the slave, remaining ever irresolute and in an -unconquerable torpor, like those who have once taken a draught of -which they are to die. - -One morning when all three went out lion-hunting, Narr' Havas -concealed a dagger in his cloak. Spendius kept continually behind him, -and when they returned the dagger had not been drawn. - -Another time Narr' Havas took them a long way off, as far as the -boundaries of his kingdom. They came to a narrow gorge, and Narr' -Havas smiled as he declared that he had forgotten the way. Spendius -found it again. - -But most frequently Matho would go off at sunrise, as melancholy as an -augur, to wander about the country. He would stretch himself on the -sand, and remain there motionless until the evening. - -He consulted all the soothsayers in the army one after the other,-- -those who watch the trail of serpents, those who read the stars, and -those who breathe upon the ashes of the dead. He swallowed galbanum, -seseli, and viper's venom which freezes the heart; Negro women, -singing barbarous words in the moonlight, pricked the skin of his -forehead with golden stylets; he loaded himself with necklaces and -charms; he invoked in turn Baal-Khamon, Moloch, the seven Kabiri, -Tanith, and the Venus of the Greeks. He engraved a name upon a copper -plate, and buried it in the sand at the threshold of his tent. -Spendius used to hear him groaning and talking to himself. - -One night he went in. - -Matho, as naked as a corpse, was lying on a lion's skin flat on his -stomach, with his face in both his hands; a hanging lamp lit up his -armour, which was hooked on to the tent-pole above his head. - -"You are suffering?" said the slave to him. "What is the matter with -you? Answer me?" And he shook him by the shoulder calling him several -times, "Master! master!" - -At last Matho lifted large troubled eyes towards him. - -"Listen!" he said in a low voice, and with a finger on his lips. "It -is the wrath of the Gods! Hamilcar's daughter pursues me! I am afraid -of her, Spendius!" He pressed himself close against his breast like a -child terrified by a phantom. "Speak to me! I am sick! I want to get -well! I have tried everything! But you, you perhaps know some stronger -gods, or some resistless invocation?" - -"For what purpose?" asked Spendius. - -Striking his head with both his fists, he replied: - -"To rid me of her!" - -Then speaking to himself with long pauses he said: - -"I am no doubt the victim of some holocaust which she has promised to -the gods?--She holds me fast by a chain which people cannot see. If I -walk, it is she that is advancing; when I stop, she is resting! Her -eyes burn me, I hear her voice. She encompasses me, she penetrates me. -It seems to me that she has become my soul! - -"And yet between us there are, as it were, the invisible billows of a -boundless ocean! She is far away and quite inaccessible! The splendour -of her beauty forms a cloud of light around her, and at times I think -that I have never seen her--that she does not exist--and that it is -all a dream!" - -Matho wept thus in the darkness; the Barbarians were sleeping. -Spendius, as he looked at him, recalled the young men who once used to -entreat him with golden cases in their hands, when he led his herd of -courtesans through the towns; a feeling of pity moved him, and he -said-- - -"Be strong, my master! Summon your will, and beseech the gods no more, -for they turn not aside at the cries of men! Weeping like a coward! -And you are not humiliated that a woman can cause you so much -suffering?" - -"Am I a child?" said Matho. "Do you think that I am moved by their -faces and songs? We kept them at Drepanum to sweep out our stables. I -have embraced them amid assaults, beneath falling ceilings, and while -the catapult was still vibrating!--But she, Spendius, she!--" - -The slave interrupted him: - -"If she were not Hanno's daughter--" - -"No!" cried Matho. "She has nothing in common with the daughters of -other men! Have you seen her great eyes beneath her great eyebrows, -like suns beneath triumphal arches? Think: when she appeared all the -torches grew pale. Her naked breast shone here and there through the -diamonds of her necklace; behind her you perceived as it were the -odour of a temple, and her whole being emitted something that was -sweeter than wine and more terrible than death. She walked, however, -and then she stopped." - -He remained gaping with his head cast down and his eyeballs fixed. - -"But I want her! I need her! I am dying for her! I am transported with -frenzied joy at the thought of clasping her in my arms, and yet I hate -her, Spendius! I should like to beat her! What is to be done? I have a -mind to sell myself and become her slave! YOU have been that! You were -able to get sight of her; speak to me of her! Every night she ascends -to the terrace of her palace, does she not? Ah! the stones must quiver -beneath her sandals, and the stars bend down to see her!" - -He fell back in a perfect frenzy, with a rattling in his throat like a -wounded bull. - -Then Matho sang: "He pursued into the forest the female monster, whose -tail undulated over the dead leaves like a silver brook." And with -lingering tones he imitated Salammbo's voice, while his outspread -hands were held like two light hands on the strings of a lyre. - -To all the consolations offered by Spendius, he repeated the same -words; their nights were spent in these wailings and exhortations. - -Matho sought to drown his thoughts in wine. After his fits of -drunkenness he was more melancholy still. He tried to divert himself -at huckle-bones, and lost the gold plates of his necklace one by one. -He had himself taken to the servants of the Goddess; but he came down -the hill sobbing, like one returning from a funeral. - -Spendius, on the contrary, became more bold and gay. He was to be seen -in the leafy taverns discoursing in the midst of the soldiers. He -mended old cuirasses. He juggled with daggers. He went and gathered -herbs in the fields for the sick. He was facetious, dexterous, full of -invention and talk; the Barbarians grew accustomed to his services, -and he came to be loved by them. - -However, they were awaiting an ambassador from Carthage to bring them -mules laden with baskets of gold; and ever beginning the same -calculation over again, they would trace figures with their fingers in -the sand. Every one was arranging his life beforehand; they would have -concubines, slaves, lands; others intended to bury their treasure, or -risk it on a vessel. But their tempers were provoked by want of -employment; there were constant disputes between horse-soldiers and -foot-soldiers, Barbarians and Greeks, while there was a never-ending -din of shrill female voices. - -Every day men came flocking in nearly naked, and with grass on their -heads to protect them from the sun; they were the debtors of the rich -Carthaginians and had been forced to till the lands of the latter, but -had escaped. Libyans came pouring in with peasants ruined by the -taxes, outlaws, and malefactors. Then the horde of traders, all the -dealers in wine and oil, who were furious at not being paid, laid the -blame upon the Republic. Spendius declaimed against it. Soon the -provisions ran low; and there was talk of advancing in a body upon -Carthage, and calling in the Romans. - -One evening, at supper-time, dull cracked sounds were heard -approaching, and something red appeared in the distance among the -undulations of the soil. - -It was a large purple litter, adorned with ostrich feathers at the -corners. Chains of crystal and garlands of pearls beat against the -closed hangings. It was followed by camels sounding the great bells -that hung at their breasts, and having around them horsemen clad from -shoulder to heel in armour of golden scales. - -They halted three hundred paces from the camp to take their round -bucklers, broad swords, and Boeotian helmets out of the cases which -they carried behind their saddles. Some remained with the camels, -while the others resumed their march. At last the ensigns of the -Republic appeared, that is to say, staves of blue wood terminated in -horses' heads or fir cones. The Barbarians all rose with applause; the -women rushed towards the guards of the Legion and kissed their feet. - -The litter advanced on the shoulders of twelve Negroes who walked in -step with short, rapid strides; they went at random to right or left, -being embarrassed by the tent-ropes, the animals that were straying -about, or the tripods where food was being cooked. Sometimes a fat -hand, laden with rings, would partially open the litter, and a hoarse -voice would utter loud reproaches; then the bearers would stop and -take a different direction through the camp. - -But the purple curtains were raised, and a human head, impassible and -bloated, was seen resting on a large pillow; the eyebrows, which were -like arches of ebony, met each other at the points; golden dust -sparkled in the frizzled hair, and the face was so wan that it looked -as if it had been powdered with marble raspings. The rest of the body -was concealed beneath the fleeces which filled the litter. - -In the man so reclining the soldiers recognised the Suffet Hanno, he -whose slackness had assisted to lose the battle of the Aegatian -islands; and as to his victory at Hecatompylos over the Libyans, even -if he did behave with clemency, thought the Barbarians, it was owing -to cupidity, for he had sold all the captives on his own account, -although he had reported their deaths to the Republic. - -After seeking for some time a convenient place from which to harangue -the soldiers, he made a sign; the litter stopped, and Hanno, supported -by two slaves, put his tottering feet to the ground. - -He wore boots of black felt strewn with silver moons. His legs were -swathed in bands like those wrapped about a mummy, and the flesh crept -through the crossings of the linen; his stomach came out beyond the -scarlet jacket which covered his thighs; the folds of his neck fell -down to his breast like the dewlaps of an ox; his tunic, which was -painted with flowers, was bursting at the arm-pits; he wore a scarf, a -girdle, and an ample black cloak with laced double-sleeves. But the -abundance of his garments, his great necklace of blue stones, his -golden clasps, and heavy earrings only rendered his deformity still -more hideous. He might have been taken for some big idol rough-hewn in -a block of stone; for a pale leprosy, which was spread over his whole -body, gave him the appearance of an inert thing. His nose, however, -which was hooked like a vulture's beak, was violently dilated to -breathe in the air, and his little eyes, with their gummed lashes, -shone with a hard and metallic lustre. He held a spatula of aloe-wood -in his hand wherewith to scratch his skin. - -At last two heralds sounded their silver horns; the tumult subsided, -and Hanno commenced to speak. - -He began with an eulogy of the gods and the Republic; the Barbarians -ought to congratulate themselves on having served it. But they must -show themselves more reasonable; times were hard, "and if a master has -only three olives, is it not right that he should keep two for -himself?" - -The old Suffet mingled his speech in this way with proverbs and -apologues, nodding his head the while to solicit some approval. - -He spoke in Punic, and those surrounding him (the most alert, who had -hastened thither without their arms), were Campanians, Gauls, and -Greeks, so that no one in the crowd understood him. Hanno, perceiving -this, stopped and reflected, swaying himself heavily from one leg to -the other. - -It occurred to him to call the captains together; then his heralds -shouted the order in Greek, the language which, from the time of -Xanthippus, had been used for commands in the Carthaginian armies. - -The guards dispersed the mob of soldiers with strokes of the whip; and -the captains of the Spartan phalanxes and the chiefs of the Barbarian -cohorts soon arrived with the insignia of their rank, and in the -armour of their nation. Night had fallen, a great tumult was spreading -throughout the plain; fires were burning here and there; and the -soldiers kept going from one to another asking what the matter was, -and why the Suffet did not distribute the money? - -He was setting the infinite burdens of the Republic before the -captains. Her treasury was empty. The tribute to Rome was crushing -her. "We are quite at a loss what to do! She is much to be pitied!" - -From time to time he would rub his limbs with his aloe-wood spatula, -or perhaps he would break off to drink a ptisan made of the ashes of a -weasel and asparagus boiled in vinegar from a silver cup handed to him -by a slave; then he would wipe his lips with a scarlet napkin and -resume: - -"What used to be worth a shekel of silver is now worth three shekels -of gold, while the cultivated lands which were abandoned during the -war bring in nothing! Our purpura fisheries are nearly gone, and even -pearls are becoming exhorbitant; we have scarcely unguents enough for -the service of the gods! As for the things of the table, I shall say -nothing about them; it is a calamity! For want of galleys we are -without spices, and it is a matter of great difficulty to procure -silphium on account of the rebellions on the Cyrenian frontier. -Sicily, where so many slaves used to be had, is now closed to us! Only -yesterday I gave more money for a bather and four scullions than I -used at one time to give for a pair of elephants!" - -He unrolled a long piece of papyrus; and, without omitting a single -figure, read all the expenses that the government had incurred; so -much for repairing the temples, for paving the streets, for the -construction of vessels, for the coral-fisheries, for the enlargement -of the Syssitia, and for engines in the mines in the country of the -Cantabrians. - -But the captains understood Punic as little as the soldiers, although -the Mercenaries saluted one another in that language. It was usual to -place a few Carthaginian officers in the Barbarian armies to act as -interpreters; after the war they had concealed themselves through fear -of vengeance, and Hanno had not thought of taking them with him; his -hollow voice, too, was lost in the wind. - -The Greeks, girthed in their iron waist-belts, strained their ears as -they strove to guess at his words, while the mountaineers, covered -with furs like bears, looked at him with distrust, or yawned as they -leaned on their brass-nailed clubs. The heedless Gauls sneered as they -shook their lofty heads of hair, and the men of the desert listened -motionless, cowled in their garments of grey wool; others kept coming -up behind; the guards, crushed by the mob, staggered on their horses; -the Negroes held out burning fir branches at arm's length; and the big -Carthaginian, mounted on a grassy hillock, continued his harangue. - -The Barbarians, however, were growing impatient; murmuring arose, and -every one apostrophized him. Hanno gesticulated with his spatula; and -those who wished the others to be quiet shouted still more loudly, -thereby adding to the din. - -Suddenly a man of mean appearance bounded to Hanno's feet, snatched up -a herald's trumpet, blew it, and Spendius (for it was he) announced -that he was going to say something of importance. At this declaration, -which was rapidly uttered in five different languages, Greek, Latin, -Gallic, Libyan and Balearic, the captains, half laughing and half -surprised, replied: "Speak! Speak!" - -Spendius hesitated; he trembled; at last, addressing the Libyans who -were the most numerous, he said to them: - -"You have all heard this man's horrible threats!" - -Hanno made no exclamation, therefore he did not understand Libyan; -and, to carry on the experiment, Spendius repeated the same phrase in -the other Barbarian dialects. - -They looked at one another in astonishment; then, as by a tacit -agreement, and believing perhaps that they had understood, they bent -their heads in token of assent. - -Then Spendius began in vehement tones: - -"He said first that all the Gods of the other nations were but dreams -besides the Gods of Carthage! He called you cowards, thieves, liars, -dogs, and the sons of dogs! But for you (he said that!) the Republic -would not be forced to pay excessive tribute to the Romans; and -through your excesses you have drained it of perfumes, aromatics, -slaves, and silphium, for you are in league with the nomads on the -Cyrenian frontier! But the guilty shall be punished! He read the -enumeration of their torments; they shall be made to work at the -paving of the streets, at the equipment of the vessels, at the -adornment of the Syssitia, while the rest shall be sent to scrape the -earth in the mines in the country of the Cantabrians." - -Spendius repeated the same statements to the Gauls, Greeks, Campanians -and Balearians. The Mercenaries, recognising several of the proper -names which had met their ears, were convinced that he was accurately -reporting the Suffet's speech. A few cried out to him, "You lie!" but -their voices were drowned in the tumult of the rest; Spendius added: - -"Have you not seen that he has left a reserve of his horse-soldiers -outside the camp? At a given signal they will hasten hither to slay -you all." - -The Barbarians turned in that direction, and as the crowd was then -scattering, there appeared in the midst of them, and advancing with -the slowness of a phantom, a human being, bent, lean, entirely naked, -and covered down to his flanks with long hair bristling with dried -leaves, dust and thorns. About his loins and his knees he had wisps of -straw and linen rags; his soft and earthy skin hung on his emaciated -limbs like tatters on dried boughs; his hands trembled with a -continuous quivering, and as he walked he leaned on a staff of olive- -wood. - -He reached the Negroes who were bearing the torches. His pale gums -were displayed in a sort of idiotic titter; his large, scared eyes -gazed upon the crowd of Barbarians around him. - -But uttering a cry of terror he threw himself behind them, shielding -himself with their bodies. "There they are! There they are!" he -stammered out, pointing to the Suffet's guards, who were motionless in -their glittering armour. Their horses, dazzled by the light of the -torches which crackled in the darkness, were pawing the ground; the -human spectre struggled and howled: - -"They have killed them!" - -At these words, which were screamed in Balearic, some Balearians came -up and recognised him; without answering them he repeated: - -"Yes, all killed, all! crushed like grapes! The fine young men! the -slingers! my companions and yours!" - -They gave him wine to drink, and he wept; then he launched forth into -speech. - -Spendius could scarcely repress his joy, as he explained the horrors -related by Zarxas to the Greeks and Libyans; he could not believe -them, so appropriately did they come in. The Balearians grew pale as -they learned how their companions had perished. - -It was a troop of three hundred slingers who had disembarked the -evening before, and had on that day slept too late. When they reached -the square of Khamon the Barbarians were gone, and they found -themselves defenceless, their clay bullets having been put on the -camels with the rest of the baggage. They were allowed to advance into -the street of Satheb as far as the brass sheathed oaken gate; then the -people with a single impulse had sprung upon them. - -Indeed, the soldiers remembered a great shout; Spendius, who was -flying at the head of the columns, had not heard it. - -Then the corpses were placed in the arms of the Pataec gods that -fringed the temple of Khamon. They were upbraided with all the crimes -of the Mercenaries; their gluttony, their thefts, their impiety, their -disdain, and the murder of the fishes in Salammbo's garden. Their -bodies were subjected to infamous mutilations; the priests burned -their hair in order to torture their souls; they were hung up in -pieces in the meat-shops; some even buried their teeth in them, and in -the evening funeral-piles were kindled at the cross-ways to finish -them. - -These were the flames that had gleamed from a distance across the -lake. But some houses having taken fire, any dead or dying that -remained were speedily thrown over the walls; Zarxas had remained -among the reeds on the edge of the lake until the following day; then -he had wandered about through the country, seeking for the army by the -footprints in the dust. In the morning he hid himself in caves; in the -evening he resumed his march with his bleeding wounds, famished, sick, -living on roots and carrion; at last one day he perceived lances on -the horizon, and he had followed them, for his reason was disturbed -through his terrors and miseries. - -The indignation of the soldiers, restrained so long as he was -speaking, broke forth like a tempest; they were going to massacre the -guards together with the Suffet. A few interposed, saying that they -ought to hear him and know at least whether they should be paid. Then -they all cried: "Our money!" Hanno replied that he had brought it. - -They ran to the outposts, and the Suffet's baggage arrived in the -midst of the tents, pressed forward by the Barbarians. Without waiting -for the slaves, they very quickly unfastened the baskets; in them they -found hyacinth robes, sponges, scrapers, brushes, perfumes, and -antimony pencils for painting the eyes--all belonging to the guards, -who were rich men and accustomed to such refinements. Next they -uncovered a large bronze tub on a camel: it belonged to the Suffet who -had it for bathing in during his journey; for he had taken all manner -of precautions, even going so far as to bring caged weasels from -Hecatompylos, which were burnt alive to make his ptisan. But, as his -malady gave him a great appetite, there were also many comestibles and -many wines, pickle, meats and fishes preserved in honey, with little -pots of Commagene, or melted goose-fat covered with snow and chopped -straw. There was a considerable supply of it; the more they opened the -baskets the more they found, and laughter arose like conflicting -waves. - -As to the pay of the Mercenaries it nearly filled two esparto-grass -baskets; there were even visible in one of them some of the leathern -discs which the Republic used to economise its specie; and as the -Barbarians appeared greatly surprised, Hanno told them that, their -accounts being very difficult, the Ancients had not had leisure to -examine them. Meanwhile they had sent them this. - -Then everything was in disorder and confusion: mules, serving men, -litter, provisions, and baggage. The soldiers took the coin in the -bags to stone Hanno. With great difficulty he was able to mount an -ass; and he fled, clinging to its hair, howling, weeping, shaken, -bruised, and calling down the curse of all the gods upon the army. His -broad necklace of precious stones rebounded up to his ears. His cloak -which was too long, and which trailed behind him, he kept on with his -teeth, and from afar the Barbarians shouted at him, "Begone coward! -pig! sink of Moloch! sweat your gold and your plague! quicker! -quicker!" The routed escort galloped beside him. - -But the fury of the Barbarians did not abate. They remembered that -several of them who had set out for Carthage had not returned; no -doubt they had been killed. So much injustice exasperated them, and -they began to pull up the stakes of their tents, to roll up their -cloaks, and to bridle their horses; every one took his helmet and -sword, and instantly all was ready. Those who had no arms rushed into -the woods to cut staves. - -Day dawned; the people of Sicca were roused, and stirring in the -streets. "They are going to Carthage," said they, and the rumour of -this soon spread through the country. - -From every path and every ravine men arose. Shepherds were seen -running down from the mountains. - -Then, when the Barbarians had set out, Spendius circled the plain, -riding on a Punic stallion, and attended by his slave, who led a third -horse. - -A single tent remained. Spendius entered it. - -"Up, master! rise! we are departing!" - -"And where are you going?" asked Matho. - -"To Carthage!" cried Spendius. - -Matho bounded upon the horse which the slave held at the door. - - - -CHAPTER III - -SALAMMBO - -The moon was rising just above the waves, and on the town which was -still wrapped in darkness there glittered white and luminous specks:-- -the pole of a chariot, a dangling rag of linen, the corner of a wall, -or a golden necklace on the bosom of a god. The glass balls on the -roofs of the temples beamed like great diamonds here and there. But -ill-defined ruins, piles of black earth, and gardens formed deeper -masses in the gloom, and below Malqua fishermen's nets stretched from -one house to another like gigantic bats spreading their wings. The -grinding of the hydraulic wheels which conveyed water to the highest -storys of the palaces, was no longer heard; and the camels, lying -ostrich fashion on their stomachs, rested peacefully in the middle of -the terraces. The porters were asleep in the streets on the thresholds -of the houses; the shadows of the colossuses stretched across the -deserted squares; occasionally in the distance the smoke of a still -burning sacrifice would escape through the bronze tiling, and the -heavy breeze would waft the odours of aromatics blended with the scent -of the sea and the exhalation from the sun-heated walls. The -motionless waves shone around Carthage, for the moon was spreading her -light at once upon the mountain-circled gulf and upon the lake of -Tunis, where flamingoes formed long rose-coloured lines amid the banks -of sand, while further on beneath the catacombs the great salt lagoon -shimmered like a piece of silver. The blue vault of heaven sank on the -horizon in one direction into the dustiness of the plains, and in the -other into the mists of the sea, and on the summit of the Acropolis, -the pyramidal cypress trees, fringing the temple of Eschmoun, swayed -murmuring like the regular waves that beat slowly along the mole -beneath the ramparts. - -Salammbo ascended to the terrace of her palace, supported by a female -slave who carried an iron dish filled with live coals. - -In the middle of the terrace there was a small ivory bed covered with -lynx skins, and cushions made with the feathers of the parrot, a -fatidical animal consecrated to the gods; and at the four corners rose -four long perfuming-pans filled with nard, incense, cinnamomum, and -myrrh. The slave lit the perfumes. Salammbo looked at the polar star; -she slowly saluted the four points of heaven, and knelt down on the -ground in the azure dust which was strewn with golden stars in -imitation of the firmament. Then with both elbows against her sides, -her fore-arms straight and her hands open, she threw back her head -beneath the rays of the moon, and said: - -"O Rabetna!--Baalet!--Tanith!" and her voice was lengthened in a -plaintive fashion as if calling to some one. "Anaitis! Astarte! -Derceto! Astoreth! Mylitta! Athara! Elissa! Tiratha!--By the hidden -symbols, by the resounding sistra,--by the furrows of the earth,--by -the eternal silence and by the eternal fruitfulness,--mistress of the -gloomy sea and of the azure shores, O Queen of the watery world, all -hail!" - -She swayed her whole body twice or thrice, and then cast herself face -downwards in the dust with both arms outstretched. - -But the slave nimbly raised her, for according to the rites someone -must catch the suppliant at the moment of his prostration; this told -him that the gods accepted him, and Salammbo's nurse never failed in -this pious duty. - -Some merchants from Darytian Gaetulia had brought her to Carthage when -quite young, and after her enfranchisement she would not forsake her -old masters, as was shown by her right ear, which was pierced with a -large hole. A petticoat of many-coloured stripes fitted closely on her -hips, and fell to her ankles, where two tin rings clashed together. -Her somewhat flat face was yellow like her tunic. Silver bodkins of -great length formed a sun behind her head. She wore a coral button on -the nostril, and she stood beside the bed more erect than a Hermes, -and with her eyelids cast down. - -Salammbo walked to the edge of the terrace; her eyes swept the horizon -for an instant, and then were lowered upon the sleeping town, while -the sigh that she heaved swelled her bosom, and gave an undulating -movement to the whole length of the long white simar which hung -without clasp or girdle about her. Her curved and painted sandals were -hidden beneath a heap of emeralds, and a net of purple thread was -filled with her disordered hair. - -But she raised her head to gaze upon the moon, and murmured, mingling -her speech with fragments of hymns: - -"How lightly turnest thou, supported by the impalpable ether! It -brightens about thee, and 'tis the stir of thine agitation that -distributes the winds and fruitful dews. According as thou dost wax -and wane the eyes of cats and spots of panthers lengthen or grow -short. Wives shriek thy name in the pangs of childbirth! Thou makest -the shells to swell, the wine to bubble, and the corpse to putrefy! -Thou formest the pearls at the bottom of the sea! - -"And every germ, O goddess! ferments in the dark depths of thy -moisture. - -"When thou appearest, quietness is spread abroad upon the earth; the -flowers close, the waves are soothed, wearied man stretches his breast -toward thee, and the world with its oceans and mountains looks at -itself in thy face as in a mirror. Thou art white, gentle, luminous, -immaculate, helping, purifying, serene!" - -The crescent of the moon was then over the mountain of the Hot -Springs, in the hollow formed by its two summits, on the other side of -the gulf. Below it there was a little star, and all around it a pale -circle. Salammbo went on: - -"But thou art a terrible mistress!--Monsters, terrifying phantoms, and -lying dreams come from thee; thine eyes devour the stones of -buildings, and the apes are ever ill each time thou growest young -again. - -"Whither goest thou? Why dost thou change thy forms continually? Now, -slender and curved thou glidest through space like a mastless galley; -and then, amid the stars, thou art like a shepherd keeping his flock. -Shining and round, thou dost graze the mountain-tops like the wheel of -a chariot. - -"O Tanith! thou dost love me? I have looked so much on thee! But no! -thou sailest through thine azure, and I--I remain on the motionless -earth. - -"Taanach, take your nebal and play softly on the silver string, for my -heart is sad!" - -The slave lifted a sort of harp of ebony wood, taller than herself, -and triangular in shape like a delta; she fixed the point in a crystal -globe, and with both hands began to play. - -The sounds followed one another hurried and deep, like the buzzing of -bees, and with increasing sonorousness floated away into the night -with the complaining of the waves, and the rustling of the great trees -on the summit of the Acropolis. - -"Hush!" cried Salammbo. - -"What ails you, mistress? The blowing of the breeze, the passing of a -cloud, everything disquiets you just now!" - -"I do not know," she said. - -"You are wearied with too long prayers!" - -"Oh! Tanaach, I would fain be dissolved in them like a flower in -wine!" - -"Perhaps it is the smoke of your perfumes?" - -"No!" said Salammbo; "the spirit of the gods dwells in fragrant -odours." - -Then the slave spoke to her of her father. It was thought that he had -gone towards the amber country, behind the pillars of Melkarth. "But -if he does not return," she said, "you must nevertheless, since it was -his will, choose a husband among the sons of the Ancients, and then -your grief will pass away in a man's arms." - -"Why?" asked the young girl. All those that she had seen had horrified -her with their fallow-deer laughter and their coarse limbs. - -"Sometimes, Tanaach, from the depths of my being there exhale as it -were hot fumes heavier than the vapours from a volcano. Voices call -me, a globe of fire rolls and mounts within my bosom, it stifles me, I -am at the point of death; and then, something sweet, flowing from my -brow to my feet, passes through my flesh--it is a caress enfolding me, -and I feel myself crushed as if some god were stretched upon me. Oh! -would that I could lose myself in the mists of the night, the waters -of the fountains, the sap of the trees, that I could issue from my -body, and be but a breath, or a ray, and glide, mount up to thee, O -Mother!" - -She raised her arms to their full length, arching her form, which in -its long garment was as pale and light as the moon. Then she fell -back, panting, on the ivory couch; but Taanach passed an amber -necklace with dolphin's teeth about her neck to banish terrors, and -Salammbo said in an almost stifled voice: "Go and bring me -Schahabarim." - -Her father had not wished her to enter the college of priestesses, nor -even to be made at all acquainted with the popular Tanith. He was -reserving her for some alliance that might serve his political ends; -so that Salammbo lived alone in the midst of the palace. Her mother -was long since dead. - -She had grown up with abstinences, fastings and purifications, always -surrounded by grave and exquisite things, her body saturated with -perfumes, and her soul filled with prayers. She had never tasted wine, -nor eaten meat, nor touched an unclean animal, nor set her heels in -the house of death. - -She knew nothing of obscene images, for as each god was manifested in -different forms, the same principle often received the witness of -contradictory cults, and Salammbo worshipped the goddess in her -sidereal presentation. An influence had descended upon the maiden from -the moon; when the planet passed diminishing away, Salammbo grew weak. -She languished the whole day long, and revived at evening. During an -eclipse she nearly died. - -But Rabetna, in jealousy, revenged herself for the virginity withdrawn -from her sacrifices, and she tormented Salammbo with possessions, all -the stronger for being vague, which were spread through this belief -and excited by it. - -Unceasingly was Hamilcar's daughter disquieted about Tanith. She had -learned her adventures, her travels, and all her names, which she -would repeat without their having any distinct signification for her. -In order to penetrate into the depths of her dogma, she wished to -become acquainted, in the most secret part of the temple, with the old -idol in the magnificent mantle, whereon depended the destinies of -Carthage, for the idea of a god did not stand out clearly from his -representation, and to hold, or even see the image of one, was to take -away part of his virtue, and in a measure to rule him. - -But Salammbo turned around. She had recognised the sound of the golden -bells which Schahabarim wore at the hem of his garment. - -He ascended the staircases; then at the threshold of the terrace he -stopped and folded his arms. - -His sunken eyes shone like the lamps of a sepulchre; his long thin -body floated in its linen robe which was weighted by the bells, the -latter alternating with balls of emeralds at his heels. He had feeble -limbs, an oblique skull and a pointed chin; his skin seemed cold to -the touch, and his yellow face, which was deeply furrowed with -wrinkles, was as if it contracted in a longing, in an everlasting -grief. - -He was the high priest of Tanith, and it was he who had educated -Salammbo. - -"Speak!" he said. "What will you?" - -"I hoped--you had almost promised me--" She stammered and was -confused; then suddenly: "Why do you despise me? what have I forgotten -in the rites? You are my master, and you told me that no one was so -accomplished in the things pertaining to the goddess as I; but there -are some of which you will not speak. Is it so, O father?" - -Schahabarim remembered Hamilcar's orders, and replied: - -"No, I have nothing more to teach you!" - -"A genius," she resumed, "impels me to this love. I have climbed the -steps of Eschmoun, god of the planets and intelligences; I have slept -beneath the golden olive of Melkarth, patron of the Tyrian colonies; I -have pushed open the doors of Baal-Khamon, the enlightener and -fertiliser; I have sacrificed to the subterranean Kabiri, to the gods -of woods, winds, rivers and mountains; but, can you understand? they -are all too far away, too high, too insensible, while she--I feel her -mingled in my life; she fills my soul, and I quiver with inward -startings, as though she were leaping in order to escape. Methinks I -am about to hear her voice, and see her face, lightnings dazzle me and -then I sink back again into the darkness." - -Schahabarim was silent. She entreated him with suppliant looks. At -last he made a sign for the dismissal of the slave, who was not of -Chanaanitish race. Taanach disappeared, and Schahabarim, raising one -arm in the air, began: - -"Before the gods darkness alone was, and a breathing stirred dull and -indistinct as the conscience of a man in a dream. It contracted, -creating Desire and Cloud, and from Desire and Cloud there issued -primitive Matter. This was a water, muddy, black, icy and deep. It -contained senseless monsters, incoherent portions of the forms to be -born, which are painted on the walls of the sanctuaries. - -"Then Matter condensed. It became an egg. It burst. One half formed -the earth and the other the firmament. Sun, moon, winds and clouds -appeared, and at the crash of the thunder intelligent creatures awoke. -Then Eschmoun spread himself in the starry sphere; Khamon beamed in -the sun; Melkarth thrust him with his arms behind Gades; the Kabiri -descended beneath the volcanoes, and Rabetna like a nurse bent over -the world pouring out her light like milk, and her night like a -mantle." - -"And then?" she said. - -He had related the secret of the origins to her, to divert her from -sublimer prospects; but the maiden's desire kindled again at his last -words, and Schahabarim, half yielding resumed: - -"She inspires and governs the loves of men." - -"The loves of men!" repeated Salammbo dreamily. - -"She is the soul of Carthage," continued the priest; "and although she -is everywhere diffused, it is here that she dwells, beneath the sacred -veil." - -"O father!" cried Salammbo, "I shall see her, shall I not? you will -bring me to her! I had long been hesitating; I am devoured with -curiosity to see her form. Pity! help me! let us go?" - -He repulsed her with a vehement gesture that was full of pride. - -"Never! Do you not know that it means death? The hermaphrodite Baals -are unveiled to us alone who are men in understanding and women in -weakness. Your desire is sacrilege; be satisfied with the knowledge -that you possess!" - -She fell upon her knees placing two fingers against her ears in token -of repentance; and crushed by the priest's words, and filled at once -with anger against him, with terror and humiliation, she burst into -sobs. Schahabarim remained erect, and more insensible than the stones -of the terrace. He looked down upon her quivering at his feet, and -felt a kind of joy on seeing her suffer for his divinity whom he -himself could not wholly embrace. The birds were already singing, a -cold wind was blowing, and little clouds were drifting in the paling -sky. - -Suddenly he perceived on the horizon, behind Tunis, what looked like -slight mists trailing along the ground; then these became a great -curtain of dust extending perpendicularly, and, amid the whirlwinds of -the thronging mass, dromedaries' heads, lances and shields appeared. -It was the army of the Barbarians advancing upon Carthage. - - - -CHAPTER IV - -BENEATH THE WALLS OF CARTHAGE - -Some country people, riding on asses or running on foot, arrived in -the town, pale, breathless, and mad with fear. They were flying before -the army. It had accomplished the journey from Sicca in three days, in -order to reach Carthage and wholly exterminate it. - -The gates were shut. The Barbarians appeared almost immediately; but -they stopped in the middle of the isthmus, on the edge of the lake. - -At first they made no hostile announcement. Several approached with -palm branches in their hands. They were driven back with arrows, so -great was the terror. - -In the morning and at nightfall prowlers would sometimes wander along -the walls. A little man carefully wrapped in a cloak, and with his -face concealed beneath a very low visor, was especially noticed. He -would remain whole hours gazing at the aqueduct, and so persistently -that he doubtless wished to mislead the Carthaginians as to his real -designs. Another man, a sort of giant who walked bareheaded, used to -accompany him. - -But Carthage was defended throughout the whole breadth of the isthmus: -first by a trench, then by a grassy rampart, and lastly by a wall -thirty cubits high, built of freestone, and in two storys. It -contained stables for three hundred elephants with stores for their -caparisons, shackles, and food; other stables again for four thousand -horses with supplies of barley and harness, and barracks for twenty -thousand soldiers with armour and all materials of war. Towers rose -from the second story, all provided with battlements, and having -bronze bucklers hung on cramps on the outside. - -This first line of wall gave immediate shelter to Malqua, the sailors' -and dyers' quarter. Masts might be seen whereon purple sails were -drying, and on the highest terraces clay furnaces for heating the -pickle were visible. - -Behind, the lofty houses of the city rose in an ampitheatre of cubical -form. They were built of stone, planks, shingle, reeds, shells, and -beaten earth. The woods belonging to the temples were like lakes of -verdure in this mountain of diversely-coloured blocks. It was levelled -at unequal distances by the public squares, and was cut from top to -bottom by countless intersecting lanes. The enclosures of the three -old quarters which are now lost might be distinguished; they rose here -and there like great reefs, or extended in enormous fronts, blackened, -half-covered with flowers, and broadly striped by the casting of -filth, while streets passed through their yawning apertures like -rivers beneath bridges. - -The hill of the Acropolis, in the centre of Byrsa, was hidden beneath -a disordered array of monuments. There were temples with wreathed -columns bearing bronze capitals and metal chains, cones of dry stones -with bands of azure, copper cupolas, marble architraves, Babylonian -buttresses, obelisks poised on their points like inverted torches. -Peristyles reached to pediments; volutes were displayed through -colonnades; granite walls supported tile partitions; the whole -mounting, half-hidden, the one above the other in a marvellous and -incomprehensible fashion. In it might be felt the succession of the -ages, and, as it were, the memorials of forgotten fatherlands. - -Behind the Acropolis the Mappalian road, which was lined with tombs, -extended through red lands in a straight line from the shore to the -catacombs; then spacious dwellings occurred at intervals in the -gardens, and this third quarter, Megara, which was the new town, -reached as far as the edge of the cliff, where rose a giant pharos -that blazed forth every night. - -In this fashion was Carthage displayed before the soldiers quartered -in the plain. - -They could recognise the markets and crossways in the distance, and -disputed with one another as to the sites of the temples. Khamon's, -fronting the Syssitia, had golden tiles; Melkarth, to the left of -Eschmoun, had branches of coral on its roofing; beyond, Tanith's -copper cupola swelled among the palm trees; the dark Moloch was below -the cisterns, in the direction of the pharos. At the angles of the -pediments, on the tops of the walls, at the corners of the squares, -everywhere, divinities with hideous heads might be seen, colossal or -squat, with enormous bellies, or immoderately flattened, opening their -jaws, extending their arms, and holding forks, chains or javelins in -their hands; while the blue of the sea stretched away behind the -streets which were rendered still steeper by the perspective. - -They were filled from morning till evening with a tumultuous people; -young boys shaking little bells, shouted at the doors of the baths; -the shops for hot drinks smoked, the air resounded with the noise of -anvils, the white cocks, sacred to the Sun, crowed on the terraces, -the oxen that were being slaughtered bellowed in the temples, slaves -ran about with baskets on their heads; and in the depths of the -porticoes a priest would sometimes appear, draped in a dark cloak, -barefooted, and wearing a pointed cap. - -The spectacle afforded by Carthage irritated the Barbarians; they -admired it and execrated it, and would have liked both to annihilate -it and to dwell in it. But what was there in the Military Harbour -defended by a triple wall? Then behind the town, at the back of -Megara, and higher than the Acropolis, appeared Hamilcar's palace. - -Matho's eyes were directed thither every moment. He would ascend the -olive trees and lean over with his hand spread out above his eyebrows. -The gardens were empty, and the red door with its black cross remained -constantly shut. - -More than twenty times he walked round the ramparts, seeking some -breach by which he might enter. One night he threw himself into the -gulf and swam for three hours at a stretch. He reached the foot of the -Mappalian quarter and tried to climb up the face of the cliff. He -covered his knees with blood, broke his nails, and then fell back into -the waves and returned. - -His impotence exasperated him. He was jealous of this Carthage which -contained Salammbo, as if of some one who had possessed her. His -nervelessness left him to be replaced by a mad and continual eagerness -for action. With flaming cheek, angry eyes, and hoarse voice, he would -walk with rapid strides through the camp; or seated on the shore he -would scour his great sword with sand. He shot arrows at the passing -vultures. His heart overflowed into frenzied speech. - -"Give free course to your wrath like a runaway chariot," said -Spendius. "Shout, blaspheme, ravage and slay. Grief is allayed with -blood, and since you cannot sate your love, gorge your hate; it will -sustain you!" - -Matho resumed the command of his soldiers. He drilled them pitilessly. -He was respected for his courage and especially for his strength. -Moreover he inspired a sort of mystic dread, and it was believed that -he conversed at night with phantoms. The other captains were animated -by his example. The army soon grew disciplined. From their houses the -Carthaginians could hear the bugle-flourishes that regulated their -exercises. At last the Barbarians drew near. - -To crush them in the isthmus it would have been necessary for two -armies to take them simultaneously in the rear, one disembarking at -the end of the gulf of Utica, and the second at the mountain of the -Hot Springs. But what could be done with the single sacred Legion, -mustering at most six thousand men? If the enemy bent towards the east -they would join the nomads and intercept the commerce of the desert. -If they fell back to the west, Numidia would rise. Finally, lack of -provisions would sooner or later lead them to devastate the -surrounding country like grasshoppers, and the rich trembled for their -fine country-houses, their vineyards and their cultivated lands. - -Hanno proposed atrocious and impracticable measures, such as promising -a heavy sum for every Barbarian's head, or setting fire to their camp -with ships and machines. His colleague Gisco, on the other hand, -wished them to be paid. But the Ancients detested him owing to his -popularity; for they dreaded the risk of a master, and through terror -of monarchy strove to weaken whatever contributed to it or might re- -establish it. - -Outside the fortification there were people of another race and of -unknown origin, all hunters of the porcupine, and eaters of shell-fish -and serpents. They used to go into caves to catch hyenas alive, and -amuse themselves by making them run in the evening on the sands of -Megara between the stelae of the tombs. Their huts, which were made of -mud and wrack, hung on the cliff like swallows' nests. There they -lived, without government and without gods, pell-mell, completely -naked, at once feeble and fierce, and execrated by the people of all -time on account of their unclean food. One morning the sentries -perceived that they were all gone. - -At last some members of the Great Council arrived at a decision. They -came to the camp without necklaces or girdles, and in open sandles -like neighbours. They walked at a quiet pace, waving salutations to -the captains, or stopped to speak to the soldiers, saying that all was -finished and that justice was about to be done to their claims. - -Many of them saw a camp of Mercenaries for the first time. Instead of -the confusion which they had pictured to themselves, there prevailed -everywhere terrible silence and order. A grassy rampart formed a lofty -wall round the army immovable by the shock of catapults. The ground in -the streets was sprinkled with fresh water; through the holes in the -tents they could perceive tawny eyeballs gleaming in the shade. The -piles of pikes and hanging panoplies dazzled them like mirrors. They -conversed in low tones. They were afraid of upsetting something with -their long robes. - -The soldiers requested provisions, undertaking to pay for them out of -the money that was due. - -Oxen, sheep, guinea fowl, fruit and lupins were sent to them, with -smoked scombri, that excellent scombri which Carthage dispatched to -every port. But they walked scornfully around the magnificent cattle, -and disparaging what they coveted, offered the worth of a pigeon for a -ram, or the price of a pomegranate for three goats. The Eaters of -Uncleanness came forward as arbitrators, and declared that they were -being duped. Then they drew their swords with threats to slay. - -Commissaries of the Great Council wrote down the number of years for -which pay was due to each soldier. But it was no longer possible to -know how many Mercenaries had been engaged, and the Ancients were -dismayed at the enormous sum which they would have to pay. The reserve -of silphium must be sold, and the trading towns taxed; the Mercenaries -would grow impatient; Tunis was already with them; and the rich, -stunned by Hanno's ragings and his colleague's reproaches, urged any -citizens who might know a Barbarian to go to see him immediately in -order to win back his friendship, and to speak him fair. Such a show -of confidence would soothe them. - -Traders, scribes, workers in the arsenal, and whole families visited -the Barbarians. - -The soldiers allowed all the Carthaginians to come in, but by a single -passage so narrow that four men abreast jostled one another in it. -Spendius, standing against the barrier, had them carefully searched; -facing him Matho was examining the multitude, trying to recognise some -one whom he might have seen at Salammbo's palace. - -The camp was like a town, so full of people and of movement was it. -The two distinct crowds mingled without blending, one dressed in linen -or wool, with felt caps like fir-cones, and the other clad in iron and -wearing helmets. Amid serving men and itinerant vendors there moved -women of all nations, as brown as ripe dates, as greenish as olives, -as yellow as oranges, sold by sailors, picked out of dens, stolen from -caravans, taken in the sacking of towns, women that were jaded with -love so long as they were young, and plied with blows when they were -old, and that died in routs on the roadsides among the baggage and the -abandoned beasts of burden. The wives of the nomads had square, tawny -robes of dromedary's hair swinging at their heels; musicians from -Cyrenaica, wrapped in violet gauze and with painted eyebrows, sang, -squatting on mats; old Negresses with hanging breasts gathered the -animals' dung that was drying in the sun to light their fires; the -Syracusan women had golden plates in their hair; the Lusitanians had -necklaces of shells; the Gauls wore wolf skins upon their white -bosoms; and sturdy children, vermin-covered, naked and uncircumcised, -butted with their heads against passers-by, or came behind them like -young tigers to bite their hands. - -The Carthaginians walked through the camp, surprised at the quantities -of things with which it was running over. The most miserable were -melancholy, and the rest dissembled their anxiety. - -The soldiers struck them on the shoulder, and exhorted them to be gay. -As soon as they saw any one, they invited him to their amusements. If -they were playing at discus, they would manage to crush his feet, or -if at boxing to fracture his jaw with the very first blow. The -slingers terrified the Carthaginians with their slings, the Psylli -with their vipers, and the horsemen with their horses, while their -victims, addicted as they were to peaceful occupations, bent their -heads and tried to smile at all these outrages. Some, in order to show -themselves brave, made signs that they should like to become soldiers. -They were set to split wood and to curry mules. They were buckled up -in armour, and rolled like casks through the streets of the camp. -Then, when they were about to leave, the Mercenaries plucked out their -hair with grotesque contortions. - -But many, from foolishness or prejudice, innocently believed that all -the Carthaginians were very rich, and they walked behind them -entreating them to grant them something. They requested everything -that they thought fine: a ring, a girdle, sandals, the fringe of a -robe, and when the despoiled Carthaginian cried--"But I have nothing -left. What do you want?" they would reply, "Your wife!" Others even -said, "Your life!" - -The military accounts were handed to the captains, read to the -soldiers, and definitively approved. Then they claimed tents; they -received them. Next the polemarchs of the Greeks demanded some of the -handsome suits of armour that were manufactured at Carthage; the Great -Council voted sums of money for their purchase. But it was only fair, -so the horsemen pretended, that the Republic should indemnify them for -their horses; one had lost three at such a siege, another, five during -such a march, another, fourteen in the precipices. Stallions from -Hecatompylos were offered to them, but they preferred money. - -Next they demanded that they should be paid in money (in pieces of -money, and not in leathern coins) for all the corn that was owing to -them, and at the highest price that it had fetched during the war; so -that they exacted four hundred times as much for a measure of meal as -they had given for a sack of wheat. Such injustice was exasperating; -but it was necessary, nevertheless, to submit. - -Then the delegates from the soldiers and from the Great Council swore -renewed friendship by the Genius of Carthage and the gods of the -Barbarians. They exchanged excuses and caresses with oriental -demonstrativeness and verbosity. Then the soldiers claimed, as a proof -of friendship, the punishment of those who had estranged them from the -Republic. - -Their meaning, it was pretended, was not understood, and they -explained themselves more clearly by saying that they must have -Hanno's head. - -Several times a day, they left their camp, and walked along the foot -of the walls, shouting a demand that the Suffet's head should be -thrown to them, and holding out their robes to receive it. - -The Great Council would perhaps have given way but for a last -exaction, more outrageous than the rest; they demanded maidens, chosen -from illustrious families, in marriage for their chiefs. It was an -idea which had emanated from Spendius, and which many thought most -simple and practicable. But the assumption of their desire to mix with -Punic blood made the people indignant; and they were bluntly told that -they were to receive no more. Then they exclaimed that they had been -deceived, and that if their pay did not arrive within three days, they -would themselves go and take it in Carthage. - -The bad faith of the Mercenaries was not so complete as their enemies -thought. Hamilcar had made them extravagant promises, vague, it is -true, but at the same time solemn and reiterated. They might have -believed that when they disembarked at Carthage the town would be -abandoned to them, and that they should have treasures divided among -them; and when they saw that scarcely their wages would be paid, the -disillusion touched their pride no less than their greed. - -Had not Dionysius, Pyrrhus, Agathocles, and the generals of Alexander -furnished examples of marvellous good fortune? Hercules, whom the -Chanaanites confounded with the sun, was the ideal which shone on the -horizon of armies. They knew that simple soldiers had worn diadems, -and the echoes of crumbling empires would furnish dreams to the Gaul -in his oak forest, to the Ethiopian amid his sands. But there was a -nation always ready to turn courage to account; and the robber driven -from his tribe, the patricide wandering on the roads, the perpetrator -of sacrilege pursued by the gods, all who were starving or in despair -strove to reach the port where the Carthaginian broker was recruiting -soldiers. Usually the Republic kept its promises. This time, however, -the eagerness of its avarice had brought it into perilous disgrace. -Numidians, Libyans, the whole of Africa was about to fall upon -Carthage. Only the sea was open to it, and there it met with the -Romans; so that, like a man assailed by murderers, it felt death all -around it. - -It was quite necessary to have recourse to Gisco, and the Barbarians -accepted his intervention. One morning they saw the chains of the -harbour lowered, and three flat-bottomed boats passing through the -canal of Taenia entered the lake. - -Gisco was visible on the first at the prow. Behind him rose an -enormous chest, higher than a catafalque, and furnished with rings -like hanging crowns. Then appeared the legion of interpreters, with -their hair dressed like sphinxes, and with parrots tattooed on their -breasts. Friends and slaves followed, all without arms, and in such -numbers that they shouldered one another. The three long, dangerously- -loaded barges advanced amid the shouts of the onlooking army. - -As soon as Gisco disembarked the soldiers ran to him. He had a sort of -tribune erected with knapsacks, and declared that he should not depart -before he had paid them all in full. - -There was an outburst of applause, and it was a long time before he -was able to speak. - -Then he censured the wrongs done to the Republic, and to the -Barbarians; the fault lay with a few mutineers who had alarmed -Carthage by their violence. The best proof of good intention on the -part of the latter was that it was he, the eternal adversary of the -Suffet Hanno, who was sent to them. They must not credit the people -with the folly of desiring to provoke brave men, nor with ingratitude -enough not to recognise their services; and Gisco began to pay the -soldiers, commencing with the Libyans. As they had declared that the -lists were untruthful, he made no use of them. - -They defiled before him according to nationality, opening their -fingers to show the number of their years of service; they were marked -in succession with green paint on the left arm; the scribes dipped -into the yawning coffer, while others made holes with a style on a -sheet of lead. - -A man passed walking heavily like an ox. - -"Come up beside me," said the Suffet, suspecting some fraud; "how many -years have you served?" - -"Twelve," replied the Libyan. - -Gisco slipped his fingers under his chin, for the chin-piece of the -helmet used in course of time to occasion two callosities there; these -were called carobs, and "to have the carobs" was an expression used to -denote a veteran. - -"Thief!" exclaimed the Suffet, "your shoulders ought to have what your -face lacks!" and tearing off his tunic he laid bare is back which was -covered with a bleeding scab; he was a labourer from Hippo-Zarytus. -Hootings were raised, and he was decapitated. - -As soon as night fell, Spendius went and roused the Libyans, and said -to them: - -"When the Ligurians, Greeks, Balearians, and men of Italy are paid, -they will return. But as for you, you will remain in Africa, scattered -through your tribes, and without any means of defence! It will be then -that the Republic will take its revenge! Mistrust the journey! Are you -going to believe everything that is said? Both the Suffets are agreed, -and this one is imposing on you! Remember the Island of Bones, and -Xanthippus, whom they sent back to Sparta in a rotten galley!" - -"How are we to proceed?" they asked. - -"Reflect!" said Spendius. - -The two following days were spent in paying the men of Magdala, -Leptis, and Hecatompylos; Spendius went about among the Gauls. - -"They are paying off the Libyans, and then they will discharge the -Greeks, the Balearians, the Asiatics and all the rest! But you, who -are few in number, will receive nothing! You will see your native -lands no more! You will have no ships, and they will kill you to save -your food!" - -The Gauls came to the Suffet. Autaritus, he whom he had wounded at -Hamilcar's palace, put questions to him, but was repelled by the -slaves, and disappeared swearing he would be revenged. - -The demands and complaints multiplied. The most obstinate penetrated -at night into the Suffet's tent; they took his hands and sought to -move him by making him feel their toothless mouths, their wasted arms, -and the scars of their wounds. Those who had not yet been paid were -growing angry, those who had received the money demanded more for -their horses; and vagabonds and outlaws assumed soldiers' arms and -declared that they were being forgotten. Every minute there arrived -whirlwinds of men, as it were; the tents strained and fell; the -multitude, thick pressed between the ramparts of the camp, swayed with -loud shouts from the gates to the centre. When the tumult grew -excessively violent Gisco would rest one elbow on his ivory sceptre -and stand motionless looking at the sea with his fingers buried in his -beard. - -Matho frequently went off to speak with Spendius; then he would again -place himself in front of the Suffet, and Gisco could feel his eyes -continually like two flaming phalaricas darted against him. Several -times they hurled reproaches at each other over the heads of the -crowd, but without making themselves heard. The distribution, -meanwhile, continued, and the Suffet found expedients to remove every -obstacle. - -The Greeks tried to quibble about differences in currency, but he -furnished them with such explanations that they retired without a -murmur. The Negroes demanded white shells such as are used for trading -in the interior of Africa, but when he offered to send to Carthage for -them they accepted money like the rest. - -But the Balearians had been promised something better, namely, women. -The Suffet replied that a whole caravan of maidens was expected for -them, but the journey was long and would require six moons more. When -they were fat and well rubbed with benjamin they should be sent in -ships to the ports of the Balearians. - -Suddenly Zarxas, now handsome and vigorous, leaped like a mountebank -upon the shoulders of his friends and cried: - -"Have you reserved any of them for the corpses?" at the same time -pointing to the gate of Khamon in Carthage. - -The brass plates with which it was furnished from top to bottom shone -in the sun's latest fires, and the Barbarians believed that they could -discern on it a trail of blood. Every time that Gisco wished to speak -their shouts began again. At last he descended with measured steps, -and shut himself up in his tent. - -When he left it at sunrise his interpreters, who used to sleep -outside, did not stir; they lay on their backs with their eyes fixed, -their tongues between their teeth, and their faces of a bluish colour. -White mucus flowed from their nostrils, and their limbs were stiff, as -if they had all been frozen by the cold during the night. Each had a -little noose of rushes round his neck. - -From that time onward the rebellion was unchecked. The murder of the -Balearians which had been recalled by Zarxas strengthened the distrust -inspired by Spendius. They imagined that the Republic was always -trying to deceive them. An end must be put to it! The interpreters -should be dispensed with! Zarxas sang war songs with a sling around -his head; Autaritus brandished his great sword; Spendius whispered a -word to one or gave a dagger to another. The boldest endeavoured to -pay themselves, while those who were less frenzied wished to have the -distribution continued. No one now relinquished his arms, and the -anger of all combined into a tumultuous hatred of Gisco. - -Some got up beside him. So long as they vociferated abuse they were -listened to with patience; but if they tried to utter the least word -in his behalf they were immediately stoned, or their heads were cut -off by a sabre-stroke from behind. The heap of knapsacks was redder -than an altar. - -They became terrible after their meal and when they had drunk wine! -This was an enjoyment forbidden in the Punic armies under pain of -death, and they raised their cups in the direction of Carthage in -derision of its discipline. Then they returned to the slaves of the -exchequer and again began to kill. The word "strike," though different -in each language, was understood by all. - -Gisco was well aware that he was being abandoned by his country; but -in spite of its ingratitude he would not dishonour it. When they -reminded him that they had been promised ships, he swore by Moloch to -provide them himself at his own expense, and pulling off his necklace -of blue stones he threw it into the crowd as the pledge of his oath. - -Then the Africans claimed the corn in accordance with the engagements -made by the Great Council. Gisco spread out the accounts of the -Syssitia traced in violet pigment on sheep skins; and read out all -that had entered Carthage month by month and day by day. - -Suddenly he stopped with gaping eyes, as if he had just discovered his -sentence of death among the figures. - -The Ancients had, in fact, fraudulently reduced them, and the corn -sold during the most calamitous period of the war was set down at so -low a rate that, blindness apart, it was impossible to believe it. - -"Speak!" they shouted. "Louder! Ah! he is trying to lie, the coward! -Don't trust him." - -For some time he hesitated. At last he resumed his task. - -The soldiers, without suspecting that they were being deceived, -accepted the accounts of the Syssitia as true. But the abundance that -had prevailed at Carthage made them furiously jealous. They broke open -the sycamore chest; it was three parts empty. They had seen such sums -coming out of it, that they thought it inexhaustible; Gisco must have -buried some in his tent. They scaled the knapsacks. Matho led them, -and as they shouted "The money! the money!" Gisco at last replied: - -"Let your general give it to you!" - -He looked them in the face without speaking, with his great yellow -eyes, and his long face that was paler than his beard. An arrow, held -by its feathers, hung from the large gold ring in his ear, and a -stream of blood was trickling from his tiara upon his shoulder. - -At a gesture from Matho all advanced. Gisco held out his arms; -Spendius tied his wrists with a slip knot; another knocked him down, -and he disappeared amid the disorder of the crowd which was stumbling -over the knapsacks. - -They sacked his tent. Nothing was found in it except things -indispensable to life; and, on a closer search, three images of -Tanith, and, wrapped up in an ape's skin, a black stone which had -fallen from the moon. Many Carthaginians had chosen to accompany him; -they were eminent men, and all belonged to the war party. - -They were dragged outside the tents and thrown into the pit used for -the reception of filth. They were tied with iron chains around the -body to solid stakes, and were offered food at the point of the -javelin. - -Autaritus overwhelmed them with invectives as he inspected them, but -being quite ignorant of his language they made no reply; and the Gaul -from time to time threw pebbles at their faces to make them cry out. - -The next day a sort of languor took possession of the army. Now that -their anger was over they were seized with anxiety. Matho was -suffering from vague melancholy. It seemed to him that Salammbo had -indirectly been insulted. These rich men were a kind of appendage to -her person. He sat down in the night on the edge of the pit, and -recognised in their groanings something of the voice of which his -heart was full. - -All, however, upbraided the Libyans, who alone had been paid. But -while national antipathies revived, together with personal hatreds, it -was felt that it would be perilous to give way to them. Reprisals -after such an outrage would be formidable. It was necessary, -therefore, to anticipate the vengeance of Carthage. Conventions and -harangues never ceased. Every one spoke, no one was listened to; -Spendius, usually so loquacious, shook his head at every proposal. - -One evening he asked Matho carelessly whether there were not springs -in the interior of the town. - -"Not one!" replied Matho. - -The next day Spendius drew him aside to the bank of the lake. - -"Master!" said the former slave, "If your heart is dauntless, I will -bring you into Carthage." - -"How?" repeated the other, panting. - -"Swear to execute all my commands and to follow me like a shadow!" - -Then Matho, raising his arm towards the planet of Chabar, exclaimed: - -"By Tanith, I swear!" - -Spendius resumed: - -"To-morrow after sunset you will wait for me at the foot of the -aqueduct between the ninth and tenth arcades. Bring with you an iron -pick, a crestless helmet, and leathern sandals." - -The aqueduct of which he spoke crossed the entire isthmus obliquely,-- -a considerable work, afterwards enlarged by the Romans. In spite of -her disdain of other nations, Carthage had awkwardly borrowed this -novel invention from them, just as Rome herself had built Punic -galleys; and five rows of superposed arches, of a dumpy kind of -architecture, with buttresses at their foot and lions' heads at the -top, reached to the western part of the Acropolis, where they sank -beneath the town to incline what was nearly a river into the cisterns -of Megara. - -Spendius met Matho here at the hour agreed upon. He fastened a sort of -harpoon to the end of a cord and whirled it rapidly like a sling; the -iron instrument caught fast, and they began to climb up the wall, the -one after the other. - -But when they had ascended to the first story the cramp fell back -every time that they threw it, and in order to discover some fissure -they had to walk along the edge of the cornice. At every row of arches -they found that it became narrower. Then the cord relaxed. Several -times it nearly broke. - -At last they reached the upper platform. Spendius stooped down from -time to time to feel the stones with his hand. - -"Here it is," he said; "let us begin!" And leaning on the pick which -Matho had brought they succeeded in dislodging one of the flagstones. - -In the distance they perceived a troop of horse-men galloping on -horses without bridles. Their golden bracelets leaped in the vague -drapings of their cloaks. A man could be seen in front crowned with -ostrich feathers, and galloping with a lance in each hand. - -"Narr' Havas!" exclaimed Matho. - -"What matter?" returned Spendius, and he leaped into the hole which -they had just made by removing the flagstone. - -Matho at his command tried to thrust out one of the blocks. But he -could not move his elbows for want of room. - -"We shall return," said Spendius; "go in front." Then they ventured -into the channel of water. - -It reached to their waists. Soon they staggered, and were obliged to -swim. Their limbs knocked against the walls of the narrow duct. The -water flowed almost immediately beneath the stones above, and their -faces were torn by them. Then the current carried them away. Their -breasts were crushed with air heavier than that of a sepulchre, and -stretching themselves out as much as possible with their heads between -their arms and their legs close together, they passed like arrows into -the darkness, choking, gurgling, and almost dead. Suddenly all became -black before them, and the speed of the waters redoubled. They fell. - -When they came to the surface again, they remained for a few minutes -extended on their backs, inhaling the air delightfully. Arcades, one -behind another, opened up amid large walls separating the various -basins. All were filled, and the water stretched in a single sheet -throughout the length of the cisterns. Through the air-holes in the -cupolas on the ceiling there fell a pale brightness which spread upon -the waves discs, as it were, of light, while the darkness round about -thickened towards the walls and threw them back to an indefinite -distance. The slightest sound made a great echo. - -Spendius and Matho commenced to swim again, and passing through the -opening of the arches, traversed several chambers in succession. Two -other rows of smaller basins extended in a parallel direction on each -side. They lost themselves; they turned, and came back again. At last -something offered a resistance to their heels. It was the pavement of -the gallery that ran along the cisterns. - -Then, advancing with great precautions, they felt along the wall to -find an outlet. But their feet slipped, and they fell into the great -centre-basins. They had to climb up again, and there they fell again. -They experienced terrible fatigue, which made them feel as if all -their limbs had been dissolved in the water while swimming. Their eyes -closed; they were in the agonies of death. - -Spendius struck his hand against the bars of a grating. They shook it, -it gave way, and they found themselves on the steps of a staircase. A -door of bronze closed it above. With the point of a dagger they moved -the bar, which was opened from without, and suddenly the pure open air -surrounded them. - -The night was filled with silence, and the sky seemed at an -extraordinary height. Clusters of trees projected over the long lines -of walls. The whole town was asleep. The fires of the outposts shone -like lost stars. - -Spendius, who had spent three years in the ergastulum, was but -imperfectly acquainted with the different quarters. Matho conjectured -that to reach Hamilcar's palace they ought to strike to the left and -cross the Mappalian district. - -"No," said Spendius, "take me to the temple of Tanith." - -Matho wished to speak. - -"Remember!" said the former slave, and raising his arm he showed him -the glittering planet of Chabar. - -Then Matho turned in silence towards the Acropolis. - -They crept along the nopal hedges which bordered the paths. The water -trickled from their limbs upon the dust. Their damp sandals made no -noise; Spendius, with eyes that flamed more than torches, searched the -bushes at every step;--and he walked behind Matho with his hands -resting on the two daggers which he carried on his arms, and which -hung from below the armpit by a leathern band. - - - -CHAPTER V - -TANITH - -After leaving the gardens Matho and Spendius found themselves checked -by the rampart of Megara. But they discovered a breach in the great -wall and passed through. - -The ground sloped downwards, forming a kind of very broad valley. It -was an exposed place. - -"Listen," said Spendius, "and first of all fear nothing! I shall -fulfil my promise--" - -He stopped abruptly, and seemed to reflect as though searching for -words,--"Do you remember that time at sunrise when I showed Carthage -to you on Salammbo's terrace? We were strong that day, but you would -listen to nothing!" Then in a grave voice: "Master, in the sanctuary -of Tanith there is a mysterious veil, which fell from heaven and which -covers the goddess." - -"I know," said Matho. - -Spendius resumed: "It is itself divine, for it forms part of her. The -gods reside where their images are. It is because Carthage possesses -it that Carthage is powerful." Then leaning over to his ear: "I have -brought you with me to carry it off!" - -Matho recoiled in horror. "Begone! look for some one else! I will not -help you in this execrable crime!" - -"But Tanith is your enemy," retorted Spendius; "she is persecuting you -and you are dying through her wrath. You will be revenged upon her. -She will obey you, and you will become almost immortal and -invincible." - -Matho bent his head. Spendius continued: - -"We should succumb; the army would be annihilated of itself. We have -neither flight, nor succour, nor pardon to hope for! What chastisement -from the gods can you be afraid of since you will have their power in -your own hands? Would you rather die on the evening of a defeat, in -misery beneath the shelter of a bush, or amid the outrages of the -populace and the flames of funeral piles? Master, one day you will -enter Carthage among the colleges of the pontiffs, who will kiss your -sandals; and if the veil of Tanith weighs upon you still, you will -reinstate it in its temple. Follow me! come and take it." - -Matho was consumed by a terrible longing. He would have liked to -possess the veil while refraining from the sacrilege. He said to -himself that perhaps it would not be necessary to take it in order to -monopolise its virtue. He did not go to the bottom of his thought but -stopped at the boundary, where it terrified him. - -"Come on!" he said; and they went off with rapid strides, side by -side, and without speaking. - -The ground rose again, and the dwellings were near. They turned again -into the narrow streets amid the darkness. The strips of esparto-grass -with which the doors were closed, beat against the walls. Some camels -were ruminating in a square before heaps of cut grass. Then they -passed beneath a gallery covered with foliage. A pack of dogs were -barking. But suddenly the space grew wider and they recognised the -western face of the Acropolis. At the foot of Byrsa there stretched a -long black mass: it was the temple of Tanith, a whole made up of -monuments and galleries, courts and fore-courts, and bounded by a low -wall of dry stones. Spendius and Matho leaped over it. - -This first barrier enclosed a wood of plane-trees as a precaution -against plague and infection in the air. Tents were scattered here and -there, in which, during the daytime, depilatory pastes, perfumes, -garments, moon-shaped cakes, and images of the goddess with -representations of the temple hollowed out in blocks of alabaster, -were on sale. - -They had nothing to fear, for on nights when the planet did not -appear, all rites were suspended; nevertheless Matho slackened his -speed, and stopped before the three ebony steps leading to the second -enclosure. - -"Forward!" said Spendius. - -Pomegranate, almond trees, cypresses and myrtles alternated in regular -succession; the path, which was paved with blue pebbles, creaked -beneath their footsteps, and full-blown roses formed a hanging bower -over the whole length of the avenue. They arrived before an oval hole -protected by a grating. Then Matho, who was frightened by the silence, -said to Spendius: - -"It is here that they mix the fresh water and the bitter." - -"I have seen all that," returned the former slave, "in Syria, in the -town of Maphug"; and they ascended into the third enclosure by a -staircase of six silver steps. - -A huge cedar occupied the centre. Its lowest branches were hidden -beneath scraps of material and necklaces hung upon them by the -faithful. They walked a few steps further on, and the front of the -temple was displayed before them. - -Two long porticoes, with their architraves resting on dumpy pillars, -flanked a quadrangular tower, the platform of which was adorned with -the crescent of a moon. On the angles of the porticoes and at the four -corners of the tower stood vases filled with kindled aromatics. The -capitals were laden with pomegranates and coloquintidas. Twining -knots, lozenges, and rows of pearls alternated on the walls, and a -hedge of silver filigree formed a wide semicircle in front of the -brass staircase which led down from the vestibule. - -There was a cone of stone at the entrance between a stela of gold and -one of emerald, and Matho kissed his right hand as he passed beside -it. - -The first room was very lofty; its vaulted roof was pierced by -numberless apertures, and if the head were raised the stars might be -seen. All round the wall rush baskets were heaped up with the first -fruits of adolescence in the shape of beards and curls of hair; and in -the centre of the circular apartment the body of a woman issued from a -sheath which was covered with breasts. Fat, bearded, and with eyelids -downcast, she looked as though she were smiling, while her hands were -crossed upon the lower part of her big body, which was polished by the -kisses of the crowd. - -Then they found themselves again in the open air in a transverse -corridor, wherein there was an altar of small dimensions leaning -against an ivory door. There was no further passage; the priests alone -could open it; for the temple was not a place of meeting for the -multitude, but the private abode of a divinity. - -"The enterprise is impossible," said Matho. "You had not thought of -this! Let us go back!" Spendius was examining the walls. - -He wanted the veil, not because he had confidence in its virtue -(Spendius believed only in the Oracle), but because he was persuaded -that the Carthaginians would be greatly dismayed on seeing themselves -deprived of it. They walked all round behind in order to find some -outlet. - -Aedicules of different shapes were visible beneath clusters of -turpentine trees. Here and there rose a stone phallus, and large stags -roamed peacefully about, spurning the fallen fir-cones with their -cloven hoofs. - -But they retraced their steps between two long galleries which ran -parallel to each other. There were small open cells along their sides, -and tabourines and cymbals hung against their cedar columns from top -to bottom. Women were sleeping stretched on mats outside the cells. -Their bodies were greasy with unguents, and exhaled an odour of spices -and extinguished perfuming-pans; while they were so covered with -tattooings, necklaces, rings, vermilion, and antimony that, but for -the motion of their breasts, they might have been taken for idols as -they lay thus on the ground. There were lotus-trees encircling a -fountain in which fish like Salammbo's were swimming; and then in the -background, against the wall of the temple, spread a vine, the -branches of which were of glass and the grape-bunches of emerald, the -rays from the precious stones making a play of light through the -painted columns upon the sleeping faces. - -Matho felt suffocated in the warm atmosphere pressed down upon him by -the cedar partitions. All these symbols of fecundation, these -perfumes, radiations, and breathings overwhelmed him. Through all the -mystic dazzling he kept thinking of Salammbo. She became confused with -the goddess herself, and his loved unfolded itself all the more, like -the great lotus-plants blooming upon the depths of the waters. - -Spendius was calculating how much money he would have made in former -days by the sale of these women; and with a rapid glance he estimated -the weight of the golden necklaces as he passed by. - -The temple was impenetrable on this side as on the other, and they -returned behind the first chamber. While Spendius was searching and -ferreting, Matho was prostrate before the door supplicating Tanith. He -besought her not to permit the sacrilege, and strove to soften her -with caressing words, such as are used to an angry person. - -Spendius noticed a narrow aperture above the door. - -"Rise!" he said to Matho, and he made him stand erect with his back -against the wall. Placing one foot in his hands, and then the other -upon his head, he reached up to the air-hole, made his way into it and -disappeared. Then Matho felt a knotted cord--that one which Spendius -had rolled around his body before entering the cisterns--fall upon his -shoulders, and bearing upon it with both hands he soon found himself -by the side of the other in a large hall filled with shadow. - -Such an attempt was something extraordinary. The inadequacy of the -means for preventing it was a sufficient proof that it was considered -impossible. The sanctuaries were protected by terror more than by -their walls. Matho expected to die at every step. - -However a light was flickering far back in the darkness, and they went -up to it. It was a lamp burning in a shell on the pedestal of a statue -which wore the cap of the Kabiri. Its long blue robe was strewn with -diamond discs, and its heels were fastened to the ground by chains -which sank beneath the pavement. Matho suppressed a cry. "Ah! there -she is! there she is!" he stammered out. Spendius took up the lamp in -order to light himself. - -"What an impious man you are!" murmured Matho, following him -nevertheless. - -The apartment which they entered had nothing in it but a black -painting representing another woman. Her legs reached to the top of -the wall, and her body filled the entire ceiling; a huge egg hung by a -thread from her navel, and she fell head downwards upon the other -wall, reaching as far as the level of the pavement, which was touched -by her pointed fingers. - -They drew a hanging aside, in order to go on further; but the wind -blew and the light went out. - -Then they wandered about, lost in the complications of the -architecture. Suddenly they felt something strangely soft beneath -their feet. Sparks crackled and leaped; they were walking in fire. -Spendius touched the ground and perceived that it was carefully -carpeted with lynx skins; then it seemed to them that a big cord, wet, -cold, and viscous, was gliding between their legs. Through some -fissures cut in the wall there fell thin white rays, and they advanced -by this uncertain light. At last they distinguished a large black -serpent. It darted quickly away and disappeared. - -"Let us fly!" exclaimed Matho. "It is she! I feel her; she is coming." - -"No, no," replied Spendius, "the temple is empty." - -Then a dazzling light made them lower their eyes. Next they perceived -all around them an infinite number of beasts, lean, panting, with -bristling claws, and mingled together one above another in a -mysterious and terrifying confusion. There were serpents with feet, -and bulls with wings, fishes with human heads were devouring fruit, -flowers were blooming in the jaws of crocodiles, and elephants with -uplifted trunks were sailing proudly through the azure like eagles. -Their incomplete or multiplied limbs were distended with terrible -exertion. As they thrust out their tongues they looked as though they -would fain give forth their souls; and every shape was to be found -among them as if the germ-receptacle had been suddenly hatched and had -burst, emptying itself upon the walls of the hall. - -Round the latter were twelve globes of blue crystal, supported by -monsters resembling tigers. Their eyeballs were starting out of their -heads like those of snails, with their dumpy loins bent they were -turning round towards the background where the supreme Rabbet, the -Omnifecund, the last invented, shone splendid in a chariot of ivory. - -She was covered with scales, feathers, flowers, and birds as high as -the waist. For earrings she had silver cymbals, which flapped against -her cheeks. Her large fixed eyes gazed upon you, and a luminous stone, -set in an obscene symbol on her brow, lighted the whole hall by its -reflection in red copper mirrors above the door. - -Matho stood a step forward; but a flag stone yielded beneath his heels -and immediately the spheres began to revolve and the monsters to roar; -music rose melodious and pealing, like the harmony of the planets; the -tumultuous soul of Tanith was poured streaming forth. She was about to -arise, as lofty as the hall and with open arms. Suddenly the monsters -closed their jaws and the crystal globes revolved no more. - -Then a mournful modulation lingered for a time through the air and at -last died away. - -"And the veil?" said Spendius. - -Nowhere could it be seen. Where was it to be found? How could it be -discovered? What if the priests had hidden it? Matho experienced -anguish of heart and felt as though he had been deceived in his -belief. - -"This way!" whispered Spendius. An inspiration guided him. He drew -Matho behind Tanith's chariot, where a cleft a cubit wide ran down the -wall from top to bottom. - -Then they penetrated into a small and completely circular room, so -lofty that it was like the interior of a pillar. In the centre there -was a big black stone, of semispherical shape like a tabourine; flames -were burning upon it; an ebony cone, bearing a head and two arms, rose -behind. - -But beyond it seemed as though there were a cloud wherein were -twinkling stars; faces appeared in the depths of its folds--Eschmoun -with the Kabiri, some of the monsters that had already been seen, the -sacred beasts of the Babylonians, and others with which they were not -acquainted. It passed beneath the idol's face like a mantle, and -spread fully out was drawn up on the wall to which it was fastened by -the corners, appearing at once bluish as the night, yellow as the -dawn, purple as the sun, multitudinous, diaphanous, sparkling light. -It was the mantle of the goddess, the holy zaimph which might not be -seen. - -Both turned pale. - -"Take it!" said Matho at last. - -Spendius did not hesitate, and leaning upon the idol he unfastened the -veil, which sank to the ground. Matho laid his hand upon it; then he -put his head through the opening, then he wrapped it about his body, -and he spread out his arms the better to view it. - -"Let us go!" said Spendius. - -Matho stood panting with his eyes fixed upon the pavement. Suddenly he -exclaimed: - -"But what if I went to her? I fear her beauty no longer! What could -she do to me? I am now more than a man. I could pass through flames or -walk upon the sea! I am transported! Salammbo! Salammbo! I am your -master!" - -His voice was like thunder. He seemed to Spendius to have grown taller -and transformed. - -A sound of footsteps drew near, a door opened, and a man appeared, a -priest with lofty cap and staring eyes. Before he could make a gesture -Spendius had rushed upon him, and clasping him in his arms had buried -both his daggers in his sides. His head rang upon the pavement. - -Then they stood for a while, as motionless as the corpse, listening. -Nothing could be heard but the murmuring of the wind through the half- -opened door. - -The latter led into a narrow passage. Spendius advanced along it, -Matho followed him, and they found themselves almost immediately in -the third enclosure, between the lateral porticoes, in which were the -dwellings of the priests. - -Behind the cells there must be a shorter way out. They hastened along. - -Spendius squatted down at the edge of the fountain and washed his -bloodstained hands. The women slept. The emerald vine shone. They -resumed their advance. - -But something was running behind them under the trees; and Matho, who -bore the veil, several times felt that it was being pulled very gently -from below. It was a large cynocephalus, one of those which dwelt at -liberty within the enclosure of the goddess. It clung to the mantle as -though it had been conscious of the theft. They did not dare to strike -it, however, fearing that it might redouble its cries; suddenly its -anger subsided, and it trotted close beside them swinging its body -with its long hanging arms. Then at the barrier it leaped at a bound -into a palm tree. - -When they had left the last enclosure they directed their steps -towards Hamilcar's palace, Spendius understanding that it would be -useless to try to dissuade Matho. - -They went by the street of the Tanners, the square of Muthumbal, the -green market and the crossways of Cynasyn. At the angle of a wall a -man drew back frightened by the sparkling thing which pierced the -darkness. - -"Hide the zaimph!" said Spendius. - -Other people passed them, but without perceiving them. - -At last they recognised the houses of Megara. - -The pharos, which was built behind them on the summit of the cliff, -lit up the heavens with a great red brightness, and the shadow of the -palace, with its rising terraces, projected a monstrous pyramid, as it -were, upon the gardens. They entered through the hedge of jujube- -trees, beating down the branches with blows of the dagger. - -The traces of the feast of the Mercenaries were everywhere still -manifest. The parks were broken up, the trenches drained, the doors of -the ergastulum open. No one was to be seen about the kitchens or -cellars. They wondered at the silence, which was occasionally broken -by the hoarse breathing of the elephants moving in their shackles, and -the crepitation of the pharos, in which a pile of aloes was burning. - -Matho, however, kept repeating: - -"But where is she? I wish to see her! Lead me!" - -"It is a piece of insanity!" Spendius kept saying. "She will call, her -slaves will run up, and in spite of your strength you will die!" - -They reached thus the galley staircase. Matho raised his head, and -thought that he could perceive far above a vague brightness, radiant -and soft. Spendius sought to restrain him, but he dashed up the steps. - -As he found himself again in places where he had already seen her, the -interval of the days that had passed was obliterated from his memory. -But now had she been singing among the tables; she had disappeared, -and he had since been continually ascending this staircase. The sky -above his head was covered with fires; the sea filled the horizon; at -each step he was surrounded by a still greater immensity, and he -continued to climb upward with that strange facility which we -experience in dreams. - -The rustling of the veil as it brushed against the stones recalled his -new power to him; but in the excess of his hope he could no longer -tell what he was to do; this uncertainty alarmed him. - -From time to time he would press his face against the quadrangular -openings in the closed apartments, and he thought that in several of -the latter he could see persons asleep. - -The last story, which was narrower, formed a sort of dado on the -summit of the terraces. Matho walked round it slowly. - -A milky light filled the sheets of talc which closed the little -apertures in the wall, and in their symmetrical arrangement they -looked in the darkness like rows of delicate pearls. He recognised the -red door with the black cross. The throbbing of his heart increased. -He would fain have fled. He pushed the door and it opened. - -A galley-shaped lamp hung burning in the back part of the room, and -three rays, emitted from its silver keel, trembled on the lofty -wainscots, which were painted red with black bands. The ceiling was an -assemblage of small beams, with amethysts and topazes amid their -gilding in the knots of the wood. On both the great sides of the -apartment there stretched a very low bed made with white leathern -straps; while above, semi-circles like shells, opened in the thickness -of the wall, suffered a garment to come out and hang down to the -ground. - -There was an oval basin with a step of onyx round it; delicate -slippers of serpent skin were standing on the edge, together with an -alabaster flagon. The trace of a wet footstep might be seen beyond. -Exquisite scents were evaporating. - -Matho glided over the pavement, which was encrusted with gold, mother- -of-pearl, and glass; and, in spite of the polished smoothness of the -ground, it seemed to him that his feet sank as though he were walking -on sand. - -Behind the silver lamp he had perceived a large square of azure held -in the air by four cords from above, and he advanced with loins bent -and mouth open. - -Flamingoes' wings, fitted on branches of black coral, lay about among -purple cushions, tortoiseshell strigils, cedar boxes, and ivory -spatulas. There were antelopes' horns with rings and bracelets strung -upon them; and clay vases were cooling in the wind in the cleft of the -wall with a lattice-work of reeds. Several times he struck his foot, -for the ground had various levels of unequal height, which formed a -succession of apartments, as it were, in the room. In the background -there were silver balustrades surrounding a carpet strewn with painted -flowers. At last he came to the hanging bed beside an ebony stool -serving to get into it. - -But the light ceased at the edge;--and the shadow, like a great -curtain, revealed only a corner of the red mattress with the extremity -of a little naked foot lying upon its ankle. Then Matho took up the -lamp very gently. - -She was sleeping with her cheek in one hand and with the other arm -extended. Her ringlets were spread about her in such abundance that -she appeared to be lying on black feathers, and her ample white tunic -wound in soft draperies to her feet following the curves of her -person. Her eyes were just visible beneath her half-closed eyelids. -The curtains, which stretched perpendicularly, enveloped her in a -bluish atmosphere, and the motion of her breathing, communicating -itself to the cords, seemed to rock her in the air. A long mosquito -was buzzing. - -Matho stood motionless holding the silver lamp at arm's length; but on -a sudden the mosquito-net caught fire and disappeared, and Salammbo -awoke. - -The fire had gone out of itself. She did not speak. The lamp caused -great luminous moires to flicker on the wainscots. - -"What is it?" she said. - -He replied: - -"'Tis the veil of the goddess!" - -"The veil of the goddess!" cried Salammbo, and supporting herself on -both clenched hands she leaned shuddering out. He resumed: - -"I have been in the depths of the sanctuary to seek it for you! Look!" -The Zaimph shone a mass of rays. - -"Do you remember it?" said Matho. "You appeared at night in my dreams, -but I did not guess the mute command of your eyes!" She put out one -foot upon the ebony stool. "Had I understood I should have hastened -hither, I should have forsaken the army, I should not have left -Carthage. To obey you I would go down through the caverns of -Hadrumetum into the kingdom of the shades!--Forgive me! it was as -though mountains were weighing upon my days; and yet something drew me -on! I tried to come to you! Should I ever have dared this without the -Gods!--Let us go! You must follow me! or, if you do not wish to do so, -I will remain. What matters it to me!--Drown my soul in your breath! -Let my lips be crushed with kissing your hands!" - -"Let me see it!" she said. "Nearer! nearer!" - -Day was breaking, and the sheets of talc in the walls were filled with -a vinous colour. Salammbo leaned fainting against the cushions of the -bed. - -"I love you!" cried Matho. - -"Give it!" she stammered out, and they drew closer together. - -She kept advancing, clothed in her white trailing simar, and with her -large eyes fastened on the veil. Matho gazed at her, dazzled by the -splendours of her head, and, holding out the zaimph towards her, was -about to enfold her in an embrace. She was stretching out her arms. -Suddenly she stopped, and they stood looking at each other, open- -mouthed. - -Then without understanding the meaning of his solicitation a horror -seized upon her. Her delicate eyebrows rose, her lips opened; she -trembled. At last she struck one of the brass pateras which hung at -the corners of the red mattress, crying: - -"To the rescue! to the rescue! Back, sacrilegious man! infamous and -accursed! Help, Taanach, Kroum, Ewa, Micipsa, Schaoul!" - -And the scared face of Spendius, appearing in the wall between the -clay flagons, cried out these words: - -"Fly! they are hastening hither!" - -A great tumult came upwards shaking the staircases, and a flood of -people, women, serving-men, and slaves, rushed into the room with -stakes, tomahawks, cutlasses, and daggers. They were nearly paralysed -with indignation on perceiving a man; the female servants uttered -funeral wailings, and the eunuchs grew pale beneath their black skins. - -Matho was standing behind the balustrades. With the zaimph which was -wrapped about him, he looked like a sidereal god surrounded by the -firmament. The slaves were going to fall upon him, but she stopped -them: - -"Touch it not! It is the mantle of the goddess!" - -She had drawn back into a corner; but she took a step towards him, and -stretched forth her naked arm: - -"A curse upon you, you who have plundered Tanith! Hatred, vengeance, -massacre, and grief! May Gurzil, god of battles, rend you! may -Mastiman, god of the dead, stifle you! and may the Other--he who may -not be named--burn you!" - -Matho uttered a cry as though he had received a sword-thrust. She -repeated several times: "Begone! begone!" - -The crowd of servants spread out, and Matho, with hanging head, passed -slowly through the midst of them; but at the door he stopped, for the -fringe of the zaimph had caught on one of the golden stars with which -the flagstones were paved. He pulled it off abruptly with a movement -of his shoulder and went down the staircases. - -Spendius, bounding from terrace to terrace, and leaping over the -hedges and trenches, had escaped from the gardens. He reached the foot -of the pharos. The wall was discontinued at this spot, so inaccessible -was the cliff. He advanced to the edge, lay down on his back, and let -himself slide, feet foremost, down the whole length of it to the -bottom; then by swimming he reached the Cape of the Tombs, made a wide -circuit of the salt lagoon, and re-entered the camp of the Barbarians -in the evening. - -The sun had risen; and, like a retreating lion, Matho went down the -paths, casting terrible glances about him. - -A vague clamour reached his ears. It had started from the palace, and -it was beginning afresh in the distance, towards the Acropolis. Some -said that the treasure of the Republic had been seized in the temple -of Moloch; others spoke of the assassination of a priest. It was -thought, moreover, that the Barbarians had entered the city. - -Matho, who did not know how to get out of the enclosures, walked -straight before him. He was seen, and an outcry was raised. Every one -understood; and there was consternation, then immense wrath. - -From the bottom of the Mappalian quarter, from the heights of the -Acropolis, from the catacombs, from the borders of the lake, the -multitude came in haste. The patricians left their palaces, and the -traders left their shops; the women forsook their children; swords, -hatchets, and sticks were seized; but the obstacle which had stayed -Salammbo stayed them. How could the veil be taken back? The mere sight -of it was a crime; it was of the nature of the gods, and contact with -it was death. - -The despairing priests wrung their hands on the peristyles of the -temples. The guards of the Legion galloped about at random; the people -climbed upon the houses, the terraces, the shoulders of the -colossuses, and the masts of the ships. He went on, nevertheless, and -the rage, and the terror also, increased at each of his steps; the -streets cleared at his approach, and the torrent of flying men -streamed on both sides up to the tops of the walls. Everywhere he -could perceive only eyes opened widely as if to devour him, chattering -teeth and outstretched fists, and Salammbo's imprecations resounded -many times renewed. - -Suddenly a long arrow whizzed past, then another, and stones began to -buzz about him; but the missiles, being badly aimed (for there was the -dread of hitting the zaimph), passed over his head. Moreover, he made -a shield of the veil, holding it to the right, to the left, before him -and behind him; and they could devise no expedient. He quickened his -steps more and more, advancing through the open streets. They were -barred with cords, chariots, and snares; and all his windings brought -him back again. At last he entered the square of Khamon where the -Balearians had perished, and stopped, growing pale as one about to -die. This time he was surely lost, and the multitude clapped their -hands. - -He ran up to the great gate, which was closed. It was very high, made -throughout of heart of oak, with iron nails and sheathed with brass. -Matho flung himself against it. The people stamped their feet with joy -when they saw the impotence of his fury; then he took his sandal, spit -upon it, and beat the immovable panels with it. The whole city howled. -The veil was forgotten now, and they were about to crush him. Matho -gazed with wide vacant eyes upon the crowd. His temples were throbbing -with violence enough to stun him, and he felt a numbness as of -intoxication creeping over him. Suddenly he caught sight of the long -chain used in working the swinging of the gate. With a bound he -grasped it, stiffening his arms, and making a buttress of his feet, -and at last the huge leaves partly opened. - -Then when he was outside he took the great zaimph from his neck, and -raised it as high as possible above his head. The material, upborne by -the sea breeze, shone in the sunlight with its colours, its gems, and -the figures of its gods. Matho bore it thus across the whole plain as -far as the soldiers' tents, and the people on the walls watched the -fortune of Carthage depart. - - - -CHAPTER VI - -HANNO - -"I ought to have carried her off!" Matho said in the evening to -Spendius. "I should have seized her, and torn her from her house! No -one would have dared to touch me!" - -Spendius was not listening to him. Stretched on his back he was taking -delicious rest beside a large jar filled with honey-coloured water, -into which he would dip his head from time to time in order to drink -more copiously. - -Matho resumed: - -"What is to be done? How can we re-enter Carthage?" - -"I do not know," said Spendius. - -Such impassibility exasperated Matho and he exclaimed: - -"Why! the fault is yours! You carry me away, and then you forsake me, -coward that you are! Why, pray, should I obey you? Do you think that -you are my master? Ah! you prostituter, you slave, you son of a -slave!" He ground his teeth and raised his broad hand above Spendius. - -The Greek did not reply. An earthen lamp was burning gently against -the tent-pole, where the zaimph shone amid the hanging panoply. -Suddenly Matho put on his cothurni, buckled on his brazen jacket of -mail, and took his helmet. - -"Where are you going?" asked Spendius. - -"I am returning! Let me alone! I will bring her back! And if they show -themselves I will crush them like vipers! I will put her to death, -Spendius! Yes," he repeated, "I will kill her! You shall see, I will -kill her!" - -But Spendius, who was listening eagerly, snatched up the zaimph -abruptly and threw it into a corner, heaping up fleeces above it. A -murmuring of voices was heard, torches gleamed, and Narr' Havas -entered, followed by about twenty men. - -They wore white woollen cloaks, long daggers, copper necklaces, wooden -earrings, and boots of hyena skin; and standing on the threshold they -leaned upon their lances like herdsmen resting themselves. Narr' Havas -was the handsomest of all; his slender arms were bound with straps -ornamented with pearls. The golden circlet which fastened his ample -garment about his head held an ostrich feather which hung down behind -his shoulder; his teeth were displayed in a continual smile; his eyes -seemed sharpened like arrows, and there was something observant and -airy about his whole demeanour. - -He declared that he had come to join the Mercenaries, for the Republic -had long been threatening his kingdom. Accordingly he was interested -in assisting the Barbarians, and he might also be of service to them. - -"I will provide you with elephants (my forests are full of them), -wine, oil, barley, dates, pitch and sulphur for sieges, twenty -thousand foot-soldiers and ten thousand horses. If I address myself to -you, Matho, it is because the possession of the zaimph has made you -chief man in the army. Moreover," he added, "we are old friends." - -Matho, however, was looking at Spendius, who, seated on the sheep- -skins, was listening, and giving little nods of assent the while. -Narr' Havas continued speaking. He called the gods to witness he -cursed Carthage. In his imprecations he broke a javelin. All his men -uttered simultaneously a loud howl, and Matho, carried away by so much -passion, exclaimed that he accepted the alliance. - -A white bull and a black sheep, the symbols of day and night, were -then brought, and their throats were cut on the edge of a ditch. When -the latter was full of blood they dipped their arms into it. Then -Narr' Havas spread out his hand upon Matho's breast, and Matho did the -same to Narr' Havas. They repeated the stain upon the canvas of their -tents. Afterwards they passed the night in eating, and the remaining -portions of the meat were burnt together with the skin, bones, horns, -and hoofs. - -Matho had been greeted with great shouting when he had come back -bearing the veil of the goddess; even those who were not of the -Chanaanitish religion were made by their vague enthusiasm to feel the -arrival of a genius. As to seizing the zaimph, no one thought of it, -for the mysterious manner in which he had acquired it was sufficient -in the minds of the Barbarians to justify its possession; such were -the thoughts of the soldiers of the African race. The others, whose -hatred was not of such long standing, did not know how to make up -their minds. If they had had ships they would immediately have -departed. - -Spendius, Narr' Havas, and Matho despatched men to all the tribes on -Punic soil. - -Carthage was sapping the strength of these nations. She wrung -exorbitant taxes from them, and arrears or even murmurings were -punished with fetters, the axe, or the cross. It was necessary to -cultivate whatever suited the Republic, and to furnish what she -demanded; no one had the right of possessing a weapon; when villages -rebelled the inhabitants were sold; governors were esteemed like wine- -presses, according to the quantity which they succeeded in extracting. -Then beyond the regions immediately subject to Carthage extended the -allies roamed the Nomads, who might be let loose upon them. By this -system the crops were always abundant, the studs skilfully managed, -and the plantations superb. - -The elder Cato, a master in the matters of tillage and slaves, was -amazed at it ninety-two years later, and the death-cry which he -repeated continually at Rome was but the exclamation of jealous greed. - -During the last war the exactions had been increased, so that nearly -all the towns of Libya had surrendered to Regulus. To punish them, a -thousand talents, twenty thousand oxen, three hundred bags of gold -dust, and considerable advances of grain had been exacted from them, -and the chiefs of the tribes had been crucified or thrown to the -lions. - -Tunis especially execrated Carthage! Older than the metropolis, it -could not forgive her her greatness, and it fronted her walls -crouching in the mire on the water's edge like a venomous beast -watching her. Transportation, massacres, and epidemics did not weaken -it. It had assisted Archagathas, the son of Agathocles, and the Eaters -of Uncleanness found arms there at once. - -The couriers had not yet set out when universal rejoicing broke out in -the provinces. Without waiting for anything they strangled the -comptrollers of the houses and the functionaries of the Republic in -the baths; they took the old weapons that had been concealed out of -the caves; they forged swords with the iron of the ploughs; the -children sharpened javelins at the doors, and the women gave their -necklaces, rings, earrings, and everything that could be employed for -the destruction of Carthage. Piles of lances were heaped up in the -country towns like sheaves of maize. Cattle and money were sent off. -Matho speedily paid the Mercenaries their arrears, and owing to this, -which was Spendius's idea, he was appointed commander-in-chief--the -schalishim of the Barbarians. - -Reinforcements of men poured in at the same time. The aborigines -appeared first, and were followed by the slaves from the country; -caravans of Negroes were seized and armed, and merchants on their way -to Carthage, despairing of any more certain profit, mingled with the -Barbarians. Numerous bands were continually arriving. From the heights -of the Acropolis the growing army might be seen. - -But the guards of the Legion were posted as sentries on the platform -of the aqueduct, and near them rose at intervals brazen vats, in which -floods of asphalt were boiling. Below in the plain the great crowd -stirred tumultuously. They were in a state of uncertainty, feeling the -embarrassment with which Barbarians are always inspired when they meet -with walls. - -Utica and Hippo-Zarytus refused their alliance. Phoenician colonies -like Carthage, they were self-governing, and always had clauses -inserted in the treaties concluded by the Republic to distinguish them -from the latter. Nevertheless they respected this strong sister of -theirs who protected them, and they did not think that she could be -vanquished by a mass of Barbarians; these would on the contrary be -themselves exterminated. They desired to remain neutral and to live at -peace. - -But their position rendered them indispensable. Utica, at the foot of -the gulf, was convenient for bringing assistance to Carthage from -without. If Utica alone were taken, Hippo-Zarytus, six hours further -distant along the coast, would take its place, and the metropolis, -being revictualled in this way, would be impregnable. - -Spendius wished the siege to be undertaken immediately. Narr' Havas -was opposed to this: an advance should first be made upon the -frontier. This was the opinion of the veterans, and of Matho himself, -and it was decided that Spendius should go to attack Utica, and Matho -Hippo-Zarytus, while in the third place the main body should rest on -Tunis and occupy the plain of Carthage, Autaritus being in command. As -to Narr' Havas, he was to return to his own kingdom to procure -elephants and to scour the roads with his cavalry. - -The women cried out loudly against this decision; they coveted the -jewels of the Punic ladies. The Libyans also protested. They had been -summoned against Carthage, and now they were going away from it! The -soldiers departed almost alone. Matho commanded his own companions, -together with the Iberians, Lusitanians, and the men of the West, and -of the islands; all those who spoke Greek had asked for Spendius on -account of his cleverness. - -Great was the stupefaction when the army was seen suddenly in motion; -it stretched along beneath the mountain of Ariana on the road to Utica -beside the sea. A fragment remained before Tunis, the rest disappeared -to re-appear on the other shore of the gulf on the outskirts of the -woods in which they were lost. - -They were perhaps eighty thousand men. The two Tyrian cities would -offer no resistance, and they would return against Carthage. Already -there was a considerable army attacking it from the base of the -isthmus, and it would soon perish from famine, for it was impossible -to live without the aid of the provinces, the citizens not paying -contributions as they did at Rome. Carthage was wanting in political -genius. Her eternal anxiety for gain prevented her from having the -prudence which results from loftier ambitions. A galley anchored on -the Libyan sands, it was with toil that she maintained her position. -The nations roared like billows around her, and the slightest storm -shook this formidable machine. - -The treasury was exhausted by the Roman war and by all that had been -squandered and lost in the bargaining with the Barbarians. -Nevertheless soldiers must be had, and not a government would trust -the Republic! Ptolemaeus had lately refused it two thousand talents. -Moreover the rape of the veil disheartened them. Spendius had clearly -foreseen this. - -But the nation, feeling that it was hated, clasped its money and its -gods to its heart, and its patriotism was sustained by the very -constitution of its government. - -First, the power rested with all, without any one being strong enough -to engross it. Private debts were considered as public debts, men of -Chanaanitish race had a monopoly of commerce, and by multiplying the -profits of piracy with those of usury, by hard dealings in lands and -slaves and with the poor, fortunes were sometimes made. These alone -opened up all the magistracies, and although authority and money were -perpetuated in the same families, people tolerated the oligarchy -because they hoped ultimately to share in it. - -The societies of merchants, in which the laws were elaborated, chose -the inspectors of the exchequer, who on leaving office nominated the -hundred members of the Council of the Ancients, themselves dependent -on the Grand Assembly, or general gathering of all the rich. As to the -two Suffets, the relics of the monarchy and the less than consuls, -they were taken from distinct families on the same day. All kinds of -enmities were contrived between them, so that they might mutually -weaken each other. They could not deliberate concerning war, and when -they were vanquished the Great Council crucified them. - -The power of Carthage emanated, therefore, from the Syssitia, that is -to say, from a large court in the centre of Malqua, at the place, it -was said, where the first bark of Phoenician sailors had touched, the -sea having retired a long way since then. It was a collection of -little rooms of archaic architecture, built of palm trunks with -corners of stone, and separated from one another so as to accommodate -the various societies separately. The rich crowded there all day to -discuss their own concerns and those of the government, from the -procuring of pepper to the extermination of Rome. Thrice in a moon -they would have their beds brought up to the lofty terrace running -along the wall of the court, and they might be seen from below at -table in the air, without cothurni or cloaks, with their diamond- -covered fingers wandering over the dishes, and their large earrings -hanging down among the flagons,--all fat and lusty, half-naked, -smiling and eating beneath the blue sky, like great sharks sporting in -the sea. - -But just now they were unable to dissemble their anxiety; they were -too pale for that. The crowd which waited for them at the gates -escorted them to their palaces in order to obtain some news from them. -As in times of pestilence, all the houses were shut; the streets would -fill and suddenly clear again; people ascended the Acropolis or ran to -the harbour, and the Great Council deliberated every night. At last -the people were convened in the square of Khamon, and it was decided -to leave the management of things to Hanno, the conqueror of -Hecatompylos. - -He was a true Carthaginian, devout, crafty, and pitiless towards the -people of Africa. His revenues equalled those of the Barcas. No one -had such experience in administrative affairs. - -He decreed the enrolment of all healthy citizens, he placed catapults -on the towers, he exacted exorbitant supplies of arms, he even ordered -the construction of fourteen galleys which were not required, and he -desired everything to be registered and carefully set down in writing. -He had himself conveyed to the arsenal, the pharos, and the treasuries -of the temples; his great litter was continually to be seen swinging -from step to step as it ascended the staircases of the Acropolis. And -then in his palace at night, being unable to sleep, he would yell out -warlike manoeuvres in terrible tones so as to prepare himself for the -fray. - -In their extremity of terror all became brave. The rich ranged -themselves in line along the Mappalian district at cockcrow, and -tucking up their robes practised themselves in handling the pike. But -for want of an instructor they had disputes about it. They would sit -down breathless upon the tombs and then begin again. Several even -dieted themselves. Some imagined that it was necessary to eat a great -deal in order to acquire strength, while others who were -inconvenienced by their corpulence weakened themselves with fasts in -order to become thin. - -Utica had already called several times upon Carthage for assistance; -but Hanno would not set out until the engines of war had been supplied -with the last screws. He lost three moons more in equipping the one -hundred and twelve elephants that were lodged in the ramparts. They -were the conquerors of Regulus; the people loved them; it was -impossible to treat such old friends too well. Hanno had the brass -plates which adorned their breasts recast, their tusks gilt, their -towers enlarged, and caparisons, edged with very heavy fringes, cut -out of the handsomest purple. Finally, as their drivers were called -Indians (after the first ones, no doubt, who came from the Indies) he -ordered them all to be costumed after the Indian fashion; that is to -say, with white pads round their temples, and small drawers of byssus, -which with their transverse folds looked like two valves of a shell -applied to the hips. - -The army under Autaritus still remained before Tunis. It was hidden -behind a wall made with mud from the lake, and protected on the top by -thorny brushwood. Some Negroes had planted tall sticks here and there -bearing frightful faces,--human masks made with birds' feathers, and -jackals' or serpents' heads,--which gaped towards the enemy for the -purpose of terrifying him; and the Barbarians, reckoning themselves -invincible through these means, danced, wrestled, and juggled, -convinced that Carthage would perish before long. Any one but Hanno -would easily have crushed such a multitude, hampered as it was with -herds and women. Moreover, they knew nothing of drill, and Autaritus -was so disheartened that he had ceased to require it. - -They stepped aside when he passed by rolling his big blue eyes. Then -on reaching the edge of the lake he would draw back his sealskin -cloak, unfasten the cord which tied up his long red hair, and soak the -latter in the water. He regretted that he had not deserted to the -Romans along with the two thousand Gauls of the temple of Eryx. - -Often the sun would suddenly lose his rays in the middle of the day. -Then the gulf and the open sea would seem as motionless as molten -lead. A cloud of brown dust stretching perpendicularly would speed -whirling along; the palm trees would bend and the sky disappear, while -stones would be heard rebounding on the animals' cruppers; and the -Gaul, his lips glued against the holes in his tent, would gasp with -exhaustion and melancholy. His thoughts would be of the scent of the -pastures on autumn mornings, of snowflakes, or of the bellowing of the -urus lost in the fog, and closing his eyelids he would in imagination -behold the fires in long, straw-roofed cottages flickering on the -marshes in the depths of the woods. - -Others regretted their native lands as well as he, even though they -might not be so far away. Indeed the Carthaginian captives could -distinguish the velaria spread over the courtyards of their houses, -beyond the gulf on the slopes of Byrsa. But sentries marched round -them continually. They were all fastened to a common chain. Each one -wore an iron carcanet, and the crowd was never weary of coming to gaze -at them. The women would show their little children the handsome robes -hanging in tatters on their wasted limbs. - -Whenever Autaritus looked at Gisco he was seized with rage at the -recollection of the insult that he had received, and he would have -killed him but for the oath which he had taken to Narr' Havas. Then he -would go back into his tent and drink a mixture of barley and cumin -until he swooned away from intoxication,--to awake afterwards in broad -daylight consumed with horrible thirst. - -Matho, meanwhile, was besieging Hippo-Zarytus. But the town was -protected by a lake, communicating with the sea. It had three lines of -circumvallation, and upon the heights which surrounded it there -extended a wall fortified with towers. He had never commanded in such -an enterprise before. Moreover, he was beset with thoughts of -Salammbo, and he raved in the delight of her beauty as in the -sweetness of a vengeance that transported him with pride. He felt an -acrid, frenzied, permanent want to see her again. He even thought of -presenting himself as the bearer of a flag of truce, in the hope that -once within Carthage he might make his way to her. Often he would -cause the assault to be sounded and waiting for nothing rush upon the -mole which it was sought to construct in the sea. He would snatch up -the stones with his hands, overturn, strike, and deal sword-thrusts -everywhere. The Barbarians would dash on pell-mell; the ladders would -break with a loud crash, and masses of men would tumble into the -water, causing it to fly up in red waves against the walls. Finally -the tumult would subside, and the soldiers would retire to make a -fresh beginning. - -Matho would go and seat himself outside the tents, wipe his blood- -splashed face with his arm, and gaze at the horizon in the direction -of Carthage. - -In front of him, among the olives, palms, myrtles and planes, -stretched two broad ponds which met another lake, the outlines of -which could not be seen. Behind one mountain other mountains reared -themselves, and in the middle of the immense lake rose an island -perfectly black and pyramidal in form. On the left, at the extremity -of the gulf, were sand-heaps like arrested waves, large and pale, -while the sea, flat as a pavement of lapis-lazuli, ascended by -insensible degrees to the edge of the sky. The verdure of the country -was lost in places beneath long sheets of yellow; carobs were shining -like knobs of coral; vine branches drooped from the tops of the -sycamores; the murmuring of the water could be heard; crested larks -were hopping about, and the sun's latest fires gilded the carapaces of -the tortoises as they came forth from the reeds to inhale the breeze. - -Matho would heave deep sighs. He would lie flat on his face, with his -nails buried in the soil, and weep; he felt wretched, paltry, -forsaken. Never would he possess her, and he was unable even to take a -town. - -At night when alone in his tent he would gaze upon the zaimph. Of what -use to him was this thing which belonged to the gods?--and doubt crept -into the Barbarian's thoughts. Then, on the contrary, it would seem to -him that the vesture of the goddess was depending from Salammbo, and -that a portion of her soul hovered in it, subtler than a breath; and -he would feel it, breathe it in, bury his face in it, and kiss it with -sobs. He would cover his shoulders with it in order to delude himself -that he was beside her. - -Sometimes he would suddenly steal away, stride in the starlight over -the sleeping soldiers as they lay wrapped in their cloaks, spring -upon a horse on reaching the camp gates, and two hours later be at -Utica in Spendius's tent. - -At first he would speak of the siege, but his coming was only to ease -his sorrow by talking about Salammbo. Spendius exhorted him to be -prudent. - -"Drive away these trifles from your soul, which is degraded by them! -Formerly you were used to obey; now you command an army, and if -Carthage is not conquered we shall at least be granted provinces. We -shall become kings!" - -But how was it that the possession of the zaimph did not give them the -victory? According to Spendius they must wait. - -Matho fancied that the veil affected people of Chanaanitish race -exclusively, and, in his Barbarian-like subtlety, he said to himself: -"The zaimph will accordingly do nothing for me, but since they have -lost it, it will do nothing for them." - -Afterwards a scruple troubled him. He was afraid of offending Moloch -by worshipping Aptouknos, the god of the Libyans, and he timidly asked -Spendius to which of the gods it would be advisable to sacrifice a -man. - -"Keep on sacrificing!" laughed Spendius. - -Matho, who could not understand such indifference, suspected the Greek -of having a genius of whom he did not speak. - -All modes of worship, as well as all races, were to be met with in -these armies of Barbarians, and consideration was had to the gods of -others, for they too, inspired fear. Many mingled foreign practices -with their native religion. It was to no purpose that they did not -adore the stars; if a constellation were fatal or helpful, sacrifices -were offered to it; an unknown amulet found by chance at a moment of -peril became a divinity; or it might be a name and nothing more, which -would be repeated without any attempt to understand its meaning. But -after pillaging temples, and seeing numbers of nations and slaughters, -many ultimately ceased to believe in anything but destiny and death;-- -and every evening these would fall asleep with the placidity of wild -beasts. Spendius had spit upon the images of Jupiter Olympius; -nevertheless he dreaded to speak aloud in the dark, nor did he fail -every day to put on his right boot first. - -He reared a long quadrangular terrace in front of Utica, but in -proportion as it ascended the rampart was also heightened, and what -was thrown down by the one side was almost immediately raised again by -the other. Spendius took care of his men; he dreamed of plans and -strove to recall the stratagems which he had heard described in his -travels. But why did Narr' Havas not return? There was nothing but -anxiety. - -Hanno had at last concluded his preparations. One night when there was -no moon he transported his elephants and soldiers on rafts across the -Gulf of Carthage. Then they wheeled round the mountain of the Hot -Springs so as to avoid Autaritus, and continued their march so slowly -that instead of surprising the Barbarians in the morning, as the -Suffet had calculated, they did not reach them until it was broad -daylight on the third day. - -Utica had on the east a plain which extended to the large lagoon of -Carthage; behind it a valley ran at right angles between two low and -abruptly terminated mountains; the Barbarians were encamped further to -the left in such a way as to blockade the harbour; and they were -sleeping in their tents (for on that day both sides were too weary to -fight and were resting) when the Carthaginian army appeared at the -turning of the hills. - -Some camp followers furnished with slings were stationed at intervals -on the wings. The first line was formed of the guards of the Legion in -golden scale-armour, mounted on their big horses, which were without -mane, hair, or ears, and had silver horns in the middle of their -foreheads to make them look like rhinoceroses. Between their squadrons -were youths wearing small helmets and swinging an ashen javelin in -each hand. The long files of the heavy infantry marched behind. All -these traders had piled as many weapons upon their bodies as possible. -Some might be seen carrying an axe, a lance, a club, and two swords -all at once; others bristled with darts like porcupines, and their -arms stood out from their cuirasses in sheets of horn or iron plates. -At last the scaffoldings of the lofty engines appeared: carrobalistas, -onagers, catapults and scorpions, rocking on chariots drawn by mules -and quadrigas of oxen; and in proportion as the army drew out, the -captains ran panting right and left to deliver commands, close up the -files, and preserve the intervals. Such of the Ancients as held -commands had come in purple cassocks, the magnificent fringes of which -tangled in the white straps of their cothurni. Their faces, which were -smeared all over with vermilion, shone beneath enormous helmets -surmounted with images of the gods; and, as they had shields with -ivory borders covered with precious stones, they might have been taken -for suns passing over walls of brass. - -But the Carthaginians manoeuvred so clumsily that the soldiers in -derision urged them to sit down. They called out that they were just -going to empty their big stomachs, to dust the gilding of their skin, -and to give them iron to drink. - -A strip of green cloth appeared at the top of the pole planted before -Spendius's tent: it was the signal. The Carthaginian army replied to -it with a great noise of trumpets, cymbals, flutes of asses' bones, -and tympanums. The Barbarians had already leaped outside the -palisades, and were facing their enemies within a javelin's throw of -them. - -A Balearic slinger took a step forward, put one of his clay bullets -into his thong, and swung round his arm. An ivory shield was shivered, -and the two armies mingled together. - -The Greeks made the horses rear and fall back upon their masters by -pricking their nostrils with the points of their lances. The slaves -who were to hurl stones had picked such as were too big, and they -accordingly fell close to them. The Punic foot-soldiers exposed the -right side in cutting with their long swords. The Barbarians broke -their lines; they slaughtered them freely; they stumbled over the -dying and dead, quite blinded by the blood that spurted into their -faces. The confused heap of pikes, helmets, cuirasses and swords -turned round about, widening out and closing in with elastic -contractions. The gaps increased more and more in the Carthaginian -cohorts, the engines could not get out of the sand; and finally the -Suffet's litter (his grand litter with crystal pendants), which from -the beginning might have been seen tossing among the soldiers like a -bark on the waves, suddenly foundered. He was no doubt dead. The -Barbarians found themselves alone. - -The dust around them fell and they were beginning to sing, when Hanno -himself appeared on the top of an elephant. He sat bare-headed beneath -a parasol of byssus which was carried by a Negro behind him. His -necklace of blue plates flapped against the flowers on his black -tunic; his huge arms were compressed within circles of diamonds, and -with open mouth he brandished a pike of inordinate size, which spread -out at the end like a lotus, and flashed more than a mirror. -Immediately the earth shook,--and the Barbarians saw all the elephants -of Carthage, with their gilt tusks and blue-painted ears, hastening up -in single line, clothed with bronze and shaking the leathern towers -which were placed above their scarlet caparisons, in each of which -were three archers bending large bows. - -The soldiers were barely in possession of their arms; they had taken -up their positions at random. They were frozen with terror; they stood -undecided. - -Javelins, arrows, phalaricas, and masses of lead were already being -showered down upon them from the towers. Some clung to the fringes of -the caparisons in order to climb up, but their hands were struck off -with cutlasses and they fell backwards upon the swords' points. The -pikes were too weak and broke, and the elephants passed through the -phalanxes like wild boars through tufts of grass; they plucked up the -stakes of the camp with their trunks, and traversed it from one end to -the other, overthrowing the tents with their breasts. All the -Barbarians had fled. They were hiding themselves in the hills -bordering the valley by which the Carthaginians had come. - -The victorious Hanno presented himself before the gates of Utica. He -had a trumpet sounded. The three Judges of the town appeared in the -opening of the battlements on the summit of a tower. - -But the people of Utica would not receive such well-armed guests. -Hanno was furious. At last they consented to admit him with a feeble -escort. - -The streets were too narrow for the elephants. They had to be left -outside. - -As soon as the Suffet was in the town the principal men came to greet -him. He had himself taken to the vapour baths, and called for his -cooks. - -Three hours afterwards he was still immersed in the oil of cinnamomum -with which the basin had been filled; and while he bathed he ate -flamingoes' tongues with honied poppy-seeds on a spread ox-hide. -Beside him was his Greek physician, motionless, in a long yellow robe, -directing the re-heating of the bath from time to time, and two young -boys leaned over the steps of the basin and rubbed his legs. But -attention to his body did not check his love for the commonwealth, for -he was dictating a letter to be sent to the Great Council, and as some -prisoners had just been taken he was asking himself what terrible -punishment could be devised. - -"Stop!" said he to a slave who stood writing in the hollow of his -hand. "Let some of them be brought to me! I wish to see them!" - -And from the bottom of the hall, full of a whitish vapour on which the -torches cast red spots, three Barbarians were thrust forward: a -Samnite, a Spartan, and a Cappadocian. - -"Proceed!" said Hanno. - -"Rejoice, light of the Baals! your Suffet has exterminated the -ravenous hounds! Blessings on the Republic! Give orders for prayers!" -He perceived the captives and burst out laughing: "Ah! ha! my fine -fellows of Sicca! You are not shouting so loudly to-day! It is I! Do -you recognise me? And where are your swords? What really terrible -fellows!" and he pretended to be desirous to hide himself as if he -were afraid of them. "You demanded horses, women, estates, -magistracies, no doubt, and priesthoods! Why not? Well, I will provide -you with the estates, and such as you will never come out of! You -shall be married to gibbets that are perfectly new! Your pay? it shall -be melted in your mouths in leaden ingots! and I will put you into -good and very exalted positions among the clouds, so as to bring you -close to the eagles!" - -The three long-haired and ragged Barbarians looked at him without -understanding what he said. Wounded in the knees, they had been seized -by having ropes thrown over them, and the ends of the great chains on -their hands trailed upon the pavement. Hanno was indignant at their -impassibility. - -"On your knees! on your knees! jackals! dust! vermin! excrements! And -they make no reply! Enough! be silent! Let them be flayed alive! No! -presently!" - -He was breathing like a hippopotamus and rolling his eyes. The -perfumed oil overflowed beneath the mass of his body, and clinging to -the scales on his skin, made it look pink in the light of the torches. - -He resumed: - -"For four days we suffered greatly from the sun. Some mules were lost -in crossing the Macaras. In spite of their position, the extraordinary -courage-- Ah! Demonades! how I suffer! Have the bricks reheated, and -let them be red-hot!" - -A noise of rakes and furnaces was heard. The incense smoked more -strongly in the large perfuming pans, and the shampooers, who were -quite naked and were sweating like sponges, crushed a paste composed -of wheat, sulphur, black wine, bitch's milk, myrrh, galbanum and -storax upon his joints. He was consumed with incessant thirst, but the -yellow-robed man did not yield to this inclination, and held out to -him a golden cup in which viper broth was smoking. - -"Drink!" said he, "that strength of sun-born serpents may penetrate -into the marrow of your bones, and take courage, O reflection of the -gods! You know, moreover, that a priest of Eschmoun watches those -cruel stars round the Dog from which your malady is derived. They are -growing pale like the spots on your skin, and you are not to die from -them." - -"Oh! yes, that is so, is it not?" repeated the Suffet, "I am not to -die from them!" And his violaceous lips gave forth a breath more -nauseous than the exhalation from a corpse. Two coals seemed to burn -in the place of his eyes, which had lost their eyebrows; a mass of -wrinkled skin hung over his forehead; both his ears stood out from his -head and were beginning to increase in size; and the deep lines -forming semicircles round his nostrils gave him a strange and -terrifying appearance, the look of a wild beast. His unnatural voice -was like a roar; he said: - -"Perhaps you are right, Demonades. In fact there are many ulcers here -which have closed. I feel robust. Here! look how I am eating!" - -And less from greediness than from ostentation, and the desire to -prove to himself that he was in good health, he cut into the -forcemeats of cheese and marjoram, the boned fish, gourds, oysters -with eggs, horse-radishes, truffles, and brochettes of small birds. As -he looked at the prisoners he revelled in the imagination of their -tortures. Nevertheless he remembered Sicca, and the rage caused by all -his woes found vent in the abuse of these three men. - -"Ah! traitors! ah! wretches! infamous, accursed creatures! And you -outraged me!--me! the Suffet! Their services, the price of their -blood, say they! Ah! yes! their blood! their blood!" Then speaking to -himself:--"All shall perish! not one shall be sold! It would be better -to bring them to Carthage! I should be seen--but doubtless, I have not -brought chains enough? Write: Send me--How many of them are there? go -and ask Muthumbal! Go! no pity! and let all their hands be cut off and -brought to me in baskets!" - -But strange cries at once hoarse and shrill penetrated into the hall -above Hanno's voice and the rattling of the dishes that were being -placed around him. They increased, and suddenly the furious trumpeting -of the elephants burst forth as if the battle were beginning again. A -great tumult was going on around the town. - -The Carthaginians had not attempted to pursue the Barbarians. They had -taken up their quarters at the foot of the walls with their baggage, -mules, serving men, and all their train of satraps; and they made -merry in their beautiful pearl-bordered tents, while the camp of the -Mercenaries was now nothing but a heap of ruins in the plain. Spendius -had recovered his courage. He dispatched Zarxas to Matho, scoured the -woods, rallied his men (the losses had been inconsiderable),--and they -were re-forming their lines enraged at having been conquered without a -fight, when they discovered a vat of petroleum which had no doubt been -abandoned by the Carthaginians. Then Spendius had some pigs carried -off from the farms, smeared them with bitumen, set them on fire, and -drove them towards Utica. - -The elephants were terrified by the flames and fled. The ground sloped -upwards, javelins were thrown at them, and they turned back;--and with -great blows of ivory and trampling feet they ripped up the -Carthaginians, stifled them, flattened them. The Barbarians descended -the hill behind them; the Punic camp, which was without entrenchments -was sacked at the first rush, and the Carthaginians were crushed -against the gates, which were not opened through fear of the -Mercenaries. - -Day broke, and Matho's foot-soldiers were seen coming up from the -west. At the same time horsemen appeared; they were Narr' Havas with -his Numidians. Leaping ravines and bushes they ran down the fugitives -like greyhounds pursuing hares. This change of fortune interrupted the -Suffet. He called out to be assisted to leave the vapour bath. - -The three captives were still before him. Then a Negro (the same who -had carried his parasol in the battle) leaned over to his ear. - -"Well?" replied the Suffet slowly. "Ah! kill them!" he added in an -abrupt tone. - -The Ethiopian drew a long dagger from his girdle and the three heads -fell. One of them rebounded among the remains of the feast, and leaped -into the basin, where it floated for some time with open mouth and -staring eyes. The morning light entered through the chinks in the -wall; the three bodies streamed with great bubbles like three -fountains, and a sheet of blood flowed over the mosaics with their -powdering of blue dust. The Suffet dipped his hand into this hot mire -and rubbed his knees with it: it was a cure. - -When evening had come he stole away from the town with his escort, and -made his way into the mountain to rejoin his army. - -He succeeded in finding the remains of it. - -Four days afterward he was on the top of a defile at Gorza, when the -troops under Spendius appeared below. Twenty stout lances might easily -have checked them by attacking the head of their column, but the -Carthaginians watched them pass by in a state of stupefaction. Hanno -recognised the king of the Numidians in the rearguard; Narr' Havas -bowed to him, at the same time making a sign which he did not -understand. - -The return to Carthage took place amid all kinds of terrors. They -marched only at night, hiding in the olive woods during the day. There -were deaths at every halting-place; several times they believed -themselves lost. At last they reached Cape Hermaeum, where vessels -came to receive them. - -Hanno was so fatigued, so desperate--the loss of the elephants in -particular overwhelmed him--that he demanded poison from Demonades in -order to put an end to it all. Moreover he could already feel himself -stretched upon the cross. - -Carthage had not strength enough to be indignant with him. Its losses -had amounted to one hundred thousand nine hundred and seventy-two -shekels of silver, fifteen thousand six hundred and twenty-three -shekels of gold, eighteen elephants, fourteen members of the Great -Council, three hundred of the rich, eight thousand citizens, corn -enough for three moons, a considerable quantity of baggage, and all -the engines of war! The defection of Narr' Havas was certain, and both -sieges were beginning again. The army under Autaritus now extended -from Tunis to Rhades. From the top of the Acropolis long columns of -smoke might be seen in the country ascending to the sky; they were the -mansions of the rich, which were on fire. - -One man alone could have saved the Republic. People repented that they -had slighted him, and the peace party itself voted holocausts for -Hamilcar's return. - -The sight of the zaimph had upset Salammbo. At night she thought that -she could hear the footsteps of the goddess, and she would awake -terrified and shrieking. Every day she sent food to the temples. -Taanach was worn out with executing her orders, and Schahabarim never -left her. - - - -CHAPTER VII - -HAMILCAR BARCA - -The Announcer of the Moons, who watched on the summit of the temple of -Eschmoun every night in order to signal the disturbances of the planet -with his trumpet, one morning perceived towards the west something -like a bird skimming the surface of the sea with its long wings. - -It was a ship with three tiers of oars and with a horse carved on the -prow. The sun was rising; the Announcer of the Moons put up his hand -before his eyes, and then grasping his clarion with outstretched arms -sounded a loud brazen cry over Carthage. - -People came out of every house; they would not believe what was said; -they disputed with one another; the mole was covered with people. At -last they recognised Hamilcar's trireme. - -It advanced in fierce and haughty fashion, cleaving the foam around -it, the lateen-yard quite square and the sail bulging down the whole -length of the mast; its gigantic oars kept time as they beat the -water; every now and then the extremity of the keel, which was shaped -like a plough-share, would appear, and the ivory-headed horse, rearing -both its feet beneath the spur which terminated the prow, would seem -to be speeding over the plains of the sea. - -As it rounded the promontory the wind ceased, the sail fell, and a man -was seen standing bareheaded beside the pilot. It was he, Hamilcar, -the Suffet! About his sides he wore gleaming sheets of steel; a red -cloak, fastened to his shoulders, left his arms visible; two pearls of -great length hung from his ears, and his black, bushy beard rested on -his breast. - -The galley, however, tossing amid the rocks, was proceeding along the -side of the mole, and the crowd followed it on the flag-stones, -shouting: - -"Greeting! blessing! Eye of Khamon! ah! deliver us! 'Tis the fault of -the rich! they want to put you to death! Take care of yourself, -Barca!" - -He made no reply, as if the loud clamour of oceans and battles had -completely deafened him. But when he was below the staircase leading -down from the Acropolis, Hamilcar raised his head, and looked with -folded arms upon the temple of Eschmoun. His gaze mounted higher -still, to the great pure sky; he shouted an order in a harsh voice to -his sailors; the trireme leaped forward; it grazed the idol set up at -the corner of the mole to stay the storms; and in the merchant -harbour, which was full of filth, fragments of wood, and rinds of -fruit, it pushed aside and crushed against the other ships moored to -stakes and terminating in crocodiles' jaws. The people hastened -thither, and some threw themselves into the water to swim to it. It -was already at the very end before the gate which bristled with nails. -The gate rose, and the trireme disappeared beneath the deep arch. - -The Military Harbour was completely separated from the town; when -ambassadors arrived, they had to proceed between two walls through a -passage which had its outlet on the left in front of the temple of -Khamon. This great expanse of water was as round as a cup, and was -bordered with quays on which sheds were built for sheltering the -ships. Before each of these rose two pillars bearing the horns of -Ammon on their capitals and forming continuous porticoes all round the -basin. On an island in the centre stood a house for the marine Suffet. - -The water was so limpid that the bottom was visible with its paving of -white pebbles. The noise of the streets did not reach so far, and -Hamilcar as he passed recognised the triremes which he had formerly -commanded. - -Not more than twenty perhaps remained, under shelter on the land, -leaning over on their sides or standing upright on their keels, with -lofty poops and swelling prows, and covered with gildings and mystic -symbols. The chimaeras had lost their wings, the Pataec Gods their -arms, the bulls their silver horns;--and half-painted, motionless, and -rotten as they were, yet full of associations, and still emitting the -scent of voyages, they all seemed to say to him, like mutilated -soldiers on seeing their master again, "'Tis we! 'tis we! and YOU too -are vanquished!" - -No one excepting the marine Suffet might enter the admiral's house. So -long as there was no proof of his death he was considered as still in -existence. In this way the Ancients avoided a master the more, and -they had not failed to comply with the custom in respect to Hamilcar. - -The Suffet proceeded into the deserted apartments. At every step he -recognised armour and furniture--familiar objects which nevertheless -astonished him, and in a perfuming-pan in the vestibule there even -remained the ashes of the perfumes that had been kindled at his -departure for the conjuration of Melkarth. It was not thus that he had -hoped to return. Everything that he had done, everything that he had -seen, unfolded itself in his memory: assaults, conflagrations, -legions, tempests, Drepanum, Syracuse, Lilybaeum, Mount Etna, the -plateau of Eryx, five years of battles,--until the fatal day when arms -had been laid down and Sicily had been lost. Then he once more saw the -woods of citron-trees, and herdsmen with their goats on grey -mountains; and his heart leaped at the thought of the establishment of -another Carthage down yonder. His projects and his recollections -buzzed through his head, which was still dizzy from the pitching of -the vessel; he was overwhelmed with anguish, and, becoming suddenly -weak, he felt the necessity of drawing near to the gods. - -Then he went up to the highest story of his house, and taking a nail- -studded staple from a golden shell, which hung on his arm, he opened a -small oval chamber. - -It was softly lighted by means of delicate black discs let into the -wall and as transparent as glass. Between the rows of these equal -discs, holes, like those for the urns in columbaria, were hollowed -out. Each of them contained a round dark stone, which appeared to be -very heavy. Only people of superior understanding honoured these -abaddirs, which had fallen from the moon. By their fall they denoted -the stars, the sky, and fire; by their colour dark night, and by their -density the cohesion of terrestrial things. A stifling atmosphere -filled this mystic place. The round stones lying in the niches were -whitened somewhat with sea-sand which the wind had no doubt driven -through the door. Hamilcar counted them one after another with the tip -of his finger; then he hid his face in a saffron-coloured veil, and, -falling on his knees, stretched himself on the ground with both arms -extended. - -The daylight outside was beginning to strike on the folding shutters -of black lattice-work. Arborescences, hillocks, eddies, and ill- -defined animals appeared in their diaphanous thickness; and the light -came terrifying and yet peaceful as it must be behind the sun in the -dull spaces of future creations. He strove to banish from his thoughts -all forms, and all symbols and appellations of the gods, that he might -the better apprehend the immutable spirit which outward appearances -took away. Something of the planetary vitalities penetrated him, and -he felt withal a wiser and more intimate scorn of death and of every -accident. When he rose he was filled with serene fearlessness and was -proof against pity or dread, and as his chest was choking he went to -the top of the tower which overlooked Carthage. - -The town sank downwards in a long hollow curve, with its cupolas, its -temples, its golden roofs, its houses, its clusters of palm trees here -and there, and its glass balls with streaming rays, while the ramparts -formed, as it were, the gigantic border of this horn of plenty which -poured itself out before him. Far below he could see the harbours, the -squares, the interiors of the courts, the plan of the streets, and the -people, who seemed very small and but little above the level of the -pavement. Ah! if Hanno had not arrived too late on the morning of the -Aegatian islands! He fastened his eyes on the extreme horizon and -stretched forth his quivering arms in the direction of Rome. - -The steps of the Acropolis were occupied by the multitude. In the -square of Khamon the people were pressing forwards to see the Suffet -come out, and the terraces were gradually being loaded with people; a -few recognised him, and he was saluted; but he retired in order the -better to excite the impatience of the people. - -Hamilcar found the most important men of his party below in the hall: -Istatten, Subeldia, Hictamon, Yeoubas and others. They related to him -all that had taken place since the conclusion of the peace: the greed -of the Ancients, the departure of the soldiers, their return, their -demands, the capture of Gisco, the theft of the zaimph, the relief and -subsequent abandonment of Utica; but no one ventured to tell him of -the events which concerned himself. At last they separated, to meet -again during the night at the assembly of the Ancients in the temple -of Moloch. - -They had just gone out when a tumult arose outside the door. Some one -was trying to enter in spite of the servants; and as the disturbance -was increasing Hamilcar ordered the stranger to be shown in. - -An old Negress made her appearance, broken, wrinkled, trembling, -stupid-looking, wrapped to the heels in ample blue veils. She advanced -face to face with the Suffet, and they looked at each other for some -time; suddenly Hamilcar started; at a wave of his hand the slaves -withdrew. Then, signing to her to walk with precaution, he drew her by -the arm into a remote apartment. - -The Negress threw herself upon the floor to kiss his feet; he raised -her brutally. - -"Where have you left him, Iddibal?" - -"Down there, Master;" and extricating herself from her veils, she -rubbed her face with her sleeve; the black colour, the senile -trembling, the bent figure disappeared, and there remained a strong -old man whose skin seemed tanned by sand, wind, and sea. A tuft of -white hair rose on his skull like the crest of a bird; and he -indicated his disguise, as it lay on the ground, with an ironic -glance. - -"You have done well, Iddibal! 'Tis well!" Then piercing him, as it -were, with his keen gaze: "No one yet suspects?" - -The old man swore to him by the Kabiri that the mystery had been kept. -They never left their cottage, which was three days' journey from -Hadrumetum, on a shore peopled with turtles, and with palms on the -dune. "And in accordance with your command, O Master! I teach him to -hurl the javelin and to drive a team." - -"He is strong, is he not?" - -"Yes, Master, and intrepid as well! He has no fear of serpents, or -thunder, or phantoms. He runs bare-footed like a herdsman along the -brinks of precipices." - -"Speak! speak!" - -"He invents snares for wild beasts. Would you believe it, that last -moon he surprised an eagle; he dragged it away, and the bird's blood -and the child's were scattered in the air in large drops like driven -roses. The animal in its fury enwrapped him in the beating of its -wings; he strained it against his breast, and as it died his laughter -increased, piercing and proud like the clashing of swords." - -Hamilcar bent his head, dazzled by such presages of greatness. - -"But he has been for some time restless and disturbed. He gazes at the -sails passing far out at sea; he is melancholy, he rejects bread, he -inquires about the gods, and he wishes to become acquainted with -Carthage." - -"No, no! not yet!" exclaimed the Suffet. - -The old slave seemed to understand the peril which alarmed Hamilcar, -and he resumed: - -"How is he to be restrained? Already I am obliged to make him -promises, and I have come to Carthage only to buy him a dagger with a -silver handle and pearls all around it." Then he told how, having -perceived the Suffet on the terrace, he had passed himself off on the -warders of the harbour as one of Salammbo's women, so as to make his -way in to him. - -Hamilcar remained for a long time apparently lost in deliberation; at -last he said: - -"To-morrow you will present yourself at sunset behind the purple -factories in Megara, and imitate a jackal's cry three times. If you do -not see me, you will return to Carthage on the first day of every -moon. Forget nothing! Love him! You may speak to him now about -Hamilcar." - -The slave resumed his costume, and they left the house and the harbour -together. - -Hamilcar went on his way alone on foot and without an escort, for the -meetings of the Ancients were, under extraordinary circumstances, -always secret, and were resorted to mysteriously. - -At first he went along the western front of the Acropolis, and then -passed through the Green Market, the galleries of Kinisdo, and the -Perfumers' suburb. The scattered lights were being extinguished, the -broader streets grew still, then shadows glided through the darkness. -They followed him, others appeared, and like him they all directed -their course towards the Mappalian district. - -The temple of Moloch was built at the foot of a steep defile in a -sinister spot. From below nothing could be seen but lofty walls rising -indefinitely like those of a monstrous tomb. The night was gloomy, a -greyish fog seemed to weigh upon the sea, which beat against the cliff -with a noise as of death-rattles and sobs; and the shadows gradually -vanished as if they had passed through the walls. - -But as soon as the doorway was crossed one found oneself in a vast -quadrangular court bordered by arcades. In the centre rose a mass of -architecture with eight equal faces. It was surmounted by cupolas -which thronged around a second story supporting a kind of rotunda, -from which sprang a cone with a re-entrant curve and terminating in a -ball on the summit. - -Fires were burning in cylinders of filigree-work fitted upon poles, -which men were carrying to and fro. These lights flickered in the -gusts of wind and reddened the golden combs which fastened their -plaited hair on the nape of the neck. They ran about calling to one -another to receive the Ancients. - -Here and there on the flag-stones huge lions were couched like -sphinxes, living symbols of the devouring sun. They were slumbering -with half-closed eyelids. But roused by the footsteps and voices they -rose slowly, came towards the Ancients, whom they recognised by their -dress, and rubbed themselves against their thighs, arching their backs -with sonorous yawns; the vapour of their breath passed across the -light of the torches. The stir increased, doors closed, all the -priests fled, and the Ancients disappeared beneath the columns which -formed a deep vestibule round the temple. - -These columns were arranged in such a way that their circular ranks, -which were contained one within another, showed the Saturnian period -with its years, the years with their months, and the months with their -days, and finally reached to the walls of the sanctuary. - -Here it was that the Ancients laid aside their sticks of narwhal's- -horn,--for a law which was always observed inflicted the punishment of -death upon any one entering the meeting with any kind of weapon. -Several wore a rent repaired with a strip of purple at the bottom of -their garment, to show that they had not been economical in their -dress when mourning for their relatives, and this testimony to their -affliction prevented the slit from growing larger. Others had their -beards inclosed in little bags of violet skin, and fastened to their -ears by two cords. They all accosted one another by embracing breast -to breast. They surrounded Hamilcar with congratulations; they might -have been taken for brothers meeting their brother again. - -These men were generally thick-set, with curved noses like those of -the Assyrian colossi. In a few, however, the more prominent cheek- -bone, the taller figure, and the narrower foot, betrayed an African -origin and nomad ancestors. Those who lived continually shut up in -their counting-houses had pale faces; others showed in theirs the -severity of the desert, and strange jewels sparkled on all the fingers -of their hands, which were burnt by unknown suns. The navigators might -be distinguished by their rolling gait, while the men of agriculture -smelt of the wine-press, dried herbs, and the sweat of mules. These -old pirates had lands under tillage, these money-grubbers would fit -out ships, these proprietors of cultivated lands supported slaves who -followed trades. All were skilled in religious discipline, expert in -strategy, pitiless and rich. They looked wearied of prolonged cares. -Their flaming eyes expressed distrust, and their habits of travelling -and lying, trafficking and commanding, gave an appearance of cunning -and violence, a sort of discreet and convulsive brutality to their -whole demeanour. Further, the influence of the god cast a gloom upon -them. - -They first passed through a vaulted hall which was shaped like an egg. -Seven doors, corresponding to the seven planets, displayed seven -squares of different colours against the wall. After traversing a long -room they entered another similar hall. - -A candelabrum completely covered with chiselled flowers was burning at -the far end, and each of its eight golden branches bore a wick of -byssus in a diamond chalice. It was placed upon the last of the long -steps leading to a great altar, the corners of which terminated in -horns of brass. Two lateral staircases led to its flattened summit; -the stones of it could not be seen; it was like a mountain of heaped -cinders, and something indistinct was slowly smoking at the top of it. -Then further back, higher than the candelabrum, and much higher than -the altar, rose the Moloch, all of iron, and with gaping apertures in -his human breast. His outspread wings were stretched upon the wall, -his tapering hands reached down to the ground; three black stones -bordered by yellow circles represented three eyeballs on his brow, and -his bull's head was raised with a terrible effort as if in order to -bellow. - -Ebony stools were ranged round the apartment. Behind each of them was -a bronze shaft resting on three claws and supporting a torch. All -these lights were reflected in the mother-of-pearl lozenges which -formed the pavement of the hall. So lofty was the latter that the red -colour of the walls grew black as it rose towards the vaulted roof, -and the three eyes of the idol appeared far above like stars half lost -in the night. - -The Ancients sat down on the ebony stools after putting the trains of -their robes over their heads. They remained motionless with their -hands crossed inside their broad sleeves, and the mother-of-pearl -pavement seemed like a luminous river streaming from the altar to the -door and flowing beneath their naked feet. - -The four pontiffs had their places in the centre, sitting back to back -on four ivory seats which formed a cross, the high-priest of Eschmoun -in a hyacinth robe, the high-priest of Tanith in a white linen robe, -the high-priest of Khamon in a tawny woollen robe, and the high-priest -of Moloch in a purple robe. - -Hamilcar advanced towards the candelabrum. He walked all round it, -looking at the burning wicks; then he threw a scented powder upon -them, and violet flames appeared at the extremities of the branches. - -Then a shrill voice rose; another replied to it, and the hundred -Ancients, the four pontiffs, and Hamilcar, who remained standing, -simultaneously intoned a hymn, and their voices--ever repeating the -same syllables and strengthening the sounds--rose, grew loud, became -terrible, and then suddenly were still. - -There was a pause for some time. At last Hamilcar drew from his breast -a little three-headed statuette, as blue as sapphire, and placed it -before him. It was the image of Truth, the very genius of his speech. -Then he replaced it in his bosom, and all, as if seized with sudden -wrath, cried out: - -"They are good friends of yours, are the Barbarians! Infamous traitor! -You come back to see us perish, do you not? Let him speak!--No! no!" - -They were taking their revenge for the constraint to which political -ceremonial had just obliged them; and even though they had wished for -Hamilcar's return, they were now indignant that he had not anticipated -their disasters, or rather that he had not endured them as well as -they. - -When the tumult had subsided, the pontiff of Moloch rose: - -"We ask you why you did not return to Carthage?" - -"What is that to you?" replied the Suffet disdainfully. - -Their shouts were redoubled. - -"Of what do you accuse me? I managed the war badly, perhaps! You have -seen how I order my battles, you who conveniently allow Barbarians--" - -"Enough! enough!" - -He went on in a low voice so as to make himself the better listened -to: - -"Oh! that is true! I am wrong, lights of the Baals; there are intrepid -men among you! Gisco, rise!" And surveying the step of the altar with -half-closed eyelids, as if he sought for some one, he repeated: - -"Rise, Gisco! You can accuse me; they will protect you! But where is -he?" Then, as if he remembered himself: "Ah! in his house, no doubt! -surrounded by his sons, commanding his slaves, happy, and counting on -the wall the necklaces of honour which his country has given to him!" - -They moved about raising their shoulders as if they were being -scourged with thongs. "You do not even know whether he is living or -dead!" And without giving any heed to their clamours he said that in -deserting the Suffet they had deserted the Republic. So, too, the -peace with Rome, however advantageous it might appear to them, was -more fatal than twenty battles. A few--those who were the least rich -of the Council and were suspected of perpetual leanings towards the -people or towards tyranny--applauded. Their opponents, chiefs of the -Syssitia and administrators, triumphed over them in point of numbers; -and the more eminent of them had ranged themselves close to Hanno, who -was sitting at the other end of the hall before the lofty door, which -was closed by a hanging of hyacinth colour. - -He had covered the ulcers on his face with paint. But the gold dust in -his hair had fallen upon his shoulders, where it formed two brilliant -sheets, so that his hair appeared whitish, fine, and frizzled like -wool. His hands were enveloped in linen soaked in a greasy perfume, -which dripped upon the pavement, and his disease had no doubt -considerably increased, for his eyes were hidden beneath the folds of -his eyelids. He had thrown back his head in order to see. His -partisans urged him to speak. At last in a hoarse and hideous voice he -said: - -"Less arrogance, Barca! We have all been vanquished! Each one supports -his own misfortune! Be resigned!" - -"Tell us rather," said Hamilcar, smiling, "how it was that you steered -your galleys into the Roman fleet?" - -"I was driven by the wind," replied Hanno. - -"You are like a rhinoceros trampling on his dung: you are displaying -your own folly! be silent!" And they began to indulge in -recriminations respecting the battle of the Aegatian islands. - -Hanno accused him of not having come to meet him. - -"But that would have left Eryx undefended. You ought to have stood out -from the coast; what prevented you? Ah! I forgot! all elephants are -afraid of the sea!" - -Hamilcar's followers thought this jest so good that they burst out -into loud laughter. The vault rang with it like the beating of -tympanums. - -Hanno denounced the unworthiness of such an insult; the disease had -come upon him from a cold taken at the siege of Hecatompylos, and -tears flowed down his face like winter rain on a ruined wall. - -Hamilcar resumed: - -"If you had loved me as much as him there would be great joy in -Carthage now! How many times did I not call upon you! and you always -refused me money!" - -"We had need of it," said the chiefs of the Syssitia. - -"And when things were desperate with me--we drank mules' urine and ate -the straps of our sandals; when I would fain have had the blades of -grass soldiers and made battalions with the rottenness of our dead, -you recalled the vessels that I had left!" - -"We could not risk everything," replied Baat-Baal, who possessed gold -mines in Darytian Gaetulia. - -"But what did you do here, at Carthage, in your houses, behind your -walls? There are Gauls on the Eridanus, who ought to have been roused, -Chanaanites at Cyrene who would have come, and while the Romans send -ambassadors to Ptolemaeus--" - -"Now he is extolling the Romans to us!" Some one shouted out to him: -"How much have they paid you to defend them?" - -"Ask that of the plains of Brutium, of the ruins of Locri, of -Metapontum, and of Heraclea! I have burnt all their trees, I have -pillaged all their temples, and even to the death of their -grandchildren's grandchildren--" - -"Why, you disclaim like a rhetor!" said Kapouras, a very illustrious -merchant. "What is it that you want?" - -"I say that we must be more ingenious or more terrible! If the whole -of Africa rejects your yoke the reason is, my feeble masters, that you -do not know how to fasten it to her shoulders! Agathocles, Regulus, -Coepio, any bold man has only to land and capture her; and when the -Libyans in the east concert with the Numidians in the west, and the -Nomads come from the south, and the Romans from the north"--a cry of -horror rose--"Oh! you will beat your breasts, and roll in the dust, -and tear your cloaks! No matter! you will have to go and turn the -mill-stone in the Suburra, and gather grapes on the hills of Latium." - -They smote their right thighs to mark their sense of the scandal, and -the sleeves of their robes rose like large wings of startled birds. -Hamilcar, carried away by a spirit, continued his speech, standing on -the highest step of the altar, quivering and terrible; he raised his -arms, and the rays from the candelabrum which burned behind him passed -between his fingers like javelins of gold. - -"You will lose your ships, your country seats, your chariots, your -hanging beds, and the slaves who rub your feet! The jackal will crouch -in your palaces, and the ploughshare will upturn your tombs. Nothing -will be left but the eagles' scream and a heap of ruins. Carthage, -thou wilt fall!" - -The four pontiffs spread out their hands to avert the anathema. All -had risen. But the marine Suffet, being a sacerdotal magistrate under -the protection of the Sun, was inviolate so long as the assembly of -the rich had not judged him. Terror was associated with the altar. -They drew back. - -Hamilcar had ceased speaking, and was panting with eye fixed, his face -as pale as the pearls of his tiara, almost frightened at himself, and -his spirit lost in funereal visions. From the height on which he -stood, all the torches on the bronze shafts seemed to him like a vast -crown of fire laid level with the pavement; black smoke issuing from -them mounted up into the darkness of the vault; and for some minutes -the silence was so profound that they could hear in the distance the -sound of the sea. - -Then the Ancients began to question one another. Their interests, -their existence, were attacked by the Barbarians. But it was -impossible to conquer them without the assistance of the Suffet, and -in spite of their pride this consideration made them forget every -other. His friends were taken aside. There were interested -reconciliations, understandings, and promises. Hamilcar would not take -any further part in any government. All conjured him. They besought -him; and as the word treason occurred in their speech, he fell into a -passion. The sole traitor was the Great Council, for as the enlistment -of the soldiers expired with the war, they became free as soon as the -war was finished; he even exalted their bravery and all the advantages -which might be derived from interesting them in the Republic by -donations and privileges. - -Then Magdassin, a former provincial governor, said, as he rolled his -yellow eyes: - -"Truly Barca, with your travelling you have become a Greek, or a -Latin, or something! Why speak you of rewards for these men? Rather -let ten thousand Barbarians perish than a single one of us!" - -The Ancients nodded approval, murmuring:--"Yes, is there need for so -much trouble? They can always be had?" - -"And they can be got rid of conveniently, can they not? They are -deserted as they were by you in Sardinia. The enemy is apprised of the -road which they are to take, as in the case of those Gauls in Sicily, -or perhaps they are disembarked in the middle of the sea. As I was -returning I saw the rock quite white with their bones!" - -"What a misfortune!" said Kapouras impudently. - -"Have they not gone over to the enemy a hundred times?" cried the -others. - -"Why, then," exclaimed Hamilcar, "did you recall them to Carthage, -notwithstanding your laws? And when they are in your town, poor and -numerous amid all your riches, it does not occur to you to weaken them -by the slightest division! Afterwards you dismiss the whole of them -with their women and children, without keeping a single hostage! Did -you expect that they would murder themselves to spare you the pain of -keeping your oaths? You hate them because they are strong! You hate me -still more, who am their master! Oh! I felt it just now when you were -kissing my hands and were all putting a constraint upon yourselves not -to bite them!" - -If the lions that were sleeping in the court had come howling in, the -uproar could not have been more frightful. But the pontiff of Eschmoun -rose, and, standing perfectly upright, with his knees close together, -his elbows pressed to his body, and his hands half open, he said: - -"Barca, Carthage has need that you should take the general command of -the Punic forces against the Mercenaries!" - -"I refuse," replied Hamilcar. - -"We will give you full authority," cried the chiefs of the Syssitia. - -"No!" - -"With no control, no partition, all the money that you want, all the -captives, all the booty, fifty zereths of land for every enemy's -corpse." - -"No! no! because it is impossible to conquer with you!" - -"He is afraid!" - -"Because you are cowardly, greedy, ungrateful, pusillanimous and mad!" - -"He is careful of them!" - -"In order to put himself at their head," said some one. - -"And return against us," said another; and from the bottom of the hall -Hanno howled: - -"He wants to make himself king!" - -Then they bounded up, overturning the seats and the torches: the crowd -of them rushed towards the altar; they brandished daggers. But -Hamilcar dived into his sleeves and drew from them two broad -cutlasses; and half stooping, his left foot advanced, his eyes flaming -and his teeth clenched, he defied them as he stood there beneath the -golden candelabrum. - -Thus they had brought weapons with them as a precaution; it was a -crime; they looked with terror at one another. As all were guilty, -every one became quickly reassured; and by degrees they turned their -backs on the Suffet and came down again maddened with humiliation. For -the second time they recoiled before him. They remained standing for -some time. Several who had wounded their fingers put them to their -mouths or rolled them gently in the hem of their mantles, and they -were about to depart when Hamilcar heard these words: - -"Why! it is a piece of delicacy to avoid distressing his daughter!" - -A louder voice was raised: - -"No doubt, since she takes her lovers from among the Mercenaries!" - -At first he tottered, then his eye rapidly sought for Schahabarim. But -the priest of Tanith had alone remained in his place; and Hamilcar -could see only his lofty cap in the distance. All were sneering in his -face. In proportion as his anguish increased their joy redoubled, and -those who were behind shouted amid the hootings: - -"He was seen coming out of her room!" - -"One morning in the month of Tammouz!" - -"It was the thief who stole the zaimph!" - -"A very handsome man!" - -"Taller than you!" - -He snatched off the tiara, the ensign of his rank--his tiara with its -eight mystic rows, and with an emerald shell in the centre--and with -both hands and with all his strength dashed it to the ground; the -golden circles rebounded as they broke, and the pearls rang upon the -pavement. Then they saw a long scar upon the whiteness of his brow; it -moved like a serpent between his eyebrows; all his limbs trembled. He -ascended one of the lateral staircases which led on to the altar, and -walked upon the latter! This was to devote himself to the god, to -offer himself as a holocaust. The motion of his mantle agitated the -lights of the candelabrum, which was lower than his sandals, and the -fine dust raised by his footsteps surrounded him like a cloud as high -as the waist. He stopped between the legs of the brass colossus. He -took up two handfuls of the dust, the mere sight of which made every -Carthaginian shudder with horror, and said: - -"By the hundred torches of your Intelligences! by the eight fires of -the Kabiri! by the stars, the meteors, and the volcanoes! by -everything that burns! by the thirst of the desert and the saltness of -the ocean! by the cave of Hadrumetum and the empire of Souls! by -extermination! by the ashes of your sons and the ashes of the brothers -of your ancestors with which I now mingle my own!--you, the Hundred of -the Council of Carthage, have lied in your accusation of my daughter! -And I, Hamilcar Barca, marine Suffet, chief of the rich and ruler of -the people, in the presence of bull-headed Moloch, I swear"--they -expected something frightful, but he resumed in a loftier and calmer -tone--"that I will not even speak to her about it!" - -The sacred servants entered wearing their golden combs, some with -purple sponges and others with branches of palm. They raised the -hyacinth curtain which was stretched before the door; and through the -opening of this angle there was visible behind the other halls the -great pink sky which seemed to be a continuation of the vault and to -rest at the horizon upon the blue sea. The sun was issuing from the -waves and mounting upwards. It suddenly struck upon the breast of the -brazen colossus, which was divided into seven compartments closed by -gratings. His red-toothed jaws opened in a horrible yawn; his enormous -nostrils were dilated, the broad daylight animated him, and gave him a -terrible and impatient aspect, as if he would fain have leaped without -to mingle with the star, the god, and together traverse the -immensities. - -The torches, however, which were scattered on the ground, were still -burning, while here and there on the mother-of-pearl pavement was -stretched from them what looked like spots of blood. The Ancients were -reeling from exhaustion; they filled their lungs inhaling the -freshness of the air; the sweat flowed down their livid faces; they -had shouted so much that they could now scarcely make their voices -heard. But their wrath against the Suffet was not at all abated; they -hurled menaces at him by way of farewells, and Hamilcar answered them -again. - -"Until the next night, Barca, in the temple of Eschmoun!" - -"I shall be there!" - -"We will have you condemned by the rich!" - -"And I you by the people!" - -"Take care that you do not end on the cross!" - -"And you that you are not torn to pieces in the streets!" - -As soon as they were on the threshold of the court they again assumed -a calm demeanour. - -Their runners and coachmen were waiting for them at the door. Most of -them departed on white mules. The Suffet leaped into his chariot and -took the reins; the two animals, curving their necks, and rhythmically -beating the resounding pebbles, went up the whole of the Mappalian Way -at full gallop, and the silver vulture at the extremity of the pole -seemed to fly, so quickly did the chariot pass along. - -The road crossed a field planted with slabs of stone, which were -painted on the top like pyramids, and had open hands carved out in the -centre as if all the dead men lying beneath had stretched them out -towards heaven to demand something. Next there came scattered cabins -built of earth, branches, and bulrush-hurdles, and all of a conical -shape. These dwellings, which became constantly denser as the road -ascended towards the Suffet's gardens, were irregularly separated from -one another by little pebble walls, trenches of spring water, ropes of -esparto-grass, and nopal hedges. But Hamilcar's eyes were fastened on -a great tower, the three storys of which formed three monster -cylinders--the first being built of stone, the second of brick, and -the third all of cedar--supporting a copper cupola upon twenty-four -pillars of juniper, from which slender interlacing chains of brass -hung down after the manner of garlands. This lofty edifice overlooked -the buildings--the emporiums and mercantile houses--which stretched to -the right, while the women's palace rose at the end of the cypress -trees, which were ranged in line like two walls of bronze. - -When the echoing chariot had entered through the narrow gateway it -stopped beneath a broad shed in which there were shackled horses -eating from heaps of chopped grass. - -All the servants hastened up. They formed quite a multitude, those who -worked on the country estates having been brought to Carthage through -fear of the soldiers. The labourers, who were clad in animals' skins, -had chains riveted to their ankles and trailing after them; the -workers in the purple factories had arms as red as those of -executioners; the sailors wore green caps; the fishermen coral -necklaces; the huntsmen carried nets on their shoulders; and the -people belonging to Megara wore black or white tunics, leathern -drawers, and caps of straw, felt or linen, according to their service -or their different occupations. - -Behind pressed a tattered populace. They lived without employment -remote from the apartments, slept at night in the gardens, ate the -refuse from the kitchens,--a human mouldiness vegetating in the shadow -of the palace. Hamilcar tolerated them from foresight even more than -from scorn. They had all put a flower in the ear in token of their -joy, and many of them had never seen him. - -But men with head-dresses like the Sphinx's, and furnished with great -sticks, dashed into the crowd, striking right and left. This was to -drive back the slaves, who were curious to see their master, so that -he might not be assailed by their numbers or inconvenienced by their -smell. - -Then they all threw themselves flat on the ground, crying: - -"Eye of Baal, may your house flourish!" And through these people as -they lay thus on the ground in the avenue of cypress trees, Abdalonim, -the Steward of the stewards, waving a white miter, advanced towards -Hamilcar with a censer in his hand. - -Salammbo was then coming down the galley staircases. All her slave -women followed her; and, at each of her steps, they also descended. -The heads of the Negresses formed big black spots on the line of the -bands of the golden plates clasping the foreheads of the Roman women. -Others had silver arrows, emerald butterflies, or long bodkins set -like suns in their hair. Rings, clasps, necklaces, fringes, and -bracelets shone amid the confusion of white, yellow, and blue -garments; a rustling of light material became audible; the pattering -of sandals might be heard together with the dull sound of naked feet -as they were set down on the wood;--and here and there a tall eunuch, -head and shoulders above them, smiled with his face in air. When the -shouting of the men had subsided they hid their faces in their -sleeves, and together uttered a strange cry like the howling of a she- -wolf, and so frenzied and strident was it that it seemed to make the -great ebony staircase, with its thronging women, vibrate from top to -bottom like a lyre. - -The wind lifted their veils, and the slender stems of the papyrus -plant rocked gently. It was the month of Schebaz and the depth of -winter. The flowering pomegranates swelled against the azure of the -sky, and the sea disappeared through the branches with an island in -the distance half lost in the mist. - -Hamilcar stopped on perceiving Salammbo. She had come to him after the -death of several male children. Moreover, the birth of daughters was -considered a calamity in the religions of the Sun. The gods had -afterwards sent him a son; but he still felt something of the betrayal -of his hope, and the shock, as it were, of the curse which he had -uttered against her. Salammbo, however, continued to advance. - -Long bunches of various-coloured pearls fell from her ears to her -shoulders, and as far as her elbows. Her hair was crisped so as to -simulate a cloud. Round her neck she wore little quadrangular plates -of gold, representing a woman between two rampant lions; and her -costume was a complete reproduction of the equipment of the goddess. -Her broad-sleeved hyacinth robe fitted close to her figure, widening -out below. The vermilion on her lips gave additional whiteness to her -teeth, and the antimony on her eyelids greater length to her eyes. Her -sandals, which were cut out in bird's plumage, had very high heels, -and she was extraordinarily pale, doubtless on account of the cold. - -At last she came close to Hamilcar, and without looking at him, -without raising her head to him: - -"Greeting, eye of Baalim, eternal glory! triumph! leisure! -satisfaction! riches! Long has my heart been sad and the house -drooping. But the returning master is like reviving Tammouz; and -beneath your gaze, O father, joyfulness and a new existence will -everywhere prevail!" - -And taking from Taanach's hands a little oblong vase wherein smoked a -mixture of meal, butter, cardamom, and wine: "Drink freely," said she, -"of the returning cup, which your servant has prepared!" - -He replied: "A blessing upon you!" and he mechanically grasped the -golden vase which she held out to him. - -He scanned her, however, with such harsh attention, that Salammbo was -troubled and stammered out: - -"They have told you, O Master!" - -"Yes! I know!" said Hamilcar in a low voice. - -Was this a confession, or was she speaking of the Barbarians? And he -added a few vague words upon the public embarrassments which he hoped -by his sole efforts to clear away. - -"O father!" exclaimed Salammbo, "you will not obliterate what is -irreparable!" - -Then he drew back and Salammbo was astonished at his amazement; for -she was not thinking of Carthage but of the sacrilege in which she -found herself implicated. This man, who made legions tremble and whom -she hardly knew, terrified her like a god; he had guessed, he knew -all, something awful was about to happen. "Pardon!" she cried. - -Hamilcar slowly bowed his head. - -Although she wished to accuse herself she dared not open her lips; and -yet she felt stifled with the need of complaining and being comforted. -Hamilcar was struggling against a longing to break his oath. He kept -it out of pride or from the dread of putting an end to his -uncertainty; and he looked into her face with all his might so as to -lay hold on what she kept concealed at the bottom of her heart. - -By degrees the panting Salammbo, crushed by such heavy looks, let her -head sink below her shoulders. He was now sure that she had erred in -the embrace of a Barbarian; he shuddered and raised both his fists. -She uttered a shriek and fell down among her women, who crowded around -her. - -Hamilcar turned on his heel. All the stewards followed him. - -The door of the emporiums was opened, and he entered a vast round hall -form which long passages leading to other halls branched off like the -spokes from the nave of a wheel. A stone disc stood in the centre with -balustrades to support the cushions that were heaped up upon carpets. - -The Suffet walked at first with rapid strides; he breathed noisily, he -struck the ground with his heel, and drew his hand across his forehead -like a man annoyed by flies. But he shook his head, and as he -perceived the accumulation of his riches he became calm; his thoughts, -which were attracted by the vistas in the passages, wandered to the -other halls that were full of still rarer treasures. Bronze plates, -silver ingots, and iron bars alternated with pigs of tin brought from -the Cassiterides over the Dark Sea; gums from the country of the -Blacks were running over their bags of palm bark; and gold dust heaped -up in leathern bottles was insensibly creeping out through the worn- -out seams. Delicate filaments drawn from marine plants hung amid flax -from Egypt, Greece, Taprobane and Judaea; mandrepores bristled like -large bushes at the foot of the walls; and an indefinable odour--the -exhalation from perfumes, leather, spices, and ostrich feathers, the -latter tied in great bunches at the very top of the vault--floated -through the air. An arch was formed above the door before each passage -with elephants' teeth placed upright and meeting together at the -points. - -At last he ascended the stone disc. All the stewards stood with arms -folded and heads bent while Abdalonim reared his pointed mitre with a -haughty air. - -Hamilcar questioned the Chief of the Ships. He was an old pilot with -eyelids chafed by the wind, and white locks fell to his hips as if -dashing foam of the tempests had remained on his beard. - -He replied that he had sent a fleet by Gades and Thymiamata to try to -reach Eziongaber by doubling the Southern Horn and the promontory of -Aromata. - -Others had advanced continuously towards the west for four moons -without meeting with any shore; but the ships prows became entangled -in weeds, the horizon echoed continually with the noise of cataracts, -blood-coloured mists darkened the sun, a perfume-laden breeze lulled -the crews to sleep; and their memories were so disturbed that they -were now unable to tell anything. However, expeditions had ascended -the rivers of the Scythians, had made their way into Colchis, and into -the countries of the Jugrians and of the Estians, had carried off -fifteen hundred maidens in the Archipelago, and sunk all the strange -vessels sailing beyond Cape Oestrymon, so that the secret of the -routes should not be known. King Ptolemaeus was detaining the incense -from Schesbar; Syracuse, Elathia, Corsica, and the islands had -furnished nothing, and the old pilot lowered his voice to announce -that a trireme was taken at Rusicada by the Numidians,--"for they are -with them, Master." - -Hamilcar knit his brows; then he signed to the Chief of the Journeys -to speak. This functionary was enveloped in a brown, ungirdled robe, -and had his head covered with a long scarf of white stuff which passed -along the edge of his lips and fell upon his shoulder behind. - -The caravans had set out regularly at the winter equinox. But of -fifteen hundred men directing their course towards the extreme -boundaries of Ethiopia with excellent camels, new leathern bottles, -and supplies of painted cloth, but one had reappeared at Carthage--the -rest having died of fatigue or become mad through the terror of the -desert;--and he said that far beyond the Black Harousch, after passing -the Atarantes and the country of the great apes, he had seen immense -kingdoms, wherein the pettiest utensils were all of gold, a river of -the colour of milk and as broad as the sea, forests of blue trees, -hills of aromatics, monsters with human faces vegetating on the rocks -with eyeballs which expanded like flowers to look at you; and then -crystal mountains supporting the sun behind lakes all covered with -dragons. Others had returned from India with peacocks, pepper, and new -textures. As to those who go by way of the Syrtes and the temple of -Ammon to purchase chalcedony, they had no doubt perished in the sands. -The caravans from Gaetulia and Phazzana had furnished their usual -supplies; but he, the Chief of the Journeys, did not venture to fit -one out just now. - -Hamilcar understood; the Mercenaries were in occupation of the -country. He leaned upon his other elbow with a hollow groan; and the -Chief of Farms was so afraid to speak that he trembled horribly in -spite of his thick shoulders and his big red eyeballs. His face, which -was as snub-nosed as a mastiff's, was surmounted by a net woven of -threads of bark. He wore a waist-belt of hairy leopard's skin, wherein -gleamed two formidable cutlasses. - -As soon as Hamilcar turned away he began to cry aloud and invoke all -the Baals. It was not his fault! he could not help it! He had watched -the temperature, the soil, the stars, had planted at the winter -solstice and pruned at the waning of the moon, had inspected the -slaves and had been careful of their clothes. - -But Hamilcar grew angry at this loquacity. He clacked his tongue, and -the man with the cutlasses went on in rapid tones: - -"Ah, Master! they have pillaged everything! sacked everything! -destroyed everything! Three thousand trees have been cut down at -Maschala, and at Ubada the granaries have been looted and the cisterns -filled up! At Tedes they have carried off fifteen hundred gomors of -meal; at Marrazana they have killed the shepherds, eaten the flocks, -burnt your house--your beautiful house with its cedar beams, which you -used to visit in the summer! The slaves at Tuburbo who were reaping -barley fled to the mountains; and the asses, the mules both great and -small, the oxen from Taormina, and the antelopes,--not a single one -left! all carried away! It is a curse! I shall not survive it!" He -went on again in tears: "Ah! if you knew how full the cellars were, -and how the ploughshares shone! Ah! the fine rams! ah! the fine -bulls!--" - -Hamilcar's wrath was choking him. It burst forth: - -"Be silent! Am I a pauper then? No lies! speak the truth! I wish to -know all that I have lost to the last shekel, to the last cab! -Abdalonim, bring me the accounts of the ships, of the caravans, of the -farms, of the house! And if your consciences are not clear, woe be on -your heads! Go out!" - -All the stewards went out walking backwards, with their fists touching -the ground. - -Abdalonim went up to a set of pigeon-holes in the wall, and from the -midst of them took out knotted cords, strips of linen or papyrus, and -sheeps' shoulder-blades inscribed with delicate writing. He laid them -at Hamilcar's feet, placed in his hands a wooden frame furnished on -the inside with three threads on which balls of gold, silver, and horn -were strung, and began: - -"One hundred and ninety-two houses in the Mappalian district let to -the New Carthaginians at the rate of one bekah a moon." - -"No! it is too much! be lenient towards the poor people! and you will -try to learn whether they are attached to the Republic, and write down -the names of those who appear to you to be the most daring! What -next?" - -Abdalonim hesitated in surprise at such generosity. - -Hamilcar snatched the strips of linen from his hands. - -"What is this? three palaces around Khamon at twelve kesitahs a month! -Make it twenty! I do not want to be eaten up by the rich." - -The Steward of the stewards, after a long salutation, resumed: - -"Lent to Tigillas until the end of the season two kikars at three per -cent., maritime interest; to Bar-Malkarth fifteen hundred shekels on -the security of thirty slaves. But twelve have died in the salt- -marshes." - -"That is because they were not hardy," said the Suffet, laughing. "No -matter! if he is in want of money, satisfy him! We should always lend, -and at different rates of interest, according to the wealth of the -individual." - -Then the servant hastened to read all that had been brought in by the -iron-mines of Annaba, the coral fisheries, the purple factories, the -farming of the tax on the resident Greeks, the export of silver to -Arabia, where it had ten times the value of gold, and the captures of -vessels, deduction of a tenth being made for the temple of the -goddess. "Each time I declared a quarter less, Master!" Hamilcar was -reckoning with the balls; they rang beneath his fingers. - -"Enough! What have you paid?" - -"To Stratonicles of Corinth, and to three Alexandrian merchants, on -these letters here (they have been realised), ten thousand Athenian -drachmas, and twelve Syrian talents of gold. The food for the crews, -amounting to twenty minae a month for each trireme--" - -"I know! How many lost?" - -"Here is the account on these sheets of lead," said the Steward. "As -to the ships chartered in common, it has often been necessary to throw -the cargo into the seas, and so the unequal losses have been divided -among the partners. For the ropes which were borrowed from the -arsenals, and which it was impossible to restore, the Syssitia exacted -eight hundred kesitahs before the expedition to Utica." - -"They again!" said Hamilcar, hanging his head; and he remained for a -time as if quite crushed by the weight of all the hatreds that he -could feel upon him. "But I do not see the Megara expenses?" - -Abdalonim, turning pale, went to another set of pigeon-holes, and took -from them some planchettes of sycamore wood strung in packets on -leathern strings. - -Hamilcar, curious about these domestic details, listened to him and -grew calm with the monotony of the tones in which the figures were -enumerated. Abdalonim became slower. Suddenly he let the wooden sheets -fall to the ground and threw himself flat on his face with his arms -stretched out in the position of a condemned criminal. Hamilcar picked -up the tablets without any emotion; and his lips parted and his eyes -grew larger when he perceived an exorbitant consumption of meat, fish, -birds, wines, and aromatics, with broken vases, dead slaves, and -spoiled carpets set down as the expense of a single day. - -Abdalonim, still prostrate, told him of the feast of the Barbarians. -He had not been able to avoid the command of the Ancients. Moreover, -Salammbo desired money to be lavished for the better reception of the -soldiers. - -At his daughter's name Hamilcar leaped to his feet. Then with -compressed lips he crouched down upon the cushions, tearing the -fringes with his nails, and panting with staring eyes. - -"Rise!" said he; and he descended. - -Abdalonim followed him; his knees trembled. But seizing an iron bar he -began like one distraught to loosen the paving stones. A wooden disc -sprang up and soon there appeared throughout the length of the passage -several of the large covers employed for stopping up the trenches in -which grain was kept. - -"You see, Eye of Baal," said the servant, trembling, "they have not -taken everything yet! and these are each fifty cubits deep and filled -up to the brim! During your voyage I had them dug out in the arsenals, -in the gardens, everywhere! your house is full of corn as your heart -is full of wisdom." - -A smile passed over Hamilcar's face. "It is well, Abdalonim!" Then -bending over to his ear: "You will have it brought from Etruria, -Brutium, whence you will, and no matter at what price! Heap it and -keep it! I alone must possess all the corn in Carthage." - -Then when they were alone at the extremity of the passage, Abdalonim, -with one of the keys hanging at his girdle, opened a large -quadrangular chamber divided in the centre by pillars of cedar. Gold, -silver, and brass coins were arranged on tables or packed into niches, -and rose as high as the joists of the roof along the four walls. In -the corners there were huge baskets of hippopotamus skin supporting -whole rows of smaller bags; there were hillocks formed of heaps of -bullion on the pavement; and here and there a pile that was too high -had given way and looked like a ruined column. The large Carthaginian -pieces, representing Tanith with a horse beneath a palm-tree, mingled -with those from the colonies, which were marked with a bull, star, -globe, or crescent. Then there might be seen pieces of all values, -dimensions, and ages arrayed in unequal amounts--from the ancient -coins of Assyria, slender as the nail, to the ancient ones of Latium, -thicker than the hand, with the buttons of Egina, the tablets of -Bactriana, and the short bars of Lacedaemon; many were covered with -rust, or had grown greasy, or, having been taken in nets or from among -the ruins of captured cities, were green with the water or blackened -by fire. The Suffet had speedily calculated whether the sums present -corresponded with the gains and losses which had just been read to -him; and he was going away when he perceived three brass jars -completely empty. Abdalonim turned away his head to mark his horror, -and Hamilcar, resigning himself to it, said nothing. - -They crossed other passages and other halls, and at last reached a -door where, to ensure its better protection and in accordance with a -Roman custom lately introduced into Carthage, a man was fastened by -the waist to a long chain let into the wall. His beard and nails had -grown to an immoderate length, and he swayed himself from right to -left with that continual oscillation which is characteristic of -captive animals. As soon as he recognised Hamilcar he darted towards -him, crying: - -"Pardon, Eye of Baal! pity! kill me! For ten years I have not seen the -sun! In your father's name, pardon!" - -Hamilcar, without answering him, clapped his hands and three men -appeared; and all four simultaneously stiffening their arms, drew back -from its rings the enormous bar which closed the door. Hamilcar took a -torch and disappeared into the darkness. - -This was believed to be the family burying-place; but nothing would -have been found in it except a broad well. It was dug out merely to -baffle robbers, and it concealed nothing. Hamilcar passed along beside -it; then stooping down he made a very heavy millstone turn upon its -rollers, and through this aperture entered an apartment which was -built in the shape of a cone. - -The walls were covered with scales of brass; and in the centre, on a -granite pedestal, stood the statue of one of the Kabiri called Aletes, -the discoverer of the mines in Celtiberia. On the ground, at its base, -and arranged in the form of a cross, were large gold shields and -monster close-necked silver vases, of extravagant shape and unfitted -for use; it was customary to cast quantities of metal in this way, so -that dilapidation and even removal should be almost impossible. - -With his torch he lit a miner's lamp which was fastened to the idol's -cap, and green, yellow, blue, violet, wine-coloured, and blood- -coloured fires suddenly illuminated the hall. It was filled with gems -which were either in gold calabashes fastened like sconces upon sheets -of brass, or were ranged in native masses at the foot of the wall. -There were callaides shot away from the mountains with slings, -carbuncles formed by the urine of the lynx, glossopetrae which had -fallen from the moon, tyanos, diamonds, sandastra, beryls, with the -three kinds of rubies, the four kinds of sapphires, and the twelve -kinds of emeralds. They gleamed like splashes of milk, blue icicles, -and silver dust, and shed their light in sheets, rays, and stars. -Ceraunia, engendered by the thunder, sparkled by the side of -chalcedonies, which are a cure for poison. There were topazes from -Mount Zabarca to avert terrors, opals from Bactriana to prevent -abortions, and horns of Ammon, which are placed under the bed to -induce dreams. - -The fires from the stones and the flames from the lamp were mirrored -in the great golden shields. Hamilcar stood smiling with folded arms, -and was less delighted by the sight of his riches than by the -consciousness of their possession. They were inaccessible, -exhaustless, infinite. His ancestors sleeping beneath his feet -transmitted something of their eternity to his heart. He felt very -near to the subterranean deities. It was as the joy of one of the -Kabiri; and the great luminous rays striking upon his face looked like -the extremity of an invisible net linking him across the abysses with -the centre of the world. - -A thought came which made him shudder, and placing himself behind the -idol he walked straight up to the wall. Then among the tattooings on -his arm he scrutinised a horizontal line with two other perpendicular -ones which in Chanaanitish figures expressed the number thirteen. Then -he counted as far as the thirteenth of the brass plates and again -raised his ample sleeve; and with his right hand stretched out he read -other more complicated lines on his arm, at the same time moving his -fingers daintily about like one playing on a lyre. At last he struck -seven blows with his thumb, and an entire section of the wall turned -about in a single block. - -It served to conceal a sort of cellar containing mysterious things -which had no name and were of incalculable value. Hamilcar went down -the three steps, took up a llama's skin which was floating on a black -liquid in a silver vat, and then re-ascended. - -Abdalonim again began to walk before him. He struck the pavement with -his tall cane, the pommel of which was adorned with bells, and before -every apartment cried aloud the name of Hamilcar amid eulogies and -benedictions. - -Along the walls of the circular gallery, from which the passages -branched off, were piled little beams of algummim, bags of Lawsonia, -cakes of Lemnos-earth, and tortoise carapaces filled with pearls. The -Suffet brushed them with his robe as he passed without even looking at -some gigantic pieces of amber, an almost divine material formed by the -rays of the sun. - -A cloud of odorous vapour burst forth. - -"Push open the door!" - -They went in. - -Naked men were kneading pastes, crushing herbs, stirring coals, -pouring oil into jars, and opening and shutting the little ovoid cells -which were hollowed out all round in the wall, and were so numerous -that the apartment was like the interior of a hive. They were brimful -of myrobalan, bdellium, saffron, and violets. Gums, powders, roots, -glass phials, branches of filipendula, and rose-petals were scattered -about everywhere, and the scents were stifling in spite of the cloud- -wreaths from the styrax shrivelling on a brazen tripod in the centre. - -The Chief of the Sweet Odours, pale and long as a waxen torch, came up -to Hamilcar to crush a roll of metopion in his hands, while two others -rubbed his heels with leaves of baccharis. He repelled them; they were -Cyreneans of infamous morals, but valued on account of the secrets -which they possessed. - -To show his vigilance the Chief of the Odours offered the Suffet a -little malobathrum to taste in an electrum spoon; then he pierced -three Indian bezoars with an awl. The master, who knew the artifices -employed, took a horn full of balm, and after holding it near the -coals inclined it over his robe. A brown spot appeared; it was a -fraud. Then he gazed fixedly at the Chief of the Odours, and without -saying anything flung the gazelle's horn full in his face. - -However indignant he might be at adulterations made to his own -prejudice, when he perceived some parcels of nard which were being -packed up for countries beyond the sea, he ordered antimony to be -mixed with it so as to make it heavier. - -Then he asked where three boxes of psagdas designed for his own use -were to be found. - -The Chief of the Odours confessed that he did not know; some soldiers -had come howling in with knives and he had opened the boxes for them. - -"So you are more afraid of them then of me!" cried the Suffet; and his -eyeballs flashed like torches through the smoke upon the tall, pale -man who was beginning to understand. "Abdalonim! you will make him run -the gauntlet before sunset: tear him!" - -This loss, which was less than the others, had exasperated him; for in -spite of his efforts to banish them from his thoughts he was -continually coming again across the Barbarians. Their excesses were -blended with his daughter's shame, and he was angry with the whole -household for knowing of the latter and for not speaking of it to him. -But something impelled him to bury himself in his misfortune; and in -an inquisitorial fit he visited the sheds behind the mercantile house -to see the supplies of bitumen, wood, anchors and cordage, honey and -wax, the cloth warehouse, the stores of food, the marble yard and the -silphium barn. - -He went to the other side of the gardens to make an inspection in -their cottages, of the domestic artisans whose productions were sold. -There were tailors embroidering cloaks, others making nets, others -painting cushions or cutting out sandals, and Egyptian workmen -polished papyrus with a shell, while the weavers' shuttles rattled and -the armourers' anvils rang. - -Hamilcar said to them: - -"Beat away at the swords! I shall want them." And he drew the -antelope's skin that had been steeped in poisons from his bosom to -have it cut into a cuirass more solid than one of brass and -unassailable by steel or flame. - -As soon as he approached the workmen, Abdalonim, to give his wrath -another direction, tried to anger him against them by murmured -disparagement of their work. "What a performance! It is a shame! The -Master is indeed too good." Hamilcar moved away without listening to -him. - -He slackened his pace, for the paths were barred by great trees -calcined from one end to the other, such as may be met with in woods -where shepherds have encamped; and the palings were broken, the water -in the trenches was disappearing, while fragments of glass and the -bones of apes were to be seen amid the miry puddles. A scrap of cloth -hung here and there from the bushes, and the rotten flowers formed a -yellow muck-heap beneath the citron trees. In fact, the servants had -neglected everything, thinking that the master would never return. - -At every step he discovered some new disaster, some further proof of -the thing which he had forbidden himself to learn. Here he was soiling -his purple boots as he crushed the filth under-foot; and he had not -all these men before him at the end of a catapult to make them fly -into fragments! He felt humiliated at having defended them; it was a -delusion and a piece of treachery; and as he could not revenge himself -upon the soldiers, or the Ancients, or Salammbo, or anybody, and his -wrath required some victim, he condemned all the slaves of the gardens -to the mines at a single stroke. - -Abdalonim shuddered each time that he saw him approaching the parks. -But Hamilcar took the path towards the mill, from which there might be -heard issuing a mournful melopoeia. - -The heavy mill-stones were turning amid the dust. They consisted of -two cones of porphyry laid the one upon the other--the upper one of -the two, which carried a funnel, being made to revolve upon the second -by means of strong bars. Some men were pushing these with their -breasts and arms, while others were yoked to them and were pulling -them. The friction of the straps had formed purulent scabs round about -their armpits such as are seen on asses' withers, and the end of the -limp black rag, which scarcely covered their loins, hung down and -flapped against their hams like a long tail. Their eyes were red, the -irons on their feet clanked, and all their breasts panted -rhythmically. On their mouths they had muzzles fastened by two little -bronze chains to render it impossible for them to eat the flour, and -their hands were enclosed in gauntlets without fingers, so as to -prevent them from taking any. - -At the master's entrance the wooden bars creaked still more loudly. -The grain grated as it was being crushed. Several fell upon their -knees; the others, continuing their work, stepped across them. - -He asked for Giddenem, the governor of the slaved, and that personage -appeared, his rank being displayed in the richness of his dress. His -tunic, which was slit up the sides, was of fine purple; his ears were -weighted with heavy rings; and the strips of cloth enfolding his legs -were joined together with a lacing of gold which extended from his -ankles to his hips, like a serpent winding about a tree. In his -fingers, which were laden with rings, he held a necklace of jet beads, -so as to recognise the men who were subject to the sacred disease. - -Hamilcar signed to him to unfasten the muzzles. Then with the cries of -famished animals they all rushed upon the flour, burying their faces -in the heaps of it and devouring it. - -"You are weakening them!" said the Suffet. - -Giddenem replied that such treatment was necessary in order to subdue -them. - -"It was scarcely worth while sending you to the slaves' school at -Syracuse. Fetch the others!" - -And the cooks, butlers, grooms, runners, and litter-carriers, the men -belonging to the vapour-baths, and the women with their children, all -ranged themselves in a single line in the garden from the mercantile -house to the deer park. They held their breath. An immense silence -prevailed in Megara. The sun was lengthening across the lagoon at the -foot of the catacombs. The peacocks were screeching. Hamilcar walked -along step by step. - -"What am I to do with these old creatures?" he said. "Sell them! There -are too many Gauls: they are drunkards! and too many Cretans: they are -liars! Buy me some Cappadocians, Asiatics, and Negroes." - -He was astonished that the children were so few. "The house ought to -have births every year, Giddenem. You will leave the huts open every -night to let them mingle freely." - -He then had the thieves, the lazy, and the mutinous shown to him. He -distributed punishments, with reproaches to Giddenem; and Giddenem, -ox-like, bent his low forehead, with its two broad intersecting -eyebrows. - -"See, Eye of Baal," he said, pointing out a sturdy Libyan, "here is -one who was caught with the rope round his neck." - -"Ah! you wish to die?" said the Suffet scornfully. - -"Yes!" replied the slave in an intrepid tone. - -Then, without heeding the precedent or the pecuniary loss, Hamilcar -said to the serving-men: - -"Away with him!" - -Perhaps in his thoughts he intended a sacrifice. It was a misfortune -which he inflicted upon himself in order to avert more terrible ones. - -Giddenem had hidden those who were mutilated behind the others. -Hamilcar perceived them. - -"Who cut off your arm?" - -"The soldiers, Eye of Baal." - -Then to a Samnite who was staggering like a wounded heron: - -"And you, who did that to you?" - -It was the governor, who had broken his leg with an iron bar. - -This silly atrocity made the Suffet indignant; he snatched the jet -necklace out of Giddenem's hands. - -"Cursed be the dog that injures the flock! Gracious Tanith, to cripple -slaves! Ah! you ruin your master! Let him be smothered in the -dunghill. And those that are missing? Where are they? Have you helped -the soldiers to murder them?" - -His face was so terrible that all the women fled. The slaves drew back -and formed a large circle around them; Giddenem was frantically -kissing his sandals; Hamilcar stood upright with his arms raised above -him. - -But with his understanding as clear as in the sternest of his battles, -he recalled a thousand odious things, ignominies from which he had -turned aside; and in the gleaming of his wrath he could once more see -all his disasters simultaneously as in the lightnings of a storm. The -governors of the country estates had fled through terror of the -soldiers, perhaps through collusion with them; they were all deceiving -him; he had restrained himself too long. - -"Bring them here!" he cried; "and brand them on the forehead with red- -hot irons as cowards!" - -Then they brought and spread out in the middle of the garden, fetters, -carcanets, knives, chains for those condemned to the mines, cippi for -fastening the legs, numellae for confining the shoulders, and -scorpions or whips with triple thongs terminating in brass claws. - -All were placed facing the sun, in the direction of Moloch the -Devourer, and were stretched on the ground on their stomachs or on -their backs, those, however, who were sentenced to be flogged standing -upright against the trees with two men beside them, one counting the -blows and the other striking. - -In striking he used both his arms, and the whistling thongs made the -bark of the plane-trees fly. The blood was scattered like rain upon -the foliage, and red masses writhed with howls at the foot of the -trees. Those who were under the iron tore their faces with their -nails. The wooden screws could be heard creaking; dull knockings -resounded; sometimes a sharp cry would suddenly pierce the air. In the -direction of the kitchens, men were brisking up burning coals with -fans amid tattered garments and scattered hair, and a smell of burning -flesh was perceptible. Those who were under the scourge, swooning, but -kept in their positions by the bonds on their arms, rolled their heads -upon their shoulders and closed their eyes. The others who were -watching them began to shriek with terror, and the lions, remembering -the feast perhaps, stretched themselves out yawning against the edge -of the dens. - -Then Salammbo was seen on the platform of her terrace. She ran wildly -about it from left to right. Hamilcar perceived her. It seemed to him -that she was holding up her arms towards him to ask for pardon; with a -gesture of horror he plunged into the elephants' park. - -These animals were the pride of the great Punic houses. They had -carried their ancestors, had triumphed in the wars, and they were -reverenced as being the favourites of the Sun. - -Those of Megara were the strongest in Carthage. Before he went away -Hamilcar had required Abdalonim to swear that he would watch over -them. But they had died from their mutilations; and only three -remained, lying in the middle of the court in the dust before the -ruins of their manger. - -They recognised him and came up to him. One had its ears horribly -slit, another had a large wound in its knee, while the trunk of the -third was cut off. - -They looked sadly at him, like reasonable creatures; and the one that -had lost its trunk tried by stooping its huge head and bending its -hams to stroke him softly with the hideous extremity of its stump. - -At this caress from the animal two tears started into his eyes. He -rushed at Abdalonim. - -"Ah! wretch! the cross! the cross!" - -Abdalonim fell back swooning upon the ground. - -The bark of a jackal rang from behind the purple factories, the blue -smoke of which was ascending slowly into the sky; Hamilcar paused. - -The thought of his son had suddenly calmed him like the touch of a -god. He caught a glimpse of a prolongation of his might, an indefinite -continuation of his personality, and the slaves could not understand -whence this appeasement had come upon him. - -As he bent his steps towards the purple factories he passed before the -ergastulum, which was a long house of black stone built in a square -pit with a small pathway all round it and four staircases at the -corners. - -Iddibal was doubtless waiting until the night to finish his signal. -"There is no hurry yet," thought Hamilcar; and he went down into the -prison. Some cried out to him: "Return"; the boldest followed him. - -The open door was flapping in the wind. The twilight entered through -the narrow loopholes, and in the interior broken chains could be -distinguished hanging from the walls. - -This was all that remained of the captives of war! - -Then Hamilcar grew extraordinarily pale, and those who were leaning -over the pit outside saw him resting one hand against the wall to keep -himself from falling. - -But the jackal uttered its cry three times in succession. Hamilcar -raised his head; he did not speak a word nor make a gesture. Then when -the sun had completely set he disappeared behind the nopal hedge, and -in the evening he said as he entered the assembly of the rich in the -temple of Eschmoun: - -"Luminaries of the Baalim, I accept the command of the Punic forces -against the army of the Barbarians!" - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE BATTLE OF THE MACARAS - -In the following day he drew two hundred and twenty-three thousand -kikars of gold from the Syssitia, and decreed a tax of fourteen -shekels upon the rich. Even the women contributed; payment was made in -behalf of the children, and he compelled the colleges of priests to -furnish money--a monstrous thing, according to Carthaginian customs. - -He demanded all the horses, mules, and arms. A few tried to conceal -their wealth, and their property was sold; and, to intimidate the -avarice of the rest, he himself gave sixty suits of armour, and -fifteen hundred gomers of meal, which was as much as was given by the -Ivory Company. - -He sent into Liguria to buy soldiers, three thousand mountaineers -accustomed to fight with bears; they were paid for six moons in -advance at the rate of four minae a day. - -Nevertheless an army was wanted. But he did not, like Hanno, accept -all the citizens. First he rejected those engaged in sedentary -occupations, and then those who were big-bellied or had a -pusillanimous look; and he admitted those of ill-repute, the scum of -Malqua, sons of Barbarians, freed men. For reward he promised some of -the New Carthaginians complete rights of citizenship. - -His first care was to reform the Legion. These handsome young fellows, -who regarded themselves as the military majesty of the Republic, -governed themselves. He reduced their officers to the ranks; he -treated them harshly, made them run, leap, ascend the declivity of -Byrsa at a single burst, hurl javelins, wrestle together, and sleep in -the squares at night. Their families used to come to see them and pity -them. - -He ordered shorter swords and stronger buskins. He fixed the number of -serving-men, and reduced the amount of baggage; and as there were -three hundred Roman pila kept in the temple of Moloch, he took them in -spite of the pontiff's protests. - -He organised a phalanx of seventy-two elephants with those which had -returned from Utica, and others which were private property, and -rendered them formidable. He armed their drivers with mallet and -chisel to enable them to split their skulls in the fight if they ran -away. - -He would not allow his generals to be nominated by the Grand Council. -The Ancients tried to urge the laws in objection, but he set them -aside; no one ventured to murmur again, and everything yielded to the -violence of his genius. - -He assumed sole charge of the war, the government, and the finances; -and as a precaution against accusations he demanded the Suffet Hanno -as examiner of his accounts. - -He set to work upon the ramparts, and had the old and now useless -inner walls demolished in order to furnish stones. But difference of -fortune, replacing the hierarchy of race, still kept the sons of the -vanquished and those of the conquerors apart; thus the patricians -viewed the destruction of these ruins with an angry eye, while the -plebeians, scarcely knowing why, rejoiced. - -The troops defiled under arms through the streets from morning till -night; every moment the sound of trumpets was heard; chariots passed -bearing shields, tents, and pikes; the courts were full of women -engaged in tearing up linen; the enthusiasm spread from one to -another, and Hamilcar's soul filled the Republic. - -He had divided his soldiers into even numbers, being careful to place -a strong man and a weak one alternately throughout the length of his -files, so that he who was less vigorous or more cowardly might be at -once led and pushed forward by two others. But with his three thousand -Ligurians, and the best in Carthage, he could form only a simple -phalanx of four thousand and ninety-six hoplites, protected by bronze -helmets, and handling ashen sarissae fourteen cubits long. - -There were two thousand young men, each equipped with a sling, a -dagger, and sandals. He reinforced them with eight hundred others -armed with round shields and Roman swords. - -The heavy cavalry was composed of the nineteen hundred remaining -guardsmen of the Legion, covered with plates of vermilion bronze, like -the Assyrian Clinabarians. He had further four hundred mounted -archers, of those that were called Tarentines, with caps of weasel's -skin, two-edged axes, and leathern tunics. Finally there were twelve -hundred Negroes from the quarter of the caravans, who were mingled -with the Clinabarians, and were to run beside the stallions with one -hand resting on the manes. All was ready, and yet Hamilcar did not -start. - -Often at night he would go out of Carthage alone and make his way -beyond the lagoon towards the mouths of the Macaras. Did he intend to -join the Mercenaries? The Ligurians encamped in the Mappalian district -surrounded his house. - -The apprehensions of the rich appeared justified when, one day, three -hundred Barbarians were seen approaching the walls. The Suffet opened -the gates to them; they were deserters; drawn by fear or by fidelity, -they were hastening to their master. - -Hamilcar's return had not surprised the Mercenaries; according to -their ideas the man could not die. He was returning to fulfil his -promise;--a hope by no means absurd, so deep was the abyss between -Country and Army. Moreover they did not believe themselves culpable; -the feast was forgotten. - -The spies whom they surprised undeceived them. It was a triumph for -the bitter; even the lukewarm grew furious. Then the two sieges -overwhelmed then with weariness; no progress was being made; a battle -would be better! Thus many men had left the ranks and were scouring -the country. But at news of the arming they returned; Matho leaped for -joy. "At last! at last!" he cried. - -Then the resentment which he cherished against Salammbo was turned -against Hamilcar. His hate could now perceive a definite prey; and as -his vengeance grew easier of conception he almost believed that he had -realised it and he revelled in it already. At the same time he was -seized with a loftier tenderness, and consumed by more acrid desire. -He saw himself alternately in the midst of the soldiers brandishing -the Suffet's head on a pike, and then in the room with the purple bed, -clasping the maiden in his arms, covering her face with kisses, -passing his hands over her long, black hair; and the imagination of -this, which he knew could never be realised, tortured him. He swore to -himself that, since his companions had appointed him schalishim, he -would conduct the war; the certainty that he would not return from it -urged him to render it a pitiless one. - -He came to Spendius and said to him: - -"You will go and get your men! I will bring mine! Warn Autaritus! We -are lost if Hamilcar attacks us! Do you understand me? Rise!" - -Spendius was stupefied before such an air of authority. Matho usually -allowed himself to be led, and his previous transports had quickly -passed away. But just now he appeared at once calmer and more -terrible; a superb will gleamed in his eyes like the flame of -sacrifice. - -The Greek did not listen to his reasons. He was living in one of the -Carthaginian pearl-bordered tents, drinking cool beverages from silver -cups, playing at the cottabos, letting his hair grow, and conducting -the siege with slackness. Moreover, he had entered into communications -with some in the town and would not leave, being sure that it would -open its gates before many days were over. - -Narr' Havas, who wandered about among the three armies, was at that -time with him. He supported his opinion, and even blamed the Libyan -for wishing in his excess of courage to abandon their enterprise. - -"Go, if you are afraid!" exclaimed Matho; "you promised us pitch, -sulphur, elephants, foot-soldiers, horses! where are they?" - -Narr' Havas reminded him that he had exterminated Hanno's last -cohorts;--as to the elephants, they were being hunted in the woods, he -was arming the foot-soldiers, the horses were on their way; and the -Numidian rolled his eyes like a woman and smiled in an irritating -manner as he stroked the ostrich feather which fell upon his shoulder. -In his presence Matho was at a loss for a reply. - -But a man who was a stranger entered, wet with perspiration, scared, -and with bleeding feet and loosened girdle; his breathing shook his -lean sides enough to have burst them, and speaking in an -unintelligible dialect he opened his eyes wide as if he were telling -of some battle. The king sprang outside and called his horsemen. - -They ranged themselves in the plain before him in the form of a -circle. Narr' Havas, who was mounted, bent his head and bit his lips. -At last he separated his men into two equal divisions, and told the -first to wait; then with an imperious gesture he carried off the -others at a gallop and disappeared on the horizon in the direction of -the mountains. - -"Master!" murmured Spendius, "I do not like these extraordinary -chances--the Suffet returning, Narr' Havas going away--" - -"Why! what does it matter?" said Matho disdainfully. - -It was a reason the more for anticipating Hamilcar by uniting with -Autaritus. But if the siege of the towns were raised, the inhabitants -would come out and attack them in the rear, while they would have the -Carthaginians in front. After much talking the following measures were -resolved upon and immediately executed. - -Spendius proceeded with fifteen thousand men as far as the bridge -built across the Macaras, three miles from Utica; the corners of it -were fortified with four huge towers provided with catapults; all the -paths and gorges in the mountains were stopped up with trunks of -trees, pieces of rock, interlacings of thorn, and stone walls; on the -summits heaps of grass were made which might be lighted as signals, -and shepherds who were able to see at a distance were posted at -intervals. - -No doubt Hamilcar would not, like Hanno, advance by the mountain of -the Hot Springs. He would think that Autaritus, being master of the -interior, would close the route against him. Moreover, a check at the -opening of the campaign would ruin him, while if he gained a victory -he would soon have to make a fresh beginning, the Mercenaries being -further off. Again, he could disembark at Cape Grapes and march thence -upon one of the towns. But he would then find himself between the two -armies, an indiscretion which he could not commit with his scanty -forces. Accordingly he must proceed along the base of Mount Ariana, -then turn to the left to avoid the mouths of the Macaras, and come -straight to the bridge. It was there that Matho expected him. - -At night he used to inspect the pioneers by torch-light. He would -hasten to Hippo-Zarytus or to the works on the mountains, would come -back again, would never rest. Spendius envied his energy; but in the -management of spies, the choice of sentries, the working of the -engines and all means of defence, Matho listened docilely to his -companion. They spoke no more of Salammbo,--one not thinking about -her, and the other being prevented by a feeling of shame. - -Often he would go towards Carthage, striving to catch sight of -Hamilcar's troops. His eyes would dart along the horizon; he would lie -flat on the ground, and believe that he could hear an army in the -throbbing of his arteries. - -He told Spendius that if Hamilcar did not arrive in three days he -would go with all his men to meet him and offer him battle. Two -further days elapsed. Spendius restrained him; but on the morning of -the sixth day he departed. - -The Carthaginians were no less impatient for war than the Barbarians. -In tents and in houses there was the same longing and the same -distress; all were asking one another what was delaying Hamilcar. - -From time to time he would mount to the cupola of the temple of -Eschmoun beside the Announcer of the Moons and take note of the wind. - -One day--it was the third of the month of Tibby--they saw him -descending from the Acropolis with hurried steps. A great clamour -arose in the Mappalian district. Soon the streets were astir, and the -soldiers were everywhere beginning to arm themselves upon their -breasts; then they ran quickly to the square of Khamon to take their -places in the ranks. No one was allowed to follow them or even to -speak to them, or to approach the ramparts; for some minutes the whole -town was silent as a great tomb. The soldiers as they leaned on their -lances were thinking, and the others in the houses were sighing. - -At sunset the army went out by the western gate; but instead of taking -the road to Tunis or making for the mountains in the direction of -Utica, they continued their march along the edge of the sea; and they -soon reached the Lagoon, where round spaces quite whitened with salt -glittered like gigantic silver dishes forgotten on the shore. - -Then the pools of water multiplied. The ground gradually became -softer, and the feet sank in it. Hamilcar did not turn back. He went -on still at their head; and his horse, which was yellow-spotted like a -dragon, advanced into the mire flinging froth around him, and with -great straining of the loins. Night--a moonless light--fell. A few -cried out that they were about to perish; he snatched their arms from -them, and gave them to the serving-men. Nevertheless the mud became -deeper and deeper. Some had to mount the beasts of burden; others -clung to the horses' tails; the sturdy pulled the weak, and the -Ligurian corps drove on the infantry with the points of their pikes. -The darkness increased. They had lost their way. All stopped. - -Then some of the Suffet's slaves went on ahead to look for the buoys -which had been placed at intervals by his order. They shouted through -the darkness, and the army followed them at a distance. - -At last they felt the resistance of the ground. Then a whitish curve -became dimly visible, and they found themselves on the bank of the -Macaras. In spite of the cold no fires were lighted. - -In the middle of the night squalls of wind arose. Hamilcar had the -soldiers roused, but not a trumpet was sounded: their captain tapped -them softly on the shoulder. - -A man of lofty stature went down into the water. It did not come up to -his girdle; it was possible to cross. - -The Suffet ordered thirty-two of the elephants to be posted in the -river a hundred paces further on, while the others, lower down, would -check the lines of men that were carried away by the current; and -holding their weapons above their heads they all crossed the Macaras -as though between two walls. He had noticed that the western wind had -driven the sand so as to obstruct the river and form a natural -causeway across it. - -He was now on the left bank in front of Utica, and in a vast plain, -the latter being advantageous for his elephants, which formed the -strength of his army. - -This feat of genius filled the soldiers with enthusiasm. They -recovered extraordinary confidence. They wished to hasten immediately -against the Barbarians; but the Suffet bade them rest for two hours. -As soon as the sun appeared they moved into the plain in three lines-- -first came the elephants, and then the light infantry with the cavalry -behind it, the phalanx marching next. - -The Barbarians encamped at Utica, and the fifteen thousand about the -bridge were surprised to see the ground undulating in the distance. -The wind, which was blowing very hard, was driving tornadoes of sand -before it; they rose as though snatched from the soil, ascended in -great light-coloured strips, then parted asunder and began again, -hiding the Punic army the while from the Mercenaries. Owing to the -horns, which stood up on the edge of the helmets, some thought that -they could perceive a herd of oxen; others, deceived by the motion of -the cloaks, pretended that they could distinguish wings, and those who -had travelled a good deal shrugged their shoulders and explained -everything by the illusions of the mirage. Nevertheless something of -enormous size continued to advance. Little vapours, as subtle as the -breath, ran across the surface of the desert; the sun, which was -higher now, shone more strongly: a harsh light, which seemed to -vibrate, threw back the depths of the sky, and permeating objects, -rendered distance incalculable. The immense plain expanded in every -direction beyond the limits of vision; and the almost insensible -undulations of the soil extended to the extreme horizon, which was -closed by a great blue line which they knew to be the sea. The two -armies, having left their tents, stood gazing; the people of Utica -were massing on the ramparts to have a better view. - -At last they distinguished several transverse bars bristling with -level points. They became thicker, larger; black hillocks swayed to -and fro; square thickets suddenly appeared; they were elephants and -lances. A single shout went up: "The Carthaginians!" and without -signal or command the soldiers at Utica and those at the bridge ran -pell-mell to fall in a body upon Hamilcar. - -Spendius shuddered at the name. "Hamilcar! Hamilcar!" he repeated, -panting, and Matho was not there! What was to be done? No means of -flight! The suddenness of the event, his terror of the Suffet, and -above all, the urgent need of forming an immediate resolution, -distracted him; he could see himself pierced by a thousand swords, -decapitated, dead. Meanwhile he was being called for; thirty thousand -men would follow him; he was seized with fury against himself; he fell -back upon the hope of victory; it was full of bliss, and he believed -himself more intrepid than Epaminondas. He smeared his cheeks with -vermilion in order to conceal his paleness, then he buckled on his -knemids and his cuirass, swallowed a patera of pure wine, and ran -after his troops, who were hastening towards those from Utica. - -They united so rapidly that the Suffet had not time to draw up his men -in battle array. By degrees he slackened his speed. The elephants -stopped; they rocked their heavy heads with their chargings of ostrich -feathers, striking their shoulders the while with their trunks. - -Behind the intervals between them might be seen the cohorts of the -velites, and further on the great helmets of the Clinabarians, with -steel heads glancing in the sun, cuirasses, plumes, and waving -standards. But the Carthaginian army, which amounted to eleven -thousand three hundred and ninety-six men, seemed scarcely to contain -them, for it formed an oblong, narrow at the sides and pressed back -upon itself. - -Seeing them so weak, the Barbarians, who were thrice as numerous, were -seized with extravagant joy. Hamilcar was not to be seen. Perhaps he -had remained down yonder? Moreover what did it matter? The disdain -which they felt for these traders strengthened their courage; and -before Spendius could command a manoeuvre they had all understood it, -and already executed it. - -They were deployed in a long, straight line, overlapping the wings of -the Punic army in order to completely encompass it. But when there was -an interval of only three hundred paces between the armies, the -elephants turned round instead of advancing; then the Clinabarians -were seen to face about and follow them; and the surprise of the -Mercenaries increased when they saw the archers running to join them. -So the Carthaginians were afraid, they were fleeing! A tremendous -hooting broke out from among the Barbarian troops, and Spendius -exclaimed from the top of his dromedary: "Ah! I knew it! Forward! -forward!" - -Then javelins, darts, and sling-bullets burst forth simultaneously. -The elephants feeling their croups stung by the arrows began to gallop -more quickly; a great dust enveloped them, and they vanished like -shadows in a cloud. - -But from the distance there came a loud noise of footsteps dominated -by the shrill sound of the trumpets, which were being blown furiously. -The space which the Barbarians had in front of them, which was full of -eddies and tumult, attracted like a whirlpool; some dashed into it. -Cohorts of infantry appeared; they closed up; and at the same time all -the rest saw the foot-soldiers hastening up with the horseman at a -gallop. - -Hamilcar had, in fact, ordered the phalanx to break its sections, and -the elephants, light troops, and cavalry to pass through the intervals -so as to bring themselves speedily upon the wings, and so well had he -calculated the distance from the Barbarians, that at the moment when -they reached him, the entire Carthaginian army formed one long -straight line. - -In the centre bristled the phalanx, formed of syntagmata or full -squares having sixteen men on each side. All the leaders of all the -files appeared amid long, sharp lanceheads, which jutted out unevenly -around them, for the first six ranks crossed their sarissae, holding -them in the middle, and the ten lower ranks rested them upon the -shoulders of their companions in succession before them. Their faces -were all half hidden beneath the visors of their helmets; their right -legs were all covered with bronze knemids; broad cylindrical shields -reached down to their knees; and the horrible quadrangular mass moved -in a single body, and seemed to live like an animal and work like a -machine. Two cohorts of elephants flanked it in regular array; -quivering, they shook off the splinters of the arrows that clung to -their black skins. The Indians, squatting on their withers among the -tufts of white feathers, restrained them with their spoon-headed -harpoons, while the men in the towers, who were hidden up to their -shoulders, moved about iron distaffs furnished with lighted tow on the -edges of their large bended bows. Right and left of the elephants -hovered the slingers, each with a sling around his loins, a second on -his head, and a third in his right hand. Then came the Clinabarians, -each flanked by a Negro, and pointing their lances between the ears of -their horses, which, like themselves, were completely covered with -gold. Afterwards, at intervals, came the light armed soldiers with -shields of lynx skin, beyond which projected the points of the -javelins which they held in their left hands; while the Tarentines, -each having two coupled horses, relieved this wall of soldiers at its -two extremities. - -The army of the Barbarians, on the contrary, had not been able to -preserve its line. Undulations and blanks were to be found through its -extravagant length; all were panting and out of breath with their -running. - -The phalanx moved heavily along with thrusts from all its sarissae; -and the too slender line of the Mercenaries soon yielded in the centre -beneath the enormous weight. - -Then the Carthaginian wings expanded in order to fall upon them, the -elephants following. The phalanx, with obliquely pointed lances, cut -through the Barbarians; there were two enormous, struggling bodies; -and the wings with slings and arrows beat them back upon the -phalangites. There was no cavalry to get rid of them, except two -hundred Numidians operating against the right squadron of the -Clinabarians. All the rest were hemmed in, and unable to extricate -themselves from the lines. The peril was imminent, and the need of -coming to some resolution urgent. - -Spendius ordered attacks to be made simultaneously on both flanks of -the phalanx so as to pass clean through it. But the narrower ranks -glided below the longer ones and recovered their position, and the -phalanx turned upon the Barbarians as terrible in flank as it had just -been in front. - -They struck at the staves of the sarissae, but the cavalry in the rear -embarrassed their attack; and the phalanx, supported by the elephants, -lengthened and contracted, presenting itself in the form of a square, -a cone, a rhombus, a trapezium, a pyramid. A twofold internal movement -went on continually from its head to its rear; for those who were at -the lowest part of the files hastened up to the first ranks, while the -latter, from fatigue, or on account of the wounded, fell further back. -The Barbarians found themselves thronged upon the phalanx. It was -impossible for it to advance; there was, as it were, an ocean wherein -leaped red crests and scales of brass, while the bright shields rolled -like silver foam. Sometimes broad currents would descend from one -extremity to the other, and then go up again, while a heavy mass -remained motionless in the centre. The lances dipped and rose -alternately. Elsewhere there was so quick a play of naked swords that -only the points were visible, while turmae of cavalry formed wide -circles which closed again like whirlwinds behind them. - -Above the voices of the captains, the ringing of clarions and the -grating of tyres, bullets of lead and almonds of clay whistled through -the air, dashing the sword from the hand or the brain out of the -skull. The wounded, sheltering themselves with one arm beneath their -shields, pointed their swords by resting the pommels on the ground, -while others, lying in pools of blood, would turn and bite the heels -of those above them. The multitude was so compact, the dust so thick, -and the tumult so great that it was impossible to distinguish -anything; the cowards who offered to surrender were not even heard. -Those whose hands were empty clasped one another close; breasts -cracked against cuirasses, and corpses hung with head thrown back -between a pair of contracted arms. There was a company of sixty -Umbrians who, firm on their hams, their pikes before their eyes, -immovable and grinding their teeth, forced two syntagmata to recoil -simultaneously. Some Epirote shepherds ran upon the left squadron of -the Clinabarians, and whirling their staves, seized the horses by the -man; the animals threw their riders and fled across the plain. The -Punic slingers scattered here and there stood gaping. The phalanx -began to waver, the captains ran to and fro in distraction, the -rearmost in the files were pressing upon the soldiers, and the -Barbarians had re-formed; they were recovering; the victory was -theirs. - -But a cry, a terrible cry broke forth, a roar of pain and wrath: it -came from the seventy-two elephants which were rushing on in double -line, Hamilcar having waited until the Mercenaries were massed -together in one spot to let them loose against them; the Indians had -goaded them so vigorously that blood was trickling down their broad -ears. Their trunks, which were smeared with mimium, were stretched -straight out in the air like red serpents; their breasts were -furnished with spears and their backs with cuirasses; their tusks were -lengthened with steel blades curved like sabres,--and to make them -more ferocious they had been intoxicated with a mixture of pepper, -wine, and incense. They shook their necklaces of bells, and shrieked; -and the elephantarchs bent their heads beneath the stream of -phalaricas which was beginning to fly from the tops of the towers. - -In order to resist them the better the Barbarians rushed forward in a -compact crowd; the elephants flung themselves impetuously upon the -centre of it. The spurs on their breasts, like ships' prows, clove -through the cohorts, which flowed surging back. They stifled the men -with their trunks, or else snatching them up from the ground delivered -them over their heads to the soldiers in the towers; with their tusks -they disembowelled them, and hurled them into the air, and long -entrails hung from their ivory fangs like bundles of rope from a mast. -The Barbarians strove to blind them, to hamstring them; others would -slip beneath their bodies, bury a sword in them up to the hilt, and -perish crushed to death; the most intrepid clung to their straps; they -would go on sawing the leather amid flames, bullets, and arrows, and -the wicker tower would fall like a tower of stone. Fourteen of the -animals on the extreme right, irritated by their wounds, turned upon -the second rank; the Indians seized mallet and chisel, applied the -latter to a joint in the head, and with all their might struck a great -blow. - -Down fell the huge beasts, falling one above another. It was like a -mountain; and upon the heap of dead bodies and armour a monstrous -elephant, called "The Fury of Baal," which had been caught by the leg -in some chains, stood howling until the evening with an arrow in its -eye. - -The others, however, like conquerors, delighting in extermination, -overthrew, crushed, stamped, and raged against the corpses and the -debris. To repel the maniples in serried circles around them, they -turned about on their hind feet as they advanced, with a continual -rotatory motion. The Carthaginians felt their energy increase, and the -battle begin again. - -The Barbarians were growing weak; some Greek hoplites threw away all -their arms, and terror seized upon the rest. Spendius was seen -stooping upon his dromedary, and spurring it on the shoulders with two -javelins. Then they all rushed away from the wings and ran towards -Utica. - -The Clinabarians, whose horses were exhausted, did not try to overtake -them. The Ligurians, who were weakened by thirst, cried out for an -advance towards the river. But the Carthaginians, who were posted in -the centre of the syntagmata, and had suffered less, stamped their -feet with longing for the vengeance which was flying from them; and -they were already darting forward in pursuit of the Mercenaries when -Hamilcar appeared. - -He held in his spotted and sweat-covered horse with silver reins. The -bands fastened to the horns on his helmet flapped in the wind behind -him, and he had placed his oval shield beneath his left thigh. With a -motion of his triple-pointed pike he checked the army. - -The Tarentines leaped quickly upon their spare horses, and set off -right and left towards the river and towards the town. - -The phalanx exterminated all the remaining Barbarians at leisure. When -the swords appeared they would stretch out their throats and close -their eyelids. Others defended themselves to the last, and were -knocked down from a distance with flints like mad dogs. Hamilcar had -desired the taking of prisoners, but the Carthaginians obeyed him -grudgingly, so much pleasure did they derive from plunging their -swords into the bodies of the Barbarians. As they were too hot they -set about their work with bare arms like mowers; and when they -desisted to take breath they would follow with their eyes a horseman -galloping across the country after a fleeing soldier. He would succeed -in seizing him by the hair, hold him thus for a while, and then fell -him with a blow of his axe. - -Night fell. Carthaginians and Barbarians had disappeared. The -elephants which had taken to flight roamed in the horizon with their -fired towers. These burned here and there in the darkness like beacons -nearly half lost in the mist; and no movement could be discerned in -the plain save the undulation of the river, which was heaped with -corpses, and was drifting them away to the sea. - -Two hours afterwards Matho arrived. He caught sight in the starlight -of long, uneven heaps lying upon the ground. - -They were files of Barbarians. He stooped down; all were dead. He -called into the distance, but no voice replied. - -That very morning he had left Hippo-Zarytus with his soldiers to march -upon Carthage. At Utica the army under Spendius had just set out, and -the inhabitants were beginning to fire the engines. All had fought -desperately. But, the tumult which was going on in the direction of -the bridge increasing in an incomprehensible fashion, Matho had struck -across the mountain by the shortest road, and as the Barbarians were -fleeing over the plain he had encountered nobody. - -Facing him were little pyramidal masses rearing themselves in the -shade, and on this side of the river and closer to him were motionless -lights on the surface of the ground. In fact the Carthaginians had -fallen back behind the bridge, and to deceive the Barbarians the -Suffet had stationed numerous posts upon the other bank. - -Matho, still advancing, thought that he could distinguish Punic -engines, for horses' heads which did not stir appeared in the air -fixed upon the tops of piles of staves which could not be seen; and -further off he could hear a great clamour, a noise of songs, and -clashing of cups. - -Then, not knowing where he was nor how to find Spendius, assailed with -anguish, scared, and lost in the darkness, he returned more -impetuously by the same road. The dawn as growing grey when from the -top of the mountain he perceived the town with the carcases of the -engines blackened by the flames and looking like giant skeletons -leaning against the walls. - -All was peaceful amid extraordinary silence and heaviness. Among his -soldiers on the verge of the tents men were sleeping nearly naked, -each upon his back, or with his forehead against his arm which was -supported by his cuirass. Some were unwinding bloodstained bandages -from their legs. Those who were doomed to die rolled their heads about -gently; others dragged themselves along and brought them drink. The -sentries walked up and down along the narrow paths in order to warm -themselves, or stood in a fierce attitude with their faces turned -towards the horizon, and their pikes on their shoulders. Matho found -Spendius sheltered beneath a rag of canvas, supported by two sticks -set in the ground, his knee in his hands and his head cast down. - -They remained for a long time without speaking. - -At last Matho murmured: "Conquered!" - -Spendius rejoined in a gloomy voice: "Yes, conquered!" - -And to all questions he replied by gestures of despair. - -Meanwhile sighs and death-rattles reached them. Matho partially opened -the canvas. Then the sight of the soldiers reminded him of another -disaster on the same spot, and he ground his teeth: "Wretch! once -already--" - -Spendius interrupted him: "You were not there either." - -"It is a curse!" exclaimed Matho. "Nevertheless, in the end I will -get at him! I will conquer him! I will slay him! Ah! if I had been -there!--" The thought of having missed the battle rendered him even -more desperate than the defeat. He snatched up his sword and threw it -upon the ground. "But how did the Carthaginians beat you?" - -The former slave began to describe the manoeuvres. Matho seemed to see -them, and he grew angry. The army from Utica ought to have taken -Hamilcar in the rear instead of hastening to the bridge. - -"Ah! I know!" said Spendius. - -"You ought to have made your ranks twice as deep, avoided exposing the -velites against the phalanx, and given free passage to the elephants. -Everything might have been recovered at the last moment; there was no -necessity to fly." - -Spendius replied: - -"I saw him pass along in his large red cloak, with uplifted arms and -higher than the dust, like an eagle flying upon the flank of the -cohorts; and at every nod they closed up or darted forward; the throng -carried us towards each other; he looked at me, and I felt the cold -steel as it were in my heart." - -"He selected the day, perhaps?" whispered Matho to himself. - -They questioned each other, trying to discover what it was that had -brought the Suffet just when circumstances were most unfavourable. -They went on to talk over the situation, and Spendius, to extenuate -his fault, or to revive his courage, asserted that some hope still -remained. - -"And if there be none, it matters not!" said Matho; "alone, I will -carry on the war!" - -"And I too!" exclaimed the Greek, leaping up; he strode to and fro, -his eyes sparkling, and a strange smile wrinkled his jackal face. - -"We will make a fresh start; do not leave me again! I am not made for -battles in the sunlight--the flashing of swords troubles my sight; it -is a disease, I lived too long in the ergastulum. But give me walls to -scale at night, and I will enter the citadels, and the corpses shall -be cold before cock-crow! Show me any one, anything, an enemy, a -treasure, a woman,--a woman," he repeated, "were she a king's -daughter, and I will quickly bring your desire to your feet. You -reproach me for having lost the battle against Hanno, nevertheless I -won it back again. Confess it! my herd of swine did more for us than a -phalanx of Spartans." And yielding to the need that he felt of -exalting himself and taking his revenge, he enumerated all that he had -done for the cause of the Mercenaries. "It was I who urged on the Gaul -in the Suffet's gardens! And later, at Sicca, I maddened them all with -fear of the Republic! Gisco was sending them back, but I prevented the -interpreters speaking. Ah! how their tongues hung out of their mouths! -do you remember? I brought you into Carthage; I stole the zaimph. I -led you to her. I will do more yet: you shall see!" He burst out -laughing like a madman. - -Matho regarded him with gaping eyes. He felt in a measure -uncomfortable in the presence of this man, who was at once so cowardly -and so terrible. - -The Greek resumed in jovial tones and cracking his fingers: - -"Evoe! Sun after run! I have worked in the quarries, and I have drunk -Massic wine beneath a golden awning in a vessel of my own like a -Ptolemaeus. Calamity should help to make us cleverer. By dint of work -we may make fortune bend. She loves politicians. She will yield!" - -He returned to Matho and took him by the arm. - -"Master, at present the Carthaginians are sure of their victory. You -have quite an army which has not fought, and your men obey YOU. Place -them in the front: mine will follow to avenge themselves. I have still -three thousand Carians, twelve hundred slingers and archers, whole -cohorts! A phalanx even might be formed; let us return!" - -Matho, who had been stunned by the disaster, had hitherto thought of -no means of repairing it. He listened with open mouth, and the bronze -plates which circled his sides rose with the leapings of his heart. He -picked up his sword, crying: - -"Follow me; forward!" - -But when the scouts returned, they announced that the Carthaginian -dead had been carried off, that the bridge was in ruins, and that -Hamilcar had disappeared. - - - -CHAPTER IX - -IN THE FIELD - -Hamilcar had thought that the Mercenaries would await him at Utica, or -that they would return against him; and finding his forces -insufficient to make or to sustain an attack, he had struck southwards -along the right bank of the river, thus protecting himself immediately -from a surprise. - -He intended first to wink at the revolt of the tribes and to detach -them all from the cause of the Barbarians; then when they were quite -isolated in the midst of the provinces he would fall upon them and -exterminate them. - -In fourteen days he pacified the region comprised between Thouccaber -and Utica, with the towns of Tignicabah, Tessourah, Vacca, and others -further to the west. Zounghar built in the mountains, Assoura -celebrated for its temple, Djeraado fertile in junipers, Thapitis, and -Hagour sent embassies to him. The country people came with their hands -full of provisions, implored his protection, kissed his feet and those -of the soldiers, and complained of the Barbarians. Some came to offer -him bags containing heads of Mercenaries killed, so they said, by -themselves, but which they had cut off corpses; for many had lost -themselves in their flight, and were found dead here and there beneath -the olive trees and among the vines. - -On the morrow of his victory, Hamilcar, to dazzle the people, had sent -to Carthage the two thousand captives taken on the battlefield. They -arrived in long companies of one hundred men each, all with their arms -fastened behind their backs with a bar of bronze which caught them at -the nape of the neck, and the wounded, bleeding as they still were, -running also along; horsemen followed them, driving them on with blows -of the whip. - -Then there was a delirium of joy! People repeated that there were six -thousand Barbarians killed; the others would not hold out, and the war -was finished; they embraced one another in the streets, and rubbed the -faces of the Pataec Gods with butter and cinnamomum to thank them. -These, with their big eyes, their big bodies, and their arms raised as -high as the shoulder, seemed to live beneath their freshened paint, -and to participate in the cheerfulness of the people. The rich left -their doors open; the city resounded with the noise of the timbrels; -the temples were illuminated every night, and the servants of the -goddess went down to Malqua and set up stages of sycamore-wood at the -corners of the cross-ways, and prostituted themselves there. Lands -were voted to the conquerors, holocausts to Melkarth, three hundred -gold crowns to the Suffet, and his partisans proposed to decree to him -new prerogatives and honours. - -He had begged the Ancients to make overtures to Autaritus for -exchanging all the Barbarians, if necessary, for the aged Gisco, and -the other Carthaginians detained like him. The Libyans and Nomads -composing the army under Autaritus knew scarcely anything of these -Mercenaries, who were men of Italiote or Greek race; and the offer by -the Republic of so many Barbarians for so few Carthaginians, showed -that the value of the former was nothing and that of the latter -considerable. They dreaded a snare. Autaritus refused. - -Then the Ancients decreed the execution of the captives, although the -Suffet had written to them not to put them to death. He reckoned upon -incorporating the best of them with his own troops and of thus -instigating defections. But hatred swept away all circumspection. - -The two thousand Barbarians were tied to the stelae of the tombs in -the Mappalian quarter; and traders, scullions, embroiderers, and even -women,--the widows of the dead with their children--all who would, -came to kill them with arrows. They aimed slowly at them, the better -to prolong their torture, lowering the weapon and then raising it in -turn; and the multitude pressed forward howling. Paralytics had -themselves brought thither in hand-barrows; many took the precaution -of bringing their food, and remained on the spot until the evening; -others passed the night there. Tents had been set up in which drinking -went on. Many gained large sums by hiring out bows. - -Then all these crucified corpses were left upright, looking like so -many red statues on the tombs, and the excitement even spread to the -people of Malqua, who were the descendants of the aboriginal families, -and were usually indifferent to the affairs of their country. Out of -gratitude for the pleasure it had been giving them they now interested -themselves in its fortunes, and felt that they were Carthaginians, and -the Ancients thought it a clever thing to have thus blended the entire -people in a single act of vengeance. - -The sanction of the gods was not wanting; for crows alighted from all -quarters of the sky. They wheeled in the air as they flew with loud -hoarse cries, and formed a huge cloud rolling continually upon itself. -It was seen from Clypea, Rhades, and the promontory of Hermaeum. -Sometimes it would suddenly burst asunder, its black spirals extending -far away, as an eagle clove the centre of it, and then departed again; -here and there on the terraces the domes, the peaks of the obelisks, -and the pediments of the temples there were big birds holding human -fragments in their reddened beaks. - -Owing to the smell the Carthaginians resigned themselves to unbind the -corpses. A few of them were burnt; the rest were thrown into the sea, -and the waves, driven by the north wind, deposited them on the shore -at the end of the gulf before the camp of Autaritus. - -This punishment had no doubt terrified the Barbarians, for from the -top of Eschmoun they could be seen striking their tents, collecting -their flocks, and hoisting their baggage upon asses, and on the -evening of the same day the entire army withdrew. - -It was to march to and fro between the mountain of the Hot Springs and -Hippo-Zarytus, and so debar the Suffet from approaching the Tyrian -towns, and from the possibility of a return to Carthage. - -Meanwhile the two other armies were to try to overtake him in the -south, Spendius in the east, and Matho in the west, in such a way that -all three should unite to surprise and entangle him. Then they -received a reinforcement which they had not looked for: Narr' Havas -appeared with three hundred camels laden with bitumen, twenty-five -elephants, and six thousand horsemen. - -To weaken the Mercenaries the Suffet had judged it prudent to occupy -his attention at a distance in his own kingdom. From the heart of -Carthage he had come to an understanding with Masgaba, a Gaetulian -brigand who was seeking to found an empire. Strengthened by Punic -money, the adventurer had raised the Numidian States with promises of -freedom. But Narr' Havas, warned by his nurse's son, had dropped into -Cirta, poisoned the conquerors with the water of the cisterns, struck -off a few heads, set all right again, and had just arrived against the -Suffet more furious than the Barbarians. - -The chiefs of the four armies concerted the arrangements for the war. -It would be a long one, and everything must be foreseen. - -It was agreed first to entreat the assistance of the Romans, and this -mission was offered to Spendius, but as a fugitive he dared not -undertake it. Twelve men from the Greek colonies embarked at Annaba in -a sloop belonging to the Numidians. Then the chiefs exacted an oath of -complete obedience from all the Barbarians. Every day the captains -inspected clothes and boots; the sentries were even forbidden to use a -shield, for they would often lean it against their lance and fall -asleep as they stood; those who had any baggage trailing after them -were obliged to get rid of it; everything was to be carried, in Roman -fashion, on the back. As a precaution against the elephants Matho -instituted a corps of cataphract cavalry, men and horses being hidden -beneath cuirasses of hippopotamus skin bristling with nails; and to -protect the horses' hoofs boots of plaited esparto-grass were made for -them. - -It was forbidden to pillage the villages, or to tyrannise over the -inhabitants who were not of Punic race. But as the country was -becoming exhausted, Matho ordered the provisions to be served out to -the soldiers individually, without troubling about the women. At first -the men shared with them. Many grew weak for lack of food. It was the -occasion of many quarrels and invectives, many drawing away the -companions of the rest by the bait or even by the promise of their own -portion. Matho commanded them all to be driven away pitilessly. They -took refuge in the camp of Autaritus; but the Gaulish and Libyan women -forced them by their outrageous treatment to depart. - -At last they came beneath the walls of Carthage to implore the -protection of Ceres and Proserpine, for in Byrsa there was a temple -with priests consecrated to these goddesses in expiation of the -horrors formerly committed at the siege of Syracuse. The Syssitia, -alleging their right to waifs and strays, claimed the youngest in -order to sell them; and some fair Lacedaemonian women were taken by -New Carthaginians in marriage. - -A few persisted in following the armies. They ran on the flank of the -syntagmata by the side of the captains. They called to their husbands, -pulled them by the cloak, cursed them as they beat their breasts, and -held out their little naked and weeping children at arm's length. The -sight of them was unmanning the Barbarians; they were an embarrassment -and a peril. Several times they were repulsed, but they came back -again; Matho made the horsemen belonging to Narr' Havas charge them -with the point of the lance; and on some Balearians shouting out to -him that they must have women, he replied: "I have none!" - -Just now he was invaded by the genius of Moloch. In spite of the -rebellion of his conscience, he performed terrible deeds, imagining -that he was thus obeying the voice of a god. When he could not ravage -the fields, Matho would cast stones into them to render them sterile. - -He urged Autaritus and Spendius with repeated messages to make haste. -But the Suffet's operations were incomprehensible. He encamped at -Eidous, Monchar, and Tehent successively; some scouts believed that -they saw him in the neighbourhood of Ischiil, near the frontiers of -Narr' Havas, and it was reported that he had crossed the river above -Tebourba as though to return to Carthage. Scarcely was he in one place -when he removed to another. The routes that he followed always -remained unknown. The Suffet preserved his advantages without offering -battle, and while pursued by the Barbarians seemed to be leading them. - -These marches and counter marches were still more fatiguing to the -Carthaginians, and Hamilcar's forces, receiving no reinforcements, -diminished from day to day. The country people were now more backward -in bringing him provisions. In every direction he encountered taciturn -hesitation and hatred; and in spite of his entreaties to the Great -Council no succour came from Carthage. - -It was said, perhaps it was believed, that he had need of none. It was -a trick, or his complaints were unnecessary; and Hanno's partisans, in -order to do him an ill turn, exaggerated the importance of his -victory. The troops which he commanded he was welcome to; but they -were not going to supply his demands continually in that way. The war -was quite burdensome enough! it had cost too much, and from pride the -patricians belonging to his faction supported him but slackly. - -Then Hamilcar, despairing of the Republic, took by force from the -tribes all that he wanted for the war--grain, oil, wood, cattle, and -men. But the inhabitants were not long in taking flight. The villages -passed through were empty, and the cabins were ransacked without -anything being discerned in them. The Punic army was soon encompassed -by a terrible solitude. - -The Carthaginians, who were furious, began to sack the provinces; they -filled up the cisterns and fired the houses. The sparks, being carried -by the wind, were scattered far off, and whole forests were on fire on -the mountains; they bordered the valleys with a crown of flames, and -it was often necessary to wait in order to pass beyond them. Then the -soldiers resumed their march over the warm ashes in the full glare of -the sun. - -Sometimes they would see what looked like the eyes of a tiger cat -gleaming in a bush by the side of the road. This was a Barbarian -crouching upon his heels, and smeared with dust, that he might not be -distinguished from the colour of the foliage; or perhaps when passing -along a ravine those on the wings would suddenly hear the rolling of -stones, and raising their eyes would perceive a bare-footed man -bounding along through the openings of the gorge. - -Meanwhile Utica and Hippo-Zarytus were free since the Mercenaries were -no longer besieging them. Hamilcar commanded them to come to his -assistance. But not caring to compromise themselves, they answered him -with vague words, with compliments and excuses. - -He went up again abruptly into the North, determined to open up one of -the Tyrian towns, though he were obliged to lay siege to it. He -required a station on the coast, so as to be able to draw supplies and -men from the islands or from Cyrene, and he coveted the harbour of -Utica as being the nearest to Carthage. - -The Suffet therefore left Zouitin and turned the lake of Hippo-Zarytus -with circumspection. But he was soon obliged to lengthen out his -regiments into column in order to climb the mountain which separates -the two valleys. They were descending at sunset into its hollow, -funnel-shaped summit, when they perceived on the level of the ground -before them bronze she-wolves which seemed to be running across the -grass. - -Suddenly large plumes arose and a terrible song burst forth, -accompanied by the rhythm of flutes. It was the army under Spendius; -for some Campanians and Greeks, in their execration of Carthage, had -assumed the ensigns of Rome. At the same time long pikes, shields of -leopard's skin, linen cuirasses, and naked shoulders were seen on the -left. These were the Iberians under Matho, the Lusitanians, -Balearians, and Gaetulians; the horses of Narr' Havas were heard to -neigh; they spread around the hill; then came the loose rabble -commanded by Autaritus--Gauls, Libyans, and Nomads; while the Eaters -of Uncleanness might be recognised among them by the fish bones which -they wore in their hair. - -Thus the Barbarians, having contrived their marches with exactness, -had come together again. But themselves surprised, they remained -motionless for some minutes in consultation. - -The Suffet had collected his men into an orbicular mass, in such a way -as to offer an equal resistance in every direction. The infantry were -surrounded by their tall, pointed shields fixed close to one another -in the turf. The Clinabarians were outside and the elephants at -intervals further off. The Mercenaries were worn out with fatigue; it -was better to wait till next day; and the Barbarians feeling sure of -their victory occupied themselves the whole night in eating. - -They lighted large bright fires, which, while dazzling themselves, -left the Punic army below them in the shade. Hamilcar caused a trench -fifteen feet broad and ten cubits deep to be dug in Roman fashion -round his camp, and the earth thrown out to be raised on the inside -into a parapet, on which sharp interlacing stakes were planted; and at -sunrise the Mercenaries were amazed to perceive all the Carthaginians -thus entrenched as if in a fortress. - -They could recognise Hamilcar in the midst of the tents walking about -and giving orders. His person was clad in a brown cuirass cut in -little scales; he was followed by his horse, and stopped from time to -time to point out something with his right arm outstretched. - -Then more than one recalled similar mornings when, amid the din of -clarions, he passed slowly before them, and his looks strengthened -them like cups of wine. A kind of emotion overcame them. Those, on the -contrary, who were not acquainted with Hamilcar, were mad with joy at -having caught him. - -Nevertheless if all attacked at once they would do one another mutual -injury in the insufficiency of space. The Numidians might dash -through; but the Clinabarians, who were protected by cuirasses, would -crush them. And then how were the palisades to be crossed? As to the -elephants, they were not sufficiently well trained. - -"You are all cowards!" exclaimed Matho. - -And with the best among them he rushed against the entrenchment. They -were repulsed by a volley of stones; for the Suffet had taken their -abandoned catapults on the bridge. - -This want of success produced an abrupt change in the fickle minds of -the Barbarians. Their extreme bravery disappeared; they wished to -conquer, but with the smallest possible risk. According to Spendius -they ought to maintain carefully the position that they held, and -starve out the Punic army. But the Carthaginians began to dig wells, -and as there were mountains surrounding the hill, they discovered -water. - -From the summit of their palisade they launched arrows, earth, dung, -and pebbles which they gathered from the ground, while the six -catapults rolled incessantly throughout the length of the terrace. - -But the springs would dry up of themselves; the provisions would be -exhausted, and the catapults worn out; the Mercenaries, who were ten -times as numerous, would triumph in the end. The Suffet devised -negotiations so as to gain time, and one morning the Barbarians found -a sheep's skin covered with writing within their lines. He justified -himself for his victory: the Ancients had forced him into the war, and -to show them that he was keeping his word, he offered them the -pillaging of Utica or Hippo-Zarytus at their choice; in conclusion, -Hamilcar declared that he did not fear them because he had won over -some traitors, and thanks to them would easily manage the rest. - -The Barbarians were disturbed: this proposal of immediate booty made -them consider; they were apprehensive of treachery, not suspecting a -snare in the Suffet's boasting, and they began to look upon one -another with mistrust. Words and steps were watched; terrors awaked -them in the night. Many forsook their companions and chose their army -as fancy dictated, and the Gauls with Autaritus went and joined -themselves with the men of Cisalpine Gaul, whose language they -understood. - -The four chiefs met together every evening in Matho's tent, and -squatting round a shield, attentively moved backwards and forwards the -little wooden figures invented by Pyrrhus for the representation of -manoeuvres. Spendius would demonstrate Hamilcar's resources, and with -oaths by all the gods entreat that the opportunity should not be -wasted. Matho would walk about angry and gesticulating. The war -against Carthage was his own personal affair; he was indignant that -the others should interfere in it without being willing to obey him. -Autaritus would divine his speech from his countenance and applaud. -Narr' Havas would elevate his chin to mark his disdain; there was not -a measure he did not consider fatal; and he had ceased to smile. Sighs -would escape him as though he were thrusting back sorrow for an -impossible dream, despair for an abortive enterprise. - -While the Barbarians deliberated in uncertainty, the Suffet increased -his defences: he had a second trench dug within the palisades, a -second wall raised, and wooden towers constructed at the corners; and -his slaves went as far as the middle of the outposts to drive caltrops -into the ground. But the elephants, whose allowances were lessened, -struggled in their shackles. To economise the grass he ordered the -Clinabarians to kill the least strong among the stallions. A few -refused to do so, and he had them decapitated. The horses were eaten. -The recollection of this fresh meat was a source of great sadness to -them in the days that followed. - -From the bottom of the ampitheatre in which they were confined they -could see the four bustling camps of the Barbarians all around them on -the heights. Women moved about with leathern bottles on their heads, -goats strayed bleating beneath the piles of pikes; sentries were being -relieved, and eating was going on around tripods. In fact, the tribes -furnished them abundantly with provisions, and they did not themselves -suspect how much their inaction alarmed the Punic army. - -On the second day the Carthaginians had remarked a troop of three -hundred men apart from the rest in the camp of the nomads. These were -the rich who had been kept prisoners since the beginning of the war. -Some Libyans ranged them along the edge of the trench, took their -station behind them, and hurled javelins, making themselves a rampart -of their bodies. The wretched creatures could scarcely be recognised, -so completely were their faces covered with vermin and filth. Their -hair had been plucked out in places, leaving bare the ulcers on their -heads, and they were so lean and hideous that they were like mummies -in tattered shrouds. A few trembled and sobbed with a stupid look; the -rest cried out to their friends to fire upon the Barbarians. There was -one who remained quite motionless with face cast down, and without -speaking; his long white beard fell to his chain-covered hands; and -the Carthaginians, feeling as it were the downfall of the Republic in -the bottom of their hearts, recognised Gisco. Although the place was a -dangerous one they pressed forward to see him. On his head had been -placed a grotesque tiara of hippopotamus leather incrusted with -pebbles. It was Autaritus's idea; but it was displeasing to Matho. - -Hamilcar in exasperation, and resolved to cut his way through in one -way or another, had the palisades opened; and the Carthaginians went -at a furious rate half way up the hill or three hundred paces. Such a -flood of Barbarians descended upon them that they were driven back to -their lines. One of the guards of the Legion who had remained outside -was stumbling among the stones. Zarxas ran up to him, knocked him -down, and plunged a dagger into his throat; he drew it out, threw -himself upon the wound--and gluing his lips to it with mutterings of -joy, and startings which shook him to the heels, pumped up the blood -by breastfuls; then he quietly sat down upon the corpse, raised his -face with his neck thrown back the better to breathe in the air, like -a hind that has just drunk at a mountain stream, and in a shrill voice -began to sing a Balearic song, a vague melody full of prolonged -modulations, with interruptions and alternations like echoes answering -one another in the mountains; he called upon his dead brothers and -invited them to a feast;--then he let his hands fall between his legs, -slowly bent his head, and wept. This atrocious occurrence horrified -the Barbarians, especially the Greeks. - -From that time forth the Carthaginians did not attempt to make any -sally; and they had no thought of surrender, certain as they were that -they would perish in tortures. - -Nevertheless the provisions, in spite of Hamilcar's carefulness, -diminished frightfully. There was not left per man more than ten -k'hommers of wheat, three hins of millet, and twelve betzas of dried -fruit. No more meat, no more oil, no more salt food, and not a grain -of barley for the horses, which might be seen stretching down their -wasted necks seeking in the dust for blades of trampled straw. Often -the sentries on vedette upon the terrace would see in the moonlight a -dog belonging to the Barbarians coming to prowl beneath the -entrenchment among the heaps of filth; it would be knocked down with a -stone, and then, after a descent had been effected along the palisades -by means of the straps of a shield, it would be eaten without a word. -Sometimes horrible barkings would be heard and the man would not come -up again. Three phalangites, in the fourth dilochia of the twelfth -syntagmata, killed one another with knives in a dispute about a rat. - -All regretted their families, and their houses; the poor their hive- -shaped huts, with the shells on the threshold and the hanging net, and -the patricians their large halls filled with bluish shadows, where at -the most indolent hour of the day they used to rest listening to the -vague noise of the streets mingled with the rustling of the leaves as -they stirred in their gardens;--to go deeper into the thought of this, -and to enjoy it more, they would half close their eyelids, only to be -roused by the shock of a wound. Every minute there was some -engagement, some fresh alarm; the towers were burning, the Eaters of -Uncleanness were leaping across the palisades; their hands would be -struck off with axes; others would hasten up; an iron hail would fall -upon the tents. Galleries of rushen hurdles were raised as a -protection against the projectiles. The Carthaginians shut themselves -up within them and stirred out no more. - -Every day the sun coming over the hill used, after the early hours, to -forsake the bottom of the gorge and leave them in the shade. The grey -slopes of the ground, covered with flints spotted with scanty lichen, -ascended in front and in the rear, and above their summits stretched -the sky in its perpetual purity, smoother and colder to the eye than a -metal cupola. Hamilcar was so indignant with Carthage that he felt -inclined to throw himself among the Barbarians and lead them against -her. Moreover, the porters, sutlers, and slaves were beginning to -murmur, while neither people, nor Great Council, nor any one sent as -much as a hope. The situation was intolerable, especially owing to the -thought that it would become worse. - -At the news of the disaster Carthage had leaped, as it were, with -anger and hate; the Suffet would have been less execrated if he had -allowed himself to be conquered from the first. - -But time and money were lacking for the hire of other Mercenaries. As -to a levy of soldiers in the town, how were they to be equipped? -Hamilcar had taken all the arms! and then who was to command them? The -best captains were down yonder with him! Meanwhile, some men -despatched by the Suffet arrived in the streets with shouts. The Great -Council were roused by them, and contrived to make them disappear. - -It was an unnecessary precaution; every one accused Barca of having -behaved with slackness. He ought to have annihilated the Mercenaries -after his victory. Why had he ravaged the tribes? The sacrifices -already imposed had been heavy enough! and the patricians deplored -their contributions of fourteen shekels, and the Syssitia their two -hundred and twenty-three thousand gold kikars; those who had given -nothing lamented like the rest. The populace was jealous of the New -Carthaginians, to whom he had promised full rights of citizenship; and -even the Ligurians, who had fought with such intrepidity, were -confounded with the Barbarians and cursed like them; their race became -a crime, the proof of complicity. The traders on the threshold of -their shops, the workmen passing plumb-line in hand, the vendors of -pickle rinsing their baskets, the attendants in the vapour baths and -the retailers of hot drinks all discussed the operations of the -campaign. They would trace battle-plans with their fingers in the -dust, and there was not a sorry rascal to be found who could not have -corrected Hamilcar's mistakes. - -It was a punishment, said the priests, for his long-continued impiety. -He had offered no holocausts; he had not purified his troops; he had -even refused to take augurs with him; and the scandal of sacrilege -strengthened the violence of restrained hate, and the rage of betrayed -hopes. People recalled the Sicilian disasters, and all the burden of -his pride that they had borne for so long! The colleges of the -pontiffs could not forgive him for having seized their treasure, and -they demanded a pledge from the Great Council to crucify him should he -ever return. - -The heats of the month of Eloul, which were excessive in that year, -were another calamity. Sickening smells rose from the borders of the -Lake, and were wafted through the air together with the fumes of the -aromatics that eddied at the corners of the streets. The sounds of -hymns were constantly heard. Crowds of people occupied the staircases -of the temples; all the walls were covered with black veils; tapers -burnt on the brows of the Pataec Gods, and the blood of camels slain -for sacrifice ran along the flights of stairs forming red cascades -upon the steps. Carthage was agitated with funereal delirium. From the -depths of the narrowest lanes, and the blackest dens, there issued -pale faces, men with viper-like profiles and grinding their teeth. The -houses were filled with the women's piercing shrieks, which, escaping -through the gratings, caused those who stood talking in the squares to -turn round. Sometimes it was thought that the Barbarians were -arriving; they had been seen behind the mountain of the Hot Springs; -they were encamped at Tunis; and the voices would multiply and swell, -and be blended into one single clamour. Then universal silence would -reign, some remaining where they had climbed upon the frontals of the -buildings, screening their eyes with their open hand, while the rest -lay flat on their faces at the foot of the ramparts straining their -ears. When their terror had passed off their anger would begin again. -But the conviction of their own impotence would soon sink them into -the same sadness as before. - -It increased every evening when all ascended the terraces, and bowing -down nine times uttered a loud cry in salutation of the sun, as it -sank slowly behind the lagoon, and then suddenly disappeared among the -mountains in the direction of the Barbarians. - -They were waiting for the thrice holy festival when, from the summit -of a funeral pile, an eagle flew heavenwards as a symbol of the -resurrection of the year, and a message from the people to their Baal; -they regarded it as a sort of union, a method of connecting themselves -with the might of the Sun. Moreover, filled as they now were with -hatred, they turned frankly towards homicidal Moloch, and all forsook -Tanith. In fact, Rabetna, having lost her veil, was as if she had been -despoiled of part of her virtue. She denied the beneficence of her -waters, she had abandoned Carthage; she was a deserter, an enemy. Some -threw stones at her to insult her. But many pitied her while they -inveighed against her; she was still beloved, and perhaps more deeply -than she had been. - -All their misfortunes came, therefore, from the loss of the zaimph. -Salammbo had indirectly participated in it; she was included in the -same ill will; she must be punished. A vague idea of immolation spread -among the people. To appease the Baalim it was without doubt necessary -to offer them something of incalculable worth, a being handsome, -young, virgin, of old family, a descendant of the gods, a human star. -Every day the gardens of Megara were invaded by strange men; the -slaves, trembling on their own account, dared not resist them. -Nevertheless, they did not pass beyond the galley staircase. They -remained below with their eyes raised to the highest terrace; they -were waiting for Salammbo, and they would cry out for hours against -her like dogs baying at the moon. - - - -CHAPTER X - -THE SERPENT - -These clamourings of the populace did not alarm Hamilcar's daughter. -She was disturbed by loftier anxieties: her great serpent, the black -python, was drooping; and in the eyes of the Carthaginians, the -serpent was at once a national and a private fetish. It was believed -to be the offspring of the dust of the earth, since it emerges from -its depths and has no need of feet to traverse it; its mode of -progression called to mind the undulations of rivers, its temperature -the ancient, viscous, and fecund darkness, and the orbit which it -describes when biting its tail the harmony of the planets, and the -intelligence of Eschmoun. - -Salammbo's serpent had several times already refused the four live -sparrows which were offered to it at the full moon and at every new -moon. Its handsome skin, covered like the firmament with golden spots -upon a perfectly black ground, was now yellow, relaxed, wrinkled, and -too large for its body. A cottony mouldiness extended round its head; -and in the corners of its eyelids might be seen little red specks -which appeared to move. Salammbo would approach its silver-wire basket -from time to time, and would draw aside the purple curtains, the lotus -leaves, and the bird's down; but it was continually rolled up upon -itself, more motionless than a withered bind-weed; and from looking at -it she at last came to feel a kind of spiral within her heart, another -serpent, as it were, mounting up to her throat by degrees and -strangling her. - -She was in despair of having seen the zaimph, and yet she felt a sort -of joy, an intimate pride at having done so. A mystery shrank within -the splendour of its folds; it was the cloud that enveloped the gods, -and the secret of the universal existence, and Salammbo, horror- -stricken at herself, regretted that she had not raised it. - -She was almost always crouching at the back of her apartment, holding -her bended left leg in her hands, her mouth half open, her chin sunk, -her eye fixed. She recollected her father's face with terror; she -wished to go away into the mountains of Phoenicia, on a pilgrimage to -the temple of Aphaka, where Tanith descended in the form of a star; -all kinds of imaginings attracted her and terrified her; moreover, a -solitude which every day became greater encompassed her. She did not -even know what Hamilcar was about. - -Wearied at last with her thoughts she would rise, and trailing along -her little sandals whose soles clacked upon her heels at every step, -she would walk at random through the large silent room. The amethysts -and topazes of the ceiling made luminous spots quiver here and there, -and Salammbo as she walked would turn her head a little to see them. -She would go and take the hanging amphoras by the neck; she would cool -her bosom beneath the broad fans, or perhaps amuse herself by burning -cinnamomum in hollow pearls. At sunset Taanach would draw back the -black felt lozenges that closed the openings in the wall; then her -doves, rubbed with musk like the doves of Tanith, suddenly entered, -and their pink feet glided over the glass pavement, amid the grains of -barley which she threw to them in handfuls like a sower in a field. -But on a sudden she would burst into sobs and lie stretched on the -large bed of ox-leather straps without moving, repeating a word that -was ever the same, with open eyes, pale as one dead, insensible, cold; -and yet she could hear the cries of the apes in the tufts of the palm -trees, with the continuous grinding of the great wheel which brought a -flow of pure water through the stories into the porphyry centre-basin. - -Sometimes for several days she would refuse to eat. She could see in a -dream troubled stars wandering beneath her feet. She would call -Schahabarim, and when he came she had nothing to say to him. - -She could not live without the relief of his presence. But she -rebelled inwardly against this domination; her feeling towards the -priest was one at once of terror, jealousy, hatred, and a species of -love, in gratitude for the singular voluptuousness which she -experienced by his side. - -He had recognised the influence of Rabbet, being skilful to discern -the gods who send diseases; and to cure Salammbo he had her apartment -watered with lotions of vervain, and maidenhair; she ate mandrakes -every morning; she slept with her head on a cushion filled with -aromatics blended by the pontiffs; he had even employed baaras, a -fiery-coloured root which drives back fatal geniuses into the North; -lastly, turning towards the polar star, he murmured thrice the -mysterious name of Tanith; but Salammbo still suffered and her anguish -deepened. - -No one in Carthage was so learned as he. In his youth he had studied -at the College of the Mogbeds, at Borsippa, near Babylon; had then -visited Samothrace, Pessinus, Ephesus, Thessaly, Judaea, and the -temples of the Nabathae, which are lost in the sands; and had -travelled on foot along the banks of the Nile from the cataracts to -the sea. Shaking torches with veil-covered face, he had cast a black -cock upon a fire of sandarach before the breast of the Sphinx, the -Father of Terror. He had descended into the caverns of Proserpine; he -had seen the five hundred pillars of the labyrinth of Lemnos revolve, -and the candelabrum of Tarentum, which bore as many sconces on its -shaft as there are days in the year, shine in its splendour; at times -he received Greeks by night in order to question them. The -constitution of the world disquieted him no less than the nature of -the gods; he had observed the equinoxes with the armils placed in the -portico of Alexandria, and accompanied the bematists of Evergetes, who -measure the sky by calculating the number of their steps, as far as -Cyrene; so that there was now growing in his thoughts a religion of -his own, with no distinct formula, and on that very account full of -infatuation and fervour. He no longer believed that the earth was -formed like a fir-cone; he believed it to be round, and eternally -falling through immensity with such prodigious speed that its fall was -not perceived. - -From the position of the sun above the moon he inferred the -predominance of Baal, of whom the planet itself is but the reflection -and figure; moreover, all that he saw in terrestrial things compelled -him to recognise the male exterminating principle as supreme. And then -he secretly charged Rabbet with the misfortune of his life. Was it not -for her that the grand-pontiff had once advanced amid the tumult of -cymbals, and with a patera of boiling water taken from him his future -virility? And he followed with a melancholy gaze the men who were -disappearing with the priestesses in the depths of the turpentine -trees. - -His days were spent in inspecting the censers, the gold vases, the -tongs, the rakes for the ashes of the altar, and all the robes of the -statues down to the bronze bodkin that served to curl the hair of an -old Tanith in the third aedicule near the emerald vine. At the same -hours he would raise the great hangings of the same swinging doors; -would remain with his arms outspread in the same attitude; or prayed -prostrate on the same flag-stones, while around him a people of -priests moved barefooted through the passages filled with an eternal -twilight. - -But Salammbo was in the barrenness of his life like a flower in the -cleft of a sepulchre. Nevertheless he was hard upon her, and spared -her neither penances nor bitter words. His condition established, as -it were, the equality of a common sex between them, and he was less -angry with the girl for his inability to possess her than for finding -her so beautiful, and above all so pure. Often he saw that she grew -weary of following his thought. Then he would turn away sadder than -before; he would feel himself more forsaken, more empty, more alone. - -Strange words escaped him sometimes, which passed before Salammbo like -broad lightnings illuminating the abysses. This would be at night on -the terrace when, both alone, they gazed upon the stars, and Carthage -spread below under their feet, with the gulf and the open sea dimly -lost in the colour of the darkness. - -He would set forth to her the theory of the souls that descend upon -the earth, following the same route as the sun through the signs of -the zodiac. With outstretched arm he showed the gate of human -generation in the Ram, and that of the return to the gods in -Capricorn; and Salammbo strove to see them, for she took these -conceptions for realities; she accepted pure symbols and even manners -of speech as being true in themselves, a distinction not always very -clear even to the priest. - -"The souls of the dead," said he, "resolve themselves into the moon, -as their bodies do into the earth. Their tears compose its humidity; -'tis a dark abode full of mire, and wreck, and tempest." - -She asked what would become of her then. - -"At first you will languish as light as a vapour hovering upon the -waves; and after more lengthened ordeals and agonies, you will pass -into the forces of the sun, the very source of Intelligence!" - -He did not speak, however, of Rabbet. Salammbo imagined that it was -through some shame for his vanquished goddess, and calling her by a -common name which designated the moon, she launched into blessings -upon the soft and fertile planet. At last he exclaimed: - -"No! no! she draws all her fecundity from the other! Do you not see -her hovering about him like an amorous woman running after a man in a -field?" And he exalted the virtue of light unceasingly. - -Far from depressing her mystic desires, he sought, on the contrary, to -excite them, and he even seemed to take joy in grieving her by the -revelation of a pitiless doctrine. In spite of the pains of her love -Salammbo threw herself upon it with transport. - -But the more that Schahabarim felt himself in doubt about Tanith, the -more he wished to believe in her. At the bottom of his soul he was -arrested by remorse. He needed some proof, some manifestation from the -gods, and in the hope of obtaining it the priest devised an enterprise -which might save at once his country and his belief. - -Thenceforward he set himself to deplore before Salammbo the sacrilege -and the misfortunes which resulted from it even in the regions of the -sky. Then he suddenly announced the peril of the Suffet, who was -assailed by three armies under the command of Matho--for on account of -the veil Matho was, in the eyes of the Carthaginians, the king, as it -were, of the Barbarians,--and he added that the safety of the Republic -and of her father depended upon her alone. - -"Upon me!" she exclaimed. "How can I--?" - -But the priest, with a smile of disdain said: - -"You will never consent!" - -She entreated him. At last Schahabarim said to her: - -"You must go to the Barbarians and recover the zaimph!" - -She sank down upon the ebony stool, and remained with her arms -stretched out between her knees and shivering in all her limbs, like a -victim at the altar's foot awaiting the blow of the club. Her temples -were ringing, she could see fiery circles revolving, and in her stupor -she had lost the understanding of all things save one, that she was -certainly going to die soon. - -But if Rabbetna triumphed, if the zaimph were restored and Carthage -delivered, what mattered a woman's life? thought Schahabarim. -Moreover, she would perhaps obtain the veil and not perish. - -He stayed away for three days; on the evening of the fourth she sent -for him. - -The better to inflame her heart he reported to her all the invectives -howled against Hamilcar in open council; he told her that she had -erred, that she owed reparation for her crime, and that Rabbetna -commanded the sacrifice. - -A great uproar came frequently across the Mappalian district to -Megara. Schahabarim and Salammbo went out quickly, and gazed from the -top of the galley staircase. - -There were people in the square of Khamon shouting for arms. The -Ancients would not provide them, esteeming such an effort useless; -others who had set out without a general had been massacred. At last -they were permitted to depart, and as a sort of homage to Moloch, or -from a vague need of destruction, they tore up tall cypress trees in -the woods of the temples, and having kindled them at the torches of -the Kabiri, were carrying them through the streets singing. These -monstrous flames advanced swaying gently; they transmitted fires to -the glass balls on the crests of the temples, to the ornaments of the -colossuses and the beaks of the ships, passed beyond the terraces and -formed suns as it were, which rolled through the town. They descended -the Acropolis. The gate of Malqua opened. - -"Are you ready?" exclaimed Schahabarim, "or have you asked them to -tell your father that you abandoned him?" She hid her face in her -veils, and the great lights retired, sinking gradually the while to -the edge of the waves. - -An indeterminate dread restrained her; she was afraid of Moloch and of -Matho. This man, with his giant stature, who was master of the zaimph, -ruled Rabbetna as much as did Baal, and seemed to her to be surrounded -by the same fulgurations; and then the souls of the gods sometimes -visited the bodies of men. Did not Schahabarim in speaking of him say -that she was to vanquish Moloch? They were mingled with each other; -she confused them together; both of them were pursuing her. - -She wished to learn the future, and approached the serpent, for -auguries were drawn from the attitudes of serpents. But the basket was -empty; Salammbo was disturbed. - -She found him with his tail rolled round one of the silver balustrades -beside the hanging bed, which he was rubbing in order to free himself -from his old yellowish skin, while his body stretched forth gleaming -and clear like a sword half out of the sheath. - -Then on the days following, in proportion as she allowed herself to be -convinced, and was more disposed to succour Tanith, the python -recovered and grew; he seemed to be reviving. - -The certainty that Salammbo was giving expression to the will of the -gods then became established in her conscience. One morning she awoke -resolved, and she asked what was necessary to make Matho restore the -veil. - -"To claim it," said Schahabarim. - -"But if he refuses?" she rejoined. - -The priest scanned her fixedly with a smile such as she had never -seen. - -"Yes, what is to be done?" repeated Salammbo. - -He rolled between his fingers the extremities of the bands which fell -from his tiara upon his shoulders, standing motionless with eyes cast -down. At last seeing that she did not understand: - -"You will be alone with him." - -"Well?" she said. - -"Alone in his tent." - -"What then?" - -Schahabarim bit his lips. He sought for some phrase, some -circumlocution. - -"If you are to die, that will be later," he said; "later! fear -nothing! and whatever he may undertake to do, do not call out! do not -be frightened! You will be humble, you understand, and submissive to -his desire, which is ordained of heaven!" - -"But the veil?" - -"The gods will take thought for it," replied Schahabarim. - -"Suppose you were to accompany me, O father?" she added. - -"No!" - -He made her kneel down, and keeping his left hand raised and his right -extended, he swore in her behalf to bring back the mantle of Tanith -into Carthage. With terrible imprecations she devoted herself to the -gods, and each time that Schahabarim pronounced a word she falteringly -repeated it. - -He indicated to her all the purifications and fastings that she was to -observe, and how she was to reach Matho. Moreover, a man acquainted -with the routes would accompany her. - -She felt as if she had been set free. She thought only of the -happiness of seeing the zaimph again, and she now blessed Schahabarim -for his exhortations. - -It was the period at which the doves of Carthage migrated to Sicily to -the mountain of Eryx and the temple of Venus. For several days before -their departure they sought out and called to one another so as to -collect together; at last one evening they flew away; the wind blew -them along, and the big white cloud glided across the sky high above -the sea. - -The horizon was filled with the colour of blood. They seemed to -descend gradually to the waves; then they disappeared as though -swallowed up, and falling of themselves into the jaws of the sun. -Salammbo, who watched them retiring, bent her head, and then Taanach, -believing that she guessed her sorrow, said gently to her: - -"But they will come back, Mistress." - -"Yes! I know." - -"And you will see them again." - -"Perhaps!" she said, sighing. - -She had not confided her resolve to any one; in order to carry it out -with the greater discretion she sent Taanach to the suburb of Kinisdo -to buy all the things that she required instead of requesting them -from the stewards: vermilion, aromatics, a linen girdle, and new -garments. The old slave was amazed at these preparations, without -daring, however, to ask any questions; and the day, which had been -fixed by Schahabarim, arrived when Salammbo was to set out. - -About the twelfth hour she perceived, in the depths of the sycamore -trees, a blind old man with one hand resting on the shoulder of a -child who walked before him, while with the other he carried a kind of -cithara of black wood against his hip. The eunuchs, slaves, and women -had been scrupulously sent away; no one might know the mystery that -was preparing. - -Taanach kindled four tripods filled with strobus and cadamomum in the -corners of the apartment; then she unfolded large Babylonian hangings, -and stretched them on cords all around the room, for Salammbo did not -wish to be seen even by the walls. The kinnor-player squatted behind -the door and the young boy standing upright applied a reed flute to -his lips. In the distance the roar of the streets was growing feebler, -violet shadows were lengthening before the peristyles of the temples, -and on the other side of the gulf the mountain bases, the fields of -olive-trees, and the vague yellow lands undulated indefinitely, and -were blended together in a bluish haze; not a sound was to be heard, -and an unspeakable depression weighed in the air. - -Salammbo crouched down upon the onyx step on the edge of the basin; -she raised her ample sleeves, fastening them behind her shoulders, and -began her ablutions in methodical fashion, according to the sacred -rites. - -Next Taanach brought her something liquid and coagulated in an -alabaster phial; it was the blood of a black dog slaughtered by barren -women on a winter's night amid the rubbish of a sepulchre. She rubbed -it upon her ears, her heels, and the thumb of her right hand, and even -her nail remained somewhat red, as if she had crushed a fruit. - -The moon rose; then the cithara and the flute began to play together. - -Salammbo unfastened her earrings, her necklace, her bracelets, and her -long white simar; she unknotted the band in her hair, shaking the -latter for a few minutes softly over her shoulders to cool herself by -thus scattering it. The music went on outside; it consisted of three -notes ever the same, hurried and frenzied; the strings grated, the -flute blew; Taanach kept time by striking her hands; Salammbo, with a -swaying of her whole body, chanted prayers, and her garments fell one -after another around her. - -The heavy tapestry trembled, and the python's head appeared above the -cord that supported it. The serpent descended slowly like a drop of -water flowing along a wall, crawled among the scattered stuffs, and -then, gluing its tail to the ground, rose perfectly erect; and his -eyes, more brilliant than carbuncles, darted upon Salammbo. - -A horror of cold, or perhaps a feeling of shame, at first made her -hesitate. But she recalled Schahabarim's orders and advanced; the -python turned downwards, and resting the centre of its body upon the -nape of her neck, allowed its head and tail to hang like a broken -necklace with both ends trailing to the ground. Salammbo rolled it -around her sides, under her arms and between her knees; then taking it -by the jaw she brought the little triangular mouth to the edge of her -teeth, and half shutting her eyes, threw herself back beneath the rays -of the moon. The white light seemed to envelop her in a silver mist, -the prints of her humid steps shone upon the flag-stones, stars -quivered in the depth of the water; it tightened upon her its black -rings that were spotted with scales of gold. Salammbo panted beneath -the excessive weight, her loins yielded, she felt herself dying, and -with the tip of its tail the serpent gently beat her thigh; then the -music becoming still it fell off again. - -Taanach came back to her; and after arranging two candelabra, the -lights of which burned in crystal balls filled with water, she tinged -the inside of her hands with Lawsonia, spread vermilion upon her -cheeks, and antimony along the edge of her eyelids, and lengthened her -eyebrows with a mixture of gum, musk, ebony, and crushed legs of -flies. - -Salammbo seated on a chair with ivory uprights, gave herself up to the -attentions of the slave. But the touchings, the odour of the -aromatics, and the fasts that she had undergone, were enervating her. -She became so pale that Taanach stopped. - -"Go on!" said Salammbo, and bearing up against herself, she suddenly -revived. Then she was seized with impatience; she urged Taanach to -make haste, and the old slave grumbled: - -"Well! well! Mistress!--Besides, you have no one waiting for you!" - -"Yes!" said Salammbo, "some one is waiting for me." - -Taanach drew back in surprise, and in order to learn more about it, -said: - -"What orders to you give me, Mistress? for if you are to remain -away--" - -But Salammbo was sobbing; the slave exclaimed: - -"You are suffering! what is the matter? Do not go away! take me! When -you were quite little and used to cry, I took you to my heart and made -you laugh with the points of my breasts; you have drained them, -Mistress!" She struck herself upon her dried-up bosom. "Now I am old! -I can do nothing for you! you no longer love me! you hide your griefs -from me, you despise the nurse!" And tears of tenderness and vexation -flowed down her cheeks in the gashes of her tattooing. - -"No!" said Salammbo, "no, I love you! be comforted!" - -With a smile like the grimace of an old ape, Taanach resumed her task. -In accordance with Schahabarim's recommendations, Salammbo had ordered -the slave to make her magnificent; and she was obeying her mistress -with barbaric taste full at once of refinement and ingenuity. - -Over a first delicate and vinous-coloured tunic she passed a second -embroidered with birds' feathers. Golden scales clung to her hips, and -from this broad girdle descended her blue flowing silver-starred -trousers. Next Taanach put upon her a long robe made of the cloth of -the country of Seres, white and streaked with green lines. On the edge -of her shoulder she fastened a square of purple weighted at the hem -with grains of sandastrum; and above all these garments she placed a -black mantle with a flowing train; then she gazed at her, and proud of -her work could not help saying: - -"You will not be more beautiful on the day of your bridal!" - -"My bridal!" repeated Salammbo; she was musing with her elbow resting -upon the ivory chair. - -But Taanach set up before her a copper mirror, which was so broad and -high that she could see herself completely in it. Then she rose, and -with a light touch of her finger raised a lock of her hair which was -falling too low. - -Her hair was covered with gold dust, was crisped in front, and hung -down behind over her back in long twists ending in pearls. The -brightness of the candelabra heightened the paint on her cheeks, the -gold on her garments, and the whiteness of her skin; around her waist, -and on her arms, hands and toes, she had such a wealth of gems that -the mirror sent back rays upon her like a sun;--and Salammbo, standing -by the side of Taanach, who leaned over to see her, smiled amid this -dazzling display. - -Then she walked to and fro embarrassed by the time that was still -left. - -Suddenly the crow of a cock resounded. She quickly pinned a long -yellow veil upon her hair, passed a scarf around her neck, thrust her -feet into blue leather boots, and said to Taanach: - -"Go and see whether there is not a man with two horses beneath the -myrtles." - -Taanach had scarcely re-entered when she was descending the galley -staircase. - -"Mistress!" cried the nurse. - -Salammbo turned round with one finger on her mouth as a sign for -discretion and immobility. - -Taanach stole softly along the prows to the foot of the terrace, and -from a distance she could distinguish by the light of the moon a -gigantic shadow walking obliquely in the cypress avenue to the left of -Salammbo, a sign which presaged death. - -Taanach went up again into the chamber. She threw herself upon the -ground tearing her face with her nails; she plucked out her hair, and -uttered piercing shrieks with all her might. - -It occurred to her that they might be heard; then she became silent, -sobbing quite softly with her head in the hands and her face on the -pavement. - - - -CHAPTER XI - -IN THE TENT - -The man who guided Salammbo made her ascend again beyond the pharos in -the direction of the Catacombs, and then go down the long suburb of -Molouya, which was full of steep lanes. The sky was beginning to grow -grey. Sometimes palm-wood beams jutting out from the walls obliged -them to bend their heads. The two horses which were at the walk would -often slip; and thus they reached the Teveste gate. - -Its heavy leaves were half open; they passed through, and it closed -behind them. - -At first they followed the foot of the ramparts for a time, and at the -height of the cisterns they took their way along the Taenia, a narrow -strip of yellow earth separating the gulf from the lake and extending -as far as Rhades. - -No one was to be seen around Carthage, whether on the sea or in the -country. The slate-coloured waves chopped softly, and the light wind -blowing their foam hither and thither spotted them with white rents. -In spite of all her veils, Salammbo shivered in the freshness of the -morning; the motion and the open air dazed her. Then the sun rose; it -preyed on the back of her head, and she involuntarily dozed a little. -The two animals rambled along side by side, their feet sinking into -the silent sand. - -When they had passed the mountain of the Hot Springs, they went on at -a more rapid rate, the ground being firmer. - -But although it was the season for sowing and ploughing, the fields -were as empty as the desert as far as the eye could reach. Here and -there were scattered heaps of corn; at other places the barley was -shedding its reddened ears. The villages showed black upon the clear -horizon, with shapes incoherently carved. - -From time to time a half-calcined piece of wall would be found -standing on the edge of the road. The roofs of the cottages were -falling in, and in the interiors might be distinguished fragments of -pottery, rags of clothing, and all kinds of unrecognisable utensils -and broken things. Often a creature clothed in tatters, with earthy -face and flaming eyes would emerge from these ruins. But he would very -quickly begin to run or would disappear into a hole. Salammbo and her -guide did not stop. - -Deserted plains succeeded one another. Charcoal dust which was raised -by their feet behind them, stretched in unequal trails over large -spaces of perfectly white soil. Sometimes they came upon little -peaceful spots, where a brook flowed amid the long grass; and as they -ascended the other bank Salammbo would pluck damp leaves to cool her -hands. At the corner of a wood of rose-bays her horse shied violently -at the corpse of a man which lay extended on the ground. - -The slave immediately settled her again on the cushions. He was one of -the servants of the Temple, a man whom Schahabarim used to employ on -perilous missions. - -With extreme precaution he now went on foot beside her and between the -horses; he would whip the animals with the end of a leathern lace -wound round his arm, or would perhaps take balls made of wheat, dates, -and yolks of eggs wrapped in lotus leaves from a scrip hanging against -his breast, and offer them to Salammbo without speaking, and running -all the time. - -In the middle of the day three Barbarians clad in animals' skins -crossed their path. By degrees others appeared wandering in troops of -ten, twelve, or twenty-five men; many were driving goats or a limping -cow. Their heavy sticks bristled with brass points; cutlasses gleamed -in their clothes, which were savagely dirty, and they opened their -eyes with a look of menace and amazement. As they passed some sent -them a vulgar benediction; others obscene jests, and Schahabarim's man -replied to each in his own idiom. He told them that this was a sick -youth going to be cured at a distant temple. - -However, the day was closing in. Barkings were heard, and they -approached them. - -Then in the twilight they perceived an enclosure of dry stones -shutting in a rambling edifice. A dog was running along the top of the -wall. The slave threw some pebbles at him and they entered a lofty -vaulted hall. - -A woman was crouching in the centre warming herself at a fire of -brushwood, the smoke of which escaped through the holes in the -ceiling. She was half hidden by her white hair which fell to her -knees; and unwilling to answer, she muttered with idiotic look words -of vengeance against the Barbarians and the Carthaginians. - -The runner ferreted right and left. Then he returned to her and -demanded something to eat. The old woman shook her head, and murmured -with her eyes fixed upon the charcoal: - -"I was the hand. The ten fingers are cut off. The mouth eats no more." - -The slave showed her a handful of gold pieces. She rushed upon them, -but soon resumed her immobility. - -At last he placed a dagger which he had in his girdle beneath her -throat. Then, trembling, she went and raised a large stone, and -brought back an amphora of wine with fish from Hippo-Zarytus preserved -in honey. - -Salammbo turned away from this unclean food, and fell asleep on the -horses' caparisons which were spread in a corner of the hall. - -He awoke her before daylight. - -The dog was howling. The slave went up to it quietly, and struck off -its head with a single blow of his dagger. Then he rubbed the horses' -nostrils with blood to revive them. The old woman cast a malediction -at him from behind. Salammbo perceived this, and pressed the amulet -which she wore above her heart. - -They resumed their journey. - -From time to time she asked whether they would not arrive soon. The -road undulated over little hills. Nothing was to be heard but the -grating of the grasshoppers. The sun heated the yellowed grass; the -ground was all chinked with crevices which in dividing formed, as it -were, monstrous paving-stones. Sometimes a viper passed, or eagles -flew by; the slave still continued running. Salammbo mused beneath her -veils, and in spite of the heat did not lay them aside through fear of -soiling her beautiful garments. - -At regular distances stood towers built by the Carthaginians for the -purpose of keeping watch upon the tribes. They entered these for the -sake of the shade, and then set out again. - -For prudence sake they had made a wide detour the day before. But they -met with no one just now; the region being a sterile one, the -Barbarians had not passed that way. - -Gradually the devastation began again. Sometimes a piece of mosaic -would be displayed in the centre of a field, the sole remnant of a -vanished mansion; and the leafless olive trees looked at a distance -like large bushes of thorns. They passed through a town in which -houses were burnt to the ground. Human skeletons might be seen along -the walls. There were some, too, of dromedaries and mules. Half-gnawed -carrion blocked the streets. - -Night fell. The sky was lowering and cloudy. - -They ascended again for two hours in a westerly direction, when -suddenly they perceived a quantity of little flames before them. - -These were shining at the bottom of an ampitheatre. Gold plates, as -they displaced one another, glanced here and there. These were the -cuirasses of the Clinabarians in the Punic camp; then in the -neighbourhood they distinguished other and more numerous lights, for -the armies of the Mercenaries, now blended together, extended over a -great space. - -Salammbo made a movement as though to advance. But Schahabarim's man -took her further away, and they passed along by the terrace which -enclosed the camp of the Barbarians. A breach became visible in it, -and the slave disappeared. - -A sentry was walking upon the top of the entrenchment with a bow in -his hand and a pike on his shoulder. - -Salammbo drew still nearer; the Barbarian knelt and a long arrow -pierced the hem of her cloak. Then as she stood motionless and -shrieking, he asked her what she wanted. - -"To speak to Matho," she replied. "I am a fugitive from Carthage." - -He gave a whistle, which was repeated at intervals further away. - -Salammbo waited; her frightened horse moved round and round, sniffing. - -When Matho arrived the moon was rising behind her. But she had a -yellow veil with black flowers over her face, and so many draperies -about her person, that it was impossible to make any guess about her. -From the top of the terrace he gazed upon this vague form standing up -like a phantom in the penumbrae of the evening. - -At last she said to him: - -"Lead me to your tent! I wish it!" - -A recollection which he could not define passed through his memory. He -felt his heart beating. The air of command intimidated him. - -"Follow me!" he said. - -The barrier was lowered, and immediately she was in the camp of the -Barbarians. - -It was filled with a great tumult and a great throng. Bright fires -were burning beneath hanging pots; and their purpled reflections -illuminating some places left others completely in the dark. There was -shouting and calling; shackled horses formed long straight lines amid -the tents; the latter were round and square, of leather or of canvas; -there were huts of reeds, and holes in the sand such as are made by -dogs. Soldiers were carting faggots, resting on their elbows on the -ground, or wrapping themselves up in mats and preparing to sleep; and -Salammbo's horse sometimes stretched out a leg and jumped in order to -pass over them. - -She remembered that she had seen them before; but their beards were -longer now, their faces still blacker, and their voices hoarser. -Matho, who walked before her, waved them off with a gesture of his arm -which raised his red mantle. Some kissed his hands; others bending -their spines approached him to ask for orders, for he was now -veritable and sole chief of the Barbarians; Spendius, Autaritus, and -Narr' Havas had become disheartened, and he had displayed so much -audacity and obstinacy that all obeyed him. - -Salammbo followed him through the entire camp. His tent was at the -end, three hundred feet from Hamilcar's entrenchments. - -She noticed a wide pit on the right, and it seemed to her that faces -were resting against the edge of it on a level with the ground, as -decapitated heads might have done. However, their eyes moved, and from -these half-opened mouths groanings escaped in the Punic tongue. - -Two Negroes holding resin lights stood on both sides of the door. -Matho drew the canvas abruptly aside. She followed him. It was a deep -tent with a pole standing up in the centre. It was lighted by a large -lamp-holder shaped like a lotus and full of a yellow oil wherein -floated handfuls of burning tow, and military things might be -distinguished gleaming in the shade. A naked sword leaned against a -stool by the side of a shield; whips of hippopotamus leather, cymbals, -bells, and necklaces were displayed pell-mell on baskets of esparto- -grass; a felt rug lay soiled with crumbs of black bread; some copper -money was carelessly heaped upon a round stone in a corner, and -through the rents in the canvas the wind brought the dust from -without, together with the smell of the elephants, which might be -heard eating and shaking their chains. - -"Who are you?" said Matho. - -She looked slowly around her without replying; then her eyes were -arrested in the background, where something bluish and sparkling fell -upon a bed of palm-branches. - -She advanced quickly. A cry escaped her. Matho stamped his foot behind -her. - -"Who brings you here? why do you come?" - -"To take it!" she replied, pointing to the zaimph, and with the other -hand she tore the veils from her head. He drew back with his elbows -behind him, gaping, almost terrified. - -She felt as if she were leaning on the might of the gods; and looking -at him face to face she asked him for the zaimph; she demanded it in -words abundant and superb. - -Matho did not hear; he was gazing at her, and in his eyes her garments -were blended with her body. The clouding of the stuffs, like the -splendour of her skin, was something special and belonging to her -alone. Her eyes and her diamonds sparkled; the polish of her nails -continued the delicacy of the stones which loaded her fingers; the two -clasps of her tunic raised her breasts somewhat and brought them -closer together, and he in thought lost himself in the narrow interval -between them whence there fell a thread holding a plate of emeralds -which could be seen lower down beneath the violet gauze. She had as -earrings two little sapphire scales, each supporting a hollow pearl -filled with liquid scent. A little drop would fall every moment -through the holes in the pearl and moisten her naked shoulder. Matho -watched it fall. - -He was carried away by ungovernable curiosity; and, like a child -laying his hand upon a strange fruit, he tremblingly and lightly -touched the top of her chest with the tip of his finger: the flesh, -which was somewhat cold, yielded with an elastic resistance. - -This contact, though scarcely a sensible one, shook Matho to the very -depths of his nature. An uprising of his whole being urged him towards -her. He would fain have enveloped her, absorbed her, drunk her. His -bosom was panting, his teeth were chattering. - -Taking her by the wrists he drew her gently to him, and then sat down -upon a cuirass beside the palm-tree bed which was covered with a -lion's skin. She was standing. He looked up at her, holding her thus -between his knees, and repeating: - -"How beautiful you are! how beautiful you are!" - -His eyes, which were continually fixed upon hers, pained her; and the -uncomfortableness, the repugnance increased in so acute a fashion that -Salammbo put a constraint upon herself not to cry out. The thought of -Schahabarim came back to her, and she resigned herself. - -Matho still kept her little hands in his own; and from time to time, -in spite of the priest's command, she turned away her face and tried -to thrust him off by jerking her arms. He opened his nostrils the -better to breathe in the perfume which exhaled from her person. It was -a fresh, indefinable emanation, which nevertheless made him dizzy, -like the smoke from a perfuming-pan. She smelt of honey, pepper, -incense, roses, with another odour still. - -But how was she thus with him in his tent, and at his disposal? Some -one no doubt had urged her. She had not come for the zaimph. His arms -fell, and he bent his head whelmed in sudden reverie. - -To soften him Salammbo said to him in a plaintive voice: - -"What have I done to you that you should desire my death?" - -"Your death!" - -She resumed: - -"I saw you one evening by the light of my burning gardens amid fuming -cups and my slaughtered slaves, and your anger was so strong that you -bounded towards me and I was obliged to fly! Then terror entered into -Carthage. There were cries of the devastation of the towns, the -burning of the country-seats, the massacre of the soldiery; it was you -who had ruined them, it was you who had murdered them! I hate you! -Your very name gnaws me like remorse! You are execrated more than the -plague, and the Roman war! The provinces shudder at your fury, the -furrows are full of corpses! I have followed the traces of your fires -as though I were travelling behind Moloch!" - -Matho leaped up; his heart was swelling with colossal pride; he was -raised to the stature of a god. - -With quivering nostrils and clenched teeth she went on: - -"As if your sacrilege were not enough, you came to me in my sleep -covered with the zaimph! Your words I did not understand; but I could -see that you wished to drag me to some terrible thing at the bottom of -an abyss." - -Matho, writhing his arms, exclaimed: - -"No! no! it was to give it to you! to restore it to you! It seemed to -me that the goddess had left her garment for you, and that it belonged -to you! In her temple or in your house, what does it matter? are you -not all-powerful, immaculate, radiant and beautiful even as Tanith?" -And with a look of boundless adoration he added: - -"Unless perhaps you are Tanith?" - -"I, Tanith!" said Salammbo to herself. - -They left off speaking. The thunder rolled in the distance. Some sheep -bleated, frightened by the storm. - -"Oh! come near!" he went on, "come near! fear nothing! - -"Formerly I was only a soldier mingled with the common herd of the -Mercenaries, ay, and so meek that I used to carry wood on my back for -the others. Do I trouble myself about Carthage! The crowd of its -people move as though lost in the dust of your sandals, and all its -treasures, with the provinces, fleets, and islands, do not raise my -envy like the freshness of your lips and the turn of your shoulders. -But I wanted to throw down its walls that I might reach you to possess -you! Moreover, I was revenging myself in the meantime! At present I -crush men like shells, and I throw myself upon phalanxes; I put aside -the sarissae with my hands, I check the stallions by the nostrils; a -catapult would not kill me! Oh! if you knew how I think of you in the -midst of war! Sometimes the memory of a gesture or of a fold of your -garment suddenly seizes me and entwines me like a net! I perceive your -eyes in the flames of the phalaricas and on the gilding of the -shields! I hear your voice in the sounding of the cymbals. I turn -aside, but you are not there! and I plunge again into the battle!" - -He raised his arms whereon his veins crossed one another like ivy on -the branches of a tree. Sweat flowed down his breast between his -square muscles; and his breathing shook his sides with his bronze -girdle all garnished with thongs hanging down to his knees, which were -firmer than marble. Salammbo, who was accustomed to eunuchs, yielded -to amazement at the strength of this man. It was the chastisement of -the goddess or the influence of Moloch in motion around her in the -five armies. She was overwhelmed with lassitude; and she listened in a -state of stupor to the intermittent shouts of the sentinels as they -answered one another. - -The flames of the lamp kindled in the squalls of hot air. There came -at times broad lightning flashes; then the darkness increased; and she -could only see Matho's eyeballs like two coals in the night. However, -she felt that a fatality was surrounding her, that she had reached a -supreme and irrevocable moment, and making an effort she went up again -towards the zaimph and raised her hands to seize it. - -"What are you doing?" exclaimed Matho. - -"I am going back to Carthage," she placidly replied. - -He advanced folding his arms and with so terrible a look that her -heels were immediately nailed, as it were, to the spot. - -"Going back to Carthage!" He stammered, and, grinding his teeth, -repeated: - -"Going back to Carthage! Ah! you came to take the zaimph, to conquer -me, and then disappear! No, no! you belong to me! and no one now shall -tear you from here! Oh! I have not forgotten the insolence of your -large tranquil eyes, and how you crushed me with the haughtiness of -your beauty! 'Tis my turn now! You are my captive, my slave, my -servant! Call, if you like, on your father and his army, the Ancients, -the rich, and your whole accursed people! I am the master of three -hundred thousand soldiers! I will go and seek them in Lusitania, in -the Gauls, and in the depths of the desert, and I will overthrow your -town and burn all its temples; the triremes shall float on the waves -of blood! I will not have a house, a stone, or a palm tree remaining! -And if men fail me I will draw the bears from the mountains and urge -on the lions! Seek not to fly or I kill you!" - -Pale and with clenched fists he quivered like a harp whose strings are -about to burst. Suddenly sobs stifled him, and he sank down upon his -hams. - -"Ah! forgive me! I am a scoundrel, and viler than scorpions, than mire -and dust! Just now while you were speaking your breath passed across -my face, and I rejoiced like a dying man who drinks lying flat on the -edge of a stream. Crush me, if only I feel your feet! curse me, if -only I hear your voice! Do not go! have pity! I love you! I love you!" - -He was on his knees on the ground before her; and he encircled her -form with both his arms, his head thrown back, and his hands -wandering; the gold discs hanging from his ears gleamed upon his -bronzed neck; big tears rolled in his eyes like silver globes; he -sighed caressingly, and murmured vague words lighter than a breeze and -sweet as a kiss. - -Salammbo was invaded by a weakness in which she lost all consciousness -of herself. Something at once inward and lofty, a command from the -gods, obliged her to yield herself; clouds uplifted her, and she fell -back swooning upon the bed amid the lion's hair. The zaimph fell, and -enveloped her; she could see Matho's face bending down above her -breast. - -"Moloch, thou burnest me!" and the soldier's kisses, more devouring -than flames, covered her; she was as though swept away in a hurricane, -taken in the might of the sun. - -He kissed all her fingers, her arms, her feet, and the long tresses of -her hair from one end to the other. - -"Carry it off," he said, "what do I care? take me away with it! I -abandon the army! I renounce everything! Beyond Gades, twenty days' -journey into the sea, you come to an island covered with gold dust, -verdure, and birds. On the mountains large flowers filled with smoking -perfumes rock like eternal censers; in the citron trees, which are -higher than cedars, milk-coloured serpents cause the fruit to fall -upon the turf with the diamonds in their jaws; the air is so mild that -it keeps you from dying. Oh! I shall find it, you will see. We shall -live in crystal grottoes cut out at the foot of the hills. No one -dwells in it yet, or I shall become the king of the country." - -He brushed the dust off her cothurni; he wanted her to put a quarter -of a pomegranate between her lips; he heaped up garments behind her -head to make a cushion for her. He sought for means to serve her, and -to humble himself, and he even spread the zaimph over her feet as if -it were a mere rug. - -"Have you still," he said, "those little gazelle's horns on which your -necklaces hang? You will give them to me! I love them!" For he spoke -as if the war were finished, and joyful laughs broke from him. The -Mercenaries, Hamilcar, every obstacle had now disappeared. The moon -was gliding between two clouds. They could see it through an opening -in the tent. "Ah, what nights have I spent gazing at her! she seemed -to me like a veil that hid your face; you would look at me through -her; the memory of you was mingled with her beams; then I could no -longer distinguish you!" And with his head between her breasts he wept -copiously. - -"And this," she thought, "is the formidable man who makes Carthage -tremble!" - -He fell asleep. Then disengaging herself from his arm she put one foot -to the ground, and she perceived that her chainlet was broken. - -The maidens of the great families were accustomed to respect these -shackles as something that was almost religious, and Salammbo, -blushing, rolled the two pieces of the golden chain around her ankles. - -Carthage, Megara, her house, her room, and the country that she had -passed through, whirled in tumultuous yet distinct images through her -memory. But an abyss had yawned and thrown them far back to an -infinite distance from her. - -The storm was departing; drops of water splashing rarely, one by one, -made the tent-roof shake. - -Matho slept like a drunken man, stretched on his side, and with one -arm over the edge of the couch. His band of pearls was raised -somewhat, and uncovered his brow; his teeth were parted in a smile; -they shone through his black beard, and there was a silent and almost -outrageous gaiety in his half-closed eyelids. - -Salammbo looked at him motionless, her head bent and her hands -crossed. - -A dagger was displayed on the table of cypress-wood at the head of the -bed; the sight of the gleaming blade fired her with a sanguinary -desire. Mournful voices lingered at a distance in the shade, and like -a chorus of geniuses urged her on. She approached it; she seized the -steel by the handle. At the rustling of her dress Matho half opened -his eyes, putting forth his mouth upon her hands, and the dagger fell. - -Shouts arose; a terrible light flashed behind the canvas. Matho raised -the latter; they perceived the camp of the Libyans enveloped in great -flames. - -Their reed huts were burning, and the twisting stems burst in the -smoke and flew off like arrows; black shadows ran about distractedly -on the red horizon. They could hear the shrieks of those who were in -the huts; the elephants, oxen, and horses plunged in the midst of the -crowd crushing it together with the stores and baggage that were being -rescued from the fire. Trumpets sounded. There were calls of "Matho! -Matho!" Some people at the door tried to get in. - -"Come along! Hamilcar is burning the camp of Autaritus!" - -He made a spring. She found herself quite alone. - -Then she examined the zaimph; and when she had viewed it well she was -surprised that she had not the happiness which she had once imagined -to herself. She stood with melancholy before her accomplished dream. - -But the lower part of the tent was raised, and a monstrous form -appeared. Salammbo could at first distinguish only the two eyes and a -long white beard which hung down to the ground; for the rest of the -body, which was cumbered with the rags of a tawny garment, trailed -along the earth; and with every forward movement the hands passed into -the beard and then fell again. Crawling in this way it reached her -feet, and Salammbo recognised the aged Gisco. - -In fact, the Mercenaries had broken the legs of the captive Ancients -with a brass bar to prevent them from taking to flight; and they were -all rotting pell-mell in a pit in the midst of filth. But the -sturdiest of them raised themselves and shouted when they heard the -noise of platters, and it was in this way that Gisco had seen -Salammbo. He had guessed that she was a Carthaginian woman by the -little balls of sandastrum flapping against her cothurni; and having a -presentiment of an important mystery he had succeeded, with the -assistance of his companions, in getting out of the pit; then with -elbows and hands he had dragged himself twenty paces further on as far -as Matho's tent. Two voices were speaking within it. He had listened -outside and had heard everything. - -"It is you!" she said at last, almost terrified. - -"Yes, it is I!" he replied, raising himself on his wrists. "They think -me dead, do they not?" - -She bent her head. He resumed: - -"Ah! why have the Baals not granted me this mercy!" He approached so -close he was touching her. "They would have spared me the pain of -cursing you!" - -Salammbo sprang quickly back, so much afraid was she of this unclean -being, who was as hideous as a larva and nearly as terrible as a -phantom. - -"I am nearly one hundred years old," he said. "I have seen Agathocles; -I have seen Regulus and the eagles of the Romans passing over the -harvests of the Punic fields! I have seen all the terrors of battles -and the sea encumbered with the wrecks of our fleets! Barbarians whom -I used to command have chained my four limbs like a slave that has -committed murder. My companions are dying around me, one after the -other; the odour of their corpses awakes me in the night; I drive away -the birds that come to peck out their eyes; and yet not for a single -day have I despaired of Carthage! Though I had seen all the armies of -the earth against her, and the flames of the siege overtop the height -of the temples, I should have still believed in her eternity! But now -all is over! all is lost! The gods execrate her! A curse upon you who -have quickened her ruin by your disgrace!" - -She opened her lips. - -"Ah! I was there!" he cried. "I heard you gurgling with love like a -prostitute; then he told you of his desire, and you allowed him to -kiss your hands! But if the frenzy of your unchastity urged you to it, -you should at least have done as do the fallow deer, which hide -themselves in their copulations, and not have displayed your shame -beneath your father's very eyes!" - -"What?" she said. - -"Ah! you did not know that the two entrenchments are sixty cubits from -each other and that your Matho, in the excess of his pride, has posted -himself just in front of Hamilcar. Your father is there behind you; -and could I climb the path which leads to the platform, I should cry -to him: 'Come and see your daughter in the Barbarian's arms! She has -put on the garment of the goddess to please him; and in yielding her -body to him she surrenders with the glory of your name the majesty of -the gods, the vengeance of her country, even the safety of Carthage!'" -The motion of his toothless mouth moved his beard throughout its -length; his eyes were riveted upon her and devoured her; panting in -the dust he repeated: - -"Ah! sacrilegious one! May you be accursed! accursed! accursed!" - -Salammbo had drawn back the canvas; she held it raised at arm's -length, and without answering him she looked in the direction of -Hamilcar. - -"It is this way, is it not?" she said. - -"What matters it to you? Turn away! Begone! Rather crush your face -against the earth! It is a holy spot which would be polluted by your -gaze!" - -She threw the zaimph about her waist, and quickly picked up her veils, -mantle, and scarf. "I hasten thither!" she cried; and making her -escape Salammbo disappeared. - -At first she walked through the darkness without meeting any one, for -all were betaking themselves to the fire; the uproar was increasing -and great flames purpled the sky behind; a long terrace stopped her. - -She turned round to right and left at random, seeking for a ladder, a -rope, a stone, something in short to assist her. She was afraid of -Gisco, and it seemed to her that shouts and footsteps were pursuing -her. Day was beginning to break. She perceived a path in the thickness -of the entrenchment. She took the hem of her robe, which impeded her, -in her teeth, and in three bounds she was on the platform. - -A sonorous shout burst forth beneath her in the shade, the same which -she had heard at the foot of the galley staircase, and leaning over -she recognised Schahabarim's man with his coupled horses. - -He had wandered all night between the two entrenchments; then -disquieted by the fire, he had gone back again trying to see what was -passing in Matho's camp; and, knowing that this spot was nearest to -his tent, he had not stirred from it, in obedience to the priest's -command. - -He stood up on one of the horses. Salammbo let herself slide down to -him; and they fled at full gallop, circling the Punic camp in search -of a gate. - -Matho had re-entered his tent. The smoky lamp gave but little light, -and he also believed that Salammbo was asleep. Then he delicately -touched the lion's skin on the palm-tree bed. He called but she did -not answer; he quickly tore away a strip of the canvas to let in some -light; the zaimph was gone. - -The earth trembled beneath thronging feet. Shouts, neighings, and -clashing of armour rose in the air, and clarion flourishes sounded the -charge. It was as though a hurricane were whirling around him. -Immoderate frenzy made him leap upon his arms, and he dashed outside. - -The long files of the Barbarians were descending the mountain at a -run, and the Punic squares were advancing against them with a heavy -and regular oscillation. The mist, rent by the rays of the sun, formed -little rocking clouds which as they rose gradually discovered -standards, helmets, and points of pikes. Beneath the rapid evolutions -portions of the earth which were still in the shadow seemed to be -displaced bodily; in other places it looked as if huge torrents were -crossing one another, while thorny masses stood motionless between -them. Matho could distinguish the captains, soldiers, heralds, and -even the serving-men, who were mounted on asses in the rear. But -instead of maintaining his position in order to cover the foot- -soldiers, Narr' Havas turned abruptly to the right, as though he -wished himself to be crushed by Hamilcar. - -His horsemen outstripped the elephants, which were slackening their -speed; and all the horses, stretching out their unbridled heads, -galloped at so furious a rate that their bellies seemed to graze the -earth. Then suddenly Narr' Havas went resolutely up to a sentry. He -threw away his sword, lance, and javelins, and disappeared among the -Carthaginians. - -The king of the Numidians reached Hamilcar's tent, and pointing to his -men, who were standing still at a distance, he said: - -"Barca! I bring them to you. They are yours." - -Then he prostrated himself in token of bondage, and to prove his -fidelity recalled all his conduct from the beginning of the war. - -First, he had prevented the siege of Carthage and the massacre of the -captives; then he had taken no advantage of the victory over Hanno -after the defeat at Utica. As to the Tyrian towns, they were on the -frontiers of his kingdom. Finally he had not taken part in the battle -of the Macaras; and he had even expressly absented himself in order to -evade the obligation of fighting against the Suffet. - -Narr' Havas had in fact wished to aggrandise himself by encroachments -upon the Punic provinces, and had alternately assisted and forsaken -the Mercenaries according to the chances of victory. But seeing that -Hamilcar would ultimately prove the stronger, he had gone over to him; -and in his desertion there was perhaps something of a grudge against -Matho, whether on account of the command or of his former love. - -The Suffet listened without interrupting him. The man who thus -presented himself with an army where vengeance was his due was not an -auxiliary to be despised; Hamilcar at once divined the utility of such -an alliance in his great projects. With the Numidians he would get rid -of the Libyans. Then he would draw off the West to the conquest of -Iberia; and, without asking Narr' Havas why he had not come sooner, or -noticing any of his lies, he kissed him, striking his breast thrice -against his own. - -It was to bring matters to an end and in despair that he had fired the -camp of the Libyans. This army came to him like a relief from the -gods; dissembling his joy he replied: - -"May the Baals favour you! I do not know what the Republic will do for -you, but Hamilcar is not ungrateful." - -The tumult increased; some captains entered. He was arming himself as -he spoke. - -"Come, return! You will use your horsemen to beat down their infantry -between your elephants and mine. Courage! exterminate them!" - -And Narr' Havas was rushing away when Salammbo appeared. - -She leaped down quickly from her horse. She opened her ample cloak and -spreading out her arms displayed the zaimph. - -The leathern tent, which was raised at the corners, left visible the -entire circuit of the mountain with its thronging soldiers, and as it -was in the centre Salammbo could be seen on all sides. An immense -shouting burst forth, a long cry of triumph and hope. Those who were -marching stopped; the dying leaned on their elbows and turned round to -bless her. All the Barbarians knew now that she had recovered the -zaimph; they saw her or believed that they saw her from a distance; -and other cries, but those of rage and vengeance, resounded in spite -of the plaudits of the Carthaginians. Thus did the five armies in -tiers upon the mountain stamp and shriek around Salammbo. - -Hamilcar, who was unable to speak, nodded her his thanks. His eyes -were directed alternately upon the zaimph and upon her, and he noticed -that her chainlet was broken. Then he shivered, being seized with a -terrible suspicion. But soon recovering his impassibility he looked -sideways at Narr' Havas without turning his face. - -The king of the Numidians held himself apart in a discreet attitude; -on his forehead he bore a little of the dust which he had touched when -prostrating himself. At last the Suffet advanced towards him with a -look full of gravity. - -"As a reward for the services which you have rendered me, Narr' Havas, -I give you my daughter. Be my son," he added, "and defend your -father!" - -Narr' Havas gave a great gesture of surprise; then he threw himself -upon Hamilcar's hands and covered them with kisses. - -Salammbo, calm as a statue, did not seem to understand. She blushed a -little as she cast down her eyelids, and her long curved lashes made -shadows upon her cheeks. - -Hamilcar wished to unite them immediately in indissoluble betrothal. A -lance was placed in Salammbo's hands and by her offered to Narr' -Havas; their thumbs were tied together with a thong of ox-leather; -then corn was poured upon their heads, and the grains that fell around -them rang like rebounding hail. - - - -CHAPTER XII - -THE AQUEDUCT - -Twelve hours afterwards all that remained of the Mercenaries was a -heap of wounded, dead, and dying. - -Hamilcar had suddenly emerged from the bottom of the gorge, and again -descended the western slope that looked towards Hippo-Zarytus, and the -space being broader at this spot he had taken care to draw the -Barbarians into it. Narr' Havas had encompassed them with his horse; -the Suffet meanwhile drove them back and crushed them. Then, too, they -were conquered beforehand by the loss of the zaimph; even those who -cared nothing about it had experienced anguish and something akin to -enfeeblement. Hamilcar, not indulging his pride by holding the field -of battle, had retired a little further off on the left to some -heights, from which he commanded them. - -The shape of the camps could be recognised by their sloping palisades. -A long heap of black cinders was smoking on the side of the Libyans; -the devastated soil showed undulations like the sea, and the tents -with their tattered canvas looked like dim ships half lost in the -breakers. Cuirasses, forks, clarions, pieces of wood, iron and brass, -corn, straw, and garments were scattered about among the corpses; here -and there a phalarica on the point of extinction burned against a heap -of baggage; in some places the earth was hidden with shields; horses' -carcasses succeeded one another like a series of hillocks; legs, -sandals, arms, and coats of mail were to be seen, with heads held in -their helmets by the chin-pieces and rolling about like balls; heads -of hair were hanging on the thorns; elephants were lying with their -towers in pools of blood, with entrails exposed, and gasping. The foot -trod on slimy things, and there were swamps of mud although no rain -had fallen. - -This confusion of dead bodies covered the whole mountain from top to -bottom. - -Those who survived stirred as little as the dead. Squatting in unequal -groups they looked at one another scared and without speaking. - -The lake of Hippo-Zarytus shone at the end of a long meadow beneath -the setting sun. To the right an agglomeration of white houses -extended beyond a girdle of walls; then the sea spread out -indefinitely; and the Barbarians, with their chins in their hands, -sighed as they thought of their native lands. A cloud of grey dust was -falling. - -The evening wind blew; then every breast dilated, and as the freshness -increased, the vermin might be seen to forsake the dead, who were -colder now, and to run over the hot sand. Crows, looking towards the -dying, rested motionless on the tops of the big stones. - -When night had fallen yellow-haired dogs, those unclean beasts which -followed the armies, came quite softly into the midst of the -Barbarians. At first they licked the clots of blood on the still tepid -stumps; and soon they began to devour the corpses, biting into the -stomachs first of all. - -The fugitives reappeared one by one like shadows; the women also -ventured to return, for there were still some of them left, especially -among the Libyans, in spite of the dreadful massacre of them by the -Numidians. - -Some took ropes' ends and lighted them to use as torches. Others held -crossed pikes. The corpses were placed upon these and were conveyed -apart. - -They were found lying stretched in long lines, on their backs, with -their mouths open, and their lances beside them; or else they were -piled up pell-mell so that it was often necessary to dig out a whole -heap in order to discover those they were wanting. Then the torch -would be passed slowly over their faces. They had received complicated -wounds from hideous weapons. Greenish strips hung from their -foreheads; they were cut in pieces, crushed to the marrow, blue from -strangulation, or broadly cleft by the elephants' ivory. Although they -had died at almost the same time there existed differences between -their various states of corruption. The men of the North were puffed -up with livid swellings, while the more nervous Africans looked as -though they had been smoked, and were already drying up. The -Mercenaries might be recognised by the tattooing on their hands: the -old soldiers of Antiochus displayed a sparrow-hawk; those who had -served in Egypt, the head of the cynosephalus; those who had served -with the princes of Asia, a hatchet, a pomegranate, or a hammer; those -who had served in the Greek republics, the side-view of a citadel or -the name of an archon; and some were to be seen whose arms were -entirely covered with these multiplied symbols, which mingled with -their scars and their recent wounds. - -Four great funeral piles were erected for the men of Latin race, the -Samnites, Etruscans, Campanians, and Bruttians. - -The Greeks dug pits with the points of their swords. The Spartans -removed their red cloaks and wrapped them round the dead; the -Athenians laid them out with their faces towards the rising sun; the -Cantabrians buried them beneath a heap of pebbles; the Nasamonians -bent them double with ox-leather thongs, and the Garamantians went and -interred them on the shore so that they might be perpetually washed by -the waves. But the Latins were grieved that they could not collect the -ashes in urns; the Nomads regretted the heat of the sands in which -bodies were mummified, and the Celts, the three rude stones beneath a -rainy sky at the end of an islet-covered gulf. - -Vociferations arose, followed by the lengthened silence. This was to -oblige the souls to return. Then the shouting was resumed persistently -at regular intervals. - -They made excuses to the dead for their inability to honour them as -the rites prescribed: for, owing to this deprivation, they would pass -for infinite periods through all kinds of chances and metamorphoses; -they questioned them and asked them what they desired; others loaded -them with abuse for having allowed themselves to be conquered. - -The bloodless faces lying back here and there on wrecks of armour -showed pale in the light of the great funeral-pile; tears provoked -tears, the sobs became shriller, the recognitions and embracings more -frantic. Women stretched themselves on the corpses, mouth to mouth and -brow to brow; it was necessary to beat them in order to make them -withdraw when the earth was being thrown in. They blackened their -cheeks; they cut off their hair; they drew their own blood and poured -it into the pits; they gashed themselves in imitation of the wounds -that disfigured the dead. Roarings burst forth through the crashings -of the cymbals. Some snatched off their amulets and spat upon them. -The dying rolled in the bloody mire biting their mutilated fists in -their rage; and forty-three Samnites, quite a "sacred spring," cut one -another's throats like gladiators. Soon wood for the funeral-piles -failed, the flames were extinguished, every spot was occupied; and -weary from shouting, weakened, tottering, they fell asleep close to -their dead brethren, those who still clung to life full of anxieties, -and the others desiring never to wake again. - -In the greyness of the dawn some soldiers appeared on the outskirts of -the Barbarians, and filed past with their helmets raised on the points -of their pikes; they saluted the Mercenaries and asked them whether -they had no messages to send to their native lands. - -Others approached, and the Barbarians recognised some of their former -companions. - -The Suffet had proposed to all the captives that they should serve in -his troops. Several had fearlessly refused; and quite resolved neither -to support them nor to abandon them to the Great Council, he had sent -them away with injunctions to fight no more against Carthage. As to -those who had been rendered docile by the fear of tortures, they had -been furnished with the weapons taken from the enemy; and they were -now presenting themselves to the vanquished, not so much in order to -seduce them as out of an impulse of pride and curiosity. - -At first they told of the good treatment which they had received from -the Suffet; the Barbarians listened to them with jealousy although -they despised them. Then at the first words of reproach the cowards -fell into a passion; they showed them from a distance their own swords -and cuirasses and invited them with abuse to come and take them. The -Barbarians picked up flints; all took to flght; and nothing more could -be seen on the summit of the mountain except the lance-points -projecting above the edge of the palisades. - -Then the Barbarians were overwhelmed with a grief that was heavier -than the humiliation of the defeat. They thought of the emptiness of -their courage, and they stood with their eyes fixed and grinding their -teeth. - -The same thought came to them all. They rushed tumultuously upon the -Carthaginian prisoners. It chanced that the Suffet's soldiers had been -unable to discover them, and as he had withdrawn from the field of -battle they were still in the deep pit. - -They were ranged on the ground on a flattened spot. Sentries formed a -circle round them, and the women were allowed to enter thirty or forty -at a time. Wishing to profit by the short time that was allowed to -them, they ran from one to the other, uncertain and panting; then -bending over the poor bodies they struck them with all their might -like washerwomen beating linen; shrieking their husband's names they -tore them with their nails and put out their eyes with the bodkins of -their hair. The men came next and tortured them from their feet, which -they cut off at the ankles, to their foreheads, from which they took -crowns of skin to put upon their own heads. The Eaters of Uncleanness -were atrocious in their devices. They envenomed the wounds by pouring -into them dust, vinegar, and fragments of pottery; others waited -behind; blood flowed, and they rejoiced like vintagers round fuming -vats. - -Matho, however, was seated on the ground, at the very place where he -had happened to be when the battle ended, his elbows on his knees, and -his temples in his hands; he saw nothing, heard nothing, and had -ceased to think. - -At the shrieks of joy uttered by the crowd he raised his head. Before -him a strip of canvas caught on a flagpole, and trailing on the -ground, sheltered in confused fashion blankets, carpets, and a lion's -skin. He recognised his tent; and he riveted his eyes upon the ground -as though Hamilcar's daughter, when she disappeared, had sunk into the -earth. - -The torn canvas flapped in the wind; the long rags of it sometimes -passed across his mouth, and he perceived a red mark like the print of -a hand. It was the hand of Narr' Havas, the token of their alliance. -Then Matho rose. He took a firebrand which was still smoking, and -threw it disdainfully upon the wrecks of his tent. Then with the toe -of his cothurn he pushed the things which fell out back towards the -flame so that nothing might be left. - -Suddenly, without any one being able to guess from what point he had -sprung up, Spendius reappeared. - -The former slave had fastened two fragments of a lance against his -thigh; he limped with a piteous look, breathing forth complaints the -while. - -"Remove that," said Matho to him. "I know that you are a brave -fellow!" For he was so crushed by the injustice of the gods that he -had not strength enough to be indignant with men. - -Spendius beckoned to him and led him to a hollow of the mountain, -where Zarxas and Autaritus were lying concealed. - -They had fled like the slave, the one although he was cruel, and the -other in spite of his bravery. But who, said they, could have expected -the treachery of Narr' Havas, the burning of the camp of the Libyans, -the loss of the zaimph, the sudden attack by Hamilcar, and, above all, -his manoeuvres which forced them to return to the bottom of the -mountain beneath the instant blows of the Carthaginians? Spendius made -no acknowledgement of his terror, and persisted in maintaining that -his leg was broken. - -At last the three chiefs and the schalischim asked one another what -decision should now be adopted. - -Hamilcar closed the road to Carthage against them; they were caught -between his soldiers and the provinces belonging to Narr' Havas; the -Tyrian towns would join the conquerors; the Barbarians would find -themselves driven to the edge of the sea, and all those united forces -would crush them. This would infallibly happen. - -Thus no means presented themselves of avoiding the war. Accordingly -they must prosecute it to the bitter end. But how were they to make -the necessity of an interminable battle understood by all these -disheartened people, who were still bleeding from their wounds. - -"I will undertake that!" said Spendius. - -Two hours afterwards a man who came from the direction of Hippo- -Zarytus climbed the mountain at a run. He waved some tablets at arm's -length, and as he shouted very loudly the Barbarians surrounded him. - -The tablets had been despatched by the Greek soldiers in Sardinia. -They recommended their African comrades to watch over Gisco and the -other captives. A Samian trader, one Hipponax, coming from Carthage, -had informed them that a plot was being organised to promote their -escape, and the Barbarians were urged to take every precaution; the -Republic was powerful. - -Spendius's stratagem did not succeed at first as he had hoped. This -assurance of the new peril, so far from exciting frenzy, raised fears; -and remembering Hamilcar's warning, lately thrown into their midst, -they expected something unlooked for and terrible. The night was spent -in great distress; several even got rid of their weapons, so as to -soften the Suffet when he presented himself. - -But on the following day, at the third watch, a second runner -appeared, still more breathless, and blackened with dust. The Greek -snatched from his hand a roll of papyrus covered with Phoenician -writing. The Mercenaries were entreated not to be disheartened; the -brave men of Tunis were coming with large reinforcements. - -Spendius first read the letter three times in succession; and held up -by two Cappadocians, who bore him seated on their shoulders, he had -himself conveyed from place to place and re-read it. For seven hours -he harangued. - -He reminded the Mercenaries of the promises of the Great Council; the -Africans of the cruelties of the stewards, and all the Barbarians of -the injustice of Carthage. The Suffet's mildness was only a bait to -capture them; those who surrendered would be sold as slaves, and the -vanquished would perish under torture. As to flight, what routes could -they follow? Not a nation would receive them. Whereas by continuing -their efforts they would obtain at once freedom, vengeance, and money! -And they would not have long to wait, since the people of Tunis, the -whole of Libya, was rushing to relieve them. He showed the unrolled -papyrus: "Look at it! read! see their promises! I do not lie." - -Dogs were straying about with their black muzzles all plastered with -red. The men's uncovered heads were growing hot in the burning sun. A -nauseous smell exhaled from the badly buried corpses. Some even -projected from the earth as far as the waist. Spendius called them to -witness what he was saying; then he raised his fists in the direction -of Hamilcar. - -Matho, moreover, was watching him, and to cover his cowardice he -displayed an anger by which he gradually found himself carried away. -Devoting himself to the gods he heaped curses upon the Carthaginians. -The torture of the captives was child's play. Why spare them, and be -ever dragging this useless cattle after one? "No! we must put an end -to it! their designs are known! a single one might ruin us! no pity! -Those who are worthy will be known by the speed of their legs and the -force of their blows." - -Then they turned again upon the captives. Several were still in the -last throes; they were finished by the thrust of a heel in the mouth -or a stab with the point of a javelin. - -Then they thought of Gisco. Nowhere could he be seen; they were -disturbed with anxiety. They wished at once to convince themselves of -his death and to participate in it. At last three Samnite shepherds -discovered him at a distance of fifteen paces from the spot where -Matho's tent lately stood. They recognised him by his long beard and -they called the rest. - -Stretched on his back, his arms against his hips, and his knees close -together, he looked like a dead man laid out for the tomb. -Nevertheless his wasted sides rose and fell, and his eyes, wide-opened -in his pallid face, gazed in a continuous and intolerable fashion. - -The Barbarians looked at him at first with great astonishment. Since -he had been living in the pit he had been almost forgotten; rendered -uneasy by old memories they stood at a distance and did not venture to -raise their hands against him. - -But those who were behind were murmuring and pressed forward when a -Garamantian passed through the crowd; he was brandishing a sickle; all -understood his thought; their faces purpled, and smitten with shame -they shrieked: - -"Yes! yes!" - -The man with the curved steel approached Gisco. He took his head, and, -resting it upon his knee, sawed it off with rapid strokes; it fell; to -great jets of blood made a hole in the dust. Zarxas leaped upon it, -and lighter than a leopard ran towards the Carthaginians. - -Then when he had covered two thirds of the mountain he drew Gisco's -head from his breast by the beard, whirled his arm rapidly several -times,--and the mass, when thrown at last, described a long parabola -and disappeared behind the Punic entrenchments. - -Soon at the edge of the palisades there rose two crossed standards, -the customary sign for claiming a corpse. - -Then four heralds, chosen for their width of chest, went out with -great clarions, and speaking through the brass tubes declared that -henceforth there would be between Carthaginians and Barbarians neither -faith, pity, nor gods, that they refused all overtures beforehand, and -that envoys would be sent back with their hands cut off. - -Immediately afterwards, Spendius was sent to Hippo-Zarytus to procure -provisions; the Tyrian city sent them some the same evening. They ate -greedily. Then when they were strengthened they speedily collected the -remains of their baggage and their broken arms; the women massed -themselves in the centre, and heedless of the wounded left weeping -behind them, they set out along the edge of the shore like a herd of -wolves taking its departure. - -They were marching upon Hippo-Zarytus, resolved to take it, for they -had need of a town. - -Hamilcar, as he perceived them at a distance, had a feeling of despair -in spite of the pride which he experienced in seeing them fly before -him. He ought to have attacked them immediately with fresh troops. -Another similar day and the war was over! If matters were protracted -they would return with greater strength; the Tyrian towns would join -them; his clemency towards the vanquished had been of no avail. He -resolved to be pitiless. - -The same evening he sent the Great Council a dromedary laden with -bracelets collected from the dead, and with horrible threats ordered -another army to be despatched. - -All had for a long time believed him lost; so that on learning his -victory they felt a stupefaction which was almost terror. The vaguely -announced return of the zaimph completed the wonder. Thus the gods and -the might of Carthage seemed now to belong to him. - -None of his enemies ventured upon complaint or recrimination. Owing to -the enthusiasm of some and the pusillanimity of the rest, an army of -five thousand men was ready before the interval prescribed had -elapsed. - -This army promptly made its way to Utica in order to support the -Suffet's rear, while three thousand of the most notable citizens -embarked in vessels which were to land them at Hippo-Zarytus, whence -they were to drive back the Barbarians. - -Hanno had accepted the command; but he intrusted the army to his -lieutenant, Magdassin, so as to lead the troops which were to be -disembarked himself, for he could no longer endure the shaking of the -litter. His disease had eaten away his lips and nostrils, and had -hollowed out a large hole in his face; the back of his throat could be -seen at a distance of ten paces, and he knew himself to be so hideous -that he wore a veil over his head like a woman. - -Hippo-Zarytus paid no attention to his summonings nor yet to those of -the Barbarians; but every morning the inhabitants lowered provisions -to the latter in baskets, and shouting from the tops of the towers -pleaded the exigencies of the Republic and conjured them to withdraw. -By means of signs they addressed the same protestations to the -Carthaginians, who were stationed on the sea. - -Hanno contented himself with blockading the harbour without risking an -attack. However, he permitted the judges of Hippo-Zarytus to admit -three hundred soldiers. Then he departed to the Cape Grapes, and made -a long circuit so as to hem in the Barbarians, an inopportune and even -dangerous operation. His jealousy prevented him from relieving the -Suffet; he arrested his spies, impeded him in all his plans, and -compromised the success of the enterprise. At last Hamilcar wrote to -the Great Council to rid himself of Hanno, and the latter returned to -Carthage furious at the baseness of the Ancients and the madness of -his colleague. Hence, after so many hopes, the situation was now still -more deplorable; but there was an effort not to reflect upon it and -even not to talk about it. - -As if all this were not sufficient misfortune at one time, news came -that the Sardinian Mercenaries had crucified their general, seized the -strongholds, and everywhere slaughtered those of Chanaanitish race. -The Roman people threatened the Republic with immediate hostilities -unless she gave twelve hundred talents with the whole of the island of -Sardinia. They had accepted the alliance of the Barbarians, and they -despatched to them flat-bottomed boats laden with meal and dried meat. -The Carthaginians pursued these, and captured five hundred men; but -three days afterwards a fleet coming from Byzacena, and conveying -provisions to Carthage, foundered in a storm. The gods were evidently -declaring against her. - -Upon this the citizens of Hippo-Zarytus, under pretence of an alarm, -made Hanno's three hundred men ascend their walls; then coming behind -them they took them by the legs, and suddenly threw them over the -ramparts. Some who were not killed were pursued, and went and drowned -themselves in the sea. - -Utica was enduring the presence of soldiers, for Magdassin had acted -like Hanno, and in accordance with his orders and deaf to Hamilcar's -prayers, was surrounding the town. As for these, they were given wine -mixed with mandrake, and were then slaughtered in their sleep. At the -same time the Barbarians arrived; Magdassin fled; the gates were -opened, and thenceforward the two Tyrian towns displayed an obstinate -devotion to their new friends and an inconceivable hatred to their -former allies. - -This abandonment of the Punic cause was a counsel and a precedent. -Hopes of deliverance revived. Populations hitherto uncertain hesitated -no longer. Everywhere there was a stir. The Suffet learnt this, and he -had no assistance to look for! He was now irrevocably lost. - -He immediately dismissed Narr' Havas, who was to guard the borders of -his kingdom. As for himself, he resolved to re-enter Carthage in order -to obtain soldiers and begin the war again. - -The Barbarians posted at Hippo-Zarytus perceived his army as it -descended the mountain. - -Where could the Carthaginians be going? Hunger, no doubt, was urging -them on; and, distracted by their sufferings, they were coming in -spite of their weakness to give battle. But they turned to the right: -they were fleeing. They might be overtaken and all be crushed. The -Barbarians dashed in pursuit of them. - -The Carthaginians were checked by the river. It was wide this time and -the west wind had not been blowing. Some crossed by swimming, and the -rest on their shields. They resumed their march. Night fell. They were -out of sight. - -The Barbarians did not stop; they went higher to find a narrower -place. The people of Tunis hastened thither, bringing those of Utica -along with them. Their numbers increased at every bush; and the -Carthaginians, as they lay on the ground, could hear the tramping of -their feet in the darkness. From time to time Barca had a volley of -arrows discharged behind him to check them, and several were killed. -When day broke they were in the Ariana Mountains, at the spot where -the road makes a bend. - -Then Matho, who was marching at the head, thought that he could -distinguish something green on the horizon on the summit of an -eminence. Then the ground sank, and obelisks, domes, and houses -appeared! It was Carthage. He leaned against a tree to keep himself -from falling, so rapidly did his heart beat. - -He thought of all that had come to pass in his existence since the -last time that he had passed that way! It was an infinite surprise, it -stunned him. Then he was transported with joy at the thought of seeing -Salammbo again. The reasons which he had for execrating her returned -to his recollection, but he very quickly rejected them. Quivering and -with straining eyeballs he gazed at the lofty terrace of a palace -above the palm trees beyond Eschmoun; a smile of ecstasy lighted his -face as if some great light had reached him; he opened his arms, and -sent kisses on the breeze, and murmured: "Come! come!" A sigh swelled -his breast, and two long tears like pearls fell upon his beard. - -"What stays you?" cried Spendius. "Make haste! Forward! The Suffet is -going to escape us! But your knees are tottering, and you are looking -at me like a drunken man!" - -He stamped with impatience and urged Matho, his eyes twinkling as at -the approach of an object long aimed at. - -"Ah! we have reached it! We are there! I have them!" - -He had so convinced and triumphant an air that Matho was surprised -from his torpor, and felt himself carried away by it. These words, -coming when his distress was at its height, drove his despair to -vengeance, and pointed to food for his wrath. He bounded upon one of -the camels that were among the baggage, snatched up its halter, and -with the long rope, struck the stragglers with all his might, running -right and left alternately, in the rear of the army, like a dog -driving a flock. - -At this thundering voice the lines of men closed up; even the lame -hurried their steps; the intervening space lessened in the middle of -the isthmus. The foremost of the Barbarians were marching in the dust -raised by the Carthaginians. The two armies were coming close, and -were on the point of touching. But the Malqua gate, the Tagaste gate, -and the great gate of Khamon threw wide their leaves. The Punic square -divided; three columns were swallowed up, and eddied beneath the -porches. Soon the mass, being too tightly packed, could advance no -further; pikes clashed in the air, and the arrows of the Barbarians -were shivering against the walls. - -Hamilcar was to be seen on the threshold of Khamon. He turned round -and shouted to his men to move aside. He dismounted from his horse; -and pricking it on the croup with the sword which he held, sent it -against the Barbarians. - -It was a black stallion, which was fed on balls of meal, and would -bend its knees to allow its master to mount. Why was he sending it -away? Was this a sacrifice? - -The noble horse galloped into the midst of the lances, knocked down -men, and, entangling its feet in its entrails, fell down, then rose -again with furious leaps; and while they were moving aside, trying to -stop it, or looking at it in surprise, the Carthaginians had united -again; they entered, and the enormous gate shut echoing behind them. - -It would not yield. The Barbarians came crushing against it;--and for -some minutes there was an oscillation throughout the army, which -became weaker and weaker, and at last ceased. - -The Carthaginians had placed soldiers on the aqueduct, they began to -hurl stones, balls, and beams. Spendius represented that it would be -best not to persist. The Barbarians went and posted themselves further -off, all being quite resolved to lay siege to Carthage. - -The rumour of the war, however, had passed beyond the confines of the -Punic empire; and from the pillars of Hercules to beyond Cyrene -shepherds mused on it as they kept their flocks, and caravans talked -about it in the light of the stars. This great Carthage, mistress of -the seas, splendid as the sun, and terrible as a god, actually found -men who were daring enough to attack her! Her fall even had been -asserted several times; and all had believed it for all wished it: the -subject populations, the tributary villages, the allied provinces, the -independent hordes, those who execrated her for her tyranny or were -jealous of her power, or coveted her wealth. The bravest had very -speedily joined the Mercenaries. The defeat at the Macaras had checked -all the rest. At last they had recovered confidence, had gradually -advanced and approached; and now the men of the eastern regions were -lying on the sandhills of Clypea on the other side of the gulf. As -soon as they perceived the Barbarians they showed themselves. - -They were not Libyans from the neighbourhood of Carthage, who had long -composed the third army, but nomads from the tableland of Barca, -bandits from Cape Phiscus and the promontory of Dernah, from Phazzana -and Marmarica. They had crossed the desert, drinking at the brackish -wells walled in with camels' bones; the Zuaeces, with their covering -of ostrich feathers, had come on quadrigae; the Garamantians, masked -with black veils, rode behind on their painted mares; others were -mounted on asses, onagers, zebras, and buffaloes; while some dragged -after them the roofs of their sloop-shaped huts together with their -families and idols. There were Ammonians with limbs wrinkled by the -hot water of the springs; Atarantians, who curse the sun; Troglodytes, -who bury their dead with laughter beneath branches of trees; and the -hideous Auseans, who eat grass-hoppers; the Achyrmachidae, who eat -lice; and the vermilion-painted Gysantians, who eat apes. - -All were ranged along the edge of the sea in a great straight line. -Afterwards they advanced like tornadoes of sand raised by the wind. In -the centre of the isthmus the throng stopped, the Mercenaries who were -posted in front of them, close to the walls, being unwilling to move. - -Then from the direction of Ariana appeared the men of the West, the -people of the Numidians. In fact, Narr' Havas governed only the -Massylians; and, moreover, as they were permitted by custom to abandon -their king when reverses were sustained, they had assembled on the -Zainus, and then had crossed it at Hamilcar's first movement. First -were seen running up all the hunters from Malethut-Baal and Garaphos, -clad in lions' skins, and with the staves of their pikes driving small -lean horses with long manes; then marched the Gaetulians in cuirasses -of serpents' skin; then the Pharusians, wearing lofty crowns made of -wax and resin; and the Caunians, Macarians, and Tillabarians, each -holding two javelins and a round shield of hippopotamus leather. They -stopped at the foot of the Catacombs among the first pools of the -Lagoon. - -But when the Libyans had moved away, the multitude of the Negroes -appeared like a cloud on a level with the ground, in the place which -the others had occupied. They were there from the White Harousch, the -Black Harousch, the desert of Augila, and even from the great country -of Agazymba, which is four months' journey south of the Garamantians, -and from regions further still! In spite of their red wooden jewels, -the filth of their black skin made them look like mulberries that had -been long rolling in the dust. They had bark-thread drawers, dried- -grass tunics, fallow-deer muzzles on their heads; they shook rods -furnished with rings, and brandished cows' tails at the end of sticks, -after the fashion of standards, howling the while like wolves. - -Then behind the Numidians, Marusians, and Gaetulians pressed the -yellowish men, who are spread through the cedar forests beyond Taggir. -They had cat-skin quivers flapping against their shoulders, and they -led in leashes enormous dogs, which were as high as asses, and did not -bark. - -Finally, as though Africa had not been sufficiently emptied, and it -had been necessary to seek further fury in the very dregs of the -races, men might be seen behind the rest, with beast-like profiles and -grinning with idiotic laughter--wretches ravaged by hideous diseases, -deformed pigmies, mulattoes of doubtful sex, albinos whose red eyes -blinked in the sun; stammering out unintelligible sounds, they put a -finger into their mouths to show that they were hungry. - -The confusion of weapons was as great as that of garments and peoples. -There was not a deadly invention that was not present--from wooden -daggers, stone hatchets and ivory tridents, to long sabres toothed -like saws, slender, and formed of a yielding copper blade. They -handled cutlasses which were forked into several branches like -antelopes' horns, bills fastened to the ends of ropes, iron triangles, -clubs and bodkins. The Ethiopians from the Bambotus had little -poisoned darts hidden in their hair. Many had brought pebbles in bags. -Others, empty handed, chattered with their teeth. - -This multitude was stirred with a ceaseless swell. Dromedaries, -smeared all over with tar-like streaks, knocked down the women, who -carried their children on their hips. The provisions in the baskets -were pouring out; in walking, pieces of salt, parcels of gum, rotten -dates, and gourou nuts were crushed underfoot; and sometimes on -vermin-covered bosoms there would hang a slender cord supporting a -diamond that the Satraps had sought, an almost fabulous stone, -sufficient to purchase an empire. Most of them did not even know what -they desired. They were impelled by fascination or curiosity; and -nomads who had never seen a town were frightened by the shadows of the -walls. - -The isthmus was now hidden by men; and this long surface, whereon the -tents were like huts amid an inundation, stretched as far as the first -lines of the other Barbarians, which were streaming with steel and -were posted symmetrically upon both sides of the aqueduct. - -The Carthaginians had not recovered from the terror caused by their -arrival when they perceived the siege-engines sent by the Tyrian towns -coming straight towards them like monsters and like buildings--with -their masts, arms, ropes, articulations, capitals and carapaces, sixty -carroballistas, eighty onagers, thirty scorpions, fifty tollenos, -twelve rams, and three gigantic catapults which hurled pieces of rock -of the weight of fifteen talents. Masses of men clinging to their -bases pushed them on; at every step a quivering shook them, and in -this way they arrived in front of the walls. - -But several days were still needed to finish the preparations for the -siege. The Mercenaries, taught by their defeats, would not risk -themselves in useless engagements; and on both sides there was no -haste, for it was well known that a terrible action was about to open, -and that the result of it would be complete victory or complete -extermination. - -Carthage might hold out for a long time; her broad walls presented a -series of re-entrant and projecting angles, an advantageous -arrangement for repelling assaults. - -Nevertheless a portion had fallen down in the direction of the -Catacombs, and on dark nights lights could be seen in the dens of -Malqua through the disjointed blocks. These in some places overlooked -the top of the ramparts. It was here that the Mercenaries' wives, who -had been driven away by Matho, were living with their new husbands. On -seeing the men again their hearts could stand it no longer. They waved -their scarfs at a distance; then they came and chatted in the darkness -with the soldiers through the cleft in the wall, and one morning the -Great Council learned that they had all fled. Some had passed through -between the stones; others with greater intrepidity had let themselves -down with ropes. - -At last Spendius resolved to accomplish his design. - -The war, by keeping him at a distance, had hitherto prevented him; and -since the return to before Carthage, it seemed to him that the -inhabitants suspected his enterprise. But soon they diminished the -sentries on the aqueduct. There were not too many people for the -defence of the walls. - -The former slave practised himself for some days in shooting arrows at -the flamingoes on the lake. Then one moonlight evening he begged Matho -to light a great fire of straw in the middle of the night, while all -his men were to shout at the same time; and taking Zarxas with him, he -went away along the edge of the gulf in the direction of Tunis. - -When on a level with the last arches they returned straight towards -the aqueduct; the place was unprotected: they crawled to the base of -the pillars. - -The sentries on the platform were walking quietly up and down. - -Towering flames appeared; clarions rang; and the soldiers on vedette, -believing that there was an assault, rushed away in the direction of -Carthage. - -One man had remained. He showed black against the background of the -sky. The moon was shining behind him, and his shadow, which was of -extravagant size, looked in the distance like an obelisk proceeding -across the plain. - -They waited until he was in position just before them. Zarxas seized -his sling, but whether from prudence or from ferocity Spendius stopped -him. "No, the whiz of the bullet would make a noise! Let me!" - -Then he bent his bow with all his strength, resting the lower end of -it against the great toe of his left foot; he took aim, and the arrow -went off. - -The man did not fall. He disappeared. - -"If he were wounded we should hear him!" said Spendius; and he mounted -quickly from story to story as he had done the first time, with the -assistance of a rope and a harpoon. Then when he had reached the top -and was beside the corpse, he let it fall again. The Balearian -fastened a pick and a mallet to it and turned back. - -The trumpets sounded no longer. All was now quiet. Spendius had raised -one of the flag-stones and, entering the water, had closed it behind -him. - -Calculating the distance by the number of his steps, he arrived at the -exact spot where he had noticed an oblique fissure; and for three -hours until morning he worked in continuous and furious fashion, -breathing with difficulty through the interstices in the upper flag- -tones, assailed with anguish, and twenty times believing that he was -going to die. At last a crack was heard, and a huge stone ricocheting -on the lower arches rolled to the ground,--and suddenly a cataract, an -entire river, fell from the skies onto the plain. The aqueduct, being -cut through in the centre, was emptying itself. It was death to -Carthage and victory for the Barbarians. - -In an instant the awakened Carthaginians appeared on the walls, the -houses, and the temples. The Barbarians pressed forward with shouts. -They danced in delirium around the great waterfall, and came up and -wet their heads in it in the extravagance of their joy. - -A man in a torn, brown tunic was perceived on the summit of the -aqueduct. He stood leaning over the very edge with both hands on his -hips, and was looking down below him as though astonished at his work. - -Then he drew himself up. He surveyed the horizon with a haughty air -which seemed to say: "All that is now mine!" The applause of the -Barbarians burst forth, while the Carthaginians, comprehending their -disaster at last, shrieked with despair. Then he began to run about -the platform from one end to the other,--and like a chariot-driver -triumphant at the Olympic Games, Spendius, distraught with pride, -raised his arms aloft. - - - -CHAPTER XIII - -MOLOCH - -The Barbarians had no need of a circumvallation on the side of Africa, -for it was theirs. But to facilitate the approach to the walls, the -entrenchments bordering the ditch were thrown down. Matho next divided -the army into great semicircles so as to encompass Carthage the -better. The hoplites of the Mercenaries were placed in the first rank, -and behind them the slingers and horsemen; quite at the back were the -baggage, chariots, and horses; and the engines bristled in front of -this throng at a distance of three hundred paces from the towers. - -Amid the infinite variety of their nomenclature (which changed several -times in the course of the centuries) these machines might be reduced -to two systems: some acted like slings, and the rest like bows. - -The first, which were the catapults, was composed of a square frame -with two vertical uprights and a horizontal bar. In its anterior -portion was a cylinder, furnished with cables, which held back a great -beam bearing a spoon for the reception of projectiles; its base was -caught in a skein of twisted thread, and when the ropes were let go it -sprang up and struck against the bar, which, checking it with a shock, -multiplied its power. - -The second presented a more complicated mechanism. A cross-bar had its -centre fixed on a little pillar, and from this point of junction there -branched off at right angles a short of channel; two caps containing -twists of horse-hair stood at the extremities of the cross-bar; two -small beams were fastened to them to hold the extremities of a rope -which was brought to the bottom of the channel upon a tablet of -bronze. This metal plate was released by a spring, and sliding in -grooves impelled the arrows. - -The catapults were likewise called onagers, after the wild asses which -fling up stones with their feet, and the ballistas scorpions, on -account of a hook which stood upon the tablet, and being lowered by a -blow of the fist, released the spring. - -Their construction required learned calculations; the wood selected -had to be of the hardest substance, and their gearing all of brass; -they were stretched with levers, tackle-blocks, capstans or tympanums; -the direction of the shooting was changed by means of strong pivots; -they were moved forward on cylinders, and the most considerable of -them, which were brought piece by piece, were set up in front of the -enemy. - -Spendius arranged three great catapults opposite the three principle -angles; he placed a ram before every gate, a ballista before every -tower, while carroballistas were to move about in the rear. But it was -necessary to protect them against the fire thrown by the besieged, and -first of all to fill up the trench which separated them from the -walls. - -They pushed forward galleries formed of hurdles of green reeds, and -oaken semicircles like enormous shields gliding on three wheels; the -workers were sheltered in little huts covered with raw hides and -stuffed with wrack; the catapults and ballistas were protected by rope -curtains which had been steeped in vinegar to render them -incombustible. The women and children went to procure stones on the -strand, and gathered earth with their hands and brought it to the -soldiers. - -The Carthaginians also made preparations. - -Hamilcar had speedily reassured them by declaring that there was -enough water left in the cisterns for one hundred and twenty-three -days. This assertion, together with his presence, and above all that -of the zaimph among them, gave them good hopes. Carthage recovered -from its dejection; those who were not of Chanaanitish origin were -carried away by the passion of the rest. - -The slaves were armed, the arsenals were emptied, and every citizen -had his own post and his own employment. Twelve hundred of the -fugitives had survived, and the Suffet made them all captains; and -carpenters, armourers, blacksmiths, and goldsmiths were intrusted with -the engines. The Carthaginians had kept a few in spite of the -conditions of the peace with Rome. These were repaired. They -understood such work. - -The two northern and eastern sides, being protected by the sea and the -gulf, remained inaccessible. On the wall fronting the Barbarians they -collected tree-trunks, mill-stones, vases filled with sulphur, and -vats filled with oil, and built furnaces. Stones were heaped up on the -platforms of the towers, and the houses bordering immediately on the -rampart were crammed with sand in order to strengthen it and increase -its thickness. - -The Barbarians grew angry at the sight of these preparations. They -wished to fight at once. The weights which they put into the catapults -were so extravagantly heavy that the beams broke, and the attack was -delayed. - -At last on the thirteenth day of the month of Schabar,--at sunrise,--a -great blow was heard at the gate of Khamon. - -Seventy-five soldiers were pulling at ropes arranged at the base of a -gigantic beam which was suspended horizontally by chains hanging from -a framework, and which terminated in a ram's head of pure brass. It -had been swathed in ox-hides; it was bound at intervals with iron -bracelets; it was thrice as thick as a man's body, one hundred and -twenty cubits long, and under the crowd of naked arms pushing it -forward and drawing it back, it moved to and fro with a regular -oscillation. - -The other rams before the other gates began to be in motion. Men might -be seen mounting from step to step in the hollow wheels of the -tympanums. The pulleys and caps grated, the rope curtains were -lowered, and showers of stones and showers of arrows poured forth -simultaneously; all the scattered slingers ran up. Some approached the -rampart hiding pots of resin under their shields; then they would hurl -these with all their might. This hail of bullets, darts, and flames -passed above the first ranks in the form of a curve which fell behind -the walls. But long cranes, used for masting vessels, were reared on -the summit of the ramparts; and from them there descended some of -those enormous pincers which terminated in two semicircles toothed on -the inside. They bit the rams. The soldiers clung to the beam and drew -it back. The Carthaginians hauled in order to pull it up; and the -action was prolonged until the evening. - -When the Mercenaries resumed their task on the following day, the tops -of the walls were completely carpeted with bales of cotton, sails, and -cushions; the battlements were stopped up with mats; and a line of -forks and blades, fixed upon sticks, might be distinguished among the -cranes on the rampart. A furious resistance immediately began. - -Trunks of trees fastened to cables fell and rose alternately and -battered the rams; cramps hurled by the ballistas tore away the roofs -of the huts; and streams of flints and pebbles poured from the -platforms of the towers. - -At last the rams broke the gates of Khamon and Tagaste. But the -Carthaginians had piled up such an abundance of materials on the -inside that the leaves did not open. They remained standing. - -Then they drove augers against the walls; these were applied to the -joints of the blocks, so as to detach the latter. The engines were -better managed, the men serving them were divided into squads, and -they were worked from morning till evening without interruption and -with the monotonous precision of a weaver's loom. - -Spendius returned to them untiringly. It was he who stretched the -skeins of the ballistas. In order that the twin tensions might -completely correspond, the ropes as they were tightened were struck on -the right and left alternately until both sides gave out an equal -sound. Spendius would mount upon the timbers. He would strike the -ropes softly with the extremity of his foot, and strain his ears like -a musician tuning a lyre. Then when the beam of the catapult rose, -when the pillar of the ballista trembled with the shock of the spring, -when the stones were shooting in rays, and the darts pouring in -streams, he would incline his whole body and fling his arms into the -air as though to follow them. - -The soldiers admired his skill and executed his commands. In the -gaiety of their work they gave utterance to jests on the names of the -machines. Thus the plyers for seizing the rams were called "wolves," -and the galleries were covered with "vines"; they were lambs, or they -were going to gather the grapes; and as they loaded their pieces they -would say to the onagers: "Come, pick well!" and to the scorpions: -"Pierce them to the heart!" These jokes, which were ever the same, -kept up their courage. - -Nevertheless the machines did not demolish the rampart. It was formed -of two walls and was completely filled with earth. The upper portions -were beaten down, but each time the besieged raised them again. Matho -ordered the construction of wooden towers which should be as high as -the towers of stone. They cast turf, stakes, pebbles and chariots with -their wheels into the trench so as to fill it up the more quickly; but -before this was accomplished the immense throng of the Barbarians -undulated over the plain with a single movement and came beating -against the foot of the walls like an overflowing sea. - -They moved forward the rope ladders, straight ladders, and sambucas, -the latter consisting of two poles from which a series of bamboos -terminating in a moveable bridge were lowered by means of tackling. -They formed numerous straight lines resting against the wall, and the -Mercenaries mounted them in files, holding their weapons in their -hands. Not a Carthaginian showed himself; already two thirds of the -rampart had been covered. Then the battlements opened, vomiting flames -and smoke like dragon jaws; the sand scattered and entered the joints -of their armour; the petroleum fastened on their garments; the liquid -lead hopped on their helmets and made holes in their flesh; a rain of -sparks splashed against their faces, and eyeless orbits seemed to weep -tears as big as almonds. There were men all yellow with oil, with -their hair in flames. They began to run and set fire to the rest. They -were extinguished in mantles steeped in blood, which were thrown from -a distance over their faces. Some who had no wounds remained -motionless, stiffer than stakes, their mouths open and their arms -outspread. - -The assault was renewed for several days in succession, the -Mercenaries hoping to triumph by extraordinary energy and audacity. - -Sometimes a man raised on the shoulders of another would drive a pin -between the stones, and then making use of it as a step to reach -further, would place a second and a third; and, protected by the edge -of the battlements, which stood out from the wall, they would -gradually raise themselves in this way; but on reaching a certain -height they always fell back again. The great trench was full to -overflowing; the wounded were massed pell-mell with the dead and dying -beneath the footsteps of the living. Calcined trunks formed black -spots amid opened entrails, scattered brains, and pools of blood; and -arms and legs projecting half way out of a heap, would stand straight -up like props in a burning vineyard. - -The ladders proving insufficient the tollenos were brought into -requisition,--instruments consisting of a long beam set transversely -upon another, and bearing at its extremity a quadrangular basket which -would hold thirty foot-soldiers with their weapons. - -Matho wished to ascend in the first that was ready. Spendius stopped -him. - -Some men bent over a capstan; the great beam rose, became horizontal, -reared itself almost vertically, and being overweighted at the end, -bent like a huge reed. The soldiers, who were crowded together, were -hidden up to their chins; only their helmet-plumes could be seen. At -last when it was twenty cubits high in the air it turned several times -to the right and to the left, and then was depressed; and like a giant -arm holding a cohort of pigmies in its hand, it laid the basketful of -men upon the edge of the wall. They leaped into the crowd and never -returned. - -All the other tollenos were speedily made ready. But a hundred times -as many would have been needed for the capture of the town. They were -utilised in a murderous fashion: Ethiopian archers were placed in the -baskets; then, the cables having been fastened, they remained -suspended and shot poisoned arrows. The fifty tollenos commanding the -battlements thus surrounded Carthage like monstrous vultures; and the -Negroes laughed to see the guards on the rampart dying in grievous -convulsions. - -Hamilcar sent hoplites to these posts, and every morning made them -drink the juice of certain herbs which protected them against the -poison. - -One evening when it was dark he embarked the best of his soldiers on -lighters and planks, and turning to the right of the harbour, -disembarked on the Taenia. Then he advanced to the first lines of the -Barbarians, and taking them in flank, made a great slaughter. Men -hanging to ropes would descend at night from the top of the wall with -torches in their hands, burn the works of the Mercenaries, and then -mount up again. - -Matho was exasperated; every obstacle strengthened his wrath, which -led him into terrible extravagances. He mentally summoned Salammbo to -an interview; then he waited. She did not come; this seemed to him -like a fresh piece of treachery,--and henceforth he execrated her. If -he had seen her corpse he would perhaps have gone away. He doubled the -outposts, he planted forks at the foot of the rampart, he drove -caltrops into the ground, and he commanded the Libyans to bring him a -whole forest that he might set it on fire and burn Carthage like a den -of foxes. - -Spendius went on obstinately with the siege. He sought to invent -terrible machines such as had never before been constructed. - -The other Barbarians, encamped at a distance on the isthmus, were -amazed at these delays; they murmured, and they were let loose. - -Then they rushed with their cutlasses and javelins, and beat against -the gates with them. But the nakedness of their bodies facilitating -the infliction of wounds, the Carthaginians massacred them freely; and -the Mercenaries rejoiced at it, no doubt through jealousy about the -plunder. Hence there resulted quarrels and combats between them. Then, -the country having been ravaged, provisions were soon scarce. They -grew disheartened. Numerous hordes went away, but the crowd was so -great that the loss was not apparent. - -The best of them tried to dig mines, but the earth, being badly -supported, fell in. They began again in other places, but Hamilcar -always guessed the direction that they were taking by holding his ear -against a bronze shield. He bored counter-mines beneath the path along -which the wooden towers were to move, and when they were pushed -forward they sank into the holes. - -At last all recognised that the town was impregnable, unless a long -terrace was raised to the same height as the walls, so as to enable -them to fight on the same level. The top of it should be paved so that -the machines might be rolled along. Then Carthage would find it quite -impossible to resist. - -The town was beginning to suffer from thirst. The water which was -worth two kesitahs the bath at the opening of the siege was now sold -for a shekel of silver; the stores of meat and corn were also becoming -exhausted; there was a dread of famine, and some even began to speak -of useless mouths, which terrified every one. - -From the square of Khamon to the temple of Melkarth the streets were -cumbered with corpses; and, as it was the end of the summer, the -combatants were annoyed by great black flies. Old men carried off the -wounded, and the devout continued the fictitious funerals for their -relatives and friends who had died far away during the war. Waxen -statues with clothes and hair were displayed across the gates. They -melted in the heat of the tapers burning beside them; the paint flowed -down upon their shoulders, and tears streamed over the faces of the -living, as they chanted mournful songs beside them. The crowd -meanwhile ran to and fro; armed bands passed; captains shouted orders, -while the shock of the rams beating against the rampart was constantly -heard. - -The temperature became so heavy that the bodies swelled and would no -longer fit into the coffins. They were burned in the centre of the -courts. But the fires, being too much confined, kindled the -neighbouring walls, and long flames suddenly burst from the houses -like blood spurting from an artery. Thus Moloch was in possession of -Carthage; he clasped the ramparts, he rolled through the streets, he -devoured the very corpses. - -Men wearing cloaks made of collected rags in token of despair, -stationed themselves at the corners of the cross-ways. They declaimed -against the Ancients and against Hamilcar, predicted complete ruin to -the people, and invited them to universal destruction and license. The -most dangerous were the henbane-drinkers; in their crisis they -believed themselves wild beasts, and leaped upon the passers-by to -rend them. Mobs formed around them, and the defence of Carthage was -forgotten. The Suffet devised the payment of others to support his -policy. - -In order to retain the genius of the gods within the town their images -had been covered with chains. Black veils were placed upon the Pataec -gods, and hair-cloths around the altars; and attempts were made to -excite the pride and jealousy of the Baals by singing in their ears: -"Thou art about to suffer thyself to be vanquished! Are the others -perchance more strong? Show thyself! aid us! that the peoples may not -say: 'Where are now their gods?'" - -The colleges of the pontiffs were agitated by unceasing anxiety. Those -of Rabbetna were especially afraid--the restoration of the zaimph -having been of no avail. They kept themselves shut up in the third -enclosure which was as impregnable as a fortress. Only one among them, -the high priest Schahabarim, ventured to go out. - -He used to visit Salammbo. But he would either remain perfectly -silent, gazing at her with fixed eyeballs, or else would be lavish of -words, and the reproaches that he uttered were harder than ever. - -With inconceivable inconsistency he could not forgive the young girl -for carrying out his commands; Schahabarim had guessed all, and this -haunting thought revived the jealousies of his impotence. He accused -her of being the cause of the war. Matho, according to him, was -besieging Carthage to recover the zaimph; and he poured out -imprecations and sarcasms upon this Barbarian who pretended to the -possession of holy things. Yet it was not this that the priest wished -to say. - -But just now Salammbo felt no terror of him. The anguish which she -used formerly to suffer had left her. A strange peacefulness possessed -her. Her gaze was less wandering, and shone with limpid fire. - -Meanwhile the python had become ill again; and as Salammbo, on the -contrary, appeared to be recovering, old Taanach rejoiced in the -conviction that by its decline it was taking away the languor of her -mistress. - -One morning she found it coiled up behind the bed of ox-hides, colder -than marble, and with its head hidden by a heap of worms. Her cries -brought Salammbo to the spot. She turned it over for a while with the -tip of her sandal, and the slave was amazed at her insensibility. - -Hamilcar's daughter no longer prolonged her fasts with so much -fervour. She passed whole days on the top of her terrace, leaning her -elbows against the balustrade, and amusing herself by looking out -before her. The summits of the walls at the end of the town cut uneven -zigzags upon the sky, and the lances of the sentries formed what was -like a border of corn-ears throughout their length. Further away she -could see the manoeuvres of the Barbarians between the towers; on days -when the siege was interrupted she could even distinguish their -occupations. They mended their weapons, greased their hair, and washed -their bloodstained arms in the sea; the tents were closed; the beasts -of burden were feeding; and in the distance the scythes of the -chariots, which were all ranged in a semicircle, looked like a silver -scimitar lying at the base of the mountains. Schahabarim's talk -recurred to her memory. She was waiting for Narr' Havas, her -betrothed. In spite of her hatred she would have liked to see Matho -again. Of all the Carthaginians she was perhaps the only one who would -have spoken to him without fear. - -Her father often came into her room. He would sit down panting on the -cushions, and gaze at her with an almost tender look, as if he found -some rest from her fatigues in the sight of her. He sometimes -questioned her about her journey to the camp of the Mercenaries. He -even asked her whether any one had urged her to it; and with a shake -of the head she answered, No,--so proud was Salammbo of having saved -the zaimph. - -But the Suffet always came back to Matho under pretence of making -military inquiries. He could not understand how the hours which she -had spent in the tent had been employed. Salammbo, in fact, said -nothing about Gisco; for as words had an effective power in -themselves, curses, if reported to any one, might be turned against -him; and she was silent about her wish to assassinate, lest she should -be blamed for not having yielded to it. She said that the schalischim -appeared furious, that he had shouted a great deal, and that he had -then fallen asleep. Salammbo told no more, through shame perhaps, or -else because she was led by her extreme ingenuousness to attach but -little importance to the soldier's kisses. Moreover, it all floated -through her head in a melancholy and misty fashion, like the -recollection of a depressing dream; and she would not have known in -what way or in what words to express it. - -One evening when they were thus face to face with each other, Taanach -came in looking quite scared. An old man with a child was yonder in -the courts, and wished to see the Suffet. - -Hamilcar turned pale, and then quickly replied: - -"Let him come up!" - -Iddibal entered without prostrating himself. He held a young boy, -covered with a goat's-hair cloak, by the hand, and at once raised the -hood which screened his face. - -"Here he is, Master! Take him!" - -The Suffet and the slave went into a corner of the room. - -The child remained in the centre standing upright, and with a gaze of -attention rather than of astonishment he surveyed the ceiling, the -furniture, the pearl necklaces trailing on the purple draperies, and -the majestic maiden who was bending over towards him. - -He was perhaps ten years old, and was not taller than a Roman sword. -His curly hair shaded his swelling forehead. His eyeballs looked as if -they were seeking for space. The nostrils of his delicate nose were -broad and palpitating, and upon his whole person was displayed the -indefinable splendour of those who are destined to great enterprises. -When he had cast aside his extremely heavy cloak, he remained clad in -a lynx skin, which was fastened about his waist, and he rested his -little naked feet, which were all white with dust, resolutely upon the -pavement. But he no doubt divined that important matters were under -discussion, for he stood motionless, with one hand behind his back, -his chin lowered, and a finger in his mouth. - -At last Hamilcar attracted Salammbo with a sign and said to her in a -low voice: - -"You will keep him with you, you understand! No one, even though -belonging to the house, must know of his existence!" - -Then, behind the door, he again asked Iddibal whether he was quite -sure that they had not been noticed. - -"No!" said the slave, "the streets were empty." - -As the war filled all the provinces he had feared for his master's -son. Then, not knowing where to hide him, he had come along the coasts -in a sloop, and for three days Iddibal had been tacking about in the -gulf and watching the ramparts. At last, that evening, as the environs -of Khamon seemed to be deserted, he had passed briskly through the -channel and landed near the arsenal, the entrance to the harbour being -free. - -But soon the Barbarians posted an immense raft in front of it in order -to prevent the Carthaginians from coming out. They were again rearing -the wooden towers, and the terrace was rising at the same time. - -Outside communications were cut off and an intolerable famine set in. - -The besieged killed all the dogs, all the mules, all the asses, and -then the fifteen elephants which the Suffet had brought back. The -lions of the temple of Moloch had become ferocious, and the hierodules -no longer durst approach them. They were fed at first with the wounded -Barbarians; then they were thrown corpses that were still warm; they -refused them, and they all died. People wandered in the twilight along -the old enclosures, and gathered grass and flowers among the stones to -boil them in wine, wine being cheaper than water. Others crept as far -as the enemy's outposts, and entered the tents to steal food, and the -stupefied Barbarians sometimes allowed them to return. At last a day -arrived when the Ancients resolved to slaughter the horses of Eschmoun -privately. They were holy animals whose manes were plaited by the -pontiffs with gold ribbons, and whose existence denoted the motion of -the sun--the idea of fire in its most exalted form. Their flesh was -cut into equal portions and buried behind the altar. Then every -evening the Ancients, alleging some act of devotion, would go up to -the temple and regale themselves in secret, and each would take away a -piece beneath his tunic for his children. In the deserted quarters -remote from the walls, the inhabitants, whose misery was not so great, -had barricaded themselves through fear of the rest. - -The stones from the catapults, and the demolitions commanded for -purposes of defence, had accumulated heaps of ruins in the middle of -the streets. At the quietest times masses of people would suddenly -rush along with shouts; and from the top of the Acropolis the -conflagrations were like purple rags scattered upon the terraces and -twisted by the wind. - -The three great catapults did not stop in spite of all these works. -Their ravages were extraordinary: thus a man's head rebounded from the -pediment of the Syssitia; a woman who was being confined in the street -of Kinisdo was crushed by a block of marble, and her child was carried -with the bed as far as the crossways of Cinasyn, where the coverlet -was found. - -The most annoying were the bullets of the slingers. They fell upon the -roofs, and in the gardens, and in the middle of the courts, while -people were at table before a slender meal with their hearts big with -sighs. These cruel projectiles bore engraved letters which stamped -themselves upon the flesh;--and insults might be read on corpses such -as "pig," "jackal," "vermin," and sometimes jests: "Catch it!" or "I -have well deserved it!" - -The portion of the rampart which extended from the corner of the -harbours to the height of the cisterns was broken down. Then the -people of Malqua found themselves caught between the old enclosure of -Byrsa behind, and the Barbarians in front. But there was enough to be -done in thickening the wall and making it as high as possible without -troubling about them; they were abandoned; all perished; and although -they were generally hated, Hamilcar came to be greatly abhorred. - -On the morrow he opened the pits in which he kept stores of corn, and -his stewards gave it to the people. For three days they gorged -themselves. - -Their thirst, however, only became the more intolerable, and they -could constantly see before them the long cascade formed by the clear -falling water of the aqueduct. A thin vapour, with a rainbow beside -it, went up from its base, beneath the rays of the sun, and a little -stream curving through the plain fell into the gulf. - -Hamilcar did not give way. He was reckoning upon an event, upon -something decisive and extraordinary. - -His own slaves tore off the silver plates from the temple of Melkarth; -four long boats were drawn out of the harbour, they were brought by -means of capstans to the foot of the Mappalian quarter, the wall -facing the shore was bored, and they set out for the Gauls to buy -Mercenaries there at no matter what price. Nevertheless, Hamilcar was -distressed at his inability to communicate with the king of the -Numidians, for he knew that he was behind the Barbarians, and ready to -fall upon them. But Narr' Havas, being too weak, was not going to make -any venture alone; and the Suffet had the rampart raised twelve palms -higher, all the material in the arsenals piled up in the Acropolis, -and the machines repaired once more. - -Sinews taken from bulls' necks, or else stags' hamstrings, were -commonly employed for the twists of the catapults. However, neither -stags nor bulls were in existence in Carthage. Hamilcar asked the -Ancients for the hair of their wives; all sacrificed it, but the -quantity was not sufficient. In the buildings of the Syssitia there -were twelve hundred marriageable slaves destined for prostitution in -Greece and Italy, and their hair, having been rendered elastic by the -use of unguents, was wonderfully well adapted for engines of war. But -the subsequent loss would be too great. Accordingly it was decided -that a choice should be made of the finest heads of hair among the -wives of the plebeians. Careless of their country's needs, they -shrieked in despair when the servants of the Hundred came with -scissors to lay hands upon them. - -The Barbarians were animated with increased fury. They could be seen -in the distance taking fat from the dead to grease their machines, -while others pulled out the nails and stitched them end to end to make -cuirasses. They devised a plan of putting into the catapults vessels -filled with serpents which had been brought by the Negroes; the clay -pots broke on the flag-stones, the serpents ran about, seemed to -multiply, and, so numerous were they, to issue naturally from the -walls. Then the Barbarians, not satisfied with their invention, -improved upon it; they hurled all kinds of filth, human excrements, -pieces of carrion, corpses. The plague reappeared. The teeth of the -Carthaginians fell out of their mouths, and their gums were -discoloured like those of camels after too long a journey. - -The machines were set up on the terrace, although the latter did not -as yet reach everywhere to the height of the rampart. Before the -twenty-three towers on the fortification stood twenty-three others of -wood. All the tollenos were mounted again, and in the centre, a little -further back, appeared the formidable helepolis of Demetrius -Poliorcetes, which Spendius had at last reconstructed. Of pyramidical -shape, like the pharos of Alexandria, it was one hundred and thirty -cubits high and twenty-three wide, with nine stories, diminishing as -they approached the summit, and protected by scales of brass; they -were pierced with numerous doors and were filled with soldiers, and on -the upper platform there stood a catapult flanked by two ballistas. - -Then Hamilcar planted crosses for those who should speak of surrender, -and even the women were brigaded. The people lay in the streets and -waited full of distress. - -Then one morning before sunrise (it was the seventh day of the month -of Nyssan) they heard a great shout uttered by all the Barbarians -simultaneously; the leaden-tubed trumpets pealed, and the great -Paphlagonian horns bellowed like bulls. All rose and ran to the -rampart. - -A forest of lances, pikes, and swords bristled at its base. It leaped -against the wall, the ladders grappled them; and Barbarians' heads -appeared in the intervals of the battlements. - -Beams supported by long files of men were battering at the gates; and, -in order to demolish the wall at places where the terrace was wanting, -the Mercenaries came up in serried cohorts, the first line crawling, -the second bending their hams, and the others rising in succession to -the last who stood upright; while elsewhere, in order to climb up, the -tallest advanced in front and the lowest in the rear, and all rested -their shields upon their helmets with their left arms, joining them -together at the edges so tightly that they might have been taken for -an assemblage of large tortoises. The projectiles slid over these -oblique masses. - -The Carthaginians threw down mill-stones, pestles, vats, casks, beds, -everything that could serve as a weight and could knock down. Some -watched at the embrasures with fisherman's nets, and when the -Barbarian arrived he found himself caught in the meshes, and struggled -like a fish. They demolished their own battlements; portions of wall -fell down raising a great dust; and as the catapults on the terrace -were shooting over against one another, the stones would strike -together and shiver into a thousand pieces, making a copious shower -upon the combatants. - -Soon the two crowds formed but one great chain of human bodies; it -overflowed into the intervals in the terrace, and, somewhat looser at -the two extremities, swayed perpetually without advancing. They -clasped one another, lying flat on the ground like wrestlers. They -crushed one another. The women leaned over the battlements and -shrieked. They were dragged away by their veils, and the whiteness of -their suddenly uncovered sides shone in the arms of the Negroes as the -latter buried their daggers in them. Some corpses did not fall, being -too much pressed by the crowd, and, supported by the shoulders of -their companions, advanced for some minutes quite upright and with -staring eyes. Some who had both temples pierced by a javelin swayed -their heads about like bears. Mouths, opened to shout, remained -gaping; severed hands flew through the air. Mighty blows were dealt, -which were long talked of by the survivors. - -Meanwhile arrows darted from the towers of wood and stone. The -tollenos moved their long yards rapidly; and as the Barbarians had -sacked the old cemetery of the aborigines beneath the Catacombs, they -hurled the tombstones against the Carthaginians. Sometimes the cables -broke under the weight of too heavy baskets, and masses of men, all -with uplifted arms, would fall from the sky. - -Up to the middle of the day the veterans had attacked the Taenia -fiercely in order to penetrate into the harbour and destroy the fleet. -Hamilcar had a fire of damp straw lit upon the roofing of Khamon, and -as the smoke blinded them they fell back to left, and came to swell -the horrible rout which was pressing forward in Malqua. Some -syntagmata composed of sturdy men, chosen expressly for the purpose, -had broken in three gates. They were checked by lofty barriers made of -planks studded with nails, but a fourth yielded easily; they dashed -over it at a run and rolled into a pit in which there were hidden -snares. At the south-west gate Autaritus and his men broke down the -rampart, the fissure in which had been stopped up with bricks. The -ground behind rose, and they climbed it nimbly. But on the top they -found a second wall composed of stones and long beams lying quite flat -and alternating like the squares on a chess-board. It was a Gaulish -fashion, and had been adapted by the Suffet to the requirements of the -situation; the Gauls imagined themselves before a town in their own -country. Their attack was weak, and they were repulsed. - -All the roundway, from the street of Khamon as far as the Green -Market, now belonged to the Barbarians, and the Samnites were -finishing off the dying with blows of stakes; or else with one foot on -the wall were gazing down at the smoking ruins beneath them, and the -battle which was beginning again in the distance. - -The slingers, who were distributed through the rear, were still -shooting. But the springs of the Acarnanian slings had broken from -use, and many were throwing stones with the hand like shepherds; the -rest hurled leaden bullets with the handle of a whip. Zarxas, his -shoulders covered with his long black hair, went about everywhere, and -led on the Barbarians. Two pouches hung at his hips; he thrust his -left hand into them continually, while his right arm whirled round -like a chariot-wheel. - -Matho had at first refrained from fighting, the better to command the -Barbarians all at once. He had been seen along the gulf with the -Mercenaries, near the lagoon with the Numidians, and on the shores of -the lake among the Negroes, and from the back part of the plain he -urged forward masses of soldiers who came ceaselessly against the -ramparts. By degrees he had drawn near; the smell of blood, the sight -of carnage, and the tumult of clarions had at last made his heart -leap. Then he had gone back into his tent, and throwing off his -cuirass had taken his lion's skin as being more convenient for battle. -The snout fitted upon his head, bordering his face with a circle of -fangs; the two fore-paws were crossed upon his breast, and the claws -of the hinder ones fell beneath his knees. - -He had kept on his strong waist-belt, wherein gleamed a two-edged axe, -and with his great sword in both hands he had dashed impetuously -through the breach. Like a pruner cutting willow-branches and trying -to strike off as much as possible so as to make the more money, he -marched along mowing down the Carthaginians around him. Those who -tried to seize him in flank he knocked down with blows of the pommel; -when they attacked him in front he ran them through; if they fled he -clove them. Two men leaped together upon his back; he bounded -backwards against a gate and crushed them. His sword fell and rose. It -shivered on the angle of a wall. Then he took his heavy axe, and front -and rear he ripped up the Carthaginians like a flock of sheep. They -scattered more and more, and he was quite alone when he reached the -second enclosure at the foot of the Acropolis. The materials which had -been flung from the summit cumbered the steps and were heaped up -higher than the wall. Matho turned back amid the ruins to summons his -companions. - -He perceived their crests scattered over the multitude; they were -sinking and their wearers were about to perish; he dashed towards -them; then the vast wreath of red plumes closed in, and they soon -rejoined him and surrounded him. But an enormous crowd was discharging -from the side streets. He was caught by the hips, lifted up and -carried away outside the ramparts to a spot where the terrace was -high. - -Matho shouted a command and all the shields sank upon the helmets; he -leaped upon them in order to catch hold somewhere so as to re-enter -Carthage; and, flourishing his terrible axe, ran over the shields, -which resembled waves of bronze, like a marine god, with brandished -trident, over his billows. - -However, a man in a white robe was walking along the edge of the -rampart, impassible, and indifferent to the death which surrounded -him. Sometimes he would spread out his right hand above his eyes in -order to find out some one. Matho happened to pass beneath him. -Suddenly his eyeballs flamed, his livid face contracted; and raising -both his lean arms he shouted out abuse at him. - -Matho did not hear it; but he felt so furious and cruel a look -entering his heart that he uttered a roar. He hurled his long axe at -him; some people threw themselves upon Schahabarim; and Matho seeing -him no more fell back exhausted. - -A terrible creaking drew near, mingled with the rhythm of hoarse -voices singing together. - -It was the great helepolis surrounded by a crowd of soldiers. They -were dragging it with both hands, hauling it with ropes, and pushing -it with their shoulders,--for the slope rising from the plain to the -terrace, although extremely gentle, was found impracticable for -machines of such prodigious weight. However, it had eight wheels -banded with iron, and it had been advancing slowly in this way since -the morning, like a mountain raised upon another. Then there appeared -an immense ram issuing from its base. The doors along the three fronts -which faced the town fell down, and cuirassed soldiers appeared in the -interior like pillars of iron. Some might be seen climbing and -descending the two staircases which crossed the stories. Some were -waiting to dart out as soon as the cramps of the doors touched the -walls; in the middle of the upper platform the skeins of the ballistas -were turning, and the great beam of the catapult was being lowered. - -Hamilcar was at that moment standing upright on the roof of Melkarth. -He had calculated that it would come directly towards him, against -what was the most invulnerable place in the wall, which was for that -very reason denuded of sentries. His slaves had for a long time been -bringing leathern bottles along the roundway, where they had raised -with clay two transverse partitions forming a sort of basin. The water -was flowing insensibly along the terrace, and strange to say, it -seemed to cause Hamilcar no anxiety. - -But when the helepolis was thirty paces off, he commanded planks to be -placed over the streets between the houses from the cisterns to the -rampart; and a file of people passed from hand to hand helmets and -amphoras, which were emptied continually. The Carthaginians, however, -grew indignant at this waste of water. The ram was demolishing the -wall, when suddenly a fountain sprang forth from the disjointed -stones. Then the lofty brazen mass, nine stories high, which contained -and engaged more than three thousand soldiers, began to rock gently -like a ship. In fact, the water, which had penetrated the terrace, had -broken up the path before it; its wheels stuck in the mire; the head -of Spendius, with distended cheeks blowing an ivory cornet, appeared -between leathern curtains on the first story. The great machine, as -though convulsively upheaved, advanced perhaps ten paces; but the -ground softened more and more, the mire reached to the axles, and the -helepolis stopped, leaning over frightfully to one side. The catapult -rolled to the edge of the platform, and carried away by the weight of -its beam, fell, shattering the lower stories beneath it. The soldiers -who were standing on the doors slipped into the abyss, or else held on -to the extremities of the long beams, and by their weight increased -the inclination of the helepolis, which was going to pieces with -creakings in all its joints. - -The other Barbarians rushed up to help them, massing themselves into a -compact crowd. The Carthaginians descended from the rampart, and, -assailing them in the rear, killed them at leisure. But the chariots -furnished with sickles hastened up, and galloped round the outskirts -of the multitude. The latter ascended the wall again; night came on; -and the Barbarians gradually retired. - -Nothing could now be seen on the plain but a sort of perfectly black, -swarming mass, which extended from the bluish gulf to the purely white -lagoon; and the lake, which had received streams of blood, stretched -further away like a great purple pool. - -The terrace was now so laden with corpses that it looked as though it -had been constructed of human bodies. In the centre stood the -helepolis covered with armour; and from time to time huge fragments -broke off from it, like stones from a crumbling pyramid. Broad tracks -made by the streams of lead might be distinguished on the walls. A -broken-down wooden tower burned here and there, and the houses showed -dimly like the stages of a ruined ampitheatre. Heavy fumes of smoke -were rising, and rolling with them sparks which were lost in the dark -sky. - -The Carthaginians, however, who were consumed by thirst, had rushed to -the cisterns. They broke open the doors. A miry swamp stretched at the -bottom. - -What was to be done now? Moreover, the Barbarians were countless, and -when their fatigue was over they would begin again. - -The people deliberated all night in groups at the corners of the -streets. Some said that they ought to send away the women, the sick, -and the old men; others proposed to abandon the town, and found a -colony far away. But vessels were lacking, and when the sun appeared -no decision had been made. - -There was no fighting that day, all being too much exhausted. The -sleepers looked like corpses. - -Then the Carthaginians, reflecting upon the cause of their disasters, -remembered that they had not dispatched to Phoenicia the annual -offering due to Tyrian Melkarth, and a great terror came upon them. -The gods were indignant with the Republic, and were, no doubt, about -to prosecute their vengeance. - -They were considered as cruel masters, who were appeased with -supplications and allowed themselves to be bribed with presents. All -were feeble in comparison with Moloch the Devourer. The existence, the -very flesh of men, belonged to him; and hence in order to preserve it, -the Carthaginians used to offer up a portion of it to him, which -calmed his fury. Children were burned on the forehead, or on the nape -of the neck, with woollen wicks; and as this mode of satisfying Baal -brought in much money to the priests, they failed not to recommend it -as being easier and more pleasant. - -This time, however, the Republic itself was at stake. But as every -profit must be purchased by some loss, and as every transaction was -regulated according to the needs of the weaker and the demands of the -stronger, there was no pain great enough for the god, since he -delighted in such as was of the most horrible description, and all -were now at his mercy. He must accordingly be fully gratified. -Precedents showed that in this way the scourge would be made to -disappear. Moreover, it was believed that an immolation by fire would -purify Carthage. The ferocity of the people was predisposed towards -it. The choice, too, must fall exclusively upon the families of the -great. - -The Ancients assembled. The sitting was a long one. Hanno had come to -it. As he was now unable to sit he remained lying down near the door, -half hidden among the fringes of the lofty tapestry; and when the -pontiff of Moloch asked them whether they would consent to surrender -their children, his voice suddenly broke forth from the shadow like -the roaring of a genius in the depths of a cavern. He regretted, he -said, that he had none of his own blood to give; and he gazed at -Hamilcar, who faced him at the other end of the hall. The Suffet was -so much disconcerted by this look that it made him lower his eyes. All -successively bent their heads in approval; and in accordance with the -rites he had to reply to the high priest: "Yes; be it so." Then the -Ancients decreed the sacrifice in traditional circumlocution,--because -there are things more troublesome to say than to perform. - -The decision was almost immediately known in Carthage, and -lamentations resounded. The cries of women might everywhere be heard; -their husbands consoled them, or railed at them with remonstrances. - -But three hours afterwards extraordinary tidings were spread abroad: -the Suffet had discovered springs at the foot of the cliff. There was -a rush to the place. Water might be seen in holes dug in the sand, and -some were already lying flat on the ground and drinking. - -Hamilcar did not himself know whether it was by the determination of -the gods or through the vague recollection of a revelation which his -father had once made to him; but on leaving the Ancients he had gone -down to the shore and had begun to dig the gravel with his slaves. - -He gave clothing, boots, and wine. He gave all the rest of the corn -that he was keeping by him. He even let the crowd enter his palace, -and he opened kitchens, stores, and all the rooms,--Salammbo's alone -excepted. He announced that six thousand Gaulish Mercenaries were -coming, and that the king of Macedonia was sending soldiers. - -But on the second day the springs diminished, and on the evening of -the third they were completely dried up. Then the decree of the -Ancients passed everywhere from lip to lip, and the priests of Moloch -began their task. - -Men in black robes presented themselves in the houses. In many -instances the owners had deserted them under pretence of some -business, or of some dainty that they were going to buy; and the -servants of Moloch came and took the children away. Others themselves -surrendered them stupidly. Then they were brought to the temple of -Tanith, where the priestesses were charged with their amusement and -support until the solemn day. - -They visited Hamilcar suddenly and found him in his gardens. - -"Barca! we come for that that you know of--your son!" They added that -some people had met him one evening during the previous moon in the -centre of the Mappalian district being led by an old man. - -He was as though suffocated at first. But speedily understanding that -any denial would be in vain, Hamilcar bowed; and he brought them into -the commercial house. Some slaves who had run up at a sign kept watch -all round about it. - -He entered Salammbo's room in a state of distraction. He seized -Hannibal with one hand, snatched up the cord of a trailing garment -with the other, tied his feet and hands with it, thrust the end into -his mouth to form a gag, and hid him under the bed of the ox-hides by -letting an ample drapery fall to the ground. - -Afterwards he walked about from right to left, raised his arms, -wheeled round, bit his lips. Then he stood still with staring eyelids, -and panted as though he were about to die. - -But he clapped his hands three times. Giddenem appeared. - -"Listen!" he said, "go and take from among the slaves a male child -from eight to nine years of age, with black hair and swelling -forehead! Bring him here! make haste!" - -Giddenem soon entered again, bringing forward a young boy. - -He was a miserable child, at once lean and bloated; his skin looked -greyish, like the infected rag hanging to his sides; his head was sunk -between his shoulders, and with the back of his hand he was rubbing -his eyes, which were filled with flies. - -How could he ever be confounded with Hannibal! and there was no time -to choose another. Hamilcar looked at Giddenem; he felt inclined to -strangle him. - -"Begone!" he cried; and the master of the slaves fled. - -The misfortune which he had so long dreaded was therefore come, and -with extravagant efforts he strove to discover whether there was not -some mode, some means to escape it. - -Abdalonim suddenly spoke from behind the door. The Suffet was being -asked for. The servants of Moloch were growing impatient. - -Hamilcar repressed a cry as though a red hot iron had burnt him; and -he began anew to pace the room like one distraught. Then he sank down -beside the balustrade, and, with his elbows on his knees, pressed his -forehead into his shut fists. - -The porphyry basin still contained a little clear water for Salammbo's -ablutions. In spite of his repugnance and all his pride, the Suffet -dipped the child into it, and, like a slave merchant, began to wash -him and rub him with strigils and red earth. Then he took two purple -squares from the receptacles round the wall, placed one on his breast -and the other on his back, and joined them together on the collar -bones with two diamond clasps. He poured perfume upon his head, passed -an electrum necklace around his neck, and put on him sandals with -heels of pearl,--sandals belonging to his own daughter! But he stamped -with shame and vexation; Salammbo, who busied herself in helping him, -was as pale as he. The child, dazzled by such splendour, smiled and, -growing bold even, was beginning to clap his hands and jump, when -Hamilcar took him away. - -He held him firmly by the arm as though he were afraid of losing him, -and the child, who was hurt, wept a little as he ran beside him. - -When on a level with the ergastulum, under a palm tree, a voice was -raised, a mournful and supplicant voice. It murmured: "Master! oh! -master!" - -Hamilcar turned and beside him perceived a man of abject appearance, -one of the wretches who led a haphazard existence in the household. - -"What do you want?" said the Suffet. - -The slave, who trembled horribly, stammered: - -"I am his father!" - -Hamilcar walked on; the other followed him with stooping loins, bent -hams, and head thrust forward. His face was convulsed with unspeakable -anguish, and he was choking with suppressed sobs, so eager was he at -once to question him, and to cry: "Mercy!" - -At last he ventured to touch him lightly with one finger on the elbow. - -"Are you going to--?" He had not the strength to finish, and Hamilcar -stopped quite amazed at such grief. - -He had never thought--so immense was the abyss separating them from -each other--that there could be anything in common between them. It -even appeared to him a sort of outrage, an encroachment upon his own -privileges. He replied with a look colder and heavier than an -executioner's axe; the slave swooned and fell in the dust at his feet. -Hamilcar strode across him. - -The three black-robed men were waiting in the great hall, and standing -against the stone disc. Immediately he tore his garments, and rolled -upon the pavement uttering piercing cries. - -"Ah! poor little Hannibal! Oh! my son! my consolation! my hope! my -life! Kill me also! take me away! Woe! Woe!" He ploughed his face with -his nails, tore out his hair, and shrieked like the women who lament -at funerals. "Take him away then! my suffering is too great! begone! -kill me like him!" The servants of Moloch were astonished that the -great Hamilcar was so weak-spirited. They were almost moved by it. - -A noise of naked feet became audible, with a broken throat-rattling -like the breathing of a wild beast speeding along, and a man, pale, -terrible, and with outspread arms appeared on the threshold of the -third gallery, between the ivory pots; he exclaimed: - -"My child!" - -Hamilcar threw himself with a bound upon the slave, and covering the -man's mouth with his hand exclaimed still more loudly: - -"It is the old man who reared him! he calls him 'my child!' it will -make him mad! enough! enough!" And hustling away the three priests and -their victim he went out with them and with a great kick shut the door -behind him. - -Hamilcar strained his ears for some minutes in constant fear of seeing -them return. He then thought of getting rid of the slave in order to -be quite sure that he would see nothing; but the peril had not wholly -disappeared, and, if the gods were provoked at the man's death, it -might be turned against his son. Then, changing his intention, he sent -him by Taanach the best from his kitchens--a quarter of a goat, beans, -and preserved pomegranates. The slave, who had eaten nothing for a -long time, rushed upon them; his tears fell into the dishes. - -Hamilcar at last returned to Salammbo, and unfastened Hannibal's -cords. The child in exasperation bit his hand until the blood came. He -repelled him with a caress. - -To make him remain quiet Salammbo tried to frighten him with Lamia, a -Cyrenian ogress. - -"But where is she?" he asked. - -He was told that brigands were coming to put him into prison. "Let -them come," he rejoined, "and I will kill them!" - -Then Hamilcar told him the frightful truth. But he fell into a passion -with his father, contending that he was quite able to annihilate the -whole people, since he was the master of Carthage. - -At last, exhausted by his exertions and anger, he fell into a wild -sleep. He spoke in his dreams, his back leaning against a scarlet -cushion; his head was thrown back somewhat, and his little arm, -outstretched from his body, lay quite straight in an attitude of -command. - -When the night had grown dark Hamilcar lifted him up gently, and, -without a torch, went down the galley staircase. As he passed through -the mercantile house he took up a basket of grapes and a flagon of -pure water; the child awoke before the statue of Aletes in the vault -of gems, and he smiled--like the other--on his father's arm at the -brilliant lights which surrounded him. - -Hamilcar felt quite sure that his son could not be taken from him. It -was an impenetrable spot communicating with the beach by a -subterranean passage which he alone knew, and casting his eyes around -he inhaled a great draught of air. Then he set him down upon a stool -beside some golden shields. No one at present could see him; he had no -further need for watching; and he relieved his feelings. Like a mother -finding her first-born that was lost, he threw himself upon his son; -he clasped him to his breast, he laughed and wept at the same time, he -called him by the fondest names and covered him with kisses; little -Hannibal was frightened by this terrible tenderness and was silent -now. - -Hamilcar returned with silent steps, feeling the walls around him, and -came into the great hall where the moonlight entered through one of -the apertures in the dome; in the centre the slave lay sleeping after -his repast, stretched at full length upon the marble pavement. He -looked at him and was moved with a sort of pity. With the tip of his -cothurn he pushed forward a carpet beneath his head. Then he raised -his eyes and gazed at Tanith, whose slender crescent was shining in -the sky, and felt himself stronger than the Baals and full of contempt -for them. - -The arrangements for the sacrifice were already begun. - -Part of a wall in the temple of Moloch was thrown down in order to -draw out the brazen god without touching the ashes of the altar. Then -as soon as the sun appeared the hierodules pushed it towards the -square of Khamon. - -It moved backwards sliding upon cylinders; its shoulders overlapped -the walls. No sooner did the Carthaginians perceive it in the distance -than they speedily took to flight, for the Baal could be looked upon -with impunity only when exercising his wrath. - -A smell of aromatics spread through the streets. All the temples had -just been opened simultaneously, and from them there came forth -tabernacles borne upon chariots, or upon litters carried by the -pontiffs. Great plumes swayed at the corners of them, and rays were -emitted from their slender pinnacles which terminated in balls of -crystal, gold, silver or copper. - -These were the Chanaanitish Baalim, offshoots of the supreme Baal, who -were returning to their first cause to humble themselves before his -might and annihilate themselves in his splendour. - -Melkarth's pavilion, which was of fine purple, sheltered a petroleum -flare; on Khamon's, which was of hyacinth colour, there rose an ivory -phallus bordered with a circle of gems; between Eschmoun's curtains, -which were as blue as the ether, a sleeping python formed a circle -with his tail, and the Pataec gods, held in the arms of their priests, -looked like great infants in swaddling clothes with their heels -touching the ground. - -Then came all the inferior forms of the Divinity: Baal-Samin, god of -celestial space; Baal-Peor, god of the sacred mountains; Baal-Zeboub, -god of corruption, with those of the neighbouring countries and -congenerous races: the Iarbal of Libya, the Adramelech of Chaldaea, -the Kijun of the Syrians; Derceto, with her virgin's face, crept on -her fins, and the corpse of Tammouz was drawn along in the midst of a -catafalque among torches and heads of hair. In order to subdue the -kings of the firmament to the Sun, and prevent their particular -influences from disturbing his, diversely coloured metal stars were -brandished at the end of long poles; and all were there, from the dark -Neblo, the genius of Mercury, to the hideous Rahab, which is the -constellation of the Crocodile. The Abbadirs, stones which had fallen -from the moon, were whirling in slings of silver thread; little -loaves, representing the female form, were born on baskets by the -priests of Ceres; others brought their fetishes and amulets; forgotten -idols reappeared, while the mystic symbols had been taken from the -very ships as though Carthage wished to concentrate herself wholly -upon a single thought of death and desolation. - -Before each tabernacle a man balanced a large vase of smoking incense -on his head. Clouds hovered here and there, and the hangings, -pendants, and embroideries of the sacred pavilions might be -distinguished amid the thick vapours. These advanced slowly owing to -their enormous weight. Sometimes the axles became fast in the streets; -then the pious took advantage of the opportunity to touch the Baalim -with their garments, which they preserved afterwards as holy things. - -The brazen statue continued to advance towards the square of Khamon. -The rich, carrying sceptres with emerald balls, set out from the -bottom of Megara; the Ancients, with diadems on their heads, had -assembled in Kinisdo, and masters of the finances, governors of -provinces, sailors, and the numerous horde employed at funerals, all -with the insignia of their magistracies or the instruments of their -calling, were making their way towards the tabernacles which were -descending from the Acropolis between the colleges of the pontiffs. - -Out of deference to Moloch they had adorned themselves with the most -splendid jewels. Diamonds sparkled on their black garments; but their -rings were too large and fell from their wasted hands,--nor could -there have been anything so mournful as this silent crowd where -earrings tapped against pale faces, and gold tiaras clasped brows -contracted with stern despair. - -At last the Baal arrived exactly in the centre of the square. His -pontiffs arranged an enclosure with trellis-work to keep off the -multitude, and remained around him at his feet. - -The priests of Khamon, in tawny woollen robes, formed a line before -their temple beneath the columns of the portico; those of Eschmoun, in -linen mantles with necklaces of koukouphas' heads and pointed tiaras, -posted themselves on the steps of the Acropolis; the priests of -Melkarth, in violet tunics, took the western side; the priests of the -Abbadirs, clasped with bands of Phrygian stuffs, placed themselves on -the east, while towards the south, with the necromancers all covered -with tattooings, and the shriekers in patched cloaks, were ranged the -curates of the Pataec gods, and the Yidonim, who put the bone of a -dead man into their mouths to learn the future. The priests of Ceres, -who were dressed in blue robes, had prudently stopped in the street of -Satheb, and in low tones were chanting a thesmophorion in the Megarian -dialect. - -From time to time files of men arrived, completely naked, their arms -outstretched, and all holding one another by the shoulders. From the -depths of their breasts they drew forth a hoarse and cavernous -intonation; their eyes, which were fastened upon the colossus, shone -through the dust, and they swayed their bodies simultaneously, and at -equal distances, as though they were all affected by a single -movement. They were so frenzied that to restore order the hierodules -compelled them, with blows of the stick, to lie flat upon the ground, -with their faces resting against the brass trellis-work. - -Then it was that a man in a white robe advanced from the back of the -square. He penetrated the crowd slowly, and people recognised a priest -of Tanith--the high-priest Schahabarim. Hootings were raised, for the -tyranny of the male principle prevailed that day in all consciences, -and the goddess was actually so completely forgotten that the absence -of her pontiffs had not been noticed. But the amazement was increased -when he was seen to open one of the doors of the trellis-work intended -for those who intended to offer up victims. It was an outrage to their -god, thought the priests of Moloch, that he had just committed, and -they sought with eager gestures to repel him. Fed on the meat of the -holocausts, clad in purple like kings, and wearing triple-storied -crowns, they despised the pale eunuch, weakened with his macerations, -and angry laughter shook their black beards, which were displayed on -their breasts in the sun. - -Schahabarim walked on, giving no reply, and, traversing the whole -enclosure with deliberation, reached the legs of the colossus; then, -spreading out both arms, he touched it on both sides, which was a -solemn form of adoration. For a long time Rabbet had been torturing -him, and in despair, or perhaps for lack of a god that completely -satisfied his ideas, he had at last decided for this one. - -The crowd, terrified by this act of apostasy, uttered a lengthened -murmur. It was felt that the last tie which bound their souls to a -merciful divinity was breaking. - -But owing to his mutilation, Schahabarim could take no part in the -cult of the Baal. The men in the red cloaks shut him out from the -enclosure; then, when he was outside, he went round all the colleges -in succession, and the priest, henceforth without a god, disappeared -into the crowd. It scattered at his approach. - -Meanwhile a fire of aloes, cedar, and laurel was burning between the -legs of the colossus. The tips of its long wings dipped into the -flame; the unguents with which it had been rubbed flowed like sweat -over its brazen limbs. Around the circular flagstone on which its feet -rested, the children, wrapped in black veils, formed a motionless -circle; and its extravagantly long arms reached down their palms to -them as though to seize the crown that they formed and carry it to the -sky. - -The rich, the Ancients, the women, the whole multitude, thronged -behind the priests and on the terraces of the houses. The large -painted stars revolved no longer; the tabernacles were set upon the -ground; and the fumes from the censers ascended perpendicularly, -spreading their bluish branches through the azure like gigantic trees. - -Many fainted; others became inert and petrified in their ecstasy. -Infinite anguish weighed upon the breasts of the beholders. The last -shouts died out one by one,--and the people of Carthage stood -breathless, and absorbed in the longing of their terror. - -At last the high priest of Moloch passed his left hand beneath the -children's veils, plucked a lock of hair from their foreheads, and -threw it upon the flames. Then the men in the red cloaks chanted the -sacred hymn: - -"Homage to thee, Sun! king of the two zones, self-generating Creator, -Father and Mother, Father and Son, God and Goddess, Goddess and God!" -And their voices were lost in the outburst of instruments sounding -simultaneously to drown the cries of the victims. The eight-stringed -scheminiths, the kinnors which had ten strings, and the nebals which -had twelve, grated, whistled, and thundered. Enormous leathern bags, -bristling with pipes, made a shrill clashing noise; the tabourines, -beaten with all the players' might, resounded with heavy, rapid blows; -and, in spite of the fury of the clarions, the salsalim snapped like -grasshoppers' wings. - -The hierodules, with a long hook, opened the seven-storied -compartments on the body of the Baal. They put meal into the highest, -two turtle-doves into the second, an ape into the third, a ram into -the fourth, a sheep into the fifth, and as no ox was to be had for the -sixth, a tawny hide taken from the sanctuary was thrown into it. The -seventh compartment yawned empty still. - -Before undertaking anything it was well to make trial of the arms of -the god. Slender chainlets stretched from his fingers up to his -shoulders and fell behind, where men by pulling them made the two -hands rise to a level with the elbows, and come close together against -the belly; they were moved several times in succession with little -abrupt jerks. Then the instruments were still. The fire roared. - -The pontiffs of Moloch walked about on the great flagstone scanning -the multitude. - -An individual sacrifice was necessary, a perfectly voluntary oblation, -which was considered as carrying the others along with it. But no one -had appeared up to the present, and the seven passages leading from -the barriers to the colossus were completely empty. Then the priests, -to encourage the people, drew bodkins from their girdles and gashed -their faces. The Devotees, who were stretched on the ground outside, -were brought within the enclosure. A bundle of horrible irons was -thrown to them, and each chose his own torture. They drove in spits -between their breasts; they split their cheeks; they put crowns of -thorns upon their heads; then they twined their arms together, and -surrounded the children in another large circle which widened and -contracted in turns. They reached to the balustrade, they threw -themselves back again, and then began once more, attracting the crowd -to them by the dizziness of their motion with its accompanying blood -and shrieks. - -By degrees people came into the end of the passages; they flung into -the flames pearls, gold vases, cups, torches, all their wealth; the -offerings became constantly more numerous and more splendid. At last a -man who tottered, a man pale and hideous with terror, thrust forward a -child; then a little black mass was seen between the hands of the -colossus, and sank into the dark opening. The priests bent over the -edge of the great flagstone,--and a new song burst forth celebrating -the joys of death and of new birth into eternity. - -The children ascended slowly, and as the smoke formed lofty eddies as -it escaped, they seemed at a distance to disappear in a cloud. Not one -stirred. Their wrists and ankles were tied, and the dark drapery -prevented them from seeing anything and from being recognised. - -Hamilcar, in a red cloak, like the priests of Moloch, was beside the -Baal, standing upright in front of the great toe of its right foot. -When the fourteenth child was brought every one could see him make a -great gesture of horror. But he soon resumed his former attitude, -folded his arms, and looked upon the ground. The high pontiff stood on -the other side of the statue as motionless as he. His head, laden with -an Assyrian mitre, was bent, and he was watching the gold plate on his -breast; it was covered with fatidical stones, and the flame mirrored -in it formed irisated lights. He grew pale and dismayed. Hamilcar bent -his brow; and they were both so near the funeral-pile that the hems of -their cloaks brushed it as they rose from time to time. - -The brazen arms were working more quickly. They paused no longer. -Every time that a child was placed in them the priests of Moloch -spread out their hands upon him to burden him with the crimes of the -people, vociferating: "They are not men but oxen!" and the multitude -round about repeated: "Oxen! oxen!" The devout exclaimed: "Lord! eat!" -and the priests of Proserpine, complying through terror with the needs -of Carthage, muttered the Eleusinian formula: "Pour out rain! bring -forth!" - -The victims, when scarcely at the edge of the opening, disappeared -like a drop of water on a red-hot plate, and white smoke rose amid the -great scarlet colour. - -Nevertheless, the appetite of the god was not appeased. He ever wished -for more. In order to furnish him with a larger supply, the victims -were piled up on his hands with a big chain above them which kept them -in their place. Some devout persons had at the beginning wished to -count them, to see whether their number corresponded with the days of -the solar year; but others were brought, and it was impossible to -distinguish them in the giddy motion of the horrible arms. This lasted -for a long, indefinite time until the evening. Then the partitions -inside assumed a darker glow, and burning flesh could be seen. Some -even believed that they could descry hair, limbs, and whole bodies. - -Night fell; clouds accumulated above the Baal. The funeral-pile, which -was flameless now, formed a pyramid of coals up to his knees; -completely red like a giant covered with blood, he looked, with his -head thrown back, as though he were staggering beneath the weight of -his intoxication. - -In proportion as the priests made haste, the frenzy of the people -increased; as the number of the victims was diminishing, some cried -out to spare them, others that still more were needful. The walls, -with their burden of people, seemed to be giving way beneath the -howlings of terror and mystic voluptuousness. Then the faithful came -into the passages, dragging their children, who clung to them; and -they beat them in order to make them let go, and handed them over to -the men in red. The instrument-players sometimes stopped through -exhaustion; then the cries of the mothers might be heard, and the -frizzling of the fat as it fell upon the coals. The henbane-drinkers -crawled on all fours around the colossus, roaring like tigers; the -Yidonim vaticinated, the Devotees sang with their cloven lips; the -trellis-work had been broken through, all wished for a share in the -sacrifice;--and fathers, whose children had died previously, cast -their effigies, their playthings, their preserved bones into the fire. -Some who had knives rushed upon the rest. They slaughtered one -another. The hierodules took the fallen ashes at the edge of the -flagstone in bronze fans, and cast them into the air that the -sacrifice might be scattered over the town and even to the region of -the stars. - -The loud noise and great light had attracted the Barbarians to the -foot of the walls; they clung to the wreck of the helepolis to have a -better view, and gazed open-mouthed in horror. - - - -CHAPTER XIV - -THE PASS OF THE HATCHET - -The Carthaginians had not re-entered their houses when the clouds -accumulated more thickly; those who raised their heads towards the -colossus could feel big drops on their foreheads, and the rain fell. - -It fell the whole night plentifully, in floods; the thunder growled; -it was the voice of Moloch; he had vanquished Tanith; and she, being -now fecundated, opened up her vast bosom in heaven's heights. -Sometimes she could be seen in a clear and luminous spot stretched -upon cushions of cloud; and then the darkness would close in again as -though she were still too weary and wished to sleep again; the -Carthaginians, all believing that water is brought forth by the moon, -shouted to make her travail easy. - -The rain beat upon the terraces and overflowed them, forming lakes in -the courts, cascades on the staircases, and eddies at the corners of -the streets. It poured in warm heavy masses and urgent streams; big -frothy jets leaped from the corners of all the buildings; and it -seemed as though whitish cloths hung dimly upon the walls, and the -washed temple-roofs shone black in the gleam of the lightning. -Torrents descended from the Acropolis by a thousand paths; houses -suddenly gave way, and small beams, plaster, rubbish, and furniture -passed along in streams which ran impetuously over the pavement. - -Amphoras, flagons, and canvases had been placed out of doors; but the -torches were extinguished; brands were taken from the funeral-pile of -the Baal, and the Carthaginians bent back their necks and opened their -mouths to drink. Others by the side of the miry pools, plunged their -arms into them up to the armpits, and filled themselves so abundantly -with water that they vomited it forth like buffaloes. The freshness -gradually spread; they breathed in the damp air with play of limb, and -in the happiness of their intoxication boundless hope soon arose. All -their miseries were forgotten. Their country was born anew. - -They felt the need, as it were, of directing upon others the -extravagant fury which they had been unable to employ against -themselves. Such a sacrifice could not be in vain; although they felt -no remorse they found themselves carried away by the frenzy which -results from complicity in irreparable crimes. - -The Barbarians had encountered the storm in their ill-closed tents; -and they were still quite chilled on the morrow as they tramped -through the mud in search of their stores and weapons, which were -spoiled and lost. - -Hamilcar went himself to see Hanno, and, in virtue of his plenary -powers, intrusted the command to him. The old Suffet hesitated for a -few minutes between his animosity and his appetite for authority, but -he accepted nevertheless. - -Hamilcar next took out a galley armed with a catapult at each end. He -placed it in the gulf in front of the raft; then he embarked his -stoutest troops on board such vessels as were available. He was -apparently taking to flight; and running northward before the wind he -disappeared into the mist. - -But three days afterwards, when the attack was about to begin again, -some people arrived tumultuously from the Libyan coast. Barca had come -among them. He had carried off provisions everywhere, and he was -spreading through the country. - -Then the Barbarians were indignant as though he were betraying them. -Those who were most weary of the siege, and especially the Gauls, did -not hesitate to leave the walls in order to try and rejoin him. -Spendius wanted to reconstruct the helepolis; Matho had traced an -imaginary line from his tent to Megara, and inwardly swore to follow -it, and none of their men stirred. But the rest, under the command of -Autaritus, went off, abandoning the western part of the rampart, and -so profound was the carelessness exhibited that no one even thought of -replacing them. - -Narr' Havas spied them from afar in the mountains. During the night he -led all his men along the sea-shore on the outer side of the Lagoon, -and entered Carthage. - -He presented himself as a saviour with six thousand men all carrying -meal under their cloaks, and forty elephants laden with forage and -dried meat. The people flocked quickly around them; they gave them -names. The sight of these strong animals, sacred to Baal, gave the -Carthaginians even more joy than the arrival of such relief; it was a -token of the tenderness of the god, a proof that he was at last about -to interfere in the war to defend them. - -Narr' Havas received the compliments of the Ancients. Then he ascended -to Salammbo's palace. - -He had not seen her again since the time when in Hamilcar's tent amid -the five armies he had felt her little, cold, soft hand fastened to -his own; she had left for Carthage after the betrothal. His love, -which had been diverted by other ambitions, had come back to him; and -now he expected to enjoy his rights, to marry her, and take her. - -Salammbo did not understand how the young man could ever become her -master! Although she asked Tanith every day for Matho's death, her -horror of the Libyan was growing less. She vaguely felt that the hate -with which he had persecuted her was something almost religious,--and -she would fain have seen in Narr' Havas's person a reflection, as it -were, of that malice which still dazzled her. She desired to know him -better, and yet his presence would have embarrassed her. She sent him -word that she could not receive him. - -Moreover, Hamilcar had forbidden his people to admit the King of the -Numidians to see her; by putting off his reward to the end of the war -he hoped to retain his devotion;--and, through dread of the Suffet, -Narr' Havas withdrew. - -But he bore himself haughtily towards the Hundred. He changed their -arrangements. He demanded privileges for his men, and placed them on -important posts; thus the Barbarians stared when they perceived -Numidians on the towers. - -The surprise of the Carthaginians was greater still when three hundred -of their own people, who had been made prisoners during the Sicilian -war, arrived on board an old Punic trireme. Hamilcar, in fact, had -secretly sent back to the Quirites the crews of the Latin vessels, -taken before the defection of the Tyrian towns; and, to reciprocate -the courtesy, Rome was now sending him back her captives. She scorned -the overtures of the Mercenaries in Sardinian, and would not even -recognise the inhabitants of Utica as subjects. - -Hiero, who was ruling at Syracuse, was carried away by this example. -For the preservation of his own States it was necessary that an -equilibrium should exist between the two peoples; he was interested, -therefore, in the safety of the Chanaanites, and he declared himself -their friend, and sent them twelve hundred oxen, with fifty-three -thousand nebels of pure wheat. - -A deeper reason prompted aid to Carthage. It was felt that if the -Mercenaries triumphed, every one, from soldier to plate-washer, would -rise, and that no government and no house could resist them. - -Meanwhile Hamilcar was scouring the eastern districts. He drove back -the Gauls, and all the Barbarians found that they were themselves in -something like a state of siege. - -Then he set himself to harass them. He would arrive and then retire, -and by constantly renewing this manoeuvre, he gradually detached them -from their encampments. Spendius was obliged to follow them, and in -the end Matho yielded in like manner. - -He did not pass beyond Tunis. He shut himself up within its walls. -This persistence was full of wisdom, for soon Narr' Havas was to be -seen issuing from the gate of Khamon with his elephants and soldiers. -Hamilcar was recalling him, but the other Barbarians were already -wandering about in the provinces in pursuit of the Suffet. - -The latter had received three thousand Gauls from Clypea. He had -horses brought to him from Cyrenaica, and armour from Brutium, and -began the war again. - -Never had his genius been so impetuous and fertile. For five moons he -dragged his enemies after him. He had an end to which he wished to -guide them. - -The Barbarians had at first tried to encompass him with small -detachments, but he always escaped them. They ceased to separate then. -Their army amounted to about forty thousand men, and several times -they enjoyed the sight of seeing the Carthaginians fall back. - -The horsemen of Narr' Havas were what they found most tormenting. -Often, at times of the greatest weariness, when they were advancing -over the plains, and dozing beneath the weight of their arms, a great -line of dust would suddenly rise on the horizon; there would be a -galloping up to them, and a rain of darts would pour from the bosom of -a cloud filled with flaming eyes. The Numidians in their white cloaks -would utter loud shouts, raise their arms, press their rearing -stallions with their knees, and, wheeling them round abruptly, would -then disappear. They had always supplies of javelins and dromedaries -some distance off, and they would return more terrible than before, -howl like wolves, and take to flight like vultures. The Barbarians -posted at the extremities of the files fell one by one; and this would -continue until evening, when an attempt would be made to enter the -mountains. - -Although they were perilous for elephants, Hamilcar made his way in -among them. He followed the long chain which extends from the -promontory of Hermaeum to the top of Zagouan. This, they believed, was -a device for hiding the insufficiency of his troops. But the continual -uncertainty in which he kept them exasperated them at last more than -any defeat. They did not lose heart, and marched after him. - -At last one evening they surprised a body of velites amid some big -rocks at the entrance of a pass between the Silver Mountain and the -Lead Mountain; the entire army was certainly in front of them, for a -noise of footsteps and clarions could be heard; the Carthaginians -immediately fled through the gorge. It descended into a plain, and was -shaped like an iron hatchet with a surrounding of lofty cliffs. The -Barbarians dashed into it in order to overtake the velites; quite at -the bottom other Carthaginians were running tumultuously amid -galloping oxen. A man in a red cloak was to be seen; it was the -Suffet; they shouted this to one another; and they were carried away -with increased fury and joy. Several, from laziness or prudence, had -remained on the threshold of the pass. But some cavalry, debouching -from a wood, beat them down upon the rest with blows of pike and -sabre; and soon all the Barbarians were below in the plain. - -Then this great human mass, after swaying to and fro for some time, -stood still; they could discover no outlet. - -Those who were nearest to the pass went back again, but the passage -had entirely disappeared. They hailed those in front to make them go -on; they were being crushed against the mountain, and from a distance -they inveighed against their companions, who were unable to find the -route again. - -In fact the Barbarians had scarcely descended when men who had been -crouching behind the rocks raised the latter with beams and overthrew -them, and as the slope was steep the huge blocks had rolled down pell- -mell and completely stopped up the narrow opening. - -At the other extremity of the plain stretched a long passage, split in -gaps here and there, and leading to a ravine which ascended to the -upper plateau, where the Punic army was stationed. Ladders had been -placed beforehand in this passage against the wall of cliff; and, -protected by the windings of the gaps, the velites were able to seize -and mount them before being overtaken. Several even made their way to -the bottom of the ravine; they were drawn up with cables, for the -ground at this spot was of moving sand, and so much inclined that it -was impossible to climb it even on the knees. The Barbarians arrived -almost immediately. But a portcullis, forty cubits high, and made to -fit the intervening space exactly, suddenly sank before them like a -rampart fallen from the skies. - -The Suffet's combinations had therefore succeeded. None of the -Mercenaries knew the mountain, and, marching as they did at the head -of their columns, they had drawn on the rest. The rocks, which were -somewhat narrow at the base, had been easily cast down; and, while all -were running, his army had raised shouts, as of distress, on the -horizon. Hamilcar, it is true, might have lost his velites, only half -of whom remained, but he would have sacrificed twenty times as many -for the success of such an enterprise. - -The Barbarians pressed forward until morning, in compact files, from -one end of the plain to the other. They felt the mountain with their -hands, seeking to discover a passage. - -At last day broke; and they perceived all about them a great white -wall hewn with the pick. And no means of safety, no hope! The two -natural outcomes from this blind alley were closed by the portcullis -and the heaps of rocks. - -Then they all looked at one another without speaking. They sank down -in collapse, feeling an icy coldness in their loins, and an -overwhelming weight upon their eyelids. - -They rose, and bounded against the rocks. But the lowest were weighted -by the pressure of the others, and were immovable. They tried to cling -to them so as to reach the top, but the bellying shape of the great -masses rendered all hold impossible. They sought to cleave the ground -on both sides of the gorge, but their instruments broke. They made a -large fire with the tent poles, but the fire could not burn the -mountain. - -They returned to the portcullis; it was garnished with long nails as -thick as stakes, as sharp as the spines of a porcupine, and closer -than the hairs of a brush. But they were animated by such rage that -they dashed themselves against it. The first were pierced to the -backbone, those coming next surged over them, and all fell back, -leaving human fragments and bloodstained hair on those horrible -branches. - -When their discouragement was somewhat abated, they made an -examination of the provisions. The Mercenaries, whose baggage was -lost, possessed scarcely enough for two days; and all the rest found -themselves destitute,--for they had been awaiting a convoy promised by -the villages of the South. - -However, some bulls were roaming about, those which the Carthaginians -had loosed in the gorge to attract the Barbarians. They killed them -with lance thrusts and ate them, and when their stomachs were filled -their thoughts were less mournful. - -The next day they slaughtered all the mules to the number of about -forty; then they scraped the skins, boiled the entrails, pounded the -bones, and did not yet despair; the army from Tunis had no doubt been -warned, and was coming. - -But on the evening of the fifth day their hunger increased; they -gnawed their sword-belts, and the little sponges which bordered the -bottom of their helmets. - -These forty thousand men were massed into the species of hippodrome -formed by the mountain about them. Some remained in front of the -portcullis, or at the foot of the rocks; the rest covered the plain -confusedly. The strong shunned one another, and the timid sought out -the brave, who, nevertheless, were unable to save them. - -To avoid infection, the corpses of the velites had been speedily -buried; and the position of the graves was no longer visible. - -All the Barbarians lay drooping on the ground. A veteran would pass -between their lines here and there; and they would howl curses against -the Carthaginians, against Hamilcar, and against Matho, although he -was innocent of their disaster; but it seemed to them that their pains -would have been less if he had shared them. Then they groaned, and -some wept softly like little children. - -They came to the captains and besought them to grant them something -that would alleviate their sufferings. The others made no reply; or, -seized with fury, would pick up a stone and fling it in their faces. - -Several, in fact, carefully kept a reserve of food in a hole in the -ground--a few handfuls of dates, or a little meal; and they ate this -during the night, with their heads bent beneath their cloaks. Those -who had swords kept them naked in their hands, and the most suspicious -remained standing with their backs against the mountain. - -They accused their chiefs and threatened them. Autaritus was not -afraid of showing himself. With the Barbaric obstinacy which nothing -could discourage, he would advance twenty times a day to the rocks at -the bottom, hoping every time to find them perchance displaced; and -swaying his heavy fur-covered shoulders, he reminded his companions of -a bear coming forth from its cave in springtime to see whether the -snows are melted. - -Spendius, surrounded by the Greeks, hid himself in one of the gaps; as -he was afraid, he caused a rumour of his death to be spread. - -They were now hideously lean; their skin was overlaid with bluish -marblings. On the evening of the ninth day three Iberians died. - -Their frightened companions left the spot. They were stripped, and the -white, naked bodies lay in the sunshine on the sand. - -Then the Garamantians began to prowl slowly round about them. They -were men accustomed to existence in solitude, and they reverenced no -god. At last the oldest of the band made a sign, and bending over the -corpses they cut strips from them with their knives, then squatted -upon their heels and ate. The rest looked on from a distance; they -uttered cries of horror;--many, nevertheless, being, at the bottom of -their souls, jealous of such courage. - -In the middle of the night some of these approached, and, dissembling -their eagerness, asked for a small mouthful, merely to try, they said. -Bolder ones came up; their number increased; there was soon a crowd. -But almost all of them let their hands fall on feeling the cold flesh -on the edge of their lips; others, on the contrary, devoured it with -delight. - -That they might be led away by example, they urged one another on -mutually. Such as had at first refused went to see the Garamantians, -and returned no more. They cooked the pieces on coals at the point of -the sword; they salted them with dust, and contended for the best -morsels. When nothing was left of the three corpses, their eyes ranged -over the whole plain to find others. - -But were they not in possession of Carthaginians--twenty captives -taken in the last encounter, whom no one had noticed up to the -present? These disappeared; moreover, it was an act of vengeance. -Then, as they must live, as the taste for this food had become -developed, and as they were dying, they cut the throats of the water- -carriers, grooms, and all the serving-men belonging to the -Mercenaries. They killed some of them every day. Some ate much, -recovered strength, and were sad no more. - -Soon this resource failed. Then the longing was directed to the -wounded and sick. Since they could not recover, it was as well to -release them from their tortures; and, as soon as a man began to -stagger, all exclaimed that he was now lost, and ought to be made use -of for the rest. Artifices were employed to accelerate their death; -the last remnant of their foul portion was stolen from them; they were -trodden on as though by inadvertence; those in the last throes wishing -to make believe that they were strong, strove to stretch out their -arms, to rise, to laugh. Men who had swooned came to themselves at the -touch of a notched blade sawing off a limb;--and they still slew, -ferociously and needlessly, to sate their fury. - -A mist heavy and warm, such as comes in those regions at the end of -winter, sank on the fourteenth day upon the army. This change of -temperature brought numerous deaths with it, and corruption was -developed with frightful rapidity in the warm dampness which was kept -in by the sides of the mountain. The drizzle that fell upon the -corpses softened them, and soon made the plain one broad tract of -rottenness. Whitish vapours floated overhead; they pricked the -nostrils, penetrated the skin, and troubled the sight; and the -Barbarians thought that through the exhalations of the breath they -could see the souls of their companions. They were overwhelmed with -immense disgust. They wished for nothing more; they preferred to die. - -Two days afterwards the weather became fine again, and hunger seized -them once more. It seemed to them that their stomachs were being -wrenched from them with tongs. Then they rolled about in convulsions, -flung handfuls of dust into their mouths, bit their arms, and burst -into frantic laughter. - -They were still more tormented by thirst, for they had not a drop of -water, the leathern bottles having been completely dried up since the -ninth day. To cheat their need they applied their tongues to the metal -plates on their waist-belts, their ivory pommels, and the steel of -their swords. Some former caravan-leaders tightened their waists with -ropes. Others sucked a pebble. They drank urine cooled in their brazen -helmets. - -And they still expected the army from Tunis! The length of time which -it took in coming was, according to their conjectures, an assurance of -its early arrival. Besides, Matho, who was a brave fellow, would not -desert them. "'Twill be to-morrow!" they would say to one another; and -then to-morrow would pass. - -At the beginning they had offered up prayers and vows, and practised -all kinds of incantations. Just now their only feeling to their -divinities was one of hatred, and they strove to revenge themselves by -believing in them no more. - -Men of violent disposition perished first; the Africans held out -better than the Gauls. Zarxas lay stretched at full length among the -Balearians, his hair over his arm, inert. Spendius found a plant with -broad leaves filled abundantly with juice, and after declaring that it -was poisonous, so as to keep off the rest, he fed himself upon it. - -They were too weak to knock down the flying crows with stones. -Sometimes when a gypaetus was perched on a corpse, and had been -mangling it for a long time, a man would set himself to crawl towards -it with a javelin between his teeth. He would support himself with one -hand, and after taking a good aim, throw his weapon. The white- -feathered creature, disturbed by the noise, would desist and look -about in tranquil fashion like a cormorant on a rock, and would then -again thrust in its hideous, yellow beak, while the man, in despair, -would fall flat on his face in the dust. Some succeeded in discovering -chameleons and serpents. But it was the love of life that kept them -alive. They directed their souls to this idea exclusively, and clung -to existence by an effort of the will that prolonged it. - -The most stoical kept close to one another, seated in a circle here -and there, among the dead in the middle of the plain; and wrapped in -their cloaks they gave themselves up silently to their sadness. - -Those who had been born in towns recalled the resounding streets, the -taverns, theatres, baths, and the barbers' shops where there are tales -to be heard. Others could once more see country districts at sunset, -when the yellow corn waves, and the great oxen ascend the hills again -with the ploughshares on their necks. Travellers dreamed of cisterns, -hunters of their forests, veterans of battles; and in the somnolence -that benumbed them their thoughts jostled one another with the -precipitancy and clearness of dreams. Hallucinations came suddenly -upon them; they sought for a door in the mountain in order to flee, -and tried to pass through it. Others thought that they were sailing in -a storm and gave orders for the handling of a ship, or else fell back -in terror, perceiving Punic battalions in the clouds. There were some -who imagined themselves at a feast, and sang. - -Many through a strange mania would repeat the same word or continually -make the same gesture. Then when they happened to raise their heads -and look at one another they were choked with sobs on discovering the -horrible ravages made in their faces. Some had ceased to suffer, and -to while away the hours told of the perils which they had escaped. - -Death was certain and imminent to all. How many times had they not -tried to open up a passage! As to implore terms from the conqueror, by -what means could they do so? They did not even know where Hamilcar -was. - -The wind was blowing from the direction of the ravine. It made the -sand flow perpetually in cascades over the portcullis; and the cloaks -and hair of the Barbarians were being covered with it as though the -earth were rising upon them and desirous of burying them. Nothing -stirred; the eternal mountain seemed still higher to them every -morning. - -Sometimes flights of birds darted past beneath the blue sky in the -freedom of the air. The men closed their eyes that they might not see -them. - -At first they felt a buzzing in their ears, their nails grew black, -the cold reached to their breasts; they lay upon their sides and -expired without a cry. - -On the nineteenth day two thousand Asiatics were dead, with fifteen -hundred from the Archipelago, eight thousand from Libya, the youngest -of the Mercenaries and whole tribes--in all twenty thousand soldiers, -or half of the army. - -Autaritus, who had only fifty Gauls left, was going to kill himself in -order to put an end to this state of things, when he thought he saw a -man on the top of the mountain in front of him. - -Owing to his elevation this man did not appear taller than a dwarf. -However, Autaritus recognised a shield shaped like a trefoil on his -left arm. "A Carthaginian!" he exclaimed, and immediately throughout -the plain, before the portcullis and beneath the rocks, all rose. The -soldier was walking along the edge of the precipice; the Barbarians -gazed at him from below. - -Spendius picked up the head of an ox; then having formed a diadem with -two belts, he fixed it on the horns at the end of a pole in token of -pacific intentions. The Carthaginian disappeared. They waited. - -At last in the evening a sword-belt suddenly fell from above like a -stone loosened from the cliff. It was made of red leather covered with -embroidery, with three diamond stars, and stamped in the centre, it -bore the mark of the Great Council: a horse beneath a palm-tree. This -was Hamilcar's reply, the safe-conduct that he sent them. - -They had nothing to fear; any change of fortune brought with it the -end of their woes. They were moved with extravagant joy, they embraced -one another, they wept. Spendius, Autaritus, and Zarxas, four -Italiotes, a Negro and two Spartans offered themselves as envoys. They -were immediately accepted. They did not know, however, by what means -they should get away. - -But a cracking sounded in the direction of the rocks; and the most -elevated of them, after rocking to and fro, rebounded to the bottom. -In fact, if they were immovable on the side of the Barbarians--for it -would have been necessary to urge them up an incline plane, and they -were, moreover, heaped together owing to the narrowness of the gorge-- -on the others, on the contrary, it was sufficient to drive against -them with violence to make them descend. The Carthaginians pushed -them, and at daybreak they projected into the plain like the steps of -an immense ruined staircase. - -The Barbarians were still unable to climb them. Ladders were held out -for their assistance; all rushed upon them. The discharge of a -catapult drove the crowd back; only the Ten were taken away. - -They walked amid the Clinabarians, leaning their hands on the horses' -croups for support. - -Now that their first joy was over they began to harbour anxieties. -Hamilcar's demands would be cruel. But Spendius reassured them. - -"I will speak!" And he boasted that he knew excellent things to say -for the safety of the army. - -Behind all the bushes they met with ambushed sentries, who prostrated -themselves before the sword-belt which Spendius had placed over his -shoulder. - -When they reached the Punic camp the crowd flocked around them, and -they thought that they could hear whisperings and laughter. The door -of a tent opened. - -Hamilcar was at the very back of it seated on a stool beside a table -on which there shone a naked sword. He was surrounded by captains, who -were standing. - -He started back on perceiving these men, and then bent over to examine -them. - -Their pupils were strangely dilated, and there was a great black -circle round their eyes, which extended to the lower parts of their -ears; their bluish noses stood out between their hollow cheeks, which -were chinked with deep wrinkles; the skin of their bodies was too -large for their muscles, and was hidden beneath a slate-coloured dust; -their lips were glued to their yellow teeth; they exhaled an -infectious odour; they might have been taken for half-opened tombs, -for living sepulchres. - -In the centre of the tent, on a mat on which the captains were about -to sit down, there was a dish of smoking gourds. The Barbarians -fastened their eyes upon it with a shivering in all their limbs, and -tears came to their eyelids; nevertheless they restrained themselves. - -Hamilcar turned away to speak to some one. Then they all flung -themselves upon it, flat on the ground. Their faces were soaked in the -fat, and the noise of their deglutition was mingled with the sobs of -joy which they uttered. Through astonishment, doubtless, rather than -pity, they were allowed to finish the mess. Then when they had risen -Hamilcar with a sign commanded the man who bore the sword-belt to -speak. Spendius was afraid; he stammered. - -Hamilcar, while listening to him, kept turning round on his finger a -big gold ring, the same which had stamped the seal of Carthage upon -the sword-belt. He let it fall to the ground; Spendius immediately -picked it up; his servile habits came back to him in the presence of -his master. The others quivered with indignation at such baseness. - -But the Greek raised his voice and spoke for a long time in rapid, -insidious, and even violent fashion, setting forth the crimes of -Hanno, whom he knew to be Barca's enemy, and striving to move -Hamilcar's pity by the details of their miseries and the recollection -of their devotion; in the end he became forgetful of himself, being -carried away by the warmth of his temper. - -Hamilcar replied that he accepted their excuses. Peace, then, was -about to be concluded, and now it would be a definitive one! But he -required that ten Mercenaries, chosen by himself, should be delivered -up to him without weapons or tunics. - -They had not expected such clemency; Spendius exclaimed: "Ah! twenty -if you wish, master!" - -"No! ten will suffice," replied Hamilcar quietly. - -They were sent out of the tent to deliberate. As soon as they were -alone, Autaritus protested against the sacrifice of their companions, -and Zarxas said to Spendius: - -"Why did you not kill him? his sword was there beside you!" - -"Him!" said Spendius. "Him! him!" he repeated several times, as though -the thing had been impossible, and Hamilcar were an immortal. - -They were so overwhelmed with weariness that they stretched themselves -on their backs on the ground, not knowing at what resolution to -arrive. - -Spendius urged them to yield. At last they consented, and went in -again. - -Then the Suffet put his hand into the hands of the ten Barbarians in -turn, and pressed their thumbs; then he rubbed it on his garment, for -their viscous skin gave a rude, soft impression to the touch, a greasy -tingling which induced horripilation. Afterwards he said to them: - -"You are really all the chiefs of the Barbarians, and you have sworn -for them?" - -"Yes!" they replied. - -"Without constraint, from the bottom of your souls, with the intention -of fulfilling your promises?" - -They assured him that they were returning to the rest in order to -fulfil them. - -"Well!" rejoined the Suffet, "in accordance with the convention -concluded between myself, Barca, and the ambassadors of the -Mercenaries, it is you whom I choose and shall keep!" - -Spendius fell swooning upon the mat. The Barbarians, as though -abandoning him, pressed close together; and there was not a word, not -a complaint. - -Their companions, who were waiting for them, not seeing them return, -believed themselves betrayed. The envoys had no doubt given themselves -up to the Suffet. - -They waited for two days longer; then on the morning of the third, -their resolution was taken. With ropes, picks, and arrows, arranged -like rungs between strips of canvas, they succeeded in scaling the -rocks; and leaving the weakest, about three thousand in number, behind -them, they began their march to rejoin the army at Tunis. - -Above the gorge there stretched a meadow thinly sown with shrubs; the -Barbarians devoured the buds. Afterwards they found a field of beans; -and everything disappeared as though a cloud of grasshoppers had -passed that way. Three hours later they reached a second plateau -bordered by a belt of green hills. - -Among the undulations of these hillocks, silvery sheaves shone at -intervals from one another; the Barbarians, who were dazzled by the -sun, could perceive confusedly below great black masses supporting -them; these rose, as though they were expanding. They were lances in -towers on elephants terribly armed. - -Besides the spears on their breasts, the bodkin tusks, the brass -plates which covered their sides, and the daggers fastened to their -knee-caps, they had at the extremity of their tusks a leathern -bracelet, in which the handle of a broad cutlass was inserted; they -had set out simultaneously from the back part of the plain, and were -advancing on both sides in parallel lines. - -The Barbarians were frozen with a nameless terror. They did not even -try to flee. They already found themselves surrounded. - -The elephants entered into this mass of men; and the spurs on their -breasts divided it, the lances on their tusks upturned it like -ploughshares; they cut, hewed, and hacked with the scythes on their -trunks; the towers, which were full of phalaricas, looked like -volcanoes on the march; nothing could be distinguished but a large -heap, whereon human flesh, pieces of brass and blood made white spots, -grey sheets and red fuses. The horrible animals dug out black furrows -as they passed through the midst of it all. - -The fiercest was driven by a Numidian who was crowned with a diadem of -plumes. He hurled javelins with frightful quickness, giving at -intervals a long shrill whistle. The great beasts, docile as dogs, -kept an eye on him during the carnage. - -The circle of them narrowed by degrees; the weakened Barbarians -offered no resistance; the elephants were soon in the centre of the -plain. They lacked space; they thronged half-rearing together, and -their tusks clashed against one another. Suddenly Narr' Havas quieted -them, and wheeling round they trotted back to the hills. - -Two syntagmata, however, had taken refuge on the right in a bend of -ground, had thrown away their arms, and were all kneeling with their -faces towards the Punic tents imploring mercy with uplifted arms. - -Their legs and hands were tied; then when they were stretched on the -ground beside one another the elephants were brought back. - -Their breasts cracked like boxes being forced; two were crushed at -every step; the big feet sank into the bodies with a motion of the -haunches which made the elephants appear lame. They went on to the -very end. - -The level surface of the plain again became motionless. Night fell. -Hamilcar was delighting himself with the spectacle of his vengeance, -but suddenly he started. - -He saw, and all saw, some more Barbarians six hundred paces to the -left on the summit of a peak! In fact four hundred of the stoutest -Mercenaries, Etruscans, Libyans, and Spartans had gained the heights -at the beginning, and had remained there in uncertainty until now. -After the massacre of their companions they resolved to make their way -through the Carthaginians; they were already descending in serried -columns, in a marvellous and formidable fashion. - -A herald was immediately despatched to them. The Suffet needed -soldiers; he received them unconditionally, so greatly did he admire -their bravery. They could even, said the man of Carthage, come a -little nearer, to a place, which he pointed out to them, where they -would find provisions. - -The Barbarians ran thither and spent the night in eating. Then the -Carthaginians broke into clamours against the Suffet's partiality for -the Mercenaries. - -Did he yield to these outbursts of insatiable hatred or was it a -refinement of treachery? The next day he came himself, without a sword -and bare-headed, with an escort of Clinabarians, and announced to them -that having too many to feed he did not intend to keep them. -Nevertheless, as he wanted men and he knew of no means of selecting -the good ones, they were to fight together to the death; he would then -admit the conquerors into his own body-guard. This death was quite as -good as another;--and then moving his soldiers aside (for the Punic -standards hid the horizon from the Mercenaries) he showed them the one -hundred and ninety-two elephants under Narr' Havas, forming a single -straight line, their trunks brandishing broad steel blades like giant -arms holding axes above their heads. - -The Barbarians looked at one another silently. It was not death that -made them turn pale, but the horrible compulsion to which they found -themselves reduced. - -The community of their lives had brought about profound friendship -among these men. The camp, with most, took the place of their country; -living without a family they transferred the needful tenderness to a -companion, and they would fall asleep in the starlight side by side -under the same cloak. And then in their perpetual wanderings through -all sorts of countries, murders, and adventures, they had contracted -affections, one for the other, in which the stronger protected the -younger in the midst of battles, helped him to cross precipices, -sponged the sweat of fevers from his brow, and stole food for him, and -the weaker, a child perhaps, who had been picked up on the roadside, -and had then become a Mercenary, repaid this devotion by a thousand -kindnesses. - -They exchanged their necklaces and earrings, presents which they had -made to one another in former days, after great peril, or in hours of -intoxication. All asked to die, and none would strike. A young fellow -might be seen here and there, saying to another whose beard was grey: -"No! no! you are more robust! you will avenge us, kill me!" and the -man would reply: "I have fewer years to live! Strike to the heart, and -think no more about it!" Brothers gazed on one another with clasped -hands, and friend bade friend eternal farewells, standing and weeping -upon his shoulder. - -They threw off their cuirasses that the sword-points might be thrust -in the more quickly. Then there appeared the marks of the great blows -which they had received for Carthage, and which looked like -inscriptions on columns. - -They placed themselves in four equal ranks, after the fashion of -gladiators, and began with timid engagements. Some had even bandaged -their eyes, and their swords waved gently through the air like blind -men's sticks. The Carthaginians hooted, and shouted to them that they -were cowards. The Barbarians became animated, and soon the combat as -general, headlong, and terrible. - -Sometimes two men all covered with blood would stop, fall into each -other's arms, and die with mutual kisses. None drew back. They rushed -upon the extended blades. Their delirium was so frenzied that the -Carthaginians in the distance were afraid. - -At last they stopped. Their breasts made a great hoarse noise, and -their eyeballs could be seen through their long hair, which hung down -as though it had come out of a purple bath. Several were turning round -rapidly, like panthers wounded in the forehead. Others stood -motionless looking at a corpse at their feet; then they would suddenly -tear their faces with their nails, take their swords with both hands, -and plunge them into their own bodies. - -There were still sixty left. They asked for drink. They were told by -shouts to throw away their swords, and when they had done so water was -brought to them. - -While they were drinking, with their faces buried in the vases, sixty -Carthaginians leaped upon them and killed them with stiletos in the -back. - -Hamilcar had done this to gratify the instincts of his army, and, by -means of this treachery, to attach it to his own person. - -The war, then, was ended; at least he believed that it was; Matho -would not resist; in his impatience the Suffet commanded an immediate -departure. - -His scouts came to tell him that a convoy had been descried, departing -towards the Lead Mountain. Hamilcar did not trouble himself about it. -The Mercenaries once annihilated, the Nomads would give him no further -trouble. The important matter was to take Tunis. He advanced by forced -marches upon it. - -He had sent Narr' Havas to Carthage with the news of his victory; and -the King of the Numidians, proud of his success, visited Salammbo. - -She received him in her gardens under a large sycamore tree, amid -pillows of yellow leather, and with Taanach beside her. Her face was -covered with a white scarf, which, passing over her mouth and -forehead, allowed only her eyes to be seen; but her lips shone in the -transparency of the tissue like the gems on her fingers, for Salammbo -had both her hands wrapped up, and did not make a gesture during the -whole conversation. - -Narr' Havas announced the defeat of the Barbarians to her. She thanked -him with a blessing for the services which he had rendered to her -father. Then he began to tell her about the whole campaign. - -The doves on the palm trees around them cooed softly, and other birds -fluttered amid the grass: ring-necked glareolas, Tartessus quails and -Punic guinea-fowl. The garden, long uncultivated, had multiplied its -verdure; coloquintidas mounted into the branches of cassias, the -asclepias was scattered over fields of roses, all kinds of vegetation -formed entwinings and bowers; and here and there, as in the woods, -sun-rays, descending obliquely, marked the shadow of a leaf upon the -ground. Domestic animals, grown wild again, fled at the slightest -noise. Sometimes a gazelle might be seen trailing scattered peacocks' -feathers after its little black hoofs. The clamours of the distant -town were lost in the murmuring of the waves. The sky was quite blue, -and not a sail was visible on the sea. - -Narr' Havas had ceased speaking; Salammbo was looking at him without -replying. He wore a linen robe with flowers painted on it, and with -gold fringes at the hem; two silver arrows fastened his plaited hair -at the tips of his ears; his right hand rested on a pike-staff adorned -with circles of electrum and tufts of hair. - -As she watched him a crowd of dim thoughts absorbed her. This young -man, with his gentle voice and feminine figure, captivated her eyes by -the grace of his person, and seemed to her like an elder sister sent -by the Baals to protect her. The recollection of Matho came upon her, -nor did she resist the desire to learn what had become of him. - -Narr' Havas replied that the Carthaginians were advancing towards -Tunis to take it. In proportion as he set forth their chances of -success and Matho's weaknesses, she seemed to rejoice in extraordinary -hope. Her lips trembled, her breast panted. When he finally promised -to kill him himself, she exclaimed: "Yes! kill him! It must be so!" - -The Numidian replied that he desired this death ardently, since he -would be her husband when the war was over. - -Salammbo started, and bent her head. - -But Narr' Havas, pursuing the subject, compared his longings to -flowers languishing for rain, or to lost travellers waiting for the -day. He told her, further, that she was more beautiful than the moon, -better than the wind of morning or than the face of a guest. He would -bring for her from the country of the Blacks things such as there were -none in Carthage, and the apartments in their house should be sanded -with gold dust. - -Evening fell, and odours of balsam were exhaled. For a long time they -looked at each other in silence, and Salammbo's eyes, in the depths of -her long draperies, resembled two stars in the rift of a cloud. Before -the sun set he withdrew. - -The Ancients felt themselves relieved of a great anxiety, when he left -Carthage. The people had received him with even more enthusiastic -acclamations than on the first occasion. If Hamilcar and the King of -the Numidians triumphed alone over the Mercenaries it would be -impossible to resist them. To weaken Barca they therefore resolved to -make the aged Hanno, him whom they loved, a sharer in the deliverance -of Carthage. - -He proceeded immediately towards the western provinces, to take his -vengeance in the very places which had witnessed his shame. But the -inhabitants and the Barbarians were dead, hidden, or fled. Then his -anger was vented upon the country. He burnt the ruins of the ruins, he -did not leave a single tree nor a blade of grass; the children and the -infirm, that were met with, were tortured; he gave the women to his -soldiers to be violated before they were slaughtered. - -Often, on the crests of the hills, black tents were struck as though -overturned by the wind, and broad, brilliantly bordered discs, which -were recognised as being chariot-wheels, revolved with a plaintive -sound as they gradually disappeared in the valleys. The tribes, which -had abandoned the siege of Carthage, were wandering in this way -through the provinces, waiting for an opportunity, or for some victory -to be gained by the Mercenaries, in order to return. But, whether from -terror or famine, they all took the roads to their native lands, and -disappeared. - -Hamilcar was not jealous of Hanno's successes. Nevertheless he was in -a hurry to end matters; he commanded him to fall back upon Tunis; and -Hanno, who loved his country, was under the walls of the town on the -appointed day. - -For its protection it had its aboriginal population, twelve thousand -Mercenaries, and, in addition, all the Eaters of Uncleanness, for like -Matho they were riveted to the horizon of Carthage, and plebs and -schalischim gazed at its lofty walls from afar, looking back in -thought to boundless enjoyments. With this harmony of hatred, -resistance was briskly organised. Leathern bottles were taken to make -helmets; all the palm-trees in the gardens were cut down for lances; -cisterns were dug; while for provisions they caught on the shores of -the lake big white fish, fed on corpses and filth. Their ramparts, -kept in ruins now by the jealousy of Carthage, were so weak that they -could be thrown down with a push of the shoulder. Matho stopped up the -holes in them with the stones of the houses. It was the last struggle; -he hoped for nothing, and yet he told himself that fortune was fickle. - -As the Carthaginians approached they noticed a man on the rampart who -towered over the battlements from his belt upwards. The arrows that -flew about him seemed to frighten him no more than a swarm of -swallows. Extraordinary to say, none of them touched him. - -Hamilcar pitched his camp on the south side; Narr' Havas, to his -right, occupied the plain of Rhades, and Hanno the shore of the lake; -and the three generals were to maintain their respective positions, so -as all to attack the walls simultaneously. - -But Hamilcar wished first to show the Mercenaries that he would punish -them like slaves. He had the ten ambassadors crucified beside one -another on a hillock in front of the town. - -At the sight of this the besieged forsook the rampart. - -Matho had said to himself that if he could pass between the walls and -Narr' Havas's tents with such rapidity that the Numidians had not time -to come out, he could fall upon the rear of the Carthaginian infantry, -who would be caught between his division and those inside. He dashed -out with his veterans. - -Narr' Havas perceived him; he crossed the shore of the lake, and came -to warn Hanno to dispatch men to Hamilcar's assistance. Did he believe -Barca too weak to resist the Mercenaries? Was it a piece of treachery -or folly? No one could ever learn. - -Hanno, desiring to humiliate his rival, did not hesitate. He shouted -orders to sound the trumpets, and his whole army rushed upon the -Barbarians. The latter returned, and ran straight against the -Carthaginians; they knocked them down, crushed them under their feet, -and, driving them back in this way, reached the tent of Hanno, who was -then surrounded by thirty Carthaginians, the most illustrious of the -Ancients. - -He appeared stupefied by their audacity; he called for his captains. -Every one thrust his fist under his throat, vociferating abuse. The -crowd pressed on; and those who had their hands on him could scarce -retain their hold. However, he tried to whisper to them: "I will gave -you whatever you want! I am rich! Save me!" They dragged him along; -heavy as he was his feet did not touch the ground. The Ancients had -been carried off. His terror increased. "You have beaten me! I am your -captive! I will ransom myself! Listen to me, my friends!" and borne -along by all those shoulders which were pressed against his sides, he -repeated: "What are you going to do? What do you want? You can see -that I am not obstanite! I have always been good-natured!" - -A gigantic cross stood at the gate. The Barbarians howled: "Here! -here!" But he raised his voice still higher; and in the names of their -gods he called upon them to lead him to the schalischim, because he -wished to confide to him something on which their safety depended. - -They paused, some asserting that it was right to summon Matho. He was -sent for. - -Hanno fell upon the grass; and he saw around him other crosses also, -as though the torture by which he was about to perish had been -multiplied beforehand; he made efforts to convince himself that he was -mistaken, that there was only one, and even to believe that there were -none at all. At last he was lifted up. - -"Speak!" said Matho. - -He offered to give up Hamilcar; then they would enter Carthage and -both be kings. - -Matho withdrew, signing to the others to make haste. It was a -stratagem, he thought, to gain time. - -The Barbarian was mistaken; Hanno was in an extremity when -consideration is had to nothing, and, moreover, he so execrated -Hamilcar that he would have sacrificed him and all his soldiers on the -slightest hope of safety. - -The Ancients were languishing on the ground at the foot of the -crosses; ropes had already been passed beneath their armpits. Then the -old Suffet, understanding that he must die, wept. - -They tore off the clothes that were still left on him--and the horror -of his person appeared. Ulcers covered the nameless mass; the fat on -his legs hid the nails on his feet; from his fingers there hung what -looked like greenish strips; and the tears streaming through the -tubercles on his cheeks gave to his face an expression of frightful -sadness, for they seemed to take up more room than on another human -face. His royal fillet, which was half unfastened, trailed with his -white hair in the dust. - -They thought that they had no ropes strong enough to haul him up to -the top of the cross, and they nailed him upon it, after the Punic -fashion, before it was erected. But his pride awoke in his pain. He -began to overwhelm them with abuse. He foamed and twisted like a -marine monster being slaughtered on the shore, and predicted that they -would all end more horribly still, and that he would be avenged. - -He was. On the other side of the town, whence there now escaped jets -of flame with columns of smoke, the ambassadors from the Mercenaries -were in their last throes. - -Some who had swooned at first had just revived in the freshness of the -wind; but their chins still rested upon their breasts, and their -bodies had fallen somewhat, in spite of the nails in their arms, which -were fastened higher than their heads; from their heels and hands -blood fell in big, slow drops, as ripe fruit falls from the branches -of a tree,--and Carthage, gulf, mountains, and plains all appeared to -them to be revolving like an immense wheel; sometimes a cloud of dust, -rising from the ground, enveloped them in its eddies; they burned with -horrible thirst, their tongues curled in their mouths, and they felt -an icy sweat flowing over them with their departing souls. - -Nevertheless they had glimpses, at an infinite depth, of streets, -marching soldiers, and the swinging of swords; and the tumult of -battle reached them dimly like the noise of the sea to shipwrecked men -dying on the masts of a ship. The Italiotes, who were sturdier than -the rest, were still shrieking. The Lacedaemonians were silent, with -eyelids closed; Zarxas, once so vigorous, was bending like a broken -reed; the Ethiopian beside him had his head thrown back over the arms -of the cross; Autaritus was motionless, rolling his eyes; his great -head of hair, caught in a cleft in the wood, fell straight upon his -forehead, and his death-rattle seemed rather to be a roar of anger. As -to Spendius, a strange courage had come to him; he despised life now -in the certainty which he possessed of an almost immediate and an -eternal emancipation, and he awaited death with impassibility. - -Amid their swooning, they sometimes started at the brushing of -feathers passing across their lips. Large wings swung shadows around -them, croakings sounded in the air; and as Spendius's cross was the -highest, it was upon his that the first vulture alighted. Then he -turned his face towards Autaritus, and said slowly to him with an -unaccountable smile: - -"Do you remember the lions on the road to Sicca?" - -"They were our brothers!" replied the Gaul, as he expired. - -The Suffet, meanwhile, had bored through the walls and reached the -citadel. The smoke suddenly disappeared before a gust of wind, -discovering the horizon as far as the walls of Carthage; he even -thought that he could distinguish people watching on the platform of -Eschmoun; then, bringing back his eyes, he perceived thirty crosses of -extravagant size on the shore of the Lake, to the left. - -In fact, to render them still more frightful, they had been -constructed with tent-poles fastened end to end, and the thirty -corpses of the Ancients appeared high up in the sky. They had what -looked like white butterflies on their breasts; these were the -feathers of the arrows which had been shot at them from below. - -A broad gold ribbon shone on the summit of the highest; it hung down -to the shoulder, there being no arm on that side, and Hamilcar had -some difficulty in recognising Hanno. His spongy bones had given way -under the iron pins, portions of his limbs had come off, and nothing -was left on the cross but shapeless remains, like the fragments of -animals that are hung up on huntsmen's doors. - -The Suffet could not have known anything about it; the town in front -of him masked everything that was beyond and behind; and the captains -who had been successively sent to the two generals had not re- -appeared. Then fugitives arrived with the tale of the rout, and the -Punic army halted. This catastrophe, falling upon them as it did in -the midst of their victory, stupefied them. Hamilcar's orders were no -longer listened to. - -Matho took advantage of this to continue his ravages among the -Numidians. - -Hanno's camp having been overthrown, he had returned against them. The -elephants came out; but the Mercenaries advanced through the plain -shaking about flaming firebrands, which they had plucked from the -walls, and the great beasts, in fright, ran headlong into the gulf, -where they killed one another in their struggles, or were drowned -beneath the weight of their cuirasses. Narr' Havas had already -launched his cavalry; all threw themselves face downwards upon the -ground; then, when the horses were within three paces of them, they -sprang beneath their bellies, ripped them open with dagger-strokes, -and half the Numidians had perished when Barca came up. - -The exhausted Mercenaries could not withstand his troops. They retired -in good order to the mountain of the Hot Springs. The Suffet was -prudent enough not to pursue them. He directed his course to the -mouths of the Macaras. - -Tunis was his; but it was now nothing but a heap of smoking rubbish. -The ruins fell through the breaches in the walls to the centre of the -plain; quite in the background, between the shores of the gulf, the -corpses of the elephants drifting before the wind conflicted, like an -archipelago of black rocks floating on the water. - -Narr' Havas had drained his forests of these animals, taking young and -old, male and female, to keep up the war, and the military force of -his kingdom could not repair the loss. The people who had seen them -perishing at a distance were grieved at it; men lamented in the -streets, calling them by their names like deceased friends: "Ah! the -Invincible! the Victory! the Thunderer! the Swallow!" On the first -day, too, there was no talk except of the dead citizens. But on the -morrow the tents of the Mercenaries were seen on the mountain of the -Hot Springs. Then so deep was the despair that many people, especially -women, flung themselves headlong from the top of the Acropolis. - -Hamilcar's designs were not known. He lived alone in his tent with -none near him but a young boy, and no one ever ate with them, not even -excepting Narr' Havas. Nevertheless he showed great deference to the -latter after Hanno's defeat; but the king of the Numidians had too -great an interest in becoming his son not to distrust him. - -This inertness veiled skilful manoeuvres. Hamilcar seduced the heads -of the villages by all sorts of artifices; and the Mercenaries were -hunted, repulsed, and enclosed like wild beasts. As soon as they -entered a wood, the trees caught fire around them; when they drank of -a spring it was poisoned; the caves in which they hid in order to -sleep were walled up. Their old accomplices, the populations who had -hitherto defended them, now pursued them; and they continually -recognised Carthaginian armour in these bands. - -Many had their faces consumed with red tetters; this, they thought, -had come to them through touching Hanno. Others imagined that it was -because they had eaten Salammbo's fishes, and far from repenting of -it, they dreamed of even more abominable sacrileges, so that the -abasement of the Punic Gods might be still greater. They would fain -have exterminated them. - -In this way they lingered for three months along the eastern coast, -and then behind the mountain of Selloum, and as far as the first sands -of the desert. They sought for a place of refuge, no matter where. -Utica and Hippo-Zarytus alone had not betrayed them; but Hamilcar was -encompassing these two towns. Then they went northwards at haphazard -without even knowing the various routes. Their many miseries had -confused their understandings. - -The only feeling left them was one of exasperation, which went on -developing; and one day they found themselves again in the gorges of -Cobus and once more before Carthage! - -Then the actions multiplied. Fortune remained equal; but both sides -were so wearied that they would willingly have exchanged these -skirmishes for a great battle, provided that it were really the last. - -Matho was inclined to carry this proposal himself to the Suffet. One -of his Libyans devoted himself for the purpose. All were convinced as -they saw him depart that he would not return. - -He returned the same evening. - -Hamilcar accepted the challenge. The encounter should take place the -following day at sunrise, in the plain of Rhades. - -The Mercenaries wished to know whether he had said anything more, and -the Libyan added: - -"As I remained in his presence, he asked me what I was waiting for. -'To be killed!' I replied. Then he rejoined: 'No! begone! that will be -to-morrow with the rest.'" - -This generosity astonished the Barbarians; some were terrified by it, -and Matho regretted that the emissary had not been killed. - -He had still remaining three thousand Africans, twelve hundred Greeks, -fifteen hundred Campanians, two hundred Iberians, four hundred -Etruscans, five hundred Samnites, forty Gauls, and a troop of Naffurs, -nomad bandits met with in the date region--in all seven thousand two -hundred and nineteen soldiers, but not one complete syntagmata. They -had stopped up the holes in their cuirasses with the shoulder-blades -of quadrupeds, and replaced their brass cothurni with worn sandals. -Their garments were weighted with copper or steel plates; their coats -of mail hung in tatters about them, and scars appeared like purple -threads through the hair on their arms and faces. - -The wraiths of their dead companions came back to their souls and -increased their energy; they felt, in a confused way, that they were -the ministers of a god diffused in the hearts of the oppressed, and -were the pontiffs, so to speak, of universal vengeance! Then they were -enraged with grief at what was extravagant injustice, and above all by -the sight of Carthage on the horizon. They swore an oath to fight for -one another until death. - -The beasts of burden were killed, and as much as possible was eaten so -as to gain strength; afterwards they slept. Some prayed, turning -towards different constellations. - -The Carthaginians arrived first in the plain. They rubbed the edges of -their shields with oil to make the arrows glide off them easily; the -foot-soldiers who wore long hair took the precaution of cutting it on -the forehead; and Hamilcar ordered all bowls to be inverted from the -fifth hour, knowing that it is disadvantageous to fight with the -stomach too full. His army amounted to fourteen thousand men, or about -double the number of the Barbarians. Nevertheless, he had never felt -such anxiety; if he succumbed it would mean the annihilation of the -Republic, and he would perish on the cross; if, on the contrary, he -triumphed, he would reach Italy by way of the Pyrenees, the Gauls, and -the Alps, and the empire of the Barcas would become eternal. Twenty -times during the night he rose to inspect everything himself, down to -the most trifling details. As to the Carthaginians, they were -exasperated by their lengthened terror. Narr' Havas suspected the -fidelity of his Numidians. Moreover, the Barbarians might vanquish -them. A strange weakness had come upon him; every moment he drank -large cups of water. - -But a man whom he did not know opened his tent and laid on the ground -a crown of rock-salt, adorned with hieratic designs formed with -sulphur, and lozenges of mother-of-pearl; a marriage crown was -sometimes sent to a betrothed husband; it was a proof of love, a sort -of invitation. - -Nevertheless Hamilcar's daughter had no tenderness for Narr' Havas. - -The recollection of Matho disturbed her in an intolerable manner; it -seemed to her that the death of this man would unburden her thoughts, -just as people to cure themselves of the bite of a viper crush it upon -the wound. The king of the Numidians was depending upon her; he -awaited the wedding with impatience, and, as it was to follow the -victory, Salammbo made him this present to stimulate his courage. Then -his distress vanished, and he thought only of the happiness of -possessing so beautiful a woman. - -The same vision had assailed Matho; but he cast it from him -immediately, and his love, that he thus thrust back, was poured out -upon his companions in arms. He cherished them like portions of his -own person, of his hatred,--and he felt his spirit higher, and his -arms stronger; everything that he was to accomplish appeared clearly -before him. If sighs sometimes escaped him, it was because he was -thinking of Spendius. - -He drew up the Barbarians in six equal ranks. He posted the Etruscans -in the centre, all being fastened to a bronze chain; the archers were -behind, and on the wings he distributed the Naffurs, who were mounted -on short-haired camels, covered with ostrich feathers. - -The Suffet arranged the Carthaginians in similar order. He placed the -Clinabarians outside the infantry next to the velites, and the -Numidians beyond; when day appeared, both sides were thus in line face -to face. All gazed at each other from a distance, with round fierce -eyes. There was at first some hesitation; at last both armies moved. - -The Barbarians advanced slowly so as not to become out of breath, -beating the ground with their feet; the centre of the Punic army -formed a convex curve. Then came the burst of a terrible shock, like -the crash of two fleets in collision. The first rank of the Barbarians -had quickly opened up, and the marksmen, hidden behind the others, -discharged their bullets, arrows, and javelins. The curve of the -Carthaginians, however, flattened by degrees, became quite straight, -and then bent inwards; upon this, the two sections of the velites drew -together in parallel lines, like the legs of a compass that is being -closed. The Barbarians, who were attacking the phalanx with fury, -entered the gap; they were being lost; Matho checked them,--and while -the Carthaginian wings continued to advance, he drew out the three -inner ranks of his line; they soon covered his flanks, and his army -appeared in triple array. - -But the Barbarians placed at the extremities were the weakest, -especially those on the left, who had exhausted their quivers, and the -troop of velites, which had at last come up against them, was cutting -them up greatly. - -Matho made them fall back. His right comprised Campanians, who were -armed with axes; he hurled them against the Carthaginian left; the -centre attacked the enemy, and those at the other extremity, who were -out of peril, kept the velites at a distance. - -Then Hamilcar divided his horsemen into squadrons, placed hoplites -between them, and sent them against the Mercenaries. - -Those cone-shaped masses presented a front of horses, and their -broader sides were filled and bristling with lances. The Barbarians -found it impossible to resist; the Greek foot-soldiers alone had -brazen armour, all the rest had cutlasses on the end of poles, scythes -taken from the farms, or swords manufactured out of the fellies of -wheels; the soft blades were twisted by a blow, and while they were -engaged in straightening them under their heels, the Carthaginians -massacred them right and left at their ease. - -But the Etruscans, riveted to their chain, did not stir; those who -were dead, being prevented from falling, formed an obstruction with -their corpses; and the great bronze line widened and contracted in -turn, as supple as a serpent, and as impregnable as a wall. The -Barbarians would come to re-form behind it, pant for a minute, and -then set off again with the fragments of their weapons in their hands. - -Many already had none left, and they leaped upon the Carthaginians, -biting their faces like dogs. The Gauls in their pride stripped -themselves of the sagum; they showed their great white bodies from a -distance, and they enlarged their wounds to terrify the enemy. The -voice of the crier announcing the orders could no longer be heard in -the midst of the Punic syntagmata; their signals were being repeated -by the standards, which were raised above the dust, and every one was -swept away in the swaying of the great mass that surrounded him. - -Hamilcar commanded the Numidians to advance. But the Naffurs rushed to -meet them. - -Clad in vast black robes, with a tuft of hair on the top of the skull, -and a shield of rhinoceros leather, they wielded a steel which had no -handle, and which they held by a rope; and their camels, which -bristled all over with feathers, uttered long, hoarse cluckings. Each -blade fell on a precise spot, then rose again with a smart stroke -carrying off a limb with it. The fierce beasts galloped through the -syntagmata. Some, whose legs were broken, went hopping along like -wounded ostriches. - -The Punic infantry turned in a body upon the Barbarians, and cut them -off. Their maniples wheeled about at intervals from one another. The -more brilliant Carthaginian weapons encircled them like golden crowns; -there was a swarming movement in the centre, and the sun, striking -down upon the points of the swords, made them glitter with white -flickering gleams. However, files of Clinabarians lay stretched upon -the plain; some Mercenaries snatched away their armour, clothed -themselves in it, and then returned to the fray. The deluded -Carthaginians were several times entangled in their midst. They would -stand stupidly motionless, or else would back, surge again, and -triumphant shouts rising in the distance seemed to drive them along -like derelicts in a storm. Hamilcar was growing desperate; all was -about to perish beneath the genius of Matho and the invincible courage -of the Mercenaries. - -But a great noise of tabourines burst forth on the horizon. It was a -crowd of old men, sick persons, children of fifteen years of age, and -even women, who, being unable to withstand their distress any longer, -had set out from Carthage, and, for the purpose of placing themselves -under the protection of something formidable, had taken from -Hamilcar's palace the only elephant that the Republic now possessed,-- -that one, namely, whose trunk had been cut off. - -Then it seemed to the Carthaginians that their country, forsaking its -walls, was coming to command them to die for her. They were seized -with increased fury, and the Numidians carried away all the rest. - -The Barbarians had set themselves with their backs to a hillock in the -centre of the plain. They had no chance of conquering, or even of -surviving; but they were the best, the most intrepid, and the -strongest. - -The people from Carthage began to throw spits, larding-pins and -hammers, over the heads of the Numidians; those whom consuls had -feared died beneath sticks hurled by women; the Punic populace was -exterminating the Mercenaries. - -The latter had taken refuge on the top of the hill. Their circle -closed up after every fresh breach; twice it descended to be -immediately repulsed with a shock; and the Carthaginians stretched -forth their arms pell-mell, thrusting their pikes between the legs of -their companions, and raking at random before them. They slipped in -the blood; the steep slope of the ground made the corpses roll to the -bottom. The elephant, which was trying to climb the hillock, was up to -its belly; it seemed to be crawling over them with delight; and its -shortened trunk, which was broad at the extremity, rose from time to -time like an enormous leech. - -Then all paused. The Carthaginians ground their teeth as they gazed at -the hill, where the Barbarians were standing. - -At last they dashed at them abruptly, and the fight began again. The -Mercenaries would often let them approach, shouting to them that they -wished to surrender; then, with frightful sneers, they would kill -themselves at a blow, and as the dead fell, the rest would mount upon -them to defend themselves. It was a kind of pyramid, which grew larger -by degrees. - -Soon there were only fifty, then only twenty, only three, and lastly -only two--a Samnite armed with an axe, and Matho who still had his -sword. - -The Samnite with bent hams swept his axe alternately to the right and -left, at the same time warning Matho of the blows that were being -aimed at him. "Master, this way! that way! stoop down!" - -Matho had lost his shoulder-pieces, his helmet, his cuirass; he was -completely naked, and more livid than the dead, with his hair quite -erect, and two patches of foam at the corners of his lips,--and his -sword whirled so rapidly that it formed an aureola around him. A stone -broke it near the guard; the Samnite was killed and the flood of -Carthaginians closed in, they touched Matho. Then he raised both his -empty hands towards heaven, closed his eyes, and, opening out his arms -like a man throwing himself from the summit of a promontory into the -sea, hurled himself among the pikes. - -They moved away before him. Several times he ran against the -Carthaginians. But they always drew back and turned their weapons -aside. - -His foot struck against a sword. Matho tried to seize it. He felt -himself tied by the wrists and knees, and fell. - -Narr' Havas had been following him for some time, step by step, with -one of the large nets used for capturing wild beasts, and, taking -advantage of the moment when he stooped down, had involved him in it. - -Then he was fastened on the elephants with his four limbs forming a -cross; and all those who were not wounded escorted him, and rushed -with great tumult towards Carthage. - -The news of the victory had arrived in some inexplicable way at the -third hour of the night; the clepsydra of Khamon had just completed -the fifth as they reached Malqua; then Matho opened his eyes. There -were so many lights in the houses that the town appeared to be all in -flames. - -An immense clamour reached him dimly; and lying on his back he looked -at the stars. - -Then a door closed and he was wrapped in darkness. - -On the morrow, at the same hour, the last of the men left in the Pass -of the Hatchet expired. - -On the day that their companions had set out, some Zuaeces who were -returning had tumbled the rocks down, and had fed them for some time. - -The Barbarians constantly expected to see Matho appear,--and from -discouragement, from languor, and from the obstinacy of sick men who -object to change their situation, they would not leave the mountain; -at last the provisions were exhausted and the Zuaeces went away. It -was known that they numbered scarcely more than thirteen hundred men, -and there was no need to employ soldiers to put an end to them. - -Wild beasts, especially lions, had multiplied during the three years -that the war had lasted. Narr' Havas had held a great battue, and-- -after tying goats at intervals--had run upon them and so driven them -towards the Pass of the Hatchet;--and they were now all living in it -when a man arrived who had been sent by the Ancients to find out what -there was left of the Barbarians. - -Lions and corpses were lying over the tract of the plain, and the dead -were mingled with clothes and armour. Nearly all had the face or an -arm wanting; some appeared to be still intact; others were completely -dried up, and their helmets were filled with powdery skulls; feet -which had lost their flesh stood out straight from the knemides; -skeletons still wore their cloaks; and bones, cleaned by the sun, made -gleaming spots in the midst of the sand. - -The lions were resting with their breasts against the ground and both -paws stretched out, winking their eyelids in the bright daylight, -which was heightened by the reflection from the white rocks. Others -were seated on their hind-quarters and staring before them, or else -were sleeping, rolled into a ball and half hidden by their great -manes; they all looked well fed, tired, and dull. They were as -motionless as the mountain and the dead. Night was falling; the sky -was striped with broad red bands in the west. - -In one of the heaps, which in an irregular fashion embossed the plain, -something rose up vaguer than a spectre. Then one of the lions set -himself in motion, his monstrous form cutting a black shadow on the -background of the purple sky, and when he was quite close to the man, -he knocked him down with a single blow of his paw. - -Then, stretching himself flat upon him, he slowly drew out the -entrails with the edge of his teeth. - -Afterwards he opened his huge jaws, and for some minutes uttered a -lengthened roar which was repeated by the echoes in the mountain, and -was finally lost in the solitude. - -Suddenly some small gravel rolled down from above. The rustling of -rapid steps was heard, and in the direction of the portcullis and of -the gorge there appeared pointed muzzles and straight ears, with -gleaming, tawny eyes. These were the jackals coming to eat what was -left. - -The Carthaginian, who was leaning over the top of the precipice to -look, went back again. - - - -CHAPTER XV - -MATHO - -There were rejoicings at Carthage,--rejoicings deep, universal, -extravagant, frantic; the holes of the ruins had been stopped up, the -statues of the gods had been repainted, the streets were strewn with -myrtle branches, incense smoked at the corners of the crossways, and -the throng on the terraces looked, in their variegated garments, like -heaps of flowers blooming in the air. - -The shouts of the water-carriers watering the pavement rose above the -continual screaming of voices; slaves belonging to Hamilcar offered in -his name roasted barley and pieces of raw meat; people accosted one -another, and embraced one another with tears; the Tyrian towns were -taken, the nomads dispersed, and all the Barbarians annihilated. The -Acropolis was hidden beneath coloured velaria; the beaks of the -triremes, drawn up in line outside the mole, shone like a dyke of -diamonds; everywhere there was a sense of the restoration of order, -the beginning of a new existence, and the diffusion of vast happiness: -it was the day of Salammbo's marriage with the King of the Numidians. - -On the terrace of the temple of Khamon there were three long tables -laden with gigantic plate, at which the priests, Ancients, and the -rich were to sit, and there was a fourth and higher one for Hamilcar, -Narr' Havas, and Salammbo; for as she had saved her country by the -restoration of the zaimph, the people turned her wedding day into a -national rejoicing, and were waiting in the square below till she -should appear. - -But their impatience was excited by another and more acrid longing: -Matho's death has been promised for the ceremony. - -It had been proposed at first to flay him alive, to pour lead into his -entrails, to kill him with hunger; he should be tied to a tree, and an -ape behind him should strike him on the head with a stone; he had -offended Tanith, and the cynocephaluses of Tanith should avenge her. -Others were of opinion that he should be led about on a dromedary -after linen wicks, dipped in oil, had been inserted in his body in -several places;--and they took pleasure in the thought of the large -animal wandering through the streets with this man writhing beneath -the fires like a candelabrum blown about by the wind. - -But what citizens should be charged with his torture, and why -disappoint the rest? They would have liked a kind of death in which -the whole town might take part, in which every hand, every weapon, -everything Carthaginian, to the very paving-stones in the streets and -the waves in the gulf, could rend him, and crush him, and annihilate -him. Accordingly the Ancients decided that he should go from his -prison to the square of Khamon without any escort, and with his arms -fastened to his back; it was forbidden to strike him to the heart, in -order that he might live the longer; to put out his eyes, so that he -might see the torture through; to hurl anything against his person, or -to lay more than three fingers upon him at a time. - -Although he was not to appear until the end of the day, the people -sometimes fancied that he could be seen, and the crowd would rush -towards the Acropolis, and empty the streets, to return with -lengthened murmurings. Some people had remained standing in the same -place since the day before, and they would call on one another from a -distance and show their nails which they had allowed to grow, the -better to bury them into his flesh. Others walked restlessly up and -down; some were as pale as though they were awaiting their own -execution. - -Suddenly lofty feather fans rose above the heads, behind the Mappalian -district. It was Salammbo leaving her palace; a sigh of relief found -vent. - -But the procession was long in coming; it marched with deliberation. - -First there filed past the priests of the Pataec Gods, then those of -Eschmoun, of Melkarth, and all the other colleges in succession, with -the same insignia, and in the same order as had been observed at the -time of the sacrifice. The pontiffs of Moloch passed with heads bent, -and the multitude stood aside from them in a kind of remorse. But the -priests of Rabbetna advanced with a proud step, and with lyres in -their hands; the priestesses followed them in transparent robes of -yellow or black, uttering cries like birds and writhing like vipers, -or else whirling round to the sound of flutes to imitate the dance of -the stars, while their light garments wafted puffs of delicate scents -through the streets. - -The Kedeschim, with painted eyelids, who symbolised the hermaphrodism -of the Divinity, received applause among these women, and, being -perfumed and dressed like them, they resembled them in spite of their -flat breasts and narrower hips. Moreover, on this day the female -principle dominated and confused all things; a mystic voluptuousness -moved in the heavy air; the torches were already lighted in the depths -of the sacred woods; there was to be a great celebration there during -the night; three vessels had brought courtesans from Sicily, and -others had come from the desert. - -As the colleges arrived they ranged themselves in the courts of the -temples, on the outer galleries, and along double staircases which -rose against the walls, and drew together at the top. Files of white -robes appeared between the colonnades, and the architecture was -peopled with human statues, motionless as statues of stone. - -Then came the masters of the exchequer, the governors of the -provinces, and all the rich. A great tumult prevailed below. Adjacent -streets were discharging the crowd, hierodules were driving it back -with blows of sticks; and then Salammbo appeared in a litter -surmounted by a purple canopy, and surrounded by the Ancients crowned -with their golden tiaras. - -Thereupon an immense shout arose; the cymbals and crotala sounded more -loudly, the tabourines thundered, and the great purple canopy sank -between the two pylons. - -It appeared again on the first landing. Salammbo was walking slowly -beneath it; then she crossed the terrace to take her seat behind on a -kind of throne cut out of the carapace of a tortoise. An ivory stool -with three steps was pushed beneath her feet; two Negro children knelt -on the edge of the first step, and sometimes she would rest both arms, -which were laden with rings of excessive weight, upon their heads. - -From ankle to hip she was covered with a network of narrow meshes -which were in imitation of fish scales, and shone like mother-of- -pearl; her waist was clasped by a blue zone, which allowed her breasts -to be seen through two crescent-shaped slashings; the nipples were -hidden by carbuncle pendants. She had a headdress made of peacock's -feathers studded with gems; an ample cloak, as white as snow, fell -behind her,--and with her elbows at her sides, her knees pressed -together, and circles of diamonds on the upper part of her arms, she -remained perfectly upright in a hieratic attitude. - -Her father and her husband were on two lower seats, Narr' Havas -dressed in a light simar and wearing his crown of rock-salt, from -which there strayed two tresses of hair as twisted as the horns of -Ammon; and Hamilcar in a violet tunic figured with gold vine branches, -and with a battle-sword at his side. - -The python of the temple of Eschmoun lay on the ground amid pools of -pink oil in the space enclosed by the tables, and, biting its tail, -described a large black circle. In the middle of the circle there was -a copper pillar bearing a crystal egg; and, as the sun shone upon it, -rays were emitted on every side. - -Behind Salammbo stretched the priests of Tanith in linen robes; on her -right the Ancients, in their tiaras, formed a great gold line, and on -the other side the rich with their emerald sceptres a great green -line,--while quite in the background, where the priests of Moloch were -ranged, the cloaks looked like a wall of purple. The other colleges -occupied the lower terraces. The multitude obstructed the streets. It -reached to the house-tops, and extended in long files to the summit of -the Acropolis. Having thus the people at her feet, the firmament above -her head, and around her the immensity of the sea, the gulf, the -mountains, and the distant provinces, Salammbo in her splendour was -blended with Tanith, and seemed the very genius of Carthage, and its -embodied soul. - -The feast was to last all night, and lamps with several branches were -planted like trees on the painted woollen cloths which covered the low -tables. Large electrum flagons, blue glass amphoras, tortoise-shell -spoons, and small round loaves were crowded between the double row of -pearl-bordered plates; bunches of grapes with their leaves had been -rolled round ivory vine-stocks after the fashion of the thyrsus; -blocks of snow were melting on ebony trays, and lemons, pomegranates, -gourds, and watermelons formed hillocks beneath the lofty silver -plate; boars with open jaws were wallowing in the dust of spices; -hares, covered with their fur, appeared to be bounding amid the -flowers; there were shells filled with forcemeat; the pastry had -symbolic shapes; when the covers of the dishes were removed doves flew -out. - -The slaves, meanwhile, with tunics tucked up, were going about on -tiptoe; from time to time a hymn sounded on the lyres, or a choir of -voices rose. The clamour of the people, continuous as the noise of the -sea, floated vaguely around the feast, and seemed to lull it in a -broader harmony; some recalled the banquet of the Mercenaries; they -gave themselves up to dreams of happiness; the sun was beginning to go -down, and the crescent of the moon was already rising in another part -of the sky. - -But Salammbo turned her head as though some one had called her; the -people, who were watching her, followed the direction of her eyes. - -The door of the dungeon, hewn in the rock at the foot of the temple, -on the summit of the Acropolis, had just opened; and a man was -standing on the threshold of this black hole. - -He came forth bent double, with the scared look of fallow deer when -suddenly enlarged. - -The light dazzled him; he stood motionless awhile. All had recognised -him, and they held their breath. - -In their eyes the body of this victim was something peculiarly theirs, -and was adorned with almost religious splendour. They bent forward to -see him, especially the women. They burned to gaze upon him who had -caused the deaths of their children and husbands; and from the bottom -of their souls there sprang up in spite of themselves an infamous -curiosity, a desire to know him completely, a wish mingled with -remorse which turned to increased execration. - -At last he advanced; then the stupefaction of surprise disappeared. -Numbers of arms were raised, and he was lost to sight. - -The staircase of the Acropolis had sixty steps. He descended them as -though he were rolled down in a torrent from the top of a mountain; -three times he was seen to leap, and then he alighted below on his -feet. - -His shoulders were bleeding, his breast was panting with great shocks; -and he made such efforts to burst his bonds that his arms, which were -crossed on his naked loins, swelled like pieces of a serpent. - -Several streets began in front of him, leading from the spot at which -he found himself. In each of them a triple row of bronze chains -fastened to the navels of the Pataec gods extended in parallel lines -from one end to the other; the crowd was massed against the houses, -and servants, belonging to the Ancients, walked in the middle -brandishing thongs. - -One of them drove him forward with a great blow; Matho began to move. - -They thrust their arms over the chains shouting out that the road had -been left too wide for him; and he passed along, felt, pricked, and -slashed by all those fingers; when he reached the end of one street -another appeared; several times he flung himself to one side to bite -them; they speedily dispersed, the chains held him back, and the crowd -burst out laughing. - -A child rent his ear; a young girl, hiding the point of a spindle in -her sleeve, split his cheek; they tore handfuls of hair from him and -strips of flesh; others smeared his face with sponges steeped in filth -and fastened upon sticks. A stream of blood started from the right -side of his neck, frenzy immediately set in. This last Barbarian was -to them a representative of all the Barbarians, and all the army; they -were taking vengeance on him for their disasters, their terrors, and -their shame. The rage of the mob developed with its gratification; the -curving chains were over-strained, and were on the point of breaking; -the people did not feel the blows of the slaves who struck at them to -drive them back; some clung to the projections of the houses; all the -openings in the walls were stopped up with heads; and they howled at -him the mischief that they could not inflict upon him. - -It was atrocious, filthy abuse mingled with ironical encouragements -and imprecations; and, his present tortures not being enough for them, -they foretold to him others that should be still more terrible in -eternity. - -This vast baying filled Carthage with stupid continuity. Frequently a -single syllable--a hoarse, deep, and frantic intonation--would be -repeated for several minutes by the entire people. The walls would -vibrate with it from top to bottom, and both sides of the street would -seem to Matho to be coming against him, and carrying him off the -ground, like two immense arms stifling him in the air. - -Nevertheless he remembered that he had experienced something like it -before. The same crowd was on the terraces, there were the same looks -and the same wrath; but then he had walked free, all had then -dispersed, for a god covered him;--and the recollection of this, -gaining precision by degrees, brought a crushing sadness upon him. -Shadows passed before his eyes; the town whirled round in his head, -his blood streamed from a wound in his hip, he felt that he was dying; -his hams bent, and he sank quite gently upon the pavement. - -Some one went to the peristyle of the temple of Melkarth, took thence -the bar of a tripod, heated red hot in the coals, and, slipping it -beneath the first chain, pressed it against his wound. The flesh was -seen to smoke; the hootings of the people drowned his voice; he was -standing again. - -Six paces further on, and he fell a third and again a fourth time; but -some new torture always made him rise. They discharged little drops of -boiling oil through tubes at him; they strewed pieces of broken glass -beneath his feet; still he walked on. At the corner of the street of -Satheb he leaned his back against the wall beneath the pent-house of a -shop, and advanced no further. - -The slaves of the Council struck him with their whips of hippopotamus -leather, so furiously and long that the fringes of their tunics were -drenched with sweat. Matho appeared insensible; suddenly he started -off and began to run at random, making a noise with his lips like one -shivering with severe cold. He threaded the street of Boudes, and the -street of Soepo, crossed the Green Market, and reached the square of -Khamon. - -He now belonged to the priests; the slaves had just dispersed the -crowd, and there was more room. Matho gazed round him and his eyes -encountered Salammbo. - -At the first step that he had taken she had risen; then, as he -approached, she had involuntarily advanced by degrees to the edge of -the terrace; and soon all external things were blotted out, and she -saw only Matho. Silence fell in her soul,--one of those abysses -wherein the whole world disappears beneath the pressure of a single -thought, a memory, a look. This man who was walking towards her -attracted her. - -Excepting his eyes he had no appearance of humanity left; he was a -long, perfectly red shape; his broken bonds hung down his thighs, but -they could not be distinguished from the tendons of his wrists, which -were laid quite bare; his mouth remained wide open; from his eye- -sockets there darted flames which seemed to rise up to his hair;--and -the wretch still walked on! - -He reached the foot of the terrace. Salammbo was leaning over the -balustrade; those frightful eyeballs were scanning her, and there rose -within her a consciousness of all that he had suffered for her. -Although he was in his death agony she could see him once more -kneeling in his tent, encircling her waist with his arms, and -stammering out gentle words; she thirsted to feel them and hear them -again; she did not want him to die! At this moment Matho gave a great -start; she was on the point of shrieking aloud. He fell backwards and -did not stir again. - -Salammbo was borne back, nearly swooning, to her throne by the priests -who flocked about her. They congratulated her; it was her work. All -clapped their hands and stamped their feet, howling her name. - -A man darted upon the corpse. Although he had no beard he had the -cloak of a priest of Moloch on his shoulder, and in his belt that -species of knife which they employed for cutting up the sacred meat, -and which terminated, at the end of the handle, in a golden spatula. -He cleft Matho's breast with a single blow, then snatched out the -heart and laid it upon the spoon; and Schahabarim, uplifting his arm, -offered it to the sun. - -The sun sank behind the waves; his rays fell like long arrows upon the -red heart. As the beatings diminished the planet sank into the sea; -and at the last palpitation it disappeared. - -Then from the gulf to the lagoon, and from the isthmus to the pharos, -in all the streets, on all the houses, and on all the temples, there -was a single shout; sometimes it paused, to be again renewed; the -buildings shook with it; Carthage was convulsed, as it were, in the -spasm of Titanic joy and boundless hope. - -Narr' Havas, drunk with pride, passed his left arm beneath Salammbo's -waist in token of possession; and taking a gold patera in his right -hand, he drank to the Genius of Carthage. - -Salammbo rose like her husband, with a cup in her hand, to drink also. -She fell down again with her head lying over the back of the throne,-- -pale, stiff, with parted lips,--and her loosened hair hung to the -ground. - -Thus died Hamilcar's daughter for having touched the mantle of Tanith. - - - - - -End of The Project Gutenberg Etext of Salammbo, by Gustave Flaubert - |