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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Cleopatra, Complete, by Georg Ebers
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Cleopatra, Complete
+
+Author: Georg Ebers
+
+Release Date: October 16, 2006 [EBook #5482]
+Last Updated: June 7, 2017
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: UTF-8
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CLEOPATRA, COMPLETE ***
+
+
+
+Produced by David Widger
+
+
+CLEOPATRA
+
+
+By Georg Ebers
+
+Translated from the German by
+Mary J. Safford
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+PREFACE.
+CLEOPATRA
+
+CHAPTER I.
+CHAPTER II.
+CHAPTER III.
+CHAPTER IV.
+CHAPTER V.
+CHAPTER VI.
+CHAPTER VII.
+CHAPTER VIII.
+CHAPTER IX.
+CHAPTER X.
+CHAPTER XI.
+CHAPTER XII.
+CHAPTER XIII.
+CHAPTER XIV.
+CHAPTER XV.
+CHAPTER XVI.
+CHAPTER XVII.
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+CHAPTER XIX.
+CHAPTER XX.
+CHAPTER XXI.
+CHAPTER XXII.
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+CHAPTER XXV.
+
+
+
+PREFACE.
+
+If the author should be told that the sentimental love of our day was
+unknown to the pagan world, he would not cite last the two lovers,
+Antony and Cleopatra, and the will of the powerful Roman general, in
+which he expressed the desire, wherever he might die, to be buried
+beside the woman whom he loved to his latest hour. His wish was
+fulfilled, and the love-life of these two distinguished mortals, which
+belongs to history, has more than once afforded to art and poesy a
+welcome subject.
+
+In regard to Cleopatra, especially, life was surrounded with an
+atmosphere of romance bordering on the fabulous. Even her bitterest foes
+admire her beauty and rare gifts of intellect. Her character, on the
+contrary, presents one of the most difficult problems of psychology. The
+servility of Roman poets and authors, who were unwilling frankly to
+acknowledge the light emanating so brilliantly from the foe of the state
+and the Imperator, solved it to her disadvantage. Everything that bore
+the name of Egyptian was hateful or suspicious to the Roman, and it was
+hard to forgive this woman, born on the banks of the Nile, for having
+seen Julius Cæsar at her feet and compelled Mark Antony to do her
+bidding. Other historians, Plutarch at their head, explained the enigma
+more justly, and in many respects in her favour.
+
+It was a delightful task to the author to scan more closely the
+personality of the hapless Queen, and from the wealth of existing
+information shape for himself a creature in whom he could believe. Years
+elapsed ere he succeeded; but now that he views the completed picture,
+he thinks that many persons might be disposed to object to the
+brightness of his colours. Yet it would not be difficult for the writer
+to justify every shade which he has used. If, during his creative work,
+he learned to love his heroine, it was because, the more distinctly he
+conjured before his mind the image of this wonderful woman, the more
+keenly he felt and the more distinctly he perceived how fully she
+merited not only sympathy and admiration, but, in spite of all her sins
+and weaknesses, the self-sacrificing affection which she inspired in so
+many hearts.
+
+It was an author of no less importance than Horace who called Cleopatra
+"_non humilis mulier_"--a woman capable of no baseness. But the phrase
+gains its greatest importance from the fact that it adorns the hymn
+which the poet dedicated to Octavianus and his victory over Antony and
+Cleopatra. It was a bold act, in such an ode, to praise the victor's
+foe. Yet he did it, and his words, which are equivalent to a deed, are
+among this greatly misjudged woman's fairest claims to renown.
+
+Unfortunately it proved less potent than the opinion of Dio, who often
+distorted what Plutarch related, but probably followed most closely the
+farce or the popular tales which, in Rome, did not venture to show the
+Egyptian in a favourable light.
+
+The Greek Plutarch, who lived much nearer the period of our heroine than
+Dio, estimated her more justly than most of the Roman historians. His
+grandfather had heard many tales of both Cleopatra and Antony from his
+countryman Philotas, who, during the brilliant days when they revelled
+in Alexandria, had lived there as a student. Of all the writers who
+describe the Queen, Plutarch is the most trustworthy, but even his
+narrative must be used with caution. We have closely followed the clear
+and comprehensive description given by Plutarch of the last days of our
+heroine. It bears the impress of truth, and to deviate widely from it
+would be arbitrary.
+
+Unluckily, Egyptian records contain nothing which could have much weight
+in estimating the character of Cleopatra, though we have likenesses
+representing the Queen alone, or with her son Cæsarion. Very recently
+(in 1892) the fragment of a colossal double statue was found in
+Alexandria, which can scarcely be intended for any persons except
+Cleopatra and Antony hand in hand. The upper part of the female figure
+is in a state of tolerable preservation, and shows a young and
+attractive face. The male figure was doubtless sacrificed to
+Octavianus's command to destroy Antony's statues. We are indebted to
+Herr Dr. Walther, in Alexandria, for an excellent photograph of this
+remarkable piece of sculpture. Comparatively few other works of plastic
+art, in which we here include coins, that could render us familiar with
+our heroine's appearance, have been preserved.
+
+Though the author must especially desire to render his creation a work
+of art, it is also requisite to strive for fidelity. As the heroine's
+portrait must reveal her true character, so the life represented here
+must correspond in every line with the civilization of the period
+described. For this purpose we placed Cleopatra in the centre of a
+larger group of people, whom she influences, and who enable her
+personality to be displayed in the various relations of life.
+
+Should the author succeed in making the picture of the remarkable woman,
+who was so differently judged, as "lifelike" and vivid as it stamped
+itself upon his own imagination, he might remember with pleasure the
+hours which he devoted to this book.
+
+
+Georg Ebers
+
+Tützing on the Starnberger See, _October 5, 1893_.
+
+
+
+CLEOPATRA.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+Gorgias, the architect, had learned to bear the scorching sunbeams of
+the Egyptian noonday. Though not yet thirty, he had directed--first as
+his late father's assistant and afterwards as his successor--the
+construction of the huge buildings erected by Cleopatra in Alexandria.
+
+Now he was overwhelmed with commissions; yet he had come hither ere the
+hours of work were over, merely to oblige a youth who had barely passed
+the confines of boyhood.
+
+True, the person for whom he made this sacrifice was Cæsarion, the son
+whom Cleopatra had given to Julius Cæsar. Antony had honoured him with
+the proud title of "King of kings"; yet he was permitted neither to rule
+nor even to issue orders, for his mother kept him aloof from affairs of
+state, and he himself had no desire to hold the sceptre.
+
+Gorgias had granted his wish the more readily, because it was apparent
+that he wanted to speak to him in private, though he had not the least
+idea what Cæsarion desired to confide, and, under any circumstances, he
+could give him only a brief interview. The fleet, at whose head the
+Queen had set sail, with Mark Antony, for Greece, must have already met
+Octavianus's galleys, and doubtless a battle wherein the destiny of the
+world was decided had also been fought upon the land, Gorgias believed
+that the victory would fall to Antony and the Queen, and wished the
+noble pair success with his whole heart. He was even obliged to act as
+if the battle had been already determined in their favour, for the
+architectural preparations for the reception of the conquerors were
+entrusted to his charge, and that very day must witness the decision of
+the location of the colossal statues which represented Antony hand in
+hand with his royal love.
+
+The epitrop Mardion, a eunuch, who as Regent, represented Cleopatra; and
+Zeno, the Keeper of the Seal, who rarely opposed him, wished to have the
+piece of sculpture erected in a different place from the one he
+favoured. The principal objection to the choice made by the powerful
+head of the government was that it had fallen on land owned by a private
+individual. This might lead to difficulties, and Gorgias opposed it. As
+an artist, too, he did not approve Mardion's plan; for though, on
+Didymus's land, the statues would have faced the sea, which the Regent
+and the Keeper of the Seal regarded as very important, no fitting
+background could have been obtained.
+
+At any rate, the architect could now avail himself of Cæsarion's
+invitation to overlook from the appointed place of meeting--the lofty
+steps of the Temple of Isis--the Bruchium, and seek the best site for
+the twin statues. He was anxious to select the most suitable one; the
+master who had created this work of art had been his friend, and had
+closed his eyes in death shortly after its completion.
+
+The sanctuary whence Gorgias commenced his survey was in one of the
+fairest portions of the Bruchium, the Alexandrian quarter, where stood
+the royal palace with its extensive annexes, the finest temples--except
+the Serapeum, situated in another part of the city--and the largest
+theatres; the Forum invited the council of Macedonian citizens to its
+assemblies, and the Museum afforded a resort for the scholars.
+
+The little square closed in the east by the Temple of Isis was called
+the "Corner of the Muses," on account of the two marble statues of women
+before the entrance of the house, which, with its large garden facing
+the square northward and extending along the sea, belonged to Didymus,
+an old and highly respected scholar and member of the Museum.
+
+The day had been hot, and the shade of the Temple of Isis was very
+welcome to the architect. This sanctuary rested upon a lofty foundation,
+and a long flight of steps led to the cella. The spot afforded Gorgias a
+wide prospect.
+
+Most of the buildings within his vision belonged to the time of
+Alexander and his successors in the house of the Ptolemies, but some,
+and by no means the least stately, were the work of Gorgias himself or
+of his father. The artist's heart swelled with enthusiastic delight at
+the sight of this portion of his native city.
+
+He had been in Rome, and visited many other places numbered among the
+world's fairest and most populous cities; but not one contained so many
+superb works of art crowded together in so small a space.
+
+"If one of the immortals themselves," he murmured, "should strive to
+erect for the inhabitants of Olympus a quarter meet for their grandeur
+and beauty, it could scarcely be much more superb or better fitted to
+satisfy the artistic needs which we possess as their gift, and it would
+surely be placed on the shore of such a sea."
+
+While speaking, he shaded his keen eyes with his hand. The architect,
+who usually devoted his whole attention to the single object that
+claimed his notice, now permitted himself the pleasure of enjoying the
+entire picture in whose finishing touches he had himself borne a part;
+and, as his practised eye perceived in every temple and colonnade the
+studied and finished harmony of form, and the admirable grouping of the
+various buildings and statues, he said to himself, with a sigh of
+satisfaction, that his own art was the noblest and building the highest
+of royal pleasures. No doubt this belief was shared by the princes who,
+three centuries before, had endeavoured to obtain an environment for
+their palaces which should correspond with their vast power and
+overflowing wealth, and at the same time give tangible expression to
+their reverence for the gods and their delight in art and beauty. No
+royal race in the universe could boast of a more magnificent abode.
+These thoughts passed through Gorgias's mind as the deep azure hue of
+sea and sky blended with the sunlight to bring into the strongest relief
+all that the skill and brains of man, aided by exhaustless resources,
+had here created.
+
+Waiting, usually a hard task for the busy architect, became a pleasure
+in this spot; for the rays streaming lavishly in all directions from the
+diadem of the sovereign sun flooded with dazzling radiance the thousands
+of white marble statues on the temples and colonnades, and were
+reflected from the surfaces of the polished granite of the obelisks and
+the equally smooth walls of the white, yellow, and green marble, the
+syenite, and the brown, speckled porphyry of sanctuaries and palaces.
+They seemed to be striving to melt the bright mosaic pictures which
+covered every foot of the ground, where no highway intersected and no
+tree shaded it, and flashed back again from the glimmering metal or the
+smooth glaze in the gay tiles on the roofs of the temples and houses.
+Here they glittered on the metal ornaments, yonder they seemed to be
+trying to rival the brilliancy of the gilded domes, to lend to the
+superb green of the tarnished bronze surfaces the sparkling lustre of
+the emerald, or to transform the blue and red lines of the white marble
+temples into lapis-lazuli and coral and their gilded decorations into
+topaz. The pictures in the mosaic pavement of the squares, and on the
+inner walls of the colonnades, were doubly effective against the light
+masses of marble surrounding them, which in their turn were indebted to
+the pictures for affording the eye an attractive variety instead of
+dazzling monotony.
+
+Here the light of the weltering sun enhanced the brilliancy of colour in
+the flags and streamers which fluttered beside the obelisks and Egyptian
+pylons, over the triumphal arches and the gates of the temples and
+palaces. Yet even the exquisite purplish blue of the banner waving above
+the palace on the peninsula of Lochias, now occupied by Cleopatra's
+children, was surpassed by the hue of the sea, whose deep azure near the
+shore merged far away into bands of lighter and darker blue, blending
+with dull or whitish green.
+
+Gorgias was accustomed to grasp fully whatever he permitted to influence
+him, and though still loyal to his custom of associating with his art
+every remarkable work of the gods or man, he had not forgotten in his
+enjoyment of the familiar scene the purpose of his presence in this
+spot.
+
+No, the garden of Didymus was _not_ the proper place for his friend's
+last work.
+
+While gazing at the lofty plane, sycamore, and mimosa trees which
+surrounded the old scholar's home, the quiet square below him suddenly
+became astir with noisy life, for all classes of the populace were
+gathering in front of the sequestered house, as if some unusual
+spectacle attracted them.
+
+What could they want of the secluded philosopher?
+
+Gorgias gazed earnestly at them, but soon turned away again; a gay voice
+from below called his name.
+
+A singular procession had approached the temple--a small body of armed
+men, led by a short, stout fellow, whose big head, covered with bushy
+curls, was crowned with a laurel wreath. He was talking eagerly to a
+younger man, but had paused with the others in front of the sanctuary to
+greet the architect. The latter shouted a few pleasant words in reply.
+The laurel-crowned figure made a movement as if he intended to join him,
+but his companion checked him, and, after a short parley, the older man
+gave the younger one his hand, flung his heavy head back, and strutted
+onward like a peacock, followed by his whole train.
+
+The other looked after him, shrugging his shoulders; then called to
+Gorgias, asking what boon he desired from the goddess.
+
+"Your presence," replied the architect blithely.
+
+"Then Isis will show herself gracious to you," was the answer, and the
+next instant the two young men cordially grasped each other's hands.
+
+Both were equally tall and well formed; the features bore witness to
+their Greek origin; nay, they might have been taken for brothers, had
+not the architect's whole appearance seemed sturdier and plainer than
+that of his companion, whom he called "Dion" and friend. As the latter
+heaped merry sarcasms upon the figure wearing the laurel wreath who had
+just left him, Anaxenor, the famous zither-player, on whom Antony had
+bestowed the revenues of four cities and permission to keep body-guard,
+and Gorgias's deeper voice sometime assented, sometimes opposed with
+sensible objections, the difference between these two men of the same
+age and race became clearly apparent.
+
+Both showed a degree of self-reliance unusual, at their age; but the
+architect's was the assurance which a man gains by toil and his own
+merit, Dion's that which is bestowed by large possession and a high
+position in society. Those who were ignorant that the weight of Dion's
+carefully prepared speech had more than once turned the scale in the
+city councils would probably have been disposed to take him for one of
+the careless worldlings who had no lack of representatives among the
+gilded youth of Alexandria; while the architect's whole exterior, from
+his keen eye to the stouter leather of his sandals, revealed earnest
+purpose and unassuming ability.
+
+Their friendship had commenced when Gorgias built a new palace for Dion.
+During long business association people become well acquainted, even
+though their conversations relate solely to direction and execution. But
+in this case, he who gave the orders had been only the inspirer and
+adviser, the architect the warm-hearted friend, eager to do his utmost
+to realize what hovered before the other's mind as the highest
+attainable excellence. So the two young men became first dear, and
+finally almost indispensable to each other. As the architect discovered
+in the wealthy man of the world many qualities whose existence he had
+not suspected, the latter was agreeably surprised to find in the artist,
+associated with his solidity of character, a jovial companion, who--this
+first made him really beloved by his friend--had no lack of weaknesses.
+
+When the palace was completed to Dion's satisfaction and became one of
+the most lauded ornaments of the city, the young men's friendship
+assumed a new form, and it would have been difficult to say which
+received the most benefit.
+
+Dion had just been stopped by the zither-player to ask for confirmation
+of the tidings that the united forces of Antony and Cleopatra had gained
+a great victory on sea and land.
+
+In the eating-house at Kanopus, where he had breakfasted, everyone was
+full of the joyful news, and rivers of wine had been drunk to the health
+of the victors and the destruction of the malicious foe.
+
+"In these days," cried Dion, "not only weak-brained fellows, like the
+zither-player, believe me omniscient, but many sensible men also. And
+why? Because, forsooth, I am the nephew of Zeno, the Keeper of the Seal,
+who is on the brink of despair because he himself knows nothing, not
+even the veriest trifle."
+
+"Yet he stands nearest to the Regent," observed Gorgias, "and must
+learn, if any one does, how the fleet fares."
+
+"You too!" sighed his friend. "Had I been standing so far above the
+ground as you, the architect--by the dog, I should not have failed to
+note the quarter whence the wind blew! It has been southerly a whole
+fortnight, and keeps back the galleys coming from the north. The Regent
+knows nothing, absolutely nothing, and my uncle, of course, no more. But
+if they do learn anything they will be shrewd enough not to enrich me
+with it."
+
+"True, there are other rumours afloat," said the architect thoughtfully.
+"If I were in Mardion's place----"
+
+"Thank the Olympians that you are not," laughed his companion. "He has
+as many cares as a fish has scales. And one, the greatest.--That pert
+young Antyllus was over-ready with his tongue yesterday at Barine's.
+Poor fellow! He'll have to answer for it to his tutor at home."
+
+"You mean the remark about the Queen's accompanying the fleet?"
+
+"St!" said Dion, putting his finger on his lips, for many men and women
+were now ascending the temple steps. Several carried flowers and cakes,
+and the features of most expressed joyful emotion. The news of the
+victory had reached their ears, and they wanted to offer sacrifices to
+the goddess whom Cleopatra, "the new Isis," preferred to all others.
+
+The first court-yard of the sanctuary was astir with life. They could
+hear the ringing of the sistrum bells and the murmuring chant of the
+priests. The quiet fore-court of the little temple of the goddess, which
+here, in the Greek quarter of palaces, had as few visitors as the great
+Temple of Isis in the Rhakotis was overcrowded, had now become the worst
+possible rendezvous for men who stood so near the rulers of the
+government. The remark made about the Queen the evening before by
+Antyllus, Antony's nineteen-year-old son, at the house of Barine, a
+beautiful young woman who attracted all the prominent men in Alexandria,
+was the more imprudent because it coincided with the opinion of all the
+wisest heads. The reckless youth enthusiastically reverenced his father,
+but Cleopatra, the object of Antony's love, and--in the Egyptians'
+eyes--his wife, was not Antyllus's mother. He was the son of Fulvia, his
+father's first wife, and feeling himself a Roman, would have preferred a
+thousand times to live on the banks of the Tiber. Besides, it was
+certain--Antony's stanchest friends made no attempt to conceal the
+fact--that the Queen's presence with the army exerted a disturbing
+influence, and could not fail to curb the daring courage of the brave
+general. Antyllus, with the reckless frankness inherited from his
+father, had expressed this view in the presence of all Barine's guests,
+and in a form which would be only too quickly spread throughout
+Alexandria, whose inhabitants relished such speeches.
+
+These remarks would be slow in reaching the plain people who were
+attracted to the temple by the news of the victory, yet many doubtless
+knew Cæsarion, whom the architect was awaiting here. It would be wiser
+to meet the prince at the foot of the steps. Both men, therefore, went
+down to the square, though the crowds seeking the temple and thronging
+the space before Didymus's house made it more and more difficult to pace
+to and fro.
+
+They were anxious to learn whether the rumour that Didymus's garden was
+to be taken for the twin statues had already spread abroad, and their
+first questions revealed that this was the case. It was even stated that
+the old sage's house was to be torn down, and within a few hours. This
+was vehemently contradicted; but a tall, scrawny man seemed to have
+undertaken to defend the ruler's violence.
+
+The friends knew him well. It was the Syrian Philostratus, a clever
+extempore speaker and agitator of the people, who placed his clever
+tongue at the disposal of the highest bidder.
+
+"The rascal is probably now in my uncle's employ," said Dion. "The
+idea of putting the piece of sculpture there originated with him, and
+it is difficult to turn him from such plans. There is some secret
+object to be gained here. That is why they have brought Philostratus.
+I wonder if the conspiracy is connected in any way with Barine, whose
+husband--unfortunately for her--he was before he cast her off."
+
+"Cast her off!" exclaimed Gorgias wrathfully. "How that sounds! True, he
+did it, but to persuade him the poor woman sacrificed half the fortune
+her father had earned by his brush. You know as well as I that life with
+that scoundrel would be unbearable."
+
+"Very true," replied Dion quietly. "But as all Alexandria melted into
+admiration after her singing of the _yalemos_ at the Adonis festival,
+she no longer needed her contemptible consort."
+
+"How can you take pleasure, whenever it is possible, in casting such
+slurs upon a woman, whom but yesterday you called blameless, charming,
+peerless?"
+
+"That the light she sheds may not dazzle your eyes. I know how sensitive
+they are."
+
+"Then spare, instead of irritating them. Besides, your suggestion gives
+food for thought Barine is the granddaughter of the man whose garden
+they want, and the advocate would probably be glad to injure both. But
+I'll spoil his game. It is _my_ business to choose the site for the
+statues."
+
+"Yours?" replied Dion. "Unless some one who is more powerful opposes
+you. I would try to win my uncle, but there are others superior to him.
+The Queen has gone, it is true; but Iras, whose commands do not die away
+in empty air, told me this morning that she had her own ideas about the
+erection of the statue."
+
+"Then you bring Philostratus here!" cried the architect.
+
+"I?" asked the other in amazement.
+
+"Ay, you," asserted Gorgias. "Did not you say that Iras, with whom you
+played when a boy is now becoming troublesome by watching your every
+step? And then--you visit Barine constantly and she so evidently prefers
+you, that the fact might easily reach the ears of Iras."
+
+"As Argus has a hundred, jealousy has a thousand eyes," interrupted
+Dion, "yet I seek nothing from Barine, save two pleasant hours when the
+day is drawing towards its close. No matter; Iras, I suppose, heard that
+I was favoured by this much-admired woman. Iras herself has some little
+regard for me, so she bought Philostratus. She is willing to pay
+something for the sake of injuring the woman who stands between us, or
+the old man who has the good or evil fortune of being her rival's
+grandfather. No, no; that would be too base! And believe me, if Iras
+desired to ruin Barine, she need not make so long a circuit. Besides,
+she is not really a wicked woman. Or is she? All I know is that where
+any advantage is to be gained for the Queen, she does not shrink even
+from doubtful means, and also that the hours speed swiftly for any one
+in her society. Yes, Iras, Iras--I like to utter the name. Yet I do not
+love her, and she--loves only herself, and--a thing few can say--another
+still more. What is the world, what am I to her, compared with the
+Queen, the idol of her heart? Since Cleopatra's departure, Iras seems
+like the forsaken Ariadne, or a young roe which has strayed from its
+mother. But stop; she may have a hand in the game: the Queen trusted her
+as if she were her sister, her daughter. No one knows what she and
+Charmian are to her. They are called waiting-women, but are their
+sovereign's dearest friends. When, on the departure of the fleet,
+Cleopatra was compelled to leave Iras here--she was ill with a
+fever--she gave her the charge of her children, even those whose beards
+were beginning to grow, the 'King of kings' Cæsarion, whose tutor
+punishes him for every act of disobedience; and the unruly lad Antyllus,
+who has forced his way the last few evenings into our friend's house."
+
+"Antony, his own father, introduced him to her."
+
+"Very true, and Antyllus took Cæsarion there. This vexed Iras, like
+everything which may disturb the Queen. Barine is troublesome on account
+of Cleopatra, whom she wishes to spare every annoyance, and perhaps she
+dislikes her a little for my sake. Now she wants to inflict on the old
+man, Barine's grandfather, whom she loves, some injury which the
+spoiled, imprudent woman will scarcely accept quietly, and which will
+rouse her to commit some folly that can be used against her. Iras will
+hardly seek her life, but she may have in mind exile or something of
+that kind. She knows people as well as I know her, my neighbour and
+playmate, whom many a time I was obliged to lift down from some tree
+into which the child had climbed as nimbly as a kitten."
+
+"I myself suggested this conjecture, yet I cannot credit her with such
+unworthy intrigues," cried Gorgias.
+
+"Credit her?" repeated Dion, shrugging his shoulders. "I only transport
+myself in imagination to the court and to the soul of the woman who
+helps make rain and sunshine there. You have columns rounded and beams
+hewed that they may afterwards support the roof to which in due time you
+wish to direct attention. She and all who have a voice in the management
+of court affairs look first at the roof and then seek anything to raise
+and support it, though it should be corpses, ruined lives, and broken
+hearts. The point is that the roof shall stand until the architect, the
+Queen, sees and approves it. As to the rest---- But there is the
+carriage---- It doubtless brings---- You were----"
+
+He paused, laid his hand on his friend's arm, and whispered hastily:
+"Iras is undoubtedly at the bottom of this, and it is not Antyllus, but
+yonder dreaming lad, for whom she is moving. When she spoke of the
+statues just now, she asked in the same breath where I had seen him on
+the evening of the day before yesterday, and that was the very time he
+called on Barine. The plot was made by her, and Iras is doing all the
+work. The mouse is not caught while the trap is closed, and she is just
+raising her little hand to open it."
+
+"If only she does not use some man's hand," replied the architect
+wrathfully, and then turned towards the carriage and the elderly man who
+had just left it, and was now approaching the two friends.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+When Cæsarion's companion reached Dion and Gorgias, the former modestly
+made a movement to retire. But Archibius was acquainted with both, and
+begged him to remain. There was an air of precision and clearness in the
+voice and quiet movements of this big, broad-shouldered man, with his
+robust frame and well-developed limbs. Though only a few years beyond
+forty, not merely his grey hair but the calm, impressive dignity of his
+whole manner indicated a more advanced age.
+
+"The young King yonder," he began in a deep, musical voice, motioning
+towards the equipage, "wished to speak to you here in person, Gorgias,
+but by my advice he refrained from mingling with the crowd. I have
+brought him hither in a closed carriage. If the plan suits you, enter it
+and talk with him while I keep watch here. Strange things seem to be
+occurring, and yonder--or am I mistaken? Has the monster dragged along
+there any connection with the twin statues of the Queen and her friend?
+Was it you who selected that place for them?"
+
+"No," replied the architect. "The order was issued over my head and
+against my will."
+
+"I thought so," replied the other. "This is the very matter of which
+Cæsarion wishes to speak. If you can prevent the erection of the
+statues on Didymus's land, so much the better. I will do everything in
+my power to aid you, but in the Queen's absence that is little."
+
+"Then what can be said of _my_ influence?" asked the architect. "Who, in
+these days, knows whether the sky will be blue or grey to-morrow? I can
+guarantee one thing only: I will do my best to prevent this injury of an
+estimable citizen, interference with the laws of our city, and violation
+of good taste."
+
+"Say so to the young King, but express yourself cautiously," replied
+Archibius as the architect turned towards the carriage.
+
+As soon as Dion and the older man were alone, the latter inquired the
+cause of the increasing uproar, and as, like every well-disposed
+Alexandrian, he esteemed Archibius, and knew that he was intimately
+acquainted with the owner of the imperilled garden, and therefore with
+his granddaughter Barine, he confided his anxiety to him without
+reserve.
+
+"Iras is your niece, it is true," he said in his open-hearted manner,
+"but I know that you understand her character. It suits her now to fling
+a golden apple into the path of a person whom she dislikes and believes
+incautious, that she may pick it up and thus afford her an opportunity
+to bring a charge of theft."
+
+Noting the inquiring glance Archibius fixed upon him as he made this
+comparison, he changed his tone and continued more earnestly: "Zeus is
+great, but destiny is superior even to him. Zeus can accomplish much,
+but when Iras and your sister Charmian, who unfortunately is now with
+the Queen, wish to effect anything, he, like the Regent Mardion, must
+give way. The more lovable Cleopatra is, the more surely every one
+prizes a position near her person above aught else, especially such
+trifles as law and justice."
+
+"These are harsh words," responded Archibius, "and seem the more bitter
+in proportion to the germ of truth which they contain. Our court shares
+the fate of every other in the East, and those to whom Rome formerly set
+the example of holding law and justice sacred----"
+
+"Can now go there," interrupted Dion, "to learn how rudely both are
+trampled under foot. The sovereigns here and there may smile at one
+another like the augurs. They are like brothers----"
+
+"But with the difference," Archibius broke in, "that the head of our
+public affairs is the very embodiment of affability and grace; while in
+Rome, on the contrary, harsh severity and bloody arrogance, or even
+repulsive servility, guide the reins."
+
+Here Archibius interrupted himself to point to the shouting throng
+advancing towards them. "You are right," Dion answered. "Let us defer
+this discussion till we can pursue it in the house of the charming
+Barine. But I rarely meet you there, though by blood you are so nearly
+allied to her father. I am her friend--at my age that might easily mean
+her lover. But in our case the comparison would not suit. Yet perhaps
+you will believe me, for you have the right to call yourself the friend
+of the most bewitching of women."
+
+A sorrowful smile flitted over the grave, set features of the older man,
+who, raising his hand as if in protest, answered carelessly: "I grew up
+with Cleopatra, but a private citizen loves a queen only as a divinity.
+I believe in your friendship for Barine, though I deem it dangerous."
+
+"If you mean that it might injure the lovely woman," replied Dion,
+raising his head more proudly as if to intimate that he required no
+warning, even from him, "perhaps you are right. Only I beg you not to
+misunderstand me. I am not vain enough to suppose that I could win her
+heart, but unfortunately there are many who cannot forgive the power of
+attraction which she exerts over me as well as upon all. So many men
+gladly visit Barine's house that there are an equal number of women who
+would rejoice to close it. Among them, of course, is Iras. She dislikes
+my friend; nay, I fear that what you witness yonder is the apple she
+flung in order, if not to ruin, at least to drive her from the city, ere
+the Queen--may the gods grant her victory!--ere Cleopatra returns. You
+know your niece Iras. Like your sister Charmian, she will shrink from
+nothing to remove an annoyance from her mistress's pathway, and it will
+hardly please Cleopatra when she learns that the two youths whose
+welfare lies nearest her heart--Antyllus and Cæsarion--seek Barine's
+house, no matter how stainless the latter's reputation may be."
+
+"I have just heard of it," replied Archibius, "and I, too, am anxious.
+Antony's son has inherited much of his father's insatiable love of
+pleasure. But Cæsarion! He has not yet ventured out of the dreamland
+which surrounds him into actual life. What others scarcely perceive
+deals him a serious blow. I fear Eros is sharpening arrows for him which
+will pierce deep into his heart. While talking with me he seemed
+strangely changed. His dreamy eyes glittered like a drunkard's when he
+spoke of Barine. I fear, I fear----"
+
+"Impossible!" cried Dion, in surprise, nay, almost terror. "If that is
+the case, Iras is not wholly wrong, and we must deal with the matter
+differently. But it is of the first importance to conceal the fact that
+Cæsarion has any interest in the affairs of the old house-owner. To
+seek to maintain the old man's right to his own property is a matter of
+course, and I will undertake to do this and try to get yonder orator
+home---- Just see how the braggart is swinging his arms in Iras's
+service! As for Barine, it will be well to induce her to leave of her
+own free will a city where it will be made unpleasant for her. Try to
+persuade her to pursue this course. If I went to her with such a
+suggestion, I, who yesterday---- No, no! Besides, she might hear that
+Iras and I---- She would imagine all sorts of absurdities. You know what
+jealousy means. To you, whom she esteems, she would surely listen, and
+she need not go far from the city. If the heart of this enthusiastic
+boy--who might some day desire to be 'King of kings' not only in
+name--should really be fired with love for Barine, what serious
+misfortune might follow! We must secure her from him. She could not go
+to my country house among the papyrus plantations at Sebennys. It would
+afford too much license for evil tongues. But you--your villa at Kanopus
+is too near--but, if I am not mistaken, you have----"
+
+"My estate in the lake region is remote enough, and will be at her
+disposal," interrupted the other. "The house is always kept ready for my
+reception. I will do my best to persuade her, for your advice is
+prudent. She must be withdrawn from the boy's eyes."
+
+"I shall learn the result of your mission tomorrow," cried Dion
+eagerly--"nay, this evening. If she consents, I will tell Iras, as if by
+accident, that Barine has gone to Upper Egypt to drink new milk, or
+something of that kind. Iras is a shrewd woman, and will be glad if she
+can keep aloof from such trifles during the time which will decide the
+fate of Cleopatra and of the world."
+
+"My thoughts, too, are always with the army," said Archibius. "How
+trivial everything else seems compared with the result which will be
+determined in the next few days! But life is made up of trifles. They
+are food, drink, maintenance. Should the Queen return triumphant, and
+find Cæsarion in wrong paths----"
+
+"We must close them against him," exclaimed Dion.
+
+"That the boy may not follow Barine?" asked Archibius, shaking his head.
+"I think we need feel no anxiety on that score. He will doubtless
+eagerly desire to do so, but with him there is a wide gulf between the
+wish and its fulfilment. Antyllus is differently constituted. He would
+be quite capable of ordering a horse to be saddled, or the sails of a
+boat to be spread in order to pursue her--beyond the Cataract if
+necessary. So we must maintain the utmost secrecy concerning the place
+to which Barine voluntarily exiles herself."
+
+"But she is not yet on her way," replied Dion with a faint sigh. "She is
+bound to this city by many ties."
+
+"I know it," answered Archibius, confirming his companion's fear. The
+latter, pointing to the equipage, said in a rapid, earnest tone:
+"Gorgias is beckoning. But, before we part, let me beseech you to do
+everything to persuade Barine to leave here. She is in serious danger.
+Conceal nothing from her, and say that her friends will not leave her
+too long in solitude."
+
+Archibius, with a significant glance, shook his finger at the young man
+in playful menace, and then went up to the carriage.
+
+Cæsarion's clear-cut but pallid face, whose every feature resembled
+that of his father, the great Cæsar, bent towards them from the opening
+above the door, as he greeted both with a formal bend of the head and a
+patronizing glance. His eyes had sparkled with boyish glee when he first
+caught sight of the friend from whom he had been separated several
+weeks, but to the stranger he wished to assume the bearing which
+beseemed a king. He desired to make him feel his superior position, for
+he was ill-disposed towards him. He had seen him favoured by the woman
+whom he imagined he loved, and whose possession he had been promised by
+the secret science of the Egyptians, whose power to unveil the mysteries
+of the future he firmly believed. Antyllus, Antony's son, had taken him
+to Barine, and she had received him with the consideration due his rank.
+Spite of her bright graciousness, boyish timidity had hitherto prevented
+any word of love to the young beauty whom he saw surrounded by so many
+distinguished men of mature years. Yet his beaming, expressive eyes must
+have revealed his feelings to her. Doubtless his glances had not been
+unobserved, for only a few hours before an Egyptian woman had stopped
+him at the temple of his father, Cæsar, to which, according to the
+fixed rules governing the routine of his life, he went daily at a
+certain hour to pray, to offer sacrifices, to anoint the stone of the
+altar, or to crown the statue of the departed emperor.
+
+Cæsarion had instantly recognized her as the female slave whom he had
+seen in Barine's atrium, and ordered his train to fall back.
+
+Fortunately his tutor, Rhodon, had not fulfilled his duty of
+accompanying him. So the youth had ventured to follow the slave woman,
+and in the shadow of the mimosas, in the little grove beside the temple,
+he found Barine's litter. His heart throbbed violently as, full of
+anxious expectation, he obeyed her signal to draw nearer. Still, she had
+granted him nothing save the favour of gratifying one of her wishes. But
+his heart had swelled almost to bursting when, resting her beautiful
+white arm on the door of her litter, she had told him that unjust men
+were striving to rob her grandfather Didymus of his garden, and she
+expected him, who bore the title of the "King of kings" to do his best
+to prevent such a crime.
+
+It had been difficult for him to grasp her meaning while she was
+speaking. There was a roaring sound in his ears as if, instead of being
+in the silent temple grove, he was standing on a stormy day upon the
+surf-beaten promontory of Lochias. He had not ventured to raise his eyes
+and look into her face. Not until she closed with the question whether
+she might hope for his assistance did her gaze constrain him to glance
+up. Ah, what had he not fancied he read in her imploring blue eyes! how
+unspeakably beautiful she had appeared!
+
+He had stood before her as if bereft of his senses. His sole knowledge
+was that he had promised, with his hand on his heart, to do everything
+in his power to prevent what threatened to cause her pain. Then her
+little hand, with its sparkling rings, was again stretched towards him,
+and he had resolved to kiss it; but while he glanced around at his
+train, she had already waved him a farewell, and the litter was borne
+away.
+
+He stood motionless, like the figure of a man on one of his mother's
+ancient vases, staring in bewilderment after the flying figure of
+Happiness, whom he might easily have caught by her floating locks. How
+he raged over the miserable indecision which had defrauded him of so
+much joy! Yet nothing was really lost. If he succeeded in fulfilling her
+wishes, she could not fail to be grateful; and then----
+
+He pondered over the person to whom he should apply--Mardion, the
+Regent, or the Keeper of the Seal? No, they had planned the erection of
+the group of sculpture in the philosopher's garden. To Iras, his
+mother's confidante? Nay, last of all to her. The cunning woman would
+have perceived his purpose and betrayed it to the Regent. Ah, if
+Charmian, his mother's other attendant, had been present! but she was
+with the fleet, which perhaps was even now engaged in battle with the
+enemy.
+
+At this recollection his eyes again sought the ground--he had not been
+permitted to take the place in the army to which his birth entitled him,
+while his mother and Charmian---- But he did not pursue this painful
+current of thought; for a serious reproach had forced itself upon him
+and sent the blood to his cheeks. He wished to be considered a man, and
+yet, in these fateful days, which would determine the destiny of his
+mother, his native city, Egypt, and that Rome which he, the only son of
+Cæsar, was taught to consider his heritage, he was visiting a beautiful
+woman, thinking of her, and of her alone. His days and half the nights
+were passed in forming plans for securing her love, forgetful of what
+should have occupied his whole heart.
+
+Only yesterday Iras had sharply admonished him that, in times like
+these, it was the duty of every friend of Cleopatra, and every foe of
+her foes, to be with the army at least in mind.
+
+He had remembered this, but, instead of heeding the warning, the thought
+of her had merely recalled her uncle, Archibius, who possessed great
+influence, not merely on account of his wealth but because every one
+also knew his high standing in the regard of the Queen. Besides, the
+clever, kindly man had always been friendly to him from childhood, and
+like a revelation came the idea of applying to him, and to the architect
+Gorgias, who had a voice in the matter, and by whom he had been strongly
+attracted during the period while he was rebuilding the wing assigned to
+the prince in the palace at Lochias.
+
+So one of the attendants was instantly despatched with the little tablet
+which invited Gorgias to the interview at the Temple of Isis.
+
+Then, in the afternoon, Cæsarion went secretly in a boat to the little
+palace of Archibius, situated on the seashore at Kanopus, and now as the
+latter, with his friend, stood beside the carriage door, he explained to
+them that he was going with the architect to old Didymus to assure him
+of his assistance.
+
+This was unadvisable in every respect, but it required all the weight of
+the older man's reasons to induce the prince to yield. The consequences
+which might ensue, should the populace discover that he was taking sides
+against the Regent, would be incalculable. But submission and withdrawal
+were especially difficult to the young "King of kings." He longed to
+pose as a man in Dion's presence, and as this could not be, he strove to
+maintain the semblance of independence by yielding his resolve only on
+the plea of not desiring to injure the aged scholar and his
+granddaughter. Finally, he again entreated the architect to secure
+Didymus in the possession of his property. When at last he drove away
+with Archibius, twilight was already gathering, torches were lighted in
+front of the temple and the little mausoleum adjoining the cella, and
+pitch-pans were blazing in the square.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+"The lad is in an evil plight," said Gorgias, shaking his head
+thoughtfully as the equipage rolled over the stone pavement of the
+Street of the King.
+
+"And over yonder," added Dion, "the prospect is equally unpleasing.
+Philostratus is setting the people crazy. But the hired mischief-maker
+will soon wish he had been less ready to seize Iras's gold coins."
+
+"And to think," cried the architect, "that Barine was this scoundrel's
+wife! How could it be----"
+
+"She was but a child when they married her," interrupted Dion. "Who
+consults a girl of fifteen in the choice of a husband? And
+Philostratus--he was my classmate at Rhodus--at that time had the
+fairest prospects. His brother Alexas, Antony's favourite, could easily
+advance him. Barine's father was dead, her mother was accustomed to
+follow Didymus's counsel, and the clever fellow had managed to strew
+dust in the old man's eyes. Long and lank as he is, he is not
+bad-looking even now. When he appeared as an orator he pleased his
+hearers. This turned his head, and a spendthrift's blood runs in his
+veins. To bring his fair young bride to a stately mansion, he undertook
+the bad cause of the thievish tax-collector Pyrrhus, and cleared him."
+
+"He bought a dozen false witnesses."
+
+"There were sixteen. Afterwards they became as numerous as the open
+mouths you see shouting yonder. It is time to silence them. Go to the
+old man's house and soothe him--Barine also, if she is there. If you
+find messengers from the Regent, raise objections to the unprecedented
+decree. You know the portions of the law which can be turned to
+Didymus's advantage."
+
+"Since the reign of Euergetes II, registered landed property has been
+unassailable, and his was recorded."
+
+"So much the better. Tell the officials also, confidentially, that you
+know of objections just discovered which may perhaps change the Regent's
+views."
+
+"And, above all, I shall insist upon my right to choose the place for
+the twin statues. The Queen herself directed the others to heed my
+opinion."
+
+"That will cast the heaviest weight into the scale. We shall meet later.
+You will prefer to keep away from Barine to-night. If you see her, tell
+her that Archibius said he would visit her later--for an object I will
+explain afterwards. I shall probably go to Iras to bring her to reason.
+It will be better not to mention Cæsarion's wish."
+
+"Certainly--and you will give nothing to yonder brawler."
+
+"On the contrary. I feel very generous. If Peitho will aid me, the
+insatiate fellow will get more than may be agreeable to him."
+
+Then grasping the architect's hand, Dion forced his way through the
+throng surrounding the high platform on wheels, upon which the closely
+covered piece of sculpture had been rolled up. The gate of the scholar's
+house stood open, for an officer in the Regent's service had really
+entered a short time before, but the Scythian guards sent by the
+exegetus Demetrius, one of Barine's friends, were keeping back the
+throng of curious spectators.
+
+Their commander knew Gorgias, and he was soon standing in the impluvium
+of the scholar's house, an oblong, roofless space, with a fountain in
+the centre, whose spray moistened the circular bed of flowers around it.
+The old slave had just lighted some three-branched lamps which burned on
+tall stands. The officers sent by the Regent to inform Didymus that his
+garden would be converted into a public square had just arrived.
+
+When Gorgias entered, these magistrates, their clerks, and the witnesses
+accompanying them--a group of twenty men, at whose head was Apollonius,
+a distinguished officer of the royal treasury--were in the house. The
+slave who admitted the architect informed him of it.
+
+In the atrium a young girl, doubtless a member of the household, stopped
+him. He was not mistaken in supposing that she was Helena, Didymus's
+younger granddaughter, of whom Barine had spoken. True, she resembled
+her sister neither in face nor figure, for while the young matron's hair
+was fair and waving, the young girl's thick black tresses were wound
+around her head in a smooth braid. Very unlike Barine's voice, too, were
+the deep, earnest tones trembling with emotion, in which she confronted
+him with the brief question, concealing a faint reproach, "Another
+demand?"
+
+After first ascertaining that he was really speaking to Helena, his
+friend's sister, he hastily told her his name, adding that, on the
+contrary, he had come to protect her grandfather from a serious
+misfortune.
+
+When his glance first rested upon her in the dimly lighted room, the
+impression she made upon him was by no means favourable. The pure brow,
+which seemed to him too high for a woman's face, wore an indignant
+frown; and though her mouth was beautiful in form, its outlines were
+often marred by a passionate tremor that lent the exquisitely chiselled
+features a harsh, nay, bitter expression. But she had scarcely heard the
+motive of his presence ere, pressing her hand upon her bosom with a sigh
+of relief, she eagerly exclaimed:
+
+"Oh, do what you can to avert this terrible deed! No one knows how the
+old man loves this house. And my grandmother! They will die if it is
+taken from them."
+
+Her large eyes rested upon him with a warm, imploring light; and the
+stern, almost repellent voice thrilled with love for her relatives. He
+must lend his aid here, and how gladly he would do so! He assured her of
+this; and Helena, who had heard him mentioned as a man of ability, saw
+in him a helper in need, and begged him, with touching fervour, to show
+her grandfather, when he came before the officers, that all was not
+lost.
+
+The astonished architect asked if Didymus did not know what was
+impending, and Helena hastily replied:
+
+"He is working in the summer-house by the sea. Apollonius is a
+kind-hearted man, and will wait until I have prepared my grandfather. I
+must go to him. He has already sent Philotas--his pupil, who finds and
+unrolls his books--a dozen times to inquire the cause of the tumult
+outside; but I replied that the crowds were flocking to the harbour on
+account of the Queen. There is often a mob shouting madly; but nothing
+disturbs my grandfather when he is absorbed in his work; and his
+pupil--a young student from Amphissa--loves him and does what I bid him.
+My grandmother, too, knows nothing yet. She is deaf, and the female
+slaves dare not tell her. After her recent attack of giddiness, the
+doctor said that any sudden shock might injure her. If only I can find
+the right words, that my grandfather may not be too sorely hurt!"
+
+"Shall I accompany you?" asked Gorgias kindly.
+
+"No," she answered hurriedly. "He needs time ere he will trust
+strangers. Only, if Apollonius discloses the terrible truth, and his
+grief threatens to overpower him, comfort him, and show him that we
+still have friends who are ready to protect us from such disaster."
+
+She waved her hand in token of gratitude, and hurried through the little
+side gate into the garden.
+
+Gorgias looked after her with sparkling eyes, and drew a long breath.
+How good this girl must be, how wisely she cared for her relatives! How
+energetically the young creature behaved! He had seen his new
+acquaintance only in the dim light, but she must be beautiful. Her eyes,
+lips, and hair certainly were. How his heart throbbed as he asked
+himself the question whether this young girl, who was endowed with every
+gift which constituted the true worth of womanhood, was not preferable
+to her more attractive sister Barine!--when the thought darted through
+his mind that he had cause to be grateful to the beard which covered his
+chin and cheeks, for he felt that he, a sedate, mature man, must have
+blushed. And he knew why. Only half an hour before he had felt and
+admitted to Dion that he considered Barine the most desirable of women,
+and now another's image cast a deep shadow over hers and filled his
+heart with new, perhaps stronger emotions.
+
+He had had similar experiences only too often, and his friends, Dion at
+their head, had perceived his weakness and spoiled many an hour for him
+by their biting jests. The series of tall and short, fair and dark
+beauties who had fired his fancy was indeed of considerable length, and
+every one on whom he had bestowed his quickly kindled affections had
+seemed to him the one woman he must make his own, if he would be a happy
+man. But ere he had reached the point of offering his hand, the question
+had arisen in his mind whether he might not love another still more
+ardently. So he had begun to persuade himself that his heart yearned for
+no individual, but the whole sex--at least the portion which was young
+and could feel love--and therefore he would scarcely be wise to bind
+himself to any one. True, he knew that he was capable of fidelity, for
+he clung to his friends with changeless loyalty, and was ready to make
+any sacrifice in their behalf. With women, however, he dealt
+differently. Was Helena's image, which now floated before him so
+bewitchingly, destined to fade as swiftly? The contrary would have been
+remarkable. Yet he firmly believed that this time Eros meant honestly by
+him. The laughing loves who twined their rose garlands around him and
+Helena's predecessors had nothing to do with this grave maiden.
+
+These reflections darted through his brain with the speed of lightning,
+and still stirred his heart when he was ushered into the impluvium,
+where the magistrates were impatiently awaiting the owner of the house.
+With the lucidity peculiar to him, he explained his reasons for hoping
+that their errand would be vain, and Apollonius replied that no one
+would rejoice more than he himself if the Regent should authorize him,
+on the morrow, to countermand his mission. He would gladly wait there
+longer to afford the old man's granddaughter an opportunity to soften
+the tidings of the impending misfortune.
+
+The kind-hearted man's patience, however, was not tested too long; for
+when Helena entered the summer-house Didymus had already been informed
+of the disaster which threatened him and his family. The philosopher
+Euphranor, an elderly member of the Museum, had reached him through the
+garden gate, and, spite of Philotas's warning sign, told him what was
+occurring. But Didymus knew the old philosopher, who, a recluse from the
+world like himself, was devoting the remainder of his life and strength
+to the pursuit of science. So he only shook his head incredulously,
+pushed back the thin locks of grey hair which hung down on his cheeks
+over the barest part of his skull, and exclaimed reproachfully, though
+as if the matter under discussion was of the most trivial importance:
+"What have you been hearing? We'll see about it!"
+
+He had risen as he spoke, and too abruptly surprised by the news to
+remember the sandals on the mat and the upper robe which lay on a chest
+of drawers at the end of the room, he was in the act of quitting it,
+when his friend, who had silently watched his movements, stopped him,
+and Helena entered.
+
+The grey-haired sage turned to her, and, vexed by his friend's doubts,
+begged her to convince her grandfather that even matters which do not
+please us may nevertheless be of some importance. She did so as
+considerately as possible, thinking meanwhile of the architect and his
+hopes.
+
+Didymus, with his eyes bent on the ground, shook his grey head again and
+again. Then, suddenly raising it, he rushed to the door, and without
+heeding the upper garment which Helena still held in her hand, tore it
+open, shouting, "But things must and shall be changed!"
+
+Euphranor and his granddaughter followed. Though his head was bowed, he
+crossed the little garden with a swift, firm tread, and, without
+noticing the questions and warnings of his companions, walked at once to
+the impluvium. The bright light dazzled his weakened eyes, and his habit
+of gazing into vacancy or on the ground compelled him to glance from
+side to side for some time, ere he could accustom himself to it.
+Apollonius approached, greeted him respectfully, and assured him that he
+deeply regretted having interrupted him in the work for which the whole
+world was waiting, but he had come on important business.
+
+"I know, I know," the old scholar answered with a smile of superiority.
+"What is all this ado about?"
+
+As he spoke he looked around the group of spectators, among whom he knew
+no one except Apollonius, who had charge of the museum accounts, and the
+architect, for whom he had composed the inscription on the Odeum, which
+he had recently built. But when his eyes met only unfamiliar faces, the
+confidence which hitherto had sustained him began to waver, though still
+convinced that a demand such as the philosopher suggested could not
+possibly be made upon him, he continued: "It is stated that there is a
+plan for turning my garden into a public square. And for what purpose?
+To erect a piece of sculpture. But there can be nothing serious in the
+rumour, for my property is recorded in the land register, and the
+law----"
+
+"Pardon me," Apollonius broke in, "if I interrupt you. We know the
+ordinance to which you refer, but this case is an exceptional one. The
+Regent desires to take nothing from you. On the contrary, he offers, in
+the name of the Queen, any compensation you yourself may fix for the
+piece of land which is to be honoured by the statues of the highest
+personages in the country--Cleopatra and Antony, hand in hand. The piece
+of sculpture has already been brought here. A work by the admirable
+artist Lysander, who passed too early to the nether world, certainly
+will not disfigure your house. The little summer-house by the sea must
+be removed to-morrow, it is true; you know that our gracious Queen may
+return any day--victorious if the immortals are just. This piece of
+sculpture, which is created in her honour, to afford her pleasure, must
+greet her on her arrival, so the Regent send me to-day to communicate
+his wish, which, as he represents the Queen----"
+
+"Yet," interrupted the architect, who had again warmly assured the old
+man's granddaughter of his aid--"yet your friends will endeavour to
+persuade the Regent to find another place for the statues."
+
+"They are at liberty to do so," said the officer. "What will happen
+later the future will show. My office merely requires me to induce the
+worthy owner of this house and garden to submit to-day to the Queen's
+command, which the Regent and my own heart bid me clothe in the form of
+a request."
+
+During this conversation the old man had at first listened silently to
+the magistrate's words, gazing intently into his face. So it was true.
+The demand to yield up his garden, and even the little house, for fifty
+years the scene of his study and creative work, for the sake of a
+statue, would be made. Since this had become a certainty, he had stood
+with his eyes fixed upon the ground. Grief had paralyzed his tongue, and
+Helena, who felt this, for the aged head seemed as if it were bending
+under a heavy burden, had drawn close to his side.
+
+The shouts and howls of the throng outside echoed through the open roof
+of the impluvium, but the old man did not seem to hear them, and did not
+even notice his granddaughter. Yet, no sooner did he feel her touch than
+he hurriedly shrank away, flung back his drooping head, and gazed around
+the circle of intruders.
+
+The dull, questioning eyes of the old commentator and writer of many
+books now blazed with the hot fire of youthful passion and, like a
+wrestler who seeks the right grip, he measured Apollonius and his
+companions with wrathful glances. The fragile recluse seemed transformed
+into a warrior ready for battle. His lips and the nostrils of his
+delicate nose quivered, and when Apollonius began to say that it would
+be wise to remove the contents of the summer-house that day, as it would
+be torn down early the next morning, Didymus raised his arms,
+exclaiming:
+
+"That will not be done. Not a single roll shall be removed! They will
+find me at work as usual early to-morrow morning, and if it is still
+your wish to rob me of my property you must use violence to attain your
+purpose."
+
+"Calm yourself," replied Apollonius. "Every one beneath the moon must
+submit to a higher power; the gods bow to destiny, we mortals to the
+sovereign. You are a sage; I, merely mindful of the behests of duty,
+administer my office. But I know life, and if I may offer my counsel,
+you will accept what cannot be averted, and I will wager ten to one that
+you will have the best of it; that the Queen will place in your hands
+means----"
+
+"Sufficient to build a palace on the site of the little house of which I
+was robbed," Didymus interrupted bitterly. Then rage burst forth afresh
+"What do I care for your money? I want my rights, my good, guaranteed
+rights. I insist upon them, and whoever assails the ground which my
+grandfather and father bequeathed to me----"
+
+He hesitated, for the throng outside had burst into a loud shout of joy;
+and when it died away, and the old man began once more defiantly to
+claim his rights, he was interrupted by a woman's clear tones,
+addressing him with the Greek greeting, "Rejoice!"--a voice so gay and
+musical that it seemed to dispel the depression which rested like a grey
+fog on the whole company.
+
+While Didymus was listening to the excited populace, and the new-comer
+was gazing at the old man whose rigid obstinacy could scarcely be
+conquered by kindness, the younger men were looking at the beautiful
+woman who joined them. Her haste had flushed her cheeks, and from
+beneath the turquoise-blue kerchief that covered her fair locks a
+bewitching face smiled at her sister, the architect, and her
+grandfather.
+
+Apollonius and many of his companions felt as if happiness in person had
+entered this imperilled house, and many an eye brightened when the
+infuriated old man exclaimed in an altered tone, "You here, Barine?" and
+she, without heeding the presence of the others, kissed his cheek with
+tender affection.
+
+Helena, Gorgias, and the old philosopher Euphranor, had approached her,
+and when the latter asked with loving reproach, "Why, Barine, how did
+you get through the howling mob?" she answered gaily: "That a learned
+member of the Museum may receive me with the query whether I am here,
+though from childhood a kind or--what do you think, grandfather?--a
+malign fate has preserved me from being overlooked, and some one else
+reprovingly asks how I passed through the shouting mob, as if it were a
+crime to wade into the water to hold out a helping hand to those we love
+best when it is up to their chins! But, oh! dear, this howling is too
+hideous!"
+
+While speaking, she pressed her little hands on the part of the kerchief
+which concealed her ears, and said no more until the noise subsided,
+although she declared that she was in a hurry, and had only come to
+learn how matters were. Meanwhile it seemed as if she was so full of
+quick, pulsing life, that it was impossible to leave even a moment
+unused, if it were merely to bestow or answer a friendly glance.
+
+The architect and her sister were obliged to return hurried answers to
+hasty questions; and as soon as she ascertained what had brought the
+strangers there she thanked Apollonius, and said that old friends would
+do their best to spare her grandfather such a sorrow.
+
+In reply to repeated inquiries from the two old men in regard to her
+arrival there, she answered: "Nobody will believe it, because in this
+hurry I could not keep my mouth shut; but I acted like a mute fish and
+reached the water." Then, drawing her grandfather aside, she whispered
+to him that, when she left her boat at the harbour, Archibius had seen
+her from his carriage, and instantly stopped it to inform her of his
+intended visit that evening. He was coming to discuss an important
+matter. Therefore she must receive the worthy man, whom she sincerely
+liked, so she could not stay. Then turning to the others--still with her
+kerchief on her head ready for departure--she asked what the people
+meant by their outcries. The architect replied that Philostratus had
+endeavoured to make the crowd believe that the only appropriate site for
+the statues of which she had heard was her grandfather's garden, and he
+thought he knew in whose behalf the fellow was acting.
+
+"Certainly not in the Regent's," said Apollonius, in a tone of sincere
+conviction; but Barine, over whose sunny brow a shadow had flitted when
+Gorgias uttered the orator's name, assented with a slight bend of the
+head, and then whispered hurriedly, yet earnestly, that she would answer
+for the old man's allowing himself to be persuaded, if he had only time
+to collect his thoughts.
+
+The next morning, when the market was crowded, the officer might
+commence his negotiations afresh, if the Regent insisted on his plan.
+Meanwhile she would do her best to persuade her grandfather to yield,
+though he was not exactly one of the class who are easily guided.
+Apollonius might remind the Regent that it would be advisable at this
+time to avoid a public scandal, to remember Didymus's age, and the
+validity of his claim.
+
+While Apollonius was talking with his companions, Barine beckoned to the
+architect, and hastily took leave of the others, protesting that she was
+in no danger, since she would slip away again like a fish, only this
+time she would use her tongue, and hoped by its means to win to the
+support of Didymus's just cause a man who would already have ended all
+the trouble had the Queen only been in Alexandria.
+
+Until now the eyes and ears of the whole company had been fixed upon
+Barine. No one had desired anything better than to gaze at and listen to
+her.
+
+Not until she had quitted the room with Gorgias did the officials
+discuss the matter together, and soon after Apollonius went away with
+his companions, to hold another conference with the Regent about this
+unpleasant business. This time the architect had followed the young
+beauty with very mingled feelings. Only an hour before he would have
+rejoiced to be permitted to accompany and protect Barine; now he would
+have gladly remained with her sister, who had returned his farewell
+greeting so gratefully and yet with such maidenly modesty. But even the
+most vacillating man cannot change one fancy for another as he would
+replace a black piece on the draughtboard with a white one, and he still
+found it delightful to be so near Barine. Only the thought that Helena
+might believe that he stood on very intimate terms with her sister had
+darted with a disquieting influence through his brain when the latter
+invited him to accompany her.
+
+In the garden Barine begged him, before they went to the landing-place
+where the boat was moored, to help her ascend the narrow flight of steps
+leading to the flat roof of the gatekeeper's little house.
+
+Here they could watch unseen the tumult in the square below, for it was
+surrounded by dense laurel bushes. Bright flames were blazing in the
+pitch-pans before the two temples at the side of the Corner of the
+Muses, and their light was increased by the torches held in the hands of
+Scythians. Yet no individuals could be distinguished in the throng. The
+marble walls of the temples shimmered, the statues at Didymus's gate,
+and the hermæ along the street of the King which passed the threatened
+house and connected the north of the Corner of the Muses with the
+sea-shore, loomed from the darkness in the brilliancy of the reflected
+light, but the smoke of the torches darkened the sky and dimmed the
+starlight.
+
+The only persons distinctly visible were Dion, who had stationed himself
+on the lofty framework of the platform on which the muffled statues had
+been drawn hither, and the attorney Philostratus, who stood on the
+pedestal of one of the dolphins which surrounded the fountain between
+the Temple of Isis and the street. The space, a dozen paces wide, which
+divided them, permitted the antagonists to understand each other, and
+the attention of the whole throng was fixed upon the wranglers.
+
+These verbal battles were one of the greatest pleasures of the
+Alexandrians, and they greeted every clever turn of speech with shouts
+of applause, every word which displeased them with groans, hisses, and
+cat-calls.
+
+Barine could see and hear what was passing below. She had pushed aside
+the foliage of the laurel bushes which concealed her, and, with her hand
+raised to her ear, stood listening to the two disputants. When the
+scoundrel whom she had called husband, and for whom her contempt had
+become too deep for hate, sneeringly assailed her family as having been
+fed from generation to generation from the corn-bin of the Museum, she
+bit her lips. But they soon curled, as if what she heard aroused her
+disgust, for the speaker now turned to Dion and accused him of
+preventing the kindly disposed Regent from increasing the renown of the
+great Queen and affording her noble heart a pleasure.
+
+"My tongue," he cried, "is the tool which supports me. Why am I using it
+here till it is weary and almost paralyzed? In honour of Cleopatra, our
+illustrious Queen, and her generous friend, to whom we all owe a debt of
+gratitude. Let all who love her and the divine Antony, the new Herakles
+and Dionysus--both will soon make their entry among us crowned with the
+laurels of victory--join the Regent and every well-disposed person in
+seizing yonder bit of land so meanly withheld by base avarice and a
+sentiment--a sentiment, do you hear?--which I do not name more plainly,
+simply because wickedness is repulsive to me, and I do not stand here as
+an accuser. Whoever upholds the word-monger who spouts forth books as
+the dolphin at my side does water, may do so. I shall not envy him. But
+first look at Didymus's ally and panegyrist. There he stands opposite to
+me. It would have been better for him had the dolphin at his feet taught
+him silence. Then he might have remained in the obscurity which befits
+him. But whether willing or not, I must drag him forth, and I will show
+you Dion, fellow-citizens, though I would far rather have you see things
+which arouse less ire. The dim light prevents your distinguishing the
+colour of his robe, but I know it, for I saw it in the glare of day. It
+is hyacinthine purple. You know what that costs. It would support the
+wives and children of many among you for ten long years. 'How heavy must
+be the purse which can expose such a treasure to sun and rain!' is the
+thought of every one who sees him strutting about as proudly as a
+peacock. And his purse _is_ loaded with many talents. Only it is a pity
+that, day after day, most of you must give your children a little less
+bread and deprive yourselves of many a draught of wine to deck him out
+so bravely. His father, Eumenes, was a tax-collector, and what the leech
+extorted from you and your children, the son now uses to drive, clad in
+hyacinthine purple, a four-horse chariot, which splashes the mire from
+the street into your faces as it rolls onward. By the dog! the gentleman
+does not weigh so very much, yet he needs four horses to drag him. And,
+fellow-citizens, do you know why? I'll tell you. He's afraid of sticking
+fast everywhere, even in his speech."
+
+Here Philostratus lowered his voice, for the phrase "sticking fast" had
+drawn a laugh from some of his hearers; but Dion, whose father had
+really amassed, in the high position of a receiver of taxes, the
+handsome fortune which his son possessed, did not delay his reply.
+
+"Yes, yes," he retorted scornfully, "yonder Syrian babbler hit the mark
+this time. He stands before me, and who does not easily stick fast when
+marsh and mire are so near? As for the hyacinthine purple cloak, I wear
+it because I like it. His crocus-yellow one is less to my taste, though
+he certainly looks fine enough in it in the sunlight. It shines like a
+buttercup in the grass. You know the plant. When it fades--and I ask
+whether you think Philostratus looks like a bud--when it fades, it
+leaves a hollow spiral ball which a child's breath could blow away.
+Suppose in future we should call the round buttercup seed-vessels
+'Philostratus heads'? You like the suggestion? I am glad,
+fellow-citizens, and I thank you. It proves your good taste. Then we
+will stick to the comparison. Every head contains a tongue, and
+Philostratus says that his is the tool which supports him."
+
+"Hear the money-bag, the despiser of the people!" interrupted
+Philostratus furiously. "The honest toil by which a citizen earns a
+livelihood is a disgrace in his eyes."
+
+"_Honest_ toil, my good friend," replied Dion, "is scarcely in question
+here. I spoke only of _your_ tongue.--You understand me,
+fellow-citizens. Or, if any of you are not yet acquainted with this
+worthy man, I will show him to you, for I know him well. He is my foe,
+yet I can sincerely recommend him to many of you. If any one has a very
+bad, shamefully corrupt cause to bring before the courts, I most
+earnestly counsel him to apply to the buttercup man perched on yonder
+fountain. He will thank me for it. Believe me, Didymus's cause is just,
+precisely because this advocate so eagerly assails it. I told you just
+now the matter under discussion. Which of you who owns a garden can say
+in future, 'It is mine,' if, during the absence of the Queen, it is
+allowable to take it away to be used for any other purpose? But this is
+what threatens Didymus. If this is to be the custom here, let every one
+beware of sowing a radish or planting a bush or a tree, for should the
+wife of some great noble desire to dry her linen there, he may be
+deprived of it ere the former can ripen or the latter give shade."
+
+Loud applause followed this sentence, but Philostratus shouted in a
+voice that echoed far and wide: "Hear me, fellow-citizens; do not allow
+your selves to be deceived! No one is to be robbed here. The project is
+to purchase, at a high price, the spot which the city needs for her
+adornment, and to honour and please the Queen. Are the Regent and the
+citizens to lose this opportunity of expressing the gratitude of years,
+and the rejoicing over the greatest of victories, of which we shall soon
+hear, because an evil-disposed person--the word must be uttered--a foe
+to his country, opposes it?"
+
+"Now the mire is coming too near me," Dion angrily responded, "and I
+might really stick fast, as I was warned; for I do not envy the ready
+presence of mind of any person whose tongue would not falter when the
+basest slander scattered its venom over him. You all know,
+fellow-citizens, through how many generations the Didymus family has
+lived to the honour of this city, doing praiseworthy work in yonder
+house. You know that the good old man who dwells there was one of the
+teachers of the royal children."
+
+"And yet," cried Philostratus, "only the day before yesterday he walked
+arm in arm in the Paneum garden with Arius, the tutor of Octavianus, our
+own and our Queen's most hated foe. In my presence, and before I know
+not how many others, Didymus distinguished this Arius as his most
+beloved pupil."
+
+"To give you that title," retorted Dion, "would certainly fill any
+teacher with shame and anger, no matter how far you had surpassed him in
+wisdom and knowledge. Nay, had you been committed to the care of the
+herring dealers, instead of the rhetoricians, every honest man among
+them would disown you, for they sell only good wares for good money,
+while you give the poorest in exchange for glittering gold. This time
+you trample under foot the fair name of an honourable man. But I will
+not suffer it; and you hear, fellow-citizens, I now challenge this
+Syrian to prove that Didymus ever betrayed his native land, or I will
+brand him in your presence a base slanderer, an infamous, venal
+destroyer of character!"
+
+"An insult from such lips is easily borne," replied Philostratus in a
+tone of scornful superiority; but there was a pause ere he again turned
+to the listening throng, and with all the warmth he could throw into his
+voice continued: "What do I desire, then, fellow-citizens? What is the
+sole object of my words? I stand here with clean hands, impelled solely
+by the impulse of my heart, to plead for the Queen. In order to secure
+the only suitable site for the statues to be erected to Cleopatra's
+honour and fame, I enter into judgment with her foes, expose myself to
+the insult with which boastful insolence is permitted to vent its wrath
+upon me. But I am not dismayed, though, in pursuing this course, I am
+acting against the law of Nature; for the infamous man against whom I
+raise my voice was my teacher, too, and ere he turned from the path of
+right and virtue--under influences which I will not mention here--he
+numbered me also, in the presence of many witnesses, among his best
+pupils. I was certainly one of the most grateful--I chose his
+granddaughter--the truth must be spoken--for my wife. The
+possession----"
+
+"Possession!" interrupted Dion in a loud, excited tone. "The corpse cast
+ashore by the waves might as well boast possession of the sea!"
+
+The dim torchlight was sufficient to reveal Philostratus's pallor to the
+bystanders. For a moment the orator seemed to lose his self-control, but
+he quickly recovered himself, and shouted: "Fellow-citizens, dear
+friends! I was about to make you witnesses of the misery which a woman,
+whose wickedness is even greater than her beauty, brought upon an
+inexperienced----"
+
+But he went no further; for his hearers--many of whom knew the
+brilliant, generous Dion, and Barine, the fair singer at the last Adonis
+festival--gave the orator tokens of their indignation, which were all
+the more pitiless because of the pleasure they felt in seeing an expert
+vanquished by an untrained foe. The wordy war would not have ended so
+quickly, however, had not restlessness and alarm taken possession of the
+crowd. The shout, "Back! disperse!" ran through the multitude, and
+directly after the trampling of hoofs and the commands of the leader of
+a troop of Libyan cavalry were heard. The matter at stake was not
+sufficiently important to induce the populace to offer an armed force
+resistance which might have entailed serious danger. Besides, the
+blustering war of tongues had reached a merry close, and loud laughter
+blended with the shouts of fear and warning; for the surging throng had
+swept with unexpected speed towards the fountain and plunged
+Philostratus into the basin. Whether this was due to the wrath of some
+enemy, or to mere accident, could not be learned; the vain efforts of
+the luckless man to crawl out of the water up the smooth marble were so
+comical, and his gestures, after helping hands had dragged him dripping
+upon the pavement of the square, were so irresistibly funny, that more
+laughing than angry voices were heard, especially when some one cried,
+"His hands were soiled by blackening Didymus, so the washing will do him
+good." "Some wise physicians flung him into the water," retorted an
+other; "he needed the cold application after the blows Dion dealt him."
+
+The Regent, who had sent the troop of horsemen to drive the crowd away
+from Didymus's house, might well be pleased that the violent measure
+encountered so little resistance.
+
+The throng quickly scattered, and was speedily attracted by something
+new at the Theatre of Dionysus--the zither-player Anaxenor had just
+announced from its steps that Cleopatra and Antony had won the most
+brilliant victory, and had sung to the accompaniment of his lute a hymn
+which had deeply stirred all hearts. He had composed it long before, and
+seized the first opportunity--the report had reached his ears while
+breakfasting in Kanopus--to try its effect.
+
+As soon as the square began to empty, Barine left her post of
+observation. It was long since her heart had throbbed so violently. Not
+one of the many suitors for her favour had been so dear to her as Dion;
+but she now felt that she loved him. What he had just done for her and
+her grandfather was worthy of the deepest gratitude; it proved that he
+did not come to her house, like most of her guests, merely to while away
+the evening hours.
+
+It had been no small matter for the young aristocrat, in the presence of
+the whole multitude, to enter into a debate with the infamous
+Philostratus, and how well he had succeeded in silencing the dreaded
+orator! Besides, Dion had even taken her part against his own powerful
+uncle, and perhaps by his deed drawn upon himself the hostility of his
+enemy's brother, Alexas, Antony's powerful favourite. Barine might
+assure herself that he, who was the peer of any Macedonian noble in the
+city, would have done this for no one else.
+
+She felt as if the act had ransomed her.
+
+When, after an unhappy marriage and many desolate days, she had regained
+her former bright cheerfulness and saw her house become the centre of
+the intellectual life of the city, she had striven until now to extend
+the same welcome to all her guests. She had perceived that she ought not
+to give any one the power over her which is possessed by the man who
+knows that he is beloved, and even to Dion she had granted little more
+than to the others. But now she saw plainly that she would resign the
+pleasure of being a universally admired woman, whose modest home
+attracted the most distinguished men in the city, for the far greater
+happiness which would be hers as Dion's beloved wife. With him,
+cherished by his love, she believed that she could find far greater joy
+in solitude than in the gay course of her present life.
+
+She knew now what she must do if Dion sought her, and the architect, for
+the first time, found her a silent companion. He had willingly
+accompanied her back to her grandfather's house, where he had again met
+her sister Helena, while she had quitted it disappointed, because her
+brave defender had not returned there.
+
+After the interruption of the debate Dion had been in a very cheerful
+mood. The pleasant sensation of having championed a good cause, and the
+delightful consciousness of success were not new to him, but he had
+rarely felt so uplifted as now. He most ardently longed for his next
+meeting with Barine, and imagined how he would describe what had
+happened and claim her gratitude for his friendly service. The scene had
+risen clearly before his mind, but scarcely had the radiant vision of
+the future faded when the unusually bright expression of his manly face
+was clouded by a grave and troubled one.
+
+The darkness of the night, illumined only by the flare of the
+pitch-pans, had surrounded him, yet it had seemed as if he were standing
+with Barine in the full light of noon in the blossoming garden of his
+own palace, and, after asking a reward for his sturdy championship, she
+had clung to him with deep emotion, and he had passionately kissed her
+tearful face.
+
+The face had quickly vanished, yet it had been as distinct as the most
+vivid picture in a dream.
+
+Was Barine more to him than he supposed? Had he not been drawn to her,
+during the past few months, by the mere charm of her pliant intellect
+and her bright beauty? Had a new, strong passion awakened within him?
+Was he in danger of seeing the will which urged him to preserve his
+freedom conquered? Had he cause to fear that some day, constrained by a
+mysterious, invincible power, in defiance of the opposition of calm
+reason, he might perhaps bind himself for life to this Barine, the woman
+who had once been the wife of a Philostratus, and who bestowed her
+smiles on all who found admittance to her house seeking a feast for the
+eye, a banquet for the ear, a pleasant entertainment?
+
+Though her honor was as stainless as the breast of a swan--and he had no
+reason to doubt it--she would still be classed with Aspasia and other
+women whose guests sought more than songs and agreeable conversations.
+The gifts with which the gods had so lavishly endowed her had already
+been shared with too many to permit him, the last scion of a noble
+Macedonian house, to think of leading her, as mistress, to the palace
+whose erection he had so carefully and successfully planned with
+Gorgias.
+
+Surely it lacked nothing save the gracious rule of a mistress.
+
+But if she should consent to become his without the blessing of Hymen?
+No.
+
+He could not thus dishonor the granddaughter of Didymus, the man who had
+been his father's revered teacher, a woman whom he had always rejoiced
+that, spite of the gay freedom with which she received so many admirers,
+he could still esteem. He would not do so, though his friends would have
+greeted such scruples with a smile of superiority. Who revered the
+sacredness of marriage in a city whose queen was openly living for the
+second time with the husband of another? Dion himself had formed many a
+brief connection, but for that very reason he could not place a woman
+like Barine on the same footing with those whose love he had perhaps
+owed solely to his wealth. He had never lacked courage and resolution,
+but he felt that this time he would have to resist a power with which he
+had never coped.
+
+That accursed face! Again and again it rose before his mental vision,
+smiling and beckoning so sweetly that the day must come when the
+yearning to realize the dream would conquer all opposition. If he
+remained near her he would inevitably do what he might afterwards
+regret, and therefore he would fain have offered a sacrifice to Peitho
+to induce her to enhance Archibius's powers of persuasion and induce
+Barine to leave Alexandria. It would be hard for him to part from her,
+yet much would be gained if she went into the country. Between the
+present and the distant period of a second meeting lay respite from
+peril, and perhaps the possibility of victory. Dion did not recognize
+himself. He seemed as unstable as a swaying reed, because he had
+conquered his wish to re-enter old Didymus's house and encourage him,
+and passed on to his own home. But he would probably have found Barine
+still with her grandfather, and he would not meet her, though every
+fibre of his being longed for her face, her voice, and a word of
+gratitude from her beloved lips. Instead of joy, he was filled with the
+sense of dissatisfaction which overpowers a man standing at a crossing
+in the roads, who sees before him three goals, yet can be fully content
+with neither.
+
+The Street of the King, along which he suffered himself to be carried by
+the excited throng, ran between the sea and the Theatre of Dionysus. The
+thought darted through his mind that his friend the architect desired to
+erect the luckless statues of the royal lovers in front of this stately
+building. He would divert his thoughts by examining the site which
+Gorgias had chosen.
+
+The zither-player finished his hymn just as Dion approached the theatre,
+and the crowd began to disperse. Every one was full of the joyful
+tidings of victory, and one shouted to another what Anaxenor, the
+favourite of the great Antony, who must surely know, had just recited in
+thrilling verse. Many a joyous Io and loud Evoë to Cleopatra, the new
+Isis, and Antony, the new Dionysus, resounded through the air, while
+bearded and smooth, delicate Greek and thick Egyptian lips joined in the
+shout, "To the Sebasteum!" This was the royal palace, which faced the
+government building containing the Regent's residence. The populace
+desired to have the delightful news confirmed, and to express, by a
+public demonstration, the grateful joy which filled every heart.
+
+Dion, too, was eager to obtain certainty, and, though usually averse to
+mingling with the populace during such noisy outbursts of feeling, he
+was preparing to follow the crowd thronging towards the Sebasteum, when
+the shouts of runners clearing a passage for a closed litter fell upon
+his ear.
+
+It was occupied by Iras, the Queen's trusted attendant. If any one could
+give accurate information, it was she; yet it would hardly be possible
+to gain an opportunity of conversing with her in this throng. But Iras
+must have had a different opinion; she had seen Dion, and now called him
+to her side. There were hoarse tones in her voice, usually so clear and
+musical, which betrayed the emotion raging in her breast as she assailed
+the young Macedonian noble with a flood of questions. Without giving him
+the usual greeting, she hastily desired to know what was exciting the
+people, who had brought the tidings of victory, and whither the
+multitude was flocking?
+
+Dion had found it difficult not to be forced from the litter while
+answering. Iris perceived this, and as they were just passing the
+Mæander, the labyrinth, which was closed after sunset, she ordered her
+bearers to carry the litter to the entrance, made herself known to the
+watchman, ordered the outer court to be opened, the litter to be placed
+there, and the bearers and runners to wait outside for her summons,
+which would soon be given.
+
+This unusual haste and excitement filled Dion with just solicitude. She
+refused his invitation to alight and walk up and down, declaring that
+life offered so many labyrinths that one need not seek them. He, too,
+seemed to be following paths which were scarcely straight ones. "Why,"
+she concluded, thrusting her head far out of the opening in the litter,
+"are you rendering it so difficult for the Regent and your own uncle to
+execute their plans, making common cause with the populace, like a paid
+agitator?"
+
+"Like Philostratus, you mean, on whom I bestowed a few blows in addition
+to the golden guerdon received from your hand?"
+
+"Ay, like him, for aught I care. Probably it was you, too, who had him
+flung into the water, after you had vented your wrath on him? You
+managed your cause well. What we do for love's sake is usually
+successful. No matter, if only his brother Alexas does not rouse Antony
+against you. For my part, I merely desire to know why and for whom all
+this was done."
+
+"For whom save the good old man who was my father's preceptor, and his
+just claim?" replied Dion frankly. "Moreover--for no site more
+unsuitable could be found than his garden--in behalf of good taste."
+
+Iras laughed a shrill, short laugh, and her narrow, regularly formed
+face, which might have been called beautiful, had not the bridge of the
+straight delicate nose been too long and the chin too small, darkened
+slightly, as she exclaimed, "That is frank at least."
+
+"You ought to be accustomed to that from me," replied Dion calmly. "In
+this case, however, the expert, Gorgias, fully shares my opinion."
+
+"I heard that too. You are both the most constant visitors of--what is
+the woman's name?--the bewitching Barine."
+
+"Barine?" repeated Dion, as if the mention of the name surprised him.
+"You take care, my friend, that our conversation does honour to its
+scene, the labyrinth. I speak of works of the sculptor's art, and you
+pretend that I am referring to what is most certainly a very successful
+living work from the creative hands of the gods. I was very far from
+thinking of the granddaughter of the old scholar for whom I interceded."
+
+"Ay," she scornfully retorted, "young gentlemen in your position, and
+with your habits of life, always think of their fathers estimable
+teachers rather than of the women who, ever since Pandora opened her
+box, have brought all sorts of misfortunes into the world. But," she
+added, pushing back her dark locks from her high forehead, "I don't
+understand myself, how, with the mountain of care that now burdens my
+soul, I can waste even a single word upon such trifles. I care as little
+for the aged scholar as I do for his legion of commentaries and books,
+though they are not wholly unfamiliar to me. For any concern of mine he
+might have as many grandchildren as there are evil tongues in
+Alexandria, were it not that just at this time it is of the utmost
+importance to remove everything which might cast a shadow on the Queen's
+pathway. I have just come from the palace of the royal children at
+Lochias, and what I learned there. But that--I will not, I cannot
+believe it. It fairly stifles me!"
+
+"Have you received bad news from the fleet?" questioned Dion, with
+sincere anxiety; but she only bent her head in assent, laying her fan of
+ostrich-plumes on her lips to enjoin silence, at the same time shivering
+so violently that he perceived it, even in the dusk. It was evident that
+speech was difficult, as she added in a muffled tone: "It must be kept
+secret--Rhodian sailors--thank the gods, it is still very doubtful--it
+cannot, must not be true--and yet--the prattle of that zither-player,
+which has filled the multitude with joyous anticipation, is
+abominable--the great ones of the earth are often most sorely injured by
+those who owe them the most gratitude. I know you can be silent, Dion.
+You could as a boy, if anything was to be hidden from our parents. Would
+you still be ready to plunge into the water for me, as in those days?
+Scarcely. Yet you may be trusted, and, even in this labyrinth, I will do
+so. My heart is heavy. But not one word to any person. I need no
+confidant and could maintain silence even towards you, but I am anxious
+that you should understand me, you who have just taken such a stand.
+Before I entered my litter at Lochias, the boy returned, and I talked
+with him."
+
+"Young Cæsarion loves Barine," replied Dion with grave earnestness.
+
+"Then this horrible folly is known?" asked Iras excitedly. "A passion
+far deeper than I should ever have expected this dreamer to feel has
+taken possession of him. And if the Queen should now return--perhaps
+less successful than we desire--if she looks to those from whom she
+still expects pleasure, satisfaction, lofty deeds, and learns what has
+befallen the boy--for what does not that sun-bright intellect learn and
+perceive? He is dear to her, dearer than any of you imagine. How it will
+increase her anxiety, perhaps her suffering! With what good reason she
+will be angered against those whom duty and love should have commanded
+to guard the boy!"
+
+"And therefore," added Dion, "the stone of offence must be removed. Your
+first step to secure this object was the attack on Didymus."
+
+He had judged correctly and perceived that, in her assault upon the old
+scholar, she had at first intended to play into the hands of the rulers,
+work against the old philosopher and his relatives, among whose number
+was Barine; for the Egyptian law permitted the relatives of those who
+were convicted of any crime against the sovereign or the government to
+be banished with the criminal. This attack upon an innocent person was
+disgraceful, yet every word Iras uttered made Dion feel, every feature
+of her face betrayed, that it was not merely base jealousy, but a nobler
+emotion, that caused her to assail the guiltless sage--love for her
+mistress, the desire which dominated her whole being to guard Cleopatra
+from grief and trouble in these trying times. He knew Iras's iron will
+and the want of consideration with which she had learned to pursue her
+purpose at the court. His first object was to protect Barine from the
+danger which threatened her; but he also wished to relieve the anxiety
+of Iras, the daughter of Krates, his father's neighbour, with whom he
+had played in boyhood and for whom he had never ceased to feel a tender
+interest.
+
+His remark surprised her. She saw that her plot was detected by the man
+whose esteem she most valued, and a loving woman is glad to recognize
+the superiority of her lover. Besides, from her earliest childhood--and
+she was only two years younger than Dion--she had belonged to circles
+where no quality was more highly prized than mental pliancy and
+keenness. Her dark eyes, which at first had glittered distrustfully and
+questioningly and afterwards glowed with a gloomy light, now gained a
+new expression. Her gaze sought her friend's with a tender, pleading
+look as, admitting his charge, she began: "Yes! Dion, the philosopher's
+granddaughter must not stay here. Or do you see any other way to protect
+the unhappy boy from incalculable misfortune? You know me well enough to
+be aware that, like you, I am reluctant to infringe another's rights,
+that except in case of necessity I am not cruel. I value your esteem. No
+one is more truthful, and yesterday you averred that Eros had no part in
+your visits to the much-admired young woman, that you joined her guests
+merely because the society you found at her house afforded a pleasant
+stimulus to the mind. I have ceased to believe in many things, but not
+in you and your words, and if hearing that you had taken sides with the
+grandfather, I fancied that you were secretly seeking the thanks and
+gratitude of the granddaughter, why--surely the atrocious maxim that
+Zeus does not hear the vows of lovers comes from you men--why, suspicion
+again reared its head. Now you seem to share my opinion----"
+
+"Like you," Dion interrupted, "I believe that Barine ought to be
+withdrawn from the boy's pursuit, which cannot be more unpleasant to you
+than to her. As Cæsarion neither can nor ought to leave Alexandria
+while affairs are so threatening, nothing is left except to remove the
+young woman--but, of course, in all kindness."
+
+"In a golden chariot, garlanded with roses, if you so desire," cried
+Iras eagerly.
+
+"That might attract attention," answered Dion, smiling and raising his
+hand as if to enjoin moderation. "Your mode of action does not please
+me, even now that I know its purpose, but I will gladly aid you to
+attain your object. Your crooked paths also lead to the goal, and
+perhaps one is less likely to stumble in them; but straight ways suit me
+better, and I think I have already found the right one. A friend will
+invite Barine to an estate far away from here, perhaps in the lake
+regions."
+
+"You?" cried Iras, her narrow eyebrows suddenly contracting.
+
+"Do you imagine that she would go with me?" he asked, in a faintly
+reproachful tone. "No. Fortunately, we have older friends, and at their
+head is one who happens to be your uncle and at the same time is wax in
+the hands of the Queen."
+
+"Archibius?" exclaimed Iras. "Ah! if he could persuade her to do so!"
+
+"He will try. He, too, is anxious about the lad. While we are talking
+here, he is inviting Barine to his estate. The country air will benefit
+her."
+
+"May she bloom there like a young shepherdess!"
+
+"You are right to wish her the best fortune; for if the Queen does not
+return victorious, the irritability of our Alexandrians will be doubled.
+When you laid hands on Didymus's garden, you were so busily engaged in
+building the triumphal arch that you forgot----"
+
+"Who would have doubted the successful issue of this war?" cried Iras.
+"And they will, they will conquer. The Rhodian said that the fleet was
+scattered. The disaster happened on the Acharnanian coast. How positive
+it sounded! But he had it only at second and third hand. And what are
+mere rumours? The source of the false tidings is discovered later.
+Besides, even if the naval battle were really lost, the powerful army,
+which is far superior to Octavianus's forces, still remains. Which of
+the enemy's generals could cope with Antony on the land? How he will
+fight when all is at stake--fame, honour, sovereignty, hate, and love!
+Away with this fear, based on mere rumour! After Dyrrachium Cæsar's
+cause was deemed lost, and how soon Pharsalus made him master of the
+world! Is it worthy of a sensible person to suffer courage to be
+depressed by a sailor's gossip? And yet--yet! It began while I was ill.
+And then the swallows on the Antonias, the admiral's ship. We have
+already spoken of it. Mardion and your uncle Zeno saw with their own
+eyes the strange swallows drive away those which had built their nest on
+the helm of the Antonias, and kill the young ones with their cruel
+beaks. An evil omen! I cannot forget it. And my dream, while I lay ill
+with fever far away from my mistress! But I have already lingered here
+too long. No, Dion, no. I am grateful for the rest here--I can now feel
+at ease about Cæsarion. Place the monument where you choose. The people
+shall see and hear that we respect their opposition, that we are just
+and friendly. Help me to turn this matter to the advantage of the Queen,
+and if Archibius succeeds in getting Barine away and keeping her in the
+country, then--if I had aught that seemed to you desirable it should be
+yours. But what does the petted Dion care for his fading playfellow?"
+
+"Fading?" he repeated in a tone of indignant reproach. "Say rather the
+fully developed flower has learned from her royal friend the secret of
+eternal youth."
+
+With a swift impulse of gratitude Iras bent her face towards him in the
+dusk, extending the slender white hand--next to Cleopatra's famed as the
+most beautiful at court--for him to kiss, but when he merely pressed his
+lips lightly on it with no shadow of tenderness, she hastily withdrew
+it, exclaiming as if overwhelmed by sudden repentance: "This idle,
+hollow dalliance at such a time, with such a burden of anxiety
+oppressing the heart! It is unworthy, shameful! If Barine goes with
+Archibius, her time will scarcely hang heavy on his estates. I think I
+know some one who will speedily follow to bear her company.--Here,
+Sasis! the bearers! To the Tower of Nilus, before the Gate of the Sun!"
+
+Dion gazed after her litter a short time, then passed his hand through
+his waving brown hair, walked swiftly to the shore and, without pausing
+long to choose, sprang into one of the boats which were rented for
+pleasure voyages. Ordering the sailors who were preparing to accompany
+him to remain on shore, he stretched the sail with a practised hand, and
+ran out towards the mouth of the harbour. He needed some strong
+excitement, and wished to go himself in search of news.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+The house facing the garden of the Paneum, where Barine lived, was the
+property of her mother, who had inherited it from her parents. The
+artist Leonax, the young beauty's father, son of the old philosopher
+Didymus, had died long before.
+
+After Barine's unhappy marriage with Philostratus was dissolved, she had
+returned to her mother, who managed the affairs of the household. She
+too, belonged to a family of scholars and had a brother who had won high
+repute as a philosopher, and had directed the studies of the young
+Octavianus. This had occurred long before the commencement of the
+hostility which separated the heirs of Cæsar and Mark Antony. But even
+after the latter had deserted Octavia, the sister of Octavianus, to
+return to Cleopatra, the object of his love, and there was an open
+breach between the two rivals for the sovereignty of the world, Antony
+had been friendly to Arius and borne him no grudge for his close
+relations to his rival. The generous Roman had even given his enemy's
+former tutor a fine house, to show him that he was glad to have him in
+Alexandria and near his person.
+
+The widow Berenike, Barine's mother, was warmly attached to her only
+brother, who often joined her daughter's guests. She was a quiet, modest
+woman whose happiest days had been passed in superintending the
+education of her children, Barine, the fiery Hippias, and the quiet
+Helena, who for several years had lived with her grandparents and, with
+faithful devotion, assumed the duty of caring for them. She had been
+more easily guided than the two older children; for the boy's aspiring
+spirit had often drawn him beyond his mother's control, and the
+beautiful, vivacious girl had early possessed charms so unusual that she
+could not remain unnoticed.
+
+Hippias had studied oratory, first in Alexandria and later in Athens and
+Rhodes. Three years before, his uncle Arius had sent him with excellent
+letters of introduction to Rome to become acquainted with the life of
+the capital and try whether, in spite of his origin, his brilliant gifts
+of eloquence would forward his fortunes there.
+
+Two miserable years with an infamous, unloved husband had changed the
+wild spirits of Barine's childhood into the sunny cheerfulness now one
+of her special charms. Her mother was conscious of having desired only
+her best good in uniting the girl of sixteen to Philostratus, whom the
+grandfather Didymus then considered a very promising young man, and
+whose advancement, in addition to his own talents, his brother Alexas,
+Antony's favourite, promised to aid. She had believed that this step
+would afford the gay, beautiful girl the best protection from the perils
+of the corrupt capital; but the worthless husband had caused both mother
+and daughter much care and sorrow, while his brother Alexas, who
+constantly pursued his young sister-in-law with insulting attentions,
+was the source of almost equal trouble. Berenike often gazed in silent
+astonishment at the child, who, spite of such sore grief and
+humiliation, had preserved the innocent light-heartedness which made her
+seem as if life had offered her only thornless roses.
+
+Her father, Leonax, had been one of the most distinguished artists of
+the day, and Barine had inherited from him the elastic artist
+temperament which speedily rebounds from the heaviest pressure. To him
+also she owed the rare gift of song, which had been carefully cultivated
+and had already secured her the first position in the woman's chorus at
+the festival of the great goddesses of the city. Every one was full of
+her praises, and after she had sung the Yalemos in the palace over the
+waxen image of the favourite of the gods, slain by the boar, her name
+was eagerly applauded. To have heard her was esteemed a privilege, for
+she sang only in her own house or at religious ceremonials "for the
+honour of the gods."
+
+The Queen, too, had heard her, and, after the Adonis festival, her uncle
+Arius had presented her to Antony, who expressed his admiration with all
+the fervour of his frank nature, and afterwards came to her house a
+second time, accompanied by his son Antyllus. Doubtless he would have
+called on her frequently and tested upon her heart his peculiar power
+over women, had he not been compelled to leave the city on the day after
+his last visit.
+
+Berenike had reproved her brother for bringing the Queen's lover to
+Barine, for her anxiety was increased by the repeated visits of Antony's
+son, and still more aroused by that of Cæsarion, who was presented by
+Antyllus.
+
+These youths were not numbered among the guests whose presence she
+welcomed and whose conversation afforded her pleasure. It was flattering
+that they should honour her simple home by their visits, but she knew
+that Cæsarion came without his tutor's knowledge, and perceived, by the
+expression of his eyes, what drew him to her daughter. Besides,
+Berenike, in rearing the two children, who had been the source of so
+much anxiety had lost the joyous confidence which had characterized her
+own youth. Whenever life presented any new phase, she saw the dark side
+first. If a burning candle stood before her, the shadow of the
+candlestick caught her eye before the light. Her whole mental existence
+became a chain of fears, but the kind-hearted woman loved her children
+too tenderly to permit them to see it. Only it was a relief to her heart
+when some of her evil forebodings were realized, to say that she had
+foreseen it all.
+
+No trace of this was legible in her face, a countenance still pretty and
+pleasing in its unruffled placidity. She talked very little, but what
+she did say was sensible, and proved how attentively she understood how
+to listen. So she was welcome among Barine's guests. Even the most
+distinguished received something from her, because he felt that the
+quiet woman understood him.
+
+Before Barine had returned that evening, something had occurred which
+made her mother doubly regret the accident to her brother Arius the day
+before. On his way home from his sister's he had been run over by a
+chariot darting recklessly along the Street of the King, and was
+carried, severely injured, to his home, where he now lay helpless and
+fevered. Nor did it lessen his sufferings to hear his two sons threaten
+to take vengeance on the reckless fellow who had wrought their father
+this mischief, for he had reason to believe Antyllus the perpetrator of
+the deed, and a collision between the youths and the son of Antony could
+only result in fresh disaster to him and his, especially as the young
+Roman seemed to have inherited little of his father's magnanimous
+generosity. Yet Arius could not be vexed with his sons for stigmatizing,
+in the harshest terms, the conduct of the man who had gone on without
+heeding the accident. He had cautioned his sister against the utterly
+unbridled youth whose father he had himself brought to her house. With
+what good reason he had raised his voice in warning was now evident. At
+sunset that very day several guests had arrived as usual, followed by
+Antyllus, a youth of nineteen. When the door-keeper refused to admit
+him, he had rudely demanded to see Barine, thrust aside the prudent old
+porter, who endeavoured to detain him, and, in spite of his
+protestations, forced his way into his dead master's work-room, where
+the ladies usually received their visitors. Not until he found it empty
+would he retire, and then he first fastened a bouquet of flowers he had
+brought to a statue of Eros in burnt clay, which stood there. Both the
+porter and Barine's waiting-maid declared that he was drunk; they saw it
+when he staggered away with the companions who had waited for him in the
+garden outside.
+
+This unseemly and insulting conduct filled Berenike with the deepest
+indignation. It must not remain unpunished, and, while waiting for her
+daughter, she imagined what evil consequences might ensue if Antyllus
+were forbidden the house and accused to his tutor, and how unbearable,
+on the other hand, he might become if they omitted to do so.
+
+She was full of sad presentiments, and as, with such good reason, she
+feared the worst, she cherished a faint hope that her daughter might
+perhaps bring home some pleasant tidings; for she had had the experience
+that events which had filled her with the utmost anxiety sometimes
+resulted in good fortune.
+
+At last Barine appeared, and it was indeed long since she had clasped
+her mother in her arms with such joyous cheerfulness.
+
+The widow's troubled heart grew lighter. Her daughter must have met with
+something unusually gratifying, she looked so happy, although she had
+surely heard what had happened here; for her cloak was laid aside and
+her hair newly arranged, so she must have been to her chamber, where she
+was dressed by her loquacious Cyprian slave, who certainly could not
+keep to herself anything that was worth mentioning. The nimble maid had
+shown her skill that day.
+
+"Any stranger would take her for nineteen," thought her mother. "How
+becoming the white robe and blue-bordered peplum are to her; how softly
+the azure bombyx ribbon is wound around the thick waves of her hair! Who
+would believe that no curling-irons had touched the little golden locks
+that rest so gracefully on her brow, that no paint-brush had any share
+in producing the rose and white hues on her cheek, or the alabaster
+glimmer of her arms? Such beauty easily becomes a Danae dower; but it is
+a magnificent gift of the gods! Yet why did she put on the bracelet
+which Antony gave her after his last visit? Scarcely on my account. She
+can hardly expect Dion at so late an hour. Even while I am rejoicing in
+the sight of her beauty, some new misfortune may be impending."
+
+So ran the current of her thoughts while her daughter was gaily
+describing what she had witnessed at her grandfather's. Meanwhile she
+had nestled comfortably among the cushions of a lounge; and when she
+mentioned Antyllus's unseemly conduct, she spoke of it, with a
+carelessness that startled Berenike, as a vexatious piece of rudeness
+which must not occur again.
+
+"But who is to prevent it?" asked the mother anxiously.
+
+"Who, save ourselves?" replied Barine.
+
+"He will not be admitted."
+
+"And if he forced his way in?"
+
+Barine's big blue eyes flashed angrily, and there was no lack of
+decision in her voice as she exclaimed, "Let him try it!"
+
+"But what power have we to restrain the son of Antony?" asked Berenike.
+"I do not know."
+
+"I do," replied her daughter. "I will be brief, for a visitor is
+coming."
+
+"So late?" asked the mother anxiously.
+
+"Archibius wishes to discuss an important matter with us."
+
+The lines on the brow of the older woman smoothed, but it contracted
+again as she exclaimed inquiringly: "Important business at so unusual an
+hour! Ah, I have expected nothing good since early morning! On my way to
+my brother's a raven flew up before me and fluttered towards the left
+into the garden."
+
+"But I," replied Barine, after receiving, in reply to her inquiry, a
+favourable report concerning her uncle's health--"I met seven--there
+were neither more nor less; for seven is the best of numbers--seven
+snow-white doves, which all flew swiftly towards the right. The fairest
+of all came first, bearing in its beak a little basket which contained
+the power that will keep Antony's son away from us. Don't look at me in
+such amazement, you dear receptacle of every terror."
+
+"But, child, you said that Archibius was coming so late to discuss an
+important matter," rejoined the mother.
+
+"He must be here soon."
+
+"Then cease this talking in riddles; I do not guess them quickly."
+
+"You will solve this one," returned Barine; "but we really have no time
+to lose. So--my beautiful dove was a good, wise thought, and what it
+carried in its basket you shall hear presently. You see, mother, many
+will blame us, though here and there some one may pity; but this state
+of things must not continue. I feel it more and more plainly with each
+passing day; and several years must yet elapse ere this scruple becomes
+wholly needless. I am too young to welcome as a guest every one whom
+this or that man presents to me. True, our reception-hall was my
+father's work-room and you, my own estimable, blameless mother, are the
+hostess here; but though superior to me in every respect, you are so
+modest that you shield yourself behind your daughter until the guests
+think of you only when you are absent. So those who seek us both merely
+say, 'I am going to visit Barine'--and there are too many who say
+this--I can no longer choose, and this thought----"
+
+"Child! child!" interrupted her mother joyfully, "what god met you as
+you went out this morning?"
+
+"Surely you know," she answered gaily; "it was seven doves, and, when I
+took the little basket from the bill of the first and prettiest one, it
+told me a story. Do you want to hear it?"
+
+"Yes, yes; but be quick, or we shall be interrupted."
+
+Then Barine leaned farther back among the cushions, lowered her long
+lashes, and began: "Once upon a time there was a woman who had a garden
+in the most aristocratic quarter of the city--here near the Paneum, if
+you please. In the autumn, when the fruit was ripening, she left the
+gate open, though all her neighbours did the opposite. To keep away
+unbidden lovers of her nice figs and dates, she fastened on the gate a
+tablet bearing the inscription: 'All may enter and enjoy the sight of
+the garden; but the dogs will bite any one who breaks a flower, treads
+upon the grass, or steals the fruit.'
+
+"The woman had nothing but a lap-dog, and that did not always obey her.
+But the tablet fulfilled its purpose; for at first none came except her
+neighbours in the aristocratic quarter. They read the threat, and
+probably without it would have respected the property of the woman who
+so kindly opened the door to them. Thus matters went on for a time,
+until first a beggar came, and then a Phœnician sailor, and a thievish
+Egyptian from the Rhakotis--neither of whom could read. So the tablet
+told them nothing; and as, moreover, they distinguished less carefully
+between mine and thine, one trampled the turf and another snatched from
+the boughs a flower or fruit. More and more of the rabble came, and you
+can imagine what followed. No one punished them for the crime, for they
+did not fear the barking of the lap-dog, and this gave even those who
+could read, courage not to heed the warning. So the woman's pretty
+garden soon lost its peculiar charm; and the fruit, too, was stolen.
+When the rain at last washed the inscription from the tablet, and saucy
+boys scrawled on it, there was no harm done; for the garden no longer
+offered any attractions, and no one who looked into it cared to enter.
+Then the owner closed her gate like the neighbours, and the next year
+she again enjoyed the green grass and the bright hues of the flowers.
+She ate her fruit herself, and the lap-dog no longer disturbed her by
+its barking."
+
+"That is," said her mother, "if everybody was as courteous and as well
+bred as Gorgias, Lysias, and the others, we would gladly continue to
+receive them. But since there are rude fellows like Antyllus----"
+
+"You have understood the story correctly," Barine interrupted. "We are
+certainly at liberty to invite to our house those who have learned to
+read our inscription. To-morrow visitors will be informed that we can no
+longer receive them as before."
+
+"Antyllus's conduct affords an excellent pretext," her mother added.
+"Every fair-minded person must understand----"
+
+"Certainly," said Barine, "and if you, shrewdest of women, will do your
+part----"
+
+"Then for the first time we can act as we please in our own home.
+Believe me, child--if you only do not----"
+
+"No ifs!--not this time!" cried the young beauty, raising her hand
+beseechingly. "It gives me such delight to think of the new life, and if
+matters come to pass as I hope and wish--then--do not you also believe,
+mother, that the gods owe me reparation?"
+
+"For what?" asked the deep voice of Archibius, who had entered
+unannounced, and was now first noticed by the widow and her daughter.
+
+Barine hastily rose and held out both hands to her old friend,
+exclaiming, "Since they bring you to us, they are already beginning the
+payment."
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+An artist, especially a great artist, finds it easy to give his house an
+attractive appearance. He desires comfort in it, and only the beautiful
+_is_ comfortable to him. Whatever would disturb harmony offends his eye,
+and to secure the noblest ornament of his house he need not invite any
+stranger to cross its threshold. The Muse, the best of assistants, joins
+him unbidden.
+
+Leonax, Barine's father, had been thus aided to transform the interior
+of his house into a very charming residence. He had painted on the walls
+of his own work-room incidents in the life of Alexander the Great, the
+founder of his native city, and on the frieze a procession of dancing
+Cupids.
+
+Here Barine now received her guests, and the renown of these paintings
+was not one of the smallest inducements which had led Antony to visit
+the young beauty and to take his son, in whom he wished to awaken at
+least a fleeting pleasure in art. He also knew how to prize her beauty
+and her singing, but the ardent passion which had taken possession of
+him in his mature years was for Cleopatra alone. He whose easily won
+heart and susceptible fancy had urged him from one commonplace love to
+another had been bound by the Queen with chains of indestructible and
+supernatural power. By her side a Barine seemed to him merely a work of
+art endowed with life and a voice that charmed the ear. Yet he owed her
+some pleasant hours, and he could not help bestowing gifts upon any one
+to whom he was indebted for anything pleasant. He liked to be considered
+the most generous spendthrift on earth, and the polished bracelet set
+with a gem, on which was carved Apollo playing on his lyre, surrounded
+by the listening Muses, looked very simple, but was really an ornament
+of priceless value, for the artist who made it was deemed the best
+stone-cutter in Alexandria in the time of Philadelphus, and each one of
+the tiny figures sculptured on the bit of onyx scarcely three fingers
+wide was a carefully executed masterpiece of the most exquisite beauty.
+Antony had chosen it because he deemed it a fitting gift for the woman
+whose song had pleased him. He had not thought of asking its value;
+indeed, only a connoisseur would have perceived it; and as the circlet
+was not showy and well became her beautiful arm, Barine liked to wear
+it.
+
+Had not the war taken him away, Antony's second visit would certainly
+not have been his last. Besides the singing which enthralled him, the
+conversation had been gay and brilliant, and in addition to Leonax's
+paintings, he had seen other beautiful works of art which the former had
+obtained by exchanging with many distinguished companions.
+
+Nor was there any lack of plastic creations in the spacious apartment,
+to which the flashing of the water poured by a powerful man from the
+goatskin bottle on his shoulder into a shell lent a special charm.
+
+The master who had carved this stooping Nubian had also created the
+much-discussed statues of the royal lovers. The clay Eros, who with bent
+knee was aiming at a victim visible to himself alone, was also his work.
+Antony, when paying his second visit, had laughingly laid the garland he
+wore before "the greatest of human conquerors," while a short time ago
+his son Antyllus had rudely thrust his bouquet of flowers into the
+opening of the curved right arm which was drawing the string. In doing
+so the statue had been injured. Now the flowers lay unheeded upon the
+little altar at the end of the large room, lighted only by a single
+lamp; for the ladies had left it with their guest. They were in Barine's
+favourite apartment, a small room, where there were several pictures by
+her dead father.
+
+Antyllus's bouquet, and the damage to the clay statue of Eros, had
+played a prominent part in the conversation between the three, and
+rendered Archibius's task easier.
+
+Berenike had greeted the guest with a complaint of the young Roman's
+recklessness and unseemly conduct, to which Barine added the declaration
+that they had now sacrificed enough to Zeus Xenios, the god of
+hospitality. She meant to devote her future life to the modest household
+gods and to Apollo, to whom she owed the gift of song.
+
+Archibius had listened silently in great surprise until she had finished
+her explanation and declared that henceforth she intended to live alone
+with her mother, instead of having her father's workshop filled with
+guests.
+
+The young beauty's vivid imagination transported her to this new and
+quieter life. But, spite of the clear and glowing hues in which she
+described her anticipations, her grey-haired listener could not have
+believed in them fully. A subtle smile sometimes flitted over his grave,
+somewhat melancholy face--that of a man who has ceased to wrestle in the
+arena of life, and after severe conflict now preferred to stand among
+the spectators and watch others win or lose the prize of victory.
+Doubtless the wounds which he had received still ached, yet his
+sorrowful experiences did not prevent his being an attentive observer.
+The expression of his clear eyes showed that he mentally shared whatever
+aroused his sympathy. Whoever understood how to listen thus, and,
+moreover--the prominence of the brow above the nose showed it--was also
+a trained thinker, could not fail to be a good counsellor, and as such
+he was regarded by many, and first of all by the Queen.
+
+The wise deliberation, which was one of his characteristic traits,
+showed itself on this occasion; for though he had come to persuade
+Barine try a country residence, he refrained from doing until she had
+exhausted the story of her own affairs and inquired the important cause
+of his visit.
+
+In the principal matter his request was granted ere he made it. So he
+could begin with the query whether the mother and daughter did not think
+that the transition to the new mode of life could be effected more
+easily if they were absent from the city a short time. It would awaken
+comment they should close their house against guests on the morrow, and
+as the true reason could not be given, many would be offended. If, on
+the contrary, they could resolve to quit the capital for a few weeks,
+many, it is true, would lament their decision, but what was alloted to
+all alike could be resented by no one.
+
+Berenike eagerly assented, but Barine grew thoughtful. Then Archibius
+begged her to speak frankly, and after she had asked where they could,
+he proposed his country estate.
+
+His keen grey eyes had perceived that something, bound her so firmly to
+the city that in the case of a true woman like Barine it must be an
+affair of the heart. He had evidently judged correctly, for, at his
+prediction that there would be no lack of visits from her dearest
+friends, she raised her head, her blue eyes sparkled brightly, and when
+Archibius paused she to her mother, exclaiming gaily:
+
+"We will go!"
+
+Again the vivid imagination daughter conjured the future before her in
+distinct outlines. She alone knew whom she meant when she spoke of the
+visitor she expected at Irenia, Archibius's estate. The name meant "The
+place of peace," and it pleased her.
+
+Archibius listened smilingly; but when she began to assign him also a
+part in driving the little Sardinian horses and pursuing the birds, he
+interrupted her with the statement that whether he could speedily allow
+himself a pleasure which he should so keenly enjoy--that of breathing
+the country air with such charming guests--would depend upon the fate of
+another. Thank the gods, he had been able to come here with a lighter
+heart, because, just before his departure, he had heard of a splendid
+victory gained by the Queen. The ladies would perhaps permit him to
+remain a little longer, as he was expecting confirmation of the news.
+
+It was evident that he awaited it in great suspense, and that his heart
+was by no means free from anxiety.
+
+Berenike shared it, and her pleasant face, which had hitherto reflected
+her delight at her daughter's sensible resolution, was now clouded with
+care as Archibius began: "The object of my presence here? You are making
+it very easy for me to attain it. If I deemed it honest, I could now
+conceal the fact that I had sought you to induce you to leave the city.
+I see no peril from the boyish insolence of the son of Antony. The point
+in question, child, is merely to put yourself out of the reach of
+Cæsarion."
+
+"If you could place me in the moon, it would please me best, as far as
+he is concerned," replied Barine eagerly. "That is just what induced me
+to change our mode of life, since my door cannot be closed against the
+boy who, though still under a tutor, uses his rank as a key to open it.
+And just think of being compelled to address that dreamer, with eyes
+pleading for help, by the title of 'king'!"
+
+"Yet what mighty impulse might not be slumbering in the breast of a son
+of Julius Cæsar and Cleopatra?" said Archibius. "And passion--I know,
+my child, that it is no fault of yours--has now awakened within him.
+Whatever the result may be, it must fill his mother's heart with
+anxiety. That is why it is needful to hasten your departure, and to keep
+your destination a secret. He will attempt no violence; but--he is the
+child of his parents--and some unexpected act may be anticipated from
+him."
+
+"You startle me!" cried Barine. "You transform the cooing dove which
+entered my house into a dangerous griffin."
+
+"As such you may regard him," said the other, warningly. "You will be a
+welcome guest, Barine, but I invited you, whom I have loved from your
+earliest childhood, the daughter of my dearest friend, not merely to do
+you a service at Irenia, but to save from grief or even annoyance the
+person to whom--who is not aware of it--I owe everything."
+
+The words conveyed to both ladies the knowledge that, though they were
+dear to Archibius, he would sacrifice them, and with them, perhaps, all
+the rest of the world, for the peace and happiness of the Queen.
+
+Barine had expected nothing else. She knew that Cleopatra had made the
+philosopher's son a wealthy man and the owner of extensive estates; but
+she also felt that the source of his loyal devotion to the Queen, over
+whom he watched like a tender father, was due to other causes. Cleopatra
+prized him also. Had he been ambitious, he could have stood at the helm
+of the ship of state, as Epitrop long ago, but--the whole city knew
+it--he had more than once refused to accept a permanent office, because
+he believed that he could serve his mistress better as an unassuming,
+unnoticed counsellor. Berenike had told Barine that the relations
+between Cleopatra and Archibius dated back to their childhood, but she
+had learned no particulars. Various rumours were afloat which, in the
+course of time, had been richly adorned and interwoven with anecdotes,
+and Barine naturally lent the most ready credence to those which
+asserted that the princess, in her earliest youth, had cherished a
+childish love for the philosopher's son. Now her friend's conduct led
+her to believe it.
+
+When Archibius paused, the young beauty assured him that she understood
+him; and as the alabaster hanging lamp and a three-branched light cast a
+brilliant glow upon the portrait which her father had painted of the
+nineteen-year-old Queen, and afterwards copied for his own household,
+she pointed to it, and, pursuing the current of her own thoughts, asked
+the question:
+
+"Was she not marvellously beautiful at that time?"
+
+"As your father's work represents her," was the reply. "Leonax painted
+the portrait of Octavia, on the opposite side, the same year, and
+perhaps the artist deemed the Roman the fairer woman." He pointed as he
+spoke to a likeness of Octavianus's sister, whom Barine's father had
+painted as the young wife of Marcellus, her first husband.
+
+"Oh, no!" said Berenike. "I still remember perfectly how Leonax returned
+in those days. What woman might not have been jealous of his enthusiasm
+for the Roman Hera? At that time I had not seen the portrait, and when I
+asked whether he thought Octavia more beautiful than the Queen, for whom
+Eros had inflamed his heart, as in the case of most of the beautiful
+women he painted, he exclaimed--you know his impetuous manner--'Octavia
+stands foremost in the ranks of those who are called "beautiful" or
+"less beautiful"; the other, Cleopatra, stands alone, and can be
+compared with no one.'"
+
+Archibius bent his head in assent, then said firmly, "But, as a child,
+when I first saw her, she would have been the fairest even in the dance
+of the young gods of love."
+
+"How old was she then?" asked Barine, eagerly.
+
+"Eight years," he answered. "How far in the past it is, yet I have not
+forgotten a single hour!"
+
+Barine now earnestly entreated him to tell them the story of those days,
+but Archibius gazed thoughtfully at the floor for some time ere he
+raised his head and answered: "Perhaps it will be well if you learn more
+of the woman for whose sake I ask a sacrifice at your hands. Arius is
+your brother and uncle. He stands near to Octavianus, for he was his
+intellectual guide, and I know that he reveres the Roman's sister,
+Octavia, as a goddess. Antony is now struggling with Octavianus for the
+sovereignty of the world. Octavia succumbed in the conflict against the
+woman of whom you desire to hear. It is not my place to judge her, but I
+may instruct and warn. Roman nations burn incense to Octavia, and, when
+Cleopatra's name is uttered, they veil their faces indignantly. Here in
+Alexandria many imitate them. Whoever upholds shining purity may hope to
+win a share of the radiance emanating from it. They call Octavia the
+lawful wife, and Cleopatra the criminal who robbed her of her husband's
+heart."
+
+"Not I!" exclaimed Barine eagerly. "How often I have heard my uncle say
+that Antony and Cleopatra were fired with the most ardent love for each
+other! Never did the arrows of Eros pierce two hearts more deeply. Then
+it became necessary to save the state from civil war and bloodshed.
+Antony consented to form an alliance with his rival, and, as security
+for the sincerity of the reconciliation, he gave his hand in marriage to
+Octavia, whose first husband, Marcellus, had just died--his hand, I say,
+only his hand, for his heart was captive to the Queen of Egypt. And if
+Antony was faithless to the wife to whom statecraft had bound him, he
+kept his pledge to the other, who had an earlier, better title. If
+Cleopatra did not give up the man to whom she had sworn fidelity
+forever, she was right--a thousand times right! In my eyes--no matter
+how often my mother rebukes me--Cleopatra, in the eyes of the immortals,
+is and always will be Antony's real wife; the other, though on her
+marriage day no custom, no word, no stroke of the stylus, no gesture was
+omitted, is the intruder in a bond of love which rejoices the gods,
+however it may anger mortals, and--forgive me, mother--virtuous
+matrons."
+
+Berenike had listened with blushing cheeks to her vivacious daughter;
+now with timid earnestness she interrupted: "I know that those are the
+views of the new times; that Antony in the eyes of the Egyptians, and
+probably also according to their customs, is the rightful husband of the
+Queen. I know, too, that you are both against me. Yet Cleopatra is in
+reality a Greek, and therefore--eternal gods!--I can sincerely pity her;
+but the marriage has been solemnized, and I cannot blame Octavia. She
+rears and cherishes, as if they were her own, the children of her
+faithless husband and Fulvia, his first wife, who have no claim upon
+her. It is more than human to take the stones from the path of the man
+who became her foe, as she does. No woman in Alexandria can pray more
+fervently than I that Cleopatra and her friend may conquer Octavianus.
+His cold nature, highly as my brother esteems him, is repellent to me.
+But when I gaze at Octavia's beautiful, chaste, queenly, noble
+countenance, the mirror of true womanly purity----"
+
+"You can rejoice," Archibius added, completing the sentence, and laying
+his right hand soothingly on the arm of the excited woman, "only it
+would be advisable at this time to put the portrait elsewhere, and rest
+satisfied with confiding your opinion of Octavia to your brother and a
+friend as reliable as myself. If we conquer, such things may pass; if
+not-- The messenger tarries long--"
+
+Here Barine again entreated him to use the time. She had only once had
+the happiness of being noticed by the Queen--just after her song at the
+Adonis festival. Then Cleopatra had advanced to thank her. She said only
+a few kind words, but in a voice which seemed to penetrate the inmost
+depths of her heart and bind her with invisible threads. Meanwhile
+Barine's eyes met those of her sovereign, and at first they roused an
+ardent desire to press her lips even on the hem of her robe, but
+afterwards she felt as if a venomous serpent had crawled out of the most
+beautiful flower.
+
+Here Archibius interrupted her with the remark that he remembered
+perfectly how, after the song, Antony had addressed her at the same time
+as the Queen, and Cleopatra lacked no feminine weakness.
+
+"Jealousy?" asked Barine, in astonishment. "I was not presumptuous
+enough to admit it. I secretly feared that Alexas, the brother of
+Philostratus, had prejudiced her. He is as ill-disposed towards me as
+the man who was my husband. But everything connected with those two is
+so base and shameful that I will not allow it to cloud this pleasant
+hour. Yet the fear that Alexas might have slandered me to the Queen is
+not groundless. He is as shrewd as his brother, and through Antony, into
+whose favour he ingratiated himself, is always in communication with
+Cleopatra. He went to the war with him."
+
+"I learned that too late, and am utterly powerless against Antony,"
+replied Archibius.
+
+"But was it not natural that I should fear he had prejudiced the Queen?"
+asked Barine. "At any rate, I imagined that I detected a hostile
+expression in her eyes, and it repelled me, though at first I had been
+so strongly attracted towards her."
+
+"And had not that other stepped between you, you could not have turned
+from her again!" said Archibius. "The first time I saw her I was but a
+mere boy, and she--as I have already said--a child eight years old."
+
+Barine nodded gratefully to Archibius, brought the distaff to her
+mother, poured water into the wine in the mixing vessel, and after at
+first leaning comfortably back among the cushions, she soon bent forward
+in a listening attitude, with her elbow propped on her knee, and her
+chin supported by her hand. Berenike drew the flax from the distaff, at
+first slowly, then faster and faster.
+
+"You know my country-house in the Kanopus," the guest began. "It was
+originally a small summer palace belonging to the royal family, and
+underwent little change after we moved into it. Even the garden is
+unaltered. It was full of shady old trees. Olympus, the leech, had
+chosen this place, that my father might complete within its walls the
+work of education entrusted to him. You shall hear the story. At that
+time Alexandria was in a state of turmoil, for Rome had not recognized
+the King, and ruled over us like Fate, though it had not acknowledged
+the will by which the miserable Alexander bequeathed Egypt to him like a
+field or a slave.
+
+"The King of Egypt, who called himself 'the new Dionysus,' was a weak
+man, whose birth did not give him the full right to the sovereignty. You
+know that the people called him the 'fluteplayer.' He really had no
+greater pleasure than to hear music and listen to his own performances.
+He played by no means badly on more than one instrument, and, moreover,
+as a reveller did honour to the other name. Whoever kept sober at the
+festival of Dionysus, whose incarnate second self he regarded himself,
+incurred his deepest displeasure.
+
+"The flute-player's wife, Queen Tryphœna, and her oldest daughter--she
+bore your name, Berenike--ruined his life. Compared with them, the King
+was worthy and virtuous. What had become of the heroes and the
+high-minded princes of the house of Ptolemy? Every passion and crime had
+found a home in their palaces!
+
+"The flute-player, Cleopatra's father, was by no means the worst. He was
+a slave to his own caprices; no one had taught him to bridle his
+passions. Where it served his purpose, even death was summoned to his
+aid; but this was a custom of the last sovereigns of his race. In one
+respect he was certainly superior to most of them--he still possessed a
+capacity to feel a loathing for the height of crime, to believe in
+virtue and loftiness of soul, and the possibility of implanting them in
+youthful hearts. When a boy, he had been under the influence of an
+excellent teacher, whose precepts had lingered in his memory and led him
+to determine to withdraw his favourite children--two girls--from their
+mother's sway, at least as far as possible.
+
+"I learned afterwards that it had been his desire to confide the
+princesses wholly to my parents' care. But an invincible power opposed
+this. Though Greeks might be permitted to instruct the royal children in
+knowledge, the Egyptians would not yield the right to their religious
+education. The leech Olympus--you know the good old man--had insisted
+that the delicate Cleopatra must spend the coldest winter months in
+Upper Egypt, where the sky was never clouded, and the summer near the
+sea in a shady garden. The little palace at Kanopus was devoted to this
+purpose.
+
+"When we moved there it was entirely unoccupied, but the princesses were
+soon to be brought to us. During the winter Olympus preferred the island
+of Philæ, on the Nubian frontier, because the famous Temple of Isis was
+there, and its priests willingly undertook to watch over the children.
+
+"The Queen would not listen to any of these plans. Leaving Alexandria
+and spending the winter on a lonely island in the tropics was an utterly
+incomprehensible idea. So she let the King have his way, and no doubt
+was glad to be relieved from the care of the children; for, even after
+her royal husband's exile from the city, she never visited her
+daughters. True, death allowed her only a short time to do so.
+
+"Her oldest daughter, Berenike, who became her successor, followed her
+example, and troubled herself very little about her sisters. I heard
+afterwards that she was very glad to know that they were in charge of
+persons who filled their minds with other thoughts than the desire to
+rule. Her brothers were reared at Lochias by our countryman Theodotus,
+under the eyes of their guardian, Pothinus.
+
+"Our family life was of course wholly transformed by the reception of
+the royal children. In the first place, we moved from our house in the
+Museum Square into the little palace at Kanopus, and the big, shady
+garden delighted us. I remember, as though it were but yesterday, the
+morning--I was then a boy of fifteen--when my father told us that two of
+the King's daughters would soon become members of the household. There
+were three of us children--Charmian, who went to the war with the Queen,
+because Iras, our niece, was ill; I myself; and Straton, who died long
+ago. We were urged to treat the princesses with the utmost courtesy and
+consideration, and we perceived that their reception really demanded
+respect; for the palace, which we had found empty and desolate, was
+refurnished from roof to foundation.
+
+"The day before they were expected horses, chariots, and litters came,
+while boats and a splendid state galley, fully manned, arrived by sea.
+Then a train of male and female slaves appeared, among them two fat
+eunuchs.
+
+"I can still see the angry look with which my father surveyed all these
+people. He drove at once to the city, and on his return his clear eyes
+were as untroubled as ever. A court official accompanied him, and only
+that portion of the useless amount of luggage and number of persons that
+my father desired remained.
+
+"The princesses were to come the next morning--it was at the end of
+February--flowers were blooming in the grass and on the bushes, while
+the foliage of the trees glittered with the fresh green which the rising
+sap gives to the young leaves. I was sitting on a strong bough of a
+sycamore-tree, which grew opposite to the house, watching for them.
+Their arrival was delayed and, as I gazed meanwhile over the garden, I
+thought it must surely please them, for not a palace in the city had one
+so beautiful.
+
+"At last the litters appeared; they had neither runners nor attendants,
+as my father had requested, and when the princesses alighted--both at
+the same moment--I knew not which way to turn my eyes first, for the
+creature that fluttered like a dragon-fly rather than stepped from the
+first litter, was not a girl like other mortals--she seemed like a wish,
+a hope. When the dainty, beautiful creature turned her head hither and
+thither, and at last gazed questioningly, as if beseeching help, into
+the faces of my father and mother, who stood at the gate to receive her,
+it seemed to me that such must have been the aspect of Psyche when she
+stood pleading for mercy at the throne of Zeus.
+
+"But it was worth while to look at the other also. Was that Cleopatra?
+She might have been the elder, for she was as tall as her sister, but
+how utterly unlike! From the waving hair to every movement of the hands
+and body the former--it _was_ Cleopatra--had seemed to me as if she were
+flying. Everything about the second figure, on the contrary, was solid,
+nay, even seemed to offer positive resistance. She sprang from the
+litter and alighted on the ground with both feet at once, clung firmly
+to the door, and haughtily flung back her head, crowned with a wealth of
+dark locks. Her complexion was pink and white, and her blue eyes
+sparkled brightly enough; but the expression with which she gazed at my
+parents was defiant rather than questioning, and as she glanced around
+her red lips curled scornfully as though she deemed her surroundings
+despicable and unworthy of her royal birth.
+
+"This irritated me against the seven-year-old child, yet I said to
+myself that, though it was very beautiful here--thanks to my father's
+care--perhaps it appeared plain and simple when compared with the
+marble, gold, and purple of the royal palace whence she came. Her
+features, too, were regular and beautiful, and she would have attracted
+attention by her loveliness among a multitude. When I soon heard her
+issue imperious commands and defiantly insist upon the fulfilment of
+every wish, I thought, in my boyish ignorance, that Arsinoë must be the
+elder; for she was better suited to wield a sceptre than her sister. I
+said so to my brother and Charmian; but we all soon saw which really
+possessed queenly majesty; for Arsinoë, if her will were crossed, wept,
+screamed, and raged like a lunatic, or, if that proved useless, begged
+and teased; while if Cleopatra wanted anything she obtained it in a
+different way. Even at that time she knew what weapons would give her
+victory and, while using them, she still remained the child of a king.
+
+"No artisan's daughter could have been further removed from airs of
+majestic pathos than this embodiment of the most charming childlike
+grace; but if anything for which her passionate nature ardently longed
+was positively refused, she understood how to attain it by the melody of
+her voice, the spell of her eyes, and in extreme cases by a silent tear.
+When to such tears were added uplifted hands and a few sweet words, such
+as, 'It would make me happy,' or, 'Don't you see how it hurts me?'
+resistance was impossible; and in after-years also her silent tears and
+the marvellous music of her voice won her a victory in the decisive
+questions of life.
+
+"We children were soon playmates and friends, for my parents did not
+wish the princesses to begin their studies until after they felt at home
+with us. This pleased Arsinoë, although she could already read and
+write; but Cleopatra more than once asked to hear something from my
+father's store of wisdom, of which she had been told.
+
+"The King and her former teacher had cherished the highest expectations
+from the brilliant intellect of this remarkable child, and Olympus once
+laid his hand on my curls and bade me take care that the princess did
+not outstrip the philosopher's son. I had always occupied one of the
+foremost places, and laughingly escaped, assuring him that there was no
+danger.
+
+"But I soon learned that this warning was not groundless. You will think
+that the old fool's heart has played him a trick, and in the magic
+garden of childish memories the gifted young girl was transformed into a
+goddess. That she certainly was not; for the immortals are free from the
+faults and weaknesses of humanity."
+
+"And what robbed Cleopatra of the renown of resembling the gods?" asked
+Barine eagerly.
+
+A subtle smile, not wholly free from reproach, accompanied Archibius's
+reply: "Had I spoken of her virtues, you would hardly have thought of
+asking further details. But why should I try to conceal what she has
+displayed to the world openly enough throughout her whole life?
+Falsehood and hypocrisy were as unfamiliar to her as fishing is to the
+sons of the desert. The fundamental principles which have dominated this
+rare creature's life and character to the present day are two ceaseless
+desires: first, to surpass every one, even in the most difficult
+achievements; and, secondly, to love and to be loved in return. From
+them emanated what raised her above all other women. Ambition and love
+will also sustain her like two mighty wings on the proud height to which
+they have borne her, so long as they dwell harmoniously in her fiery
+soul. Hitherto a rare favour of destiny has permitted this, and may the
+Olympians grant that thus it may ever be!"
+
+Here Archibius paused, wiped the perspiration from his brow, asked if
+the messenger had arrived, and ordered him to be admitted as soon as he
+appeared. Then he went on as calmly as before:
+
+"The princesses were members of our household, and in the course of time
+they seemed like sisters. During the first winter the King allowed them
+to spend only the most inclement months at Philæ, for he was unwilling
+to live without them. True, he saw them rarely enough; weeks often
+elapsed without a visit; but, on the other hand, he often came day after
+day to our garden, clad in plain garments, and borne in an unpretending
+litter, for these visits were kept secret from every one save the leech
+Olympus.
+
+"I often saw the tall, strong man, with red, bloated face, playing with
+his children like a mechanic who had just returned from work. But he
+usually remained only a short time, seeming to be satisfied with having
+seen them again. Perhaps he merely wished to assure himself that they
+were comfortable with us. At any rate, no one was permitted to go near
+the group of plane-trees where he talked with them.
+
+"But it is easy to hide amid the dense foliage of these trees, so my
+knowledge that he questioned them is not solely hearsay.
+
+"Cleopatra was happy with us from the beginning; Arsinoë needed a
+longer time; but the King valued only the opinion of his older child,
+his darling, on whom he feasted his eyes and ears like a lover. He often
+shook his heavy head at the sight of her, and when she gave him one of
+her apt replies, he laughed so loudly that the sound of his deep,
+resonant voice was heard as far as the house.
+
+"Once I saw tear after tear course down his flushed cheeks, and yet his
+visit was shorter than usual. The closed _harmamaxa_* in which he came
+bore him from our house directly to the vessel which was to convey him
+to Cyprus and Rome. The Alexandrians, headed by the Queen, had forced
+him to leave the city and the country.
+
+[* A closed Asiatic travelling-carriage with four wheels.]
+
+"He was indeed unworthy of the crown, but he loved his little daughter
+like a true father. Still, it was terrible, monstrous for him to invoke
+curses upon the mother and sister of the children, in their presence,
+and in the same breath command them to hate and execrate them, but to
+love and never forget him.
+
+"I was then seventeen and Cleopatra ten years old. I, who loved my
+parents better than my life, felt an icy chill run through my veins and
+then a touch upon my heart like balsam, as I heard little Arsinoë,
+after her father had gone, whisper to her sister, 'We will hate
+them--may the gods destroy them!' and when Cleopatra answered with
+tearful eyes, 'Let us rather be better than they, very good indeed,
+Arsinoë, that the immortals may love us and bring our father back.'
+
+"'Because then he will make you Queen,' replied Arsinoë sneeringly,
+still trembling with angry excitement.
+
+"Cleopatra gazed at her with a troubled look. Her tense features showed
+that she was weighing the meaning of the words, and I can still see her
+as she suddenly drew up her small figure, and said proudly, 'Yes, I will
+be Queen!'
+
+"Then her manner changed, and in the sweetest tones of her soft voice,
+she said beseechingly, 'You won't say such naughty things again, will
+you?'
+
+"This was at the time that my father's instruction began to take
+possession of her mind. The prediction of Olympus was fulfilled. True, I
+attended the school of oratory, but when my father set the royal maiden
+a lesson, I was permitted to repeat mine on the same subject, and
+frequently I could not help admitting that Cleopatra had succeeded
+better than I.
+
+"Soon there were difficult problems to master, for the intellect of this
+wonderful child demanded stronger food, and she was introduced into
+philosophy. My father himself belonged to the school of Epicurus, and
+succeeded far beyond his expectations in rousing Cleopatra's interest in
+his master's teachings. She had been made acquainted with the other
+great philosophers also, but always returned to Epicurus, and induced
+the rest of us to live with her as a true disciple of the noble Samian.
+
+"Your father and brother have doubtless made you familiar with the
+precepts of the Stoa; yet you have certainly heard that Epicurus spent
+the latter part of his life with his friends and pupils in quiet
+meditation and instructive conversation in his garden at Athens. We,
+too--according to Cleopatra's wish--were to live thus and call ourselves
+'disciples of Epicurus.'
+
+"With the exception of Arsinoë, who preferred gayer pastimes, into
+which she drew my brother Straton--at that time a giant in strength--we
+all liked the plan. I was chosen master, but I perceived that Cleopatra
+desired the position, so she took my place.
+
+"During our next leisure afternoon we paced up and down the garden, and
+the conversation about the chief good was so eager, Cleopatra directed
+it with so much skill, and decided doubtful questions so happily, that
+we reluctantly obeyed the brazen gong which summoned us to the house,
+and spent the whole evening in anticipating the next afternoon.
+
+"The following morning my father saw several country people assembled
+before the secluded garden; but he did not have time to inquire what
+they wanted; for Timagenes, who shared the instruction in history--you
+know he was afterwards taken to Rome as a prisoner of war--rushed up to
+him, holding out a tablet which bore the inscription Epicurus had
+written on the gate of his garden: 'Stranger, here you will be happy;
+here is the chief good, pleasure.'
+
+"Cleopatra had written this notice in large letters on the top of a
+small table before sunrise, and a slave had secretly fastened it on the
+gate for her.
+
+"This prank might have easily proved fatal to our beautiful
+companionship, but it had been done merely to make our game exactly like
+the model.
+
+"My father did not forbid our continuing this pastime, but strictly
+prohibited our calling ourselves 'Epicureans' outside of the garden, for
+this noble name had since gained among the people a significance wholly
+alien. Epicurus says that true pleasure is to be found only in peace of
+mind and absence of pain."
+
+"But every one," interrupted Barine, "believes that people like the
+wealthy Isidorus, whose object in life is to take every pleasure which
+his wealth can procure, are the real Epicureans. My mother would not
+have confided me long to a teacher by whose associates 'pleasure' was
+deemed the chief good."
+
+"The daughter of a philosopher," replied Archibius, gently shaking his
+head, "ought to understand what pleasure means in the sense of Epicurus,
+and no doubt you do. True, those who are further removed from these
+things cannot know that the master forbids yearning for individual
+pleasure. Have you an idea of his teachings? No definite one? Then
+permit me a few words of explanation. It happens only too often that
+Epicurus is confounded with Aristippus, who places sensual pleasure
+above intellectual enjoyment, as he holds that bodily pain is harder to
+endure than mental anguish. Epicurus, on the contrary, considers
+intellectual pleasure to be the higher one; for sensual enjoyment, which
+he believes free to every one, can be experienced only in the present,
+while intellectual delight extends to both the past and the future. To
+the Epicureans the goal of life, as has already been mentioned, is to
+attain the chief blessings, peace of mind, and freedom from pain. He is
+to practise virtue only because it brings him pleasure; for who could
+remain virtuous without being wise, noble, and just?--and whoever is all
+these cannot have his peace of mind disturbed, and must be really happy
+in the exact meaning of the master. I perceived long since the peril
+lurking in this system of instruction, which takes no account of moral
+excellence; but at that time it seemed to me also the chief good.
+
+"How all this charmed the mind of the thoughtful child, still untouched
+by passion! It was difficult to supply her wonderfully vigorous
+intellect with sufficient sustenance, and she really felt that to enrich
+it was the highest pleasure. And to her, who could scarcely endure to
+have a rude hand touch her, though a small grief or trivial
+disappointment could not be averted, the freedom from pain which the
+master had named as the first condition for the existence of every
+pleasure, and termed the chief good, seemed indeed the first condition
+of a happy life.
+
+"Yet this child, whom my father once compared to a thinking flower, bore
+without complaint her sad destiny--her father's banishment, her mother's
+death, her sister Berenike's profligacy. Even to me, in whom she found a
+second brother and fully trusted, she spoke of these sorrowful things
+only in guarded allusions. I know that she understood what was passing
+fully and perfectly, and how deeply she felt it; but pain placed itself
+between her and the 'chief good,' and she mastered it. And when she sat
+at work, with what tenacious power the delicate creature struggled until
+she had conquered the hardest task and outstripped Charmian and even me!
+
+"In those days I understood why, among the gods, a maiden rules over
+learning, and why she is armed with the weapons of war. You have heard
+how many languages Cleopatra speaks. A remark of Timagenes had fallen
+into her soul like a seed. 'With every language you learn,' he had said,
+'you will gain a nation.' But there were many peoples in her father's
+kingdom, and when she was Queen they must all love her. True, she began
+with the tongue of the conquerors, not the conquered. So it happened
+that we first learned Lucretius, who reproduces in verse the doctrines
+of Epicurus. My father was our teacher, and the second year she read
+Lucretius as if it were a Greek book. She had only half known Egyptian;
+now she speedily acquired it. During our stay at Philæ she found a
+troglodyte who was induced to teach her his language. There were Jews
+enough here in Alexandria to instruct her in theirs, and she also
+learned its kindred tongue, Arabic.
+
+"When, many years later, she visited Antony at Tarsus, the warriors
+imagined that some piece of Egyptian magic was at work, for she
+addressed each commander in his own tongue, and talked with him as if
+she were a native of the same country.
+
+"It was the same with everything. She outstripped us in every branch of
+study. To her burning ambition it would have been unbearable to lag
+behind.
+
+"The Roman Lucretius became her favourite poet, although she was no more
+friendly to his nation than I, but the self-conscious power of the foe
+pleased her, and once I heard her exclaim 'Ah! if the Egyptians were
+Romans, I would give up our garden for Berenike's throne.'
+
+"Lucretius constantly led her back to Epicurus, and awakened a severe
+conflict in her unresting mind. You probably know that he teaches that
+life in itself is not so great a blessing that it must be deemed a
+misfortune _not to live_. It is only spoiled by having death appear to
+us as the greatest of misfortunes. Only the soul which ceases to regard
+death as a misfortune finds peace. Whoever knows that thought and
+feeling end with life will not fear death; for, no matter how many dear
+and precious things the dead have left here below, their yearning for
+them has ceased with life. He declares that providing for the body is
+the greatest folly, while the Egyptian religion, in which Anubis strove
+to strengthen her faith, maintained precisely the opposite.
+
+"To a certain degree he succeeded, for his personality exerted a
+powerful influence over her; and besides, she naturally took great
+pleasure in mystical, supernatural things, as my brother Straton did in
+physical strength, and you, Barine, enjoy the gift of song. You know
+Anubis by sight. What Alexandrian has not seen this remarkable man?--and
+whoever has once met his eyes does not easily forget him. He does indeed
+rule over mysterious powers, and he used them in his intercourse with
+the young princess. It is his work if she cleaves to the religious
+belief of her people, if she who is a Hellene to the last drop of blood
+loves Egypt, and is ready to make any sacrifice for her independence and
+grandeur. She is called 'the new Isis,' but Isis presides over the magic
+arts of the Egyptians, and Anubis initiated Cleopatra into this secret
+science, and even persuaded her to enter the observatory and the
+laboratory----
+
+"But all these things had their origin in our garden of Epicurus, and my
+father did not venture to forbid it; for the King had sent a message
+from Rome to say that he was glad to have Cleopatra find pleasure in her
+own people and their secret knowledge.
+
+"The flute-player, during his stay on the Tiber, had given his gold to
+the right men or bound them as creditors to his interest. After Pompey,
+Cæsar, and Crassus had concluded their alliance, they consented at
+Lucca to the restoration of the Ptolemy. Millions upon millions would
+not have seemed to him too large a price for this object. Pompey would
+rather have gone to Egypt himself, but the jealousy of the others would
+not permit it. Gabinius, the Governor of Syria, received the commission.
+
+"But the occupants of the Egyptian throne were not disposed to resign it
+without a struggle. You know that meanwhile Queen Berenike, Cleopatra's
+sister, had been twice married. She had her miserable first husband
+strangled--a more manly spouse had been chosen by the Alexandrians for
+her second consort. He bravely defended his rights, and lost his life on
+the field of battle.
+
+"The senate learned speedily enough that Gabinius had brought the
+Ptolemy back to his country; the news reached us more slowly. We watched
+for every rumour with the same passionate anxiety as now.
+
+"At that time Cleopatra was fourteen, and had developed magnificently.
+Yonder portrait shows the perfect flower, but the bud possessed, if
+possible, even more exquisite charm. How clear and earnest was the gaze
+of her bright eyes! When she was gay they could shine like stars, and
+then her little red mouth had an indescribably mischievous expression,
+and in each cheek came one of the tiny dimples which still delight every
+one. Her nose was more delicate than it is now, and the slight curve
+which appears in the portrait, and which is far too prominent in the
+coins, was not visible. Her hair did not grow dark until later in life.
+My sister Charmian had no greater pleasure than to arrange its wavy
+abundance. It was like silk, she often said, and she was right. I know
+this, for when at the festival of Isis, Cleopatra, holding the sistrum,
+followed the image of the goddess, she was obliged to wear it
+unconfined. On her return home she often shook her head merrily, and her
+hair fell about her like a cataract, veiling her face and figure. Then,
+as now, she was not above middle height, but her form possessed the most
+exquisite symmetry, only it was still more delicate and pliant.
+
+"She had understood how to win all hearts. Yet, though she seemed to
+esteem our father higher, trust me more fully, look up to Anubis with
+greater reverence, and prefer to argue with the keen-witted Timagenes,
+she still appeared to hold all who surrounded her in equal favour, while
+Arsinoë left me in the lurch if Straton were present, and whenever the
+handsome Melnodor, one of my father's pupils, came to us, she fairly
+devoured him with her glowing eyes.
+
+"As soon as it was rumoured that the Romans were bringing the King back,
+Queen Berenike came to us to take the young girls to the city. When
+Cleopatra entreated her to leave her in our parents' care and not
+interrupt her studies, a scornful smile flitted over Berenike's face,
+and turning to her husband Archelaus, she said scornfully, 'I think
+books will prove to be the smallest danger.'
+
+"Pothinus, the guardian of the two princesses' brothers, had formerly
+permitted them at times to visit their sisters. Now they were no longer
+allowed to leave Lochias, but neither Cleopatra nor Arsinoë made many
+inquiries about them. The little boys always retreated from their
+caresses, and the Egyptian locks on their temples, which marked the age
+of childhood, and the Egyptian garments which Pothinus made them wear,
+lent them an unfamiliar aspect.
+
+"When it was reported that the Romans were advancing from Gaza, both
+girls were overpowered by passionate excitement. Arsinoë's glittered in
+every glance; Cleopatra understood how to conceal hers, but her colour
+often varied, and her face, which was not pink and white like her
+sister's, but--how shall I express it?----"
+
+"I know what you mean," Barine interrupted. "When I saw her, nothing
+seemed to me more charming than that pallid hue through which the
+crimson of her cheeks shines like the flame through yonder alabaster
+lamp, the tint of the peach through the down. I have seen it often in
+convalescents. Aphrodite breathes this hue on the faces and figures of
+her favourites only, as the god of time imparts the green tinge to the
+bronze. Nothing is more beautiful than when such women blush."
+
+"Your sight is keen," replied Archibius, smiling. "It seemed indeed as
+if not Eos, but her faint reflection in the western horizon, was tinting
+the sky, when joy or shame sent the colour to her cheeks, But when wrath
+took possession of her--and ere the King's return this often
+happened--she could look as if she were lifeless, like a marble statue,
+with lips as colourless as those of a corpse.
+
+"My father said that the blood of Physkon and other degenerate
+ancestors, who had not learned to control their passions, was asserting
+itself in her also. But I must continue my story, or the messenger will
+interrupt me too soon.
+
+"Gabinius was bringing back the King. But from the time of his approach
+with the Roman army and the auxiliary troops of the Ethnarch of Judea,
+nothing more was learned of him or of Antipater, who commanded the
+forces of Hyrkanus; every one talked constantly of the Roman general
+Antony. He had led the troops successfully through the deserts between
+Syria and the Egyptian Delta without losing a single man on the
+dangerous road by the Sirbonian Sea and Barathra, where many an army had
+met destruction. Not to Antipater, but to him, had the Jewish garrison
+of Pelusium surrendered their city without striking a blow. He had
+conquered in two battles; and the second, where, as you know, Berenike's
+husband fell after a brave resistance, had decided the destiny of the
+country.
+
+"From the time his name was first mentioned, neither of the girls could
+hear enough about him. It was said that he was the most aristocratic of
+aristocratic Romans, the most reckless of the daring, the wildest of the
+riotous, and the handsomest of the handsome.
+
+"The waiting-maid from Mantua, with whom Cleopatra practised speaking
+the Roman language, had often seen him, and had heard of him still more
+frequently--for his mode of life was the theme of gossip among all
+classes of Roman men and women. His house was said to have descended in
+a direct line from Hercules, and his figure and magnificent black beard
+recalled his ancestor. You know him, and know that the things reported
+of him are those which a young girl cannot hear with indifference, and
+at that time he was nearly five lustra younger than he is to-day.
+
+"How eagerly Arsinoë listened when his name was uttered! How Cleopatra
+flushed and paled when Timagenes condemned him as an unprincipled
+libertine! True, Antony was opening her father's path to his home.
+
+"The flute-player had not forgotten his daughters. He had remained aloof
+from the battle, but as soon as the victory was decided, he pressed on
+into the city.
+
+"The road led past our garden.
+
+"The King had barely time to send a runner to his daughters, fifteen
+minutes before his arrival, to say that he desired to greet them. They
+were hurriedly attired in festal garments, and both presented an
+appearance that might well gladden a father's heart.
+
+"Cleopatra was not yet as tall as Arsinoë, but, though only fourteen,
+she looked like a full-grown maiden, while her sister's face and figure
+showed that in years she was still a child. But she was no longer one in
+heart. Bouquets for the returning sovereign had been arranged as well as
+haste permitted. Each one of the girls held one in her hand when the
+train approached.
+
+"My parents accompanied them to the garden gate. I could see what was
+passing, but could hear distinctly only the voices of the men.
+
+"The King alighted from the travelling chariot, which was drawn by eight
+white Median steeds. The chamberlain who attended him was obliged to
+support him. His face, reddened by his potations, fairly beamed as he
+greeted his daughters. His joyful surprise at the sight of both, but
+especially of Cleopatra, was evident. True, he kissed and embraced
+Arsinoë, but after that he had eyes and ears solely for Cleopatra.
+
+"Yet his younger daughter was very beautiful. Away from her sister, she
+would have commanded the utmost admiration; but Cleopatra was like the
+sun, beside which every other heavenly body pales. Yet, no; she should
+not be compared to the sun. It was part of the fascination she exerted
+that every one felt compelled to gaze at her, to discover the source of
+the charm which emanated from her whole person.
+
+"Antony, too, was enthralled by the spell as soon as he heard the first
+words from her lips. He had dashed up to the King's chariot, and seeing
+the two daughters by their father's side, he greeted them with a hasty
+salute. When, in reply to the question whether he might hope for her
+gratitude for bringing her father back to her so quickly, she said that
+as a daughter she sincerely rejoiced, but as an Egyptian the task would
+be harder, he gazed more keenly at her.
+
+"I did not know her answer until later; but ere the last sound of her
+voice had died away, I saw the Roman spring from his charger and fling
+the bridle to Ammonius--the chamberlain who had assisted the King from
+the chariot--as if he were his groom. The woman-hunter had met with rare
+game in his pursuit of the fairest, and while he continued his
+conversation with Cleopatra her father sometimes joined in, and his deep
+laughter was often heard.
+
+"No one would have recognized the earnest disciple of Epicurus. We had
+often heard apt replies and original thoughts from Cleopatra's lips, but
+she had rarely answered Timagenes's jests with another. Now she
+found--one could see it by watching the speakers--a witty answer to many
+of Antony's remarks. It seemed as if, for the first time, she had met
+some one for whom she deemed it worth while to bring into the field
+every gift of her deep and quick intelligence. Yet she did not lose for
+a moment her womanly dignity; her eyes did not sparkle one whit more
+brightly than during an animated conversation with me or our father.
+
+"It was very different with Arsinoë. When Antony flung himself from his
+horse, she had moved nearer to her sister, but, as the Roman continued
+to overlook her, her face crimsoned, she bit her scarlet lips. Her whole
+attitude betrayed the agitation that mastered her, and I, who knew her,
+saw by the expression of her eyes and her quivering nostrils that she
+was on the point of bursting into tears. Though Cleopatra stood so much
+nearer to my heart, I felt sorry for her, and longed to touch the arm of
+the haughty Roman, who indeed looked like the god of war, and whisper to
+him to take some little notice of the poor child, who was also a
+daughter of the King.
+
+"But a still harder blow was destined to fall upon Arsinoë; for when
+the King, who had been holding both bouquets, warned Antony that it was
+time to depart, he took one, and I heard him say in his deep, loud
+tones, 'Whoever calls such flowers his daughters does not need so many
+others.' Then he gave Cleopatra the blossoms and, laying his hand upon
+his heart, expressed the hope of seeing her in Alexandria, and swung
+himself upon the charger which the chamberlain, pale with fury, was
+still holding by the bridle.
+
+"The flute-player was delighted with his oldest daughter, and told my
+father he would have the young princess conveyed to the city on the day
+after the morrow. The next day he had things to do of which he desired
+her to have no knowledge. Our father, in token of his gratitude, should
+retain for himself and his heirs the summer palace and the garden. He
+would see that the change of owner was entered in the land register.
+This was really done that very day. It was, indeed, his first act save
+one--the execution of his daughter Berenike.
+
+"This ruler, who would have seemed to any one who beheld his meeting
+with his children a warm-hearted man and a tender father, at that time
+would have put half Alexandria to the sword, had not Antony interposed.
+He forbade the bloodshed, and honoured Berenike's dead husband by a
+stately funeral.
+
+"As the steed bore him away, he turned back towards Cleopatra; he could
+not have saluted Arsinoë, for she had rushed into the garden, and her
+swollen face betrayed that she had shed burning tears.
+
+"From that hour she bitterly hated Cleopatra.
+
+"On the day appointed, the King brought the princesses to the city with
+regal splendour. The Alexandrians joyously greeted the royal sisters,
+as, seated on a golden throne, over which waved ostrich-feathers, they
+were borne in state down the Street of the King, surrounded by
+dignitaries, army commanders, the body-guard, and the senate of the
+city. Cleopatra received the adulation of the populace with gracious
+majesty, as if she were already Queen. Whoever had seen her as, with
+floods of tears, she bade us all farewell, assuring us of her gratitude
+and faithful remembrance, the sisterly affection she showed me--I had
+just been elected commander of the Ephebi--" Here Archibius was
+interrupted by a slave, who announced the arrival of the messenger, and,
+rising hurriedly, he went to Leonax's workshop, to which the man had
+been conducted, that he might speak to him alone.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+The men sent by Archibius to obtain news had brought back no definite
+information; but a short time before, a royal runner had handed him a
+tablet from Iras, requesting him to visit her the next day. Disquieting,
+but fortunately as yet unverified tidings had arrived. The Regent was
+doing everything in his power to ascertain the truth; but he (Archibius)
+was aware of the distrust of the government, and everything connected
+with it, felt by the sailors and all the seafaring folk at the harbour.
+An independent person like himself could often learn more than the chief
+of the harbour police, with all his ships and men.
+
+The little tablet was accompanied by a second, which, in the Regent's
+name, authorized the bearer to have the harbour chains raised anywhere,
+to go out into the open sea and return without interference.
+
+The messenger, the overseer of Archibius's galley slaves, was an
+experienced man. He undertook to have the "Epicurus"--a swift vessel,
+which Cleopatra had given to her friend--ready for a voyage to the open
+sea within two hours. The carriage should be sent for his master, that
+no time might be lost.
+
+When Archibius had returned to the ladies and asked whether it would be
+an abuse of their hospitality, if--it was now nearly midnight--he should
+still delay his departure for a time, they expressed sincere pleasure,
+and begged him to continue his narrative.
+
+"I must hasten," he hurriedly began, after eating the lunch which
+Berenike had ordered while he was talking with the messenger, "but the
+events of the next few years are hardly worth mentioning. Besides, my
+time was wholly occupied by my studies in the museum.
+
+"As for Cleopatra and Arsinoë, they stood like queens at the head of
+all the magnificence of the court. The day on which they left our house
+was the last of their childhood.
+
+"Who would venture to determine whether her father's restoration, or the
+meeting with Antony, had wrought the great change which took place at
+that time in Cleopatra?
+
+"Just before she left us, my mother had lamented that she must give her
+to a father like the flute-player, instead of to a worthy mother; for
+the best could not help regarding herself happy in the possession of
+such a daughter. Afterwards her character and conduct were better suited
+to delight men than to please a mother. The yearning for peace of mind
+seemed over. Only the noisy festivals, the singing and music, of which
+there was never any cessation in the palace of the royal virtuoso,
+seemed to weary her and at such times she appeared at our house and
+spent several days beneath its roof. Arsinoë never accompanied her; her
+heart was sometimes won by a golden-haired officer in the ranks of the
+German horsemen whom Gabinius had left among the garrison of Alexandria,
+sometimes by a Macedonian noble among the youths who, at that time,
+performed the service of guarding the palace.
+
+"Cleopatra lived apart from her, and Arsinoë openly showed her
+hostility from the time that she entreated her to put an end to the
+scandal caused by her love affairs.
+
+"Cleopatra held aloof from such things.
+
+"Though she had devoted much time to the magic arts of the Egyptians,
+her clear intellect had rendered her so familiar with the philosophy of
+the Hellenes that it was a pleasure to hear her converse or argue in the
+museum--as she often did--with the leaders of the various schools. Her
+self-confidence had become very strong. Though, while with us, she said
+that she longed to return to the days of the peaceful Garden of
+Epicurus, she devoted herself eagerly enough to the events occurring in
+the world and to statecraft. She was familiar with everything in Rome,
+the desires and struggles of the contending parties, as well as the
+characters of the men who were directing affairs, their qualities,
+views, and aims.
+
+"She followed Antony's career with the interest of love, for she had
+bestowed on him the first affection of her young heart. She had expected
+the greatest achievements, but his subsequent course seemed to belie
+these lofty hopes. A tinge of scorn coloured her remarks concerning him
+at that time, but here also her heart had its share.
+
+"Pompey, to whom her father owed his restoration to the throne, she
+considered a lucky man, rather than a great and wise one. Of Julius
+Cæsar, on the contrary, long before she met him, she spoke with ardent
+enthusiasm, though she knew that he would gladly have made Egypt a Roman
+province. The greatest deed which she expected from the energetic Julius
+was that he would abolish the republic, which she hated, and soar upward
+to tyrannize over the arrogant rulers of the world--only she would fain
+have seen Antony in his place. How often in those days she used magic
+art to assure herself of his future! Her father was interested in these
+things, especially as, through them, and the power of the mighty Isis,
+he expected to obtain relief from his many and severe sufferings.
+
+"Cleopatra's brothers were still mere boys, completely dependent upon
+their guardian, Pothinus, to whom the King left the care of the
+government, and their tutor, Theodotus, a clever but unprincipled
+rhetorician. These two men and Achillas, the commander of the troops,
+would gladly have aided Dionysus, the King's oldest male heir, to obtain
+the control of the state, in order afterwards to rule him, but the
+flute-player baffled their plans. You know that in his last will he made
+Cleopatra, his favourite child, his successor, but her brother Dionysus
+was to share the throne as her husband. This caused much scandal in
+Rome, though it was an old custom of the house of Ptolemy, and suited
+the Egyptians.
+
+"The flute-player died. Cleopatra became Queen, and at the same time the
+wife of a husband ten years old, for whom she did not even possess the
+natural gift of sisterly tenderness. But with the obstinate child who
+had been told by his counsellors that the right to rule should be his
+alone, she also married the former governors of the country.
+
+"Then began a period of sore suffering. Her life was a perpetual battle
+against notorious intrigues, the worst of which owed their origin to her
+sister. Arsinoë had surrounded herself with a court of her own, managed
+by the eunuch Ganymedes, an experienced commander, and at the same time
+a shrewd adviser, wholly devoted to her interest. He understood how to
+bring her into close relations with Pothinus and other rulers of the
+state, and thus at last united all who possessed any power in the royal
+palace in an endeavour to thrust Cleopatra from the throne. Pothinus,
+Theodotus, and Achillas hated her because she saw their failings and
+made them feel the superiority of her intellect. Their combined efforts
+might have succeeded in overthrowing her before, had not the
+Alexandrians, headed by the Ephebi, over whom I still had some
+influence, stood by her so steadfastly. Whoever could still be classed
+as a 'youth' glowed with enthusiasm for her, and most of the Macedonian
+nobles in the body-guard would have gone to death for her sake, though
+she had forced them to gaze hopelessly up to her as if she were some
+unapproachable goddess.
+
+"When her father died she was seventeen, but she knew how to resist
+oppressors and foes as if she were a man. My sister, Charmian, whom she
+had appointed to a place in her service, loyally aided her. At that time
+she was a beautiful and lovable girl, but the spell exerted by the Queen
+fettered her like chains and bonds. She voluntarily resigned the love of
+a noble man--he afterwards became your husband, Berenike--in order not
+to leave her royal friend at a time when she so urgently needed her.
+Since then my sister has shut her heart against love. It belonged to
+Cleopatra. She lives, thinks, cares for her alone. She is fond of you,
+Barine, because your father was so dear to her. Iras, whose name is so
+often associated with hers, is the daughter of my oldest sister, who was
+already married when the King entrusted the princesses to our father's
+care. She is thirteen years younger than Cleopatra, but her mistress
+holds the first place in her heart also. Her father, the wealthy Krates,
+made every effort to keep her from entering the service of the Queen,
+but in vain. A single conversation with this marvellous woman had bound
+her forever.
+
+"But I must be brief. You have doubtless heard how completely Cleopatra
+bewitched Pompey's son during his visit to Alexandria. She had not been
+so gracious to any man since her meeting with Antony, and it was not
+from affection, but to maintain the independence of her beloved native
+land. At that time the father of Gnejus was the man who possessed the
+most power, and statecraft commanded her to win him through his son. The
+young Roman also took his leave 'full of her,' as the Egyptians say.
+This pleased her, but the visit greatly aided her foes. There was no
+slander which was not disseminated against her. The commanders of the
+body-guard, whom she had always treated as a haughty Queen, had seen her
+associate with Pompey's son in the theatre as if he were a friend of
+equal rank; and on many other occasions the Alexandrians saw her repay
+his courtesies in the same coin. But in those days hatred of Rome surged
+high. The regents, leagued with Arsinoë, spread the rumour that
+Cleopatra would deliver Egypt up to Pompey, if the senate would secure
+to her the sole sovereignty of the new province, and leave her free to
+rid herself of her royal brother and husband.
+
+"She was compelled to fly, and went first to the Syrian frontier, to
+gain friends for her cause among the Asiatic princes. My brother
+Straton--you remember the noble youth who won the prize for wrestling at
+Olympia, Berenike--and I were commissioned to carry the treasure to her.
+We doubtless exposed ourselves to great peril, but we did so gladly, and
+left Alexandria with a few camels, an ox-cart, and some trusted slaves.
+We were to go to Gaza, where Cleopatra was already beginning to collect
+an army, and had disguised ourselves as Nabatæan merchants. The
+languages which I had learned, in order not to be distanced by
+Cleopatra, were now of great service.
+
+"Those were stirring times. The names of Cæsar and Pompey were in every
+mouth. After the defeat at Dyrrachium the cause of Julius seemed lost,
+but the Pharsalian battle again placed him uppermost, unless the East
+rose in behalf of Pompey. Both seemed to be favourites of Fortune. The
+question now was to which the goddess would prove most faithful.
+
+"My sister Charmian was with the Queen, but through one of Arsinoë's
+maids, who was devoted to her, we had learned from the palace that
+Pompey's fate was decided. He had come a fugitive from the defeat of
+Pharsalus, and begged the King of Egypt--that is, the men who were
+acting in his name--for a hospitable reception. Pothinus and his
+associates had rarely confronted a greater embarrassment. The troops and
+ships of the victorious Cæsar were close at hand; many of Gabinius' men
+were serving in the Egyptian army. To receive the vanquished Pompey
+kindly was to make the victorious Cæsar a foe. I was to witness the
+terrible solution of this dilemma. The infamous words of Theodotus,
+'Dead dogs no longer bite,' had turned the scale.
+
+"My brother and I reached Mount Casius with our precious freight, and
+pitched our tents to await a messenger, when a large body of armed men
+approached from the city. At first we feared that we were pursued; but a
+spy reported that the King himself was among the soldiery, and at the
+same time a large Roman galley drew near the coast. It must be Pompey's.
+So they had changed their views, and the King was coming in person to
+receive their guest. The troops encamped on the flat shore on which
+stood the Temple of the Casian Amon.
+
+"The September sun shone brightly, and was reflected from the weapons.
+From the high bank of the dry bed of the river, where we had pitched our
+tent, we saw something scarlet move to and fro. It was the King's
+mantle. The waves, stirred by the autumn breeze, rippled lightly, blue
+as cornflowers, over the yellow sand of the dunes; but the King stood
+still, shading his eyes with his hand as he gazed at the galley.
+Meanwhile, Achillas, the commander of the troops, and Septimius, the
+tribune, who belonged to the Roman garrison in Alexandria, and who, I
+knew, had served under Pompey and owed him many favours, had entered a
+boat and put off to the vessel, which could not come nearer the land on
+account of the shallow water.
+
+"The conference now began, and Achillas's offer of hospitality must have
+been very warm and well calculated to inspire confidence, for a tall
+lady--it was Cornelia, the wife of the Imperator--waved her hand to him
+in token of gratitude."
+
+Here the speaker paused, drew a long breath, and, pressing his hand to
+his brow, continued:
+
+"What follows--alas, that it was my fate to witness the dreadful scene!
+How often a garbled account has been given, and yet the whole was so
+terribly simple!
+
+"Fortune makes her favourites confiding. Pompey was also. Though more
+than fifty years old--he lacked two years of sixty--he sprang into the
+boat quickly enough, with merely a little assistance from a freedman. A
+sailor--he was a negro--shoved the skiff off from the side of the huge
+ship as violently as if the pole he used for the purpose was a spear,
+and the galley his foe. The boat, urged by his companions' oars, had
+already moved forward, and he stumbled, the brown cap falling from his
+woolly head in the act. It seems as if I could still see him. Ere I
+clearly realized that this was an evil omen, the boat stopped.
+
+"The water was shallow. I saw Achillas point to the shore. It could be
+reached by a single bound. Pompey looked towards the King. The freedman
+put his hand under his arm to help him rise. Septimius also stood up. I
+thought he intended to assist him. But no! What did this mean? Something
+flashed by the Imperator's silver-grey hair as if a spark had fallen
+from the sky. Would Pompey defend himself, or why did he raise his hand?
+It was to draw around him the toga, with which he silently covered his
+face. The tribune's arm was again raised high into the air, and
+then--what confusion! Here, there, yonder, hands suddenly appeared
+aloft, bright flashes darted through the clear air. Achillas, the
+general, dealt blows with his dagger as if he were skilled in murder.
+The Imperator's stalwart figure sank forward. The freedman supported
+him.
+
+"Then shouts arose, here a cry of fury, yonder a wail of grief, and,
+rising above all, a woman's shriek of anguish. It came from the lips of
+Cornelia, the murdered man's wife. Shouts of applause from the King's
+camp followed, then the blast of a trumpet; the Egyptians drew back from
+the shore. The scarlet cloak again appeared. Septimius, bearing in his
+hand a bleeding head, went towards it and held the ghastly trophy aloft.
+The royal boy gazed into the dull eyes of the victim, who had guided the
+destinies of many a battlefield, of Rome, of two quarters of the globe.
+The sight was probably too terrible for the child upon the throne, for
+he averted his head. The ship moved away from the land, the Egyptians
+formed into ranks and marched off. Achillas cleansed his blood-stained
+hands in the sea-water. The freedman beside him washed his master's
+headless trunk. The general shrugged his shoulders as the faithful
+fellow heaped reproaches on him."
+
+Here Archibius paused, drawing a long breath. Then he continued more
+calmly:
+
+"Achillas did not lead the troops back to Alexandria, but eastward,
+towards Pelusium, as I learned later.
+
+"My brother and I stood on the rocky edge of the ravine. It was long ere
+either spoke. A cloud of dust concealed the King and his body-guard, the
+sails of the galley disappeared. Twilight closed in, and Straton pointed
+westward towards Alexandria. Then the sun set. Red! red! It seemed as if
+a torrent of blood was pouring over the city.
+
+"Night followed. A scanty fire was glimmering on the strand. Where had
+the wood been gathered in this desert? How had it been kindled? A
+wrecked, mouldering boat had lain close beside the scene of the murder.
+The freedman and his companions had broken it up and fed the flames with
+withered boughs, the torn garments of the murdered man, and dry
+sea-weed. A blaze soon rose, and a body was carefully placed upon the
+wretched funeral pyre. It was the corpse of the great Pompey. One of the
+Imperator's veterans aided the faithful servant."
+
+Here Archibius sank back again among the cushions, adding in
+explanation:
+
+"Cordus, the man's name was Servius Cordus. He fared well later. The
+Queen provided for him. The others? Fate overtook them all soon enough.
+Theodotus was condemned by Brutus to a torturing death. Amid his loud
+shrieks of agony one of Pompey's veterans shouted, 'Dead dogs no longer
+bite, but they howl when dying!'
+
+"It was worthy of Cæsar that he averted his face in horror from the
+head of his enemy, which Theodotus sent to him. Pothinus, too, vainly
+awaited the reward of his infamous deed.
+
+"Julius Cæsar had cast anchor before Alexandria shortly after the
+King's return. Not until after his arrival in Egypt did he learn how
+Pompey had been received there. You know that he remained nine months.
+How often I have heard it said that Cleopatra understood how to chain
+him here! This is both true and false. He was obliged to stay half a
+year; the following three months he did indeed give to the woman whom he
+loved. Ay, the heart of the man of fifty-four had again opened to a
+great passion. Like all wounds, those inflicted by the arrows of Eros
+heal more slowly when youth lies behind the stricken one. It was not
+only the eyes and the senses which attracted a couple so widely
+separated by years, but far more the mental characteristics of both. Two
+winged intellects had met. The genius of one had recognized that of the
+other. The highest type of manhood had met perfect womanhood. They could
+not fail to attract each other. I expected it; for Cleopatra had long
+watched breathlessly the flight of this eagle who soared so far above
+the others, and she was strong enough to keep at his side.
+
+"We succeeded in joining Cleopatra, and heard that, spite of the
+hostility of our citizens, Cæsar had occupied the palace of the
+Ptolemies and was engaged in restoring order.
+
+"We knew in what way Pothinus, Achillas, and Arsinoë would seek to
+influence him. Cleopatra had good reason to fear that her foes might
+deliver Egypt unconditionally to Rome, if Cæsar should leave the reins
+of government in their hands and shut her out. She had cause to dread
+this, but she also had the courage to act in person in her own behalf.
+
+"The point now was to bring her into the city, the palace--nay, into
+direct communication with the dictator. Children tell the tale of the
+strong man who bore Cleopatra in a sack through the palace portals. It
+was not a sack which concealed her, but a Syrian carpet. The strong man
+was my brother Straton. I went first, to secure a free passage.
+
+"Julius Cæsar and she saw and found each other. Fate merely drew the
+conclusion which must result from such premises. Never have I seen
+Cleopatra happier, more exalted in mind and heart, yet she was menaced
+on all sides by serious perils. It required all the military genius of
+Cæsar to conquer the fierce hostility which he encountered here. It was
+this, not the thrall of Cleopatra, I repeat, which first bound him to
+Egypt. What would have prevented him--as he did later--from taking the
+object of his love to Rome, had it been possible at that time? But this
+was not the case. The Alexandrians provided for that.
+
+"He had recognized the flute-player's will, nay, had granted more to the
+royal house than could have been given to the former. Cleopatra and her
+brother-husband, Dionysus, were to share the government, and he also
+bestowed on Arsinoë and her youngest brother the island of Cyprus,
+which had been wrested from their uncle Ptolemy by the republic. Rome
+was, of course, to remain the guardian of the brothers and sisters.
+
+"This arrangement was unendurable to Pothinus and the former rulers of
+the state. Cleopatra as Queen, and Rome--that is Cæsar, the dictator,
+her friend, as guardian--meant their removal from power, their
+destruction, and they resisted violently.
+
+"The Egyptians and even the Alexandrians supported them. The young King
+hated nothing more than the yoke of the unloved sister, who was so
+greatly his superior. Cæsar had come with a force by no means equal to
+theirs, and it might be possible to draw the mighty general into a
+snare. They fought with all the power at their command, with such
+passionate eagerness, that the dictator had never been nearer succumbing
+to peril. But Cleopatra certainly did not paralyze his strength and
+cautious deliberation. No! He had never been greater; never proved the
+power of his genius so magnificently. And against what superior power,
+what hatred he contended! I myself saw the young King, when he heard
+that Cleopatra had succeeded in entering the palace and meeting Cæsar,
+rush into the street, fairly crazed by rage, tear the diadem from his
+head, hurl it on the pavement, and shriek to the passers-by that he was
+betrayed, until Cæsar's soldiers forced him back into the palace, and
+dispersed the mob.
+
+"Arsinoë had received more than she could venture to expect; but she
+was again most deeply angered. After Cæsar's entry into the palace, she
+had received him as Queen, and hoped everything from his favour. Then
+her hated sister had come and, as so often happened, she was forgotten
+for Cleopatra's sake.
+
+"This was too much, and with the eunuch Ganymedes, her confidant,
+and--as I have already said--an able warrior, she left the palace and
+joined the dictator's foes.
+
+"There were severe battles on land and sea; in the streets of the city,
+for the drinkable water excavated by the foe; and against the
+conflagration which destroyed part of the Bruchium and the library of
+the museum. Yet, half dead with thirst, barely escaped from drowning,
+threatened on all sides by fierce hatred, he stood firm, and remained
+victor also in the open field, after the young King had placed himself
+at the head of the Egyptians and collected an army.
+
+"You know that the boy was drowned in the flight.
+
+"In battle and mortal peril, amid blood and the clank of arms, Cæsar
+and Cleopatra spent half a year ere they were permitted to pluck the
+fruit of their common labour. The dictator now made her Queen of Egypt,
+and gave her, as co-regent, her youngest brother, a boy not half her own
+age. To Arsinoë he granted the life she had forfeited, but sent her to
+Italy.
+
+"Peace followed the victory. Now, it is true, grave duties must have
+summoned the statesman back to Rome, but he tarried three full months
+longer.
+
+"Whoever knows the life of the ambitious Julius, and is aware what this
+delay might have cost him, may well strike his brow with his hand, and
+ask, 'Is it true and possible that he used this precious time to take a
+trip with the woman he loved up the Nile, to the island of Isis, which
+is so dear to the Queen, to the extreme southern frontier of the
+country?' Yet it was so, and I myself went in the second ship, and not
+only saw them together, but more than once shared their banquets and
+their conversation. It was giving and taking, forcing down and
+elevating, a succession of discords, not unpleasant to hear, because
+experience taught that they would finally terminate in the most
+beautiful harmony. It was a festal day for all the senses."
+
+"I imagine the whole Nile journey," interrupted Barine, "to be like the
+fairy voyage, when the purple silk sails of Cleopatra's galley bore
+Antony along the Cydnus."
+
+"No, no," replied Archibius, "she first learned from Antony the art of
+filling this earthly existence with fleeting pleasures. Cæsar demanded
+more. Her intellect offered him the highest enjoyment."
+
+Here he hesitated.
+
+"True, the skill with which, to please Antony, she daily offered him for
+years fresh charms for every sense, was not a matter of accident."
+
+"And this," cried Barine, "this was undertaken by the woman who had
+recognized the chief good in peace of mind!"
+
+"Ay," replied Archibius thoughtfully, "yet this was the inevitable
+result. Pleasure had been the young girl's object in life. Ere passion
+awoke in her soul, peace of mind was the chief good she knew. When the
+hour arrived that this proved unattainable, the firmly rooted yearning
+for happiness still remained the purpose of her existence. My father
+would have been wiser to take her to the Stoa and impress it upon her
+that, if life must have a goal, it should be only to live in accordance
+with the sensibly arranged course of the world, and in harmony with
+one's own nature. He should have taught her to derive happiness from
+virtue. He should have stamped goodness upon the soul of the future
+Queen as the fundamental law of her being. He omitted to do this,
+because in his secluded life he had succeeded in finding the happiness
+which the master promises to his disciples. From Athens to Cyrene, from
+Epicurus to Aristippus, is but a short step, and Cleopatra took it when
+she forgot that the master was far from recognizing the chief good in
+the enjoyment of individual pleasure. The happiness of Epicurus was not
+inferior to that of Zeus, if he had only barley bread and water to
+appease his hunger and thirst.
+
+"Yet she still considered herself a follower of Epicurus, and later,
+when Antony had gone to the Parthian war, and she was a long time alone,
+she once more began to strive for freedom from pain and peace of mind,
+but the state, her children, the marriage of Antony--who had long been
+her lover--to Octavia, the yearning of her own heart, Anubis, magic, and
+the Egyptian teachings of the life after death, above all, the burning
+ambition, the unresting desire to be loved, where she herself loved, to
+be first among the foremost----"
+
+Here he was interrupted by the messenger, who informed him that the ship
+was ready.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+Archibius had buried himself so deeply in the past that it was several
+minutes ere he could bring himself back to the present. When he did so,
+he hastily discussed with the two ladies the date of their departure.
+
+It was hard for Berenike to leave her injured brother, and Barine longed
+to see Dion once more before the journey. Both were reluctant to quit
+Alexandria ere decisive news had arrived from the army and the fleet. So
+they requested a few days' delay; but Archibius cut them short,
+requiring them, with a resolution which transformed the amiable friend
+into a stern master, to be ready for the journey the next day at sunset.
+His Nile boat would await them at the Agathodæmon harbour on Lake
+Mareotis, and his travelling chariot would convey them thither, with as
+much luggage and as many female slaves as they desired to take with
+them. Then softening his tone, he briefly reminded the ladies of the
+great annoyances to which a longer stay would expose them, excused his
+rigour on the plea of haste, pressed the hands of the mother and
+daughter, and retired without heeding Barine, who called after him, yet
+could desire nothing save to plead for a longer delay. The carriage bore
+him swiftly to the great harbour.
+
+The waxing moon was mirrored like a silver column, now wavering and
+tremulous, now rent by the waves tossing under a strong southeast wind,
+and illumined the warm autumn night. The sea outside was evidently
+running high. This was apparent by the motion of the vessels lying at
+anchor in the angle which the shore in front of the superb Temple of
+Poseidon formed with the Choma. This was a tongue of land stretched like
+a finger into the sea, on whose point stood a little palace which
+Cleopatra, incited by a chance remark of Antony, had had built there to
+surprise him.
+
+Another, of white marble, glimmered in the moonlight from the island of
+Antirrhodus; and farther still a blazing fire illumined the darkness.
+Its flames flared from the top of the famous lighthouse on the island of
+Pharos at the entrance of the harbour, and, swayed to and fro by the
+wind, steeped the horizon and the outer edge of the dark water in the
+harbour with moving masses of light which irradiated the gloomy
+distance, sometimes faintly, anon more brilliantly.
+
+Spite of the late hour, the harbour was full of bustle, though the wind
+often blew the men's cloaks over their heads, and the women were obliged
+to gather their garments closely around them. True, at this hour
+commerce had ceased; but many had gone to the port in search of news, or
+even to greet before others the first ship returning from the victorious
+fleet; for that Antony had defeated Octavianus in a great battle was
+deemed certain.
+
+Guards were watching the harbour, and a band of Syrian horsemen had just
+passed from the barracks in the southern part of the Lochias to the
+Temple of Poseidon.
+
+Here the galleys lay at anchor, not in the harbour of Eunostus, which
+was separated from the other by the broad, bridge-like dam of the
+Heptastadium, that united the city and the island of Pharos. Near it
+were the royal palaces and the arsenal, and any tidings must first reach
+this spot. The other harbour was devoted to commerce, but, in order to
+prevent the spread of false reports, newly arrived ships were forbidden
+to enter.
+
+True, even at the great harbour, news could scarcely be expected, for a
+chain stretching from the end of the Pharos to a cliff directly opposite
+in the Alveus Steganus, closed the narrow opening. But it could be
+raised if a state galley arrived with an important message, and this was
+expected by the throng on the shore.
+
+Doubtless many came from banquets, cookshops, taverns, or the nocturnal
+meeting-places of the sects that practised the magic arts, yet the
+weight of anxious expectation seemed to check the joyous activity, and
+wherever Archibius glanced he beheld eager, troubled faces. The wind
+forced many to bow their heads, and, wherever they turned their eyes,
+flags and clouds of dust were fluttering in the air, increasing the
+confusion.
+
+As the galley put off from the shore, and the flutes summoned the
+oarsmen to their toil, its owner felt so disheartened that he did not
+even venture to hope that he was going in quest of good tidings.
+
+Long-vanished days had, as it were, been called from the grave, and many
+a scene from the past rose before him as he lay among the cushions on
+the poop, gazing at the sky, across which dark, swiftly sailing clouds
+sometimes veiled the stars and again revealed them.
+
+"How much we can conceal by words without being guilty of falsehood!" he
+murmured, while recalling what he had told the women.
+
+Ay, he had been Cleopatra's confidant in his early youth, but how he had
+loved her, how, even as a boy, he had been subject to her, body and
+soul! He had allowed her to see it, displayed, confessed it; and she had
+accepted it as her rightful due. She had repelled with angry pride his
+only attempt to clasp her, in his overflowing affection, in his arms;
+but to show his love for her is a crime for which the loftiest woman
+pardons the humblest suitor, and a few hours later Cleopatra had met him
+with the old affectionate familiarity.
+
+Again he recalled the torments which he had endured when compelled to
+witness how completely she yielded to the passion which drew her to
+Antony. At that time the Roman had merely swept through her life like a
+swiftly passing meteor, but many things betrayed that she did not forget
+him; and while Archibius had seen without pain her love for the great
+Cæsar bud and grow, the torturing feeling of jealousy again stirred in
+his heart, though youth was past, when at Tarsus, on the river Cydnus,
+she renewed the bond which still united her to Antony.
+
+Now his hair had grown grey, and though nothing had clouded his
+friendship for the Queen, though he had always been ready to serve her,
+this foolish feeling had not been banished, and again and again mastered
+his whole being. He by no means undervalued Antony's attractions; but he
+saw his foibles no less clearly. All in all, whenever he thought of this
+pair, he felt like the lover of art who entrusts the finest gem in his
+collection to a rich man who knows not how to prize its real value, and
+puts it in the wrong place.
+
+Yet he wished the Roman the most brilliant victory; for his defeat would
+have been Cleopatra's also, and would she endure the consequences of
+such a disaster?
+
+The galley was approaching the flickering circle of light at the foot of
+the Pharos, and Archibius was just producing the token which was to
+secure the lifting of the chain, when his name echoed through the
+stillness of the night.
+
+It was Dion hailing him from a boat tossing near the mouth of the
+harbour on the waves surging in from the turbulent sea. He had
+recognized Archibius's swift galley from the bust of Epicurus which was
+illumined by the light of the lantern in the prow. Cleopatra had had it
+placed upon the ship which, by her orders, had been built for her
+friend.
+
+Dion now desired to join him, and was soon standing on the deck at his
+side. He had landed on the island of Pharos, and entered a sailors'
+tavern to learn what was passing. But no one could give him any definite
+information, for the wind was blowing from the land and allowed large
+vessels to approach the Egyptian coast only by the aid of oars. Shortly
+before the breeze had veered from south to southeast, and an experienced
+Rhodian would "never again lift cup of wine to his lips" if it did not
+blow from the north to-morrow or the day after. Then ships bearing news
+might reach Alexandria by the dozen--that is, the greybeard added with a
+defiant glance at the daintily clad city gentleman--if they were allowed
+to pass the Pharos or go through the Poseidon basin into the Eunostus.
+He had fancied that he saw sails on the horizon at sunset, but the
+swiftest galley became a hedgehog when the wind blew against its prow,
+and even checked the oars.
+
+Others, too, had fancied that they had seen sails, and Dion would gladly
+have gone out to sea to investigate, but he was entirely alone in a
+frail hired boat, and this would not have been permitted to pass beyond
+the harbour. The expectation that every road would be open to Archibius
+had not deceived him, and the harbour chain was drawn aside for the
+Epicurus. With swelling sails, urged by the strong wind blowing from the
+southeast, its keel cut the rolling waves.
+
+Soon a faint, tremulous light appeared in the north. It must be a ship;
+and though the helmsman in the tavern at Pharos, who looked as though he
+had not always steered peaceful trading-vessels, had spoken of some
+which did not let the ships they caught pass unscathed, the men on the
+well-equipped, stately Epicurus did not fear pirates, especially as
+morning was close at hand, and it had just shot by two clumsy men-of-war
+which had been sent out by the Regent.
+
+The strong wind filled every sail, rowing would have been useless
+labour, and the light in front seemed to be coming nearer.
+
+A wan glimmer was already beginning to brighten the distant east when
+the Epicurus approached the vessel with the light, but it seemed to wish
+to avoid the Alexandrian, and turned suddenly towards the northeast.
+
+Archibius and Dion now discussed whether it would be worth while to
+pursue the fugitive. It was a small ship, which, as the dark masses of
+clouds became bordered with golden edges, grew more distinct and
+appeared to be a Cilician pirate of the smallest size.
+
+As to its crew, the tried sailors on the Epicurus, a much larger vessel,
+which lacked no means of defence, showed no signs of alarm, the helmsman
+especially, who had served in the fleet of Sextus Pompey, and had sprung
+upon the deck of many a pirate ship.
+
+Archibius deemed it foolish to commence a conflict unnecessarily. But
+Dion was in the mood to brave every peril.
+
+If life and death were at stake, so much the better!
+
+He had informed his friend of Iras's fears.
+
+The fleet must be in a critical situation, and if the little Cilician
+had had nothing to conceal she would not have shunned the Epicurus.
+
+It was worth while to learn what had induced her to turn back just
+before reaching the harbour.
+
+The warlike helmsman also desired to give chase, and Archibius yielded,
+for the uncertainty was becoming more and more unbearable. Dion's soul
+was deeply burdened too. He could not banish Barine's image; and since
+Archibius had told him that he had found her resolved to shut her house
+against guests, and how willingly she had accepted his invitation to the
+country, again and again he pondered over the question what should
+prevent his marrying the quiet daughter of a distinguished artist, whom
+he loved?
+
+Archibius had remarked that Barine would be glad to greet her most
+intimate friends--among whom he was included--in her quiet country home.
+
+Dion did not doubt this, but he was equally sure that the greeting would
+bind him to her and rub him of his liberty, perhaps forever. But would
+the Alexandrian possess the lofty gift of freedom, if the Romans ruled
+his city as they governed Carthage or Corinth? If Cleopatra were
+defeated, and Egypt became a Roman province, a share in the business of
+the council, which was still addressed as "Macedonian men," and which
+was dear to Dion, could offer nothing but humiliation, and no longer
+afford satisfaction.
+
+If a pirate's spear put an end to bondage under the Roman yoke and to
+this unworthy yearning and wavering, so much the better!
+
+On this autumn morning, under this grey sky, from which sank a damp,
+light fog, with these hopes and fears in his heart, he beheld in both
+the present and future naught save shadows.
+
+The Epicurus overtook and captured the fugitive. The slight resistance
+the vessel might have offered was relinquished when Archibius's helmsman
+shouted that the Epicurus did not belong to the royal navy, and had come
+in search of news.
+
+The Cilician took in his oars; Archibius and Dion entered the vessel and
+questioned the commander.
+
+He was an old, weather-beaten seaman, who would give no information
+until after he had learned what his pursuers really desired.
+
+At first he protested that he had witnessed on the Peloponnesian coast a
+great victory gained by the Egyptian galleys over those commanded by
+Octavianus; but the queries of the two friends involved him in
+contradictions, and he then pretended to know nothing, and to have
+spoken of a victory merely to please the Alexandrian gentlemen.
+
+Dion, accompanied by a few men from the crew of the Epicurus, searched
+the ship, and found in the little cabin a man bound and gagged, guarded
+by one of the pirates.
+
+It was a sailor from the Pontus, who spoke only his native language.
+Nothing intelligible could be obtained from him; but there were
+important suggestions in a letter, found in a chest in the cabin, among
+clothing, jewels, and other stolen articles.
+
+The letter--Dion could scarcely believe his own eyes--was addressed to
+his friend, the architect Gorgias. The pirate, being ignorant of
+writing, had not opened it, but Dion tore the wax from the cord without
+delay. Aristocrates, the Greek rhetorician, who had accompanied Antony
+to the war, had written from Tænarum, in the south of the Peloponnesus,
+requesting the architect, in the general's name, to set the little
+palace at the end of the Choma in order, and surround it on the land
+side with a high wall.
+
+No door would be necessary. Communication with the dwelling could be had
+by water. He must do his utmost to complete the work speedily.
+
+The friends gazed at each other in astonishment, as they read this
+commission.
+
+What could induce Antony to give so strange an order? How did it fall
+into the hands of the pirates?
+
+This must be understood.
+
+When Archibius, whose gentle nature, so well adapted to inspire
+confidence, quickly won friends, burst into passionate excitement, the
+unexpected transition rarely failed to produce its effect, especially as
+his tall, strong figure and marked features made a still more
+threatening impression.
+
+Even the captain gazed at him with fear, when the Alexandrian threatened
+to recall all his promises of consideration and mercy if the pirate
+withheld even the smallest trifle connected with this letter. The man
+speedily perceived that it would be useless to make false statements;
+for the captive from Pontus, though unable to speak Greek, understood
+the language, and either confirmed every remark of the other with
+vehement gestures, or branded it in the same manner as false.
+
+Thus it was discovered that the pirate craft, in company with a much
+larger vessel, owned by a companion, had lurked behind the promontory of
+Crete for a prize. They had neither seen nor heard aught concerning the
+two fleets, when a dainty galley, "the finest and fleetest that ever
+sailed in the sea"--it was probably the "Swallow," Antony's
+despatch-boat--had run into the snare. To capture her was an easy task.
+The pirates had divided their booty, but the lion's share of goods and
+men had fallen to the larger ship.
+
+A pouch containing letters and money had been taken from a gentleman of
+aristocratic appearance--probably Antony's messenger--who had received a
+severe wound, died, and had been flung into the sea. The former had been
+used to light the fire, and only the one addressed to the architect
+remained.
+
+The captured sailors had said that the fleet of Octavianus had defeated
+Cleopatra's, and the Queen had fled, but that the land forces were still
+untouched, and might yet decide the conflict in Antony's favour. The
+pirate protested that he did not know the position of the army--it might
+be at Tænarum, whence the captured ship came. It was a sin and a shame,
+but his own crew had set it on fire, and it sank before his eyes.
+
+This report seemed to be true, yet the Acharnanian coast, where the
+battle was said to have been fought, was so far from the southern point
+of the Peloponnesus, whence Antony's letter came, that it must have been
+written during the flight.
+
+One thing appeared to be certain--the fleet had been vanquished and
+dispersed on the 2d or 3d of September.
+
+Where would the Queen go now? What had become of the magnificent galleys
+which had accompanied her to the battle?
+
+Even the contrary winds would not have detained them so long, for they
+were abundantly supplied with rowers.
+
+Had Octavianus taken possession of them?
+
+Were they burned or sunk?
+
+But in that case how had Antony reached Tænarum?
+
+The pirate could give no answer to these questions, which stirred both
+heart and brain. Why should he conceal what had reached his ears?
+
+At last Archibius ordered the property stolen from Antony's ship, and
+the liberated sailor to be brought on board the Epicurus, but the pirate
+was obliged to swear not to remain in the waters between Crete and
+Alexandria. Then he was suffered to pursue his way unmolested.
+
+This adventure had occupied many hours, and the return against the wind
+was slow; for, during the chase the Epicurus had been carried by the
+strong breeze far out to sea. Yet, when still several miles from the
+mouth of the harbour at the Pharos, it was evident that the Rhodian
+helmsman in the island tavern had predicted truly; for the weather
+changed with unusual speed, and the wind now blew from the north. The
+sea fairly swarmed with ships, some belonging to the royal fleet, some
+to curious Alexandrians, who had sailed out to take a survey. Archibius
+and Dion had spent a sleepless night and day. The heavy air, pervaded by
+a fine mist, had grown cool. After refreshing themselves by a repast,
+they paced up and down the deck of the Epicurus.
+
+Few words were exchanged, and they wrapped their cloaks closer around
+them. Both had quaffed large draughts of the fiery wine with which the
+Epicurus was well supplied, but it would not warm them. Even the fire,
+blazing brightly in the richly furnished cabin, could scarcely do so.
+
+Archibius's thoughts lingered with his beloved Queen, and his vivid
+power of imagination conjured before his mind everything which could
+distress her. No possible chance, not even the most terrible, was
+forgotten, and when he saw her sinking in the ship, stretching her
+beautiful arms imploringly towards him, to whom she had so long turned
+in every perilous position, when he beheld her a captive in the presence
+of the hostile, cold-hearted Octavianus, the blood seemed to freeze in
+his veins. At last he dropped his felt mantle and, groaning aloud,
+struck his brow with his clenched hand. He had fancied her walking with
+gold chains on her slender wrists before the victor's four-horse
+chariot, and heard the exulting shouts of the Roman populace.
+
+That would have been the most terrible of all.
+
+To pursue this train of thought was beyond the endurance of the faithful
+friend, and Dion turned in surprise as he heard him sob and saw the
+tears which bedewed his face.
+
+His own heart was heavy enough, but he knew his companion's warm
+devotion to the Queen; so, passing his arm around his shoulder, he
+entreated him to maintain that peace of soul and mind which he had so
+often admired. In the most critical situations he had seen him stand
+high above them, as yonder man who fed the flames on the summit of the
+Pharos stood above the wild surges of the sea. If he would reflect over
+what had happened as dispassionately as usual, he could not fail to see
+that Antony must be free and in a position to guide his own future,
+since he directed the palace in the Choma to be put in order. He did not
+understand about the wall, but perhaps he was bringing home some
+distinguished captive whom he wished to debar from all communication
+with the city. It might prove that everything was far better than they
+feared, and they would yet smile at these grievous anxieties. His heart,
+too, was heavy, for he wished the Queen the best fortune, not only for
+her own sake, but because with her and her successful resistance to the
+greed of Rome was connected the liberty of Alexandria.
+
+"My love and anxiety, like yours," he concluded, "have ever been given
+to her, the sovereign of this country. The world will be desolate, life
+will no longer be worth living, if the iron foot of Rome crushes our
+independence and freedom."
+
+The words had sounded cordial and sincere, and Archibius followed Dion's
+counsel. Calm thought convinced him that nothing had yet happened which
+compelled belief in the worst result; and, as one who needs consolation
+often finds relief in comforting another, Archibius cheered his own
+heart by representing to his younger friend that, even if Octavianus
+were the victor and should deprive Egypt of her independence, he would
+scarcely venture to take from the citizens of Alexandria the free
+control of their own affairs. Then he explained to Dion that, as a
+young, resolute, independent man, he might render himself doubly useful
+if it were necessary to guard the endangered liberty of the city, and
+told him how many beautiful things life still held in store.
+
+His voice expressed anxious tenderness for his young friend. No one had
+spoken thus to Dion since his father's death.
+
+The Epicurus would soon reach the mouth of the harbour, and after
+landing he must again leave Archibius.
+
+The decisive hour which often unites earnest men more firmly than many
+previous years had come to both. They had opened their hearts to each
+other. Dion had withheld only the one thing which, at the first sight of
+the houses in the city, filled his soul with fresh uneasiness.
+
+It was long since he had sought counsel from others. Many who had asked
+his, had left him with thanks, to do exactly the opposite of what he had
+advised, though it would have been to their advantage. More than once
+he, too, had done the same, but now a powerful impulse urged him to
+confide in Archibius. He knew Barine, and wished her the greatest
+happiness. Perhaps it would be wise to let another person, who was
+kindly disposed, consider what his own heart so eagerly demanded and
+prudence forbade.
+
+Hastily forming his resolution, he again turned to his friend, saying:
+
+"You have shown yourself a father to me. Imagine that I am indeed your
+son, and, as such wished to confess that a woman had become dear to my
+heart, and to ask whether you would be glad to greet her as a daughter."
+
+Here Archibius interrupted him with the exclamation: "A ray of light
+amid all this gloom? Grasp what you have too long neglected as soon as
+possible! It befits a good citizen to marry. The Greek does not attain
+full manhood till he becomes husband and father. If I have remained
+unwedded, there was a special reason for it, and how often I have envied
+the cobbler whom I saw standing before his shop in the evening, holding
+his child in his arms, or the pilot, to whom large and small hands were
+stretched in greeting when he returned home! When I enter my dwelling
+only my dogs rejoice. But you, whose beautiful palace stands empty, to
+whose proud family it is due that you should provide for its
+continuance----"
+
+"That is just what brings me into a state of indecision, which is
+usually foreign to my nature," interrupted Dion. "You know me and my
+position in the world, and you have also known from her earliest
+childhood the woman to whom I allude."
+
+"Iras?" asked his companion, hesitatingly. His sister, Charmian, had
+told him of the love felt by the Queen's younger waiting-woman.
+
+But Dion eagerly denied this, adding: "I am speaking of Barine, the
+daughter of your dead friend Leonax. I love her, yet my pride is
+sensitive, and I know that it will extend to my future wife. The
+contemptuous glances which others might cast at her I should scorn, for
+I know her worth. Surely you remember my mother: she was a very
+different woman. Her house, her child, the slaves, her loom, were
+everything to her. She rigidly exacted from other women the chaste
+reserve which was a marked trait in her own character. Yet she was
+gentle, and loved me, her only son, beyond aught else. I think she would
+have opened her arms to Barine, had she believed that she was necessary
+to my happiness. But would the young beauty, accustomed to gay
+intercourse with distinguished men, have been able to submit to her
+demands? When I consider that she cannot help taking into her married
+life the habit of being surrounded and courted; when I think that the
+imprudence of a woman accustomed to perfect freedom might set idle
+tongues in motion, and cast a shadow upon the radiant purity of my name;
+when I even--" and he raised his clenched right hand. But Archibius
+answered soothingly:
+
+"That anxiety is groundless if Barine warmly and joyfully gives you her
+whole heart. It is a sunny, lovable, true woman's heart, and therefore
+capable of a great love. If she bestows it on you--and I believe she
+will--go and offer sacrifices in your gratitude; for the immortals
+desired your happiness when they guided your choice to her and not to
+Iras, my own sister's child. If you were really my son, I would now
+exclaim, 'You could not bring me a dearer daughter, if--I repeat it--if
+you are sure of her love.'"
+
+Dion gazed into vacancy a short time, and then cried firmly:
+
+"I am!"
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+The Epicurus anchored before the Temple of Poseidon. The crew had been
+ordered to keep silence, though they knew nothing, except that a letter
+from Antony, commanding the erection of a wall, had been found on board
+the pirate. This might be regarded as a good omen, for people do not
+think of building unless they anticipate a time of peace.
+
+The light rain had ceased, but the wind blew more strongly from the
+north, and the air had grown cool. A dense throng still covered the quay
+from the southern end of the Heptastadium to the promontory of Lochias.
+The strongest pressure was between the peninsula of the Choma and the
+Sebasteum; for this afforded a view of the sea, and the first tidings
+must reach the residence of the Regent, which was connected with the
+palace.
+
+A hundred contradictory rumours had been in circulation that morning;
+and when, at the third hour in the afternoon, the Epicurus arrived, it
+was surrounded by a dense multitude eager to hear what news the ship had
+brought from without. Other vessels shared the same fate, but none could
+give reliable tidings.
+
+Two swift galleys from the royal fleet reported meeting a Samian
+trireme, which had given news of a great victory gained by Antony on the
+land and Cleopatra on the sea, and, as men are most ready to believe
+what they desire, throngs of exulting men and women moved to and fro
+along the shore, strengthening by their confidence many a timorous
+spirit. Prudent people, who had regarded the long delay of the first
+ships of the fleet with anxiety, had opened their ears to the tales of
+evil, and looked forward to the future with uneasiness. But they avoided
+giving expression to their fears, for the overseer of an establishment
+for gold embroidery, who had ventured to warn the people against
+premature rejoicing, had limped home badly beaten, and two other
+pessimists who had been flung in the sea had just been dragged out
+dripping wet.
+
+Nor could the multitude be blamed for this confidence; for at the
+Serapeum, the theatre of Dionysus, the lofty pylons of the Sebasteum,
+the main door of the museum, in front of the entrance of the palace in
+the Bruchium, and before the fortress-like palaces in the Lochias,
+triumphal arches had been erected, adorned with gods of victory and
+trophies hastily constructed of plaster, inscriptions of congratulations
+and thanks to the deities, garlands of foliage and flowers. The
+wreathing of the Egyptian pylons and obelisks, the principal temple, and
+the favourite statues in the city had been commenced during the night.
+The last touches were now being given to the work.
+
+Gorgias, like his friend Dion, had not closed his eyes since the night
+before; for he had had charge of all the decorations of the Bruchium,
+where one superb building adjoined another.
+
+Sleep had also fled from the couches of the occupants of the Sebasteum,
+the royal palace where Iras lived during the absence of the Queen, and
+the prætorium, facing its southern front, which contained the official
+residence of the Regent.
+
+When Archibius was conducted to the Queen's waiting-woman, her
+appearance fairly startled him. She had been his guest in Kanopus only
+the day before yesterday, and how great was the alteration within this
+brief time! Her oval face seemed to have lengthened, the features to
+have grown sharper; and this woman of seven-and-twenty years, who had
+hitherto retained all the charms of youth, appeared suddenly to have
+aged a decade. There was a feverish excitement in her manner, as,
+holding out her hand to her uncle, in greeting, she exclaimed hastily,
+"You, too, bring no good tidings?"
+
+"Nor any evil ones," he answered quietly. "But, child, I do not like
+your appearance--the dark circles under your keen eyes. You have had
+news which rouses your anxiety?"
+
+"Worse than that," she answered in a low tone.
+
+"Well?"
+
+"Read!" gasped Iras, her lips and nostrils quivering as she handed
+Archibius a small tablet.
+
+With a gesture of haste very unusual in him, he snatched it from her
+hand and, as his eyes ran over the words traced upon it, every vestige
+of colour vanished from his cheeks and lips.
+
+They were written by Cleopatra's own hand, and contained the following
+lines:
+
+"The naval battle was lost--and by my fault. The land forces might still
+save us, but not under his command. He is with me, uninjured, but
+apparently exhausted; like a different being, bereft of courage,
+listless as if utterly crushed. I foresee the beginning of the end. As
+soon as this reaches you, arrange to have some unpretending litters
+ready for us every evening at sunset. Make the people believe that we
+have conquered until trustworthy intelligence arrives concerning the
+fate of Canidius and the army. When you kiss the children in my name, be
+very tender with them. Who knows how soon they may be orphaned? They
+already have an unhappy mother; may they be spared the memory of a
+cowardly one! Trust no one except those whom I left in authority, and
+Archibius, not even Cæsarion or Antyllus. Provide for having every one
+whose aid may be valuable to me within reach when I come. I cannot close
+with the familiar 'Rejoice'--the 'Fresh Courage' placed on many a
+tombstone seems more appropriate. You who did not envy me in my
+happiness will help me to bear misfortune. Epicurus, who believes that
+the gods merely watch the destiny of men inactively from their blissful
+heights, is right. Were it otherwise, how could the love and loyalty
+which cleave to the hapless, defeated woman, be repaid with anguish of
+heart and tears? Yet--continue to love her."
+
+Archibius, pale and silent, let the tablet fall. It was long ere he
+gasped hoarsely: "I foresaw it; yet now that it is here--" His voice
+failed, and violent, tearless sobs shook his powerful frame.
+
+Sinking on a couch he buried his face amid the cushions.
+
+Iras gazed at the strong man and shook her head.
+
+She, too, loved the Queen; the news had brought tears to her eyes also;
+but even while she wept, a host of plans coping with this disaster had
+darted through her restless brain. A few minutes after the arrival of
+the message of misfortune she had consulted with the members of
+Cleopatra's council, and adopted measures for sustaining the people's
+belief in the naval victory.
+
+What was she, the delicate, by no means courageous girl, compared to
+this man of iron strength who, she was well aware, had braved the
+greatest perils in the service of the Queen? Yet there he lay with his
+face hidden in the pillows as if utterly overwhelmed.
+
+Did a woman's soul rebound more quickly after being crushed beneath the
+burdens of the heaviest suffering, or was hers of a special character,
+and her slender body the casket of a hero's nature?
+
+She had reason to believe so when she recalled how the Regent and the
+Keeper of the Seal had received the terrible news. They had rushed
+frantically up and down the vast hall as if desperate; but Mardion the
+eunuch had little manhood, and Zeno was a characterless old author who
+had won the Queen's esteem, and the high office which he occupied solely
+by the vivid power of imagination, that enabled him constantly to devise
+new exhibitions, amusements, and entertainments, and present them with
+magical splendour.
+
+But Archibius, the brave, circumspect counsellor and helper?
+
+His shoulders again quivered as if they had received a blow, and Iras
+suddenly remembered what she had long known, but never fully
+realized--that yonder grey-haired man loved Cleopatra, loved her as she
+herself loved Dion; and she wondered whether she would have been strong
+enough to maintain her composure if she had learned that a cruel fate
+threatened to rob him of life, liberty, and honour.
+
+Hour after hour she had vainly awaited the young Alexandrian, yet he had
+witnessed her anxiety the day before. Had she offended him? Was he
+detained by the spell of Didymus's granddaughter?
+
+It seemed a great wrong that, amid the unspeakably terrible misfortune
+which had overtaken her mistress, she could not refrain from thinking
+continually of Dion. Even as his image filled her heart, Cleopatra's
+ruled her uncle's mind and soul, and she said to herself that it was not
+alone among women that love paid no heed to years, or whether the locks
+were brown or tinged with grey.
+
+But Archibius now raised himself, left the couch, passed his hand across
+his brow, and in the deep, calm tones natural to his voice, began with a
+sorrowful smile: "A man stricken by an arrow leaves the fray to have his
+wound bandaged. The surgeon has now finished his task. I ought to have
+spared you this pitiable spectacle, child. But I am again ready for the
+battle. Cleopatra's account of Antony's condition renders a piece of
+news which we have just received somewhat more intelligible."
+
+"We?" replied Iras. "Who was your companion?"
+
+"Dion," answered Archibius; but when he was about to describe the
+incidents of the preceding night, she interrupted him with the question
+whether Barine had consented to leave the city. He assented with a curt
+"Yes," but Iras assumed the manner of having expected nothing different,
+and requested him to continue his story.
+
+Archibius now related everything which they had experienced, and their
+discovery in the pirate ship. Dion was even now on the way to carry
+Antony's order to his friend Gorgias.
+
+"Any slave might have attended to that matter equally well," Iras
+remarked in an irritated tone. "I should think he would have more reason
+to expect trustworthy tidings here. But that's the way with men!"
+
+Here she hesitated but, meeting an inquiring glance from her uncle, she
+went on eagerly; "Nothing, I believe, binds them more firmly to one
+another than mutual pleasure. But that must now be over. They will seek
+other amusements, whether with Heliodora or Thais I care not. If the
+woman had only gone before! When she caught young Cæsarion----"
+
+"Stay, child," her uncle interrupted reprovingly. "I know how much she
+would rejoice if Antyllus had never brought the boy to her house."
+
+"Now--because the poor deluded lad's infatuation alarms her."
+
+"No, from his first visit. Immature boys do not suit the distinguished
+men whom she receives."
+
+"If the door is always kept open, thieves will enter the house."
+
+"She received only old acquaintances, and the friends whom they
+presented. Her house was closed to all others. So there was no trouble
+with thieves. But who in Alexandria could venture to refuse admittance
+to a son of the Queen?"
+
+"There is a wide difference between quiet admittance and fanning a
+passion to madness. Wherever a fire is burning, there has certainly been
+a spark to kindle it. You men do not detect such women's work. A glance,
+a pressure of the hand, even the light touch of a garment, and the flame
+blazes, where such inflammable material lies ready."
+
+"We lament the violence of the conflagration. You are not well disposed
+towards Barine."
+
+"I care no more for her than this couch here cares for the statue of
+Mercury in the street!" exclaimed Iras, with repellent arrogance. "There
+could be no two things in the world more utterly alien than we. Between
+the woman whose door stands open, and me, there is nothing in common
+save our sex."
+
+"And," replied Archibius reprovingly, "many a beautiful gift which the
+gods bestowed upon her as well as upon you. As for the open door, it was
+closed yesterday. The thieves of whom you spoke spoiled her pleasure in
+granting hospitality. Antyllus forced himself with noisy impetuosity
+into her house. This made her dread still more unprecedented conduct in
+the future. In a few hours she will be on the way to Irenia. I am glad
+for Cæsarion's sake, and still more for his mother's, whom we have
+wronged by forgetting so long for another."
+
+"To think that we should be forced to do so!" cried Iras
+excitedly--"now, at this hour, when every drop of blood, every thought
+of this poor brain should belong to the Queen! Yet it could not be
+avoided. Cleopatra is returning to us with a heart bleeding from a
+hundred wounds, and it is terrible to think that a new arrow must strike
+her as soon as she steps upon her native soil. You know how she loves
+the boy, who is the living image of the great man with whom she shared
+the highest joys of love. When she learns that he, the son of Cæsar,
+has given his young heart to the cast-off wife of a street orator, a
+woman whose home attracted men as ripe dates lure birds, it will be--I
+know--like rubbing salt into her fresh wounds. Alas! and the _one_
+sorrow will not be all. Antony, her husband, also found the way to
+Barine. He sought her more than once. You cannot know it as I do; but
+Charmian will tell you how sensitive she has become since the flower of
+her youthful charms--you don't perceive it--is losing one leaf after
+another. Jealousy will torture her, and--I know her well--perhaps no one
+will ever render the siren a greater service than I did when I compelled
+her to leave the city."
+
+The eyes of Archibius's clever niece had glittered with such hostile
+feeling as she spoke that he thought with just anxiety of his dead
+friend's daughter. What did not yet threaten Barine as serious danger
+Iras had the power to transform into grave peril.
+
+Dion had begged him to maintain strict secrecy; but even had he been
+permitted to speak, he would not have done so now. From his knowledge of
+Iras's character she might be expected, if she learned that some one had
+come between her and the friend of her youth, to shrink from no means of
+spoiling her game. He remembered the noble Macedonian maiden whom the
+Queen had begun to favour, and who was hunted to death by Iras's hostile
+intrigues. Few were more clever, and--if she once loved--more loyal and
+devoted, more yielding, pliant, and in happy hours more bewitching, yet
+even in childhood she had preferred a winding path to a straight one. It
+seemed as if her shrewdness scorned to attain the end desired by the
+simple method lying close at hand. How willingly his mother and his
+younger sister Charmian had cared for the slaves and nursed them when
+they were ill; nay, Charmian had gained in her Nubian maid Aniukis a
+friend who would have gone to death for her sake! Cleopatra, too, when a
+child, had found sincere delight in taking a bouquet to his parents'
+sick old housekeeper and sitting by her bedside to shorten the time for
+her with merry talk. She had gone to her unasked, while Iras had often
+been punished because she had made the lives of numerous slaves in her
+parents' household still harder by unreasonable harshness. This trait in
+her character had roused her uncle's anxiety and, in after-years, her
+treatment of her inferiors had been such that he could not number her
+among the excellent of her sex. Therefore he was the more joyfully
+surprised by the loyal, unselfish love with which she devoted herself to
+the service of the Queen. Cleopatra had gratified Charmian's wish to
+have her niece for an assistant; and Iras, who had never been a loving
+daughter to her own faithful mother, had served her royal mistress with
+the utmost tenderness.
+
+Archibius valued this loyalty highly, but he knew what awaited any one
+who became the object of her hatred, and the fear that it would involve
+Barine in urgent peril was added to his still greater anxiety for
+Cleopatra.
+
+When about to depart, burdened by the sorrowful conviction that he was
+powerless against his niece's malevolent purpose, he was detained by the
+representation that every fresh piece of intelligence would first reach
+the Sebasteum and her. Some question might easily arise which his calm,
+prudent mind could decide far better than hers, whose troubled condition
+resembled a shallow pool disturbed by stones flung into the waves.
+
+The apartments of his sister Charmian, which were connected with his by
+a corridor, were empty, and Iras begged him to remain there a short
+time. The anxiety and dread that oppressed her heart would kill her. To
+know that he was near would be the greatest comfort.
+
+When Archibius hesitated because he deemed it his duty to urge
+Cæsarion, over whom he possessed some influence, to give up his foolish
+wishes for his mother's sake, Iras assured him that he would not find
+the youth. He had gone hunting with Antyllus and some other friends. She
+had approved the plan, because it removed him from the city and Barine's
+dangerous house.
+
+"As the Queen does not wish him to know the terrible news yet," she
+concluded, "his presence would only have caused us embarrassment. So
+stay, and when it grows dark go with us to the Lochias. I think it will
+please the sorrowing woman, when she lands, to see your familiar face,
+which will remind her of happier days. Do me the favour to stay." She
+held out both hands beseechingly as she spoke, and Archibius consented.
+
+A repast was served, and he shared it with his niece; but Iras did not
+touch the carefully chosen viands, and Archibius barely tasted them.
+Then, without waiting for dessert, he rose to go to his sister's
+apartments. But Iras urged him to rest on the divan in the adjoining
+room, and he yielded. Yet, spite of the softness of the pillows and his
+great need of sleep, he could not find it; anxiety kept him awake, and
+through the curtain which divided the room in which Iras remained from
+the one he occupied he sometimes heard her light footsteps pacing
+restlessly to and fro, sometimes the coming and going of messengers in
+quest of news.
+
+All his former life passed before his mind. Cleopatra had been his sun,
+and now black clouds were rising which would dim its light, perchance
+forever. He, the disciple of Epicurus, who had not followed the
+doctrines of other masters until later in life, held the same view of
+the gods as his first master. To him also they had seemed immortal
+beings sufficient unto themselves, dwelling free from anxiety in
+blissful peace, to whom mortals must look upward on account of their
+supreme grandeur, but who neither troubled themselves about the guidance
+of the world, which was fixed by eternal laws, nor the fate of
+individuals. Had he been convinced of the contrary, he would have
+sacrificed everything he possessed in order, by lavish offerings, to
+propitiate the immortals in behalf of her to whom he had devoted his
+life and every faculty of his being.
+
+Like Iras, he, too, could find no rest upon his couch, and when she
+heard his step she called to him and asked why he did not recover the
+sleep which he had lost. No one knew the demands the next night might
+make upon him.
+
+"You will find me awake," he answered quietly.
+
+Then he went to the window which, above the pylons that rose before the
+main front of the Sebasteum, afforded a view of the Bruchium and the
+sea. The harbour was now swarming with vessels of every size, garlanded
+with flowers and adorned with gay flags and streamers. The report of the
+successful issue of the first naval battle was believed, and many
+desired to greet the victorious fleet and hail their sovereign as she
+entered the harbour.
+
+Many people, equipages, and litters had also gathered on the shore,
+between the lofty pylons and the huge door of the Sebasteum. They were
+representatives of the aristocracy of the city; for the majority were
+attended by richly attired slaves. Many wore costly garlands, and
+numerous chariots and litters were adorned with gold or silver
+ornaments, gems, and glittering paste. The stir and movement in front of
+the palace were ceaseless, and Iras, who was now standing beside her
+uncle, waved her hand towards it, saying: "The wind of rumour! Yesterday
+only one or two came; to-day every one who belongs to the 'Inimitable
+Livers' flocks hither in person to get news. The victory was proclaimed
+in the market-place, at the theatre, the gymnasium, and the camp. Every
+one who wears garlands or weapons heard of a battle won. Yesterday,
+among all the thousands, there was scarcely a single doubter; but
+to-day--how does it happen? Even among those who as 'Inimitables' have
+shared all the pleasures, entertainments, and festivities of our noble
+pair, faith wavers; for if they were firmly convinced of the brilliant
+victory which was announced loudly enough, they would not come
+themselves to watch, to spy, to listen. Just look down! There is the
+litter of Diogenes--yonder that of Ammonius. The chariot beyond belongs
+to Melampous. The slaves in the red bombyx garments serve Hermias. They
+all belong to the society of 'Inimitables,' and shared our banquets.
+That very Apollonius who, for the last half hour, has been trying to
+question the palace servants, day before yesterday ordered fifty oxen to
+be slaughtered to Ares, Nike, and the great Isis, as the Queen's
+goddess, and when I met him in the temple he exclaimed that this was the
+greatest piece of extravagance he had ever committed; for even without
+the cattle Cleopatra and Antony would be sure of victory. But now the
+wind of rumour has swept away his beautiful confidence also. They are
+not permitted to see me. The doorkeepers say that I am in the country.
+The necessity of showing every one a face radiant with the joy of
+victory would kill me. There comes Apollonius. How his fat face beams!
+He believes in the victory, and after sunset none of yonder throng will
+appear here; he is already giving orders to his slaves. He will invite
+all his friends to a banquet, and won't spare his costly wines. Capital!
+At least no one from that company can disturb us. Dion is his cousin,
+and will be present also. We shall see what these pleasure-lovers will
+do when they are forced to confront, the terrible reality."
+
+"I think," replied Archibius, "they will afford the world a remarkable
+spectacle; friends won in prosperity who remain constant in adversity."
+
+"Do you?" asked Iras, with sparkling eyes. "If that proves true, how I
+would praise and value men--the majority of whom without their wealth
+would be poorer than beggars. But look at yonder figure in the white
+robe beside the left obelisk--is it not Dion? The crowd is bearing him
+away--I think it was he."
+
+But she had been deceived; the man whom she fancied she had seen,
+because her heart so ardently yearned for him, was not near the
+Sebasteum, and his thoughts were still farther away.
+
+At first he had intended to give the architect the letter which was
+addressed to him. He would be sure to find him at the triumphal arch
+which was being erected on the shore of the Bruchium. But on reaching
+the former place he learned that Gorgias had gone to remove the statues
+of Cleopatra and Antony from the house of Didymus, and erect them in
+front of the Theatre of Dionysus. The Regent, Mardion, had ordered it.
+Gorgias was already superintending the erection of the foundation.
+
+The huge hewn stones which he required for this purpose had been taken
+from the Temple of Nemesis, which he was supervising. Whatever number of
+government slaves he needed were at his disposal, so Gorgias's foreman
+reported, proudly adding that before the sun went down, the architect
+would have shown the Alexandrians the marvel of removing the twin
+statues from one place to another in a single day, and yet establishing
+them as firmly as the Colossus which had been in Thebes a thousand
+years.
+
+Dion found the piece of sculpture in front of Didymus's garden, ready
+for removal, but the slaves who had placed before the platform the
+rollers on which it was to be moved had already been kept waiting a long
+time by the architect.
+
+This was his third visit to the old philosopher's house. First, he had
+been obliged to inform him and his family that their property was no
+longer in danger; then he had come to tell them at what hour he would
+remove the statues, which still attracted many curious spectators; and,
+finally, he had again appeared, to announce that they were to be taken
+away at once. His foreman or a slave could probably have done this, but
+Helena--Didymus's granddaughter, Barine's sister--drew him again and
+again to the old man's home. He would gladly have come still more
+frequently, for at every meeting he had discovered fresh charms in the
+beautiful, quiet, thoughtful maiden, who cared so tenderly for her aged
+grandparents. He believed that he loved her, and she seemed glad to
+welcome him. But this did not entitle him to seek her hand, though his
+large, empty house so greatly needed a mistress. His heart had glowed
+with love for too many. He wished first to test whether this new fancy
+would prove more lasting. If he succeeded in remaining faithful even a
+few days, he would, as it were, reward himself for it, and appear before
+Didymus as a suitor.
+
+He excused his frequent visits to himself on the pretext of the
+necessity of becoming acquainted with his future wife, and Helena made
+the task easier for him. The usual reserve of her manner lessened more
+and more; nay, the great confidence with which he at first inspired her
+was increased by his active assistance. When he entered just now, she
+had even held out her hand to him, and inquired about the progress of
+his work.
+
+He was overwhelmed with business, but so great was his pleasure in
+talking with her that he lingered longer than he would have deemed right
+under any other circumstances, and regarded it as an unpleasant
+interruption when Barine--for whom his heart had throbbed so warmly only
+yesterday--entered the tablinum.
+
+The young beauty was by no means content with a brief greeting; but drew
+Helena entirely away from him. Never had he seen her embrace and kiss
+her sister so passionately as while hurriedly telling her that she had
+come to bid farewell to the loved ones in her grandparents' house.
+
+Berenike had arrived with her, but went first to the old couple.
+
+While Barine was telling Helena and Gorgias, also, why all this plan had
+been formed so hastily, Gorgias was silently comparing the two sisters.
+He found it natural that he had once believed that he loved Barine; but
+she would not have been a fitting mistress of his house. Life at her
+side would have been a chain of jealous emotions and anxieties, and her
+stimulating remarks and searching questions, which demanded absolute
+attention, would not have permitted him, after his return home, wearied
+by arduous toil, to find the rest for which he longed. His eye wandered
+from her to her sister, as if testing the space between two newly
+erected pillars; and Barine, who had noticed his strange manner,
+suddenly laughed merrily, and asked whether they might know what
+building was occupying his thoughts, while a good friend was telling him
+that the pleasant hours in her house were over.
+
+Gorgias started, and the apology he stammered showed so plainly how
+inattentively he had listened, that Barine would have had good reason to
+feel offended. But one glance at her sister and another at him enabled
+her speedily to guess the truth. She was pleased; for she esteemed
+Gorgias, and had secretly feared that she might be forced to grieve him
+by a refusal, but he seemed as if created for her sister. Her arrival
+had probably interrupted them so, turning to Helena, she exclaimed: "I
+must see my mother and our grandparents. Meanwhile entertain our friend
+here. We know each other well. He is one of the few men who can be
+trusted. That is my honest opinion, Gorgias, and I say it to you also,
+Helena."
+
+With these words she nodded to both, and Gorgias was again alone with
+the maiden whom he loved.
+
+It was difficult to begin the conversation anew, and when, spite of many
+efforts, it would not flow freely, the shout of the overseer, which
+reached his ear through the opening of the roof, urging the men to work,
+was like a deliverance. Promising to return again soon, as eagerly as if
+he had been requested to do so, he took his leave and opened the door
+leading into the adjoining room. But on the threshold he started back,
+and Helena, who had followed him, did the same, for there stood his
+friend Dion, and Barine's beautiful head lay on his breast, while his
+hand rested as if in benediction on her fair hair. And--no, Gorgias was
+not mistaken--the slender frame of the lovely woman, whose exuberant
+vivacity had so often borne him and others away with it, trembled as if
+shaken by deep and painful emotion.
+
+When Dion perceived his friend, and Barine raised her head, turning her
+face towards him, it was indeed wet with tears, but their source could
+not be sorrow; for her blue eyes were sparkling with a happy light.
+
+Yet Gorgias found something in her features which he was unable to
+express in words--the reflection of the ardent gratitude that had taken
+possession of her soul and filled it absolutely.
+
+While seeking the architect, Dion had met Barine, who was on her way to
+her grandparents, and what he had dreaded the day before happened.
+
+The first glance from her eyes which met his forced the decisive
+question from his lips.
+
+In brief, earnest words he confessed his love for her, and his desire to
+make her his own, as the pride and ornament of his house.
+
+Then, in the intensity of her bliss, her eyes overflowed and, under the
+spell of a great miracle wrought in her behalf, she found no words to
+answer; but Dion had approached, clasped her right hand in both of his,
+and frankly acknowledged how, with the image of his strict mother before
+his eyes, he had wavered and hesitated until love had overmastered him.
+Now, full of the warmest confidence, he asked whether she would consent
+to rule as mistress of his home, the honour and ornament of his ancient
+name? He knew that her heart was his, but he must hear one thing more
+from her lips----
+
+Here she had interrupted him with the cry, "This one thing--that your
+wife, in joy and in sorrow, will live for you and you alone? The whole
+world can vanish for her, now that you have raised her to your side and
+she is yours."
+
+After this assurance, which sounded like an oath, Dion felt as if a
+heavy burden had fallen from his heart, and clasping her in his arms
+with passionate tenderness, he repeated, "In joy and in sorrow!"
+
+Thus Gorgias and Helena had surprised them, and the architect felt for
+the first time that there is no distinction between our own happiness
+and that of those whom we love.
+
+His friend Helena seemed to have the same feeling, when she saw what
+this day had given her sister; and the philosopher's house, so lately
+shadowed by anxiety, and many a fear, would soon ring with voices
+uttering joyous congratulations.
+
+The architect no longer felt that he had a place in this circle, which
+was now pervaded by a great common joy, and after Dion made a brief
+explanation, Gorgias's voice was soon heard outside loudly issuing
+orders to the workmen.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+Gorgias went to his work without delay. When the twin statues were only
+waiting to be erected in front of the Theatre of Dionysus, Dion sought
+him. Some impulse urged him to talk to his old friend before leaving the
+city with his betrothed bride. Since they parted the latter had
+accomplished the impossible; for the building of the wall on the Choma,
+ordered by Antony, was commenced, the restoration of the little palace
+at the point, and many other things connected with the decoration of the
+triumphal arches, were arranged. His able and alert foreman found it
+difficult to follow him as he dictated order after order in his
+writing-tablet.
+
+The conversation with his friend was not a long one, for Dion had
+promised Barine and her mother to accompany them to the country.
+Notwithstanding the betrothal, they were to start that very day; for
+Cæsarion had called upon Barine twice that morning. She had not
+received him, but the unfortunate youth's conduct induced her to hasten
+the preparations for her departure.
+
+To avoid attracting attention, they were to use Archibius's large
+travelling chariot and Nile boat, although Dion's were no less
+comfortable.
+
+The marriage was to take place in the "abode of peace." The young
+Alexandrian's own ship, which was to convey the newly wedded pair to
+Alexandria, bore the name of Peitho, the goddess of persuasion, for Dion
+liked to be reminded of his oratorical powers in the council.
+Henceforward it would be called the _Barine_, and was to receive many an
+embellishment.
+
+Dion confided to his friend what he had learned in relation to the fate
+of the Queen and the fleet, and, notwithstanding the urgency of the
+claims upon Gorgias's time, he lingered to discuss the future destiny of
+the city and her threatened liberty; for these things lay nearest to his
+heart.
+
+"Fortunately," cried Dion, "I followed my inclination; now it seems to
+me that duty commands every true man to make his own house a nursery for
+the cultivation of the sentiments which he inherited from his
+forefathers and which must not die, so long as there are Macedonian
+citizens in Alexandria. We must submit if the superior might of Rome
+renders Egypt a province of the republic, but we can preserve to our
+city and her council the lion's share of their freedom. Whatever may be
+the development of affairs, we are and shall remain the source whence
+Rome draws the largest share of the knowledge which enriches her brain."
+
+"And the art which adorns her rude life," replied Gorgias. "If she is
+free to crush us without pity, she will fare, I think, like the maiden
+who raises her foot to trample on a beautiful, rare flower, and then
+withdraws it because it would be a crime to destroy so exquisite a work
+of the Creator."
+
+"And what does the flower owe to your maiden," cried Dion, "or our city
+to Rome? Let us meet her claims with dignified resolution, then I think
+we shall not have the worst evils to fear."
+
+"Let us hope so. But, my friend, keep your eyes open for other than
+Roman foes. Now that it will become known that you do not love her,
+beware of Iras. There is something about her which reminds me of the
+jackal. Jealousy!--I believe she would be capable of the worst----"
+
+"Yet," Dion interrupted, "Charmian will soften whatever injury Iras
+plans to do me, and, though I cannot rely much upon my uncle, Archibius
+is above both and favours us and our marriage."
+
+Gorgias uttered a sigh of relief, and exclaimed, "Then on to happiness!"
+
+"And you must also begin to provide for yours," replied Dion warmly.
+"Forbid your heart to continue this wandering, nomad life. The tent
+which the wind blows down is not fit for the architect's permanent
+residence. Build yourself a fine house, which will defy storms, as you
+built my palace. I shall not grudge it, and have already said, the times
+demand it."
+
+"I will remember the advice," replied Gorgias. "But six eyes are again
+bent upon me for direction. There are so many important things to be
+done while we waste the hours in building triumphal arches for the
+defeated--trophies for an overthrow. But your uncle has just issued
+orders to complete the work in the most magnificent style. The ways of
+destiny and the great are dark; may the brightest sunshine illumine
+yours! A prosperous journey! We shall hear, of course, when you
+celebrate the wedding, and if I can I shall join you in the Hymenæus.
+Lucky fellow that you are! Now I'm summoned from over yonder! May Castor
+and Pollux, and all the gods favourable to travel, Aphrodite, and all
+the Loves attend your trip to Irenia, and protect you in the realm of
+Eros and Hymen!"
+
+With these words the warm-hearted man clasped his friend to his breast
+for the first time. Dion cordially responded, and at last shook his hard
+right hand with the exclamation:
+
+"Farewell, then, till we meet in Irenia on the wedding day, you dear,
+faithful fellow."
+
+Then he entered the chariot which stood waiting, and Gorgias gazed after
+him thoughtfully.
+
+The hyacinthine purple cloak which Dion wore that day had not vanished
+from his sight when a loud crashing, rattling, and roaring arose behind
+him. A hastily erected scaffold, which was to support the pulleys for
+raising the statues, had collapsed. The damage could be easily repaired,
+but the accident aroused a troubled feeling in the architect's mind. He
+was a child of his time, a period when duty commanded the prudent man to
+heed omens. Experience also taught him that when such a thing happened
+in his work something unpleasant was apt to occur within the circle of
+his friends. The veil of the future concealed what might be in store for
+the beloved couple; but he resolved to keep his eyes open on Dion's
+behalf and to request Archibius to do the same.
+
+The pressure of work, however, soon silenced the sense of uneasiness.
+The damage was speedily repaired, and later Gorgias, sometimes with one,
+sometimes with another tablet or roll of MS. in his hand, issued the
+most varied orders.
+
+Gradually the light of this dismal day faded.
+
+Ere the night, which threatened to bring rain and storm, closed in, he
+again rode on his mule to the Bruchium to overlook the progress of the
+work in the various buildings and give additional directions, for the
+labour was to be continued during the night.
+
+The north wind was now blowing so violently from the sea that it was
+difficult to keep the torches and lamps lighted. The gale drove the
+drops of rain into his face, and a glance northward showed him masses of
+black clouds beyond the harbour and the lighthouse. This indicated a bad
+night, and again the boding sense of coming misfortune stole over him.
+Yet he set to work swiftly and prudently, helping with his own hands
+when occasion required.
+
+Night closed in. Not a star was visible in the sky, and the air, chilled
+by the north wind, grew so cold that Gorgias at last permitted his body
+slave to wrap his cloak around him. While drawing the hood over his
+head, he gazed at a procession of litters and men moving towards
+Lochias.
+
+Perhaps the Queen's children were returning home from some expedition.
+But probably they were rather private citizens on their way to some
+festival celebrating the victory; for every one now believed in a great
+battle and a successful issue of the war. This was proved by the shouts
+and cheers of the people, who, spite of the storm, were still moving to
+and fro near the harbour.
+
+The last of the torch-bearers had just passed Gorgias, and he had told
+himself that a train of litters belonging to the royal family would not
+move through the darkness so faintly lighted, when a single man, bearing
+in his hand a lantern, whose flickering rays shone on his wrinkled face,
+approached rapidly from the opposite direction. It was old Phryx,
+Didymus's house slave, with whom the architect had become acquainted,
+while the aged scholar was composing the inscription for the Odeum which
+Gorgias had erected. The aged servant had brought him many alterations
+of his master's first sketch, and Gorgias had reminded him of it the
+previous day.
+
+The workmen by whom the statues had been raised to the pedestal, amid
+the bright glare of torches, to the accompaniment of a regular chant,
+had just dropped the ropes, windlasses, and levers, when the architect
+recognized the slave.
+
+What did the old man want at so late an hour on this dark night? The
+fall of the scaffold again returned to his mind.
+
+Was the slave seeking for a member of the family? Did Helena need
+assistance? He stopped the gray-haired man, who answered his question
+with a heavy sigh, followed by the maxim, "Misfortunes come in pairs,
+like oxen." Then he continued: "Yesterday there was great anxiety.
+Today, when there was so much rejoicing on account of Barine, I thought
+directly, 'Sorrow follows joy, and the second misfortune won't be spared
+us.' And so it proved."
+
+Gorgias anxiously begged him to relate what had happened, and the old
+man, drawing nearer, whispered that the pupil and assistant of
+Didymus--young Philotas of Amphissa, a student, and, moreover, a
+courteous young man of excellent family--had gone to a banquet to which
+Antyllus, the son of Antony, had invited several of his classmates. This
+had already happened several times, and he, Phryx, had warned him, for,
+when the lowly associate with the lofty, the lowly rarely escape kicks
+and blows. The young fellow, who usually had behaved no worse than the
+other Ephebi, had always returned from such festivities with a flushed
+face and unsteady steps, but to-night he had not even reached his room
+in the upper story. He had darted into the house as though pursued by
+the watch, and, while trying to rush up the stairs--it was really only a
+ladder--he had made a misstep and fell. He, Phryx, did not believe that
+he was hurt, for none of his limbs ached, even when they were pulled and
+stretched, and Dionysus kindly protected drunkards; but some demon must
+have taken possession of him, for he howled and groaned continually, and
+would answer no questions. True, he was aware, from the festivals of
+Dionysus, that the young man was one of those who, when intoxicated,
+weep and lament; but this time something unusual must have occurred, for
+in the first place his handsome face was coloured black and looked
+hideous, since his tears had washed away the soot in many places, and
+then he talked nothing but a confused jargon. It was a pity.
+
+When an attempt was made, with the help of the garden slave, to carry
+him to his room, he dealt blows and kicks like a lunatic. Didymus now
+also believed that he was possessed by demons, as often happens to those
+who, in falling, strike their heads against the ground, and thus wake
+the demons in the earth. Well, yes, they might be demons, but only those
+of wine. The student was just "crazy drunk," as people say. But the old
+gentleman was very fond of his pupil, and had ordered him, Phryx, to go
+to Olympus, who, ever since he could remember, had been the family
+physician.
+
+"The Queen's leech?" asked Gorgias, disapprovingly, and when the slave
+assented, the architect exclaimed in a positive tone: "It is not right
+to force the old man out of doors in such a north wind. Age is not
+specially considerate to age. Now that the statues stand yonder, I can
+leave my post for half an hour and will go with you. I don't think a
+leech is needed to drive out _these_ demons."
+
+"True, my lord, true!" cried the slave, "but Olympus is our friend. He
+visits few patients, but he will come to our house in any weather. He
+has litters, chariots, and splendid mules. The Queen gives him whatever
+is best and most comfortable. He is skilful, and perhaps can render
+speedy help. People must use what they have."
+
+"Only where it is necessary," replied the architect. "There are my two
+mules; follow me on the second. If I don't drive out the demons, you
+will have plenty of time to trot after Olympus."
+
+This proposal pleased the old slave, and a short time after Gorgias
+entered the venerable philosopher's tablinum.
+
+Helena welcomed him like an intimate friend. Whenever he appeared she
+thought the peril was half over. Didymus, too, greeted him warmly, and
+conducted him to the little room where the youth possessed by demons lay
+on a divan.
+
+He was still groaning and whimpering. Tears were streaming down his
+cheeks, and, whenever any member of the household approached, he pushed
+him away.
+
+When Gorgias held his hands and sternly ordered him to confess what
+wrong he had done, he sobbed out that he was the most ungrateful wretch
+on earth. His baseness would ruin his kind parents, himself, and all his
+friends.
+
+Then he accused himself of having caused the destruction of Didymus's
+granddaughter. He would not have gone to Antyllus again had not his
+recent generosity bound him to him, but now he must atone--ay, atone.
+Then, as if completely crushed, he continued to mumble the word,
+"atone!" and for a time nothing more could be won from him.
+
+Didymus, however, had the key to the last sentence. A few weeks before,
+Philotas and several other pupils of the rhetorician whose lectures in
+the museum he attended had been invited to breakfast with Antyllus. When
+the young student loudly admired the beautiful gold and silver beakers
+in which the wine was served, the reckless host cried: "They are yours;
+take them with you." When the guests departed the cup-bearer asked
+Philotas, who had been far from taking the gift seriously, to receive
+his property. Antyllus had intended to bestow the goblets; but he
+advised the youth to let him pay their value in money, for among them
+were several ancient pieces of most artistic workmanship, which Antony,
+the extravagant young fellow's father, might perhaps be unwilling to
+lose.
+
+Thereupon several rolls of gold _solidi_ were paid to the astonished
+student--and they had been of little real benefit, since they had made
+it possible for him to keep pace with his wealthy and aristocratic
+classmates and share many of their extravagances. Yet he had not ceased
+to fulfil his duty to Didymus.
+
+Though he sometimes turned night into day, he gave no serious cause for
+reproof. Small youthful errors were willingly pardoned; for he was a
+good-looking, merry young fellow, who knew how to make himself agreeable
+to the entire household, even to the women.
+
+What had befallen the poor youth that day? Didymus was filled with
+compassion for him, and, though he gladly welcomed Gorgias, he gave him
+to understand that the leech's absence vexed him.
+
+But, during a long bachelor career in Alexandria, a city ever gracious
+to the gifts of Bacchus, Gorgias had become familiar with attacks like
+those of Philotas and their treatment, and after several jars of water
+had been brought and he had been left alone a short time with the
+sufferer, the philosopher secretly rejoiced that he had not summoned the
+grey-haired leech into the stormy night for Gorgias led forth his pupil
+with dripping hair, it is true, but in a state of rapid convalescence.
+
+The youth's handsome face was freed from soot, but his eyes were bent in
+confusion on the ground, and he sometimes pressed his hand upon his
+aching brow. It needed all the old philosopher's skill in persuasion to
+induce him to speak, and Philotas, before he began, begged Helena to
+leave the room.
+
+He intended to adhere strictly to the truth, though he feared that the
+reckless deed into which he had suffered himself to be drawn might have
+a fatal effect upon his future life.
+
+Besides, he hoped to obtain wise counsel from the architect, to whom he
+owed his speedy recovery, and whose grave, kindly manner inspired him
+with confidence; and, moreover, he was so greatly indebted to Didymus
+that duty required him to make a frank confession--yet he dared not
+acknowledge one of the principal motives of his foolish act.
+
+The plot into which he had been led was directed against Barine, whom he
+had long imagined he loved with all the fervour of his twenty years.
+But, just before he went to the fatal banquet, he had heard that the
+young beauty was betrothed to Dion. This had wounded him deeply; for in
+many a quiet hour it had seemed possible to win her for himself and lead
+her as his wife to his home in Amphissa. He was very little younger than
+she, and if his parents once saw her, they could not fail to approve his
+choice. And the people in Amphissa! They would have gazed at Barine as
+if she were a goddess.
+
+And now this fine gentleman had come to crush his fairest hopes. No word
+of love had ever been exchanged between him and Barine, but how kindly
+she had always looked at him, how willingly she had accepted trivial
+services! Now she was lost.
+
+At first this had merely saddened him, but after he had drunk the wine,
+and Antyllus, Antony's son, in the presence of the revellers, over whom
+Cæsarion presided as "symposiarch"* had accused Barine of capturing
+hearts by magic spells, he had arrived at the conviction that he, too,
+had been shamefully allured and betrayed.
+
+[* Director of a banquet.]
+
+He had served for a toy, he said to himself, unless she had really loved
+him and merely preferred Dion on account of his wealth. In any case, he
+felt justified in cherishing resentment against Barine, and with the
+number of goblets which he drained his jealous rage increased.
+
+When urged to join in the escapade which now burdened his conscience he
+consented with a burning brain in order to punish her for the wrong
+which, in his heated imagination, she had done him.
+
+All this he withheld from the older men and merely briefly described the
+splendid banquet which Cæsarion, pallid and listless as ever, had
+directed, and Antyllus especially had enlivened with the most reckless
+mirth.
+
+The "King of kings" and Antony's son had escaped from their tutors on
+the pretext of a hunting excursion, and the chief huntsman had not
+grudged them the pleasure--only they were obliged to promise him that
+they would be ready to set out for the desert early the next morning.
+
+When, after the banquet, the mixing-vessels were brought out and the
+beakers were filled more rapidly, Antyllus whispered several times to
+Cæsarion and then turned the conversation upon Barine, the fairest of
+the fair, destined by the immortals for the greatest and highest of
+mankind. This was the "King of kings," Cæsarion, and he also claimed
+the favour of the gods for himself. But everybody knew that Aphrodite
+deemed herself greater than the highest of kings, and therefore Barine
+ventured to close her doors upon their august symposiarch in a manner
+which could not fail to be unendurable, not only to him but to all the
+youth of Alexandria. Whoever boasted of being one of the Ephebi might
+well clench his fist with indignation, when he heard that the insolent
+beauty kept young men at a distance because she considered only the
+older ones worthy of her notice. This must not be! The Ephebi of
+Alexandria must make her feel the power of youth. This was the more
+urgently demanded, because Cæsarion would thereby be led to the goal of
+his wishes.
+
+Barine was going into the country that very evening. Insulted Eros
+himself was smoothing their way. He commanded them to attack the
+arrogant fair one's carriage and lead her to him who sought her in the
+name of youth, in order to show her that the hearts of the Ephebi, whom
+she disdainfully rejected, glowed more ardently than those of the older
+men on whom she bestowed her favours.
+
+Here Gorgias interrupted the speaker with a loud cry of indignation, but
+old Didymus's eyes seemed to be fairly starting from their sockets as he
+hoarsely shouted an impatient--
+
+"Go on!"
+
+And Philotas, now completely sobered, described with increasing
+animation the wonderful change that had taken place in the quiet
+Cæsarion, as if some magic spell had been at work; for scarcely had the
+revellers greeted Antyllus's words with shouts of joy, declaring
+themselves ready to avenge insulted youth upon Barine, than the "King of
+kings" suddenly sprang from the cushions on which he had listlessly
+reclined, and with flashing eyes shouted that whoever called himself his
+friend must aid him in the attack.
+
+Here he was urged to still greater haste by another impatient "Go on!"
+from his master, and hurriedly continued his story, describing how they
+had blackened their faces and armed themselves with Antyllus's swords
+and lances. As the sun was setting they went in a covered boat through
+the Agathodæmon Canal to Lake Mareotis. Everything must have been
+arranged in advance; for they landed precisely at the right hour.
+
+As, during the trip, they had kept up their courage by swallowing the
+most fiery wine, Philotas had staggered on shore with difficulty and
+then been dragged forward by the others. After this he knew nothing
+more, except that he had rushed with the rest upon a large _harmamaxa_,
+and in so doing fell. When he rose from the earth all was over.
+
+As if in a dream he saw Scythians and other guardians of the peace seize
+Antyllus, while Cæsarion was struggling on the ground with another man.
+If he was not mistaken it was Dion, Barine's betrothed husband.
+
+These communications were interrupted by many exclamations of impatience
+and wrath; but now Didymus, fairly frantic with alarm, cried:
+
+"And the child--Barine?"
+
+But when Philotas's sole reply to this question was a silent shake of
+the head, indignation conquered the old philosopher, and clutching his
+pupil's _chiton_ with both hands, he shook him violently, exclaiming
+furiously:
+
+"You don't know, scoundrel? Instead of defending her who should be dear
+to you as a child of this household, you joined the rascally scorners of
+morality and law as the accomplice of this waylayer in purple!"
+
+Here the architect soothed the enraged old man with expostulations, and
+the assertion that everything must now yield to the necessity of
+searching for Barine and Dion. He did not know which way to turn, in the
+amount of labour pressing upon him, but he would have a hasty talk with
+the foreman and then try to find his friend.
+
+"And I," cried the old man, "must go at once to the unfortunate
+child.--My cloak, Phryx, my sandals!"
+
+In spite of Gorgias's counsel to remember his age and the inclement
+weather, he cried angrily:
+
+"I am going, I say! If the tempest hurls me to the earth, and the bolts
+of Zeus strike me, so be it. One misfortune more or less matters little
+in a life which has been a chain of heavy blows of Fate. I buried three
+sons in the prime of manhood, and two have been slain in battle. Barine,
+the joy of my heart, I myself, fool that I was, bound to the scoundrel
+who blasted her joyous existence; and now that I believed she would be
+protected from trouble and misconstruction by the side of a worthy
+husband, these infamous rascals, whose birth protects them from
+vengeance, have wounded, perhaps killed her betrothed lover. They
+trample in the dust her fair name and my white hair!--Phryx, my hat and
+staff."
+
+The storm had long been raging around the house, which stood close by
+the sea, and the sailcloth awning which was stretched over the impluvium
+noisily rattled the metal rings that confined it. Now so violent a gust
+swept from room to room that two of the flames in the three-branched
+lamp went out. The door of the house had been opened, and drenched with
+rain, a hood drawn over his black head, Barine's Nubian doorkeeper
+crossed the threshold.
+
+He presented a pitiable spectacle and at first could find no answer to
+the greetings and questions of the men, who had been joined by Helena,
+her grandmother leaning on her arm; his rapid walk against the fury of
+the storm had fairly taken away his breath.
+
+He had little, however, to tell. Barine merely sent a message to her
+relatives that, no matter what tales rumour might bring, she and her
+mother were unhurt. Dion had received a wound in the shoulder, but it
+was not serious. Her grandparents need have no anxiety; the attack had
+completely failed.
+
+Doris, who was deaf, had listened vainly, holding her hand to her ear,
+to catch this report; and Didymus now told his granddaughter as much as
+he deemed it advisable for her to know, that she might communicate it to
+her grandmother, who understood the movements of her lips.
+
+The old man was rejoiced to learn that his granddaughter had escaped so
+great a peril uninjured, yet he was still burdened by sore anxiety. The
+architect, too, feared the worst, but by dint of assuring him that he
+would return at once with full details when he had ascertained the fate
+of Dion and his betrothed bride, he finally persuaded the old man to
+give up the night walk through the tempest.
+
+Philotas, with tears in his eyes, begged them to accept his services as
+messenger or for any other purpose; but Didymus ordered him to go to
+bed. An opportunity would be found to enable him to atone for the
+offence so recklessly committed.
+
+The scholar's peaceful home was deprived of its nocturnal repose, and
+when Gorgias had gone and Didymus had refused Helena's request to have
+the aged porter take her to her sister, the old man remained alone with
+his wife in the tablinum.
+
+She had been told nothing except that thieves had attacked her
+granddaughter, Barine, and slightly wounded her lover; but her own heart
+and the manner of the husband, at whose side she had grown grey, showed
+that many things were being concealed. She longed to know the story more
+fully, but it was difficult for Didymus to talk a long time in a loud
+tone, so she silenced her desire to learn the whole truth. But, in order
+to await the architect's report, they did not go to rest.
+
+Didymus had sunk into an armchair, and Doris sat near at her spindle,
+but without drawing any threads from her distaff. When she heard her
+husband sigh and saw him bury his face in his hands, she limped nearer
+to him, difficult as it was for her to move, and stroked his head, now
+nearly bald, with her hand. Then she uttered soothing words, and, as the
+anxious, troubled expression did not yet pass from his wrinkled face,
+she reminded him in faltering yet tender tones how often they had
+thought they must despair, and yet everything had resulted well.
+
+"Ah! husband," she added, "I know full well that the clouds hanging over
+us are very black, and I cannot even see them clearly, because you show
+them at such a distance. Yet I feel that they threaten us with sore
+tribulation. But, after all, what harm can they do us, if we only keep
+close together, we two old people and the children of the children whom
+Hades rent from us? We need only to grow old to perceive that life has a
+head with many faces. The ugly one of to-day can last no longer than you
+can keep that deeply furrowed brow. But you need not coerce yourself for
+my sake, husband. Let it be so. I need merely close my eyes to see how
+smooth and beautiful it was in youth, and how pleasant it will look when
+better days say, 'Here we are!'"
+
+Didymus, with a mournful smile, kissed her grey hair and shouted into
+her left ear, which was a little less deaf than the other:
+
+"How young you are still, wife!"
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+The tempest swept howling from the north across the island of Pharos,
+and the shallows of Diabathra in the great harbour of Alexandria. The
+water, usually so placid, rose in high waves, and the beacon on the
+lighthouse of Sastratus sent the rent abundance of its flames with
+hostile impetuosity towards the city. The fires in the pitch-pans and
+the torches on the shore sometimes seemed on the point of being
+extinguished, at others burst with a doubly brilliant blaze through the
+smoke which obscured them.
+
+The royal harbour, a fine basin which surrounded in the form of a
+semicircle the southern part of the Lochias and a portion of the
+northern shore of the Bruchium, was brightly illuminated every night;
+but this evening there seemed to be an unusual movement among the lights
+on its western shore, the private anchorage of the royal fleet.
+
+Was it the storm that stirred them? No. How could the wind have set one
+torch in the place of another, and moved lights or lanterns in a
+direction opposite to its violent course? Only a few persons, however,
+perceived this; for, though joyous anticipation or anxious fears urged
+many thither, who would venture upon the quay on such a tempestuous
+night? Besides, no one would have found admittance to the royal port,
+which was closed on all sides. Even the mole which, towards the west,
+served as the string to the bow of land surrounding it, had but a single
+opening and--as every one knew--that was closed by a chain in the same
+way as the main entrance to the harbour between the Pharos and Alveus
+Steganus.
+
+About two hours before midnight, spite of the increasing fury of the
+tempest, the singular movement of the lights diminished, but rarely had
+the hearts of those for whom they burned throbbed so anxiously. These
+were the dignitaries and court officials who stood nearest to
+Cleopatra--about twenty men and a single woman, Iras. Mardion and she
+had summoned them because the Queen's letter permitted those to whom she
+had given authority to offer her a quiet reception. After a long
+consultation they had not invited the commanders of the little Roman
+garrison left behind. It was doubtful whether those whom they expected
+would return that night, and the Roman soldiers who were loyal to Antony
+had gone with him to the war.
+
+The hall in the centre of the private roadstead of the royal harbour,
+where they had assembled, was furnished with regal magnificence; for it
+was a favourite resort of the Queen. The spacious apartment lacked no
+requisite of comfort, and most of those who were waiting used the
+well-cushioned couches, while others, harassed by mental anxiety, paced
+to and fro.
+
+As the room had remained unused for months, bats had made nests there,
+and now that it was lighted, dazzled by the glare of the lamps and
+candles, they darted to and fro above the heads of the assembly. Iras
+had ordered the commander of the Mellakes, or youths, a body-guard
+composed of the sons of aristocratic Macedonian families, to expel the
+troublesome creatures, and it diverted the thoughts of these devoted
+soldiers of the Queen to strike at them with their swords.
+
+Others preferred to watch this futile battle rather than give themselves
+up to the anxiety which filled their minds. The Regent was gazing mutely
+at the ground; Iras, pale and absent-minded, was listening to Zeno's
+statements; and Archibius had gone out of doors, and, unheeding the
+storm, was looking across the tossing waves of the harbour for the
+expected ships.
+
+In a wooden shed, whose roof was supported by gaily painted pillars,
+through which the wind whistled, the servants, from the porters to the
+litter-bearers, had gathered in groups under the flickering light of the
+lanterns. The Greeks sat on wooden stools, the Egyptians upon mats on
+the floor. The largest circle contained the parties who attended to the
+Queen's luggage and the upper servants, among whom were several maids.
+
+They had been told that the Queen was expected that night, because it
+was possible that the strong north wind would bear her ship home with
+unexpected speed after the victory. But they were better informed:
+palaces have chinks in doors and curtains, and are pervaded by a very
+peculiar echo which bears even a whisper distinctly from ear to ear.
+
+The body-slave of the commander-in-chief Seleukus was the principal
+spokesman. His master had reached Alexandria but a few hours ago from
+the frontier fortress of Pelusium, which he commanded. A mysterious
+order from Lucilius, Antony's most faithful friend, brought from
+Tænarum by a swift galley, had summoned him hither.
+
+The freedman Beryllus, a loquacious Sicilian, who, as an actor, had seen
+better days ere pirates robbed him of his liberty, had heard many new
+things, and his hearers listened eagerly; for ships coming from the
+north, which touched at Pelusium, had confirmed and completed the evil
+tidings that had penetrated the Sebasteum.
+
+According to his story, he was as well informed as if he had been an
+eye-witness of the naval battle; for he had been present during his
+master's conversation with many ship-captains and messengers from
+Greece. He even assumed the air of a loyal, strictly silent servant, who
+would only venture to confirm and deny what the Alexandrians had already
+learned. Yet his knowledge consisted merely of a confused medley of
+false and true occurrences. While the Egyptian fleet had been defeated
+at Actium, and Antony, flying with Cleopatra, had gone first to Tænarum
+at the end of the Peloponnesian coast, he asserted that the army and
+fleet had met on the Peloponnesian coast and Octavianus was pursuing
+Antony, who had turned towards Athens, while Cleopatra was on her way to
+Alexandria.
+
+His "trustworthy intelligence" had been patched together from a few
+words caught from Seleukus at table, or while receiving and dismissing
+messengers. In other matters his information was more accurate.
+
+While for several days the harbour of Alexandria had been closed,
+vessels were permitted to enter Pelusium, and all captains of newly
+arrived ships and caravans were compelled to report to Beryllus's
+master, the commandant of the important frontier fortress.
+
+He had quitted Pelusium the night before. The strong wind had driven the
+trireme before it so swiftly that it was difficult for even the sea
+gulls to follow. It was easy for the listeners to believe this; for the
+storm outside howled louder and louder, whistling through the open hall
+where the servants had gathered. Most of the lamps and torches had been
+blown out, the pitch-pans only sent forth still blacker clouds of smoke,
+lit by red and yellow flames, and the closed lanterns alone continued to
+diffuse a flickering light. So the wide space, dim with smoke, was
+illumined only by a dull, varying glimmer.
+
+One of the porters had furnished wine to shorten the hours of waiting;
+but it could only be drunk in secret, so there were no goblets. The jars
+wandered from mouth to mouth, and every sip was welcome, for the wind
+blew keenly, and besides, the smoke irritated their throats.
+
+The freedman, Beryllus, was often interrupted by paroxysms of coughing,
+especially from the women, while relating the evil omens which were told
+to his master in Pelusium. Each was well authenticated and surpassed its
+predecessor in significance.
+
+Here one of Iras's maids interrupted him to tell the story of the
+swallows on the "Antonius," Cleopatra's admiral galley. He could
+scarcely report from Pelusium an omen of darker presage.
+
+But Beryllus gazed at her with a pitying smile, which so roused the
+expectations of the others that the overseer of the litter and baggage
+porters, who were talking loudly together, hoarsely shouted, "Silence!"
+
+Soon no sound was heard in the open space save the shrill whistling of
+the wind, a word of command to the harbour-guards, and the freedman's
+voice, which he lowered to increase the charm of the mysterious events
+he was describing.
+
+He began with the most fulsome praise of Cleopatra and Antony, reminding
+his hearers that the Imperator was a descendant of Herakles. The
+Alexandrians especially were aware that their Queen and Antony claimed
+and desired to be called "The new Isis" and "The new Dionysus." But
+every one who beheld the Roman must admit that in face and figure he
+resembled a god far more than a man.
+
+The Imperator had appeared as Dionysus, especially to the Athenians. In
+the proscenium of the theatre in that city was a huge bas-relief of the
+Battle of the Giants, the famous work of an ancient sculptor--he,
+Beryllus, had seen it--and from amid the numerous figures in this piece
+of sculpture the tempest had torn but a single one--which? Dionysus, the
+god as whose mortal image Antony had once caroused in a vine-clad arbour
+in the presence of the Athenians. The storm to-night was at the utmost
+like the breath of a child, compared with the hurricane which could
+wrest from the hard marble the form of Dionysus. But Nature gathers all
+her forces when she desires to announce to short-sighted mortals the
+approach of events which are to shake the world.
+
+The last words were quoted from his master who had studied in Athens.
+They had escaped from his burdened soul when he heard of another
+portent, of which a ship from Ostia had brought tidings. The flourishing
+city Pisaura----
+
+Here, however, he was interrupted, for several of those present had
+learned, weeks before, that this place had sunk in the sea, but merely
+pitied the unfortunate inhabitants.
+
+Beryllus quietly permitted them to free themselves from the suspicion
+that people in Alexandria had had tidings of so remarkable an event
+later than those in Pelusium, and at first answered their query what
+this had to do with the war merely by a shrug of the shoulders; but when
+the overseer of the porters also put the question, he went on "The omen
+made a specially deep impression upon our minds, for we know what
+Pisaura is, or rather how it came into existence. The hapless city which
+dark Hades ingulfed really belonged to Antony, for in the days of its
+prosperity he was its founder."
+
+He measured the group with a defiant glance, and there was no lack of
+evidences of horror; nay, one of the maid-servants shrieked aloud, for
+the storm had just snatched a torch from the iron rings in the wall and
+hurled it on the floor close beside the listener.
+
+Suspense seemed to have reached its height. Yet it was evident that
+Beryllus had not yet drawn his last arrow from the quiver.
+
+The maid-servant, whose scream had startled the others, had regained her
+composure and seemed eager to hear some other new and terrible omen,
+for, with a beseeching glance, she begged the freedman not to withhold
+the other things he knew.
+
+He pointed to the drops of perspiration which, spite of the wind
+sweeping through the hall, covered her brow: "You must use your
+handkerchief. Merely listening to my tale will dampen your skin. Stone
+statues are made of harder material, but a soul dwells within them too.
+Their natures may be harsher or more gentle; they bring us woe or heal
+heavy sorrows, according to their mood. Every one learns this who raises
+his hands to them in prayer. One of these statues stands in Alba. It
+represents Mark Antony, in whose honour it was erected by the city. And
+it foresaw what menaced the man whose stone double it is. Ay, open your
+ears! About four days ago a ship's captain came to my master and in my
+presence this man reported--he grew as pale as ashes while he
+spoke--what he himself had witnessed. Drops of perspiration had oozed
+from the statue of Antony in Alba. Horror seized all the citizens; men
+and women came to wipe the brow and cheeks of the statue, but the drops
+of perspiration did not cease to drip, and this continued several days
+and nights. The stone image had felt what was impending over the living
+Mark Antony. It was a horrible spectacle, the man said."
+
+Here the speaker paused, and the group of listeners started, for the
+clang of a gong was heard outside, and the next instant all were on
+their feet hastening to their posts.
+
+The officials in the magnificent hall had also risen. Here the silence
+had been interrupted only by low whispers. The colour had faded from
+most of the grave, anxious faces, and their timid glances shunned one
+another.
+
+Archibius had first perceived, by the flames of the Pharos, the red
+glimmer which announced the approach of the royal galley. It had not
+been expected so early, but was already passing the islands into the
+great harbour. It was probably the Antonius, the ship on which the old
+swallows had pecked the young ones to death.
+
+Though the waves were running high, even in the sheltered harbour, they
+scarcely rocked the massive vessel. An experienced pilot must have
+steered it past the shallows and cliffs on the eastern side of the
+roadstead, for instead of passing around the island of Antirrhodus as
+usual, it kept between the island and the Lochias, steering straight
+towards the entrance into the little royal harbour. The pitch-pans on
+both sides had been filled with fresh resin and tow to light the way.
+The watchers on the shore could now see its outlines distinctly.
+
+It was the Antonius, and yet it was not.
+
+Zeno, the Keeper of the Seal, who was standing beside Iras, wrapped his
+cloak closer around his shivering limbs, pointed to it, and whispered,
+"Like a woman who leaves her parents' house in the rich array of a
+bride, and returns to it an impoverished widow."
+
+Iras drew herself up, and with cutting harshness replied, "Like the sun
+veiled by mists, but which will soon shine forth again more radiantly
+than ever."
+
+"Spoken from the depths of my soul," said the old courtier eagerly, "so
+far as the Queen is concerned. Of course, I did not allude to her
+Majesty, but to the ship. You were ill when it left the harbour,
+garlanded with flowers and adorned with purple sails. And now! Even this
+flickering light shows the wounds and rents. I am the last person whom
+you need tell that our sun Cleopatra will soon regain its old radiance,
+but at present it is very chilly and cold here by the water's edge in
+this stormy air; and when I think of our first moment of meeting----"
+
+"Would it were over!" murmured Iras, wrapping herself closer in her
+cloak. Then she drew back shivering, for the rattle of the heavy chain,
+which was drawn aside from the opening of the harbour, echoed with an
+uncanny sound through the silence of the night. A mountain seemed to
+weigh upon the watchers' breasts, for the wooden monster which now
+entered the little harbour moved forward as slowly and silently as a
+spectral ship. It seemed as if life were extinct on the huge galley
+usually swarming with a numerous crew; as if a vessel were about to cast
+anchor whose sailors had fallen victims to the plague. Nothing was heard
+save an occasional word of command, and the signal whistles of the
+fluteplayer who directed the rowers. A few lanterns burned with a
+wavering light on the vast length of her decks. The brilliant
+illumination which usually shone through the darkness would have
+attracted the attention of the Alexandrians.
+
+Now it was close to the landing. The group on shore watched every inch
+of its majestic progress with breathless suspense, but when the first
+rope was flung to the slaves on shore several men in Greek robes pressed
+forward hurriedly among the courtiers.
+
+They had come with a message, whose importance would permit no delay, to
+the Regent Mardion, who stood between Zeno and Iras, gazing gloomily at
+the ground with a frowning brow. He was pondering over the words in
+which to address the Queen, and within a few minutes the ship would have
+made her landing, and Cleopatra might cross the bridge. To disturb him
+at that moment was an undertaking few who knew the irritable, uncertain
+temper of the eunuch would care to risk. But the tall Macedonian, who
+for a short time attracted the eyes of most of the spectators from the
+galley, ventured to do so. It was the captain of the nightwatch, the
+aristocratic commander of the police force of the city.
+
+"Only a word, my lord," he whispered to the Regent, "though the time may
+be inopportune."
+
+"As inopportune as possible," replied the eunuch with repellent
+harshness.
+
+"We will say as inopportune as the degree of haste necessary for its
+decision. The King Cæsarion, with Antyllus and several companions,
+attacked a woman. Blackened faces. A fight. Cæsarion and the woman's
+companion--an aristocrat, member of the Council--slightly wounded.
+Lictors interfered just in time. The young gentlemen were arrested. At
+first they refused to give their names----"
+
+"Cæsarion slightly, _really_ only slightly wounded?" asked the eunuch
+with eager haste.
+
+"Really and positively. Olympus was summoned at once. A knock on the
+head. The man who was attacked flung him on the pavement in the
+struggle."
+
+"Dion, the son of Eumenes, is the man," interrupted Iras, whose quick
+ear had caught the officer's report. "The woman--is Barine, the daughter
+of the artist Leonax."
+
+"Then you know already?" asked the Macedonian in surprise.
+
+"So it seems," answered Mardion, gazing into the girl's face with a
+significant glance. Then, turning to her rather than to the Macedonian,
+he added, "I think we will have the young rascals set free and brought
+to Lochias with as little publicity as possible."
+
+"To the palace?" asked the Macedonian.
+
+"Of course," replied Iras firmly. "Each to his own apartments, where
+they must remain until further orders."
+
+"Everything else must be deferred until after the reception," added the
+eunuch, and the Macedonian, with a slight, haughty nod, drew back.
+
+"Another misfortune," sighed the eunuch.
+
+"A boyish prank," Iras answered quickly, "but even a still greater
+misfortune is less than nothing so long as we are not conscious of it.
+This unpleasant occurrence must be concealed for the present from the
+Queen. Up to this time it is a vexation, nothing more--and it can and
+must remain so; for we have it in our power to uproot the poisonous tree
+whence it emanates."
+
+"You look as if no one could better perform the task," the Regent
+interrupted, with a side glance at the galley, "so you shall have the
+commission. It is the last one I shall give, during the Queen's absence,
+in her name."
+
+"I shall not fail," she answered firmly.
+
+When Iras again looked towards the landing-place she saw Archibius
+standing alone, with his eyes fixed upon the ground. Impulse prompted
+her to tell her uncle what had happened; but at the first step she
+paused, and her thin lips uttered a firm "No."
+
+Her friend had become a stone in her path. If necessary, she would find
+means to thrust him also aside, spite of his sister Charmian and the old
+tie which united him to Cleopatra. He had grown weak, Charmian had
+always been so.
+
+She would have had time enough now to consider what step to take first,
+had not her heart ached so sorely.
+
+After the huge galley lay moored, several minutes elapsed ere two
+_pastophori_ of the goddess Isis, who guarded the goblet of Nektanebus,
+taken from the temple treasures and borne along in a painted chest,
+stepped upon the bridge, followed by Cleopatra's first chamberlain, who
+in a low tone announced the approach of the Queen and commanded the
+waiting groups to make way. A double line of torch-bearers had been
+stationed from the landing to the gate leading into the Bruchium, and
+the other on the north, which was the entrance to the palaces on the
+Lochias, since it was not known where Cleopatra would desire to go. The
+chamberlain, however, said that she would spend the night at Lochias,
+where the children lived, and ordered all the flickering, smoking
+torches, save a few, to be extinguished.
+
+Mardion, the Keeper of the Seal, Archibius, and Iras were standing by
+the bridge a little in advance of the others, when voices were heard on
+the ship, and the Queen appeared, preceded by several lantern-bearers
+and followed by a numerous train of court officials, pages, maids, and
+female slaves. Cleopatra's little hand rested on Charmian's arm, as,
+with a haughty carriage of the head, she moved towards the shore. A
+thick veil covered her face, and a large, dark cloak concealed her
+figure. How elastic her step was still! how proud yet graceful was the
+gesture with which she waved a greeting to Mardion and Zeno!
+
+Extending her hand to raise Iras, who had sunk prostrate before her, she
+kissed her on the forehead, whispering, "The children?"
+
+"All is well with them," replied the girl.
+
+Then the returning sovereign greeted the others with a gracious gesture,
+but vouchsafed a word to no one until the eunuch stepped before her to
+deliver his address of welcome. She motioned him aside with a curt
+"Later"; and when Zeno held open the door of the litter, she said in a
+stifled tone: "I will walk. After the rocking of the galley in this
+tempest, I feel reluctant to enter the litter. There are many things to
+be considered to-day. An idea came to me on the way home. Summon the
+captain of the harbour and his chief counsellors, the heads of the war
+office, the superintendent of the fortifications on land and water,
+especially the Aristarch and Gorgias--I want to see them. Time presses.
+They must be here in two hours--no, in an hour and a half. I wish to
+examine all their plans and charts of the eastern frontier, especially
+the river channels and canals in the Delta."
+
+Then she turned to Archibius, who had approached the litter, laid her
+hand upon his arm, and though her veil prevented him from seeing her
+sparkling eyes, he felt them shining deep into his heart, as the voice
+whose melody had often enthralled his soul cried, "We will take it as a
+favourable omen that it is again _you_ who lead me to this palace in a
+time of trouble."
+
+His overflowing heart found expression in the warm reply, "Whenever it
+may be, forever and ever this arm and this life are yours!" And the
+Queen answered in a tone of earnest belief, "I know it."
+
+Then, with her hand still resting on his arm, she moved forward; but
+when he began to ask whether she really had cause to speak of a time of
+trouble, she cut him short with the entreaty "Not now. Let us say
+nothing. It is worse than bad--as evil as possible. Yet no. Few are
+permitted, in an hour of trouble, to lean on the arm of a faithful
+friend."
+
+The words were accompanied with a light pressure of her little hand, and
+it seemed as if his old heart was growing young.
+
+He dared not speak, for her wish was law; but while moving silently at
+her side, first along the shore, then through the gate, and finally over
+the marble flagstones which led to the palace portal, it seemed as if he
+beheld, instead of the veiled head of the hapless Queen, the soft,
+light-brown locks which floated around the face of a happy child. Before
+his mental vision rose the little mistress of the garden of Epicurus. He
+saw the sparkle of her large blue eyes, which never ceased to question,
+yet appeared to contain the mystery of the world. He fancied he heard
+once more the silvery cadence of her voice and the bewitching magic of
+her pure, childlike laughter, and it was hard to remember what she had
+become.
+
+Snatched away from the present, yet conscious that Fate had granted him
+a great boon in this sorrowful hour, he moved on at her side and led her
+through the main entrance, the spacious inner court-yard of the palace.
+At the rear was the great door opening into the Queen's apartments,
+before which Mardion, Iras, and their companions had already stationed
+themselves. At the left was a smaller one leading into the wing occupied
+by the children.
+
+Archibius was about to conduct Cleopatra across the lighted court-yard,
+but she motioned towards the children's rooms, and he understood her.
+
+At the threshold her hand fell from his arm, and when he bowed as if to
+retire, she said kindly: "There is Charmian. You both deserve to
+accompany me to the spot where childhood is dreaming and peace of mind
+and painlessness have their abode. But respect for the Queen has
+prevented the brother and sister from greeting each other after so long
+a separation. Do so now! Then, follow me."
+
+While speaking, she hastened with the swift step of youth into the
+atrium and up the staircase which led to the sleeping-rooms of the
+princes and princesses.
+
+Archibius and Charmian obeyed her bidding; the brother clasped his
+sister affectionately in his arms, and in hurried tones, with tears
+streaming from her eyes, she informed him that to her all seemed lost.
+
+Antony had behaved in a manner for which no words of condemnation or
+regret were adequate. Probably he would follow Cleopatra; the fleet, and
+perhaps the army also, were destroyed. Her fate lay in the hands of
+Octavianus.
+
+Then she preceded him towards the staircase, where Iras was standing
+with a tall Syrian, who bore a striking resemblance to Philostratus,
+Barine's former husband. It was his brother Alexas, the trusted
+favourite of Mark Antony. His place should now have been with him, and
+Archibius asked his sister with a hasty look how this man chanced to be
+in the Queen's train.
+
+"His skill in reading the stars," was the reply. "His flattering tongue.
+He is a parasite of the worst kind, but he tells her many things, he
+diverts her, and she tolerates him near her person."
+
+As soon as Iras saw the direction in which Cleopatra had turned, she had
+hastened after her to accompany her to the children. The Syrian Alexas
+had stopped her to express his joy in meeting her again. Even before the
+outbreak of the war he had devoted himself zealously to her, and he now
+plainly showed that during the long period of separation his feelings
+had by no means cooled. Like his brother, he had a head too small for
+his body, but his well-formed features were animated by a pair of eyes
+sparkling with a keen, covetous expression.
+
+Iras, too, seemed glad to welcome the favourite, but ere the brother and
+sister reached the staircase she left him to embrace Charmian, her aunt
+and companion, with the affection of a daughter.
+
+They found the Queen in the anteroom of the children's apartments.
+Euphronion, their tutor, had awaited her there, and hurriedly gave, in
+the most rapturous terms, his report of them and the wonderful gifts
+which became more and more apparent in each, now as a heritage from
+their mother, now from their father.
+
+Cleopatra had interrupted the torrent of his enthusiastic speech with
+many a question, meanwhile endeavouring to loose the veil wound about
+her head; but the little hands, unaccustomed to the task, failed. Iras
+noticed it from the stairs and, hastening up the last steps, skilfully
+released her from the long web of lace.
+
+The Queen acknowledged the service by a gracious nod, but when the chief
+eunuch opened the door leading into the children's rooms, she called
+joyously to the brother and sister, "Come!" The tutor, who was obliged
+to leave the charge of his pupils' sleeping apartments to the eunuchs
+and nurses, drew back, but Iras felt it a bitter affront to be excluded
+from this visit. Her cheeks flushed and paled; her thin lips were more
+firmly compressed, and she gazed intently at the basket of fruit in the
+mosaic floor at her feet as if she were counting the cherries that
+filled it. But she suddenly pushed the little curls back from her
+forehead, darted swiftly down the stairs, and called to Alexas just as
+he was about to leave the atrium.
+
+The Syrian hastened towards her, extolling the good fortune that made
+his sun rise for him a second time that night, but she cut him short
+with the words: "Cease this foolish love-making. It would be far better
+for us both to become allies in serious, bitter earnest. I am ready."
+
+"So am I!" cried the Syrian rapturously, pressing his hand upon his
+heart.
+
+Meanwhile Cleopatra had entered the chamber where the children lay
+sleeping. Deep silence pervaded the lofty hall hung with bright-hued
+carpets, and softly lighted by three lamps with rose-colored globes. An
+arch, supported by pillars of Libyan marble, divided the wide space. In
+the first, near a window closely muffled with draperies, stood two ivory
+beds, surmounted with crowns of gold and silver set with pearls and
+turquoises. Around the edge, carved by the hands of a great artist, ran
+a line of happy children dancing to the songs of birds in blossoming
+bushes.
+
+The couches were separated by a heavy curtain which the eunuchs had
+raised at the approach of the Queen. Cleopatra could now see them all at
+a single glance, and the picture was indeed one of exquisite charm; for
+on these beautiful couches slept the twins, the ten-year-old children of
+Cleopatra and Antony--Antonius Helios and Cleopatra Selene. The girl was
+pink and white, fair and wonderfully lovely; the boy no less beautiful,
+but with ebon-black hair, like his father. Both curly heads were turned
+towards the side, and rested on a dimpled hand pressed upon the silken
+pillow.
+
+Upon a third bed, beyond the arch, was Alexander, the youngest prince, a
+lovely boy of six, the Queen's darling.
+
+After gazing a long while at the twins, and pressing a light kiss upon
+cheeks flushed with slumber, she turned to the youngest child and sank
+beside his couch as if forced to bend the knee before some apparition
+which Heaven had vouchsafed to her. Tears streamed from her eyes as,
+drawing the child carefully towards her, she kissed his mouth, eyes, and
+cheeks, and then laid him gently back upon the pillows. The boy,
+however, did not instantly relapse into slumber, but threw his little
+plump arms around his mother's neck, murmuring incomprehensible words.
+She joyously submitted to his caresses, till sleep again overpowered
+him, and his little hands fell back upon the bed.
+
+She lingered a short time longer, with her brow resting on the ivory of
+the couch, praying for this child and his brother and sister. When she
+rose again her cheeks were wet with tears, and she pressed her hand upon
+her breast. Then, beckoning to Charmian and Archibius, she motioned
+towards Alexander and the twins, saying, as she saw tears glittering in
+the eyes of both: "I know you have lost this happiness for my sake. For
+each one of these children a great empire would not be too high a price;
+for them all---- What does earth contain that I would not bestow? Yet
+what can I still call my own?"
+
+Her smiling face clouded as she asked the question. The vision of the
+lost battle again rose before her mind. Her own power was lost,
+forfeited, and with it the independence of the native land which she
+loved. Rome was already stretching out her hand to add it to the others
+as a new province. But this should not be! Her twin children yonder,
+sleeping beneath crowns, must _wear_ them! And the boy slumbering on the
+pillows? How many kingdoms Antony had bestowed! What remained for her to
+give?
+
+Again she bent to the child. A beautiful dream must have hovered over
+him, for he was smiling in his sleep. A flood of maternal love welled up
+in her agitated heart, and, as she saw the companions of her childhood
+also gazing tenderly at the little steeper, she remembered the days of
+her own youth, and the quiet happiness which she had enjoyed in her
+garden of Epicurus.
+
+Power and splendour had begun for her beyond its confines, but the
+greater the heights of worldly grandeur she attained, the more distant,
+the more irrecoverable became the consciousness of the happiness which
+she had once gratefully enjoyed, and for which she had never ceased to
+long. And as she now gazed once more at the peaceful, smiling face,
+whence all pain and anxiety seemed worlds away, and all the love which
+her heart contained appeared to be pouring towards him, the question
+arose in her mind whether this boy, for whom she possessed no crown,
+might not be the only happy mortal of them all--happy in the sense of
+the master. Deeply moved by this thought, she turned to Archibius and
+Charmian, exclaiming in a subdued tone, in order not to rouse the
+sleeper: "Whatever destiny may await us, I commend this child to your
+special love and care. If Fate denies him the lustre of the crown and
+the elation of power, teach him to enjoy that other happiness,
+which--how long ago it is!--your father unfolded to his mother."
+
+Archibius kissed her robe, and Charmian her hands; but Cleopatra,
+drawing a long breath, said: "The mother has already taken too much time
+from the Queen. I have ordered the news of my arrival to be kept from
+Cæsarion. This was well. The most important matters will be settled
+before our meeting. Everything relating to me and to the state must be
+decided within an hour. But, first, I am something more than mother and
+Queen. The woman also asserts her claim. I will find time for you, my
+friend, to-morrow!--To my chamber first, Charmian. But you need rest
+still more than I. Go with your brother. Send Iras to me. She will be
+glad to use her skilful fingers again in her mistress's service."
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+The Queen had left her bath. Iras had arranged the still abundant waves
+of her hair, now dark-brown in hue, and robed her magnificently to
+receive the dignitaries whom, spite of the late hour of the night, she
+expected.
+
+How wonderfully she had retained her beauty! It seemed as if Time had
+not ventured to touch this masterpiece of feminine loveliness; yet the
+Greek's keen eye detected here and there some token of the vanishing
+spell of youth. She loved her mistress, yet her inmost soul rejoiced
+whenever she detected in her the same changes which began to appear in
+herself, the woman of seven-and-twenty, so many years her sovereign's
+junior. She would gladly have given Cleopatra everything at her command,
+yet she felt as if she must praise Nature for an act of justice, when
+she perceived that even her royal favourite was not wholly relieved from
+the law which applied to all.
+
+"Cease your flattery," said Cleopatra, smiling mournfully. "They say
+that the works of the Pharaohs here on the Nile flout Time. The
+inexorable destroyer is less willing to permit this from the Queen of
+Egypt. These are grey hairs, and they came from this head, however
+eagerly you may deny it. Whose save my own are these lines around the
+corners of the eyes and on the brow? What say you to the tooth which my
+lips do not hide so kindly as you assert? It was injured the night
+before the luckless battle. My dear, faithful, skilful Olympus, the
+prince of leeches, is the only one who can conceal such things. But it
+would not do to take the old man to the war, and Glaucus is far less
+adroit. How I missed Olympus during those fatal hours! I seemed a
+monster even to myself, and he--Antony's eye is only too keen for such
+matters. What _is_ the love of men? A blackened tooth may prove its
+destruction. An aspect obnoxious to the gaze will pour water on the
+fiercest fire. What hours I experienced, Iras! Many a glance from him
+seemed an insult, and, besides, my heart was filled with torturing
+anxiety.
+
+"Something had evidently come between us! I felt it. The trouble began
+soon after he left Alexandria. It gnawed my soul like a worm, and now
+that I am here again I must see clearly. He will follow me in a few
+days, I know. Pinarius Scarpus, with his untouched legions, is in
+Parætonium, whither he went. At Tænarum he resolved to retire from the
+world which he, on whom it had bestowed so much that is great, hates
+because he has given it cause for many a shake of the head. But the old
+spirit woke again, and if Fortune, usually so faithful, still aids him,
+a large force will soon join the new African army. The Asiatic
+princes---- But the ruler of the state must be silent. I entered this
+room to give the woman her just rights, and the woman shall have them.
+He will soon be here. He cannot live without me. It is not alone the
+beaker of Nektanebus which draws him after me!"
+
+"When the greatest of the great, Julius Cæsar, sued for your love in
+Alexandria, and Antony on the Cydnus, you did not possess the goblet,"
+observed Iras. "It is two years since Anubis permitted you to borrow the
+masterpiece from the temple treasures, and within a few days you will be
+obliged to restore it. That a mysterious spell emanates from the cup is
+certain, but one still more powerful dwells in the magic of your own
+nature."
+
+"Would that it might assert itself to-day!" cried the Queen. "At any
+rate the power of the beaker impelled Antony to do many things. I am not
+vain enough to believe that it was love, that it was solely the spell of
+my own personality which drew him to me in that disastrous hour. That
+battle, that incomprehensible, disgraceful battle! You were ill, and
+could not see our fleet when it set sail; but even experienced
+spectators said that handsomer, larger vessels were never beheld. I was
+right in insisting that the decision of the conflict should be left to
+them. I was entitled to call them mine. Had we conquered, what a proud
+delight it would have been to say, 'The weapons which you gave to the
+man you loved gained him the sovereignty of the world!' Besides, the
+stars had assured me that good fortune would attend us on the sea. They
+had given the same message to Anubis here and to Alexas upon Antony's
+galley. I also trusted the spell of the goblet, which had already
+compelled Antony to do many things he opposed. So I succeeded in having
+the decision of the conflict left to the fleet, but the prediction was
+false, false, false!--how utterly, was to be proved only too soon.
+
+"If I had only been told in time what I learned later! After the defeat
+people were more loquacious. That one remark of a veteran commander of
+the foot-soldiers would probably have sufficed to open my eyes. He had
+asked Mark Antony why he fixed his hopes on miserable wood, exclaiming,
+'Let the Phœnician's and Egyptians war on the water, but leave _us_ the
+land where we are accustomed, with our feet firmly set upon the earth,
+to fight, conquer, or die!' This alone, I am sure, would have changed my
+resolve in a happy hour. But it was kept from me.
+
+"The conflict began. Our troops had lost patience. The left wing of the
+fleet advanced. At first I watched the battle eagerly, with a throbbing
+heart. How proudly the huge galleys moved forward! Everything was going
+admirably. Antony had made an address, assuring the warriors that, even
+without soldiers, our ships would destroy the foe by their mere height
+and size. What orator can so carry his hearers with him! I, too, was
+still fearless. Who cherishes anxiety when confidently expecting
+victory? When he went on board his own ship, after bidding me farewell
+far less cordially than usual, I became more troubled. I thought it was
+evident that his love was waning. What had I become since we left
+Alexandria, and Olympus no longer attended me! Matters could not
+continue in this way. I would leave the direction of the war to him, and
+vanish from his eyes. After he had looked into the beaker of Nektanebus,
+he yielded to my will, but often with indignation. The unconcealed,
+ineffaceable lines, and the years, the cruel years!"
+
+"What thoughts are these?" cried Iras. "Let me take oath, my sovereign
+mistress, that as you stand before me----"
+
+"Thanks to this toilet-table and the new compounds of Olympus in these
+boxes! At that time, I tell you, I was fairly startled at the sight of
+my own face. Trouble does not enhance beauty, and what condemnation the
+Romans had heaped on the woman who meddled with war, the craft of man! I
+had answers for them, but I would not endure it longer. I had previously
+determined to hold aloof from the battle on land; but even at the
+commencement of the conflict, spite of its favourable promise, I longed
+to leave Antony and return to the children. They do not heed the colour
+of their mother's hair, nor her wrinkles; and he, when he had looked for
+and called me in vain, would feel for the first time what he possessed
+in me, would miss me, and with the longing the old love would awaken
+with fresh ardour. As soon as the fleet had gained the victory I would
+have the prow of my galley turned southward and, without a farewell,
+exclaiming only, 'We will meet in Alexandria!' set sail for Egypt.
+
+"I summoned Alexas, who had remained with me, and ordered him to give me
+a signal as soon as the battle was decided in our favour. I remained on
+deck. Then I saw the ships of the foe describing a wide circle. The
+_nauarch_ told me that Agrippa was trying to surround us. This roused a
+feeling of discomfort. I began to repent having meddled with men's work.
+
+"Antony looked across at me from his galley. I waved my hand to point
+out the peril, but instead of eagerly and lovingly answering the
+greeting, as of yore, he turned his back, and in a short time after the
+wildest uproar arose around me. One ship became entangled with another,
+planks and poles shattered with a loud crash. Shouts, the cries and
+moans of the combatants and the wounded, mingled with the thunder of the
+stones hurled by the catapults, and the sharp notes of the signals which
+sounded like calls for help. Two soldiers, stricken by arrows, fell
+beside me. It was horrible! Yet my courage remained steadfast, even when
+a squadron--it was commanded by Aruntius--pressed upon the fleet. I saw
+another line of galleys steering directly towards us, and a Roman vessel
+assailed by one of mine--I had named her the Selene--turn on her side
+and sink. This pleased me and seemed like the first presage of victory.
+I again ordered Alexas to have the ship's prow turned as soon as the
+result of the battle was decided. Ere I had ceased speaking, Jason, the
+steward--you know him--appeared with refreshments. I took the beaker,
+but, ere I could raise it to my lips, he fell to the deck with a cloven
+skull, mingling his blood with the spilled juice of the grape. My blood
+seemed fairly to freeze in my veins, and Alexas, trembling and deadly
+pale, asked, 'Do you command us to quit the battle?'
+
+"Every fibre of my being urged me to give the order, but I controlled
+myself, and asked the _nauarch_, who was standing on the bridge before
+me, 'Are we gaining the advantage?' The reply was a positive 'Yes.' I
+thought the fitting time had come, and called to him to steer the galley
+southward. But the man did not seem to understand. Meanwhile the noise
+of the conflict had grown louder and louder. So, in spite of Charmian,
+who besought me not to interfere in the battle, I sent Alexas to the
+commander on the bridge, and while he talked with the grey-bearded
+seaman, who wrathfully answered I know not what, I glanced at the
+nearest ship--I no longer knew whether it was friend or foe--and as I
+saw the rows of restless oars moving in countless numbers to and fro, it
+seemed as if every ship had become a huge spider, and the long wooden
+handles of the oars were its legs and feet. Each of these monsters
+appeared to be seeking to snare me in a horrible net, and when the
+_nauarch_ came to beseech me to wait, I imperiously commanded him to
+obey my orders.
+
+"The luckless man bowed, and performed his Queen's behest. The giant was
+turned, and forced a passage through the maze.
+
+"I breathed more freely.
+
+"What had threatened me like the legs of huge spiders became oars once
+more. Alexas led me under a roof, where no missiles could reach me. My
+desire was fulfilled. I had escaped Antony's eyes, and we were going
+towards Alexandria and my children. When I at last looked around I saw
+that my other ships were following. I had not given this order, and was
+terribly startled. When I sought Alexas, he had vanished. The centurion
+whom I sent to order the _nauarch_ to give the signal to the other ships
+to return to the battle, reported that the captain's dead body has just
+been borne away, but that the command should be given. How this was done
+I do not know, but it produced no effect, and no one noticed the anxious
+waving of my handkerchief.
+
+"We had left Antony's galley--he was standing on the bridge--far behind.
+
+"I had waved my hand as we passed close by, and he hurried down to bend
+far over the bulwark and shout to me. I can still see his hands raised
+to his bearded lips. I did not understand what he said, and only pointed
+southward and in spirit wished him victory and that this separation
+might tend to the welfare of our love. But he shook his head, pressed
+his hand despairingly to his brow, and waved his arms as though to give
+me a sign, but the Antonias swept far ahead of his ship and steered
+straight towards the south.
+
+"I breathed more freely, in the pleasant consciousness of escaping a
+two-fold danger. Had I remained long before Antony's eyes, looking as I
+did then, it might----
+
+"Wretched blunder of a wretched woman, I say now. But at that time I
+could not suspect what a terrible doom I had brought down in that hour
+upon ourselves, my children, perhaps the whole world; so I remained
+under the thrall of these petty fears and thoughts until wounded men
+were carried past me. The sight distressed me; you know how sensitive I
+am, and with what difficulty I endure and witness suffering.
+
+"Charmian led me to the cabin. There I first realized what I had done. I
+had hoped to aid in crushing the hated foe, and now perhaps it was I who
+had built for him the bridge to victory, to sovereignty, to our
+destruction. Pursued by such thoughts, as if by the Furies, I paced
+restlessly to and fro.
+
+"Suddenly I heard a loud noise on deck. A crashing blow seemed to shake
+the huge ship. We were pursued! A Roman galley had boarded mine! This
+was my thought as I grasped the dagger Antony had given me.
+
+"But Charmian came back with tidings which seemed scarcely less terrible
+than the baseless fear. I had angrily commanded her to leave me because
+she had urged me to revoke the command to turn back. Now, deadly pale,
+she announced that Mark Antony had left his galley, followed me in a
+little five-oared boat, and come on board our ship.
+
+"My blood froze in my veins.
+
+"He had come, I imagined, to force me to return to the battle and,
+drawing a long breath, my defiant pride urged me to show him that I was
+the Queen and would obey only my own will, while my heart impelled me to
+sink at his feet and beseech him, without heeding me, to issue any order
+which promised to secure a victory.
+
+"But he did not come.
+
+"I sent Charmian up again. Antony had been unable to continue the
+conflict when parted from me. Now he sat in front of the cabin with his
+head resting on his hands, staring at the planks of the deck like one
+distraught. He, he--Antony! The bravest horseman, the terror of the foe,
+let his arms fall like a shepherd-boy whose sheep are stolen by the
+wolves. Mark Antony, the hero who had braved a thousand dangers, had
+flung down his sword. Why, why? Because a woman had yielded to idle
+fears, obeyed the yearning of a mother's heart, and fled? Of all human
+weaknesses, not one had been more alien than cowardice to the man whose
+recklessness had led him to many an unprecedented venture. And now? No,
+a thousand times no! Fire and water would unite sooner than Mark Antony
+and cowardice! He had been under the coercive power of a demon; a
+mysterious spell had forced him----."
+
+"The mightiest power, love," interrupted Iras with enthusiastic
+warmth--"a love as great and overmastering as ever subjugated the soul
+of man."
+
+"Ay, love," repeated Cleopatra, in a hollow tone. Then her lips curled
+with a faint tinge of derision, and her voice expressed the very
+bitterness of doubt, as she continued: "Had it been merely the love
+which makes two mortals one, transfers the heart of one to the other, it
+might perchance have borne my timorous soul into the hero's breast! But
+no. Violent tempests had raged before the battle. It had not been
+possible always to appear before him in the guise in which we would fain
+be seen by those whom we love. Even now, when your skilful hands have
+served me--there is the mirror--the image it reflects--seems to me like
+a carefully preserved wreck----"
+
+"O my royal mistress," cried Iras, raising her hands beseechingly, "must
+I again declare that neither the grey hairs which are again brown, nor
+the few lines which Olympus will soon render invisible, nor whatever
+else perhaps disturbs you in the image you behold reflected, impairs
+your beauty? Unclouded and secure of victory, the spell of your godlike
+nature----"
+
+"Cease, cease!" interrupted Cleopatra. "I know what I know. No mortal
+can escape the great eternal laws of Nature. As surely as birth
+commences life, everything that exists moves onward to destruction and
+decay."
+
+"Yet the gods," Iras persisted, "give to their works different degrees
+of existence. The waterlily blooms but a single day, yet how full of
+vigour is the sycamore in the garden of the Paneum, which has flourished
+a thousand years! Not a petal in the blossoms of your youth has faded,
+and is it conceivable that there is even the slightest diminution in the
+love of him who cast away all that man holds dearest because he could
+not endure to part, even for days or weeks, from the woman whom he
+worshipped?"
+
+"Would that he had done so!" cried Cleopatra mournfully. "But are you so
+sure that it was love which made him follow me? I am of a different
+opinion. True love does not paralyze, but doubles the high qualities of
+man. I learned this when Cæsar was prisoned by a greatly superior force
+within this very palace, his ships burned, his supply of water cut off.
+In him also, in Antony, I was permitted to witness this magnificent
+spectacle twenty--what do I say?--a hundred times, so long as he loved
+me with all the ardour of his fiery soul. But what happened at Actium?
+That shameful flight of the cooing dove after his mate, at which
+generations yet unborn will point in mockery! He who does not see more
+deeply will attribute to the foolish madness of love this wretched
+forgetfulness of duty, honour, fame, the present and the future; but I,
+Iras--and this is the thought which whitens one hair after another,
+which will speedily destroy the remnant of your mistress's former beauty
+by the exhaustion of sleepless nights--I know better. It was not love
+which drew Antony after me, not love that trampled in the dust the
+radiant image of reckless courage, not love that constrained the demigod
+to follow the pitiful track of a fugitive woman."
+
+Here her voice fell, and seizing the girl's wrist with a painful
+pressure, she drew her closer to her side and whispered:
+
+"The goblet of Nektanebus is connected with it. Ay, tremble! The powers
+that emanate from the glittering wonder are as terrible as they are
+unnatural. The magic spell exerted by the beaker has transformed the
+heroic son of Herakles, the more than mortal, into the whimpering
+coward, the crushed, broken nonentity I found upon the galley's deck.
+You are silent? Your nimble tongue finds no reply. How could you have
+forgotten that you aided me to win the wager which forced Antony to gaze
+into the beaker before I filled it for him? How grateful I was to Anubis
+when he finally consented to trust to my care this marvel of the temple
+treasures, when the first trial succeeded, and Antony, at my bidding,
+placed the magnificent wreath which he wore upon the bald brow of that
+crabbed old follower of Aristoteles, Diomedes, whom he detested in his
+inmost soul! It was scarcely a year ago, and you know how rarely at
+first I used the power of the terrible vessel. The man whom I loved
+obeyed my slightest glance, without its aid. But later--before the
+battle--I felt how gladly he would have sent me, who might ruin all,
+back to Egypt. Besides, I felt--I have already said so--that something
+had come between us. Yet, often as he was on the point of sacrificing me
+to the importunate Romans, I need only bid him gaze into the beaker, and
+exclaim 'You will not send me hence. We belong together. Whither one
+goes, the other will follow!' and he besought me not to leave him. The
+very morning before the battle I gave him the drinking cup, urging him,
+whatever might happen, never, never to leave me. And he obeyed this time
+also, though the person to whom a magic spell bound him was a fleeing
+woman. It is terrible. And yet, have I a right to execrate the thrall of
+the beaker? Scarcely! For without the Magian's glittering vessel--a
+secret voice in my soul has whispered the warning a thousand times
+during the sleepless nights--he would have taken another on the galley.
+And I believe I know this other--I mean the woman whose singing
+enthralled my heart too at the Adonis festival just before our
+departure. I noticed the look with which his eyes sought hers. Now I
+know that it was not merely my old deceitful foe, jealousy, which warned
+me against her. Alexas, the most faithful of his friends, also confirmed
+what I merely feared--ah! and he told me other things which the stars
+had revealed to him. Besides, he knows the siren, for she was the wife
+of his own brother. To protect his honour, he cast off the coquettish
+Circe."
+
+"Barine!" fell in resolute tones from the lips of Iras.
+
+"So you know her?" asked Cleopatra, eagerly.
+
+The girl raised her clasped hands beseechingly to the Queen, exclaiming:
+
+"I know this woman only too well, and how my heart rages against her! O
+my mistress, that I, too, should aid in darkening this hour! Yet it must
+be said. That Antony visited the singer, and even took his son there
+more than once, is known throughout the city. Yet that is not the worst.
+A Barine entering into rivalry with you! It would be too ridiculous. But
+what bounds can be set to the insatiate greed of these women? No rank,
+no age is sacred. It was dull in the absence of the court and the army.
+There were no men who seemed worth the trouble of catching, so she cast
+her net for boys, and the one most closely snared was the King
+Cæsarion."
+
+"Cæsarion!" exclaimed Cleopatra, her pale cheeks flushing. "And his
+tutor Rhodon? My strict commands?"
+
+"Antyllus secretly presented him to her," replied Iras. "But I kept my
+eyes open. The boy clung to the singer with insensate passion. The only
+expedient was to remove her from the city. Archibius aided me."
+
+"Then I shall be spared sending her away."
+
+"Nay, that must still be done; for, on the journey to the country
+Cæsarion, with several comrades, attacked her."
+
+"And the reckless deed was successful?"
+
+"No, my royal mistress. I wish it had been. A love-sick fool who
+accompanied her drew his sword in her defence, raised his hand against
+the son of Cæsar, and wounded him. Calm yourself, I beseech you, I
+conjure you--the wound is slight. The boy's mad passion makes me far
+more anxious."
+
+The Queen's pouting scarlet lips closed so firmly that her mouth lost
+the winning charm which was peculiar to it, and she answered in a firm,
+resolute tone: "It is the mother's place to protect the son against the
+temptress. Alexas is right. Her star stands in the path of mine. A woman
+like this casts a deep shadow on her Queen's course. I will defend
+myself. It is she who has placed herself between us; she has won Antony.
+But no! Why should I blind myself? Time and the charms he steals from
+women are far more powerful than twenty such little temptresses. Then,
+there are the circumstances which prevented my concealing the defects
+that wounded the eyes of this most spoiled of all spoiled mortals. All
+these things aided the singer. I feel it. In her pursuit of men she had
+at her command all the means which aid us women to conceal what is
+unlovely and enhance what is beautiful in a lover's eyes, while I was at
+a disadvantage, lacking your aid and the long-tested skill of Olympus.
+The divinity on the ship, amid the raging of the storm, was forced more
+than once to appear before the worshipper ungarlanded, without ornament
+for the head, or incense."
+
+"But though she used all the combined arts of Aphrodite and Isis, she
+could not vie with you, my royal mistress!" cried Iras. "How little is
+required to delude the senses of one scarcely more than a child!"
+
+"Poor boy!" sighed the Queen, gently. "Had he not been wounded, and were
+it not so hard to resign what we love, I should rejoice that he, too,
+understands how to plan and act. Perhaps--O Iras, would that it might be
+so!--now that the gate is burst open, the brain and energy of the great
+Cæsar will enter his living image. As the Egyptians call Horus 'the
+avenger of his father,' perhaps he may become his mother's defender and
+avenger. If Cæsar's spirit wakes within him, he will wrest from the
+dissembler Octavianus the heritage of which the nephew robbed the son.
+You swear that the wound is but a slight one?"
+
+"The physicians have said so."
+
+"Well, then we will hope so. Let him enter the conflict of life. We will
+afford him ample opportunity to test his powers. No foolish passion
+shall prevent the convalescent youth from following his father upward
+along the pathway of fame. But send for the woman who ensnared him, the
+audacious charmer whose aspirations mount to those I hold dearest. We
+will see how she appears beside me!"
+
+"These are grievous times," said Iras, who saw in amazement the Queen's
+eyes sparkle with the confident light of victory. "Grant your foot its
+right. Let it crush her! Monsters enough, on whom you cannot set your
+foot, throng your path. Hence to Hades, in these days of conflict, with
+all who can be quickly removed!"
+
+"Murder?" asked Cleopatra, her noble brow contracting in a frown.
+
+"If it must be, ay," replied Iras, sharply. "If possible, banishment to
+an island, an oasis. If necessity requires, to the mines with the
+siren!"
+
+"If necessity requires?" repeated the Queen. "I think that means, if it
+proves that she has deserved the harshest punishment."
+
+"She has brought it upon herself by every hour of my sovereign's life
+clouded through her wiles. In the mines the desire to set snares for
+husbands and sons soon vanishes."
+
+"And people languish in the most terrible torture till death ends their
+suffering," added Cleopatra, in a tone of grave reproof. "No, girl, this
+victory is too easy. I will not send even my foe to death without a
+hearing, especially at this time, which teaches me what it is to await
+the verdict of one who is more powerful. This woman who, as it were,
+summons me to battle, shall have her wish. I am curious to see the
+singer again, and to learn the means by which she has succeeded in
+chaining to her triumphal car so many captives, from boys up to the most
+exacting men."
+
+"What do you intend, my royal mistress?" cried Iras in horror.
+
+"I intend," said Cleopatra imperiously, "to see the daughter of Leonax,
+the granddaughter of Didymus, two men whom I hold in high esteem, ere I
+decide her destiny. I wish to behold, test, and judge my rival, heart
+and mind, ere I condemn her. I will engage in the conflict to which she
+challenged the loving wife and mother! But--this is my right--I will
+compel her to show herself to me as Antony so often saw me during the
+past few weeks, unaided and unimproved by the arts which we both have at
+command."
+
+Then, without paying any further heed to her attendant, she went to a
+window, and, after a swift glance at the sky, added quietly: "The first
+hour after midnight is drawing to a close. The council will begin
+immediately. The matter to be under discussion is a venture which might
+save much from the wreck. The council will last two hours, perchance
+only one. The singer can wait. Where does she live?"
+
+"In the house which belonged to her father, the artist Leonax, in the
+garden of the Paneum," replied Iras hoarsely. "But, O my Queen, if ever
+my opinion had the slightest weight with you----"
+
+"I desire no counsel now, but demand the fulfilment of my orders!" cried
+Cleopatra resolutely. "As soon as those whom I expect are here----"
+
+The Queen was interrupted by a chamberlain, who announced the arrival of
+the men whom she had summoned, and Cleopatra bade him tell them that she
+was on her way to the council chamber. Then she turned again to Iras and
+in rapid words commanded her to go at once in a closed carriage,
+accompanied by a reliable person, to Barine's house. She must be brought
+to the palace without the least delay--Iras would understand--even if it
+should be necessary to rouse her from her sleep. "I wish to see her as
+if a storm had forced her suddenly upon the deck of a ship," she said in
+conclusion.
+
+Then snatching a small tablet from the dressing-table, she scrawled upon
+the wax with a rapid hand: "Cleopatra, the Queen, desires to see Barine,
+the daughter of Leonax, without delay. She must obey any command of
+Iras, Cleopatra's messenger, and her companion."
+
+Then, closing the diptychon, she handed it to her attendant, asking:
+
+"Whom will you take?"
+
+She answered without hesitation, "Alexas."
+
+"Very well," answered Cleopatra. "Do not allow her a moment for
+preparations, whatever they may be. But do not forget--I command
+you--that she is a woman."
+
+With these words she turned to follow the chamberlain, but Iras hurried
+after her to adjust the diadem upon her head and arrange some of the
+folds of her robe.
+
+Cleopatra submitted, saying kindly, "Something else, I see, is weighing
+on your heart."
+
+"O my mistress!" cried the girl. "After these tempests of the soul,
+these harassing months, you are turning night into day and assuming
+fresh labours and anxieties. If the leech Olympus----"
+
+"It must be," interrupted Cleopatra kindly. "The last two weeks seemed
+like a single long and gloomy night, during which I sometimes left my
+couch for a few hours. One who seeks to drag what is dearest from the
+river does not consider whether the cold bath is agreeable. If we
+succumb, it does not matter whether we are well or ill; if, on the
+contrary, we succeed in gathering another army and saving Egypt, let it
+cost health and life. The minutes I intend to grant to the woman will be
+thrown into the bargain. Whatever may come, I shall be ready to meet my
+fate. I am at one of life's great turning points. At such a time we
+fulfil our obligations and demands, both great and small."
+
+A few minutes later Cleopatra entered the throne-room and saluted the
+men whom she had roused from their slumber in order to lay before them a
+bold plan which, in the lowest depths of misfortune, her yearning to
+offer fresh resistance to the victorious foe had caused her vigorous,
+restless mind to evoke.
+
+When, many years before, the boy with whom, according to her father's
+will, she shared the throne, and his guardian Pothinus, had compelled
+her to fly from Alexandria, she had found in the eastern frontier of the
+Delta, on the isthmus which united Egypt to Asia, the remains of the
+canal which the energetic Pharaohs of former times had constructed to
+connect the Mediterranean with the Red Sea.
+
+Even at that period she had deemed this ruinous work worthy of notice,
+had questioned the Ænites who dwelt there about the remains, and even
+visited some of them herself during the leisure hours of waiting.
+
+From this survey it had seemed possible, by a great expenditure of
+labour, to again render navigable the canal which the Pharaohs had used
+to reach both seas in the same galleys, and by which, less than five
+hundred years before, Darius, the founder of the Persian Empire, had
+brought his fleet to his support.
+
+With the tireless desire for knowledge characteristic of her, Cleopatra
+had sought information concerning all these matters, and in quiet hours
+had more than once pondered over plans for again uniting the Grecian and
+Arabian seas.
+
+Clearly, plainly, fully, with more thorough knowledge of many details
+than even the superintendent of the water works, she explained her
+design to the assembled professionals. If it proved practicable, the
+rescued ships of the fleet, with others lying in the roadstead of
+Alexandria, could be conveyed across the isthmus into the Red Sea, and
+thus saved to Egypt and withdrawn from the foe. Supported by this force,
+many things might be attempted, resistance might be considerably
+prolonged, and the time thus gained used in gathering fresh aid and
+allies.
+
+If the opportunity to make an attack arrived, a powerful fleet would be
+at her disposal, for which smaller ships also should now be built at
+Klysma, on the basis of the experience gained at Actium.
+
+The men who had been robbed of their night's rest listened in amazement
+to the melodious words of this woman who, in the deepest disaster, had
+devised a plan of escape so daring in its grandeur, and understood how
+to explain it better than any one of their number could have done. They
+followed every sentence with the keenest attention, and Cleopatra's
+language grew more impassioned, gained greater power and depth, the more
+plainly she perceived the unfeigned, enthusiastic admiration paid her by
+her listeners.
+
+Even the oldest and most experienced men did not consider the surprising
+proposal utterly impossible and impracticable. Some, among them Gorgias,
+who during the restoration of the Serapeum had helped his father on the
+eastern frontier of the Delta, and thus became familiar with the
+neighbourhood of Heroonopolis, feared the difficulties which an
+elevation of the earth in the centre of the isthmus would place in the
+way of the enterprise. Yet, why should an undertaking which was
+successful in the days of Sesostris appear unattainable?
+
+The shortness of the time at their disposal was a still greater source
+of anxiety, and to this was added the information that one hundred and
+twenty thousand workmen had perished during the restoration of the canal
+which Pharaoh Necho nearly completed. The water way was not finished at
+that period, because an oracle had asserted that it would benefit only
+the foreigners, the Phœnicians.
+
+All these points were duly considered, but could not shake the opinion
+that, under specially favourable conditions, the Queen's plan would be
+practicable; though, to execute it, obstacles mountain-high were to be
+conquered. All the labourers in the fields, who had not been pressed
+into the army, must be summoned to the work.
+
+Not an hour's delay was permitted. Where there was no water to bear the
+ships, an attempt must be made to convey them across the land. There was
+no lack of means. The mechanics who had understood how to move the
+obelisks and colossi from the cataract to Alexandria, could here again
+find opportunity to test their brains and former skill.
+
+Never had Cleopatra's kindling spirit roused more eager, nay, more
+passionate sympathy, in any counsellors gathered around her than during
+this nocturnal meeting, and when at last she paused, the loud
+acclamations of excited men greeted her. The Queen's return, and the
+tidings of the lost battle which she had communicated, were to be kept
+secret.
+
+Gorgias had been appointed one of the directors of the enterprise, and
+the intellect, voice, and winning charm of Cleopatra had so enraptured
+him that he already fancied he saw the commencement of a new love which
+would be fatal to his regard for Helena.
+
+It was foolish to raise his wishes so high, but he told himself that he
+had never beheld a woman more to be desired. Yet he cherished a very
+warm memory of the philosopher's granddaughter, and lamented that he
+would scarcely find it possible to bid her farewell.
+
+Zeno, the Keeper of the Seal, Dion's uncle, had questioned him about his
+nephew in a very mysterious manner as soon as he entered the council
+chamber, and received the reply that the wound in the shoulder, which
+Cæsarion had dealt with a short Roman sword, though severe, was--so the
+physicians assured them--not fatal.
+
+This seemed to satisfy Zeno, and ere Gorgias could urge him to extend a
+protecting hand over his nephew, he excused himself and, with a message
+to the wounded man, turned his back upon him.
+
+The courtier had not yet learned what view the Queen would take of this
+unfortunate affair, and besides, he was overloaded with business. The
+new enterprise required the issue of a large number of documents
+conferring authority, which all passed through his hands.
+
+Cleopatra addressed a few kind, encouraging words to each one of the
+experts who had been entrusted with the execution of her plan. Gorgias,
+too, was permitted to kiss her robe, which stirred his blood afresh. He
+would fain have flung himself at the feet of this marvellous woman and,
+with his services, place his life at her disposal. And Cleopatra noticed
+the enthusiastic ardour of his glance.
+
+He, too, had been mentioned in the list of Barine's admirers. There must
+be something unusual about this woman! But could she have fired a body
+of grave men in behalf of a great, almost impossible deed, roused them
+to such enthusiastic admiration as she, the vanquished, menaced Queen?
+Certainly not.
+
+She felt in the right mood to confront Barine as judge and rival.
+
+In the midst of the deepest misery she had spent one happy hour. She had
+again felt, with joyous pride, that her intellect, fresh and unclouded,
+would be capable of outstripping the best powers, and in truth she
+needed no magic goblet to win hearts.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+Barine had been an hour in the palace. The magnificently furnished room
+to which she was conducted was directly above the council chamber, and
+sometimes, in the silence of the night, the voice of the Queen or the
+loud cheers of men were distinctly heard.
+
+Barine listened without making the slightest effort to catch the meaning
+of the words which reached her ears. She longed only for something to
+divert her thoughts from the deep and bitter emotion which filled her
+soul. Ay, she was roused to fury, and yet she felt how completely this
+passionate resentment contradicted her whole nature.
+
+True, the shameless conduct of Philostratus during their married life
+had often stirred the inmost depths of her placid, kindly spirit, and
+afterwards his brother Alexas had come to drive her, by his disgraceful
+proposals, to the verge of despair; rage was added to the passionate
+agitation of her soul, and for this she had cause to rejoice--but for
+this mighty resentment during the time of struggle she might have,
+perhaps, succumbed from sheer weariness and the yearning desire to rest.
+
+At last, at last, she and her friends, by means of great sacrifices, had
+succeeded in releasing her from these tortures. Philostratus's consent
+to liberate her was purchased. Alexas's persecution had ceased long
+before; he had first been sent away as envoy by his patron Antony, and
+afterwards been compelled to accompany him to the war.
+
+How she had enjoyed the peaceful days in her mother's house! How quickly
+the bright cheerfulness which she had supposed lost had returned to her
+soul!--and to-day Fate had blessed her with the greatest happiness life
+had ever offered. True, she had had only a few brief hours in which to
+enjoy it, for the attack of the unbridled boys and the wound inflicted
+upon her lover had cast a heavy shadow on her bliss.
+
+Her mother had again proved to be in the right when she so confidently
+predicted a second misfortune which would follow the first only too
+soon.
+
+Barine had been torn at midnight from her peaceful home and her wounded
+lover's bedside. This was done by the Queen's command, and, full of
+angry excitement, she said to herself that the men were right who cursed
+tyranny because it transformed free human beings into characterless
+chattels.
+
+There could be nothing good awaiting her; that was proved by the
+messengers whom Cleopatra had sent to summon her at this unprecedented
+hour. They were her worst enemies: Iras, who desired to wed her
+lover--Dion had told her so after the assault--and Alexas, whose suit
+she had rejected in a way which a man never forgives.
+
+She had already learned Iras's feelings. The slender figure with the
+narrow head, long, delicate nose, small chin, and pointed fingers,
+seemed to her like a long, sharp thorn. This strange comparison had
+entered her head as Iras stood rigidly erect, reading aloud in a shrill,
+high voice the Queen's command. Everything about this hard, cold face
+appeared as sharp as a sting, and ready to destroy her.
+
+Her removal from her mother's house to the royal palace had been swift
+and simple.
+
+After the attack--of which she saw little, because, overpowered by fear
+and horror, she closed her eyes--she had driven home with her lover,
+where the leech had bandaged his injuries, and Berenike had quickly and
+carefully transformed her own sleeping chamber into a sick-room.
+
+Barine, after changing her dress, did not leave Dion's side. She had
+attired herself carefully, for she knew his delight in outward
+adornment. When she returned from her grandparents, before sunset, she
+was alone with him, and he, kissing her arm, had murmured that wherever
+the Greek tongue was spoken there was not one more beautiful. The gem
+was worthy of its loveliness. So she had opened her baggage to take out
+the circlet which Antony had given, and it again enclasped her arm when
+she entered the sick-room.
+
+Because Dion had told her that he deemed her fairest in the simple white
+robe she had worn a few days before, when there were no guests save
+himself and Gorgias, and she had sung until after midnight his favourite
+songs as though all were intended for him alone, her choice had fallen
+upon this garment. And she rejoiced that she had worn it--the wounded
+man's eyes rested upon her so joyously when she sat down opposite to
+him.
+
+The physician had forbidden him to talk, and urged him to sleep if
+possible. So Barine only held his hand in silence, whispering, whenever
+he opened his eyes, a tender word of love and encouragement.
+
+She had remained with him for hours, leaving her place at his side
+merely to give him his medicine, or, with her mother's aid, place
+poultices on his wounds.
+
+When his manly face was distorted by suffering, she shared his pain; but
+during most of the time a calm, pleasant sense of happiness pervaded her
+mind. She felt safe and sheltered in the possession of the man whom she
+loved, though fully aware of the perils which threatened him, and,
+perhaps, her also. But the assurance of his love completely filled her
+heart and cast every care entirely into the shade. Many men had seemed
+estimable and agreeable, a few even desirable husbands, but Dion was the
+first to awaken love in her ardent but by no means passionate soul. She
+regarded the experiences of the past few days as a beautiful miracle.
+How she had yearned and pined until the most fervent desire of her heart
+was fulfilled! Now Dion had offered her his love, and nothing could rob
+her of it.
+
+Gorgias and the sons of her uncle Arius had disturbed her a short time.
+After they had gone with a good report, Berenike had entreated her
+daughter to lie down and let her take her place. But Barine would not
+leave her lover's couch, and had just loosed her hair to brush it again
+and fasten the thick, fair braids around her head, when, two hours after
+midnight, some one knocked loudly on the window shutters. Berenike was
+in the act of removing the poultice, so Barine herself went into the
+atrium to wake the doorkeeper.
+
+But the old man was not asleep, and had anticipated her. She recognized,
+with a low cry of terror, the first person who entered the lighted
+vestibule--Alexas. Iras followed, her head closely muffled, for the
+storm was still howling through the streets. Last of all a
+lantern-bearer crossed the threshold.
+
+The Syrian saluted the startled young beauty with a formal bow, but
+Iras, without a greeting or even a single word of preparation, delivered
+the Queen's command, and then read aloud, by the light of the lantern,
+what Cleopatra had scrawled upon the wax tablet.
+
+When Barine, pallid and scarcely able to control her emotion, requested
+the messengers who had arrived at so late an hour to enter, in order to
+give her time to prepare for the night drive and take leave of her
+mother, Iras vouchsafed no reply, but, as if she had the right to rule
+the house, merely ordered the doorkeeper to bring his mistress's cloak
+without delay.
+
+While the old man, with trembling knees, moved away, Iras asked if the
+wounded Dion was in the dwelling; and Barine, her self-control restored
+by the question, answered, with repellent pride, that the Queen's orders
+did not command her to submit to an examination in her own house.
+
+Iras shrugged her shoulders and said, sneeringly, to Alexas:
+
+"In truth, I asked too much. One who attracts so many men of all ages
+can scarcely be expected to know the abode of each individual."
+
+"The heart has a faithful memory," replied the Syrian in a tone of
+correction, but Iras echoed, contemptuously, "The heart!"
+
+Then all were silent until, instead of the doorkeeper, Berenike herself
+came hurrying in, bringing the cloak. With pallid face and bloodless
+lips she wrapped it around her daughter's shoulders, whispering, amid
+floods of tears, almost inaudible words of love and encouragement, which
+Iras interrupted by requesting Barine to follow her to the carriage.
+
+The mother and daughter embraced and kissed each other, then the closed
+equipage bore the persecuted woman through the storm and darkness to
+Lochias.
+
+Not a word was exchanged between Barine and the Queen's messengers until
+they reached the room where the former was to await Cleopatra; but here
+Iras again endeavoured to induce her to speak. At the first question,
+however, Barine answered that she had no information to give.
+
+The room was as bright as if it were noonday, though the lights
+flickered constantly, for the wind found its way through the thin
+shutters closing the windows on both sides of the corner room, and a
+strong, cold draught swept in. Barine wrapped her cloak more closely
+around her; the storm which howled about the sea-washed palace
+harmonized with the vehement agitation of her soul. Whether she had
+looked within or without, there was nothing which could have soothed her
+save the assurance of being loved--an assurance that held fear at bay.
+Now, indignation prevented dread from overpowering her, yet calm
+consideration could not fail to show her that danger threatened on every
+hand. The very manner in which Iras and Alexas whispered together,
+without heeding her presence, boded peril, for courtiers show such
+contempt only to those whom they know are threatened with the
+indifference or resentment of the sovereign.
+
+Barine, during her married life with a man devoid of all delicacy of
+feeling, and with a disposition as evil as his tongue was ready, had
+learned to endure many things which were hard to bear; yet when, after
+a remark from Iras evidently concerning her, she heard Alexas laugh, she
+was compelled to exert the utmost self-restraint to avoid telling her
+enemy how utterly she despised the cowardly cruelty of her conduct. But
+she succeeded in keeping silent. Still, the painful constraint she
+imposed on herself must find vent in some way, and, as the tortured
+anguish of her soul reached its height, large tears rolled down her
+cheeks.
+
+These, too, were noticed by her enemy and made the target of her wit;
+but this time the sarcasm failed to produce its effect upon the Syrian,
+for, instead of laughing, he grew grave, and whispered something which
+seemed to Barine a reproof or a warning. Iras's reply was merely a
+contemptuous shrug of the shoulders.
+
+Barine had noticed long before that her mother, in her fear and
+bewilderment, had brought her own cloak instead of her daughter's, and
+this circumstance also did not seem to her foe too trivial for a sneer.
+
+But the childish insolence that seemed to have taken possession of one
+who usually by no means lacked dignity, was merely the mask beneath
+which she concealed her own suffering. A grave motive was the source of
+the mirth by which she affected to be moved at the sight of her enemy's
+cloak. The grey, ill-fitting garment disfigured Barine, and she desired
+that the Queen should feel confident of surpassing her rival even in
+outward charms. No one, not even Cleopatra, could dispense with a
+protecting wrap in this cold draught, and nothing suited her better than
+the purple mantle in whose delicate woollen fabric black and gold
+dragons and griffins were embroidered. Iras had taken care that it lay
+ready. Barine could not fail to appear like a beggar in comparison,
+though Alexas said that her blue kerchief was marvellously becoming.
+
+He was a base-minded voluptuary, who, aided by rich gifts of mind and
+wide knowledge, had shunned no means of ingratiating himself with
+Antony, the most lavish of patrons. The repulse which this man,
+accustomed to success, had received from Barine had been hard to forget,
+yet he did not resign the hope of winning her. Never had she seemed more
+desirable than in her touching weakness. Even base natures are averse to
+witnessing the torture of the defenceless, and when Iras had aimed
+another poisoned shaft at her, he ventured, at the risk of vexing his
+ally, to say, under his breath:
+
+"Condemned criminals are usually granted, before their end, a favourite
+dish. I have no cause to wish Barine anything good; but I would not
+grudge that. You, on the contrary, seem to delight in pouring wormwood
+on her last mouthful."
+
+"Certainly," she answered, her eyes sparkling brightly. "Malice is the
+purest of pleasures; at least to me, when exercised on this woman."
+
+The Syrian, with a strange smile, held out his hand, saying:
+
+"Keep your good-will towards me, Iras."
+
+"Because," she retorted with a sneer, "evil may follow my enmity. I
+think so, too. I am not especially sensitive concerning myself, but
+whoever dares"--here she raised her voice--"to harm one whom I-- Just
+listen to the cheers! How she carries all hearts with her! Though Fate
+had made her a beggar, she would still be peerless among women. She is
+like the sun. The clouds which intrude upon her pathway of radiance are
+consumed and disappear."
+
+While uttering the last sentence she had turned towards Barine, whose
+ear the sharp voice again pierced like a thorn, as she commanded her to
+prepare for the examination.
+
+Almost at the same moment the door, caught by the wind, closed with a
+loud bang. The "introducer"* had opened it, and, after a hasty glance,
+exclaimed:
+
+[* Marshal of the court.]
+
+"The audience will not be given in this meeting place for all the winds
+of heaven! Her Majesty desires to receive her late visitor in the Hall
+of Shells."
+
+With these words he bowed courteously to Barine, and ushered her and her
+two companions through several corridors and apartments into a
+well-heated anteroom.
+
+Here even the windows were thoroughly protected from the storm. Several
+body-guards and pages belonging to the corps of the "royal boys" stood
+waiting to receive them.
+
+"This is comfortable," said Alexas, turning to Iras. "Was the winter we
+have just experienced intended to fill us with twofold gratitude for the
+delights of the mild spring in this blessed room?"
+
+"Perhaps so," she answered sullenly, and then added in a low tone: "Here
+at Lochias the seasons do not follow their usual course. They change
+according to the pleasure of the supreme will. Instead of four, the
+Egyptians, as you know, have but three; in the palaces on the Nile they
+are countless. What is the meaning of this sudden entry of summer?
+Winter would have pleased me better."
+
+The Queen--Iras knew not why--had changed her arrangements for Barine's
+reception. This vexed her, and her features assumed a gloomy,
+threatening expression as the young beauty, casting aside her cloak and
+kerchief, stood awaiting Cleopatra in a white robe of fine material and
+perfect fit. The thick, fair braids, wound simply around her shapely
+head, gave her an appearance of almost childish youth, and the sight
+made Iras feel as if she, and Cleopatra also, were outwitted.
+
+In the dimly lighted atrium of the house near the Paneum garden, she had
+noticed only that Barine wore something white. Had it been merely a
+night robe, so much the better. But she might have appeared in her
+present garb at the festival of Isis. The most careful deliberation
+could have selected nothing more suitable or becoming. And did this vain
+woman go to rest with costly gold ornaments? Else how did the circlet
+chance to be on her arm? Each of Cleopatra's charms seemed to Iras, who
+knew them all, like a valuable possession of her own. To see even the
+least of them surpassed by another vexed her; and to behold in yonder
+woman a form which she could not deny was no less beautiful, enraged,
+nay, pierced her to the heart.
+
+Since she had known that because of Barine she could hope for nothing
+more from the man to whose love she believed she possessed a claim
+dating from their childhood, she had hated the young beauty. And now to
+the many things which contributed to increase her hostile mood, was
+added the disagreeable consciousness that during the last few hours she
+had treated her contemptibly. Had she only seen earlier what her foe's
+cloak concealed, she would have found means to give her a different
+appearance. But she must remain as she was; for Chairman had already
+entered. Other hours, however, would follow, and if the next did not
+decide the fate of the woman whom she hated, future ones should.
+
+For this purpose she did not need the aid of Charmian, her uncle
+Archibius's sister, who had hitherto been a beloved associate and
+maternal friend. But what had happened? Iras fancied that her pleasant
+features wore a repellent expression which she had never seen before.
+Was this also the singer's fault? And what was the cause?
+
+The older woman's manner decided the question whether she should still
+bestow upon her returned relative the love of a grateful niece. No, she
+would no longer put any restraint upon herself. Charmian should feel
+that she (Iras) considered any favour shown to her foe an insult. To
+work against her secretly was not in her nature. She had courage to show
+an enemy her aversion, and she did not fear Charmian enough to pursue a
+different course. She knew that the artist Leonax, Barine's father, had
+been Charmian's lover; but this did not justify her favouring the woman
+who had robbed her niece of the heart of the man whom she--as Charmian
+knew--had loved from childhood.
+
+Charmian had just had a long conversation with her brother, and had also
+learned in the palace that Barine had been summoned to the Queen's
+presence in the middle of the night; so, firmly persuaded that evil was
+intended to the young woman who had already passed through so many
+agitating scenes of joy and sorrow, she entered the waiting-room, and
+her pleasant though no longer youthful face, framed in smooth, grey
+hair, was greeted by Barine as the shipwrecked mariner hails the sight
+of land.
+
+All the emotions which had darkened and embittered her soul were
+soothed. She hastened towards her friend's sister, as a frightened child
+seeks its mother, and Charmian perceived what was stirring in her heart.
+
+It would not do, under existing circumstances, to kiss her in the
+palace, but she drew Leonax's daughter towards her to show Iras that she
+was ready to extend a protecting hand over the persecuted woman. But
+Barine gazed at her with pleading glances, beseeching aid, whispering
+amid her tears: "Help me, Charmian. She has tortured, insulted,
+humiliated me with looks and words--so cruelly, so spitefully! Help me;
+I can bear no more."
+
+Charmian shook her kind head and urged her in a whisper to calm herself.
+She had robbed Iras of her lover; she should remember that. Cost what it
+might, she must not shed another tear. The Queen was gracious. She,
+Charmian, would aid her. Everything would depend on showing herself to
+Cleopatra as she was, not as slander represented her. She must answer
+her as she would Archibius or herself.
+
+The kindly woman, as she spoke, stroked her brow and eyes with maternal
+tenderness, and Barine felt as if goodness itself had quelled the
+tempest in her soul. She gazed around her as though roused from a
+troubled dream, and now for the first time perceived the richly adorned
+room in which she stood, the admiring glances of the boys in the
+Macedonian corps of pages, and the bright fire blazing cheerily on the
+hearth. The howling of the storm increased the pleasant sense of being
+under a firm roof, and Iras, who had whispered to the "introducer" at
+the door, no longer seemed like a sharp thorn or a spiteful demon, but a
+woman by no means destitute of charm, who repulsed her, but on whom she
+had inflicted the keenest pang a woman's heart can suffer. Then she
+again thought of her wounded lover at home, and remembered that,
+whatever might happen, his heart did not belong to Iras, but to her
+alone. Lastly, she recalled Archibius's description of Cleopatra's
+childhood, and this remembrance was followed by the conviction that the
+omnipotent sovereign would be neither cruel nor unjust, and that it
+would depend upon herself to win her favour. Charmian, too, was the
+Queen's confidante; and if the manner of Iras and Alexas had alarmed
+her, Charmian's might well inspire confidence.
+
+All these thoughts darted through her brain with the speed of lightning.
+Only a brief time for consideration remained; for, even as she bowed her
+head on the bosom of her friend, the "introducer" entered the room,
+crying, "Her illustrious Majesty will expect those whom she summoned in
+a few minutes!"
+
+Soon after a chamberlain appeared, waving a fan of ostrich feathers and,
+preceded by the court official, they passed through several brilliantly
+lighted, richly furnished rooms.
+
+Barine again breathed freely and moved with head erect; and when the
+wide, lofty folding doors of ebony, against whose deep black surface the
+inlaid figures of Tritons, mermaids, shells, fish, and sea monsters were
+sharply relieved, she beheld a glittering, magnificent scene, for the
+hall which Cleopatra had chosen for her reception was completely covered
+with various marine forms, from the shells to coral and starfish.
+
+A wide, lofty structure, composed of masses of stalactites and unhewn
+blocks of stone, formed a deep grotto at the end of the hall, whence
+peered the gigantic head of a monster whose open jaws formed the
+fireplace of the chimney. Logs of fragrant Arabian wood were blazing
+brightly on the hearth, and the dragon's ruby glass eyes diffused a red
+light through the apartment which, blended with the rays of the white
+and pink lamps in the shape of lotus flowers fastened among gold and
+silver tendrils and groups of sedges on the walls and ceiling, filling
+the spacious apartment with the soft light whose roseate hue was
+specially becoming to Cleopatra's waxen complexion.
+
+Several stewards and cup-bearers, the master of the hunt, chamberlains,
+female attendants, eunuchs, and other court officials were awaiting the
+Queen, and pages who belonged to the Macedonian cadet corps of royal
+boys stood sleepily, with drooping heads, around the small throne of
+gold, coral, and amber which, placed opposite to the chimney, awaited
+the sovereign.
+
+Barine had already seen this magnificent hall, and others still more
+beautiful in the Sebasteum, and the splendour therefore neither excited
+nor abashed her; only she would fain have avoided the numerous train of
+courtiers. Could it be Cleopatra's intention to question her before the
+eyes of all these men, women, and boys?
+
+She no longer felt afraid, but her heart still throbbed quickly. It had
+beat in the same way in her girlhood, when she was asked to sing in the
+presence of strangers.
+
+At last she heard doors open, and an invisible hand parted the heavy
+curtains at her right. She expected to see the Regent, the Keeper of the
+Seal, and the whole brilliantly adorned train of attendants who always
+surrounded the Queen on formal occasions, enter the magnificent hall.
+Else why had it been selected as the scene of this nocturnal trial?
+
+But what was this?
+
+While she was still recalling the display at the Adonis festival, the
+curtains began to close again. The courtiers around the throne
+straightened their bowed figures, the pages forgot their fatigue, and
+all joined in the Greek salutation of welcome, and the "Life! happiness!
+health!" with which the Egyptians greeted their sovereign.
+
+The woman of middle height who now appeared before the curtain, and who,
+as she crossed the wide hall alone and unattended, seemed to Barine even
+smaller than when surrounded by the gay throng at the Adonis festival,
+must be the Queen.
+
+Ay, it was she!
+
+Iras was already standing by her side, and Charmian was approaching with
+the "introducer." The women rendered her various little services: thus
+Iras took from her shoulders the purple mantle, with its embroidery of
+black and gold dragons. What an exquisite masterpiece of the loom it
+must be!
+
+All the dangers against which she must defend herself flashed swiftly
+through Barine's mind; yet, for an instant, she felt the foolish
+feminine desire to see and handle the costly mantle.
+
+But Iras had already laid it on the arm of one of the waiting maids, and
+Cleopatra now glanced around her, and with a youthful, elastic step
+approached the throne.
+
+Once more the feeling of timidity which she had had in her girlhood
+overpowered Barine, but with it came the memory of the garden of
+Epicurus, and Archibius's assurance that she, too, would have left the
+Queen with her heart overflowing with warm enthusiasm had not a
+disturbing influence interposed between them.
+
+Yet, had this disturbing influence really existed?
+
+No. It was created solely by Cleopatra's jealous imagination. If she
+would only permit her to speak freely now, she should hear that Antony
+cared as little for her as she, Barine, for the boy Cæsarion. What
+prevented her from confessing that her heart was another's? Iras had no
+one to blame save herself if she spoke the truth pitilessly in her
+presence.
+
+Cleopatra now turned to the "introducer," waving her hand towards the
+throne and those who surrounded it.
+
+Ay, she was indeed beautiful. How bright and clear was the light of her
+large eyes, in spite of the harassing days through which she had passed
+and the present night of watching!
+
+Cleopatra's heart was still elated by the reception of her bold idea of
+escape, and she approached Barine with gentler feelings and intentions.
+She had chosen a pleasanter room for the interview than the one Iras had
+selected. She desired a special environment to suit each mood, and as
+soon as she saw the group of courtiers who surrounded the throne she
+ordered their dismissal. The "introducer," to carry out the usual
+ceremonial, had commanded their presence in the audience chamber, but
+their attendance had given the meeting a form which was now distasteful
+to the Queen. She wished to question, not to condemn.
+
+At so happy an hour it was a necessity of her nature to be gracious.
+Perhaps she had been unduly anxious concerning this singer. It even
+seemed probable; for a man who loved her like Antony could scarcely
+yearn for the favour of another woman. This view had been freshly
+confirmed by a brief conversation with the chief Inspector of
+Sacrifices, an estimable old man, who, after hearing how Antony had
+hurried in pursuit of her at Actium, raised his eyes and hands as if
+transported with rapture, exclaiming: "Unhappy Queen! Yet happiest of
+women! No one was ever so ardently beloved; and when the tale is told of
+the noble Trojan who endured such sore sufferings for a woman's sake,
+future generations will laud the woman whose resistless spell
+constrained the greatest man of his day, the hero of heroes, to cast
+aside victory, fame, and the hope of the world's sovereignty, as mere
+worthless rubbish."
+
+Posterity, whose verdict she dreaded--this wise old reader of the future
+was right--must extol her as the most fervently beloved, the most
+desirable of women.
+
+And Mark Antony? Even had the magic power of Nektanebus's goblet forced
+him to follow her and to leave the battle, there still remained his
+will, a copy of which--received from Rome--Zeno, the Keeper of the Seal,
+had showed to her at the close of the council. "Wherever he might die,"
+so ran the words, "he desired to be buried by the side of Cleopatra."
+Octavianus had wrested it from the Vestal Virgins, to whose care it had
+been entrusted, in order to fill the hearts of Roman citizens and
+matrons with indignation against his foe. The plot had succeeded, but
+the document had reminded Cleopatra that her heart had given this man
+the first of its flowers, that love for him had been the sunshine of her
+life. So, with head erect, she had crossed the threshold where she was
+to meet the woman who had ventured to sow tares in her garden. She
+intended to devote only a short time to the interview, which she
+anticipated with the satisfaction of the strong who are confident of
+victory.
+
+As she approached the throne, her train left the hall; the only persons
+who remained were Charmian, Iras, Zeno, the Keeper of the Seal, and the
+"introducer."
+
+Cleopatra cast a rapid glance at the throne, to which an obsequious
+gesture of the courtier's hand invited her; but she remained standing,
+gazing keenly at Barine.
+
+Was it the coloured rays from the ruby eyes of the dragon in the
+fireplace which shed the roseate glow on Cleopatra's cheeks? It
+certainly enhanced the beauty of a face now only too frequently pallid
+and colourless, when rouge did not lend its aid; but Barine understood
+Archibius's ardent admiration for this rare woman, when Cleopatra, with
+a faint smile, requested her to approach.
+
+Nothing more winning could be imagined than the frank kindness, wholly
+untinged by condescending pride, of this powerful sovereign.
+
+The less Barine had expected such a reception the more deeply it moved
+her; nay, her eyes grew dim with grateful emotion, which lent them so
+beautiful a lustre, she looked so lovely in her glad surprise, that
+Cleopatra thought the months which had elapsed since her first meeting
+with the singer had enhanced her charms. And how young she was! The
+Queen swiftly computed the years which Barine must have lived as the
+wife of Philostratus, and afterwards as the attractive mistress of a
+hospitable house, and found it difficult to reconcile the appearance of
+this blooming young creature with the result of the calculation.
+
+She was surprised, too, to note the aristocratic bearing whose
+possession no one could deny the artist's daughter. This was apparent
+even in her dress, yet Iras had roused her in the middle of the night,
+and certainly had given her no time for personal adornment.
+
+She had expected lack of refinement and boldness, in the woman who was
+said to have attracted so many men, but even the most bitter prejudice
+could have detected no trace of it. On the contrary, the embarrassment
+which she could not yet wholly subdue lent her an air of girlish
+timidity. All in all, Barine was a charming creature, who bewitched men
+by her vivacity, her grace, and her exquisite voice, not by coquetry and
+pertness. That she possessed unusual mental endowments Cleopatra did not
+believe. Barine had only one advantage over her--youth.
+
+Time had not yet robbed the former of a single charm, while from the
+Queen he had wrested many; their number was known only to herself and
+her confidantes, but at this hour she did not miss them.
+
+Barine, with a low, modest bow, advanced towards the Queen, who
+commenced the conversation by graciously apologizing for the late hour
+at which she had summoned her. "But," she added, "you belong to the
+ranks of the nightingales, who during the night most readily and
+exquisitely reveal to us what stirs their hearts----"
+
+Barine gazed silently at the floor a moment, and when she raised her
+eyes her voice was faint and timid. "I sing, it is true, your Majesty,
+but I have nothing else in common with the birds. The wings which, when
+a child, bore me wherever I desired, have lost their strength. They do
+not wholly refuse their service, but they now require favourable hours
+to move."
+
+"I should not have expected that in the time of your youth, your most
+beautiful possession," replied the Queen. "Yet it is well. I too--how
+long ago it seems!--was a child, and my imagination outstripped even the
+flight of the eagle. It could dare the risk unpunished. Now---- Whoever
+has reached mature life is wise to let these wings remain idle. The
+mortal who ventures to use them may easily approach too near the sun,
+and, like Icarus, the wax will melt from his pinions. Let me tell you
+this: To the child the gift of imagination is nourishing bread. In later
+years we need it only as salt, as spice, as stimulating wine. Doubtless
+it points out many paths, and shows us their end; but, of a hundred
+rambles to which it summons him, scarcely one pleases the mature man. No
+troublesome parasite is more persistently and sharply rebuffed. Who can
+blame the ill-treated friend if it is less ready to serve us as the
+years go on? The wise man will keep his ears ever open, but rarely lend
+it his active hand. To banish it from life is to deprive the plant of
+blossoms, the rose of its fragrance, the sky of its stars."
+
+"I have often said the same things to myself, though in a less clear and
+beautiful form, when life has been darkened," replied Barine, with a
+faint blush; for she felt that these words were doubtless intended to
+warn her against cherishing too aspiring wishes. "But, your Majesty,
+here also the gods place you, the great Queen, far above us. We should
+often find existence bare indeed but for the fancy which endows us with
+imaginary possessions. You have the power to secure a thousand things
+which to us common mortals only the gift of imagination pictures as
+attainable."
+
+"You believe that happiness is like wealth, and that the happiest person
+is the one who receives the largest number of the gifts of fortune,"
+answered the Queen. "The contrary, I think, can be easily proved. The
+maxim that the more we have the less we need desire, is also false,
+though in this world there are only a certain number of desirable
+things. He who already possesses one of ten solidi which are to be
+divided, ought really to desire only nine, and therefore would be poorer
+by a wish than another who has none. True, it cannot be denied that the
+gods have burdened or endowed me with a greater number of perishable
+gifts than you and many others. You seem to set a high value upon them.
+Doubtless there may be one or another which you could appropriate only
+by the aid of the imagination. May I ask which seems to you the most
+desirable?"
+
+"Spare me the choice, I beseech you," replied Barine in an embarrassed
+tone. "I need nothing from your treasures, and, as for the other
+possessions---- I lack many things; but it is uncertain how the noblest
+and highest gifts in the possession of the marvellously endowed
+favourite of the gods would suit the small, commonplace ones I call
+mine, and I know not----"
+
+"A sensible doubt!" interrupted the Queen. "The lame man, who desired a
+horse, obtained one, and on his first ride broke his neck. The only
+blessing--the highest of all--which surely bestows happiness can neither
+be given away nor transferred from one to another. He who has gained it
+may be robbed of it the next moment."
+
+The last sentence had fallen from the Queen's lips slowly and
+thoughtfully, but Barine, remembering Archibius's tale, said modestly,
+"You are thinking of the chief good mentioned by Epicurus--perfect peace
+of mind."
+
+Cleopatra's eyes sparkled with a brighter light as she asked eagerly,
+"Do you, the granddaughter of a philosopher, know the system of the
+master?"
+
+"Very superficially, your Majesty. My intellect is far inferior to
+yours. It is difficult for me thoroughly to comprehend all the details
+of any system of philosophy."
+
+"Yet you have attempted it?"
+
+"Others endeavoured to introduce me into the doctrines of the Stoics. I
+have forgotten most of what I learned; only one thing lingered in my
+memory, and I know why--because it pleased me."
+
+"And _that?_"
+
+"Was the wise law of living according to the dictates of our own
+natures. The command to shun everything contradictory to the simple
+fundamental traits of our own characters pleased me, and wherever I saw
+affectation, artificiality, and mannerism I was repelled, while from my
+grandfather's teaching I drew the principle that I could do nothing
+better than to remain, so far as life would permit, what I had been as a
+child ere I had heard the first word of philosophy, or felt the
+constraint which society and its forms impose."
+
+"So the system of the Stoics leads to this end also!" cried the Queen
+gaily, and, turning to the companion of her own studies, she added: "Did
+you hear, Charmian? If we had only succeeded in perceiving the wisdom
+and calm, purposeful order of existence which the Stoics, amid so much
+that is perverse, unhealthy, and provocative of contradiction,
+nevertheless set above everything else! How can I, in order to live
+wisely, imitate Nature, when in her being and action I encounter so much
+that is contradictory to my human reason, which is a part of the
+divine?"
+
+Here she hesitated, and the expression of her face suddenly changed.
+
+She had advanced close to Barine and, while standing directly in front
+of her, her eyes had rested on the gem which adorned her arm above the
+elbow.
+
+Was it this which agitated Cleopatra so violently that her voice lost
+its bewitching melody, as she went on in a harsh, angry tone?--"So that
+is the source of all this misfortune. Even as a child I detested that
+sort of arbitrary judgment which passes under the mask of stern
+morality. There is an example! Do you hear the howling of the storm? In
+human nature, as well as in the material world, there are tempests and
+volcanoes which bring destruction, and, if the original character of any
+individual is full of such devastating forces, like the neighbourhood of
+Vesuvius or Etna, the goal to which his impulses would lead him is
+clearly visible. Ay, the Stoic is not allowed to destroy the harmony and
+order of things in existence, any more than to disturb those which are
+established by the state. But to follow our natural impulses wherever
+they lead us is so perilous a venture, that whoever has the power to fix
+a limit to it betimes is in duty bound to do so. This power is mine, and
+I will use it!"
+
+Then, with iron severity, she asked: "As it seems to be one of the
+demands of your nature, woman, to allure and kindle the hearts of all
+who bear the name of man, even though they have not yet donned the garb
+of the Ephebi, so, too, you seem to appear to delight in idle ornaments.
+Or,"--and as she spoke she touched Barine's shoulder--"or why should you
+wear, during the hours of slumber, that circlet on your arm?"
+
+Barine had watched with increasing anxiety the marked change in the
+manner and language of the Queen. She now beheld a repetition of what
+she had experienced at the Adonis festival, but this time she knew what
+had roused Cleopatra's jealousy. She, Barine, wore on her arm a gift
+from Antony. With pallid face she strove to find a fitting answer, but
+ere she could do so Iras advanced to the side of the incensed Queen,
+saying: "That circlet is the counterpart of the one your august husband
+bestowed upon you. The singer's must also be a gift from Mark Antony.
+Like every one else in the world, she deems the noble Imperator the
+greatest man of his day. Who can blame her for prizing it so highly that
+she does not remove it even while she sleeps?"
+
+Again Barine felt as if a thorn had pierced her; but though the
+resentment which she had previously experienced once more surged hotly
+within her heart, she forced herself to maintain seemly external
+composure, and struggled for some word in answer; but she found none
+suitable, and remained silent.
+
+She had told the truth. From early youth she had followed the impulses
+of her own nature without heeding the opinion of mortals, as the
+teachings of the Stoics directed, and she had been allowed to do so
+because this nature was pure, truthful, alive to the beautiful, and,
+moreover, free from those unbridled, volcanic impulses to which the
+Queen alluded. The cheerful patience of her soul had found ample
+satisfaction in the cultivation of her art, and in social intercourse
+with men who permitted her to share their own intellectual life. Today
+she had learned that the first great passion of her heart had met with a
+response. Now she was bound to her lover, and knew herself to be pure
+and guiltless, far better entitled to demand respect from sterner judges
+of morality than the woman who condemned her, or the spiteful Iras, who
+had not ceased to offer her love to Dion.
+
+The sorrowful feeling of being misunderstood and unjustly condemned,
+mingled with fear of the terrible fate to which she might be sentenced
+by the omnipotent sovereign, whose clear intellect was clouded by
+jealousy and the resentment of a mother's wounded heart, paralyzed her
+tongue. Besides, she was confused by the angry emotion which the sight
+of Iras awakened. Twice, thrice she strove to utter a few words of
+explanation, defence, but her voice refused to obey her will.
+
+When Charmian at last approached to encourage her, it was too late; the
+indignant Queen had turned away, exclaiming to Iras: "let her be taken
+back to Lochias. Her guilt is proved; but it does not become the injured
+person, the accuser, to award the punishment. This must be left to the
+judges before whom we will bring her."
+
+Then Barine once more recovered the power of speech. How dared Cleopatra
+assert that she was convicted of a crime, without hearing her defence?
+As surely as she felt her own innocence she must succeed in proving it,
+and with this consciousness she cried out to the Queen in a tone of
+touching entreaty: "O your Majesty, do not leave me without hearing me!
+As truly as I believe in your justice, I can ask you to listen to me
+once more. Do not give me up to the woman who hates me because the man
+whom she----"
+
+Here Cleopatra interrupted her. Royal dignity forbade her to hear one
+woman's jealous accusation of another, but, with the subtle discernment
+with which women penetrate one another's moods, she heard in Barine's
+piteous appeal a sincere conviction that she was too severely condemned.
+Doubtless she also had reason to believe in Iras's hate, and Cleopatra
+knew how mercilessly she pursued those who had incurred her displeasure.
+She had rejected and still shuddered at her advice to remove the singer
+from her path; for an inner voice warned her not to burden her soul now
+with a fresh crime, which would disturb its peace. Besides, she had at
+first been much attracted by this charming, winning creature; but the
+irritating thought that Antony had bestowed the same gift upon the
+sovereign and the artist's daughter still so incensed her, that it taxed
+to the utmost her graciousness and self-control as, without addressing
+any special person, she exclaimed, glancing back into the hall: "This
+examination will be followed by another. When the time comes, the
+accused must appear before the judges; therefore she must remain at
+Lochias and in custody. It is my will that no harm befalls her.--You are
+her friend, Charmian. I will place her in your charge. Only"--here she
+raised her voice--"on pain of my anger, do not allow her by any
+possibility to leave the palace, even for a moment, or to hold
+intercourse with any person save yourself."
+
+With these words she passed out of the hall and went into her own
+apartments. She had turned the night into day, not only to despatch
+speedily matters which seemed to her to permit of no delay, but even
+more because, since the battle of Actium, she dreaded the restless hours
+upon her lonely couch. They seemed endless; and though before she had
+remembered with pleasure the unprecedented display and magnificence with
+which she had surrounded her love-life with Antony, she now in these
+hours reproached herself for having foolishly squandered the wealth of
+her people. The present appeared unbearable, and from the future a host
+of black cares pressed upon her.
+
+The following days were overcrowded with business details.
+
+Half of her nights were spent in the observatory. She had not asked
+again for Barine. On the fifth night she permitted Alexas to conduct her
+once more to the little observatory which had been erected for her
+father at Lochias, and Antony's favourite knew how to prove that a star
+which had long threatened her planet was that of the woman whom she
+seemed to have forgotten as completely as she had ignored his former
+warning against this very foe.
+
+The Queen denied this, but Alexas eagerly continued: "The night after
+your return home your kindness was again displayed in its inexhaustible
+and--to us less noble souls--incomprehensible wealth. Deeply agitated,
+we watched during the memorable examination the touching spectacle of
+the greatest heart making itself the standard by which to measure what
+is petty and ignoble. But ere the second trial takes place the wanderers
+above, who know the future, bid me warn you once more; for that woman's
+every look was calculated, every word had its fixed purpose, every tone
+of her voice was intended to produce a certain effect. Whatever she said
+or may yet say had no other design than to deceive my royal mistress. As
+yet there have been no definite questions and answers. But you will have
+her examined, and then---- What may she not make of the story of Mark
+Antony, Barine, and the two armlets? Perhaps it will be a masterpiece."
+
+"Do you know its real history?" asked Cleopatra, clasping her fingers
+more closely around the pencil in her hand.
+
+"If I did," replied Alexas, smiling significantly, "the receiver of
+stolen goods should not betray the thief."
+
+"Not even if the person who has been robbed--the Queen--commands you to
+give up the dishonestly acquired possession?"
+
+"Unfortunately, even then I should be forced to withhold obedience; for
+consider, my royal mistress, there are but two great luminaries around
+which my dark life revolves. Shall I betray the moon, when I am sure of
+gaining nothing thereby save to dim the warm light of the sun?"
+
+"That means that your revelations would wound me, the sun?"
+
+"Unless your lofty soul is too great to be reached by shadows which
+surround less noble women with an atmosphere of indescribable torture."
+
+"Do you intend to render your words more attractive by the veil with
+which you shroud them? It is transparent, and dims the vision very
+little. My soul, you think, should be free from jealousy and the other
+weaknesses of my sex. There you are mistaken. I am a woman, and wish to
+remain one. As Terence's Chremes says he is a human being, and nothing
+human is unknown to him, I do not hesitate to confess all feminine
+frailties. Anubis told me of a queen in ancient times who would not
+permit the inscriptions to record 'she,' but 'he came,' or 'he, the
+ruler, conquered.' Fool! Whatever concerns me, my womanhood is not less
+lofty than the crown. I was a woman ere I became Queen. The people
+prostrate themselves before my empty litters; but when, in my youth, I
+wandered in disguise with Antony through the city streets and visited
+some scene of merrymaking, while the men gazed admiringly at me, and we
+heard voices behind us murmur, 'A handsome couple!' I returned home full
+of joy and pride. But there was something greater still for the woman to
+learn, when the heart in the breast of the Queen forgot throne and
+sceptre and, in the hours consecrated to Eros, tasted joys known to
+womanhood alone. How can you men, who only command and desire,
+understand the happiness of sacrifice? I am a woman; my birth does not
+exalt me above any feeling of my sex; and what I now ask is not as Queen
+but as woman."
+
+"If that is the case," Alexas answered with his hand upon his heart,
+"you impose silence upon me; for were I to confess to the woman
+Cleopatra what agitates my soul, I should be guilty of a double crime--I
+would violate a promise and betray the friend who confided his noble
+wife to my protection."
+
+"Now the darkness is becoming too dense for me," replied Cleopatra,
+raising her head with repellent pride. "Or, if I choose to raise the
+veil, I must point out to you the barriers----"
+
+"Which surround the Queen," replied the Syrian with an obsequious bow.
+"There you behold the fact. It is an impossibility to separate the woman
+from the princess. So far as I am concerned, I do not wish to anger the
+former against the presumptuous adorer, and I desire to yield to the
+latter the obedience which is her due. Therefore I entreat you to forget
+the armlet and its many painful associations, and pass to the
+consideration of other matters. Perhaps the fair Barine will voluntarily
+confess everything, and even add how she managed to ensnare the amiable
+son of the greatest of men, and the most admirable of mothers, the young
+King Cæsarion."
+
+Cleopatra's eyes flashed more brightly, and she angrily exclaimed: "I
+found the boy just now as though he were possessed by demons. He was
+ready to tear the bandage from his wound, if he were refused the woman
+whom he loved. A magic potion was the first thought, and his tutor of
+course attributes everything to magic arts. Charmian, on the contrary,
+declares that his visits annoyed and even alarmed Barine. Nothing except
+a rigid investigation can throw light upon this subject. We will await
+the Imperator's return. Do you think that he will again seek the singer?
+You are his most trusted confidant. If you desire his best good, and
+care for my favour, drop your hesitation and answer this question."
+
+The Syrian assumed the manner of a man who had reached a decision, and
+answered firmly: "Certainly he will, unless you prevent him. The
+simplest way would be----"
+
+"Well?"
+
+"To inform him, as soon as he lands, that she is no longer to be found.
+I should be especially happy to receive this commission from my royal
+sun."
+
+"And do you think it would dim the light of your moon a little, were he
+to seek her here in vain?"
+
+"As surely as that the contrary would be the case if he were always as
+gratefully aware of the peerless brilliancy of his sun as it deserves.
+Helios suffers no other orb to appear so long as he adorns the heavens.
+His lustre quenches all the rest. Let my sun so decree, and Barine's
+little star will vanish."
+
+"Enough! I know your aim now. But a human life is no small thing, and
+this woman, too, is the child of a mother. We must consider, earnestly
+consider, whether our purpose cannot be gained without proceeding to
+extremes. This must be done with zeal and a kindly intention---- But
+I---- Now, when the fate of this country, my own, and the children's is
+hanging in the balance, when I have not fifteen minutes at my command,
+and there is no end of writing and consulting, I can waste no time on
+such matters."
+
+"The reflective mind must be permitted to use its mighty wings
+unimpeded," cried the Syrian eagerly. "Leave the settlement of minor
+matters to trustworthy friends."
+
+Here they were interrupted by the "introducer," who announced the eunuch
+Mardion. He had come on business which, spite of the late hour,
+permitted no delay.
+
+Alexas accompanied the Queen to the tablinum, where they found the
+eunuch. A slave attended him, carrying a pouch filled with letters which
+had just been brought by two messengers from Syria. Among them were some
+which must be answered without delay. The Keeper of the Seal and the
+Exegetus were also waiting. Their late visit was due to the necessity of
+holding a conference in relation to the measures to be adopted to calm
+the excited citizens. All the galleys which had escaped from the battle
+had entered the harbour the day before, wreathed with garlands as if a
+great victory had been won. Loud acclamations greeted them, yet tidings
+of the defeat at Actium spread with the swiftness of the wind. Crowds
+were now gathering, threatening demonstrations had been made in front of
+the Sebasteum, and on the square of the Serapeum the troops had been
+compelled to interfere, and blood had flowed.
+
+There lay the letters. Zeno remarked that more papers conferring
+authority were required for the work on the canal, and the Exegetus
+earnestly besought definite instruction.
+
+"It is much--much," murmured Cleopatra. Then, drawing herself up to her
+full height, she exclaimed, "Well, then, to work!"
+
+But Alexas did not permit her to do this at once. Humbly advancing as
+she took her seat at the large writing-table, he whispered: "And with
+all this, must my royal mistress devote time and thought to the
+destroyer of her peace. To disturb your Majesty with this trifle is a
+crime; yet it must be committed, for should the affair remain unheeded
+longer, the trickling rivulet may become a mountain torrent----"
+
+Here Cleopatra, whose glance had just rested upon a fateful letter from
+King Herod, turned her face half towards her husband's favourite,
+exclaiming curtly, with glowing cheeks, "Presently."
+
+Then she glanced rapidly over the letter, pushed it excitedly aside, and
+dismissed the waiting Syrian with the impatient words: "Attend to the
+trial and the rest. No injustice, but no untimely mildness. I will look
+into this unpleasant matter myself before the Imperator returns."
+
+"And the authority?" asked the Syrian, with another low bow.
+
+"You have it. If you need a written one, apply to Zeno. We will discuss
+the affair further at some less busy hour."
+
+The Syrian retired; but Cleopatra turned to the eunuch and, flushed with
+emotion, cried, pointing to the King of Judea's letter: "Did you ever
+witness baser ingratitude? The rats think the ship is sinking, and it is
+time to leave it. If we succeed in keeping above water, they will return
+in swarms; and this must, must, _must_ be done, for the sake of this
+beloved country and her independence. Then the children, the children!
+All our powers must now be taxed, every expedient must be remembered and
+used. We will hammer each feeble hope until it becomes the strong steel
+of certainty. We will transform night into day. The canal will save the
+fleet. Mark Antony will find in Africa Pinarius Scarpus with untouched
+loyal legions. The gladiators are faithful to us. We can easily make
+them ours, and my brain is seething with other plans. But first we will
+attend to the Alexandrians. No violence!"
+
+This exclamation was followed by order after order, and the promise
+that, if necessary, she would show herself to the people.
+
+The Exegetus was filled with admiration as he received the clear,
+sagacious directions. After he had retired with his companions, the
+Queen again turned to the Regent, saying: "We did wisely to make the
+people happy at first with tidings of victory. The unexpected news of
+terrible disaster might have led them to some unprecedented deed of
+madness. Disappointment is a more common pain, for which less powerful
+remedies will suffice. Besides, many things could be arranged ere they
+knew that I was here. How much we have accomplished already, Mardion!
+But I have not even granted myself the joy of seeing my children. I was
+forced to defer the pleasure of the companionship of my oldest friends,
+even Archibius. When he comes again he will be admitted. I have given
+the order. He knows Rome thoroughly. I must hear his opinion of pending
+negotiations."
+
+She shivered as she spoke, and pressing her hand upon her brow,
+exclaimed: "Octavianus victor, Cleopatra vanquished! I, who was
+everything to Cæsar, beseeching mercy from his heir. I, a petitioner to
+Octavia's brother! Yet, no, no! There are still a hundred chances of
+avoiding the horrible doom. But whoever wishes to compel the field to
+bear fruits must dig sturdily, draw the buckets from the well, plough,
+and sow the seed. To work, then, to work! When Antony returns he must
+find all things ready. The first success will restore his lost energy. I
+glanced through yonder letter while talking with the Exegetus; now I
+will dictate the answer."
+
+So she sat reading, writing, and dictating, listening, answering, and
+giving orders, until the east brightened with the approach of dawn, the
+morning star grew pale, and the Regent, utterly exhausted, entreated her
+to consider her own health and his years, and permit him a few hours'
+rest.
+
+Then she, too, allowed herself to be led into her darkened chamber, and
+this time a friendly, dreamless slumber closed her weary eyes and held
+her captive until roused by the loud shouts of the multitude, who had
+heard of the Queen's return and flocked to Lochias.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+During these hours of rest Iras and Charmian had watched in turn beside
+Cleopatra. When she rose, the younger attendant rendered her the
+necessary services. She was to devote herself to her mistress until the
+evening; for her companion, who now stood in her way, was not to return
+earlier. Before Charmian left, she had seen that her apartments--in
+which Barine, since the Queen had placed her in her charge, had been a
+welcome guest--were carefully watched. The commander of the Macedonian
+guard, who years before had vainly sought her favour, and finally had
+become the most loyal of her friends, had promised to keep them closely.
+
+Yet Iras knew how to profit by her mistress's sleep and the absence of
+her aunt. She had learned that she would be shut out of her apartments,
+and therefore from Barine also. Ere any step could be taken against the
+prisoner, she must first arrange the necessary preliminaries with
+Alexas. The failure of her expectation of seeing her rival trampled in
+the dust had transformed her jealous resentment into hatred, and though
+she was her niece, she even transferred a portion of it to Charmian, who
+had placed herself between her and her victim.
+
+She had sent for the Syrian, but he, too, had gone to rest at a late
+hour and kept her waiting a long time. The reception which the impatient
+girl bestowed was therefore by no means cordial, but her manner soon
+grew more friendly.
+
+First Alexas boasted of having induced the Queen to commit Barine's fate
+to him. If he should try her at noon and find her guilty, there was
+nothing to prevent him from compelling her to drink the poisoned cup or
+having her strangled before evening. But the matter would be dangerous,
+because the singer's friends were numerous and by no means powerless.
+Yet, in the depths of her heart, Cleopatra desired nothing more ardently
+than to rid herself of her dangerous rival. But he knew the great ones
+of the earth. If he acted energetically and brought matters to a speedy
+close, the Queen, to avoid evil gossip, would burden him with her own
+act. Antony's mood could not be predicted, and the Syrian's weal or woe
+depended on his favour. Besides, the execution of the singer at the last
+Adonis festival might have a dangerous effect upon the people of
+Alexandria. They were already greatly excited, and his brother, who knew
+them, said that some were overwhelmed with sorrow, and others ready, in
+their fury, to rise in a bloody rebellion. Everything was to be feared
+from this rabble, but Philostratus understood how to persuade them to
+many things, and Alexas had just secured his aid.
+
+Alexas had really succeeded in the work of reconciliation. During the
+orator's married life with Barine she had forbidden her brother-in-law
+the house, and her husband had quarrelled with the brother who sought
+his wife. But after the latter had risen to a high place in Antony's
+favour, and been loaded with gold by his lavish hand, Philostratus had
+again approached him to claim his share of the new wealth. And the
+source from which Alexas drew flowed so abundantly that his favourite
+did not find it difficult to give. Both men were as unprincipled as they
+were lavish, and experience taught them that base natures always have at
+their disposal a plank with which to bridge chasms. If it is of gold, it
+will be crossed the more speedily. Such was the case here, and of late
+it had become specially firm; for each needed the other's aid.
+
+Alexas loved Barine, while Philostratus no longer cared for her. On the
+other hand, he hated Dion with so ardent a thirst for revenge that, to
+obtain it, he would have resigned even the hope of fresh gains. The
+humiliation inflicted upon him by the arrogant Macedonian noble, and the
+derision which through his efforts had been heaped upon him, haunted him
+like importunate pursuers; and he felt that he could only rid himself of
+them with the source of his disgrace. Without his brother's aid, he
+would have been content to assail Dion with his slandering tongue; with
+his powerful assistance he could inflict a heavier injury upon him,
+perhaps even rob him of liberty and life. They had just made an
+agreement by which Philostratus pledged himself to reconcile the
+populace to any punishment that might be inflicted upon Barine, and
+Alexas promised to help his brother take a bloody vengeance upon Dion
+the Macedonian.
+
+Barine's death could be of no service to Alexas. The sight of her beauty
+had fired his heart a second time, and he was resolved to make her his
+own. In the dungeon, perhaps by torture, she should be forced to grasp
+his helping hand. All this would permit no delay. Everything must be
+done before the return of Antony, who was daily expected. Alexas's
+lavish patron had made him so rich that he could bear to lose his favour
+for the sake of this object. Even without it, he could maintain a
+household with royal magnificence in some city of his Syrian home.
+
+On receiving the favourite's assurance that he would remove Barine from
+Charmian's protection on the morrow, Iras became more gracious. She
+could make no serious objection to his statement that the new trial
+might not, it is true, end in a sentence of death, but the verdict would
+probably be transportation to the mines, or something of the sort.
+
+Then Alexas cautiously tested Iras's feelings towards his brother's
+mortal foe. They were hostile; yet when the favourite intimated that he,
+too, ought to be given up to justice, she showed so much hesitation,
+that Alexas stopped abruptly and turned the conversation upon Barine.
+Here she promised assistance with her former eager zeal, and it was
+settled that the arrest should be made the following morning during the
+hours of Charmian's attendance upon the Queen.
+
+Iras had valuable counsel to offer. She was familiar with one of the
+prisons, whose doors she had opened to many a hapless mortal whose
+disappearance, in her opinion, might be of service to the Queen. She had
+deemed it a duty, aided by the Keeper of the Seal, to anticipate her
+mistress in cases where her kind heart would have found it difficult to
+pronounce a severe sentence, and Cleopatra had permitted it, though
+without commendation or praise. What happened within its walls--thanks
+to the silence of the warder--never passed beyond the portals. If Barine
+cursed her life there, she would still fare better than she, Iras, who
+during the past few nights had been on the brink of despair whenever she
+thought of the man who had disdained her love and abandoned her for
+another.
+
+As the Syrian held out his hand to take leave, she asked bluntly:
+
+"And Dion?"
+
+"He cannot be set free," was the reply, "for he loves Barine; nay, the
+fool was on the eve of leading her home to his beautiful palace as its
+mistress."
+
+"Is that true, really true?" asked Iras, whose cheeks and lips lost
+every tinge of colour, though she succeeded in maintaining her
+composure.
+
+"He confessed it yesterday in a letter to his uncle, the Keeper of the
+Seal, in which he entreated him to do his utmost for his chosen bride,
+whom he would never resign. But Zeno has no liking for this niece. Do
+you wish to see the letter?"
+
+"Then, of course, he cannot be set at liberty," replied Iras, and there
+was additional shrillness in her voice. "He will do everything in his
+power for the woman he loves, and that is much--far more than you, who
+are half a stranger here, suspect. The Macedonian families stand by each
+other. He is a member of the council. The bands of the Ephebi will
+support him to a man. And the populace?--He lately spoiled the game of
+your brother, who was acting for me, in a way.--He was finally dragged
+out of the basin of the fountain, dripping with water and overwhelmed
+with shame."
+
+"For that very reason his mouth must be closed."
+
+Iras nodded assent, but after a short pause she exclaimed angrily: "I
+will help you to silence him, but not forever. Do you hear? Theodotus's
+saying about the dead dogs which do not bite brought no blessing to any
+one who followed it. There are other ways of getting rid of this man."
+
+"A bird sang that you were not unfriendly to him."
+
+"A bird? Then it was probably an owl, which cannot see in the daylight.
+His worst enemy, your brother, would probably sacrifice himself for his
+welfare sooner than I."
+
+"Then I shall begin to feel sympathy for this Dion."
+
+"I saw recently that your compassion surpassed mine. Death is not the
+hardest punishment."
+
+"Is that the cause of this gracious respite?"
+
+"Perhaps so. But there are other matters to be considered here. First,
+the condition of the times. Everything is tottering, even the royal
+power, which a short time ago was a wall which concealed many things and
+afforded shelter from every assault. Then Dion himself. I have already
+numbered those who will support him. Since the defeat at Actium, the
+Queen can no longer exclaim to that many-headed monster, the people,
+'You must,' but 'I entreat.' The others----"
+
+"The first considerations are enough; but may I be permitted to know
+what my wise friend has awarded to the hapless wight from whom she
+withdrew her favour?"
+
+"First, imprisonment here at Lochias. He has stained his hands with the
+blood of Cæsarion, the King of kings. That is high treason, even in the
+eyes of the people. Try to obtain the order for the arrest this very
+day."
+
+"Whenever I can disturb the Queen with such matters."
+
+"Not for _my_ sake, but to save _her_ from injury. Away with everything
+which can cloud her intellect in these decisive days! First, away with
+Barine, who spoiled her return home; and then let us take care of the
+man who would be capable, for this woman's sake, of causing an
+insurrection in Alexandria. The great cares associated with the state
+and the throne are hers; for the minor ones of the toilet and the heart
+I will provide."
+
+Here she was interrupted by one of Cleopatra's waiting-maids. The Queen
+had awakened, and Iras hastened to her post.
+
+As she passed Charmian's apartments and saw two handsome soldiers,
+belonging to the Macedonian body-guard, pacing to and fro on duty before
+them, her face darkened. It was against her alone that Charmian was
+protecting Barine. She had been harshly reproved by the older woman on
+account of the artist's daughter, who had been the source of so many
+incidents which had caused her pain, and Iras regretted that she had
+ever confided to her aunt her love for Dion. But, no matter what might
+happen, the upas-tree whence emanated all these tortures, anxieties, and
+vexations, must be rooted out--stricken from the ranks of the living.
+
+Ere she entered the Queen's anteroom she had mentally pronounced
+sentence of death on her enemy. Her inventive brain was now busy in
+devising means to induce the Syrian to undertake its execution. If this
+stone of offence was removed it would again be possible to live in
+harmony with Charmian. Dion would be free, and then, much as he had
+wounded her, she would defend him from the hatred of Philostratus and
+his brother.
+
+She entered the Queen's presence with a lighter heart. The death of a
+condemned person had long since ceased to move her deeply. While
+rendering the first services to her mistress, who had been much
+refreshed by her sleep, her face grew brighter and brighter; for
+Cleopatra voluntarily told her that she was glad to have her attendance,
+and not be constantly annoyed by the same disagreeable matter, which
+must soon be settled.
+
+In fact, Charmian, conscious that no one else at court would have
+ventured to do so, had never grown weary, spite of many a rebuff, of
+pleading Barine's cause until, the day before, Cleopatra, in a sudden
+fit of anger, had commanded her not to mention the mischief-maker again.
+
+When Charmian soon after requested permission to let Iras take her place
+the following day, the Queen already regretted the harsh reproof she had
+given her friend, and, while cordially granting the desired leave,
+begged her to attribute her angry impatience to the cares which burdened
+her. "And when you show me your kind, faithful face again," she
+concluded, "you will have remembered that a true friend withholds from
+an unhappy woman whom she loves whatever will shadow more deeply her
+already clouded life. This Barine's very name sounds like a jeer at the
+composure I maintain with so much difficulty. I do not wish to hear it
+again."
+
+The words were uttered in a tone so affectionate and winning, that
+Charmian's vexation melted like ice in the sun. Yet she left the Queen's
+presence anxious and troubled; for ere she quitted the room Cleopatra
+remarked that she had committed the singer's affairs to Alexas. She was
+now doubly eager to obtain a day's freedom, for she knew the
+unprincipled favourite's feelings towards the young beauty, and longed
+to discuss with Archibius the best means of guarding her from the worst
+perils.
+
+When at a late hour she went to rest, she was served by the Nubian maid,
+who had accompanied her to the court from her parents' home. She came
+from the Cataract, where she had been bought when the family of Alypius
+accompanied the child Cleopatra to the island of Philæ. Anukis was
+given to Charmian, who at the time was just entering womanhood, as the
+first servant who was her sole property, and she had proved so clever,
+skilful, apt to learn, and faithful, that her mistress took her, as her
+personal attendant, to the palace.
+
+Charmian's warm, unselfish love for the Queen was equalled by Anukis's
+devotion to the mistress who had long since made her free, and had
+become so strongly attached to her that the Nubian's interests were
+little less regarded than her own. Her sound, keen judgment and natural
+wit had gained a certain renown in the palace, and as Cleopatra often
+condescended to rouse her to an apt answer, Antony had done so, too; and
+since the slight crook in the back, which she had from childhood, had
+grown into a hump, he gave her the name of Aisopion--the female Æsop.
+All the Queen's attendants now used it, and though others of lower rank
+did the same, she permitted it, though her ready wit would have supplied
+her tongue with a retort sharp enough to respond to any word which
+displeased her.
+
+But she knew the life and fables of Æsop, who had also once been a
+slave, and deemed it an honour to be compared with him.
+
+When Charmian had left Cleopatra and sought her chamber, she found
+Barine sound asleep, but Anukis was awaiting her, and her mistress told
+her with what deep anxiety for Barine she had quitted the presence of
+the Queen. She knew that the Nubian was fond of the young matron, whom
+in her childhood she had carried in her arms, and whose father, Leonax,
+had often jested with her. The maid had watched her career with much
+interest, and while Barine had been her mistress's guest her efforts to
+amuse and soothe her were unceasing.
+
+She had gone every morning to Berenike to ask tidings of Dion's health,
+and always brought favourable news. Anukis knew Philostratus and his
+brother, too, and as she liked Antony, who jested with her so kindly,
+she grieved to see an unprincipled fellow like Alexas his chief
+confidant. She knew the plots with which the Syrian had persecuted
+Barine, and when Charmian told her that the Queen had committed the
+young beauty's fate to this man's keeping her dark face grew fairly
+livid; but she forced herself to conceal the terror which the news
+inspired. Her mistress was also aware what this choice meant to Barine.
+But Anukis would have thought it wrong to disturb Charmian's sleep by
+revealing her own distress. It was fortunate that she was going early
+the next morning to seek the aid of Archibius, whom Anukis believed to
+be the wisest of men; but this by no means soothed her. She knew the
+fable of the lion and the mouse, which had been told in her home long
+before the time of the author for whom she was nicknamed, and already
+more than once she had been in a position to render far greater and more
+powerful persons an important service. To soothe Charmian to sleep and
+turn her thoughts in another direction, she told her about Dion, whom
+she had found much better that day, how tenderly he seemed to love
+Barine, and how touchingly patient and worthy of her father the daughter
+of Leonax had been.
+
+After her mistress had fallen asleep she went to the hall where, spite
+of the late hour, she expected to meet some of the servants--sure of
+being greeted as a welcome guest. When, a short time later, Alexas's
+body-slave appeared, she filled his wine cup, sat down by his side, and
+tried with all the powers at her command to win his confidence. And so
+well did the elderly Nubian succeed that Marsyas, a handsome young
+Ligurian, after she had gone, declared that Aisopion's jokes and stories
+were enough to bring the dead to life, and it was as pleasant to talk
+seriously with the brown-skinned monster as to dally with a fair-haired
+sweetheart.
+
+After Charmian had left the palace the following morning, Anukis again
+sought Marsyas and learned from him for what purpose and at what hour
+Iras had summoned Alexas. His master was continually whispering with the
+languishing Macedonian.
+
+When Anukis returned, Barine seemed troubled because she brought no
+tidings from her mother and Dion; but the Nubian entreated her to have
+patience, and gave her some books and a spindle, that she might have
+occupation in her solitude. She, Anukis, must go to the kitchen, because
+she had heard yesterday that the cook had bought some mushrooms, which
+might be poisonous; she knew the fungi and wanted to see them.
+
+Then, passing into Charmian's chamber, she glided through the corridor
+which connected the apartments of Cleopatra's confidential attendants,
+and slipped into Iras's room. When Alexas entered she was concealed
+behind one of the hangings which covered the walls of the
+reception-room.
+
+After the Syrian had retired and Iras had been called away, Anukis
+returned to Barine and said that the mushrooms had really been
+poisonous, and of the deadliest species. They had been cooked, and she
+must go out to seek an antidote. Since a precious human life might be at
+stake, Barine would not wish to keep her.
+
+"Go," said the latter, kindly. "But if you are the old obliging
+Aisopion, you won't object to going a little farther."
+
+"And inquiring at the house near the Paneum garden," added Anukis. "That
+was already settled. Longing is also a poison for a loving heart, and
+its antidote is good news."
+
+With these laughing words she left her favourite; but as soon as she was
+out of doors her black brow became lined with earnest thought, and she
+stood pondering a long time. At last she went to the Bruchium to hire a
+donkey to ride to Kanopus, where she hoped to find Archibius. It was
+difficult to reach the nearest stand; for a great crowd had assembled on
+the quay between the Lochias and the Corner of the Muses, and groups of
+the common people, sailors, and slaves were constantly flocking hither.
+But she at last forced her way to the spot and, while the driver was
+helping her to mount the animal she had chosen, she asked what had
+attracted the throng, and he answered:
+
+"They are tearing down the house of the old Museum fungus, Didymus."
+
+"How can that be?" cried the startled woman. "The good old man!"
+
+"Good?" repeated the driver, scornfully. "He's a traitor, who has caused
+all the trouble. Philostratus, the brother of the great Alexas, a friend
+of Mark Antony, told us so. He wanted to prove it, so it must be true.
+Hear the shouts, and how the stones are flying! Yes, yes. His
+granddaughter and her lover set an ambush for the King Cæsarion. They
+would have killed him, but the watch interfered, and now he lies wounded
+on his couch. If mighty Isis does not lend her aid, the young prince's
+life will soon be over."
+
+Then, turning to the donkey, he dealt him two severe blows on the right
+and left haunches, shouting: "Hi, Grey! It does one good to hear that
+royal backs have room for the cudgel too."
+
+Meanwhile, the Nubian was hesitating whether she should not first turn
+the donkey to the right and seek Didymus; but Barine was threatened by
+greater peril, and her life was of more value than the welfare of the
+aged pair. This decided the question, and she rode forward.
+
+The donkey and his driver did their best, but they came too late; for in
+the little palace at Kanopus, Anukis learned from the porter that
+Archibius had gone to the city with his old friend Timagenes, the
+historian, who lived in Rome, and seemed to have come to Alexandria as
+an envoy.
+
+Charmian, too, had been here, but also failed to find the master of the
+house, and followed him. Evil tidings--which, owing to the loss of time
+involved, might prove fatal. If the donkey had only been swifter! True,
+Archibius's stable was full of fine animals, but who was she that she
+should presume to use them? Yet she had gained something which rendered
+her the equal of many who were born free and occupied a higher
+station--the reputation for trustworthiness and wisdom; and relying upon
+this, she told the faithful old steward, as far as possible, what was at
+stake, and soon after he himself took her, both mounted on swift mules,
+to the city and the Paneum garden.
+
+He chose the nearest road thither through the Gate of the Sun and the
+Kanopic Way. Usually at this hour it was crowded with people, but to-day
+few persons were astir. All the idlers had thronged to the Bruchium and
+the harbour to see the returning ships of the vanquished fleet, hear
+something new, witness the demonstrations of joy, the sacrifices and
+processions, and--if Fortune favoured--meet the Queen and relieve their
+overflowing hearts by acclamations.
+
+When the carriage turned towards the left and approached the Paneum,
+progress for the first time became difficult. A dense crowd had gathered
+around the hill on whose summit the sanctuary of Pan dominated the
+spacious garden. Anukis's eye perceived the tall figure of Philostratus.
+Was the mischief-maker everywhere? This time he seemed to encounter
+opposition, for loud shouts interrupted his words. Just as the carriage
+passed he pointed to the row of houses in which the widow of Leonax
+lived, but violent resistance followed the gesture.
+
+Anukis perceived what restrained the crowd; for, as the equipage
+approached its destination, a body of armed youths stopped it. Their
+finely-formed limbs, steeled by the training of the Palæstra, and the
+raven, chestnut, and golden locks floating around their well-shaped
+heads, were indeed beautiful. They were a band of the Ephebi, formerly
+commanded by Archibius, and to whose leadership more recently Dion had
+been elected. The youths had heard what had occurred--that imprisonment,
+perhaps even worse disaster, threatened him. At any other time it would
+scarcely have been possible to oppose the decree of the Government and
+guard their imperilled friend, but in these dark days the rulers must
+deal with them. Though they were loyal to the Queen, and had resolved,
+spite of her defeat, to support her cause, as soon as she needed them,
+they would not suffer Dion to be punished for a crime which, in their
+eyes, was an honour. Their determination to protect him grew more eager
+with every vexatious delay on the part of the city council to deal with
+a matter which concerned one of their own body. They had not yet decided
+whether to demand a full pardon or only a mild sentence for the man who
+had wounded the "King of kings," the son of the sovereign. Moreover, the
+quiet Cæsarion, still subject to his tutor, had not understood how to
+win the favour of the Ephebi. The weakling never appeared in the
+Palæstra, which even the great Mark Antony did not disdain to visit.
+The latter had more than once given the youths assembled there proofs of
+his giant strength, and his son Antyllus also frequently shared their
+exercises. Dion had merely dealt Cæsarion with his clenched fist one of
+the blows which every one must encounter in the arena.
+
+Philotas of Amphissa, the pupil of Didymus, had been the first to inform
+them of the attack and, with fiery zeal, had used his utmost power to
+atone for the wrong done to his master's granddaughter. His appeal had
+roused the most eager sympathy. The Ephebi believed themselves strong
+enough to defend their friend against any one and, if the worst should
+come, they knew they would be sustained by the council, the Exegetus,
+the captain of the guard--a brave Macedonian, who had once been an
+ornament of their own band--and the numerous clients of Dion and his
+family. There was not a single weakling among them. They had already
+found an opportunity to prove this; for, though they had arrived too
+late to protect Didymus's property from injury, they had checked the
+fury of the mob whose passions Philostratus had aroused, and forced back
+the crowd whom the Syrian led to Barine's dwelling to devote it to the
+same fate.
+
+Another equipage was already standing before the door of Berenike's
+house--one of the carriages which were always at the disposal of the
+Queen's officials--when Anukis left Archibius's vehicle. Had some of
+Alexas's myrmidons arrived, or was he himself on the way to examine
+Dion, or even arrest him? The driver, like all the palace servants, knew
+Anukis, and she learned from him that he had brought Gorgias, the
+architect.
+
+Anukis had never met the latter, though, during the rebuilding of
+Cæsarion's apartments, she had often seen him, and heard much of him;
+among other things, that Dion's beautiful palace was his work. He was a
+friend of the wounded man, so she need not fear him.
+
+When she entered the atrium she heard that Berenike had gone out to
+drive with Archibius and his Roman friend. The leech had forbidden his
+patient to see many visitors. No one had been admitted except Gorgias
+and one of Dion's freedmen.
+
+But time pressed; people of the same rank and disposition understand one
+another; the old porter and the Nubian were both loyal to their
+employers, and, moreover, were natives of the same country; so it
+required only a few words to persuade the door-keeper to conduct her
+without delay to the bedside of the wounded man.
+
+The freedman, a tall, weather-beaten greybeard, simply clad, who looked
+like a pilot, was waiting outside the sick-room. He had not yet been
+admitted to Dion's presence, but this did not appear to vex him, for he
+stood leaning quietly against the wall beside the door, gazing at the
+broad-brimmed sailor's hat which he was slowly turning in his hands.
+
+Scarcely had Dion heard Anukis's name, when an eager "Let her come in"
+reached her ears through the half-open door.
+
+The Nubian waited to be summoned, but her dark face must have showed
+distinctly that something important and urgent had brought her here, for
+the wounded man added to his first words of greeting the expression of a
+fear that she had no good news.
+
+Her reply was an eager nod of assent, accompanied by a doubtful glance
+at Gorgias; and Dion now curtly told the architect the name of the
+newcomer, and assured her that his friend might hear everything, even
+the greatest secret.
+
+Anukis uttered a sigh of relief and then, in a tone of the most earnest
+warning, poured forth the story of the impending danger. She would not
+be satisfied when he spoke of the Ephebi, who were ready to defend him,
+and the council, which would make the cause of one of its members its
+own, but entreated him to seek some safe place of refuge, no matter
+where; for powers against whom no resistance would avail were stretching
+their hands towards him. Even this statement, however, proved useless,
+for Dion was convinced that the influence of his uncle, the Keeper of
+the Seal, would guard him from any serious danger. Then Anukis resolved
+to confess what she had overheard; but she told the story without
+mentioning Barine, and the peril threatening her also. Finally, with all
+the warmth of a really anxious heart, she entreated him to heed her
+warning.
+
+Even while she was still speaking, the friends exchanged significant
+glances; but scarcely had the last words fallen from her lips when the
+giant figure of the freedman passed through the door, which had remained
+open.
+
+"You here, Pyrrhus?" cried the wounded man kindly.
+
+"Yes, master, it is I," replied the stalwart fellow, twirling his sailor
+hat still faster. "Listening isn't exactly my trade, and I don't usually
+enter your presence uninvited; but I couldn't help hearing what came
+through the door, and the croaking of the old raven drew me in."
+
+"I wish you had heard more cheerful things," replied Dion; "but the
+brown-skinned bird of ill omen usually sings pleasant songs, and they
+all come from a faithful heart. But when my silent Pyrrhus opens his
+mouth so far, something important must surely follow, and you can speak
+freely in her presence."
+
+The sailor cleared his throat, gripped his coarse felt hat in his sinewy
+hands, and said, in such a tremulous, embarrassed tone that his heavy
+chin quivered and his voice sometimes faltered: "If the woman is to be
+trusted, you must leave here, master, and seek some safe hiding-place. I
+came to offer one. On my way I heard your name. It was said that you had
+wounded the Queen's son, and it might cost you your life. Then I
+thought: 'No, no, not that, so long as Pyrrhus lives, who taught his
+young master Dion to use the oars and to set his first sail--Pyrrhus and
+his family.' Why repeat what we both know well enough? From my first
+boat and the land on our island to the liberty you bestowed upon us, we
+owe everything to your father and to you, and a blessing has rested upon
+your gift and our labour, and what is mine is yours. No more words are
+needed. You know our cliff beyond the Alveus Steganus, north of the
+great harbour--the Isle of Serpents. It is quickly gained by any one who
+knows the course through the water, but is as inaccessible to others as
+the moon and stars. People are afraid of the mere name, though we rid
+the island of the vermin long ago. My boys Dionysus, Dionichus, and
+Dionikus--they all have 'Dion' in their name--are waiting in the fish
+market, and when it grows dusk----" Here the wounded man interrupted the
+speaker by holding out his hand and thanking him warmly for his fidelity
+and kindness, though he refused the well-meant invitation. He admitted
+that he knew no safer hiding-place than the cliff surrounded by
+fluttering sea-gulls, where Pyrrhus lived with his family and earned
+abundant support by fishing and serving as pilot. But anxiety concerning
+his future wife prevented his leaving the city.
+
+The freedman however gave him no rest. He represented how quickly the
+harbour could be reached from his island, that fish were brought thence
+from it daily, and he would therefore always have news of what was
+passing. His sons were like him, and never used any unnecessary words;
+talking did not suit them. The women of the household rarely left the
+island. So long as it sheltered their beloved guest, they should not set
+foot away from it. If occasion should require, the master could be in
+Alexandria again quickly enough to put anything right.
+
+This suggestion pleased the architect, who joined in the conversation to
+urge the freedman's request. But Dion, for Barine's sake, obstinately
+refused, until Anukis, who had long been anxious to go in pursuit of
+Archibius, thought it time to give _her_ opinion.
+
+"Go with the man, my lord!" she cried. "I know what I know. I will tell
+our Barine of your faithful resolution; but how can she show her
+gratitude for it if you are a dead man?"
+
+This question and the information which followed it turned the scale;
+and, as soon as Dion had consented to accompany the freedman, the Nubian
+prepared to continue her errands, but the wounded man detained her to
+give many messages for Barine, and then she was stopped by the
+architect, who thought he had found in her the right assistant for
+numerous plans he had in his mind.
+
+He had returned early that morning from Heroonpolis, where, with other
+members of his profession, he had inspected the newly constructed
+waterway. The result of the first investigation had been unfavourable to
+the verge of discouragement; and, in behalf of the others, he had gone
+to the Queen to persuade her to give up the enterprise which, though so
+full of promise, was impracticable in the short time at their disposal.
+
+He had travelled all night, and was received as soon as Cleopatra rose
+from her couch. He had driven from the Lochias in the carriage placed at
+his disposal because he had business at the arsenal and various points
+where building was going on, in order to inspect the wall erected for
+Antony on the Choma, and the Temple of Isis at the Corner of the Muses,
+to which Cleopatra desired to add a new building. But scarcely had he
+quitted the Bruchium when he was detained by the crowd assailing the
+house of Didymus with beams and rams, and at the same time keeping off
+the Ephebi who had attacked them.
+
+He had forced his way through the raging mob to aid the old couple and
+their granddaughter. The slave Phryx had been busily preparing the boats
+which lay moored in the harbour of the seawashed estate, but Gorgias had
+found it difficult to persuade the grey-haired philosopher to go with
+him and his family to the shore. He was ready to face the enraged
+rioters and--though it should cost his life--cry out that they were
+shamefully deceived and were staining themselves with a disgraceful
+crime. Not until the architect represented that it was unworthy of a
+Didymus to expose to bestial violence a life on which helpless women and
+the whole world--to whom his writings were guide-posts to the realms of
+truth--possessed a claim, could he be induced to yield. Nevertheless,
+the sage and his relatives almost fell into the hands of the furious
+rabble, for Didymus would not depart until he had saved this, that, and
+the other precious book, till the number reached twenty or thirty.
+Besides, his old deaf wife, who usually submitted quietly when her
+defective hearing prevented her comprehension of many things, insisted
+upon knowing what was occurring. She ordered everybody who came near her
+to explain what had happened, thus detaining her granddaughter Helena,
+who was trying to save the most valuable articles in the dwelling. So
+the departure was delayed, and only the brave defence of young Philotas,
+Didymus's assistant, and some of the Ephebi, who joined him, enabled
+them to escape unharmed.
+
+The Scythian guards, which at last put a stop to the frantic rage of the
+deluded populace, arrived too late to prevent the destruction of the
+house, but they saved Philotas and the other youths from the fists and
+stones of the rabble.
+
+When the boats had gone farther out into the harbour the question of
+finding a home for the philosopher and his family was discussed.
+Berenike's house was also threatened, and the rules of the museum
+prevented the reception of women. Five servants had accompanied the
+family, and none of Didymus's learned friends had room for so many
+guests. When the old man and Helena began to enumerate the lodgings of
+which they could think, Gorgias interposed with an entreaty that they
+would come to his house.
+
+He had inherited the dwelling from his father. It was very large and
+spacious, almost empty, and they could reach it speedily, as it stood on
+the seashore, north of the Forum. The fugitives would be entirely at
+liberty there, since he had work on hand which would permit him to spend
+no time under his own roof except at night. He soon overcame the trivial
+objections made by the philosopher and, fifteen minutes after they had
+left the Corner of the Muses, he was permitted to open the door of his
+house to his guests, and he did so with genuine pleasure. The old
+housekeeper and the grey-haired steward, who had been in his father's
+service, looked surprised, but worked zealously after Gorgias had
+confided the visitors to their charge. The pressure of business forbade
+his fulfilling the duties of host in his own person.
+
+Didymus and his family had reason to be grateful; and when the old sage
+found in the large library which the architect placed at his disposal
+many excellent books and among them some of his own, he ceased his
+restless pacing to and fro and forced himself to settle down. Then he
+remembered that, by the advice of a friend, he had placed his property
+in the keeping of a reliable banker and, though life still seemed dark
+grey, it no longer looked as black as before.
+
+Gorgias briefly related all this to the Nubian, and Dion added that she
+would find Archibius with his Roman friend at the house of Berenike's
+brother, the philosopher Arius. Like himself, the latter was suffering
+from an injury inflicted by a reckless trick of Antyllus. Barine's
+mother was there also, so Anukis could inform them of the fate of
+Didymus and his brother, and tell them that he, Dion, intended to leave
+her house and the city an hour after sunset.
+
+"But," interrupted Gorgias, "no one, not even your hostess Berenike and
+her brother, must know your destination.--You look as if you could keep
+a secret, woman."
+
+"Though she owes her nickname Aisopion to her nimble tongue," replied
+Dion.
+
+"But this tongue is like the little silver fish with scarlet spots in
+the palace garden," said Anukis. "They dart to and fro nimbly enough;
+but as soon as danger threatens they keep as quiet in the water as
+though they were nailed fast. And--by mighty Isis!--we have no lack of
+peril in these trying times. Would you like to see the lady Berenike and
+the others before your departure?"
+
+"Berenike, yes; but the sons of Arius--they are fine fellows--would be
+wise to keep aloof from this house to-day."
+
+"Yes indeed!" the architect chimed in. "It will be prudent for their
+father, too, to seek some hiding-place. He is too closely connected with
+Octavianus. It may indeed happen that the Queen will desire to make use
+of him. In that case he may be able to aid Barine, who is his sister's
+child. Timagenes, too, who comes from Rome as a mediator, may have some
+influence."
+
+"The same thoughts entered my poor brain also," said Anukis. "I am now
+going to show the gentlemen the danger which threatens her, and if I
+succeed---- Yet what could a serving-woman of my appearance accomplish?
+Still--my house is nearer to the brink of the stream than the dwelling
+of most others, and if I fling in a loaf, perhaps the current will bear
+it to the majestic sea."
+
+"Wise Aisopion!" cried Dion; but the worthy maid-servant shrugged her
+crooked shoulders, saying: "We needn't be free-born to find pleasure in
+what is right; and if being wise means using one's brains to think, with
+the intention of promoting right and justice, you can always call me so.
+Then you will start after sundown?"
+
+With these words she was about to leave the room, but the architect, who
+had watched her every movement, had formed a plan and begged her to
+follow him.
+
+When they reached the next room he asked for a faithful account of
+Barine and the dangers threatening her. After consulting her as if she
+were an equal, he held out his hand in farewell, saying: "If it is
+possible to bring her to the Temple of Isis unseen, these clouds may
+scatter. I shall be in the sanctuary of the goddess from the first hour
+after sunset. I have some measurements to take there. When you say you
+know that the immortals will have pity on the innocent woman whom they
+have led to the verge of the abyss, perhaps you may be right. It seems
+as if matters here were combining in a way which would be apt to rob the
+story-teller of his listener's faith."
+
+After Aisopion had gone, Gorgias returned to Dion's room and asked the
+freedman to be ready with his boat at a place on the shore which he
+carefully described.
+
+The friends were again alone. Gorgias had his hands full of work, but he
+could not help expressing his surprise at the calm bearing which Dion
+maintained. "You behave as if you were going to an oyster supper at
+Kanopus," he said, shaking his head as though perplexed by some
+incomprehensible problem.
+
+"What else would you have me do?" asked the Macedonian. "The vivid
+imagination of you artists shows you the future according to your own
+varying moods. If you hope, you transform a pleasant garden into the
+Elysian fields; if you fear anything you behold in a burning roof the
+conflagration of a world. We, from whose cradle the Muse was absent, who
+use only sober reason to provide for the welfare of the household and
+the state, as well as for our own, see facts as they are and treat them
+like figures in a sum. I know that Barine is in danger. That might drive
+me frantic; but beyond her I see Archibius and Charmian spreading their
+protecting wings over her head; I perceive the fear of my faction,
+including the museum, of the council of which I am a member, of my
+clients and the conditions of the times, which precludes arousing the
+wrath of the citizens. The product which results from the correct
+addition of all these known quantities----"
+
+"Will be correct," interrupted his friend, "so long as the most
+incalculable of all factors, passion, does not blend with them--the
+passion of a woman--and the Queen belongs to the sex which is certainly
+more powerful in that domain."
+
+"Granted! But as soon as Mark Antony returns it will be proved that her
+jealousy was needless."
+
+"We will hope so. It is only the misled, deceived, abused Cleopatra whom
+I fear; for she herself is matchless in divine goodness. The charm by
+which she ensnares hearts is indescribable, and the iron power of her
+intellect! I tell you, Dion----"
+
+"Friend, friend," was the laughing interruption. "How high your wishes
+soar! For three years I have kept an account of the conflagrations in
+your heart. I believe we had reached seventeen; but this last one is
+equal to two."
+
+"Folly!" cried Gorgias in an irritated tone: "May not a man admire what
+is magnificent, wonderful, unique? She is all these things! Just
+now--how long ago is it?--she appeared before me in a radiance of
+beauty----"
+
+"Which should have made you shade both eyes. Yet you have been speaking
+so warmly of your young guest, her loving caution, her gentle calmness
+in the midst of peril----"
+
+"Do you suppose I wish to recall a single syllable?" the architect
+indignantly broke in. "Helena has no peer among the maidens of
+Alexandria--but the other--Cleopatra--is elevated in her divine majesty
+above all ordinary mortals. You might spare me and yourself that
+scornful curl of the lip. Had she gazed into your face with those
+tearful, sorrowful eyes, as she did into mine, and spoken of her misery,
+you would have gone through fire and water, hand in hand with me, for
+her sake. I am not a man who is easily moved, and since my father's
+death the only tears I have seen have been shed by others; but when she
+talked of the mausoleum I was to build for her because Fate, she knew
+not how soon, might force her to seek refuge in the arms of death, my
+calmness vanished. Then, when she cumbered me among the friends on whom
+she could rely and held out her hand--a matchless hand--oh! laugh if you
+choose--I felt I know not how, and kneeling at her feet I kissed it; it
+was wet with my tears. I am not ashamed of this emotion, and my lips
+seem consecrated since they touched the little white hand which spoke a
+language of its own and stands before my eyes wherever I gaze."
+
+Pushing back his thick locks from his brow as he spoke, he shook his
+head as though dissatisfied with himself and, in an altered tone,
+hurriedly continued: "But this is a time ill-suited for such ebullitions
+of feeling. I mentioned the mausoleum, whose erection the Queen desires.
+She will see the first hasty sketch to-morrow. It is already before my
+mind's eye. She wished to have it adjoin the Temple of Isis, her
+goddess---- I proposed the great sanctuary in the Rhakotis quarter, but
+she objected--she wished to have it close to the palace at Lochias. She
+had thought of the temple at the Corner of the Muses, but the house
+occupied by Didymus stood in the way of a larger structure. If this were
+removed it would be possible to carry the street through the old man's
+garden, perhaps even to the sea-shore, and we should have had space for
+a gigantic edifice and still left room for a fine garden. But we had
+learned how the philosopher loved his family estate. The Queen is
+unwilling to use violence towards the old man---- She is just, and
+perhaps other reasons, of which I am ignorant, influence her. So I
+promised to look for another site, though I saw how much she desired to
+have her tomb connected with the sanctuary of her favourite goddess----
+Then--I have already told the clever brown witch--then the immortals,
+Divinity, Fate, or whatever we call the power which guides the world and
+our lives according to eternal laws and its own mysterious, omnipotent
+will, permitted a rascally deed, from which I think may come deliverance
+for you and a source of pleasure to the Queen in these days of trial."
+
+"Man, man! Where will this new passion lead you? The horses are stamping
+impatiently outside; duty summons the most faithful of men, and he
+stands like a prophet, indulging in mysterious sayings!"
+
+"Whose meaning and purport, spite of your calm calculations of existing
+circumstances, will soon seem no less wonderful to you than to me, whose
+unruly artist nature, according to your opinion, is playing me a trick,"
+retorted the architect. "Now listen to this explanation: Didymus's house
+will be occupied at once by my workmen, but I shall examine the lower
+rooms of the Temple of Isis. I have with me a document requiring
+obedience to my orders. Cleopatra herself laid the plans before me, even
+the secret portion showing the course of the subterranean chambers. It
+will cast some light upon my mysterious sayings if I bear you away from
+the enemy through one of the secret corridors. They were right in
+concealing from you by how slender a thread, spite of the power of your
+example in mathematics, the sword hangs above your head. Now that I see
+a possibility of removing it, I can show it to you. Tomorrow you would
+have fallen, without hope of rescue, into the hands of cruel foes and
+been shamefully abandoned by your own weak uncle, had not the most
+implacable of all your enemies permitted himself the infamous pleasure
+of laying hands on an old man's house, and the Queen, in consequence of
+an agitating message, had the idea suggested of building her own
+mausoleum. The corridor"--here he lowered his voice--"of which I spoke
+leads to the sea at a spot close beside Didymus's garden, and through it
+I will guide you, and, if possible, Barine also, to the shore. This
+could be accomplished in the usual way only by the greatest risk. If we
+use the passage we can reach a dark place on the strand unseen, and
+unless some special misfortune pursues us our flight will be unnoticed.
+The litters and your tottering gait would betray everything if we were
+to enter the boat anywhere else in the great harbour."
+
+"And we, sensible folk, refuse to believe in miracles!" cried Dion,
+holding out his wan hand to the architect. "How shall I thank you, you
+dear, clever, most loyal of friends to your male friends, though your
+heart is so faithless to fair ones? Add that malicious speech to the
+former ones, for which I now crave your pardon. What you intend to
+accomplish for Barine and me gives you a right to do and say to me
+whatever ill you choose all the rest of my life. Anxiety for her would
+surely have bound me to this house and the city when the time came to
+make the escape, for without her my life would now be valueless. But
+when I think that she might follow me to Pyrrhus's cliff----"
+
+"Don't flatter yourself with this hope," pleaded Gorgias. "Serious
+obstacles may interpose. I am to have another talk with the Nubian
+later. With no offence to others, I believe her advice will be the best.
+She knows how matters stand with the lofty, and yet herself belongs to
+the lowly. Besides, through Charmian the way to the Queen lies open, and
+nothing which happens at court escapes her notice. She showed me that we
+must consider Barine's delivery to Alexas a piece of good fortune. How
+easily jealousy might have led to a fatal crime one whose wish promptly
+becomes action, unless she curbs the undue zeal of her living tools!
+Those on whom Fate inflicts so many blows rarely are in haste to spare
+others. Would the anxieties which weigh upon her like mountains
+interpose between the Queen and the jealous rancour which is too petty
+for her great soul?"
+
+"What is great or petty to the heart of a loving woman?" asked Dion. "In
+any case you will do what you can to remove Barine from the power of the
+enraged princess--I know."
+
+Gorgias pressed his friend's hand closely, then, yielding to a sudden
+impulse, kissed him on the forehead and hurried to the door.
+
+On the threshold a faint moan from the wounded man stopped him. Would he
+be strong enough to follow the long passage leading to the sea?
+
+Dion protested that he confidently expected to do so, but his deeply
+flushed face betrayed that the fever which had once been conquered had
+returned.
+
+Gorgias's eyes sought the floor in deep thought. Many sick persons were
+borne to the temple in the hope of cure; so Dion's appearance would
+cause no special surprise. On the other hand, to have strangers carry
+him through the passage seemed perilous. He himself was strong, but even
+the strongest person would have found it impossible to support the heavy
+burden of a grown man to the sea, for the gallery was low and of
+considerable length. Still, if necessary, he would try. With the
+comforting exclamation, "If your strength does not suffice, another way
+will be found," he took his leave, gave Barine's maid and the wounded
+man's body-slave the necessary directions, commanded the door-keeper to
+admit no one save the physician, and stepped into the open air.
+
+A little band of Ephebi were pacing to and fro before the house. Others
+had flung themselves down in an open space surrounded by shrubbery in
+the Paneum garden, and were drinking the choice wine which Dion's
+cellarer, by his orders, had brought and was pouring out for the crowd.
+
+It was an animated scene, for the clients of the sufferer, who, after
+expressing their sympathy, had been dismissed by the porter, and
+bedizened girls had joined the youths. There was no lack of jests and
+laughter, and when some pretty young mother or female slave passed by
+leading children, with whom the garden was a favourite playground, many
+a merry word was exchanged.
+
+Gorgias waved his hands gaily to the youths, pleased with the
+cheerfulness with which the brave fellows transformed duty into a
+festival, and many raised their wine-cups, shouting a joyous "Io" and
+"Evoe," to drink the health of the famous artist who not long ago had
+been one of themselves.
+
+The others were led by a slender youth, the student Philotas, from
+Amphissa, Didymus's assistant, whom the architect, a few days before,
+had helped to liberate from the demons of wine. Even while Gorgias was
+beckoning to him from the two-wheeled chariot, the thought entered his
+mind that yonder handsome youth, who had so deeply wronged Barine and
+Dion, would be the very person to help carry his friend through the
+low-roofed passage to the sea. If Philotas was the person Gorgias
+believed him to be, he would deem it a special favour to make amends for
+his crime to those whom he had injured, and he was not mistaken; for,
+after the youth had taken a solemn oath not to betray the secret to any
+one, the architect asked him to aid in Dion's rescue. Philotas,
+overflowing with joyful gratitude, protested his willingness to do so,
+and promised to wait at the appointed spot in the Temple of Isis at the
+time mentioned.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+While Gorgias was examining the subterranean chambers in the Temple of
+Isis, Charmian returned to Lochias earlier than she herself had
+expected. She had met her brother, whom she did not find at Kanopus, at
+Berenike's, and after greeting Dion on his couch of pain, she told
+Archibius of her anxiety. She confided to him alone that the Queen had
+committed Barine's fate to Alexas, for the news might easily have led
+the mother of the endangered woman to some desperate venture; but even
+Archibius's composure, so difficult to disturb, was not proof against
+it. He would have sought the Queen's presence at once--if necessary,
+forced his way to it; but the historian Timagenes, who had just come
+from Rome, was expecting him, and he had not returned to his birthplace
+as a private citizen, but commissioned by Octavianus to act as mediator
+in putting an end to the struggle which had really been decided in his
+favour at the battle of Actium. The choice of this mediator was a happy
+one; for he had taught Cleopatra in her childhood, and was the self-same
+quick-witted man who had so often roused her to argument. His share in a
+popular insurrection against the Roman rule had led to his being carried
+as a slave to the Tiber. There he soon purchased his freedom, and
+attained such distinction that Octavianus entrusted this important
+mission to the man who was so well known in Alexandria. Archibius was to
+meet him at the house of Arius, who was still suffering from the wounds
+inflicted by the chariot-wheels of Antyllus, and Berenike had
+accompanied Timagenes to her brother.
+
+Charmian did not venture to go there; a visit to Octavianus's former
+teacher would have been misinterpreted, and it was repugnant to her own
+delicacy of feeling to hold intercourse at this time with the foe and
+conqueror of her royal mistress.
+
+She therefore let her brother drive with Berenike to the injured man's;
+but before his departure Archibius had promised, if the worst came, to
+dare everything to open the eyes of the Queen, who had forbidden her,
+Charmian, to speak in behalf of Barine and thwart the plans of Alexas.
+
+From the Paneum garden she was carried to the Kanopic Way and the Jewish
+quarter, where she had many important purchases to make for Cleopatra.
+It was long after noon when the litter was again borne to Lochias.
+
+On the way she had severely felt her own powerlessness. Without having
+accomplished anything herself, she was forced to wait for the success of
+others; and she had scarcely crossed the threshold of the palace ere
+fresh cares were added to those which already burdened her soul.
+
+She understood how to read the faces of courtiers, and the door-keeper's
+had taught her that since her departure something momentous had
+occurred. She disliked to question the slaves and lower officials, so
+she refrained, though the interior of the palace was crowded with
+guards, officials of every grade, attendants, and slaves. Many who saw
+her gazed at her with the timidity inspired by those over whom some
+disaster is impending. Others, whose relations were more intimate,
+pressed forward to enjoy the mournful satisfaction of being the first
+messengers of evil tidings. But she passed swiftly on, keeping them back
+with grave words and gestures, until, before the door of the great
+anteroom thronged with Greek and Egyptian petitioners, she met Zeno, the
+Keeper of the Seal. Charmian stopped him and inquired what had happened.
+
+"Since when?" asked the old courtier. "Every moment has brought some
+fresh tidings and all are mournful. What terrible times, Charmian, what
+disasters!"
+
+"No messenger had arrived when I left the Lochias," replied Charmian.
+"Now it seems as though the old monster of a palace, accustomed to so
+many horrors, is holding its breath in dread. Tell me the main thing, at
+least, before I meet the Queen."
+
+"The main thing? Pestilence or famine--which shall we call the worse?"
+
+"Quick, Zeno! I am expected."
+
+"I, too, am in haste, and really there is nothing to relate over which
+the tongue would care to dwell. Candidus arrived first. Came himself
+straight from Actium. The fellow is bold enough."
+
+"Is the army defeated also?"
+
+"Defeated, dispersed, deserted to the foe--King Herod with his legions
+in the van."
+
+Charmian covered her face with her hands and groaned aloud, but Zeno
+continued:
+
+"You were with her in the flight. When Mark Antony left you, he sailed
+with the ships which joined him for Parætonium. A large body of troops
+on which the Queen and Mardion had fixed their hopes was encamped there.
+Reinforcements could easily be gained and we should once more have a
+fine army at our disposal."
+
+"Pinarius Scarpus, a cautious soldier, was in command; and I, too,
+believed----"
+
+"The more you trusted him, the greater would be your error. The
+shameless rascal--he owes everything to Antony--had received tidings of
+Actium ere the ships arrived, and had already made overtures to
+Octavianus when the Imperator came. The veterans who opposed the
+treachery were hewn down by the wretch's orders, but the brave garrison
+of the city could not be won over to the monstrous crime. It is due to
+these men that Mark Antony still lives and did not come to a miserable
+end at the hands of his own troops. The twice-defeated general--a
+courier brought the news--will arrive to-night. Strangely enough, he
+will not come to Lochias, but to the little palace on the Choma."
+
+"Poor, poor Queen!" cried Charmian; "how did she bear all this?"
+
+"In the presence of the defeated Candidus and Antony's messenger like a
+heroine. But afterwards---- Her raving did not last long; but the mute,
+despairing silence!---- Ere she had fully recovered her self-command she
+sent us all away, and I have not seen her since. But all the thoughts
+and feelings which dwell here"--he pointed to his brow and breast--"have
+left their abode and linger with her. I totter from place to place like
+a soulless body. O Charmian! what has befallen us? Where are the days
+when care and trouble lay buried with the other dead--the days and
+nights when my brain united with that of the Queen to transform this
+desolate earth into the beautiful Elysian Fields, every-day life to a
+festival, festivals to the very air of Olympus? What unprecedented
+scenes of splendour had I not devised for the celebration of the
+victory, the triumph--nay, even the entry into Rome! Whole chests are
+filled with the sketches, programmes, drawings, and verses. All who
+handle brush and chisel, compose and execute music, would have lent
+their aid, and--you may believe me--the result would have been something
+which future generations would have discussed, lauded, and extolled in
+song. And now--now?"
+
+"Now we will double our efforts to save what is yet to be rescued!"
+
+"Rescued?" repeated the courtier in a hollow tone. "The Queen, too,
+still clings to this fine word. When I saw her at work yesterday, it
+seemed as if I beheld her drawing water with the bottomless vessel of
+the Danaides. True, today, when I left her, her arms had fallen--and in
+this attitude she now stands before me with her tearful eyes. And
+besides, I can't get my nephew Dion out of my mind. Cares--nothing but
+cares concerning him! And my intentions towards him were so kind! My
+will gives him my entire fortune; but now he actually wants to marry the
+singer, the daughter of the artist Leonax. You have taken her under your
+protection, but surely your own niece, Iras, is dearer to you, so you
+will approve of my destroying the will if Dion insists upon his own way.
+He shall not have a solidus of my property if he does not give up the
+woman who is a thorn in the Queen's flesh. And his choice does not suit
+our ancient race. Iras, on the contrary, was Dion's playfellow, and I
+have long destined her for his wife. No better match, nor one more
+acceptable to the Queen, could be found for him. He cared for her until
+the singer bewitched him. Bring them together, and they shall be like my
+own children. If the fool resists his uncle, whose sole desire is to
+benefit him, I will withdraw my aid. Whatever intrigues his foes may
+weave, I shall fold my arms and not interfere. I stand in the place of
+his father, my dead brother, and demand obedience. The Queen is my
+universe, and her favour is of more value than twenty refractory
+nephews."
+
+"You will retain her Majesty's favour, even if you intercede for your
+brother's son."
+
+"And Iras? When she finds herself deceived--and she will soon discover
+it--she will not rest----"
+
+"Until she has brought ruin upon him," interrupted Charmian, in a tone
+of sorrow rather than reproach as though she already beheld the
+impending disaster. "But Iras has no greater influence with the Queen
+than I, and if you and I unite to protect the brave young fellow, who is
+of your own blood----"
+
+"Then, of course--no doubt, on account of your longer period of service,
+you have more influence with her Majesty than Iras--however--such
+matters must be considered--and I have already said--my mind leaves its
+abode to follow the Queen like her shadow. It heeds only what concerns
+her. Let everything else go as it will. The fleet the same as destroyed,
+Candidus defeated, Herod a deserter, treason on treason--the African
+legions lost! What in the name of the god who tried to roll back the
+wheel dashing down the mountain-side!---- And yet! Let us offer
+sacrifices, my friend, and hope for better days!"
+
+Zeno retired as he spoke, but Charmian moved forward with a drooping
+head to find Barine and her faithful Anukis, and weep her fill ere she
+went to perform the duty of consoling and sustaining her beloved
+mistress. Yet she herself so sorely needed comfort. Wherever she turned
+her eyes she beheld disaster, peril, treachery, and base intrigues. She
+felt as if she had lived long enough, and that her day was over.
+Hitherto her gentle nature, her intellect, which yearned to expand,
+gather new riches, and exchange what it had gained with others, had
+possessed much to offer to the Queen. She had not only been Cleopatra's
+confidante, but necessary to her to discuss questions far in advance of
+the demands of the times, which occupied her restless mind. Now the
+Queen's attention was wholly absorbed by events--hard, cruel
+facts--which she must resist or turn to her own advantage. Her life had
+become a conflict, and Charmian felt that she was by no means combative.
+The hard, supple, keenly polished intellect of Iras now asserted its
+value, and the elderly woman told herself that she was in danger of
+being held in less regard than her younger companion. To resign her
+office would have given her peace of mind, but she repelled the thought.
+For the very reason that these days were so full of misery and perhaps
+drawing nearer to the end, she must remain, first for the sake of the
+Queen, but also to watch over Barine.
+
+Now she longed to go to Cleopatra. Her mere presence, she knew, would do
+her sore heart good.
+
+The silvery laugh of a child reached her ears through the open gate of
+the garden which she was rapidly approaching. Little six-year-old
+Alexander ran towards her with open arms, hugged her closely, pressed
+his curly head against her, and gazed into her face with his large clear
+eyes.
+
+Charmian's heart swelled; and as she raised the child in her arms and
+kissed him, she thought of the sad fate impending, and the composure
+maintained with so much difficulty gave way; tears streamed from her
+eyes and, sobbing violently, she pressed the boy closer to her breast.
+
+The prince, accustomed to bright faces and tender caresses, broke away
+from her in terror to run back to his brother and sisters. But he had a
+kind little heart, and, knowing that no one weeps and sobs unless in
+pain, Alexander pitied Charmian, whom he loved, and hurried to her
+again.
+
+What he meant to show her had pleased his mother, too, and dried the
+tears in her eyes. So he took Charmian by the hand and drew her along,
+saying that he wanted her to see the prettiest thing. She willingly
+allowed herself to be led over the paths, strewn with red sand, of the
+little garden which Antony had had laid out for his children in the
+magnificent style which pleased his love of splendour, and filled with
+rare and beautiful things.
+
+There was a pond with tiny gold and silver fish, where the rare lotus
+flowers with pink blossoms arose from amid their smooth green leaves,
+and another where dwarf ducks of every colour, which seemed as if they
+had been created for children, swam to and fro. A bit of the sea which
+washed its shore had been enclosed by a gilded latticework, and on its
+surface floated a number of snow-white swans and black ones with scarlet
+bills. Native and Indian flowers of every hue adorned the beds, and the
+narrow paths were shaded by arbours made of gold wire, over which ran
+climbing vines filled with bright blossoms.
+
+A grotto of stalactites behind the dense foliage of an Indian tree
+offered a resting-place, and beside it was a little house where the
+children could stay. The interior lacked none of the requisites of
+living, not even the cooking utensils in the kitchen, and the family
+portraits in the tablinum, delicately painted by an artist on small
+ivory slabs. Everything was made to suit the size of children, but of
+the most costly material and careful workmanship.
+
+Behind the house was a little stable where four tiny horses with spotted
+skins, the rarest and prettiest creatures imaginable--a gift from the
+King of Media--were stamping the ground.
+
+In another place was an enclosure containing gazelles, ostriches, young
+giraffes, and other grass-eating animals. Bright-plumaged birds and
+monkeys filled the tops of the trees, gay balls rose and fell on the
+jets of the fountains, and child genii and images of the gods in bronze
+and marble peered from the foliage. This whole enchanted world was
+comprised within a narrow space, and, with its radiance of colour and
+wealth of form, its perfume, songs, and warbling, exerted a bewildering
+influence upon the excited imaginations of grown people as well as
+children.
+
+Little Alexander, without even casting a glance at all this, drew
+Charmian forward. He did not pause until he reached the shore of the
+lotus pond; then, putting his fingers on his lips, he said: "There, now,
+I'll show you. Look here!"
+
+Rising cautiously upon tip-toe as he spoke, he pointed to the hollow in
+the trunk of a tree. A pair of finches had built their nest in it, and
+five young ones with big yellow beaks stretched their ugly little heads
+hungrily upward.
+
+"That's so pretty!" cried the prince. "And you must see the old ones
+come to feed them."
+
+The beautiful boy's sweet face fairly beamed with delight, and Charmian
+kissed him tenderly. Yet, even as she did so, she thought of the young
+swallows hacked to death in his mother's galley, and a chill ran through
+her veins.
+
+Just at that moment voices were heard calling Alexander from a neglected
+spot behind the dainty little house built for the children, and the boy
+exclaimed peevishly:
+
+"There, now, I showed you the little nest, so I forgot. Agatha fell
+asleep and Smerdis went away, so we were alone. Then they sent me to
+Horus, the gate-keeper, to get some of his spelt bread. He never says no
+to anything, and it does taste so good. We're peasants, and have been
+using the axe and the hoe, so we want something to eat. Have you seen
+our house? We built it ourselves. Selene, Helios, Jotape, my future
+wife, and I--yes, I! They let me help, and we finished it alone, all
+alone! Everything is here. We shall build the shed for the cow
+to-morrow. The others mustn't see it, but I may show it to you."
+
+While speaking, he drew her forward again, and Charmian obediently
+followed. The twins and little Jotape, who had been chosen for the
+future bride of the six-year-old Prince Alexander--a pretty, delicate,
+fair-haired child of his own age, the daughter of the Median king, who
+had been betrothed to the boy after the Parthian war, and now remained
+as a hostage at Cleopatra's court--welcomed her with joyous shouts. With
+the exception of the little Median princess, Charmian had witnessed
+their birth, and they all loved her dearly.
+
+The little royal labourers showed their work with proud delight, and it
+really was well done. They had toiled at it for weeks, paying no heed to
+the garden and all its costly rarities. They pointed with special pride
+to the two planks which Helios, aided by Alexander, had fished out of
+the sea after the last storm, when they were left alone, and to the lock
+on the door which they had secretly managed to wrench from an old gate.
+Selene herself had woven the curtain in front of the door. Now they were
+going to build a hearth too.
+
+Charmian praised their skill, while they--all talking merrily
+together--told her how they had conquered the greatest difficulties.
+Their bright eyes sparkled with pleasure while describing the work of
+their own hands, and they were so absorbed in eager delight that they
+did not notice the approach of a man until startled by his words:
+"Enough of this idle sport now, your Highnesses. Too much time has
+already been wasted on it."
+
+Then, turning to the Queen, who had accompanied him, he continued in a
+tone of apology: "This amusement might seem somewhat hazardous, yet
+there is much to be said in its favour. Besides, it appeared to afford
+the royal children so much pleasure that I permitted it for a short
+time. But if your Majesty commands----"
+
+"Let them have their pleasure," the Queen interrupted kindly; and as
+soon as the children saw their mother they rushed forward, crowded
+around her with fearless love, thanked her, and eagerly assured her that
+nothing in the whole garden was half so dear to them as their little
+house. They meant to build a stable too.
+
+"That might be too much," said the tutor Euphronion, a grey-haired man
+with a shrewd, kindly face. "We must remember how many things are yet to
+be learned, that we may reach the goal fixed for your Majesty's birthday
+and pass the examination."
+
+But all the children now joined in the entreaty to be allowed to build
+the stable too, and it was granted.
+
+When the tutor at last began to lead them away, the royal mother stopped
+them, asking:
+
+"Suppose, instead of this garden, I should give you a bit of bare land,
+such as the peasants till, where, after your lessons, you might dig and
+build as much as you please?"
+
+Loud shouts of joy from the children answered the question; but the
+little Median girl, Jotape, said hesitatingly:
+
+"Could I take my doll too--only the oldest, Atossa? She has lost one
+arm, yet I love her the best."
+
+"Deprive us of anything you choose!" cried Helios, drawing little
+Alexander towards him, to show that they, the men, were of the same
+mind, "only give us some ground and let us build."
+
+"We will consider whether it can be done," replied Cleopatra. "Perhaps,
+Euphronion, you would be the right person---- But we will discuss the
+matter at a more quiet hour."
+
+The tutor withdrew and the children, who followed, looked back, waving
+their hands and calling to their mother for a long time.
+
+When they had disappeared behind the shrubbery in the garden Charmian
+exclaimed, "However dark the sky may be, so long as you possess these
+little ones you can never lack sunshine."
+
+"If," replied Cleopatra, gazing pensively at the ground, "with a thought
+of them another did not blend which makes the gloom become deeper still.
+You know the tidings this terrible day has brought?"
+
+"All," replied Charmian, sighing heavily.
+
+"Then you know the abyss on whose verge we are walking; and to see
+them--them also dragged into the yawning gulf by their unhappy
+mother--O, Charmian, Charmian!"
+
+She sobbed aloud, threw her arms around the neck of her friend and
+playfellow, and laid her head upon her bosom like a child seeking
+consolation. Cleopatra wept for several minutes, and when she again
+raised her tear-stained face she said softly:
+
+"That did me good! O, Charmian! no one needs love as I do. On your warm
+heart my own has already grown calmer."
+
+"Use it, nestle there whenever you need it, to the end," cried Charmian,
+deeply moved.
+
+"To the end," repeated Cleopatra, wiping her eyes. "It began to-day, I
+think. I have just spent an hour alone. I meant to commit a crime, and
+you know how impatiently passion sweeps me along. But what misfortunes
+have assailed me! The army destroyed; the desertion of Herod and
+Pinarius; Antony's generous, trusting heart torn by base treachery, his
+soul darkened; the reconstruction of the canal, the last hope--Gorgias
+brought the news--the same as destroyed. Just then little Alexander came
+to show me his bird's nest. Everything else in the garden seemed to him
+worthless by comparison. This awakened new thoughts, and now here is the
+little house which the children have built with their own hands. All
+these things forced me by some mysterious power to look back along the
+course of my life to the distant days in your father's house--I----
+These children! Upon what different foundations our lives have been
+built! I made them begin at the point I had gained when youth lay behind
+me. _My_ childhood commenced among the disorders of the government,
+clouded by my father's exile and my mother's death, on the brink of
+ruin. That of the twins--they are ten years old--will soon be over--and
+now, after enjoying pleasures not one of which was bestowed on me, they
+must endure the same sorrow. But did not we have better ones? What they
+daily possessed we only dreamed of in our simple garden. How often I let
+you share the radiant visions which my soul revealed to me! You
+willingly accompanied me into the splendid fairy world of my dreams. All
+that my imagination conjured up during the years of quiet and repose
+accompanied me into my after-life. Again and again I have beheld them,
+rich and powerful, upon the throne. The means of rendering the vision a
+verity were at hand; and when I met the man whose own life resembled the
+realization of a dream, I recalled those childish fancies and made them
+facts. The marvels with which I adorned my lover's existence were
+childish dreams to which I gave tangible form. This garden is an image
+of the life to which I intended to rise; in reality, fell. We collected
+within the limits of this bit of earth everything which can delight the
+senses; not a single one is omitted in this narrow space, whose crowded
+maze of pleasures fairly impede freedom of movement. Yet in your home,
+and guided by your wise father, I had learned to be content with so
+little, and commenced the struggle to attain peace. That painless
+peace--our chief good--whence came it? Through me it was lost to you
+both---- But the children--I made them begin their lives in an arena of
+every disturbing influence; and now I see how their own healthy natures
+yearn to escape from the dazzling wealth of colour, the stupefying
+fragrance, the bewildering songs and twittering. They long to return to
+the untilled earth, where the life of struggling mortals began. The boy
+casts away the baubles, to test his own creative powers. The girl
+follows his example, and clings fast only to the doll in which she sees
+the living child, in order to do justice to the maternal instinct, the
+token of her sex. But what they so eagerly desire is right, and shall be
+granted. When I was ten years old, like the twins, my life and efforts
+were already directed towards one fixed goal. They are still blindly
+following the objects set before them. Let them return to the place
+whence their mother started, where she received everything good which is
+still hers. They shall go to the garden of Epicurus, no matter whether
+it is the old one in Kanopus or elsewhere. All that their mother beheld
+in vivid dreams, which she often strove with wanton extravagance to
+realize, has surrounded them from their birth and early satiated them.
+When they enter life, they will scorn what merely stirs and dazzles the
+senses, and cling to the aspiration for painless peace of mind, if a
+wise guide directs them and protects them from the dangers which the
+teachings of Epicurus contain for youth. I have found this guide, and
+you, too, will trust him--I mean your brother Archibius."
+
+"Archibius?" asked Charmian in surprise.
+
+"Yes, he who grew up in the garden of Epicurus, and in life and
+philosophy found the support which has preserved his peace of mind
+during all the conflicts of existence--he who loves the mother, and to
+whom the children are also dear--he to whom the boys and girls cling
+with affectionate confidence. I wish to place the children under his
+protection and, if he will consent to grant this desire of the most
+hapless of women, I shall look forward calmly to the end. It is
+approaching! I feel, I know it! Gorgias is already at work upon the plan
+for my tomb."
+
+"O my Queen!" cried Charmian sorrowfully. "Whatever may happen, your
+illustrious life cannot be in danger! The generous heart of Mark Antony
+does not throb in Octavianus's breast, but he is not cruel, and for the
+very reason that cool calculation curbs ambition he will spare you. He
+knows that you are the idol of the city, the whole country; and if he
+really succeeds in adding fresh victories to this first conquest, if the
+immortals permit your throne and--may they avert it!--your sacred
+person, too, to fall into his power----"
+
+"Then," cried Cleopatra, her clear eyes flashing, "then he shall learn
+which of us two is the greater--then I shall know how to maintain the
+right to despise him, though blind Fate should make the whole power of
+the world subject to him who robbed my son and Cæsar's of his
+heritage!"
+
+Her eyes had blazed with anger as she uttered the words; then, letting
+her little clenched hand fall, she went on in an altered tone:
+
+"Months may pass before he is strong enough to risk the attack, and the
+immortals themselves approved the erection of the monument. The only
+obstacle in the way, the house of the old philosopher Didymus, was
+destroyed. A messenger from Gorgias brought the news. It is to be the
+second monument in Alexandria worthy of notice. The other contains the
+body of the great Alexander, to whom the city owes its origin and name.
+He who subjected half the world to his power and the genius of the
+Greeks, was younger than I when he died. Whence do I, by whose miserable
+weakness the battle of Actium was lost, derive the right to walk longer
+beneath the sun? Perhaps Mark Antony will arrive in a few hours."
+
+"And will you meet the disheartened hero in this mood?" interrupted
+Charmian.
+
+"He does not wish to be received," answered Cleopatra bitterly. "He even
+refused to let me greet him, and I understand the denial. But what must
+have overwhelmed this joyous nature, so friendly to all mankind, that he
+longs for solitude and avoids meeting those who are nearest and dearest?
+Iras is now at the Choma--whither he wishes to retire--to see that
+everything is in order. She will also provide a supply of the flowers he
+loves. It is hard, cruelly hard, not to welcome him as usual. O,
+Charmian, what joy it was when, with open arms and overflowing heart, he
+swung his mighty figure ashore like a youth, while his handsome, heroic
+face beamed with ardent love for me! And then--you do not forget it
+either--when he raised his deep voice to shout the first greeting, why,
+it seemed as if the very fish in the water must join in, and the
+palm-trees on the shore wave their feathery tops in joyous sympathy. And
+here! The dreams of my childhood, which I made reality for him, received
+us, and our existence, wreathed with love and roses, became a fairy
+tale. Since the day he rode towards us at Kanopus and offered me the
+first bouquet, with his sunny glance wooing my love, his image has stood
+before my soul as the embodiment of the virile strength which conquers
+everything, and the bright, undimmed joy which renders the whole world
+happy. And now--now? Do you remember the dull dreamer whom we left ere
+he set forth for Parætonium? But no, no, a thousand times no, he must
+not remain so! Not with bowed head, but erect as in the days of
+happiness, must he cross the threshold of Hades, hand in hand with her
+whom he loved. And he does love me still. Else would he have followed me
+hither, though no magic goblet drew him after me? And I? The heart
+which, in the breast of the child, gave him its first young love, is
+still his, and will be forever. Might I not go to the harbour and await
+him there? Look me in the face, Charmian, and answer me as fearlessly as
+a mirror: did Olympus really succeed in effacing the wrinkles?"
+
+"They were scarcely visible before," was the reply, "and even the
+keenest eye could no longer discover them. I have brought the pomade,
+too, and the prescription Olympus gave me for----"
+
+"Hush, hush!" interrupted Cleopatra softly. "There are many living
+creatures in this garden, and they say that even the birds are good
+listeners."
+
+A roguish smile deepened the dimples in her cheeks as she spoke, and
+delight in her bewitching grace forced from Charmian's lips the
+exclamation:
+
+"If Mark Antony could only see you now!"
+
+"Flatterer!" replied the Queen with a grateful smile. But Charmian felt
+that the time had now come to plead once more for Barine, and she began
+eagerly:
+
+"No, I certainly do not flatter. No one in Alexandria, no matter what
+name she bears, could venture to vie even remotely with your charms. So
+cease the persecution of the unfortunate woman whom you confided to my
+care. It is an insult to Cleopatra----"
+
+But here an indignant "Again!" interrupted her.
+
+Cleopatra's face, which during the conversation had mirrored every
+emotion of a woman's soul, from the deepest sorrow to the most
+mischievous mirth, assumed an expression of repellent harshness, and,
+with the curt remark, "You are forgetting what I had good reason to
+forbid--I must go to my work," she turned her back upon the companion of
+her youth.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+Charmain went towards her own apartments. How often she had had a
+similar experience! In the midst of the warmest admiration for this rare
+woman's depth of feeling, masculine strength of intellect, tireless
+industry, watchful care for her native land, steadfast loyalty, and
+maternal devotion, she had been sobered in the most pitiable way.
+
+She had been forced to see Cleopatra, for the sake of realizing a
+childish dream, and impressing her lover, squander vast sums, which
+diminished the prosperity of her subjects; place great and important
+matters below the vain, punctilious care of her own person; forget, in
+petty jealousy, the justice and kindness which were marked traits in her
+character; and, though the most kindly and womanly of sovereigns, suffer
+herself to be urged by angry excitement to inflict outrage on a subject
+whose acts had awakened her displeasure. The lofty ambition which had
+inspired her noblest and most praiseworthy deeds had more than once been
+the source of acts which she herself regretted. When a child, she could
+not endure to be surpassed in difficult tasks, and still deemed it a
+necessity to be first and peerless. Hence the unfortunate circumstance
+that Antony had given Barine the counterpart of an armlet which she
+herself wore as a gift from her lover, was perhaps the principal cause
+of her bitter resentment against the hapless woman.
+
+Charmian had seen Cleopatra forgive freely and generously many a wrong,
+nay, many an affront, inflicted upon her; but to see herself placed by
+her husband on the same plane as a Barine, even in the most trivial
+matter, might easily seem to her an unbearable insult; and the mishap
+which had befallen Cæsarion, in consequence of his foolish passion for
+the young beauty, gave her a right to punish her rival.
+
+Deeply anxious concerning the fate of the woman in her care--greatly
+agitated, moreover, and exhausted physically and mentally--Charmian
+sought her own apartments.
+
+Here she hoped to find solace in Barine's cheerful and equable nature;
+here the helpful hands of her dark-skinned maid and confidante awaited
+her.
+
+The sun was low in the western horizon when she entered the anteroom.
+The members of the body-guard who were on duty told her that nothing
+unusual had occurred, and with a sigh of relief she passed into the
+sitting-room.
+
+But the Ethiopian, who usually came to meet her with words of welcome,
+took her veil and wraps, and removed her shoes, was absent. Today no one
+greeted her. Not until she entered the second room, which she had
+assigned to her guest, did she find Barine, who was weeping bitterly.
+
+During Charmian's absence the latter had received a letter from Alexas,
+in which he informed her that he was ordered by the Queen to subject her
+to an examination the next morning. Her cause looked dark but, if she
+did not render his duty harder by the harshness which had formerly
+caused him much pain, he would do his utmost to protect her from
+imprisonment, forced labour in the mines, or even worse misfortunes. The
+imprudent game which she had played with King Cæsarion had
+unfortunately roused the people against her. The depth of their
+indignation was shown by the fury with which they had assailed the house
+of her grandfather, Didymus. Nothing could save Dion, who had
+audaciously attacked the illustrious son of their beloved Queen, from
+the rage of the populace. He, Alexas, knew that in this Dion she would
+lose a friend and protector, but he would be disposed to take his place
+if her conduct did not render it impossible for him to unite mercy with
+justice.
+
+This shameful letter, which promised Barine clemency in return for her
+favour without unmasking him in his character of judge, explained to
+Charmian the agitation in which she found her friend's daughter.
+
+It was doubtless a little relief to Barine to express her loathing and
+abhorrence of Alexas as eagerly as her gentle nature would permit, but
+fear, grief, and indignation continued to struggle for the mastery in
+her oppressed soul.
+
+It would have been expected that the keen-witted woman would have
+eagerly inquired what Charmian had accomplished with the Queen and
+Archibius, and what new events had happened to affect Cleopatra, the
+state, and the city; but she questioned her with far deeper interest
+concerning the welfare of her lover, desiring information in regard to
+many things of which her friend could give no tidings. In her brief
+visit to Dion's couch she had not learned how he bore his own
+misfortunes and Barine's, what view he took of the future, or what he
+expected from the woman he loved.
+
+Charmian's ignorance and silence in regard to these very matters
+increased the anxiety of the endangered woman, who saw not only her own
+life, but those dearest to her, seriously threatened. So she entreated
+her hostess to relieve her from the uncertainty which was harder to
+endure than the most terrible reality; but the latter either could not
+or would not give her any further details of Cleopatra's intentions, or
+the fate and present abode of her grandparents and Helena. This
+increased her anxiety, for if Alexas's information was correct, her
+family must be homeless. When Charmian at last admitted that she had
+seen Dion only a few minutes, the tortured Barine's power of quiet
+endurance gave way.
+
+She, whose nature was so hopeful that, when the glow of the sunset
+faded, she already anticipated with delight the rosy dawn of the next
+day, now beheld in Cleopatra's hand the reed which was to sign the
+death-sentence of Dion and herself. Her mental vision conjured up her
+relatives wounded by the falling house or bleeding under the stones
+hurled by the raging populace. She heard Alexas command the executioner
+to subject her to the rack, and fancied that Anukis had not returned
+because she had failed to find Dion. The Queen's soldiers had probably
+carried him to prison, loaded with chains, if Philostratus had not
+already instigated the mob to drag him through the streets.
+
+With feverish impetuosity, which alarmed Charmian the more because it
+was so unlike her old friend's daughter, Barine described all the
+spectres with which her imagination--agitated by terror, longing, love,
+and loathing--terrified her; but the former exerted all the power of
+eloquence she possessed, by turns reproving her and loading her with
+caresses, in order to soothe her and rouse her from her despair. But
+nothing availed. At last she succeeded in persuading the unhappy woman
+to go with her to the window, which afforded a most beautiful view.
+Westward, beyond the Heptastadium, the sun was sinking below the forests
+of masts in the harbour of the Eunostus; and Charmian, who had learned
+from her intercourse with the royal children how to soothe a troubled
+young heart, to divert Barine's thoughts, directed her attention to the
+crimson glow in the western sky, and told her how her father, the
+artist, had showed her the superb brilliancy which colours gained at
+this hour of the day, even when the west was less radiant than now. But
+Barine, who usually could never gaze her fill at such a spectacle, did
+not thank her, for this sunset reminded her of another which she had
+lately watched at Dion's side, and she again broke into convulsive sobs.
+
+Charmian, not knowing what to do, passed her arm around her. Just at
+that moment the door was hurriedly thrown open, and Anukis, the Nubian,
+entered.
+
+Her mistress knew that something unusual must have happened to detain
+her so long from her post at Barine's side, and her appearance showed
+that she had been attending to important matters which had severely
+taxed her strength. Her shining dark skin looked ashen grey, her high
+forehead, surrounded by tangled woolly locks, was dripping with
+perspiration, and her thick lips were pale. Although she must have
+undergone great fatigue, she did not seem in need of rest; for, after
+greeting the ladies, apologizing for her long absence, and telling
+Barine that this time Dion had seemed to her half on the way to
+recovery, a rapid side glance at her mistress conveyed an entreaty that
+she would follow her into the next room.
+
+But the language of the Nubian's eyes had not escaped the suspicious
+watchfulness of the anxious Barine and, overwhelmed with fresh terror,
+she begged that she might hear all.
+
+Charmian ordered her maid to speak openly; but Anukis, ere she began,
+assured them that she had received the news she brought from a most
+trustworthy source--only it would make a heavy demand upon the
+resolution and courage of Barine, whom she had hoped to find in a very
+different mood. There was no time to lose. She was expected at the
+appointed place an hour after sunset.
+
+Here Charmian interrupted the maid with the exclamation "Impossible!"
+and reminded her of the guards which Alexas, aided by Iras, who was
+thoroughly familiar with the palace, had stationed the day before in the
+anteroom, at all the doors--nay, even beneath the windows.
+
+The Nubian replied that everything had been considered; but, to gain
+time, she must beg Barine to let her colour her skin and curl her hair
+while she was talking.
+
+The surprise visible in the young beauty's face caused her to exclaim:
+"Only act with entire confidence. You shall learn everything directly.
+There is so much to tell! On the way here I had planned how to relate
+the whole story in regular order, but it can't be done now. No, no!
+Whoever wants to save a flock of sheep from a burning shed must lead out
+the bell-wether first--the main thing, I mean--so I will begin with
+that, though it really comes last. The explanation of how all this----"
+
+Here, like a cry of joy, Barine's exclamation interrupted her:
+
+"I am to fly, and Dion knows it and will follow me! I see it in your
+face."
+
+In fact, every feature of the dusky maid-servant's ugly face betrayed
+that pleasant thoughts were agitating her mind. Her black eyes flashed
+with fearless daring, and a smile beautified her big mouth and thick
+lips as she replied:
+
+"A loving heart like yours understands the art of prophecy better than
+the chief priest of the great Serapis. Yes, my young mistress, he of
+whom you speak must disappear from this wicked city where so much evil
+threatens you both. He will certainly escape and, if the immortals aid
+us and we are wise and brave, you also. Whence the help comes can be
+told later. Now, the first thing is to transform you--don't be
+reluctant--into the ugliest woman in the world--black Anukis. You must
+escape from the palace in this disguise.--Now you know the whole plan,
+and while I get what is necessary from my chest of clothes, I beg you,
+mistress, to consider how we are to obtain the black stains for that
+ivory skin and golden hair."
+
+With these words she left the room, but Barine flung herself into her
+friend's arms, exclaiming, amid tears and laughter: "Though I should be
+forced to remain forever as black and crooked as faithful Aisopion, if
+he did not withdraw his love, though I were obliged to go through fire
+and water--I would---- O Charmian! what changes so quickly as joy and
+sorrow? I would fain show some kindness to every one in the world, even
+to your Queen, who has brought all these troubles upon me."
+
+The new-born hope had transformed the despairing woman into a happy one,
+and Charmian perceived it with grateful joy, secretly wishing that
+Cleopatra had listened to her appeal.
+
+While examining the hair-dyes used by the Queen she saw, lurking in the
+background of what was still unexplained, and therefore confused her
+mind, fresh and serious perils. Barine, on the contrary, gazed across
+them to the anticipated meeting with her lover, and was full of the
+gayest expectation until the maid-servant's return.
+
+The work of disfigurement began without delay. Anukis moved her lips as
+busily as her hands, and described in regular order all that had
+befallen her during the eventful day.
+
+Barine listened with rising excitement, and her joy increased as she
+beheld the path which had been smoothed for her by the care and wisdom
+of her friends. Charmian, on the contrary, became graver and more quiet
+the more distinctly she perceived the danger her favourite must
+encounter. Yet she could not help admitting that it would be a sin
+against Barine's safety, perhaps her very life, to withhold her from
+this well-considered plan of escape.
+
+That it must be tried was certain; but as the moment which was to
+endanger the woman she loved drew nearer, and she could not help saying
+to herself that she was aiding an enterprise in opposition to the
+express command of the Queen and helping to execute a plan which
+threatened to rouse the indignation, perhaps the fury, of Cleopatra, a
+feeling of sorrow overpowered her. She feared nothing for herself. Not
+for a single instant did she think of the unpleasant consequences which
+Barine's escape might draw upon her. The burden on her soul was due only
+to the consciousness of having, for the first time, opposed the will of
+the sovereign, to fulfil whose desires and to promote whose aims had
+been the beloved duty of her life. Doubtless the thought crossed her
+mind that, by aiding Barine's escape, she was guarding Cleopatra from
+future repentance; probably she felt sure that it was her duty to help
+rescue this beautiful young life, whose bloom had been so cruelly
+assailed by tempest and hoar-frost, and which now had a prospect of the
+purest happiness; yet, though in itself commendable, the deed brought
+her into sharp conflict with the loftiest aims and aspirations of her
+life. And how much nearer than the other was the woman--she shrank from
+the word--whom she was about to betray, how much greater was Cleopatra's
+claim to her love and gratitude! Could she have any other emotion than
+thankfulness if the plan of escape succeeded? Yet she was reluctant to
+perform the task of making Barine's beautiful, symmetrical figure
+resemble the hunch-backed Nubian's, or to dip her fingers into the
+pomade intended for Cleopatra; and it grieved her to mar the beauty of
+Barine's luxuriant tresses by cutting off part of her thick fair braids.
+
+True, these things could not be avoided, if the flight was to succeed,
+and the further Anukis advanced in her story, the fewer became her
+mistress's objections to the plan.
+
+The conversation between Iras and Alexas, which had been overheard by
+the maid, already made it appear necessary to withdraw Barine and her
+lover from the power of such foes. The faithful man whom Anukis had
+found with Dion, whose name she did not mention and of whose home she
+said only that no safer hiding-place could be found, even by the mole
+which burrowed in the earth, really seemed to have been sent with
+Gorgias to Dion's couch by Fate itself. The control of the subterranean
+chambers in the Temple of Isis which had been bestowed on the architect,
+also appeared like a miracle.
+
+Upon a small tablet, which the wise Aisopion had intentionally delayed
+handing to her mistress until now, were the lines:
+
+"Archibius greets his sister Charmian. If I know your heart, it will be
+as hard for you as for me to share this plot, yet it must be done for
+the sake of her father, to save the life and happiness of his child. So
+it must fall to your lot to bring Barine to the Temple of Isis at the
+Corner of the Muses. She will find her lover there and, if possible, be
+wedded to him. As the sanctuary is so near, you need leave the palace
+only a short time. Do not tell Barine what we have planned. The
+disappointment would be too great if it should prove impracticable."
+
+This letter and the arrangement it proposed transformed the serious
+scruples which shadowed Charmian's good-will into a joyous, nay,
+enthusiastic desire to render assistance. Barine's marriage to the man
+who possessed her heart was close at hand, and she was the daughter of
+Leonax, who had once been dear to her. Fear and doubt vanished as if
+scattered to the four winds, and when Aisopion's work of transformation
+was completed and Barine stood before her as the high-shouldered,
+dark-visaged, wrinkled maid, she could not help admitting that it would
+be easy to escape from the palace in that disguise.
+
+She now told Barine that she intended to accompany her herself; and
+though the former's stained face forced her to refrain from kissing her
+friend, she plainly expressed to her and the faithful freedwoman the
+overflowing gratitude which filled her heart.
+
+Anukis was left alone. After carefully removing all the traces of her
+occupation, as habit dictated, she raised her arms in prayer, beseeching
+the gods of her native land to protect the beautiful woman to whom she
+had loaned her own misshapen form, which had now been of genuine
+service, and who had gone forth to meet so many dangers, but also a
+happiness whose very hope had been denied to her.
+
+Charmian had told her maid that if the Queen should inquire for her
+before Iras returned from the Choma to say that she had been obliged to
+leave the palace, and to supply her place. During their absence, when
+Charmian had been attacked by sickness, Cleopatra had often entrusted
+the care of her toilet to Aisopion, and had praised her skill.
+
+The Queen's confidential attendant was followed as usual when she went
+out by a dark-skinned maid. Lanterns and lamps had already been lighted
+in the corridors of the spacious palace, and the court-yards were ablaze
+with torches and pitch-pans; but, brilliantly as they burned in many
+places, and numerous as were the guards, officers, eunuchs, clerks,
+soldiers, cooks, attendants, slaves, door-keepers, and messengers whom
+they passed, not one gave them more than a careless glance.
+
+So they reached the last court-yard, and then came a moment when the
+hearts of both women seemed to stop beating--for the man whom they had
+most cause to dread, Alexas the Syrian, approached.
+
+And he did not pass the fugitives, but stopped Charmian, and
+courteously, even obsequiously, informed her that he wished to get rid
+of the troublesome affair of her favourite, which had been assigned to
+him against his will, and therefore had determined to bring Barine to
+trial early the following morning.
+
+The Syrian's body-servant attended his master, and while the former was
+talking with Charmian the latter turned to the supposed Nubian, tapped
+her lightly on the shoulder, and whispered: "Come this evening, as you
+did yesterday. You haven't finished the story of Prince Setnau."
+
+The fugitive felt as if she had grown dumb and could never more regain
+the power of speech. Yet she managed to nod, and directly after the
+favourite bowed a farewell to Charmian. The Ligurian was obliged to
+follow his master, while Charmian and Barine passed through the gateway
+between the last pylons into the open air.
+
+Here the sea-breeze seemed to waft her a joyous greeting from the realm
+of liberty and happiness, and the timid woman, amid all the perils which
+surrounded her, regained sufficient presence of mind to tell her friend
+what Alexas's slave had whispered--that Aisopion might remind him of it
+the same evening, and thus strengthen his belief that the Nubian had
+accompanied the Queen's confidante.
+
+The way to the Temple of Isis was short. The stars showed that they
+would reach their destination in time; but a second delay unexpectedly
+occurred. From the steps leading to the cella of the sanctuary a
+procession, whose length seemed endless, came towards them. At the head
+of the train marched eight pastophori, bearing the image of Isis. Then
+came the basket-bearers of the goddess with several other priestesses,
+followed by the reader with an open book-roll. Behind him appeared the
+quaternary number of prophets, whose head, the chief priest, moved with
+stately dignity beneath a canopy. The rest of the priestly train bore in
+their hands manuscripts, sacred vessels, standards, and wreaths. The
+priestesses--some of whom, with garlands on their flowing hair, were
+already shaking the sistrum of Isis--mingled with the line of priests,
+their high voices blending with the deep notes of the men. Neokori, or
+temple servants, and a large number of worshippers of Isis, closed the
+procession, all wearing wreaths and carrying flowers. Torch and lantern
+bearers lighted the way, and the perfume of the incense rising from the
+little pan of charcoal in the hand of a bronze arm, which the pastophori
+waved to and fro, surrounded and floated after the procession.
+
+The two women waiting for the train to pass saw it turn towards Lochias,
+and the conversation of the bystanders informed them that its object was
+to convey to "the new Isis," the Queen, the greeting of the goddess, and
+assure the sovereign of the divinity's remembrance of her in the hour of
+peril.
+
+Cleopatra could not help accepting this friendly homage, and it was
+incumbent upon her to receive it wearing on her head the crown of Upper
+and Lower Egypt, and robed in all the ecclesiastical vestments which
+only her two most trusted attendants knew how to put on with the
+attention to details that custom required. This had never been entrusted
+to maids of inferior position like the Nubian; so Cleopatra would miss
+Charmian.
+
+The thought filled her with fresh uneasiness and, when the steps were at
+last free, she asked herself anxiously how all this would end.
+
+It seemed as if the fugitive and her companion had exposed themselves to
+this great peril in vain; for some of the temple servants were forcing
+back those who wished to enter the sanctuary, shouting that it would be
+closed until the return of the procession. Barine gazed timidly into
+Charmian's face; but, ere she could express her opinion, the tall figure
+of a man appeared on the temple steps. It was Archibius, who with grave
+composure bade them follow him, and silently led them around the
+sanctuary to a side door, through which, a short time before, a litter
+had passed, accompanied by several attendants.
+
+Ascending a flight of steps within the long building, they reached the
+dimly lighted cella.
+
+As in the Temple of Osiris at Abydos seven corridors, here three led to
+the same number of apartments, the holy place of the sanctuary. The
+central one was dedicated to Isis, that on the left to her husband
+Osiris, and that on the right to Horus, the son of the great goddess.
+Before it, scarcely visible in the dim light, stood the altars, loaded
+with sacrifices by Archibius.
+
+Beside that of Horus was the litter which had been borne into the temple
+before the arrival of the women. From it, supported by two friends,
+descended a slender young man.
+
+A hollow sound echoed through the pillared hall. The iron door at the
+main entrance of the temple had been closed. The shrill rattle that
+followed proceeded from the metal bolts which an old servant of the
+sanctuary had shot into the sockets.
+
+Barine started, but neither inquired the cause of the noise nor
+perceived the wealth of objects here presented to the senses; for the
+man who, leaning on another's arm, approached the altar, was Dion, the
+lover who had perilled his life for her sake. Her eyes rested intently
+on his figure, her whole heart yearned towards him and, unable to
+control herself,--she called his name aloud.
+
+Charmian gazed anxiously around the group, but soon uttered a sigh of
+relief; for the tall man whose arm supported Dion was Gorgias, the
+worthy architect, his best friend, and the other, still taller and
+stronger, her own brother Archibius. Yonder figure, emerging from the
+disguise of wraps, was Berenike, Barine's mother. All trustworthy
+confidants! The only person whom she did not know was the handsome young
+man standing at her brother's side.
+
+Barine, whose arm she still held, had struggled to escape to rush to her
+mother and lover; but Archibius had approached, and in a whisper warned
+her to be patient and to refrain from any greeting or question,
+"supposing," he added, "that you are willing to be married at this altar
+to Dion, the son of Eumenes."
+
+Charmian felt Barine's arm tremble in hers at this suggestion, but the
+young beauty obeyed her friend's directions. She did not know what had
+befallen her, or whether, in the excess of happiness which overwhelmed
+her, to shout aloud in her exultant joy, or melt into silent tears of
+gratitude and emotion.
+
+No one spoke. Archibius took a roll of manuscript from Dion's hand,
+presented himself before the assembled company as the bride's kyrios, or
+guardian, and asked Barine whether she so recognized him. Then he
+returned to Dion the marriage contract, whose contents he knew and
+approved, and informed those present that, in the marriage about to be
+solemnized, they must consider him the paranymphos, or best man, and
+Berenike as the bridesmaid, and they instantly lighted a torch at the
+fires burning on one of the altars. Archibius, as kyrios, joined the
+lovers' hands in the Egyptian--Barine's mother, as bridesmaid, in the
+Greek--manner, and Dion gave his bride a plain iron ring. It was the
+same one which his father had bestowed at his own wedding, and he
+whispered: "My mother valued it; now it is your turn to honour the
+ancient treasure."
+
+After stating that the necessary sacrifices had been offered to Isis and
+Serapis, Zeus, Hera, and Artemis, and that the marriage between Dion,
+son of Eumenes, and Barine, daughter of Leonax, was concluded, Archibius
+shook hands with both.
+
+Haste seemed necessary, for he permitted Berenike and his sister only
+time for a brief embrace, and Gorgias to clasp her hand and Dion's. Then
+he beckoned, and the newly made bride's mother followed him in tears,
+Charmian bewildered and almost stupefied. She did not fully realize the
+meaning of the event she had just witnessed until an old neokori had
+guided her and the others into the open air.
+
+Barine felt as if every moment might rouse her from a blissful dream,
+and yet she gladly told herself that she was awake, for the man walking
+before her, leaning on the arm of a friend, was Dion. True, she saw,
+even in the faint light of the dim temple corridor, that he was
+suffering. Walking appeared to be so difficult that she rejoiced when,
+yielding to Gorgias's entreaties, he entered the litter.
+
+But where were the bearers?
+
+She was soon to learn; for, even while she looked for them, the
+architect and the youth, in whom she had long since recognized Philotas,
+her grandfather's assistant, seized the poles.
+
+"Follow us," said Gorgias, under his breath, and she obeyed, keeping
+close behind the litter, which was borne first down a broad and then a
+narrow staircase, and finally along a passage. Here a door stopped the
+fugitives; but the architect opened it and helped his friend out of the
+litter, which before proceeding farther he placed in a room filled with
+various articles discovered during his investigation of the subterranean
+temple chambers.
+
+Hitherto not a word had been spoken. Now Gorgias called to Barine: "This
+passage is low--you must stoop. Cover your head, and don't be afraid if
+you meet bats. They have long been undisturbed. We might have taken you
+from the temple to the sea, and waited there, but it would probably have
+attracted attention and been dangerous. Courage, young wife of Dion! The
+corridor is long, and walking through it is difficult; but compared with
+the road to the mines, it is as smooth and easy as the Street of the
+King. If you think of your destination, the bats will seem like the
+swallows which announce the approach of spring."
+
+Barine nodded gratefully to him; but she kissed the hand of Dion, who
+was moving forward painfully, leaning on the arm of his friend. The
+light of the torch carried by Gorgias's faithful foreman, who led the
+way, had fallen on her blackened arm, and when the little party advanced
+she kept behind the others. She thought it might be unpleasant for her
+lover to see her thus disfigured, and spared him, though she would
+gladly have remained nearer. As soon as the passage grew lower, the
+wounded man's friends took him in their arms, and their task was a hard
+one, for they were not only obliged to move onward bending low under the
+heavy burden, but also to beat off the bats which, frightened by the
+foreman's torch, flew up in hosts.
+
+Barine's hair was covered, it is true, but at any other time the hideous
+creatures, which often brushed against her head and arms, would have
+filled her with horror and loathing. Now she scarcely heeded them; her
+eyes were fixed on the recumbent figure in the bearers' arms, the man to
+whom she belonged, body and soul, and whose patient suffering pierced
+her inmost heart. His head rested on the breast of Gorgias, who walked
+directly in front of her; the architect's stooping posture concealed his
+face, but his feet were visible and, whenever they twitched, she fancied
+he was in pain. Then she longed to press forward to his side, wipe the
+perspiration from his brow in the hot, low corridor, and whisper words
+of love and encouragement.
+
+This she was sometimes permitted to do when the friends put down their
+heavy burden. True, they allowed themselves only brief intervals of
+rest, but they were long enough to show her how the sufferer's strength
+was failing. When they at last reached their destination, Philotas was
+forced to exert all his strength to support the exhausted man, while
+Gorgias cautiously opened the door. It led to a flight of sea-washed
+steps close to the garden of Didymus, which as a child she had often
+used with her brother to float a little boat upon the water.
+
+The architect opened the door only a short distance; he was expected,
+for Barine soon heard him whisper, and suddenly the door was flung wide.
+A tall man raised Dion and bore him into the open air. While she was
+still gazing after him, a second figure of equal size approached her
+and, hastily begging her permission, lifted her in his arms like a
+child, and as she inhaled the cool night air and felt the water through
+which her bearer waded splash up and wet her feet, her eyes sought her
+new-made husband--but in vain; the night was very dark, and the lights
+on the shore did not reach this spot so far below the walls of the quay.
+
+Barine was frightened; but a few minutes after the outlines of a large
+fishing boat loomed through the darkness, dimly illumined by the harbour
+lights, and the next instant the giant who carried her placed her on the
+deck, and a deep voice whispered: "All's well. I'll bring some wine at
+once."
+
+Then Barine saw her husband lying motionless on a couch which had been
+prepared for him in the prow of the boat. Bending over him, she
+perceived that he had fainted, and while rubbing his forehead with the
+wine, raising his head on her lap, cheering him, and afterwards by the
+light of a small lantern carefully renewing the bandage on his shoulder,
+she did not notice that the vessel was moving through the water until
+the boatman set the triangular sail.
+
+She had not been told where the boat was bearing her, and she did not
+ask. Any spot that she could share with Dion was welcome. The more
+lonely the place, the more she could be to him. How her heart swelled
+with gratitude and love! When she bent over him, kissed his forehead,
+and felt how feverishly it burned, she thought, "I will nurse you back
+to health," and raised her eyes and soul to her favourite god, to whom
+she owed the gift of song, and who understood everything beautiful and
+pure, to thank Phœbus Apollo and beseech him to pour his rays the next
+morning on a convalescent man. While she was still engaged in prayer the
+boat touched the shore. Again strong arms bore her and Dion to the land,
+and when her foot touched the solid earth, her rescuer, the freedman
+Pyrrhus, broke the silence, saying: "Welcome, wife of Dion, to our
+island! True, you must be satisfied to take us as we are. But if you are
+as content with us as we are glad to serve you and your lord, who is
+ours also, the hour of leave-taking will be far distant."
+
+Then, leading the way to the house, he showed her as her future
+apartments two large whitewashed rooms, whose sole ornament was their
+exquisite neatness.
+
+On the threshold stood Pyrrhus's grey-haired wife, a young woman, and a
+girl scarcely beyond childhood; but the older one modestly welcomed
+Barine, and also begged her to accept their hospitality. Recovery was
+rapid in the pure air of the Serpent Isle. She herself, and--she pointed
+to the others--her oldest son's wife, and her own daughter, Dione, would
+be ready to render her any service.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+Brothers and sisters are rarely talkative when they are together. As
+Charmian went to Lochias with Archibius, it was difficult for her to
+find words, the events of the past few hours had agitated her so deeply.
+Archibius, too, could not succeed in turning his thoughts in any other
+direction, though important and far more momentous things claimed his
+attention.
+
+They walked on silently side by side. In reply to his sister's inquiry
+where the newly wedded pair were to be concealed, he had answered that,
+spite of her trustworthiness, this must remain a secret. To her second
+query, how had it been possible to use the interior of the Temple of
+Isis without interruption, he also made a guarded reply.
+
+In fact, it was the control of the subterranean corridors of the
+sanctuary which had suggested to Gorgias the idea of carrying Dion
+through them to Pyrrhus's fishing-boat. To accomplish this it was only
+necessary to have the Temple of Isis, which usually remained open day
+and night, left to the fugitive's friends for a short time; and this was
+successfully managed.
+
+The historian Timagenes, who had come from Rome as ambassador and
+claimed the hospitality of his former pupil Archibius, had been
+empowered to offer Cleopatra recognition of her own and her children's
+right to the throne, and a full pardon, if she would deliver Mark Antony
+into the hands of Octavianus, or have him put to death.
+
+The Alexandrian Timagenes considered this demand both just and
+desirable, because it promised to deliver his native city from the man
+whose despotic arrogance menaced its freedom, and whose lavish
+generosity and boundless love of splendour diminished its wealth. To
+Rome, as whose representative the historian appeared, this man's mere
+existence meant constant turmoil and civil war. At the restoration of
+the flute-player by Gabinius and Mark Antony, Timagenes had been carried
+into slavery. Later, when, after his freedom had been purchased by the
+son of Sulla, he succeeded in attaining great influence in Rome, he
+still remained hostile to Mark Antony, and it had been a welcome charge
+to work against him in Alexandria. He hoped to find an ally in
+Archibius, whose loyal devotion to the Queen he knew. Arius, Barine's
+uncle and Octavianus's former tutor, would also aid him. The most
+powerful support of his mission, however, could be rendered by the
+venerable chief priest, the head of the whole Egyptian hierarchy. He had
+shown the latter that Antony, in any case, was a lost man, and Egypt was
+in the act of dropping like a ripe fruit into the lap of Octavianus. It
+would soon be in his power to give the country whatever degree of
+liberty and independence he might choose. The Cæsar had the sole
+disposal of the Queen's fate also, and whoever desired to see her remain
+on the throne must strive to gain the good-will of Octavianus.
+
+The wise Anubis had considered all these things, but he owed to
+Timagenes the hint that Arius was the man whom Octavianus most trusted.
+So the august prelate secretly entered into communication with Barine's
+uncle. But the dignity of his high office, and the feebleness of extreme
+age, forbade Anubis to seek the man who was suspected of friendship for
+the Romans. He had therefore sent his trusted secretary, the young
+Serapion, to make a compact as his representative with the friend of
+Octavianus, whose severe injuries prevented his leaving the house to go
+to the chief priest.
+
+During Timagenes's negotiations with the secretary and Arius, Archibius
+came to entreat Barine's uncle to do everything in his power to save his
+niece; and, as all the Queen's friends were anxious to prevent an act
+which, in these times of excitement, could not fail, on account of its
+connection with Dion, a member of the Council, to rouse a large number
+of the citizens against her, Serapion, as soon as he was made aware of
+the matter, eagerly protested his readiness to do his best to save the
+imperilled lovers. He cared nothing for Barine or Dion as individuals,
+but he doubtless would have been ready to make a still greater sacrifice
+to win the influential Archibius, and especially Arius, who would have
+great power through Octavianus, the rising sun.
+
+The men had just begun to discuss plans for saving Barine, when the
+Nubian appeared and told Archibius what had been arranged beside Dion's
+sick-bed by the freedman and Gorgias. The escape of the fugitives
+depended solely upon their reaching the boat unseen, and the surest way
+to accomplish this was to use the subterranean passage which the
+architect had again opened.
+
+Archibius, to whom the representative of the chief priest had offered
+his aid, now took the others into his confidence, and Arius proposed
+that Barine should marry Dion in the Temple of Isis, and the couple
+should afterwards be guided through the secret passage to the boat. This
+proposal was approved, and Serapion promised to reserve the sanctuary
+for the wedding of the fugitives for a short time after the departure of
+the procession, which was to take place at sunset. In return for this
+service another might perhaps soon be requested from the friend of
+Octavianus, who greeted his promise with grateful warmth.
+
+"The priesthood," said Serapion, "takes sides with all who are unjustly
+persecuted, and in this case bestows aid the more willingly on account
+of its great anxiety to guard the Queen from an act which would be
+difficult to approve." As for the fugitives, so far as he could see,
+only two possibilities were open to them: Cleopatra would cleave to Mark
+Antony and go--would that the immortals might avert it!--to ruin, or she
+would sacrifice him and save her throne and life. In both cases the
+endangered lovers could soon return uninjured--the Queen had a merciful
+heart, and never retained anger long if no guilt existed.
+
+The details of the plan were then settled by Archibius, Anukis, and
+Berenike, who was with the family of Arius, and the decision was
+communicated to the architect. Archibius had maintained the same silence
+concerning the destination of the fugitives towards the men composing
+the council and Barine's mother as to his sister. With regard to the
+mission of Timagenes and the political questions which occupied his
+mind, he gave Charmian only the degree of information necessary to
+explain the plan she so lovingly promoted; but she had no desire to know
+more. On the way home her mind was wholly absorbed by the fear that
+Cleopatra had missed her services and discovered Barine's flight. True,
+she mentioned the Queen's desire to place her children in Archibius's
+charge, but she could not give him full particulars until she reached
+her own apartments.
+
+Her absence had not been noticed. The Regent Mardion had received the
+procession in the Queen's name, for Cleopatra had driven into the city,
+no one knew where.
+
+Charmian entered her apartments with a lighter heart. Anukis opened the
+door to them. She had remained undisturbed, and it was a pleasure to
+Archibius to give the faithful, clever freedwoman an account of the
+matter with his own lips. He could have bestowed no richer reward upon
+the modest servant, who listened to his words as if they were a
+revelation. When she disclaimed the thanks with which he concluded,
+protesting that she was the person under obligation, the expression was
+sincere. Her keen intellect instantly recognized the aristocrat's manner
+of addressing an equal or an inferior; and he who, in her eyes, was the
+first of men, had described the course of events as though she had stood
+on the same level. The Queen herself might have been satisfied with the
+report.
+
+When she left Charmian's rooms to join the other servants, she told
+herself that she was an especially favoured mortal; and when a young
+cook teased her about her head being sunk between her shoulders, she
+answered, laughing: "My shoulders have grown so high because I shrug
+them so often at the fools who jeer at me and yet are not half so happy
+and grateful."
+
+Charmian, sorely wearied, had flung herself into an arm-chair, and
+Archibius took his place opposite to her. They were happy in each
+other's society, even when silent; but to-day the hearts of both were so
+full that they fared like those who are so worn out by fatigue that they
+cannot sleep. How much they had to tell each other!--yet it was long ere
+Charmian broke the silence and returned to the subject of the Queen's
+wish, describing to her brother Cleopatra's visit to the house which the
+children had built, how kind and cordial she had been; yet, a few
+minutes later, incensed by the mere mention of Barine's name, she had
+dismissed her so ungraciously.
+
+"I do not know what you intend," she said in conclusion, "but,
+notwithstanding my love for her, I must perhaps decide in favour of what
+is most difficult, for--when she learns that it was I who withdrew the
+daughter of Leonax from her and the base Alexas--what treatment can I
+expect, especially as Iras no longer gives me the same affection, and
+shows that she has forgotten my love and care? This will increase, and
+the worst of the matter is, that if the Queen begins to favour her, I
+cannot justly reproach her, for Iras is keener-witted, and has a more
+active brain. Statecraft was always odious to me. Iras, on the contrary,
+is delighted with the opportunity to speak on subjects connected with
+the government of the country, and especially the ceaseless, momentous
+game with Rome and the men who guide her destiny."
+
+"That game is lost," Archibius broke in with so much earnestness that
+Charmian started, repeating in a low, timid tone:
+
+"Lost?"
+
+"Forever," said Archibius, "unless----"
+
+"The Olympians be praised--that there is still a doubt."
+
+"Unless Cleopatra can decide to commit an act which will force her to be
+faithless to herself, and destroy her noble image through all future
+generations."
+
+"How?"
+
+"Whenever you learn it, will be too soon."
+
+"And suppose she should do it, Archibius? You are her most trusted
+confidant. She will place in your charge what she loves more than she
+does herself."
+
+"More? You mean, I suppose, the children?"
+
+"The children! Yes, a hundred times yes. She loves them better than
+aught else on earth. For them, believe me, she would be ready to go to
+her death."
+
+"Let us hope so."
+
+"And you--were she to commit the horrible deed--I can only suspect what
+it is. But should she descend from the height which she has hitherto
+occupied--would you still be ready----"
+
+"With me," he interrupted quietly, "what she does or does not do matters
+nothing. She is unhappy and will be plunged deeper and deeper into
+misery. I know this, and it constrains me to exert my utmost powers in
+her service. I am hers as the hermit consecrated to Serapis belongs to
+the god. His every thought must be devoted to him. To the deity who
+created him he dedicates body and soul until the death to which he dooms
+him. The bonds which unite me to this woman--you know their origin--are
+not less indestructible. Whatever she desires whose fulfilment will not
+force me to despise myself is granted in advance."
+
+"She will never require such things from the friend of her childhood,"
+cried Charmian. Then, approaching him with both arms extended joyfully,
+she exclaimed: "Thus you ought to speak and feel, and therein is the
+answer to the question which has agitated my soul since yesterday.
+Barine's flight, the favour and disfavour of Cleopatra, Iras, my poor
+head, which abhors politics, while at this time the Queen needs
+keen-sighted confidants----"
+
+"By no means," her brother interrupted. "It is for men alone to give
+counsel in these matters. Accursed be women's gossip over their toilet
+tables. It has already scattered to the four winds many a
+well-considered plan of the wisest heads, and an Iras could never be
+more fatal to statecraft than just at the present moment, had not Fate
+already uttered the final verdict."
+
+"Then hence with these scruples," cried Charmian eagerly; "my doubts are
+at an end! As usual, you point out the right path. I had thought of
+returning to the country estate we call Irenia--the abode of peace--or
+to our beloved little palace at Kanopus, to spend the years which may
+still be allotted to me, and return to everything that made my childhood
+beautiful. The philosophers, the flowers in the garden, the poets--even
+the new Roman ones, of whose works Timagenes sent us such charming
+specimens--would enliven the solitude. The child, the daughter of the
+man whose love I renounced, and afterwards perhaps her sons and
+daughters, would fill the place of my own. As they would have been dear
+to Leonax, I, too, would have loved them! This is the guise in which the
+future has appeared to me in many a quiet hour. But shall Charmian--who,
+when her heart throbbed still more warmly and life lay fair before her,
+laid her first love upon the altar of sacrifice for her royal
+playfellow--abandon Cleopatra in misfortune from mere selfish scruples?
+No, no!--Like you, I too belong--come what may--to the Queen."
+
+She gazed into her brother's face, sure of his approval but, waving his
+uplifted hand, he answered gravely: "No, Charmian! What I, a man, can
+assume, might be fatal to you, a woman. The present is not sweet enough
+for me to embitter it with wormwood from the future. And yet---- You
+must cast one glance into its gloomy domain, in order to understand me.
+You can be silent, and what you now learn will be a secret between us.
+Only one thing"--here he lowered the loud tones of his deep voice--"only
+one thing can save her: the murder of Antony, or an act of shameless
+treachery which would deliver him into Octavianus's power. This is the
+proposal Timagenes brought."
+
+"This?" she asked in a hollow tone, her grey head drooping.
+
+"This," he repeated firmly. "And if she succumbs to the temptation, she
+will be faithless to the love which has coursed through her whole life
+as the Nile flows through the land of her ancestors. Then, Charmian,
+stay, stay under any circumstances, cling to her more firmly than ever,
+for then, then, my sister, she will be more wretched--ten, a hundred
+fold more wretched than if Octavianus deprives her of everything,
+perhaps even life itself."
+
+"Nor will I leave her, come what may. I will remain at her side until
+the end," cried Charmian eagerly. But Archibius, without noticing the
+enthusiastic ardor, so unusual to his sister's quiet nature, calmly
+continued: "She won your heart also, and it seems impossible for you to
+desert her. Many have shared our feelings; and it is no disgrace to any
+one. Misfortune is a weapon which cleaves base natures like a sword, yet
+like a hammer welds noble ones more closely. To you, therefore, it now
+seems doubly difficult to leave her, but you need love. The right to
+live and guard yourself from the most pitiable retrogression is your
+due, as much as that of the rare woman on the throne. So long as you are
+sure of her love, remain with her, and show your devotion in every
+situation until the end. But the motives which were drawing you away to
+books, flowers, and children, weigh heavily in the balance, and if you
+lack the anchor of her favour and love, I shall see you perish
+miserably. The frost emanating from Cleopatra, if her heart grew cold to
+you, the pin-pricks with which Iras would assail you, were you
+defenceless, would kill you. This must not be, sister; we will guard
+against it---- Do not interrupt me. The counsel I advise you to follow
+has been duly weighed. If you see that the Queen still loves you as in
+former days, cling to her; but should you learn the contrary, bid her
+farewell to-morrow. My Irenia is yours----"
+
+"But she _does_ love me, and even should she no longer----"
+
+"The test is at hand. We will leave the decision to her. You shall
+confess that you were the culprit who aided Barine to escape her power
+to punish."
+
+"Archibius!"
+
+"If you did not, a series of falsehoods must ensue. Try whether the
+petty qualities in her nature, which urged her to commit the fate of
+Leonax's daughter to unworthy hands, are more powerful than the nobler
+ones. Try whether she is worthy of the self-sacrificing fidelity which
+you have given her all your life. If she remains the same as before,
+spite of this admission----"
+
+Here he was interrupted by Anukis, who asked if her mistress would see
+Iras at this late hour.
+
+"Admit her," replied Archibius, after hastily exchanging glances with
+his sister, whose face had paled at his demand. He perceived it and, as
+the servant withdrew, he clasped her hand, saying with earnest
+affection: "I gave you my opinion, but at our age we must take counsel
+with ourselves, and you will find the right path."
+
+"I have already found it," she answered softly with downcast eyes. "This
+visitor brought a speedy decision. I must not feel ashamed in Iras's
+presence."
+
+She had scarcely finished speaking when the Queen's younger confidante
+entered. She was excited and, after casting a searching glance around
+the familiar room, she asked, after a curt greeting: "No one knows where
+the Queen has gone. Mardion received the procession in her place. Did
+she take you into her confidence?"
+
+Charmian answered in the negative, and inquired whether Antony had
+arrived, and how she had found him.
+
+"In a pitiable state," was the reply. "I hastened hither to prevent the
+Queen from visiting him, if possible. She would have received a rebuff.
+It is horrible."
+
+"The disappointment of Parætonium is added to the other burdens,"
+observed Archibius.
+
+"A feather compared with the rest," cried Iras indignantly. "What a
+spectacle! A shrivelled soul, never too large, in the body of a powerful
+giant. Disaster crushes the courage of the descendant of Herakles. The
+weakling will drag the Queen's splendid courage with him into the dust."
+
+"We will do our best to prevent it," replied Archibius firmly. "The
+immortals have placed you and Charmian at her side to sustain her, if
+her own strength fails. The time to test your powers has arrived."
+
+"I know my duty," replied Iras austerely.
+
+"Prove it!" said Archibius earnestly. "You think you have cause for
+anger against Charmian."
+
+"Whoever treats my foes so tenderly can doubtless dispense with my
+affection. Where is your ward?"
+
+"That you shall learn later," replied Charmian advancing. "But when you
+do know, you will have still better reason to doubt my love; yet it was
+only to save one dear to me from misery, certainly not to grieve you,
+that I stepped between you and Barine. And now let me say--had you
+wounded me to the quick, and everything dear to the Greek heart called
+to me for vengeance--I should impose upon myself whatever constraint
+might be necessary to deny the impulse, because this breast contains a
+love stronger, more powerful, than the fiercest hate. And this love we
+both share. Hate me, strive to wound and injure one at whose side you
+have hitherto stood like a daughter, but beware of robbing me of the
+strength and freedom which I need, to be and to offer to my royal
+mistress all the assistance in my power. I have just been consulting my
+brother about leaving Cleopatra's service."
+
+"Now?" Iras broke in vehemently. "No, no! Not that! It must not be! She
+cannot spare you now."
+
+"More easily, perhaps, than you," replied Charmian; "yet in many things
+my services might be hard to replace."
+
+"Nothing under the sun _could_ do it," cried Iras eagerly. "If, in these
+days of trouble, she should lose you too----"
+
+"Still darker ones are approaching," interrupted Archibius positively.
+"Perhaps you will learn all to-morrow. Whether Charmian yields to her
+desire for rest, or continues in the service of the Queen, depends on
+you. If you wish her to remain you must not render it too hard for her
+to do so. We three, my child, are perhaps the only persons at this court
+to whom the Queen's happiness is more than their own, and therefore we
+should permit no incident, whatever name it may bear, to cloud our
+harmony."
+
+Iras threw back her head with angry pride, exclaiming passionately: "Was
+it I who injured you? I do not know in what respect. But you and
+Charmian--though you have so long been aware that this heart was closed
+against every love save one--stepped between me and the man for whom I
+have yearned since childhood, and built the bridge which united Dion and
+Barine. I held the woman I hated in my grasp, and thanked the immortals
+for the boon; but you two--it is not difficult to guess the secret you
+are still trying to keep from me--you aided her to escape. You have
+robbed me of my revenge; you have again placed the singer in the path
+where she must find the man to whom I have a better and older claim, and
+who perhaps may still be considering which of us two will be the better
+mistress of his house, if Alexas and his worthy brother do not arrange
+matters so that we must both content ourselves with thinking tenderly of
+a dead man. That is why I believe that I am no longer indebted to you,
+that Charmian has more than repaid herself for all the kindness she has
+ever showed me."
+
+With these words she hurried to the door, but paused on the threshold,
+exclaiming: "This is the state of affairs; yet I am ready to serve the
+Queen hand in hand with you as before; for you two--as I have said--are
+necessary to her. In other respects--I shall follow my own path."
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+Cleopatra had sought the venerable Anubis, who now, as the priest of
+Alexander, at the age of eighty, ruled the whole hierarchy of the
+country. It was difficult for him to leave his arm-chair, but he had
+been carried to the observatory to examine the adverse result of the
+observation made by the Queen herself. The position of the stars,
+however, had been so unfavourable that the more deeply Cleopatra entered
+into these matters, the less easy he found it to urge the mitigating
+influences of distant planets, which he had at first pointed out.
+
+In his reception-hall, however, the chief priest had assured her that
+the independence of Egypt and the safety of her own person lay in her
+hands; only--the planets showed this--a terrible sacrifice was
+required--a sacrifice of which his dignity, his eighty years, and his
+love for her alike forbade him to speak. Cleopatra was accustomed to
+hear these mysterious sayings from his lips, and interpreted them in her
+own way. Many motives had induced her to seek the venerable prelate at
+this late hour. In difficult situations he had often aided her with good
+counsel; but this time she was not led to him by the magic cup of
+Nektanebus, which the eight pastophori who accompanied it had that day
+restored to the temple, for since the battle of Actium the superb vessel
+had been a source of constant anxiety to her.
+
+Cleopatra had now asked the teacher of her childhood the direct question
+whether the cup--a wide, shallow vessel, with a flat, polished
+bottom--could really have induced Antony to leave the battle and follow
+her ere the victory was decided. She had used it just before the
+conflict between the galleys, and this circumstance led Anubis to answer
+positively in the affirmative.
+
+Long ago the marvellous chalice had been exhibited to her among the
+temple treasures, and she was told that every one who induced another
+person to be reflected from its shining surface obtained the mastery
+over his will. Her wish to possess it, however, was not gratified, and
+she did not ask for it again until the limitless devotion and ardent
+love of Antony had seemed less fervent than of yore. From that time she
+had never ceased to urge her aged friend to place the wondrous cup in
+her keeping. At first he had absolutely refused, predicting that its use
+would bring misfortune upon her; but when her request was followed by an
+imperative command, and the goblet was entrusted to her, Anubis himself
+believed that this _one_ vessel did possess the magic power attributed
+to it. He deemed that the drinking-cup afforded the strongest proof of
+the magic art, far transcending human ability, of the great goddess by
+whose aid King Nektanebus--who, according to tradition, was the father
+of Alexander the Great--was said to have made the vessel in the Isis
+island of Philæ.
+
+Anubis had intended to remind Cleopatra of his refusal, and show her the
+great danger incurred by mortals who strove to use powers beyond their
+sphere. It had been his purpose to bid her remember Phaeton, who had
+almost kindled a conflagration in the world, when he attempted, in the
+chariot of his father, Phœbus Apollo, to guide the horses of the sun.
+But this was unnecessary, for he had scarcely assented to the question
+ere, with passionate vehemence, she ordered him to destroy before her
+eyes the cup which had brought so much misfortune.
+
+The priest feigned that her desire harmonized with a resolution which he
+had himself formed.
+
+In fact, before her arrival, he had feared that the goblet might be used
+in some fatal manner if Octavianus should take possession of the city
+and country, and the wonder-working vessel should fall into his hands.
+Nektanebus had made the cup for Egypt. To wrest it from the foreign
+ruler was acting in the spirit of the last king in whose veins had
+flowed the blood of the Pharaohs, and who had toiled with enthusiastic
+devotion for the independence and liberty of his people. To destroy this
+man's marvellous work rather than deliver it to the Roman conqueror
+seemed to the chief priest, after the Queen's command, a sacred duty,
+and as such he represented it to be when he commanded the smelting
+furnace to be fired and the cup transformed into a shapeless mass before
+the eyes of Cleopatra.
+
+While the metal was melting he eagerly told the Queen how easily she
+could dispense with the vessel which owed its magic power to the mighty
+Isis.
+
+The spell of woman's charms was also a gift of the goddess. It would
+suffice to render Antony's heart soft and yielding as the fire melted
+the gold. Perhaps the Imperator had forfeited, with the Queen's respect,
+her love--the most priceless of blessings. He, Anubis, would regard this
+as a great boon of the Deity; "for," he concluded, "Mark Antony is the
+cliff which will shatter every effort to secure to my royal mistress
+undiminished the heritage which has come to her and her children from
+their ancestors, and preserve the independence and prosperity of this
+beloved land. This cup was a costly treasure. The throne and prosperity
+of Egypt are worthy of greater sacrifices. But I know that there is none
+harder for a woman to make than her love."
+
+The meaning of the old man's words Cleopatra learned the following
+morning, when she granted the first interview to Timagenes, Octavianus's
+envoy.
+
+The keen-witted, brilliant man, who had been one of her best teachers
+and with whom, when a pupil, she had had many an argument, was kindly
+received, and fulfilled his commission with consummate skill.
+
+The Queen listened attentively to his representations, showed him that
+her own intellect had not lost in flexibility, though it had gained
+power; and when she dismissed him, with rich gifts and gracious words,
+she knew that she could preserve the independence of her beloved native
+land and retain the throne for herself and her children if she would
+surrender Antony to the conqueror or to him, as "the person acting,"
+or--these were Timagenes's own words--"remove him forever from the play
+whose end she had the power to render either brilliant or fateful."
+
+When she was again alone her heart throbbed so passionately and her soul
+was in such a tumult of agitation that she felt unable to attend the
+appointed meeting of the Council of the crown. She deferred the session
+until the following day, and resolved to go out upon the sea, to
+endeavour to regain her composure.
+
+Antony had refused to see her. This wounded her. The thought of the
+goblet and its evil influences had by no means passed from her memory
+with the destruction of the vessel caused by one of those outbursts of
+passion to which, in these days of disaster, she yielded more frequently
+than usual. On the contrary, she felt the necessity of being alone, to
+collect her thoughts and strive to dispel the clouds from her troubled
+soul.
+
+The beaker had been one of the treasures of Isis, and the memory of it
+recalled hours during which, in former days, she had often found
+composure in the temple of the goddess. She wished to seek the sanctuary
+unnoticed and, accompanied only by Iras and the chief Introducer, went,
+closely veiled, to the neighbouring temple at the Corner of the Muses.
+
+But she failed to find the object of her pilgrimage. The throng which
+filled it to pray and offer sacrifices, and the fear of being
+recognized, destroyed her calmness.
+
+She was in the act of retiring, when Gorgias, the architect, followed by
+an assistant carrying surveying instruments, advanced towards her. She
+instantly called him to her side, and he informed her how wonderfully
+Fate itself seemed to favour her plan of building. The mob had destroyed
+the house of the old philosopher Didymus, and the grey-haired sage, to
+whom he had offered the shelter of his home, was now ready to transfer
+the property inherited from his ancestors, if her Majesty would assure
+him and his family of her protection.
+
+Then she asked to see the architect's plan for joining the museum to the
+sanctuary, and became absorbed in the first sketch, to which he had
+devoted part of the night and morning. He showed it, and with eager
+urgency Cleopatra commanded him to begin the building as soon as
+possible and pursue the work night and day. What usually required months
+must be completed in weeks.
+
+Iras and the "Introducer," clad in plain garments, had waited for her in
+the temple court and, joined by the architect, accompanied her to the
+unpretending litter standing at one of the side gates but, instead of
+entering it, she ordered Gorgias to attend her to the garden.
+
+The inspection proved that the architect was right and, even if the
+mausoleum occupied a portion of it, and the street which separated it
+from the Temple of Isis were continued along the shore of the sea, the
+remainder would still be twice as large as the one belonging to the
+palace at Lochias.
+
+Cleopatra's thorough examination showed Gorgias that she had some
+definite purpose in view. Her inquiry whether it would be possible to
+connect it with the promontory of Lochias indicated what she had in
+mind, and the architect answered in the affirmative. It was only
+necessary to tear down some small buildings belonging to the Crown and a
+little temple of Berenike at the southern part of the royal harbour. The
+arm of the Agathodæmon Canal which entered here had been bridged long
+ago.
+
+The new scene which would result from this change had been conjured
+before the Queen's mental vision with marvellous celerity, and she
+described it in brief, vivid language to the architect. The garden
+should remain, but must be enlarged from the Lochias to the bridge.
+Thence a covered colonnade would lead to the palace. After Gorgias had
+assured her that all this could easily be arranged, she gazed
+thoughtfully at the ground for a time, and then gave orders that the
+work should be commenced at once, and requested him to spare neither
+means nor men.
+
+Gorgias foresaw a period of feverish toil, but it did not daunt him.
+With such a master builder he was ready to roof the whole city. Besides,
+the commission delighted him because it proved that the woman whose
+mausoleum was to rise from the earth so swiftly still thought of
+enhancing the pleasures of existence; for, though she wished the garden
+to remain unchanged, she desired to see the colonnade and the remainder
+of the work constructed of costly materials and in beautiful forms. When
+she bade him farewell, Gorgias kissed her robe with ardent enthusiasm.
+
+What a woman! True, she had not even raised her veil, and was attired in
+plain dark clothing, but every gesture revealed the most perfect grace.
+The arm and hand with which she pointed now here, now there, again
+seemed to him fairly instinct with life; and he, who deemed perfection
+of form of so much value, found it difficult to avert his eyes from her
+marvellous symmetry. And her whole figure! What lines, what genuine
+aristocratic elegance, and warm, throbbing life!
+
+That morning when Helena, now an inmate of his own home, greeted him, he
+had essayed to compare her, mentally, with Cleopatra, but speedily
+desisted. The man to whom Hebe proffers nectar does not ask for even the
+best wine of Byblus. A feeling of grateful, cheerful satisfaction,
+difficult to describe, stole over him when the reserved, quiet Helena
+addressed him so warmly and cordially; but the image of Cleopatra
+constantly thrust itself between them, and it was difficult for him to
+understand himself. He had loved many women in succession, and now his
+heart throbbed for two at once, and the Queen was the brighter of the
+two stars whose light entranced him. Therefore his honest soul would
+have considered it a crime to woo Helena now.
+
+Cleopatra knew what an ardent admirer she had won in the able architect,
+and the knowledge pleased her. She had used no goblet to gain _him_.
+Doubtless he would begin to build the mausoleum the next morning. The
+vault must have space for several coffins. Antony had more than once
+expressed the desire to be buried beside her, wherever he might die, and
+this had occurred ere she possessed the beaker. She must in any case
+grant him the same favour, no matter in what place or by whose hand he
+met death, and the bedimmed light of his existence was but too evidently
+nearing extinction. If she spared him, Octavianus would strike him from
+the ranks of the living, and she---- Again she was overpowered by the
+terrible, feverish restlessness which had induced her to command the
+destruction of the goblet, and had brought her to the temple. She could
+not return in this mood to meet her councillors, receive visitors, greet
+her children. This was the birthday of the twins; Charmian had reminded
+her of it and undertaken to provide the gifts. How could she have found
+time and thought for such affairs?
+
+She had returned from the chief priest late in the evening, yet had
+asked for a minute description of the condition in which they found Mark
+Antony. The report made by Iras harmonized with the state in which she
+had herself seen him during and after the battle. Ay, his brooding gloom
+seemed to have deepened. Charmian had helped her dress in the morning,
+and had been on the point of making her difficult confession, and owning
+that she had aided Barine to escape the punishment of her royal
+mistress; but ere she could begin, Timagenes was announced, for
+Cleopatra had not risen from her couch until a late hour.
+
+The object for which the Queen had sought the temple had not been
+gained; but the consultation with Gorgias had diverted her mind, and the
+emotions which the thought of her last resting-place had evoked now
+drowned everything else, as the roar of the surf dominates the
+twittering of the swallows on the rocky shore.
+
+Ay, she needed calmness! She must weigh and ponder over many things in
+absolute quietude, and this she could not obtain at Lochias. Then her
+glance rested upon the little sanctuary of Berenike, which she had
+ordered removed to make room for a garden near at hand, where the
+children could indulge their love of creative work. It was empty. She
+need fear no interruption there. The interior contained only a single,
+quiet, pleasant chamber, with the image of Berenike. The "Introducer"
+commanded the guard to admit no other visitors, and soon the little
+white marble, circular room with its vaulted roof received the Queen.
+She sank down on one of the bronze benches opposite to the statue. All
+was still; in this cool silence her mind, trained to thought, could find
+that for which it longed--clearness of vision, a plain understanding of
+her own feelings and position in the presence of the impending decision.
+
+At first her thoughts wandered to and fro like a dove ere it chooses the
+direction of its flight; but after the question why she was having a
+tomb built so hurriedly, when she would be permitted to live, her mind
+found the right track. Among the Scythian guards, the Mauritanians, and
+Blemmyes in the army there were plenty of savage fellows whom a word
+from her lips and a handful of gold would have set upon the vanquished
+Antony, as the huntsman's "Seize him!" urges the hounds. A hint, and
+among the wretched magicians and Magians in the Rhakotis, the Egyptian
+quarter of the city, twenty men would have assassinated him by poison or
+wily snares; one command to the Macedonians in the guard of the Mellakes
+or youths, and he would be a captive that very day, and to-morrow, if
+she so ordered, on the way to Asia, whither Octavianus, as Timagenes
+told her, had gone.
+
+What prevented her from grasping the gold, giving the hint, issuing the
+command?
+
+Doubtless she thought of the magic goblet, now melted, which had
+constrained him to cast aside honour, fame, and power, as worthless
+rubbish, in order to obey her behest not to leave her; but though this
+remembrance burdened her soul, it had no decisive influence. It was no
+one thing which prisoned her hand and lips, but every fibre of her
+being, every pulsation of her heart, every glance back into the past to
+the confines of childhood.
+
+Yet she listened to other thoughts also. They reminded her of her
+children, the elation of power, love for the land of her ancestors, and
+the peril which menaced it without her, the bliss of seeing the light,
+and the darkness, the silence, the dull rigidity of death, the
+destruction of the body and the mind cherished and developed with so
+much care and toil, the horrible torture which might be associated with
+the transition from life to death--the act of dying. And what lay before
+her in the existence which lasted an eternity? When she no longer
+breathed beneath the sun, even if the death hour was deferred, and she
+found that not Epicurus, who believed that with death all things ended,
+had been right, but the ancient teachings of the Egyptians, what would
+await her in that world beyond the grave if she purchased a few more
+years of life by the murder or betrayal of her lover, her husband?
+
+Yet perhaps the punishments inflicted upon the condemned were but
+bugbears invented by the priesthood, which guarded the regulation of the
+state in order to curb the unruly conduct of the populace and terrify
+the turbulent transgressors of the law. And, whispered the daring Greek
+spirit, in the abode of the condemned, not in the Garden of Aalu, the
+Elysian Fields of the Egyptians, she would meet her father and mother
+and all her wicked ancestors down to Euergetes I, who was succeeded by
+the infamous Philopater. Thus the thought of the other world became an
+antecedent so uncertain as to permit no definite inference, and might
+therefore be left out of the account. How would--this must be the form
+of the question--the years purchased by the murder or betrayal of one
+whom she loved shape themselves for her?
+
+During the night the image of the murdered man would drive sleep from
+her couch, and the Furies, the Diræ, as the Roman Antony called them,
+who pursue murderers with the serpent scourge, were no idle creations of
+poetic fancy, but fully symbolized the restlessness of the criminal,
+driven to and fro by the pangs of conscience. The chief good, the
+painless happiness of the Epicureans, was forever lost to those burdened
+by such guilt.
+
+And during the hours of the day and evening?
+
+Ay, then she would be free to heap pleasure on pleasure. But for whom
+were the festivals to be celebrated; with whom could she share them? For
+many a long year no banquet, no entertainment had given her enjoyment
+without Mark Antony. For whom did she adorn herself or strive to stay
+the vanishing charm? And how soon would anguish of soul utterly destroy
+the spell, which was slowly, slowly, yet steadily diminishing, and, when
+the mirror revealed wrinkles which the skill of no Olympus could efface,
+when she---- No, she was not created to grow old! Did the few years of
+life which must contain so much misery really possess a value great
+enough to surrender the right of being called by present and future
+generations the bewitching Cleopatra, the most irresistible of women?
+
+And the children?
+
+Yes, it would have been delightful to see them grow up and occupy the
+throne, but serious, decisive doubts soon blended even with an idea so
+rich in joy.
+
+How glorious to greet Cæsarion as sovereign of the world in
+Octavianus's place! But how could the dreamer, whose first love affair
+had caused the total sacrifice of dignity and violation of the law, and
+who now seemed to have once more relapsed into the old state of torpor,
+attain the position?
+
+The other children inspired fair hopes, and how beautiful it appeared to
+the mother's heart to see Antonius Helios as King of Egypt; Cleopatra
+Selene with her first child in her arms; and little Alexander a noble
+statesman and hero, rich in virtue and talents! Yet, what would they,
+Antony's children, whose education she hoped Archibius would direct,
+feel for the mother who had been their father's murderess?
+
+She shuddered at the thought, remembering the hours when her childish
+heart had shed tears of blood over the infamous mother whom her father
+had execrated. And Queen Tryphœna, whom history recorded as a monster,
+had not killed her husband, but merely thrust him from the throne.
+
+Arsinoë's execrations of her mother and sister came back to her memory,
+and the thought that the rosy lips of the twins and her darling
+Alexander could ever open to curse her,--the idea that the children
+would ever raise their beloved hands to point at her, the wicked
+murderess of their father, with horror and scorn---- No, no, and again
+no! She would not purchase a few more years of valueless life at the
+cost of this humiliation and shame.
+
+Purchase of whom?
+
+Of that Octavianus who had robbed her son of the heritage of his father,
+Cæsar, and whose mention in the will was like an imputation on her
+fidelity--the cold-hearted, calculating upstart, whose nature from their
+first meeting in Rome had repelled, rebuffed, chilled her; of the man by
+whose cajolery and power her husband--for in her own eyes and those of
+the Egyptians Antony held this position--had been induced to wed his
+sister, Octavia, and thereby stamp her, Cleopatra, as merely his love,
+cast a doubt upon the legitimate birth of her children; of the false
+friend of the trusting Antony who, before the battle of Actium, had most
+deeply humiliated and insulted both!
+
+On the contrary, her royal pride rebelled against obeying the command of
+such a man to commit the most atrocious deed; and from childhood this
+pride had been as much a part of her nature as her breath and the
+pulsation of her heart. And yet, for her children's sake, she might
+perhaps have incurred this disgrace, had it not been at the same time
+the grave of the best and noblest things which she desired to implant in
+the young souls of the twins and Alexander.
+
+While thinking of the children's curses she had risen from her seat. Why
+should she reflect and consider longer? She had found the clear
+perception she sought. Let Gorgias hasten the building of the tomb.
+Should Fate demand her life, she would not resist if she were permitted
+to preserve it only at the cost of murder or base treachery. Her lover's
+was already forfeited. At his side she had enjoyed a radiant, glowing,
+peerless bliss, of which the world still talked with envious amazement.
+At his side, when all was over, she would rest in the grave, and compel
+the world to remember with respectful sympathy the royal lovers, Antony
+and Cleopatra. Her children should be able to think of her with
+untroubled hearts, and not even the shadow of a bitter feeling, a
+warning thought, should deter them from adorning their parents' grave
+with flowers, weeping at its foot, invoking and offering sacrifices to
+their spirits.
+
+Then she glanced at the statue of Berenike, who had also once worn on
+her brow the double crown of Egypt. She, too, had early died a violent
+death; she, too, had known how to love. The vow to sacrifice her
+beautiful hair to Aphrodite if her husband returned uninjured from the
+Syrian war had rendered her name illustrious. "Berenike's Hair" was
+still to be seen as a constellation in the night heavens.
+
+Though this woman had sinned often and heavily, one act of loyal love
+had made her an honoured, worshipped princess. She--Cleopatra--would do
+something still greater. The sacrifice which she intended to impose upon
+herself would weigh far more heavily in the balance than a handful of
+beautiful tresses, and would comprise sovereignty and life.
+
+With head erect and a sense of proud self-reliance she gazed at the
+noble marble countenance of the Cyrenian queen. Ere entering the
+sanctuary she had imagined that she knew how the criminals whom she had
+sentenced to death must feel. Now that she herself had done with life,
+she felt as if she were relieved from a heavy burden, and yet her heart
+ached, and--especially when she thought of her children--she was
+overwhelmed with the emotion which is the most painful of all forms of
+compassion--pity for herself.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+
+When Cleopatra left the temple, Iras marvelled at the change in her
+appearance. The severe tension which had given her beautiful face a
+shade of harshness had yielded to an expression of gentle sadness that
+enhanced its charm, yet her features quickly brightened as her attendant
+pointed to the procession which was just entering the forecourt of the
+palace.
+
+In Alexandria and throughout Egypt birthdays were celebrated as far as
+possible. Therefore, to do honour to the twins, the children of the city
+had been sent to offer their congratulations, and at the same time to
+assure their royal mother of the love and devotion of the citizens.
+
+The return to the palace occupied only a few minutes, and as Cleopatra,
+hastily donning festal garments, gazed down at the bands of children, it
+seemed as if Fate by this fair spectacle had given her a sign of
+approval of her design.
+
+She was soon standing hand in hand with the twins upon the balcony
+before which the procession had halted. Hundreds of boys and girls of
+the same age as the prince and princess had flocked thither, the former
+bearing bouquets, the latter small baskets filled with lilies and roses.
+Every head was crowned with a wreath, and many of the girls wore
+garlands of flowers. A chorus of youths and maidens sang a festal hymn,
+beseeching the gods to grant the royal mother and children every
+happiness; the leader of the chorus of girls made a short address in the
+name of the city, and during this speech the children formed in ranks,
+the tallest in the rear, the smallest in the front, and the others
+between according to their height. The scene resembled a living garden,
+in which rosy faces were the beautiful flowers.
+
+Cleopatra thanked the citizens for the charming greeting sent to her by
+those whom they held dearest, and assured them that she returned their
+love. Her eyes grew dim with tears as she went with her three children
+to the throng who offered their congratulations, and an unusually pretty
+little girl whom she kissed threw her arms around her as tenderly as if
+she were her own mother. And how beautiful was the scene when the girls
+strewed the contents of their little baskets on the ground before her,
+and the boys, with many a ringing shout and loving wish, offered the
+bouquets to her and the twins!
+
+Charmian had not forgotten to provide the gifts; and when the
+chamberlains and waiting-women led the children into a large hall to
+offer them refreshments, the Queen's eyes sparkled so brightly that the
+companion of her childhood ventured to make her difficult confession.
+
+And, as so often happens, the event we most dread shows, when it
+actually occurs, a friendly or indifferent aspect; this was the case
+now. Nothing in life is either great or small--the one may be
+transformed to the other, according to the things with which it is
+compared. The tallest man becomes a dwarf beside a rocky giant of the
+mountain chain, the smallest is a Titan to the swarming ants in the
+forest. The beggar seizes as a treasure what the rich man scornfully
+casts aside. That which the day before yesterday seemed to Cleopatra
+unendurable, roused her keenest anxiety, robbed her of part of her
+night's repose, and induced her to adopt strenuous measures, now
+appeared trivial and scarcely worthy of consideration.
+
+Yesterday and to-day had brought events and called up questions which
+forced Barine's disappearance into the realm of unimportant matters.
+
+Charmian's confession was preceded by the statement that she longed for
+rest yet, nevertheless, was ready to remain with her royal friend, in
+every situation, until she no longer desired her services and sent her
+away. But she feared that this moment had come.
+
+Cleopatra interrupted her with the assurance that she was speaking of
+something utterly impossible; and when Charmian disclosed Barine's
+escape, and admitted that it was she who had aided the flight of the
+innocent and sorely threatened granddaughter of Didymus, the Queen
+started up angrily and frowned, but it was only for a moment. Then, with
+a smile, she shook her finger at her friend, embraced her, and gravely
+but kindly assured her that, of all vices, ingratitude was most alien to
+her nature. The companion of her childhood had bestowed so many proofs
+of faithfulness, love, self-sacrifice, and laborious service in her
+behalf that they could not be long outweighed by a single act of wilful
+disobedience. An abundant supply would still remain, by virtue of which
+she might continue to sin without fearing that Cleopatra would ever part
+from her Charmian.
+
+The latter again perceived that nothing on earth could be hostile or
+sharp enough to sever the bond which united her to this woman. When her
+lips overflowed with the gratitude which filled her heart, Cleopatra
+admitted that it seemed as if, in aiding Barine's escape, she had
+rendered her a service. The caution with which Charmian had concealed
+Barine's refuge had not escaped her notice, and she did not ask to learn
+it. It was enough for her that the dangerous beauty was out of
+Cæsarion's reach. As for Antony, a wall now separated him from the
+world, and consequently from the woman who, spite of Alexas's
+accusations, had probably never stood closer to his heart.
+
+Charmian now eagerly strove to show the Queen what had induced the
+Syrian to pursue Barine so vindictively. It was evident--and scarcely
+needed proof--that Mark Antony's whole acquaintanceship with the old
+scholar's granddaughter had been far from leading to any tender
+relation. But Cleopatra gave only partial attention. The man whom she
+had loved with every pulsation of her heart already seemed to her only a
+dear memory. She did not forget the happiness enjoyed with and through
+him, or the wrong she had done by the use of the magic goblet; yet with
+the wall on the Choma, which divided him from her and the rest of the
+world, and her command to have the mausoleum built, she imagined that
+the season of love was over. Any new additions to this chapter of the
+life of her heart were but the close. Even the jealousy which had
+clouded the happiness of her love like a fleeting, rapidly changing
+shadow, she believed she had now renounced forever.
+
+While Charmian protested that no one save Dion had ever been heard with
+favour by Barine, and related many incidents of her former life,
+Cleopatra's thoughts were with Antony. Like the image of the beloved
+dead, the towering figure of the Roman hero rose before her mind, but
+she recalled him only as he was prior to the battle of Actium. She
+desired and expected nothing more from the broken-spirited man, whose
+condition was perhaps her own fault. But she had resolved to atone for
+her guilt, and would do so at the cost of throne and life. This settled
+the account. Whatever her remaining span of existence might add or
+subtract, was part of the bargain.
+
+The entrance of Alexas interrupted her. With fiery passion he expressed
+his regret that he had been defrauded by base intrigues of the right
+bestowed upon him to pass sentence upon a guilty woman. This was the
+more difficult to bear because he was deprived of the possibility of
+providing for the pursuit of the fugitive. Antony had honoured him with
+the commission to win Herod back to his cause. He was to leave
+Alexandria that very night. As nothing could be expected in this matter
+from the misanthropic Imperator, he hoped that the Queen would avenge
+such an offence to her dignity, and adopt severe measures towards the
+singer and her last lover, Dion, who with sacrilegious hands had wounded
+the son of Cæsar.
+
+But Cleopatra, with royal dignity, kept him within the limits of his
+position, commanded him not to mention the affair to her again, and
+then, with a sorrowful smile, wished him success with Herod, in whose
+return to the lost cause of Antony, however, much as she prized the
+skill of the mediator, she did not believe.
+
+When he had retired, she exclaimed to Charmian: "Was I blind? This man
+is a traitor! We shall discover it. Wherever Dion has taken his young
+wife, let her be carefully concealed, not from me, but from this Syrian.
+It is easier to defend one's self against the lion than the scorpion.
+You, my friend, will see that Archibius seeks me this very day. I must
+talk with him, and--you no longer have any thought of a parting? Another
+will come soon enough, which will forever forbid these lips from kissing
+your dear face."
+
+As she spoke, she again clasped the companion of her childhood in her
+arms, and when Iras entered to request an audience for Lucilius,
+Antony's most faithful friend, Cleopatra, who had noticed the younger
+woman's envious glance at the embrace, said: "Was I mistaken in fancying
+that you imagined yourself slighted for Charmian, who is an older
+friend? That would be wrong; for I love and need you both. You are her
+niece, and indebted to her for much kindness from your earliest
+childhood. So, even though you will lose the joy of revenge upon a hated
+enemy, forget what has happened, as I did, and maintain your former
+affectionate companionship. I will reward you for it with the only thing
+that the daughter of the wealthy Krates cannot purchase, yet which she
+probably rates at no low value--the love of her royal friend."
+
+With these words she clasped Iras also in a close embrace, and when the
+latter left the room to summon Lucilius, she thought: "No woman has ever
+won so much love; perhaps that is why she possesses so great a treasure
+of it, and can afford such unspeakable happiness by its bestowal. Or is
+she so much beloved because she entered the world full of its wealth,
+and dispenses it as the sun diffuses light? Surely that must be the
+case. I have reason to believe it, for whom did I ever love save the
+Queen? No one, not even myself, and I know no one in whose love for me I
+can believe. But why did Dion, whom I loved so fervently, disdain me?
+Fool! Why did Mark Antony prefer Cleopatra to Octavia, who was not less
+fair, whose heart was his, and whose hand held the sovereignty of half
+the world?"
+
+Passing on as she spoke, she soon returned, ushering the Roman Lucilius
+into the presence of the Queen. A gallant deed had bound this man to
+Antony. After the battle of Philippi, when the army of the republicans
+fled, Brutus had been on the point of being seized by the enemy's
+horsemen; but Lucilius, at the risk of being cut down, had personated
+him, and thereby, though but for a short time, rescued him. This had
+seemed to Antony unusual and noble and, in his generous manner, he had
+not only forgiven him, but bestowed his favour upon him. Lucilius was
+grateful, and gave him the same fidelity he had showed to Brutus. At
+Actium he had risked Antony's favour to prevent his deserting Cleopatra
+after the battle, and then accompanied him in his flight. Now he was
+bearing him company in his seclusion on the Choma.
+
+The grey-haired man who, but a short time before, had retained all the
+vigour of youth, approached the Queen with bowed head and saddened
+heart. His face, so regular in its contours, had undergone a marked
+change within the past few weeks. The cheeks were sunken, the features
+had grown sharper, and there was a sorrowful expression in the eyes,
+which, when informing Cleopatra of his friend's condition, glittered
+with tears.
+
+Before the hapless battle he was one of Cleopatra's most enthusiastic
+admirers; but since he had been forced to see his friend and benefactor
+risk fame, happiness, and honour to follow the Queen, he had cherished a
+feeling of bitter resentment towards her. He would certainly have spared
+himself this mission, had he not been sure that she who had brought her
+lover to ruin was the only person who could rouse him from spiritless
+languor to fresh energy and interest in life.
+
+From motives of friendship, urged by no one, he came unbidden to the
+woman whom he had formerly so sincerely admired, to entreat her to cheer
+the unfortunate man, rouse him, and remind him of his duty. He had
+little news to impart; for on the voyage she had herself witnessed long
+enough the pitiable condition of her husband. Now Antony was beginning
+to be content in it, and this was what most sorely troubled the faithful
+friend.
+
+The Imperator had called the little palace which he occupied on the
+Choma his Timonium, because he compared himself with the famous Athenian
+misanthrope who, after fortune abandoned him, had also been betrayed by
+many of his former friends. Even at Tænarum he had thought of returning
+to the Choma, and by means of a wall, which would separate it from the
+mainland, rendering it as inaccessible as--according to rumour--the
+grave of Timon at Halæ near Athens. Gorgias had erected it, and whoever
+wished to visit the hermit was forced to go by sea and request
+admittance, which was granted to few.
+
+Cleopatra listened to Lucilius with sympathy, and then asked whether
+there was no way of cheering or comforting the wretched man.
+
+"No, your Majesty," he replied. "His favourite occupation is to recall
+what he once possessed, but only to show the uselessness of these
+memories. 'What joys has life not offered me?' he asks, and then adds:
+'But they were repeated again and again, and after being enjoyed for the
+tenth time they became monotonous and lost their charm. Then they caused
+satiety to the verge of loathing.' Only necessary things, such as bread
+and water, he says, possess real value; but he desires neither, because
+he has even less taste for them than for the dainties which spoil a
+man's morrow. Yesterday in a specially gloomy hour, he spoke of gold.
+This was perhaps most worthy of desire. The mere sight of it awakened
+pleasant hopes, because it might afford so many gratifications. Then he
+laughed bitterly, exclaiming that those joys were the very ones which
+produced the most disagreeable satiety. Even gold was not worth the
+trouble of stretching out one's hand.
+
+"He is fond of enlarging upon such fancies, and finds images to make his
+meaning clear.
+
+"'In the snow upon the highest mountain-peak the feet grow cold,' he
+said. 'In the mire they are warm, but the dark mud is ugly and clings to
+them.'
+
+"Then I remarked that between the morass and the mountain-snows lie
+sunny valleys where life would be pleasant; but he flew into a rage,
+vehemently protesting that he would never be content with the pitiable
+middle course of Horace. Then he exclaimed: 'Ay, I am vanquished.
+Octavianus and his Agrippa are the conquerors; but if a rock mutilates
+or an elephant's clumsy foot crushes me, I am nevertheless of a higher
+quality than either.'"
+
+"There spoke the old Mark Antony!" cried Cleopatra; but again Lucilius's
+loyal heart throbbed with resentment against the woman who had fostered
+the recklessness which had brought his powerful friend to ruin, and he
+continued:
+
+"But he often sees himself in a different light. 'No writer could invent
+a more unworthy life than mine,' he exclaimed recently. 'A farce ending
+in a tragedy.'"
+
+Lucilius might have added still harsher sayings, but the sorrowful
+expression in the tearful eyes of the afflicted Queen silenced them upon
+his lips.
+
+Yet Cleopatra's name blended with most of the words uttered by the
+broken-spirited man. Sometimes it was associated with the most furious
+reproaches, but more frequently with expressions of boundless delight
+and wild outbursts of fervent longing, and this was what inspired
+Lucilius with the hope that the Queen's influence would be effectual
+with his friend. Therefore he repeated some especially ardent words, to
+which Cleopatra listened with grateful joy.
+
+Yet, when Lucilius paused, she remarked that doubtless the misanthropist
+had spoken of her, and probably of Octavia also, in quite a different
+way. She was prepared for the worst, for she was one of the rocks
+against which his greatness had been shattered.
+
+This reminded Lucilius of the comment Antony had made upon the three
+women whom he had wedded, and he answered reluctantly: "Fulvia, the wife
+of his youth--I knew the bold, hot-blooded woman, the former wife of
+Clodius--he called the tempest which swelled his sails."
+
+"Yes, Yes!" cried Cleopatra. "So she did. He owes her much; but I, too,
+am indebted to the dead Fulvia. She taught him to recognize and yield to
+woman's power."
+
+"Not always to his advantage," retorted Lucilius, whose resentment was
+revived by the last sentence and, without heeding the faint flush on the
+Queen's cheek, he added: "Of Octavia he said that she was the straight
+path which leads to happiness, and those who are content to walk in it
+are acceptable to gods and men."
+
+"Then why did he not suffer it to content him?" cried Cleopatra
+wrathfully.
+
+"Fulvia's school," replied the Roman, "was probably the last where he
+would learn the moderation which--as you know--is so alien to his
+nature. His opinion of the quiet valleys and middle course you have just
+heard."
+
+"But I, what have _I_ been to him?" urged the Queen.
+
+Lucilius bent his gaze for a short time on the floor, then answered
+hesitatingly:
+
+"You asked to hear, and the Queen's command must be obeyed. He compared
+your Majesty to a delicious banquet given to celebrate a victory, at
+which the guests, crowned with garlands, revel _before_ the battle----"
+
+"Which is lost," said the Queen hurriedly, in a muffled voice. "The
+comparison is apt. Now, after the defeat, it would be absurd to prepare
+another feast. The tragedy is closing, so the play (doubtless he said
+so) which preceded it would be but a wearisome repetition if performed a
+second time. One thing, it is true, seems desirable--a closing act of
+reconciliation. If you think it is in my power to recall my husband to
+active life, rely upon me. The banquet of which he spoke occupied long
+years. The dessert will consume little time, but I am ready to serve it.
+When I asked permission to visit him he refused. What plan of meeting
+have you arranged?"
+
+"That I will leave to your feminine delicacy of feeling," replied
+Lucilius. "Yet I have come with a request whose fulfilment will perhaps
+contain the answer. Eros, Mark Antony's faithful body-slave, humbly
+petitions your Majesty to grant him a few minutes' audience. You know
+the worthy fellow. He would die for you and his master, and he--I once
+heard from your lips the remark of King Antiochus, that no man was great
+to his body-slave--thus Eros sees his master's weaknesses and lofty
+qualities from a nearer point of view than we, and he is shrewd. Antony
+gave him his freedom long ago, and if your Majesty does not object to
+receiving a man so low in station----"
+
+"Let him come," replied Cleopatra. "Your demand upon me is just.
+Unhappily, I am but too well aware of the atonement due your friend.
+Before you came, I was engaged in making preparations for the fulfilment
+of one of his warmest wishes."
+
+With these words she dismissed the Roman. Her feelings as she watched
+his departure were of very mingled character. The yearning for the
+happiness of which she had been so long deprived had again awaked, while
+the unkind words which he had applied to her still rankled in her heart.
+But the door had scarcely closed behind Lucilius when the usher
+announced a deputation of the members of the museum.
+
+The learned gentlemen came to complain of the wrong which had been done
+to their colleague, Didymus, and also to express their loyalty during
+these trying times. Cleopatra assured them of her favour, and said that
+she had already offered ample compensation to the old philosopher. In a
+certain sense she was one of themselves. They all knew that, from early
+youth, she had honoured and shared their labours. In proof of this, she
+would present to the library of the museum the two hundred thousand
+volumes from Pergamus, one of the most valuable gifts Mark Antony had
+ever bestowed upon her, and which she had hitherto regarded merely as a
+loan. This she hoped would repay Didymus for the injury which, to her
+deep regret, had been inflicted upon him, and at least partially repair
+the loss sustained by the former library of the museum during the
+conflagration in the Bruchium.
+
+The sages, eagerly assuring her of their gratitude and devotion,
+retired. Most of them were personally known to Cleopatra who, to their
+mutual pleasure and advantage, had measured her intellectual powers with
+the most brilliant minds of their body.
+
+The sun had already set, when a procession of the priests of Serapis,
+the chief god of the city, whose coming had been announced the day
+before, appeared at Lochias. Accompanied by torch and lantern bearers,
+it moved forward with slow and solemn majesty. In harmony with the
+nature of Serapis, there were many reminders of death.
+
+The meaning of every image, every standard, every shrine, every
+peculiarity of the music and singing, was familiar to the Queen. Even
+the changing colours of the lights referred to the course of growth and
+decay in the universe and in human life, and the magnificent close of
+the chant of homage which represented the reception of the royal soul
+into the essence of the deity, the apotheosis of the sovereign, was well
+suited to stir the heart; for a sea of light unexpectedly flooded the
+whole procession and, while its glow irradiated the huge pile of the
+palace, the sea with its forest of ships and masts, and the shore with
+its temples, pylons, obelisks, and superb buildings, all the choruses,
+accompanied by the music of sackbuts, cymbals, and lutes, blended in a
+mighty hymn, whose waves of sound rose to the star-strewn sky and
+reached the open sea beyond the Pharos.
+
+Many a symbolical image suggested death and the resurrection, defeat and
+a victory following it by the aid of great Serapis; and when the torches
+retired, vanishing in the darkness, with the last, notes of the chanting
+of the priests, Cleopatra, raised her head, feeling as if the vow she
+had made during the gloomy singing of the aged men and the extinguishing
+of the torches had received the approval of the deity brought by her
+forefathers to Alexandria and enthroned there to unite in his own person
+the nature of the Greek and the Egyptian gods.
+
+Her tomb was to be built and, if destiny was fulfilled, to receive her
+lover and herself. She had perceived from Antony's bitter words, as well
+as the looks and tones of Lucilius, that he, as well as the man to whom
+her heart still clung with indissoluble bonds, held her responsible for
+Actium and the fall of his greatness.
+
+The world, she knew, would imitate them, but it should learn that if
+love had robbed the greatest man of his day of fame and sovereignty,
+that love had been worthy of the highest price.
+
+The belief which had just been symbolically represented to her--that it
+was allotted to the vanishing light to rise again in new and radiant
+splendour--she would maintain for the present, though the best success
+could scarcely lead to anything more than merely fanning the glimmering
+spark and deferring its extinction.
+
+For herself there was no longer any great victory to win which would be
+worth the conflict. Yet the weapons must not rest until the end. Antony
+must not perish, growling, like a second Timon, or a wild beast caught
+in a snare. She would rekindle, though but for the last blaze, the fire
+of his hero-nature, which blind love for her and the magic spell that
+had enabled her to bind his will had covered for a time with ashes.
+
+While listening to the resurrection hymn of the priests of Serapis, she
+had asked herself if it might not be possible to give Antony, when he
+had been roused to fresh energy, the son of Cæsar as a companion in
+arms. True, she had found the boy in a mood far different from the one
+for which she had hoped. If he had once been carried on to a bold deed,
+it seemed to have exhausted his energy; for he remained absorbed in the
+most pitiable love-sickness. Yet he had not recovered from his illness.
+When he was better he would surely wake to active interest in the events
+which threatened to exert so great an influence on his own existence
+and, like the humblest slave, lament the defeat of Actium. Hitherto he
+had listened to the tidings of battle which had reached his ears with an
+indifference that seemed intelligible and pardonable only when
+attributed to his wound.
+
+His tutor Rhodon had just requested a leave of absence, remarking that
+Cæsarion would not lack companions, since he was expecting Antyllus and
+other youths of his own age. A flood of light streamed from the windows
+of the reception hall of the "King of kings." There was still time to
+seek him and make him understand what was at stake. Ah! if she could but
+succeed in awaking his father's spirit! If that culpable attack should
+prove the harbinger of future deeds of manly daring!
+
+No interview with him as yet had encouraged this expectation, but a
+mother's heart easily sees, even in disappointment, a step which leads
+to a new hope. When Charmian entered to announce Antony's body-slave,
+she sent word to him to wait, and requested her friend to accompany her
+to her son.
+
+As they approached the apartments occupied by Cæsarion, Antyllus's loud
+voice reached them through the open door, whose curtain was only half
+drawn. The first word which the Queen distinguished was her own name;
+so, motioning to her companion, she stood still. Barine was again the
+subject of conversation.
+
+Antony's son was relating what Alexas had told him. Cleopatra, the
+Syrian had asserted, intended to send the young beauty to the mines or
+into exile, and severely punish Dion; but both had made their escape.
+The Ephebi had behaved treacherously by taking sides with their foe. But
+this was because they were not yet invested with their robes. He hoped
+to induce his father to do this as soon as he shook off his pitiable
+misanthropy. And he must also be persuaded to direct the pursuit of the
+fugitives. "This will not be difficult," he cried insolently, "for the
+old man appreciates beauty, and has himself cast an eye on the singer.
+If they capture her, I'll guarantee nothing, you 'King of kings!' for,
+spite of his grey beard, he can cut us all out with the women, and
+Barine--as we have heard--doesn't think a man of much importance until
+his locks begin to grow thin. I gave Derketæus orders to send all his
+men in pursuit. He's as cunning as a fox, and the police are compelled
+to obey him."
+
+"If I were not forced to lie here like a dead donkey, I would soon find
+her," sighed Cæsarion. "Night or day, she is never out of my mind. I
+have already spent everything I possessed in the search. Yesterday I
+sent for the steward Seleukus. What is the use of being my mother's son,
+and the fat little fellow isn't specially scrupulous! He will do
+nothing, yet there must be gold enough. The Queen has sunk millions in
+the sand on the Syrian frontier of the Delta. There is to be a square
+hole or something of the sort dug there to hide the fleet. I only half
+understand the absurd plan. The money might have paid hundreds of spies.
+So talents are thrown away, and the strong-box is locked against the
+son. But I'll find one that will open to me. I must have her, though I
+risk the crown. It always sounds like a jeer when they call me the King
+of kings. I am not fit for sovereignty. Besides, the throne will be
+seized ere I really ascend it. We are conquered, and if we succeed in
+concluding a peace, which will secure us life and a little more, we must
+be content. For my part, I shall be satisfied with a country estate on
+the water, a sufficient supply of money and, above all, Barine. What do
+I care for Egypt? As Cæsar's son I ought to have ruled Rome; but the
+immortals knew what they were doing when they prompted my father to
+disinherit me. To govern the world one must have less need of sleep.
+Really--you know it--I always feel tired, even when I am well. People
+must let me alone! Your father, too, Antyllus, is laying down his arms
+and letting things go as they will."
+
+"Ah, so he is!" cried Antony's son indignantly. "But just wait! The
+sleeping lion will wake again, and, when he uses his teeth and paws----"
+
+"My mother will run away, and your father will follow her," replied
+Cæsarion with a melancholy smile, wholly untinged by scorn. "All is
+lost. But conquered kings and queens are permitted to live. Cæsar's son
+will not be exhibited to the Quirites in the triumphal procession.
+Rhodon says that there would be an insurrection if I appeared in the
+Forum. If I go there again, it certainly will not be in Octavianus's
+train. I am not suited for that kind of ignominy. It would stifle me
+and, ere I would grant any man the pleasure of dragging the son of
+Cæsar behind him to increase his own renown, I would put an end--ten,
+nay, a hundred times over, in the good old Roman fashion, to my life,
+which is by no means especially attractive. What is sweeter than sound
+sleep, and who will disturb and rouse me when Death has lowered his
+torch before me? But now I think I shall be spared this extreme.
+Whatever else they may inflict upon me will scarcely exceed my powers of
+endurance. If any one has learned contentment it is I. The King of kings
+and Co-Regent of the Great Queen has been trained persistently, and with
+excellent success, to be content. What should I be, and what _am_ I? Yet
+I do not complain, and wish to accuse no one. We need not summon
+Octavianus, and when he is here let him take what he will if he only
+spares the lives of my mother, the twins, and little Alexander, whom I
+love, and bestows on me the estate--the main thing is that it must be
+full of fishponds--of which I spoke. The private citizen Cæsarion, who
+devotes his time to fishing and the books he likes to read, will gladly
+be allowed to choose a wife to suit his own taste. The more humble her
+origin, the more easily I shall win the consent of the Roman guardian."
+
+"Do you know, Cæsarion," interrupted Antony's unruly son, leaning back
+on the cushions and stretching his feet farther in front of him, "if you
+were not the King of kings I should be inclined to call you a base,
+mean-natured fellow! One who has the good fortune to be the son of
+Julius Cæsar ought not to forget it so disgracefully. My gall overflows
+at your whimpering. By the dog! It was one of my most senseless pranks
+to take you to the singer. I should think there would be other things to
+occupy the mind of the King of kings. Besides, Barine cares no more for
+you than the last fish you caught. She showed that plainly enough. I say
+once more, if Derketæus's men succeed in capturing the beauty who has
+robbed you of your senses, she won't go with you to your miserable
+estate to cook the fish you catch, for if we have her again, and my
+father holds out his hand to her, all your labour will be in vain. He
+saw the fair enchantress only twice, and had no time to become better
+acquainted, but she captured his fancy and, if I remind him of her, who
+knows what will happen?"
+
+Here Cleopatra beckoned to her companion and returned to her apartments
+with drooping head. On reaching them, she broke the silence, saying:
+"Listening, Charmian, is unworthy of a Queen; but if all listeners heard
+things so painful, one need no longer guard keyholes and chinks of
+doors. I must recover my calmness ere I receive Eros. One thing more. Is
+Barine's hiding-place secure?"
+
+"I don't know--Archibius says so."
+
+"Very well. They are searching for her zealously enough, as you heard,
+and she must not be found. I am glad that she did not set a snare for
+the boy. How a jealous heart leads us astray! Were she here, I would
+grant her anything to make amends for my unjust suspicion of her and
+Antony. And to think that Alexas--but for your interposition he would
+have succeeded--meant to send her to the mines! It is a terrible warning
+to be on my guard. Against whom? First of all, my own weakness. This is
+a day of recognition. A noble aim, but on the way the feet bleed, and
+the heart--ah! Charmian, the poor, weak, disappointed heart!"
+
+She sighed heavily, and supported her head on the arm resting upon the
+table at her side. The polished, exquisitely grained surface of
+thya-wood was worth a large estate; the gems in the rings and bracelets
+which glittered on her hand and arm would have purchased a principality.
+This thought entered her mind and, overpowered by a feeling of angry
+disgust, she would fain have cast all the costly rubbish into the sea or
+the destroying flames.
+
+She would gladly have been a beggar, content with the barley bread of
+Epicurus, she said to herself, if in return she could but have inspired
+her son even with the views of the reckless blusterer Antyllus. Her
+worst fears had not pictured Cæsarion so weak, so insignificant. She
+could no longer rest upon her cushions; and while, with drooping head,
+she gazed backward over the past, the accusing voice in her own breast
+cried out that she was reaping what she had sowed. She had repressed,
+curbed the boy's awakening will to secure his obedience; understood how
+to prevent any exercise of his ability or efforts in wider circles.
+
+True, it had been done on many a pretext. Why should not her son taste
+the quiet happiness which she had enjoyed in the garden of Epicurus? And
+was not the requirement that whoever is to command must first learn to
+obey, based upon old experiences?
+
+But this was a day of reckoning and insight, and for the first time she
+found courage to confess that her own burning ambition had marked out
+the course of Cæsarion's education. She had not repressed his talents
+from cool calculation, but it had been pleasant to her to see him grow
+up free from aspirations. She had granted the dreamer repose without
+arousing him. How often she had rejoiced over the certainty that this
+son, on whom Antony, after his victory over the Parthians, had bestowed
+the title of Co-Regent, would never rebel against his mother's
+guardianship! The welfare of the state had doubtless been better secured
+in her trained hands than in those of an inexperienced boy. And the
+proud consciousness of power! Her heart swelled. So long as she lived
+she would remain Queen. To transfer the sovereignty to another, whatever
+name he might bear, had seemed to her impossible. Now she knew how
+little her son yearned for lofty things. Her heart contracted. The
+saying "You reap what you sowed" gave her no peace, and wherever she
+turned in her past life she perceived the fruit of the seeds which she
+had buried in the ground. The field was sinking under the burden of the
+ears of misfortune. The harvest was ripe for the reaper; but, ere he
+raised the sickle, the owner's claim must be preserved. Gorgias must
+hasten the building of the tomb; the end could not be long deferred. How
+to shape this worthily, if the victor left her no other choice, had just
+been pointed out by the son of whom she was ashamed. His father's noble
+blood forbade him to bear the deepest ignominy with the patience his
+mother had inculcated.
+
+It had grown late ere she admitted Antony's body-slave, but for her the
+business of the night was just commencing. After he had gone she would
+be engaged for hours with the commanders of the army, the fleet, the
+fortifications. The soliciting of allies, too, must be carried on by
+means of letters containing the most stirring appeals to the heart.
+
+Eros, Antony's body-slave, appeared. His kind eyes filled with tears at
+the sight of the Queen. Grief had not lessened the roundness of his
+handsome face, but the expression of mischievous, often insolent, gaiety
+had given place to a sorrowful droop of the lips, and his fair hair had
+begun to turn grey.
+
+Lucilius's information that Cleopatra had consented to make advances to
+Antony had seemed like the rising of the sun after a long period of
+darkness. In his eyes, not only his master, but everything else, must
+yield to the power of the Queen. He had heard Antony at Tarsus inveigh
+against "the Egyptian serpent," protesting that he would make her pay so
+dearly for her questionable conduct towards himself and the cause of
+Cæsar that the treasure-houses on the Nile should be like an empty
+wine-skin; yet, a few hours after, body and soul had been in her toils.
+So it had continued till the battle of Actium. Now there was nothing
+more to lose; but what might not Cleopatra bestow upon his master? He
+thought of the delightful years during which his face had grown so
+round, and every day fresh pleasures and spectacles, such as the world
+would never again witness, had satiated eye and ear, palate and
+nostril,--nay, even curiosity. If they could be repeated, even in a
+simpler form, so much the better. His main--nay, almost his sole--desire
+was to release his lord from this wretched solitude, this horrible
+misanthropy, so ill suited to his nature.
+
+Cleopatra had kept him waiting two hours, but he would willingly have
+loitered in the anteroom thrice as long if she only determined to follow
+his counsel. It was worth considering, and Eros did not hesitate to give
+it. No one could foresee how Antony would greet Cleopatra herself, so he
+proposed that she should send Charmian--not alone, but with her clever
+hunch-backed maid, to whom the Imperator himself had given the name
+"Aisopion." He liked Charmian, and could never see the dusky maid
+without jesting with her. If his master could once be induced to show a
+cheerful face to others besides himself, Eros, and perceived how much
+better it was to laugh than to lapse into sullen reverie and anger, much
+would be gained, and Charmian would do the rest, if she brought a loving
+message from her royal mistress.
+
+Hitherto Cleopatra had not interrupted him; but when she expressed the
+opinion that a slave's nimble tongue would have little power to change
+the deep despondency of a man overwhelmed by the most terrible disaster,
+Eros waved his short, broad hand, saying:
+
+"I trust your Majesty will pardon the frankness of a man so humble in
+degree, but those in high station often permit us to see what they hide
+from one another. Only the loftiest and the lowliest, the gods and the
+slaves, behold the great without disguise. May my ears be cropped if the
+Imperator's melancholy and misanthropy are so intense! All this is a
+disguise which pleases him. You know how, in better days, he enjoyed
+appearing as Dionysus, and with what wanton gaiety he played the part of
+the god. Now he is hiding his real, cheerful face behind the mask of
+unsocial melancholy, because he thinks the former does not suit this
+time of misfortune. True, he often says things which make your skin
+creep, and frequently broods mournfully over his own thoughts. But this
+never lasts long when we are alone. If I come in with a very funny
+story, and he doesn't silence me at once, you can rely on his surpassing
+it with a still more comical one. A short time ago I reminded him of the
+fishing party when your Majesty had a diver fasten a salted herring on
+his hook. You ought to have heard him laugh, and exclaim what happy days
+those were. The lady Charmian need only remind him of them, and Aisopion
+spice the allusion with a jest. I'll give my nose--true, it's only a
+small one, but everybody values that feature most--if they don't
+persuade him to leave that horrible crow's nest in the middle of the
+sea. They must remind him of the twins and little Alexander; for when he
+permits me to talk about them his brow smooths most speedily. He still
+speaks very often to Lucilius and his other friends of his great plans
+of forming a powerful empire in the East, with Alexandria as its
+principal city. His warrior blood is not yet calm. A short time ago I
+was even ordered to sharpen the curved Persian scimitar he likes to
+wield. One could not know what service it might be, he said. Then he
+swung his mighty arm. By the dog! The grey-haired giant still has the
+strength of three youths. When he is once more with you, among warriors
+and battle chargers, all will be well."
+
+"Let us hope so." replied Cleopatra kindly, and promised to follow his
+advice.
+
+When Iras, who had taken Charmian's place, accompanied the Queen to her
+chamber after several hours of toil, she found her silent and sad. Lost
+in thought, she accepted her attendant's aid, breaking her silence only
+after she had gone to her couch. "This has been a hard day, Iras," she
+said; "it brought nothing save the confirmation of an old saying,
+perhaps the most ancient in the world: 'Every one wilt reap only what he
+sows. The plant which grows from the seed you place in the earth may be
+crushed, but no power in the world will compel the seed to develop
+differently or produce fruit unlike what Nature has assigned to it.' My
+seed was evil. This now appears in the time of harvest. But we will yet
+bring a handful of good wheat to the storehouses. We will provide for
+that while there is time. I will talk with Gorgias early to-morrow
+morning. While we were building, you showed good taste and often
+suggested new ideas. When Gorgias brings the plans for the mausoleum you
+shall examine them with me. You have a right to do so, for, if I am not
+mistaken, few will visit the finished structure more frequently than my
+Iras."
+
+The girl started up and, raising her hand as if taking a vow, exclaimed:
+"Your tomb will vainly wait my visit; your end will be mine also."
+
+"May the gods preserve your youth from it!" replied the Queen in a tone
+of grave remonstrance. "We still live and will do battle."
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+
+Night brought little sleep to Cleopatra. Memory followed memory, plan
+was added to plan. The resolve made the day before was the right one.
+To-day she would begin its execution. Whatever might happen, she was
+prepared for every contingency.
+
+Ere she went to her work she granted a second audience to the Roman
+envoy. Timagenes exerted all his powers of eloquence, skill in
+persuasion, wit, and ingenuity. He again promised to Cleopatra life and
+liberty, and to her children the throne; but when he insisted upon the
+surrender or death of Mark Antony as the first condition of any further
+negotiations, Cleopatra remained steadfast, and the ambassador set forth
+on his way home without any pledge.
+
+After he had gone, the Queen and Iras looked over the plans for the tomb
+brought by Gorgias, but the intense agitation of her soul distracted
+Cleopatra's attention, and she begged him to come again at a later hour.
+When she was alone, she took out the letters which Cæsar and Antony had
+written to her. How acute, subtle, and tender were those of the former;
+how ardent, impassioned, yet sincere were those of the mighty and fiery
+orator, whose eloquence swept the listening multitudes with him, yet
+whom her little hand had drawn wherever she desired!
+
+Her heart throbbed faster when she thought of the meeting with Antony,
+now close at hand; for Charmian had gone with the Nubian to invite him
+to join her again. They had started several hours ago, and she awaited
+their return with increasing impatience. She had summoned him for their
+last mutual battle. That he would come she did not doubt. But could she
+succeed in rekindling his courage? Two persons so closely allied should
+sink and perish, still firmly united, in the final battle, if victory
+was denied.
+
+Archibius was now announced.
+
+It soothed her merely to gaze into the faithful countenance, which
+recalled so many of her happiest memories.
+
+She opened her whole soul to him without reserve, and he drew himself up
+to his full height, as if restored to youth; while when she told him
+that she would never sully herself by treachery to her lover and
+husband, and had resolved to die worthy of her name, the expression of
+his eyes revealed that she had chosen the right path.
+
+Ere she had made the request that he should undertake the education and
+guidance of the children, he voluntarily proposed to devote his best
+powers to them. The plan of uniting Didymus's garden with the Lochias
+and giving it to the little ones also met with his approval. His sister
+had already told him that Cleopatra had determined to build her tomb. He
+hoped, he added, that its doors would not open to her for many years.
+
+She shook her head sorrowfully, exclaiming: "Would that I could read
+every face as I do yours! My friend Archibius wishes me a long life, if
+any one does; but he is as wise as he is faithful, and therefore will
+consider that earthly life is by no means a boon in every case. Besides,
+he says to himself: 'Events are impending over this Queen and woman, my
+friend, which will perhaps render it advisable to make use of the great
+privilege which the immortals bestow on human beings when it becomes
+desirable for them to leave the stage of life. So let her build her
+tomb.' Have I read the old familiar book aright?"
+
+"On the whole, yes," he answered gravely. "But it is inscribed upon its
+pages that a great princess and faithful mother can be permitted to set
+forth on the last journey, whence there is no return, only when----"
+
+"When," she interrupted, "a shameful end threatens to fall upon the fair
+beginning and brilliant middle period, as a swarm of locusts darkens the
+air and devours and devastates the fields. I know it, and will act
+accordingly."
+
+"And," added Archibius, "this end also (faithful to your nature) you
+will shape regally.--On my way here I met my sister near the Choma. You
+sent her to your husband. He will grasp the proffered hand. Now that it
+is necessary to stake everything or surrender, the grandson of Herakles
+will again display his former heroic power. Perhaps, stimulated and
+encouraged by the example of the woman he loves, he will even force
+hostile Fate to show him fresh favour."
+
+"Destiny will pursue its course," interrupted Cleopatra firmly. "But
+Antony must help me to heap fresh obstacles in the pathway, and when he
+wishes to use his giant strength, what masses of rock his mighty arm can
+hurl!"
+
+"And if your lofty spirit smooths the path for him, then, my royal
+mistress----"
+
+"Even then the close of the tragedy will be death, and every scene a
+disappointment. Was not the plan of bringing the fleet across the
+isthmus bold and full of promise? Even the professional engineers
+greeted it with applause, and yet it proved impracticable. Destiny dug
+its grave. And the terrible omens before and after Actium, and the
+stars--the stars! Everything points to speedy destruction, everything!
+Every hour brings news of the desertion of some prince or general. As if
+from a watch-tower, I now overlook what is growing from the seed I
+sowed. Sterile ears or poisonous vegetation, wherever I turn my eyes.
+And yet! You, who know my life from its beginning, tell me--must I veil
+my head in shame when the question is asked, what powers of intellect,
+what talents industry, and desire for good Cleopatra displayed?"
+
+"No, my royal mistress, a thousand times no!"
+
+"Yet the fruit of every tree I planted degenerated and decayed.
+Cæsarion is withering in the flower of his youth--by whose fault I know
+only too well. You will now take charge of the education of the other
+children. So it is for you to consider what brought me where I now
+stand, and how to guard their life-bark from wandering and shipwreck."
+
+"Let me train them to be human beings," replied Archibius gravely, "and
+preserve them from the desire to enter the lists with the gods. From the
+simple Cleopatra in the garden of Epicurus, who was a delight to the
+good and wise, you became the new Isis, to whom the multitude raised
+hearts, eyes, and hands, dazzled and blinded. We will transfer the
+twins, Helios and Selene, the sun and the moon, from heaven to earth;
+they must become mortals--Greeks. I will not transplant them to the
+garden of Epicurus, but to another, where the air is more bracing. The
+inscription on its portals shall not be, 'Here pleasure is the chief
+good,' but 'This is an arena for character.' He who leaves this garden
+shall not owe to it the yearning for happiness and comfort, but an
+immovably steadfast moral discipline. Your children, like yourself, were
+born in the East, which loves what is monstrous, superhuman,
+exaggerated. If you entrust them to me, they must learn to govern
+themselves. At the helm stands moral earnestness, which, however, does
+not exclude the joyous cheerfulness natural to our people; the sails
+will be trimmed by moderation, the noblest quality of the Greek nation."
+
+"I understand," Cleopatra interrupted, with drooping head. "Interwoven
+with the means of securing the children's welfare, you set before the
+mother's eyes the qualities she has lacked. I know that long ago you
+abandoned the teachings of Epicurus and the Stoa, and with an earnest
+aim before your eyes sought your own paths. The tempest of life swept me
+far away from the quiet garden where we sought the purest delight. Now I
+have learned to know the perils which threaten those who see the chief
+good in happiness. It stands too high for mortals, for in the changeful
+stir of life it remains unattainable, and yet it is too low an aim for
+their struggles, for there are worthier objects. Yet one saying of
+Epicurus we both believed, and it has always stood us in good stead:
+'Wisdom can obtain no more precious contribution to the happiness of
+mortal life than the possession of friendship.'"
+
+She held out her hand as she spoke, and while, deeply agitated, he
+raised it to his lips, she went on: "You know I am on the eve of the
+last desperate battle--if the gods will--shoulder to shoulder with
+Antony. Therefore I shall not be permitted to watch your work of
+education; yet I will aid it. When the children question you about their
+mother, you will be obliged to restrain yourself from saying: 'Instead
+of striving for the painless peace of mind, the noble pleasure of
+Epicurus, which once seemed to her the highest good, she constantly
+pursued fleeting amusements. The Oriental recklessly squandered her once
+noble gifts of intellect and the wealth of her people, yielded to the
+hasty impulses of her passionate nature.' But you shall also say to
+them: 'Your mother's heart was full of ardent love, she scorned what was
+base, strove for the highest goal, and when she fell, preferred death to
+treachery and disgrace.'"
+
+Here she paused, for she thought she heard footsteps approaching, and
+then exclaimed anxiously: "I am waiting--expecting. Perhaps Antony
+cannot escape from the paralyzing grasp of despair. To fight the last
+battle without him, and yet under the gaze of his wrathful, gloomy eyes,
+once so full of sunshine, would be the greatest sorrow of my life.
+Archibius, I may confess this to you, the friend who saw love for this
+man develop in the breast of the child---- But what does this mean? An
+uproar! Have the people rebelled? Yesterday the representatives of the
+priesthood, the members of the museum, and the leaders of the army
+assured me of their changeless fidelity and love. Dion belonged to the
+Macedonian men of the Council; yet I have already declared, in
+accordance with the truth, that I never intended to persecute him on
+Cæsarion's account. I do not even know--and do not desire to know--the
+refuge of the lately wedded pair. Or has the new tax levied, the command
+to seize the treasures of the temple, driven them to extremities? What
+am I to do? We need gold to bid the foe defiance, to preserve the
+independence of the throne, the country, and the people. Or have tidings
+from Rome----? It is becoming serious--and the noise is growing louder."
+
+"Let me see what they want," Archibius anxiously interrupted, hastening
+to the door; but just at that moment the Introducer opened it, crying,
+"Mark Antony is approaching the Lochias, attended by half Alexandria!"
+
+"The noble Imperator is returning!" fell from the bearded lips of the
+commander of the guard, ere the courtier's words had died away; and even
+while he spoke Iras pressed past him, shrieking as if half frantic: "He
+is coming! He is here! I knew he would come! How they are shouting and
+cheering! Out with you, men! If you are willing, my royal mistress, we
+will greet him from the balcony of Berenike. If we only had----"
+
+"The twins--little Alexander!" interrupted Cleopatra, with blanched face
+and faltering voice. "Put on their festal garments."
+
+"Quick--the children, Zoe!" cried Iras, completing the order and
+clapping her hands. Then she turned to the Queen with the entreaty: "Be
+calm, my royal mistress, be calm, I beseech you. We have ample time.
+Here is the vulture crown of Isis, and here the other. Antony's slave,
+Eros, has just come in, panting for breath. The Imperator, he says, will
+appear as the new Dionysus. It would certainly please his master--though
+he had not commissioned him to request it--if you greeted him as the new
+Isis.--Help me, Hathor. Nephoris, tell the usher to see that the
+fan-bearers and the other attendants, women and men, are in their
+places.--Here are the pearl and diamond necklaces for your throat and
+bosom. Take care of the robe. The transparent bombyx is as delicate as a
+cobweb, and if you tear it---- No, you must not refuse. We all know how
+it pleases him to see his goddess in divine majesty and beauty."
+
+Cleopatra, with glowing cheeks and throbbing heart, made no further
+objection to donning the superb festal robe, strewn with glimmering
+pearls and glittering gems. It would have been more in harmony with her
+feelings to meet the returning Antony in the plain, dark garb which,
+since her arrival at home, she had exchanged for a richer one only on
+festal occasions; but Antony was coming as the new Dionysus, and Eros
+knew what would please his master.
+
+Eight nimble hands, which were often aided by Iras's skilful fingers,
+toiled busily, and soon the latter could hold up the mirror before
+Cleopatra, exclaiming from the very depths of her heart, "Like the
+foam-born Aphrodite and the golden Hathor!"
+
+Then Iras, who, in adorning her beloved mistress, had forgotten love,
+hate, and envy, and amid her eager haste barely found time for a brief,
+fervent prayer for a happy issue of this meeting, threw the broad
+folding-doors as wide as if she were about to reveal to the worshippers
+in the temple the image of the god in the innermost sanctuary.
+
+A long, echoing shout of surprise and delight greeted the Queen, for the
+courtiers, hastily summoned, were already awaiting her without, from the
+grey-haired epistolograph to the youngest page. Regally attired women in
+her service raised the floating train of her cloak; others, in
+sacerdotal robes, were testing the ease of movement of the rings on the
+sistrum rods, men and boys were forming into lines according to the rank
+of each individual, and the chief fan-bearer gave the signal for
+departure. After a short walk through several halls and corridors, the
+train reached the first court-yard of the palace, and there ascended the
+few steps leading to the broad platform at the entrance-gate which
+overlooked the whole Bruchium and the Street of the King, down which the
+expected hero would approach.
+
+The distant uproar of the multitude had sounded threatening, but now,
+amid the deafening din, they could distinguish every shout of welcome,
+every joyous greeting, every expression of delight, surprise, applause,
+admiration, and homage, known to the Greek and Egyptian tongues.
+
+Only the centre and end of the procession were visible. The head had
+reached the Corner of the Muses, where, concealed by the old trees in
+the garden, it moved on between the Temple of Isis and the land owned by
+Didymus. The end still extended to the Choma, whence it had started.
+
+All Alexandria seemed to have joined it.
+
+Men large and small, of high and low degree, old and young, the lame and
+the crippled, mingled with the throng, sweeping onward among horses and
+carriages, carts and beasts of burden, like a mountain torrent dashing
+wildly down to the valley. Here a loud shriek rang from an overturned
+litter, whose bearers had fallen. Yonder a child thrown to the ground
+screamed shrilly, there a dog trodden under the feet of the crowd howled
+piteously. So clear and resonant were the shouts of joy that they rose
+high above the flutes and tambourines, the cymbals and lutes of the
+musicians, who followed the man approaching in the robes of a god.
+
+The head of the procession now passed beyond the Corner of the Muses and
+came within view of the platform.
+
+There could be no doubt to whom this ovation was given, for the
+returning hero was in the van, high above all the other figures. From
+the golden throne borne on the shoulders of twelve black slaves he waved
+his long thyrsus in greeting to the exulting multitude. Before the
+bacchanalian train which accompanied him, and behind the musicians who
+followed, moved two elephants bearing between them, as a light burden,
+some unrecognizable object covered with a purple cloth. Now the column
+had passed between the pylons through the lofty gateway which separated
+the palace from the Street of the King, and stopped opposite to the
+platform.
+
+While officials, Scythians, and body-guards of all shades of complexion,
+on foot and on horseback, kept back the throng by force where friendly
+warning did not avail, Cleopatra saw her lover descend from the throne
+and give a signal to the Indian slave who guided the elephants. The
+cloth was flung aside, revealing to the astonished eyes of the
+spectators a bouquet of flowers such as no Alexandrian had ever beheld.
+It consisted entirely of blossoming rose-bushes. The red flowers formed
+a circle in the centre, surrounded by a broad light garland of white
+ones. The whole gigantic work rested like an egg in its cup in a holder
+of palm fronds which, as it were, framed it in graceful curving
+outlines. More than a thousand blossoms were united in this peerless
+bouquet, and the singular gigantic gift was characteristic of its giver.
+
+He advanced on foot to the platform, his figure towering above the
+brown, light-hued, and black freedmen and slaves who followed as, on the
+monuments of the Pharaohs, the image of the sovereign dominates those of
+the subjects and foes.
+
+He could look down upon the tallest men, and the width of his shoulders
+was as remarkable as his colossal height. A long, gold-broidered purple
+mantle, floating to his ancles, increased his apparent stature. Powerful
+arms, with the swelling muscles of an athlete, were extended from his
+sleeveless robe towards the beloved Queen.
+
+The well-formed head, thick dark hair, and magnificent beard
+corresponded with the powerful figure. Formerly these locks had adorned
+the head of the youth with the blue-black hue of the raven's plumage;
+now the threads of grey scattered abundantly through them were concealed
+by the aid of dye. A thick wreath of vine leaves rested on the
+Imperator's brow, and leafy vine branches, to which clung several dark
+bunches of grapes, fell over his broad shoulders and down his back,
+which was covered like a cloak, not by a leopard-skin, but that of a
+royal Indian tiger of great size--he had slain it himself in the arena.
+The head and paws of the animal were gold, the eyes two magnificent
+sparkling sapphires. The clasp of the chain, by which the skin was
+suspended, as well as that of the gold belt which circled the
+Imperator's body above the hips, was covered with rubies and emeralds.
+The wide armlets above his elbows, the ornaments on his broad breast,
+nay, even his red morocco boots, glittered and flashed with gems.
+
+Radiant magnificent as his former fortunes seemed the attire of this
+mighty fallen hero, who but yesterday had shrunk timidly and sadly from
+the eyes of his fellow-men. His features, too, were large, noble, and
+beautiful in outline; but, though his pale cheeks were adorned with the
+borrowed crimson of youth, half a century of the maddest pursuit of
+pleasure and the torturing excitement of the last few weeks had left
+traces only too visible; for the skin hung in loose bags beneath the
+large eyes; wrinkles furrowed his brow and radiated in slanting lines
+from the corners of his eyes across his temples.
+
+Yet not one of those whom this bedizened man of fifty was approaching
+thought of seeing in him an aged, bedecked dandy; it was an instinct of
+his nature to surround himself with pomp and splendour and, moreover,
+his whole appearance was so instinct with power that scorn and mockery
+shrank abashed before it.
+
+How frank, gracious, and kindly was this man's face, how sincere the
+heart-felt emotion which sparkled in his eyes, still glowing with the
+fire of youth, at the sight of the woman from whom he had been so long
+parted! Every feature beamed with the most ardent tenderness for the
+royal wife whom he was approaching, and the expression on the lips of
+the giant varied so swiftly from humble, sorrowful anguish of mind to
+gratitude and delight, that even the hearts of his foes were touched.
+But when, pressing his hand on his broad breast, he advanced towards the
+Queen, bending so low that it seemed as if he would fain kiss her feet,
+when in fact the colossal figure did sink kneeling before her, and the
+powerful arms were outstretched with fervent devotion like a child
+beseeching help, the woman who had loved him throughout her whole life
+with all the ardour of her passionate soul was overpowered by the
+feeling that everything which stood between them, all their mutual
+offences, had vanished. He saw the sunny smile that brightened her
+beloved, ever-beautiful face, and then--then his own name reached his
+ears from the lips to which he owed the greatest bliss love had ever
+offered. At last, as if intoxicated by the tones of her voice, which
+seemed to him more musical than the songs of the Muses; half smiling at
+the jest which, even in the most serious earnest, he could not abandon;
+half moved to the depths of his soul by the power of his newly awakening
+happiness after such sore sorrow, he pointed to the gigantic bouquet,
+which three slaves had lifted down from the elephant and were bearing to
+the Queen. Cleopatra, too, was overwhelmed with emotion.
+
+This floral gift imitated, on an immense scale, the little bouquet which
+the famous young general had taken from her father's hand before the
+gate of the garden of Epicurus to present to her as his first gift. That
+had also been composed of red roses, surrounded by white ones. Instead
+of palm fronds, it had been encircled only by fern leaves. This was one
+of the beautiful offerings which Antony's gracious nature so well
+understood how to choose. The bouquet was a symbol of the unprecedented
+generosity natural to this large-minded man. No magic goblet had
+compelled him to approach her thus and with such homage. Nothing had
+constrained him, save his overflowing heart, his constant, fadeless
+love.
+
+As if restored to youth, transported by some magic spell to the happy
+days of early girlhood, she forgot her royal dignity and the hundreds of
+eyes which rested upon him as if spell-bound; and, obedient to an
+irresistible impulse of the heart, she sank upon the broad, heaving
+breast of the kneeling hero. Laughing joyously in the clear, silvery
+tones which are usually heard only in youth, he clasped her in his
+strong arms, raised her slender figure in its floating royal mantle from
+the ground, kissed her lips and eyes, held her aloft in the soaring
+attitude of the Goddess of Victory, as if to display his happiness to
+the eyes of all, and at last placed her carefully on her feet again like
+some treasured jewel.
+
+Then, turning to the children, who were waiting at their mother's side,
+he lifted first little Alexander, then the twins, to kiss them; and,
+while holding Helios and Selene in his arms, as if the joy of seeing
+them again had banished their weight, the shouts which had arisen when
+the Queen sank on his breast again burst forth.
+
+The ancient walls of the Lochias palace had never heard such
+acclamations. They passed from lip to lip, from hundreds to hundreds
+and, though those more distant did not know the cause, they joined in
+the shouts. Along the whole vast stretch from the Lochias to the Choma
+the cheers rang out like a single, heart-stirring, inseparable cry,
+echoing across the harbour, the ships lying at anchor, the towering
+masts, to the cliff amid the sea where Barine was nursing her new-made
+husband.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+
+The property of the freedman Pyrrhus was a flat rock in the northern
+part of the harbour, scarcely larger than the garden of Didymus at the
+Corner of the Muses, a desolate spot where neither tree nor blade of
+grass grew. It was called the Serpent Island, though the inhabitants had
+long since rid it of these dangerous guests, which lived in great
+numbers in the neighbouring cliffs. Not even the poorest crops would
+grow in soil so hostile to life, and those who chose it for a home were
+compelled to bring even the drinking-water from the continent.
+
+This desert, around which hovered gulls, sea-swallows, and sea-eagles,
+had been for several weeks the abode of the fugitives, Dion and Barine.
+They still occupied the two rooms which had been assigned to them on
+their arrival. During the day the sun beat fiercely down upon the yellow
+chalky rock. There was no shade save in the house and at the foot of a
+towering cliff in the southern part of the island, the fishermen's
+watch-tower.
+
+There were no works of human hands save a little Temple of Poseidon, an
+altar of Isis, the large house owned by Pyrrhus, solidly constructed by
+Alexandrian masons, and a smaller one for the freedman's married sons
+and their families. A long wooden frame, on which nets were strung to
+dry, rose on the shore. Near it, towards the north, in the open sea, was
+the anchorage of the larger sea-going ships and the various skiffs and
+boats of the fisher folk. Dionikos, Pyrrhus's youngest son, who was
+still unmarried, built new boats and repaired the old ones.
+
+His two strong, taciturn brothers, with their wives and children, his
+father Pyrrhus, his wife and their youngest child, a daughter, Dione, a
+few dogs, cats, and chickens, composed the population of the Serpent
+Island.
+
+Such were the surroundings of the newly wedded pair, who had been reared
+in the capital. At first many things were strange to them, but they
+accommodated themselves to circumstances with a good grace, and both had
+admitted to each other, long before, that life had never been so equable
+and peaceful.
+
+During the first week Dion's wound and fever still harassed him, but the
+prediction of Pyrrhus that the pure, fresh sea-air would benefit the
+sufferer had been fulfilled, and the monotonous days had passed swiftly
+enough to the young bride in caring for the invalid.
+
+The wife of Pyrrhus--"mother," as they all called her--had proved to be
+a skilful nurse, and her daughters-in-law and young Dione were faithful
+and nimble assistants. During the time of anxiety and nursing, Barine
+had formed a warm friendship for them. If the taciturn men avoided using
+a single unnecessary word, the women were all the more ready to gossip;
+and it was a pleasure to talk to pretty Dione, who had grown up on the
+island and was eager to hear about the outside world.
+
+Dion had long since left his couch and the house, and each day looked
+happier, more content with himself and his surroundings. At first his
+feverish visions had shown him his dead mother, pointing anxiously at
+his new-made wife, as if to warn him against her. During his
+convalescence he remembered them and they conjured up the doubt whether
+Barine could endure the solitude of this desolate cliff, whether she
+would not lose the bright serenity of soul whose charm constantly
+increased. Would it be any marvel if she should pine with longing in
+this solitude, and even suffer physically from their severe privations?
+
+The perception that love now supplied the place of all which she had
+lost pleased him, but he forbade himself to expect that this condition
+of affairs could be lasting. Nothing save exaggerated self-conceit would
+induce the hope. But he must have undervalued his own power of
+attraction--or Barine's love--for with each passing week the cheerful
+serenity of her disposition gained fresh steadfastness and charm. He,
+too, had the same experience; it was long since he had felt so vigorous,
+untrammelled, and free from care. His sole regret was the impossibility
+of sharing the political life of the city at this critical period; and
+at times he felt some little anxiety concerning the fate and management
+of his property, though, even if his estates were confiscated, he would
+still retain a competence which he had left in the hands of a
+trustworthy money-changer. Barine shared everything that concerned him,
+even these moods, and this led him to tell her about the affairs of the
+city and the state, in which she had formerly taken little interest, his
+property in Alexandria and the provinces. With what glad appreciation
+she listened, when she went out with him from the northern anchorage on
+the open sea, or sat during long winter evenings making nets, an art
+which she had learned from Dione!
+
+Her lute had been sent to her from the city, and what pleasure her
+singing afforded her husband and herself; how joyously their hosts, old
+and young, listened to the melody!
+
+A few book-rolls had also come, and Dion enjoyed discussing their
+contents with Barine. He himself read very little, for he was rarely
+indoors during the day. The fourth week after his arrival he was able to
+aid, with arms whose muscles had been steeled in the palæstra, the men
+in their fishing, and Dionikos in his boat-building.
+
+The close, constant, uninterrupted companionship of the married pair
+revealed to each unexpected treasures in the other, which, perhaps,
+might have remained forever concealed in city life. Here each was
+everything to the other, and this undisturbed mutual life soon inspired
+that blissful consciousness of inseparable union which usually appears
+only after years, as the fairest fruit of a marriage founded on love.
+
+Doubtless there were hours when Barine longed to see her mother and
+others who were dear to her, but the letters which arrived from time to
+time prevented this yearning from becoming a source of actual pain.
+
+Prudence required them to restrict their intercourse with the city. But,
+whenever Pyrrhus went to market, letters reached the island delivered at
+the fish auction in the harbour by Anukis, Charmian's Nubian maid, to
+the old freedman, who had become her close friend.
+
+So the time came when Dion could say without self-deception that Barine
+was content in this solitude, and that his love and companionship
+supplied the place of the exciting, changeful life of the capital.
+Though letters came from her mother, sister, or Charmian, her
+grandfather, Gorgias, or Archibius, not one transformed the wish to
+leave her desolate hiding-place into actual homesickness, but each
+brought fresh subjects for conversation, and among them many which, by
+arousing the interest of both, united them more firmly.
+
+The second month of their flight a letter arrived from Archibius, in
+which he informed them that they might soon form plans for their return,
+for Alexas, the Syrian, had proved a malicious traitor. He had not
+performed the commission entrusted to him of winning Herod to Antony's
+cause, but treacherously deserted his patron and remained with the King
+of the Jews. When, with unprecedented shamelessness, he sought
+Octavianus to sell the secrets of his Egyptian benefactor, he was
+arrested and executed in his own home, Laodicea.
+
+Now, their friend continued, Cleopatra's eyes as well as her husband's
+were opened to the true character of Barine's most virulent accuser. The
+influence of Philostratus, too, was of course destroyed by his brother's
+infamous deed. Yet they must wait a little longer; for Cæsarion had
+joined the Ephebi, and Antyllus had been invested with the _toga
+virilis_. They could now undertake many things independently, and
+Cæsarion often made remarks which showed that he would not cease to lay
+plots for Barine.
+
+Dion feared nothing from the royal boy on his own account, but for his
+wife's sake he dared not disregard his friend's warning. This was hard;
+for though he still felt happy on the island, he longed to install the
+woman he loved in his own house, and every impulse of his nature urged
+him to be present at the meetings of the Council in these fateful times.
+Therefore he was more than ready to risk returning to the city, but
+Barine entreated him so earnestly not to exchange the secure happiness
+they enjoyed here for a greater one, behind which might lurk the
+heaviest misfortune, that he yielded. Another letter from Charmian soon
+proved the absolute necessity of continuing to exercise caution.
+
+Even from the island they could perceive that everything known as festal
+pleasure was rife in Alexandria, and bore along in its mad revelry the
+court and the citizens. When the wind blew from the south, it brought
+single notes of inspiring music or indistinct sounds of the wildest
+popular rejoicing.
+
+The fisherman's daughter, Dione, often called them to the strand to
+admire the galleys adorned with fabulous splendour, garlanded with
+flowers, and echoing with the music of lutes and the melody of songs.
+Sails of purple embroidered silk bore the vessels over the smooth tide.
+Once the watchers even distinguished, upon a barge richly adorned with
+gilded carving, young female slaves who, with floating hair and
+transparent sea-green robes, handled, in the guise of Nereids, light
+sandal-wood oars with golden blades. Often the breeze bore to the island
+the perfumes which surrounded the galleys, and on calm nights the
+magnificent ships, surrounded by the magical illumination of many-hued
+lamps, swept across the mirror-like surface of the waves, Among the
+voyagers were gods, goddesses, and heroes who, standing or reclining in
+beautiful groups, represented scenes from the myths and history. On the
+deck of the Queen's superb vessel guests crowned with wreaths lay on
+purple couches, under garlands of flowers, eating choice viands and
+draining golden wine-cups.
+
+On other nights the illumination of the shore of the Bruchium rendered
+it as bright as day. The huge dome of the Serapeum on the Rhakotis,
+covered with lamps, towered above the flat roofs of the city like the
+starry firmament of a smaller world which had descended to earth. Every
+temple and palace was transformed into a giant candelabrum, and the rows
+of lamps on the quay stretched like tendrils of light from the
+dazzlingly illuminated marble Temple of Poseidon to the palace at
+Lochias, steeped in radiance.
+
+When Pyrrhus or one of his sons returned from market they described the
+festivals and shows, banquets, races, and endless pleasure excursions
+arranged by the court, which made the citizens fairly hold their breath.
+It was a prosperous time for the fishermen; the Queen's cooks took all
+their wares and paid a liberal price.
+
+January had come, when another letter arrived from Charmian. Dion and
+Barine had watched in vain for any unusual events on Cleopatra's birth
+day, but on Antony's, a few days later, there was plenty of music and
+shouting, and in the evening an unusually magnificent illumination.
+
+Two days after, this letter was delivered to Pyrrhus by his dusky friend
+Anukis.
+
+Her inquiry whether he thought it prudent to convey visitors to his
+guests was answered in the negative, for since Octavianus had been in
+Asia, the harbour swarmed with the boats of spies, and a single act of
+imprudence might bring ruin.
+
+Charmian's letter, too, was even better calculated to curb Dion's
+increasing desire to return home than the fisherman's warning.
+
+True, the beginning contained good news of Barine's relatives, and then
+informed Dion that his uncle, the Keeper of the Seal, was fairly
+revelling in bliss. His inventive gifts were taxed more than ever. Every
+day brought a festival, every night magnificent banquets. One spectacle,
+excursion, or hunting party followed another. In the theatres, the
+Odeum, the Hippodrome, no more brilliant performances, races, naval
+battles, gladiatorial struggles, and combats between beasts had been
+given, even before Actium. Dion himself had formerly attended the
+entertainments of those who belonged to the court circle, the society of
+"Inimitable Livers." It had been revived again, but Antony called them
+the "Comrades of Death."
+
+This was significant. Every one knows that the end is drawing near, and
+imitates the Pharaoh to whom the oracle promised six years of life, and
+who convicted it of falsehood and made them twelve by carousing during
+the night also.
+
+The Queen's meeting with her husband, which she had previously reported,
+had been magnificent. "At that time," she wrote, "we hoped that a more
+noble life would begin, and Mark Antony, awakened and elevated by his
+rekindled love, would regain his former heroic power; but we were
+mistaken; Cleopatra, it is true, toiled unceasingly, but her lover with
+his enormous bunch of roses gave the signal for the maddest revelry
+which the imagination of the wildest devotee of pleasure could conceive.
+The performances of the 'Inimitable Livers' were far surpassed by those
+of the 'Comrades of Death'."
+
+"Antony is at their head, and he, whose giant frame resists even the
+most unprecedented demands, succeeds in stupefying himself and
+forgetting the impending ruin. When he comes to us after a night of
+revelry his eyes sparkle as brightly, his deep voice has as clear a
+ring, as at the beginning of the banquet. The Queen is his goddess; and
+who could remain unmoved when the giant bows obediently to the nod of
+his delicate sovereign, and devises and offers the most unprecedented
+things to win a smile from her lips? The changeful, impetuous wooing of
+youth lies far behind him, but his homage, which the Ephebi of today
+would perhaps term antiquated, has always seemed to me as if a mountain
+were bending before a star. The stranger who sees her in his company
+believes her a happy woman. Amid the fabulous radiance of the festal
+array, when all who surround her admire, worship, and strew flowers in
+her path, one might believe that the old sunny days had returned; but
+when we are alone, how rarely I see her smile! Then she plans for the
+tomb which, under Gorgias's direction, is rapidly rising, and considers
+with him the best method of rendering it an inaccessible place of
+retreat.
+
+"She decided everything, down to the carving on the stone sarcophagi. In
+addition, there are to be rooms and chambers in the lower story for the
+reception of her treasures. Beneath them she has had corridors made for
+the pitch and straw which, if the worst should come, are to be lighted.
+She will then give to the flames the gold and silver, gems and jewels,
+ebony and ivory, the costly spices--in short, all her valuables. The
+pearls alone are worth many kingdoms. Who can blame her if she prefers
+to destroy them rather than leave them for the foe."
+
+"The garden in which you grew up, Barine, is now the scene of the happy,
+busy life led by Alexander and the twins. There, under my brother's
+guidance, they frolic, build, and dig. Cleopatra goes to it whenever she
+longs for repose after the pursuit of pleasures which have lost their
+zest.
+
+"When, the day before yesterday, Antony, crowned with ivy as the new
+Dionysus, drove up the Street of the King in the golden chariot drawn by
+tamed lions, to bring her, the new Isis, from the Lochias in a lotus
+flower made of silver and white paste, drawn by four snow-white steeds,
+she pointed to the glittering train and said: 'Between the quiet of the
+philosopher's garden, where I began my life and still feel most at ease,
+and the grave, where nothing disturbs my last repose, stretches the
+Street of the King, with this deafening tumult, this empty splendour. It
+is mine.'
+
+"O child, it was very different in former days! She loved Mark Antony
+with passionate ardour. He was the first man in the world, and yet he
+bowed before the supremacy of her will. The longing of the awakening
+heart, the burning ambition which already kindled the soul of the child,
+had alike found satisfaction, and the world beheld how the mortal woman,
+Cleopatra, for her lover and herself, could steep this meagre life with
+the joys of the immortals. He was grateful for them, and the most
+generous of men laid at the feet of the 'Great Queen of the East' the
+might of Rome and the kings of two quarters of the globe.
+
+"These years were spent by both in one long revel. His marriage with
+Octavia brought the first awakening. It was hard and painful. He had not
+deserted Cleopatra for a woman's sake, but on account of his endangered
+power and sovereignty. But the unloved Octavia constrained him to look
+up to her with respectful admiration--nay, she became dear to him.
+
+"A fierce battle for him and his heart arose between the two. It was
+fought with very different weapons, and Cleopatra conquered. The revel,
+the dream began again. Then came Actium, the disenchantment, the
+awakening, the fall, the flight from the world. Our object was not to
+let him relapse into intoxication, to rouse the hero's strength and
+courage from their slumber, render him for love's sake a
+fellow-combatant in the common cause.
+
+"But he had become accustomed to see in her the giver of ecstasy. The
+only thing that he still desired was to drain the cup of pleasure in her
+society till all was over. She sees this, grieves over it, and leaves no
+means of rousing him to fresh energy untried; yet how rarely he rallies
+his powers to earnest labour!
+
+"While she is fortifying the mouths of the Nile and the frontiers of the
+country, building ship after ship, arming and negotiating, she can not
+resist him when he summons her to new pleasures.
+
+"Though so many of the traits which rendered him great and noble have
+vanished, she can not give up the old love and clings steadfastly to him
+because, because--I know not why. A woman's loving heart does not
+question motives and laws. Besides, he is the father of her children
+and, in playing with them, he regains the old joyousness of mood so
+enthralling to the heart.
+
+"Since Archibius has taken charge of them, they can dispense with
+Euphronion, their tutor. The clever man knows Rome, Octavianus, and
+those who surround him, so he was chosen as an envoy. His object was to
+induce the conqueror to transfer the sovereignty of Egypt to the boys
+Antonius Helios, and Alexander, but Cæsar vouchsafed no answer to the
+mediator in Antony's affairs--nay, did not even grant him an audience.
+
+"To Cleopatra Octavianus promised friendly treatment, and the fulfilment
+of her wish concerning the boys if--and now came the repetition of the
+old demand--she would put Antony out of the world or deliver him into
+his hands.
+
+"This demand, which contains base treachery, was impossible for her
+noble soul. Since she had resolved to build the tomb, granting it became
+impossible, yet Octavianus made every effort to tempt her to the base
+deed. True, the death of this one man would have spared much bloodshed.
+The Cæsar knows how to choose his tools. He sent here as negotiator a
+clever young man, who possessed great charms of mind and person. No plan
+to prejudice the Queen against her husband and persuade her to commit
+the treachery was left untried. He went so far as to assure Cleopatra
+that in former years she had won the Cæsar's heart, and that he still
+loved her. She accepted these assurances at their true value and
+remained steadfast.
+
+"Antony at first paid no heed to the intriguer. But when he learned what
+means he employed, and especially how he made use of the surrender of
+one of Cæsar's murderers, which he himself had long regretted, to brand
+him as an ungrateful traitor, he would not have been Mark Antony if he
+had accepted it quietly. He was completely his old self when he ordered
+the smooth fellow--who, however, had come as the ambassador of the
+mighty victor--to be scourged, sent him back to Rome, and wrote a letter
+to Octavianus, in which he complained of the man's arrogance and
+presumption, adding--spite of my heavy heart I can not help smiling when
+I think of it--that misfortune had rendered him unusually irritable; yet
+if his action perhaps displeased Cæsar, he might treat his freedman
+Hipparchus, who was in his power, as he had served Thyrsus!
+
+"You see that his gay arrogance has not deserted him. Trouble slips away
+from him as rain is shaken from the coarse military cloak which he wore
+in the Parthian war, and therefore it cannot exert its purifying power.
+
+"When we consider that, a few years ago, this man, as it were, doubled
+himself when peril was most threatening, his conduct now, on the eve of
+the decisive struggle, is intelligible only to those who know him as we
+do. If he fights, he will no longer do so to save himself, or even to
+conquer, but to die an honourable death. If he still enjoys the
+pleasures offered, he believes that he can thus mitigate for himself the
+burden of defeat, and diminish the grandeur of the conqueror's victory.
+In the eyes of the world, at least, a man who can still revel like
+Antony is only half vanquished. Yet the lofty tone of his mind was
+lowered. The surrender of the murderer of Cæsar--his name was
+Turullius--proves it.
+
+"And this, Barine--tell your husband so--this is what fills me with
+anxiety and compels me to entreat you not to think of returning home
+yet.
+
+"Antony is now the jovial companion of his son, and permits Antyllus to
+share all his own pleasures. Of course, he heard of Cæsarion's passion,
+and is disposed to help the poor fellow. He has often said that nothing
+would better serve to rouse the dreamer from torpor than your charming
+vivacity. As the earth could scarcely have swallowed you up, you would
+be found; he, too, should be glad to hear you sing again. I know that
+search will be made for you.
+
+"How imperiously this state of affairs requires you to exercise caution
+needs no explanation. On the other hand, you may find comfort in the
+tidings that Cleopatra intends to send Cæsarion with his tutor Rhodon
+to Ethiopia, by way of the island of Philæ. Archibius heard through
+Timagenes that Octavianus considers the son of Cæsar, whose face so
+wonderfully resembles his father's, a dangerous person, and this opinion
+is the boy's death-warrant. Antyllus, too, is going on a journey. His
+destination is Asia, where he is to seek to propitiate Octavianus and
+make him new offers. As you know, he was betrothed to his daughter
+Julia. The Queen ceased long ago to believe in the possibility of
+victory, yet, spite of all the demands of the 'Comrades of Death' and
+her own cares, she toils unweariedly in preparing for the defence of the
+country. She is doubtless the only member of that society who thinks
+seriously of the approaching end.
+
+"Now that the tomb is rising, she ponders constantly upon death. She,
+who was taught by Epicurus to strive for freedom from pain and is so
+sensitive to the slightest bodily suffering, is still seeking a path
+which, with the least agony, will lead to the eternal rest for which she
+longs. Iras and the younger pupils of Olympus are aiding her. The old
+man furnishes all sorts of poisons, which she tries upon various
+animals--nay, recently even on criminals sentenced to death. All these
+experiments seem to prove that the bite of the uræus serpent, whose
+image on the Egyptian crown symbolizes the sovereign's instant power
+over life and death, stills the heart most swiftly and with the least
+suffering.
+
+"How terrible these things are! What pain it causes to see the being one
+loves most, the mother of the fairest children, so cruelly heighten the
+anguish of parting, choose death, as it were, for a constant companion,
+amid the whirl of the gayest amusements! She daily looks all his terrors
+in the face, yet with proud contempt turns her back upon the bridge
+which might perhaps enable her for a time to escape the monster. This is
+grand, worthy of her, and never have I loved her more tenderly.
+
+"You, too, must think of her kindly. She deserves it. A noble heart
+which sees itself forced to pity a foe, easily forgives; and was she
+ever your enemy?
+
+"I have written a long, long letter to solace your seclusion from the
+world and relieve my own heart. Have patience a little while longer. The
+time is not far distant when Fate itself will release you from exile.
+How often your relatives, Archibius and Gorgias, whom I now see
+frequently in the presence of the Queen, long to visit you!--but they,
+too, believe that it might prove a source of danger."
+
+The warnings in this letter were confirmed by another from Archibius,
+and soon after they heard that Cæsarion had really sailed up the Nile
+for Ethiopia with his tutor Rhodon, and Antyllus had been sent to Asia
+to visit Octavianus. The latter had received him, it is true; but sent
+him home without making any pledges.
+
+These tidings were not brought by letter, but by Gorgias himself, whose
+visit surprised them one evening late in March.
+
+Rarely had a guest received a more joyous welcome. When he entered the
+bare room, Barine was making a net and telling the fisherman's daughter
+Dione the story of the wanderings of Ulysses. Dion, too, listened
+attentively, now and then correcting or explaining her descriptions,
+while carving a head of Poseidon for the prow of a newly built boat.
+
+As Gorgias unexpectedly crossed the threshold, the dim light of the lamp
+fed by kiki-oil seemed transformed into sunshine. How brightly their
+eyes sparkled, how joyous were their exclamations of welcome and
+surprise! Then came questions, answers, news! Gorgias was obliged to
+share the family supper, which had only waited the return of the father
+who had brought the guest.
+
+The fresh oysters, langustæ, and other dishes served tasted more
+delicious to the denizen of the city than the most delicious banquets of
+the "Comrades of Death" to which he was now frequently invited by the
+Queen.
+
+All that Pyrrhus said voluntarily and told his sons in reply to their
+questions was so sensible and related to matters which, because they
+were new to Gorgias, seemed so fascinating that, when Dion's good wine
+was served, he declared that if Pyrrhus would receive him he, too, would
+search for pursuers and be banished here.
+
+When the three again sat alone before the plain clay mixing vessel it
+seemed to the lonely young couple as if the best part of the city life
+which they had left behind had found its way to them, and what did they
+not have to say to one another! Dion and Barine talked of their hermit
+life, Gorgias of the Queen and the tomb, which was at the same time a
+treasure chamber. The slanting walls were built as firmly as if they
+were intended to last for centuries and defy a violent assault. The
+centre of the lower story was formed by a lofty hall of vast dimensions,
+in whose midst were the large marble sarcophagi. Men were working busily
+upon the figures in relief intended for the decoration of the sides and
+lids. This hall, whose low arched ceiling was supported by three pairs
+of heavy columns, was furnished like a reception-room. The couches,
+candelabra, and altars were already being made. Charmian had kept the
+fugitives well informed. In the subterranean chambers at the side of the
+hall, and in the second story, which could not be commenced until the
+ceiling was completed, store-rooms were to be made, and below and beside
+them were passages for ventilation and the storage of combustible
+materials.
+
+Gorgias regretted that he could not show his friend the hall, which was
+perhaps the handsomest and most costly he had ever created. The noblest
+material--brown porphyry, emerald-green serpentine, and the dark
+varieties of marble--had been used, and the mosaic and brass doors,
+which were nearing completion, were masterpieces of Alexandrian art. To
+have all this destroyed was a terrible thought, but even more unbearable
+was that of its object--to receive the body of the Queen.
+
+Again rapturous admiration of this greatest and noblest of women led
+Gorgias to enthusiastic rhapsodies, until Dion exercised his office of
+soberer, and Barine asked tidings of her mother, her grandparents, and
+her sister. There was nothing but good news to be told. True, the
+architect had to wage a daily battle with the old philosopher, who
+termed it an abuse of hospitality to remain so long at his friend's with
+his whole family; but thus far Gorgias had won the victory, even against
+Berenike, who wished to take her father and his household to her own
+home.
+
+Cleopatra had purchased the house and garden of Didymus at thrice their
+value, the architect added. He was now a wealthy man, and had
+commissioned him to build a new mansion. The land facing the sea and
+near the museum had been found, but the handsome residence would not be
+completed until summer. The dry Egyptian air would have permitted him to
+roof it sooner, but there were many of Helena's wishes--most of them
+very sensible ones--to be executed.
+
+Barine and Dion glanced significantly at each other; but the architect,
+perceiving it, exclaimed: "Your mute language is intelligible enough,
+and I confess that for five months Helena has seemed to me the most
+attractive of maidens. I see, too, that she has some regard for me. But
+as soon as I stand before _her_--the Queen, I mean--and hear her voice,
+it seems as if a tempest swept away every thought of Helena, and it is
+not in my nature to deceive any one. How can I woo a girl whom I so
+deeply honour--your sister, Barine--when the image of another rules my
+soul?"
+
+Dion reminded him of his own words that the Queen was loved only as a
+goddess and, without waiting for his reply, turned the conversation to
+other topics.
+
+It was three hours after midnight when Pyrrhus warned Gorgias that it
+was time for departure. When the fisherman's fleetest boat was at last
+bearing him back to the city he wondered whether girls who, before
+marriage, lived like Helena in undisturbed seclusion, would really be
+better wives and more content with every lot than the much-courted
+Barine, whom Dion had led from the gayest whirl of life in the capital
+to the most desolate solitude.
+
+This delightful evening was followed by a day of excitement and grave
+anxiety. It had been necessary to conceal the young couple from the
+collector's officials, who took from Pyrrhus part of his last year's
+savings, and the large new boat which he used to go out on the open sea.
+The preparations for war required large sums; all vessels suitable for
+the purpose were seized for the fleet, and all residents of the city and
+country shared the same fate as Pyrrhus.
+
+Even the temple treasures were confiscated, and yet no one could help
+saying to himself that the vast sums which, through these pitiless
+extortions, flowed into the treasury, were used for the pleasures of the
+court as well as for the equipment of the fleet and the army.
+
+Yet so great was the people's love for the Queen, so high their regard
+for the independence of Egypt, so bitter their hate of Rome, that there
+was no rebellion.
+
+How earnestly Cleopatra, amid all the extravagant revels, from which she
+could not too frequently absent herself, toiled to advance the military
+preparations, could be seen even by the exiles from their cliff; for
+work in two dock-yards was continued day and night, and the harbour was
+filled with vessels. Ships of war were continually moving to and fro,
+and from the Serpent Island they witnessed constantly, often by
+starlight, the drilling of the oarsmen and of whole squadrons upon the
+open sea. Sometimes a magnificent state galley appeared, on whose deck
+was Antony, who inspected the hastily equipped fleet to make the newly
+recruited sailors one of those kindling speeches in which he was a
+master hard to surpass. Two sons of Pyrrhus were now numbered in the
+crews of the recently built war ships. They had been impressed into the
+service in April, and though Dion had placed a large sum at their
+father's disposal to secure their release, the attempt was unsuccessful.
+
+So there had been sorrow and tears in the contented little colony of
+human beings on the lonely cliff, and when Dionysus and Dionichos had a
+day's leave of absence to visit their relatives, they complained of the
+cruel haste with which the young men were drilled and wearied to
+exhaustion, and spoke of the sons of citizens and peasants who had been
+dragged from their villages, their parents, and their business to be
+trained for seamen. There was great indignation among them, and they
+listened only too readily to the agitators who whispered how much better
+they would have fared on the galleys of Octavianus.
+
+Pyrrhus entreated his sons not to join any attempt at mutiny; the women,
+on the contrary, would have approved anything which promised to release
+the youths from their severe service, and their bright cheerfulness was
+transformed into anxious depression. Barine, too, was no longer the
+same. She had lost her joyous activity, her eyes were often wet with
+tears, and she moved with drooping head as if some heavy care oppressed
+her.
+
+Was it the heat of April, with its desert winds, which had brought the
+transformation? Had longing for the changeful, exciting life of former
+days at last overpowered her? Was solitude becoming unendurable? Was her
+husband's love no longer sufficient to replace the many pleasures she
+had sacrificed?--No! It could not be that; never had she gazed with more
+devoted tenderness into Dion's face than when entirely alone with him in
+shady nooks. She who in such hours looked the very embodiment of
+happiness and contentment, certainly was neither ill nor sorrowful.
+
+Dion, on the contrary, held his head high early and late, and appeared
+as proud and self-conscious as though life was showing him its fairest
+face. Yet he had heard that his estates had been sequestrated, and that
+he owed it solely to the influence of Archibius and his uncle, that his
+property, like that of so many others, had not been added to the royal
+treasures. But what disaster could he not have speedily vanquished in
+these days?
+
+A great joy--the greatest which the immortals can bestow upon human
+beings--was dawning for him and his young wife, and in May the women on
+the island shared her blissful hope.
+
+Pyrrhus brought from the city an altar and a marble statue of Ilythyia,
+the Goddess of Birth, called by the Romans Lucina, which his friend
+Anukis had given him, in Charmian's name, for the young wife. She had
+again spoken of the serpents which lived in such numbers in the
+neighbouring islands, and her question whether it would be difficult to
+capture one alive was answered by the freedman in the negative.
+
+The image of the goddess and the altar were erected beside the other
+sanctuaries, and how often the stone was anointed by Barine and the
+women of the fisherman's family!
+
+Dion vowed to the goddess a beautiful temple on the cliff and in the
+city if she would be gracious to his beloved young wife.
+
+When, in June, the noonday sun blazed most fiercely, the fisherman
+brought to the cliff Helena, Barine's sister, and Chloris, Dion's nurse,
+who had been a faithful assistant of his mother, and afterwards managed
+the female slaves of the household.
+
+How joyously and gratefully Barine held out her arms to her sister! Her
+mother had been prevented from coming only by the warning that her
+disappearance would surely attract the attention of the spies. And the
+latter were very alert; for Mark Antony had not yet given up the pursuit
+of the singer, nor had the attorney Philostratus recalled the
+proclamation offering two talents for the capture of Dion, and both the
+latter's palace and Berenike's house were constantly watched.
+
+It seemed more difficult for the quiet Helena to accommodate herself to
+this solitude than for her gayer-natured sister. Plainly as she showed
+her love for Barine, she often lapsed into reverie, and every evening
+she went to the southern side of the cliff and gazed towards the city,
+where her grandparents doubtless sorely missed her, spite of the careful
+attention bestowed upon them in Gorgias's house.
+
+Eight days had passed since her arrival, and life in this wilderness
+seemed more distasteful than on the first and the second; the longing
+for her grandparents, too, appeared to increase; for that day she had
+gone to the shore, even under the burning rays of the noonday sun, to
+gaze towards the city.
+
+How dearly she loved the old people!
+
+But Dion's conjecture that the tears sparkling in Helena's eyes when she
+entered their room at dusk were connected with another resident of the
+capital, spite of his wife's indignant denial, appeared to be correct;
+for, a short time after, clear voices were heard in front of the house,
+and when a deep, hearty laugh rang out, Dion started up, exclaiming,
+"Gorgias never laughs in that way, except when he has had some unusual
+piece of good fortune!"
+
+He hurried out as he spoke, and gazed around; but, notwithstanding the
+bright moonlight, he could see nothing except Father Pyrrhus on his way
+back to the anchorage.
+
+But Dion's ears were keen, and he fancied he heard subdued voices on the
+other side of the dwelling. He followed the sound without delay and,
+when he turned the corner of the building, stopped short in
+astonishment, exclaiming as a low cry rose close before him:
+
+"Good-evening, Gorgias! I'll see you later. I won't interrupt you."
+
+A few rapid steps took him back to Barine, and as he whispered, "I saw
+Helena out in the moonlight, soothing her longing for her grandparents
+in Gorgias's arms," she clapped her hands and said, smiling:
+
+"That's the way one loses good manners in this solitude. To disturb the
+first meeting of a pair of lovers! But Gorgias treated us in the same
+way in Alexandria, so he is now paid in his own coin."
+
+The architect soon entered the room, with Helena leaning on his arm.
+Hour by hour he had missed her more and more painfully, and on the
+eighth day found it impossible to endure life's burden longer without
+her. He now protested that he could approach her mother and grandparents
+as a suitor with a clear conscience; for on the third day after Helena's
+departure the relation between him and the Queen had changed. In
+Cleopatra's presence the image of the granddaughter of Didymus became
+even more vivid than that of the peerless sovereign had formerly been in
+Helena's. Outside of the pages of poetry he had never experienced
+longing like that which had tortured him during the past few days.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+
+This time the architect could spend only a few hours on the Serpent
+Island, for affairs in the city were beginning to wear a very serious
+aspect, and the building of the monument was pushed forward even during
+the night. The interior of the first story was nearly completed and the
+rough portion of the second was progressing. The mosaic workers, who
+were making the floor of the great hall, had surpassed themselves. It
+was impossible to wait longer for the sculptures which were to adorn the
+walls. At present slabs of polished black marble were to occupy the
+places intended for bronze reliefs; the utmost haste was necessary.
+
+Octavianus had already reached Pelusium; even if Seleukus, the commander
+of the garrison, held the strong fortress a long time, a part of the
+hostile army might appear before Alexandria the following week.
+
+A considerable force, however, was ready to meet him. The fleet seemed
+equal to that of the enemy; the horsemen whom Antony had led before the
+Queen would delight the eye of any one versed in military affairs; and
+the Imperator hoped much from the veterans who had served under him in
+former times, learned to know his generosity and open hand in the hour
+of prosperity, and probably had scarcely forgotten the eventful days
+when he had cheerfully and gaily shared their perils and privations.
+
+Helena remained on the cliff, and her longing for the old couple had
+materially diminished. Her hands moved nimbly, and her cheerful glance
+showed that the lonely life on the island was beginning to unfold its
+charms to her.
+
+The young husband, however, had grown very uneasy. He concealed it
+before the women, but old Pyrrhus often had much difficulty in
+preventing his making a trip to the city which might imperil, on the eve
+of the final decision, the result of their long endurance and privation.
+Dion had often wished to set sail with his wife for a great city in
+Syria or Greece, but fresh and mighty obstacles had deterred him. A
+special danger lay in the fact that every large vessel was thoroughly
+searched before it left the harbour, and it was impossible to escape
+from it without passing through the narrow straits east of the Pharos or
+the opening in the Heptastadium, both of which were easily guarded. The
+calm moderation that usually distinguished the young counsellor had been
+transformed into feverish restlessness, and the heart of his faithful
+old monitor had also lost its poise; for an encounter between the fleet
+in which his sons served and that of Octavianus was speedily expected.
+
+One day he returned from the city greatly excited. Pelusium was said to
+have fallen.
+
+When he ascended the cliff he found everything quiet. No one, not even
+Dione, came to meet him.
+
+What had happened here?
+
+Had the fugitives been discovered and dragged with his family to the
+city to be thrown into prison, perhaps sent to the stone quarries?
+
+Deadly pale, but erect and composed, he walked towards the house. He
+owed to Dion and his father the greatest blessing in life, liberty, and
+the foundation of everything else he possessed. But if his fears were
+verified, if he was bereft of friends and property, even as a lonely
+beggar he might continue to enjoy his freedom. If, for the sake of those
+to whom he owed his best possession, he must surrender the rest, it was
+his duty to bear fate patiently.
+
+It was still light.
+
+Even when he had approached very near the house he heard no sound save
+the joyous barking of his wolf-hound, Argus, which leaped upon him.
+
+He now laid his hand upon the lock of the door--but it was flung open
+from the inside.
+
+Dion had seen him coming and, enraptured by the new happiness with which
+this day had blessed him, he flung himself impetuously on the breast of
+his faithful friend, exclaiming: "A boy, a splendid boy! We will call
+him Pyrrhus."
+
+Bright tears of joy streamed down the freedman's face and fell on his
+grey beard; and when his wife came towards him with her finger on her
+lips, he whispered in a tremulous voice: "When I brought them here you
+were afraid that the city people would drag us into ruin, but
+nevertheless you received them as they deserved to be, and--he's going
+to name him Pyrrhus--and now!--What has a poor fellow like me done to
+have such great and beautiful blessings fall to my lot?"
+
+"And I--I?" sobbed his wife. "And the child, the darling little
+creature!"
+
+This day of sunny happiness was followed by others of quiet joy, of the
+purest pleasure, yet mingled with the deepest anxiety. They also brought
+many an hour in which Helena found an opportunity to show her prudence,
+while old Chloris and the fisherman's wife aided her by their
+experience.
+
+Every one, down to the greybeard whose name the little one bore,
+declared that there had never been a lovelier young mother than Barine
+or a handsomer child than the infant Pyrrhus; but Dion could no longer
+endure to remain on the cliff.
+
+A thousand things which he had hitherto deemed insignificant and allowed
+to pass unheeded now seemed important and imperatively in need of his
+personal attention. He was a father, and any negligence might be harmful
+to his son.
+
+With his bronzed complexion and long hair and beard he required little
+aid to disguise him from his friends. In the garments shabby by long
+use, and with his delicate hands calloused by work in the dock-yard, any
+one would have taken him for a real fisherman.
+
+Perhaps it was foolish, but the desire to show himself in the character
+of a father to Barine's mother and grandparents and to Gorgias seemed
+worth risking a slight danger; so, without informing Barine, who was now
+able to walk about her room, he set out for the city after sunset on the
+last day of July.
+
+He knew that Octavianus was encamped in the Hippodrome east of
+Alexandria. The white mounds which had risen there had been recognized
+as tents, even from the Serpent Island. Pyrrhus had returned in the
+afternoon with tidings that Antony's mounted troops had defeated those
+of Octavianus. This time the news of victory could be trusted, for the
+palace at Lochias was illuminated for a festival and when Dion landed
+there was a great bustle on the quay. One shouted to another that all
+would be well. Mark Antony was his old self again. He had fought like a
+hero.
+
+Many who yesterday had cursed him, to-day mingled their voices in the
+shouts of "Evoë!" which rang out for the new Dionysus, who had again
+proved his claim to godship.
+
+The late visitor found the grandparents alone in the house of Gorgias.
+They had been informed of Barine's new happiness long before. Now they
+rejoiced with Dion, and wanted to send at once for their host and future
+son-in-law, who was in the city attending a meeting of the Ephebi,
+although he had ceased some time ago to be a member of their company.
+But Dion wished to greet him among the youths who had invited the
+architect to give them his aid in deciding the question of the course
+they were to pursue in the impending battle.
+
+Yet he did not leave the old couple immediately; he was expecting two
+visitors--Barine's mother and Charmian's Nubian maid who, since the
+birth of little Pyrrhus, had come to the philosopher's every evening.
+The former's errand was to ask whether any news of the mother and child
+had been received during the day; the latter, to get the letters which
+she delivered the next morning at the fish-market to her friend Pyrrhus
+or his sons.
+
+Anukis was the first to appear. She relieved her sympathizing heart by a
+brief expression of congratulations; but, gladly as she would have
+listened to the most minute details concerning the beloved young mother
+from the lips of Dion himself, she repressed her own wishes for her
+mistress's sake, and returned to Charmian as quickly as possible to
+inform her of the arrival of the unexpected guest.
+
+Berenike bore her new dignity of grandmother with grateful joy, yet
+to-night she came oppressed by a grave anxiety, which was not solely due
+to her power of imagining gloomy events. Her brother Arius and his sons
+were concealed in the house of a friend, for they seemed threatened by a
+serious peril. Hitherto Antony had generously borne the philosopher no
+ill-will on the score of his intimate relations with Octavianus; but now
+that Octavianus was encamped outside the city, the house of the man who,
+during the latter's years of education, had been his mentor and
+counsellor, and later a greatly valued friend, was watched, by Mardion's
+orders, by the Scythian guard. He and his family were forbidden to enter
+the city, and his escape to his friend had been effected under cover of
+the darkness and with great danger.
+
+The anxious woman feared the worst for her brother if Mark Antony should
+conquer, and yet, with her whole heart, she wished the Queen to gain the
+victory. She, who always feared the worst, saw in imagination the
+fortunes of war change--and there was reason for the belief. The bold
+general who had gained so many victories, and whom the defeat of Actium
+had only humbled, was said to have regained his former elasticity. He
+had dashed forward at the head of his men with the heroic courage of
+former days--nay, with reckless impetuosity. Rumour reported that, with
+the huge sword he wielded, he had dealt from his powerful charger blows
+as terrible as those inflicted five-and-twenty years before when, not
+far from the same spot, he struck Archelaus on the head. The statement
+that, in his golden armour, with the gold helmet framing his bearded
+face, he resembled his ancestor Herakles, was confirmed by Charmian, who
+had been borne quickly hither by a pair of the Queen's swift horses.
+Cleopatra might need her soon, yet she had left the Lochias to question
+the father about many things concerning the young mother and her boy,
+who was already dear to her as the first grandson of the man whose suit,
+it is true, she had rejected, but to whom she owed the delicious
+consciousness of having loved and been loved in the springtime of life.
+
+Dion found her changed. The trying months which she had described in her
+letters to Barine had completely blanched her grey hair, her cheeks were
+sunken, and a deep line between her mouth and nose gave her pleasant
+face a sorrowful expression. Besides, she seemed to have been weeping
+and, in fact, heart-rending events had just occurred.
+
+She had stolen away from Lochias in the midst of a revel.
+
+Antony's victory was being celebrated. He himself presided at the
+banquet. Again his head and breast were wreathed with a wealth of fresh
+leaves and superb flowers. At his side reclined Cleopatra, robed in
+light-blue garments adorned with lotus-flowers which, like the little
+coronet on her head, glittered with sapphires and pearls. Charmian said
+she had rarely looked more beautiful. But she did not add that the Queen
+had been obliged to have rouge applied to her pale, bloodless cheeks.
+
+It was touching to see Antony after his return from the battle, still in
+his suit of mail, clasp her in his arms as joyously as if he had won her
+back, a prize of victory, and with his vanished heroic power regained
+her and their mutual love. Her eyes, too, had been radiant with joy and,
+in the elation of her heart, she had given the horseman who, for a deed
+of special daring, was presented to her, a helmet and coat of mail of
+solid gold.
+
+Yet, even before the revel began, she had been forced to acknowledge to
+herself that the commencement of the end was approaching; for, a few
+hours after she had so generously rewarded the man, he had deserted to
+the foe. Then Antony had challenged Octavianus to a duel, and received
+the unfeeling reply that he would find many roads to death open.
+
+This was the language of the cold-hearted foe, secure of superior power.
+How sadly, too, she had been disappointed in the hope--that the veterans
+who had served under Antony would desert their new commander at the
+first summons and flock to his standard!--for all her husband's efforts
+in this direction, spite of the bewitching power of his eloquence,
+failed, while every hour brought tidings of the treacherous desertion
+from his army of individual warriors and whole maniples. His foe deemed
+his cause so weak that he did not even resist Mark Antony's attempts to
+win the soldiers by promises.
+
+From all these signs Cleopatra now saw plainly, in her lover's victory,
+only the last flicker of a dying fire; but so long as it burned he
+should see her follow its light.
+
+Therefore she had entered the festal hall with the victor of the day.
+She had witnessed a strange festival. It began with tears and reminded
+Cleopatra of the saying that she herself resembled a banquet served to
+celebrate a victory before the battle was won. The cup-bearers had
+scarcely advanced to the guests with their golden vessels when Antony
+turned to them, exclaiming: "Pour generously, men; perhaps to-morrow you
+will serve another master!"
+
+Then, unlike his usual self, he grew thoughtful and murmured under his
+breath, "And I shall probably be lying outside a corpse, a miserable
+nothing."
+
+Loud sobs from the cup-bearers and servants followed these words; but he
+addressed them calmly, assuring them that he would not take them into a
+battle from which he expected an honourable death rather than rescue and
+victory.
+
+At this Cleopatra's tears flowed also. If this reckless man of pleasure,
+this notorious spendthrift and disturber of the public peace, with his
+insatiate desires, had inspired bitter hostility, few had gained the
+warm love of so many hearts. One glance at his heroic figure; one memory
+of the days when even his foes conceded that he was never greater than
+in the presence of the most imminent peril, never more capable of
+awakening in others the hope of brighter times than amid the sorest
+privations; one tone of the orator's deep, resonant voice, which so
+often came from the heart and therefore gained hearts with such
+resistless power; the recollection of numberless instances of the bright
+cheerfulness of his nature and his boundless generosity sufficiently
+explained the lamentations which burst forth at that banquet, the tears
+which flowed--tears of genuine feeling. They were also shed for the
+beautiful Queen who, unmindful of the spectators, rested her noble brow,
+with its coronal of pearls, upon his mighty shoulder.
+
+But the grief did not last long, for Mark Antony, shouted: "Hence with
+melancholy! We do not need the larva!* We know, without its aid, that
+pleasure will soon be over!--Xuthus, a joyous festal song!--And you,
+Metrodor, lead the dancers! The first beaker to the fairest, the best,
+the wisest, the most cherished, the most fervently beloved of women!" As
+he spoke he waved his goblet aloft, the flute-player, Xuthus, beckoned
+to the chorus, and the dancer Metrodor, in the guise of a butterfly, led
+forth a bevy of beautiful girls, who, in the cloud of ample robes of
+transparent coloured bombyx which floated around them, executed the most
+graceful figures and now hovered like mists, now flitted to and fro as
+if borne on wings, affording the most charming variety to the delighted
+spectators.
+
+[* At the banquets of the Egyptians a small figure in the shape of a
+mummy was passed around to remind the guests that they, too, would soon
+be in the same condition, and have no more time to enjoy life and its
+pleasures. The Romans imitated this custom by sending the larva, a
+statuette in the form of a skeleton, to make the round of the revellers.
+The Greek love of beauty converted this ugly scarecrow into a winged
+genius.]
+
+The "Comrades of Death" had again become companions in pleasure; and
+when Charmian, who did not lose sight of her mistress, noticed the
+sorrowful quiver of her lips and glided out of the circle of guests, the
+faithful Nubian had approached to inform her of Dion's arrival.
+
+Then--but this she concealed from her friends--she hastened to her own
+apartments to prepare to go out, and when Iras opened the door to enter
+her rooms she went to speak to her about the night attendance upon the
+Queen. But her niece had not perceived her; shaken by convulsive sobs,
+she had pressed her face among the cushions of a couch, and there
+suffered the fierce anguish which had stirred the inmost depths of her
+being to rave itself out with the full vehemence of her passionate
+nature. Charmian called her name and, weeping herself, ripened her arms
+to her, and for the first time since her return from Actium her sister's
+daughter again sank upon her breast, and they held each other in a close
+embrace until Charmian's exclamation, "With her, for her unto death!"
+was answered by Iras's "To the tomb!"
+
+This was a word which, in many an hour of the silent night, had stirred
+the soul of the woman who had been the youthful playmate of the Queen
+who, with bleeding heart, sat below among the revellers at the noisy
+banquet and forced her to ask the question: "Is not your fate bound to
+hers? What can life offer you without her?"
+
+Now, this word was spoken by other lips, and, like an echo of Iras's
+exclamation, came the answer: "Unto death, like you, if she precedes us
+to the other world. Whatever may follow dying, nowhere shall she lack
+Charmian's hand and heart."
+
+"Nor the love and service of Iras," was the answering assurance.
+
+So they had parted, and the agitation of this fateful moment was still
+visible in the features of the woman who had formerly sacrificed to her
+royal playfellow her love, and now offered her life.
+
+When, ere leaving Gorgias's house, she bade her friend farewell, she
+pressed Dion's hand with affectionate warmth and, as he accompanied her
+to the carriage, she informed him that, before the first encounter of
+the troops, Archibius had taken the royal children to his estate of
+Irenia, where they were at present.
+
+"Rarely has it been my fate to experience a more sorrowful hour than
+when I beheld the Queen, her heart torn with anguish, bid them farewell.
+What fate is impending over the dear ones, who are so worthy of the
+greatest happiness? To see the twins and little Alexander recognized and
+saved from death and insult, and your boy in Barine's arms, is the last
+wish which I still cherish."
+
+On returning to Lochias, Charmian had a long time to wait ere the Queen
+retired. She dreaded the mood in which she would leave the banquet. For
+months past Cleopatra had returned from the revels of the "Comrades of
+Death" saddened to tears, or in a blaze of indignation. How must this
+last banquet, which began so mournfully and continued with such reckless
+mirth, affect her?
+
+At last, the second hour after midnight, Cleopatra appeared.
+
+Charmian believed that she must be the sport of some delusion, for the
+Queen's eyes which, when she had left her, were full of tears, now
+sparkled with the radiant light of joy and, as her friend took the crown
+from her head, she exclaimed:
+
+"Why did you depart from the banquet so early? Perhaps it was the last,
+but I remember no festival more brilliant. It was like the springtime of
+my love. Mark Antony would have touched the heart of a stone statue by
+that blending of manly daring and humble devotion which no woman can
+resist. As in former days, hours shrivelled into moments. We were again
+young, once more united. We were together here at Lochias to-night, and
+yet in distant years and other places. The notes of the singers, the
+melodies of the musicians, the figures executed by the dancers, were
+lost upon us. We soared back, hand in hand, to a magic world, and the
+fairy drama in the realms of the blessed, which passed before us in
+dazzling splendour and blissful joy, was the dream which I loved best
+when a child, and at the same time the happiest portion of the life of
+the Queen of Egypt.
+
+"It began before the gate of the garden of Epicurus, and continued on
+the river Cydnus. I again beheld myself on the golden barge, garlanded
+with wreaths of flowers, reclining on the purple couch with roses strewn
+around me and beneath my jewelled sandals. A gentle breeze swelled the
+silken sails; my female companions raised their clear voices in song to
+the accompaniment of lutes; the perfumes floating around us were borne
+by the wind to the shore, conveying the tidings that the bliss believed
+by mortals to be reserved for the gods alone was drawing near. And even
+as his heart and his enraptured senses yielded to my sway, his mind, as
+he himself confessed, was under the thrall of mine. We both felt happy,
+united by ties which nothing, not even misfortune, could sever. He, the
+ruler of the world, was conquered, and delighted to obey the behests of
+the victor, because he felt that she before whom he bowed was his own
+obedient slave. And no magic goblet effected all this. I breathed more
+freely, as if relieved from the oppressive delusion--the fire had
+consumed it also--which had burdened my soul until a few hours ago. No
+magic spell, only the gifts of mind and soul which the vanquished
+victor, the woman Cleopatra, owed to the favour of the immortals, had
+compelled his lofty manhood to yield.
+
+"From the Cydnus he brought me hither to the blissful days which we were
+permitted to pass in my city of Alexandria. A thousand sunny hours,
+musical, echoing surges which long since dashed down the stream of Time,
+he recalled to life, and I--I did the same, and our memories blended
+into one. What never-to-be-forgotten moments we experienced when, with
+reckless mirth, we mingled unrecognized among the joyous throng! What
+Olympic delight elated our hearts when the plaudits of thousands greeted
+us! What joys satiated our minds and senses in our own apartments! What
+pure, unalloyed nectar of the soul was bestowed upon us by our
+children--bliss which we shared with and imparted to each other until
+neither knew which was the giver and which the receiver! Everything sad
+and painful seemed to be effaced from the book of memory; and the
+child's dream, the fairy-tale woven by the power of imagination, stood
+before my soul as a reality--the same reality, I repeat, which I call my
+past life.
+
+"And, Charmian, if death comes to-morrow, should I say that he appeared
+too early--summoned me ere he permitted life to bestow all its best
+gifts upon me? No, no, and again no! Whoever, in the last hour of
+existence, can say that the fairest dreams of childhood were surpassed
+by a long portion of actual life, may consider himself happy, even in
+the deepest need and on the verge of the grave.
+
+"The aspiration to be first and highest among the women of her own time,
+which had already thrilled the young girl's heart, was fulfilled. The
+ardent longing for love which, even at that period, pervaded my whole
+being, was satisfied when I became a loving wife, mother, and Queen, and
+friendship, through the favour of Destiny, also bestowed upon me its
+greatest blessings by the hands of Archibius, Charmian, and Iras.
+
+"Now I care not what may happen. This evening taught me that life had
+fulfilled its pledges. But others, too, must be enabled to remember the
+most brilliant of queens, who was also the most fervently beloved of
+women. For this I will provide: the mausoleum which Gorgias is erecting
+for me will stand like an indestructible wall between the Cleopatra who
+to-day still proudly wears the crown and her approaching humiliation and
+disgrace.
+
+"Now I will go to sleep. If my awakening brings defeat, sorrow, and
+death, I have no reason to accuse my fate. It denied me one thing only:
+the painless peace which the child and the young girl recognized as the
+chief good; yet Cleopatra will possess that also. The domain of death,
+which, as the Egyptians say, loves silence, is opening its doors to me.
+The most absolute peace begins upon its threshold--who knows where it
+ends? The vision of the intellect does not extend far enough to discover
+the boundary where, at the end of eternity--which in truth is
+endless--it is replaced by something else."
+
+While speaking, the Queen had motioned to her friend to accompany her
+into her chamber, from which a door led into the children's room. An
+irresistible impulse constrained her to open it and gaze into the dark,
+empty apartment.
+
+She felt an icy chill run through her veins. Taking a light from the
+hand of one of the maids who attended her, she went to little
+Alexander's couch. Like the others, it was empty, deserted. Her head
+sank on her breast, the courageous calmness with which she had surveyed
+her whole past life failed and, like the luxuriant riot in the sky of
+the most brilliant hues, ere the glow of sunset suddenly yields to
+darkness, Cleopatra's soul, after the lofty elation of the last few
+hours, underwent a sudden transition and, overwhelmed by deep, sorrowful
+depression, she threw herself down before the twins' bed, where she lay
+weeping softly until Charmian, as day began to dawn, urged her to retire
+to rest. Cleopatra slowly rose, dried her eyes, and said: "My past life
+seemed to me just now like a magnificent garden, but how many serpents
+suddenly stretched out their flat heads with glittering eyes and forked
+tongues! Who tore away the flowers beneath which they lay concealed? I
+think, Charmian, it was a mysterious power which here, in the children's
+apartment, rules so strongly the most trivial as well as the strongest
+emotions, it was--when did I last hear that ominous word?--it was
+conscience. Here, in this abode of innocence and purity, whatever
+resembles a spot stands forth distinctly before the eyes. Here, O
+Charmian!--if the children were but here! If I could only--yet, no, no!
+It is fortunate, very fortunate that they have gone. I must be strong;
+and their sweet grace would rob me of my energy. But the light grows
+brighter and brighter. Dress me for the day. It would be easier for me
+to sleep in a falling house than with such a tumult in my heart."
+
+While she was being attired in the dark robes she had ordered, loud
+shouts arose from the royal harbour below, blended with the blasts of
+the tuba and other signals directing the movements of the fleet and the
+army, a large body of troops having been marched during the night to the
+neighbouring hills overlooking the sea.
+
+The notes sounded bold and warlike. The well-armed galleys presented a
+stately appearance. How often Cleopatra had seen unexpected events
+occur, apparent impossibilities become possible! Had not the victory of
+Octavianus at Actium been a miracle? What if Fate, like a capricious
+ruler, now changed from frowns to smiles? What if Antony proved himself
+the hero of yesterday, the general he had been in days of yore?
+
+She had refused to see him again before the battle, that she might not
+divert his thoughts from the great task approaching. But now, as she
+beheld him, clad in glittering armour like the god of war himself, ride
+before the troops on his fiery Barbary charger, greeting them with the
+gay salutation whose warmth sprung from the heart and which had so often
+kindled the warriors to glowing enthusiasm, she was forced to do
+violence to her own feelings to avoid calling him and saying that her
+thoughts would follow his course. But she refrained, and when his purple
+cloak vanished from her sight her head drooped again. How different in
+former days were the cheers of the troops when he showed himself to
+them! This lukewarm response to his gay, glad greeting was no omen of
+victory.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+
+Dion, too, witnessed the departure of the troops. Gorgias, whom he had
+found among the Ephebi, accompanied him and, like the Queen, they saw,
+in the cautious manner with which the army greeted the general, a bad
+omen for the result of the battle. The architect had presented Dion to
+the youths as the ghost of a dead man, who, as soon as he was asked
+whence he came or whither he was going, would be compelled to vanish in
+the form of a fly. He could venture to do this; he knew the
+Ephebi--there was no traitor in their ranks.
+
+Dion, the former head of the society, had been welcomed like a beloved
+brother risen from the dead, and he had the gratification, after so long
+a time, of turning the scale as speaker in a debate. True, he had
+encountered very little opposition, for the resolve to hold aloof from
+the battle against the Romans had been urged upon the Ephebi by the
+Queen herself through Antyllus, who, however, had already left the
+meeting when Dion joined it. It had seemed to Cleopatra a crime to claim
+the blood of the noblest sons of the city for a cause which she herself
+deemed lost. She knew the parents of many, and feared that Octavianus
+would inflict a terrible punishment upon them if, not being enrolled in
+the army, they fell into his power with arms in their hands.
+
+The stars were already setting when the Ephebi accompanied their friend,
+singing in chorus the Hymenæus, which they had been unable to chant on
+his wedding day. The melody of lutes accompanied the voices, and this
+nocturnal music was the source of the rumour that the god Dionysus, to
+whom Mark Antony felt specially akin, and in whose form he had so often
+appeared to the people, had abandoned him amid songs and music.
+
+The youths left Dion in front of the Temple of Isis. Gorgias alone
+remained with him. The architect led his friend to the Queen's mausoleum
+near the sanctuary, where men were toiling busily by torchlight. Alight
+scaffolding still surrounded it, but the lofty first story, containing
+the real tomb, was completed, and Dion admired the art with which the
+exterior of the edifice suggested its purpose. Huge blocks of dark-grey
+granite formed the walls. The broad front--solemn, almost gloomy in
+aspect--rose, sloping slightly, above the massive lofty door, surmounted
+by a moulding bearing the winged disk of the sun. On either side were
+niches containing statues of Antony and Cleopatra cast in dark bronze,
+and above the cornice were brazen figures of Love and Death, Fame and
+Silence, ennobling the Egyptian forms with exquisite works of Hellenic
+art.
+
+The massive door, adorned with brass figures in relief, would have
+resisted a battering-ram. On the side of the steps leading to it lay
+Sphinxes of dark-green diorite. Everything connected with this building,
+dedicated to death, was grave and massive, suggesting by its
+indestructibility the idea of eternity.
+
+The second story was not yet finished; masons and stone-cutters were
+engaged in covering the strong walls with dark serpentine and black
+marble. The huge windlass stood ready to raise a masterpiece of
+Alexandrian art. This was intended for the pediment, and represented
+Venus Victrix with helmet, shield, and lance, leading a band of winged
+gods of love, little archers at whose head Eros himself was discharging
+arrows, and victoriously fighting against the three-headed Cerberus,
+death, already bleeding from many wounds.
+
+There was no time to see the interior of the building, for Pyrrhus
+expected his guest to join him at the harbour at sunrise, and the
+eastern sky was already brightening with the approach of dawn.
+
+As the friends reached the landing-place the brass dome of the Serapeum,
+which towered above everything, was glittering with dazzling splendour.
+The pennons and masts of the fleet which was about to set sail from the
+harbour seemed steeped in a sea of golden light. Tremulous reflections
+of the brazen and gilded figures on the prows of the vessels were
+mirrored in the undulating surface of the sea, and the long shadows of
+the banks of oars united galley after galley on the surface of the water
+like the meshes of a net.
+
+Here the friends parted, and Dion walked down the quay alone to meet the
+freedman, who must have found it difficult to guide his boat out of this
+labyrinth of vessels. The inspection of the mausoleum had detained the
+young father too long and, though disguised beyond recognition, he
+reproached himself for having recklessly incurred a danger whose
+consequences--he felt this to-day for the first time--would not injure
+himself alone. The whole fleet was awaiting the signal for departure.
+The vessels which did not belong to it had been obliged to moor in front
+of the Temple of Poseidon, and all were strictly forbidden to leave the
+anchorage.
+
+Pyrrhus's fishing-boat was in the midst, and return to the Serpent
+Island was impossible at present.
+
+How vexatious! Barine was ignorant of his trip to the city, and to be
+compelled to leave her alone while a naval battle was in progress
+directly before her eyes distressed him as much as it could not fail to
+alarm her.
+
+In fact, the young mother had waited from early dawn with increasing
+anxiety for her husband. As the sun rose higher, and the strokes of the
+oars propelling two hundred galleys, the shrill whistle of the flutes
+marking the time, the deep voices of the captains shouting orders, and
+the blasts of the trumpets filling the air, were heard far and near
+around the island, she became so overwhelmed with uneasiness that she
+insisted upon going to the shore, though hitherto she had not been
+permitted to take the air except under the awning stretched for the
+purpose on the shady side of the house.
+
+In vain the women urged her not to let her fears gain the mastery and to
+have patience. But she would have resisted even force in order to look
+for him who, with her child, now comprised her world.
+
+When, leaning on Helena's arm, she reached the shore, no boat was in
+sight. The sea was covered with ships of war, floating fortresses,
+moving onward like dragons with a thousand legs whose feet were the
+countless rowers arranged in three or five sets. Each of the larger
+galleys was surrounded by smaller ones, from most of which darted
+dazzling flashes of light, for they were crowded with armed men, and
+from the prows of the strong boarding vessels the sunbeams glittered on
+the large shining metal points whose office was to pierce the wooden
+sides of the foe. The gilded statues in the prows of the large galleys
+shone and sparkled in the broad radiance of the day-star, and flashes of
+light also came from the low hills on the shore. Here Mark Antony's
+soldiers were stationed, and the sunbeams reflected from the helmets,
+coats of mail, and lance-heads of the infantry, and the armour of the
+horsemen quivered with dazzling brilliancy in the hot air of the first
+day of an Egyptian August.
+
+Amid this blazing, flashing, and sparkling in the morning air, so
+steeped in warmth and radiance, the sounds of warlike preparations from
+the land and fleet constantly grew louder. Barine, exhausted, had just
+sunk into a chair which Dione, the fisherman's daughter, had placed in
+the shade of the highest rock on the northwestern shore of the flat
+island, when a crashing blast of the tuba suddenly echoed from all the
+galleys in the Egyptian fleet, and the whole array of vessels filed past
+the Pharos at the opening of the harbour into the open sea.
+
+There the narrow ranks of the wooden giants separated and moved onward
+in broader lines. This was done quietly and in the same faultless order
+as a few days before, when a similar manœuvre had been executed under
+the eyes of Mark Antony.
+
+The longing for combat seemed to urge them steadily forward.
+
+The hostile fleet, lying motionless, awaited the attack. But the
+Egyptian assailants had advanced majestically only a few ships lengths
+towards the Roman foe when another signal rent the air. The women whose
+ears caught the waves of sound said afterwards that it seemed like a cry
+of agony--it had given the signal for a deed of unequalled treachery.
+The slaves, criminals, and the basest of the mercenaries on the rowers'
+benches in the hold had doubtless long listened intently for it, and,
+when it finally came, the men on the upper benches raised their long
+oars and held them aloft, which stopped the work of those below, and
+every galley paused, pointing at the next with the wooden oars
+outstretched like fingers, as if seized with horror. The celerity and
+faultless order with which the raising of the oars was executed and
+vessel after vessel brought to a stand would have been a credit to an
+honourable captain, but the manœuvre introduced one of the basest acts
+ever recorded in history; and the women, who had witnessed many a
+_naumachia_ and understood its meaning, exclaimed as if with a single
+voice: "Treachery! They are going over to the enemy!"
+
+Mark Antony's fleet, created for him by Cleopatra, surrendered, down to
+the last galley, to Cæsar's heir, the victor of Actium; and the man to
+whom the sailors had vowed allegiance, who had drilled them, and only
+yesterday had urged them to offer a gallant resistance, saw from one of
+the downs on the shore the strong weapons on which he had based the
+fairest hopes, not shattered, but delivered into the hands of the enemy!
+
+The surrender of the fleet to the foe--he knew it--sealed his
+destruction; and the women on the shore of the Serpent Island, who were
+so closely connected with those on whom this misfortune fell, suspected
+the same thing. The hearts of both were stirred, and their eyes grew dim
+with tears of indignation and sorrow. They were Alexandrians, and did
+not desire to be ruled by Rome.
+
+Cleopatra, daughter of the Macedonian house of the Ptolemies, had the
+sole right to govern the city of her ancestors, founded by the great
+Macedonian. The sorrow they had themselves endured through her sank into
+insignificance beside the tremendous blow of Fate which in this hour
+reached the Queen.
+
+The Roman and Egyptian fleet returned to the harbour as one vast
+squadron under the same commander, and anchored in the roadstead of the
+city, which was now its precious booty.
+
+Barine had seen enough, and returned to the house with drooping head.
+Her heart was heavy, and her anxiety for the man she loved hourly
+increased.
+
+It seemed as if the very day-star shrank from illuminating so infamous a
+deed with friendly light; for the dazzling, searching sun of the first
+of August veiled its radiant face with a greyish-white mist, and the
+desecrated sea wrinkled its brow, changed its pure azure robe to
+yellowish grey and blackish green, while the white foam hissed on the
+crests of the angry waves.
+
+As twilight began to approach, the anxiety of the deserted wife became
+unendurable. Not only Helena's wise words of caution, but the sight of
+her child, failed to exert their usual influence; and Barine had already
+summoned the son of Pyrrhus to persuade him to take her in his boat to
+the city, when Dione saw a boat approaching the Serpent Island from the
+direction of the sea.
+
+A short time after, Dion sprang on shore and kissed from his young
+wife's lips the reproaches with which she greeted him.
+
+He had heard of the treachery of the fleet while entering a hired boat
+with the freedman in the harbour of Eunostus, Pyrrhus's having been
+detained with the other craft before the Temple of Poseidon.
+
+The experienced pilot had been obliged to steer the boat in a wider
+curve against the wind through the open sea, and was delayed a long time
+by a number of the war vessels of the fleet.
+
+Danger and separation were now passed, and they rejoiced in the
+happiness of meeting, yet could not feel genuine joy. Their souls were
+oppressed by anxiety concerning the fate of the Queen and their native
+city.
+
+As night closed in the dogs barked violently, and they heard loud voices
+on the shore. Dion, with a presentiment that misfortune was threatening
+himself and his dear ones, obeyed the summons.
+
+No star illumined the darkness. Only the wavering light of a lantern on
+the strand and another on the nearest island illumined the immediate
+vicinity, while southward the lights in the city shone as brightly as
+ever.
+
+Pyrrhus and his youngest son were just pushing a boat into the water to
+release from the sands another which had run aground in a shallow near
+the neighbouring island.
+
+Dion sprang in with them, and soon recognized in the hail the voice of
+the architect Gorgias.
+
+The young father shouted a joyous greeting to his friend, but there was
+no reply.
+
+Soon after, Pyrrhus landed his belated guest on the shore. He had
+escaped--as the fisherman explained--a great danger; for had he gone to
+the other island, which swarmed with venomous serpents, he might easily
+have fallen a victim to the bite of one of the reptiles.
+
+Gorgias grasped Dion's hand but, in reply to his gay invitation to
+accompany him to the house at once, he begged him to listen to his story
+before joining the ladies.
+
+Dion was startled. He knew his friend. When his deep voice had such a
+tone of gloomy discouragement, and his head drooped so mournfully, some
+terrible event had befallen him.
+
+His foreboding had been correct. The first tidings pierced his own soul
+deeply.
+
+He was not surprised to learn that the Romans ruled Alexandria; but a
+small band of the conquerors, who had been ordered to conduct themselves
+as if they were in a friendly country, had forced their way into the
+architect's large house to occupy the quarters assigned to them. The
+deaf grandmother of Helena and Barine, who had but half comprehended
+what threatened the citizens, terrified by the noisy entrance of the
+soldiers, had had another attack of apoplexy, and closed her eyes in
+death before Gorgias set out for the island.
+
+But it was not only this sad event, which must grieve the hearts of the
+two sisters, that had brought the architect in a stranger's boat to the
+Serpent Island at so late an hour. His soul was so agitated by the
+horrible incidents of the day that he needed to seek consolation among
+those from whom he was sure to find sympathy.
+
+Nor was it wholly the terrible things Fate had compelled him to witness
+which induced him to venture out upon the sea so recklessly, but still
+more the desire to bring to the fugitives the happy news that they might
+return with safety to their native city.
+
+Deeply agitated--nay, confused and overpowered by all he had seen and
+experienced--the architect, usually so clear and, with all his mental
+vivacity, so circumspect, began his story. A remonstrance from Dion
+induced him to collect his thoughts and describe events in the order in
+which they had befallen him.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+
+After accompanying Dion to the harbour, the architect had gone to the
+Forum to converse with the men he met there, and learn what they feared
+and expected in regard to the future fate of the city.
+
+All news reached this meeting-place first, and he found a large number
+of Macedonian citizens who, like himself, wished to discuss passing
+events in these decisive hours.
+
+The scene was very animated, for the most contradictory messages were
+constantly arriving from the fleet and the army.
+
+At first they were very favourable; then came the news of the treason,
+and soon after of the desertion of the cavalry and foot soldiers.
+
+A distinguished citizen had seen Mark Antony, accompanied by several
+friends, dashing down the quay. The goal of their flight was the little
+palace on the Choma.
+
+Grave men, whose opinion met with little opposition, thought that it was
+the duty of the Imperator--now that Fate had decided against him, and
+nothing remained save a life sullied by disgrace--to put himself to
+death with his own hand, like Brutus and so many other noble Romans.
+Tidings soon came that he had attempted to do what the best citizens
+expected.
+
+Gorgias could not endure to remain longer in the Forum, but hastened to
+the Choma, though it was difficult to force his way to the wall, where a
+breach had been made. He had found the portion of the shore from which
+the promontory ran densely crowded with people--from whom he learned
+that Antony was no longer in the palace--and the sea filled with boats.
+
+A corpse was just being borne out of the little palace on the Street of
+the King and, among those who followed, Gorgias recognized one of
+Antony's slaves. The man's eyes were red with weeping. He readily obeyed
+the architect's sign and, sobbing bitterly, told him that the hapless
+general, after his army had betrayed him, fled hither. When he heard in
+the palace that Cleopatra had preceded him to Hades, he ordered his
+body-slave Eros to put an end to his life also. The worthy man drew
+back, pierced his own breast with his sword, and sank dying at his
+master's feet; but Antony, exclaiming that Eros's example had taught him
+his duty, thrust the short sword into his breast with his own hand. Yet
+deep and severe as was the wound, it did not destroy the tremendous
+vitality of the gigantic Roman. With touching entreaties he implored the
+bystanders to kill him, but no one could bring himself to commit the
+deed. Meanwhile Cleopatra's name, coupled with the wish to follow her,
+was constantly on the lips of the Imperator.
+
+At last Diomedes, the Queen's private secretary, appeared, to bring him,
+by her orders, to the mausoleum where she had taken refuge.
+
+Antony, as if animated with fresh vigour, assented, and while being
+carried thither gave orders that Eros should have a worthy burial. Even
+though dying, it would have been impossible for the most generous of
+masters to permit any kindness rendered to pass unrequited.
+
+The slave again wept aloud as he uttered the words, but Gorgias hastened
+at once to the tomb.
+
+The nearest way, the Street of the King, had become so crowded with
+people who had been forced back by Roman soldiers, between the Theatre
+of Dionysus and the Corner of the Muses, that he had been compelled to
+reach the building through a side street.
+
+The quay was already unrecognizable, and even in the other streets the
+populace showed a foreign aspect. Instead of peaceful citizens, Roman
+soldiers in full armour were met everywhere. Instead of Greek, Egyptian,
+and Syrian faces, fair and dark visages of alien appearance were seen.
+
+The city seemed transformed into a camp. Here he met a cohort of
+fair-haired Germans; yonder another with locks of red whose home he did
+not know; and again a _vexil_ of Numidian or Pannonian horsemen.
+
+At the Temple of the Dioscuri he was stopped. A Hispanian maniple had
+just seized Antony's son Antyllus and, after a hasty court-martial,
+killed him. His tutor, Theodotus, had betrayed him to the Romans, but
+the infamous fellow was being led with bound hands after the corpse of
+the hapless youth, because he was caught in the act of hiding in his
+girdle a costly jewel which he had taken from his neck. Before his
+departure for the island Gorgias heard that the scoundrel had been
+sentenced to crucifixion.
+
+At last he succeeded in forcing a passage to the tomb, which he found
+surrounded on all sides by Roman lictors and the Scythian guards of the
+city, who, however, permitted him, as the architect, to pass.
+
+The numerous obstacles by which he had been delayed spared him from
+becoming an eye-witness of the most terrible scenes of the tragedy which
+had just ended; but he received a minute description from the Queen's
+private secretary, a well-disposed Macedonian, who had accompanied the
+wounded Antony, and with whom Gorgias had become intimately acquainted
+during the building of the mausoleum.
+
+Cleopatra had fled to the tomb as soon as the fortune of war turned in
+favour of Octavianus. No one was permitted to accompany her except
+Charmian and Iras, who had helped her close the heavy brazen door of the
+massive building. The false report of her death, which had induced
+Antony to put an end to his life, had perhaps arisen from the fact that
+the Queen was literally in the tomb.
+
+When, borne in the arms of his faithful servants, he reached the
+mausoleum, mortally wounded, the Queen and her attendants vainly
+endeavoured to open the heavy brazen portal. But Cleopatra ardently
+longed to see her dying lover. She wished to have him near to render the
+last services, assure him once more of her devotion, close his eyes,
+and, if it was so ordered, die with him.
+
+So she and her attendants had searched the place, and when Iras spoke of
+the windlass which stood on the scaffold to raise the heavy brass plate
+bearing the bas-relief of Love conquering Death, the Queen and her
+friends hastened up the stairs, the bearer below fastened the wounded
+man to the rope, and Cleopatra herself stood at the windlass to raise
+him, aided by her faithful companions.
+
+Diomedes averred that he had never beheld a more piteous spectacle than
+the gigantic man hovering between heaven and earth in the agonies of
+death and, while suffering the most terrible torture, extending his arms
+longingly towards the woman he loved. Though scarcely able to speak, he
+tenderly called her name, but she made no reply; like Iras and Charmian,
+she was exerting her whole strength at the windlass in the most
+passionate effort to raise him. The rope running over the pulley cut her
+tender hands; her beautiful face was terribly distorted; but she did not
+pause until they had succeeded in lifting the burden of the dying man
+higher and higher till he reached the floor of the scaffolding. The
+frantic exertion by which the three women had succeeded in accomplishing
+an act far beyond their strength, though it was doubled by the power of
+the most earnest will and ardent longing, would nevertheless have failed
+in attaining its object had not Diomedes, at the last moment, come to
+their assistance. He was a strong man, and by his aid the dying Roman
+was seized, drawn upon the scaffolding, and carried down the staircase
+to the tomb in the first story.
+
+When the wounded general had been laid on one of the couches with which
+the great hall was already furnished, the private secretary retired, but
+remained on the staircase, an unnoticed spectator, in order to be at
+hand in case the Queen again needed his assistance. Flushed from the
+terrible exertion which she had just made, with tangled, dishevelled
+locks, gasping and moaning, Cleopatra, as if out of her senses, tore
+open her robe, beat her breast, and lacerated it with her nails. Then,
+pressing her own beautiful face on her lover's wound to stanch the
+flowing blood, she lavished upon him all the endearing names which she
+had bestowed on their love.
+
+His terrible suffering made her forget her own and the sad fate
+impending. Tears of pity fell like the refreshing drops of a shower upon
+the still unwithered blossoms of their love, and brought those which,
+during the preceding night, had revived anew, to their last magnificent
+unfolding.
+
+Boundless, limitless as her former passion for this man, was now the
+grief with which his agonizing death filled her heart.
+
+All that Mark Antony had been to her in the heyday of life, all their
+mutual experiences, all that each had received from the other, had
+returned to her memory in clear and vivid hues during the banquet which
+had closed a few hours ago. Now these scenes, condensed into a narrow
+compass, again passed before her mental vision, but only to reveal more
+distinctly the depth of misery of this hour. At last anguish forced even
+the clearest memories into oblivion: she saw nothing save the tortures
+of her lover; her brain, still active, revealed solely the gulf at her
+feet, and the tomb which yawned not only for Antony, but for herself.
+
+Unable to think of the happiness enjoyed in the past or to hope for it
+in the future, she gave herself up to uncontrolled despair, and no woman
+of the people could have yielded more absolutely to the consuming grief
+which rent her heart, or expressed it in wilder, more frantic language,
+than did this great Queen, this woman who as a child had been so
+sensitive to the slightest suffering, and whose after-life had certainly
+not taught her to bear sorrow with patience. After Charmian, at the
+dying man's request, had given him some wine, he found strength to speak
+coherently, instead of moaning and sighing.
+
+He tenderly urged Cleopatra to secure her own safety, if it could be
+done without dishonour, and mentioned Proculejus as the man most worthy
+of her confidence among the friends of Octavianus. Then he entreated her
+not to mourn for him, but to consider him happy; for he had enjoyed the
+richest favours of Fortune. He owed his brightest hours to her love; but
+he had also been the first and most powerful man on earth. Now he was
+dying in the arms of Love, honourable as a Roman who succumbed to
+Romans.
+
+In this conviction he died after a short struggle.
+
+Cleopatra had watched his last breath, closed his eyes, and then thrown
+herself tearlessly on her lover's body. At last she fainted, and lay
+unconscious with her head upon his marble breast.
+
+The private secretary had witnessed all this, and then returned with
+tearful eyes to the second story. There he met Gorgias, who had climbed
+the scaffolding, and told him what he had seen and heard from the
+stairs. But his story was scarcely ended when a carriage stopped at the
+Corner of the Muses and an aristocratic Roman alighted.
+
+This was the very Proculejus whom the dying Antony had recommended to
+the woman he loved as worthy of her confidence.
+
+"In fact," Gorgias continued, "he seemed in form and features one of the
+noblest of his haughty race. He came commissioned by Octavianus, and is
+said to be warmly devoted to the Cæsar, and a well-disposed man. We
+have also heard him mentioned as a poet and a brother-in-law of
+Mæcenas. A wealthy aristocrat, he is a generous patron of literature,
+and also holds art and science in high esteem. Timagenes lauds his
+culture and noble nature. Perhaps the historian was right; but where the
+object in question is the state and its advantage, what we here regard
+as worthy of a free man appears to be considered of little moment at the
+court of Octavianus. The lord to whom he gives his services intrusted
+him with a difficult task, and Proculejus doubtless considered it his
+duty to make every effort to perform it--and yet---- If I see aright, a
+day will come when he will curse this, and the obedience with which he,
+a free man, aided Cæsar---- But listen.
+
+"Erect and haughty in his splendid suit of armour, he knocked at the
+door of the tomb. Cleopatra had regained consciousness and asked--she
+must have known him in Rome--what he desired.
+
+"He had come, he answered courteously, by the command of Octavianus, to
+negotiate with her, and the Queen expressed her willingness to listen,
+but refused to admit him into the mausoleum.
+
+"So they talked with each other through the door. With dignified
+composure, she asked to have the sons whom she had given to Antony--not
+Cæsarion--acknowledged as Kings of Egypt.
+
+"Proculejus instantly promised to convey her wishes to Cæsar, and gave
+hopes of their fulfilment.
+
+"While she was speaking of the children and their claims--she did not
+mention her own future--the Roman questioned her about Mark Antony's
+death, and then described the destruction of the dead man's army and
+other matters of trivial importance. Proculejus did not look like a
+babbler, but I felt a suspicion that he was intentionally trying to hold
+the attention of the Queen. This proved to be his design; he had been
+merely waiting for Cornelius Gallus, the commander of the fleet, of whom
+you have heard. He, too, ranks among the chief men in Rome, and yet he
+made himself the accomplice of Proculejus.
+
+"The latter retired as soon as he had presented the new-comer to the
+hapless woman.
+
+"I remained at my post and now heard Gallus assure Cleopatra of his
+master's sympathy. With the most bombastic exaggeration he described how
+bitterly Octavianus mourned in Mark Antony the friend, the
+brother-in-law, the co-ruler and sharer in so many important
+enterprises. He had shed burning tears over the tidings of his death.
+Never had more sincere ones coursed down any man's cheeks.
+
+"Gallus, too, seemed to me to be intentionally prolonging the
+conversation.
+
+"Then, while I was listening intently to understand Cleopatra's brief
+replies, my foreman, who, when the workmen were driven away by the
+Romans, had concealed himself between two blocks of granite, came to me
+and said that Proculejus had just climbed a ladder to the scaffold in
+the rear of the monument. Two servants followed, and they had all stolen
+down into the hall.
+
+"I hastily started up. I had been lying on the floor with my head
+outstretched to listen.
+
+"Cost what it might, the Queen must be warned. Treachery was certainly
+at work here.
+
+"But I came too late.
+
+"O Dion! If I had only been informed a few minutes before, perhaps
+something still more terrible might have happened, but the Queen would
+have been spared what now threatens her. What can she expect from the
+conqueror who, in order to seize her alive, condescends to outwit a
+noble, defenceless woman, who has succumbed to superior power?
+
+"Death would have released the unhappy Queen from sore trouble and
+horrible shame. And she had already raised the dagger against her life.
+Before my eyes she flung aloft her beautiful arm with the flashing
+steel, which glittered in the light of the candles in the many-branched
+candelabra beside the sarcophagi. But I will try to remain calm! You
+shall hear what happened in regular order. My thoughts grow confused as
+the terrible scene recurs to my memory. To describe it as I saw it, I
+should need to be a poet, an artist in words; for what passed before me
+happened on a stage--you know, it was a tomb. The walls were of dark
+stone--dark, too, were the pillars and ceiling--all dark and glittering;
+most portions were smoothly polished stone, shining like a mirror. Near
+the sarcophagi, and around the candelabra as far as the vicinity of the
+door, where the rascally trick was played, the light was brilliant as in
+a festal hall. Every blood-stain on the hand, every scratch, every wound
+which the desperate woman had torn with her own nails on her bosom,
+which gleamed snow-white from her black robes, was distinctly visible.
+Farther away, on the right and left, the light was dim, and near the
+side walls the darkness was as intense as in a real tomb. On the smooth
+porphyry columns, the glittering black marble and serpentine--here,
+there, and everywhere--flickered the wavering reflection of the
+candlelight. The draught kept it continually in motion, and it wavered
+to and fro in the hall, like the restless souls of the damned. Wherever
+the eye turned it met darkness. The end of the hall seemed black--black
+as the anteroom of Hades--yet through it pierced a brilliant moving bar;
+sunbeams which streamed from the stairway into the tomb and amid which
+danced tiny motes. How the scene impressed the eye! The home of gloomy
+Hecate! And the Queen and her impending fate. A picture flooded with
+light, standing forth in radiant relief against the darkness of the
+heavy, majestic forms surrounding it in a wide circle. This tomb in this
+light would be a palace meet for the gloomy rule of the king of the
+troop of demons conjured up by the power of a magician--if they have a
+ruler. But where am I wandering? 'The artist!' I hear you exclaim again,
+'the artist! Instead of rushing forward and interposing, he stands
+studying the light and its effects in the royal tomb.' Yes, yes; I had
+come too late, too late--far too late! On the stairs leading to the
+lower story of the building I saw it, but I was not to blame for the
+delay--not in the least!
+
+"At first I had been unable to see the men--or even a shadow; but I
+beheld plainly in the brightest glare of the light the body of Mark
+Antony on the couch and, in the dusk farther towards the right, Iras and
+Charmian trying to raise a trapdoor. It was the one which closed the
+passage leading to the combustible materials stored in the cellar. A
+sign from the Queen had commanded them to fire it. The first steps of
+the staircase, down which I was hastening, were already behind
+me--then--then Proculejus, with two men, suddenly dashed from the
+intense darkness on the other side. Scarcely able to control myself, I
+sprang down the remaining steps, and while Iras's shrill cry, 'Poor
+Cleopatra, they will capture you!' still rang in my ears, I saw the
+betrayed Queen turn from the door through which, resolved on death, she
+was saying something to Gallus, perceive Proculejus close behind her,
+thrust her hand into her girdle, and with the speed of lightning--you
+have already heard so--throw up her arm with the little dagger to bury
+the sharp blade in her breast. What a picture! In the full radiance of
+the brilliant light, she resembled a statue of triumphant victory or of
+noble pride in great deeds accomplished; and then, then, only an instant
+later, what an outrage was inflicted!
+
+"Like a robber, an assassin, Proculejus rushed upon her, seized her arm,
+and wrested the weapon from her grasp. His tall figure concealed her
+from me. But when, struggling to escape from the ruffian's clutch, she
+again turned her face towards the hall, what a transformation had
+occurred! Her eyes--you know how large they are--were twice their usual
+size, and blazed with scorn, fury, and hatred for the traitor. The
+cheering light had become a consuming fire. So I imagine the vengeance,
+the curse which calls down ruin upon the head of a foe. And Proculejus,
+the great lord, the poet whose noble nature is praised by the authors on
+the banks of the Tiber, held the defenceless woman, the worthy daughter
+of a brilliant line of kings, in a firm grasp, as if it required the
+exertion of all his strength to master this delicate embodiment of
+charming womanhood. True, the proud blood of the outwitted lioness urged
+her to resist this profanation, and Proculejus--an enviable honour--made
+her feel the superior strength of his arm. I am no prophet, but Dion, I
+repeat, this shameful struggle and the glances which flashed upon him
+will be remembered to his dying hour. Had they been darted at me, I
+should have cursed my life. They blanched even the Roman's cheeks. He
+was lividly pale as he completed what he deemed his duty. His own
+aristocratic hands were degraded to the menial task of searching the
+garments of a woman, the Queen, for forbidden wares, poisons or weapons.
+He was aided by one of Cæsar's freedmen, Epaphroditus, who is said to
+stand so high in the favour of Octavianus.
+
+"The scoundrel also searched Iras and Charmian, yet all the time both
+Romans constantly spoke in cajoling terms of Cæsar's favour; and his
+desire to grant Cleopatra everything which was due a Queen.
+
+"At last she was taken back to Lochias, but I felt like a madman; for
+the image of the unfortunate woman pursued me like my shadow. It was no
+longer a vision of the bewitching sovereign--nay, it resembled the
+incarnation of despair, tearless anguish, wrath demanding vengeance. I
+will not describe it; but those eyes, those flashing, threatening eyes,
+and the tangled hair on which Antony's blood had flowed--terrible,
+horrible! My heart grew chill, as if I had seen upon Athene's shield the
+head of the Medusa with its serpent locks.
+
+"It had been impossible for me to warn her in time, or even to seize the
+traitor's arm--I have already said so--and yet, yet her shining image
+gazed reproachfully at me for my cowardly delay. Her glance still haunts
+me, robbing me of calmness and peace. Not until I gaze into Helena's
+pure, calm eyes will that terrible vision of the face, flooded by light
+in the midst of the tomb, cease to haunt me."
+
+His friend laid his hand on his arm, spoke soothingly to him, and
+reminded him of the blessings which this terrible day--he had said so
+himself--had brought.
+
+Dion was right to give this warning; for Gorgias's bearing and the very
+tone of his voice changed as he eagerly declared that the frightful
+events had been followed by more than happy ones for the city, his
+friend, and Barine.
+
+Then, with a sigh of relief, he continued: "I pursued my way home like a
+drunken man. Every attempt to approach the Queen or her attendants was
+baffled, but I learned from Charmian's clever Nubian that Cleopatra had
+been permitted, in Cæsar's name, to choose the palace she desired to
+occupy, and had selected the one at Lochias.
+
+"I did not make much progress towards my house; the crowd in front of
+the great gymnasium stopped me. Octavianus had gone into the city, and
+the people, I heard, had greeted him with acclamations and flung
+themselves on their knees before him. Our stiff-necked Alexandrians in
+the dust before the victor! It enraged me, but my resentment was
+diminished.
+
+"The members of the gymnasium all knew me. They made way and, ere I was
+aware of it, I had passed through the door. Tall Phryxus had drawn my
+arm through his. He appears and vanishes at will, is as alert as he is
+rich, sees and hears everything, and manages to secure the best places.
+This time he had again succeeded; for when he released me we were
+standing opposite to a newly erected tribune.
+
+"They were waiting for Octavianus, who was still in the hypostyle of
+Euergetes receiving the homage of the epitrop, the members of the
+Council, the gymnasiarch, and I know not how many others.
+
+"Phryxus said that on Cæsar's entry he had held out his hand to his
+former tutor, bade him accompany him, and commanded that his sons should
+be presented. The philosopher had been distinguished above every one
+else, and this will benefit you and yours; for he is Berenike's brother,
+and therefore your wife's uncle. What he desires is sure to be granted.
+You will hear at once how studiously the Cæsar distinguishes him. I do
+not grudge it to the man; he interceded boldly for Barine; he is lauded
+as an able scholar, and he does not lack courage. In spite of Actium and
+the only disgraceful deed with which, to my knowledge, Mark Antony could
+be reproached--I mean the surrender of Turullius--Arius remained here,
+though the Imperator might have held the friend of Julius Cæsar's
+nephew as a hostage as easily as he gave up the Emperor's assassin.
+
+"Since Octavianus encamped before the city, your uncle has been in
+serious danger, and his sons shared his peril. Surely you must know the
+handsome, vigorous young Ephebi.
+
+"We were not obliged to wait long in the gymnasium ere the Cæsar
+appeared on the platform; and now--if your hand clenches, it is only
+what I expect--now all fell on their knees. Our turbulent, rebellious
+rabble raised their hands like pleading beggars, and grave, dignified
+men followed their example. Whoever saw me and Phryxus will remember us
+among the kneeling lickspittles; for had we remained standing we should
+certainly have been dragged down. So we followed the example of the
+others."
+
+"And Octavianus?" asked Dion eagerly.
+
+"A man of regal bearing and youthful aspect; beardless face of the
+finest chiselling, a profile as beautiful as if created for the
+coin-maker; all the lines sharp and yet pleasing; every inch an
+aristocrat; but the very mirror of a cold nature, incapable of any lofty
+aspiration, any warm emotion, any tenderness of feeling. All in all, a
+handsome, haughty, calculating man, whose friendship would hardly
+benefit the heart, but from whose enmity may the immortals guard all we
+love!
+
+"Again he led Arius by the hand. The philosopher's sons followed the
+pair. When he stood on the stage, looking down upon the thousands
+kneeling before him, not a muscle of his noble face--it is certainly
+that--betrayed the slightest emotion. He gazed at us like a farmer
+surveying his flocks and, after a long silence, said curtly in excellent
+Greek that he absolved the Alexandrians from all guilt towards him:
+first--he counted as if he were summoning individual veterans to reward
+them--from respect for the illustrious founder of our city, Alexander,
+the conqueror of the world; secondly, because the greatness and beauty
+of Alexandria filled him with admiration; and, thirdly--he turned to
+Arius as he spoke--to give pleasure to his admirable and beloved friend.
+
+"Then shouts of joy burst forth.
+
+"Every one, from the humblest to the greatest, had had a heavy burden
+removed from his mind, and the throng had scarcely left the gymnasium
+when they were again laughing saucily enough, and there was no lack of
+biting and innocent jests. The fat carpenter, Memnon--who furnished the
+wood-work for your palace--exclaimed close beside me that formerly a
+dolphin had saved Arius from the pirates; now Arius was saving marine
+Alexandria from the robbers. So the sport went on. Philostratus,
+Barine's first husband, offered the best butt for jests. The agitator
+had good reason to fear the worst; and now, clad in black mourning
+robes, ran after Arius, whom but a few months ago he persecuted with the
+most vindictive hatred, continually repeating this shallow bit of verse:
+
+"'If he is a wise man, let the wise aid the wise.'
+
+"Reaching home was not easy. The street was swarming with Roman
+soldiers. They fared well enough; for in the joy of their hearts many a
+prosperous citizen who saw his property saved invited individual
+warriors, or even a whole maniple, to the taverns or cook-shops, and the
+stock of wine in Alexandrian cellars will be considerably diminished
+to-night.
+
+"Many, as I have already said, had been quartered in the houses, with
+orders to spare the property of the citizens; and it was in this way
+that the misfortune with which I commenced my narrative befell the
+grandmother. She died before my departure.
+
+"All the gates of the city will now stand open to you, and the niece of
+Arius and her husband will be received with ovations. I don't grudge
+Barine the good fortune; for the way in which your noble wife, who had
+cast her spell over me too, flung aside what is always dear to the
+admired city beauty and found on the loneliest of islands a new world in
+love, is worthy of all admiration and praise. For yourself, I dread new
+happiness and honours; if they are added to those which Fate bestowed
+upon you in such a wife and your son Pyrrhus, the gods would not be
+themselves if they did not pursue you with their envy. I have less
+reason to fear them."
+
+"Ungrateful fellow!" interrupted his friend. "There will be numerous
+mortals to grudge you Helena. As for me, I have already felt many a
+slight foreboding; but we have already paid by no means a small tribute
+to the divine ones. The lamp is still burning in the sitting-room.
+Inform the sisters of their grandmother's death, and tell them the
+pleasant tidings you have brought us, but reserve until the morning a
+description of the terrible scenes you witnessed. We will not spoil
+their sleep. Mark my words! Helena's silent grief and her joy at our
+escape will lighten your heart."
+
+And so it proved. True, Gorgias lived over again in his dreams the
+frightful spectacle witnessed the day before; but when the sun of the 2d
+day of August rose in full radiance over Alexandria and, early in the
+morning, boat after boat reached the Serpent Island, landing first
+Berenike and her nephews, the sons of the honoured philosopher Arius,
+then clients, officials, and friends of Dion, and former favourite
+guests of Barine, to greet the young pair and escort them from the
+refuge which had so long sheltered them back to the city and their
+midst, new and pleasant impressions robbed the gloomy picture of a large
+portion of its terrors.
+
+"Tall Phryxus" had rapidly spread the news of the place where Dion and
+Barine had vanished, and that they had long been happily wedded. Many
+deemed it well worth a short voyage to see the actors in so strange an
+adventure and be the first to greet them. Besides, those who knew Barine
+and her husband were curious to learn how two persons accustomed to the
+life of a great capital had endured for months such complete solitude.
+Many feared or expected to see them emaciated and careworn, haggard or
+sunk in melancholy, and hence there were a number of astonished faces
+among those whose boats the freedman Pyrrhus guided as pilot through the
+shallows which protected his island.
+
+The return of this rare couple to their home would have afforded an
+excellent opportunity for gay festivities. Sincerely as the majority of
+the populace mourned the fate of the Queen, and gravely as the more
+thoughtful feared for Alexandria's freedom under Roman rule, all
+rejoiced over the lenient treatment of the city. Their lives and
+property were safe, and the celebration of festivals had become a life
+habit with all classes. But the news of the death of Didymus's wife and
+the illness of the old man, who could not bear up under the loss of his
+faithful companion, gave Dion a right to refuse any gay welcome at his
+home.
+
+Barine's sorrow was his also, and Didymus died a few days after his
+wife, with whom he had lived in the bonds of love for more than half a
+century--people said, "of a broken heart."
+
+So Dion and his young wife entered his beautiful palace with no noisy
+festivities. Instead of the jubilant hymenæus, the voice of his own
+child greeted him on the threshold.
+
+The mourning garments in which Barine welcomed him in the women's
+apartment reminded him of the envy of the gods which his friend had
+feared for him. But he often fancied that his mother's statue in the
+tablinum looked specially happy when the young mistress of the house
+entered it.
+
+Barine, too, felt that her happiness as wife and mother in her
+magnificent home would have been overwhelming had not a wise destiny
+imposed upon her, just at this time, grief for those whom she loved.
+
+Dion instantly devoted himself again to the affairs of the city and his
+own business. He and the woman he loved, who had first become really his
+own during a time of sore privation, had run into the harbour and gazed
+quietly at the storms of life. The anchor of love, which moored their
+ship to the solid earth, had been tested in the solitude of the Serpent
+Island.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+
+The fisherman and his family had watched the departure of their beloved
+guests with sorrowful hearts, and the women had shed many tears,
+although the sons of Pyrrhus had been dismissed from the fleet and were
+again helping their father at home, as in former times.
+
+Besides, Dion had made the faithful freedman a prosperous man, and given
+his daughter, Dione, a marriage dowry. She was soon to become the wife
+of the captain of the Epicurus, Archibius's swift galley, whose
+acquaintance she had made when the vessel, on several occasions, brought
+Charmian's Nubian maid to the island. Anukis's object in making these
+visits was not only to see her friend, but to induce him to catch one of
+the poisonous serpents in the neighbouring island and keep it ready for
+the Queen.
+
+Since Cleopatra had ascertained that no poison caused a less painful
+death than the fangs of the asp, she had resolved that the bite of one
+of these reptiles should release her from the burden of life. The clever
+Ethiopian had thought of inducing her friend Pyrrhus to procure the
+adder, but it had required all Aisopion's skill in persuasion, and the
+touching manner in which she understood how to describe the Queen's
+terrible situation and severe suffering, to conquer the reluctance of
+the upright man. At last she succeeded in persuading him to measure a
+queen by a different standard from a woman of the people, and inducing
+him to arrange the manner and time of conveying the serpent into the
+well-guarded palace. A signal was to inform him when the decisive hour
+arrived. After that he was to be ready with the asp in the fish-market
+every day. Probably his service would soon be claimed; for Octavianus's
+delay was scarcely an indication of a favourable decision of Cleopatra's
+fate.
+
+True, she was permitted to live in royal state at Lochias, and had even
+been allowed to have the children, the twins, and little Alexander sent
+back to her with the promise that life and liberty would be granted
+them; but Cæsarion--whose treacherous tutor Rhodon lured him from the
+journey southward back to Alexandria by all sorts of representations,
+among them the return of Barine--was held prisoner in his father's
+temple, where he had sought refuge. This news, and the fact that
+Octavianus had condemned to death the youth who bore so striking a
+resemblance to Cæsar, had not remained concealed from the unhappy
+mother. She was also informed of the words in which the philosopher
+Arius had encouraged Cæsar's desire to rid himself of the son of his
+famous uncle. They referred to the Homeric saying concerning the
+disadvantage of having many rulers.
+
+Everything which Cleopatra desired to know concerning events in the city
+reached her ears; for she was allowed much liberty--only she was closely
+watched day and night, and all the servants and officials to whom she
+granted an audience were carefully searched to keep from her all means
+of self-destruction.
+
+True, it was very evident that she had closed her account with life. Her
+attempt to take no food and die of starvation must have been noticed.
+Threats directed against the children, through whom she could be most
+easily influenced, finally induced her to eat again. Octavianus was
+informed of all these things, and his conduct proved his anxiety to keep
+her from suicide.
+
+Several Asiatic princes vied with each other in the desire to honour
+Mark Antony by a magnificent funeral, but Octavianus had allowed
+Cleopatra to provide the most superb obsequies. In the time of her
+deepest anguish it afforded her comfort and satisfaction to arrange
+everything herself, and even perform some offices with her own hands.
+The funeral had been as gorgeous as the dead man's love of splendour
+could have desired.
+
+Iras and Charmian were often unable to understand how the Queen--who,
+since Antony's death, had suffered not only from the wounds she had
+inflicted upon herself in her despair, but also after her baffled
+attempt at starvation from a slow fever--had succeeded in resisting the
+severe exertions and mental agitation to which she had been subjected by
+Antony's funeral.
+
+The return of Archibius with the children, however, had visibly
+reanimated her flagging energy.
+
+She often went to Didymus's garden, which was now connected with the
+palace at Lochias, to watch their work and share whatever interested
+their young hearts.
+
+But the gayest of mothers, who had understood how to enter so thoroughly
+into her children's pursuits, had now become a sorrowful, grave monitor.
+Though the lessons she urged upon them were often beautiful and wise,
+they were little suited to the ages of Archibius's pupils, for they
+usually referred to death and to questions of philosophy not easily
+understood by children.
+
+She herself felt that she no longer struck the right key; but whenever
+she tried to change it and jest with them as usual, she could endure the
+forced gaiety only a short time; a painful revulsion, frequently
+accompanied by tears, followed, and she was obliged to leave her
+darlings.
+
+The life her foe granted her seemed like an intrusive gift, an
+oppressive debt, which we desire to pay a troublesome creditor as soon
+as possible.
+
+She seemed calmer and apparently content only when permitted to talk
+with the companions of her youth concerning bygone days, or with them
+and Iras of death, and how it would be possible to put an end to an
+unwelcome existence.
+
+After such conversations Iras and Charmian left her with bleeding
+hearts. They had long since resolved to share the fate of their royal
+mistress, whatever it might be. Their common suffering was the bond
+which again united them in affection. Iras had provided poisoned pins
+which had speedily destroyed the animals upon which they had been tried.
+Cleopatra knew of their existence, but she herself preferred the
+painless death bestowed by the serpent's bite, and it was long since her
+friends had seen the eyes of their beloved sovereign sparkle so brightly
+as when Charmian told her that away had been found to obtain the uræus
+serpent as soon as it was needed. But it was not yet imperative to adopt
+the last expedient. Octavianus wished to be considered lenient, and
+perhaps might still be prevailed upon to grant the Queen and her
+children a future meet for their royal birth.
+
+Cleopatra's reply was an incredulous smile, yet a faint hope which saved
+her from despair began to bud in her soul.
+
+Dolabella, an aristocratic Roman, a scion of the noble Cornelius family,
+was in the Cæsar's train, and had been presented to the Egyptian Queen.
+In former years his father was a friend of Cleopatra; nay, she had
+placed him under obligations by sending him, after the murder of Julius
+Cæsar, the military force at her command to be used against Cassius.
+True, her legions, by messengers from Dolabella himself, were despatched
+in another direction; but Cleopatra had not withdrawn her favour from
+Dolabella's father on that account. The latter had known her in Rome
+before the death of Cæsar, and had enthusiastically described the
+charms of the bewitching Egyptian sovereign. Though the youth found her
+only a mourning widow, ill in body and mind, he was so strongly
+attracted and deeply moved by her beauty, her brilliant intellect, her
+grace of bearing, her misfortunes and sufferings, that he devoted many
+hours to her, and would have considered it a happiness to render her
+greater services than circumstances permitted. He often accompanied her
+to the children, whose hearts had been completely won by his frank,
+cheerful nature; and so it happened that he soon became one of the most
+welcome guests at Lochias. He confided without reserve every feeling
+that stirred his soul to the warm-hearted woman who was so many years
+his senior, and through him she learned many things connected with
+Octavianus and his surroundings. Without permitting himself to be used
+as a tool, he became an advocate for the unfortunate woman whom he so
+deeply esteemed.
+
+In intercourse with her he made every effort to inspire confidence in
+Octavianus, who favoured him, enjoyed his society, and in whose
+magnanimity the youth firmly believed.
+
+He anticipated the best results from an interview between the Queen and
+the Cæsar; for he deemed it impossible that the successful conqueror
+could part untouched, and with no desire to mitigate her sad fate, from
+the woman who, in earlier years, had so fascinated his father, and whom
+he himself, though she might almost have been his mother, deemed
+peerless in her bewitching and gracious charm.
+
+Cleopatra, on the contrary, shrank from meeting the man who had brought
+so much misfortune upon Mark Antony and herself, and inflicted upon her
+insults which were only too well calculated to make her doubt his
+clemency and truth. On the other hand, she could not deny Dolabella's
+assertion that it would be far less easy for Octavianus to refuse her in
+person the wishes she cherished for her children's future than through
+mediators. Proculejus had learned that Antony had named him to the Queen
+as the person most worthy of her confidence, and more keenly felt the
+wrong which, as the tool and obedient friend of Octavianus, he had
+inflicted upon the hapless woman. The memory of his unworthy deed, which
+history would chronicle, had robbed the sensitive man, the author and
+patron of budding Roman poetry, of many an hour's sleep, and therefore
+he also now laboured zealously to oblige the Queen and mitigate her hard
+fate. He, like the freedman Epaphroditus, who by Cæsar's orders watched
+carefully to prevent any attempt upon her life, seemed to base great
+hopes on such an interview, and endeavoured to persuade her to request
+an audience from the Cæsar.
+
+Archibius said that, even in the worst case, it could not render the
+present state of affairs darker. Experience, he said to Charmian, proved
+that no man of any feeling could wholly resist the charm of her nature,
+and to him at least she had never seemed more winning than now. Who
+could have gazed unmoved into the beautiful face, so eloquent in its
+silent suffering, whose soul would not have been deeply touched by the
+sorrowful tones of her sweet voice? Besides, her sable mourning robes
+were so well suited to the slight tinge of melancholy which pervaded her
+whole aspect. When the fever flushed her cheeks, Archibius, spite of the
+ravages which grief, anxiety, and fear had made upon her charms, thought
+that he had never seen her look more beautiful. He knew her thoroughly,
+and was aware that her desire to follow the man she loved into the realm
+of death was sincere; nay, that it dominated her whole being. She clung
+to life only to die as soon as possible. The decision which, after her
+resolve to build the monument, she had recognized in the temple of
+Berenike as the right one, had become the rule of conduct of her life.
+Every thought, every conversation, led her back to the past. The future
+seemed to exist no longer. If Archibius succeeded in directing her
+thoughts to approaching days she occupied herself wholly with her
+children's fate. For herself she expected nothing, felt absolved from
+every duty except the one of protecting herself and her name from
+dishonour and humiliation.
+
+The fact that Octavianus, when he doomed Cæsarion to death, permitted
+the other children to return to her with the assurance that no harm
+should befall them, proved that he made a distinction between them and
+his uncle's son, and had no fears that they threatened his own safety.
+She might expect important results in their favour from an interview
+with Octavianus, so she at last authorized Proculejus to request an
+audience.
+
+The Imperator's answer came the very same day. It was his place to seek
+her--so ran the Cæsar's message. This meeting must decide her fate.
+Cleopatra was aware of this, and begged Charmian to remember the asp.
+
+Her attendants had been forbidden to leave Lochias, but Epaphroditus
+permitted them to receive visitors. The Nubian's merry, amusing talk had
+made friends for her among the Roman guards, who allowed her to pass in
+and out unmolested. On her return, of course, she was searched with the
+utmost care, like every one who entered Lochias.
+
+The decisive hour was close at hand. Charmian knew what she must do in
+any event, but there was still one desire for whose fulfilment she
+longed. She wished to greet Barine and see her boy.
+
+To spare Iras, she had hitherto refrained from sending for Dion's wife.
+The sight of the mother and child might have reopened wounds still
+unhealed, and she would not inflict this sorrow upon her niece, who for
+a long time had once more been loyally devoted to her.
+
+Octavianus did not hasten to fulfil his assurance. But, at the end of a
+week, Proculejus brought the news that he could promise a visit from the
+Cæsar that afternoon. The Queen was deeply agitated, and desired before
+the interview to pay a visit to her tomb. Iras offered to accompany her,
+and as Cleopatra intended to remain an hour or longer, Charmian thought
+it a favourable opportunity to see Barine and her boy.
+
+Dion's wife had been informed of her friend's wish, and Anukis, who was
+to take her to Lochias, did not wait long for the mother and child.
+
+Didymus's garden--now the property of the royal children--was the scene
+of the meeting. In the shade of the familiar trees the young mother sank
+upon the breast of her faithful friend, and Charmian could not gaze her
+fill at the boy, or weary of tracing in his features a resemblance to
+his grandfather Leonax.
+
+How much these two women, to whom Fate had allotted lives so widely
+different, found to tell each other! The older felt transported to the
+past, the younger seemed to have naught save a present rich in blessing
+and a future green with hope. She had good news to tell of her sister
+also. Helena had long been the happy wife of Gorgias who, however, spite
+of the love with which he surrounded the young mistress of his house,
+numbered among his most blissful hours those which were devoted to
+overseeing the progress of the work on the mausoleum, where he met
+Cleopatra.
+
+Time flew swiftly to the two women, and it was a painful surprise when
+one of the eunuchs on guard announced that the Queen had returned. Again
+Charmian embraced her lover's grandson, blessed him and the young
+mother, sent messages of remembrance to Dion, begged Barine to think of
+her affectionately when she had passed from earth and, if her heart
+prompted her to the act, to anoint or adorn with a ribbon or flower the
+tombstone of the woman who had no friend to render her such a service.
+
+Deeply moved by the firmness with which Charmian witnessed the approach
+of death, Barine listened in silence, but suddenly started as the sharp
+tones of a well-known voice called her friend's name and, as she turned,
+Iras stood before her. Pallid and emaciated, she looked in her long,
+floating black robes the very incarnation of misery.
+
+The sight pierced the heart of the happy wife and mother. She felt as if
+much of the joy which Iras lacked had fallen to her own lot, and all the
+grief and woe she had ever endured had been transferred to her foe. She
+would fain have approached humbly and said something very kind and
+friendly; but when she saw the tall, haggard woman gazing at her child,
+and noticed the disagreeable expression which had formerly induced her
+to compare her to a sharp thorn, a terrible dread of this woman's evil
+eye which might harm her boy seized the mother's heart and, overwhelmed
+by an impulse beyond control, she covered his face with her own veil.
+
+Iras saw it, and after Barine had answered her question, "Dion's child?"
+in the affirmative, with a glance beseeching forbearance, the girl drew
+up her slender figure, saying with arrogant coldness "What do I care for
+the child? We have more important matters on our hearts."
+
+Then she turned to Charmian to inform her, in the tone of an official
+announcement, that during the approaching interview the Queen desired
+her attendance also.
+
+Octavianus had appointed sunset for the interview, and it still lacked
+several hours of the time. The suffering Queen felt wearied by her visit
+to the mausoleum, where she had implored the spirit of Antony, if he had
+any power over the conqueror's heart, to induce him to release her from
+this torturing uncertainty and promise the children a happy fate.
+
+To Dolabella, who had accompanied her from the tomb to the palace, she
+said that she expected only one thing from this meeting, and then won
+from him a promise which strengthened her courage and seemed the most
+precious boon which could be granted at this time.
+
+She had expressed the fear that Octavianus would still leave her in
+doubt. The youth spoke vehemently in Cæsar's defence, and closed with
+the exclamation, "If he should still keep you in suspense, he would be
+not only cool and circumspect----"
+
+"Then," Cleopatra interrupted, "be nobler, be less cruel, and release
+your father's friend from these tortures. If he does not reveal to me
+what awaits me and you learn it, then--you will not say no, you cannot
+refuse me--then you, yes, you will inform me?"
+
+Promptly and firmly came the reply: "What have I been able to do for you
+until now? But I will release you from _this_ torture, if possible."
+Then he hastily turned his back, that he might not be compelled to see
+the eunuchs stationed at the palace gate search the garments of the
+royal captive.
+
+His promise sustained the failing courage of the wearied, anxious Queen,
+and she reclined upon the cushions of a lounge to recover from the
+exhausting expedition; but she had scarcely closed her eyes when the
+pavement of the court-yard rang under the hoofs of the four horses which
+bore the Cæsar to Lochias. Cleopatra had not expected the visit so
+early.
+
+She had just been consulting with her attendants about the best mode of
+receiving him. At first she had been disposed to do so on the throne,
+clad in her royal attire, but she afterwards thought that she was too
+ill and weak to bear the heavy ornaments. Besides, the man and
+successful conqueror would show himself more indulgent and gracious to
+the suffering woman than to the princess.
+
+There was much to palliate the course which she had pursued in former
+days, and she had carefully planned the defence by which she hoped to
+influence his calm but not unjust nature. Many things in her favour were
+contained in the letters from Cæsar and Antony which, after her
+husband's death, she had read again and again during so many wakeful
+nights, and they had just been brought to her.
+
+Both Archibius and the Roman Proculejus had counselled her not to
+receive him entirely alone. The latter did not express his opinion in
+words, but he knew that Octavianus was more readily induced to noble and
+lenient deeds when there was no lack of witnesses to report them to the
+world. It was advisable to provide spectators for the most consummate
+actor of his day.
+
+Therefore the Queen had retained Iras, Charmian, and some of the
+officials nearest to her person, among them the steward Seleukus, who
+could give information if any question arose concerning the delivery of
+the treasure.
+
+She had also intended, after she had somewhat recovered from the visit
+to the tomb, to be robed in fresh garments. This was prevented by the
+Cæsar's unexpected arrival. Now, even had time permitted, she would
+have been unable to have her hair arranged, she felt so weak and yet so
+feverishly excited.
+
+The blood coursed hotly through her veins and flushed her cheeks. When
+told that the Cæsar was close at hand, she had only time to raise
+herself a little higher on her cushions, push back her hair, and let
+Iras, with a few hasty touches, adjust the folds of her mourning robes.
+Had she attempted to advance to meet him, her limbs would have failed to
+support her.
+
+When the Cæsar at last entered, she could greet him only by a wave of
+her hand; but Octavianus, who had uttered the usual salutations from the
+threshold, quickly broke the painful silence, saying with a courteous
+bow:
+
+"You summoned me--I came. Every one is subject to beauty--even the
+victor."
+
+Cleopatra's head drooped in shame as she answered distinctly, yet in a
+tone of modest denial:
+
+"I only asked the favour of an audience. I did not _summon_. I thank you
+for granting the request. If it is dangerous for man to bow to woman's
+charms, no peril threatens you here. Beauty cannot withstand tortures
+such as those which have been imposed on me--barely can life remain. But
+you prevented my casting it from me. If you are just, you will grant to
+the woman whom you would not permit to die an existence whose burden
+will not exceed her power to endure."
+
+The Cæsar again bowed silently and answered courteously:
+
+"I intend to make it worthy of you."
+
+"Then," cried Cleopatra impetuously, "release me from this torturing
+uncertainty. You are not one of the men who never look beyond to-day and
+to-morrow."
+
+"You are thinking," said Octavianus harshly, "of one who perhaps would
+still be among us, if with wiser caution----"
+
+Cleopatra's eyes, which hitherto had met the victor's cold gaze with
+modest entreaty, flashed angrily, and a majestic: "Let the past rest!"
+interrupted him.
+
+But she soon mastered the indignation which had stirred her passionate
+blood, and in a totally different tone, not wholly free from gentle
+persuasion, she continued:
+
+"The provident intellect of the man whose nod the universe obeys grasps
+the future as well as the present. Must not he, therefore, have decided
+the children's fate ere he consented to see their mother? The only
+obstacle in your path, the son of your great uncle----"
+
+"His doom was a necessity," interrupted the conqueror in a tone of
+sincere regret. "As I mourned Antony, I grieve for the unfortunate boy."
+
+"If that is true," replied Cleopatra eagerly, "it does honour to the
+kindness of your heart. When Proculejus wrested the dagger from my grasp
+he blamed me because I attributed to the most clement of conquerors
+harshness and implacability."
+
+"Two qualities," the Cæsar protested, "which are wholly alien to my
+nature."
+
+"And which--even if you possessed them--you neither could nor ought to
+use," cried Cleopatra, "if you really mean the beautiful words you so
+often utter that, as the nephew and heir of the great Julius Cæsar, you
+intend to walk in his footsteps. Cæsarion--there is his bust--was the
+image in every feature of his father, your illustrious model. To me, the
+hapless woman now awaiting my sentence from his nephew's lips, the gods
+granted, as the most precious of all gifts, the love of your divine
+uncle. And what love! The world knew not what I was to his great heart,
+but my wish to defend myself from misconception bids me show it to you,
+his heir. From you I expect my sentence. You are the judge. These
+letters are my strongest defence. I rely upon them to show myself to you
+as I was and am, not as envy and slander describe me.--The little ivory
+casket, Iras! It contains the precious proofs of Cæsar's love, his
+letters to me."
+
+She raised the lid with trembling hands and, as these mementoes carried
+her back to the past, she continued in lower tones:
+
+"Among all my treasures this simple little coffer has been for half a
+lifetime my most valued jewel. He gave it to me. It was in the midst of
+the fierce contest here at the Bruchium."
+
+Then, while unfolding the first roll, she directed Octavianus's
+attention to it and the remainder of the contents of the little casket,
+exclaiming:
+
+"Silent pages, yet how eloquent! Each one a peerless picture, the
+powerful thinker, the man of action, who permits his restless intellect
+to repose, and suffers his heart to overflow with the love of youth!
+Were I vain, Octavianus, I might call each one of these letters a trophy
+of victory, an Olympic garland. The woman to whom Julius Cæsar owned
+his subjugation might well hold her head higher than the unhappy,
+vanquished Queen who, save the permission to die----"
+
+"Do not part with the letters," said Octavianus kindly. "Who can doubt
+that they are a precious treasure----"
+
+"The most precious and at the same time the advocate of the accused,"
+replied Cleopatra eagerly; "on them--as you have already heard--rests my
+vindication. I will commence with their contents. How terrible it is to
+make what is sacred to us and intended only to elevate our own hearts
+serve a purpose, to do what has always been repugnant to us! But I need
+an advocate and, Octavianus, these letters will restore to the wretched,
+suffering beggar the dignity and majesty of the Queen. The world knows
+but two powers to which Julius Cæsar bowed--the thrall of the pitiable
+woman on this couch, and of all-conquering death. An unpleasant
+fellowship--but I do not shrink from it; for death robbed him of life,
+and from my hand---- I ask only a brief moment. How gladly I would spare
+myself my own praises, and you the necessity of listening to them! Yes,
+here it is: 'Through you, you irresistible woman,' he writes, 'I learned
+for the first time, after youth was over, how beautiful life can be.'"
+
+Cleopatra, as she spoke, handed Cæsar the letter. But while she was
+still searching hastily for another he returned the first, saying:
+
+"I understand only too well your reluctance to allow such confidential
+effusions to play the part of defender. I can imagine their purport, and
+they shall influence me as if I had read them all. However eloquent they
+may be, they are needless witnesses. Is any written testimony required
+in behalf of charms whose magic is still potent?"
+
+A bewitching smile, which seemed like a confirmation of the haughty
+young conqueror's flattering words, flitted over Cleopatra's face.
+
+Octavianus noticed it. This woman indeed possessed enthralling charms,
+and he felt the slight flush that suffused his cheeks.
+
+This unhappy captive, this suffering supplicant, could still draw into
+her net any man who did not possess the cool watchfulness which
+panoplied his soul. Was it the marvellous melody of her voice, the
+changeful lustre of her tearful eyes, the aristocratic grace of the
+noble figure, the exquisite symmetry of the hands and feet, the weakness
+of the prostrate sufferer, strangely blended with truly royal majesty,
+or the thought that love for her had found earth's greatest and loftiest
+men with indissoluble fetters, which lent this fragile woman, who had
+long since passed the boundaries of youth, so powerful a spell of
+attraction?
+
+At any rate, however certain of himself he might be, he must guard his
+feelings. He understood how to bridle passion far better than the uncle
+who was so greatly his superior.
+
+Yet it was of the utmost importance to keep her alive, and therefore to
+maintain her belief in his admiration. He wished to show the world and
+the Great Queen of the East, who had just boasted of conquering, like
+death, even the most mighty, its own supremacy as man and victor. But he
+must also be gentle, in order not to endanger the object for which he
+wanted her. She must accompany him to Rome. She and her children
+promised to render his triumph the most brilliant and memorable one
+which any conqueror had ever displayed to the senate and the people. In
+a light tone which, however, revealed the emotion of his soul, he
+answered: "My illustrious uncle was known as a friend of fair women. His
+stern life was crowned with flowers by many hands, and he acknowledged
+these favours verbally and perhaps--as he did to you in all these
+letters--with the reed. His genius was greater, at any rate more
+many-sided and mobile, than mine. He succeeded, too, in pursuing
+different objects at the same time with equal devotion. I am wholly
+absorbed in the cares of state, of government, and war. I feel grateful
+when I can permit our poets to adorn my leisure for a brief space.
+Overburdened with toil, I have no time to yield myself captive, as my
+uncle did in these very rooms, to the most charming of women. If I could
+follow my own will, you would be the first from whom I would seek the
+gifts of Eros.--But it may not be! We Romans learn to curb even the most
+ardent wishes when duty and morality command. There is no city in the
+world where half so many gods are worshipped as here; and what strange
+deities are numbered among them! It needs a special effort of the
+intellect to understand them. But the simple duties of the domestic
+hearth!--they are too prosaic for you Alexandrians, who imbibe
+philosophy with your mothers' milk. What marvel, if I looked for them in
+vain? True, they would find little satisfaction--our household gods I
+mean--here, where the rigid demands of Hymen are mute before the ardent
+pleadings of Eros. Marriage is scarcely reckoned among the sacred things
+of life. But this opinion seems to displease you."
+
+"Because it is false," cried Cleopatra, repressing with difficulty a
+fresh outburst of indignation. "Yet, if I see aright, your reproach is
+aimed only at the bond which united me to the man who was called your
+sister's husband. But I will---- I would gladly remain silent, but you
+force me to speak, and I will do so, though your own friend, Proculejus,
+is signing to me to be cautious. I--I, Cleopatra, was the wife of Mark
+Antony according to the customs of this country, when you wedded him to
+the widow of Marcellus, who had scarcely closed his eyes. Not she, but
+I, was the deserted wife--I to whom his heart belonged until the hour of
+his death, not the wedded----" Here her voice fell. She had yielded to
+the passionate impulse which urged her to express her feelings in the
+matter, and now continued in a tone of gentle explanation: "I know that
+you proposed this alliance solely for the peace and welfare of Rome----"
+
+"To guard both, and to spare the blood of tens of thousands," Octavianus
+added with proud decision. "Your clear brain perceived the true state of
+affairs. If, spite of the grave importance of these motives, you---- But
+what voices would not that of the heart silence with you women! The man,
+the Roman, succeeded in closing his ears to its siren song. Were it
+otherwise, I would never have chosen for my sister a husband by whom I
+knew her happiness would be so ill-guarded--I would, as I have already
+said, be unable to master my own admiration of the loveliest of women.
+But I ought scarcely to boast of that. I fear that a heart like yours
+opens less quickly to the modest Octavianus than to a Julius Cæsar or
+the brilliant Mark Antony. Yet I may be permitted to confess that
+perhaps I might have avoided conducting this unhappy war against my
+friend to the end under my own guidance, and appearing myself in Egypt,
+had I not been urged by the longing to see once more the woman who had
+dazzled my boyish eyes. Now, in my mature manhood, I desired to
+comprehend those marvellous gifts of mind, that matchless sagacity----"
+
+"Sagacity!" interrupted the Queen, shrugging her shoulders mournfully.
+"You possess a far greater share of what is commonly called by that
+name. My fate proves it. The pliant intellect which the gods bestowed on
+me would ill sustain the test in this hour of anguish. But if you really
+care to learn what mental power Cleopatra once possessed, relieve me of
+this terrible burden of uncertainty, and grant me a position in life
+which will permit my paralyzed soul to move freely once more."
+
+"It depends solely on yourself," Octavian eagerly responded, "to make
+your future life, not only free from care, but beautiful."
+
+"On me?" asked Cleopatra in astonishment. "Our weal and woe are in your
+hands alone. I am modest and ask nothing save to know what you intend
+for our future, what you mean by the lot which you term beautiful."
+
+"Nothing less," replied the Cæsar quietly, "than what seems to lie
+nearest to your own heart--a life of that freedom of soul to which you
+aspire."
+
+The breath of the agitated Queen began to come more quickly and, no
+longer able to control the impatience which overpowered her, she
+exclaimed, "With the assurance of your favour on your lips, you refuse
+to discuss the question which interests, me beyond any other--for which,
+if any you must have been prepared when you came here----"
+
+"Reproaches?" asked Octavianus with we feigned surprise. "Would it not
+rather be my place to complain? It is precisely because I am thoroughly
+sincere in the friendly disposition which you read aright from my words,
+that some of your measures cannot fail to wound me. Your treasures were
+to be committed to the flames. It would be unfair to expect tokens of
+friendship from the vanquished; but can you deny that even the bitterest
+hatred could scarcely succeed in devising anything more hostile?"
+
+"Let the past rest! Who would not seek in war to diminish the enemy's
+booty?" pleaded the Queen in a soothing tone. But as Octavianus delayed
+his answer, she continued more eagerly: "It is said that the ibex in the
+mountains, when in mortal peril, rushes upon the hunter and hurls him
+with it down the precipice. The same impulse is natural to human beings,
+and praiseworthy, I think, in both. Forget the past, as I will try to
+do, I repeat with uplifted hands. Say that you will permit the sons whom
+I gave to Antony to ascend the Egyptian throne, not under their mother's
+guardianship, but that of Rome, and grant me freedom wherever I may
+live, and I will gladly transfer to you, down to the veriest trifles,
+all the property and treasures I possess."
+
+She clenched her little hand impatiently under the folds of her robe as
+she spoke; but Octavianus lowered his eyes, saying carelessly: "In war
+the victor disposes of the property of the vanquished; but my heart
+restrains me from applying the universal law to you, who are so far
+above ordinary mortals. Your wealth is said to be vast, though the
+foolish war which Antony, with your aid, so greatly prolonged, devoured
+vast sums. In this country squandered gold seems like the grass which,
+when mowed, springs up anew."
+
+"You speak," replied Cleopatra, more and more deeply incensed, with
+proud composure, "of the treasures which my ancestors, the powerful
+monarchs of a wealthy country, amassed during three hundred years for
+their noble race and for the adornment of the women of their line.
+Parsimony did not accord with the generosity and lofty nature of an
+Antony, yet avarice itself would not deem the portion still remaining
+insignificant. Every article is registered."
+
+While speaking, she took a manuscript from the hand of Seleukus and
+passed it to Octavianus who, with a slight bend of the head, received it
+in silence. But he had scarcely begun to read it when the steward, a
+little corpulent man with twinkling eyes half buried in his fat cheeks,
+raised his short forefinger, pointed insolently at the Queen, and
+asserted that she was trying to conceal some things, and had ordered him
+not to place them on the list. Every tinge of colour faded from the lips
+and cheeks of the agitated and passionate woman; tortured by feverish
+impatience and no longer able to control her emotions, she raised
+herself and, with her own dainty hand, struck the accuser--whom she had
+lifted from poverty and obscurity to his present high position--again
+and again in the face, till Octavianus, with a smile of superiority,
+begged her, much as the man deserved his punishment, to desist.
+
+The unfortunate woman, thus thrown off her guard, flung herself back on
+her couch and, panting for breath, with tears streaming from her eyes,
+sobbed aloud, declaring that in the presence of such unendurable insult,
+such contemptible baseness, she fairly loathed herself. Then pressing
+her clenched hands upon her temples, she exclaimed: "Before the eyes of
+the foe my royal dignity, which I have maintained all my life, falls
+from me like a borrowed mantle. Yet what am I? What shall I be
+to-morrow, what later? But who beneath the sun who has warm blood in his
+veins can preserve his composure when juicy grapes are held before his
+thirsting lips to be withdrawn, as from Tantalus, ere he can taste them?
+You came hither with the assurance of your favour; but the flattering
+words of promise which you bestowed upon the unhappy woman were probably
+only the drops of poppy-juice given to soothe the ravings of fever. Was
+the favour which you permitted me to see and anticipate for the future
+merely intended to delude a miserable----"
+
+But she went no further; Octavianus, with dignified bearing and loud,
+clear tones, interrupted "Whoever believes the heir of Cæsar capable of
+shamefully deceiving a noble woman, a queen, the object of his
+illustrious uncle's love, insults and wounds him; but the just anger
+which overmastered you may serve as your apology. Ay," he added in a
+totally different tone, "I might even have cause to be grateful for this
+indignation, and to wish for another opportunity to witness the outbreak
+of passion though in its unbridled fierceness--the royal lioness is
+scarcely aware of her own beauty when the tempest of wrath sweeps her
+away. What must she be when it is love that constrains the flame of her
+glowing soul to burst into a blaze?"
+
+"Her glowing soul!" Cleopatra eagerly repeated, and the desire awoke to
+subjugate this man who had so confidently boasted of his power of
+resistance. Though he might be stronger than many others, he certainly
+was not invincible. And aware of her still unbroken sway over the hearts
+of men, her eyes sparkled with the alluring radiance of love, and a
+bewitching smile brightened her face.
+
+The young Imperator's heart began to chafe under the curb and to beat
+more quickly, his cheeks flushed and paled by turns. How she gazed at
+him! What if she loved the nephew as she had once loved the uncle who,
+through her, had learned what bliss life can offer? Ay, it must be
+happiness to kiss those lips, to be clasped in those exquisite arms, to
+hear one's own name tenderly spoken by those musical tones. Even the
+magnificent marble statue of Ariadne, which he had seen in Athens, had
+not displayed to his gaze lines more beautiful than those of the woman
+reclining on yonder pillows. Who could venture to speak in her presence
+of vanished charms? Ah, no! The spell which had conquered Julius Cæsar
+was as vivid, as potent as ever. He himself felt its power; he was
+young, and after such unremitting exertions he too yearned to quaff the
+nectar of the noblest joys, to steep body and soul in peerless bliss.
+
+So, with a hasty movement, he took one step towards her couch, resolved
+to grasp her hands and raise them to his lips. His ardent gaze answered
+hers; but surprised by the power which, though so heavily burdened with
+physical and mental suffering, she still possessed over the strongest
+and coldest of men, she perceived what was passing in his soul, and a
+smile of triumph, blended with the most bitter contempt, hovered around
+her beautiful lips. Should she dupe him into granting her wishes by
+feigning love for the first time? Should she yield to the man who had
+insulted her, in order to induce him to accord the children their
+rights? Should she, to gratify her lover's foe, relinquish the sacred
+grief which was drawing her after him, give posterity and her children
+the right to call her, instead of the most loyal of the loyal, a
+dishonoured woman, who sold herself for power?
+
+To all these questions came a prompt denial. The single stride which
+Octavianus had made towards her, his eyes aflame with love, gave her the
+right to feel that she had vanquished the victor, and the proud delight
+of triumph was too plainly reflected in her mobile features to escape
+the penetrating, distrustful gaze of the subjugated Cæsar. But he had
+scarcely perceived what threatened him, and remembered her words
+concerning his famous uncle's surrender only to her and to death, when
+he succeeded in conquering his quickly kindled senses. Blushing at his
+own weakness, he averted his eyes from the Queen, and when he met those
+of Proculejus and the other witnesses of the scene, he realized the
+abyss on whose verge he stood. He had half succumbed to the danger of
+losing, by a moment's weakness, the fruit of great sacrifices and severe
+exertions.
+
+His expressive eyes, which had just rested rapturously upon a beautiful
+woman, now scanned the spectators with the stern glance of a monarch
+and, apparently wishing to moderate an excess of flattering recognition
+which might be misinterpreted, he said in an almost pedagogical tone:
+
+"Yet we would rather see the noble lioness in the majestic repose which
+best suits all sovereigns. It is difficult for a calm, deliberate nature
+like mine to understand an ardent, quickly kindling heart."
+
+Cleopatra had watched this sudden transition with more surprise than
+disappointment. Octavianus had half surrendered to her, but recovered
+his self-command in time, and a man of his temperament does not readily
+succumb twice to a danger which he barely escaped. And this was well! He
+should learn that he had misunderstood the glance which fired his heart;
+so she answered distantly, with majestic dignity:
+
+"Misery such as mine quenches all ardour. And love? Woman's heart is
+ever open to it, save where it has lost the desire for power and
+pleasure. You are young and happy, therefore your soul still yearns for
+love--I know that--though not for mine. To me, on the contrary, one
+suitor only is welcome, he with the lowered torch, whom you keep aloof
+from me. With him alone is to be found the boon for which this soul has
+longed from childhood--painless peace! You smile. My past gives you the
+right to do so. I will not lessen it. Each individual lives his or her
+own life. Few understand the changes of their own existence, far less
+those of a stranger's. The world has witnessed how Peace fled from my
+path, or I from hers, and yet I see the possibility of finding the way.
+I am safe from the only things which would debar me from those
+joys--humiliation and disgrace." Here she hesitated; then, as if in
+explanation, continued in the sweetest tones at her command: "Your
+generosity, I think, will guard from these two foes the woman whom just
+now--I did not fail to see it--you considered worthy of a more than
+gracious glance. I shall treasure it among memories which will never
+fade. But now, illustrious Imperator! tell me, what is your decision
+concerning me and the children? What may we hope from your favour?"
+
+"That Octavianus will be more and more warmly animated by the desire to
+accord you and yours a worthy destiny, the more firmly you expect that
+he will attest his generosity."
+
+"And if I fulfil this desire and expect from you everything that is
+great and noble--the condition is not difficult--what proofs of your
+graciousness will then await us?"
+
+"Paint them with all the fervour of that vivid power of imagination
+which interpreted even my glance in your favour, and devised the marvels
+by which you rendered the greatest and most brilliant man in Rome the
+happiest of mortals. But--by Zeus!--it is the fourth hour after
+noonday!"
+
+A glance from the window had caused the exclamation. Then, pressing his
+hand upon his heart, he continued in a tone of the most sincere regret:
+"How gladly I would prolong this fascinating conversation, but important
+matters which, unfortunately, cannot be deferred, summon me----"
+
+"And your answer?" cried Cleopatra, panting for breath and gazing at him
+with eyes full of expectation.
+
+"Must I repeat it?" he asked with impatient haste. "Very well, then. In
+return for implicit confidence on your part, favour, forgiveness,
+cordiality, every consideration which you can justly desire. Your heart
+is so rich in warmth of feeling, grant me but a small share of it and
+ask tangible gifts in return. They are already bestowed." Then greeting
+her like a friend who is reluctant to say farewell, he hastily left the
+apartment.
+
+"Gone--gone!" cried Iras as the door closed behind him. "An eel that
+slips from the hand which strives to hold him."
+
+"Northern ice," added Cleopatra gloomily as Charmian aided her to find a
+more comfortable position. "As smooth as it is cold; there is nothing
+more to hope."
+
+"Yes, my royal mistress, yes," Iras eagerly protested. "Dolabella is
+waiting for him in the Philadelphus court-yard. From him--you have his
+promise--we shall learn what Octavianus has in store for you."
+
+In truth, the Cæsar did find the youth at the first gate of the palace,
+inspecting his superb Cyrenean horses.
+
+"Magnificent animals!" cried Octavianus; "a gift from the city! Will you
+drive with me?--A remarkable, a very remarkable woman!"
+
+"Isn't she?" asked Dolabella eagerly.
+
+"Undoubtedly," replied the Cæsar. "But though she might almost be your
+mother, an uncommonly dangerous one for youths of your age. What a
+melting voice, what versatility, what fervour! And yet such regal grace
+in every movement! But I wish to stifle, not to fan, the spark which
+perhaps has already fallen into your heart. And the play, the farce
+which she just enacted before me in the midst of most serious matters!"
+
+He uttered a low, short laugh; but Dolabella exclaimed expectantly: "You
+rarely laugh, but this conversation--apparently--excites your mirth. So
+the result was satisfactory?"
+
+"Let us hope so. I was as gracious to her as possible."
+
+"That is delightful. May I know in what manner your kindness and wisdom
+have shaped her future? Or, rather, what did you promise the vanquished
+Queen?"
+
+"My favour, if she will trust me."
+
+"Proculejus and I will continue to strengthen her confidence. And if we
+succeed----?"
+
+"Then, as I have said, she will have my favour--a generous abundance of
+favour."
+
+"But her future destiny? What fate will you bestow on her and her
+children?"
+
+"Whatever the degree of her confidence deserves."
+
+Here he hesitated, for he met Dolabella's earnest, troubled gaze, which
+was blended with a shade of reproach.
+
+Octavianus desired to retain the enthusiastic admiration of the youth,
+who perhaps was destined to lofty achievements, so he continued in a
+confidential tone: "To you, my young friend, I can venture to speak more
+frankly. I will gladly grant the most aspiring wishes of this
+fascinating and, I repeat, very remarkable woman, but first I need her
+for my triumph. The Romans would have cause to reproach me if I deprived
+them of the sight of this Queen, this peerless woman, in many respects
+the first of her time. We shall soon set out for Syria. The Queen and
+her children I shall send in three days to Rome. If, in the triumphal
+procession there, she creates the sensation I anticipate from a
+spectacle so worthy of admiration, she shall learn how I reward those
+who oblige me."
+
+Dolabella had listened in silence. When the Cæsar entered the carriage,
+he requested permission to remain behind.
+
+Octavianus drove alone eastward to the camp where, in the vicinity of
+the Hippodrome, men were surveying the ground on which the suburb of
+Nikopolis--city of victory--was to be built to commemorate for future
+generations the victory of the first Emperor over Antony and Cleopatra.
+It grew, but never attained any great importance.
+
+The noble Cornelius gazed indignantly after his sovereign's fiery
+steeds; then, drawing up his stately figure to its full height, he
+entered the palace with a firm step. The act might cost him his life,
+but he would do what he believed to be his duty to the noble woman who
+had honoured him with her friendship. This rare sovereign was too good
+to feast the eyes of the rabble.
+
+A few minutes later Cleopatra knew her impending ignominy.
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+
+The next morning the Queen had many whispered conversations with
+Charmian, and the latter with Anukis. The day before, Archibius's
+gardener had brought to his master's sister some unusually fine figs,
+which grew in the old garden of Epicurus. This fruit was also mentioned,
+and Anukis went to Kanopus, and thence, in the steward's carriage, with
+a basket of the very best ones to the fish-market. There she had a great
+deal to say to Pyrrhus, and the freedman went to his boat with the figs.
+
+Shortly after the Nubian's return the Queen came back to the palace from
+the mausoleum. Her features bore an impress of resolution usually alien
+to them; nay, the firmly compressed lips gave them an expression of
+actual sternness. She knew what duty required, and regarded her
+approaching end as an inevitable necessity. Death seemed to her like a
+journey which she must take in order to escape the most terrible
+disgrace. Besides, life after the death of Antony was no longer the
+same; it had been only a tiresome delay and waiting for the children's
+sake.
+
+The visit to the tomb had been intended, as it were, to announce her
+coming to her husband. She had remained a long time in the silent hall,
+where she had garlanded the coffin with flowers, kissed it, talked to
+the dead man as if he were still alive, and told him that the day had
+come when what he had mentioned in his will as the warmest desire of his
+heart--to rest beside her in the same tomb--would be fulfilled. Among
+the thousand forms of suffering which had assailed her, nothing had
+seemed so hard to bear as to be deprived of his society and love.
+
+Then she had gone into the garden, embraced and kissed the children, and
+entreated them to remember her tenderly. Her purpose had not been
+concealed from Archibius, but Charmian had told him the menace of the
+future, and he approved her decision. By the exertion of all his innate
+strength of will, he succeeded in concealing the grief which rent his
+faithful heart. She must die. The thought of seeing her adorn the
+triumphal procession of Octavianus was unbearable to him also. Her
+thanks and entreaties to be an affectionate guardian to the children
+were received with an external calmness which afterwards seemed to him
+utterly incomprehensible.
+
+When she spoke of her approaching meeting with her lover, he asked
+whether she had entirely abandoned the teachings of Epicurus, who
+believed that death absolutely ended existence.
+
+Cleopatra eagerly assented, saying: "Absence of pain has ceased to
+appear to me the chief earthly blessing, since I have known that love
+does not bring pleasure only, since I have learned that pain is the
+inseparable companion of love. I will not give it up, nor will I part
+from my lover. Whoever experiences what fate has allotted to me has
+learned to know other gods than those whom the master described as
+dwelling happily in undisturbed repose. Rather eternal torture in
+another world, united to the man I love, than painless, joyless mere
+existence in a desolate, incomprehensible, unknown region! You will be
+the last to teach the children to yearn for freedom from pain----?"
+
+"Because, like you," cried Archibius, "I have learned how great a
+blessing is love, and that love is pain."
+
+As he spoke he bent over her hand to kiss it, but she took his temples
+between her hands and, bending hastily, pressed her lips on his broad
+brow.
+
+Then his self-control vanished, and, sobbing aloud, he hurried back to
+the children.
+
+Cleopatra gazed after him with a sorrowful smile, and leaning on
+Charmian's arm, she entered the palace.
+
+There she was bathed and, robed in costly mourning garments, reclined
+among her cushions to take breakfast, which was usually served at this
+hour.
+
+Iras and Charmian shared it.
+
+When dessert was carried in, the Nubian brought a basket filled with
+delicious figs. A peasant, she told Epaphroditus, who was watching the
+meal, had given them to her because they were so remarkably fine. Some
+had already been snatched by the guards.
+
+The Queen and her companions ate a little of the fruit, and Proculejus,
+who had come to greet Cleopatra, was also persuaded to taste one of the
+finest figs.
+
+At the end of the meal Cleopatra wished to rest.
+
+The Roman gentlemen and the guards retired.
+
+At last the women were alone, and gazed at each other silently.
+
+Charmian timidly lifted the upper layer of the fruit, but the Queen said
+mournfully:
+
+"The wife of Antony dragged through the streets of Rome behind the
+victor's chariot, a spectacle for the populace and envious matrons!"
+Then, starting up, she exclaimed: "What a thought! Was it too great for
+Octavianus, or too petty? He who so loudly boasts his knowledge of
+mankind expects this impossibility from the woman who revealed her
+inmost soul to him as fully as he concealed his from her. We will show
+him how small is his comprehension of human nature, and teach him
+modesty."
+
+A contemptuous smile flitted over her beautiful lips as, with rapid
+movements, she flung handful after handful of figs on the table, till
+she saw some thing stirring under the fruit, and with a sigh of relief
+exclaimed under her breath:
+
+"There it is!" as with hasty resolution she held out her arm towards the
+asp, which hissed at her.
+
+While gazing intently at the movements of the viper, which seemed afraid
+to fulfil the dread office, she said to her attendants:
+
+"I thank you--thank you for everything. Be calm. You know, Iras, it will
+cause no pain. They say it is like falling asleep." Then she shuddered
+slightly, adding: "Death is a solemn thing; yet it must be. Why does the
+serpent delay? There--there; I will keep firm. Ambition and love were
+the moving forces of my life. Men shall praise my memory.--I follow you,
+Mark Antony!"
+
+Charmian bent over the left arm of her royal mistress, which hung
+loosely at her side, and, weeping aloud, covered it with kisses, while
+Cleopatra, watching the motions of the asp still more closely, added:
+
+"The peace of our garden of Epicurus will begin to-day. Whether it will
+be painless, who can tell? Yet--there I agree with Archibius--life's
+greatest joy--love--is blended with pain, as yonder branch of exquisite
+roses from Dolabella, the last gift of friendship, has its sharp thorns.
+I think you have both experienced this. The twins and my little
+darling---- When they think of their mother and her end, will not the
+children----"
+
+Here she uttered a low cry. The asp had struck its fangs into the upper
+part of her arm like an icy flash of lightning, and a few instants later
+Cleopatra sank back upon her pillows lifeless.
+
+Iras, pale but calm, pointed to her, saying "Like a sleeping child.
+Bewitching even in death. Fate itself was constrained to do her will and
+fulfil the last desire of the great Queen, the victorious woman, whom no
+heart resisted. Its decree shatters the presumptuous plan of Octavianus.
+The victor will show himself to the Romans without thee, thou dear one."
+
+Sobbing violently, she bent over the inanimate form, closed the eyes,
+and kissed the lips and brow. The weeping Charmian did the same.
+
+Then the footsteps of men were heard in the anteroom, and Iras, who was
+the first to notice them, cried eagerly:
+
+"The moment is approaching! I am glad it is close at hand. Does it not
+seem to you also as if the very sun in the heavens was darkened?"
+
+Charmian nodded assent, and whispered, "The poison?"
+
+"Here!" replied Iras calmly, holding out a plain pin. "One little prick,
+and the deed will be done. Look! But no. You once inflicted the deepest
+suffering upon me. You know--Dion, the playmate of my childhood---- It
+is forgiven. But now--you will do me a kindness. You will spare my using
+the pin myself. Will you not? I will repay you. If you wish, my hand
+shall render you the same service."
+
+Charmian clasped her niece to her heart, kissed her, pricked her arm
+lightly, and gave her the other pin, saying:
+
+"Now it is your turn. Our hearts were filled with love for one who
+understood how to bestow it as none other ever did, and our love was
+returned. What matters all else that we sacrificed? Those on whom the
+sun shines need no other light. Love is pain," she said in dying, "but
+this pain--especially that of renunciation for love's sake--bears with
+it a joy, an exquisite joy, which renders death easy. To me it seems as
+if it were merely following the Queen to---- Oh, that hurt!"
+
+Iras's pin had pricked her.
+
+The poison did its work quickly. Iras was seized with giddiness, and
+could scarcely stand. Charmian had just sunk on her knees, when some one
+knocked loudly at the closed door, and the voices of Epaphroditus and
+Proculejus imperiously demanded admittance.
+
+When no answer followed, the lock was hastily burst open.
+
+Charmian was found lying pale and distorted at the feet of her royal
+mistress; but Iras, tottering and half stupefied by the poison, was
+adjusting the diadem, which had slipped from its place. To keep from her
+beloved Queen everything that could detract from her beauty had been her
+last care.
+
+Enraged, fairly frantic with wrath, the Romans rushed towards the women.
+Epaphroditus had seen Iras still occupied in arranging Cleopatra's
+ornaments. Now he endeavoured to raise her companion, saying
+reproachfully, "Charmian, was this well done?" Summoning her last
+strength, she answered in a faltering voice, "Perfectly well, and worthy
+a descendant of Egyptian kings." Her eyes closed, but Proculejus, the
+author, who had gazed long with deep emotion into the beautiful proud
+face of the Queen whom he had so greatly wronged, said: "No other woman
+on earth was ever so admired by the greatest, so loved by the loftiest.
+Her fame echoed from nation to nation throughout the world. It will
+continue to resound from generation to generation; but however loudly
+men may extol the bewitching charm, the fervour of the love which
+survived death, her intellect, her knowledge, the heroic courage with
+which she preferred the tomb to ignominy--the praise of these two must
+not be forgotten. Their fidelity deserves it. By their marvellous end
+they unconsciously erected the most beautiful monument to their
+mistress; for what genuine goodness and lovableness must have been
+possessed by the woman who, after the greatest reverses, made it seem
+more desirable to those nearest to her person to die than to live
+without her!"*
+
+[* The Roman's exclamation and the answer of the loyal dying Charmian
+are taken literally from Plutarch's narrative.]
+
+The news of the death of their beloved, admired sovereign transformed
+Alexandria into a house of mourning. Obsequies of unprecedented
+magnificence and solemnity, at which many tears of sincere grief flowed,
+honoured her memory. One of Octavianus's most brilliant plans was
+frustrated by her death, and he had raved furiously when he read the
+letter in which Cleopatra, with her own hand, informed him of her
+intention to die. But he owed it to his reputation for generosity to
+grant her a funeral worthy of her rank. To the dead, who had ceased to
+be dangerous, he was ready to show an excess of magnanimity.
+
+The treatment which he accorded to Cleopatra's children also won the
+world's admiration. His sister Octavia received them into her own house
+and intrusted their education to Archibius.
+
+When the order to destroy the statues of Antony and Cleopatra was
+issued, Octavianus gave his contemporaries another proof of his
+disposition to be lenient, for he ordered that the numerous statues of
+the Queen in Alexandria and Egypt should be preserved. True, he had been
+influenced by the large sum of two thousand talents paid by an
+Alexandrian to secure this act of generosity. Archibius was the name of
+the rare friend who had impoverished himself to render this service to
+the memory of the beloved dead.
+
+In later times the statues of the unfortunate Queen adorned the places
+where they had been erected.
+
+The sarcophagi of Cleopatra and Mark Antony, by whose side rested Iras
+and Charmian, were constantly heaped with flowers and offerings to the
+dead. The women of Alexandria, especially, went to the tomb of their
+beloved Queen as if it were a pilgrimage; but in after-days faithful
+mourners also came from a distance to visit it, among them the children
+of the famous lovers whom death here united--Cleopatra Selene, now the
+wife of the learned Numidian Prince Juba, Helios Antony, and Alexander,
+who had reached manhood. Their friend and teacher, Archibius,
+accompanied them. He taught them to hold their mother's memory dear, and
+had so reared them that, in their maturity, he could lead them with head
+erect to the sarcophagus of the friend who had confided them to his
+charge.
+
+
+[The End]
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Cleopatra, Complete, by Georg Ebers
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