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diff --git a/42224-0.txt b/42224-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..2693197 --- /dev/null +++ b/42224-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,19296 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 42224 *** + + [Illustration: _THE ADORATION OF THE MAGI._ + + Reproduced for our Members through the courtesy of + The Newberry Library, Chicago + + This illuminated manuscript represents the work done by French monks + in the early part of the fourteenth century. The border, containing + as it does many grotesque figures scattered through its foliage, + indicates this, as also the style of the faces in the miniature + work. This is taken from one of the many "Book of Hours" and was the + page used for the "Sext Hour," a full description of illuminated + manuscript will be found Part IX, page 101. + + "COPYRIGHT BY THE DELPHIAN SOCIETY, CHICAGO"] + + + + +THE WORLD'S PROGRESS + + + WITH ILLUSTRATIVE TEXTS FROM MASTERPIECES OF EGYPTIAN, HEBREW, + GREEK, LATIN, MODERN EUROPEAN AND AMERICAN LITERATURE + + FULLY ILLUSTRATED + + + EDITORIAL STAFF + + VERY REV. J. K. BRENNAN Missouri + GISLE BOTHME, M.A. University of Minnesota + CHAS. H. CAFFIN New York + JAMES A. CRAIG, M.A., B.D., PH.D. University of Michigan + MRS. SARAH PLATT DECKER Colorado + ALCÉE FORTIER, D.LT. Tulane University + ROSWELL FIELD Chicago + BRUCE G. KINGSLEY Royal College of Organists, England + D. D. LUCKENBILL, A.B., PH.D. University of Chicago + KENNETH MCKENZIE, PH.D. Yale University + FRANK B. MARSH, PH.D. University of Texas + DR. HAMILTON WRIGHT MABIE New York + W. A. MERRILL, PH.D., L.H.D. University of California + T. M. PARROTT, PH.D. Princeton University + GRANT SHOWERMAN, PH.D. University of Wisconsin + H. C. TOLMAN, PH.D., D.D. Vanderbilt University + I. E. WING, M.A. Michigan + + + VOL. I + + THE DELPHIAN SOCIETY + + + + + COPYRIGHT 1913 + BY + THE DELPHIAN SOCIETY + CHICAGO + + + COMPOSITION, ELECTROTYPING, PRINTING + AND BINDING BY THE + W. B. CONKEY COMPANY + HAMMOND, INDIANA + + + + +TABLE OF CONTENTS + +PART I. + + + PAGE + + The Delphian Course of Reading VIII + + Prehistoric Man; Customs and Occupations. Dawn of Civilization XIV + + +EGYPT. + + Prefatory Chapter 13 + + CHAPTER I. + Its Antiquity; Story of Joseph, Physical Geography, Prehistoric + Egypt 20 + + CHAPTER II. + Sources of Egyptian History; Herodotus' Account of Egypt 31 + + CHAPTER III. + Pyramid Age; Early Egyptian Kings; Construction of Pyramids 37 + + CHAPTER IV. + Age of Darkness; Middle Empire; Reigns of Amenemhet I. and III.; + Description of Labyrinth 43 + + CHAPTER V. + Egypt under the Shepherd Kings; Beginning of the New Empire; + Conquests of Thutmose I. 51 + + CHAPTER VI. + First Egyptian Queen; Temple of Hatshepsut; Expedition to Punt 57 + + CHAPTER VII. + Military Kings; Hymn of Victory; Worship of the Solar Disk; + Temple of Karnak 64 + + CHAPTER VIII. + Nineteenth Dynasty; Egypt under Ramses the Great; Twentieth + Dynasty; Priest Rule; Ethiopian Kings 72 + + CHAPTER IX. + Social Life in Egypt; Houses, Dress, Family Life 85 + + CHAPTER X. + Sports and Recreations 96 + + CHAPTER XI. + Agriculture and Cattle Raising; Arts and Crafts; Egyptian Markets; + Military Affairs 100 + + CHAPTER XII. + Schools and Education; Egyptian Literature 112 + + CHAPTER XIII. + Religion of Ancient Egypt; Hymn to the Nile; Egyptian Temples and + Ceremonies 119 + + CHAPTER XIV. + Art and Decoration 133 + + CHAPTER XV. + Tombs and Burial Customs 138 + + CHAPTER XVI. + Excavations in Egypt; Discoveries of W. M. Flinders Petrie 144 + + _Descriptions of Egypt._ + Description of the Nile 153 + Feast of Neith 155 + Karnak 159 + Memphis 161 + Hymn to the God Ra 163 + + _Egyptian Literature._ + An Old Kingdom Book of Proverbs 164 + The Voyage of the Soul 168 + The Adventures of the Exile Sanehat 171 + The Song of the Harper 179 + + _Present Day Egypt._ + Alexandria 181 + Cairo 182 + Egyptian Museum 185 + Suez Canal 187 + + +BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. + + Prefatory Chapter 193 + + CHAPTER I. + Early Civilization of Asia; Recovery of Forgotten Cities 201 + + CHAPTER II. + Sources of Babylonian and Assyrian History; Physical Geography 211 + + CHAPTER III. + Prehistoric Chaldea; Charms and Talismans; Semitic Invasion 218 + + CHAPTER IV. + City-States Before the Rise of Babylon; Hymn to the Moon-God 227 + + CHAPTER V. + Dominance of Babylon 232 + + CHAPTER VI. + Beginnings of Assyrian Empire; Conquest of Asshurnatsirpal 237 + + CHAPTER VII. + Assyria a Powerful Empire; Hebrew Account of the War with Assyria 245 + + CHAPTER VIII. + Last Years of Assyrian Dominance 256 + + CHAPTER IX. + Chaldean Empire in Babylonia 264 + + CHAPTER X. + Social Life in Mesopotamia. The Babylonian and Assyrian Compared; + Their Houses and Family Life 270 + + CHAPTER XI. + Morality of the Ancient Babylonians 276 + + CHAPTER XII. + Literature and Learning; Deluge Story 283 + + CHAPTER XIII. + Clothing Worn by Assyrians and Babylonians; Their Food 293 + + CHAPTER XIV. + Architecture and Decoration 300 + + CHAPTER XV. + Religious Customs 307 + + CHAPTER XVI. + The Laboring Classes; Professions 317 + + CHAPTER XVII. + The Medes 328 + + CHAPTER XVIII. + Condition of Persia Before the Age of Cyrus; Cyrus the Great and + the Persian Empire 332 + + CHAPTER XIX. + War with Greece 340 + + CHAPTER XX. + Manners and Customs of the Persians; Their Religion 346 + + CHAPTER XXI. + Contributions of Babylonia, Assyria and Persia to Modern + Civilization 357 + + _Assyrian Literature._ + Chaldean Account of the Deluge 361 + Descent of Ishtar to Hades 367 + Gyges and Assurbanipal 371_a_ + Purity 371_c_ + Zoroaster's Prayer 371_d_ + + +THE HEBREWS AND THEIR NEIGHBORS. + + CHAPTER I. + Syria 372 + + CHAPTER II. + The Land of Phoenicia; Reign of Hiram; Invasion of Asshurbanipal 378 + + CHAPTER III. + Phoenician Colonies and Commerce 390 + + CHAPTER IV. + Occupations and Industries; Literature and Learning; Religion 399 + + CHAPTER V. + Physical Geography of Palestine; Climate and Productivity 408 + + CHAPTER VI. + Effects of Geographical Conditions upon the Hebrews 418 + + CHAPTER VII. + Sources of Hebrew History 426 + + CHAPTER VIII. + Condition of the Hebrews Prior to Their Occupation of Canaan 434 + + CHAPTER IX. + Era of the Judges 441 + + CHAPTER X. + Morality of the Early Hebrews 448 + + CHAPTER XI. + Causes Leading to the Establishment of the Kingdom. David's + Lament; His Reign. Solomon Rules; King Solomon and the Bees 453 + + CHAPTER XII. + After the Division of the Kingdom; End of Israel 469 + + Description of Illustrations 483 + + + + +[Illustration: MAP OF ANCIENT EGYPT] + + + + +FULL PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS + +PART I. + + + PAGE + ILLUMINATED MISSAL Frontispiece + DISTANT VIEW OF THE PYRAMIDS 44 + NEAR VIEW OF PYRAMIDS AND SPHINX 68 + TOURISTS SCALING THE GREAT PYRAMID 92 + COLUMN AND PYLON OF KARNAK 124 + BEAUTIFUL ISLAND OF PHILEA 148 + WINDOWS OF A HAREM 172 + SHIP OF THE DESERT (Photogravure) 192 + WINGED LION 236 + MUSICIANS AND ATTENDANTS IN THE GARDEN OF ASSHURBANIPAL 284 + SWORD-MAKER OF DAMASCUS 348 + THE RIVER JORDAN 392 + JAPPA HARBOR 432 + ROSES OF SHARON 464 + MAP OF ANCIENT EGYPT VI + + + + +THE DELPHIAN COURSE OF READING + + +Two thousand years before the sight of a new world burst upon the view +of the Genoese mariner, there existed in north-central Greece a +sanctuary famous in three continents. Located in mountainous Phocis, in +a natural amphitheater, overhung by frowning rocks and reached only +through mysterious caves, was the Oracle of Delphi. Here in remote times +Apollo was believed to reveal his wishes to men through the medium of a +priestess, speaking under the influence of vaporous breath which rose +from a yawning fissure. Her utterances were not always coherent and were +interpreted to those seeking guidance by Apollo's priests. + +As its fame spread, the number of visitors to Delphi increased. More +priests were needed to counsel and advise. Although the first blind +faith in earlier deities lessened, the prestige of Delphi was +nevertheless preserved. Apollo's priests became better versed in the +affairs of Greece and the surrounding countries; their assistants became +familiar with all vital issues, and thus intelligent replies were given +to unceasing inquiries. In time the Greek divinities were almost +forgotten and Christianity became the state religion, yet the Oracle of +Delphi continued to draw men unto it until the fifth Christian century. + +Ancient writers have left us abundant accounts of journeyings made +thither by potentates and kings, and have described at length the rich +offerings left by them in gratitude. The humble were seldom mentioned by +early writers and it remained for the last few years to bring to light +little leaden tablets--valueless from the standpoint of plunderers, +earth-covered and revealed only by the excavator's spade--silent +testimonials of appeals made to the oracle by the common people. + +It is difficult for us today to understand the powerful influence which +the Delphian Oracle exercised for a thousand years in Greece. This might +fittingly be compared to that wielded by the Church in the Middle Ages. +Here questions of international importance were brought, policies +determined, and the balance delicately turned for peace or war. Nor were +questions of the humblest slighted. Any interference on the part of one +state designed to deny citizens of another free access to Delphi +precipitated serious trouble. + +There is no doubt but that implicit faith directed the first visitors to +Delphi and beyond question this faith to some extent survived. The +peasant accepted literally the presence of deity as many a worshipper +today regards the statue, not as a symbol, but as the very Christ. +However, there have been in all ages the discerning who have +distinguished between the symbol and that symbolized, and certainly the +keen, alert Greeks did not remain blind adherents of antiquated +conceptions. The wisdom of the Delphian priests was revered and their +judgments accepted much in the same way as were those of the seers who +taught the children of Israel at the city gates. The Oracle of Delphi +became potent--a name with which to conjure. + +We know full well today that no priestess upon a tripod can reveal to us +the secrets of the future. A thorough understanding of the past must be +the safest guide for coming years. No vapor can inspire sudden +revelations--the result only of faithful effort and earnest thought. Yet +the story of the ancient oracle charms us still and when a name was +sought for a national organization, that had for its avowed purpose the +promotion of educational interests in a continent, none was deemed more +suitable than that which for so many years cast its gracious spell from +one sea to another. + +Each new decade brings new needs, and the conditions of fifty years ago +were wholly different from those confronting us today. Ours is an age +characterized by intensity, strenuous effort and tireless exertion. +Leisure seems to have disappeared from our national life and to be +remembered only when reviewing pleasant stories of other times. +Educators complain that we are neglecting the wisdom of the past--that +the enduring thoughts of men as preserved to us in their writings have +ceased to be familiar. The thoughtful deplore the loss of culture, +courtesy and old-time chivalry. Frequently the critics fail to look +beneath the surface for reasons leading to the very evident result. The +truth is that in no previous age have the hearts of people been more +sensitive to injustice, more united for fair dealing between man and +man, more eager for the best the world can offer. But we are living in a +transition period; social and industrial conditions have not yet +crystallized in their new forms sufficiently to permit the wider +opportunity for cultivation and reflection which must necessarily +overtake us in time. + +At present people accumulate fine libraries and rarely read them; for +their shelves they seek the best--for their diversion the lightest and +most transient literature. Few are there who do not dream of a happy +time when it shall be their delight to browse among their books and find +companionship in them. Still the years fly by relentlessly and many who +are not mere theorists are sounding a warning: This time so fondly +anticipated will never come to many of the present generation; seize +today; snatch a brief moment for the consideration of enduring thoughts; +do not merely provide for the temporal wants and leave the soul +famishing. Dr. Eliot, late president of Harvard, in repeated lectures +and addresses has voiced this crying need. + +"From the total training during childhood there should result in the +child a taste for interesting and improving reading, which should direct +and inspire its subsequent intellectual life. That schooling which +results in this taste for good reading, however unsystematic or +eccentric the schooling may have been, has achieved a main end of +elementary education; and that schooling which does not result in +implanting this permanent taste has failed. Guided and animated by this +impulse to acquire knowledge, and exercise his imagination through +reading, the individual will continue to educate himself all through +life. Without that deep-rooted impulsion he will soon cease to draw on +the accumulated wisdom of the past and the new resources of the present, +and, as he grows older, he will live in a mental atmosphere which is +always growing thinner and emptier. Do we not all know many people who +seem to live in a mental vacuum--to whom, indeed, we have great +difficulty in attributing immortality, because they apparently have so +little life except that of the body? _Fifteen minutes a day of good +reading would have given any one of this multitude a really human +life._"[1] + +To meet this condition, which prevails throughout the length and breadth +of our land, to stimulate a deeper interest, quicken a latent +appreciation and facilitate the use of brief periods of freedom for +self-improvement, the Delphian Society was organized and the Delphian +Course of Reading made possible. + +Believing that only a comprehensive course could meet the requirements +of the day and prove acceptable to a large number of people, the +Delphian Society has included those subjects which are now offered in +the curriculums of our leading colleges and universities--history, +literature, philosophy, poetry, fiction, drama, art, ethics, music. +Mathematics, being in its higher forms essential to few, has been +omitted; languages, requiring the aid of a teacher, and such sciences as +make laboratories necessary, are not included. None of these subjects +possess purely cultural qualities. Technical information has no place +whatever in such a scheme. The branches of human interest which remain +are those of vital importance to everyone. + +Not only is the list of subjects widely inclusive, but the method of +treatment has been carefully considered. Finding the beginnings of most +modern activities in antiquity, the Delphian Course presents the gradual +unfoldment of each subject from earliest times to our own. The distance +between an imitation of the hunt, as found among the diversions of +primitive people, and a modern play is great, and yet no complete idea +of the latter can be acquired without some conception of dramatic +origins. The crude picture drawn upon the sooty hide which formed a hut +in early times and the crowning masterpiece of a Raphael present +extremes, and yet he who would follow the gradual growth of painting +realizes that each has its place in the progress of art. Only in +comparatively recent times has the value of each link which form the +long chain of development been understood. No amount of heterogenous +reading can compare with the systematic tracing of one subject from its +early manifestations to its present forms. + +Correlation of topics presents wonderful possibilities. If we become +interested, for example, in society as portrayed in the earliest English +novels, how much more shall we then appreciate the canvases of Hogarth, +which depict the same social conditions. If the age of idealism in +literature be under consideration, the productions of contemporaneous +artists grow to have for us a new significance. + +It is a mistake to imagine that relaxation and diversion are obtainable +only from reading matter of the day. Oscar Kuhms calls attention to the +fact that "to spend hours over illustrated magazines, Sunday newspapers, +and the majority of popular novels, has very little to do with the art +of reading in its larger sense." To a far greater extent than is +generally imagined, the inordinate reading of magazines accounts for the +host of superficial readers of our generation. To see how temporary is +their interest one needs only to examine journals three or four years +old. + +The pleasures of travel may be greatly enhanced by definite knowledge of +countries visited--their recorded past, the manner of life of those who +dwelt within them and those now populating them; ruins, old temples, +surviving art, make slight appeal to those wholly unfamiliar with the +ages that produced them. The enjoyment of a play is more poignant for +the one who has in mind the changes which plays and playhouses have +witnessed. There is something impressive in the thought that for ages +audiences have been thus held spellbound. Four centuries before the +Christian era imposing dramas and keenly satirical comedies were given +before larger assemblies than modern theatres could accommodate. Only in +modern times has a curtain separated the players and spectators. +Formerly the favored sat upon the stage itself; in the Elizabethan +playhouse the majority stood throughout an entire performance. Sentences +in Shakespeare's plays are meaningless without taking these facts into +account. Some extended acquaintance with pictures would put an end to +comments made not infrequently by critics that the spectacle of groups +of people today in attendance upon an art exhibit supplies an +astonishing sight. The majority--so it has been stated--find a number +in their catalogues, search frantically about for a picture so +designated, and when they discover it, sigh with satisfaction and begin +the search for another--"for all the world as though they were indulging +in a simple hunting game!" Why Raphael painted so many Madonnas, why +Watteau seems to have known only the gay and carefree--these are simple +questions which many might find perplexing to adequately explain. + +The traveler whose time in a foreign land is limited does not seek the +commonplace and unattractive; he does not try to compass all a city +might have to show in the brief period he can spend there; rather, he +obtains the guidance of those more familiar with the locality, and gives +his attention to the best it has to offer. So if our time for reading +and self-improvement must be brief, we shall find small satisfaction in +wasting it blindly searching for what may satisfy. Educators are usually +less pressed by insidious cares and more free to give their devotion to +favorite subjects. + +It is a mistake to suppose one reads chiefly for information. We read to +develop our insight into the mystery of life; to gain an individual +viewpoint; to establish our standards of conduct and modify our standard +of judgment. Reading which is mere diversion can never bestow this +power. + +If those adopting the Delphian Course as the basis of their reading find +that with its aid they are enabled to accomplish more satisfying +results; if they finally discover that with its guidance one can make +more intelligent use of his own library; if a love for things worth +while--the lasting and enduring thoughts and sentiments of +men--increases, and the desire for wider knowledge is aroused--the hopes +and ambitions of the Delphian Society shall have been largely realized. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Eliot: Educational Reform. + + + + +[Illustration: PRIMITIVE DRAWING OF MAN.] + +PREHISTORIC MAN + + +The word _prehistoric_ means, literally, _before history begins_, and by +prehistoric man we mean those human beings who lived upon the earth +before records were kept. History, properly so called, does not begin +until civilization is reached. The roaming of savage people over land in +search of food has little or no importance for the student of history, +although knowledge of a people in its savage state may throw some light +upon its future development. While prehistoric ages are the concern of +the archaeologist rather than the historian, we shall find that historic +ages owe a great debt to prehistoric ages, and with this aspect of the +matter the historian has deep interest. + +The science of geology teaches us that the earth has not always +possessed its present familiar appearance. On the contrary, countless +years were consumed in molding it to its present shape, and even yet it +is undergoing constant change. It is supposed that in the beginning all +was a chaotic heap of Matter. In the words of a familiar story: "The +earth was not solid, the sea was not liquid, nor the air transparent. +All lay in confusion." + +In some mysterious way,--that nobody understands--Motion was started in +this chaotic whole. Gradually the mass became more and more compact; at +the same time it became very hot. Revolving on an imaginary axis, the +mass grew rounder and rounder, flattening slightly at the poles, or the +ends of the axis. Gradually the surface of the mass cooled, and cooling, +formed the earth's crust. Because it did not cool evenly, but shrunk to +fit the still molten mass, this surface or crust was left with deep +crevasses and high ridges. This marked irregularity was further +increased by mighty upheavals caused by pressure of heat from within. +Thus were many of the mountains formed. + +This process, so slightly indicated here, extended over a vast period of +time. It is supposed that later, for a protracted period, rain fell. +When the age of rain had passed, the deep depressions in the earth's +surface were left filled with water--our present oceans and some of the +seas. It would be impossible for us to review rapidly all the stages +through which the earth passed in its making. Suffice it to say that +conditions upon it were not always favorable to life as we know it. In +course of long geological ages--perhaps millions and millions of +years--forests of trees, plants, shrubs and flowers sprang up and +covered the bare earth. Last of all, probably, _man_ appeared. How all +these things came about no one understands, but it is generally accepted +that they occurred in an order similar to that just given. It would be +useless for us to inquire into all the reasons that have led to these +conclusions, but the most important one has been _evidences within the +earth itself_. + +Men who work deep down in mines know that as they descend lower and +lower, the temperature rises, until there is a noticeable difference +between the temperature at the entrance of a mine and at its lowest +point. Moreover, not infrequently volcanoes pour forth streaming lava, +smoke and fire accompanying the eruption. While such evidences lead to +the conclusion that the temperature of its interior is very high, still +there are many reasons for believing that the earth is a solid mass. +From the examination of the various earth strata, their composition and +the evidences each bears of the conditions under which it was formed, we +learn of periods of rain, heat and cold prevailing. All these facts +belong to the realm of geology however, and concern us here only as they +have concerned the progress of mankind. These same earth layers or +strata which preserve eloquent testimony regarding the earth's +development, contain also remains of prehistoric men--men who lived in +the far away time before records were made and of which the rocks alone +give testimony. + +Of the beginnings of the human race we know nothing. Many scientists, +notably Darwin and his followers, have sought to show that man evolved +from some lower animal life, in a way similar to that in which we find +some plant or flower perfected from inferior origin. Whether the theory +of man's evolution from some lower animal will ever be shown to be true +the future alone can tell. Nevertheless the scholarly world today has +generally accepted the evolutionary view of life and the world. + +Buried within the earth along river-beds, around cliffs, in mounds and +many other places, have been found remains of primitive man. While the +beginnings of the human race, as has been said, are utterly unknown, the +earliest stage of which we have knowledge has been called the +Paleolithic Age,--the age of the River-drift Man. + +Whether we accept the theory of man's evolution from the lower animal +kingdom or not, we must admit that the earliest Paleolithic people of +whom we have knowledge differed but little from the wild beasts. They +lived in caves along rivers,--natural retreats where wild animals might +have taken refuge. They lived on berries, roots, fish and such small +game as they could kill by blows. They did not cook their food, but +devoured raw meat much as did the wild beasts. They did not even bury +their dead. From the stones accessible to them they selected their +weapons, chipping them roughly. The crude weapons of this period have +given it the name of the Rough Stone Age. + +The Paleolithic man, or man of the Rough Stone age, did not try to tame +the beasts he encountered. He stood in great fear of those with whose +strength he was not able to combat. He feared especially strange beings +like himself, and with his family dwelt apart from others so far as +possible. He did not plant nor gather stores for the future; thus when +food failed in his vicinity, he was obliged to roam on until he came +upon a fresh supply of acorns, berries, roots and small animals. Any +cave served for his dwelling. He protected himself from cold by a +covering made from the skin of the beast he had slain. He had few +belongings and these were scarcely valued, being easily replaced. + +It is not difficult to see why the man of the Rough Stone Age preferred +to live by the side of some river. In early times, before paths were +worn through the forests, travel was easiest along the river bed. Food +was more abundant here, for fish inhabited the streams and thither also +animals came to drink, and in the reeds by the river's side, birds and +wild fowl breeded. Moreover, man was a timid creature and feared to +venture far inland. + +From all this we see that man in his primitive state gave little +promise of his future development. For how long a time he continued in +this stage, we cannot estimate. Yet we find a decided improvement in the +latter part of this Paleolithic Age, for fire and its uses became known. +This brought about a wonderful change. + +The man of the Paleolithic or Rough Stone Age was followed by the man of +the Neolithic Age--the cliff dweller. He exchanged a home by the river +for one higher up; secure in some elevated cliff, the Neolithic man +lived, away from molesting beasts. Again, the stone weapons were greatly +improved. No longer were they rough; on the contrary, they were now +polished smooth. Ingenious from the beginning, man found that sharp +edges of stone were more useful than blunt ones, that smooth handles +were more convenient than irregular stones with no handles at all. For +this reason, this period has been called the Smooth Stone Age. Other +improvements no less momentous had been wrought. Food was now cooked, +and as a result, man grew a little less ferocious. He had less fear of +the wild beasts than before, and domesticated some of them. No longer +was he wholly dependent upon such food as nature provided, for he had +learned how to sow grain and gather it. He had learned how to fashion +bowls and other receptacles of clay. He now buried his dead with weapons +and other useful articles, proving that he believed that the dead still +had need of such things. We must not, however, suppose that he believed +in immortality, for the evidence shows that his conception of a +hereafter was very vague. In most cases the care for and fear of the +dead ceased a few years after their burial. Before the close of this +period men had journeyed far from abject savagery. + +Finally we come to the Metal--sometimes called the Bronze--Age. The +discovery of metal proved the greatest boon, for now it was possible to +make sharp tools and weapons. Hitherto the mere cutting down of a tree +had taken a prodigious time. With a bronze ax, it could be quickly +accomplished. Progress made rapid strides after this invaluable +discovery. Nor this alone. Having learned to domesticate the beasts, men +passed from a purely hunting into a pastoral stage. Having learned to +reap and sow, it became convenient to have a fixed habitation. Instead +of dwelling apart, it proved safest to settle in hamlets or villages. In +other words, man had become _civilized_, and with the dawn of +civilization we find the dawn of history. + +From this cursory view of the three important stages in prehistoric +times, it is possible to derive mistaken notions. For example, there was +never a time when stone was the only material available to man. Wood, +ivory and shell were probably always known and frequently procurable. +Neither is it to be supposed that each of these periods broke off +abruptly or that they extended over all lands simultaneously. Quite on +the contrary, stages in human development are never abrupt, and changes +come about unnoticed. In nature results are slowly attained and there +are no sharp distinctions between them. The three divisions of Rough and +Smooth Stone and Metal Ages refer to conditions of progress--not to +periods of time. The Egyptians had passed through all three stages +before the dawn of history; the American Indians were in the Smooth +Stone Age when Columbus discovered America; and in Central Australia +there are tribes today just emerging from the Smooth Stone period. The +rapidity with which a tribe passes from one to another of these stages +depends upon the natural conditions of the country, contact with outside +peoples and many other factors. + +When written records enable us to weigh the true and the false, to sift +out fact from fiction and legend from verified event, several nations +had come into possession of a very fair degree of civilization. They had +settled homes in towns and villages, recognized some form of government, +understood the uses of fire, planted crops and garnered them, spun, wove +and made pottery; they had attained considerable skill in the working of +metals, had domestic animals and cultivated plants; they possessed a +spoken, and sometimes a written, language and had attained no little +skill in decorative art. A rich legacy was this for historic ages. +Surely there is interest for the historian in this remote time that lies +clouded still by much uncertainty. Let us consider some of these more +important attainments and try to see how naturally men grew to master +them and how in obscure ages the human race travelled so far on the high +road to progress. + + +DISCOVERY OF FIRE. + +We have already noted that there was a time when fire was unknown. How +then could the Paleolithic man, thrown wholly upon his own observation +and resources, come upon this discovery, which was to work such changes +for the future? Only from his observance of natural phenomena. When +storms swept over desert and plain, vivid lightning flashed, and +occasionally some tree was struck by the bolt and flamed up, greatly to +the astonishment and alarm of the unknowing mind. At other times, +volcanic eruptions occurred, and dry leaves and forests caught on fire +from flying cinders. In the natural course of events, men soon found +that the warmth of burning wood was agreeable, that fire at night +allowed them to keep watch over possible invaders--whether man or wild +beasts--and that the interior of a tree's trunk could be more easily +removed by burning than by laborious scraping out with stone implements. +Having once tasted roasted flesh, a desire for cooked food was probably +developed. Such a valued possession as fire proved, needed to be +carefully tended, and when it was exhausted, human ingenuity set to work +to create it anew. It is not unlikely that sparks occasionally struck +out from flint when it was being chipped into shape for a weapon or +implement. Necessity and desire have always worked wonders, and +primitive man learned shortly to produce the vital spark, both by +friction and by drilling. + +Having mastered the art of fire-making, many innovations were consequent +upon it. Some fixed habitation was necessary if the coals were to be +kept covered from day to day, and from meal to meal. Cooked foods +gradually took the place of raw ones; in cold weather the family grew to +gather around the fire, where meals were prepared and warmth was to be +found. When the family, clan or tribe removed to a new home, coals were +carried to kindle the fire upon the new hearth. When men journeyed +abroad in the night, they carried torches to guide them; when they +labored at home, fire grew indispensable for baking their clay pottery, +smelting their ore, and manifold purposes. + +While fire became one of man's aids, it wrought a decided change in the +position of woman. Before its discovery, man and woman had probably gone +side by side, sharing alike dangers and hardships. With its acquisition, +some one was required to stay to watch lest it go out, and thus was +developed the fireside and the home. "The fire has made the home. We +have heard much in these later days about woman's position. We are +assured that she has not all her rights. Now, there can be little doubt +that the primitive woman had all her rights. It is probable that she was +as free as her husband to kill the wild beasts, catch fish, fight her +savage neighbors, eat the raw meat which she tore by main strength from +the carcass of the lately slain beast. The beginning of woman's slavery +was the discovery of the fire. The value of fire known and the need of +feeding it recognized, it became necessary that someone should stay by +it to tend it. Notwithstanding the fact that woman had all her rights +and was free to come and go as she would, it was still true that, on +account of children and certain physical peculiarities, the woman was +more naturally the one who would remain behind to care for the feeding +of the flame. Before that, men and women wandered from place to place, +thoughtless of the night. After that, a place was fixed to which man +returned after the day's hunt. It was the beginning of the home."[1] + + +THE HOUSE. + +The man of the Paleolithic Age crept into any cave that offered shelter +from the storm and molesting beasts. Such caves were plentiful along the +river's bank. Here today, elsewhere tomorrow, little heed was given to +the particular shelter in which he took refuge. With the possession of +fire, a fixed home became desirable. Even so, caves still remain the +homes of men for a long period of time. + +The Neolithic man sought an abode farther away from the main +highway--the river. In cliffs towering above the river bed--sometimes +away from streams altogether, he scooped out a cave similar to the ones +occupied by his ancestors. Thus in many countries remains are found of a +race of cliff-dwellers. In ancient Greece, for example, have been found +evidences of people living thus, and Indians in Mexico and Arizona three +thousand years later were discovered in similar dwellings. + +With a settled life, and cultivation of the soil, man frequently was +forced to provide a home for himself. The material from which he made it +depended upon the resources of the locality. In Egypt and Babylonia, +sun-baked mud huts afforded the simplest, least expensive structures, +both in point of time and labor. Among pastoral tribes, tents formed of +animal skins sewed together were easiest to provide. This was the usual +shelter also of the American Indians and other hunting tribes. The +Laplander found cakes of ice suited for his home, while man in the +tropics quickly constructed a shelter from the huge palm leaves, +available on every hand. + +"Of all places for studying construction of huts, Africa is the very +best. There one may see samples of everything that can be thought of in +the way of circular houses; built of straw, sticks, leaves, matting; of +one room or of many; large or small; crude or wonderfully artistic and +carefully made. They may be permanent constructions to be occupied for +years or temporary shelter for a single night; they may consist of +frameworks made of light poles over which are thrown mats or sheets of +various materials and which after using can be taken apart, packed away, +and transported."[2] + +From lightly built, temporary dwellings, it was but a short step to the +more substantial, more enduring ones. Stone houses, dwellings made of +timber and of brick, as the country afforded, replaced the earlier +homes, and when written records bring the full light of knowledge upon +the life of nations, in the matters of constructing dwelling places, +several peoples had become proficient. + + +FOOD. + +It would be difficult to discover any plant or animal life which had not +served at some period for food. Primitive man knew nothing about harmful +plants, and only by long experience did he learn to avoid such as worked +him woe. No insect or animal is so repulsive but that it has been +appropriated by the food-hunter in some age and country, and things +today which we would refuse in time of distress were used as a matter of +course by earlier people. + +Nature supplied acorns, berries, roots, fruits, fish and plenty of game. +All these articles were at first eaten in their native state. When fire +became well known, cooked foods grew in favor. It is supposed that these +were at first roasted. To suspend meat over a fire or make a large +opening in the ground, cover the floor with stones, heat these very +hot, then remove the fire and bake the food, these are the most +primitive--as well, perhaps, as the most satisfactory--ways known to us. +Boiling was probably a later method, and this was not done as we boil +food today. Rather, stones were heated very hot and tossed into kettles +of water. In this way the water was brought to a boiling point and the +food cooked. + + +CULTIVATED PLANTS. + +Before men learned to cultivate plants and to domesticate animals, +subsistence was always an uncertain matter. They roamed about in one +vicinity until nature could no longer supply their needs, then left the +exhausted land to recover itself while new territory afforded means for +satisfying hunger. After fire became such a potent factor, as we have +seen, a fixed abode was desirable. It fell to the lot of women to stay +and tend the hearth. Shut off from the long expeditions undertaken by +men, they soon learned to make as much as possible of the space around +about their homes. Sticks were sometimes placed around plants or bushes +to protect them from the careless step until their fruits matured. +Occasionally plants were dug up and replanted nearer the hut. The garden +and grain field were but natural results of this spirit of husbanding +the stores provided by mother earth. + +While women were the first to domesticate plants in the simple way just +indicated, not much came of it until men adopted the idea and carried it +further. With sharp sticks they scratched the soil and with the help of +animals they trod in the seeds. Irrigation was sometimes needed--as in +Egypt--to insure good crops. Thus from slight beginnings developed the +agriculture of the world. With reasonable labor and painstaking, the +tiller of the soil could be sure of a living for himself and his family, +and before historic records illumine the life of several nations, +farming was well understood. Indeed it is safe to say that until very +recent times methods followed by tillers of the soil in quite a number +of countries advanced very little upon those of the prehistoric man. + +It is interesting to trace the history of present day foods, grains, +vegetables and fruits, with the attempt to ascertain where each was +native. All have been greatly improved by cultivation and not alone our +varieties, but even distinct fruits and plants have resulted from man's +propagation. Often the original species have been vastly improved. For +example, the potato was a native of Chili. Found there in the sixteenth +century of our era, it was described as "watery, insipid, but with no +bad taste when cooked." It is supposed that it was taken from some +Spanish ship to Virginia, and in the latter part of the same century +carried to Europe. Its cultivation has spread over many countries, and +from a small, watery tuber it has been brought to large size, mealiness +and taste agreeable to the palate. Even today it flourishes in its wild +state in Chili and Peru. + +The cabbage was once a weed, growing on rocks by the seashore. By man's +care it has been developed to the vegetable widely used today; moreover, +its blossom has been exaggerated until a wholly new vegetable in the +form of the cauliflower is the result. + +"When we visit a vegetable garden or see fresh, attractive fruits +offered in market or inspect the wonders shown upon the tables of county +fairs and agricultural shows, we seldom realize how truly they are all +the work of man.... + +"One of the most wonderful illustrations of what man can do in changing +nature is seen in the case of the peach. Some time, long ago, perhaps in +Western Asia, grew a wild tree which bore fruits, at the center of which +were the hardest of hard pits, containing the bitterest of kernels; over +this hard stone was a thin layer of flesh--bitter, stringy, with almost +no juice, and which, as it ripened, separated, exposing to view the +contained seed; such was nature's gift. Man taking it found that it +contained two parts which might by proper treatment be made of use for +food--the thin external pulp and the bitter inner pit. He has improved +both. Today we eat the luscious peaches with their thick, soft, +richly-flavored juicy flesh--they are _one_ product of man's patient +ingenuity. Or we take the soft shelled almond with its sweet kernel; it +is the old pit improved and changed by man: in the almond, as it is +raised at present, we care nothing for the pulp and it has almost +vanished. The peach and almond are the same in nature; the differences +they now betray are due to man."[3] + +Many of the grains were known and grown by prehistoric man. Millet, +wheat and barley were known in earliest recorded times in Egypt; these +grains were also cultivated before historic times. Oats and rye were +early plant products. Corn was native to America and unknown to the +antiquity of the Old World. Several of our vegetables, such as the +radish, carrot, turnip, beet and onion, were early grown for food. The +lemon, orange, fig and olive were all native to Asia. Many flowers are +mentioned by early writers and they too were unquestionably carefully +tended in remote times. It is a subject for pleasant investigation to +find out where flowers, cultivated in some countries, grow wild in +others. + + +DOMESTICATION OF ANIMALS. + +Desiring to provide food for time of want, primitive man learned to keep +a wounded animal instead of at once killing it. Quite naturally it might +come about that such a creature would grow less wild and become a pet. +Realizing the advantage of confining animals, enclosures were probably +thrown around herds of goats, deer or sheep. Ingenious man soon seized +upon these half tamed beasts to help him in his work. Their use being +proven, he would not rest until he had tamed them to his hand. The dog +was the first dumb friend of men, accompanying them upon the hunt and +aiding in bringing game to bay. The oldest friend, the dog, has also +proven the most faithful of the animal kingdom. When history dawned, the +dog, cow, sheep, goat, donkey, and pig were already domesticated. The +horse was less commonly known in remote times. All these animals were +originally small and not to be compared with their present day +descendants. + + +DRESS IN PREHISTORIC TIMES. + +Among primitive people dress is invariably a simple matter. In warm +countries little clothing is needed, and even in colder lands, ornaments +are valued above mere protection from the elements. It has been well +established that love of decoration has been a powerful factor with +primitive tribes, and that to this passion the habit of wearing clothing +can largely be traced. Skins of wild beasts were often used by early men +as protection from the cold, but it will be remembered that the Indians +found by early discoverers in America were very scantily clad, although +furs were available on every hand. Yet the Indian, who braved the +winter's blast unclad, was eager to barter his all for glass beads, +scarlet cloth, or little trinkets with which he could ornament himself. +The habits of different tribes and peoples have differed considerably; +some have adopted clothing earlier than others; some still go unclad. +Generally speaking, we may note that during the hunting stage, if men +have worn clothing except for ornamentation, it has been the skins of +animals; as spinning and weaving have become known, coarse, home-made +stuffs have come into use. In Egypt, linens were early woven; in +northern countries, woolen stuffs were made. Feathers, furs, fabrics +woven of grasses or reeds, leaves, shells, teeth, tusks and metal +ornaments have held varying favor for decorative purposes. + + +ART. + +At first thought it seems surprising that art can be ultimately traced +back to the self-ornamentation of the savage; yet this is probably true. +The earliest people of whom we know loved to paint their bodies; the +American Indians made ready for feast or war by painting their bodies in +startling colors, and the tribes lowest today in the social +scale--tribes of Central Australia--have a similar practice. Dark +skinned tribes have frequently painted themselves with white; fair +skinned tribes with dark colors. The use of colors among primitive +peoples is an interesting study, and it is significant to note that red +has always been a favorite. + +"Red--and particularly yellowish red--is the favorite color of the +primitive as it is the favorite color of nearly all peoples. We need +only observe our children to satisfy ourselves how little taste on this +point has changed. In every box of water colors the saucer that contains +the cinnabar red is the first one emptied; and 'if a child expresses a +particular liking for a color, it is nearly always a bright dazzling +red. Even adults, notwithstanding the modern impoverishment and blunting +of the color sense, still, as a rule, feel the charm of red.'... It may +be questioned whether the strong effect of red is called out by the +direct impression of the color, or by certain associations. Many +animals have a feeling for red similar to that of man. Every child knows +that the sight of a red cloth drives oxen and turkeys into the most +passionate excitement.... As to the primitive peoples, one circumstance +is here significant above all others. Red is the color of blood, and men +see it, as a rule, precisely when their emotional excitement is +greatest--in the heat of the chase and of the battle. In the second +place, all the ideas that are associated with the use of the red color +come strongly into play--recollections of the excitement of the dance +and combat. Notwithstanding all these considerations, painting with red +would hardly have been so generally diffused in the lowest stages of +civilization if the red coloring material had not been everywhere so +easily and so abundantly procurable. Probably the first red with which +the primitive man painted himself was nothing else than the blood of the +wild beast or the enemy he had slain. At present most of the decoration +is done with a red ochre, which is very abundant nearly everywhere, and +is commonly obtained through exchange by those tribes in whose territory +it is wanting."[4] + +The difficulty found in this means of decoration is that it is not +lasting. However skillfully the savage covers himself with solid +coloring or design, a short time only and his labor is effaced. To +overcome this trouble, tattooing was devised. By this means the color +was placed beneath the skin and thus not subject to change. Very +elaborate patterns were sometimes worked out and the man so ornamented +was far more attractive in the eyes of his fellowmen. + +Next to the personal adornment of primitive peoples comes the decoration +of their weapons and implements and the patterns in their handicrafts, +such as basketry and mattings. Generally speaking those are in imitation +of nature, and more, imitation of human and animal forms. Heretofore it +has not been unusual to dismiss these as merely geometrical designs. +Surely they were never such in the mind of the ancient worker. He copied +things that he saw around him--copied them awkwardly no doubt, but +nevertheless certainly. Some of these patterns we can recognize; others +defy us. For example, the waving line has been interpreted to represent +the course of the serpent; the herring bone pattern originated as a +copy of the feather. Sometimes the patterns copy the skin markings of +some animal or serpent; sometimes they imitate the scales of a fish. +Very seldom have these early artists attempted to copy plants or +flowers. Sometimes the bone knife bears an excellent drawing of a bird +or fish; occasionally the whole object has been given the form of some +living creature, as, for example, bone needle cases have come to us +which have the form of fish or birds. Shields, knives, bows and arrows, +and weapons of whatever sort often bore some picture, more or less +decorative. Such a picture upon an arrow enabled the savage to identify +as his game some animal that died some distance from where it was +wounded. Clubs and throw-sticks remain whereupon is scratched the +picture of some familiar animal--a kangaroo, a snake, or a fish. But the +pictures painted by primeval man were not limited to those which adorned +their weapons and implements. The _hide_ pictures, or pictures painted +or scratched upon hides are very interesting. Generally the hide used +for this purpose was a portion of the hut. During times when inclement +weather forced the early tribesman to remain inside for shelter, it may +be, merely for diversion he occupied himself by scratching some picture +upon the soot-covered skin that formed his hut. A tooth or bit of flint +furnished him with a tool. Or again, a piece of charcoal, snatched from +the hearth, furnished him means of picturing some scene upon a fresh +skin. Figures of men and animals, drawn in outline, make up the picture. +Now a battle, now a hunting scene may be delineated. The Eskimo brings +into his picture some of the round snow huts, with the animals which he +hunts--bears, walruses, and the like. In detail and accuracy of outline +the tribes still in the hunting stage greatly excel those which have +developed into a settled farming people. Nor is this difficult to +understand. The success of the hunter depends in no small degree upon +his ability to follow the faint foot-prints of the game. He must be +susceptible to many indications wholly unseen by the casual eye. The +keen vision of the uncivilized hunter is well recognized. When he no +longer needs this wonderful sight to accomplish his daily tasks, it +disappears. For this reason we find a fidelity to nature in the pictures +of the early hunting peoples which is missed in the productions of more +highly developed peoples. + +Finally we may gather these conclusions from the facts known of +primitive art--or of art among primitive peoples. While no great +masterpieces remain as models for future generations, it is among +prehistoric men that art had its beginnings. Nor is it possible to sweep +aside the art of this remote period, relegating it to the realm of the +curious alone. Recent scholarly investigators in this field have reached +far different conclusions, finding here the indications of man's +artistic possibilities and the promise for the future. + +"The agreement between the artistic works of the rudest and of the most +cultivated peoples is not only in breadth but also in depth. Strange and +inartistic as the primitive forms of art sometimes appear at the first +sight, as soon as we examine them more closely, we find that they are +formed according to the same laws as govern the highest creations of +art.... The emotions represented in primitive art are narrow and rude, +its materials are scanty, its forms are poor and coarse, but in its +essential motives, means, and aims, the art of the earliest times is at +one with the art of all times."[5] + + +RELIGION OF PREHISTORIC MEN. + +We have found that men of earliest times had no belief in a future life. +They did not even bury their dead. The man of the Smooth Stone Age had +advanced greatly in this respect. He buried his dead with weapons and +implements which he imagined would be as useful in the next world as +they had proven during the earthly life. The question arises +consequently, how did the idea of a future existence, of a soul apart +from the body, have its origin among men? The answer is, through dreams +and visions. We understand today that dreams frequently result from +physical derangement. In early times, under the unwholesome conditions +that prevailed, men dreamed more constantly and vividly than they do +now. Having feasted immoderately, the man lay down to sleep. While he +slept, he dreamed--dreamed perchance of a hunt that seemed very real to +him. When he awakened, he related his experiences, but his companions +insisted that he had not been absent. He had to explain the matter in +some way, so he fancied that he was not one, but _two_, and that it was +his _other self_ that had been fortunate in the chase. Again, he would +dream of one of his dead relatives. Not understanding the stuff that +dreams are made of, or that dreams were less real than life, he inferred +that his dead relative had returned to him for the time being, and that +he still lived in some way. We can understand his condition the better +if we think of the child who has dreamed and has been either pleased or +terrified with his dream. The idea of another existence awakened, +ancestor worship was a natural result. + +The early man who had developed a religious sense, worshipped two +different kinds of forces; the forces of nature, and his ancestors. The +savage bowed down to the stick that tripped him in the forest. He could +not understand how such a small object could possess power to throw him +and since it apparently did possess it, he worshipped it. The sun +brought light and warmth. By its presence man was benefited. Therefore, +primeval man worshipped the sun. + +Ancestor worship was inspired by quite different motives. If it were +true that the dead lived on, then it must be possible for them to work +one's weal or woe. If the dead were cared for and ministered unto, they +would be appeased and would have no desire to bring trouble or +misfortune upon the survivor. + +The taboo held an important place in early religious beliefs and +practices. A taboo is a prohibition laid upon some object or some +performance, with the superstitious idea that injury will follow if the +object be used or the performance done. Some of the tribes of Central +Australia, today in the Smooth Stone stage of development, hold the idea +that the meat of the emu may be eaten only by the elders of the tribe. +For women, therefore, there is a taboo on this meat, and its use by them +would be regarded as a great sacrilege. The early Hebrews had a similar +taboo, recorded in the earliest set of commandments preserved by them. +It was "Thou shalt not seethe the kid in its mother's milk." This does +not mean one of many foolish meanings worked into it, but rather that +the early Hebrews for some reason had placed this taboo on kid cooked in +milk. The use of beans was similarly tabooed by Pythagoras and forbidden +to his followers. A study of the taboo is interesting indeed. + +The _totem_ was important to the primitive man. A totem is an animal or +species of animal from which a social circle derives its origin. One +clan owed its being to a black hawk, another to an eagle, and so on. No +one of a clan would kill its totem, or in other words, there was a taboo +placed upon the totem. Of course this taboo affected only the one clan. + +Early religion consisted for the most part in certain observances--not +so much in formulated beliefs. To be sure, the primeval man believed +that harm would overtake him if he failed to perform certain ceremonies, +but it was the performance or the refraining from the performance that +was important. + +Among the earliest people associated into tribes there were distinct +moral requirements. There were some people who were not to be killed, +except upon due provocation, while to kill those of other tribes brought +great glory. Again, it was not right to lie to those of one's own tribe, +but to others one might lie at all times. "An eye for an eye, and a +tooth for a tooth," was the primitive way of viewing injury, and yet +when history sheds its light upon certain nations of antiquity, some of +them had already come into the transition state, where damages might be +given if satisfactory to the injured. The Babylonians afford an +excellent example of this condition. + + +CONCLUSION. + +Each individual passes through many of the stages through which the race +has come. A child may pass in a week or a month through a stage covering +centuries in the development of the race, but nevertheless he +experiences it clearly for the time being. The savage personified +everything around him. If he struck himself against a tree, he was angry +with the tree that had hurt him, and he tried to hurt the tree in +revenge. The child today falls against a chair and hits the chair that +hurt him. Now just as the child by such experiences, scarcely noted by +others, realized far less by himself, comes into the clear vision of +manhood, so by similar experiences the whole race has come to its +present development. We are too prone to smile at the conceptions of the +primitive world, and, grown wise with the flight of centuries, cast +aside the beliefs of early ages when men adjusted themselves to life. +Let us reflect then upon the attainments of prehistoric man and attempt +to fathom how great a debt historic peoples owe him. In view of his +achievements, we must grant that by his efforts civilization was greatly +aided. The stepping stones on which he rose from abject savagery to +higher things stand out sharply in spite of absence of records and scant +remains. The rough pioneering had been done, in a great measure, and not +alone the rudiments of civilization but evidences of culture were +plainly visible at the dawn of history, properly so-called. + +[Illustration: ABORIGINAL ROCK-CARVINGS.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Starr: Some First Steps in Human Progress, p. 28. + +[2] Starr: Some First Steps in Human Progress, p. 151. + +[3] Starr: Some First Steps in Human Progress, p. 80. + +[4] The Beginnings of Art, Grosse, p. 61. + +[5] The Beginnings of Art, Grosse, p. 307. + + + * * * * * + + + + +[Illustration] + +EGYPTIAN AFTERGLOW. + + + "'Tis sunset hour on Egypt's arid plains. + Each mighty pyramid, with purpling crest, + Looms dark against the glory in the west. + Swiftly the heaven's beauty dies and wanes, + Till sudden darkness its rich splendor stains. + Then slowly, dawn-like, on the shadows rest + Faint crimsons, violets, tint to tint soft pressed; + They brighten, glow, then fade and darkness reigns." + P. F. CAMP. + + + + +EGYPT + + + + +PREFATORY CHAPTER + + +There never was a time when men were so intensely interested in origins +and development as they are today. Our biologists are studying life in +all its forms, from the single cell to the highest mammal. Our +psychologists are studying mind--what consciousness is; how attention, +habit, memory are formed. Our physicists, not content with studying +gravitation, heat, light, electricity, etc., are inquiring into the very +nature of matter itself, and, together with the astronomers and +geologists, are telling us not only how the earth, but also how the +universe came to be. Our anthropologists, ethnologists and sociologists +are just as actively and patiently inquiring into the origins of +customs, institutions, law, religion, society. The historian is no +longer content to rehearse a story because it is interesting; he insists +upon getting at the original documents, at the facts in the case, not at +theories. The savage, when asked why he observes a certain custom or +performs some ceremony whose meaning he does not know, replies that his +ancestors did the same. To inquire beyond this seems to him more than +useless. Until the beginning of our modern scientific age the answer to +similar questions among ourselves--as it still is among the Chinese, +would have been, "it is written," "thus saith the Lord," "Aristotle, +Plato or St. Augustine thought so and so about the matter." But today +all is different. We are no longer content to know what is written, or +what somebody thinks about a subject, we insist upon demonstrating or +having some one demonstrate for us, the proposition put forward. We want +the "facts." Our whole system of education encourages pupils to perform +experiments and thus verify the statements they may find in their +text-books on chemistry, physics and other subjects. It is the +inductive method which gives the pupil the facts and encourages him to +draw his own conclusions. + +But what has Egypt to offer the modern man? Does it interest any but +specialists and archaeologists? Apparently it does, for every year sees +an increase of tourists in the Nile valley. It is true many go there +because of the ideal climate or because it has become the fashion to do +so. But if we look at the matter more closely, do we not see other, +deeper reasons? Is it not true that many go because in their youth they +had read about the pyramids and the wonderful temples of Egypt, and +because now when they have the opportunity they desire to see these for +themselves? The architect, the engineer, the contractor, all are +interested in these masses of masonry. Again, when we are beginning to +reclaim the desert areas in our western states, Egypt with its system of +irrigation, older than history, arouses a new interest. The fact is that +in spite of our practical nature, as some would put it, or rather, as we +prefer to have it, because of our intensely practical nature, we are +beginning to feel the necessity of inquiring into the activities of +other peoples, be they past or present, not only because such inquiry +will satisfy our curiosity or enliven our dull moments, but because of +the lasting benefit we derive from it. We insist upon knowing the people +who have achieved, who have accomplished things, and surely the pyramids +alone would demonstrate that the ancient Egyptians belonged to this +class. + +_Man attained to civilization for the first time in the Nile valley._ We +study the natives of Australia and Africa for social origins. It is here +we can gather most information about the primitive forms of marriage and +the growth of the family; about the beginnings of dress and ornament; +about primitive warfare, magic, religion and early forms of tribal +government. Just as we pay special attention to the development of the +mind of the child in the study of psychology, so we feel that the best +way to study the complex features of our civilization is to observe the +simpler life of the savage. But the child becomes a man while the savage +has not yet developed a civilization before our eyes. The growth of the +race is slow. It is only when we are able to observe a race through a +period of thousands of years that it is possible to see it grow from +infancy to manhood. We can follow our own ancestors from the time they +had advanced little beyond the stage of savagery, but it is to be +observed that they did not _develop_ but _borrowed_ their civilization. +Of the beginnings of the Greeks and Romans, whose civilization our +ancestors took over, we know but little, but in the case of the +Egyptians matters are different. We are able, by means of +archaeological, monumental and inscriptional remains to follow them as +they developed in the Nile valley, unassisted by any outside +civilization--for none existed, the world's first great civilized state. + +"It may appear paradoxical to affirm that it is in arid districts, where +agriculture is most arduous, that agriculture began; yet the affirmation +is not to be gainsaid but rather supported by history, and is +established beyond reasonable doubt by the evidence of desert organisms +and organizations."[1] This lesson drawn from the life of the Papago +Indians might just as well have been drawn from Egyptian life. Egypt is +practically rainless, but the soil of the Nile valley, ever renewed by +the silt deposited by the yearly inundation, yields enormous returns +provided only man uses his energy and ingenuity. Long before our written +records begin the Egyptians had developed an extensive system of +irrigation. Thus by arduous toil, organized and watched over by the +growing state, Egypt developed an enormous agricultural wealth--the +foundation upon which her civilization was built. With Egypt it was not +a question of the "conservation" but of the development of her natural +resources. The Egyptian was forced to keep up a continuous struggle with +nature and as a result he was always practical. Egypt has been called +the mother of the mechanical arts. It is not surprising that the +imaginative Greeks, when they became acquainted with the material +civilization of Egypt, her pyramids and temples, her system of +irrigation, her craftsmanship, conceived an exaggerated opinion of the +wisdom of the Egyptians. Even today we hear surmises of "lost arts" +which were used in the construction of the pyramids. But we know better. +The pyramids were built by the brawn of tens of thousands of serfs, +without the use, it would seem, of even a pulley; not even the roller +seems to have been known. On the other hand, we have only to visit the +museums here and abroad--especially the one in Cairo, to realize the +marvellous skill the Egyptian workman acquired in the carving of wood, +ivory and stone, and in the working of metals. Our architects are +studying the products of the greatest geniuses Egyptian culture +produced, and our students of design may learn many a lesson from the +workmanship of her artisans. + +Not long since it was not unusual to see ridicule heaped upon the +theories of the "high-brows" by our farmers, manufacturers and other +"practical" men. Probably our system of education _was_ at fault. +Nevertheless, these same farmers, manufacturers and other practical men +are beginning to realize the importance of the researches and +investigations of the specialists. We cannot hope to compete with the +industries of the Germans which rest upon a scientific basis, as long as +ours are conducted by "rule-of-thumb" methods. There is no better +opportunity offered anywhere for observing the limitations of an +exclusively practical system of education than the study of Egyptian +learning. + +The Egyptian regarded learning as a means to an end, and that end was +never the increase of the sum of human knowledge or the advancement of +humankind, but always freedom from manual labor. Next to a few folk +songs, preserved in the decorations of Fifth Dynasty tombs--by mere +accident, for a scribe would never have thought of preserving them, the +oldest literature of the Egyptians which has come down to us consists of +the precepts of Kagemni and Ptah-hotep.[2] This wisdom of the viziers of +the Pharaohs of the Fourth and Fifth Dynasties, is similar to that of +the books of instruction from all periods of Egyptian history, and +consists largely of rules of conduct. The sole object of an education +was to obtain a position as scribe or secretary of higher or lower rank +in the government service, and this could only be done by gaining and +keeping the favor of the Pharaoh or of one of his officials. These +scribes never weary of telling of the superiority of their calling over +that of the man who must labor with his hands, who is like a heavily +laden ass driven by the scribes. Of course we too recognize the gulf +fixed between the educated and the unlettered, but we try to bridge it. +It is not probable that many of the laboring classes knew more than the +barest elements of reading and writing. The Egyptian script was +exceedingly cumbrous, and probably few would have seen any use in +mastering it, even if they had had the time, unless they intended to +enter upon a scribal career. Of course many such careers were open, for +the elaborate bureaucratic system of administration demanded the +services of a host of secretaries and overseers. In time these +constituted a distinct middle class, largely recruited, we may be sure, +from the laboring class below. The Egyptian was always ready to +recognize and reward ability, no matter where it was found. Now a word +about the limitations of such a view of education. As already indicated, +the object of an education was to gain a government position. In Egypt, +as elsewhere, the chief end of government, in the eyes of the officials +at least, was the collection of revenues. Taxes were in kind and as a +result the work of the scribe consisted in finding out the amount of the +harvest and deducting the king's share. The extensive mining and +building operations conducted by the Pharaohs required the services of +hundreds of scribes and overseers to superintend the work and distribute +the rations of the armies of workmen employed in these projects. In this +work the scribe developed a remarkable facility with figures. But he +never advanced beyond concrete examples. Multiplication and division in +our sense of the terms were unknown to him, their places were taken by +addition and subtraction. For example: to multiply seven by nine, the +Egyptian scribe would proceed, 1·7=7, 2·7=14, 2·14=28, 2·28=56, etc. +That is he always doubled the last figure. It was nothing but addition. +He wrote his results as follows: + + 1 7 + 2 14 + 4 28 + 8 56 + 16 112 + +and then found which of the numbers of the first column added together +would give the sum 9. These were 8 and 1. He then added the +corresponding numbers in the second column and got the result, 56+7=63. +So 50÷7 would have looked like this: 50-28=22; 22-14=8; 8-7=1. The +result was (4+2+1) sevens with 1 as remainder. The Egyptian scribe +could not handle fractions other than those with one as numerator. +Two-thirds was the only exception. The Egyptian knew that the area of a +rectangle was to be found by multiplying the two adjacent sides +together, and that the area of a right angled triangle was equal to half +the area of a rectangle whose base and altitude were equal respectively +to the sides adjacent to the right angle. When his problem was to find +the area of an isosceles triangle he applied the same rule, that is, +multiplied the base by one of the sides and divided by two. Here theory +might have helped him, had he been able to develop it. He never reached +the conception of base and altitude. His rule for finding the area of a +circle is worth mentioning. He took the diameter, subtracted one-ninth +of it therefrom, and squared the result. In a word, he had not come far +from the correct value of [Greek: pi]. But the Egyptian always dealt +with concrete examples, he never was able to generalize and carry his +mathematics into the theoretical. As a result he never attained +scientific accuracy. Not that he did not set himself difficult problems. +Indeed many of them are so complicated that they required an immense +amount of reckoning, by his methods, to solve. Without giving his +solution, let me add one more of his problems: "A man owns 7 cats; each +cat eats 7 mice daily; each mouse eats 7 ears of grain; each ear +contains 7 grains; each grain gives a sevenfold return in the harvest. +What is the sum of the cats, mice, ears and grains?" + +The Egyptians observed the stars. They had names for all of the +principal constellations; knew the circumpolar stars from those which at +times disappeared below the horizon, but they never seem to have noticed +the difference between fixed stars and planets. They invented a calendar +with a year of 365 days as early as 4241 B.C. This was based upon the +heliacal rising of Sirius (Sothis) coincident with the beginning of the +inundation. But they never discovered, or if they did, never bothered +about the fact that their year was one-fourth of a day too short. They +were deeply interested in medicine, and their recipes prescribe +everything that can be swallowed. Many of these were borrowed by the +Greeks and from them have come down into the folk-medicine of modern +Europe. No doubt many of their remedies were helpful, but magic always +played the most important rôle in their medicine, as it does among all +primitive peoples and as it did in our own until the beginning of our +modern scientific age. + +The progress made by the Egyptians in the development of a purer +conception of religion will be discussed at length in the body of this +volume, especially on pages 131 and following. The Egyptians were not +far from monotheism. + +But the Egyptian culture must be studied as a whole. Time was when the +study of the civilization of Egypt, Babylonia and Assyria, together with +that of the Hebrews, was regarded as a sort of introduction to the study +of history, which began with the Greeks and Romans. Much was said of the +immovable East. It was supposed that progress was exceedingly slow there +as compared with that in the West. But our wider knowledge of the +history and life of these peoples shows how false this conception was. +We can trace Egyptian civilization from its beginnings in the +palaeolithic and neolithic ages; see it develop from many petty states +into an absolute monarchy; follow it as it emerges after a period of +anarchy into a Feudal Age, and as it rises after two centuries of +foreign oppression into a mighty empire pushing its southern frontier +away into Nubia and its northern one to the Euphrates. Meanwhile we are +not neglecting to study the economic and intellectual forces at work. +Society has been developing steadily. A monotheistic religion has been +growing up. But Egypt has reached her zenith and the age of decline sets +in. In time she falls before foreign invasion, because she has used up +her vitality. Her civilization is not to be studied as a preliminary to +anything else, but as the achievement of a gifted race. Of course we are +to compare her progress with that of other peoples, to see the faults +of, but also to appreciate the good in, her culture. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] W. J. McGee, "The Beginning of Agriculture," American +Anthropologist, 8, 375. + +[2] See page 164. + + + + +EGYPT. + + + + +[Illustration: THE SPIRAL DECORATION OF SCARABS.] + +CHAPTER I. + + +ITS ANTIQUITY. + +Among Old Testament stories familiar throughout the Christian World, a +general favorite with boys and girls from their earliest years is the +story of Joseph--a seventeen year old lad, the son of his father's later +life, and most loved of all his children. In Genesis we may read how his +brothers became jealous of Joseph because of Jacob's care for him, and +their anger increased when the boy related a dream wherein he had seen +himself exalted to high position while his family and all the world did +honor to him. + +His people led a pastoral life, and when the dry season came, the older +brothers went away with the flocks in search of fresh pastures. Soon the +father grew anxious to hear from them, and sent Joseph to locate them +and then return to tell him how they fared. After some searching, Joseph +drew near the flocks and was seen afar by his brothers. They were now +many miles from home, and what they might do was not likely to reach the +ears of those who knew them. So they plotted to kill Joseph and ascribe +the deed to some wild beast. Reuben, more compassionate, urged that they +should not have this awful crime upon their hands, but suggested instead +that they cast him into a pit, from which plight, we are told, Reuben +intended to deliver him. The others yielded to his plea, and Joseph was +cast into the pit. Shortly after, a caravan came in sight, passing on +its way to Egypt. At once a surer way of disposing of Joseph suggested +itself--they would sell him as a slave and free themselves from further +responsibility in the matter. The company of merchantmen drew nearer, +journeying with their spices and their wares. To them Joseph was sold, +and with them he "went down into Egypt." + +His varying fortune for the next few years is briefly told. Now we see +him a trusted servant, given responsibility and acquitting himself with +credit; then upon false accusation, he is cast into prison, but even +here he wins the confidence of his jailer. Here too, he establishes a +fame for the interpretation of dreams, which ability is soon noised +abroad. So widely did it become known that when the king's counsellors +were unable to explain his repeated vision, from prison walls Joseph was +summoned to reveal its hidden meaning. He thereupon foretold the seven +years of plenty and the seven years of famine through which the land of +Egypt would soon pass. The king, impressed with his wisdom and +sincerity, chose him steward of the realm. + +All know the outcome of the tale--how Joseph soon became second in +importance to the king himself, trusted, depended upon and loved; how he +bought up the heavy yield of grain throughout the realm for seven years +and hoarded it in "store cities," until he ceased to chronicle the +amount, so vast it was. Then when the years of famine came, he sold +again to those who would buy, and when their money was exhausted, he +took their flocks, their lands and their slaves as security--yes, even +the service of citizens was pledged to the king in exchange for food. + +It was during these tedious years of want that Joseph learned of his +family, when the same brothers who had done him so much injury came into +Egypt to buy grain, and through his generosity they were united once +more, and at his invitation brought their families to dwell near him. +The king commanded that they be well provided for and they prospered and +increased in number. + +Years passed and Jacob died, and at last Joseph himself. Then we are +told there came to the throne a king "who knew not Joseph." He looked +with dismay upon a foreign people growing up within his country, whose +traditions, customs, and religious beliefs were wholly unlike those of +his own nation. Then followed the years of oppression when he sought to +exterminate the race with relentless work and cruel persecution. Within +recent years, one of the "store cities," supposed by some scholars to +have been built by the Hebrews during this period of their life in +Egypt, has been unearthed--verifying the account of their bondage as +preserved to us in the book of Genesis. + +It is difficult for us to realize the vast antiquity of Egypt. When +Joseph as a seventeen year old boy came with that band of merchantmen +into its borders more years had passed over its civilization than have +passed since Homer told his stories of gods and heroes to the Hellenes +who gathered around to hear him. The three great pyramids had stood in +their majestic calm under more moons than have risen and set since +Christ was born in Bethlehem of Judea; and the Sphinx had watched, for +how many years men cannot tell. When we come to the land of Egypt, we +are appalled by its age. America was discovered about five hundred years +ago; England has been inhabited for more than twenty hundred years, but +Egypt counts its history back for thousands of years and loses itself in +tradition and legendary periods preceding these. The story of Joseph, +told in Genesis, the book of earliest Biblical tradition, records an +incident early in the history of the Hebrews, but the Egyptians had +already been governed by many ruling dynasties and had known the +oppression of invading kings whom they had at last driven from the +throne. They had built colossal structures which were to perpetuate the +memories of their mighty kings as well as to provide their everlasting +tombs, and these stand today the marvel of all who gaze upon their vast +proportions. They had developed a complex religious system, and had +reached some perfection in decorative art. Egypt had long been the +granary of the civilized world and consequently of great importance from +an economic standpoint. The Nile, that wonderful river which caused +Herodotus to exclaim: "Egypt is the gift of the Nile!"--a sentiment +quoted ever since by all who have written about the country or the +river--had cut down its river bed and had already built up a rich soil +in the valley by its deposits, left by the overflow of countless +seasons. + +We look today upon the cathedrals of Europe, standing as they have since +the Norman conquest, even, in some instances antedating it, and we +exclaim that the builders of these impressive edifices built for ages to +come. Yet in Egypt the pyramids have stood for almost five thousand +years, and it is safe to say that they will proclaim to many +millenniums more, the wealth and power of the Pharaohs who raised them +for their everlasting abodes. Hundreds of years dwindle in the +contemplation of thousands, and these are ever before the student of +Egyptian history. + + +PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF EGYPT. + +Egypt is located in the northeastern corner of Africa. To the east lies +the Isthmus of Suez--the pathway to Asia, and the Red Sea--separated by +a range of mountains from the Valley of the Nile. To the south lies +Nubia, and to the west stretches away for hundreds of weary miles the +Sahara, the old bed of an extinct ocean. + +Egypt is by no means the country it is sometimes represented to be on +geographical maps. That Egypt someone has called a "geographical +fiction." On the contrary, it has always consisted simply of the Nile +valley and delta. It is about one-half as large again as the state of +Massachusetts, containing approximately 12,000 square miles. + +The Nile is unlike any river of our land. It takes its rise in a chain +of lakes near the Equator. These lakes lie in a heavy rain belt and at a +certain season the rainfall is so constant that the river is greatly +swollen. It is joined by tributaries which in turn are overflowing with +the melting snows of mountains wherein they take their rise, and +altogether the main river continues so to increase that it overflows its +channel and spreads out into the valley on either side. + +In America we know how disastrous spring floods frequently become, but +here the overflow is violent, tearing down bridges and embankments, +bringing injury rather than benefit to the land. In Egypt the rise of +the Nile is gradual; dwellings are built on elevations of land or on the +outskirts of the valley. + +Without the yearly inundation there would be no food to maintain the +dense population of the country. + +During the period of high water the Nile is heavily loaded with mud. +When the river recedes, this fertile silt is left upon the surface of +the land. This, and this alone, has made the land of Egypt different +from the deserts on either side of it. And now we see how truly +Herodotus spoke when he exclaimed that Egypt is the gift of the Nile. +Containing about the same number of miles as our state of Maryland, for +numberless years this little country has been the granary for +surrounding lands. Thus may we judge of its remarkable fertility. + +Much of the loam which the river has brought down has been spread over +the valley, but a considerable amount has been emptied each year at the +mouth of the stream, forming in course of time a _delta_,--so called by +the Greeks from its resemblance to their letter _delta_. Because of its +long threading valley and this delta, Egypt has sometimes been likened +to a lily; the delta representing the flower and the valley the stem. + +After flowing four thousand miles, the waters of the Nile find their way +at last to the Mediterranean Sea, and towards this sea the land +gradually slopes. Passing southward through Egypt from the +Mediterranean, one journeys more than a hundred miles through the delta. +This great plain has been formed entirely of the mud washed down by the +mighty river. Each year for countless ages it has been extended at least +eight feet farther into the sea, and thus its area continues to +increase. This portion of the country, or this delta, is frequently +referred to as Lower Egypt. + +Continuing south, one enters the valley. This narrow strip of fertile +land measures about six hundred miles from the apex, or southern +extremity of the delta, to the first cataract. The bed of the Nile is +very irregular in its upper course and falls over ten cataracts in its +downward flow before the southern boundary of Upper Egypt is reached. In +width the valley varies from one to ten miles. This portion of the +country is known as Upper Egypt. + +Imagine, if you can, a river flowing through a valley skirted on either +side by deserts whose boundaries are so abruptly marked that one may +stand with one foot in the fertile, life-producing valley, and with the +other in the shifting sands of desert waste. On the east lies the +Arabian desert, while the many colored peaks of a lofty mountain range +form a well nigh impassable barrier between it and the Red Sea, save +where famous mountain passes lead to the waters beyond. + +Nubian mountains, to the south, supplied most of the gold and precious +ore used by the ancient Egyptians, and were held in greatest dread by +those taken in captivity, for the work within them was relentless and +none ever returned when once sent to join the hopeless, heartsick throng +of laborers employed by the king to develop the mines. + +The Sahara west of the valley is not a flat region, but is made up of +shifting sands, hills and rocks of limestone. It is plain that the +Valley of the Nile was once a part of this desert, but the river, with +its tremendous volume, set to work to cut down its bed. The channel, so +worn down, is the present valley. "Egypt is the temporarily uncovered +bed of the Nile, which it reclaims and recovers during a portion of each +year, when Egypt disappears from view, save where human labor has by +mounds and embankments formed artificial islands that raise their heads +above the waste of waters, for the most part crowned with buildings."[1] + +It is plain, as we note the nature of the land through which the great +river flows, that no rich soil would be accumulated from the banks it +washes in its downward course. We must look to the high tablelands where +the two large tributaries, the Blue Nile and the Atbara, have their +beginnings, to find the mountain loam that has given the valley a +fertile soil, thirty feet in depth, and has built up the grain-producing +delta, one hundred miles in length and more in breadth. Again and again +we are forced to remember that Egypt is indeed the gift of the Nile. + + +YEARLY RISE OF THE NILE. + +This brings us back once more to the subject of the inundations. Early +in June the Nile begins to rise below the first cataract. In July it has +become swollen throughout its course. + +The highest water mark is reached about September fifteenth. By the +first of November the river begins to recede and is at low water again +by the last of January, although it continues to diminish until the +following June. + +Nilometers are used to register the river's rise. These are wells in +which the water can fluctuate freely, with a stone column in the center +marked as a scale. The _ell_ is the unit of measure, being equal to +about twenty-one and one-third inches. At low water the river registers +about seven ells. If during the inundation sixteen ells are reached, all +Egypt is supplied with water and fine crops are assured throughout the +land. + + +NILOMETERS. + +From earliest times the rise of the Nile was closely watched, and +nilometers, which were under the special protection of the State, +constructed. Today these water gauges are under the inspection of +government officials. Taxes have always been apportioned according to +the amount of the inundation, and it has been to the interest of the +government, naturally, that these be as heavy as possible. For this +reason it has often been claimed, both in ancient and modern times, that +the official report of the high water mark greatly exceeded the actual +rise. + +There is no rainfall in the valley and little in the delta, so whatever +moisture Egypt receives must come from the Nile. The entire valley is +not of equal elevation but becomes higher as it spreads out on either +side, and so a vast system of irrigation must be maintained to make good +crops possible. Large sums have been expended in the construction of +dams, embankments and canals to contain the water after the river +recedes, allowing the amount thus retained to be drawn off as it is +needed. From canals it is drawn off into trenches for still higher land, +and artificial means of various kinds have always been employed to lift +the water from one level to another. It is estimated that tens of +thousands of men and boys are constantly engaged in this elevation of +water from one level to another, in order that farms throughout the +valley may receive the necessary moisture and fertility. As rapidly as +one crop is harvested, the soil is made ready for another, so that as +many as five crops are frequently harvested in a year on a given +acreage. + + +INFLUENCE OF TOPOGRAPHY. + +With a sea on the north, mountains on the east, cataracts to the south +and a desert on the west, what would be the natural effect upon the +inhabitants of physical conditions such as these prevailing in the land +of Egypt? They determined that the Egyptians would be left to develop +their civilization unmolested for the most part by outside influences. +Such physical features account for the fact that for hundreds of years +that was a land, not of war, but of peace. Think for a moment what +natural boundaries have meant to nations of Europe. England's isolation +has been largely due to her stormy channel, while the independence of +the Swiss is accounted for by their inaccessible mountain home. Austria, +on the other hand, has known the disastrous effects of repeated +invasions, while Poland has lost her identity and has been appropriated +by her neighbors because of unfortunate situation and the lack of +natural defenses. + +Not only did the topography of the land surface determine the political +fortunes of the ancient Egyptians in a large degree; it materially +influenced the very temperament of the people. Many civilizations have +developed in lands broken by hills and valleys, plains and plateaus, +dotted with lakes, skirted by forests, bays, inlets and a thousand +irregularities of nature. Few trees grow in Egypt and few wild flowers +are found. Each spot that might have become a tangled thicket was early +appropriated by the practical tiller of the soil. The valley has always +supported too dense a population to permit of wilds and abandoned +corners, and only that remains uncultivated which has proved too marshy +for grain production. Possessing no timber suitable for ship-building, +the Nile dwellers did not become sailors. Their communication from one +part of the country to the other was established by means of small boats +or donkey paths. Rain was scanty and mud huts sufficed to shelter the +people. While constant attention was required to maintain an extensive +system of irrigation, the soil was so fertile and the climate so +favorable that two, three and even more crops per year were possible. +Nature worked with--not against--man. "A serene temper, and a reliance +in nature were fostered. A submissiveness was developed which allowed +the king to turn all into a fighting people, or into a body of forced +laborers." The absence of nearly all that inspires, that stimulates the +energy and quickens the imagination may largely account for the placid +temperament of the ancient Egyptians. Passing their lives in a land of +slightly varying processes, they could imagine nothing more +satisfactory for a hereafter than a shadowy land wherein they might till +the soil as of yore, only water should always reach the needs of the +remotest, and perplexities removed, each should complete his yearly +circuit through eternity. + + +PREHISTORIC EGYPT. + +Long before northern Africa acquired its present land surface, made up +so largely of deserts, it is believed that the portion which we call +Egypt was a fertile country, visited by frequent rains. It is possible +that the Nile did not exist; at least, it had not eroded its present +channel, and the fertility of the soil was due to causes other than +yearly inundations. This, we must remember, was many geological ages ago +and cannot be computed in years at all. Remains of rude flint implements +are scattered over the heights of the desert plateau to the west of the +Nile valley. The people who used these lived in settlements, traces of +many of which have been found; but of their relation to the later +inhabitants of Egypt we know nothing. They belong to the field of +archaeology rather than to history. + +Climatic changes took place in Africa. Gradually the country assumed its +present surface of desert and valley. It is supposed that Libyan tribes +came from northwestern Africa and settled in Egypt; these were joined +later by Asiatic hordes who crossed the Isthmus of Suez in search of +better pastures for their flocks, or because of some shifting of the +tribes in their rear. This inference, based upon the Semitic elements in +the grammar and vocabulary of the language of the earliest Egyptian +inscriptions, has been raised almost beyond doubt by the latest +researches. From the mingling of these Asiatic tribes with others +already established in western Africa, sprang, so it is believed, the +early Egyptians. The Egyptians, however, like the ancient Greeks, +regarded themselves as autochthonous. + +Roughly speaking, prehistoric events in Egypt include all those +preceding the year 4000 B.C., and our knowledge of them has been +gathered from the disclosures of excavated tombs. While a discussion of +the Egyptian religion will be taken up later on, some slight knowledge +of it is necessary at the start. + +The Egyptian of both early and later periods believed firmly in a future +life, but he believed further that the future welfare of the soul +depended wholly upon the preservation of the body. This belief led him +to study how best to preserve the dead body, and to bring embalming to +such an art that tombs opened today, after the flight of five thousand +years, reveal bodies in complete states of preservation. Again, it was +believed that the same needs would be felt in the future life as had +been experienced during the earthly career. For this reason, foods, +vessels of pottery, weapons, and even toilet preparations for personal +adornment, were enclosed in the tomb. From a study of the contents of +these ancient tombs most that is at present known of the ancient +Egyptian has been ascertained. + +When many implements furnished with ivory handles are found in these +tombs, together with occasional pictures of elephants scratched on bone +and bits of pottery, even those of us who are neither antiquarians nor +historians might infer that the elephant was contemporaneous with the +prehistoric Egyptian. Pictures of boats, of animals and men, decorating +pieces of pottery, throw light upon this early civilization. + +From all remains recovered in tombs antedating the year 4000 B.C. the +following conclusions have been reached: these primitive people reached +considerable skill in the making of pottery and stone receptacles. From +copper they made knives and implements; they built very fair river +boats, wove coarse fabrics, although skins of wild animals usually +constituted their clothing: they hunted and fished and were to some +extent an agricultural people. At this remote time Egypt was not the one +united country it later became. It was composed of nomes, or districts, +of which the late lists give 22 for Upper and 20 for Lower Egypt. Their +number probably varied considerably during the course of Egyptian +history. In early times each nome probably had been the home of an +independent tribe, having its own chief and its own religious customs. +Gradually, however, powerful chieftains conquered other nomes, until +just before our written records begin, the two more or less compact +kingdoms of Upper and Lower Egypt were established. Throughout Egyptian +history each locality held to its peculiar religious beliefs, and +although there was always a state religion and a state god, dearer to +the hearts of men were the deities of their own vicinity; and it is +possible to trace several religions in the one composite system of later +years. + +By 4300 B.C. the men of the Delta had divided the year into 365 days, +and again into twelve months of thirty days each, with five extra days +for sacred festival. For six thousand years, then, the calendar which we +use has experienced little change. Take it all in all, the Egyptians of +this age had traveled far from the state of savagery. + +[Illustration: ROYAL CROWNS.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Rawlinson; Ancient Egypt, p. 6. + + + + +[Illustration: CLEOPATRA.] + +CHAPTER II. + + +SOURCES OF EGYPTIAN HISTORY. + +The study of prehistoric man is largely a matter of conjecture and has +little interest for any save the archaeologist and antiquarian. There is +yet so much uncertainty regarding historic periods in Egypt that the +general reader must leave prehistoric ages to others. Reaching authentic +ages, in addition to the remains discovered within old tombs, we are +aided by written records, and these fall into three classes: facts +regarding Egypt as recounted in the Old Testament; writings of the +Greeks; inscriptions of the ancient Egyptians themselves. The light +thrown upon the subject by old Hebrew writers is slight. They chronicled +the history of their own people and mentioned other nations only when in +some way the Hebrews came into contact with them. Hebrew traditions, +customs, and religion differing wholly from those of Egypt, at best +there would have been but little understanding between them. Biblical +comment upon Egyptian life is slight. In connection with the story of +Joseph we find that some facts concerning the land unwittingly creep +into the narrative. Modern discovery has verified such facts as are +recounted, and buried and forgotten cities have been sought and located +from mere mention of them in some Old Testament passage. Thus the Bible +is rightly included with the sources of Egyptian history. + +So far as treatment of Egypt by Greek writers is concerned, we can stop +for only the most important. Best known are the works of Herodotus, who +lived about five hundred years before the Christian era. He was the +first to bring forward the historical style of writing and for this +reason he has been called the Father of History. + +Herodotus journeyed to Egypt and abode there some little time. He did +not understand the language of the country and depended largely upon +priests who spoke Greek for his information. He apparently believed all +they told him, and likewise accepted the tales with which his guides +entertained him, incorporating all their marvelous stories into his +writings. Consequently much that is found in his works cannot be +credited. Whatever he himself saw and understood he recounted with +simplicity and truth, as recent discoveries have proved. It is easy +today to point out the failings of Herodotus and to wonder that he was +so ready to credit all he heard, but judged by the age in which he +lived, his writings may be the better understood. We are told that +portions of his works were read by him at the Olympian Games, and that +those who listened received his stories with enthusiasm. To the +imaginative Greeks no report was too fanciful to find credence. They +delighted in the unusual and strange, and they made up the audiences for +which Herodotus wrote. It is not surprising, then, that the Father of +History brought back to his countrymen the unique stories he heard +concerning the Egyptians--a people whose life and customs were thought +by foreigners until long years after, to be deeply shrouded in mystery. + +More valuable has proved the work of Manetho, an Egyptian priest who +wrote in Greek. He is said to have made a complete list of Egyptian +kings from records preserved in the temples. This list has been lost and +only portions quoted from time to time by later writers have come down +to us. These fragments have been of much service to students of +Egyptology. It was Manetho who divided the history of his country into +three periods: the Old Empire, Middle Empire, and New Empire. He also +treated the past by dynasties rather than years. These general divisions +have been retained by all subsequent historians. Those who are not +specialists in Egyptology are apt to be confused by the widely divergent +systems of chronology found in the different histories of Egypt, or they +reach the conclusion that all is uncertainty in this field. This is not +the place to enter into a discussion of this difficult technical +problem. Suffice it to say that in the opinion of the best scholars, +Eduard Meyer, the great historian of the Ancient Orient, has said the +last word on this subject. Contrary opinions notwithstanding, the +accession of Menes and the beginning of the dynasties cannot be placed +before 3400 B.C., nor can the beginning of the twelfth dynasty have been +earlier than 2000 B.C.* + +Coming lastly to monumental inscriptions, we approach the difficulties +of the Egyptian language. Let us try to understand why it proved so +difficult for scholars who read Hebrew, Greek and Latin, together with +some older tongues, to comprehend the language of the Nile dwellers. + +In prehistoric times the Egyptians understood one another but it was +long before they had any means of expressing their thoughts in writing. +It may have occurred to them finally that the pictures which they drew +for decorative purposes might be used to convey messages, and thus they +began to express simple meanings, using pictures rather than symbols. +Sometimes to make doubly sure the meaning of several pictures, they +added another which combined the meaning of all into one. These added +pictures have been called determinitives, and the pictures used to +convey meanings in this way are known as hieroglyphics. There was +something very attractive and decorative about this method of writing by +thus picturing out stories, and it was used extensively in tombs and +temples. It became too elaborate, however, for daily use, and gradually +only the _main outlines_ of the original pictures were used to represent +the idea or word. This system of writing was more practical for +constant, everyday needs than the more ornamental hieroglyphics. It is +known as the hieratic writing. Finally, late in the history of Egypt, +these hieratics were very much abbreviated, mere dots and lines being +substituted. This cursory system is known as _demotic_ writing. It was +adopted by the people generally, and might perhaps be compared to modern +shorthand. To make the whole more complicated still, all three methods +were used for different purposes contemporaneously. + +Hundreds of years passed; the language of the ancient Egyptians was +forgotten and so, indeed, were the people themselves. In modern times +the learning of ancient peoples was revived and their writings eagerly +read. Quite naturally students wished to know something of the earliest +civilizations, particularly of the civilization of the Nile valley. Here +they were confronted by what seemed baffling indeed. Three forms of +writing used contemporaneously, even interchangeably, defied all effort +to decipher them. Attempts were made to explain certain inscriptions, +but these explanations were found later to have been far astray. In +1799, one of Napoleon's soldiers, while excavating in the mouth of the +Rosetta, came upon a stone which bore a royal decree written in three +ways: in hieroglyphics, in demotic and in Greek. This supplied a key at +last, and scholars set themselves to the task of deciphering ancient +Egyptian writings. Other inscriptions written in two or more languages +were found and verified the conclusions reached earlier in the +translation of the Rosetta Stone. + +In recent years a large number of inscriptions from tombs and temples +have been read and many rolls of papyrus have been translated. This has +enabled historians to read back, step by step, into far away ages, and +to carry the thread of Egyptian civilization to its beginnings. Maspero, +Eduard Meyer, Breasted, Petrie and other painstaking students of +Egyptology have given their lives to the task of unraveling the past, +both by deciphering inscriptions and unearthing forgotten cities. From +the tireless efforts of men like these, tombs hidden for centuries have +been recovered, temples and colonnades laid bare of drifting sands, +inscriptions transcribed and translated, and volumes of scholarly +material written for the special student, while at the same time the +general reader may find much of interest concerning the life of a +remarkable people whose works have borne testimony through the ages. + + +HERODOTUS. + +The following lines are taken from the pages of Herodotus wherein he +relates what he saw and heard when he visited Egypt nearly twenty-five +hundred years ago. + +"There is no country in all the whole world that hath in it more +marvelous things or greater works of buildings and the like than hath +the land of Egypt. And as the heavens in this land are such as other men +know not--for in the upper parts there falls not rain but once in a +thousand years or more, and in the lower parts not often--and the river +is different from all other rivers in the earth, seeing that it +overflows in the summer and is at its least in the winter, so also do +the manners of the Egyptians differ from the manners of all other men. +For among them the women buy and sell in the market but the men sit at +home and spin. And even in this matter of spinning they do not as +others, for others push the shuttle in the loom from below upward, but +these men push it from above downward. Also the men carry burdens on +their heads, but the women carry them on their shoulders. And the women +pray to none, neither god or goddess, but the men pray to all. And there +is no duty laid on a son to succor father or mother, if it be not his +pleasure to do it, but on a daughter there is laid, whether she will or +no. + +"In the matter of mourning for the dead, these folks have a strange +custom, for they let grow the hair upon the head and chin when they +mourn, but are shaven at other times. And whereas other men hold +themselves better than the beasts, the Egyptians have these in great +honor, keeping them in their houses, aye, and worshipping them. Nor do +they eat the food of other men, holding it a shame to be fed on wheat +and barley which others use, and eating the grain of millet only; and +the dough that is made of it this they knead, trampling it with their +feet; but mud and like things they are wont to take up with their +hands.... + +"Now as to the beasts and the honor in which the Egyptians hold them, +there are many strange things to be told. The crocodile some of the +Egyptians hold to be sacred, but not all. And in every city where they +hold it, as in Thebes and in the cities round the lake Moeris, they keep +one crocodile to which they do special honor. This they train to be tame +to the hand, and they put earrings of glass and gold into his ears, and +bracelets on his forefeet, and give it a portion of food day by day, and +make offerings to it, and when it dies they embalm it and bury it in the +sacred sepulchres. But the people that dwell in the city of Elphantine +count them not to be sacred at all, but slay and eat them.... + +"The cat the Egyptians hold in great honor. Of this beast there is a +very marvelous thing to be told. When it chanceth that a house is +burning a strange madness cometh upon the cats, for they are very +desirous to leap into the fire. And the Egyptians set guards round the +place if by any means they may keep the cats from their purpose; nor do +they care to quench the fire, if so be that they may do this; but the +cats nevertheless, making their way through them, or leaping over them, +have their will and so perish. Over this the Egyptians make great +lamentation. If a cat die in the course of nature, all that are in that +house shave their eyebrows only, but all dwellers in a house where a dog +dies shave their heads and whole bodies. The cats, when they are dead, +they carry away for burial to the city of Bubastis, but the dogs they +bury each in the city where he dies, only in the holy sepulchres.... + +"For food the Egyptians have bread made of millet as has been said +before. They have wine made of barley, for the vine groweth not in their +land. Of birds they eat doves and pigeons, and such small kinds as there +are in the country. + +"... Such of the Egyptians as dwell in the marshes of the river have +also for food the seed of the water-lilies, which grow abundantly when +the river overfloweth the plains. This seed is like to the seed of a +poppy, and they make of it loaves which they bake with fire, having +first dried it in the sun. Also the root of this water-lily (which they +call the lotus) may be eaten, being round, and of the bigness of an +apple. Other lilies there are growing in the river, like to roses, which +have a fruit very like to a wasp's comb, and in it many seeds of the +bigness of an olive, which the men eat both green and dry. Also these +marsh folk gather the reeds, and use the upper part for other things, as +for the making of paper and the like, but the lower part, as much as a +cubit's length from the ground they eat. + +"All the Egyptians worship not the same gods, but Isis and Osiris they +all worship and this Osiris is the same as he whom the Greeks call +Bacchus or Dionysus, and his feast is in all things like to that which +the Greeks keep to their God, only that there is no acting of plays. As +for Isis the Greeks call her Demeter, that is to say, being interpreted, +Mother Earth.... + +"Let so much then be said about the Egyptians and their customs and +manner of life, and the gods whom they worship." + + + + +[Illustration: EGYPTIAN NUMERATION.] + +CHAPTER III. + + +THE PYRAMID AGE. + +Menes was the king who succeeded in accomplishing the unification of +Egypt. We are told by Manetho that he was at first chief or governor of +the eighth nome of Upper Egypt, whose capital city was Thinis, and being +ambitious, subdued the surrounding nomes, until at last all Egypt was +brought under his control. No doubt earlier chieftains had begun the +work of conquest and left the completion to Menes, whose personality and +executive strength were sufficient to efface the reigns of his +predecessors. + +Having brought the Delta under his control and crowned himself with the +white crown of Upper and the red crown of Lower Egypt, Menes realized +that a capital for such a straggling kingdom as his would best be +centrally located. He therefore fixed upon a site just south of the apex +of the delta and built the city of Memphis. Quite possibly there was a +settlement here before this time. + +It happened that the Nile flowed close to the western hills in this +locality. The king knew well that his capital would be safer and the +more easily protected were the river between it and possible Asiatic +invaders on the east. So he undertook what has ever since been regarded +as a bold feat of engineering; he built a high embankment across the +Nile and compelled the stream to seek a new course farther east. Filling +in the old channel, he built a wall around the new city, caused a temple +to be at once erected to Ptah, the ancient deity of the locality, and +shortly a town grew up around it. Thus we see the beginnings of the Old +Empire, so called by Manetho and subsequent historians. For convenience +scholars sometimes group Dynasties I. and II. and Dynasties III. to VI. +together. The first period (3400-2980 B.C.) is called the Thinite age +because the rulers of these two dynasties came from Thinis. The name Old +Kingdom is then limited to Dynasties III. to VI. (2980-2475 B.C.) + +It would be useless for us to attempt to become familiar with all these +early kings--some fifty in number--with reigns varying from one to many +years. Should we succeed in collecting the meager facts known of each we +would have little to repay us for our trouble. It is more to the purpose +that we know something about the period as a whole--its general +characteristics and attainments. + +During this period hieroglyphic writing became widely used, having been +but rarely known before the age of Menes. A line of forts was built +along the Isthmus of Suez to stay invaders from Asia. Tribes on the +south were brought into subjection and pledged service to Egypt in time +of war. Stone quarries and mines were developed and granite ranges +sought and found. In the sixth dynasty one man-of-war sufficed to +accompany the transports sent to bring granite for the kings' tombs from +the southland--a fact recorded with pride by the pharaohs, since it gave +proof of their far reaching might. + +From earliest times the Egyptian kings were builders, particularly of +tombs, which during the Old Empire took the form of pyramids. Of far +greater importance than the earthly abode was thought to be the +tomb--the dwelling place for eternal years, consequently tombs and +temples received the attention of Egypt's kings in early as well as +later times. + +In 1897 the tomb of Menes was discovered. It was a brick-lined pit +containing an inner chamber of wood. Around the mummy of the pharaoh had +been placed the bodies of different members of his household. Similar to +this were royal tombs until the Third dynasty, when stone was first +used. To the kings of the Fourth dynasty belong the famous pyramids, +unsurpassed by any subsequently built, and still today the wonder of the +world. + +The Egyptians always located their cemeteries toward the west. Into the +west the sun sank at night, and by the same way the soul started upon +its long journey to the realm of Osiris, god of the future world. The +irregularity of the Nile usually made it possible for the city of the +living to grow up on its eastern bank, while across the stream, on the +west shore, lay the City of the Dead. To the west of Memphis lay its +cemetery or Necropolis, and while this remained the capital of Egypt, +the pyramid-shaped tomb remained in favor. Sometimes the pyramid tombs +were small; sometimes they were large. More than sixty have been found, +and large numbers have doubtless disappeared for all time. Three, +however, were made so prodigious in size as to cast into obscurity all +the rest, and these have come to be called the "three Pyramids of +Gizeh," quite as though they were sole examples of their kind. Khufu was +builder of the largest; this is generally called "the Great Pyramid." +His son Khafre built the one next in size, known as the "Second +Pyramid," while the third, much smaller than these, was built by +Menkure. Were we indifferent to the political development of Egypt, we +would still wish to learn about these mammoth structures which are +scaled each season by wondering tourists, and have excited the +admiration and awe of travelers since the time of Herodotus. + +It is difficult to realize the vast size of these piles, and we can do +so only by comparing them to things with which we are familiar. The base +of the largest pyramid covers thirteen acres of ground, solid masonry; +it was originally 482 feet high. Since it is almost one solid mass of +stone, it is not difficult to credit the statement of Herodotus that it +took 100,000 men twenty years to build it, an additional ten years being +necessary to quarry the stone and bring it to the chosen site. + +"The tradition recorded by Herodotus as to the labor employed, is so +entirely reasonable for the execution of such work, that we cannot +hesitate to accept it. It is said that a hundred thousand men were +levied for three months at a time (i. e. during the three months of the +inundation, when ordinary labor is at a standstill); and on this scale +the pyramid-building lasted twenty years." + +How complete must have been the organization of a government which could +promote such an extensive project as this! How entirely were the +resources of the empire at the disposal of the king when free citizens +could be impressed to satisfy the vanity of the proud pharaoh! To have +supported 100,000 non-producing men must of itself have taxed the +treasury. The rulers who built these majestic tombs wished to make their +names immortal, as well as to preserve their bodies from harm and decay. +This first they certainly accomplished, but in light of modern +investigation, when each stone lifted into place has been estimated to +have cost at least one human life, these proud pharaohs elicit less +admiration and commendation than they doubtless thought to win. + +Three kinds of stone were used in the construction of these pyramids. +The inner part, or core, was formed of material plentiful near the +building site. This was a spongy limestone that was not durable if +exposed to the elements, but adequate when covered with other stone. The +successive layers, put on in the form of steps, were of stone brought +from across the river, having been quarried in the mountains on the +east. It has been conjectured that a causeway was laid from the +mountains to the side of the pyramid, and that blocks of stone were +dragged by men this distance. Finally, the beautiful granite used for +outer casing was found near the southern border of Egypt, floated down +the stream when the water was high, and having been polished like a +mirror, was fitted over the rougher stone. 2,300,000 blocks, averaging +two and one-half tons each, were used for the construction of the +largest pyramid. + +"If we had so much stone, what could one do with it?" is asked in The +Boy Travelers in Egypt. And it is answered: "You could build a wall four +feet high and two feet thick--a good wall for a farm or a garden--all +the way from New York to Salt Lake City, and were New York in danger of +an attack and desired to surround the whole of Manhattan Island--21 +miles--with a wall forty feet high and twenty feet thick, here would be +material to do it." Rawlinson tries to bring its size home to us by +comparing it to structures with which we are familiar. He says: "In +height it exceeds the capitol at Washington by nearly 200 feet, and its +cubic contents would provide a city of 22,000 houses solidly built of +stone having walls a foot thick, twenty feet frontage and thirty feet +deep, thirty feet high, allowing one-third for dividing walls." + +For several hundred years the Mohammedans have occupied Egypt and they +have taken away quantities of stone from the lesser pyramids, from +temples and other ancient structures of Memphis, to be used in their +mosques and buildings in Cairo, near-by. The outer casing of the Great +Pyramid, beautiful granite as hard as iron, was removed to build the +large mosque of this comparatively modern city. The removal of this +casing has left the under layers bare, and these, step-like in +appearance, are annually scaled by tourists. With the help of Arab +guides, one may ascend to the very top of the huge pile, gaining thence +a splendid view of the surrounding country. + +Even the pyramids left cased in granite are no longer smooth. The +weathering of ages has roughened their sides and dulled their polish. +They are of a tawny orange color and gleam by certain lights like +gigantic piles of gold. + +Within the pyramids were chambers for the remains of kings and their +families and chambers for friends to gather for worship--for after his +death, an Egyptian king was worshipped as a god. Even a spacious gallery +was provided near the top of the Great Pyramid, in order that air might +circulate freely and thus keep the tomb dry. + +The ambitious, short-sighted Fourth dynasty kings exhausted the +resources of their realm. During the Fifth and Sixth dynasties the +pyramids became smaller. Even the long-suffering land of the Nile could +no longer muster vast forces to provide huge abiding places for the +pharaohs. Marvelous temples would still be erected, and wonderful feats +of architecture accomplished, but the passion for tremendous tombs had +in a measure spent itself. + +"The essential feeling of all the earliest work is a rivalry with +nature. In other times buildings have been placed either before a +background of hills, so as to provide a natural setting to them, or +crowning some natural height. But the Egyptian consented to no such tame +co-operation with natural features. He selected a range of desert hills +over a hundred feet high, and then subdued it entirely, making of it a +mere pedestal for pyramids, which were more than thrice as high as the +native hill on which they stood. There was no shrinking from a +comparison with the work of nature; but, on the contrary, an artificial +hill was formed which shrunk its natural basis by comparison, until it +seemed a mere platform for the work of man. + +"This same grandeur of idea is seen in the vast masses used in +construction. Man did not then regard his work as a piling together of +stones, but as the erection of masses that rivalled those of nature. If +a cell or chamber was required, each side was formed of one single +stone.... If a building was set up, it was an artificial hill in which +chambers were carved out after it was piled together.... + +"The sculptor's work, and the painter's, show the same sentiment. They +did not make a work of art to please the taste as such; but they +rivalled nature as closely as possible. The form, the expression, the +colouring, the glittering transparent eye, the grave smile, all are +copied as if to make an artificial man. The painter mixed his half-tints +and his delicate shades, and dappled over the animals, or figured the +feathers of birds, in a manner never attempted in the later ages. The +embalmer built up the semblance of the man in resins and cloth over his +shrunken corpse, to make him as nearly as possible what he was when +alive. + +"In each direction man then set himself to supplement, to imitate, to +rival or to exceed, the works of nature. Art, as the gratification of an +artificial taste and standard, was scarcely in existence; but the +simplicity, the vastness, the perfection, and the beauty of the earliest +works place them on a different level to all the workers of art and +man's device in later ages. They are unique in their splendid power, +which no self-conscious civilization has ever rivalled, nor can hope to +rival; and in their enduring greatness they may last till all the +feebler works of man have perished."[1] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Petrie; History of Egypt, Vol. I, p. 66. + + + + +[Illustration] + +CHAPTER IV. + + +THE AGE OF DARKNESS. + +With the close of the Sixth dynasty, records practically cease, and few +indeed are the facts established regarding those kings whom Manetho +included in his Seventh and Eighth dynasties. + +From earliest times each nome had been the seat of some noble +family--the descendants of chieftains, possibly, or perhaps the +recipients of royal land grants. Certain it is that each nome had its +noble family of wide estate, from whose number the governor was usually +chosen, as was also the high priest of the local temple. By the end of +the Sixth dynasty, the claimants to the throne were not strong enough to +hold together the land they aspired to rule; they maintained their +capital at Memphis, but neither the Delta or Upper Egypt recognized +their sway. On the contrary, each prince in his own nome tried to +increase his individual strength at the expense of the general +government. Asiatic invaders seem to have strengthened themselves in the +Delta, while to the south Theban princes came into prominence. + +During the period which Manetho accorded to the Ninth and Tenth +dynasties, a prince often bought the favor and assistance of as many +nobles as he was able, and with his united forces established himself in +his own vicinity. + +The vast resources which had been so completely at the command of the +Fourth dynasty kings were now divided among many petty nobles, each +seeking to aggrandize himself. Naturally, no costly tombs could be +constructed to perpetuate the memories of these who now aspired to +Egypt's throne; the tombs which had to satisfy were less enduring, and +this no doubt explains why so few remains of the period have come to +light in recent years. The thread of history is almost lost during the +age of darkness which included the Seventh, Eighth, Ninth and Tenth +dynasties. Shut off from the disclosures of tombs, Egyptologists have +turned to the mines and quarries. All kings of importance have there +left traces of their operations, but the mines contain no tablets, no +decrees, no records of quarrying undertaken in these years, save here +and there an inscription indicating that some noble carried on work +within them on his own behalf. + +It is probable that the land passed through a most trying experience in +the time intervening between the Old and the beginning of the Middle +Empire, when neither property, possessions, nor life itself were safe +throughout the land, but anarchy, strife and turmoil were everywhere +rife. The kings maintained their capital at Heracleopolis, but they were +in continual struggle with the princes of Thebes. How great had been the +confusion we may judge when one of the Tenth dynasty rulers takes pride +in recording the fact that order had characterized his reign. "Every +official was at his post, there was no fighting, nor any shooting an +arrow. The child was not smitten beside his mother, nor the citizen +beside his wife. There was no evil-doer nor any one doing violence +against his house. When night came, he who slept on the road gave me +praise, for he was like a man in his house; the fear of my soldiers was +his protection."[1] + + +THE MIDDLE EMPIRE.[2] + +Order and prosperity returned to Egypt after years of darkness and +confusion. Thebes superseded Memphis as the center of political life. +Great material development characterized the beginning of what Manetho +designated as the Middle Empire. Before taking up the work of the early +Theban kings, let us learn something of the locality wherein they dwelt. + +[Illustration: DISTANT VIEW OF THE PYRAMIDS.] + +Memphis, as has been shown, was located conveniently to both Upper and +Lower Egypt, while the Nile protected the city from sudden Asiatic +attacks. What then were the points of advantage for Thebes, lying 400 +miles farther south? + +"Here the usually narrow valley of the Nile opens into a sort of plain +or basin. + +"The mountains on either side of the river recede, as though by common +consent, and leave between themselves and the river's bank a broad +amphitheater, which in each case is a rich green plain--a soil of the +most productive character--dotted with doom and date palms, sometimes +growing single, sometimes collected into clumps or groves. On the +western side the Libyan range gathers itself up into a single +considerable peak, which has an elevation of 1,200 feet On the east the +desert-wall maintains its usual level character, but is pierced by +valleys conducting to the coast of the Red Sea. The situation was one +favorable for commerce. On the one side was the nearest route through +the sandy desert to the Lesser Oasis, which commanded the trade of the +African interior; on the other the way led through the valley of +Hammamat, rich with ... valuable and rare stones, to a district +abounding in mines of gold, silver and lead, and thence to the Red Sea +coast, from which, even in very early times, there was communication +with the opposite coast of Arabia, the region of gums and spices."[3] + +Such being the location of Thebes, we shall see that it grew until in +time it became the mightiest city of the ancient world. + +With the establishment of the Eleventh dynasty (_Ca._ 2160-2000 B.C.), +the work of reuniting and re-establishing a centralized government +began. The Delta had to be reclaimed from invaders who had gained the +upper hand while the land was divided against itself. Unity being at +last secured, rulers were free to launch out upon other enterprises. One +of the later kings had a deep well provided for those who served in the +quarries; another sent an expedition of 3,000 men to bring back stone +for his tomb. These men were also instructed to go beyond the +quarries--to Punt, which must have lain on the Somali coast of East +Africa, and bring back products of that region. The expedition set out +under the leadership of a nobleman whose report has fortunately come +down to us. It states that his men built stations and made wells along +their route, to the lasting benefit of those who might journey thence. +Part of the detachment was left to quarry stone, while the rest +proceeded to Punt and procured spices, gums, precious woods, and rare +animals. After noting their safe return, the prince adds: "Never was +brought down the like thereof for the king's court; never was done the +like of this by any king's confidant sent out since the time of the +god. I did this for the majesty of my lord because he so much loved +me."[4] + +The Twelfth dynasty (2000-1788 B.C.) brought forth some of Egypt's +ablest kings. Their creative ability was perhaps not excelled by +subsequent pharaohs. Amenemhet I. (2000-1970 B.C.) proved himself strong +enough to curb the power of the feudal princes. These hereditary nobles +had probably received gifts of land from earlier kings in recognition of +loyal service. The estates passed from father to son, and while the +central government had been weak, the princes became more and more +aggressive. They fortified themselves, each in his nome, retained large +retinues of officials, servants, militia and realized vast incomes from +extensive tracts of arable land. It was neither possible nor prudent to +remodel the entire system, but Amenemhet I. undertook to modify it. +Whenever one of these landed princes died, the king himself chose from +the heirs the one who should succeed him. Naturally, he selected one +whose loyalty to himself and to the government was unquestioned. Again, +the boundaries of the nomes had never been officially determined, and +during the years of confusion, strong nobles had infringed upon the +possessions of weaker ones. The king made a tour through the country, +heard all complaints of such encroachments, and decided the limits of +all disputed boundaries. This did much to restrict the strength of +ambitious princes. + +His son, coming to the throne, subdued the Nubians on the south and +extended the empire to the second cataract; but it was left for +Sesostris III. to make this conquest sure, and then to post his decree +along the river. + +"This is the southern frontier; fixed in the eighth year of the reign of +his majesty. Usurtasen [Sesostris], ever living. Let it not be permitted +to any negro to pass this boundary northward, either on foot or by boat; +nor any sort of cattle, oxen, goats, or sheep belonging to the negroes. +Except when any negro comes to trade in the land of Aken, or on any +business, let him be well treated. But without allowing boats of the +negroes to pass Heh northward forever."[5] + +In gratitude to the king for thus securing to them safety by repulsing +the negroes, the Egyptians sang extravagant hymns to Sostostris. Some of +these have been rendered into English, and are regarded as excellent +specimens of Egyptian poetry. The following is one of these songs: + + "Twice joyful are the gods, + Thou hast established their offerings. + Twice joyful are thy princes, + Thou hast formed their boundaries. + Twice joyful are thy ancestors before thee, + Thou hast increased their portions. + Twice joyful is Egypt at thy strong arm, + Thou hast guarded the ancient order. + Twice joyful are the aged with thy administration, + Thou hast widened their possessions. + Twice joyful are the two regions with thy valor, + Thou hast caused them to flourish. + Twice joyful are thy young men of support, + Thou hast caused them to flourish. + Twice joyful are thy veterans, + Thou hast caused them to be vigorous. + Twice joyful are the two lands in thy might, + Thou hast guarded their walls. + Twice joyful be thou, O Horus! widening thy boundary, + Mayest thou renew an eternity of life."[6] + + +AMENEMHET III. + +The greatest name of the Twelfth dynasty is that of Amenemhet III. +(1849-1801 B.C.). He directed his attention to internal improvements. +Realizing the dire effects upon Egypt when the Nile failed to supply +sufficient water or when too much water was forthcoming, he studied +various ways of controlling the river. Once or twice in a century the +rainfall, always heavy in the Abyssinian highlands, is yet greater; the +river rises rapidly to unexpected heights and works general havoc. Or +sometimes the supply may be less than usual. Having watched the stream +with anxious eyes for many a week, the people behold it recede, +although only the adjacent plains have been refreshed and upper portions +of the valley lie parched and lifeless, while famine stares Egypt in the +face. + +Amenemhet III. believed that a vast reservoir might regulate the supply, +receiving the water when it was at high flood and giving it out once +more when the stream was low. He looked about for a natural depression +and found it to the west of Memphis, beyond a narrow range of hills. +Canals were made leading into this basin and Lake Moeris was the result. +Some hundreds of square miles were gained by this new means of +irrigation and the tract thus made arable, became royal domain. The +district is known as the Fayoum. Near its entrance Amenemhet III. built +his pyramid. It differed from earlier tombs in that the chamber destined +to receive his mummy was reached by passages even more secret and +winding than ordinary. False doors were placed here and there to mislead +any who might attempt to molest the body. + +Under his direction, a wonderful building was constructed. It was called +the Labyrinth. Being about 800 feet wide and 1,000 feet long, it +contained 1,500 rooms above the ground and as many more below it. There +were many courts with numerous doors leading from them and Strabo, a +Greek geographer, who saw it long after Amenemhet had taken his journey +to the realm of Osiris, said that the ceilings and sides of the rooms +were made from single stones! It is believed that the king planned this +structure to serve as a great capitol for his kingdom, and that there +were suites of halls for every nome, with chapels for their gods. A vast +number of chambers would naturally be required for this, and probably +there was no thought of making the building baffling or bewildering, as +the name labyrinth now signifies. This was counted among the wonders of +the ancient world, but, like the city built around it, disappeared ages +ago. Herodotus has left us a description of the huge building, written +to inform his countrymen of a structure more remarkable than anything +they could boast. When he saw it, almost five hundred years before the +time of Christ, it was still in perfect condition. + +"I visited the place," he says, "and found it to surpass description; +for if all the walls and other great works of the Greeks could be put +together into one, they would not equal this Labyrinth. The pyramids +likewise surpass description, and are severally equal to a number of the +greatest works of the Greeks; but the Labyrinth surpasses the pyramids. +It has twelve courts, all of them roofed, with gates exactly opposite +one another, six looking to the north, and six to the south. A single +wall surrounds the whole building. It contains two different sorts of +chambers, half of them under ground, and half above ground, the latter +built upon the former; the whole number is three thousand, of each kind +fifteen hundred. The upper chambers I myself passed through and saw, and +what I say of them is from my own observation; of the underground +chambers I can only speak from report, for the keepers of the building +could not be induced to show them; since they contain, they said, the +sepulchres of the kings who built the labyrinth, and also those of the +sacred crocodiles. Thus it is from hearsay only that I can speak of +them; but the upper chambers I saw with my own eyes, and found them to +excel all other human productions; for the passages through the houses +and the varied windings of the paths across the courts, excited in me +infinite admiration, as I passed from these colonnades into fresh +houses, and again from these into courts unseen before. The roof was, +throughout, of stone, like the walls; and the walls were carved all over +with figures; every court was surrounded with a colonnade, which was +built of white stone, exquisitely fitted together. At the corner of the +Labyrinth stands a pyramid, forty fathoms high, with large figures +engraved upon it, which is entered by a subterranean passage." + +In comparison with the Old Empire kings, those of the Middle Empire seem +to us much more modern in spirit. Instead of merging the whole +population into instruments to work out the pharaoh's fancy, instead of +squandering the riches of the land and the lives of subjects to provide +mammoth tombs which should eternalize the ruler's memory and flame forth +his power and greatness unto succeeding generations, the farsighted +Twelfth dynasty kings devoted their time and resources to the +improvement of their kingdom. Wells were dug; roads constructed; public +buildings erected; fortifications strengthened; frontiers extended. The +attention of the monarch was directed to the commercial prosperity of +the realm, to the agricultural conditions and their improvement--in +short, the best years of the Middle Empire were years of material gain +for the Nile dwellers, wherein men developed the arts of peace, and the +valley testified to wise administration. Through a second period of +depression a nation was to look back upon the age of its material +progress with longing eyes, and still better, to retain even under +adverse conditions standards of government and life which would later be +recovered. After the death of the great king, called Amenemhet the Good +by his grateful subjects, none appeared able to adequately fill his +place, and his glorious reign was overshadowed by a second period of +darkness. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Trans. by Breasted, Hist. Egypt, 149. The approximate dates of this +period are: Dynasties VII. and VIII. _Ca._ 2475-2445 B.C.; Dynasties XI. +and X. _Ca._ 2475-2160 B.C. + +[2] Dynasties XI. and XII. 2160-1788 B.C. + +[3] Rawlinson, Ancient Egypt, 95. + +[4] Trans. by Breasted, Ancient Records, I, §483. + +[5] Petrie, Hist. of Egypt, Vol. I, 181. + +[6] Petrie, Hist. of Egypt, Vol. I, 182. + + + + +[Illustration] + +CHAPTER V. + + +THE SHEPHERD KINGS.[1] + +The Thirteenth dynasty kings were not sufficiently strong to hold intact +the kingdom which passed into their hands. Soon again the feudal princes +of nome and city were contending with one another for additional power. +The Fourteenth dynasty rulers had their capital in Xois, a Delta city. +Both dynasties lasted but a brief time, filled with unrest and +contention. We can imagine into what state Egypt fell when a negro of +Nubia, of a race despised by the Egyptians, set himself up as their +king. Several princes ruled at the same time in various portions of the +realm. Sources of information for these chaotic years are scanty; no +monuments have come down to us, the inference being that the resources +and energies of the land were required for more immediate needs than the +erection of costly tombs for rulers of disputed right. + +The whole country must have suffered greatly. The system of irrigation +set in order by Amenemhet III. required both national supervision and +national funds for its maintenance. As neither could have been +forthcoming, the food production must have been materially diminished. +Engaged in civil war, Egypt soon fell a prey to foreign invaders. + +For hundreds of years it had been not unusual for Syrian bands to ask +permission to settle within Egyptian borders. In the tomb of a +provincial governor of Upper Egypt has been found a painting which +portrays a company of seventeen Bedouins bringing presents to the +nobleman and asking that they be allowed to locate in his dominion. In +Genesis we read concerning Abram: "And Abram journeyed, going still +toward the south. And there was a famine in the land of Canaan; and +Abram went down into Egypt to sojourn there; for the famine was grievous +in the land." Since Abram was rich in cattle and in gold, he undoubtedly +brought many of his family and followers to dwell with him in the land +of plenty. Similar incidents were common. If the rainfall was short in +Canaan, in the territory of the Hittites or even in Arabia, Egypt was +ever regarded as a last resort. The Nile never failed to supply water +for the flocks; here, too, it was customary to store grain in royal +store-cities, in order that in time of need Egypt could sell +advantageously to her neighbors. In a pastoral age, such favorable +conditions as these were highly prized. + +The Pharaohs diligently fortified their frontiers, and it must not be +supposed that in times of peace foreigners were allowed to come at will +into the land. There were, on the contrary, officers stationed along the +boundaries to apprehend any who wished to enter, to receive their +requests and forward them to the governor of the nome. Until he was +heard from, strangers were detained on the border. It seems to have been +usual, however, to admit such petitioners unless it was thought that +they might become a menace to the state. It naturally came about, +therefore, that the tribes on the east looked with envious eyes upon the +rich valley of the Nile, and when Egypt was disrupted, her resources and +soldiers no longer at the command of one ruler but divided among several +contending nobles--each of whom valued his personal interests above +those of his country--while anarchy and disorder infested the coveted +land, an overwhelming host of Semitic hordes poured into the Delta, +spreading thence into the valley. Before them Egypt was helpless. + +Asia and Egypt as well were inhabited in early times by many wandering +or nomadic tribes. A tribe dwelt in one locality while pasturage was +good, and when it was exhausted, would move on to new fields. Sometimes +the tribe in possession of one district would learn that other tribes +were drawing near, and in an age when strangers were considered enemies, +this would furnish sufficient pretext for starting out on the march +again. Periods of unrest sometimes swept over vast areas; in such a time +as this, perhaps, Asiatic tribes poured into Egypt. In her pitiable +plight, the country lay an easy prey to such invaders, who Manetho tells +us numbered a quarter of a million. It is said that they took possession +without a battle. Just who they were or where they came from is not +known. We now know that the Hittites invaded Babylonia during the reign +of Samsu-ditana, the last king of the First Dynasty of Babylon, and that +this was the indirect cause of the fall of this dynasty (about 1750 +B.C.). Scholars are beginning to suspect that the invasion of Egypt at +this time was either led by the Hittites or due to Hittite pressure +back of the tribes in Syria-Palestine. Their kings were called Hyksos, +and from a doubtful etymology of this name they are still styled the +"Shepherd kings." + +The invading conquerors put many of the Egyptians to death, taking their +wives and children into slavery. Worshipping gods of their own, they +hated the gods of the Egyptians and destroyed many temples and +monuments. Generally speaking, they remained in the Delta and the +Fayoum, the Theban princes ruling in the south as their vassals. + +Gradually these fierce Asiatics took on the civilization of the land +they had invaded. They donned Egyptian dress, spoke and wrote as the +Egyptians, and built temples much like theirs. The country rallied from +its recent disaster and life became not unlike that of earlier times. + +In time the Theban nobles increased in power; the Hyksos--or their +descendants in the Delta--grew alarmed lest the native princes might +become powerful enough to force them from the throne they had usurped. +Determined to check any threatening strength on the part of the +Egyptians, the foreigners tried to bring about open conflict, sure +themselves of victory. At first the Theban princes sought to avert war, +but the demands of the Hyksos grew heavier. There was a folk-story to +the effect that the usurping king in the Delta sent word to the Theban +prince that the noise of the sacred hippopotami in the pools and canals +allowed him rest neither by night or day, and must be disposed of. +However simple this appears, it may easily signify that the final break +came because of religious difficulties. + +Roused at last, the Egyptians determined to drive the invaders from +their land. This occurred during the Seventeenth dynasty--for Manetho +continues his list of Egyptian kings throughout the period of foreign +rule. The Asiatics were driven north, and the first pharaoh of the +Eighteenth Dynasty, King Ahmose (1580-1350 B.C.), gathered a vast army +and forced them beyond his borders. Five years were consumed in +accomplishing this, and in the end many of the foreigners were reduced +to slavery. + +Summing up the results of the invasion of the Hyksos, we may note that +Egypt learned much during her period of oppression Before the invasion, +her fighting had been confined to the defense of her frontiers. Asiatic +and African, and the tribes with which she had waged war had been her +inferiors. In the Asiatic tribes she had at last met a people more +skillful in military affairs than she. They used horses and chariots, +and their mode of warfare was superior to the clumsy, undisciplined +efforts of the Nile-dwellers. It was by adopting their methods that +Egypt finally succeeded in expelling them from the land. Hereafter we +find the horse and chariot used extensively in Egyptian wars. + +Another important result was the elimination of the feudal lords. They +had opposed both the Hyksos and the successful king Ahmose, and fighting +for personal interests alone, had most of them perished in the conflict. +The vast areas which had been their portion reverted to the crown and +became royal domain. + +It has been thought that Joseph served under one of the foreign kings, +and that the conditions spoken of at the close of his career--when all +Egypt was subdued and at the command of the Pharaoh--coincide with the +situation shortly after the feudal lords had disappeared as a political +factor. All this is, however, doubtful. + +In marked contrast with the gloom of long years under foreign oppression +shines the splendor of the New Empire. + + +THE BEGINNING OF THE NEW EMPIRE.[2] + +The wide differences which we have noted concerning dates accepted by +various Egyptologists disappear as we approach the Christian era, and +there is general agreement that the sixteenth century before Christ saw +the dawn of the New Empire which had its beginning when the independence +of Egypt was established and Hyksos rule thrown off. Petrie calls this +the most glorious page in Egyptian history. + +Ahmose had much to do before the safety of the government was assured. +While he pursued the Hyksos into Asia, crippling their allies, the +Ethiopians infringed upon his southern border. Three different +expeditions had to be sent against them before they were reduced to +submission. Then only did the king find opportunity to direct his +attention to the domestic concerns of the kingdom. Thebes, the capital, +was given first consideration in the matter of building and adornment. +The foundations for the famous temple of Karnak, of which we shall hear +more at length, were begun. + +Ahmose's son succeeded him, but aside from putting down an uprising of +the troublesome Ethiopians, little of importance attached to his +administration. + +It was left for Ahmose's grandson, Thutmose[3] I., to give Egypt the +position she was to occupy among the nations for many years. Thutmose I. +was instinctively a soldier. Coming to the throne when a mere boy, the +Ethiopians made war directly, thinking they could easily overcome so +inexperienced a king. Thutmose at once gave indication of his capacity +by marching immediately into their territory and defeating them with +tremendous slaughter. To prevent further annoyance from these people the +king divided their country into districts and over each he placed an +Egyptian official. Thus the land of Kush became an Egyptian province. + +Having now a well organized army, Thutmose pressed into Asia--for the +experience of Ahmose had shown that rich plunder there awaited the +victor. Some tribes yielded voluntarily to Egypt; others were forced to +yield. + +Although the king penetrated some distance east of the Euphrates, these +districts were not permanently won for Egypt. On the contrary, we shall +find that subsequent pharaohs did over and over again what this king +attempted, and for this reason: each time a nation was conquered, +Thutmose withdrew his soldiers from it, imposing tribute and asking +hostages. So long as the tribute was forthcoming, the tribe was left +undisturbed. This gave wide opportunity for the conquered peoples to +unite among themselves and make attempts to shake off control whenever a +new ruler succeeded to the throne of Egypt. This proved eventually a +most extravagant policy for Thutmose to have followed. + +Henceforth Egypt had to take her place as a military power, and with her +every new aspiring nation had to reckon. When we recall the peaceful +Egyptians of early times, secluded in their quiet valley, disliking +foreigners and having as little intercourse with them as possible, we +realize what a change had been wrought in them by their contact with the +Hyksos during the years of their oppression. + +Egypt's future was largely marked out by Thutmose I., as later reigns +demonstrated. Perhaps his greatness has not been wholly appreciated. +"The greatness of Thutmose[3] I. has scarcely been sufficiently +recognized by historians. It may be true that he did not effect much; +but he broke ground in a new direction; he set an example which led on +to grand results. To him it was due that Egypt ceased to be the +isolated, unaggressive power that she had remained for perhaps ten +centuries, that she came boldly to the front and aspired to bring Asia +into subjection. Henceforth she exercised a potent influence beyond her +borders--an influence which affected, more or less, all the western +Asiatic powers. She had forced her way into the comity of the great +nations. Henceforth whether it was for good or for evil, she had to take +her place among them, to reckon with them, as they reckoned with her, to +be a factor in the problem which the ages had to work out--what should +be the general march of events, and what states and nations should most +affect the destiny of the world."[4] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Dynasties XIII to XVIII, including the Hyksos, 1788-1580 B.C. + +[2] Dynasties XVIII to XX, 1580-1090 B.C. + +[3] Usually written Thothmes. The form Thutmose is, however, nearer the +original. + +[4] Rawlinson, Ancient Egypt, 168. + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + + +THE EARLIEST QUEEN IN HISTORY. + +We now come upon a story in Egyptian history. It might easily begin with +"Once upon a time," and better still, it is true. Of course we all know +that when people live hundreds and thousands of years in a country and +reach a high degree of civilization, when they build noble structures, +become proficient in art, write books, and have developed a high degree +of culture, their lives have been full of absorbing experiences, just as +ours are today, and we may be sure that these Egyptians, who sometimes +seem a bit monotonous in the light of recorded history, would be +interesting enough did we know more about their daily lives. + +In many families it has been customary to keep a family record--in the +Bible often, sometimes in special record books. The habit is less +prevalent than it once was, but we have doubtless all seen such records +and recall that they generally include births, marriages and deaths +occurring in the family. From them, however, one could get no idea in +years to come of the happy holiday gatherings, social pleasures, and +family celebrations frequently enjoyed. + +It is somewhat the same with nations. They leave momentous events in +their history carved in marble, painted on canvas or written in whatever +fashion they have known; but it is left largely to us to weave in the +rest of the story as best we may--and too often this part is neglected. +People long since vanished seem too often like unreal creatures, who +fought in wars, established dynasties, enjoyed periods of peace and +suffered in times of tumult, and these events appear to be fitted +together like the pieces of a puzzle. Had historians keener imaginations +they might bring these ancient people before us as distinctly human, so +that, like the characters of Dickens and Scott, they would abide in our +memories. But then you see, someone would suggest that this was no +longer history. + +However, the world has seen a few queens who have apparently determined +to relegate dullness and monotony to kings--as for themselves they +would have none of it. Such was Good Queen Bess of England, and such +also was Queen Hatshepsut of long-forgotten Egypt. + +Thutmose I. had been a great warrior; he had subdued the Nubians and +Ethiopians in Africa, and then, roused to a spirit of conquest, he had +pushed into Asia, revenged the indignities inflicted upon his people by +the Hyksos, and had made his power felt far beyond the Euphrates. When +no longer able to rule, he left the widest empire the world had yet seen +to his daughter Hatshepsut, aged twenty-four, and to his seventeen year +old son. Hatshepsut had inherited her father's great ability and +tireless energy; the son was weak and purposeless. His untimely death +gave occasion for many both then and since to wonder if his vindictive +sister did all she could to save him. Certain it is that Queen +Hatshepsut rallied sufficiently from the shock of his death to reign for +many years. + +It was very disconcerting to a nation so strongly held by tradition and +veneration for established customs as was Egypt, to have a woman on the +throne of the Pharaohs. This is amusingly shown in temples where her +loyal supporters sought to lessen prejudices felt because she was a +woman by portraying pictures designed to show that her birth had been +attended by special marks of favor and of prophecy on the part of the +gods. In these, however, she is often represented as a _boy_. She seems +to have regretted not having been a man, and no doubt the matter was +constantly thrust before her and she was forced to feel how greatly this +placed her at a disadvantage among her subjects. She seems to have made +heroic efforts to modify the differences in sex as much as possible by +assuming a beard and by having herself represented in art in a king's +official dress. Furthermore, a bewildering use of pronouns seem to have +been employed concerning her, and such phrases as: "his majesty +herself," and others similar have come down to us. + +Great benefits came to Egypt when the ruler's attention was directed +from conquest to internal improvements, and these last occupied the +energy of this capable queen throughout her reign. Instead of erecting +pyramids or tombs, she at once began to build a temple in which she +might be worshipped after death--for in Egypt a ruler was worshipped as +a god after his death. Nor would Hatshepsut have her temple like those +around her. Rather, a site was chosen out of Thebes, where the hills +rose to quite an elevation. A series of four terraces, each having its +beautiful colonnade, led to the temple itself, which was hewn out of the +rocky hill. + +The young queen wished to build such a temple as she fancied might have +been sacred to Amon--the ancient deity of Thebes--in his own land of +Punt, on the East African coast. It was a myth of the Egyptians that +long before they existed, the gods abode in the land of Punt, called by +them the Holyland, or God's land. Tradition held that in this land the +myrrh tree was sacred to Amon, and so one day Queen Hatshepsut announced +to her ministers that the god Amon had revealed to her his desire that +here in Thebes, before the new temple, his favorite myrrh tree should +grow. + +Now myrrh incense for offerings had been procured from merchantmen who +brought their spices into Egypt, and the tree itself grew only in Punt, +which lay to the furthermost corner of the ancient world. However, the +queen was determined to satisfy the god--and incidentally, perhaps, her +own fancy. So, nothing daunted, her subjects set to work to construct a +fleet suitable for the journey necessary for procuring the +incense-bearing tree. + +It is supposed that some canal connected the river with the Red Sea; +whether or not this was the case, the ships were built at Thebes, and +there is no record of their having been carried over land to the port. +They were fitted out with both sails and oars, so that the expedition +might not be hindered by calm weather. Beside the oarsmen and the crew, +soldiers accompanied the fleet to give protection should it be needed. + +After many days the ships came at last to the Holy Land, or Punt. +Messengers were dispatched to the native king with presents from Queen +Hatshepsut and a request that he acknowledge the sovereignty of Egypt, +and allow her subjects to bring back products from his land--especially +the coveted incense-tree. The king was delighted with the gifts and made +up a procession to go down to the shore and meet the Egyptians. He had a +funny little dwarf wife, belonging, it is supposed, to one of the dwarf +tribes of interior Africa. She on her donkey, her three children, the +king and several of his chiefs, proceeded to the shore to greet the +strangers. They were led to the native houses--curious round huts built +on piles and entered only by ladders, while palm and incense trees +sheltered their occupants from the hot rays of the tropical sun. The +travelers were treated royally throughout their sojourn in the land of +Punt, and were allowed to exchange the products they had brought from +the valley of the Nile for the native products--such as ebony, ivory, +incense, leopard skins, metals, and the much desired myrrh trees. + +At length the Egyptians were ready to set sail for the home land, and +now some of the natives, the dwarf queen, some of the chief men and +others decided to return with them and see the queen of great renown; so +with these for passengers, the ships cleared port. + +Upon arrival, their return was the occasion for a gala-day at the +capital. The state troops were out on parade, the veterans of the +expedition formed in procession with the thirty-one myrrh trees which +had been carefully packed and shielded under awning from the sun's rays; +the strange animals from Punt--dogs, baboons, monkeys, a tame leopard +with his keeper, natives who gave their war dance, the dwarf queen of +Punt, who with her chief men brought gifts to Hatshepsut--all these made +up a great spectacle sufficiently absorbing to the throngs who filled +the streets of Thebes. All went to the temple where Queen Hatshepsut +made offerings to Amon, and then the myrrh trees were planted before his +temple. It would be interesting to know how many of these thirty-one +trees withstood the radical change, but probably trees which had +occasioned such a national outlay had no choice but to flourish. + +Queen Hatshepsut felt a natural pride in the result of her expedition +which had the effect of establishing lasting trade between the two +countries, to the benefit of both. She did not wish it to be forgotten, +and so had the whole story depicted on the walls of her temple by +artists who probably accompanied the fleet. There some of the pictures +may still be seen. The first portrays the embarking of the Egyptian +fleet. An inscription before it reads: "These are the ships which the +wind brought along with it. The voyage on the sea, the attainment of the +longed-for aim in the Holy Land, the happy arrival of the Egyptian +soldiers in the land of Punt, according to the arrangement of Amon, +King of the gods, Lord of the terrestrial thrones in Thebes, in order to +bring to him the treasures of the whole land in such quantities as will +satisfy him. This was done by the Queen of Egypt, the daughter of the +Sun, never has anything similar been done in the times of a former king +in this country."[1] + +The second scene shows the reception in Punt; the third, the traffic; +the fourth picture, the loading of ships for the return. Men are seen +bringing trees and other products of Punt on board. This inscription +reads: "The loading of the ships of transport with a great quantity of +the magnificent products of Arabia,[2] with all kinds of precious woods +of the Holy Land, with heaps of incense, resin, with verdant incense +trees, with ebony, with pure ivory, with gold, and silver from the land +of Amon, with tesep-wood and the cassia bark, incense, hounds, skins of +leopards, apes, monkeys, with women and children. Never has a coming +been made like this by any king since the creation of the world." + +The fifth is the "Return to Thebes." The accompanying inscription: +"Excursion completed satisfactorily; happy arrival at Thebes to the joy +of the Egyptian soldiers. The princes of Punt after arrival in this +country, bringing with them costly things of the Arabian[2] land, such +as never had yet been brought by any Egyptian king, for the Supreme +Majesty of the god Amon-Ra, Lord of the terrestrial thrones." + +The sixth scene represents the presentation of the tribute of Punt to +the Queen, while princes of that land kneeling before her ask for peace. + + "Homage to thy countenance, + O Queen of Egypt, Sun, + Beaming like the sun-disk + After your mistress, who is + Arabia's[2] mistress." + +In the seventh painting the Queen offers gifts to Amon; the eighth shows +the weighing of the incense; the ninth, the formal announcement of the +successful expedition before Amon, and the tenth and last, the formal +announcement of the happy issue before the Egyptian court. + +Other paintings which adorn the walls of this temple, depicting the +birth of the Queen and the guardianship exercised over her by the +goddess Hathor, while less famous are quite as indelible and interesting +from a social standpoint. + +This temple in its architectural conception was a departure from +Egyptian models. It impresses us with its fine proportion and the +skillful use of the colonnade. + +It has not long been accessible to visitors, having been uncovered only +in the last few years. + +Other building enterprises were undertaken by Queen Hatshepsut, notably +the erection of two obelisks of polished granite in honor of Amon. + +Possessing some tributary territory in Asia and Punt and maintaining a +policy of peace, the national revenue was much increased. The proud +queen left a record of her kingdom's prosperity chronicled in stone: "My +southern boundary is as far as Punt; my eastern boundary as far as the +marshes of Asia, and the Asiatics are in my grasp; my western boundary +is as far as the mountain of Manu (or the sunset); my fame is among the +Sand dwellers altogether. The myrrh of Punt has been brought to me, all +the luxurious marvels of this country were brought to my palace in one +collection. They have brought me the choicest products, of cedar, of +juniper, and of meru-wood; all the goodly sweet woods of God's-land. I +brought the tribute of Libya, consisting of ivory and seven hundred +tusks which were there, numerous panther skins of five cubits along the +back and four cubits wide."[3] + +In addition to new structures, Queen Hatshepsut repaired temples fallen +in decay. In one of these temples she caused to be written: "I have +restored that which was in ruins, I have raised up that which was +unfinished since the Asiatics were in the midst of the Northland, and +the barbarians in the midst of them, overthrowing that which had been +made while they ruled in ignorance of Ra."[4] + +Thutmose III., a younger brother--a mere child at the death of his +father--grew restless at being held so long from the throne by his +ambitious sister. The sudden death of the queen again raised the +question as to whether the sovereign had died as a result of court +intrigue. Certain it is that Thutmose III. retaliated for the restraint +the queen had exercised over him by commanding that her name be stricken +from all the monuments she had erected, his own to be substituted. +Fortunately his workmen followed his instructions so badly that it has +been possible to read the original name in many cases, and thus possible +to trace the career of the world's earliest recorded queen. Thus have +later ages been able to realize how well Queen Hatshepsut met the +requirements of her day, and to appreciate her courage in overcoming the +prejudices which as a woman on the throne of the Pharaohs she is sure to +have encountered. + +[Illustration: QUEEN HATSHEPSUT.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] These inscriptions are translated in Records of the Past, ed. by +Sayce, Vol. X. + +[2] The translation is to be corrected to Punt. + +[3] Trans. by Breasted, History of Egypt, 280. + +[4] Ibid. + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + + +GREAT MILITARY KINGS. + +The accession of a new king was the signal for Asiatic nations, long +held in tribute, to revolt from a servitude that had always been galling +to their pride. Thutmose III. at once established his reputation as a +king of prompt decision and strength by marching immediately into the +revolting territories and defeating the league formed against him. +During his reign of some fifty years he is reputed to have carried on +nineteen campaigns. The wealth of Egypt was materially increased by +these expeditions which were frequently marauding excursions rather than +open-battle victories. + +"Altogether Thothmes [Thutmose] III. is said to have carried off from +the subject countries about 11,000 captives, 1,670 chariots, 3,639 +horses, 4,491 of the larger cattle, more than 35,000 goats, silver to +the amount of 3,940 pounds, and gold to the amount of 9,954 pounds. He +also conveyed to Egypt from the conquered lands enormous quantities of +corn and wines, together with incense, balsam, honey, ivory, ebony, and +other rare woods, lapis lazuli, furniture, statues, vases, dishes, +basins, tent-poles, bows, habergeons, fruit-trees, live birds, and +monkeys! With a curiosity which was insatiable, he noted all that was +strange or unusual in the lands which he visited, and sought to +introduce the various novelties into his own proper country. Two unknown +kinds of birds, and a variety of the goose, which he found in +Mesopotamia, and transported from the valley of the Khabour to that of +the Nile, are said to have been 'dearer to the king than anything else.' +His artists had instructions to make careful studies of the different +objects, and to represent them faithfully on his monuments. We see on +these 'water-lilies as high as trees, plants of a growth like cactuses, +all sort of trees and shrubs, leaves, flowers, and fruits, including +melons and pomegranates; oxen and calves also figure, and among them a +wonderful animal with three horns. There are likewise herons, +sparrow-hawks, geese and doves.' All these appear gaily intermixed in +the pictures, as suited the simple childlike conception of the artist. +An inscription tells the intention of the monarch. 'Here,' it runs, 'are +all sorts of plants and all sorts of flowers of the Holy Land, which the +king discovered when he went to the land of Ruten to conquer it. Thus +says the king--I swear by the sun, and I call to witness my father Amon, +that all is plain truth; there is no trace of deception in that which I +relate. What the splendid soil brings forth in the way of production I +have portrayed in these pictures, with the intention of offering them to +my father Amon, as a memorial for all times.'"[1] + +Egypt had now become so powerful that many of the Phoenician cities +voluntarily came under her protection, thinking in this way they could +best secure safety for their extensive commerce on the seas. The +Phoenicians were the middle-men for antiquity and desired above all to +keep their triremes safe from sea pirates. Seeking the protection of the +greatest world power, in this age they turned to Egypt. + +A vast amount of Asiatic plunder found its way to the temples as +offerings to the gods who were supposed to have made victory possible. +This accumulation of wealth within the temples proved a most important +factor in strengthening the priesthood--a power with which the future +had to reckon. + +A song of victory, composed in honor of Thutmose III., is preserved in +the temple of Karnak. The god Amon is supposed to be speaking. We may be +sure that it was not wholly the flattery of priests, written to appease +the ruler, but that it embodied the general opinion as to the power +bestowed by the god upon the king, who was his representative upon +earth. + + +HYMN OF VICTORY.[2] (_Amon speaking._) + + I have come, causing thee to smite the princes of Zahi; + I have hurled them beneath thy feet among their highlands. + I have caused them to see thy majesty as lord of radiance, + So that thou hast shone in their faces like my image. + + I have come, causing thee to smite the Asiatics, + Thou hast made captive the heads of the Asiatics of Retenu. + I have caused them to see thy majesty equipped with thy adornment + When thou takest the weapons of war in the chariot. + + I have come, causing thee to smite the eastern land, + Thou hast trampled those who are in the districts of God's-Land. + I have caused them to see thy majesty like a circling star, + When it scatters its flame in fire, and gives forth its dew. + + I have come, causing thee to smite the western land, + Keftyew and Cyprus are in terror. + I have caused them to see thy majesty as a young bull, + Firm of heart, ready-horned, irresistible. + + I have come, causing thee to smite those who are in their marshes, + The lands of Mitanni tremble under fear of thee. + I have caused them to see thy majesty as a crocodile, + Lord of fear in the water, unapproachable. + + I have come, causing thee to smite those who are in their isles; + Those who are in the midst of the Great Green (sea) hear thy roarings. + I have caused them to see thy majesty as an avenger, + Who rises upon the back of his slain victim.... + + I have come, causing thee to smite the uttermost ends of the lands, + The circuit of the Great Circle (Okeanos) is included in thy grasp. + I have caused them to see thy majesty as a lord of wing (hawk), + Who seizeth upon that which he seeth, as much as he desires. + + I have come, causing thee to smite the Nubian Troglodytes, + As far as Shat (they) are in thy grasp. + I have caused them to see thy majesty as thy two brothers.[3] + I have united their two arms for thee in victory. + + Thy two sisters,[4] I have set them as protection behind thee, + The arms of my majesty are above, warding off evil. + I have caused thee to reign, my beloved son, + Horus, Mighty Bull, Shining in Thebes, whom I have begotten in + uprightness of heart. + + Thutmose, living forever, who hast done for me all that my ka desired; + Thou hast erected my dwelling as an everlasting work, + Enlarging and extending it more than the past which has been. + Thou hast fêted the beauty of Amon-Re, + Thy monuments are greater than those of any king who has been. + When I commanded thee to do it, I was satisfied therewith; + I established thee upon the Horus-throne of millions of years. + +Thutmose III. left his individuality strongly stamped upon the empire +his military skill had welded together. Tribute poured into his coffers +from all the petty nations throughout western Asia, from the tribes of +the Sahara, and lands south of Egypt. He was probably without question +the greatest military leader the country ever produced, and he was a +tireless builder. The great temple of Amon in the city of Thebes was his +pride and many other temples were built and restored by him. He was +succeeded by his son, but no very important event claims our attention +until the accession of his great grandson, Amenhotep IV. + +The beautiful Queen Tiy was the mother of this monarch. There is no +foundation for the oft repeated assertion that she was of foreign, +probably Asiatic, origin. Maspero's belief that she was of Egyptian +(perhaps obscure) origin is most probable. We may well believe that she +exercised considerable power over her son, but we have no evidence for +asserting that it was from her that he received the new religion which +he attempted to force upon the country, as a result of which the whole +land was thrown into a tumult. + +We have already seen that Egypt was originally composed of many little +states, each independent of the rest and each having its own religious +system and customs. As the many states were assimilated into one, a +state religion resulted, into which the main elements of each local cult +were combined. Although the people throughout the land worshipped the +state god, the local gods were always more particularly endeared to the +masses. Now had Amenhotep IV. desired to change the state god, the +official deity, the people would have accepted the change readily, but +when he attempted to sweep away the entire religious system of his realm +and substitute an utterly new system, the masses could not understand +such a radical change. They were enraged at what they considered an +indignity put upon their gods and the gods of their fathers. + +Realizing how impossible it would be to accomplish his reform in the +ancient city of Thebes, the king determined to change his capital. +Thebes had long been the religious as well as the political center, and +the worship of Amon was fundamentally associated with the city. In order +to set up the worship of one deity, Aton--the Solar Disk--in place of +Amon, with the complex system of deities, Amenhotep IV. went north of +Thebes and began the construction of a new capital[5] which was never +completed. Its name signified "The Horizon of the Solar Disk." Within +this new capital the new religion was to be firmly established and +thence spread throughout the realm. Just what teachings this religion +embodied is not now understood. While the sun was worshipped in a new +form as Aton, this may have been merely symbolic of one God--one Spirit, +felt to be one and alone. Acceptance of the Solar Disk religion +necessitated an abandoning of all earlier deities, especially the +powerful Amon, and his name was commanded to be stricken from all +monuments throughout the land. + +The result of this religious crusade was a total failure. Amenhotep IV. +realized how great was the innovation he sought to make, but he +underestimated the strength of the priests of Amon, the treasures of +whose temple at Thebes were loaded with the spoil of Asia. This +"reform" while in line with the theology, was utterly at variance with +the popular religion of the day. Angered beyond measure by the injury to +their faith, the people rose up against the new teaching. The old-time +worship was reinstated, the former deities elevated to their former +dignity, and the Eighteenth dynasty which had begun so auspiciously came +to an end in confusion and disorder. + +[Illustration: GREAT PYRAMID, SPHINX AND TEMPLE OF ARMACHIS.] + + +KARNAK. + +The temple of Karnak belongs to both the Eighteenth and Nineteenth +dynasties. Thutmose III., Amenhotep II. and Amenhotep III. each added +rooms to the great structure, although it was left for Seti I. to build +the crowning Hall of Pillars. Three centuries witnessed its erection and +many kings contributed to its greatness. Most famous of all Theban +architecture, it is still mighty in its ruins. + +Karnak is the name of one of the four districts into which the irregular +Nile divided the city of Thebes. From this district, or ward, the great +temple dedicated to Amon--ancient deity of Thebes--took its name. + +In some ways, perhaps, the temples of Egypt corresponded to the temples +of the Greeks, or even to modern churches, yet there were material +differences. Indeed, the similarity is slight. Modern churches are +supposedly places of worship; Greek temples were erected in honor of +Greek gods and thither offerings were brought by a trusting people. +Egyptian temples were built by rulers in honor of some god whose help +and protection they believed had enabled them to put down their enemies +and given their country its victories and prosperity. While a temple was +erected especially in honor of some particular deity, as Karnak was +dedicated to Amon, other deities might have shrines within it. While it +did honor to the god whose protection had allowed the ruler to rise +triumphantly above all obstacles, yet it was the glory of the king that +the temple exalted--his pictures adorned the walls, his deeds were set +forth in minute detail, his courage in war and relentless energy in +times of peace,--these were carved in stone and written in hieroglyphics +until it was difficult to find a section of wall, a column, a stone +ceiling unadorned. Hymns of victory were inscribed in the temples; +songs of praise and fulsome flattery not infrequently were composed by +the priests. Sometimes the god who presided over the temple seems to +have been well nigh lost sight of, yet even so, honor was accorded him, +since the king was his representative on earth. Because Karnak received +the particular care of many kings, it is one of the most interesting +temples to study, apart from its beauty, its stupendous size and +proportions. + +Lists of dimensions are seldom interesting, and yet, unless we compare +the size of Egyptian structures to others known to us, we fail utterly +to grasp the tremendous scale on which these people built. We have +mentioned the avenue, more than a mile in length, guarded on either side +with sphinxes, which connected this temple with one built by Queen +Hatshepsut. This avenue led finally to a gateway, flanked on both sides +by towers. Either of these towers were themselves spacious enough to +have contained a temple. The temple court was enclosed by a wall 25 feet +thick and varying from 60 to 100 feet in height. Vast wealth was stored +in the temple, and this wall made it possible, in an age before +gunpowder, to protect the place from sudden attacks--always possible +contingencies. The temple itself was 1,180 feet long and 600 feet wide, +and was composed of many rooms and halls built by various kings. We +shall give attention to one alone--the famous Hall of Pillars. + +Often has it been said that to describe this hall and do it justice +exceeds the power of mortals. It is on such a vast scale that modern +times have produced no structures with which to compare it. + +The Hall of Pillars was originally 329 feet long and 170 feet in width. +Through its center were placed two rows of columns, six in each row. +Excluding pedestal and capital, these measured 60 feet in height and in +circumference were so large that should six men stand with arms +extended, fingers touching, they could scarcely encompass one. Seven +rows of pillars, somewhat smaller, were placed on either side of these; +the ceiling was supported by all these columns and was formed of mammoth +blocks of stone. Finally the entire interior was covered with +sculptures, paintings, and hieroglyphics--all recounting the exploits of +the king who built the hall. In a similar fashion the entire temple was +ornamented. + +King succeeded king and each burned with ambition to exceed the skill of +his predecessor. Room after room was added to Karnak and the original +plan greatly expanded. Seti I. however built on such a tremendous plan +that none other eclipsed him, and the Hall of Pillars remains today a +mighty monument to a mighty ruler. + +[Illustration: AMMON-RA, THE GREAT GOD OF THEBES.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Rawlinson, Ancient Egypt, 196. + +[2] Breasted, Ancient Records, II, §§ 658f. + +[3] Horus and Set. + +[4] Isis and Nephthys. + +[5] On the site of the modern Tell el-Amarna, about a hundred and sixty +miles south of Cairo, on the east bank of the Nile. Here the famous Tell +el-Amarna Letters were discovered in 1887. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + + +THE NINETEENTH DYNASTY.[1] + +Before Seti I., founder of the Nineteenth dynasty, succeeded to the +throne, peace and order had been once more restored to Egypt. One +important change had crept into the military life of the country, which +was to lead to trouble later on. Heretofore, Egypt had depended solely +upon her national troops to protect her borders and maintain her +position as first among the nations. Now her armies were increased by +mercenaries--foreign soldiers hired to do her fighting for her. History +has shown that uniformly when a people ceases to depend upon its own +citizens for the main strength of its army, taking instead hired +soldiers who fight simply for the love of fighting and for gain, serving +one cause today and another tomorrow,--whenever a nation has adopted +this policy of providing its armed forces, its years of strength are +numbered. So it was in Egypt. Troops from Libya, from Nubia and Ethiopia +made up her armies. During times of peace they returned to their kindred +and gave glowing accounts of the vast wealth of the Nile valley. It came +about naturally then, that African, as well as Asiatic, tribes looked +with longing eyes upon the coveted country and stood ready at the first +sign of internal weakness to revolt and share the spoils. Strong rulers +of the Nineteenth dynasty held their possessions intact, and foreign +nations bided the time when the first sign of weakness should be the +signal for action. + +The immediate successor of Thutmose III. had little trouble in keeping +Syria in subjection. Taxes regularly reached Thebes. During the reigns +of the Amenhoteps, III. and IV., the Hittites began pushing south from +Asia Minor and organizing the revolt against Egypt. Upon ascending the +throne Seti I. found it expedient to push into western Asia and quell a +vigorous uprising. He was one of Egypt's most capable and farsighted +kings, and being as well a fearless warrior, he carried all before him. +He struck terror to the hearts of his enemies and returned home to find +the Libyans threatening his western borders. After defeating their +chiefs with great slaughter, Seti I. received a large number of their +soldiers into his army as mercenaries. This did very well for the time, +but before four hundred years had passed, their chiefs had become +powerful enough to snatch the throne of Egypt from its rightful +claimants. + +Like most Egyptian rulers, Seti I. was a builder. From earliest years in +Egypt, imposing structures had supplied surest means by which a monarch +could leave evidences of his power. The position of chief architect to +the king had been filled by princes, who held it as a post of honor. +Often the king's sons planned temples for the king's construction, and +not infrequently gave personal supervision to their erection. + +During the last period of civil disorder, many public monuments and +temples had fallen into decay. These Seti I. caused to be restored. He +invariably adhered to the original ideas of the builder, adding but an +inscription to show that by him they were restored. In this respect his +course differed widely from that of many of the Egyptian kings, notably +Ramses II., who boldly appropriated scores of temples and monuments, +substituting his name for that of the original builder. Frequently his +workmen did their task so badly that the first name has been deciphered. +In other cases, the true builder of the temple is now uncertain. + +It was this king who erected the Hall of Pillars, of which we have just +learned. While temples were erected and restored throughout the land, +much of his attention was directed to Thebes--the great and splendid +city so long the capital of Egypt. + +Thebes was built on the east side of the river. On this side dwelt the +pharaohs, the wealthy, and the poor. Here too were the shops, the places +of business and amusement. In fact, all the interests of living, pulsing +Thebes were centered here. On this side also, in the district of Karnak, +was the great temple of Amon. South of it rose the palace of the king; +around this were mansions of the wealthy, while in the narrow streets +reaching into the desert lived those of moderate and limited means. +South of Karnak lay the district of Luxor, and along the river between +these two districts stood the mud huts of the poor. + +Crossing the Nile to the western bank, one came into radically different +surroundings. Here lay the City of the Dead. This was quite unlike any +cemetery of modern times. Here were temples, tombs of kings and queens, +tombs of the wealthy and the prosperous citizens, and the symbolic lake +of the dead. Here were the unpretentious tombs of the masses. Nor was +this all. We have seen that the Egyptian felt it necessary to supply his +dead with all the necessities of life, such as food, furniture, and +ornaments. Here, then, were the shops where such things might be +obtained. Here were the embalmers, the makers of linen used by them; +here lived the priests who said prayers over each finger and toe of the +deceased and made the body ready for its everlasting home. On the west +bank of the river lay a city in itself very different from the living +one across the water. Funeral processions constantly wended their way to +this City of the Dead; wails and lamentations often mingled in the air +with songs of the priests at their devotions. At sunset the gates +admitting to this portion of Thebes were locked and guarded against +bands of robbers who laid in wait for the riches enclosed in the tombs. +The tombs reached out to the rocky range of hills on the west and were +with difficulty protected. + +Ancient Thebes extended some miles in each direction and covered +considerable territory. Little today remains to mark its early splendor. +The ruins at Karnak, the ancient mounds of Luxor, topped by a squalid +Arab village, some tombs opened, some still hidden by the sands, are +left. Much excavating has been done in this so-called "Valley of the +Kings." Strabo and other early writers left some description of the +original city, but aside from such records, little is left today to +indicate the glories of that Thebes which was for hundreds of years the +pride of Egyptian kings. + + +RAMSES. + +Seti I. was followed by his son, the famous Ramses II., or Ramses the +Great. Recent historians claim that this king has been given undue +prominence, and that he was outranked by several Egyptian monarchs, +including his own father. While this is probably true, it would seem +that this pharaoh was as popular as any king who ruled in Egypt. He was +young and handsome when he ascended the throne, and possessed a power of +winning people to himself. That he was filled with self-pride, no one +can deny. He attached his name, as we have seen, to every temple and +monument where it was possible, and scattered statues of himself +broadcast. Yet the only poem that suggests the epic in all Egyptian +literature is the one known as "Pentuar's Poem," in which his bravery at +the battle of Kadesh was sung. + +Ramses had penetrated into Asia to bring the revolting tribes back to +submission. During this particular battle, he became separated from his +body guard and suddenly found himself facing 2,500 charioteers alone. +His personal bravery on that occasion was splendid; his soldiers pressed +on to him quickly, but his daring was seen by them and greatly admired. +The poem of Pentuar was written to celebrate the king's courage in this +crisis. + + +PENTUAR'S POEM.[2] + + "Then the King stood forth, and, radiant with courage, + He looked like the Sun-god armed and eager for battle. + The noble steeds that bore him into the struggle-- + 'Victory to Thebes' was the name of one, and the other + Was called 'contented Nura'--were foaled in the stables + Of him we call 'the elect,' 'the beloved of Amon,' + 'Lord of truth,' the chosen vicar of Ra. + + Up sprang the king and threw himself on the foe, + The swaying ranks of the contemptible Cheta. + He stood alone--alone, and no man with him. + As thus the king stood forth all eyes were upon him, + And soon he was enmeshed by men and horses, + And by the enemy's chariots, two thousand five hundred, + The foe behind hemmed him in, and enclosed him. + Dense the array of the contemptible Cheta, + Dense the swarm of warriors out of Arad, + Dense the Mysian host, the Pisidian legions. + Every chariot carried three bold warriors, + All his foes, and all allied like brothers. + + "'Not a prince is with me, not a captain, + Not an archer, none to guide my horses! + Fled the riders! fled my troops and horse-- + By my side not one is now left standing.' + 'Great father Amon, I have known thee well, + And can the father thus forget his son? + Have I in any deed forgotten Thee? + Have I done aught without Thy high behest, + Or moved or staid against Thy sovereign will? + Great am I--mighty are the Egyptian kings-- + But in the sight of Thy commanding might, + Small as the chieftain of a wandering tribe. + Immortal Lord, crush Thou this unclean people; + Break Thou their necks, annihilate the heathen. + And I--have I not brought Thee many victims, + And filled Thy temple with the captive folk? + And for Thy presence built a dwelling place + That shall endure for countless years to come? + Thy garners overflow with gifts from me. + + "'I offer Thee the world to swell Thy glory, + And thirty thousand mighty steers have shed + Their smoking blood on fragrant cedar piles. + Tall gateways, flag-decked masts, I raised to Thee, + And obelisks from Abu I have brought, + And built Thee temples of eternal stone. + For Thee my ships have brought across the sea + The tribute of the nations. This I did-- + When were such things done in former time? + For dark the fate of him who would rebel + Against Thee; though Thy sway is just and mild. + My father, Amon--as an earthly son + His earthly father--so I call on Thee. + Look down from heaven on me, beset by foes, + By heathen foes, the folk that know Thee not. + The nations have combined against Thy son; + I stand alone--alone, and no man with me. + My foot and horse are fled, I called aloud + And no one heard--in vain I called to them. + And yet I say: the sheltering care of Amon + Is better succor than a million men, + Or than ten thousand knights, or than a thousand + Brothers and sons though gathered into one. + And yet I say: the bulwarks raised by men + However strong, compared to Thy great works + Are but vain shadows, and no human aid + Avails against the foe--but thy strong hand. + The counsel of Thy lips shall guide my way; + I have obeyed whenever Thou hast ruled; + I call on Thee--and, with my fame, Thy glory + Shall fill the world, from farthest east to west.' + + "Yea, his cry rang forth even far as Hermonthis, + And Amon himself appeared at his call; and gave him + His hand and shouted in triumph, saying to the pharaoh + 'Help is at hand, O Rameses. I will uphold thee-- + I thy father am he who now is thy succor, + Bearing thee in my hands. For stronger and readier + I than a hundred thousand mortal retainers; + I am the Lord of victory loving valor. + I rejoice in the brave and give them good counsel, + And he whom I counsel certainly shall not miscarry.' + + "Then like Menth, with his right he scattered the arrows, + And with his left he swung his deadly weapon, + Felling the foe--as his foes are felled by Baal. + The chariots were broken and the drivers scattered, + Then was the foe overthrown before his horses. + None found a hand to fight; they could not shoot, + Nor dared they hurl the spear, but fled at his coming-- + Headlong into the river." + +Having quelled the disturbances incident to his accession--for a change +of rulers was generally the occasion for tribes held in tribute to seek +their freedom--Ramses was free to devote the remainder of his reign, +some forty years, to internal improvements. New cities, embankments, +fortresses, statues, obelisks and temples absorbed his untiring +interest. He seems to have been especially fond of grotto +temples,--those hewn out of rocky hills or mountain sides. Most +beautiful of these was the temple of Abu Simbel, guarded by four famous +statues of this king. They stand today much as they stood three thousand +years ago. One who has gazed upon the unaltering expression of these +sentinels says of them: "The artists who wrought the statues were ... +daunted by no difficulties of scale. Giants themselves, they summoned +these giants from out the solid rock and endowed them with superhuman +strength and beauty. They sought no quarried blocks of syenite or +granite for their work. They fashioned no models of clay. They took a +mountain and fell upon it like Titans and hollowed and carved it as +though it were a cherry stone; and left it for the feebler men of after +ages to marvel at forever. One great hall and fifteen spacious chambers +they hewed out from the heart of it, then smoothed the rugged precipice +toward the river, and cut four huge statues with their faces to the +sunrise, two to the right and two to the left of the doorway, there to +keep watch to the end of time. + +"These tremendous warders sit sixty-six feet high, without the platform +under their feet. They measure across the chest twenty-five feet and +four inches.... If they stood up, they would tower to a height of at +least eighty-three feet, from the soles of their feet to the tops of +their enormous double-crowns."[3] + +To estimate the cost of all those tremendous undertakings in human life +would be impossible. It is believed by some that Ramses II. was the +pharaoh of the oppression of the Hebrews. However, during his +administration they were well fed and while their tasks were hard, they +were not harder than those of other workmen similarly employed. It was +left for his son and successor to make their lot so grievous that a +deliverer was raised up to lead them out of bondage. + +Regard for human life, compassion for the lowly, and the spirit of +humanity were qualities almost unknown in antiquity. The importance of +the individual has only in modern times come to be acknowledged. At the +period of which we are studying, there was no restraint upon the will of +the sovereign. To satisfy his ambition and to gratify his pride, +hundreds of thousands of slaves, captives, and impressed citizens were +continually sacrificed. Some were driven to the mines: others were +harnessed to huge blocks of stone to draw them from the quarry mountain +to the building site; some were set to work in the brick fields, and +over all were placed overseers to goad the workers on, giving little +rest or respite. + +Regarding the Hebrews, it must be remembered that before the Nineteenth +dynasty, they prospered in the land of Egypt. A new king who "knew not +Joseph" looked with disfavor upon these foreign people waxing strong +within his borders. Feeling that they might become a menace to the +country, he determined to exterminate them by dint of excessive work. +One of the "store-cities" built by them under these circumstances has +been unearthed. It was surrounded by a wall thirty feet thick, which +enclosed about twelve acres. Besides a temple, the enclosure contained +subterranean cellars built of sun-dried brick. The bricks themselves +confirm the biblical version of the story. While some are mixed with +straw, as was customary, others were mixed with leaves and +reeds--indicating that straw was no longer supplied. Still others were +made simply of sun-dried mud. + +Ramses II. so covered the land with his works and monuments of his +greatness, that his personality has stamped itself everywhere. + +It caught the attention of early writers and has ever since impressed +itself upon the traveller, so that this king has been exalted to a +prominent place in Egyptian history. Best known of Egypt's kings, for +that reason, possibly, he has been most popular. + +At length Merneptah ruled in his father's stead. Few qualities did he +possess to awaken admiration. When his armies were forced to face an +invasion of African tribes, reinforced by mercenary troops, he remained +in camp while his soldiers won victory for him. The god Ptah, so he +explained, had commanded him to stay inside. This did not deter him from +taking full credit for the successes. Upon his monuments were inscribed +records similar to this: "These people were meditating to do evil to +Egypt. They were as grasshoppers. Lo, I vanquished them; I slaughtered +them, making a spoil of their country." + +It is supposed that at this time Moses came to the relief of Israel, and +asked permission for his people to withdraw a few days into the desert +to offer sacrifices to their God. This was the occasion for the king +both to deny the request and to double the tasks meted out to the +brickmakers by withholding straw and requiring the same amount of work +to be accomplished as before. Then, according to the Hebrew version, +grievous plagues were sent upon Egypt, and only when the king's son, +with the other first born, was stricken in the night, did the monarch +concede to the entreaties of his own people and bid the Hebrews depart +from his land. The story is familiar to all--how when he came to think +of the six hundred thousand valued bonds-people of which he was now +bereft, he dispatched the flower of Egyptian charioteers to prevent the +Hebrews crossing the Red Sea and bring them back to do his bidding. To +these despairing people to whom light seemed about to dawn, the fact +that they were able to cross over while the Egyptian horses were +ensnared and drowned, seemed a miracle enacted for their deliverance. It +has since been noted that similar tidal action at this point has +sometimes repeated itself. To the Hebrews, believing firmly in the +inspired mission of Moses, it was regarded later as an example of how +for the dutiful "all things work together for good." + + +TWENTIETH DYNASTY.[4] + +Ramses III. was the first important ruler of the Twentieth dynasty. He +and his immediate successors were able to hold intact the vast empire +won by earlier kings. We hear no more of aggressive wars for conquest. +However, the time had come when Egypt did well when she maintained such +territories as belonged to her. + +Men of Crete, other islanders and sea-faring people, made common cause +against the Asiatic shore early in this reign. Ramses watched their +progress until they attacked the Egyptian province of Palestine. Not +willing to lose this, the pharaoh marched against the plundering bands +and utterly routed them, taking many captives. Three other campaigns +were directed by this king, but they were carried on to defend Egyptian +borders and hold together tributary provinces. + +Like his father, Ramses III. was a builder. Like him, too, he +appropriated earlier temples and monuments for his own fame and glory. +He built a fleet on the Red Sea, continued the profitable commercial +intercourse with Punt, and caused a large reservoir to be constructed in +Palestine. Another thing he did, which all histories have been careful +to chronicle: he ordered trees and shrubs to be systematically planted +throughout the realm. In a land where for months together the sun pours +its hot rays down on a defenseless people, he tried to bring rest and +cooling shade where both were sorely needed. + +We have often noted the growing power of the priesthood in Egypt, and +have seen that a large amount of the booty and tribute which flowed into +the country from Asia found its way to the temples. An inventory of the +resources of the temples during this reign has come down to us in a +statement prepared by Ramses III., known now as the Papyrus Harris. From +this it appears that the temples owned 107,000 slaves--or 2 per cent of +the entire population; they possessed 750,000 acres, or over 15 per cent +of all the arable land in the valley. Some 500,000 head of cattle, over +80 vessels, 53 workshops and shipyards, brought an annual income; and +169 towns in Egypt Kush and Syria were theirs. All this property in a +land of less than 10,000 square miles and possibly 6,000,000 people, was +exempt from taxation. + +The lion's share of all this wealth fell to the temples sacred to Amon. +The priests of Amon had charge of it, and as time went on, they came to +be regarded as superior to other priestly orders and their High Priest +became the head of all priesthoods in the realm. Of all the temple +estates, Amon owned two-thirds. In slaves, this god owned seven times as +many as any other; of the cattle, more than four-fifths; of the ships, +all but five; of the workshops, forty-six of the fifty-three were his. +Regarding Amon's coffers, Ramses had inscribed: "I have filled its +treasury with the products of the land of Egypt: gold, silver, every +costly stone by the hundred thousand. Its granary was overflowing with +barley and wheat; its lands, its herds, their multitudes were like the +sands of the shore. I taxed for it the Southland as well as the +Northland; Nubia and Syria came to it, bearing their impost."[5] + +In showering all these princely gifts upon Amon, Ramses was but +following the example set by his forefathers. The kings themselves held +the priests somewhat in fear, believing that they had influence with the +gods and could indirectly influence not only their earthly prosperity +but their future welfare. + +While this lavish wealth overflowed the coffers of the temples, we find +the workmen in the service of the government, laboring in the City of +the Dead--the Necropolis--having to resort to strikes, or in older +phraseology, "having to lie at home," because their monthly rations were +not forthcoming. The revenue of the government had, apparently, become +the spoils for corrupt officials who sought to increase their personal +incomes at the expense of the public treasury. Repeatedly starving +laborers left their work and started with their families to leave +Thebes, whereupon part of their rations would be given them and they +would be urged to continue at their tasks! Nor was this all. Records +have come down to us of bands of robbers who made a profession of +rifling tombs of the dead. Worse still, cases for trial were frequently +dismissed because officials themselves and priests of lesser position +were sharing in the booty! Some of the Ramessides removed their +ancestors from the original tombs and had all placed in a shaft where +guards could keep watch over them. It was next to impossible to protect +the wide-reaching City of the Dead, but it was worse than useless to +attempt such a thing when those supposed to lend protection were +themselves participating in the robberies. + +After the death of Ramses III., his descendants to the number of ten +succeeded him. Then the High Priest of Amon snatched the power from +Ramses XIII., taking the title of king as well as the authority which he +already held. For some time the kings had been practically subservient +to him. For almost a hundred and fifty years priests ruled in Egypt.[6] +Under priestly rule the government was quite as corrupt as it had been +previously. Discontent on the part of the workmen, bold robberies of +tombs, were the order of the day. First Libyan, then Ethiopian chiefs +gained possession of the throne. The country fell apart; the days of +Egypt's glory were gone. + +From this time forward her political power was at an end. To be sure, +Ethiopian kings took on Egyptian civilization--as a matter of fact, +their country had long been Egyptianized. They tried to rule as pharaohs +before them had done, worshipping Egyptian gods and keeping temples in +repair. To the average citizen, life was no doubt much as it had been in +former periods. But the old ideas were steadily falling away. The +Assyrians invaded the country, and later, the Persians under Cambyses +conquered it. Now and then a native prince would temporarily get control +and repulse the Libyans and Ethiopians on the west and Asiatic peoples +on the east. Such reactions and returns to the old order were +short-lived, and like the sudden glow of dying embers, bespoke an +approaching end. + +Foreign people and foreign influences pushed into the valley. Especially +did they come from Greece. We have seen that rapid change and quick +assimilation were alien to the nature of the Egyptian. While the Greeks +gained much by this contact, their coming served but to make briefer the +remaining years of Egyptian life. Greek learning was taught and Greek +religion spread into the valley. Finally with the conquest of Alexander +in 331 B.C., the prevailing element in the land became Greek and so +remained until Rome extended her sway over all the ancient world. + +When we think that each succeeding invasion was the occasion for +destruction; when plunder and fire vied with each other in despoiling +the conquered land; when later the few temples which had withstood these +experiences were robbed of their contents, and obelisks, monuments and +statues were scattered among the nations of the earth, to satisfy +personal gratification, we can no longer wonder that so little remains +of that Egypt we have been studying. + +After the period of the priest-kings, the history of Egypt belongs to +the history of Assyria, Babylonia, Greece and Rome, and no longer +concerns us in our attempt to become acquainted with the "earliest +nations." + +We feel some way that the end of Egypt's political power should have +been more splendid than it was--more worthy of her former dignity and +strength, and almost regret that the masses of her citizens had not met +their final repulse in some desperate rally to drive invaders from their +borders. But the end had been long drawn out. Generations of alien rule +had accustomed the people to accept this as a natural condition. +Rawlinson puts it well: "As it was, Egypt sank ingloriously at the +last--her art, her literature, her national spirit decayed and almost +extinct--paying, by her early disappearance from among the nations of +the earth, the penalty of her extraordinarily precocious greatness."[7] + +Such being a brief survey of her political achievements, we turn now to +the life and customs of her people. + +[Illustration: OSIRIS] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] 1350-1205 B.C. + +[2] Records of the Past, ed. Dr. Burch. The author is unknown, but the +poem is known by the name of a scribe who once copied the production. + +[3] Edwards: A Thousand Miles Up the Nile, 262 + +[4] 1200-1090 B.C. + +[5] Breasted: History of Egypt, 493; trans. + +[6] Twenty-first Dynasty, 1090-945 B.C. + +[7] Rawlinson: Ancient Egypt, 402. + + + + +SOCIAL LIFE IN EGYPT + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + + +INTRODUCTORY. + +The social life of ancient peoples has for many greater interest than +their political development. Before the days of Greece self-government +was unknown, and the king embodied in himself the government. Upon his +personal character, his foresight and statesmanship, the weal of the +country depended. For this reason, as we trace the political fortunes of +one nation and another in antiquity, we find that the story consists +largely of the doings of the monarch. When kings were strong and +ambitious, wide activities characterized their reigns; when they were +weak, unprincipled and selfish, their periods were less brilliant. In +any case, one feels how powerless were the masses--how utterly at the +will of the sovereign. To be sure, even in antiquity, it ill behooved a +ruler to disregard his subjects altogether, but conditions had to be +extreme before they would assert themselves against him. + +Apart from a nation's political life, however, there is always a greater +life--the life of the people, regardless of their political relations. +One never exists without the other, and one is influenced by the other; +but the social body includes each and every one, whether of low or high +estate, while the political body may include but a portion of a nation's +people. Again, in spite of bad government, the selfishness of kings, +even in spite of invasions of the enemy, the daily life of the great +majority of early people varied but little. They procured food and +clothing, cared for their children, worked at their various callings, as +civilized beings have done in all ages. Certain peculiar customs are to +be found among each nation, and it is these very peculiarities, +probably, that relieves what might otherwise become a monotonous +repetition. + +We cannot too often recall that the recorded history of ancient Egypt +extended over three thousand years. The manner of life, dress, customs, +etc., changed considerably in that long period, and just as we divide +the social life of England into various epochs--such as social +conditions under Saxon kings, during Norman rule, in Elizabethan years, +etc.--so, for any protracted investigation of social Egypt, we would +find it necessary to make several divisions of the subject. + +The greatest source of knowledge for Egyptian social life is of course +the tombs. From their contents and from the pictures that adorn their +walls much has been ascertained. To be sure, many details are yet +lacking, and Egyptologists seek still for answers to unanswered queries. +Many recovered remains have not yet been classified, and rolls of papyri +lie still untranslated, so undoubtedly the future will make many +contributions to what has already been worked out. Nevertheless, even +now many aspects of the life of the old Nile-dwellers have been +reconstructed with considerable degree of certainty. These recent +conclusions have proven the ancient Egyptian to have been quite a +different creature from what he was long supposed. Until late years it +was believed that he was a solemn, serious individual, overwhelmed with +an ever-present thought of death, for which many of his acts in life +prepared him. This idea was mistaken. The religion of the ancient +Egyptian led him into many curious ways, beyond a doubt, but he was +withal a contented person who found some humor in life. The happenings +of his earthly career were as potent to him as ours are to us. The study +of history should do one thing for us at least: it should teach us to +find strong similarities between the people we see around us today and +those of whom we read and study in antiquity. The normal human being has +in all ages been governed by certain controlling interests, passions and +desires, has pulsed with the vigor of life and its manifold +interests--as we do now and as the Egyptian did, five thousand years +ago. + + +HOUSES. + +In strong contrast with the solid, substantial tombs and temples were +the private dwellings. No need was felt to make these enduring. Rather, +they were constructed in such a way as to allow free circulation of air +and to preserve coolness. The walls were thin, being made of stucco, mud +brick, or wood. The outside of the house was decorated in gay colors, +and was hung with brightly tinted carpets or mattings. Similar coverings +adorned the inner walls. + +Many pictures of ancient Egyptian houses have been found in tomb +pictures. It is apparent that the well-to-do citizen desired seclusion +for his home. An outer wall usually surrounded the house and out +buildings. The general plan of houses for people of comfortable means +was this: a gateway, often of cedar, gave entrance into a court. The +gate was kept locked, save when the keeper opened it to allow visitors +to enter or depart. Crossing the court--of varying size--one entered a +vestibule, guarded by a porter. This vestibule led directly to the +dining hall, the largest and most important room in the house. Sleeping +apartments for the family were reached through a second vestibule and +the kitchen, store-rooms, and servants' apartments, though joined on one +side, were separated from the main portion of the house by an inner +court. Often the houses were two stories in height. Generally a stairway +led to the roof, which was used for many purposes when the heat of the +sun was passed. + +The wealthy required many buildings. One would be set aside for the +women; another contained reception halls for distinguished guests; a +third, store-rooms and supplies; and besides these there might be +several stables and separate quarters for slaves and servants. Service +was cheap and slaves plentiful, so people of even moderate means had +numerous assistants. + +The elaborate estate of the wealthy was exceeded by the magnificence of +the pharaoh, who frequently constructed his own city, as it was called. +Here the king might have plenty of land and surround himself with as +many buildings as he chose, enclosing the whole by a wall. In bitter +contrast to this royal splendor was the squalor of the poor, whose +shelter was a tiny hut built of sun-dried mud. + +For those whose incomes permitted, the garden was the favorite spot. +This we would naturally expect in a country where out of door life is +interrupted only in the middle of the day by the intense heat. In the +garden, trees, shrubs, and many kinds of flowers were planted. Its size +depended upon the prosperity of the owner. Sometimes the court, however +tiny, provided all the garden plot he possessed; sometimes extensive +grounds included flower-gardens, date orchards, and sycamore groves, +while summer houses and artificial ponds were scattered over wide areas. +Small wonder was it that the "pious Egyptian hoped his soul, as its +supreme felicity, would return to sit under the trees he had planted, by +the side of the ponds he had dug, there to enjoy the refreshing breeze +from the north." + +The Egyptians were passionately fond of flowers. They grew them in their +gardens, filled their houses with the blossoms, used them lavishly at +their feasts and carved them on their tombs and in their temples. They +sought ever to increase their varieties, originally few, and we have +seen that the kings often prized new specimens found in other lands +above their tribute. + +"Everywhere on the monuments we meet with flowers; bouquets of flowers +are presented to the gods; the coffins are covered with wreaths of +flowers; flowers form the decoration of the houses, and all the capitals +of the pillars are painted in imitation of their colored petals. The +Egyptian also loved shady trees. He not only prayed that the 'Nile +should bestow every flowering plant in their season' upon his departed +soul, but also that his soul might sit 'on the boughs of the trees that +he had planted, and enjoy the cool air in the shade of his sycamore.' +The arable fields, the shadeless woods of palms, the bare mud soil, +scarcely provided the scenery which he most admired; he therefore tried +to supply the want by landscape gardening. In the oldest periods there +were parks and gardens; and the gentleman of ancient Egypt talked with +pride of his shady trees, his sweet-smelling plants, and his cool tanks. +All the sentiments with which we regard the woods and meadows of nature, +the Egyptian felt towards his well kept garden; to him it was the +dwelling place of love, and his trees were the confidants of lovers. + +"On the 'festival day of the garden,' that is on the day when the garden +was in full bloom, the wild fig-tree calls to the maiden to come into +the shade of the fig leaves as a trysting place: + + "The little Sycamore, + Which she planted with her hand + She begins to speak, + And her (words are as) drops of honey. + She is charming, her bower is green, + Greener than the (papyrus). + She is laden with fruit, + Redder than the ruby, + The color of her leaves is as glass, + Her stem is as the color of the opal.... + It is cool in her shadow. + She sends her letter by a little maiden, + The daughter of her chief gardener + She makes her haste to her beloved: + Come and linger in the (garden) ... + The servants who belong to thee + Come with the dinner things; + They are bringing beer of every (kind), + With all manner of bread, + Flowers of yesterday and of today, + And all kinds of refreshing fruit. + Come, spend this festival day + And tomorrow and the day after tomorrow + Sitting in my shadow. + Thy companion sits at thy right hand, + Thou dost make him drink, + And then thou dost follow what he says.... + I am of a silent nature + And I do not tell what I see + I do not chatter."[1] + +Having attractive grounds as a setting, the houses of the wealthy +Egyptians were also attractive indoors. The dining room was the +important room of the house. Guests generally sat on stools when dining. +When ladies gathered for a banquet, they frequently sat on costly rugs +spread upon the floor. Servants or slaves served those assembled from a +large table loaded with tempting viands. + +The Egyptian seems no longer far away and mummy-like when we learn that +he was fond of good things to eat. Roast goose was a favorite dish; +bread and beer were constantly in demand, quite as they are in Germany +today. In naming over the dishes he hoped to supply his departed, in a +tomb we may read: five kinds of birds, sixteen kinds of bread and cake, +six varieties of wine, and eleven different fruits. The bread, molded +into fancy shapes, was made of barley and wheat. Grapes were generally +grown, and fig trees too. Tame monkeys were trained to go into the high +branches of the fig trees and throw down the fruit. + +Many specimens of ancient household furniture have been found in +Egyptian tombs, such as chairs, couches, tables and bedsteads. In the +sleeping apartments, high couches were reached by steps. Wooden +headrests took the place of pillows. These were used in order that the +wigs and elaborate head dresses might not be disturbed while the wearers +slept. + +The student who would make an exhaustive study of the Egyptian house and +its contents must go to the museums where discovered articles have been +preserved, or at least to the detailed descriptions of these given by +Maspero and other Egyptologists. We could not well leave a consideration +of the subject however, without giving brief attention to the dwellings +of the poor, who in every age and country have made up a large part of +the population. + +The fellah of today lives much as did the peasant of antiquity. His +dwelling was a hut built of mud and roofed with palm leaves. While the +poorest had but one room, those who were more industrious, perhaps, +might have two or three. Once or twice in a century, rain would fall. +Then these huts would dissolve and flow away. When the storm ceased, all +the family would set to work, level off the spot and construct a new +dwelling from sun-dried mud, which after being exposed to the heat of a +few days, would be as good as ever. This leveling of huts, whether +caused by storms, or because it was easier to build a new house than +cleanse the old one, has elevated the land in many parts of Egypt. +Frequently it is the case that peasants have dwelt so long on the sites +of buried cities, that the explorer who today would reach the original +settlement must tunnel down through many layers of sun-dried mud, once +the dwellings of the poor. + + +FAMILY LIFE. + +It is frequently said that the test of a nation's civilization is the +position accorded to woman. Applying this test to Egypt, her +civilization would rank well with nations of modern times as well as +with those contemporaneous with her. From the earliest times of which we +have record, Egyptian women were the companions and trusted counsellors +of their husbands. During the New Empire it was the boast of one of the +Ramessides that any woman might go alone and unveiled as far in any +direction as she wished, confident that she would not be accosted nor +disturbed. + +Two customs prevailed in ancient Egypt that are contrary to the moral +standards of our day: one was the practice of a brother marrying his +sister; the second, a husband having more than one wife. Early peoples +did not regard these practices in the light of modern opinion. The +Hebrews, for example, frequently took two or more wives, and the same +habit obtained among the Babylonians and Assyrians. Among pastoral +tribes of the present day this custom survives. In all cases, _one_ +woman was regarded as the legitimate wife, and her children were heirs +to their father's estate, while children by his other wives might or +might not be recognized by the father as his heirs, according to his +pleasure. As a rule, only the well-to-do Egyptian could afford the +luxury of two wives, so that polygamy was not common among the lower +classes. There seems to have been little friction in the Egyptian +household between the several wives. Stories have come down to us of +women who cared enough for other wives of their husbands to name +children for them. Certain marks of honor were the right of the first +wife and were conceded as a matter of course. + +The marriage of those close of kin was quite usual. The word _sister_ in +Egypt came to be used interchangeably for wife or sister. In this land +it appears to have frequently resulted that a boy and girl, brought up +in the same family, having similar ideas and interests, married and +lived happily together in their married life. + +Multifarious were the duties of a wife of the middle class. She cared +for the family, spun and wove, sent the little ones to school and took +them a lunch at mid-day. She drew water at the nearest pool, ground +corn into meal and made the meal into cakes; she drove the cattle to +pasture and collected the fuel. What did not this mother do? It is +little wonder that from lack of care and nourishment, large numbers of +children died before they became ten years of age. Those who lived were +indeed the survival of the fittest, and aside from a disease of the +eye--brought on by the glaring sand and burning sun--they were generally +healthy and equal to any hardship. Marrying young, women were often +grandmothers at thirty. Although they faded early, they did not suffer +in their position in the family on that account. Great respect was shown +them while they lived, and after their death they were worshipped--for +the Egyptian always worshipped his ancestors. Believing that the soul +lived on, it might work harm for the surviving relatives and friends +unless appeased with marked consideration. This desire to escape +possible harm by satisfying the departed appears to have been the strong +motive inducing ancient peoples to worship the dead. + +The children were left with the mother until almost four years of age. +Dolls and other toys found buried in the tombs with little ones show +that they, in those far away times, were quite like children who have +lived since. When four, they were sent to an elementary school. If at +ten the son had evinced any special ability that would justify educating +him, he was put into a school maintained by the priests. Here he was +trained for a scribe unless his early promise was borne out by rapid +progress, in which case he was educated for the priesthood. If by the +age of ten he had given no special evidence of ability, he was taught a +trade. + +The old idea that caste was strongly marked in Egypt is not only +misleading but untrue. Class distinctions were closely drawn in Egypt, +as they are today, even in America. The average child born in the slums +of a city seldom comes to importance. The son of a day laborer rarely +marries into the wealthy or so-called "old families." The reason for +this is not so much that there is objection in America to the humblest +born rising to any height, but that the opportunities for progress to +one born into such surroundings are few. It was somewhat similar in +Egypt. Chances for rapid advance were by no means as favorable then as +now, but nevertheless, there are many cases on record where men +attained high official position in spite of great social disadvantages. + +[Illustration: TOURISTS SCALING THE GREAT PYRAMID.] + +The affection of the Egyptians for their children was almost universal. +Large families were desired, even by those in moderate circumstances. +Indeed it was necessary that families be perpetuated, for thus alone +would family tombs be kept up and respect be shown those who had +departed. Among all people who worship ancestors, children are +especially desired and to be bereft of them is the greatest hardship and +affliction. + +In spite of all that has been said of the respect paid to women, the +happy domestic relations in Egypt and the affection for children, it is +doubtful whether or not there was much home life as we today understand +the phrase. The importance of the individual is a modern conception. The +will of the king was paramount in Egypt and all citizens were first of +all subservient to his wishes. Less security, less freedom in pursuing +one's own course probably resulted in brief periods of family unity. +Surely such must have been the result of early marriages which took +children from their parents at a tender age. + + +DRESS. + +Suppose for a moment that some unforseen catastrophe should wipe out the +inhabitants of England, and future generations attempted to reconstruct +their history, from the age of King Arthur and his knights to the +peaceful days of Edward the Seventh. After working out an outline of +their political development, suppose it should be asked, But how did +these people dress? Think of the variety of costumes that have been +popular since the Round Table days! Who could describe them all? The +task would be disheartening indeed. And yet, far more years sped over +Egypt than England has yet known. + +Living in a warm country, the Egyptian required simpler raiment than the +Englishman. In early times a short, scant skirt was worn by both men and +women--the children were generally not clothed at all. This skirt, which +formed the foundation of all the later, more elaborate dress, changed in +style from one age to another. Sometimes it was scantier than at other +times and it varied in length. During the Sixth dynasty, either by means +of pressing, or by some device, the front of the skirt was made to +assume a stiff, triangular appearance. As pictured on the tombs, it +looks like a three-cornered apron. In the Old Empire, the great lords +threw a panther skin across their shoulders, when, as Erman expresses +it, "they wished to appear in full dress." + +In the Middle Empire people of high position wore two skirts, the under +one short and of heavy linen; the outer skirt so sheer that the contour +of the body was quite visible. + +By the Eighteenth dynasty it had become customary to clothe the upper +portion of the body. Even now the arms were left free. The king appeared +occasionally in a mantle and the nobles also donned mantles for festival +days. + +Working people always clothed in the simplest fashion. All garments were +frequently discarded in the field, as they impeded rapid movement. The +supersensitive modesty of our day which cries out against a low bodice +or lace hose, even raises objection at undraped marble statues, had no +part in the thought of these simple-hearted, pure-minded people; yet +they showed a fitting sense of decorum and dignity. + +It was the men in Egypt who delighted in finery and showy costumes, +while the dress of the women was plainer and remained almost wholly +unaltered for centuries together. Their usual garment during the later +periods was a close fitting gown reaching from under the arms to the +ankles, and mistress and maid were dressed much alike. In the New Empire +a cloak was added, but it and the gown beneath were of sheerest linen +procurable. As time went on, garments of both men and women were +elaborately embroidered. + +The ancient Egyptian desired to preserve absolute cleanliness. Scenes +characteristic of washing day have been pictured on many a tomb. The +chief washer was assisted by others who beat the clothes, wrung them +out, bleached and dried them. It was the desire to be clean which led +these people to shave their heads and beards. Wigs of curled wool and +others of long hair are constantly seen in the old pictures, although it +sometimes appears that these covered heads already crowned by a natural +growth. While they shaved off the beard as something unclean, the +Egyptians still shared in the idea common to oriental peoples that a +beard gives added dignity, hence the king and men of rank wore +artificial beards on state occasions. Even Queen Hatshepsut assumed one +when she wished to appear regal. + +Sandals and foot gear were not popular at any time, although men of the +higher classes wore them when they walked abroad. Men and women alike +donned necklaces and bracelets, while women wore anklets also. Earrings +were introduced by foreigners and rings seem to have been confined to +seal rings. Walking sticks were carried as badges of honor and each +style of stick indicated a degree of social rank. + +The Egyptians painted their faces, rouged their lips, blackened their +eyes, and oiled their hair and bodies. At a feast a slave would bring a +ball soaked in oil for each guest, place it on his head, in order that +the oil might gently percolate through the hair of the banqueter during +the meal. The dead were provided with many kinds of oil, perfumes, and +rouges for use of the double, or ka. + +Probably many allowed their hair to grow long, for we find physicians +taxed to their utmost to supply concoctions which would produce heavy +growths of hair, strengthen it and prevent it from turning grey. All +these remedies are found in old papyri: + +To prevent the hair turning grey: "The blood of a black calf, cooked in +oil--a salve." + +Or this: "Two parts of bloods, horn of a black cow, warm it up for a +salve." + +When the hair fell out: "Take fat of the lion, of the hippopotamus, the +crocodile, the cat, the snake, and the ibex." + +To strengthen the hair: "Anoint it with the tooth of a donkey crushed in +honey." + +Or try this: "Boil the hoof of a donkey in oil together with a dog's +foot, and some date kernels." + +[Illustration: VIEW OF MANSION, FROM THE TOMB OF ANNA, EIGHTEENTH +DYNASTY.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 193. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + + +SPORTS AND RECREATIONS. + +The pastimes and diversions of any people fall easily in two divisions; +those which are adapted to the open air, and those enjoyed indoors. The +popular outdoor sports among the Egyptians were hunting, fishing and +boating, while the banquet with its attendant dancing and music, helped +them to pass those hours when Amon, god of the sun, concealed, reigned +over all. + +The wealthy Egyptian liked to take his wife or family in his light boat +and wander at will among the reeds and marshy plants abounding in the +little streams and lakes left still undrained. It was fine sport to flit +in and out among the tall papyrus, rouse a flock of birds and bring some +of them down with the boomerang. Fishes were plentiful in the streams, +and the sportsman chose to get them with a two-pointed spear. If he +became expert, he could spear two at once--one on either point. To be +sure, the game dealers, requiring large numbers of fish and fowl, caught +both in a net. Only the noble or the well-to-do had time to indulge in +hunting and fishing for mere diversion. In the tomb pictures, gentlemen +are shown seated in their gardens, on costly rugs, it may be, leisurely +spearing fish in their own artificial ponds. This was too simple a +process for any but the most indolent, and did not appeal to the true +sportsman who loved the natural streams. + +Great was the attraction of these marshy lakes. "Much of the country +formerly covered by marshes and tropical forests was already arable +land. At the same time old river beds remained; stretches of marsh and +half-stagnant water, overgrown as of old with papyrus reeds, offered +shelter to the hippopotamus, the crocodile and to numberless +water-birds. This was the happy hunting ground of the great lords of +ancient Egypt, the oft-mentioned 'backwaters,' the 'bird tanks of +pleasure.' They played the same part in Egyptian life as the forest in +German folk lore; the greatest delight perhaps that an Egyptian knew was +to row in a light boat between the beautiful waving tufts of the +papyrus reeds, to pick the lotus flowers, to start the wild birds and +then knock them over with the throw-stick, to spear the great fish of +the Nile and even the hippopotamus, with the harpoon. Pictures of all +periods exist representing these expeditions, and we have but to glance +at them in order to realize how much the Egyptians loved these wild +districts, and how much poetry they found in them."[1] + +Danger mingled with sport in capturing the larger game--the hippopotamus +and crocodile. Pictures of crocodile hunts have not been found. Probably +they were not painted, because in certain parts of Egypt these animals +were held sacred to some god, and even those who did not share this +belief might not have cared to record the killing of them in the tomb. +No such feeling existed concerning the hippopotamus and he who was +successful in securing one seldom failed to have the hunt pictured in +his tomb. You will remember that in ancient Egypt, each person built his +own tomb during his life time, and so decided for himself for what he +was to be remembered. + +The deserts and mountains on either side offered game to the hunter. +Gazelles, antelopes, foxes, hares, and other small animals, such as +rabbits, abounded. Did one crave greater adventure, he might follow the +leopard and the lion. It was quite the custom for the wealthy man, who +followed the chase for sport, to collect wild animals and add them to +the menagerie usually found on the large estates. Here were elephants +and baboons from Asia, giraffes from the upper Nile, lions, leopards, +hyenas and gazelles from the deserts. Some became quite tame and were +taught tricks. Lions were favorite pets, and kings often took them along +on their campaigns. Monkeys were found in almost every household; and +since hunting was so popular, various kinds of hounds were more numerous +than other species of dogs. + +In addition to the small canoe in which he hunted water birds, the +nobleman usually had a large, square-sailed, double-masted boat in which +he would take his family and friends for an evening sail down the river. +His musicians would accompany him, and dispense sweet strains on their +harps and lutes, in harmony with the quiet waters. + +Feasting was popular alike with men and women. Music and dancing were +invariably furnished as means of entertainment. Many pictures of the +banquet remain. Sometimes ladies in elaborate toilettes are shown, +partaking of all sorts of dainties, while dancing girls move gracefully +before them, beating time to the music which accompanied them. Sometimes +the dances were intricate; one of them pictured in a tomb seems to +represent papyrus reeds, swaying in the wind. Others were yet more +elaborate. + +Music was popular among all classes. Flutes, lutes and harps are shown +in the tomb pictures. Singing often accompanies the harp. Among the +superintendents of "all the most beautiful pleasures of the king" were +superintendents of singing. Thus it seems royalty, at least, did not +trust to inspiration for entertainment, but prudently had it arranged +and rehearsed in advance. At Memphis there is said to have been a school +where music was taught to girls. + +Some games of chance were popular in Egypt. Checkers was known and a +picture remains wherein Ramses II. is playing the game with his +daughter. + +It remains to speak of certain other customs of the feast. The ladies +would come together to make their toilets, rouging their lips, +blackening their eyes, offering one another their flowers to smell, and +examining each other's jewelry. + +"The serving boys and girls go round, offering ointment, wreaths, +perfumes, and bowls of wine. They challenge the guests at the same time +to 'celebrate the joyful day' by the enjoyment of the pleasure of the +present moment; the singers also continually repeat the same as the +refrain to their song. They sing to the guests as they quaff the wine: + + 'Celebrate the joyful day! + Let sweet odours and oils be placed for thy nostrils, + Wreaths of lotus flowers for the limbs + And for the bosom of thy sister, dwelling in thy heart + Sitting beside thee. + Let song and music be made before thee. + Cast behind thee all cares and mind thee of pleasure, + Till cometh the day when we drew towards the land + That loveth silence.' + +or: + + 'Put myrrh on thy head, array thyself in fine linen, + Anointing thyself with the true wonders of God. + Adorn thyself with all the beauty thou canst. + With a beaming face celebrate the joyful day and rest not therein + For no one can take away his goods with him, + Yea, no one returns again, who has gone hence.'"[2] + +The men banqueted alone. Dancing and music diverted them during the +feast. It was customary to pass the image of a mummy around at the +feast, while words similar to these were repeated: "Look upon this and +know, even as it is, so shalt thou be--for all must die." This in no way +dampened the pleasures of the night; rather, each sought to enjoy to its +fullest capacity the fleeting hours. + +[Illustration: FACADE OF A HOUSE TOWARD THE STREET. SECOND THEBAN +PERIOD.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 235. + +[2] Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 255. + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + + +AGRICULTURE AND CATTLE RAISING. + +Owing to the inexhaustible fertility of the Nile valley, fine crops were +always forthcoming on the land reached by the annual overflow. The rich +mud deposited by the flood left the productive qualities of the soil +restored, and it was never necessary to leave the fields lie fallow. +However, the ground had not only to be merely reached by the river +waters, but to be saturated, for rain seldom fell and whatever humidity +was supplied the growing vegetation, came from the overflow. A system of +irrigation brought the water in trenches as near each farm as possible. +From these trenches, thousands of men and boys, employed throughout the +country, lifted water in buckets to the higher land, that all the crops +might receive sufficient moisture. + +As soon as the river receded, all the valley was astir with busy people, +getting the ground ready for the grain and other seed. Implements of the +farm were crude indeed, and crude they are today. A high official in +recent times had a quantity of agricultural implements, such as are used +by the most progressive farmers in America, imported into Egypt and +endeavored to encourage the peasants to use them. Not they. What had +served the needs of seven thousand years in their valley was deemed +sufficient for them, and after some time, the entire outfit had to be +sold for old iron. + +Pictures in tombs depict many scenes connected with grain +production--from the plowing of the soil to the storing of the grain +into granaries. From these pictures we are able to outline the daily +life of the peasant. + +Their plows were crude, wooden implements, which at best did little more +than scratch over the soil. Coarse clods of earth had to be broken with +a sort of wooden hoe. Then the farmer scattered seed over the mellow +ground, driving flocks of sheep across the fields to tread it in. Aside +from the matter of irrigation, the crops needed little attention until +the time for harvest. Then the grain was cut by a sickle, loaded on to +donkeys and taken to the threshing-floor, located near the village. Here +in early times it was trodden out by donkeys, driven back and forth over +it. Later oxen were in greater favor for threshing. The grain was freed +from chaff by throwing it up into the air rapidly. The grain fell +straight down, while the chaff was blown forward. Now it was ready for +the "scribes of the granary," who measured it and supervised it while +being stored safely away. Sometimes the boats of a nobleman would ply +back and forth for weeks together, bringing his heavy yield of millet +and barley to his granaries. + +One word about the "corn" of Egypt. The Indian corn which we call corn +today is a native American product, and was unknown to antiquity. Corn +has been used as a common name for all grain. Wheat, barley and millet +were the leading grains of Egypt. + +Taxes were paid in kind--in produce; so naturally, large quantities of +grain were poured yearly into the coffers of the government. This was +stored against times of need which occasionally fell upon Egypt. It was +in one of these years when a famine swept over the east that Joseph's +brothers came down into the valley to buy grain from government +granaries. + +Little is known of the vegetables grown in antiquity. Probably many of +those common today were raised. Melons were extensively grown; onions +and cucumbers were probably known and the grape vine was extensively +cultivated. + +Cattle raising was carried to some perfection. The Egyptians understood +well the secrets of high breeding and produced especially fine specimens +of cows and oxen. Being fond of all animals, they were partial to the +ox, symbolic of great strength, and to the cow, sacred to Isis. As the +lion, with its strength, has appealed to many people, so the ox was a +favorite with the dwellers on the Nile. + +The herders made up a class by themselves. In the summer they drove the +cattle up north, into the marshes, where pasture was good. The average +Egyptian looked upon these men with deepest disgust, for they let their +hair grow, and wore beards. They lived in portable reed huts. Their +lives were quite primitive and they had a general unkempt appearance. +They dressed very little, and their efforts to copy the Egyptian skirt +in their stiff matting, afforded the townsman much amusement. They +spent their idle time weaving papyrus reeds into mats, and wove boats +from the same useful plant. + +When the fall came, they returned with their herds from the northern +marshes. When they reached home, officials came to inspect the flocks. +They noted the increase of the stock, all losses and other matters of +interest to the owners. Records show that single proprietors sometimes +owned as many as 1,300 cows, in addition to other cattle. + +Large flocks of sheep were kept, and goats were plentiful. Few pictures +of pigs are to be seen, and those only in the New Empire period. The pig +was objected to on religious grounds, as unclean. + +Their fondness for animals led the Egyptians to receive as many wild +animals as possible into their flocks. These were fattened with the +cattle. Mention is made of the ibex and antelope being especially valued +when they had been fed for awhile with the herds. + +Birds were apparently not extensively domesticated. This was not +necessary, for the bird-catchers could find any number of ducks and +geese in the marshes, fatten them for a time, and supply them without +the trouble of raising them. The goose was the favorite bird. Roast +goose was a favorite dish and was offered as a delicacy to the gods. +Pictures even show geese kept as pets, in the place of dogs or monkeys. + +While the whole civilization of Egypt was based on its agriculture and +its cattle raising, the farmer and herder had no social standing. The +tiller of the soil was regarded as an overworked creature who never +became prosperous. The land was generally owned by great noblemen of +wealth, who themselves received the profit. + +"The following sad sketch of the lot of the harvestmen was written by +the compiler of a didactic letter, of which many copies are extant, and +implies not only a personal opinion, but the general view of this +matter: The worm has taken half of the food, the hippopotamus the other +half; there were many mice in the fields, the locusts have come down and +the cattle have eaten, and the sparrows have stolen. Poor miserable +agriculturist! What was left on the threshing floor thieves made away +with.... Then the scribe lands on the bank to receive the harvest, his +followers carry sticks and the negroes carry palm rods. They say: 'Give +up the corn'--and there is none there. Then they beat him as he lies +stretched out and bound to the ground, they throw him into the canal and +he sinks down, head under water.... This is, of course, an exaggerated +picture, which is purposely overdrawn by the writer, in order to +emphasize the striking contrast that he draws in his eulogy of the +profession of scribe; in its main features, however, it gives us a very +true idea, for the lot of the ancient peasant very much resembled that +of the modern fellah. The latter labours and toils without enjoying the +results of his own work. He earns a scanty subsistence, and, +notwithstanding all his industry, he gains no great renown amongst his +countrymen of the towns; the best they can say of him is, that he is +worthy to be compared with his own cattle."[1] + + +ARTISANS AND THEIR CRAFTS. + +Countries today can easily import such articles of manufacture as are +not produced within their own boundaries. A single household may possess +silk made in India, porcelain from China, curtains and laces from +Belgium, cutlery from England, and some musical instruments made in +Germany. All this was different in antiquity. Egypt long remained +isolated. She developed a higher civilization than her neighbors, and +what her people required had to be produced for the most part within her +borders. It followed naturally that a wide variety of trades and crafts +grew up in the limited valley of the Nile. To be sure, during her empire +period many lands sent their choicest products as tribute, yet even +then, Egyptians held first place in certain arts and crafts. + +There was little native wood in the valley. When the conquests of +Thutmose I. established relations with Syria, woods were imported to +some extent. Mummies have been found encased in the rare cedars of +Lebanon. Generally speaking, however, substitutes had to be found for +timber. Light boats were made from reeds, and for the making of larger +ones, boatmakers became expert in joining together small pieces of wood, +thus forming large boards, strong enough to bear severe strains. For +some purposes, cartonage was substituted. This was composed of several +layers of coarse linen glued together. It was used extensively for the +manufacture of coffins. In veneering rare woods upon less costly +foundations, the Egyptians far surpassed any modern efforts. Wood +carvers reached a high degree of skill in fashioning little statuettes +and images from wood, also in carving, with exquisite detail, tiny +wooden amulets and ornaments. Handles of knives sometimes display the +dexterity of the wood carvers. + +Even greater, perhaps, was their success in metal work. Bronze was +commonly used for articles of every day use. Iron was known and was +reserved more especially for weapons of warfare and for some kinds of +knives. For a time, silver was more highly valued than gold, being more +rare. Later it was found in greater quantities, and took rank with gold, +or had even less value. Statues of the gods were made commonly in +bronze, although many were fashioned from gold. The goldsmith was a +person of good social standing. He made statues of the gods to adorn the +temples and he cut and set jewels for royalty. The number of precious +stones was quite extensive in Egypt. Diamonds, rubies and sapphires were +seemingly unknown, but amethysts, emeralds, garnets, agates, jasper and +lapis lazuli were available. The Egyptians, both men and women, were +very fond of personal adornments, and jewelry was worn in profusion by +the wealthy and to some extent by all. Amber, turquoise, coral and +pearls were popular. Every man wore a seal ring--and this not merely as +an ornament. Letters and documents were never signed in these +ages--rather, one affixed his seal. The noble wore a costly ring; the +citizen of humble position, one of slight value, but every one who +expected to transact any business or carry on any correspondence wore a +seal ring of some kind. Women, to the same extent, wore necklaces. Most +elaborate ones have been discovered in the tombs of royalty; very simple +ones adorned the necks of the humbler women, yet none was so poor as to +lack a necklace altogether. Bracelets, anklets, hair combs and +ornaments, amulets, chains, and scarabs were greatly in demand, and the +goldsmiths of ancient Egypt attained great originality, skill and +perfection in his art. So constant being the demand for inexpensive +jewelry, remarkable skill was reached in imitating precious stones in +glass. Indeed, it is difficult for experts today to determine in some +cases whether the stone be real or imitated. + +In glass work, the Egyptians preferred colored glass to the clear. +Whatever glass utensils remain are invariably colored. Blue was a +favorite color. Thin layers of glass were used sometimes to decorate +coffins. Blown glass was not made in early times, statements to the +contrary notwithstanding. Pictures once supposed to represent glass +blowers at work are now understood to depict one stage of metal working. + +Pottery was never brought to any high mark by the Nile dwellers. Clay +utensils were used for only the most ordinary purposes, and the jars, +bowls, and vases which remain give evidence of poor material having been +used in the first place, indifferent labor in the next place, poor fire +and little skill in ornamentation. These indifferent results were +satisfactory enough for the commonest uses and for anything more, +something in metal appears to have been demanded. + +Hunting being a favorite pastime, and cattle raising carried on to such +a wide extent, Egypt became rich in skins. The skins of rarer animals +were never shorn of the natural hair. This was dressed and used for +coverings of couches and chairs--for shields and even garments. Skins of +cattle were made into leather and worked up into sandals, straps and +aprons for workmen. Pictures of boats are shown with leather sails, and +leather was used for manifold purposes. + +The extensive use of linen for clothing necessitated a large production +of flax. Those who wove--mostly women, in spite of Herodotus to the +contrary--attained a high skill and dexterity in their work. Linen was +generally kept white, and was frequently made so thin and sheer that the +outlines of the body were visible through it. + +Of the condition and life of the average artisan, we know that he was +allowed to hold no office under the government and had no political +rights whatever. Every man was obliged by law to have some calling and +to follow it, nor could he work at trades other than his own. This +insured good work--always exacted by the Egyptians from their workmen +who often received but meager food and no wages. Probably the highly +prized work of the goldsmith was well paid. The Egyptians frequently +paid for their goods in kind. + +Large numbers of laborers belonged to the state or the temples, and they +were provided only the bare necessities of life. Some of these men knew +how to chisel the hard granite which almost defies the strong steel of +today; others could decorate tombs with animated scenes which still +today retain their original colors. All these men lived in wretched +poverty, in little mud huts, and often had to besiege their overseers +for bread. It appears to have been customary to give these workmen their +monthly rations at the beginning of the month. Probably the supply was +scanty at best, and the hungry laborers made heavy inroads upon it +during the first few days. Ere twenty days had passed they were often +entirely out of meal for bread, to say nothing of oil and other +necessities. Only a threat to appeal to the king would at times bring +the needed food. The workmen maintained that the officers withheld from +them their dues, only to add it to their own personal stores--a claim +that was no doubt well founded, and needs no better proof than the +granting of more food to those who united and ceased to work until +supplies were forthcoming. + + +MARKETS. + +For an understanding of the old Egyptian market we can do no better than +read the description worked out by Maspero from scenes still existing in +the tombs: + +"We ... suddenly emerge into the full sunshine of a noisy little square, +where a market is being held. Sheep, geese, goats, asses, large-horned +oxen, scattered in unequal groups in the center, are awaiting a +purchaser. Peasants, fishermen, small retail dealers, squat several deep +in front of the houses, displaying before them, in great rush baskets or +on low tables, loaves of pastry, fruit, vegetables, fish, meat raw or +cooked, jewels, perfumes, stuffs, all the necessities and all the +superfluities of Egyptian life. + +"The customers stroll past and leisurely examine the quality of the +commodities offered for sale; each carries something of his own +manufacture in his hand--a new tool, some shoes, a mat, or a small box +full of rings of copper, silver, even of gold, of the weight of an +_outnou_ (a little over two ounces), which he proposes to barter for the +objects he requires. Two customers stop at the same moment in front of +a fellah, who exhibits onions and wheat in front of a basket. Instead of +money, the first holds two necklets of glass or of many colored +earthenware, the second a round fan with a wooden handle, and one of +those triangular ventilators which the cooks use to quicken the fire. +'Here is a beautiful necklet which will please you, this is what you +want,' cries the former; whilst the latter urges, 'Here is a fan and a +ventilator.' However, the fellah, quite overcome by this double attack, +methodically proceeds to first seize a string of beads for closer +examination. 'Let me see it, that I may fix a price.' The one asks too +much, the other too little; from concession to concession they finally +come to terms, and settle the number of onions or the weight of corn +which the necklet or fan may be worth. Elsewhere it is a question of +bartering a pair of sandals or a row of enamelled beads for some +perfume. 'Here,' urges the buyer, 'is a very strong pair of shoes.' But +the seller does not require shoes for the moment, so he offers one of +his small pots in exchange for a row of beads. 'It is delicious when a +few drops are poured out,' he explains, with a persuasive air. A woman +thrusts under the nose of a kneeling individual two jars, probably +containing some ointment of her own manufacture. 'Here,' she cries, 'it +smells sweet enough to entice thee.' Behind this group two men are +discussing the value of a packet of fish-hooks; a woman, box in hand, is +a vendor of bracelets and necklets; another woman endeavors to obtain a +reduction upon the price of a fish, which is being dressed before her. + +"When it is a question of a large animal, or of objects of considerable +value, the accounts become intricate. For instance, Ahmosou sells a bull +for a mat, five measures of honey, eleven measures of oil, and seven +objects of different kinds. Now, imagine the calculations which must +have been made before he succeeded in establishing such a complicated +balance.... The mat was estimated at 25 outnou, the honey at 4, the oil +at 10, and so on, the whole weighing 119 outnou, which is not too dear +for a beast in good condition. This custom of payment by one of the +usual metals is so convenient, and dispenses with so many calculations, +that it has been adopted even for the minor transactions of daily life. +The butcher, the baker, the corn-chandler, all the small tradesmen +prefer exchange for metal, which is of small compass and does not spoil, +to exchange for objects, often bulky in size, which is liable to +deteriorate if kept too long in the house. A pair of ducks is worth a +quarter of an outnou in copper; a fan, a quarter; a bronze razor is +worth a whole outnou; a pickaxe, two; a goat, two; an ox-head, half an +outnou in silver; a leather bottle of fine wine, three outnou of +gold.... + +"Two or three commercial streets or bazaars open from the other side of +the square, and the crowd hastens towards them when it leaves the +market. Nearly their whole length is filled with stalls and shops, in +which not only Egypt, but the majority of the oriental nations display +their most varied productions. Beautifully ornamented stuffs from Syria, +Phoenician or Hittite jewellery, scented woods and gums from Punt and +the Holy Lands; lapis and embroideries from Babylon; coral, gold, iron, +tin and amber from the far-distant countries beyond the seas, are found +scattered pell-mell amongst the native fine linen, jewels, glass-work +and furniture. The shop is usually independent from the rest of the +house, and is let separately. It is a small, square room, often a simple +shed, widely open in front, and closed every evening by means of wooden +shutters, held in place by cross-bars with one or two mats, one or two +low stools, some shelves fixed to the wall, which hold the goods; +perhaps behind the shop are one or two carefully closed rooms where the +most valuable objects are stored. Most of the tradesmen are also +manufacturers. They have apprentices or workmen who work for them, and +they join them during the intervals between their sales.... Artisans of +the same trade have usually a natural tendency to collect together, to +dwell side by side in the same place--blacksmiths with blacksmiths, +curriers with curriers, goldsmiths with goldsmiths, forming a small city +in which objects of the same kind only are found."[2] + + +THE BUSINESS OF WAR. + +It would be misleading to speak of the profession of war in Egypt, for +the Egyptians were essentially unwarlike. In early times they lived in +their isolated valley, and the nature of the country on either side of +them was not such as to tempt them to reach out to conquer it. When +Nubian and nomadic tribes stole their cattle and otherwise molested +their outlying districts, it was a comparatively simple matter to +repulse them and reduce their number. Such raids were not regular +military campaigns--far from it. They were expeditions of plunder and +pillage. "I have carried off their women and captured their men; for I +marched to their well; I slew their oxen, cut down their corn and set +fire to it." Thus did one pharaoh record his victory on a monument +raised to commemorate it. War with tribes of this strength was not +likely to elevate the military standard of Egypt. + +Contact with the Hyksos during the Middle Empire taught the Nile +dwellers more of warfare than they had previously known. By superior use +of arms these Asiatics were able to take possession of the land, which +they held until, from the struggling feudal nobles, a ruler came forth, +strong enough to establish himself and collect an army. By adopting the +method of battle practised by the enemy, the Hyksos were at last driven +from the valley, and were pursued far beyond their former borders. + +The New Empire saw a brief period of military successes, but they rested +on a slight foundation. The Egyptians were naturally poor soldiers. A +strong and fearless general was able to rouse them to action, and by +meeting detached tribes, they were able to overcome them. Then with +confidence born of success, they sometimes made a brilliant progress to +the civilization of Mesopotamia. Asiatics had not yet learned the real +nature of those to whom they offered tribute. When once it was learned, +tribute was no longer forthcoming, or indeed, it was sometimes demanded +by the Asiatics of Egypt. + +Of the life of a private soldier, we know very little. During times of +peace he was a tiller of the soil, or a common laborer. He thought no +hardship greater than that which compelled him to enter the service of +an army. He regarded war as the greatest evil and was disheartened by +the slightest defeat. This was poor material to convert into effective +soldiers and only when the Egyptian king received a large number of +mercenaries into his ranks was his army particularly efficient. + +Many times several thousand soldiers were dispatched to escort workmen +sent to obtain granite for the king's tomb. It is probable that their +duties were less military than civil, for they no doubt were set to +cutting out the granite from the quarry and assisted in transporting it +to the building site. + +Of the equipment of the soldiers, it seems that in early times they +carried simply a bow, wearing ostrich feathers on their heads as a token +of victory. Later they carried shields and spears or battle axes. The +order of battle in later times was to place chariots in the front and +rear, with strong detachments of infantry between them. Ramses II. +caused the whole story of his victory over the Hittite king at Kadesh to +be painted in his temple. This is one of the best sources for military +history during the New Empire. "We see how the soldiers of the 'first +army of Amon' pitch their camp; the shields are placed side by side so +as to construct a great four-cornered enclosure. One entrance only is +left, and this is fortified with barricades and is defended by four +divisions of infantry. In the middle of the camp a large square space +indicates the position of the royal tent; the smaller tents of the +officers surround it. The wide space between these tents and the outer +enclosure serves as a camping-ground for the common soldiers and for the +cattle, and here we see a series of life-like scenes, in the +representation of which the Egyptian artist has evidently taken great +delight. In one corner stands the rows of war-chariots; the horses are +unharnessed and paw the ground contentedly, while they receive their +food. Close by are posted the two-wheeled baggage cars; the oxen are +looking round at the food, and do not appear to trouble themselves about +the king's big tame lion, which has lain down near them wearied out. The +most characteristic animal in the camp, however, is the donkey with his +double panniers in which he has to carry the heavy sacks and jars of +provisions. We meet with him here, there, and everywhere, in all manner +of positions; for instance, he drops on his knee indignantly, as if he +could carry his panniers no longer; he prances about when the soldiers +want to lade him with the sacks; he lies down and brays, or he takes his +ease rolling in the dust near his load. The boys, also, whose business +it is to fasten up the donkeys to pegs, contribute to the general +liveliness of the camp; in more than one place they have begun to +quarrel about their work, and in their anger they beat each other with +the pegs. Other boys belonging to the camp have to hang the baggage on +posts, or to bring food for the soldiers, or to fetch the skins of +water. These boys insist upon quarreling too; the skins are thrown down, +and they use their fists freely. + +"In contrast to these scenes of daily life in the camp, we have on the +other hand a representation of the wild confusion of battle. Close to +the bank of the Orontes is the royal chariot, in which the king stands +drawn up to his full height; behind and on each side the chariots of the +Cheta[3] surround him; while many more are crossing the stream. The +Egyptian chariots are indeed in the rear of the king, but in order to +come to his help they would have first to force a way through the +chariots of the Cheta. In the meantime, the Pharaoh fights by himself, +and pours down such a frightful rain of arrows on the enemy that they +fly in wild confusion. Hit by the arrows, their horses take fright, dash +the chariots to pieces, and throw out the warriors, or they get loose +and breaking through their own ranks, spread confusion everywhere. The +dead and the wounded Cheta fall one upon another; those who escape the +arrows of the king throw themselves into the Orontes and try to swim +across to Kadesh, which is seen on the opposite bank surrounded by walls +and trenches.... + +"Whilst the Pharaoh thus slays the Cheta, the prince of the latter +people stands watching the battle from the corner between Kadesh and the +Orontes in the midst of a mighty square of 8,000 foot soldiers of the +elite of his troops; 'he does not come out to fight, because he is +afraid before his Majesty, since he has seen his Majesty.' When he sees +that the battle is lost, he says in admiration: 'He is as Sutech the +glorious, Ba'al lives in his body.'"[4] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 415. + +[2] Maspero: Ancient Egypt, 18. + +[3] That is, the Hittite king. + +[4] Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 529. + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + + +PRAISING LEARNING.[1] + + I have seen violence, I have seen violence, give thy heart after letters. + I have seen one free from labors; consider there is not anything beyond + letters. + Love letters as thy mother. I make its beauty go in thy face. + It is a greater possession than all besides. + He who has commenced to avail himself is from his infancy a counsellor. + He is sent to perform commissions. + He who does not go is in sack-cloth. + I have not seen a blacksmith on a commission, a founder who goes on an + embassy. + I have seen the blacksmith at his work at the mouth of the furnace. + His fingers like things of crocodiles, he smells worse than the eggs + of fishes. + Every carpenter carrying tools,--is he more at rest than the laborer? + + I tell you the fisherman suffers more than any employment. + Consider, is he not toiling on the river? he is mixed with the + crocodiles. + Should the clumps of papyrus diminish, then he is crying for help. + If he has not been told that a crocodile is not there, terrors blind him. + Consider, there is not an employment destitute of superior ones + Except the scribe, who is first, for he knows letters; he is greater + than they. + Shouldst thou walk after great men, thou art to proceed with great + knowledge. + Do not say proud words. Be sealed in thyself alone. + + +SCHOOLS AND EDUCATION. + +The Greek loved learning for itself alone. Not so the Egyptian. He, too, +praised learning and considered no calling so worthy as that of the +scribe. It was not because an education lifted one out of a sordid world +to purer heights of knowledge, however, but rather, because the scribe +was exempt from physical exertion, and if ambitious and persevering, +might find all official doors open to him. A citizen wished his son to +receive an education in order that he might occupy a position superior +and less arduous than he could otherwise hope to fill. The lot of the +laborer in Egypt was hard. Working constantly he could but provide +himself and family with their scanty food and scanty clothing. At any +time he might be pressed into public service and here he was fortunate +if he received "one clean garment once a month," in addition to his +monthly rations. Scribes were safe from physical toil. Quite naturally, +it followed that a family would make every possible sacrifice that one +of the children might be fitted for a life more safe and comfortable +than the average. No higher ideal, no loftier motive seems to have +actuated the parent than this: to qualify his son for an easy and +lucrative position in life. + +There were elementary schools in Egypt in an early age. These were open +to all children, who probably paid a small fee to the teacher. Gradually +also, there grew up around the temples schools for the training of boys +for the priesthood. As the empire grew and tribute was asked and +received from many tribes and countries, many scribes--copyists and +accountants--were needed in the service of the government, and schools +were opened in connection with the court to educate boys to meet this +new demand. + +Having spent a few years in the elementary school, the average boy was +set to work to assist with the cattle, gather fuel, care for the ducks +and geese about his home, and later was put to learn a trade--generally +the trade of his father. However, if a boy showed special aptitude for +learning or seemed more alert and clever than ordinary, he was sent to +the school for scribes. Here the training was vigorous. The scribe would +waken the youth, calling: "The books are already in the hands of thy +companions, take hold of thy clothes and call for thy sandals!" +Discipline was rigid indeed. An old adage held that a boy's ears are +placed on his back--he hears if he is flogged. + +You will remember how complex were the Egyptian styles of writing--both +hieroglyphic and demotic. Consequently to be able to read and write was +considered a great accomplishment. Having mastered the art of writing, +the youth was set next to copying. Many of the old copy books still +exist, for it was customary to place them in the tomb with the deceased. +Three pages a day was the usual lesson. "By the age of ten or twelve," +says Maspero, "the child was ... apprenticed to a scribe in some office, +who would undertake to make him a _learned scribe_. The boy accompanied +his master to the office or work-yard, and there passed entire months +copying letters, circulars, legal documents, or accounts, which he did +not at first understand, but which he faithfully remembered.... The +pupil copied and copied, the master inserted forgotten words, corrected +the faults of spelling, and drew on the margin the signs or groups +unskillfully traced. When the book was finished and the apprentice could +write all the formulas from memory, the master entrusted him with the +composition of a few letters, gradually increasing the number and adding +new difficulties. As soon as he had fairly mastered the ordinary daily +routine his education was ended, and an unimportant post was sought."[2] + +The Egyptians never investigated a subject until they reduced it to a +science. A certain knowledge of geometry was necessary to determine +boundaries of land, so valuable along the river that very small areas +were sometimes in dispute. A knowledge sufficient for this purpose the +Egyptians possessed, but they never delved deeper into the matter and +became proficient in it. They studied astronomy and made charts of +portions of the heavens. They studied arithmetic, but never, for +example, wrote a fraction with a numerator larger than 1; instead of +writing 2/3 or 5/8 they wrote: 1/3, 1/3; 1/2, 1/8. It has taken much +patience and some ingenuity to understand problems found already worked +out in the copy books. + +The subject of medicine was deemed important, but the ancient Egyptians +knew nothing about it, generally speaking. Magic, drugs, herbs and +incantations were used together. Believing that the welfare of the soul +depended upon the preservation of the body, students never had the +opportunity of dissecting bodies, either animal or human. They had no +idea of the vital organs, and when they were successful in relieving a +patient, it was when, like some old herb woman, they had learned the +properties of healing plants and had watched their effects in many cases +until they became skillful in administering them. When one was ill, it +was thought that an evil spirit had entered his body. By magic words +this must be driven out before recovery could be hoped for. Magic +greatly aided medicine, according to this view. Here is a formula for a +magic mixture: "Take two grains of incense, two fumigations, two jars of +cedar oil, two jars of tas, two jars of wine, two jars of spirits of +wine. Apply it at the place of thy heart. Thou art protected against the +accidents of life; thou art protected against a violent death; thou art +protected against fire; thou are not ruined on earth, and thou escapest +in heaven." + + +LITERATURE. + +Egypt seems to have been lacking in any considerable number of literary +works. Records were kept in the temples; treatises on religion, magic +and medicine have been found. The Book of the Dead was familiar to the +living and indispensable to the departed. Some folk lore, hymns of +worship and of victory, and a few stories, more or less complete, +remain. Vast numbers of papyri have undoubtedly perished, but reference +would probably be made in existing manuscripts to great productions, and +these are lacking. Giving all credit to what has been recovered and +allowing for the destruction of time, the fact remains that in +literature Egypt was not productive. + +There are no literary remains antedating the Middle Empire; however, we +have traces of folk songs and of myths which were earlier known. The old +belief that the Egyptians had no secular literature was mistaken. Our +greatest sources of knowledge regarding their literature have been the +tombs and temples, and these were not places in which a people would +have chosen to preserve its lighter literature. + +It is probable that just as the workmen sing today, while they work +along the Nile, so too they chanted in earliest times. Under the most +trying conditions in Egypt, laborers sang as they worked. The scribes +did not think it worthy of their dignity to chronicle folk songs. +Probably little thought was ever given to them. Occasionally a few lines +are quoted beneath some tomb pictures to make it more vivid. + +"The herdsman wading in the mud as he drives his sheep over the fields +from which the flood has not yet entirely retreated, says to his flock: +'In the water walks your shepherd with the fishes; with the catfish +talketh he; with the fish he changeth greeting.' Another song +accompanied the work equivalent to threshing. The ancient Egyptians, +like the Israelites, did not use flails, but after scattering the corn +on the threshing-floor, they drove oxen over it to tread out the grain. +Then was sung with variations: 'Thresh, oh ye oxen! Thresh for +yourselves! Oh ye oxen thresh for yourselves! Thresh straw for your +fodder, thresh grain for your master. Take ye no rest, cool is the air +this day.'"[3] + +Mythological tales grew out of an attempt to explain natural +phenomena--the rising or setting sun, the struggle between light and +darkness. All phenomena which attracted sufficient attention furnished +material for myths. It has been observed for instance, that certain +stars never set, whereas others after performing their courses sank +below the horizon. The Egyptians expressed this by the myth of the +Crocodile of the West, which fed upon the setting stars. + +"The sunrise and sunset, alternation of day and night, the solar drama +in all its details, furnished the subject of Egyptian mythology. In +other countries the sun-god rode in a chariot; in Egypt he rode in a +boat. Hence the sky is considered an expanse of water, the Nile being +the earthly representative. Seb is the earth, Nut the heaven. Osiris +their son, is the sun and is wedded to Isis, the dawn. From their union +sprang Horus, the Sun in his full strength. Set the destroyer, is +another child of Seb and Nut. He is darkness and weds Nephthys, the +Sunset. The contest between Seb and Osiris is the constant subject of +mythological story." + +Traces of these early folk songs and early myths survived in Egyptian +literature. The literature of the Middle Empire shows an eager interest +in travel. Of the few books that remain from this period several relate +adventures in distant parts. + +Most of the remaining literature belongs to the New Empire. Lyrical and +didactic poems, stories, records and documents were then produced in +considerable number. It would appear that the Egyptians never wrote a +history of their country. Accounts, more or less in detail, cover +several reigns, but nothing like a chronological treatise of their +development was apparently undertaken. The New Empire knew far less of +the Old Empire than we know today. + +In the realm of religious writing, the Book of the Dead was most +important. Its negative confession to be made before the judges of the +dead would imply a high degree of morality, but the truth was that it +came into being in an early stage when words were thought identical with +the thing itself. We find all peoples passing through a period when +great importance was given the spoken word. "I have not been idle; I +have not been intoxicated; I have not told secrets; I have not told +falsehoods; I have not defrauded; I have not slandered; I have not +caused tears; I have given food to the hungry; drink to the thirsty, and +clothes to the naked." That confession was probably formulated in this +early period when such stress was given to the spoken word. Later, when +people understood the difference between the name and the thing itself +the confession remained the same, because all things pertaining to +religion are last to change. + +The _Precepts of Ptah-hotep_, prince of the Fifth dynasty, is one of the +oldest known books in the world. It is now in the Bibliothèque Nationale +at Paris and is made up of what would be equivalent to twenty printed +pages of precepts written to admonish the young. The following indicate +their nature: + +"Be not arrogant because of that which thou knowest, no artist being in +possession of the perfection to which he should aspire." + +"If thou hast become great after having been little, harden not thy +heart; thou art only the steward of the good things of God." + +"Let thy face be cheerful as long as thou livest; hast any one come out +of the coffin after having once entered it?" + +Before leaving this brief consideration of Egyptian writing, we should +understand what supplied the writing material of Egypt. The papyrus +reeds have frequently been mentioned with no explanation of their use. +From this word papyrus has been derived our word _paper_. + +The reeds grew thick along the sides of streams. Their stems were three +cornered and about three inches wide at the base. By peeling off the +outer tough green covering, a white pith was obtained. Splitting it and +laying strips together, the edges lapping, and upon a surface so formed +placing a second layer running the other way, sprinkling the whole with +the muddy Nile water, and putting it all under a press made up the +process of manufacturing a composition which could be cut into thin +sheets. These afforded all the writing material known until the seventh +century after Christ, when prepared skins, or parchment, were sometimes +substituted. + +[Illustration: EGYPTIAN SCRIBES] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] From inscription on a tomb; trans. in "Dwellers on the Nile." + +[2] Maspero: Ancient Egypt, 9. + +[3] Popular Literature of Ancient Egypt. Wiedermann. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + + +RELIGION OF ANCIENT EGYPT. + +The life of the ancient Egyptians was in a great measure controlled by +their religious beliefs. In prehistoric times, as has already been +explained, each nome, or province, was independent, and was the home of +some tribe or tribes. Just as we find the American Indian worshipping +the stick that was powerful enough to throw him in the forest, so these +primitive people worshipped animals and trees. Each animate object was +conceived as possessing a soul or spirit, and this spirit accounted for +the qualities or characteristics of the object--were they good or ill. A +lion possessed savage tendencies--hence they would worship him and +propitiate his spirit, and their attitude was the same toward the +crocodile, the ram, the elephant, and many other animals. The date-palm +brought them great blessings--therefore they would worship the tree and +insure a continuance of these blessings. As time went on, they grew to +worship gods, and to the gods these trees and animals, worshipped +earlier on their own account, were thought sacred. + +Each village and town had its own local deity and special objects of +worship, while the nome as a whole recognized gods of a more general +character. In this way, each province of Upper Egypt--which was older in +civilization than the Delta--and various portions of Lower Egypt, +developed religions complete and independent of one another. After many +hundred years, when all Egypt was united under one government and one +king, the priests attempted to comprise these various beliefs into a +common faith, to recognize the principal gods of all the nomes in the +temples, and to evolve one religious system from the many local systems. +This they never succeeded in fully accomplishing. They included in their +lists some seventy deities, and harmonized some features of worship, but +each locality clung to its ancient deity and several different religions +can be traced throughout Egyptian history. + +Like most primitive people, the Egyptians worshipped the sun. This god +revealed himself in many forms, but chiefly as Horus, represented by a +falcon, and Re or Ra, represented by the Scarabaeus. + +Osiris ruled in the kingdom of the dead, and he was thought to be just +and good. With his wife, Isis, and his son, Horus, he was worshipped +throughout the land, while everywhere Set was regarded as the principle +of Evil. + +Qeb was the god of Earth and Nut, his wife, the queen of the heavens, +which in this connection signifies the skies. Their children were +Osiris, Isis, Set, and Nebthet (Nephthys). Mat was the goddess of truth +and justice. + +One finds similarities between some of these divinities and the +divinities of the Greeks--as for example, Nut reminds one of Hera, and +Set was feared as much as Pluto; but it is dangerous to make these +comparisons, for the religious conceptions of the two nations were +fundamentally different. + +The Egyptians usually represented their deities with human bodies and +the heads of the animal sacred to each. So, for example, Horus always +has the head of a sparrow-hawk; Thot, that of an Ibis, and so on. The +prominent feature of this religion was the veneration of animals. It was +believed that sometimes the god-spirit took up his abode within certain +animals, and for this reason certain animals were regarded as sacred and +were therefore, objects of worship. Ptah was the god of Memphis. He, it +was believed, took the form of the Apis-bull, hence this bull was +regarded as sacred. + +"The Apis bull dwelt in a temple of his own near the city, had his train +of attendant priests, his meals of the choicest food, his grooms and +currycombers who kept his coat clean and beautiful, his chamberlains who +made up his bed, his cup-bearers who brought his water, and on certain +days was led in a festive procession through the main streets of the +town, so that the inhabitants might see him, and come forth from their +dwellings and make obeisance. When he died he was carefully embalmed, +and deposited, together with magnificent jewels and statuettes and +vases, in a polished granite sarcophagus, cut out of a single block, and +weighing between sixty and seventy tons. The cost of an Apis funeral +amounted sometimes, as we are told, to as much as $100,000. Near +Memphis the number of Apis bulls buried in this fashion was found to be +sixty-four."[1] + +In another locality the crocodile was the object of adoration, because, +as in the case of the Apis bull, it was believed that some god dwelt +within it. + +"The crocodile was principally worshipped about Lake Moeris. A chosen +number of these animals were kept in the temples, where they were given +elegant apartments and treated to every luxury at public expense. Let us +imagine a crocodile, fresh from a warm, sumptuous bath, anointed with +the most precious ointments and perfumed with fragrant odors; its head +and neck glittering with jeweled earrings and necklace, and its feet +with bracelets wallowing on a rich and costly carpet to receive the +worship of intelligent human beings! Its death was mourned as a public +calamity; its body, wrapped in linen, was carried to the embalmers, +attended by a train of people weeping and beating their breasts in +grief; then having been expensively embalmed and bandaged in gaily +colored mummy cloths, amid imposing ceremonies it was laid away in its +rock sepulchre." + +For these absurdities the Egyptians were ridiculed by other nations of +their own times. Their adoration of animals led to most degrading +excesses. The cat was considered sacred throughout the land, and +punishment of death was meted out to persons injuring one. + + +WORSHIP OF THE NILE. + +HYMN TO THE NILE. + + Hail to thee O Nile! + Thou shewest thyself in this land + Coming in peace, giving life to Egypt; + O Ammon (thou) leadest night into day, + A leading that rejoices the heart! + Overflowing the gardens created by Ra. + Giving life to all animals; + Watering the lands without ceasing, + The way of heaven descending, + Lover of food, bestower of corn, + Giving light to every home, O Ptah! + + Bringer of food! Great Lord of provisions, + Creator of all good things! + Lord of terrors and of choicest joys! + All are combined in him. + He produceth grass for the oxen, + Providing victims for every god. + The choice incense is that which he supplies. + Lord in both regions, + He filleth the granaries, enricheth the storehouses, + He careth for the state of the poor. + + Thou shinest in the city of the King; + Then the householders are satiated with good things, + The poor man laughs at the lotus. + All things are perfectly ordered. + Every kind of herb for thy children, + If food should fail, + All enjoyment is cast on the ground, + The land falls in weariness. + + O inundation of Nile, offerings are made to thee: + Oxen are slain to thee: + Great festivals are kept for thee; + Fowls of the field are caught for thee, + Pure flowers are offered to thee. + Offerings are made to every god + As they are made unto the Nile. + + Incense ascends unto heaven, + Oxen, bulls, fowls are burnt! + Nile makes for himself chasms in the South; + Unknown is his name in heaven, + He doth not manifest his forms, + Vain are all representations! + + Shine forth, shine forth, O Nile, shine forth + Giving life to his oxen by the pastures, + Giving life to men by his oxen, + Shine forth in glory, O Nile! + +More natural seems to us the worship of the Nile. There was a certain +beauty which we today can still appreciate in the festivals celebrated +each year on the banks of the rising water--which alone brought +happiness and prosperity to all. Hapi was the god of the Nile and he was +worshipped alike throughout Upper and Lower Egypt. Hymns were chanted to +him, as it was believed he might be importuned to rise high enough to +insure sufficient water, while if neglected, only a partial flood might +occur. One of these hymns was something like this: + + Hail to thee, Hapi + Who descendeth upon earth + And giveth life unto Egypt. + Thou who art hidden in the unknown + Whose waters spread upon the fields + Which the sun-god hath created; + And giveth life to all who are athirst. + Thou, the Creator of corn, + The Maker of barley---- + Do thy waters cease to flow, + Then are all mankind in misery; + When thou wanest in heaven + The gods and all living things perish. + +It would be useless for us to attempt to become familiar with all the +Egyptian divinities. In the age when people conceived and worshipped +them, the gods of a given locality were often unknown in a neighboring +city, and the animals held to be sacred in one town might be eaten as +food in another. + +In addition to all their deities, ancestors were worshipped by the +Egyptians, and an altar was erected to the departed in every home. + +It was believed that the soul left the body after death in the form of a +bird (ba), dwelled apart from the body, but would often return to it for +nourishment and earthly comforts. In early days, therefore, food in +great abundance was placed in the tomb, or the priests were paid to +provide daily food for the deceased. Later it was felt that the ka--or +that portion of the dead which required nourishment--was a mere shadow, +a ghost, a phantom, and so pictures of things to eat would satisfy as +well as the articles themselves. Carrying out this idea, the Egyptians +pictured upon tomb walls all stages of growing grain, from the time the +seed dropped upon the mellow soil until the ground flour was served in +loaves for the feast; meat was shown, in all its forms: from the ox, +feeding in the pasture, to the juicy roasts, made ready for the table. +Such scenes as these adorned the interior chambers of the tomb; upon +them, it was believed, the phantom-like ka might look and be appeased. + +In a recently excavated tomb, liquid honey was discovered. Meats too, +encased for at least 3,000 years, for the sustenance of the deceased, +were here, while a lengthy menu covered a wall, stating the amount of +food at the disposal of the departed. 5,006 geese, so it read, were at +his command, but the number 5,006 was simply written beneath one +pictured goose! + +Beds, chairs, toilet articles, chariots, and countless other objects +were left in the tomb of the well-to-do Egyptian, but were placed apart +from the mummy, which was sealed up in a private apartment by itself, +while a statue or image of the deceased was left near the belongings. + +It was believed that at death the ba--or soul--went on a long journey to +the land where Osiris reigned, and so great were the dangers of the way +that many amulets and charms were laid by the departed to assist him in +passing the obstacles of the road he must needs encounter. He who +arrived at last at the land of Peace, where the joys of life abided +without the sorrows of earth, came into the presence of Osiris. Here he +made a negative confession, similar to the following: "Hail unto you, ye +lords of Truth! hail to thee, great god, lord of Truth and Justice! I +have not committed iniquity against men! I have not oppressed the poor! +I have not laid labor upon any free man beyond that which he wrought for +himself! I have not starved any man! I have not caused any to weep!... +There is no crime against me in this land of the Double Truth!" + +[Illustration: DROMOS AND SECOND PYLON, TEMPLE OF KARNAK.] + +These and many more denials of sin were made and it sometimes happened +that the confession was inscribed on one wall of a tomb while elsewhere +were shown captives taken in war, slaves oppressed by labor, and other +incidents in the earthly career of the departed which lead us to infer +that the gods were supposed to be too mighty to take notice of most +remarkable contradictions. + +After the confession of the candidate for admission to the realm of +Osiris, his good and evil deeds were weighed in a balance and if his +virtues outweighed his failings, he was admitted to the land of the +departed, a counterpart of his own Egypt. + +A vast priesthood was required to preside over a religious system so +complex as that of Egypt and the priests gained great influence over the +people. The reason for this is apparent when we consider the prevailing +ideas of the country. The body of the dead must be preserved, for upon +its preservation depended the fate of the soul. To this end the body +must be properly embalmed and entombed. The embalmers were under the +control and supervision of the priests. Again, the soul of the departed +must be assisted upon its perilous journey to Osiris by prayers said +over each finger and each portion of the body. These prayers could be +offered only by the priests themselves. Such a condition as this gave +the priesthood of Egypt an opportunity to make itself supreme in the +land, and this opportunity it was quick to seize upon. + + +TEMPLES. + +Many questions concerning Egyptian worship still remain unanswered. What +part did the citizen take in the worship of his national gods? What +effect did the worship of these gods have upon his life? We do not +know--we cannot tell. It appears that his ancestral gods, worshipped at +an altar in his own house, where of first importance. Some understanding +of the temples and temple ceremonies cannot fail to throw light upon +this old religion. Several of the old ruined temples may be seen today, +standing like forest trees which have outlived their neighbors. + +There is not in all Egypt a temple perfectly preserved; but by locating +here an avenue of approach, there, a gateway, finding courts in other +places, and halls and chapels, one comes at length to piece the whole +together and to get some conception of the original entirety of the +ancient temple. + +In Greece the people built temples to their gods. In Egypt the king +built them. Offerings were brought to the shrines of the Greek gods by +every citizen in the land. In Egypt most of the gifts came from the +king. To be sure there were special offerings made by all on feast days, +but the king and the priests were alone responsible for the Egyptian +temples; and while throngs accompanied processions thither on days of +sacred festival, there is nothing to show that they had any part in the +ceremonies. + +The general plan of the temple was this: an avenue of approach--varying +in length, and lined usually on either side by rows of sphinxes--led to +a gateway, guarded by towers. In the Old Empire these towers served for +defense, and seem later to have been preserved for decorative purposes. +The gate admitted one to a court, open to the sky and outlined by +pillars. In direct line with the gateway was the entrance to a large +hall, supported by columns and lighted by small openings under the roof. +Within this hall were celebrated the sacred festivals. At the end of the +hall a small chapel was built which contained an image of the god of the +temple. Sometimes two other chapels were placed, one on each side of +this, and contained images of the god's wife and son, or his wife and +daughter. The images sometimes represented the animal sacred to the god, +or, again, would have a human body and merely the head of the sacred +animal or bird. Later an image of the god himself was attempted. The +tiny room or cell wherein these were kept was called the Holy of Holies. +Before the door were inscribed these words: Four times must he purify +himself who enters here. + +Some temples were much more elaborate and complex than the simple one +just described. + +The doors of these chapels were always left sealed, and whenever they +were opened, a clay seal was affixed. Having purified himself, the +priest would fill the hall with the smoke of incense, break the seal, +open the door and fall down, offering incense and kissing the ground +before the image. Then a hymn of praise was probably sung. + + +RISE OF THE NILE. + + "King and Father, gift and giver, + God revealed in form of river, + Issuing perfect and sublime, + From the fountain-head of time; + + "Whom eternal mystery shroudeth, + Unapproached, untraced, unknown; + Whom the Lord of heaven encloudeth + With the curtains of his throne; + + "From the throne of heaven descending, + Glory, power, and goodness blending, + Grant us, ere the daylight dies, + Token of thy rapid rise." + + Ha, it cometh! Furrowing, flashing, + Red blood rushing o'er brown breast; + Peaks and ridges, and dome dashing + Foam on foam, crest on crest! + + But the time of times for wonder + Is when ruddy sun goes under; + And the dust throws, half afraid, + Silver shuttles of long shade. + + Opens then a scene, the fairest + Ever burst on human view; + Once behold, and then comparest + Nothing in the world thereto. + + Every skiff a big ship seemeth, + Every bush with tall wings clad; + Every man his good brain deemeth + The only brain that is not mad. + + 'Tis the signal Thebes hath waited, + Libyan Thebes, the hundred-gated; + Rouse and robe thee, River-priest + For thy dedication feast! + --Blackmore: Florilla. + + +RELIGIOUS CEREMONIES. + +The Egyptian believed that his god had needs similar to those he himself +experienced. Consequently each day the god needed to be clothed and fed. +"The priest laid his hands on him (the image of the god), he took off +the old rouge and his former clothes, all of course with the necessary +formulae. He then dressed the god in the robe called the Nems, saying: +'Come white dress! come white dress! come white eye of Horus, which +proceeds from the town of Nechebt. The gods dress themselves with thee +in thy name _Dress_, and the gods adorn themselves with thee in thy name +_Adornment_.' The priest then dressed the god in the _great dress_, +rouged him, and presented him with his insignia: the sceptre, the staff +of ruler, and the whip, the bracelets and anklets, as well as the two +feathers which he wore on his head, because 'he has triumphed over his +enemies, and is more splendid than gods or spirits.' The god required +further a collarette and an amulet, two red, two green, and two white +bands; when these had been presented to him the priest might then leave +the chapel."[2] + +Food and drink must needs be placed daily on his table. Lists of +offerings made by the Ramesides have come down to us. One records +offerings in the temple as follows: each day were received 3,220 loaves +of bread, 24 cakes, 144 jugs of beer, 32 geese, besides honey, flowers +and incense. This food was probably used to feed the corps of assistants +around the temple--the priests, servants and laborers. On feast days the +people sent offerings. A large number of loaves of bread are recorded on +certain days; these probably came from the poorer people. Again, an +overwhelming number of cakes and jugs of wine would indicate offerings +from the wealthy. + +On feast days the king would himself perform part of the ceremonies, and +as a king he would worship himself as a god. It sometimes seems as +though the offerings and the ceremonies were made more to do honor to +the king than to the god. When Ramses called for plans for a new grotto +temple and heard the reports of his architects, an inscription tells us +that he answered them after this fashion: "The temple we have in mind +already lies hidden by the gods in yonder mountain. You have but to +clear away the waste material and your work is done. See to it, however, +that the deities Ra and Isis and Ptah and I are all represented in +becoming size on the facade as guardians--two on each side of the pylon. +And mark you: see that no god has choice of position over the king; let +the likeness and the form of them all be mine. Osiris must man the eight +piers which support the roof, and we four be seated in the sanctuary, +side by side." + +Many buildings surrounded the temple, and the whole was enclosed by a +wall. Various buildings were needed in order that all the functions of +the temple could be performed. On one side was a court where the animals +and birds intended for sacrifice were prepared. To the rear was a +kitchen. The priests often received private revenues for providing food +for the departed. This food as a rule was prepared in the kitchens of +the temple. Dwellings for the priests, and the servants, store houses, +granaries, the treasure house, gardens and an artificial lake lay within +the temple wall. In the sacred lake the priests bathed, and in it they +washed the vessels pertaining to the sanctuary. + +The priestly duties were manifold. Certain priests poured out drink +offerings; others recited from holy books; others kept the annals of the +temples. Their incomes were paid in kind--like all other obligations of +the time. So many loaves of bread, so many jugs of wine, beer and cakes +made up their annual revenue. + +While we may gain some feeble idea of these places of worship, built to +do honor to the god--and to the king,--any description of them must +necessarily be inadequate. "We may agree that neither the boldest +imagination nor the most exact study, can enable us to form an adequate +conception of the splendors of an Egyptian temple in its perfect state. +The vast space it occupied; its lofty gateways; the long avenues of +sphinxes; the glittering obelisks and the lifelike expressions of the +monstrous statues, form a combination of the most imposing architectural +grandeur. The æsthetic qualities of these structures cannot briefly be +summed up. As we ponder them we shall be willing to acknowledge, for we +shall discover, the exceptional constructive power of the ancient +architects; we shall see how closely they followed Nature, and at times +drew as well upon foreign art, though always preserving their own +principles of form. There is always one grand imaginative vein running +through all their work--which expresses the principal idea of their +faith--_imperishability_. + +"The ancient Egyptians copied no one. Their art sprang from their +surroundings. What they have left continues to baffle us in many ways. +We may understand perspective better than they did; we are their +superiors in the use of light and shadow. We dare to build higher, and +we are willing to trust thousands of lives to walls which would be +wrecked if a single Egyptian column should fall against them; but we do +not yet understand how they lifted their great masses to such lofty +places, nor do we know where their architects studied art."[3] + +Little has thus far been said of the sphinxes which ordinarily flanked +the avenues leading up to these temples. These imaginary creatures were +carved in stone, and having the body of a lion, had either the head of a +ram or a human head. When the _Sphinx_ is mentioned reference is usually +made to the huge stone monument lying near the Great Pyramid. This was a +natural rock, to which was given, more or less accurately, the external +appearance of that mythological animal. The head was sculptured; the +body was sculptured; the body was formed of the rock itself, filled out +where necessary, by rather clumsy masonry of limestone. The total height +of the Sphinx is 65 feet. The ear measures 6 feet 5 inches; the nose, 5 +feet 10 inches; the mouth, 7 feet 8 inches. Its ponderous human face, +grave in its eternal repose, rising in the midst of desert wastes, has +been a great puzzle to people for thousands of years. It was probably +hewn out of the rock as a symbol of the power of some Pharaoh of the +Pyramid-age. The sphinxes which lined approaches to the temples were of +course much smaller than this, and were carved merely for decorative +purposes. An Egyptian god was given the image of the sphinx, and whether +it was in honor of him, or merely because the symbol was a favorite +one, that so many of these mystic animals were used, is not known. + +A final word regarding the faith which prompted the building of the +Egyptian temples should perhaps be added. We hear much about the absurd +and corrupt side of the Egyptian religion, but few have taken the +trouble to acquaint themselves with its brighter side. Our ideas on the +subject have been determined largely by the writings of the Greeks and +Romans who knew only the last decadent period of Egyptian history. The +decipherment of the hieroglyphs has enabled us to study the contemporary +documents and inscriptions, and as a result the religious ideas +developed by the Egyptians have not only aroused our deepest interest, +but are commanding our admiration. + +Like all other peoples in the same stage of culture, the primitive +Egyptians feared and tried to render harmless, and perchance useful, the +powers of nature, always mysterious because not understood. Thus arose +the worship of natural phenomena, plants, animals and the dead. If we +remember that among our own ignorant masses many of the religious ideas +of our primitive forefathers survive in what we call superstition, we +will not judge the common people of Egypt for holding fast to the +beliefs of their ancestors, for it is true that they did so all through +Egypt's long history. Hence the ridicule of the Greeks. + +But there is another side to the picture. No people has ever developed a +culture like that of the Egyptians without also reaching a purer +conception of God. Way back in the Fifth dynasty we find the beginnings +of a monotheistic tendency in the religion of Egypt. Indeed even earlier +the priests of Heliopolis had taught the idea of the unity of the deity +who manifested himself in the creative energy of the Sun. The Pharaohs +of the Fifth dynasty took up the cult of Re (or Ra) as this god was +called, raising mighty obelisks on the edge of the desert back of +Memphis, before which stood altars of alabaster under the open sky: for +this god could not be represented by any image and consequently needed +no temple, no house of god. + +As time went on this idea of the unity of the deity--largely, it is +true, as a "mystery" understood only by the priests and other +"initiated" ones, spread over the whole of Egypt. As a result the local +deities, no matter what their origin, came to be regarded as +manifestations of the one god Re, whose name was added to those of the +local gods. We are all familiar with Amon of Thebes. This god, whose +origin is very obscure, was of course a local deity, and when Thebes +became the capital of the Empire, was raised to the kingship of all the +gods. But it will be observed that to do this, the priests felt it +necessary to identify him with Re and to speak of him henceforth not as +Amon, but as Amon-Re. + +But this was not a step forward. The priests of Re had taught that god +is one and might be worshiped anywhere. It was not even necessary to +have temples. When, however, such a local divinity as Amon of Thebes was +identified with Re, as one of this god's manifestations, he received all +the attributes of the one god, but at the same time remained god of +Thebes and the priests never raised any theological objections when the +Pharaohs erected the mighty temples of that city for the glory of their +god and the perpetuation of their own deeds. Indeed the Pharaohs +regarded themselves as his viceroys on earth. The attempted "reform" of +Amen-hotep IV., which, as we saw, was so disastrous for his line, was +largely an attempt to restore the purer worship of the Sun-god, not as +Re but as Aton. But the priests of Amon-Re, who had already looked with +disfavor, which they dared not express, upon the claims of the earlier +Pharaohs of the Eighteenth dynasty--Amen-hotep III. during his lifetime +had gone so far as to build a temple in which he worshipped his own +_ka_, broke with Amen-hotep IV., were persecuted by him after he had +removed to his new city, but in the end were able to overthrow the +dynasty and place upon the throne kings who would recognize them as the +intermediaries between god and man. In the end they themselves seized +the throne--and it was not long before Egyptian history was at an end. + + "God is the Eternal One. He is eternal and infinite; and endureth + forever and ever. He hath endured for countless ages and He shall + endure to all eternity. + + "No man knoweth how to know Him. His name remaineth hidden. His + name, is a mystery unto His children. His names are innumerable; + they are manifold and none knoweth their number." + + --_Trans. from Brugsch; quoted in Budge, Egyptian Religion._ + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] See Mariette's Monuments of Upper Egypt. + +[2] Ancient Egypt, 274. + +[3] Edward Wilson, Scribner, Oct. '88. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV. + + +ART AND DECORATION. + +During the Old Empire certain rules regulating drawing were invented +which were adhered to throughout the history of Egypt. The stiff, +unnatural appearance of all Egyptian figures was due to strict +observance of these rules, which became binding upon artists and +prevented any perfection of art in the valley of the Nile. + +Egyptian painting consisted of mere outline sketching. The human body +was first entirely drawn; then clothing was added. The artists knew no +more of anatomy than did the physicians. They did not even follow each +his own ideas, but there was _one_ established way of drawing the head, +the arms, the limbs, and all felt obliged to hold to this conventional +method. The extended arms show no elbows, the fingers no joints. An +endeavor to draw the body in profile resulted in portions of it facing +the spectator, other parts in profile, and still other sharing the +characteristics of both positions. For many years the human figure, +animals and birds could only extend the foot or arm--in case of a +person--farthest away from the spectator, and each figure must be shown +with the right side to the front. In course of time artists drew people +of the lower classes with more freedom, but it would have been deemed +disrespectful to have portrayed those of high rank in any but the +conventional positions. Thus, in a picture of a noble being served by a +slave, the latter might be drawn in a natural pose, while the noble +still retained the stiff, grotesque position of early times. Again, the +king was given colossal proportions, to indicate his power and strength, +while children may be distinguished only by their tiny forms. + +Side by side with this conventional school of art there developed a +realistic school that exercised greater freedom with the human body. +Tomb pictures remain wherein persons are shown with their backs to the +spectator, and in many positions not permissible according to +established rules. However, these paintings are invariably in the tombs +of the lower classes. It would not have been deemed fitting that such +freedom be used in decorating the tombs of nobles, or of persons of high +social standing. Artists of this school seem to have been in disfavor in +ancient Egypt. To be sure, in the matter of portraying scenes where +captives, slaves or the humble people were gathered, artists of the +conventional school drew these with considerable degree of freedom and +ease. In the same picture the king, or noble, or high official was +represented according to the established custom. + +All Egyptian drawing of human figures, birds and animals is plain, and +it is possible for any one today to read the stories of long series of +tomb pictures--studying them out, one by one. However, when it came to +representing a temple, a house, or a garden, the desire to show every +portion of it resulted in some confusion. The artist was in doubt as to +how to portray it all. "In treating such an important and complex object +he wished if possible to show every part of it; he therefore did not +draw the house from the front nor from the side, but made a picture of +both sides together, and when the house had an upper story with three +chambers, he put these three rooms close by also. He considered his duty +accomplished when he had placed all the details before the spectator, +but he did not care whether the spectator understood how these details +fitted together. + +"We have to face another difficulty in order to comprehend these +pictures; the Egyptian artist has no sense of proportion between the +different parts of the representation. If, for instance, the king is +standing in one of the rooms of the building in question, our artist +would, regardless of truth, draw that room ten times as large as all the +others together, and even in one picture he frequently changes his +standard of measurement."[1] + +All pictures were painted, some only in outline, some entirely. The +interiors of tombs were made to assume a gay appearance since tomb +colors were always bright. Red, the color of the sun, and blue, the sky +reflected in the Nile, were thought to be sacred. + +Sculpture served two needs: it furnished statues of the dead for +relatives to worship, and statues of the kings and gods, with the +animals sacred to each, for the ornamentation of the temples. Thus the +scope of the sculptor was limited in the beginning. Furthermore, the +proportion, form, color and expression of every statue was fixed by laws +prescribed by the priests. The aim of the artist was in every case to +show absolute repose. + +When we realize that many of the surviving monuments were chiseled from +granite as hard as iron, upon which the artist could work with only a +small metal chisel, we view them as monuments of the artist's untiring +patience, as well as of kingly greatness and statues of the gods. These +artists also knew how to make good use of poor material. In soft +limestone their task was easier; scenes were frequently cut in this, +covered with stucco and then painted. Inexpensive statues were often +made in this way. + +Art seems at first to have taken rapid strides in Egypt, but after +reaching a certain point, it was prevented by established laws, enforced +by the priesthood, from going farther. So it deteriorated. Unfortunately +we know little of the artists who wrought these works and nothing of the +training they received. + +Decorative art, as developed by the dwellers on the Nile, has perhaps +greater interest for the modern artist than their paintings or statuary. +The modern conventional school of decorative art finds much to copy and +adapt from patterns which survive in Egypt. In the first place, the +hieroglyphics were in themselves decorative. They were often used as +friezes, and never do we find them cut across figures, as was the case +in Assyria. Among designs commonly called geometrical, but in the +beginning the representation of something familiar, the zigzag line was +popular. A double zigzag formed little squares, and by various +arrangements, many combinations were possible. The scroll was also a +favorite decoration. There was an old legend to the effect that the +spiral represented the wanderings of the soul, but just what connection +existed between the two--if indeed there had ever been one--was lost in +distant ages. + +Coils, hooks, links and endless scrolls were used, and the fret patterns +were but modifications of the spiral. The checkered design was +originally worked out by the shepherds and herdsmen who wove baskets and +mats of rushes. The source of one of the earliest imitations was the +feather, with its variety of forms. Only a few flowers were copied. The +lotus, papyrus, daisy, convolvulus, vine and palm were the only ones +used to any great extent. By far the most popular of these was the +lotus. This water lily has been worshipped in many countries. The +Egyptians did not regard it as a national flower--by no means. It was +considered the emblem of immortality. + +"The lotus is the symbol of 'life,' ... of resurrection. Bouquets of it +were presented to guests at funerals. It was sometimes called the symbol +of the Sun. 'The solar significance of the lotus is elementary and most +important. A text reads: The Sun, which was from the beginning, rises +like a hawk from the midst of its lotus bed. When the doors of its +leaves open in sapphire-colored brilliancy, it has divided the night +from the day.' + +"A confessional chapter of the Book of the Dead closes with the words: I +am a pure lotus, issue of the field of the Sun.... The Egyptian idea of +the resurrection and of a future life was connected with a worship of +the creative and reproductive forces of nature, which were conceived and +worshipped as solar in character and origin. It is the supposed passage +of the sun at night through a lower world, during its return to the dawn +of a following day which makes Osiris--the Sun at night--the God of the +lower world and of the dead, hence himself represented as a mummy. As +the God of the resurrection, his special and emphatic character, he +represents the creative energy of the Sun-god. Hence, the lotus as +attribute of Osiris is at once a symbol of the sun, of the resurrection, +and of creative forces and power. Since the doctrine of a future life +and a belief in a spirit world were ever present to the Egyptian mind, +we cannot too strongly insist on the funeral symbolism of the lotus."[2] + +This brief explanation of the lotus' significance given by one who has +made a detailed study of this particular Egyptian symbol, helps us to +understand its universal use. It was pictured with the gods, given as +offerings to them, employed as capitals for columns, and had many +significant uses. It has been suggested that the bright yellow ovary +stigmas of this water-lily, with its rayed appearance, might have been +thought a symbol of the sun. As time went on, the flower developed into +a monstrosity, and became so conventionalized that it has been difficult +in many cases to determine what the artist intended to represent. + +The grape vine, with its fruit, was a popular decoration. Ceilings were +often painted golden yellow, with vine leaves and bunches of grapes +hanging down. In glazed work grapes, convolvulus and thistle were used. +Golden stars on a blue-black background found favor as a ceiling +decoration. + +In prehistoric times, ideas of ornamentation were often gained in +curious ways. Jars of pottery were sometimes tied with a string to +support them while drying. The string naturally left an impression in +the clay. This suggested the notion of twisting the string and so +obtaining not only an impression but a pattern. From this very +illustration we may realize how completely many origins of decoration +have been lost in obscurity. + +[Illustration: CEILING DECORATION.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Erman: Life in Ancient Egypt, 174. + +[2] Goodyear: Grammar of the Lotus. + + + + +CHAPTER XV. + + +TOMBS AND BURIAL CUSTOMS. + +We have seen in a former chapter that the Egyptians believed one to be +composed of three parts: his earthly body, his soul, or ba, and his ka, +the ghostlike phantom that grew up with him in life and after death +experienced the same needs that he had known while living. All three +parts were essential to the existence of any one of them. On this +account the Egyptians made every effort to perpetuate the body and to +provide necessities for the ka, lest the soul should wither up and be no +more. Granting the truth of these beliefs, all that the Nile dwellers +did in consequence of a faith in them was logical and natural. + +When an Egyptian was ill, a physician and one skilled in magic were +summoned. They did what they could to restore him. When their efforts +failed, they usually discovered that from his birth it had been decreed +that he would meet with an early death, and in this ingenious way they +maintained their influence unimpaired. + +Upon the death of a relative, all the women of the house rushed into the +street with disheveled hair, shouting loud lamentations. In this way +their loss was made public. Then they returned and the body was sent to +the embalmer. + +Three methods of embalming were commonly employed. The most costly +method involved seventy days and absorbed perhaps the total income of +the year, unless the family was wealthy. The second was less costly and +required less time; finally there was a comparatively inexpensive method +which had to satisfy the poor. + +The vital organs and those parts of the body hardest to preserve were +removed. This was strictly necessary according to later Egyptian ideas, +yet so dreadful did they regard any mutilation of the body that the men +who performed this task were intensely hated and considered as unclean. +They were not allowed to mingle with other classes, nor could one rise +out of his class. When they had done their work, they were stoned away +from the house. + +The body was now put into a bath of chemicals to remain for many days. +When at last it was taken out, it was filled with linen and sweet +smelling powders and made to look as lifelike as possible. Then it was +wrapped in linen bands, the quality of the linen used depending upon the +purse of the family. + +"Each separate limb of the deceased was dedicated to a particular +divinity by the aid of holy oils, charms and sentences; a specially +prepared cloth was wrapped round each muscle, every drug and bandage +owed its origin to some divinity, and the confusion of sounds, of +disguised figures, and of various perfumes, had a stupefying effect on +those who visited this chamber. It need not be said that the whole +embalming establishment and its neighborhood was enveloped in a cloud of +powerful resinous fumes, of sweet attar, of lasting musk, and of pungent +spices." + +Prayers and magical charms were said, scarabs and amulets enclosed, and +finally the body was placed in a coffin so constructed that it would +stand upright, as though the person were standing erect. It was then +taken home, and lamentations were made for some days. These finally gave +way to festivals. Banquets were held in honor of the mummy, which was +placed near the table and offered portions of food. Sometimes mummies +were kept in the home for a long time, and were worshipped with the +household gods. When at length the day for burial came, the family and +friends accompanied the body across the Nile to the Necropolis. They +took offerings with them,--food, furniture, toilet articles, and some +literature--certainly some pages from the Book of the Dead. All the way +across the river, the women wept. That the exhibition of grief might be +sufficient, wailing women were hired to increase the lamentations. + +Seeing the sun which they worshipped disappear each night in the west, +the Egyptians grew to think that it went to a mysterious country, the +land of Osiris. In course of time they located the land of the Blest in +the west, and where-ever possible, placed their tombs facing the +west--the direction which the departed took for his long journey. All +through the river ride the women cried: "To the West; to the West!" + +Upon reaching the place of burial, the priest performed certain +ceremonies. Then the mummy in its coffin, and the jars containing the +vital organs, were sealed up in the chamber prepared to receive them. + +There were always three essential parts to an Egyptian tomb: the chapel, +or room used by the relatives to worship the deceased and bring him +offerings; the sepulchral chamber which contained the mummy; and the +serdab, or secret cell, where images of the deceased were sealed up for +the ka to look upon, since the features of the earthly body were now +changed by death. This secret chamber was connected by a small aperture +with the chapel, in order that the smoke of burning incense and +proffered prayers might be the more easily experienced by the Ka. On the +west wall of the tomb was the stela, or a false door, upon which was +engraved the name of the deceased, his parentage, titles, and a record +of the offerings made to his ka. In early times offerings alone were +made with no record of them, but as the people grew more enlightened, +they realized that a time must come when even the best known would be +forgotten and neglected. Therefore they conceived the notion of +enumerating the articles of food contributed, believing that the ka +would look upon the record and be satiated through the ages. + +Compared to the earthly abode, which was temporary, the tomb was +eternal; hence the care that was lavished upon the tomb by the +Egyptians. While yet young, a man began to build his final resting +place. If he died before it was completed, some relative supervised its +completion, but in most cases tombs left thus unfinished show signs of +hasty conclusion. The survivor was chiefly interested in his own tomb, +and could give but passing attention to that of the departed. + +In the Old Empire, tombs were constructed of brick masonry. The mummy +was placed some distance below the brick work which was elevated a few +feet above the ground. During the Middle Empire, grotto tombs came into +favor. These were hewed out of the living rock. A large excavation was +made and chambers were sometimes formed by masonry, sometimes hollowed +from the rock itself. It was during this period that pictures of food +offerings were made in addition to the food formerly offered alone. +During the New Empire tombs were generally cut in rocks, and now it +became customary to have the heart removed from the deceased and placed +in a jar. The idea of reward and punishment was emphasized. "From the +calm assurance of purely material happiness which the earliest Egyptian +loved to dwell on, there developed a keener sense of the trials through +which the soul must pass, together with a higher ideal of the future +life, a strong conviction of the moral qualities and acts essential to +the justification of the individual. Later this spiritual degenerated +into a reliance upon ritual and formulas in a merely magical sense."[1] + +The nature of the burial depended upon the means of the family. The +middle class interment was less pretentious than that of the noble, and +the poor appropriated some old, neglected tomb, or paid for space in a +public tomb. Even in such cases, some offerings were made. The burial of +royalty was splendid, as tombs recently discovered in the Valley of the +Kings have attested. Furniture, receptacles, toilet articles--even a +boat and a chariot were in some cases provided. + +In the tombs of the wealthy were enclosed little images of servants, or +"answerers." To the unimaginative Egyptian, the future world could only +be a place, like his own Egypt, where he would sow and reap, under +conditions most favorable. Water would be plentiful, and work would be +so easy that it would be a joy to perform it. This satisfied the masses, +who knew only how to reap and sow. But the wealthy had not been +accustomed to cultivate the soil in this life and were not pleased with +the prospect of doing so through countless ages. Lest such menial tasks +be required of them in the realm of Osiris, they had with them these +images of servants--these answerers--who might respond when they were +called upon: "Here am I, thy servant." Thus the noble would have his +work performed by others, as it had always been. + +Amulets and scarabs were also deposited with the mummy. The amulets were +charms supposed to bring good luck, and the scarabs had a deeper +significance. The word _scarab_ means _beetle_. A certain kind of +beetle deposited its eggs in the sand. From the earth, in course of +time, a fully developed beetle would come forth. The Egyptians, who knew +nothing of insect life, believed the beetle, long since dead, had the +power of restoring itself to life anew. Hence the scarab was an emblem +of the resurrection and immortality. Just as the cross is a symbol dear +to the hearts of Christians, so, to the followers of the Egyptian +religion, the scarab was significant. It was made of various kinds of +stone, variously colored, and was worn by the Egyptian during life, and +buried with him at death. During periods when religious revivals were +strong, large numbers of these emblems were produced; during ages when +greater indifference to religious matters were shown, fewer seem to have +been made. As little Greek vases have been found in all lands where +Greek merchantmen went, so the Egyptian trade of antiquity can be traced +by the little scarabs. Large collections of them have been made in +recent years, and many are exhibited today in museums. + +In the New Empire, when it became necessary to remove the heart of the +deceased, a sacred scarab was substituted in its place. The idea +prompting such action was that the heart was sinful, and if removed, +might not be able to testify against its owner. The scarab, being a +symbol of faith, might be of some assistance. + +A copy of the Book of the Dead was supplied the deceased because it +contained a list of the dangers his soul would have to meet in +journeying to the abode of Osiris. The topography of the future world +was included and all invocations to be uttered at different stages of +the progress were given. Only with a perfect knowledge of all these +things could the soul hope to reach the land of the blest. Advice was +given him about meeting the forty-two judges of the western world, who +judged him for forty-two sins. If his good deeds outweighed his +shortcomings, he remained forever with Osiris; otherwise he was +transformed into some unclean animal, and never knew the joys of eternal +life. + +It has been estimated that some 200,000,000 people died in Upper Egypt +during its active history and found a resting place in the favorite +strip of desert less than 450 miles in length. Of course only the most +substantial of the tombs are preserved. The dryness of the country has +helped to preserve ancient monuments. + +It is small wonder that to the very poor, whose huts have always been in +the Necropolis--the wealth concealed in tombs has always been a strong +temptation. Records reach through the Middle and New Empires testifying +that robbers pillaged tombs for jewelry and gold, and today the Arab +traffics constantly in the spoils of the tombs--above which, in many +cases, he lives. + +[Illustration: THE FUNERAL PROCESSION: THE WEAPONS AND JEWELS.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Blimmer: Essays on History, Religion and Art of Ancient Egypt. + + + + +CHAPTER XVI. + + +EXCAVATIONS IN EGYPT. + +We have spoken frequently of recent discoveries in Egypt, and of objects +found within old tombs. The question naturally arises: Who makes these +discoveries, and under what circumstances are the secrets of the tombs +revealed? + +Modern excavations in Egypt are of recent date. In 1798 the military +expedition of Napoleon Bonaparte drew attention to Egyptian monuments. +One of his soldiers, excavating for some fortifications in the delta, +discovered a stone covered with an inscription, and this was preserved. +Being found near the mouth of the Rosetta river, it was called the +Rosetta stone. The stone had been inscribed during the reign of Ptolemy +III., a Greek king. Because some of his subjects in Egypt were Greeks +and some Egyptians, he had caused the decree to be inscribed (1) in +Greek, (2) in hieroglyphics, (3) in demotic. The Greek sentences were +easily read, and since it seemed probable that the other writing simply +repeated the decree, scholars set to work to decipher it. By 1832 they +had prepared an Egyptian grammar and vocabulary. + +The earliest attempt at systematic investigation was begun in 1822, when +the government of Tuscany sent a number of scholars into Egypt to study +inscriptions. Champollian and Rosellini were among them. In 1840 Germany +sent out an expedition under the leadership of Lepsius. This party began +work at Memphis, among the pyramids. In course of time the Tuscan +expedition supplied volumes of copied inscriptions and explanatory +material. + +August Marietta went to Egypt in 1850 and was active there until 1880. +He made the first great discovery when he came upon the burial place of +the Apis bulls in Memphis. Sixty-four tombs were found, together with +amulets and funeral ornaments. In 1857 he was made director of a new +museum, which was founded at Cairo. He received the monopoly of the +right to excavate in the vicinity of Thebes, and while he allowed others +to study what was unearthed under his direction, he would not permit +them to do any excavating. Maspero succeeded him as curator of the Cairo +Museum. Into this museum has been placed all the great finds of recent +years and here one who would make detailed study of ancient Egypt must +go. + +As a result of his explorations in the valley of the Nile, and of his +personal knowledge of all gifts made to the Cairo Museum, Maspero has +prepared many books pertaining to the life of the ancient Egyptians. His +conclusions are drawn entirely from the revelations of old monuments and +remains, and are of first importance. + +Means have been provided by the Egyptian Exploration Fund and by the +Egyptian Research Account to make it possible for young students to +undertake explorations in behalf of public museums. Nothing found by +those thus engaged can be sold, whether publicly or privately, but must +be presented to some museum where people generally can have an +opportunity to see and examine such objects. Reports of all discoveries +are published at the earliest possible moment. In marked contrast to +such generous principles have been the undertakings carried on by many +who have used recovered objects for their personal profit, or have +withheld knowledge of them indefinitely. + +W. M. Flinders Petrie, professor of Egyptology in University College, +London, took charge of the expedition sent out by the Egypt Exploration +Fund in 1884. Later he organized the Egyptian Research Account, in order +to give young students an opportunity to do active work themselves. In +late years Petrie has carried on his efforts alone. On the basis of his +observations, discoveries and knowledge, he has prepared a history of +Egypt, recently published. This is a chronological account of royal +tombs unearthed by him, rather than a complete history of Egypt's +development. + +Gardner, Griffith and Naville have been sent out at different times by +the Egypt Exploration Fund, and have each prepared reports of their +finds. + +The Tell el Amarna Letters should be mentioned with the great finds in +Egypt. In 1887-8, Arabs, who were carrying off bricks for their houses, +came upon a record chamber, containing many hundred letters inscribed on +bricks. They were shown to experts who did not appreciate their value. +They were put in sacks and carried around, from one place to another, +with the hope of making something from their sale. When many of them had +been ground to powder and others were hopelessly ruined, they were +bought up by museums at London, Berlin, St. Petersburg and Cairo. They +have since been translated and it appears that they belonged to the +record chamber of the capital built by Amenhotep IV., and called by him +the Horizon of the Solar Disk. As now translated, they are found to be +letters written during the peaceful reign of Amenhotep III. and early in +the reign of Amenhotep IV.; others recount the North Syrian war, and +certain others, the Palestine war. They reveal the condition of the +empire during the reign of the fanatical king who attempted to bring +about a religious revolution at home, while hostile tribes assailed his +empire on the east. The Tell el Amarna letters have done much to clear +up a portion of Egyptian history, previously not understood. Their +revelations have been supplemented by two wonderful discoveries made +within the last two years: the discovered tomb of the parents of Queen +Tiy--mother of Amenhotep IV., in 1905, and early in 1907, the tomb of +Queen Tiy herself. These finds are so remarkable that we may well give +them brief consideration. + +In recent years, Theodore M. Davis has undertaken systematic excavations +in the Valley of the Kings--the great Necropolis west of Thebes--for the +benefit of the Cairo Museum. This work has been directed by +Archaeologist Quibell, maintained by the present Egyptian government. + +Quoting from one who was present at the exciting moment when the tomb of +Queen Tiy's parents was opened: + +"Squeezing their way between the wall and rock ceiling, M. Maspero and +Mr. Davis were soon in the midst of such a medley of tomb furniture +that, in the glare of their lighted candles, the first effect was one of +bewilderment. Gradually, however, one object after another detached +itself from the shimmering mass, shining through the cool air, dust-free +and golden. Against the wall to the left stood a chair, and beyond it a +gilded coffin-cover lay upside down. In it was a conventional mask that +gleamed golden through dark veiling; and the mummy whose head this mask +had covered lay farther off, its body partly incased in gilded +openwork. Against the wall to the right leaned two 'Osiris beds,' flat +surfaces on which seed had been sown, which in sprouting, had outlined +the figure of the god. Not far off, along the wall opposite the door, +stood a row of sentry-boxes, each containing a statuette. In front of +these rose the outermost case for a mummy. To the left stood a bed. +Nearer again lay a silvered mummy case; and on this, and on a mummy +beyond it, the second in the tomb, a shaft of cold blue light struck +down from the outer day. + +"By day-light then, mingled with the light of flickering candle flames, +the discoverers examined the second mummy. By candle light alone they +searched the first. Both had been plundered by the thief of long ago. +Throwing the mummy cases hither and yon, he had taken from both mummies +everything of intrinsic value except a plate of gold closing the +aperture through which the heart of one had been removed by the +embalmers. Not a jewel, and only part of one necklace, remained of all +those with which the dead must once have been bedecked. But if such +trophies were lacking, others of surpassing splendor and significance +still packed the tomb-chamber, from wall to wall. In the bottom of a +mummy-case, from which the thief had removed the cover, he had left a +cushion and a graceful alabaster vase. In another mummy-case he had +neglected an alabaster jar and the cover of an embroidery-box which he +must have carried across the chamber to a second bed, on which it now +lay beside a superb gilded chair. Near by, where the floor suddenly fell +one deep step to a lower level, he had thrown, among a multitude of +sealed jars, half of the gilded openwork casing which had encircled one +of the mummies. Near these jars again he had propped a coffin-cover +against one corner of the tomb. Here, too, he had left a third bed and +one of the most important finds in the tomb, a chariot, the curving +front and wheel-rims of which shone through the darkness golden and +scarlet. + +"Except for its broken pole and the partly bare spokes of its gilded +wheels, this chariot was in perfect condition; with the yoke already +found in the corridor and a whip soon to be discovered, it lacked +nothing to be complete. + +"Maspero studied the hieroglyphics on their gleaming mummy-cases. +'Tioua,' he read after a time; and after further study he went on, +'Ioua, hereditary prince, chief friend among the friends of the +sovereign.' There were the names of the dead in the tomb; and these +dead, as Maspero therefore knew, had been the parents of Tiy, a queen of +the eighteenth dynasty, whose changing of the national religion had once +caused such uproar and violence that the burial of her parents in the +sacred Valley of the Kings would have had to be hasty and secret. + +"The probable history of the tomb, accordingly, was clear. During a +period of unrest Queen Tiy, who wished a royal burial for her father and +mother, either chose an old tomb on which the work had been abandoned or +stopped work on one which was being hewn out. In it she had placed the +mummies, with their funeral offerings, till the tomb could be reopened +and finished, or its contents transferred to a fitter resting place. +Quiet times had perhaps never returned during her reign; and however +that may be, the tomb had been reopened, not by Queen Tiy, but first by +a robber, and now at last, by modern archaeologists."[1] + +[Illustration: BEAUTIFUL ISLAND OF PHILAE AND THE NILE.] + +Even more gratifying than the discovery just recounted was the finding +of Queen Tiy herself. Again we can get into the spirit of the discovery +best by reading the description of an eye-witness: + +"The excitement of entering a newly opened tomb is naturally +considerable; but when the first inscriptions to be seen revealed the +fact that the tomb of Queen Tiy, which had been so long sought for, had +been found, a glamour was added to the moment which will not easily be +forgotten by any of the party. Inside the tomb chamber the gold covered +coffin and outer coffin, gleaming in the light of the electric lamps, +formed a sight of surprising richness.... The mummy of the queen +protruded from beneath the lip of the beautiful coffin, which was made +in human form. A vulture-headed diadem of gold could just be seen +passing around her head, and one could see here and there the shining +sheets of gold in which the body was wrapped. There must have been +thousands of dollars worth of gold-foil and leaf in the chamber, and the +post-Akhnaton officials seem to have carried away many of the +portable gold ornaments, probably amounting to many times that value. In +a recess cut in the wall of the chamber stood four fine canopic vases of +alabastrum, containing the queen's heart and intestines; and in one +corner of the room there were several charming little pots and toilet +utensils of blue glazed ware. One of these, in the form of a graceful +girl carrying a pot upon her shoulder, is perhaps the most perfect +specimen of miniature figure-molding known in Egypt.... + +"After the tomb had been opened for a few hours, the air, of course, +became very much better, but its bad effects on the antiquities was at +once discernible. Even before the first quick record had been finished, +some of the scenes on the gold showed signs of dropping to pieces.... + +"It is to be hoped that most of the antiquities will be able to travel +to Cairo, though their fragile condition makes it difficult to deal with +them. Probably much of the rotten wood work, and even some of the fine +reliefs on the gold-leaf, will have to be left in the tomb, which will +be closed with Portland cement."[2] + +Greatest care has to be exercised to protect finds from the Arabs. In +spite of the vigilance of the government, pilfering of the old +Necropolis is constantly carried on. Every fragment or curio which might +bring profit is snatched up by those in the employ of speculators. + + +DIFFICULTIES CONFRONTING THE EXPLORER. + +Petrie has given in detail many of the difficulties which have +confronted him in his excavations among ancient Egyptian tombs. On one +occasion, in preference to living in an Arabian village, he hunted out +an old tomb, occupied the three chambers above, where the deceased had +been fed and worshipped, and with his guide as a guard in an adjoining +tomb, found the place secure and comfortable. + +A little account of his experience in the summer of 1888, while +excavating in the Fayoum, will give us some notion of the perplexities +that often beset the archaeologist. Whenever possible, quotation is made +from Petrie's own report. The district he selected--the Fayoum--calls to +mind Amenemhet III., who first irrigated the region and thus added +materially to the arable land of his country. To this particular section +Petrie was drawn, because, as he explains: "The exploration of the +pyramids of this district was my main object, as their arrangement, +their dates, and their builders were yet unknown."[3] + +"So soon as we began to turn over the soil we found chips of sandstone +colossi; the second day the gigantic nose of a colossus was found, as +broad as a man's body; then pieces of carved thrones, and a fragment of +inscription of Amenemhet III. It was evident that the two piles of stone +had been the pedestals of colossal seated monolithic statues, carved in +hard quartzite sandstone, and brilliantly polished. These statues faced +northward, and around each was a courtyard wall with sloping outer face +and red granite gateway in the north front The total height of the +colossi was about 60 feet from the ground. The description of Herodotus, +therefore, is accounted for; and it shows that he actually saw the +figures, though from a distance, as any person who visited them closely +would not have described them in such a manner."[4] + +Petrie took his corps of native workmen next to Hawara, for the pyramids +there had not been opened in modern times. Finding no trace of an +entrance, they tunneled for many weeks in the solid tomb. Finally a +small opening was effected into the old chamber of the tomb, and there, +by the flickering light of a candle, could be seen two empty sarcophagi. +A modern canal has saturated this part of the land and the explorer was +obliged to wade through mud to the tombs. + +Quoting from his description of what was found: "The pyramid had been +elaborately arranged so as to deceive and weary the spoilers, and it had +apparently occupied a great amount of labor to force an entrance." After +explaining a dozen ways they had tried and failed, he says: "At last the +way had been forced by breaking away a hole in the edge of the +glassy-hard sandstone roofing block, and thus reaching the chamber and +its sarcophagi. By a little widening of the spoilers' hole I succeeded +in getting through it into the chamber. The water was up to the middle +of my body, and so the exploration was difficult; but the floor was +covered with rubbish and chips, which might contain parts of the funeral +vessels, and therefore needed searching. The first day I got the coveted +prize, a piece of alabaster vessel with the name of Amenemhet III., +proving finally to whom the pyramid belonged. Still there was a puzzle +as to the second sarcophagus, which had been built up between the great +central one and the chamber side. On clearing in the chamber which led +to the sepulchre, however, a beautiful altar of offerings in alabaster +was found, covered with figures of the offerings all named, over a +hundred, and dedicated to the king's daughter, Neferuptah.... The +chamber itself is a marvellous work; nearly the whole height of it is +carved out of a single block of hard quartzite sandstone, forming a huge +tank in which the sarcophagus was placed. No trace of inscription exists +on either the walls or the sarcophagi; and but for the funeral +furniture, even the very name would not have been recovered."[5] + +Next they located what had in all probability been the old Labyrinth. No +trace of the building itself could be discovered, but the vast extent +showed it to have been larger than any temple known in Egypt. Pliny, a +Roman historian, has told us that for centuries this Labyrinth served as +a quarry for this section of the country, and that a small town of +quarrymen lived near by. + +In the cemetery of Hawara, Petrie made some explorations. He succeeded +in finding one tomb, which had been missed by the spoilers--this +naturally was the coveted find. It belonged to the twenty-sixth dynasty, +a period of the decline of Egyptian power. It was the tomb of a great +noble, Horuta. Standing deep under water, it was more difficult to +manage than usual. + +"But the sarcophagus itself was most difficult to open. The lid block +was nearly two feet thick, and almost under water. It was too heavy for +us to move entire, so some weeks were spent in cutting it in two. One +piece was then raised, but it proved to be the foot end; and though I +spent a day struggling with the inner coffins, sitting in the +sarcophagus up to my nose in water, I yet could not draw them out from +under the rest of the stone lid. So after some days the men raised +that, enough to get one's head in between the under side of it and the +water; and then I spent another gruesome day, sitting astride of the +inner coffin, unable to turn my head under the lid without tasting the +bitter brine in which I sat." At last the coffin was recovered. +"Anxiously opening it, we found a slight inner coffin, and then the body +of Horuta himself, wrapped in a network of beads of lazuli, beryl, and +silver, this last decomposed.... Then came the last and longed-for +scene, for which our months of toil had whetted our appetites--the +unwrapping of Horuta. Bit by bit the layers of pitch and cloth were +loosened, and row after row of magnificent amulets were disclosed, just +as they were laid on in the distant past. The gold ring on the finger +which bore his name and titles, the exquisitely inlaid gold birds, the +chased gold figures, the lazuli statuettes delicately wrought, the +polished lazuli and beryl and carnelian amulets finally engraved, all +the wealth of talismanic armory, rewarded our eyes with a sight which +has never been surpassed to archaeological gaze. No such complete and +rich a series of amulets has been seen intact before; and as one by one +they were removed all their positions were recorded, and they may now be +seen lying in their original order in the Ghizeh Museum."[6] + +We have noted repeatedly the various articles found within the tombs, +such as funeral furniture, vases, food, and amulets. Some rather unusual +disclosures were brought to light in this old cemetery in the Fayoum. +Children's toys, and their personal belongings were found entombed with +their mummies. One tomb of a much later date than yet mentioned--of +Roman Egypt indeed--contained one of the books of the Iliad. More +valuable than any of these were wreaths of flowers with which the dead +had been adorned. These were perfectly dried and from them and accounts +given us by Pliny, the ancient flora of Egypt has been worked out by the +patience and painstaking of noted botanists. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Century, Nov., '05. + +[2] Century, Sept., '07. + +[3] Petrie: Ten Years' Digging in Egypt, 81. + +[4] Ibid. 82. + +[5] Petrie: Ten Years' Digging in Egypt, 86. + +[6] Petrie: Ten Years' Digging in Egypt, 93, ff. + + + + +DESCRIPTIONS OF EGYPT. + + +I. + +The Nile had overflowed its bed. The luxuriant corn fields and blooming +gardens on its shores were lost beneath a boundless waste of waters; and +only the gigantic temples and palaces of its cities (protected from the +force of the water by dikes), and the tops of the tall palm-trees and +acacias could be seen above its surface. The branches of the sycamores +and plane-trees drooped and floated on the waves, but the boughs of the +tall silver poplars strained upward, as if anxious to avoid the watery +world beneath. The full moon had risen; her soft light fell on the +Libyan range of mountains vanishing on the western horizon, and in the +north the shimmer of the Mediterranean could faintly be discerned. Blue +and white lotus flowers floated on the clear water, bats of all kinds +darted softly through the still air, heavy with the scent of +acacia-blossom and jasmine; the wild pigeons and other birds were at +roost in the tops of the trees, while the pelicans, storks and cranes +squatted in groups on the shore under the shelter of the papyrus reeds, +and Nile-beans. The pelicans and storks remained motionless, their long +bills hidden beneath their wings, but the cranes were startled by the +mere beat of an oar, stretching their necks, and peering anxiously into +distance, if they heard but the song of the boatmen. The air was +perfectly motionless, and the unbroken reflection of the moon, lying +like a silver shield on the surface of the water, proved that, wildly as +the Nile leaps over cataracts, and rushes past the gigantic temples of +Upper Egypt, yet on approaching the sea by different arms, he can +abandon his impetuous course, and flow along in sober tranquility. + +On this moonlight night in the year 528 B.C. a bark was crossing the +almost currentless canopic mouth of the Nile. On the raised deck at the +stern of this boat an Egyptian was sitting to guide the long +pole-rudder, and the half naked boatmen within were singing as they +rowed.... + +As Phanes uttered these words they landed at the garden wall, washed by +the Nile.... The garden of Rhodopis was as full of sound, and scent and +blossom as a night in fairy land. It was one labyrinth of acanthus +shrubs, yellow mimosa, the snowy gueldres rose, jasmine and lilac, red +roses and laburnums, overshadowed by tall palm-trees, acacias and +balsam-trees. Large bats hovered softly on their delicate wings over the +whole, and sounds of mirth and song echoed from the river. + +This garden had been laid out by an Egyptian, and the builders of the +Pyramids had already been celebrated for ages for their skill in +horticulture. They well understood how to mark out neat flower-beds, +plant groups of trees and shrubs in regular order, water the whole by +aqueducts and fountains, arrange arbors and summer-houses, and even +inclose the walks with artistically clipped hedges and breed gold-fish +in stone basins.... + +At noon on the following day the same boat, which, the evening before, +had carried the Athenian and the Spartan, stopped once more before +Rhodopis' garden. The sun was shining so brightly, so warmly and +genially in the dark blue Egyptian sky, the air was so pure and light, +the beetles were humming so merrily, the boatmen singing so lustily and +happily, the shores of the Nile bloomed in such gay, variegated beauty, +and were so thickly peopled, the palm-trees, sycamores, bananas and +acacias were so luxuriant in foliage and blossom, and over the whole +landscape the rarest and most glorious gifts seemed to have been poured +out with such divine munificence that a passerby must have pronounced it +the very home of joy and gladness, a place from which sadness and sorrow +had been forever banished. + + --_An Egyptian Princess._ + + +DESCRIPTIONS OF EGYPT. II. + +The feast of Neith, called in Egyptian "the lamp-burning," was +celebrated by a universal illumination, which began at the rising of the +moon. The shores of the Nile looked like two long lines of fire. Every +temple, house, and hut was ornamented with lamps, according to the means +of its possessors. The porches of the country houses and the little +towers on the larger buildings were all lighted up by brilliant flames, +burning in pans of pitch and sending up clouds of smoke, in which the +flags and pennons waved gently backward and forward. The palm-trees and +sycamores were silvered by the moonlight and threw strange fantastic +reflections onto the red waters of the Nile--red from the fiery glow of +the houses on their shores. But, strong and glowing as was the light of +the illumination, its rays had not power to reach the middle of the +giant river where the boat was making its course and the pleasure party +felt as if they were sailing in dark night between two brilliant days. +Now and then a brightly lighted boat would come swiftly across the river +and seem as it neared the shore to be cutting its way through a glowing +stream of molten iron. + +Lotus-blossoms, white as snow, lay on the surface of the river, rising +and falling with the waves and looking like eyes in the water. Not a +sound could be heard from either shore. The echoes were carried away by +the north wind and the measured stroke of the oars and the monotonous +song of the rowers were the only sounds that broke the stillness of this +strange night--a night robbed of its darkness.... + +The pyramids lay on the left bank of the Nile, in the silver moonshine, +massive and awful, as if bruising the earth beneath them with their +weight; the giant graves of mighty rulers. They seemed examples of man's +creative power and at the same time warnings of the vanity and +mutability of earthly greatness. For where was Chufu[1] now--the king +who had cemented that mountain of stone with the sweat of his subjects? +Where was the long-lived Chafra[2] who had despised the gods, and, +defiant in the consciousness of his own strength, was said to have +closed the gates of the temples in order to make himself and his name +immortal by building a tomb of superhuman dimensions? Their empty +sarcophagi are, perhaps, tokens that the judges of the dead found them +unworthy of rest in the grave, unworthy of the resurrection, whereas, +the builder of the third and most beautiful pyramid, Menkera,[3] who +contented himself with a smaller monument, and reopened the gates of the +temples, was allowed to rest in peace in his coffin of blue basalt. + + [1] Khufu. + [2] Khafre. + [3] Menkure. + +There they lay in the quiet night, these mighty pyramids, shone on by +the bright stars, guarded by the watchmen of the desert--the gigantic +sphinx--and overlooking the barren rocks of the Libyan stony mountains. +At their feet slept the mummies of their faithful subjects.... + +But their boat sped on before the north wind; they left the city of the +dead behind them and passed the enormous dikes built to protect the city +of Menes from the violence of the floods; the city of the Pharaohs came +in sight, dazzlingly bright with the myriads of flames which had been +kindled in honor of the goddess Neith, and when at last the gigantic +temple of Ptah appeared, the most ancient building of the most ancient +land, the spell broke, their tongues were loosed, and they burst out +into loud exclamations of delight. + +It was illuminated by thousands of lamps; a hundred fires burned on its +pylons, its battlemented walls and roofs. Burning torches flared between +the rows of sphinxes which connected the various gates with the main +building, and the now empty house of the god Apis was so surrounded by +colored fires that it gleamed like a white limestone rock in a tropical +sunset. Pennons, flags and garlands waved above the brilliant picture; +music and loud songs could be heard from below. + + --_Egyptian Princess._ + + +DESCRIPTIONS OF EGYPT. III. + +By the walls of Thebes--the old city of a hundred gates--the Nile +spreads to a broad river; the heights, which follow the stream on both +sides, here take a more decided outline; solitary, almost cone-shaped +peaks stand out sharply from the level background of the many-colored +limestone hills, on which no palm-tree flourishes and in which no humble +desert-plant can strike root. Rocky crevasses and gorges cut more or +less deeply into the mountain range, and up to its ridge extends the +desert, destructive of all life, with sand and stones, with rocky cliffs +and reef-like, desert hills. + +Behind the eastern range the desert spreads to the Red Sea; behind the +western it stretches without limit, into infinity. In the belief of the +Egyptians beyond it lay the region of the dead.... + +In the fourteenth century before Christ--for to so remote a date we +must direct the thoughts of the reader--impassable limits had been set +by the hand of man, in many places in Thebes, to the inroads of the +water; high dykes of stone and embankments protected the streets and +squares, the temples and the palaces, from the overflow. + +Canals that could be tightly closed up led from the dykes to the land +within, and smaller branch-cuttings to the gardens of Thebes. + +On the right, the eastern bank of the Nile, rose the buildings of the +far-famed residence of the Pharaohs. Close by the river stood the +immense and gaudy temples of the city of Amon; behind these and at a +short distance from the Eastern hills--indeed at their very foot and +partly even on the soil of the desert--were the palaces of the king and +nobles, and the shady streets in which the high narrow houses of the +citizens stood in close rows. + +Life was gay and busy in the streets of the capital of the Pharaohs. The +western shore of the Nile showed quite a different scene. Here too there +was no lack of stately buildings or thronging men; but while on the +further side of the river there was a compact mass of houses, and the +citizens went cheerfully and openly about their day's work, on this side +there were solitary splendid structures, round which little houses and +huts seemed to cling as children cling to the protection of a mother. +And these buildings lay in detached groups.... + +And even more dissimilar were the slow-moving, solemn groups in the +road-ways on this side, and the cheerful, confused throng yonder. There, +on the eastern shore, all were in eager pursuit of labor or recreation, +stirred by pleasure or by grief, active in deed and speech: here, in the +west, little was spoken, a spell seemed to check the footsteps of the +wanderer, a pale hand to sadden the bright glance of every eye, and to +banish the smile from every lip. + +And yet many a gayly-dressed bark stopped at the shore, there was no +lack of minstrel bands, grand processions passed on to the western +heights; but the Nile boats bore the dead, the songs sung here were +songs of lamentation, and the processions consisted of mourners +following the sarcophagus. We are standing on the soil of the City of +the Dead of Thebes. + +Nevertheless even here nothing is wanting for return and revival, for +to the Egyptian his dead died not. He closed his eyes, he bore him to +the Necropolis, to the house of the embalmer, or Kolchytes, and then to +the grave; but he knew that the souls of the departed lived on; that the +justified absorbed into Osiris floated over the Heavens in the vessel of +the Sun; that they appeared on earth in the form they chose to take upon +them, and that they might exert influence on the current of the lives of +the survivors. So he took care to give a worthy interment to his dead, +above all to have the body embalmed so as to endure long; and had fixed +times to bring fresh offerings for the dead, of flesh and fowl, with +drink-offerings and sweet-smelling essences, and vegetables and flowers. + +Neither at the obsequies nor at the offerings might the ministers of the +gods be absent, and the silent City of the Dead was regarded as a +favored sanctuary in which to establish schools and dwellings for the +learned. + +So it came to pass that in the temples and on the site of the +Necropolis, large communities of priests dwelt together, and close to +the extensive embalming houses lived numerous Kolchytes, who handed down +the secrets of their art from father to son. + +Besides these there were other manufactories and shops. In the former, +sarcophagi of stone and of wood, linen bands for enveloping mummies, and +amulets for decorating them, were made; in the latter, merchants kept +spices and essences, flowers, fruits, vegetables and pastry for sale. +Calves, gazelles, goats, geese, and other fowl were fed on inclosed +meadow-plats, and the mourners betook themselves thither to select what +they needed from among the beasts pronounced by the priests to be clean +for sacrifice, and to have them sealed with the sacred seal. Many bought +only a part of a victim at the shambles--the poor could not even do +this. They bought only colored cakes in the shape of beasts, which +symbolically took the place of the calves and geese which their means +were unable to procure. In the handsomest shops sat servants of the +priests, who received forms written on rolls of papyrus which were +filled up in the writing room of the temple with those sacred verses +which the departed spirit must know and repeat to ward off the evil +genius of the deep, to open the gate of the under-world, and to be held +righteous before Osiris and the forty-two assessors of the subterranean +court of justice. + +What took place within the temples was concealed from view, for each was +surrounded by a high inclosing wall with lofty, carefully closed +portals, which were only opened when a chorus of priests came out to +sing a pious hymn, in the morning to Horus the rising god, and in the +evening to Turn the descending god. As soon as the evening hymn of the +priests was heard, the Necropolis was deserted, for the mourners and +those who were visiting the graves were required by this time to return +to their boats, and to quit the City of the Dead. Crowds of men who had +marched in the processions of the west bank hastened in disorder to the +shore, driven on by the body of watchmen who took it in turns to do this +duty and to protect the graves against robbers. The merchants closed +their booths, then embalmers and workmen ended their day's work and +retired to their houses, the priests returned to the temples, and the +inns were filled with guests, who had come hither on long pilgrimages +from a distance, and who preferred passing the night in the vicinity of +the dead whom they had come to visit, to going across to the bustling +noisy city on the further shore. + +The voices of the singers and of the wailing women were hushed, even the +song of the sailors on the numberless ferryboats from the western shore +of Thebes died away, its faint echo was now and then borne across on the +evening air, and at last all was still. + + _Uarda._ + + +KARNAK. + + "I am Karnak, and a thousand million men have lived and died + Since open have my gates been thrown for kings through them to ride: + My massive walls have echoed to the tread of Egypt's hosts, + But now they are a skulking place for goblins and for ghosts." + +"I stand once more among those mighty columns, which radiate into +avenues from whatever point one takes them. I see them swathed in coiled +shadows and broad bands of light. I see them sculptured and painted with +shapes of gods and kings, with blazonings of royal names, with +sacrificial altars and forms of sacred beasts, and emblems of wisdom and +truth. The shafts of these columns are enormous. I stand at the foot of +one--or of what seems to be the foot; for the original pavement lies +buried seven feet below.... It casts a shadow twelve feet in +breadth--such a shadow as might be cast by a tower. The capital that +juts out so high above my head looks as if it might have been placed +there to support the heavens. It is carved in the semblance of a +full-blown lotus, and glows with undying colors--colors that are still +fresh, though laid on by hands that have been dust these three thousand +years and more. It would take not six men, but a dozen, to measure round +the curved lip of that stupendous lily. + +"Such are the twelve central columns. The rest (one hundred and +twenty-two in number) are gigantic, too, but smaller. Of the roof they +once supported, only the beams remain. Those beams are stone ... carved +and painted, bridging the space from pillar to pillar, and patterning +the trodden soil with bands of shadow. + +"Looking up and down the central avenue, we see at the one end a +flame-like obelisk; at the other, a solitary palm against a back-ground +of glowing mountain. To right, to left, showing transversely through +long files of columns, we catch glimpses of colossal bas-reliefs lining +the roofless walls in every direction. The king, as usual, figures in +every group, and performs the customary acts of worship. The gods +receive and approve him. Half in light, half in shadow, these slender, +fantastic forms stand out sharp and clear and colorless; each figure +some eighteen or twenty feet in height. They could scarcely have looked +more weird when the great roof was in its place and perpetual twilight +reigned. But it is difficult to imagine the roof on and the sky shut +out. It all looks right as it is; and one feels, somehow, that such +columns should have nothing between them and the infinite blue depths of +heaven.... + +"How often has it been written, and how often must it be repeated, that +the great hall at Karnak is the noblest architectural work ever designed +and executed by human hands? One writer tells us that it covers four +times the area occupied by the cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. Another +measures it against St. Peter's. All admit their inability to describe +it; yet all attempt the description. To convey a concrete image of the +place to one who has never seen it, is, however, as I have said, +impossible. If it could be likened to this place or that, the task would +not be so difficult; but there is, in truth, no building in the wide +world to compare with it. The pyramids are more stupendous. The +colosseum covers more ground. The parthenon is more beautiful. Yet in +nobility of conception, in vastness of detail, in majesty of the highest +order, the hall of pillars exceeds them every one. This doorway, these +columns, are the wonder of the world. How was that lintel-stone raised? +How were these capitals lifted? Entering among those mighty pillars, +says a recent observer, 'you feel that you have shrunk to the dimensions +and feebleness of a fly.' But I think you feel more than that. You are +stupefied by the thought of the mighty men who made them. You say to +yourself: 'There were indeed giants in those days.' + +"It may be that the traveler who finds himself for the first time in the +midst of a grove of _Wellingtonia gigantea_ feels something of the same +overwhelming sense of awe and wonder; but the great trees, though they +have taken three thousand years to grow, lack the pathos and the mystery +that comes of human labor. They do not strike their roots through six +thousand years of history. They have not been watered with the blood and +tears of millions. Their leaves know no sounds less musical than the +singing of the birds, or the moaning of the night-wind as it sweeps over +the highlands of Calaveras. But every breath that wanders down the +painted aisles of Karnak seems to echo back the sighs of those who +perished in the quarry, at the oar, and under the chariot-wheels of the +conqueror." + + +MEMPHIS. + +"And this is all that remains of Memphis, eldest of cities--a few huge +rubbish-heaps, a dozen or so of broken statues, and a name! One looks +round and tries in vain to realize the lost splendors of the place. +Where is the Memphis that King Mena[1] came from Thinis to found--the +Memphis of Chufu[2] and Chafra,[3] and all the early kings who built +their pyramid-tombs in the adjacent desert? Where is the Memphis of +Herodotus and Strabo? Where are those stately ruins which, even in the +middle ages, extended over a space estimated at half a day's journey in +every direction? One can hardly believe that a great city ever +flourished on this spot, or understand how it should have been effaced +so utterly. Yet here it stood--here where the grass is green, and the +palms are growing, and the Arabs build their hovels on the verge of the +inundation. The great colossus marks the site of the main entrance to +the Temple of Ptah. It lies where it fell, and no man has moved it. That +tranquil sheet of palm-fringed back-water, beyond which we catch a +distant glimpse of the pyramids of Gizeh, occupies the basin of a vast +artificial lake excavated by Mena. + + [1] Menes. + [2] Khufu. + [3] Khafre. + +"No capital in the world dates so far back as this or kept its place in +history so long. Founded four thousand years before our era, it beheld +the rise and fall of thirty-one dynasties; it survived the rule of the +Persians, the Greek and the Roman; it was, even in its decadence, second +only to Alexandria in population and extent; and it continued to be +inhabited up to the time of the Arab invasion. It then became the quarry +from which old Cairo was built; and as the new city rose on the eastern +bank the people of Memphis quickly abandoned their ancient capital to +desolation and decay.... + +"Memphis is a place to read about, and think about, and remember; but it +is a disappointing place to see. To miss it, however, would be to miss +the first link in the whole chain of monumental history which unites the +Egypt of antiquity with the world of today. Those melancholy mounds and +that heron-haunted lake must be seen, if only that they may take their +due place in the picture gallery of one's memory." + + --_A Thousand Miles Up the Nile._ + + +A HYMN TO THE GOD RA. + + Incline thine ear towards me, thou rising Sun, + Thou who dost enlighten the two lands with beauty; + Thou sunshine of mankind, chasing darkness from Egypt! + Thy form is as that of thy father Ra rising in the heavens, + Thy rays penetrate to the farthest lands. + When thou art resting in thy palace, + Thou hearest the words of all countries; + For indeed thou hast millions of ears; + Thine eye is clearer than the stars of heaven; + Thou seest farther than the Sun. + If I speak afar off, thine ear hears; + If I do a hidden deed, thine eye sees it. + O Ra, richest of beings, chosen of Ra, + Thou king of beauty, giving breath to all. + + + + +[Illustration] + +AN OLD KINGDOM BOOK OF PROVERBS. + + There is preserved in the Bibliothèque Nationale at Paris, a + papyrus roll, which was discovered at Thebes by M. Prisse, and is + now distinguished by his name. It was first described in 1857 by M. + Chabas. The papyrus dates from the beginning of the Middle Kingdom + (_Ca._ 2100 B.C.), and belongs to the rather extensive didactic + literature of the Egyptians. According to the Egyptian custom, the + words of the book were put into the mouth of a sage of the olden + time, Ptah-hotep by name, who was said to have lived in the time + of King Assa of the Fifth Dynasty (_Ca._ 2600 B.C.). There is no + reason for doubting the correctness of the tradition. Of course + it is not to be supposed that all of the proverbs really go back + to Ptah-hotep. The author is stated to have been 110 years old, + and his book opens with a remarkable description of old age. It + proceeds in a style which recalls the Proverbs of Solomon, the + Greek didactic poems, and even the homely "Poor Richard." It + inculcates obedience, diligence, patience, and other virtues + belonging to an official or servant. The Papyrus Prisse also + contains the Proverbs of Kagemni, vizier of King Snefru (_Ca._ + 2900 B.C.) of the Fourth Dynasty. + + +PRECEPTS OF PTAH-HOTEP. + +The words of the Lord Prefect Ptah-Hotep, who lived in the reign of +Assa, King of Northern and Southern Egypt, who liveth forever. + +Thus saith the Lord Ptah-Hotep: O Lord Osiris, whose feet are upon the +crocodiles! + +A man waxeth old, his strength decayeth, he getteth in years, his +youth fadeth away: + +Day by day the heart of an old man fainteth and is troubled: + +His eyes see not, his ears hear not, his power is lessened and abated: + +Behold, his mouth speaketh not as of yore, his mind is feeble, and +remembereth not the deeds of yesterday: + +Yea, his whole body is afflicted, good is to him as evil, his tongue +savoreth no longer. + +Alas, the old age of a man is full of misery, his nostrils drink not +the breath of heaven, his lungs wax feeble, he delighteth neither to +stand nor to be seated. + +Who shall give unto my tongue authority to utter unto the young men +the counsels from of old? or who vouchsafeth unto me to declare the +counsels received from on high? + +O Lord Osiris, let thy favor be poured out upon thy servant, and +suffer that these evils be removed from those who are unenlightened. + +Then answered the Lord Osiris and said: Instruct them in the counsels +from of old; for verily, wisdom from of old maketh the weak strong; +knowledge giveth freedom to him that heareth; wisdom cries aloud, and +the ear is not satisfied with hearing. + +Here beginneth the book of the wise sayings of the Lord Prefect +Ptah-Hotep, the first-born, the son of the King, the well-beloved of +the Lord: + +That the ignorant and the foolish may be instructed in the +understanding of wisdom. + +Whoso giveth ear, to him shall these words be as riches; + +To him who heedeth them not, to the same shall come emptiness forever. + +Thus speaketh he, giving counsel unto his son. + +Be not thou puffed up with thy learning; honor the wise, neither +withhold thou honor from the simple. + +The gates of art are closed unto none; whoso entereth thereat, though +he seeketh perfection, yet shall he not find it. + +But the words of wisdom are hid, even as the emerald is hid in the +earth, and adamant in the rock, which the slave diggeth up. + +Yield unto him whose strength is more than thine, who falleth upon +thee in anger: be not thou inflamed, neither lay thy hands upon him; +so shalt thou escape calamity. + +He is froward, it shall not profit thee to contend against him; be +contained, and when he rageth against thee, oppose him not; so in the +end shalt thou prevail over him. + +If one rail against thee, and flout thee, answer him not again, but be +as one who cannot be moved; even so shalt thou overcome him. For the +bystanders shall declare that he who, being provoked, holdeth his +tongue, is greater than he who provoketh; and thou shalt be honored of +those who have understanding. + +If thou do evil, being thereto commanded by one having authority over +thee, the gods shall not condemn thee. + +Know the master, and the slave: be not froward: obey and reverence him +to whom is given dominion over thee: + +None may know adversity, when it cometh, nor prosperity, when it shall +relieve him, for the will of fate is hid from all: + +But he that abuseth his servant shall be confounded, and God who gave +him authority shall suddenly take it away; and great shall be his +overthrow. + +Be diligent, and do more than thy master commandeth thee; for the +slothful servant shall be discomfited, and he that is idle shall be +chidden. + +See thou neglect not thy household; if thou find opportunity to +increase thy wealth improve it; business begetteth business, but +poverty is the lot of the slothful. + +The wise traineth his child to walk devoutly and to serve the Lord; he +maketh him obey his law, and do that which is bidden; so shall the +love of the father be justified. + +The son of a man is flesh of his flesh and bone of his bone; let not +thy heart be cold towards him. But if he be froward, and transgress +thy law, and, being tempted of evil, turn himself from thy +instruction, then do thou smite the mouth that smote thee. + +Delay not to bring the erring to obedience, and to chastise the +rebellious; so shall he not stray from the path of righteousness, nor +stumble among pitfalls. + +Hide not thy path, let not thy way be hidden; though thou stand in the +council of thy master, declare the truth that is in thee. + +Be not as those who go backward, who eat the words of their own mouth, +lest peradventure they offend: + +Be not like unto them; feigners, answering, He that perceiveth the +error of others, the same is wise: when the wise man uplifteth his +voice against error, deny him not, but keep silence; for surely none +but the wise have understanding. + +If thou be wise guard thy house: honor thy wife, and love her +exceedingly: feed her belly and clothe her back, for this is the duty +of a husband. + +Give her abundance of ointment, fail not each day to caress her, let +the desire of her heart be fulfilled: for verily he that is kind to +his wife and honoreth her, the same honoreth himself. + +Withhold thy hand from violence, and thy heart from cruelty; softly +entreat her and win her to thy way; consider her desires, and deny not +the wish of her heart. + +Thus shalt thou keep her heart from wandering; but if thou harden +thyself against her, she will turn from thee. Speak to her, yield her +thy love, she will have respect unto thee; open thy arms, she will +come unto thee. + +Blessed is the son who gives ear to the instruction of his father, for +he shall escape error. + +Train thou thy son to obedience; his wisdom shall be pleasing unto the +great. + +Let his mouth have respect to thy sayings; by obedience shall his +wisdom be established. Day by day shall his walk be perfect; but error +shall be the destruction of fools. The ignorant and the froward shall +be overthrown, but knowledge shall uplift the wise. + +He that lacketh prudence and inclineth not his ear to instruction, the +same worketh no good. He thinketh to discover knowledge in ignorance, +and gain in that which profiteth nothing; he runneth to mischief, and +wandereth in error, choosing those things which are rejected of the +prudent; so subsisteth he on that which perisheth, and filleth his +belly with the words of evil. Yea, he is brought to shame, seeking to +be nourished with whatsoever the wise hold in abomination, shunning +profitable things, led astray by much foolishness. + + +[Illustration] + +THE VOYAGE OF THE SOUL. + + In the 15th chapter of "The Book of the Dead" we find an account + of the passage of the soul in a boat across the firmament, to the + abode of the blessed. + + This fable reappears in the religious writings of other nations, + as, for instance, in, the Greek story of Charon, ferrying departed + spirits across the Styx, and in the traditions of the ancient + Mexicans. The soul is called by the Egyptians Osiris, in connection + with the proper name of the individual (_N_), to indicate that the + latter already partakes of the divine nature. Ra is the sun-god, + approaching the west. The following translation is by P. Le Page + Renouf: + +Here is the Osiris _N_. + +Come forth into Heaven, sail across the firmament and enter into +brotherhood with the stars, let salutation be made to thee in the +bark, let invocation be made to thee in the morning bark. Contemplate +Ra within his Ark, and do thou propitiate his orb daily. See the fish +in its birth from the emerald stream, and see the tortoise and its +rotations. Let the offender (the dragon) fall prostrate, when he +meditates destruction for me, by blows on his backbone. + +Ra springs forth with a fair wind; the evening bark speeds on and +reaches the Haven. The crew of Ra are in exultation when they look +upon him; the Mistress of Life, her heart is delighted at the +overthrow of the adversary of her Lord. + +See thou Horus at the look-out at the bow, and at his sides Thoth and +Maat. All the gods are in exultation when they behold Ra coming in +peace to give new life to the hearts of the Chu, and here is the +Osiris _N_ along with them. + + [_Litany._] + + Adored be Ra, as he setteth in the land of Life. + Hail to thee, who hast come as Tmu, and hast been the creator of the + cycle of the gods, + _Give thou delicious breezes of the north wind to the Osiris N._ + Hail to thee, who hast come as the Soul of souls, revered in Amenta, + Hail to thee, who art above the gods, and who lightenest up Tuat with + thy glories, + Hail to thee, who comest in splendor, and goest around in thine orb, + Hail to thee, who art mightier than the gods, who art crowned in + Heaven and King in Tuat, + Hail to thee, who openest the Tuat and disposest of all its doors, + Hail to thee, supreme among the gods, and weigher of words in the + nether world, + Hail to thee, who art in thy Nest, and stirrest the Tuat with thy + glory, + Hail to thee, the great, the mighty, whose enemies are laid prostrate + at their blocks, + Hail to thee, who slaughterest the Sebau and annihilatest Apepi (the + dragon). + + [After each invocation, the italicized line is repeated.] + +Horus openeth: the Great, the Mighty, who divideth the earths, the +Great One who resteth in the Mountain of the West, and brighteneth up +the Tuat with his glories and the Souls in their hidden abode, by +shining into their sepulchres. + +By hurling harm against the foe thou hast utterly destroyed all the +adversaries of the Osiris _N_. + +THE SOUL'S DECLARATION OF INNOCENCE. + + This declaration was to be made by the soul in the Judgment Hall of + Osiris in the presence of the council of forty-two gods. The heart + being weighed against the symbol of truth and found correct was + then restored to the deceased who entered upon the life of the + blessed. + + "O ye Lords of Truth! I have brought you truth. + I have not privily done evil against mankind. + I have not afflicted the miserable. + I have not told falsehoods. + I have had no acquaintance with sin. + I have not made the laboring man do more than his daily task. + I have not been idle. + I have not been intoxicated. + I have not been immoral. + I have not calumniated a slave to his master. + I have not caused hunger. + I have not made to weep. + I have not murdered. + I have not defrauded. + "I have not eaten the sacred bread in the temples. + I have not cheated in the weight of the balance. + I have not withheld milk from the mouths of sucklings. + I have not slandered any one. + I have not netted sacred birds. + I have not caught the fish which typify them. + I have not stopped running water. + I have not robbed the gods of their offered haunches. + I have not stopped a god from his manifestation. + I have made to the gods the offerings that were their due. + I have given food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty, and clothes to + the naked. + I am pure! I am pure!" + +[Illustration: WEIGHING THE HEART IN THE JUDGMENT HALL OF OSIRIS.] + + +THE ADVENTURES OF THE EXILE SANEHAT.[1] + +(2000 B.C.) + + The fact that three copies of this tale have been found indicates + that it was popular. Sanehat was a high official, and probably a + member of the royal family; but on the death of King Amenemhet, the + founder of the twelfth dynasty, Sanehat, fearing for his life, fled + to Syria and lived there many years. In his old age he desired to + return, that he might die in his native land. The narrative was + probably prepared for inscription on the wall of his tomb. The + translation is from W. M. Flinders Petrie's "Egyptian Tales." + +In the thirtieth year, the month Paophi, the seventh day, the god +entered his horizon, the King Sehotepabra flew up to heaven and joined +the sun's disc, the follower of the god met his maker. The palace was +silenced, and in mourning, the great gates were closed, the courtiers +crouching on the ground, the people in hushed mourning. + +[Illustration] + +His majesty had sent a great army with the nobles to the land of the +Temehu (Libya), his son and heir, the good god, King Usertesen,[2] as +their leader. Now he was returning, and had brought away living +captives and all kinds of cattle without end. The councillors of the +palace had sent to the West to let the king know the matter that had +come to pass in the inner hall. The messenger was to meet him on the +road, and reach him at the time of evening: the matter was urgent. "A +hawk had soared with his followers." Thus said he, not to let the army +know of it. Even if the royal sons who commanded in that army sent a +message, he was not to speak to a single one of them. + +But I was standing near, and heard his voice while he was speaking. I +fled far away, my heart beating, my arms failing, trembling had +fallen on all my limbs. I turned about in running to seek a place to +hide me, and I threw myself between two bushes, to wait while they +should pass by. Then I turned me toward the south, not wishing to come +into this palace--for I knew not if war was declared--nor even +thinking a wish to live after this sovereign. I turned my back to the +sycamore, I reached Shi-Seneferu, and rested on the open field. In the +morning I went on and overtook a man, who passed by the edge of the +road. He asked of me mercy, for he feared me. By the evening I drew +near to Kher-ahau (Cairo) and I crossed the river on a raft without a +rudder. Carried by the west wind, I passed over to the east to the +quarries of Aku and the land of the goddess Herit, mistress of the red +mountain. Then I fled on foot, northward, and reached the walls of the +prince, built to repel the Sati. I crouched in a bush for fear of +being seen by the guards, changed each day, who watch on the top of +the fortress. I took my way by night, and at the lighting of the day I +reached Peten, and turned me toward the valley of Kemur. Then thirst +hasted me on; I dried up, and my throat narrowed, and I said, "This is +the taste of death." + +When I lifted up my heart and gathered strength, I heard a voice and +the lowing of cattle. I saw men of the Sati, and one of them--a friend +unto Egypt--knew me. He gave me water and boiled milk, and I went with +him to his camp; they did me good, and one tribe passed me on to +another. I passed on to Sun, and reached the land of Adim (Edom). + +[Illustration: HAREM WINDOW AND COURT. + +Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y.] + +When I had dwelt there half a year Amu-an-shi--who is the prince of +the Upper Tenu--sent for me and said: "Dwell thou with me that thou +mayest hear the speech of Egypt." He said thus for that he knew of my +excellence, and had heard tell of my worth, for men of Egypt who were +there with him bore witness of me. Behold he said to me, "For what +cause hast thou come hither? Has a matter come to pass in the palace? +Has the king of the two lands, Sehetepabra, gone to heaven? What has +happened about this is not known." But I answered with concealment, +and said, "When I came from the land of the Temehu, and my desires +were there changed in me, if I fled away it was not by reason of +remorse that I took the way of a fugitive; I have not failed in my +duty, my mouth has not said any bitter words, I have not heard any +evil counsel, my name has not come into the mouth of a magistrate. I +know not by what I have been led into this land." And Amu-an-shi said, +"This is by the will of the god (King of Egypt), for what is a land +like, if it know not that excellent god, of whom the dread is upon the +lands of strangers, as they dread Sekhet in a year of pestilence?" I +spake to him, and replied, "Forgive me, his son now enters the palace, +and has received the heritage of his father. He is a god who has none +like him, and there is none before him. He is a master of wisdom, +prudent in his designs, excellent in his decrees, with good-will to +him who goes or who comes; he subdued the land of strangers while his +father yet lived in his palace, and he rendered account of that which +his father destined him to perform. A king, he has ruled from his +birth; he, from his birth, has increased births, a sole being, a +divine essence, by whom this land rejoices to be governed. He enlarges +the borders of the South; but he covets not the lands of the North; he +does not smite the Sati, nor crush the Nemau-shau. If he descends +here, let him know thy name, by the homage which thou wilt pay to his +majesty. For he refuses not to bless the land which obeys him." + +And he replied to me, "Egypt is indeed happy and well settled; behold +thou art far from it, but whilst thou art with me I will do good unto +thee." And he placed me before his children, he married his eldest +daughter to me, and gave me the choice of all his land, even among the +best of that which he had on the border of the next land. It is a +goodly land; Iaa is its name. There are figs and grapes; there is wine +commoner than water; abundant is the honey, many are its olives; and +all fruits are upon its trees; there is barley and wheat, and cattle +of kinds without end. This was truly a great thing that he granted me, +when the prince came to invest me, and establish me as prince of a +tribe in the best of his land. I had my continual portion of bread and +of wine each day, of cooked meat, of roasted fowl, as well as the wild +game which I took, or which was brought to me, besides what my dogs +captured. They made me much butter, and prepared milk of all kinds. I +passed many years, the children that I had became great, each ruling +his tribe. When a messenger went or came to the palace, he turned +aside from the way to come to me; for I helped every man. I gave water +to the thirsty, I set on his way him who went astray, and I rescued +the robbed. The Sati who went far, to strike and turn back the princes +of other lands, I ordained their goings; for the Prince of the Tenu +for many years appointed me to be general of his soldiers. In every +land which I attacked I played the champion, I took the cattle, I led +away the vassals, I carried off the slaves, I slew the people, by my +sword, my bow, my marches and my good devices. I was excellent to the +heart of my prince; he loved me when he knew my power, and set me over +his children when he saw the strength of my arms. + +A champion of the Tenu came to defy me in my tent: a bold man without +equal, for he had vanquished the whole country. He said, "Let Sanehat +fight with me;" for he desired to overthrow me, he thought to take my +cattle for his tribe. The prince counseled with me. I said, "I know +him not. I certainly am not of his degree, I hold me far from his +place. Have I ever opened his door, or leaped over his fence? It is +some envious jealousy from seeing me; does he think that I am like +some steer among the cows, whom the bull overthrows? If this is a +wretch who thinks to enrich himself at my cost, not a Bedawi fit for +fight, then let us put the matter to judgment. Verily a true bull +loves battle, but a vain-glorious bull turns his back for fear of +contest; if he has a heart for combat, let him speak what he pleases. +Will God forget what he has ordained, and how shall that be known?" I +lay down; and when I had rested I strung my bow, I made ready my +arrows, I loosened my dagger, I furbished my arms. + +At dawn the land of the Tenu came together; it had gathered its tribes +and called all the neighboring people; it spake of nothing but the +fight. Each heart burnt for me, men and women crying out; for each +heart was troubled for me, and they said, "Is there another strong one +who would fight with him? Behold the adversary has a buckler, a +battle-axe, and an armful of javelins." Then I drew him to the +attack; I turned aside his arrows, and they struck the ground in vain. +One drew near to the other, and he fell on me, and then I shot him. My +arrow fastened in his neck, he cried out, and fell on his face: I +drove his lance into him, and raised my shout of victory on his back. +Whilst all the men of the land rejoiced, I, and his vassals whom he +had oppressed, gave thanks unto Mentu (the god of war). This prince, +Amu-an-shi, embraced me. Then I carried off his goods and took his +cattle, that which he had wished to do to me, I did even so unto him; +I seized that which was in his tent, I spoiled his dwelling. As time +went on I increased the richness of my treasures and the number of my +cattle.... + +[But at last the exile desired to return to his native land, and sent +a petition to the King of Egypt, asking permission.] + +Then the majesty of King Kheper-ka-ra, the blessed, spake upon this my +desire that I had made to him. His majesty sent unto me with presents +from the king, that he might enlarge the heart of his servant, like +unto the province of any strange land; and the royal sons who are in +the palace addressed themselves unto me. + + _Copy of the decree which was brought to lead me back into Egypt._ + + "The Horus, life of births, lord of the two crowns, King of Upper + and Lower Egypt, Kheper-ka-ra, son of the Sun, Amen-em-hat, ever + living unto eternity. Order for the follower Sanehat. Behold this + order of the king is sent to thee to instruct thee of his will. + + "Now, although them hast gone through strange lands from Adim to + Tenu, and passed from one country to another at the wish of thy + heart--behold, what hast thou done, or what has been done against + thee, that is amiss? Moreover, thou reviledst not; but if thy word + was denied, thou didst not speak again in the assembly of the + nobles, even if thou wast desired. Now, therefore, that thou hast + thought on this matter which has come to thy mind, let thy heart + not change again; for this thy Heaven (queen), who is in the palace + is fixed, she is flourishing, she is enjoying the best in the + kingdom of the land, and her children are in the chambers of the + palace. + + "Leave all the riches that thou hast, and that are with thee, + altogether. When thou shalt come into Egypt behold the palace, and + when thou shalt enter the palace, bow thy face to the ground before + the Great House; thou shalt be chief among the companions. And day + by day behold thou growest old; thy vigor is lost, and thou + thinkest on the day of burial. Thou shalt see thyself come to the + blessed state, they shall give thee the bandages from the hand of + Tait, the night of applying the oil of embalming. They shall follow + thy funeral, and visit the tomb on the day of burial, which shall + be in a gilded case, the head painted with blue, a canopy of + cypress wood above thee, and oxen shall draw thee, the singers + going before thee, and they shall dance the funeral dance. The + weepers crouching at the door of thy tomb shall cry aloud the + prayers for offerings: they shall slay victims for thee at the door + of thy pit; and thy pyramid shall be carved in white stone, in the + company of the royal children. Thus thou shalt not die in a strange + land, nor be buried by the Amu; thou shalt not be laid in a + sheep-skin when thou art buried; all people shall beat the earth, + and lament on thy body when thou goest to the tomb." + +When this order came to me, I was in the midst of my tribe. When it +was read unto me, I threw me on the dust, I threw dust in my hair; I +went around my tent rejoicing and saying, "How may it be that such a +thing is done to the servant, who with a rebellious heart has fled to +strange lands? Now with an excellent deliverance, and mercy delivering +me from death, thou shalt cause me to end my days in the palace." + +I made a feast in Iaa, to pass over my goods to my children. My eldest +son was leading my tribe, all my goods passed to him, and I gave him +my corn and all my cattle, my fruit, and all my pleasant trees. When I +had taken my road to the south, and arrived at the roads of Horus, the +officer who was over the garrison sent a messenger to the palace to +give notice. His majesty sent the good overseer of the peasants of the +king's domains, and boats laden with presents from the king for the +Sati who had come to conduct me to the roads of Horus. I spoke to each +one by his name, and I gave the presents to each as was intended. I +received and I returned the salutation and I continued thus until I +reached the city of Thetu (Thebes). + +When the land was brightened, and the new day began, four men came +with a summons for me; and the four men went to lead me to the palace. +I saluted with both my hands on the ground; the royal children stood +at the courtyard to conduct me: the courtiers who were to lead me to +the hall brought me on the way to the royal chamber. + +I found his majesty on the great throne in the hall of pale gold. Then +I threw myself on the ground; this god, in whose presence I was, knew +me not. He questioned me graciously, but I was as one seized with +blindness, my spirit fainted, my limbs failed, my heart was no longer +in my bosom, and I knew the difference between life and death. His +majesty said to one of the companions, "Lift him up, let him speak to +me." + +The royal children were brought in, and his majesty said to the queen, +"Behold, Sanehat has come as an Amu, whom the Sati have produced." + +She cried aloud, and the royal children spake with one voice, saying +before his majesty, "Verily it is not so, O king, my lord." Said his +majesty, "It is verily he." Then they brought their collars, and their +wands, and their sistra[A] in their hands, and displayed them before +his majesty; and they sang-- + + "May thy hands prosper, O king; + May the ornaments of the Lady of Heaven continue. + May the goddess Nub give life to thy nostril; + May the mistress of the stars favor thee, when thou sailest south and + north. + All wisdom is in the mouth of thy majesty; + Thy uræus[B] is on thy forehead, thou drivest away the miserable. + Thou art pacified, O Ra, lord of the lands; + They call on thee as on the mistress of all. + Strong is thy horn. Thou lettest fly thine arrow. + Grant the breath to him who is without it; + Grant good things to this traveller, Sanehat the Pedti, born in the + land of Egypt, + Who fled away from fear of thee, + And fled this land from thy terrors. + Does not the face grow pale, of him who beholds thy countenance; + Does not the eye fear, which looks upon thee?" + + [A] The sistrum was a musical rattle, usually consisting of a thin + oval metal band, crossed with metal rods and having a handle. + See cut. p. 39. + + [B] The serpent, with raised, projecting head, which was an emblem + of sovereignty. + +Said his majesty, "Let him not fear, let him be freed from terror. He +shall be a Royal Friend amongst the nobles; he shall be put within the +circle of the courtiers. Go ye to the chamber of praise to seek wealth +for him." + +When I went out from the palace, the royal children offered their +hands to me; we walked afterwards to the Great Gates. + +Years were removed from my limbs: I was shaved, and polled my locks of +hair; the foulness was cast to the desert with the garments of the +Nemau-shau. I clothed me in fine linen, and anointed myself with the +fine oil of Egypt; I laid me on a bed. I gave up the sand to those who +lie on it; the oil of wood to him who would anoint himself therewith. +There was given to me the mansion of a lord of serfs, which had +belonged to a royal friend. There many excellent things were in its +buildings; all its wood was renewed. There were brought to me portions +from the palace, thrice and four times each day; besides the gifts of +the royal children, always, without ceasing. There was built for me a +pyramid of stone amongst the pyramids. The overseer of the architects +measured its ground; the chief treasurer wrote it; the sacred masons +cut the well; the chief of the laborers on the tombs brought the +bricks; all things used to make strong a building were there used. +There were given to me peasants; there was made for me a garden, and +fields were in it before my mansion, as is done for the chief royal +friend. My statue was inlaid with gold, its girdle of pale gold; his +majesty caused it to be made. Such honor is not done to a man of low +degree. + +May I be in the favor of the king until the day shall come of my +death. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] More correctly rendered as Sinuhe. + +[2] Sesostris. + + +[Illustration] + +THE SONG OF THE HARPER. + +(Sixteenth century B.C.) + + The Song of the Harper was found in the tomb of the priest + Neferhotep, near Thebes. It was designed to be sung on the + anniversary of his death. He is shown sitting with his wife, son + and daughter, while the harper chants. Other copies of this song + have come down to us. _Ra_ or _Re_ is the general appellation of + the Sun-god; _Tum_ or _Tmu_ denotes the Sun setting; _Shu_ is the + light of the Sun in its life-giving function. + + Neferhotep, great and blessed, sleepeth; we protect his sleep. + Since the day when Ra began his race, and Tum hastened to its ending, + fathers have gone down to death, and children have arisen in + their place. + Even as Ra has his birth in the morning, fathers beget sons; + Even as Tum begetteth night, mothers conceive and bring forth; + The breath of the morning is in a man's nostrils; + Man that is born of a woman vanisheth when his race is run. + + Holy Father, vouchsafe that the day return with blessing; + Smell thou the fragrant oils that we pour on thy altars, receive the + flowers that we bring for an offering. + Lo, thy sister dwelleth in thy heart as in a temple; + Give these lotus flowers into her arms, place them in her bosom; + Lo, she sitteth at thy right hand; let the harp and the sound of + singing be pleasing unto thee, and drive sorrow away. + Rejoice even unto the day when we, pilgrims, enter Amenti, welcomed + by him who went before us. + + Vouchsafe, O Lord, that the day come quickly; + Pure of heart and deed was he whom we loved: + The life of earth passeth away, even so passed he away; + Behold, he was, and he is not, and no man knoweth his place. + So hath it been, since Ra went forth, O Man, and so shall it be + forever. + The eyes of a man are opened, and are quickly closed again. + His soul drinketh of the sacred waters, he drinketh with them that are + gone of the waters of the River of Life. + + Give unto the poor, who cry to thee when the harvest faileth; so shall + thy name be magnified forever. + And to the feast of thy sacrifice multitudes shall come, worshipping; + And the priest, clothed with a panther's skin, shall pour out wine unto + thee; + And shall offer cakes, and sing songs before thy altars, + In that day when thy servants stand before Ra, the Sun-god. + Shu shall bring forth the harvest in its season, + And glory shall be thine, but destruction shall overtake the wicked. + + Return quickly, O Neferhotep, let the day of thy honor return: + Lo, the works which thou didst upon earth, thou didst leave them in the + day of thy going; + Rich wast thou, but of thy riches only these ashes are left. + In the day of thy going thou tarriedst not, nothing didst thou save in + that day: + Yea, though a man have much grain, yet the day of his poverty shall + come; + Death regardeth not his riches; Death heedeth not the pride of a man. + + Friends, the day of your going shall come; let your hearts have + understanding. + Whither ye go, thence shall ye not return forever. + The upright man shall prosper, but the transgressor shall perish. + Be ye just, for the just man shall be blessed. + But neither the brave man, nor he that feareth, nor he that hath + friends, nor the forsaken one, + None shall escape the grave, no man small prevail against Death. + Vouchsafe unto us, therefore, of thine abundance, and be thou blessed + forever of Isis. + + + + +PRESENT-DAY EGYPT + + +ALEXANDRIA. + +Where East and West Meet. + +Alexandria is the great commercial center of the southern +Mediterranean. Approached from the sea, the coast is so level that the +city is not visible until the harbor is almost reached. Modern docks +and warehouses are crowded along the shore. + +In spite of its modern appearance, Alexandria is an old city, founded +by Alexander the Great, in 332 B.C. He evinced his usual insight and +good judgment in the site chosen, it being sufficiently far west to +escape the deposits brought down by the Nile and carried to sea by its +various outlets. The only important city of all those founded by the +great conqueror, Alexandria became a center of culture and education. +Scholars and men of genius were encouraged to come here by the +Ptolomies, who were determined to make the place a second Athens. A +museum was founded and a library established, some 900,000 rolls of +manuscript being accumulated. This we may feel sure embraced the +wealth of ancient learning. + +When the city was besieged by the Romans in the time of Cæsar, this +priceless collection of books was destroyed. The loss to the future +was irreparable. However, an earnest effort was put forth to replace +as many as possible of the writings, and for years scribes copied +precious rolls sent them from other educational centers and from +private collections. Indeed, it was plainly hinted by those best +informed that the originals were never returned to rightful owners, +but that copies were invariably returned and the original kept to +grace the public library. When Omar overcame Egypt in the seventh +century, he proclaimed the Koran sufficient for all, saying that it +included whatever wisdom men needed. Whereupon he commanded the +destruction of this second library. It is recorded that the contents +were distributed among four thousand public baths of Alexandria and +that fires were kept burning for six months before the books were +consumed. Lovers of antiquity can never cease to regret these two +wanton wastes of ancient literature. + +Pompey's Pillar[A] may be seen towering high above the city as one +draws near. While its significance is not absolutely proved, +nevertheless it is thought to have been erected in honor of Diocletian +in the third century. It is made of red granite and was originally +crowned by a statue. Aside from it and the catacombs, there is little +to suggest the venerable age of the place. The catacombs were used +here, as in Rome, by early Christians for interment. + + [A] The shaft is erroneously associated with Pompey. + +In many respects Alexandria is like certain European cities. Its +streets are well paved, it has broad avenues in its newer sections, +and the local activities center around a great public square, named +after Mohammet Ali, who loved the place and did much to beautify it. +Except for the ruinous policy of Saïd and Ismail, who involved their +country in heavy debt, Alexandria would be a very wealthy metropolis, +for its yearly shipment of cotton alone is nearly one million bales. +Nevertheless, while as conspicuous a commercial center as Liverpool, +its commerce is slight compared to what it was before shipping +interests were diverted around the Cape of Good Hope. + +In no other locality can one see such a meeting of the nations. All +languages are heard in a general babel around the harbor and in the +streets. Numbering about three hundred and forty thousand people, its +population includes Asiatics and Europeans of every description, who +offer a striking contradiction to Kipling's couplet: + + "For East is East, and West is West, + And never the twain shall meet." + + +CAIRO. + +The ride from Alexandria to Cairo leads across the level plains of the +delta. Fields of grain, occasional palms, scattering villages of mud +huts, and the ever-evident canals make up the landscape. As one draws +near the city a sight of the Pyramids is gained; then the suburbs of +Cairo appear. + +Unlike Alexandria, Cairo is a comparatively modern city. The seaport +was twelve hundred years old before a stone of Cairo had been set in +place. Now having a population of about six hundred thousand, it, too, +shows great diversity of people. While the Arabs make up the bulk of +the inhabitants, representatives of all countries and climes are seen. +The domed mosques stand on every hand, monuments to the teachings of +Mohammed. + +Much as Venice attracts artists by its lavish display of color, Cairo +also offers visions for one who is skillful with the brush. Its +sapphire skies, gorgeous sunsets with their marvellous after-glow, the +gleaming sands of the desert and Pyramids turned to gold in the +setting sun, are intoxicating. It is the land of Arabian Nights, and +slight imagination is required to make the visitor fancy himself back +in story land. Strange and unfamiliar sights greet him everywhere; +even the odor of the oriental city, incapable of description, is +present when darkness has eliminated many of the scenes, and slumber +has lessened many of the sounds. + +Although few spend much time in Alexandria, all visitors to Egypt +devote as many days or weeks as may be possible to Cairo. From there +one may visit the great Pyramids, going by train if limited in point +of time; going by donkey or camel if fond of following historic +customs. Here, too, one starts upon the trip up the Nile, without +which any visit to Egypt would be incomplete. The bazaars afford much +entertainment for the sojourner in Cairo. Even those who for some +reason have made this city their abode for a protracted time never +tire of the street scenes or the bazaars. Unlike our shops, each +bazaar displays in a series of booths one commodity; rugs and carpets +have a bazaar given up to them alone; jewels and ornaments are +displayed at another, and so on. It would seem as if each article was +priced according to the purse of the customer. It is impossible in +oriental lands to shop expeditiously, as in western countries. The +oriental makes bargains with his customers; he names a price +considerably larger than he expects to receive; the would-be customer +names another considerably less than he expects to pay; and sometimes +for hours the bickering is continued, each satisfied in the end and +probably far better pleased than if the matter had been speedily +adjusted. + +Many festivals are observed in Egypt. The year is lunar: if New Year's +Day be ascertained, it is very easy to account for the months, each +being twenty-eight days in length. Within a period of thirty-three +years a complete circuit is made and another begun. The fact that a +given holiday was celebrated last year in one month proves immediately +that this year it will fall at another time. Mohammedan feasts and +fasts are strictly observed. The month of Ramadan is the holy month, +corresponding in some measure to our Lent. None of the faithful will +allow a morsel of food or a drop of water to pass their lips during +that month from sunrise to sunset. But the moment the golden orb has +fallen below the horizon the feasting begins, often to last throughout +the night. When this month of daily fasting falls in the hot +summer-time, the mortality is very great, not only because of +immoderate indulgence through the night, but because of the suffering +for lack of water through the day. + +The yearly departure of the caravan for Mecca is a remarkable sight. +Every true Mohammedan hopes to some day make a pilgrimage to +Mecca--the sacred city of his prophet. Each year those who are able +set out upon their journey. A carpet which has been woven for this +purpose is sent to the sacred shrine, to take the place of the one +placed there the previous year. The procession of pilgrims winds +through the streets of Cairo, witnessed by the entire population, who +throng the streets to catch sight of the carpet and, if possible, to +touch it Reaching Mecca, the carpet which has absorbed holiness during +the past year is torn up, the pieces being distributed among the +pilgrims, who treasure them as their dearest possessions. + +Upon his return home, each pilgrim is looked upon with envy and honor +by his Mohammedan brethren. He and all who behold him know that his +entrance into Paradise is secure; henceforward he is distinguished for +his piety, and those less fortunate can but dream of the day when +they, too, may be able to follow his worthy example. + + +THE EGYPTIAN MUSEUM. + +Only in comparatively recent years have antiquities been adequately +prized or cared for. Early in the nineteenth century Lord Elgin, then +on diplomatic service to Turkey, was so dismayed by the spectacle of +Parthenon fragments lying about unprotected on the Acropolis at +Athens, that he succeeded in obtaining permission from the Sublime +Porte to remove them to England. Subsequently the British Museum +purchased them from him for much less than had been the expense +incurred in removing and exporting them from Greece. Similarly, +valuable recoveries in Egypt were left for private individuals to take +away as they saw fit; sometimes they were finally collected by +national museums, but quite as often they became the possessions of +the favored few, or in some cases were even wholly lost. + +In 1863 Mariette obtained the exclusive right to excavate in Egypt He +also awakened the government to the need of placing all recoveries +under its exclusive control. Since the time of Napoleon scarcely a +vessel had left Alexandria without carrying some priceless treasure to +be added to the collections of the Louvre or the British Museum. In +1878 Mariette founded the Egyptian Museum at Balak, and for a long +time it was known as the Balak Museum. + +Although small and without the slightest protection against fire, it +nevertheless provided a place for antiques; some were merely stored in +sheds, for lack of room, and others remained unclassified because +there was no opportunity to display them. In 1889 the need for another +building was keenly felt. Egypt could not build at this time, but the +Palace of Gizeh was placed at the disposal of the collection. While +somewhat larger than Balak, it was neither commodious nor safe. + +On the first day of April, 1897, the corner stone of a national museum +was laid in Cairo by the Khedive. This substantial and fireproof +building, constructed at a cost of almost $900,000, was completed +November 15, 1902, and is now the repository of the largest and most +valuable collection of Egyptian antiquities in the world. + +This museum has been fortunate in its curators--all men of scholarly +attainments and well versed in Egyptian history. Mariette was +succeeded by M. Maspero, whose voluminous work upon Egyptian history +is well known to many. Later he resigned this position to resume his +literary work in Europe, only to return by a fortunate circumstance in +1899, in time to supervise the transfer of the many priceless +treasures to their present abode. + +Leaving the busy streets of Cairo, one turns from Mohammedan to +ancient Egypt. On every hand the past looms up; pharaohs and beings of +a period far remote populate this little world, and so far as life can +express itself in material things, these are available for examination +and study. The plan followed in the arrangement is the chronological +one used also in the earlier buildings. The heavier objects have been +given place on the ground floor; the lighter and smaller articles on +the floor above. The first six rooms on the ground floor are devoted +to the remains of the Old Empire--particularly of the fourth, fifth +and sixth dynasties. The diorite statue of Khafra, so often shown in +prints, is here; also the squatting statue of a scribe, second only in +beauty to the one in the Louvre. The next series of rooms are given +over to the remains of the Middle Empire. The statue of Amenemhet III, +of the twelfth dynasty, is worthy of special mention. Moreover, +statues and sphinxes of the Hyksos period are also found here. + +The New Empire left evidences of regal splendor, eclipsing all earlier +periods; gilded chairs, chariots, dishes of gold and silver, as well +as statues of the kings themselves attract attention. Other rooms +record Egypt's decay--when Ethiopians ruled the land; the period of +Egyptian Renaissance, productive of wonderful sculpture; the coming of +Alexander and Greek supremacy; the period of Roman rule; and finally +Byzantine Egypt. + +The second floor is the treasure house for the more varied remains. +One may see the mummies of the priests of Ammon, funerary furniture, +dolls and other toys, alabaster vases, domestic furniture, funerary +barks, terra-cottas of the Græco-Roman period, statues of the gods, +amulets and "answerers" and, most imposing of all perhaps, the royal +mummies. + +In one of the rooms is an example of the finest surviving Egyptian +painting: a picture of geese feeding. This, like other paintings of +ancient Egypt, was found in an old tomb. + +The _Galerie des Bijoux_ is also on this upper floor. Some of its +wonderful treasures rival the workmanship of Tiffany; others are even +more perfect. The stones most frequently used were lapis lazuli, +carnelian, jasper and garnets. The favorite ornaments were rings, +collars, chains, amulets and bracelets. + +One might spend months in this museum and fail to exhaust its marvels. +Few can do this, and for those whose visit to Cairo must be brief, it +is better to see only a little and see it well than to attempt to +hurriedly pass through all the rooms. The British Museum, the Louvre +and the Metropolitan Museum in New York all have departments of +Egyptian antiquities. + +Since the work of excavation and discovery still goes on, it may +reasonably be expected that further light will be thrown upon the past +by the labor of the next few years. For this reason only recent +publications regarding the Nile dwellers have any great value. + + +THE SUEZ CANAL. + +The Suez Canal has been the cause of Egypt's late international +importance. It exemplifies several striking paradoxes. Opposed +bitterly by England at first, it is now largely under her control; +made possible by the heavy investments of the viceroy of Egypt, this +country has no shipping today to profit by the canal nor does it +receive any benefit whatever because of it. On the contrary, it has +been the real cause of Egypt's loss of independence. Before the +building of the canal began Egypt had no debt; while the viceroy +acknowledged the suzerainty of the Sultan of Turkey, in a large +measure he was free to conduct all internal affairs, and hoped in time +to gain full sovereignty. The enormous amounts supplied by Viceroy +Saïd for the canal with the idle hope of dazzling the eyes of Europe +were the first of a long series of extravagances which so burdened his +country with debt that progress finally ceased and activities became +paralyzed. To protect their subjects, who had loaned money at a rate +of interest prohibited in their own lands, European countries stepped +in and assumed control of Egyptian finances. Today it is impossible +to foresee how Egypt can regain the independence she has lost. + +In ancient times canals provided Egyptians access to the Red Sea. When +the expedition was made to Punt during the early years of the New +Empire, it is probable that ships built at Thebes were dispatched +directly to the sea by means of some constructed water way. Again, we +know that a canal was built two or three hundred years before the +Christian Era and that Cleopatra tried to save the remnant of her +fleet after the battle of Actium by means of it; but owing to its +impaired condition and the low water at that season, her attempt +failed. + +When Egypt became a Roman province a water way connecting the Red and +Mediterranean seas was projected but not constructed. Napoleon was +quick to see its opportunities during his Egyptian campaign and set +his engineers to work upon the plan, which was abandoned upon his +withdrawal from Africa. The idea prevailed that the two seas were of +different levels. In 1847 England, France and Austria sent out a +commission to ascertain the facts, and their surveys proved that the +levels were the same. However, nothing was done and the matter was +forgotten save by a French engineer by the name of De Lesseps, who +continued to brood over the undertaking. In 1856, having unusual +opportunities to cultivate the acquaintance of Viceroy Saïd, De +Lesseps obtained from him a concession for the construction of a canal +to join the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, it being distinctly stated +that this should cost Egypt nothing, that fifteen per cent of the +profits should fall to her share, and that in ninety-nine years, upon +payment of the actual improvements made by the canal company along the +banks, the canal should revert to Egypt. To prevent the importation of +vast hordes of laborers, Saïd agreed to supply peasant labor at a +nominal price, De Lesseps and his associates to provide them with +adequate food and care; likewise to bring fresh water to the scene of +action for their use. The concession was made conditional to the +approval of the Sultan of Turkey, suzerain of Egypt, whose consent was +to be obtained by De Lesseps without mediation of the viceroy. + +When it came to procuring capital sufficient to promote the +enterprise, De Lesseps found it far more difficult than he had +imagined. England had completed a railroad from Alexandria to Suez in +1858 and vigorously opposed the canal project; private funds might +have been forthcoming from Englishmen but for the fact that the +government disapproved so heartily; French capital was needed largely +at home. The canal company issued 400,000 shares, which for some time +went begging. De Lesseps finally persuaded Saïd to take 177,662 +shares, which marked the beginning of Egypt's enslavement and at the +same time the beginning of De Lesseps' success. Stock was readily sold +now, and in 1859 the digging began. + +In 1863 Saïd died and Ismail became viceroy of Egypt. He fell into the +mistake of his predecessor and became a willing victim for the canal +company. The work upon the canal was but one-fourth completed; +twenty-five thousand peasants had been impressed every three months, +but their insufficient food and cruel treatment had resulted in the +death of thousands. Protests were made by civilized countries +everywhere--particularly did the English government take a stand for +humane conditions, "her philanthropy and political interests being +roused to simultaneous action." + +It is amusing to review articles written during the years when the +canal was first discussed as a possibility, then as an actual +undertaking. The following lines have been taken from a magazine +published in 1860: + +"We have once more to advert to the monster folly of the nineteenth +century. It is now understood that our government perceives the wisdom +of leaving a project so insane to the fate and ridicule which +inevitably await it. It was their opposition alone that gave it any +importance, and by exciting the national prejudices of France, enabled +the projectors to raise funds which they never could have got without +it.... + +"The project is to cut a ship canal three hundred feet wide and thirty +feet deep over ninety miles of flat sand. As the level of the +Mediterranean and the Red Sea are the same, the canal will be near +thirty feet below the level of both, and hence it will be a stagnant +and in all likelihood a pestilential ditch.... + +"The Suez Canal will be begun but never completed nor half completed. +Its wreck, as useless as the Pyramids, but far less interesting, will +like to be exhibited to posterity probably under the name of the +'French Folly.'"[A] + + [A] Living Age, December, 1860. + +England's appeal to the Sublime Porte to have the work upon the canal +stopped brought to light the fact that the Sultan's sanction to the +undertaking had never been procured. The work done so far had followed +very primitive methods, peasants digging the sand up by handsful, +putting it in palm-leaf baskets and carrying these up the steep bank +to empty. France made great effort to obtain the Sultan's approval, +for the situation was critical. His reply was that he confirmed the +concession granted by Viceroy Saïd, but that the work henceforth +should not be done by impressed peasants. The company's treasury was +again empty; it chose to hold the viceroy responsible for the +predicament caused by the withdrawal of the peasants and brought him a +bill for damages. The claims made could not have been substantiated in +any court, for there was no contract, and the concession distinctly +stated that the canal was to cost Egypt nothing. However, the viceroy +was peculiarly situated; he was dreaming of a day when he might shake +off the suzerainty of Turkey and be recognized by the powers as a +monarch of independent might. Moreover, he valued the friendship of +France--which was to cost him dear. He had been educated in Paris and +hoped to make Cairo the Paris of Egypt. Refusing to pay the damages +asked, De Lesseps prevailed upon him to submit the matter for +arbitration and--strange as it may seem--the emperor of France was +agreed upon, his judgment to be final. Napoleon III ruled that the +clause wherein the viceroy had agreed to provide peasant labor +amounted to a contract; that by the decree of the Sultan this labor +was now unavailable; hence the company had suffered severe loss. The +fact that the water was already filtering in from the sea, +necessitating the use of dredges, was not brought to light. Not only +sustaining the company's claim, he added other injuries which they had +overlooked. The result was that the viceroy paid a large amount, which +added to Egypt's rapidly increasing debt, and at the same time enabled +the canal company to continue operations. + +In 1869 the canal was finished, and its completion was celebrated by +sumptuous festivities. The Empress of France, Emperor of Austria, +Crown Prince of Prussia, Prince of Wales, and many other important +members of royalty were present. Forty-eight ships were required to +convey the guests thither; the celebration lasted one month--the +entire cost defrayed by the viceroy, or the Egyptian government. It +amounted to about $21,000,000. It was for this occasion that Verdi +wrote his opera Aïda, the great Egyptologist Mariette Bey studying +ancient costumes and settings to give added interest and reality, +while the Egyptian Museum supplied jewels for the gifted musicians +brought from various parts of Europe to present the opera. + +A few years later it was found that the debt of Egypt amounted to over +$450,000,000. Securities for this vast amount were held by English, +French and German subjects. Even the stipulated fifteen per cent of +the canal profits had been used as security; the Nile valley suffered +from insufficient water supply, and the inflated price of cotton, +obtaining during the Civil War in the United States, fell. In the face +of impending ruin, something had to be done. At the clamorous demands +of Europe, the Sultan deposed Ismail, whose reckless policy, together +with that of Saïd, had brought this overwhelming trouble upon his +country. The British government bought the stock held by the +viceroy--177,662 shares--for $20,000,000, thus obtaining a controlling +voice in the company. France and England established what was known as +the "dual control" in Egypt, which continued until the revolt of 1882, +at which time France refused to go to the extreme of bombarding +Alexandria and withdrew--thus ending her control in Egyptian affairs. +Since 1882 English "occupation" has continued and bids fair to +continue for an indefinite time. It is even now evident that if the +canal reverts to the Egyptian government upon the expiration of +ninety-nine years, this may be a very different government from that +which gave the original concession. + +From the standpoint of commercial history, few events have been more +signal than the completion of the Suez Canal. Heretofore vessels have +saved little except time by making use of it, for the tolls exacted +have been equal to the expense of about three thousand miles ocean +travel. One dollar and ninety cents per vessel tonnage and two dollars +per passenger, crews excepted, have been required, thus making the +cost of large vessels passing through amount sometimes to $10,000; +$400 has been charged for a small yacht. However, it is now +contemplated to make the tolls for both Panama and Suez canals +uniform--one dollar and twenty cents per vessel tonnage and no charge +for passengers being the proposed change. The distance has been +greatly reduced by means of the canal; from England to Bombay lessened +from 10,860 to 4,620 miles; from New York to Bombay from 11,520 to +7,920 miles. + +The Suez Canal is one hundred miles in length, four hundred twenty +feet wide surface measure, and one hundred eight feet on the bottom; +it was originally twenty-seven feet nine inches deep but has been +since dredged to a depth of thirty-one feet, lakes making it deeper in +some places. It takes about fifteen hours and forty minutes to pass +through, electricity making night passage possible. + +The majority of ships passing through fly under the English flag; next +in number are those sailing under the French flag; fewer still +belonging to Germany. Except for passenger vessels and men of war, few +United States crafts have been seen in these waters. However, in view +of the opening of Panama, the shipping of this country may be expected +to rapidly increase. + +[Illustration: _A "SHIP OF THE DESERT."_ + + Here one sees ladies of modern Cairo out taking the + air--"smelling the air," as they call it. Since one of them + has removed her veil, it is safe to conclude that they do + not belong to the upper class. Brides are usually transported + in such a conveyance as this upon their wedding day, and the + tinkling bells and smart trappings of the camel add to the + pleasure of the occasion.] + + + * * * * * + + + + +BABYLONIA AND HER NEIGHBORS + + + + +PREFATORY CHAPTER + + + "_Aus den fruehesten Anfaengen erklaeren sich die spaetesten + Erscheinungen."--Heine._ + +If the German poet was justified in writing the words just quoted much +more are we in repeating them. The interpretation of the present is to +be sought in the light of the past. _Ex oriente lux_ is an old and +familiar saying. In the last century there flashed from this quarter a +light that astonished the world, and like the wise men of old, it came +from the valley of the Tigris and Euphrates. The consequent increase in +our knowledge has revolutionized much of the thought of the past, and so +quietly has this been done that none but those who have been more +particularly interested in the new discoveries are aware of the +importance and extent of the changes made. Our views of ancient history, +literature, life, religion have been greatly altered and enlarged. + +Europe and America have been for almost two millennia under the potent +spell and inspiration of a little people who lived at the eastern end of +the Mediterranean. Prophets and teachers arose among them who lifted the +world off its hinges, set Greece, the home of intellect, to thinking +anew, and uttered their messages through the successors of the Caesars. +A wonderful people, indeed! How are they to be explained? Most certainly +we must seek for their explanation in the light of their antecedents and +racial affinities. It was, and is, no more possible to understand them +and correctly interpret their literary remains, the Bible, apart from a +knowledge of the great family of which they formed numerically only an +insignificant part than it would be to understand the spirit and thought +of the people of the United States if the early relations to Great +Britain were unknown or ignored. The Old Testament, in its late written +traditions, records that the ancestors of the Hebrews emigrated from Ur +of the Chaldees, an ancient city, even in the days of Abraham, of +southern Babylonia and a principal seat of the worship of the moon-god, +Sin. But of the great family of the Semites--the Arabians, Babylonians, +Assyrians, Canaanites, Aramaeans, Syrians, etc., little was known a +century ago. Practically all scholarly interest in this group until the +middle of the nineteenth century was confined to the literature and +civilization of the Arabs since the Mohammedan era. + +No better evidence of the universal ignorance of this past, extending +down to modern times, can be found than in Sir Isaac Newton's +"Chronology of Ancient Kingdoms Amended," published in 1728. This +foremost scholar of his day writes, page 268: "However we must allow +that Nimrod founded a kingdom at Babylon, and perhaps extended it into +Assyria; but this kingdom was but of small extent, if compared with the +empires that rose up afterwards; being only within the fertile plains of +Chaldea, Chalonitis, and Assyria, watered by the Tigris and Euphrates; +and if it had been greater, yet it was but of short continuance, it +being the custom in those early ages for every father to divide his +territories amongst his sons. So Noah was king of all the world, and +Cham was king of all Afric, and Japhet of all Europe and Asia Minor." +Nimrod, Noah, Ham and Japhet were all as truly historical persons to the +great scientist Newton and his age as were David, Isaiah and the apostle +Paul. + +More than a century and a half have passed since this famous son of a +Lincolnshire farmer wrote his Chronology, but the limitations under +which he wrote were destined to remain for succeeding historians until +quite recently. Even trained historians have found it difficult within +the last two or three decades to adjust themselves to the new +discoveries. Not long ago serious writers contended that the world was +created 4004 B.C., in six days of twenty-four hours each, and anathemas +were in store for those that questioned it. Writing in 1855, Professor +Lewis in his "Six Days of Creation," declares that the Biblical story of +the Creation was given "by inspiration to the earliest times, and to the +earliest men, and in the earliest language that was spoken on the +globe."--Hebrew! Less than twenty-five years ago one of the present +writers' colleagues in a theological seminary, was teaching his students +that the use of the plural name for God in Hebrew, and the thrice +repeated "Holy, holy, holy," furnished collateral evidence in support +of the doctrine of The Trinity. He was quite unaware that the +polytheistic Assyrians used the same thrice repeated _ashru, ashru, +ashru_, in praise of their gods. + +Today scholars are agreed that the first twelve chapters of Genesis are +largely a _refacimento_ of mythical deposit found among the Semites and +genetically closely related to the Babylonian cosmologies and epic +stories. The Hebrew writers purged the old myths of their polytheism, +breathed into them a new spirit, and made them the bearers of higher +religious truth. But Adam and Eve are as genuinely semitic mythical +creations as _Adapa_, or _Eabani_ and Ukhat, the spouse of the latter, +who, like Adam, was created out of clay. When we read in the 10th +chapter of Joshua the account of Joshua's miraculous victory over the +combined forces of the five Amoritic kings we can now parallel it with +like marvels in Assyria: "And it came to pass as they fled before +Israel ... that the Lord cast down great stones from heaven upon them +unto Azekah, and they died: there were more who died with the +hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword." +In the same way, the enemies of Esarhaddon are to be slain by the +goddess of war, Ishtar. + +Owing to the political relations into which the people of Israel and +Judah were brought to the empires of the Tigris and Euphrates valley, +the compilers of the historical books of The O. T., and the prophets +have given us incidental, valuable, but not always unprejudiced notices +of their kinsmen to the East. The II. Book of Kings touches upon some +noteworthy events from the time of Tiglathpileser II. including the fall +of Israel and Judah. Characteristic of these notices is the complete +omission of Sargon's name except in Isaiah 20:1, where until the +discovery of the inscriptions it was thought to be an official title, +although he was the one who completed the conquest of the northern +kingdom, the "House of Omri," as he calls it, and deported its +inhabitants. It is difficult indeed for an Assyriologist to imagine an +Assyrian _rabshak_ speaking to the messengers of Hezekiah as that +officer is reported to have done in II. Kings 18:25f.: "Am I now come up +without the Lord against this place to destroy it? The Lord said unto +me, Go up against this land and destroy it." This Yahwe (Lord) Isaiah +declares the Assyrian blasphemed, an act, which, to say the least, was +more in accord with his usual temper. Yahwe was no more in the +estimation of Sennacherib than the gods of the petty principalities of +Hamath and Arpad. The truth seems to be that the writer in the book of +Kings makes the _rabshak_ speak as he is alleged to have spoken just as +the babylonian priests declared that Cyrus had been called to the +conquest of Babylon by the Babylonian god Marduk. + +The books, especially of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Nahum and Ezekiel, contain +some interesting material upon the cultus of Babylonia. It is, however, +the darker features that the prophets delight to draw, and the picture +they present to us does not in all points resemble the one we find in +the palaces of the kings. The animus displayed toward the enemy is far +removed from the precept which enjoins that he shall be loved. The +fourteenth chapter of Isaiah is a standing witness to the correctness of +this observation. It is a magnificent paean of prophetic feeling, but it +is necessary to observe that the fate of Nabonidus, the last king of +Babylon, was not so wretched as here described. When Cyrus conquered the +city he made Nabonidus governor. It may, however, be that this perfervid +and vengeful utterance of irrepressible joy related originally to Sargon +II., king of Assyria, conqueror of Samaria, who, as his successor +Sennacherib tells us "was not buried in his house," and that after the +fall of Babylon the latter name was interpolated. At all events this +king, unlike "the kings of the nations," did not "sleep in his own +house" (vss. 18-19), and the introductory verses are obviously late. +Optimistic and pessimistic patriots who writhed under the domination of +a foreign power, religious zealots conscious of their possession of a +purer and practically religious faith, it is little wonder they +portrayed only the harsher features of their spoilers and conquerors. + +The apocalyptic book of Daniel, so long interpreted as a sober recital +of historic events, is distinctly and admittedly at variance on some +points with the monumental records of Nebuchadnezzar, Nabonidus, and +Cyrus. It would, however, be an unjustifiable inference were any one to +conclude from the foregoing that the records of the Old Testament had +all, or in great measure, been relegated to the hazy region of myth and +fiction by the revelations of the contemporary records of the monuments. +The historical presentation of events from the age of Saul onwards have +on the whole received welcome corroboration. The inscriptions on stone +and clay have confirmed the story of the parchment rolls, completing, +amending, elucidating it and always enabling us to interpret it more +accurately. + +Sufficient has been said in the foregoing to suggest the far-reaching +importance of Babylonian and Assyrian archaeology and literature for the +understanding of the Old Testament. We are able now not only to bring +new material in contemporary documents to aid us in its study, we are +able also to interpret the life and thought of its people in the light +of the larger history, political, institutional, social, moral, legal +and religious, of the great family to which Israel belonged. The life of +the various members of the ancient semitic stock has been illuminated by +the discoveries which began with Botta and Layard. The conditions +existing in Canaan prior to the conquest, for example, became clear only +with the discovery of the Tell-Amarna tablets in 1887. They were found +in the palace of Amenophis on the bank of the Nile about 180 miles south +of Cairo and they cast an unexpected light upon the period of the +Exodus. Israel, her history, her conquests, her captivities and her +religion no longer stand as things apart in which the supernatural has +been imminent and active in a manner nowhere else discoverable in the +history of the race. A "Thus saith Jehovah," however spiritual the +content, can no longer be interpreted as essentially different from a +divine communication from the gods of Israel's neighbors and kinsmen. + +While the Old Testament gave us some information about Babylonia and +Assyria prior to the discoveries of their own monuments, a brief account +of which is given in the following pages, it must be admitted that it +has gained by these discoveries incomparably more than it gave. But we +have learned not only about Israel and the Bible, we have learned also +much about the earlier Amoritic inhabitants of Palestine who had entered +there and spread into Egypt and Babylonia as early as the second half of +the third millennium B.C. Much has been won from these records about +Egypt and Ethiopia, about the peoples of Arabia, the Hittites, the +Aramaeans, Armenians, Elamites, Medes and Persians as well as the early +inhabitants of Babylonia, the Sumerians, the original inventors of the +cuneiform writing, which was a later development of pictographic +symbols. We have learned with astonishment of the advances made in +Babylonia in early times in the arts and architecture. Deprived by the +nature of their country, in which wood and stone were not to be found, +we read of Gudea (Circa 3000 B.C.) bringing diorite from Magan, West +Arabia, for his sculptures, some of which are now to be seen in the +Louvre collection. The skill of the lapidarist in connection with the +cunningly engraved cylinder seals is today the admiration of the best +workers in the art of engraving, and the wounded lioness from the palace +of Ashurbanipal in the seventh century B.C. is the best portrayal of +animal life that has come to us from ancient times. As Professor Sayce +has recently shown, the lamp in use in Greece in the historical age, and +not before, and later borrowed by the Romans, and after the Greek +conquest, by the Egyptians, was Babylonian in origin and a common +utensil in Mesopotamia prior to the fourteenth century B.C. The +composite symbols of Babylonia were adopted by the people of Western +Asia. The eagle of the southern city-kingdom of Lagash (Telloh) was +transported to the Hittites. The eagle symbol, wherever found, +double-headed or single, is a bird from the land of Paradise. The winged +horse is found upon Hittite seals, and from Asia passed over the +Hellespont and became the Greek Pegasos. The native fetish deities of +Asia Minor were replaced by gods in human form, and the idea of a +trinity, or triad of deities, followed in the wake of Babylonian +culture. In architecture the Babylonians invented the arch. This +achievement had always been attributed to the Etruscans on the basis of +the statements of the classical writers. But it was used by the +Babylonians, as we now know, three thousand years before there is any +evidence of its use on classical soil. Columnar construction dates back +to the same period. Both the arch and the column were found in the +buildings unearthed a few years ago at Nippur by the expeditions from +the University of Pennsylvania. Owing to the dearth of wood and stone +these pioneers in the arts of civilization were forced to have recourse +to clay, the only material available. They therefore invented the pillar +made of brick. Babylonia was the land _par excellence_ of brick +buildings. Their land abounded in asphaltum and this they used instead +of mortar, as the Hebrew writer tells us they did when they built the +tower of Babel, "the temple with the lofty tower," in Babylon. "Their +technical skill rested on scientific principles no less unattainable in +modern architecture than the Grecian idea of beauty in the plastic art. +The buildings which they constructed with brick must have been built +according to rules and laws unknown to modern architecture, which views +many of these ancient works with the same astonishment as is evoked by +the pyramids of Egypt." Babylonia can at least claim to have made early +advances in astronomical observations. The movements of the heavenly +bodies were carefully watched from the earliest times and records made +of them. Even in the late Roman period the Chaldeans were still looked +upon as the founders of astronomy. It is true that Egypt had also at a +very early age successfully cultivated this science and had introduced a +practical calendar which began the year on the day when Sirius was first +observed on the eastern horizon at sunrise 4200 years before the +Christian era. Some Egyptologists hold that this calendar was the +precursor of the Julian, which in turn was modified by Pope Gregory in +1582, thus giving us the Gregorian calendar which was adopted in England +by the Calendar Amendment Act of 1751. But it is more probable that we +are indebted to the Babylonians for our calendrical system, Greece and +Rome borrowing from them. The naming of the days of the week after the +sun and moon gods and the five planets known to them seems beyond +dispute. It was they who divided the circle into 360 degrees in +connection with their sexagesimal system of numerals, the day into 24 +hours, and the hour into 60 minutes. The faces of our watches bear daily +and hourly witness to our obligations to this old people of the land of +Shinar. There are 24 hours in the day, but our time-pieces divide them +into two periods of 12 hours each, just as the Babylonian day was +reckoned as 12 _double_ hours. By what routes and means these transfers +of scientific achievements were made from the mother-land of science to +the peoples of Europe we are not yet able to decide. Further +discoveries, however, will doubtless reveal still more clearly the +historic connections of modern culture with the people of the Tigris and +Euphrates valley who themselves speak of their cities as "ancient" +before the deluge. + +All of this increase of knowledge hinted at in the preceding paragraphs, +and all too briefly sketched in this work, is the acquisition of our +own times. The Greeks, who in haughty disdain regarded all others as +"barbarians," knew little of this ancient of days--nothing whatever of +the great ruler Sargon I. or Hammurabi, imperialist and great law-giver +fifteen hundred years before the enactment of the laws of Draco and +Solon at Athens. + +Among the Greek writers Herodotus is the only one that can be considered +as a direct source. He may have visited Babylon about the middle of the +fifth century B.C. Much of what he has written, however, is clearly a +matter of hearsay or romancing. The judgment passed on him by his +contemporaries and successors was certainly not without foundation. His +critics accused him, as the Arabian historians did Ibn Ishaq, the +biographer of Mohammed, of direct falsification, and even a superficial +study of his writings is sufficient to prove that the accusation was not +without apparent warrant. One seeks in vain, for example, in the +Babylonian literature for evidence of the custom, which he describes as +one of the most beautiful and wisest of the Babylonians, of putting the +marriageable girls once a year upon the market to be sold to the highest +bidders! Naively he adds that this was an earlier custom that was no +longer practised in his time. Of the history of Babylon he knew +little--of its latest rulers and even of the great Nebuchadnezzar he had +not an inkling as Tiele, the Dutch historian, has said. Ctesias, the +Carian physician who lived for seventeen years at the Persian court of +Artaxerxes Mnemon in the fourth century, did not know that Babylon had +an independent existence. Those who followed were for the most part +merely excerptors from those who preceded them. In view of the paucity +and unreliability of the sources an impenetrable veil was drawn between +us and the ancient orient. At last it has been lifted, and in the +language of the old poets of Babylon, "brother again sees brother." + + + + +[Illustration: CLAY JARS OF CHALDEA.] + +BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA + + + + +CHAPTER I. + + +EARLY CIVILIZATION OF ASIA. + +In studying the history of Babylonia and Assyria, our attention is drawn +to one of the earliest inhabited portions of the globe--so far as is now +known: to the valley of the Euphrates. Biblical tradition favored the +view that this was the Cradle of the Human Race. Here the Yahvistic +writer placed the fabled Garden of Eden, the best explanation he could +devise for the origin of mankind. The valley was a regular thoroughfare +for early tribes journeying to and from Arabia, and reaching out to the +east, west, or north for new homes, often remaining for long succeeding +generations in the fertile region itself. It was a land where men of +various tongues and dialects met, only to again diverge. The effort of +the Hebrew to explain how so many languages had come into being resulted +in the story of the Tower of Babel. Before the beginnings of the Hebrew +race as distinct from the general Semitic family, an old civilization +had developed here in Chaldea. In connection with his worship, the +Chaldean built high ziqqurats--temple-towers of from three to seven +platforms, rising one above the other, each platform smaller than the +one below. The story handed down from one generation of the Hebrews to +another was that the Chaldeans had once tried to build a tower to reach +the very heavens. Alarmed at their presumption, God confounded their +speech so they could no longer understand one another. Thus was man +punished and thus the various speeches originated. + +In following the history of the mixed race known as the Babylonians, and +of those who pressed north of the home-country to found the state of +Assyria, we shall become acquainted with the only great nation of +antiquity whose civilization may have been older than that of the +Egyptians. We have up reliable record of the Chinese until late in the +third millennium, and their civilization, if more ancient still, was +isolated at least, and affected no other people. When Thutmose I. +penetrated to the valley of the Euphrates, some years after the +expulsion of the Hyksos, he came upon a nation, of whose culture, +script, and language, as the recently discovered Tell-el-Amarna tablets +indicate, were already familiar to his own people. + +The recorded life of Egypt reaches back more than 6,000 years; +civilization in Mesopotamia may have been more ancient. Many monuments +have been unearthed in the sites of ancient cities which throw light +upon great antiquity. In Egypt visible monuments have borne witness +through long succeeding centuries of early strength; in Babylonia and +Assyria the very site of cities was forgotten, and men no longer +remembered where these two influential powers of antiquity had +developed. Though in the last century only anything like a complete +history of Egypt has been possible, yet evidences of a nation long since +extinct, were preserved in temples and tombs, and hieroglyphics covering +walls and columns indicated that whoever should discover their meaning +would learn of their mighty builders. Far different was the case of +Babylonia and Assyria. They too had once been proud and wealthy nations, +taking foremost rank; their cities filled the valleys of the Euphrates +and Tigris, and their fertile fields yielded even more abundantly than +the rich Nile valley. Their palaces rose to the glory of their kings, +and their commerce penetrated to every corner of the ancient world. Then +changes came upon the life of antiquity. New peoples pushed to the +front; the tide of commerce shifted into other channels. These nations +were conquered by their yet stronger neighbors, and their temples and +palaces, built not of enduring stone but of perishable brick, fell into +heaps of nameless mounds. When the waters of the mighty rivers were no +longer guided through canals to irrigate the land, the soil ceased to +be productive. Desert sands spread over the desolate region and +reclaimed wide areas which became the tenting ground for nomadic tribes. +The very words of the late writer in the Book of Isaiah concerning these +nations rang true through the ages: + + "And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' + excellency, shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It + shall never be inhabited, neither shall it be dwelt in from + generation to generation: neither shall the Arabian pitch tent + there; neither shall the shepherds make their fold there. But wild + beasts of the desert shall lie there; and their houses shall be + full of doleful creatures; and owls shall dwell there, and satyrs + shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the islands shall cry in + their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces; and + her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged. + + "Then shall the Assyrian fall with the sword, not of a mighty man; + and the sword, not of a mean man, shall devour him; but he shall + flee from the sword, and his young men shall be discomfited. And he + shall pass over to his stronghold for fear, and his princes shall + be afraid of the ensign."[1] + +Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, disappeared suddenly. In Alexander's +day its site was unknown. Babylon, however, was not destroyed by Cyrus, +but continued its importance until the rise of its rival Seleucia, and +was still inhabited in the Middle Ages. But the two nations were +forgotten in the west for hundreds of years. Then with the dawn of peace +and order in Europe during the later Middle Ages, came the desire to +know about the past. Monks who made pilgrimages to the Holy Land, during +the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, sometimes pressed farther east, +and made mention of strange mounds seen in the valleys of these ancient +rivers. Travelers told of curious inscriptions found among the ruins +there. In rare cases, they even went to the length of copying one or +two, with greater or less accuracy. It was left finally for the +eighteenth century to locate the old sites of Babylonian cities, and for +the nineteenth century to discover the hidden meaning of the +wedge-shaped letters inscribed upon their ruins. + +To the patient efforts of the men who persisted in their difficult and +often disheartening task of unearthing ruins, and to the scholars who +toiled year after year to read the forgotten language these ruins +brought to light, we owe most that is now known regarding the early +inhabitants of the Euphrates valley. These nations, so long destroyed, +their cities, so long abandoned, we shall try to bring before us as they +have been reconstructed by historians in more pretentious volumes. +Naturally, any account of the Babylonians and Assyrians will involve +some consideration of their neighbors, whose civilizations developed by +their side, and whose fortunes frequently mingled with theirs. + + +THE RECOVERY OF FORGOTTEN CITIES. + +Were we to proceed at once to the development of the Babylonian and +Assyrian states without first pausing to note what far-reaching efforts +have been made to read their early civilization from their remains, +entombed within the earth, we would deprive ourselves of one of the most +interesting pages in modern historical research. + +Since the middle of the twelfth century we find references made to the +ruins of Babylon and Nineveh, by monks and travellers who greatly +confused the ancient cities, repeatedly mistaking Baghdad for Babylon. +In 1613 there was published by an English nobleman an account of his +distant travels. "Sir Anthony Sherley; His Relation of His Travels into +Persia." This is what he wrote of these ancient capitals: "I will +speak ... of Babylon; not to the intent to tell stories, either of the +huge ruins of the first Towne or the splendour of the second, but +because nothing doth impose anything in man's nature more than +example--to shew the truth of God's word, whose vengeances, threatened +by His Prophets, are truely succeeded in all those parts.... + +"All the ground on which Babylon was spred is left now desolate; nothing +standing in that Peninsula between the Euphrates and the Tigris, but +only part, and that a small part, of the greate Tower, which God hath +suffered to stand (if man may speake so confidently of His greate +impenetrable counsels) for an eternal testimony of His work in the +confusion of Man's pride, and that Arke of Nebuchadnezzar for as +perpetual a memory of his greate idolatry and condigne punishment.... + +"Nineve, that which God himself called That greate Citie, hath not one +stone standing which may give memory of the being of a towne. One +English mile from it is a place called Mosul, a small thing, rather to +be a witness of the other's mightinesse and God's judgment than of any +fashion of magnificence in it selfe."[2] + +These words struck the note which was to lead to extensive labors for +discovery. Europe was at the time passing through a period of deep +religious fervor, which was felt in many classes of society and walks of +life, and people who cared not at all for the history of ancient nations +were roused by the possibility offered to verify statements found in the +Old Testament and prove its inspiration by showing the fulfillment of +its prophecies. Although nothing of importance was accomplished at this +time, the religious motive survived. + +The first systematic investigation was made by Claudius James Rich, +appointed in 1811 as resident of the East India Company at Baghdad. He +made a thorough examination of all the large mounds in that particular +locality and prepared a survey of the most important ones. This proved +very useful to those who came later to the field. He had besides made a +small collection of finds at Hillah and Mosul--a box only three feet +square--which were sent with his charts to the British Museum. These +later furnished the inspiration to further exploration. + +In 1842 the French government sent Paul Emil Botta to Mosul as consular +agent, and his name was destined to be connected with all discoveries +made in Assyria during the early part of the nineteenth century. +Stimulated by Julius Mohl, who had examined Rich's meagre but suggestive +finds, he was the first to actually dig into the mounds of ruins. After +coming upon nothing noteworthy during three months' excavation in +Kujundjik, a peasant told him that strange objects had been found at +Khorsabad, about four hours to the northeast, and thither Botta sent his +workmen. + +The poor Arabian laborers of this region are ignorant Mohammedans, and +they suspected that Botta was digging for gold, while they conceived the +unique idea that the fragments bearing inscriptions, now and then +brought to light, were charms which in some way guided him on to hidden +treasure. The Turkish Pasha put all possible obstacles in his way, but +the very first shaft Botta sank came upon the walls of an old palace--a +find especially valuable at a time when only the most enthusiastic +scholars had faith in the undertaking, and people generally regarded the +project as misguided. No less than 209 rooms were laid bare by Botta and +his successor, Victor Place. + +Austen Henry Layard, an English boy of Huguenot descent, had devoured +all available books of travel and adventure. He came to the work of +Assyrian exploration as an enthusiastic young man about the time of +Botta's widely noised discovery. On November 9, 1845, Mr. Layard began +to excavate at Nimrud, some distance south of Nineveh, and before the +first day's work was done he had the promise, and, in part, the +satisfaction of realizing his "visions of palaces under ground." He had +discovered the North-West palace of Nimrud, built by Ashurnatsirpal, +884-861 B.C., upon the foundations of one laid by Shalmeneser, 1300 B.C. +After a little more than a year and a half he returned to England having +discovered no less than three palaces. The funds necessary for his work +were obtained from Sir Stratford Canning, the English ambassador at +Constantinople. + +In 1849 excavations were begun again with the assistance of Hormuzd +Rassam at the expense of the British Museum. "The excavations carried on +under these auspices, and with the powers Layard then possessed, were +successful beyond his wildest dream. As the trenches followed round the +walls of room after room they uncovered great slabs of alabaster, with +which the chamber walls were wainscoted, and these were found to be +richly carved in relief with scenes of hunting, of war, and of solemn +ceremony. The very life of palace, camp and field in Assyrian days came +back again before the astonished eyes of the explorer, while these +received an addition to their verisimilitude by the discovery in some +of the ruins of pieces of iron which had once formed parts of the same +kind of armor as that portrayed on the reliefs, together with iron and +bronze helmets, while in others were found vases and ornamentally carved +pieces of ivory. Here were the pictures and there were the objects which +they represented. As the trenches were dug deeper or longer, monuments +carved or inscribed were found daily."[3] + +Whatever objects could be transported were sent to the British Museum in +London, and went far to arouse interest and thus secure funds to enable +Layard to continue his operations. During this expedition the palace of +Sennacherib, the walls of which had been partly laid bare during the +first period, was still further explored, and in addition to the +valuable bas-reliefs an ancient library, consisting of thousands of clay +tablets, was found in two of the rooms, and this was greatly increased +by Rassam's discovery of the North-West palace in 1854. + +In 1850 William K. Loftus began his labors in this field, but none of +his discoveries proved so valuable as his descriptions of various +mounds, used as guides to this day. Concerning the appearance of the +mounds he wrote: "I know of nothing more exciting or impressive than the +first sight of one of these great Chaldean piles looming in solitary +grandeur from the surrounding plains and marshes. A thousand thoughts +and surmises concerning its past eventful history and origin--its +gradual rise and rapid fall--naturally present themselves to the mind of +the spectator. The hazy atmosphere of early morning is peculiarly +favorable to considerations and impressions of this character, and the +gray mist intervening between the gazer and the object of his +reflections imparts to it a dreamy existence. This fairylike effect is +heightened by mirage, which strangely and fantastically magnifies its +form, elevating it from the ground, and causing it to dance and quiver +in the rarefied air. No wonder, therefore, that the beholder is lost in +pleasing doubt as to the actual reality of the apparition before +him."[4] + +Of all the Assyrian discoveries which were crowded into the last +century, unquestionably the most important was made by Rassam in 1852 +and 1853 when he laid bare the magnificent palace of Assurbanipal, in +which was found the royal library. Here the king had caused to be +collected tablets embodying the literature of both Babylonia and +Assyria, and numberless royal inscriptions of both states, from the +earliest time. Owing to the circumstance of their having been inscribed +upon tablets of clay, many had been destroyed as the building in which +they were kept fell in ruins. Many were found in an almost perfect state +of preservation and thousands of others have since been joined by the +patient labors of scholars. At this point Assyrian excavations largely +ceased, for it was felt that unless some understanding of these tablets +could be gained, it was scarcely worth while to amass more of them at +such great outlays. Archæologists realized that the inscriptions must be +deciphered before funds would be forthcoming for fresh undertakings. + +We have seen how difficult a task Egyptologists had in discovering the +meaning of the hieroglyphics, and how the Rosetta stone, giving one +decree in three different languages, at last led to an understanding of +the whole. The Babylonians and Assyrians used a series of wedge-shaped +letters or symbols, which has given the name _cuneiform_ to their +written language. These wedge-shaped signs were impressed on the clay by +a stylus, and several of them are united to form a _syllabic_ character. +There are about 400 of these complex syllabic signs in the syllabary, +instead of 26 letters as in English. Where the writing on the tablets is +very close, as it frequently is, it is often very difficult to read the +signs correctly. In the earlier Babylonian period, moreover, the form +differs from that of the later Babylonian and Assyrian period. To make +the reading still more puzzling they are polyphonic, _i. e._, have +several syllabic values, and are also used ideagraphically, _i. e._, may +be used for entire words. If we should read _b_ either b, p, m, d, etc., +and also for break, run, beside with only the context to guide us we +would have a parallel case. There was no Rosetta stone to help this +time, and the tablets long remained sealed books. We have only to look +at a page of the characters to wonder that their meaning at last dawned +upon the tireless workers. + +Prominent among linguists engaged upon Assyrian inscriptions were Sir +Henry Rawlinson, Fox Talbot, Jules Oppert, and a talented Irish scholar +by the name of Hincks. At last translations of certain inscriptions were +offered by these men, but critics looked at the apparently meaningless +signs and questioned the versions rendered. At least, they insisted, +there was no way to prove that a meaning had not been worked into them, +rather than out of them. + +Finally it was suggested that a single inscription, hitherto unread, be +sent to the four scholars just mentioned, and that they be asked to +return their renderings sealed, to a committee appointed to examine +them. To the amazement of the world, the translations made were almost +identical, differences occurring in those portions which the translators +themselves had marked as uncertain. This was, indeed, a triumph for +students of the Assyrian language, and compelled a general agreement +that the cuneiform tongue had at last been mastered. Rapid advances were +made after this test, which was made in 1857. The translation of +numerous tablets was at once eagerly begun. + +George Smith, a young man engaged to copy inscriptions required by +Rawlinson for some material he was about to publish, was not content to +copy meaningless signs, but set to work to understand them. So rapidly +did he advance in mastering the language that he became most helpful in +classifying the tablets stored in the British Museum. In connection with +his work there one incident deserves notice. + +The clay tablets had been removed as carefully as possible from the +ruins of the library at Nineveh, and had been brought to the London +Museum with as little mishap as could be expected. Some were perfect, +some partly missing, some in fragments. One day George Smith came upon a +deluge story which so strongly resembled the version given in the Old +Testament that he was struck by the similarity. Now recent years have +disclosed that the flood legend has been common among all Semitic +peoples, but the fact was not established in the middle part of the last +century. Finding many portions of the story lacking, Smith felt that he +would like to go in search of them. The whole affair was widely +published, and Edwin Arnold, then editor of the Daily Telegraph of +London, became interested in it. Through his influence the Telegraph +offered five thousand guineas to pay the expenses of an expedition to +Nineveh, under the direction of George Smith, to recover, if possible, +the missing portions of the story. In 1872, accordingly, Smith started +out upon his search for the "Deluge Fragments," under contract to +telegraph his experiences and discoveries to the London paper. When he +actually came upon a fragment of the deluge epic, it was regarded in +England as a great and unexpected triumph. Two other fragments were +found, and then the Telegraph, probably thinking it had been +sufficiently advertised, decided that its venture had succeeded, and +Smith was recalled. Returning in 1873, he died in Assyria three years +later of a fever contracted in the marshy, fever-breeding country. + +In recent years, excavations have been carried on in the valley of the +Euphrates under auspices of the University of Pennsylvania. Most of this +work has been done at Nippur, and accounts of the discoveries have been +published. An agreement was made with the Turkish government to the +effect that all remains uncovered be turned over to the Imperial Museum +at Constantinople. So generous did the leaders of this college band +prove in aiding the Turks to classify objects found, accepting no +remuneration for their services, that the Sultan was pleased to present +a large number of them to the Museum of the University of Pennsylvania, +where they are today exhibited. + +[Illustration: TRANSPORT OF TIMBER FOR SARGON'S PALACE. + +(The God Ea, represented in the lower left-hand corner as half man, half +fish, escorts the fleet.)] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Isaiah 13, 19-22; 31, 8-9. NOTE.--This is the A. V. version. It +should read: + + The Assyrian shall fall by a sword, not a man's, + And a sword, not a human one, shall devour him. + [And he shall flee from the face of the sword, + And his brave ones shall become tributary, + And his rock he will run by in terror, + And his princes in fright shall abandon their flag.] + +The destruction is to be _supernatural_, according to Isaiah. The lines +in brackets are probably a later addition.--(CRAIG.) + +[2] Sherley: His Relation of His Travels Into Persia. + +[3] Rogers: Hist. of Babylonia and Assyria, 154. + +[4] Loftus: Travels and Researches in Chaldea and Susiana. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + + +SOURCES OF BABYLONIAN AND ASSYRIAN HISTORY. + +In considering the four important sources of Babylonian and Assyrian +history, we may note first, Old Testament writings. + +Unquestionably the Bible has gained more through Assyrian excavations +than it has itself contributed to the history of that country. As has +been said before, the Old Testament consists of Hebrew writings which +portray various phases of Hebrew life, and mention is made of other +nations only when the Chosen People by force of circumstances were +thrown in direct contact with them. Since their kingdom was overcome by +Babylonians, we could scarcely expect Hebrew writers to hold +unprejudiced opinions regarding their own conquerors; nevertheless +whatever facts concerning them crept into their writings have been +verified by modern discovery. + +Much is often revealed in a few words, as is characteristic of Biblical +expression. For example, see how much is condensed in the following +sentence: "And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his +land: for the king of Babylon had taken from the river of Egypt unto the +river Euphrates all that pertained to the king of Egypt." + +Not alone have the facts recorded in the Old Testament proved useful to +those engaged in reconstructing the history of the Tigris-Euphrates +nations, but the desire of religious adherents to confirm the truth and +accuracy of ancient Hebrew writings has served as an incentive both to +those who did the work and to those who by contributions made the task +possible. + +The writings of the early Greeks concerning Babylonia and Assyria supply +another source. Berosus was a Babylonian priest connected with a temple +sacred to Bel. He lived during the fourth century before Christ, when +Babylonia and Assyria had become Greek provinces. For the Antiochus he +wrote a lengthy history of his country, which would have been of +greatest value to us had it been preserved. Unfortunately it was +destroyed, and only excerpts, made by Polyhistor and Apollodoras of the +first century B.C., are now in existence. + +Herodotus devoted more than twenty chapters of his first volume to +Babylonia, but owing to certain faults we have found characteristic of +his writings, he has led some scholars to even declare that he never saw +the country at all. While they cannot be wholly depended upon, his +writings have some value. Other Greek writers have thrown so little +light on Babylonian life that we shall not consider them here at all. + +Thirdly, we may mention Egyptian records as a source for Mesopotamian +history. The Egyptian hieroglyphics and the cuneiform symbols of the +Assyrian tongue were translated about the same time, so that little +actual help was gained through Egyptian sources. Nevertheless, campaigns +waged by Egyptian kings within the very borders of Asiatic countries, +with detailed accounts as set forth upon the walls of Egyptian temples, +cannot fail to aid in the reconstruction of Assyrian growth and +development. + +Lastly and most important of all are the monuments and remains unearthed +in Mesopotamia itself. More than one hundred thousand clay record +tablets have been recovered; temples and palaces have been excavated, +and within these were found alabaster slabs carved with many scenes +characteristic of Assyrian life; armour, utensils and numerous other +articles have each thrown some light upon the ancient civilization. The +value of this first hand, or original material, is priceless indeed, +since without it no detailed knowledge of these old kingdoms could ever +have been hoped for. Explorations among the ruins are still carried on, +and it is possible that the present century may add much to what has +already been gained concerning the ancient dwellers in the once fertile +valleys of the Euphrates and Tigris. + + +PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF BABYLONIA AND ASSYRIA. + +If you will look closely at a map of the eastern hemisphere, you will +see that a great tract of desert extends across northern Africa, and +reaching beyond the Mediterranean Sea, the Isthmus of Suez and the Red +Sea, traverses the entire width of Asia to the Pacific Ocean. This +desert waste is so broken by plateaus and mountain ranges that its vast +extent is scarcely realized. Rivers occasionally cross it, producing +fertile valleys which, generally speaking, support the life of the whole +area. + +We are now concerned with the location and topography of the ancient +Babylonian and Assyrian kingdoms, and of those districts lying adjacent. +North of the Persian Gulf some considerable distance, we find the +Armenian mountains. These ranges are loftier than most in Western Asia, +piercing high above the eternal snow-line. During winter their sides and +gorges are massed with snow, which melts rapidly with the warmth of +spring and heat of summer. The drainage of the mountains has resulted in +many streams, which unite to form the Euphrates on the western slopes, +and on the eastern slopes, form the Tigris. Ages ago these two rivers +emptied into the Persian Gulf at points some distance from each other. +But such heavy deposits of rich mountain loam have been brought down by +the streams, that they have extended the land far into the gulf, pushing +the water back for some hundred miles. Joining one another in the area +thus formed, the waters of the two streams reach the gulf today as one +mighty river with many mouths. We may judge how great changes this +land-building process has wrought by the fact that the town of Ur, now +nearly two hundred miles from the gulf, was a sea-port at the time of +which we are now studying. The annual increase of the land is about 115 +feet. + +Herodotus' statement that "Egypt is the gift of the Nile," might have +been made with equal truth of the Euphrates and Babylonia. Here again an +annual overflow refreshes a valley, while in antiquity a network of +canals provided water, fertility, and humidity for districts sloping off +gently on either side. + +Today this territory is held by the Turks, and with their ruinous policy +of trying to extract all possible revenue from their lands while doing +nothing to improve them, the old canals are abandoned, none others take +their place, and the rivers wander today at will, leaving part of the +area parched and unproductive, and converting the rest into +fever-breeding swamps and marshes. + +The Euphrates is the longer of the two rivers. Taking its rise west of +a lofty mountain, it receives several tributaries near its source, but +none join it during the last eight hundred miles of its course. The +snows melt gradually; in March the stream begins to overflow its +channel; high water mark is reached by the first of June, and July finds +the waters receding. This river is very winding in its course, at one +place being but one hundred miles from the Mediterranean Sea and near +Babylon running along within twenty-five miles of the Tigris, only to +immediately branch off again to the south. Its entire length is about +eighteen hundred miles, and most of the water is spent before it reaches +the Gulf. + +The Tigris is somewhat different from its sister stream. Its name +signifies "the swift," or the "arrowy," and indicates its rapid current, +whereas the Euphrates flows more gently. Not so broad as the Euphrates, +the Tigris is much deeper. On the east of the high mountains wherein +this river has its rise, spring comes quickly; the water rises rapidly, +and the period of its overflow is short. Beginning to rise in March, the +first of May sees the high water mark, and by the last of June the +stream is fast finding its usual volume. + +The territory between the Tigris and Euphrates the Greeks called +Mesopotamia, meaning "between two rivers," but they applied the name to +the northern portion of the district--the home of the Assyrians. As +generally used today, the term Mesopotamia signifies the whole region. + +The southern portion, bordering on the Persian Gulf, has a deep alluvial +soil, built up by the yearly deposit of the rivers. Like the valley of +the Nile, it has been the repository of fine silt. This portion from its +capital city Babylon was called Babylonia. As we might expect, this was +the country first settled because it was the more accessible. Its wide, +monotonous plains, enriched with the fertile mountain loam, afforded the +most productive farm lands in the world. Herodotus told of their +prodigious yield of grain: "This territory is of all that we know the +best by far for producing grain; as to trees, it does not attempt to +bear them, either fig, or vine or olive, but for producing grain it is +so good that it returns as much as two-hundred-fold for the average, +and, when it bears its best, it produces three-hundred-fold. The blades +of the wheat and barley there grew to be four fingers broad; and from +millet and sesame seed, how large a tree grows, I know myself, but shall +not record, being well aware that even what has already been said +relating to the crops produced has been enough to cause disbelief in +those who have not visited Babylonia." Theophrastus wrote: "In Babylon +the wheat fields are regularly mown twice, and then fed off with beasts +to keep down the luxuriance of the leaf; otherwise the plant does not +run to ear. When this is done the return in lands that are badly +cultivated is fiftyfold, while in those that are well farmed it is a +hundredfold." + +The land of Babylonia has been happily compared with the southern half +of our state of Louisiana, which it resembles in marshy districts. Again +it might be likened to the Egyptian Delta, being of course, +larger,--something like Denmark in point of area. Possessing no rocks or +mountains, the country seemed at first to be devoid of building +material. It has been supposed that its primitive people first sheltered +themselves in huts built of reeds which grew abundantly along the river +banks. After awhile it was discovered that clay mud furnished a fair +material when shaped into bricks and dried in the sun. A more enduring +brick was later made by baking the brick in ovens. This oven-baked brick +as well as the sun-dried brick constituted the great building material +of Babylonia for all subsequent time. + +The district north of the alluvial line, enclosed by rivers and +mountains, in time became the kingdom of Assyria. This region differed +greatly from the southern land. It was made up of low ranges on the +north, rolled gently to the south, and supplied excellent pasturage. +Stone and material suitable to building purposes were available, but the +people, accustomed to the clay bricks of their old home in Babylonia, +never made use of the more substantial building stuff. Indeed the +Assyrians were not at all of an inventive mind, as another illustration +will plainly show. In Babylonia, because the ground was low and level, +the people were obliged to construct artificial heights for building +sites, thus to escape marshy exhalations and troublesome insects. They +erected huge piles of sun-dried brick and crowned these with their +palaces and temples. + +Now the Assyrians were in the beginning colonists who had gone out of +the mother state to find less populated regions farther north. There +were hills and elevations in abundance in Assyria, but holding to the +custom they had so long followed, they continued to construct great +foundations of bricks for their buildings. It is curious indeed to find +them, throughout their history, expending time, labor and resources to +produce what nature had already provided. + +Assyria was somewhat larger than Babylonia, and has been compared to the +state of Illinois in size. While the northern mountains and the Gulf +afforded definite boundaries, the limits to the east and west were never +certain and both Babylonians and Assyrians pushed out in each direction +as they became more powerful, contracting again if their strength +weakened. On the west a desert separated them from the Mediterranean, +and while various tribes held the country east of the Tigris in early +times, the Medes later conquered the region east of Assyria, and Persia +reached away to the southeast. + +There are two seasons in these valleys--the rainy period, lasting from +November to March, and the dry season, filling out the remainder of the +year. Babylonia was never subject to the cold storms of Assyria, and the +kings of the latter country, after they conquered Babylonia, frequently +maintained winter palaces in the old capital, Babylon. Summer is +intensely hot near the Gulf. In recent years this has been a serious +obstacle to confront those carrying on excavations here. + +In ancient times an extensive system of canals and ditches made it +possible to keep the land under constant cultivation, thus preventing in +a large measure the sand storms that now spread over the country, +causing much suffering and even death. Under Turkish rule at present, +the whole region is left desolate. + +In spite of Herodotus to the contrary, certain kinds of trees grew in +Babylonia. The fig, apple, almond and walnut were native. The date palm +ministered to the wants of the people in manifold ways. An old Persian +poem sung of its 360 uses, while the Greeks claimed that it supplied the +Babylonians with bread, wine, vinegar, honey, rope, fuel, wood for +furniture, and food for cattle. A wide variety of grains and vegetables +were produced. + +Wild animals were plentiful. The Mesopotamian lion was thought milder +than its jungle cousin. Buffaloes were domesticated. Leopards, hyænas, +wild boars, gazelles, foxes and hares were found, while birds and fishes +abounded. + +Altogether this was a spot where life was favorable for man, and it was +natural that wandering tribes that came thither should soon abandon +their roving habits for the surer livelihood promised by a fixed home. + +[Illustration: SARGON'S STANDARD (WITH FIGURE OF ASSHUR).] + + + + +CHAPTER III. + + +PREHISTORIC CHALDEA. + +We have already noted that prehistoric periods are those preceding +written records. Uncertainty enters into all attempts to reconstruct +such a period for any people, and especially has this been true of +Babylonia. However, when the library of Nineveh was unearthed, tablets +were discovered which shed some light on those remote ages. + +The land we call Babylonia was once called Chaldea. So we shall call it +during its prehistoric age--as we call the British Island Britain in the +beginning of its history, and later, England. By the term Chaldea we are +to understand that portion of the valleys which extended around the +Persian Gulf. It was inhabited at the earliest period known. Probably +its first settlers were a branch of the Turanian or Yellow Race, to +which the Chinese, Japanese, Monguls and present-day Turks belong. That +the Chaldeans came from some other locality into this land is not +doubted, but from whence they came is not known. + +The southern part of Chaldea was called Shumir--the Hebrews writing it +_Shinar_; the land immediately north they called Accad. The dwellers in +both districts came from the same stock and spoke practically the same +language. The name _Accad_ means mountains, or highlands, and it has +been surmised that it may have attached to the inhabitants from some +earlier home. + +These early people may have migrated to Chaldea five or six thousand +years before the Christian era. Of their coming and first settlements, +nothing is known. When we first learn of them, they had reached quite a +degree of civilization, having canals for irrigating the lands unreached +by the river; they had also devised the cuneiform system of writing--an +advance on the picture system, earlier in use. + +The history of their strange symbols was probably this: in ages bygone +they had invented a system of picture writing, as all primitive people +seem to have done. As they advanced, too much time was required to copy +the elaborate pictures in their entirety, and so the principal outlines +were used to represent the pictures themselves. When these people +migrated to Chaldea, and were reduced to clay tablets on which to write, +it was easier to make straight lines than curved ones. In this way the +written language continued to undergo changes until it was eventually +made up of wedge-shaped symbols, one of the clear results of the use of +the clay tablets. + +Our principal knowledge concerning the Chaldeans pertains to their +religion, which is believed to have been one of the earliest religions +of the world. + +The religious instinct seems to have been inborn with man. Some form and +degree of worship has been found among all primitive people and is +cruder or more elevated according to the stage of development. Primitive +man felt himself able to cope with many of the conditions around him, +but he soon found that the very agencies which helped might also injure +him. The sun, whose light and warmth gave life to his growing crops, +might also wither them with its intense heat. The rain which renewed and +refreshed the fields, might come in torrents and lay them low. Gradually +all these agencies were regarded as _Beings_, which must be importuned. +The religion of the Chaldeans taught man how to guard himself against +the harmful forces in the world, and every animate and inanimate thing +was endowed with a spirit. + +A series of tablets treating of this ancient religion was recovered by +Rassam, and they fall into three divisions: those treating of "Evil +Spirits," others concerning diseases, and last, those devoted to prayers +and hymns of praise. + +The Accadian conceived of the earth as resembling a huge, inverted bowl. +The thickness represented the earth's crust; the hollow beneath was +thought of as a bottomless pit, destined to be the final dwelling place +of man, and was the abode of demons. Above the earth were two heavens; +the higher, supported by a lofty mountain; the lower containing seven +kind and friendly planets, which wandered at will through its wide +domains. Opposed to these were seven fiery phantoms. Over all dwelt the +great Spirit Ana. + +"Between the lower heaven and the surface of the earth is the +atmospheric region, the realm of Mermer, the Wind, where he drives the +clouds, rouses the storms, and whence he pours down the rain, which is +stored in the great reservoir of Ana, in the heavenly Ocean. As to the +earthly Ocean, it is fancied as a broad river, flowing all around the +edge of the imaginary inverted bowl; in its waters dwells Ea, the great +Spirit of the Earth and Waters, either in the form of a fish, whence he +is frequently called "Ea the fish," or "the exalted fish," or on a +magnificent ship, with which he travels around the earth, guarding and +protecting it. + +"The minor spirits of the earth are not much spoken of except in a body, +a sort of host or legion. All the more terrible are the seven spirits of +the abyss, the Maskim, of whom it is said that, although their seat is +in the depths of the earth, yet their voice resounds on the heights +also; they reside at will in the immensity of space, 'not enjoying a +good name either in heaven or on earth.' Their greatest delight is to +subvert the orderly course of nature, to cause earthquakes, inundations, +ravaging tempests."[1] + +The Maskim were ever feared and hated as is shown by the following, +translated from one of the tablets: + +"They are seven! they are seven!--Seven are they in the depths of +Ocean,--seven they are, disturbers of the face of Heaven.--They arise +from the depths of Ocean, from hidden lurking-places.--They spread like +snares.--Male they are not, female they are not. Wives they have not, +children are not born to them.--Order they know not, nor +beneficence;--prayers and supplications they hear not. Horses grown in +the bowels of the mountains--foes of EA--they are throne-bearers of the +gods--they sit in the roads and make them unsafe.--The fiends! The +fiends! They are seven, they are seven, seven are they! + +"Spirit of Heaven, be they conjured! Spirit of Earth, be they conjured!" + + +A CHARM. + + Seven are they, they are seven; + In the caverns of ocean they dwell, + They are clothed in the lightnings of heaven, + Of their growth the deep waters can tell; + Seven are they, they are seven. + + Broad is their way and their course is wide, + Where the seeds of destruction they sow, + O'er the tops of the hills where they stride, + To lay waste the smooth highways below,-- + Broad is their way and their course is wide. + + Man they are not, nor womankind, + For in fury they sweep from the main, + And have wedded no wife but the wind, + And no child have begotten but pain,-- + Man they are not, nor womankind. + + Fear is not in them, nor awe; + Supplication they heed not, nor prayer, + For they know no compassion nor law, + And are deaf to the cries of despair,-- + Fear is not in them, nor awe. + + Cursed they are, they are cursed, + They are foes to wise EA'S name; + By the whirlwind are all things dispersed + On the paths of the flash of their flame,-- + Cursed are they, they are cursed. + + Spirit of Heaven, oh help! Help, oh Spirit of Earth! + They are seven, thrice said they are seven; + For the gods they are Bearers of Thrones, + But for men they are Breeders of Dearth + And the authors of sorrows and moans. + They are seven, thrice said they are seven. + Spirit of Heaven, oh help! Help, oh Spirit of Earth! + + --_Rendered into verse by Dyer._ + +Besides these seven hated ones, there were numberless demons who could +work all manner of evil for man. They were invisible and brought +sickness, sorrow, insanity, and grief. No house was secure against them, +and no bolt strong enough to keep them out. + +To contend against so much evil, it was necessary to employ conjurers +and those skilled in magic, who by incantations and mixtures of herbs +might discover the demons and put them to flight. Like the Egyptians, +the Chaldeans believed that when one was ill, a demon had taken +possession of his body, which must be driven out before recovery would +be possible. As a result of this belief, the science of medicine never +developed in Babylonia. Even in its advanced period, magicians treated +the sick. + +Charms and talismans were in great demand to ward off demons. They were +worn by the living and adorned the dead. Many articles of furniture were +made to serve two purposes--as household conveniences or ornaments, and +talismans. Thus the winged bulls which have been found guarding the +portals of royal palaces were placed there to keep out demons who would +manage in some way to creep in unless prevented by eternal vigilance. + +It was believed that certain of these demons were so forbidding in +aspect that should they but catch sight of their own faces, they would +be frightened away. Therefore a most dreadful demon was fashioned, as +terrible and fierce as human ingenuity could conceive. This impersonated +the south-west wind--the wind which brought burning heat and drought in +its wake. An image thus made was placed in southwest windows, with the +hope that the approaching demon might look upon himself and flee in +terror. + +As time went on, the Chaldeans progressed in their religious beliefs, +and the third series of tablets record prayers and hymns of adoration. + +Nothing was more natural than that they should worship the sun, as a +manifestation of divinity which provided heat, light and life itself, +for the children of the earth. Some of these hymns are beautiful in +their conception. + +"O Sun, I have called unto thee in the bright heavens. In the shadow of +the cedar art thou; Thy feet are on the summits--The countries have +wished for thee, they have longed for thy coming, O Lord! Thy radiant +light illumines all countries. Thou makest lies to vanish, thou +destroyest the noxious influence of portents, omens, spells, dreams and +evil apparitions; thou turnest wicked plots to a happy issue. + +"O Sun! thou hast stepped forth from the background of heaven, thou hast +pushed back the bolts of the brilliant heaven,--yea, the gate of heaven. +O Sun! above the land thou hast raised thy head! O Sun! thou hast +covered the immeasurable space of heaven and countries!" + +The sun disappeared at evening tide, and during the night contended with +the spirits of darkness. Some other protection was needed for man while +darkness reigned. So fire was brought into existence, and was also +regarded as worthy of worship: + +"Thou who drivest away the evil Maskim, who furtherest the well-being of +life, who strikest the breast of the wicked with terror,--Fire, the +destroyer of foes, dread weapon which drivest away Pestilence." + +Certain wandering Turanian tribes today cling to a religion much like +the one so briefly described. Like their remote ancestors, they have +conjurers instead of priests. + +When they had reached this stage of development, the Chaldeans were +overpowered by a vast barbaric horde. + + +THE STORY OF GENESIS RELATIVE TO THE FIRST SETTLEMENT IN SHUMIR. + +"And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came +to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the +land of _Shinar_; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go +to, let us make brick, and burn them thoroughly. And they had brick for +stone, and slime had they for mortar. And they said, Go to, let us build +us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make +us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. +And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the children +of men builded. And the Lord said, Behold, the people is one, and they +have all one language; and this they begin to do; and now nothing will +be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us +go down and there confound their language, that they may not understand +one another's speech. So the Lord scattered them abroad from thence upon +the face of all the earth; and they left off to build the city. +Therefore is the name of it called Babel;[2] because the Lord did there +confound the language of all the earth; and from thence did the Lord +scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth. + + * * * * * + +"And Nimrod was a mighty hunter before the Lord; wherefore it is said, +Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the Lord. And the beginning of +his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calnch, in the land of +Shinar. Out of that land went forth Asshur, and builded Nineveh, and the +city Rehoboth, and Calah. And Resen between Nineveh and Calah; the same +is a great city. + + * * * * * + +"And Terah took Abram his son, and Lot the son of Haran, his son's son, +and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram's wife; and they went forth +with them from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan; and +they came unto Haran, and dwelt there."--_Genesis 10 and 11._ + +The first great Semitic invasion took place probably about the beginning +of the fourth millennium B.C., and it seems impossible to assign to it a +more definite date. The later Babylonians, like the Chinese, gave great +antiquity to their nation, reckoning back into hundreds of thousands of +years. Their beginnings belonged to so remote a time that adding years +inconceivably was but another way of saying that certain events happened +very long ago, so long, indeed, that no record or monument remained to +give evidence of events which had survived only in stories handed down, +from father to son, for thousands of generations. + +Like the Hebrews and Arabs, these people belonged to the Semitic race, +and from whence they came has long been a matter of conjecture. Scholars +are now agreed that Arabia had been their home and that there they had +lived as shepherds and herdsmen. They poured in overwhelming forces into +the land of Chaldea, killing some of the inhabitants, driving others +out of the country, and assimilating the rest. + +The Chaldeans had reached a much higher degree of culture than their +conquerors, who rapidly took on the civilization of their adopted +country. As in England the Saxon and Norman for some generations after +the conquest pursued each his native life and customs, little influenced +by the other, so in Chaldea at first the Semitic herdsman followed his +pastoral life outside the brick-walled cities of the Chaldeans. + +Some have thought that an invasion of Cushites, or Ethiopians, had +preceded the invasion of the Semites in Chaldea, and have claimed that +the language, customs and culture in the land when conquered by the +Semites was the result of a blending of Turanian and Ethiopian. The +theory has been vigorously opposed by other authorities who contend that +the invading Semites found only pure Turanian stock. However that may +be, the civilization and culture of Chaldea, whether simply Turanian, or +Turanian-Cushite, was soon taken on by the newcomers. Adopting the +Chaldean language, they used it for all their inscriptions, writings and +literature. Even after the speech of the people had become quite a +different tongue, as a result of its assimilation with the Semitic, +still in all written records the early Chaldean language--or Sumerian, +as it is generally called--was alone used. Assyriologists have often +noted that "while the language was Sumerian, the spirit of the writings +was Semitic." + +Because the land of Chaldea was so accessible, and offered advantages so +superior to surrounding countries--plentiful water and a fertile +soil,--it became a veritable bee-hive of humanity. When the Semites +first came thither, they were a fierce, warlike people; but soon, under +new conditions, they became peace-loving, as the Turanians before them +had been. Shortly they were unable to hold the valley against new tribes +that unceasingly swarmed into the country. + +Prior to 2000 B.C. Ashur had been settled probably in part at least, by +emigrants from the south who may have united with other Semites from +North Mesopotamia and in time they founded the state of Assyria. +Somewhat later, the ancestors of the Hebrews, according to one of the O. +T. traditions, departed from the land of Chaldea for Harran in +Mesopotamia, and later entered Canaan, on the east coast of the +Mediterranean Sea. Each of these little bands founded states which +developed such peculiar characteristics, that after the lapse of a few +ages, it would scarcely have occurred to an observer that the ancestry, +early environment, and traditions of all had been the same. + +It was not strange, then, that the Hebrews of later time, trying to +account for the diversity of languages and nations, made this swarming +valley the site of the scattering of the tribes and the confusion of +tongues. + +Those who remained in Chaldea became a peaceful farming people, caring +not at all for war. The Assyrians, while of the same stock, developed +very differently. There were several reasons for this. First, their +country was less accessible than Chaldea, whose shore was washed by the +Persian Gulf, and so it suffered less from invasions, and was allowed to +keep a more purely Semitic civilization. Again, having gone out from +Chaldea before they became devoted to peaceful pursuits, the Assyrians +retained and fostered their original warlike dispositions. The more +temperate climate of Assyria was more invigorating and produced men of +greater endurance than did the kingdom to the south. + +Both Chaldea and Assyria alike, developed small states, each led by a +city in which had been built a temple sacred to some local deity. Each +community was presided over by one who combined the duties of king and +priest. + +Such was the condition of affairs when the first written records, more +or less complete, bring some degree of certainty and less conjecture +into the development of these nations. And here we arrive at the +beginning of Mesopotamian history, properly so-called. + +[Illustration: A JAR-SHAPED COFFIN OF CLAY.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Ragozin: Chaldea. + +[2] This is a late popular etymology. Babel means "the gate of God," and +has no connection with the Hebrew verb _balal_ "to confound." + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + + +CITY-STATES BEFORE THE RISE OF BABYLON. + +We have seen that the Chaldeans were in time assimilated with the +invading Semites, producing eventually a new nation. It is not to be +supposed that this was at once accomplished, or that the dawn of +authentic history found such a process completed. Rather, the Chaldeans +held tenaciously to the south, the Semites kept farther to the north, +and for many centuries the two races fought for dominance in the valley. + +As early as 4500 B.C., a record inscribes one as "king of Kengi," but +his kingdom probably included but a few cities added to his own. + +Several cities had been founded at a remote time and these now grew +rapidly in importance. Each was built around a temple dedicated to some +particular divinity. Eridu worshipped the god EA, father of waters; Ur +was sacred to Sin, the moon-god, and later kings, of the dynasty of Ur, +added the name Sin to their own, as for example, Ine-Sin, Pur-Sin. +Larsam was sacred to the sun-god Shamash; Uruk to the goddess Ishtar; +Nippur to En-lil, father of the gods, and so on. Each city believed that +its god--Bel or Lord--was the greatest of all gods, and often its +inhabitants were inspired to go out to conquer other cities and +territories in order to extend the prestige of the local deity. Probably +at the same time the people were stimulated to fight because certain +cities had grown up in the very heart of the fertile valley, while +others had been obliged to locate in poorer sections. Naturally these +last looked with envious eyes upon the richer soil of their neighbors, +and desired to win it for themselves. Each city watched for the first +sign of weakness in her sister cities, and when it appeared, tried at +once to incorporate them into her own domains. + +The political history of the Euphrates valley before the dominance of +Babylon is the history of these cities as they grew into little states. +Some grew strong; others weakened and became tributary to the more +vigorous few. + +En-shag-kush-ana, "Lord of Kengiu," was the name of the first king to +appear in the Babylonian records. Erech was probably his capital, and +Nippur the religious center of his little kingdom. We have already +connected Nippur with the excavations made by the University of +Pennsylvania. The ruins there unearthed have enabled scholars to +understand in the main sacred cities of Babylonia. En-shag-kush-ana was +priest as well as king. Although his race was not mentioned, he was +probably a Chaldean, like the people over whom he ruled. + +A little to the north, a Semitic kingdom with the city Kish as its head, +was growing rapidly in power, and threatened to absorb even Erech +itself. On this account, Chaldeans attacked it and gained the victory, +whereupon their god, En-lil of Nippur was celebrated in festival and his +temple received numerous trophies of the triumph, since he had enabled +those of the south to overcome the cruder Semitic city. + +Their defeat only led the Semitic kingdom of Kish to strengthen its +forces, and about 4000 B.C., under leadership of Lugalzaggisi, the vigor +of the new race overcame the nearly expended force of the Chaldeans. +This conquering Semitic king set forth his position thus: "Lugalzaggisi, +king of Erech, king of the world, priest of Ana, hero of Nidaba, son of +Ukush, he who is looked upon favorably by the faithful eye of En-lil. + +"When En-lil, Lord of the lands, invested Lugalzaggisi with the kingdom +of the world, and granted him success before the world, when he filled +the land with his power, and subdued the country from the rise of the +sun to the setting sun--at that time he straightened his path from the +lower sea of the Tigris and Euphrates to the upper sea, and granted him +the dominion of everything from the rising sun to the setting of the +sun, and caused the countries to dwell in peace."[1] + +For some generations the Semites now held the valley and the Chaldeans +are lost sight of in surviving records. Then a southern kingdom, +Shirpurla, with Sungir its chief city, became strong enough to throw off +Semitic rule. This victory of the Chaldeans was widely celebrated in the +annals of the waning race. Not only did they now gain the upper hand of +all the cities in the valley, but they pushed into Elam, a kingdom to +the east and dominated both it and its tributary lands. + +While comparisons in history may sometimes be misleading, they often aid +the student to better understand certain conditions. There is some +similarity between these two races in this valley contending for +supremacy--the stronger being sometimes held in check, the weaker +gradually losing ground--in certain aspects, it calls to mind the period +in English history when Saxons, Jutes and Angles struggled for +leadership. The Saxons had developed the higher civilization; the Danes +were the more vigorous and aggressive. Sometimes the Saxons would be +able to set up their king, again the Danes would enthrone one of their +number. Now the waning light of Saxon power would seem to be well-nigh +spent, when suddenly it would burst out again with a flame that would +illumine all England, only again to be eclipsed by the fresh strength of +the other nation. Not to push the comparison further, either country +offers a fair example of the usual course events take whenever two +races, somewhat equal in strength, seek to gain the upper hand in a +given territory. + +A northern city, hitherto unmentioned, was to give the palm once more to +the Semitic. Agade, the home-city of Shargani-shar-ali, or Sargon I. + +Many legends cluster around this king, an early Semitic hero. Since our +knowledge of him comes mainly through legendary sources, it is difficult +to separate the grain from the chaff. A tradition which in the course of +history has been related many times of men in many lands, was told first +of this Semitic king. + + "Sargon, the powerful king, King of Agade, am I. + + "My mother was of low degree, my father I did not know. + + "The brother of my father dwelt in the mountain. + + "My city was Azupirani, situated on the banks of the Euphrates. + + "(My) humble mother conceived me; in secret she brought me forth. + + "She placed me in a bask-boat of rushes; with pitch she closed my door. + + "She gave me over to the river, which did not (rise) over me. + + "The river bore me along; to Akki, the irrigator, it carried me. + + "Akki, the irrigator, ... brought me to land. + + "Akki, the irrigator, reared me as his own son. + + "Akki, the irrigator, appointed me his gardener. + + "While I was gardener, Ishtar looked on me with love. + + * * * * * + + "Four years I ruled the kingdom."[2] + +Sargon I. and his son, Naram Sin, had great capacity for organization. +They were prolific builders, and bricks have been found bearing their +names and titles. The material for their temples they brought some +distance--the famous cedars of Lebanon forming the beams. Sargon was +called "Lord of Nippur, Shirpurla, Kish, Babylon and Uruk." Naram Sin +extended his sway to the Mediterranean on the west, east into Elam, and +south into Arabia and the isles of the Persian Gulf. He took for the +first time the title: "King of the Four World-Regions." His vast kingdom +thus built up disappeared, however, as quickly as it came into being, +and after some changes, Ur became the capital center. Three thousand +eight hundred B.C. has been accepted as the date of Sargon's reign and +this is the first definite date in Babylonian history. + +The kings of the Ur dynasty erected several temples, and because Ur was +easy of access, they imported many of their building materials. Dolerite +was brought from Arabia, cedar from Syria, gold and precious stones from +the east. This town was sacred to Sin, the moon-god, and several hymns +praising this deity have been found. + +Isin, Erech, and other cities strove now for leadership, and internal +dissensions offered opportunity for the Elamites on the east, now +advancing on a wave of prosperity, to invade the land. It is known that +they advanced as far as Erech, and carried off a statue of the goddess +Nana. They set up their own king, whose line continued on the throne for +some time. One of these invading kings called himself: "exalter of Ur, +king of Larsa, king of Sumer and Accad." Under Elamite administration, +temples were built and the religious and commercial centers continued to +grow. + +Of this whole period Maspero has said: "We have here the dust of history +rather than history itself; here an isolated individual makes his +appearance in the record of his name, to vanish when we attempt to lay +hold of him; there the stem of a dynasty which breaks abruptly off, +pompous preambles, devout formulas, dedications of objects of buildings, +here or there the account of some battle, or the indication of some +foreign country with which relations of friendship or commerce were +maintained--these are the scanty materials of which to construct a +narrative." + +To summarize the period as a whole, we may note that thus far no united +kingdom had been evolved. To weld that together was the work of the next +period. This was, on the other hand, an age of city-states, each one +contesting for leadership. While the struggle began with the mere hope +of annexing cities in the valley, it expanded to include outlying lands +as well. The assimilation of the two races was, generally speaking, +effected, and henceforth the Chaldeans disappear as a distinct element +of the country, having been absorbed politically by the Semites. + + +A PART OF A HYMN TO THE MOON-GOD.[3] + +(Composed in the city of Ur before the age of Abraham.) + + Father, long-suffering and full of forgiveness, + Whose hands uphold the life of all mankind! + First born, omnipotent, whose heart is immensity, + There is none who may fathom it! + + In heaven, who is supreme? + Thou alone, Thou art supreme. + On earth, who is supreme? + Thou alone, Thou art supreme. + + As for Thee, Thy will is made known in heaven, + And the angels bow their faces. + As for Thee, Thy will is made known upon earth, + And the spirits kiss the ground. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Hilprecht: Old Babylonian Inscriptions. + +[2] Trans. quoted by Goodspeed: Hist. of the Bab. and Assy., p. 62. + +[3] Translated by Sayce. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + + +DOMINANCE OF BABYLON, 2100-1100 B.C. + +In early times Babylon had not been a city of sufficient size to demand +royal attention. No king had thought it of enough importance to include +with his enumerated possessions, although in all probability, it was +founded as early as 4000 B.C.--perhaps earlier still. Sumu-abi was its +first king, but of him and his immediate successors, we know little. The +sixth king was destined to bring greatness to his city and to the whole +country--for it was he who united the many states of Babylonia into one +strong kingdom and drove the usurping Elamites from the throne. + +Hammurabi, sixth king of Babylon, ruled in the twenty-first century +B.C. His reign and the reigns of his family were regarded by the +Babylonians as their "Golden Age." Down to the last days of Babylon, +Babylonian kings emulated his example, modelling even their inscriptions +after his. + +How Hammurabi freed the land from Elamite rule is not known, but his +name was soon established as an able soldier. He assumed the titles: +King of Sumer and Accad, King of the Four-Quarters of the World, King of +Babylon. Having annexed all the little city-states to his original +kingdom of Babylon, the capital city gave its name to the whole country. +To make this union lasting, Hammurabi himself appointed officers of +administration for each political division of the kingdom, and so made +the entire system dependent upon the government at the capital. The +pre-eminence now given the capital turned the tide of commerce and +traffic from other places and made Babylon the great center, not only +for matters of government, but for industrial and social life as well. + +Hammurabi was not only a distinguished warrior, but a statesman. When he +had made secure his recently united kingdom, he turned to internal +improvements. A post-envoy system for royal messages was established. +This tended to make the roads and highways between different parts of +the country safe. He established royal granaries in the valley of the +Euphrates--as we have found them maintained in the valley of the +Nile--to store grain for use in time of famine. + +As each succeeding city was exalted to leadership in Babylonia, we have +found that the patron deity of that community rose to highest place in +the pantheon. Originally, Marduk was accorded a minor position in the +category of gods. By enabling Babylon to gain supremacy over all other +cities, he had now proven himself greatest of all gods; so while Nippur +and other religious centers, long established, retained their deities +and their cults, there came forward a large priesthood devoted to the +worship of Marduk. These priests, centered as they were around Babylon, +probably had much to do with that city's rapid progress in becoming the +center of culture, art and literary effort. Long years after, when the +kings of warlike Assyria had added Babylonia to their numerous +possessions, they turned to the archives of this city for its literary +productions and one of the most productive periods was the reign of +Hammurabi. + +Perhaps the most stupendous undertaking of this king was the +construction of a vast canal which reclaimed a large tract of land, long +unproductive. An inscription left by him has been found, and sets forth +his effort in this fashion: + +"Hammurabi, the powerful king, king of Babylonia, ... when Anu and Bel +gave unto me to rule the land of Sumer and Accad, and with their scepter +filled my hands, I dug the canal Hammurabi, the Blessing-of-Men, which +bringeth the water of the overflow into the land of Sumer and Accad. Its +banks upon both sides I made arable land; much seed I scattered upon it. +Lasting water I provided for the land of Sumer and Accad. The land of +Sumer and Accad, its separated peoples I united, with blessings and +abundance I endowed them, in peaceful dwellings I made them to live."[1] + +He was a tireless builder, spending much care in repairing old temples +and constructing new ones. Indeed King Hammurabi stands forth, after +four thousand years have passed, as a ruler of exceptional executive +ability. Prosperity long attended his people because of the personal +supervision he gave to all branches of the administration. + +Among the lasting benefits assured his subjects was means of getting +legal redress. A court of appeals was instituted at Babylon to which any +citizen might come to state his wrongs. He codified the laws of the land +in 282 laws and inscribed them on monoliths, one of which was found ten +years ago in Susa, whither it had been carried by the Elamites about +1100 B.C. In the prologue to the Code he states, "When Marduk sent me to +rule the people ... I established law and justice in the land and +promoted the welfare of the people." + +Long after his death his son and successors reaped the benefits of +Hammurabi's splendid rule, and the memory of his strength and capacity +held the country in check as long as his house endured. Probably for +some time before the close of this prosperous era, which came to an end +cir. 1700 B.C., mountaineers threatened the eastern borders, and the +death of the last king of the dynasty was the occasion for an invasion +of the Kassites, a people who emerged from Elam-Media. They seem to have +been one of the many bands of mountaineers who gained a livelihood from +the products of the mountainous regions and by frequent plundering raids +directed against those living on either side of their strongholds. They +well knew that Babylon's long devotion to the arts of peace had weakened +her military strength, and regarded the time as favorable for winning +the fertile valleys for themselves. At all events, they placed their +king upon the throne. The inhabitants of southern Babylonia were never +possessed of strong patriotism. So long as the land was allowed to rest +in peace and the taxes were not increased, there seems to have been no +especial interest on the part of the people generally as to who wore the +crown. The material development of the country did not suffer long on +this occasion, and for nearly 600 years the Kassite dynasty ruled in +Babylon. They rapidly took on the culture of their newly acquired state, +built temples and directed their attention to the prosperity of the +land. As time went on, they wellnigh ceased to be regarded as usurpers. +One of their kings set forth his titles thus: "I am Agumkakrime, the son +of Tashshigurumash; the illustrious descendant of god Shuqamuna; called +by Anu and Bel, Ea and Marduk, Sin and Shamash; the powerful hero of +Ishtar, the warrior among the gods. + +"I am a king of wisdom and prudence; a king who grants hearing and +pardon; the son of Tashshigurumash; the descendant of Abiru ... the +crafty warrior; the first son of the great Agum; an illustrious, royal +scion who holds the reins of the nation (and is) a mighty shepherd.... + +"I am king of the country of Kashshu and of the Akkadians; king of the +wide country of Babylon, who settles the numerous people in Ashnunak; +the King of Padan and Alman; the king of Gutium, a foolish nation; (a +king) who makes obedient to him the four regions, and a favorite of the +great gods." + +This enumeration of tributary lands shows these kings to have been good +warriors. + +For a hundred years before the end of the Kassite dynasty, the kingdom +of Assyria, founded before 3000 B.C. in all probability, was growing in +strength and importance. When the Babylonians were unable to hold out +against invading kings, naturally the Assyrians felt in no way bound to +render the tribute they had paid Babylonia to usurping foreigners, and +took advantage of the occasion to assert their sovereignty. + +As has been previously noted, the Assyrians were of pure Semitic stock, +and, as their own artists represent them, apparently had not +intermarried with the Chaldeans, as the Semites farther south had done. +They were warlike in disposition, and knew neither the luxuries of the +southern state nor its enervating climate. They had even become powerful +enough to make treaties with the rulers of Babylon regarding disputed +lands, and this fact in itself was significant. For some considerable +period after the invasion of the Kassites, Assyria was concerned with +her own affairs, but the time was coming when she would make her power +felt in the mother country. + +Generally speaking, the Kassite rule was an age of peace. Among the Tell +el Amarna letters, unearthed upon the ancient site of the "Horizon of +the Sun's Disk," correspondence has been found between some of these +Asiatic rulers and the kings of Egypt. The letters open with the +preliminaries customary in oriental correspondence: "To Kadashman-Bel, +king of Kardunyash, my brother; thus saith Amenophis, the great king, +the king of Egypt, thy brother: with me it is well. May it be well with +thee, with thy house, with thy wives, with thy children, with thy +nobles, with thy horses and with thy chariots, and with thy land may it +be well; with me may it be well, with my house with my wives, with my +children, with my nobles, with my horses, with my chariots, with my +troops, and with my land, may it be very well." Regarding this +particular letter and others of the same period, Rogers says: "No +historical material of great moment is offered in these letters. They +reveal a period of relative peace and prosperity, and deal, in +considerable measure, with the little courtesies and amenities of life. +It is, for example, curious to find the Babylonian king reproving the +king of Egypt for not having sent an ambassador to inquire for him when +he was ill. When kings had time for such courtesies, and could only +excuse themselves for failing to observe them on the ground of their +ignorance of the illness, and the great distance to be covered on the +journey, there must have been freedom from war and from all distress at +home and abroad."[2] + +It was not destined to long continue peaceful, however. By 1285 B.C. the +Assyrian king felt himself powerful enough to invade Babylonia. +Penetrating even to the capital itself, he carried away the statue of +the god Marduk--a great indignity. He allowed the Babylonia king to +become his vassal. This state of affairs continued for seven years, +whereupon the Babylonians succeeded in driving the Assyrians north +again, taking from them some of the territory they had seized. When next +the Assyrians threatened, the Semites instituted a revolution, forced +the Kassites from the throne, and established the dynasty of Isin. + +Now began the struggle for supremacy in the valley, waged by two great +nations. The strength of Babylonia was waning, but their king, +Nebuchadnezzar I., held the kingdom together with a strong hand. He only +delayed the inevitable. The future belonged to the more vigorous kingdom +to the north, and to her power Babylonia soon fell subservient. + +To follow the main thread of activity in the Euphrates valley, we must +now turn to Assyria, while the life so characteristic of Babylon +continued until it could be said: "No capital in the world has ever been +the center of so much power, wealth, and culture for so vast a period of +time." + +[Illustration: WINGED LION.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Quoted in Rogers: Hist. of Baby. and Assy., 391. + +[2] Rogers: Hist. of Baby. and Assy., Vol I., p. 418. + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + + +BEGINNINGS OF THE ASSYRIAN EMPIRE. + +The beginnings of the Assyrian state are lost in obscurity. Nineveh was +possibly founded before 3000 B.C., but like Babylon, its origin is not +known. Asshur was long the important city of the country, overshadowing +the later capital. + +About 1490 B.C. Thutmose III. pushed into Asia and roused the western +portion of that continent with his conquests. Assyria, like many other +weak states, hastened to send gifts to the conquering pharaoh. These +signified submission, and Thothmes gave no further evidences of his +military power. The next mention of Assyria occurs when the state had +become sufficiently important to enter into a treaty with the Kassite +king of Babylonia, regarding disputed territories. As we have already +noted, Assyria, long subservient to the older kingdom, felt in no way +bound to submit to the foreign rule of Kassite princes, and had already +established her own independence, which was acknowledged by the +Babylonian king when he negotiated a treaty with her. Later, the +daughter of an Assyrian king was married to the king of Babylonia. Their +son came to the throne at an early age, and the Babylonians, seeing an +intrigue to allow Assyrian influences to dominate their land, made way +with the boy-king, substituting another in his place. Thereupon the +Assyrian ruler, grandfather of the murdered prince, invaded Babylonia, +killed the monarch popularly crowned, and placed his own candidate upon +the throne. The result of this Assyrian interference was not immediately +important, but it was the first of a long series of difficulties between +the two countries, which ended ultimately in the recognition of the +Assyrian king as ruler of Babylonia as well. + +About 1290 B.C., troubles having again arisen, the northern king came +once more to the city of Babylon, this time carrying away the statue of +the god Marduk, as we have already seen. He left Assyrian officials in +the land as his representatives. Seven years later, these were driven +out by a popular uprising of the Babylonians, who seized certain +outlying districts which had recently been appropriated by the +Assyrians. When the Kassite princes were finally dethroned, +Nebuchadnezzar I., of the dynasty of Isin, was strong enough to hold the +Babylonian state intact against the power which constantly threatened at +the north. + +To this point we had come in the preceding chapter, and this recast of +the situation is made that we may have its essential features clearly in +mind. + +Coming now to the reign of Tiglath-Pileser I., 1120 B.C., we meet one of +the great warriors of antiquity, and with his administration, a new era +opened for Assyria. The first five years of his reign were occupied with +campaigns to the north, east, and west, in which directions tribes had +been menacing the borders of his kingdom. In these campaigns we see the +beginnings of those cruel, relentless punishments, amounting often to +mere savagery,--which fill the pages of Assyrian history. These were +meted out to all who failed to submit to Assyrian arms. An inscription +commemorating the victories of the warrior says: "With their corpses I +strewed the mountain passes and the heights. I took away their property, +a countless booty. Six thousand warriors, the remnant of their army, who +had fled before my arms, embraced my feet. I carried them away and +counted them among the inhabitants of my own land." And again: "In those +days, ... Asshur, the Lord, sent me, who knows no victor in war, no +rival in battle, whose rule is righteous over the four quarters of the +world, towards distant kingdoms on the shores of the Upper Sea, which +knew not submission, and I went forth. Across impracticable heights and +through precipitous defiles the inside of which no king had beheld +before, I passed. Through sixteen mountain ridges I marched in my +chariot where the ground was good; where it was inaccessible, I cleared +away with axes, and bridges for the passage of my troops I constructed +excellently well. I crossed the Euphrates.... Twenty-three kings of the +land of Nairi, assembled their chariots and troops in the midst of their +countries and came forth to do battle against me. By the impetuous +onslaught of my mighty arms I conquered them. I destroyed their numerous +armies like Raman's thundershower; with the corpses of their warriors I +strewed the mountain heights and the enclosures of their cities as with +straw. Their 120 chariots I destroyed in the battle; sixty kings of the +lands of Nairi, with those who had come to their assistance, I pursued +to the Upper Sea. Their great cities I took, their spoils, their +possessions I carried off, their towns I burned with fire, I destroyed, +laid them waste, made heaps of them and land for the plough. Numerous +herds of steeds, colts, calves, and implements without number I carried +home. The kings of the lands of the Nairi my hand captured alive, all of +them. To these same kings I granted favor. Captive and bound, I released +them before Shamash, my lord, and made them swear allegiance forever. +Their children, the offspring of their royalty, I took as hostages. I +imposed on them a tribute of 1,200 steeds and 2,000 bulls and dismissed +them to their respective countries.... The vast lands of Nairi I took in +all their extent, and all their kings I brought low to my feet." + +When five years, filled with similar campaigns, had passed, a large +number of tribes paid tribute to Assyria. Before this period, Calab had +served as capital. Tiglath-Pileser now rebuilt Asshur. Rare trees were +brought from conquered lands, to beautify the town. Temples were +restored, to the honor of the gods. Of the restoration of the temple of +Ana and Adad, the king caused to be inscribed: "I built it from +foundation to roof larger and grander than before, and erected also two +great towers, fitting ornaments of their great divinities. The splendid +temple, a brilliant and magnificent dwelling, the habitation of their +joys, the house for their delight, shining as bright as the stars on +heaven's firmament and richly decorated with ornaments through the skill +of my artists, I planned, devised, and thought out, built and completed. +I made its interior brilliant like the dome of the heavens; decorated +its walls like the splendor of the rising stars, and make it grand with +resplendent brilliancy. I reared its temple towers to heaven, and +completed its roof with burned brick; located therein the upper terrace +containing the chamber of their great divinities; and led into the +interior Anu and Adad, the great gods, and made them to dwell in their +lofty house, thus gladdening the heart of their great divinities."[1] + +The memory of this stern warrior lived long after his death, holding +tribes in subjection and enabling his successors to rule in comparative +peace. The greatness of the future kingdom has been attributed in no +small measure to the foundations laid by Tiglath-Pileser I. + +A period of reaction followed. Tribute, which had been paid only for +fear of a strong, well disciplined army, was no longer forthcoming. +Babylonia and Assyria have left so few records for these years that they +are almost sure to have been years of inaction. On the alluvial bottoms +of Babylonia, a new dynasty arose, known as the dynasty of the Sea +Lands. Both the rulers and the subjects they governed were comparatively +newcomers, who easily gained the upper hand in the decadent state, +especially as no interference came from Assyria. + +While the inertia of Babylonia allowed the latest comer to rule, so the +inaction of Assyria allowed countries on the west--Syria and +Palestine--to gain strength. On the north, the Armenians, a nation of +traders, extended their territories and their commercial affairs. + +In 950 B.C. Tiglath-Pileser II. became king. From this time forward +records become more numerous, and we are able to trace the stages of +development with greater accuracy. Assyria once more wakened to her +possibilities, while Babylonia continued in her helpless, prostrate +condition. Nothing of note is chronicled until Asshur-natsirpal III. +became king in 885 B.C. He promptly marched against the earlier +conquered tribes on the north who no longer paid their tribute. He +slaughtered a goodly number at the start, and this report spread like +wildfire among the tribes, who hastened to send gifts. For some years he +continued to bring countries under tribute, quelling revolts with such +severity as only an Assyrian could have directed. One inscription is +sufficient to let us understand his customary procedure: + +"I drew near to the city of Tela. The city was very strong; three walls +surrounded it. The inhabitants trusted to their strong walls and +numerous soldiers; they did not come down or embrace my feet. With +battle and slaughter I assaulted and took the city. Three thousand +warriors I slew in battle. Their booty and possessions, cattle, sheep, I +carried away; many captives I burned with fire. Many of their soldiers I +took alive; of some I cut off hands and limbs; of others the noses, +ears, and arms; of many soldiers I put out the eyes. I reared a column +of the living and a column of heads. I hung up on high their heads on +trees in the vicinity of their city. Their boys and girls I burned up in +the flame. I devastated the city, dug it up, in the fire burned it; I +annihilated it."[2] + +Babylonia and nations on the east united against the relentless +conqueror, but in vain. They were defeated and some of their cities laid +waste. + +Having carried on campaigns in this fashion for some time, +Asshur-natsirpal found himself at the head of a large army, well +disciplined, invincible, inured to slaughter and devastation--a menace +to the state if kept idle, and if disbanded, removing at a stroke the +fear which prompted the payment of tribute. + +Something should perhaps be said of tribute, which we find kings +demanding of all subjected people. The habit of compelling the payment +of tribute was tolerated only in an age when might made right. None of +the earliest nations gave anything in exchange for tribute exacted. No +effort was made to defend tributary tribes from the attacks of other +tribes. Tribute was merely the price paid by a people for the privilege +of being in other respects left alone. A king who dreamed of a wide +reaching empire, tried to bring as many nations as possible under his +tribute. The payment of this tribute was the formal acknowledgment of +the emperor's over-lordship. Until the age of Persian dominance, no +monarch was able to do much more than compel the annual payment in +joining alien territories to his own. Assyria attempted on a smaller +scale what Persia effected, but little more than the _conception_ of a +great empire was contributed by Assyria; it was given reality by Persian +conquerors. + +Asshur-natsirpal realized the only course open to him was that of +conquest, and to that he now turned. Setting out for the west, his march +was a continual triumph. His reputation was so well established, and the +strength of his army so well understood that tribes on either side sent +gifts as soon as he drew near. + +Reaching the Euphrates, he was unable to make any adequate provision +for the transportation of his troops. The Assyrians were an inland +people and knew nothing of maritime affairs. Each soldier was expected +to get himself across the stream, partly swimming, partly buoyed up by +inflated skins of animals. + +Drawing near the Mediterranean Sea, he found that commerce occupied the +people in that region to the exclusion of war. Indeed, they would pay +heavily to avoid war, which seriously interfered with their trade. The +king of the Hittites--once a nation of importance but at this time +retaining little of its former strength--stated his position very +frankly. His policy was direct and simple. He was willing to pay down +the sum of twenty talents of silver, one hundred talents of copper, two +hundred and fifty talents of iron, along with chains and beads of gold +and much other treasure, if he were simply let alone.... National pride +counted for nothing. The primary desire was to get the Assyrians out of +the country as soon as possible; and well might they pay a heavy tribute +to gain such a boon as that.[3] + +It was apparent that there would be no particular opportunity for +military skill against people of such convictions as these. The Assyrian +army moved on and at length drew near the green slopes of the Lebanon, +in sight of the Mediterranean waters, dotted over by Phoenician ships, +busily plying their trade. While no city was besieged, no blood shed, +the effect was marked upon the entire region. All acknowledged +Asshur-natsirpal as conqueror. In some cases, Assyrian officials were +stationed to keep the home government in touch with these distant parts; +in other places, Assyrian colonists were induced to settle, far from +their native homes. Cities were walled by the labor of Assyrian +soldiers, and were temporarily protected by Assyrian fortifications. +While such demonstrations had a lasting effect on the western states, +the Assyrian king, on his part, was deeply impressed by one thing, and +this omened ill for their future; the people of this region cared more +to protect their commerce than their country. They valued the protection +of their wares above the honor and independence of their respective +states. We shall see that this one fact as understood by the Assyrian +king developed a definite western policy. + +Unable to supply military action for his troops, the king set them to +cutting down trees--cedar, cypress, and juniper. These were taken to +Assyria. The army returned home without approaching Damascus, where +opposition was certain to be strong. Too much glory had been won to have +it overshadowed by any chance issue. + +While the western conquest had been in progress, officers at home had +been carrying out the king's plans by rebuilding Calah, and constructing +a large canal. The king now returned to personally supervise the +construction of a royal palace. + +"A palace for my royal dwelling-place, for the glorious seat of my +royalty, I founded forever and splendidly planned it. I surrounded it +with a cornice of copper. Sculptures of the creatures of land and sea +carved in alabaster, I made and placed them at the doors. Lofty +doorposts of ... wood I made, and sheathed them with copper and set them +up in the gates. Thrones of costly woods, dishes of ivory containing +silver, gold, lead, copper, and iron, the spoil of my hand, taken from +conquered lands I deposited therein." + +In 860 B.C. Asshur-natsirpal died, leaving the future to regard him as +the most ferocious king in all Assyrian history; yet he had accomplished +more for his country than any of his predecessors, and left it more +united and in a more prosperous condition. His son, Shalmaneser II., +like the father, found himself obliged to keep an army active, +collecting tributes and making fresh conquests. He repeated the westward +march, and met an alliance formed against him at Damascus. To that +city's forces were joined those of Israel and of Phoenicia. While their +armies were defeated, no tribute was exacted, and this fact in itself +shows that the victory was not complete. + +This first coalition formed against Assyria, made up of Mediterranean +peoples, is important. Such a union might have effectually stayed the +great military power of the age had not jealousies among the states +themselves hindered permanent union. By 846 B.C. the alliance had been +broken, and Jehu of Israel sent gifts to the Assyrian ruler. This +furnished him his first hold on the independence of the Hebrews. + +The next hundred years saw a union of Babylonia and Assyria, and an +attempt, on the part of one king at least, to blot out all differences +between the two peoples by showing among other things that their +religions were the same. To give weight to the claim, he constructed +temples in Nineveh, after the model of those of Babylon. + +In the following chapter we shall note the height of Assyrian dominance +and the proudest years of her history. + +[Illustration: FLOCKS AND CAPTIVE WOMEN CARRIED AWAY.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Quoted in Goodspeed, p. 171. + +[2] Quoted in Goodspeed, p. 197. + +[3] Rogers: Hist. of Baby. and Assy., Vol. II, 64. + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + + +ASSYRIA--A POWERFUL EMPIRE. + +A dynasty of weak kings followed and seemed to be leading Assyria on to +ruin, but in 746 B.C. the people rose up in rebellion, driving them out +and crowning a ruler selected by themselves. It is supposed that the one +they chose had already proven his worth and capacity either at the head +of a large division of the army, or possibly in the management of some +Assyrian province. In any event, he was firmly established at once and +spent no time trying to inspire his subjects with awe. His own name has +not been recorded but he took the crown name of Tiglath-Pileser III., +seeking to emulate him who had borne it first. He is the Pul of the Old +Testament. + +Babylonia demanded first attention. The Armenians had established +themselves in the southern part of the kingdom and threatened to crush +out the old life and culture by their rapidly increasing numbers. + +Tiglath-Pileser III. was hailed by the native Babylonians as a +deliverer. Forcing the usurpers back, he divided the former kingdom into +four provinces, placing Assyrian governors over each. He also brought +many captives into these provinces to make their homes, hoping in this +way to weaken the national spirit which tried every little while to gain +back old-time freedom for the state. + +The Medes on the east required some curbing, but their independence was +not destroyed. These matters attended to, Tiglath-Pileser III. was free +to give attention to the west. + +The city of Arpad stood in the way of Assyrian progress and since it +refused tribute, it was besieged. The plucky town held out for two long +years, but when finally taken, was laid waste with great slaughter. All +neighboring tribes hastened to send tribute, and were incorporated into +the Assyrian empire. + +Heretofore we have seen people brought under tribute and some faint +efforts made to hold them. Now we have reached the imperial period of +Assyrian development when the government, established at home, sought +to increase its actual possessions abroad, and to bind them to the +original kingdom with strong ties. + +An alliance had been made among the sea-coast states, with Judah at the +head. This had been formed, of course, to stay the western tide of +Assyrian power. Notwithstanding, the king of Samaria yielded the moment +the Assyrian army drew near, paying the tribute with no display of +force. Judah alone seems to have remained unyielding and undisturbed. +Thirty thousand captives were brought into these districts to find new +homes, while many of the natives were deported to make room for them. + +Several methods were employed by Assyria to make conquests lasting. If a +tribe or city acknowledged the Assyrian king as conqueror, no recourse +was made to arms; an annual tribute was usually imposed and an Assyrian +governor placed in the territory to hold revolts in check and to +generally represent the empire, of which the province was now a part. +The native king was frequently allowed to rule over the people, even +though his main duty in some instances seems to have been to raise the +required tribute. If, on the other hand, a tribe or city resisted, a war +or siege followed. One battle might reduce a tribe to submission; in the +case of a city, all supplies were shut off, and eventually the +inhabitants would be starved into surrender, whereupon, the city was +often made "land for the plough" by the exasperated king, and the people +subjected to all sorts of cruel punishments. + +When a kingdom was conquered, it was thought desirable to destroy its +old patriotism by removing all chances for its development. With that +end in view, some of its citizens would be sent out of the country to +seek homes in other lands, while those from distant regions would be +brought in to take their places. Naturally the newcomers knew nothing of +the traditions of their newly found country and cared not at all to +fight for them. In this way, nations ceased to retain their venerated +customs, but as the kings often record: "I made them all to speak one +language"--and that Assyrian. One far-reaching effect of this policy was +that when a revolt did break out in some district, it no longer spread +like wildfire in all directions, but the governor of the province was +himself able to put down any uprising, and the colonists recently +imported, caring nothing for the older inhabitants, could be depended +upon to help him. + +Tiglath-Pileser III. turned now to Gaza, whose king fled to Egypt there +to get aid in behalf of his state. Deserted, the city soon surrendered +and the Assyrian king, having sent the old gods home to Assyria, +installed Assyrian gods in the temples. Thence he marched to Palestine. + +He who had held out against Assyria before was dead and a weak king now +ruled in Judah. Had the kings of Samaria and Damascus formed an alliance +with Judah, the power of Assyria might yet have been broken; instead +they united their forces to invade Judah and appropriate the territory +of the weak king for themselves. Isaiah, the great statesman of the +Hebrews, counselled the ruler in vain. To protect himself against his +aggressive neighbors he appealed to Assyria for help. This drew +Tiglath-Pileser III. to Samaria and Damascus, while Judah, sending +gifts, was not at this time molested. The Samarians themselves rose up +against their king. Having killed him, they asked the Assyrian ruler to +allow Hoshea to rule over them as an Assyrian vassal. This sifted the +opposition down to Damascus, which city prepared for a siege. Some five +hundred outlying towns were laid waste and their inhabitants sent into +other districts. Not all the army being constantly required to guard the +besieged town, part of the troops marched into Arabia, demanding tribute +and receiving it. In 732 B.C. Damascus fell and became an Assyrian +province. + +By this time, Babylonia was in a state of turmoil. Under Assyrian +government the people had at first been free to develop their arts of +peace, and literature had flourished. Then the Chaldeans to the south, +established originally in the region around the gulf, known once as +Chaldea--tried again to rule the land. In 726 B.C. Tiglath-Pileser III. +marched into Babylonia, where, taking the hands of the god Marduk, he +was crowned king of Babylonia. According to the ancient custom, he who +wore this crown must return each year and celebrate this same ceremony. +Two years later Tiglath-Pileser having again performed the rites, died +before the year elapsed. + +During the short reign which followed interest again reverted to the +west. Hoshea refused to pay tribute in 725 B.C., looking to Egypt for +help. He was taken captive and Samaria made ready for a siege. Strange +to say, the town held out for three years and the king of Assyria died +before it was taken. Sargon II. at once succeeded. (722-705 B.C.) He +again was not of royal blood and he too chose a popular crown name. + +Samaria soon fell, and quite possibly neither the besieging army or the +stricken town knew of any change in rulers. Twenty-seven thousand two +hundred and ninety of the inhabitants of Samaria--the flower of the +land,--were deported to the Median mountains, while colonists were +brought in from Babylonia and other provinces to take their places. This +loss it was impossible to retrieve. Assyrian governors were set over the +land, now merely an Assyrian province. + +In 721 B.C. attention focused once more in Babylonia, where the +Chaldeans had again usurped the crown. In the battle Sargon waged, the +result was so indecisive that neither side gained much. The usurpers +were simply checked. + +Suddenly an alliance was formed in the west, made up of stricken +Samaria, Damascus and Gaza. Sargon marched rapidly west before their +armies were ready, and defeated them separately and carried "the ten +tribes into captivity." Now again more strangers were brought in, and +more citizens sent out. It is little wonder, after all these mixtures of +peoples, that in later years the Jews regarded the Samarians as not of +their kin, but an inferior race, so that in the time of Christ one could +say: "How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a +woman of Samaria? For the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans!" + +It was during this campaign that the Hittite king was taken prisoner and +his kingdom, once so powerful, was merged into the Assyrian Empire. + +Not long after, Hezekiah, king of Judah, attempted to stir up an +opposition to the Assyrian tribute payment. Isaiah, the far-seeing +statesman, again counselled against it,--vainly to be sure, yet +constantly, for this was an unfavorable moment. As might have been +foreseen, the coalition was short-lived. + +Sargon's work in time of peace was extensive. He built a palace, like +his predecessors, but outdoing them, he constructed a royal city for +its location. This was a custom new in Assyria, but we have seen that it +was usual in Egypt, during the Middle and New Empires. Choosing a spot +not far from Nineveh, at the base of a mountain, he had a rectangular +area laid out, its corners pointing to the four cardinal points. First +temples were built to the gods, whose favor he sought in every possible +way, even going to the length of paying for the site of the city, and +compensating those who asked no money. After the temples, the palace +itself arose--built of ivory, palm-wood, cedar, cypress, having gates of +wood overlaid with bronze. The eight gates of the city were named for +the eight leading divinities, the walls for Asshur, and the ramparts for +Niveb. An invocation was inscribed to the gods: "May Asshur bless this +city, and this palace! May he invest these constructions with an eternal +brightness! May he grant that they shall be inhabited until the remotest +days! May the sculptured bull, the guarding spirit, stand forever before +his face! May he keep watch here night and day, and may his feet never +move from this threshold!" The palace is said to have contained +"twenty-four bulls in relief and two miles of sculptured slabs." Since +the work was only begun in 712 B.C., and he came to reside within in 707 +B.C., he was apparently able to command a large army of workmen. This +was the palace whose ruins Botta unearthed in 1846, and each part +remaining appeared to be as perfect as workmanship could make it. + +The new city was peopled in a unique way. "People from the four quarters +of the world, of foreign speech, of manifold tongues, who had dwelt in +mountains and valleys, ... whom I, in the name of Asshur my lord, by the +might of my arms had carried into captivity, I commanded to speak one +language and settled them therein. Sons of Asshur of wise insight in all +things, I placed over them, to watch over them; learned men and scribes +to teach them the fear of God and the King." + +It is supposed that Sargon II. was murdered in 705 B.C. and his son +Sennacherib succeeded to the throne. He had observed his father's +difficulties in keeping order in Babylonia, and had concluded before +ever he came to the throne that to indulge the pride of Babylon by +longer conforming to her venerated custom of crowning her king each +year--thus requiring his annual appearance,--was mere folly. He believed +that Babylonia, whatever her history, was now an Assyrian province, and +hence the king of Assyria was her king. So he himself did not go at all +to Babylon, but was merely crowned in Nineveh as King of Assyria. Now +the Babylonians, far from submitting to this train of logic, in course +of a brief time, crowned their own king. Thereupon the Chaldeans, ever +watchful for an opportunity to re-establish their power, set up a ruler +in the same country, farther south. In 702 B.C., because of this +confusion, Sennacherib marched to Babylon, laid waste many Chaldean +cities, deported 200,000 people and crowned as king a young nobleman, +Babylonian by birth but educated at the Assyrian court. Having so +vigorously asserted his strength, he was soon needed in the west. + +The situation there was critical. Hezekiah, king of Judah, had +successfully conducted a war against the Philistines, and was therefore +regarded by his subjects as a great and mighty warrior. There was a +strong faction in the kingdom who opposed the annual payment of tribute +to Assyria and who believed that against them also Hezekiah might assert +himself and free them from this hated tribute service. Isaiah, +understanding the vast difference in the resources of the two countries, +counselled against a war, but it remained for future generations to +discern the clear, far sighted reasoning of this statesman, and the +king, even had he chosen to heed good counsel, was shortly plunged into +a war which was the popular demand of his people. Jerusalem prepared for +a siege, and water was brought into the city from some distance by an +aqueduct. Egypt promised aid, for the Ethiopian king who ruled that +country and the native princes who were struggling to regain the throne, +all felt that an opportunity opened in this way to win glory in Asia +which should serve as a lever to them at home. Judah had yet to learn +how fallen was this ancient state and how incapable of giving material +assistance. + +The rebellion spread, for freedom was dear to nations in those days when +submission meant at least heavy tributes, and often deportation and a +dismantled country. In the city of Ekron the people, stirred by a hope +of independence, seized the Assyrian governor and led him captive to +Hezekiah. As usual, the Assyrian king made forced marches and appeared +before he was expected and before the armies were massed, so he had the +less difficult task of defeating each nation separately. Tyre, one of +the rebel cities, was first attacked. It was not possible to materially +injure her, since her defenses on the sea were strong; Sidon surrendered +and an Assyrian ruler was set over the city; now many of the allies were +consumed with fear and dropped out of the coalition, sending tribute +with all haste. In Ekron those who had led the rebellion were killed or +deported. As had long been the case, the Assyrian king was meeting with +brief resistance. Judah held out, however. Hezekiah watched for +re-enforcements from Egypt, but before they drew near, Sennacherib +opened battle, winning with heavy losses. Hezekiah withdrew his forces +into Jerusalem to undergo a siege, while the Assyrian army turned to +meet Egyptian allies and captured the leaders. Forty-six cities around +Jerusalem were taken, and when it seemed futile to longer hold out, +Hezekiah sent an embassy to Sennacherib to ask for terms of peace. A sum +of money approaching $1,000,000 in our money, was demanded, and although +it was raised with difficulty in Judah, it was paid over to the +conqueror. However, Hezekiah did not come out to meet Sennacherib and +acknowledge him as overlord, and the Assyrian king, feeling that his +victory was yet indecisive, dispatched his most trusted generals to +demand the surrender of Jerusalem. Meanwhile he marched with the great +mass of Assyrian forces to intercept more Egyptian armies now +approaching. Encamping at Pelusium, a place noted for its plagues before +that day and since, the army was stricken in the night. In a few days +only a remnant of the great force remained and a homeward march was +begun at once. + +The Hebrews, according to their custom, interpreted this issue to +signify direct intervention of Providence in their behalf. Instead of +being led captives of Assyrian provinces and having their land +devastated, they gained fame and glory by the expedition. The Egyptians +also claimed a victory--all because of the pestilence. + +The two accounts of the campaign, the Hebrew version of the story as +chronicled in the Old Testament, and the Assyrian version, as translated +from their tablets, are both so interesting that we quote them at +length. Such differences as they show are easily explained in view of +the standpoints of each writer. + +Returning home, Babylonia was found to be in a state of insubordination, +having once more asserted her independence. Sennacherib now placed his +own son on the throne, but still difficulties multiplied. At last the +Babylonians united with the Chaldeans, their long-sworn enemies, against +Assyria. At this juncture, in 689 B.C., Sennacherib determined to strike +at the root of the trouble. He marched into the land and set fire to the +city of Babylon, after plundering its temples and palaces. Over the +desolate site of the city he then turned a canal, converting the region +into a swamp. + +It is almost staggering even at this remote time to think of the pride +and glory of Babylonian life, the splendor of its palaces, the wonder of +its temples, being thus wantonly destroyed. Long periods of peace in the +kingdom had given opportunity for art and literature to develop, and +there can be no question that countless records of priceless worth +were destroyed by the deed of this fierce Assyrian. The culture of +Babylonia had indeed succumbed to the barbarism of Assyria. The +inhabitants--scholars, artists, artisans, were taken captives, and +deported to various points of the empire. + +The following reign saw all that was possible done to atone for this +reckless act, but far beyond what we can now calculate, the loss was +irreparable. + + +HEBREW ACCOUNT OF THE WAR WITH ASSYRIA. + +"Now in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah did Sennacherib, king of +Assyria, come up against all the fenced cities of Judah, and took them. +And Hezekiah, king of Judah, sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, +saying, 'I have offended; return from me: that which thou puttest on me +will I bear.' And the king of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah, king of +Judah, three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. + +"And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the +Lord, and in the treasures of the king's house. At that time did +Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the temple of the Lord, and +from the pillars which Hezekiah, king of Judah, had overlaid, and gave +it to the king of Assyria. + +"And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rabsaris and Rab-shakeh from +Lachish to King Hezekiah with a great host against Jerusalem. And they +went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they were come up they came and +stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the highway of the +fuller's field. And when they had called to the king, there came out to +them Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, which was over the household, and +Shebna the scribe, and Joan the son of Asaph, the recorder. + +"And Rab-shakeh said unto them: Speak ye now to Hezekiah, Thus saith the +great king, the king of Assyria: What confidence is this wherein thou +trusteth? Thou sayest (but they are vain words) I have counsel and +strength for the war. Now on whom dost thou trust, that thou rebellest +against me? + +"Now, behold, thou trusteth upon the staff of this bruised reed, even +upon Egypt, on which if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce +it: so is Pharaoh, king of Egypt, unto all that trust on him. + +"But if ye say unto me, We trust in the Lord our God: is not that he, +whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away and hath +said to Judah and Jerusalem, Ye shall worship before this altar in +Jerusalem? + +"Now, therefore, I pray thee, give pledges to my lord the king of +Assyria, and I will deliver thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on +thy part to set riders upon them. How then wilt thou turn away the face +of one captain of the least of my master's servants, and put thy trust +on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? Am I now come up without the +Lord against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me, Go up +against this land, and destroy it. + +"Then said Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, and Shebna, and Joan, unto +Rab-shakeh, Speak, I pray thee, to thy servants in the Syrian language; +for we understand it: and talk not with us in the Jews' language in the +ears of the people that are on the wall. But Rab-shakeh said unto them, +Hath my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words? +hath he not sent me to the men which sit on the wall? Then Rab-shakeh +stood and cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language, and spake, +saying, Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria: Thus saith +the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you: for he shall not be able to +deliver you out of his hand. Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the +Lord, saying, The Lord will surely deliver us, and this city shall not +be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria: Harken not to +Hezekiah: for thus saith the king of Assyria, Make an agreement with me +by a present, and come out to me, and then eat ye every man of his own +vine and every one of his own fig-tree, and drink ye every one the +waters of his cistern: Until I come and take you away to a land like +your own land, a land of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a +land of oil, olive and of honey, that ye may live, and not die: and +harken not unto Hezekiah, when he persuadeth you, saying, The Lord will +deliver us. Hath any of the gods of the nations delivered at all his +land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of +Hamath, and of Arpad? where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivah? +have they delivered Samaria out of mine hand? Who are they among all the +gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of mine +hand, that the Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of mine hand? But the +people held their peace, and answered him not a word: for the king's +commandment was, saying, Answer him not.... + +"And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord, and said, ... O Lord our God, I +beseech thee save thou us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the +earth may know that thou art the Lord God, even thou only.... Therefore +thus saith the Lord concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come +into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with +shield, nor cast a bank against it. By the way that he came, by the same +shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the Lord. For +I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my +servant David's sake. + +"And it came to pass that night that the angel of the Lord went out, and +smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five +thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold they were all +dead corpses. + +"So Sennacherib, king of Assyria, departed, and went and returned and +dwelt at Nineveh."--_II. Kings, 18 and 19._ + + +CONCERNING THE REVOLT OF JUDAH: FROM AN ASSYRIAN TABLET. + +"But as for Hezekiah of Judah, who had not submitted to my yoke, +forty-six of his strong walled cities and the smaller cities round about +them, without number, by the battering of rams, and the attack of +war-engines, by making breaches by cutting through, and the use of axes, +I besieged and captured. Two hundred thousand, one hundred and fifty +people, small and great, male and female, horses, mules, asses, camels, +cattle and sheep, without number, I brought forth from their midst and +reckoned as spoil. (Hezekiah) himself I shut up like a caged bird in +Jerusalem, his royal city. I threw up fortifications against him, and +whoever came out of the gates of his city I punished. His cities, which +I had plundered, I cut off from his land and gave to Mitinti, King of +Ashdod, ... and made his territory smaller. To the former taxes, paid +yearly, tribute, a present for my lordship, I added and imposed on him. +Hezekiah himself was overwhelmed by the fear of the brilliancy of my +lordship, and the Arabians and faithful soldiers whom he had brought in +to strengthen Jerusalem, his royal city, deserted him. Thirty talents of +gold, eight hundred talents of silver, precious stones, ... couches of +ivory, thrones of elephant skin and ivory, _ushu_ and _urkarinu_ woods, +of every kind, a heavy treasure, and his daughters, his palace women, +male and female singers, to Nineveh, my lordship's city, I caused to be +brought after me, and he sent his ambassador to give tribute and to pay +homage." + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + + +LAST YEARS OF ASSYRIAN GREATNESS. + +"And it came to pass, as Sennacherib was worshipping in the house of +Nishroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with +the sword: and they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his +son reigned in his stead." Thus did the Hebrew chronicle the death of +Sennacherib, and since Assyrian tablets recounting the dire plot have +long since been destroyed, we are thrown wholly upon the fact as stated +without explanation or detail. + +Esarhaddon, who succeeded to the throne in 680 B.C., had already acted +as regent in Babylonia, and had there acquired deep veneration and love +for the Babylonian past, as well as for its life and culture. He wished +to win the favor of its people, scattered though they were, and so in +addition to being crowned king of Assyria, he had himself proclaimed +viceroy of Babylonia, for this office would not require his annual +presence in celebration of the yearly rites. Thus had his grandfather +done, and Sennacherib only had ruthlessly thrust aside the national +prejudice. His father had laid Babylon waste, changing its very site +into a swamp and scattering its proud people to the four winds. +Esarhaddon immediately planned to rebuild the city and so far as +possible, bring those departed back to their old homes. + +In an age given over to cruelty, devastations, selfish plots and +intrigues, it is surprising to find that this king allowed no +reflections to be cast upon his father's memory by condemning his +Babylonian policy. He had it set forth on tablets that the gods had been +displeased with the wrong doing of Babylon, and that a king, merely +their instrument, had in this way visited divine wrath upon the heads of +the people; while now, he, Esarhaddon, again acting as agent for the +gods, ready once more to give their favor in hope of future obedience, +would now rebuild the ancient capital. + +Slowly the city rose, more splendid and magnificent than before. First +the old temples were replaced, and around these the city came into +being. Chaldeans had taken possession of the land after the nation was +disrupted. The new king now forced them back, restoring property +wherever possible to its rightful owners. + +Such being the situation at home, abroad the state of affairs was +critical. Tyre had not submitted, nor Judah. Sidon no longer paid +tribute. Vast sums of money were needed to carry on the gigantic +building project, and these commercial sea-port towns offered a rich +reward to the conqueror. + +Having heard that Esarhaddon was determined to make a westward march, +the sea-coast cities prepared to offer resistance. Sidon was besieged +and held out for nearly three years. When at last it fell into the hands +of the exasperated Assyrians, it was utterly destroyed. Both king and +soldiers were infuriated by the long delay and plundered until weary. +The walls of the town were broken down and cast into the sea; the +luxurious homes of the merchantmen were stripped of their wealth and +razed to the ground. The entire city was blotted out of existence. Then +the king set about erecting a new town on its site, naming it for +himself, and peopling it with those taken captive in the nearby +mountains while the siege was carried on. Over all he placed an Assyrian +governor, and then set out for Nineveh. + +Reaching his capital, he made a triumphal entry, laden with spoils, +captives and cattle. Some of the noblest citizens of Sidon swelled his +train. Gold, silver, precious stones, rare woods, dress-stuffs,--these +had fallen to his share after three years of waiting. + +The siege of Tyre had been begun about the same time that Sidon was +attacked, but Tyre was more favorably situated. She could not be cut off +from the sea and so could not be starved into submission. Baal was king +and he proposed to hold out against the besiegers. The Assyrians walled +up the land side of the city and it was wholly cut off from its land +commerce, so in the long run, it would have to yield. After a time, the +siege was raised, but over-land commerce was no longer possible. + +Esarhaddon knew well that the frequent disturbances in Syria which so +annoyed him and had so troubled previous reigns, were largely instigated +by unceasing efforts of Egypt to stir the cities to rebellion, hoping +in some unquiet times that she might gain a foothold in western Asia and +share in the plunder of Syria, as pharaohs in early times had done. To +understand her position it is necessary to go back and see how Egypt had +fared after losing first place among the nations. + +The Ethiopians, having taken on Egyptian culture and customs centuries +before, had gained political control as the country weakened. Native +princes gained power in the nomes and tried incessantly to regain +possession of the throne. As usual there was so much personal jealousy +among them that concerted action was impossible. Egypt's name had stood +for power and great resources so many centuries, that even though the +state was weak--even tottering within, abroad it was still judged by its +former strength. Assyrian rulers had doubtless known better its truer +condition, for Sennacherib's generals told those of Judah that looking +thence for aid was like leaning on a bruised reed. + +Esarhaddon determined to strike at the root of Syrian dissension, and in +673 B.C. led an army for the first time in Assyrian history against +Egypt. An army met his own outside the borders and the result was +indecisive. The Assyrians did not enter the land at all. Three years +later they defeated an Egyptian army sent to meet them, crossed the +border now unhindered, and marched rapidly to Memphis. The city, wholly +unprepared for such unexpected attack, fell at once into their hands. It +was plundered generally and laid waste. Unquestionably much of great +historic value was wantonly destroyed by soldiers who were allowed to +pillage at will. Statues of gods were removed to Nineveh, together with +great booty--and this was the work of a man who deplored the loss of +Babylon, and had undertaken to rebuild a capital not yet known when +Memphis stood the wonder of the world! + +The Assyrians never outgrew their ferocity, their savage thirst for +ravage and murder, and their culture in Assyria's most enlightened days +was but a veneer encasing old tendencies, characteristics and desires. + +Over the twenty-one nomes, native princes were allowed to rule, as +vassals of an Assyrian governor, set over the whole land. The king +further undertook to change the names of ancient towns, giving them +Assyrian names, but this never became a change at all--simply a useless +attempt. + +The youngest world-power had now conquered the oldest. Surely these were +years wherein chart-makers would have had a sorry time trying to +indicate a nation's possessions. + +On its homeward march the Assyrian army made a raid into Arabia, but +desert marches told quickly on the soldiers, and no lasting results came +of it. + +At this point Assyrian possessions--even the original kingdom +itself--were threatened alarmingly by a migration starting from the +southern portion of present Russia. Thither had come the Medes in an +early day, and now thousands upon thousands came pouring eastward in +search of new and less crowded homes. It was hopeless to stay such an +onset of troops--it would wear out many an army. Places vacated today +would be filled shortly by those pressing in the rear. Besides, these +people had no plan of conquest or occupation of the land. They simply +spread out like so many hungry cattle, seeking food where it might be +found. All that could be done was to turn aside the main stream of +progress. These new comers settled down in Syria, reaching east to the +land of the Medes and far beyond it. In spite of watchful care, many +fertile lands were lost to Assyria. + +In 668 a second Egyptian campaign was planned by the king, but before +starting out, he had his son, Asshur-banipal, recognized as regent of +Babylonia. This was to cause much trouble in the future, because it once +more divided the now united country, and made an opportunity for old +jealousies to creep in again. On the march, Esarhaddon died, leaving the +future to regard him as noblest among Assyrian kings--the most just and +fair-minded of his race. + +Asshur-banipal who succeeded to the throne in 668 B.C., was naturally +fond of learning and was a prodigious book-collector. By using that term +for Assyrian days we mean of course a collector of clay tablets whereon +were inscribed literary productions. + +The Egyptian campaign had already opened, for it was plain that the +conquests of two years before were practically lost. Sea-coast towns in +Egypt submitted at once. Little opposition was encountered in the Land +of the Pyramids, and Assyrian government was soon re-instated. The +suspicion of the generals was awakened by the simplicity of their task +and withdrawing their army, they loitered not far away. No sooner had +they left than the Assyrian government, tolerated in the presence of the +army, was thrown off and old forms instituted. Now it was the Egyptian's +turn to be surprised when the army, supposed to be far on its homeward +march, reappeared in the land. The revolt was quickly put down, and the +leaders killed with as great cruelty as ever blackened Assyrian pages. + +In 660 B.C. Egypt declared her independence and this was the first great +loss of the Assyrian empire, soon to be followed by many more. + +Probably before this Tyre had been forced to yield, and the king had +sent his son and daughter to the Assyrian court as an indication of +submission. + +A raid was made into Media, some of its cities being taken and their +inhabitants deported. For such experiences the Medes grew to hate the +Assyrians with increasing fervor. Asshur-banipal was finding some +difficulty in holding together the empire of his fathers, and when +revolts occurred, they were put down with greatest severity. + +Babylonia had maintained peace for fifteen years, but the people clung +to the traditions of their early history, and harked back to a time when +Babylon was the greatest city of the world. Now, except for freedom from +tribute, they ranked as any other Assyrian province. Encouraged by the +feelings of those under him, the prince-regent conceived the notion of +stirring up all the provinces to revolt at the same time, hoping that +Babylonian independence might be gained in time of confusion. He was +urged on to this course, which was misguided and ill timed, with little +chance for success. Its only hope lay in keeping secret the plot so far +as the Assyrian king was concerned. There were, however, many who would +gladly try to benefit themselves by unearthing any plan for revolt. +There might also be governors of provinces sufficiently far-sighted to +have nothing to do with any treasonable plot, and these could not be +expected to guard such a secret. + +At last the Chaldeans on the south, Palestine, some provinces of Syria +and some Arabian tribes, promised help. The Babylonians were destined to +learn how different was that from actually giving it. To allay any +suspicions Asshurbanipal might have, an embassy of Babylonian nobles +visited his court to give him assurance of his brother's loyalty. When +the news came that the Babylonians had seized Ur and Uruk, the Assyrian +king was much astonished. He spent some little time in complaint of his +faithless brother; an inscription ran: + +"At that time Shamash-shum-ukin, the faithless brother, to whom I had +done good, and whom I had established as king of Babylon, and for whom I +had made every possible kind of royal decoration, and had given him, and +had gathered together soldiers, horses, and chariots, and had intrusted +them to him, and had given him cities, fields, and woods, and the men +dwelling in them, even more than my father had commanded--even he forgot +that favor I had shown him, and he planned evil. Outwardly with his lips +he spoke friendly things, while inwardly his heart plotted rebellion." + +Asshur-banipal waited for a favorable omen before starting out to quell +the rebellion, and it came at last in this way: "In those days a seer +slept in the beginning of the night and dreamed a dream, thus: 'On the +face of the Moon it is written: Whoever deviseth evil against +Asshur-banipal, king of Asshur, makes enmity, a violent death I appoint +for them. With the edge of the sword, the burning of fire, famine, and +the judgment of the Pest-god, I will destroy their lives.' This I heard +and trusted to the will of Sin, my lord. I gathered my army; against +Shamash-Shum-ukin I directed the march." + +Help came to the revolting Babylonians from few of the promised allies. +Arabia, Chaldea, and the land of the Elamites sent troops, but in the +battle waged they suffered fearful defeat. Babylon underwent a severe +siege and at last the king committed suicide. Then the gates of the city +were thrown open and great was the slaughter. Asshur-banipal had himself +proclaimed king, and pushed on to punish the allies for their part in +the rebellion. Much of the land of the Elamites was laid waste, and left +smoking by this man who patronized learning. The weakening of these +people left Assyria open to attacks later from the Medes. + +The later years of Asshur-banipal's reign were filled with peaceful +interests. He rebuilt the great palace of his father, and in one of its +upper chambers was amassed the great number of tablets, referred to as +the library of Nineveh. In 626 B.C. the king died. + +Our knowledge of the reigns immediately following is scanty. Babylonia +asserted her independence and the Assyrian king had a difficult task to +hold the empire together. Determined to recover the kingdom to the +south, he marched against its capital while its king was distant with +his army. Cut off from Babylon, the king appealed to the Medes for aid. +They cared not at all to help the Babylonian, but they hated with +undying hatred the very name of Assyria. Their numbers had often been +increased by refugees, driven from their homes by Assyrian armies, and +they themselves had experienced defeat at the hands of Assyrian troops. +The possibility of crippling the great power of Asia stimulated them to +aid the Babylonians. They soon repulsed the Assyrian army near Babylon +and drove it north. Still they pursued the fleeing army and forced the +king and his army to retire into Nineveh. At last the fate the Assyrians +had so often meted out to others was measured out to them. Great wealth +was stored in Nineveh, and this the besieging army wished for +themselves. The walls were strong and were long defended, but an assault +finally carried all before it. Nineveh, built by the wealth of spoils, +beautified by plunder from the known world, became the spoils of the +Medes, who stripped the temples and palaces and then set fire to the +city. + +Nineveh fell in 606 B.C. The Assyrians were scattered to the four winds +and grass grew over the once smoking ruins. Two hundred years later, +when Xenophon led his army over this spot on his return to Greece, none +knew that they passed over the site of the once great world-city. + +The civilization developed by the Babylonians had been passed on to the +Assyrians. It was now left a heritage for the Chaldeans, to whom +descended the legacies of both countries, and in turn they dominated the +valley of the Euphrates. As for Assyrian greatness, so far-reaching and +wide, the Hebrew told the story in poetic language centuries ago, and +today none could set it forth more vividly. + +"Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with fair branches, and +with a shadowing shroud, and of an high stature; and his top was among +the thick boughs. The waters made him great, the deep set him up on +high, with her rivers running round about his plants and sent out her +little rivers unto all the trees of the field. Therefore his height was +exalted above all the trees of the field, and his boughs were +multiplied, and his branches became long because of the multitude of +waters, when he shot forth. + +"All the fowls of heaven made their nests in his boughs, and under his +branches did all the beasts of the field bring forth their young, and +under his shadow dwelt all great nations. Thus was he fair in his +greatness, in the length of his branches; for his root was by the great +waters. The cedars in the garden of God could not hide him: the fir +trees were not like his boughs, and the chestnut trees were not like his +branches; nor any tree in the garden of God was like unto him in his +beauty.... All the trees of Eden, that were in the garden of God, envied +him.... + +"Strangers, the terrible of the nations, have cut him off, and have left +him: upon the mountains and in all the valleys his branches are fallen, +and his boughs are broken by all the rivers of the land; and all the +people of the earth are gone down from his shadow, and have left him. +Upon his ruin shall all the fowls of the heaven remain, and all the +beasts of the field shall be upon his branches. To the end that none of +all the trees by the waters exalt themselves for their height, neither +shoot up their top among the thick boughs, neither their trees shall +stand up in their height, all that drink water: for they are delivered +unto death, to the nether parts of the earth, in the midst of the +children of men, with them that go down to the pit."--_Ezekiel 31._ + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + + +THE CHALDEAN EMPIRE IN BABYLONIA. + +We have found frequent mention of the Chaldeans, and it is now necessary +to understand just what was their position at the fall of Nineveh. + +The Chaldeans belonged to the Semitic race and their home had long been +in the Sea-lands, which included districts in eastern Arabia as well as +lands in Babylonia washed by the Persian Gulf. Originally a pastoral +people, they had taken to trade and though long in Babylonia, they had +not mingled greatly with others. They looked with envious eyes upon the +fertile valley of the Euphrates and coveted the wealth of its cities. On +this account they would willingly follow any leader who might enable +them to gain these lands and riches for themselves. Because such a +victory would unquestionably give kingship over the people, many of +their princes made efforts to gain political control, causing no end of +trouble to the Babylonian or Assyrian officials in charge of maintaining +the peace. This makes clear the motive prompting the numerous attempts +to usurp the government, already noted. + +The old Babylonians had received so many infusions of blood from the +Elamites, Kassites, and colonists settled in their territory by +different Assyrian rulers, that the pure Babylonian stock no longer +existed to any extent, although Babylonian ideas, culture and +characteristics had been absorbed by those who came to dwell in the +land. The empire which now grew up in the valley was essentially +Chaldean. It has been called the New Empire of Babylonia. + +Upon the death of Asshur-banipal, he who had previously been king-regent +asserted himself as king of Babylonia, and so Nabopolassar has sometimes +been called the founder of the New Chaldean Empire, although in truth he +was merely one who declared Babylonian independence at a time when none +were strong enough to dispute the claim. The empire, established in this +way, followed Babylonian precedence in all matters. The kings concerned +themselves with war only when compelled to do so, their works being +works of peace--the building of temples, the construction of canals. + +One foreign war of some importance occurred during the first reign--the +reign of Nabopolassar. Necho II., pharaoh of Egypt, desired to regain +those Asiatic possessions which Thothmes III. and later warrior kings +had won for the Nile kingdom. To this end he led an army north, +demanding the submission of the sea-coast towns. Gaza was quickly won, +and this city was key to the east. Tyre and Sidon would pay tribute to +any nation rather than have their commerce again destroyed by war. Judah +alone resisted. Too long had this little country held out against a +various enemy to yield tribute upon demand. Josiah was now Judah's king. +He led an army against the Egyptian forces but was repulsed and he +himself killed. In confusion the Hebrew army fled to Jerusalem where a +younger brother of Josiah was proclaimed king. The Egyptian pharaoh now +collected a heavy fine from the people of Judah and he named a king for +them in place of the one just popularly crowned. + +The old Assyrian empire, so long the fear of all nations, was now under +control of three distinct peoples: the Chaldeans held the Euphrates +valley, the Medes held the north, and Egypt had appropriated western +Syria. Now the pharaoh determined to further extend his empire. He would +reach the very banks of the Euphrates. This plan threatened the Chaldean +state, and Nabopolassar being too old to undertake active service in the +field, sent his son Nebuchadnezzar to meet the Egyptian force. This was +soon put to flight. The Babylonian prince pursued and had not word come +of the death of the king, his father, the Babylonian army would have +been able to march victorious into Egypt. It was, however, more +important to hold the kingdom at home than to pursue fleeing troops +abroad, so the prince went home to be crowned Nebuchadnezzar II., king +of Babylonian, and to enjoy one of the longest reigns in Babylonian +history. The city of Babylon became his pride, and the erection of +temples and palaces attracted him more than conquests. + +Notwithstanding, the kingdom of Judah compelled attention by refusing +after three years' peace to longer pay tribute. The war-party in this +little state seems often to have been strong and always to have been +eager for independence, while its adherents were generally so blinded by +their own enthusiasm that they were unable to estimate correctly their +probable chance for success. Isaiah had long been dead. Jeremiah held +his place of influence and he labored diligently to show his people the +folly of their intent. He succeeded only in drawing censure upon himself +and in 597 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar sent an army to besiege Jerusalem. The +Judean king Jehoiakim, suddenly died, and a youth about eighteen years +of age ascended the throne. He thought best to surrender, whereupon he, +his mother and court, were taken as captives to Babylon, together with +7,000 soldiers and 1,000 artisans. The remainder of the inhabitants were +left to pay tribute and remain subservient to Babylonian rule. + +In Egypt, Hophra had come to the throne. Like his predecessor, he longed +for Syrian possessions, and now tried to stir up the sea-coast states to +rebellion. No folly could have been plainer--for Judah it meant +destruction itself to set its strength against the forces of Babylonia. +Jeremiah thundered his bitterest reproaches. He sought vainly to bring +his countrymen to their senses and save them from utter ruin. But the +spirit of rebellion was abroad, and many times it has spread similarly +through a land, drawing to its cause voices seldom heard, and kindling a +desire which cannot be put down by cool argument and reason. So Jeremiah +continued to grow in disfavor, and was finally held a prisoner by those +he tried to aid. + +It has been pointed out with much force that the stricken nation of +Judah had become the prey of neighboring tribes and that an insufferable +situation impelled it to war, but Babylonia could alone protect it, and +Babylonian protection was not to be won by rebellion against its rule. +Egypt was to again prove the "bruised reed" which would fail utterly +when leaned upon. + +From the Babylonian standpoint the situation was this: here was a little +state which for hundreds of years had been the center of western +dissensions. Its revolts had already cost Babylonia and Assyria dear in +fighting men and tiresome sieges, and now it must be forever quelled if +attention was to be given to home affairs. Crippling its strength would +not avail, for that had been already tried. Trusting to the vows of its +kings was manifestly useless, since the king who led the revolt had +sworn by his mighty God to be faithful to Babylon. That solemn pledge he +had now broken. Nothing short of laying waste the land and scattering +the people would apparently put an end to the trouble. + +Moab, Ammon, Tyre and Sidon were now in league with Judah and Egyptian +aid was promised. The war party in Jerusalem went about shouting that +Jehovah was with them--no matter, seemingly, what folly they undertook. + +In 587 B.C. the Babylonian army besieged Jerusalem, intending to starve +the city into submission. The siege was raised when Egyptian +reinforcements drew near, long enough to defeat them and send them home +in confusion. Then it went on again. In 586 B.C. the Babylonians broke +through the walls of Jerusalem and the city was destroyed. The king who +had broken faith was taken to Babylon and blinded, while his sons were +slain. Such punishments as these had not been common with the old +Babylonians, and they show that the Chaldeans were not of the ancient +temperament,--merciful and kind. The best citizens of Jerusalem were +taken captives, while the poorer ones were left to cultivate the soil. +The great prophet Jeremiah was thought to be friendly to the government +of Babylon, and was given permission to go where he would. He remained +with the stricken band of Hebrews, who soon after journeyed into Egypt. + +Tyre, as an ally, was besieged but here the problem of cutting the city +off from outside communication again arose. The siege lasted for +thirteen years and in the end the city paid tribute. In 567 B.C. +Nebuchadnezzar's army invaded Egypt, but it was merely a raid to +terrorize the Egyptians and put an end to Egyptian interference. + +The king was now free to give his energy to internal affairs, and his +attention was chiefly centered in building and beautifying Babylon. +Notable among his undertakings were the walls of the city--counted among +the seven wonders of the world. They were so well constructed that had +they been defended, the city could never have been taken save by +treachery inside the capital itself. In 562 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar +died--the last great king of an ancient nation. + +Of the following reign little is known, the king being assassinated in +the second year of his rule. Two other uneventful reigns followed, and +then Nabonidus ascended the throne. This man was a student--not a king. +He did one good service for future ages; being devoted to rebuilding the +temples of the gods, he had his workmen excavate deep down into the old +foundations of the temple of the sun-god in Sippar, which he says had +not been seen for 3200 years, for the record-tablet, always placed in +the corner. Then he caused a new tablet to be inserted, repeating the +history of the temple and enumerating his repairs. Modern excavators +have been greatly aided by these tablets of Nabonidus. While he was thus +absorbed, his country was fast plunging on to ruin. His was an age when +the mere existence of a nation depended upon its aggressive policy. +While the entire resources of the country were being expended upon +shrines sacred to the gods, there was neither time nor money for the +maintenance of an army. Matters were allowed to take their own course +for awhile, and later the king's son, Belshar-usur, or Belshazzar, was +left to manage government concerns. For this reason, the Hebrews +recorded him as the last Babylonian king, while in truth his father bore +the kingly title. + +Even when danger threatened the state to such an extent that the +scholar-king himself, poking around among his ancient record-tablets, +was finally forced to take notice of it, he gave no thought to his +kingdom or his subjects, but was simply alarmed for the safety of his +statue-deities. These he had hurried into the capital from all parts of +the land. So occupied was he lest perchance a god or two might some way +escape him, that he had no time to prepare the city for attack, and in +the end Babylon, the pride of its age, came into the hands of the +conqueror without a blow! + +The fact was that there were many within the kingdom who would gladly +welcome outside interference. The Hebrews had settled down in their +quarter and had become the leading people of commerce and loaners of +money. One commercial firm alone--Egibi & Sons--filled a place for that +age not unlike the modern Rothschilds. These people, who may have been +of Jewish descent, hated the king who had destroyed their city of +Jerusalem and his descendants, and would willingly help any one who +might rob Babylonian kings of their empire. It has been surmised that +for aid rendered they were allowed to go back to their own country and +rebuild Jerusalem on its early site. + +Not only were the Hebrews an element to be reckoned with; the priests of +the Babylonian gods had been repeatedly offended by Nabonidus, and they +too joined the opposition, beyond doubt. + +So great a city as Babylon had never before existed. No city since has +had so long a history, and yet, without a blow struck in its defense, it +passed into the possession of a people just taking on the ways of +civilized life. It was little wonder that it fell shortly into ruins, +soon to be grass-covered and like Nineveh, forgotten! + +Since 606 B.C. the Medes, conquerors of Assyria, had been extending +their territory. They were now a people of strength, united under King +Astyages. + +In the land earlier called Elam, now Persia, a great conqueror +appeared--Cyrus the Great. He defeated the Medes under Astyages, and so +rapidly did his empire come into being, that all civilized nations were +roused to the danger of a world-conqueror. In 546 B.C. Egypt, Babylonia, +Lydia and Sparta arrayed their forces against Cyrus, to check his power, +but his camels put their cavalry to flight, and he won the decisive +battle. Having annexed Asia Minor, he turned to Babylon. As we have +seen, the city of Babylon might have held out indefinitely against +attack, but when Belshazzar led an army against a detachment of Persian +troops, none were left to defend the capital. The old tale of Herodotus +that Cyrus turned the Euphrates out of its course and entered the city +through its channel, is mere fiction. Such exertion was unnecessary, for +the city gates swung open wide to the conqueror. + +And thus we come to the end of the political history of the +Tigris-Euphrates states--a mere skeleton of framework, which we can now +fill out with some account of their social, industrial and religious +life. + + + + +[Illustration: ASSYRIAN PALACE AT NINEVEH.] + +CHAPTER X. + + +THE BABYLONIAN AND ASSYRIAN COMPARED. + +To understand the Babylonian, we must take into consideration both the +nature of his country and the origin of his race. Apart from these two +important factors, the marked differences between himself and his +Assyrian brother would not be clear. + +We have found that Babylonia was an alluvial plain, sloping gently to +the Persian Gulf, and made fertile by the annual overflow and deposits +of two rivers. As in Egypt, so here remarkable yields of grain rewarded +the sower if he but supplied necessary moisture by maintaining a system +of well-regulated canals. Regarding the origin of the Babylonians, we +found that they sprang from a union of Semitics with the earlier +Turanian settlers of the country, receiving later infusion of blood from +the Kassites and Elamites. This intermingling of races and peoples +resulted in a nation whose characteristics differed widely from the +purer Semitic stock that peopled Assyria. + +"The Babylonian was a stout, thick-set man, somewhat short, with +straight nose, wide nostrils, and square face. The Assyrian, on the +other hand, was tall and muscular, his nose was slightly hooked, his +lips were full, his eyes dark and piercing. His head and face showed an +abundance of black curly hair.... + +"The Babylonian was essentially an irrigator and cultivator of the +ground. The cuneiform texts are full of references to the gardens of +Babylonia, and the canals by which they were watered. It was a land +which brought forth abundantly all that was entrusted to its bosom.... +But the fear of floods and the reclamation of the marsh lands demanded +constant care and labor, the result being that the country population of +Babylonia was, like the country population of Egypt, an industrious +peasantry, wholly devoted to agricultural work, and disinclined to war +and military operations. In the towns, where the Semitic element was +stronger, a considerable amount of trade and commerce was carried on, +and the cities on the sea-coast built ships and sent their merchantmen +to distant lands.... + +"The character of the Assyrian was altogether different from that of the +Babylonian. He was a warrior, a trader, and an administrator. The +peaceful pursuits of the agricultural population of Babylonia suited him +but little. His two passions were fighting and trading. But his wars, at +all events in the later days of the Assyrian Empire, were conducted with +a commercial object.... It was to destroy the trade of the Phoenician +cities and to divert it into Assyrian hands, that the Assyrian kings +marched their armies to the west; it was to secure the chief highways of +commerce that campaigns were made into the heart of Arabia and Assyrian +satraps were appointed in the cities of Syria. The Assyrian was indeed +irresistible as a soldier, but the motive that inspired him was as much +the interest of the trader as the desire for conquest."[1] + +Side by side with the Babylonian's farming concerns, grew his love for +study and his development of the peaceful arts. An elementary education +was general in Babylonia. As industry and commerce brought wealth and +created thus a leisure class, education and learning flourished in +Babylonian cities. Schools grew into prominence, and in the realm of +astronomy and certain of the sciences, some advance was made by which +the Greeks later profited. Quite the reverse was true in Assyria. A +feverish desire for commercial gain and for military conquest prevented +progress in the arts of peace. Learning was confined to a +few--professional scribes supplied secretaries for the state and even +wrote private letters for private citizens. When the luxuries of the +ancient world could be won as tribute, the Assyrian scorned to produce +them for himself. With blood unmixed with any peace-loving people, he +retained the characteristics of his earlier Arabian home. He left the +cultivation of the country to slaves and dwelt in cities, when war and +trade left him intermittent periods at home. + +Both Babylonian and Assyrian were religious, but here again we find +differences due to environment. The Babylonian, inheriting the conjuring +and magic of the earlier Chaldean, possessed a religion which held him +in constant dread of demons. The greatest aid and solace his religion +afforded was to assist him in driving away foes which assailed him at +every turn. The Assyrian on the contrary, showed the same proud bearing +in his religious concerns as in other aspects of life. Asshur was his +mighty God, strong in battle and unequaled in courage. Firm in his +conviction that Asshur would give him victory, he went forth, like his +Hebrew brother, to overcome all others and destroy other gods which +offended the true God. + +In origin and traditions alike, the Assyrian and the Hebrew in early +times present many similarities, and the religion of the one is +comparable at many points with that of the other. + + +HOUSES. + +It is supposed that in earliest times the dwellers in the Euphrates +valley built their huts of reeds which grew in profusion along the river +and the canals. These in time were replaced by huts of sun-dried brick. +We have already learned that the low level plains of Babylonia afforded +little or no stone for building purposes. Oven-dried brick was the most +substantial building material known and this was so costly, on account +of the scarcity of fuel, that only the temples, kings' palaces, and +homes of the wealthy were made of it. The great majority of houses then, +were constructed of clay mud, shaped in bricks and dried in the sun. + +The more pretentious dwellings of nobles and kings were placed on +artificially constructed heights--huge piles of brickwork, in order to +raise them above the gnats and the malaria-breeding fogs of the marshes. +The huts of the poor were located wherever opportunity offered. While +these contained but one or two rooms with small apertures in the clay +walls for windows, and had no floor save the ground, the houses of the +wealthy were frequently several stories high, the upper floors being +reached by outside stairways. The use of the arch was known in Babylonia +from 4000 B.C., a perfect keystone example having been found at Nippur +by the University of Pennsylvania expedition. Windows were furnished +with tapestries to exclude the storms and intense heat of noonday. Flat +roofs supplied a place for the women to perform many household duties, +or, if these were performed by slaves elsewhere, they sat here to +embroider their tapestries and to chat with their friends. Here too, on +hot nights, mattresses were thrown down for the hours of sleep. + +Wherever possible a garden surrounded the house. The pride of the +Babylonian, as of the Egyptian, was his carefully tended garden, whether +it was a tiny plot of land or a vast overhanging terrace like that of +Babylon's queen. + +Streets were narrow and exceedingly dirty, for into them all refuse and +rubbish from the houses accumulated. We learn that sometimes the entire +street would be filled up to the very doors of the dwellings, and then, +instead of clearing them out, an upper story was added to the houses, +new doors provided, and the occupants started anew on a fresh elevation. + +In homes of the wealthy the furniture was simple, and in the huts of the +poor it was scanty indeed. Chairs, stools, and tables were in use; a mat +often constituted the bed, although pictures of most uncomfortable +looking bedsteads have been preserved, these being possessed only by the +wealthy. + +The Assyrians who went from Babylonia into their northern land, took +with them the habits and customs there acquired. While stone was +plentiful, they used it only for foundations, or for the less important +portion of their buildings, continuing to make mud brick for the rest, +as they had done before. While hills and elevations were now available +on every hand, they still erected huge piles of brick or stone and +crowned these by their buildings. The Assyrian blood, unmixed with other +tribes or peoples, produced no ingenuity, no inventive genius. The +Assyrian remained an imitator--never a creator. For this reason, we find +close similarity between the houses of the two countries. + +Certain features which became inseparable with later architecture had +their beginnings in Babylonia. In early times the roof which covered the +mud hut was supported by dried palm stems; gradually a more substantial +support was substituted, and in this way the column had its origin and +was adopted and improved upon by the Greeks. Again, interior house +decoration may be traced back to these Babylonian houses built of brick. +In houses of the well-to-do, the unsightly bricks were covered by a +coating of stucco and upon this were painted various scenes and +ornamentations. In Assyria, slabs of soft lime-stone were used instead +of the stucco, and figures of horses and men, hunting scenes and +battles, were carved in bas-relief upon them. Indeed much of our +knowledge concerning the life of the people has been gained from a study +of the reliefs discovered in buried palaces. + +Regarding the daily lives of those who dwelt within these mud brick +houses, we have less detailed information than concerning the ancient +Egyptian. Fewer scenes of ordinary life were painted in the +Tigris-Euphrates valleys, and whatever was entrusted to the clay stood +far greater chance of being destroyed than that committed to Egyptian +stone. + + +FAMILY LIFE. + +In considering the family life, the position accorded to woman and the +marriage laws and regulations are of first importance. + +In early times in Babylonia, a man received a dowry with his wife. +Polygamy was not infrequent but a strong check was placed upon it by +requiring the husband, in case of divorce, to return the wife's dowry to +her and allow her to return home or maintain her own establishment. The +income from the dowry was enjoyed by both husband and wife, but it +remained the portion of the wife and could be willed according to her +pleasure. In case of a woman's second marriage, her first dowry belonged +to her, subject to the claim of her children for one-half of its value. + +In both Babylonia and Assyria married women enjoyed many liberties. They +might carry on business enterprises, borrow or loan, manage their own +property and dispose of it at their will. They could seek justice in the +courts, and if they belonged to the middle classes, could come and go at +pleasure. The women of noble families were more carefully guarded, and +seldom appeared unattended in public. + +Girls who were not provided with dowries might be purchased and so +become superior slaves of their husbands. Children might be sold by +their parents and brothers might sell their sisters, but in these +countries, slaves were not despised as inferiors and inhumanly treated. +They were often adopted into families, and since those of noble birth +were not infrequently taken captives in war, the slave might be +superior to the owner. However, this last was not so common in +Mesopotamia as it was later in Rome. The fact which alone assured slaves +of good treatment was that there was generally no race difference to +engender feeling between slave and master. Indeed one case is cited in +those days of quickly reversed fortunes, where the slave in a few years +became the master and his former owner became his property! + +Marriage was both a civil and a religious ceremony, and the contract was +signed in the presence of a priest. In a code of Babylonian laws +compiled about 2250 B.C., a law provided that "If a man has taken a wife +and has not executed a marriage-contract, that woman is not a wife." +Another provided for one who is helpless: "If a man has married a wife +and a disease has seized her, if he is determined to marry a second +wife, he shall marry her. He shall not divorce the wife whom the disease +has seized. In the home they made together she shall dwell and he shall +maintain her as long as she lives."[2] + +Both sons and daughters could inherit property, and according to +Babylonian law, whosoever possessed property, could will it, or dispose +of it, with certain well established restrictions. In case there were no +children to inherit an estate, it was a common practice to adopt them. +Thus families were prevented from dying out. + +Children were cared for, sent to school, taught trades or professions, +and probably a certain amount of family life was enjoyed while they were +growing up. The rights of each member of the family were definitely +recognized by law. Home life as we today understand the phrase, was +unknown in antiquity. + +We can contrast the condition in Babylonia, where the individual, +instead of the family, was recognized by the law to that in Rome of a +later time, when the family was the unit of the state, and the pater +familias managed all family affairs without state interference or +restriction. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Sayce: Social Life Among the Assyrians and Babylonians, 18. + +[2] Johns: Babylonian and Assyrian Laws, Contracts and Letters, 56, 58. + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + + +MORALITY OF THE ANCIENT BABYLONIANS. + +For some years past, the French explorer De Morgan has been making +extensive excavations at Susa, the capital of ancient Persia, and before +the rise of Persia, the capital of Elam as early as 3000 B.C. In the +winter of 1901-1902, having removed layers of earth containing ruins of +Persian palaces, he reached deposits contemporary with some of the old +Elamite kings. Here was discovered a stone monument inscribed with the +code of Hammurabi. As we have seen, this king ruled Babylonia about 2000 +B.C. He it was who united all the little city-states into one kingdom +with its capital at Babylon. Proving himself a statesman as well as a +warrior, he devoted himself to the welfare of his subjects. He repaired +old canals and constructed new ones, restored the temples and above all, +gave the country a uniform system of laws. These laws were not made by +Hammurabi--generally speaking at least. They had been long established +by custom and he merely codified such customs and earlier decisions into +a system so that justice might be administered alike throughout the +realm. The laws were then inscribed upon stone slabs and erected at +certain places where the people could read them, and those who felt +themselves injured might know what redress lay open to them. + +The particular stele unearthed by De Morgan had been set up originally +in the town of Sippara. Later Elamite kings became powerful enough to +invade Babylonia and lay the country under tribute. During this period, +one Elamite king had removed the stone monument from Sippara and taken +it home with his spoils. It had graced his triumphal procession upon his +return and was set up at his capital. 49 columns of inscription were +engraved upon it, but the Elamite king caused 5 to be removed and the +stone to be re-polished, in order that his name might be therein +inserted. For some reason this was forgotten or omitted. + +Of the 282 laws once carved upon the stele, all are still legible. Their +discovery is most important for the history of ancient Babylonia, as it +has enabled scholars to reconstruct the standards of morality and +justice current when the country came into its first strength and power. +We may be sure that these laws were in vogue much earlier than the time +of Hammurabi and they lived on with little change for many years after. +They without doubt furnished the basis for the legal code throughout the +history of Babylonia, and without some knowledge of them we would never +have been able to understand the civilization of the country as it is +known today. It is comparable to the "Mosaic Code," which is made up of +different strata from different periods, cir. 1000 B.C. to 500 B.C. The +similarity between the two codes harks back to an early period when the +two peoples had not yet left their Arabian home, and indicates general +Semitic customs. Hammurabi's code "is concerned little, if at all, with +religious matters; the chief content is almost entirely civil and +criminal, dealing with such subjects as marriage, the family, property +rights, agricultural and commercial activities." + +It is on the basis of these laws now translated that the morality of the +ancient Babylonians has been worked out. We find that the people were on +the borderland of retaliation, and punishments often took the form of +fines. There was still the old tribal "group responsibility"--that is, +the children often had to suffer for the sins of the father. Distinction +was now made between intentional and unintentional injury. Trial by +ordeal was sometimes allowed, especially when magic was thought to have +been used. Death was a frequent punishment. Banishment might be +inflicted. On the whole, the practices in Babylonia, before and after +2000 B.C., were not so severe as those common in England a century ago, +when petty larceny was met by extreme punishment. + +The Babylonians carried the idea of contract and written agreement +farther than any other ancient people. Understandings which are today +made verbally between men were inscribed on clay tablets, duly impressed +by the seals of the parties concerned, and carefully preserved. We find +the law required receipts and written contracts as early as 2000 B.C. +For example, "If a merchant has given to an agent corn, wool, oil, or +any sort of goods to traffic with, the agent shall write down the money +value, and shall return that to the merchant. The agent shall then take +a sealed receipt for the money that he has given to the merchant. If +the agent forgets and has not taken a sealed receipt for the money he +gave to the merchant, money that has not been acknowledged by receipt +shall not be put down in the accounts."[1] Regarding money given +bankers: "If a man has given another gold, silver, or any goods whatever +on deposit, all that he gives shall be shown to witnesses, and take a +bond and so give on deposit. If he has given on deposit without +witnesses and bonds, and has been defrauded where he made his deposit, +he has no claim to prosecute."[2] + +"An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth" was demanded by the Code of +Hammurabi. + +"If a man has knocked out the eye of a patrician, his eye shall be +knocked out. + +"If he has broken the limb of a patrician, his limb shall be broken. + +"If he has knocked out the eye of a plebeian or has broken the limb of a +plebeian, he shall pay one mana of silver. + +"If a patrician has knocked out the tooth of a man that is his equal, +his tooth shall be knocked out. If he has knocked out the tooth of a +plebeian, he shall pay one-third of a mana of silver. + +"If a man has struck another in a quarrel, and caused him permanent +injury, that man shall swear, 'I struck him without malice,' and shall +pay the doctor."[3] + +Theft at a fire was made a capital offense. "If a fire has broken out in +a man's house and one who has come to put it out has coveted the +property of the householder and appropriated any of it, that man shall +be cast into the self-same fire."[4] + +Fees of the surgeon were graded by law, and severe penalties were +inflicted for unskillful operations. Probably these were not strictly +enforced but were intended to prevent malpractice. + +Marriage laws and regulations governing inheritance were necessarily +definite in a country where a man might have more than one wife. Since +perpetuation of a family through adoption was frequent, laws protected +both foster children and foster parents. + +"If a man has brought up a child, whom he has taken to be his son, but +has not reckoned him with his sons, that foster child shall return to +his father's house. + +"If a craftsman has taken a child to bring up and has taught him his +handiwork, he shall not be reclaimed. If he has not taught him his +handicraft, that foster child shall return to his father's house." + +Injury which today would necessitate the payment of damages, in ancient +Babylonia might even be punished with death. "If a builder has built a +house for a man, and has not made his work sound, and the house he built +has fallen, and caused the death of its owner, that builder shall be put +to death. If it is the owner's son that is killed, the builder's son +shall be put to death. + +"If he has caused the loss of goods, he shall render back whatever he +has destroyed. Moreover, because he did not make sound the house he +built, and it fell, at his own cost he shall rebuild the house that +fell." + +Workmen were required to do faithful work or make good consequent +losses. "If a boatman has built a boat for a man, and has not made his +work sound, and in that same year that boat is sent on a voyage and +suffers damage, the boatman shall rebuild that boat, and, at his own +expense, shall make it strong, or shall give a strong boat to the +owner." + +In a land where the cultivation of the soil was the great industry, +naturally many regulations refer to the lease of ground and the rent to +be paid by the farmer to the owner of the estate. Because the very +production of the soil depended upon the maintenance of canals, neglect +in the care of the dikes was severely punished. + +"If a man has hired a field to cultivate and has caused no corn to grow +on the field, he shall be held responsible for not doing the work on the +field and shall pay an average rent. + +"If a man has given his garden to a gardener to farm, the gardener, as +long as he holds the garden, shall give the owner of the garden +two-thirds of the produce of the garden and shall take one-third +himself. + +"If a man has neglected to strengthen his dike and has not kept his +dike strong, and a breach has broken out in his dike, and the waters +have flooded the meadow, the man in whose dike the breach has broken out +shall restore the corn he has caused to be lost. If he be not able to +restore the corn, he and his goods shall be sold, and the owners of the +meadow whose corn the water has carried away shall share the money. + +"If a man has opened his runnel for watering and has left it open, and +the water has flooded his neighbor's field, he shall pay him an average +crop." + +That justice might be administered uniformly throughout the realm, +courts were established in different cities, and Hammarabi insured the +well-being of his subjects by further creating a court of appeals, held +in Babylon. To this superior court anyone, thinking himself unfairly +treated in the lower courts, might have a hearing. Perjury was severely +punished. "If a man has borne false witness in a trial, or has not +established the statement that he has made, if that case be a capital +trial, that man shall be put to death. + +"If he has borne false witness in a civil law case, he shall pay the +damages in that suit." Judges were always restricted by law and were +held to strict account in administering justice. Any suspicion of +bribery expelled the judge from his seat. + +"If a judge has given a verdict, rendered a decision, granted a written +judgment, and afterwards has altered his judgment, that judge shall be +prosecuted for altering the judgment he gave and shall pay twelvefold +the penalty laid down in that judgment. Further, he shall be publicly +expelled from his judgment-seat and shall not return nor take his seat +with the judges at a trial." + +Other public servants were required to deal justly with the people. +Governors of provinces who oppressed the inhabitants or in any way were +unjust to those dependent upon them, laid themselves liable to a death +sentence if charges against them could be proven. + +In the light of these laws we would conclude that the Babylonians had +reached a high stage of morality when authentic history of their kingdom +begins. Honesty, truth, fair-dealing,--these were demanded by the laws +of the realm, and penalties attached to crimes violating them. One who +was injured must bring his cause before a judge and allow disinterested +persons to render a decision. Instead of retaliation upon the assailant, +money was sometimes received as compensation for injury. In more +flagrant cases, the law imposed the penalty of death. A man could not +slander his neighbor without risk of punishment. + +"If the claimant of lost property has not brought the witnesses that +know his lost property, he has been guilty of slander, he has stirred up +strife, he shall be put to death. + + * * * * * + +"If a man has not his witnesses at hand, the judge shall set him a fixed +time not exceeding six months, and if within six months he has not +produced his witnesses, the man has lied; he shall bear the penalty of +the suit." + +Protection was assured the weak and helpless by this code. It was +customary to receive hostages as security for debt--the debtor's son and +slave. Such a hostage was entitled to fair treatment and a law made it +an offense to misuse him. "If a hostage has died of blows or want in the +house of the creditor, the owner of the hostage shall prosecute his +creditor, and if the deceased were free-born, the creditor's son shall +be put to death; if a slave, the creditor shall pay one-third of a mana +of silver, furthermore, he shall lose whatever it was that he lent." + +Regarding intemperance among the Babylonians, they used beer freely, but +appear to have gone to no such excesses as were common among the +Egyptians. The price of beer was fixed by law and an overcharge was +punishable by drowning. + +The morality of the people seems to have been very slightly influenced +by their religion. While all Semitics have been strongly religious +people, the Babylonians had reached a certain degree of secularism in +their religion. Their temples were financial centers for the country and +were of more direct interest to the people because from them they might +negotiate small loans to tide them over emergencies perhaps than because +the deity of the locality had there his center of worship. + +A lengthy prologue setting forth the titles of Hammurabi and the gods +that gave him power, preceded his code of laws. These were followed by +an epilogue similar in nature. The king calls down curses upon any +future ruler who should cause his wholesome regulations to be altered. +"In the future, in days to come, at any time, let the king who is in the +land, guard the words of righteousness which I have written on my stele. +Let him not alter the judgment of the land which I judged nor the +decisions I decided. Let him not destroy my bas-relief. If that man has +wisdom and is capable of directing his land, let him attend to the words +which I have written upon my stele, let him apprehend the path, the +rule, the law of the land which I judged, and the decision I decided for +the land, and so let him guide forward the black-headed race; let him +judge their judgment and decide their decision, let him cut off from his +land the proud and violent, let him rejoice in the flesh of his +people."[5] + +Blessings were given him who should respect this code of laws and +terrible curses heaped upon any who might disregard it. Much of +Babylonia's prosperity appears to have resulted from the enforcement of +these impartial judgments. + +[Illustration: BABYLONIAN BRICK. THE KING'S NAME AND TITLES WERE +INSCRIBED ON EACH BRICK.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Johns: Babylonian and Assyrian Laws, Letters and Contracts; +Hammarabi's Code, 104, 105. + +[2] Ibid., 122, 123. + +[3] Ibid., 196, 197, 198, 201, 206. + +[4] Ibid., 25. + +[5] Johns: Babylonian and Assyrian Laws, Letters and Contracts; +Hammarabi's Code, 104, 105. + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + + +LITERATURE AND LEARNING. + +The Babylonians produced quite an extensive literature. Their writings +treated of religion, mathematics, astronomy, astrology and geography, +while some attempt was made to explain animal and plant life. History in +Babylonia was limited almost wholly to royal inscriptions and lists of +kings. In Assyria, on the other hand, the greater portion of the +literature related to history, and the kings set forth the happenings of +their reigns with directness and considerable detail. Diplomatic +affairs, correspondence with Babylonia and foreign provinces, official +letters, tribute lists and royal decrees, make up a large part of the +surviving tablets. + +We have already spoken of the library of Asshurbanipal, or the Ninevan +library, and have seen what a world of light was thrown upon Assyrian +civilization when its surviving tablets were at last deciphered. +Babylonia maintained libraries, however, before Nineveh was founded. + +These clustered, for reasons which we shall soon see, around the +temples. At Erech were early collected writings which were concerned +with the religion of the ancient Chaldeans, together with the myths and +legends of the country. So many tablets were preserved in this temple +that Erech was called the "city of books." A library, rich in +mathematical lore, grew up at Larsa, another at Nippur, and still +another at Cathah. Smaller libraries were attached to all the great +temples. + +When we speak of "libraries" in Mesopotamia, collections of clay tablets +are meant. Rooms were frequently provided within the temples for the +storing of these clay books. The size of the tablet varied greatly. The +largest were flat and about 9 by 6-1/2 inches; smaller ones were +slightly convex, while tiny ones, not more than one inch long, +containing but a line or two, have been found. Sometimes the lettering +is so fine that it could have been done only with the aid of a lens, and +it cannot be read without one. + +In these valleys, the cheapest, most available writing material was the +soft clay, ever in evidence. When bricks had been partially dried in the +sun, a substance was formed which readily received impressions, and +these became firm as the tablet hardened. Both sides and sometimes the +edges as well, were written upon, and little pegs of wood provided legs +for the brick to rest upon when reversed, that the soft impressions +might not be injured. To make the whole proof against fire and water, it +was finally baked in an oven. When so treated, a material was made which +proved more enduring against action of the elements than either +parchment or papyrus. + +It is quite certain that papyrus and possibly parchment as well were +used for writing purposes, especially in the later period, but no +fragment of either has survived. + +Certain disadvantages attached to the cheap tablets. They were heavy and +unwieldy to hold or carry, but more especially, they allowed no +embellishments or lengthy descriptions. Owing to the laborious method of +transcribing records, everything was of necessity abbreviated and +simplified. Thus we see how one thing acts upon another--the country +afforded only clay tablets for writing material; these, limited because +of size and weight, curtailed speech and so influenced the style of +expression. + +Occasionally one tablet constituted a book, but more often several +tablets were needed to contain the entire writing. Thus the Deluge Story +is the eleventh tablet, or chapter, of a series numbering twelve in all. +Seventy tablets composed a single work on astronomy, while the three +books comprising the earliest religious texts covered 200 tablets. Each +tablet was carefully numbered and known by the first line of the book; +as, for example, one work treated on the creation and began: "Formerly +that which is above was not yet called the heaven;" so the first tablet +of the series was entitled: "Formerly that which is above, No. 1;" the +second, "Formerly that which is above, No. 2," and so on through the +entire series. + +[Illustration: MUSICIANS AND ATTENDANTS IN THE GARDEN OF ASSHURBANIPAL.] + +The ancient Chaldeans believed that literature and the art of writing +were gifts from the gods, and in the myth which to them explained how +knowledge came into the world, it was numbered among the things taught +them by the Man-Fish, Oannes. This is the myth as Berosus told it: +"There was originally at Babylonia a multitude of men of foreign race +who had colonized Chaldea, and they lived without order, like animals. +But in the first year (of the new order of things) there appeared from +out the Persian Gulf where it borders upon Babylonia, an animal endowed +with reason, who was called Oannes. The whole body of the animal was +that of a fish, but under the fish's head he had another head, and also +feet below, growing out of his fish's tail, similar to those of a man; +also human speech, and his image is preserved to this day. This being +used to spend the whole day amidst men, without taking any food, and he +gave them an insight into letters, and sciences, and every kind of art; +he taught them how to found cities, to construct temples, to introduce +laws and to measure land; he showed them how to sow seeds and gather in +crops; in short, he instructed them in everything that softens manners +and makes up civilization, so that from that time no one has invented +anything new. Then, when the sun went down, this monstrous Oannes used +to plunge back into the sea and spend the night in the midst of the +boundless waves, for he was amphibious." + +It was believed that learning and letters were under the special +protection of the gods, and for this reason it was fitting to preserve +books in the temples. The libraries thus established were cared for by +scribes and were open to the public. Many were engaged constantly in +copying, repairing and taking care of the tablets. An order of celibate +priests, not unlike the monks of the Middle Ages, devoted itself to the +task of book-making, regarding the work as a pious undertaking. + +Among the most ancient books recovered is one containing bits of +folk-lore, popular songs and maxims. One of the maxims runs: + + "Like an oven that is old + Against thy foes be hard and strong." + +A fragment of a ploughman's song says: + + "My knees are marching--my feet are not resting; + With no wealth of thy own--grain thou makest for me." + +The Creation legends were among the most ancient writings. + + "A plant had not been brought forth, a tree had not been created. + A brick had not been made, a beam had not been formed. + A house had not been built, a city had not been constructed. + A city had not been made, earthly things had not been made glorious. + Nipur had not been built, (its temple) E-kura had not been constructed. + Erech had not been built, (its temple) E-Ana had not been constructed. + The deep had not been made, Eridu had not been constructed. + As for the glorious temple (of Eridu), the house of the gods, its seat + had not been made. + The whole of the lands, the sea also, (had not been formed). + When within the sea the current was + In that day Eridu was made. E-Sagila was constructed, + E-Sagila which the god Lugal-du-azagga founded within the deep; + Babylon (also) was built, E-Sagila was completed. + The gods and the spirits of the earth were made altogether. + The glorious city, the seat of the joy of their hearts, supremely they + proclaimed. + Merodack (Marduk) bound together the slime before the water. + Dust he made and he poured it out with the flood. + The gods were made to dwell in a seat of joy of heart. + He created mankind. + The god Aruru, the seed of mankind, they made with him. + He made the beasts of the field and the living creatures of the desert. + He made the Tigris and Euphrates, and set (them) in (their) places + Well proclaimed he their name. + The ussu-plant, the dittu-plant of the marshland, the reed and the + forest he made. + He made the verdure of the plain; + The lands, the marshes, and the greensward also; + Oxen, the young of the horse, the stallion, the mare, the sheep, + the locust; + Meadows and forests also. + The he-goat and the gazelle brought forth to him."[1] + +Babylonian myths often took the form of epics. The epic of Gilgamesh was +popular. Twelve tablets composed it, each corresponding to a zodiacal +sign. The Deluge Story made up the eleventh chapter. Another epic, the +Descent of Ishtar into Arallu, or Hades, was well known. Ishtar, herself +a goddess, mourned a departed god, her consort, so greatly that she +braved the terrors of the underworld to find him and to carry him water +from the fountain of life, that he might rejoin her. This was the +earliest form of a myth which later appeared in many lands. + +Astronomy had its birth in astrology--the so-called science which sought +to discover the influences of the planets upon the destinies of mankind. +This science was firmly believed in and strongly supported for centuries +after the Christian era, and has its followers even today. + +Mathematics had a similar beginning. Geometrical figures were used for +augury. In arithmetic, 60 was a favorite number for computation, and the +division of a circle into seconds, minutes and degrees, dates from this +time. + +Geography consisted merely of lists of seas, mountains, rivers, waters, +nations, and cities then known. Grammars and dictionaries were plentiful +because they were needed even at that time for an understanding of a +language, already "dead," but still the language of literature. + +In the realm of history, royal inscriptions may be included. With the +rise of Assyria these came to be more complete. Fewer set phrases, +copied by each king from most ancient times, were used and more +information was included concerning the subject at hand. For example, an +inscription of Tiglathpileser I. (about 1100 B.C.) filled eight sides of +a clay cylinder, and contained 809 lines. It consisted of (1) an +invocation to the gods who had given him power; (2) set forth his titles +and summed up the deeds of his reign; (3) 500 lines recounted the +campaigns of his first year; (4) 200 lines described his royal hunts and +his temples built and restored; (5) finally a blessing was pronounced +upon those who shall honor his deeds and a curse is given those who +ignore them. + +Both nations loved justice and delighted in formality. All kinds of +agreements were put into writing and were duly witnessed. To the +original code of laws in Babylonia, court decisions were added and +together comprised the later law of the land. All important cases were +abstracted and the decision of the judges given at length on tablets +which have been preserved in many cases with the signature of the judge. +The judges were appointed by the king. Priests were eligible, but others +often served. There was probably a court in the vicinity of every +important temple, which has given a general impression that the priests +took entire charge of court proceedings. + +Education was much more widely diffused in Babylonia than in Assyria. In +the former country both girls and boys seem to have received some +elementary training in the art of reading and writing. Schools for the +training of scribes were maintained in connection with each of the great +temples. Tutors were doubtless employed in families of the nobility, but +little is known of the training of the young. The art of writing was a +difficult one to master and required the memorizing of a large number of +symbols. There must have been much truth in the sentence found often in +the children's copy-books: "He who would become a scribe must rise with +the dawn." In the school of Sippara a tablet has been found which is +supposed to have been either a medal or a diploma given by the school. +An inscription upon it reads: "Whosoever has distinguished himself at +the place of tablet writing shall shine as the light." The calling of +the scribe was an honorable one and his social position was good. + +One indication that people of the better classes in Babylonia could +write is to be found in the number of personal letters which have been +found. These are not written, as in Assyria, in one uniform handwriting, +but show many variations and degrees of perfection. + +In Assyria writing was a profession, and only trades-people whose +business compelled them to understand rudimentary writing, public +officials and the upper classes understood the art. Public scribes wrote +many private letters, much in the same way as a lawyer of today might +draw up some document, and to the letter so written, the sender affixed +his seal. + +Learning was limited in the northern kingdom to the favored few. Some of +the kings, notably Asshurbanipal, was a book collector and sent his men +everywhere to gather up tablets of worth and antiquity. + +Letters which have been translated help to bring these early days before +us. This one was probably sent by a lover to the object of his +adoration: + +"To Bibea say, thus saith Gimil-Marduk: May Shamash and Marduk for my +sake preserve thy health forever. I have sent for thy health. Tell me +how thou art. I went to Babylon and did not see thee. I was greatly +disappointed. Send me the reason of thy leaving, and let me be cheered. +In Marchevan do thou come. For my sake keep well always."[2] + +The next is written by the captain of a river barge to King Sennacherib, +concerning the transporting of colossal bulls. + +"To the king my lord, thy servant Asshur-mukin has ordered me to +transport in boats the colossal bulls and cherubim of stone. The boats +are not strong enough and are not ready. But if a present be kindly made +to us, we will see that they are got ready, and ascend the river." + +If the writer of the third failed to have his request granted, it could +scarcely be for lack of persistence in making it known. It is a letter +written by a tenant to his landlord, and belongs to the age of Abraham: + +"To my lord say, thus saith Ibgatum thy servant: As, my lord, thou hast +heard, the enemy has carried off my oxen. Never before have I sent to +thee, my lord. Now I have caused a letter to be brought to thee, my +lord, Do thou, my lord, send me one young cow. I will weigh out and send +five shekels of silver to thee, my lord. My lord, what thou sayest, +under the command of Marduk, thy protector, what pleases thee, no one +can hinder thee, my lord. My lord, do thou make her worth the five +shekels of silver that I have weighed out and sent to thee. Do thou, my +lord, treat seriously this request, do not trifle with my wish. Let my +lord not wonder at this request, which I send my lord. I am thy servant. +I will do thy will, my lord. As to the young cow, which thou, my lord, +dost send, let her be on credit, and either to Basu, or wherever is +convenient to my lord, do thou send. With Iliikisham, my brother, let +the young cow come. And I, in order that my lord should quickly consent +and send the young cow, will forthwith weigh out and send fifteen +shekels of silver to thee, my lord."[3] + +Sayce has suggested that the five shekels of silver was the amount he +paid annually for the lease of his farm, and that he sent it at this +time to further influence the landlord to grant his request. Another +interpretation has been put upon it that he sent the five shekels as a +payment down, but did not propose to pay the full price until he saw the +particular cow sent him. + +Letters were enclosed generally in an envelope of clay. Powdered clay +was sprinkled over the letter to prevent its clinging to the cover. +Because the envelope of clay had to be broken before the letter was +read, safety and privacy was proven by the unbroken cover. Again the +tablet upon which the letter was inscribed was sometimes covered with a +linen wrapper and the ends held by a seal--a lump of clay pressed down +with the impression of the seal upon it. Few of these clay or linen +envelopes have been found, for they were regarded as valueless and were +cast aside. A very fair postal system was maintained in Mesopotamia. + +"Babylonian and Assyrian letters were treated much as ours are when they +are put into a post-bag to which the seals of the post-office are +attached. There were excellent roads all over Western Asia, with +post-stations at intervals where relays of horses could be procured. +Along these all letters to or from the king and the government were +carried by royal messengers. It is probable that the letters of private +individuals were also carried by the same hands.... The civilized and +oriental world was bound together by a network of postal routes over +which literary intercourse was perpetually passing. They extended from +the Euphrates to the Nile and from the plateau of Asia Minor to the +confines of Arabia. These routes followed the old lines of war and trade +along which armies had marched and merchantmen had traveled for +unnumbered generations. The Tell-el-Amarna tablets show that +letter-writing was not confined to Assyria and Babylonia on the one +hand, or to Egypt on the other. Wherever the ancient culture of +Babylonia had spread, there had gone with it not only the cuneiform +characters and the use of clay as a writing material, but the art of +letter-writing as well."[4] + +Fifteen hundred and seventy-five letters alone were found in the library +of Asshurbanipal, unearthed by Layard. This great Assyrian king sent +scribes throughout Babylonia to visit ancient temples and copy tablets +on which were preserved ancient writings. Some thirty thousand were +collected before his death and they treated of all subjects known at +that time. It was remarkable that when this splendid palace fell into +ruins, many of these tablets remained uninjured, and, having laid +undisturbed for twenty-five hundred years, were finally brought to light +some fifty years ago to give the world of today their old-time messages. + + +DELUGE STORY--COLUMN III. + + "The surface of the land like fire they wasted; + they destroyed all life from the face of the land; + to battle against men they brought the waters. + Brother saw not his brother; men knew not one another. + + In heaven the gods feared the flood and + hastened to ascend to the heaven of Anu. + The gods, like dogs in the kennel, crouched down in a heap. + Six days and nights ... + the wind, the flood, and the storm go on overwhelming. + The seventh day, when it approached, the flood subsided, the + storm which had fought against men like an armed host + was quieted. The sea began to dry, and the wind and the flood ended. + I beheld the sea and uttered a cry, + for the whole of mankind was turned to clay; + like trunks the corpses floated. + I opened the window, and light smote upon my face; + I stopped and sat down; I wept; + over my face flowed my tears. + I beheld a shore beyond the sea; + a district rose twelve times distant. + On the mountain of Nizir the ship grounded; + the mountain of Nizir stopped the ship, and it was not able to pass + over it. + + The first day, the second day, the mountain of Nizir stopped the ship. + The third day, the fourth day, the mountain of Nizir stopped the ship. + The fifth day, the sixth day, the mountain of Nizir stopped the ship. + The seventh day when it approached + I sent forth a dove, and it left. The dove went in and returned + and found no resting place, and it came back. + Then I sent forth a swallow, and it left. The swallow went and returned, + and found no resting place, and it came back. + I sent forth a raven, and it left. + The raven went, and saw the going down of the waters, and + it approached, it waded, it croaked; it did not return. + I sent the animals to the four winds; I sacrificed a sacrifice + I built an altar on the peak of the mountain. + I sent vessels ... by sevens; + underneath them I spread reeds, cedar-wood, and herbs. + The gods smelt the savour; the gods smelt the good savour; + the gods gathered like flies over the sacrifices. + Thereupon the great goddess at her approach + lifted up the mighty bow which Anu had created according to + his wishes. + These gods, by my necklace, never will I forget." + +[Illustration: ISHTAR. FROM AN ASSYRIAN CYLINDER.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] George Smith: Babylonia, 46. + +[2] Johns: Baby. and Assy. Laws, Letters and Contracts, 336. + +[3] Johns: Baby. and Assy. Laws, Letters and Contracts, 334. + +[4] Sayce: Life and Customs in Baby. and Assy., 228. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII. + + +CLOTHING. + +The Babylonians and Assyrians were very fond of dress. There were three +essentials to Mesopotamian dress, and accessories depended upon the +taste and purse of the wearer. A head-dress, a tunic and a robe were the +main features of one's apparel, although all were not of necessity worn +by the lower classes. The head-dress was frequently of felt and was some +times quilted; the tunic was generally made of linen when worn in +Babylonia and of wool in Assyria; the robe was long, falling to the +ankles; it was often of wool and was finished with a deep fringe. The +tunic and some times the robe as well were belted at the waist by a wide +and elaborate girdle. Women's garments were similar to those worn by +men, but their robes fell in more ample folds. Naturally fashions +changed and a garment worn in the days of the Semitic invasion would +have appeared odd and out of date in the age of Asshurbanipal. + +Early portraits of kings show them clad in thick quilted skirts falling +to the ankles, while quilted turbans covered their heads. Later robes +took the place of the skirt. Parasols were carried in Babylonia as +protection against the heat, but in Assyria they gradually became the +privilege of the royal family. In portraits of later Assyrian kings, the +parasol is frequently shown. This custom may have been borrowed from +Persia. + +Ordinarily no head-dress was worn by the lower classes in Babylonia +unless, perhaps, to denote some special calling. Certain musicians +appear with caps. The devotees of fashion probably donned head-dresses +at pleasure. + +Jewelry was popular with both men and women, even the poor being adorned +with necklaces, bracelets, anklets. Shoes and sandals were seldom worn +in the southern kingdom. In Assyria, naturally a colder climate brought +about some variations of dress. High boots and leather breeches were +worn by the soldiers of later periods; shoes were needed to protect the +feet from frosty ground, and cloaks were required in addition to the +usual robe. + +Embroidered and imported robes, smart hats and other details of wearing +apparel were characteristic of later periods when wealth and leisure +gave opportunity for such indulgences. Certain it is that the simple +tunic sufficed in early days, and rank was indicated by its greater or +abbreviated length. + +The ancient Chaldeans or Sumerians always shaved their heads and faces. +Influenced by this custom, the Babylonians did not wear long beards. The +Assyrians, more purely Semitic, wore long ones and had hair dressers +largely in the place of barbers, who curled both their beards and hair. + +A word should be said of the costumes of the priests. They may always be +distinguished on the monuments by their long, flounced robes, reaching +nearly to the ground. Because the goat was an animal of special +sanctity, a goat-skin was invariably thrown over the shoulder--quite as +the Egyptian priest wore the skin of a leopard. + +In connection with the jewelry worn by men, we may consider the little +cylinders which served as seals. In Babylonia, because of the scarcity +of stone, even tiny pebbles were valued, and it came to be the custom to +have these cut in cylindrical shapes by expert stone-cutters. An opening +was made throughout their length to allow a cord or chain to pass +through. This attached the cylinder to the owner's wrist. Upon the round +surface of the cylinder were engraved various designs and figures, and a +few words explaining the identity of the wearer, name of his father and +other noteworthy facts regarding him. His name was affixed, and with +this he stamped his letters and all documents. To be without a cylinder +was almost as inconvenient as to be without a name. The very poor, who +could not afford such a seal, were obliged to make a nail-mark in the +soft clay, while some one wrote the name of the person to whom that +particular mark belonged. The possessor of a cylinder had only to pass +it over the clay and his signature was made. Many of these little +cylinders have been recovered, and some lack the name of an owner, +showing that they had been made by a gem-cutter, but had not yet found a +buyer. + + +FOOD. + +Food was easily obtained in Mesopotamia, and consisted mainly of grains +and dried fish. Cereals were made into little cakes and seasoned with +dates or some other fruit. Fish and fowl were plentiful; many kinds of +fruits and vegetables were grown, and wine and beer were universally +used. Lacking the tomb-pictures of Egypt, we know less about the food +and its preparation in the Euphrates valley. + + +SPORTS AND PASTIMES. + +For our knowledge of ancient Babylonian and Assyrian life, we are +dependent largely upon scenes depicted on palace walls, especially the +walls of royal dwellings. These scenes commemorate the doings of the +king particularly, and where laborers, slaves and the common people are +shown at all, they are seen at work, building palaces and temples, +marching to battle, swelling the triumphal processions, or they are +cultivating the fields, storing away the grain--all to the glory of the +realm and consequently to the king. Naturally then, we know little about +the pastimes of the masses. They no doubt thronged the streets on +festivals, for then they were free from work. Even labor on royal +palaces--always pushed with all possible speed--was then suspended. +Every day in the year had its own significance, but five days each month +were of particular importance, being sacred to the gods, and were duly +observed. Worship and merry-making were in a measure mingled. Other days +for popular observance were those in which the king and the army +returned from successful wars. A triumphal procession passed slowly +through the streets on its way to the temple, where thanksgiving was +rendered the gods who had made victory possible. Such occasions were +always holidays, and the people in gay attire, gathered to witness the +home-coming of their sovereign, and to gaze in wonder at the booty and +the captives. + +Two recreations pictured on the palace walls were enjoyed only by the +nobles and the wealthy classes--the hunt and the banquet. In modern +times, when those in high position have occasionally laid down important +matters for a brief while to seek recreation in hunting, fishing and out +of door life, they have taken opportunity to throw off much of the +conventionality surrounding their every-day life and have found some +diversion in "roughing it,"--in sharing the varying fortune likely to +befall those who leave the certain comforts of home for the uncertain +conditions to be met away from the centers of civilization. Such was not +at all the case with the kings of Assyria when they left their capitals +to hunt the lion in its distant jungles and marshes. In the palace of +Sennacherib and Asshurbanipal, hunts have been depicted throughout their +progress. We may see the king marching out of the city in his state +chariot, his charioteer at his side, while behind him an attendant holds +high an embroidered parasol over his kingly head to protect him from the +rays of the sun. Nobles accompany him on horses and they, together with +the guards and retinue of servants, make up a small army. Goats and +cattle are driven along, that his majesty and his nobles may have fresh +milk and meat throughout their absence; a sumptuous tent shelters the +king when the procession stops for the night, while each noble tries to +pitch his tent near the more splendid one of his king. Maspero has +graphically described the hunt. Some wild oxen have been discovered, and +the king gives chase: + +"In less time than we can speak, three of the bulls are rolling on the +ground, pierced with several arrows; the four others but slightly +wounded, turn round and gallop towards the river. Asshurbanipal follows +the largest of them, which he is almost sure is wounded in the shoulder; +then gradually he overtakes it, skillfully drives his chariot beside it +without checking speed, and laying aside his bow, grasps one of the +poignards he wears in his belt. With one hand he seizes one of the +animal's horns, with the other he plunges his weapon into his neck; the +short, wide blade divides the spine, between the neck and shoulder, the +bull falls like a stone. A flight of arrows arrests the fugitives before +they can reach the water; the whole herd is killed, except the old bull +that escaped at first. + +"The return to the camp is a triumphal march. As soon as the sentinels +signal the arrival of the party, soldiers, slaves, women, all who are +not bound by etiquette or military duty, hurry to meet it, and form two +lines, watching the procession. The sight of the seven bulls, each +carried by five or six men, almost causes them to forget the respect +due to royalty. They exclaim upon the size of the animals, the strength +of their horns, the savage aspect given by their manes; they praise +their master's skill, and loudly thank the gods who have favored him +with such rare and terrible game. Asshurbanipal has left his chariot in +front of his tent, and now prepares to return thanks for his success to +the lord Asshur and the lady Ishtar. Two priests with their harps are +waiting to commence the hymns of praise. The bearers place the oxen side +by side in a single line. The king, accompanied by his fly-flap and +sunshade-bearers, stands on the right, the bow in his left hand. He +takes the cup full of sacramental wine, which the vizier presents to +him, touches it with his lips, then partly empties it over the victims +whilst the musicians play. The same evening a messenger will start for +Nineveh to have the new exploit graven upon stone. The picture will +portray the departure, the chase, the death, the solemn entry, and an +inscription placed above the last scene will tell posterity the name of +the victor. 'I, Asshurbanipal, king of multitudes, king of Assyria, +whose power is secured by Asshur and Beltis, I have killed seven oxen; I +have strung the mighty bow of Ishtar, queen of battles, against them, I +have made an offering over them and poured wine upon them.' + +"On the following day the dogs rouse three lions from their jungle. +These are killed after having made a desperate resistance. The three +bodies are carried back to the camp, then presented to Ishtar with the +same ceremonies that had celebrated the triumph over the wild bulls, and +the sculptors were ordered to represent the hand-to-hand struggle of the +sovereign and his savage foe. 'I, Asshurbanipal, king of peoples, king +of Assyria, alone on foot, in my majesty, I seized a lion of the desert +by the ear; and by the mercy of Asshur and Ishtar, queen of battles, I +pierced its loins with my lance, with mine own hands.'"[1] + +A banquet sometimes celebrated the return from a fine and successful +hunt, but it faded into insignificance when compared with the one held +after the return from a war of pillage and conquest. The entire +population of the capital became temporary guests of the king. + +"After the procession, the day is passed in a perfect frenzy of joy by +the whole nation. It is customary for all the inhabitants of the city, +slaves and freemen, to eat and drink at the king's expense during the +festival; this is a method of giving them a share of the booty. For +seven days the palace gates are open to all comers. Many colored stuffs +suspended over the walls by means of ropes have transformed the courts +into immense banqueting halls. The crowd is coming and going from +morning till night; the people install themselves upon state-seats and +ask for whatever they like; the slaves have orders to give them anything +they wish for, and to bring each person whatever he desires as many +times as he asks for it. Women and children are admitted to these +festivals as well as men. The soldiers kept in barracks by their duty +are not forgotten; the king sends them the food and wine they cannot +fetch for themselves in so great profusion that they have nothing to +regret. The loaves disappear by thousands, by thousands also the oxen, +sheep, goats, and birds of all kinds are sacrificed to satisfy the +public appetite. But what they eat is nothing to what they drink. The +Assyrian is sober in ordinary life, but he does not know how to stop if +he once allows himself any excess. Wines of Assyria and Chaldea, wines +from Elam, wines from Syria and Phoenicia, wines from Egypt, the skins +are emptied as soon as opened, without visibly quenching the universal +thirst. After one or two days no brain is strong enough to resist it, +and Nineveh presents the extraordinary spectacle of a whole city in +different degrees of intoxication; when the festival is over, several +days are required before it resumes its usual aspect. + +Whilst the people are becoming tipsy outside, Asshurbanipal feasts the +leading chiefs and the ministers of state within the palace. Unlike the +common people, the nobles eat but little, so that few dishes of meat are +set before them, but cakes and fruits of different kinds, grapes, dates, +apples, pears, and figs are brought in continual relays, by long lines +of slaves. On the other hand, they drink a great deal--with more +refinement, perhaps, than the common people, but with equal avidity. + +The only persons who do not drink, or who drink little, through the +necessity of retaining their sobriety, are the guards, the servants and +the musicians. No festival is complete without the presence of singers, +and the king's musicians conscientiously perform their finest melodies. +Perhaps some one listened to them at the beginning of the feast, but now +that the great silver bowls have been filled and emptied several times, +their music is literally wasted. They may sing out of tune, or remain +silent, just as they please, no one will listen or care. + +The court poet has placed the recital of the hero's life and exploits, +from the hour of his birth until the day of his triumph, in his own +mouth. He concluded by saying: + +"'I am a strong warrior, beloved of Asshur and Ishtar, the child of +royalty. The gods have been gracious to me. The wheat has grown to five +cubits, and its ears of corn are always one cubit long; during my reign, +abundance has overflowed; during all the years of my reign, the divine +blessing has been poured out upon me like a heavy dew. The gods have +raised me higher than any king ever ascended before me. Whilst Asshur +and Ishtar support me, who can prevail against me? My power is +everlastingly founded by their hands, the duration of my race is +established; they shall reign for many days, and for everlasting +years.'"[2] + +[Illustration: ASSYRIAN KING IN ROYAL ROBES.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Maspero: Ancient Egypt and Assyria, 260. + +[2] Maspero: Ancient Egypt and Assyria, 368, ff. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV. + + +ARCHITECTURE AND DECORATION. + +Architecture is evolved from religion as well as from nature. Generally +speaking, we find temples of worship to be the first buildings erected +by every people. + +Because the Babylonians were limited by lack of other material to sun or +kiln-dried brick, and the Assyrians, devoid of originality, limited +themselves to the same baked clay, we would scarcely expect to find +pleasing or artistic buildings in either state. Even in the dwellings of +rich and poor, the great difference was one of size. It was impossible +to make a clay wall very ornate, but the wealthy could have more walls +and broader expanse of bricks. Size, or hugeness, then, signified +superiority. It naturally followed that the temple, the noblest +structure attempted by the Mesopotamians, was especially large, being +called by a word which meant "mountain house." + +Large tracts of land were dedicated to the temples. Having been +consecrated by libations of wine, oil and honey, the temple proper, +consisting of halls or rooms surrounding an inner court, was first +erected. Near this arose the ziggurat or tower, and many smaller +buildings, not unlike private dwellings. These served as residences for +the priests, for the temple school, store-houses for the sacred oil and +other articles pertaining to worship, and many other purposes. The +entire area was enclosed by a wall, and was ordinarily remote from the +noises of the city. Within this large enclosure other walls surrounded +buildings of special sanctity and importance. Within the temple proper +was an inner room where the statue of the god was kept. This +corresponded to the "holy of holies" in a Jewish synagogue, and was +entered only by the priest or king. + +The ziggurat or mountain house--for this alone was massive and +high--built as symbolic of the mountain form which the whole earth was +supposed to assume, was a tower, some times three, some times five or +even seven stories high. The remains of one of these ziggurats was +discovered by Dr. Peters and his explorers at Nippur, and is supposed to +have been built as early as 2700 B.C. + +The ziggurat at Borsippa had a base of earthwork 272 feet on each side, +and was 26 feet high. Above this foundation arose two stories, 26 feet +in height, each 42 feet less on a side than the story below. Four +stories, each 15 feet high, followed, decreasing 42 feet on a side like +the lower ones, and the last, or seventh, story, was just 29 feet +square. Stairways wound around the outside of the tower, and it was +thought pleasing to the gods that worshippers should ascend to the top. +Each story was sacred to some particular god whose statue it contained +while the shrine of the most important deity was placed on top. +Sometimes each story was painted a different color. + +The mass of worshippers, however, assembled at the temple rather than +the tower, and offerings were made at the base of the ziggurat instead +of at the top. + +It was the ambition of the kings that the inner walls of their +buildings, whether temples or palaces, should "shine like the sunlight," +and to this end gold, silver and precious stones lent their gleams and +glows to mural decorations. + +Next in importance to the temples were royal palaces, and in Assyria, +where religion was given less prominence, the temple was a mere adjunct +of the palace. Here again, a large inner court was surrounded by halls +and rooms. The palace court was paved and decorated and upon the inner +walls of the palace the skill of the artist was expended. The floors +were made of tiles, and these followed ingenious patterns. Sometimes the +floors were formed of bricks or tablets covered with inscriptions deeply +cut; then molten metal--brass or bronze--was poured over the whole, and +filling the depressions, caused the entire floor to look like a curious +and intricate design. + +It was comparatively easy to lay floors and raise walls of bricks, but +it was quite another thing to make roofs of them. The longest rafters +were obtained from the cedars of Lebanon and these ranged from 30 to 40 +feet in length. This practically determined the width of the halls and +rooms, which seem to have been even four times their width in length. + +The monotony of the inner walls was relieved by alabaster reaching +around the halls from twelve to fifteen feet above the floors, and held +in place by strong iron clamps. On this soft, yielding substance were +portrayed scenes in the life and exploits of the king--his campaigns, +hunts, works of peace, and acts of worship. These were executed in +bas-relief after the slabs were fitted into place. Above them extended a +frieze perhaps three feet in width, made of tiles painted in delicate +colors and laid in such a way as to form a picture or design. We miss +the gaudy colors so popular in Egypt. It has been well said that the +Assyrian artist sought to please by the elegance of his forms and the +harmony of his hues--not to startle by a display of bright and strongly +contrasted colors. The palace of Sennacherib, second only to the temple +of Karnak in grandeur--covered an area of eight acres, and contained +some eighty apartments. The palace of Sargon at Khorsabad had no less +than 209 rooms. Of the scenes depicted on the slabs of alabaster in the +state apartments Rawlinson writes at length: "The most striking +characteristic of Sennacherib's ornamentation is its strong and marked +realism. Mountains, rocks, trees, roads, rivers, lakes were regularly +portrayed, an attempt being made to represent the locality, whatever it +might be, as truthfully as the artist's skill and the character of his +material rendered possible. The species of trees is distinguished, +gardens, fields, ponds, reeds, are carefully represented; wild animals +are introduced, as stags, boars and antelopes; birds fly from tree to +tree, or stand over their nests, feeding the young who stretch up to +them; fish disport themselves in the water; fishermen ply their craft; +boatmen and agricultural laborers pursue their avocations; the scene is, +as it were, photographed, with all its features. + +"In the same spirit of realism, Sennacherib chooses for artistic +representation scenes of a commonplace and everyday character. The +trains of attendants who daily enter his palace with game and locust for +his dinner, and cakes and fruit for his dessert, appear on the walls of +the passages exactly as they walked through his courts bearing the +delicacies in which he delighted. Elsewhere he puts before us the entire +process of carving and transporting a colossal bull, from the first +removal of the huge stone in its rough state from the quarry to its +final elevation on a palace mound, as part of the great gateway of a +royal residence. We see the trackers dragging the rough block, supported +on a low flat-bottomed boat, along the course of a river, disposed in +gangs, each gang having a costume of its own which probably marked its +nation, under taskmasters armed with staves, who urged on the labor with +blows. The whole scene must be represented, and so the trackers are +there, to the number of three hundred, each delineated with as much care +as if he were not the exact image of ninety-nine others. We then observe +the block transferred to land, and carved into the rough semblance of a +bull, in which form it is placed on a rude sledge and conveyed along +level land by gangs of laborers, arranged nearly as before, to the foot +of the mound at whose top it has to be placed. The construction of the +mound is elaborately represented. Brickmakers are seen moulding the +bricks at its base, while workmen with baskets at their backs, full of +earth, brick, stone, or rubbish toil up the ascent--for the mound is +already half raised--and empty their burdens out upon the summit. The +bull, still lying on its sledge, is then drawn up an inclined plane to +the top by four gangs of laborers, in the presence of the monarch and +his attendants. After this the carving is completed, and the colossus, +having been raised into an upright position, is conveyed along the +surface of the platform to the exact site which it is to occupy." + +Guarding the portals of the palaces stood the winged bulls and lions, in +pairs. They were thought to ward off demons and to inspire awe in those +who beheld them. They were formed with five legs, in order that the +spectator, whether he viewed them from the front or side, might still +see the usual four. Speaking of these great stone creatures, Layard +wrote: "I used to contemplate for hours these mysterious emblems, and +muse over their intent and history. What more noble forms could have +ushered the people into the temple of their gods? What more sublime +images could have been borrowed from nature by men who sought, unaided +by the light of revealed religion, to embody their conception of the +wisdom, power and ubiquity of a Supreme Being? They could find no better +type of intellect and knowledge than the head of a man; of strength, +than the body of a lion; of rapidity of motion than the wings of a bird. +These winged human-headed lions were not idle creations, the offspring +of mere fancy; their meaning was written upon them. They had awed and +instructed races which flourished three thousand years ago. Through the +portals which they guarded, kings, priests, and warriors had borne +sacrifices to their altars long before the wisdom of the East had +penetrated to Greece, and furnished its mythology with symbols long +recognized by the Assyrian votaries. + +"They may have been buried, and their existence may have been unknown +before the foundation of the Eternal City. For twenty-five centuries +they had been hidden from the eye of man, and they now stood forth once +more in their ancient majesty. But how changed was the scene around +them! The luxury and civilization of a mighty nation had given place to +the wretchedness and ignorance of a few half-barbarous tribes. The +wealth of temples and the riches of the great cities had been succeeded +by ruins and shapeless heaps of earth. Above the spacious hall in which +they stood the plow had passed and the corn now waved. Egypt has +monuments no less ancient and no less wonderful, but they have stood +forth for ages to testify her early power and renown, while these before +me had but now appeared to bear witness, in the words of the prophet, +that once 'the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon with fair branches.... +Now is Nineveh desolate and dry like a wilderness, and flocks lie down +in the midst of her.'" + +Babylon was probably the most beautiful city of antiquity. +Nebuchadnezzar II. surrounded the capital with walls of such solidity +that it is supposed the city could never have been taken by assault. His +father began the fortifications, and it was left for the greatest +Babylonian king to complete them and make them even more secure. Between +the outer and inner walls, wide distances were left. Here trees and +gardens were planted. This space was provided for nearby villagers in +times of siege, and it was also intended that here fields of grain might +be grown to sustain the population under such trying conditions. + +Herodotus described these walls: "And here I may not omit to tell the +use to which the mould dug out of the great moat was turned, nor the +manner wherein the wall was wrought. As fast as they dug the moat, the +soil which they got from the cutting was made into bricks, and when a +sufficient number were completed, they baked the bricks in kilns. Then +they set to building and began with bricking the borders of the moat, +after which they proceeded to construct the wall itself, using +throughout for their cement hot bitumen, and interposed a layer of +wattled reeds at every thirtieth course of the bricks." According to +this writer the outer wall was 14 miles in circumference, 93 feet thick, +and 370 feet in height, but it is supposed that he included the city of +Borsippa, across the river, within the length of wall, and no doubt he +computed the height to include the lofty towers built at intervals along +the wall, to give sentinels a wide outlook over the country. These walls +the Greeks included among the wonders of the world, and probably ancient +warfare could not have destroyed them. + +The Hanging Gardens of this great city were also enumerated among the +world's wonders. These are said to have been built by Nebuchadnezzar for +his Median queen, who wearied of the dull, flat country of Babylonia, +and pined for her mountain home. The lowest terrace arose some 500 feet +square, and three other terraces, supported by arches and pillars, were +constructed above it, each smaller than the one beneath. These four +platforms or terraces were covered with soil drawn up in carts, and the +earth was deep enough to grow large trees, as well as all kinds of +plants and vines. A pump house was located on top, water being drawn +from the river and forced all through the structure, while the pipes +were carefully concealed. Broad stairways led up to the uppermost +terraces where a residence was built for the favorite queen. Hanging +gardens had been built in Nineveh by former kings, but none so splendid +as these nor on so gigantic a scale. Seen from afar, overtowering the +high walls of the city, their height accentuated by the vast expanse of +level land, the effect was that of a low mountain, clothed in verdure +and scenting the breeze with the blended fragrance of its beautiful +flowers. + +The population of Babylon was probably above 500,000 and the city +contained more wealthy families than any other in Asia. The houses of +these added to the beauty of the place, while two royal palaces, one on +either side of the Euphrates, exceeded all former splendor in the +southland. Streets were laid out at right angles, and the more important +ones terminated in high gates leading out of the city walls. These gates +were made of cedar and covered with bronze plates. Well might +Nebuchadnezzar exclaim: "Is not this great Babylon, which I have built +for the royal dwelling-place, by the might of my power, and for the +glory of my majesty?" And again: "For the astonishment of men I built +this house; awe of the power of my majesty encompasses its walls. The +temples of the great gods I made brilliant as the sun, shining as the +day. In Babylon alone I raised the seat of my dominion, in no other +city!" + +[Illustration: DECORATION IN ENAMELED TILES ON ONE OF THE GATES OF THE +HAREM IN SARGON'S PALACE.] + + + + +CHAPTER XV. + + +RELIGION. + +We have learned something of the primitive religious ideas of the +Chaldeans, or Sumerians, who originally occupied Babylonia. However, +when the Babylonian religion is mentioned, reference is made to the +later faith of the valley, and this resulted from a blending of the +Sumerian beliefs and the religious system brought in by the Semitic +invaders. + +The original inhabitants of the country, in their attempt to explain the +forces of nature, had conceived that spirits belonged to animate as well +as inanimate objects, and that these spirits had power to bless or +injure. The rain could refresh the crops or it might wash them out of +the earth; the sun could cause the grain to germinate or in a day could +dry it up with withering heat. The evil which each spirit was likely to +do so far exceeded the good that gradually these spirits were thought of +as demons. It was a demon which took possession of a man and made him +ill. Famines were brought by the south-west wind. In short, demons +threatened on every hand, and only a diligent use of charms and frequent +incantations could protect humanity and enable each to live out his days +amidst such imminent dangers. + +Now it is evident that there is no trace of our conception of a god in +all this, but the early Sumerians had also their gods which were +likewise personifications of nature, and these were later adopted by the +Babylonian Semites, who also took over the earlier beliefs about the +various spirits. In the course of perhaps several hundred years from the +blending of the two beliefs, with such changes as growing intelligence +brought, the religion of the Babylonians was evolved. + +The Semites who pushed north and founded the state of Assyria, took with +them the religion of the southern kingdom. + +In explaining further the religion of the southland, we must remember +its early political situation. Instead of one united kingdom, it was +made up of a number of little states under leadership of cities. The +leading cities had grown up around the temple of some protecting deity +whose favor was believed to extend over the immediate vicinity. Thus, +for example, Sin, the Moon-god, was not only the patron deity of Ur, but +of the whole state of which Ur was the capital city. To exalt its god, a +state would reach out to incorporate another. The people thus conquered +did not cease to worship their former deity but now gave homage to the +god of their conquerors as well. When several little states were united, +the greatest of their gods was the god of their strongest city, since he +had clearly demonstrated his power by giving victory over the rest. In +truth, it should be explained that such was the official god, for +without doubt the masses knew little of political absorption and +worshipped the god of their infancy rather than new gods honored by the +state. + +In course of various unions, En-lil or Bel became the most important god +in Babylonia and remained so until Babylon gained supremacy over all +other states. Then Marduk, her ancient god, was given first place. + +A brief consideration of the leading Babylonian gods will help us to +gain some insight into these early ideas and conceptions. As early as +3500 B.C., En-lil or Bel was worshipped in Nippur. The very name +testifies to its Sumerian origin. Lil signifies _demon_, and En-lil was +the _chief of spirits_. In one of the earliest inscriptions in Sumerian +he is mentioned with _Anna_ and Enki, the gods of heaven and the abyss. +These three made up the original triad and as such they continued +throughout the later period as Bel Anu and Ea. Nippur became a strong +political center and this made Bel principal god of the land until his +powers were transferred to Marduk. Bel's consort, like the consorts of +all Babylonian gods, was but a weak reflection of the god himself. + +Eridu was a seaport. Ea, god of "that which is below," was its local +deity. He was first considered as god of the earth but the water was of +greater commercial importance and gradually he grew to be regarded as +god of the deep. From merely a local god, protecting Eridu, he extended +his sway over all waters. In both Larsa and Sippar the sun-god Shamash, +known among the Sumerians as _Utu_, was honored. No other deity enjoyed +such continued popularity as the "god of day." From the earliest to the +latest period he was hailed as the "god that gives light and life to +all things, upon whose favor the prosperity of the fields and well-being +of man depend." As light is opposed to darkness, so again light reveals +wrong doing; for this reason this god of light became associated with +justice. Sin, the Moon-god, was given prominence over Shamash, so far as +official order of deities was concerned. Some renown attached to him +because he was the father of Ishtar. Indeed from being the father of +many gods and goddesses, he was remembered as father of this brilliant +goddess, greater than all others. Sin was worshipped more extensively in +early times. + +Ishtar, supreme goddess, mother of the gods, was first conceived as a +mild, sympathetic mother-spirit, a goddess of love and care. In Assyria, +however, she was regarded as goddess of war and battle, and was +associated with Asshur in that connection. Nabu, the wise, all-knowing +god, sacred in Borsippa, was also popular in literature and learning. In +addition to being patron of intelligence and wisdom, he was also patron +of agriculture. When his favor was given, storehouses were heaped high +with grain; when his favor was withdrawn, famine afflicted the land. +From the twelfth century B.C. onwards his name appears in royal names +such as Nabo-polasar, Nebuchadnezzar, Nabo-nidus, and in the ninth +century B.C. the worship of this god only was preached: "Put thy trust +in Nebo; trust not in another God." The long proper names so constantly +found in both Babylonia and Assyria were always compounded from several +words and had some particular meaning--as, Sennacherib, or more +correctly Sin-akhi-irib, meaning "Sin has multiplied brethren;" +Buzur-Asshur--"a stronghold is Asshur;" Sargon or Sargina--Sar meaning +king and gin, to establish, "I am the established king." + +Anu was the god of the heavens; Ramman the god of storm, and both held +important places in the myths and stories of the people. In later times +Ea was a deity of wide dominion. Father of Marduk, he was god of +humanity. He gave wisdom, and as god of water, fountains were sacred to +him. Oannes or Fish-Man was simply a name given him by Greek travellers. +In time he was regarded as god of civilization, and nothing could have +been more natural, for over the waters he protected came civilization to +Chaldea, and progress was facilitated by navigation. Great works of art +were ascribed to him; likewise he was god of the smith and of the +sculptor. + +The great bulls were works of his hand. He was probably made father of +Marduk in later years, when Babylon's god had been given first place in +the nation, and the only way to reconcile all that was believed of Ea +was to show that as father, his wisdom had descended to his son, Marduk. + +In addition to these leading deities, there was a host of minor ones but +their enumeration would be useless for our purposes. One tablet in the +British museum contained originally the names of nearly 1,800 gods. They +were early local gods, and as their states were added to the kingdom, +they were included in the temple lists to pacify their worshippers. + +The religious faith and worship for any one district was not +complicated. Each little community had its patron deity and paid scant +attention to the numerous gods of temple lists. + +In Assyria the political situation had been far different. No large +number of petty states, each with its religious system, had united to +form the kingdom; consequently we miss the numerous gods found in +Babylonia. Asshur was the one great god of the northern people. Alone he +stood, god of all. When Assyria entered upon her military career, Asshur +was regarded as god of war, and because of repeated victory, grew very +popular in this conception. His standard was carried into battle to +encourage the soldiers; knowing that his mighty power was with them, +they could not fail. The standard of Asshur, one of the earliest ensigns +of the battle field, has its own interest for us. On top of a long pole, +guarded on either side by huge wings, perhaps the wings of the eagle, a +circle enclosed the figure of an archer, shooting an arrow. Seen afar by +faltering troops, the standards of the national god gave new strength +and inspired fresh hope of victory. + +The similarity between the religion of the Assyrians and the Hebrews has +frequently been noted. Both nations were Semitic and hence their +inheritances were the same. Their origin and early home was identical. +The Hebrews, in course of their wanderings and experiences, grew to +worship one God to the exclusion of all others. The Assyrians retained +their warlike disposition, and worshipped one God as greater than all +others, but they allowed other deities to be honored as well. Both +nations with great regularity ascribed all their victories to the +divinity they worshipped--nay, more by far, they attributed all their +slaughters to the same deity. The Hebrews, during the period when as +tribes they struggled for existence, treated their enemies with great +cruelty. This was done, they insisted, to appease their God, or +generally in furtherance of his direct command. Their brethren, the +Assyrians, proceeded in exactly the same manner, and all their ruthless +deeds were done to gratify Asshur and avenge the insults done him by +revolts against his strength. One divinity commanded the outrages as +much as the other, and they were but expressions of an early and +barbarous development. + +Among the masses, the sacrifice was unquestionably that feature of +worship best understood. It seems to have been an instinct born in man +to make offerings to appease the wrath of a god, and to seek by the same +means to win his favor. The priests acted as mediators between the +people and the divinity. To a priest, the farmer, laborer, and slave as +well as the noble and prince, brought each his offering, and such +portions as were considered sacred were offered upon the altar. + +As the Egyptian provided food for the _ka_ of the deceased, so also the +Babylonian provided it for the _zi_ of his dead. It is possible that the +belief in the shadowy ka came originally from the valley of the +Euphrates. + +Gods were supposed to visit their shrines at intervals and so food was +placed for them. The masses of the people were so ignorant that it is +entirely probable they regarded the image of the god as the god himself, +and that they thought these images of clay and stone actually devoured +the food they brought.[1] The more enlightened had no such crude +notions, but realized that the god-spirit was something apart from +anything they saw and worshipped. If we substitute the name of the +Hebrew deity in place of the Babylonian god, worshippers of Judah might +have used some of the hymns of prayer and praise used in Babylonia: + + "The heart of my lord is wroth; may it be appeased! + O lord, my sins are many, my transgressions are great! + The sin that I sinned I knew not, + The transgression I committed I knew not, + The lord in the wrath of his heart has regarded me, + God in the fierceness of his heart has revealed himself to me. + I sought for help and none took my hand; + I wept, and none stood at my side; + I cried aloud, and there was none that heard me. + I am in trouble and hiding; I dare not look up. + To my god, the merciful one, I turn myself, I utter my prayer; + The sins I have sinned turn into a blessing; + The transgressions I have committed let the wind carry away! + Strip off my manifold wickedness as a garment! + O my god, seven times seven are my transgressions: forgive my sins!" + +Another, written first to Sin of Ur, and later incorporated into the +hymns of the nation: + + "Father, long-suffering and full of forgiveness, + Whose hand upholdeth the life of all mankind! + First-born, omnipotent, whose heart is immensity, and there is none + who may fathom it! + In heaven who is supreme? Thou alone, thou art supreme! + On earth, who is supreme? Thou alone, thou art supreme! + As for thee, thy will is made known in heaven, and the angels bow + their faces. + As for thee, thy will is made known upon earth, and the spirits below + kiss the ground." + +Elsewhere we find Ashur appealed to as "lord of the gods, _who has +created himself_." + +Services were many. Each day required its own offerings and ceremonies. +The changes of the moon were watched and accompanied by peculiar +services. Taboos were placed on certain days and on these no work was +permitted. + +The priesthood was large. Besides the chief priests, there were elders, +anointers,--who anointed the images of the gods and the vessels of the +temple with sacred oil; priests who presided over the oracles and whose +function it was to ascertain auspicious times for war and other +prodigious undertakings, and seers, who interpreted dreams. + +Revenues of the temples came from offerings and more regularly, from the +tithe, a tax paid by both king and subjects. In this way, the temples +controlled property. Their lands were usually rented out. + +When Babylonia reached her age of greatest prosperity, the religion of +the land had been greatly secularized, and the temples were important +for their business significances quite as much as for their religious +features. "The temple exerted an overwhelming financial influence in +smaller towns. Only in certain large cities was it rivalled by a few +great firms. Its financial status was that of the chief, if not the +only, great capitalist. Its political influence was also great. This was +largely enlisted on the side of peace at home and stability in +business." Its great possessions resulted from the daily and monthly +payments, from lands dedicated to the temple by devout ones, and from +careful investment of revenues. + +"The temple was also a commercial institution of high efficiency. Their +accumulations of all sorts of raw products were enormous. The temple let +out or advanced all kinds of raw material, usually on easy terms. To the +poor, as a charity, advances were made in times of a scarcity or +personal want, to their tenants as part of the metayer system of tenure, +to slaves who lived outside its precincts, and to contractors who took +the material on purely commercial terms. The return was expected in +kind, to the full amount of advance, or with stipulated interest.... + +"The temples did a certain amount of banking business. By this we mean +that they held money on deposit against the call of the depositor. +Whether they charged for safe-keeping or remunerated themselves by +investing the bulk of their capital, reserving a balance to meet calls, +does not appear.... + +"In certain circumstances the king's officials might borrow of the +temples.... Some kings laid hands on the treasure of the temple for +their own use. Doubtless this was done under bond to repay. The cases in +which we read of such practices are always represented as a wrong.... + +"The temple could act in all the capacities of a private individual or a +firm of traders."[2] + +The religion of Mesopotamia did not require the believer to preserve his +dead, as in Egypt. Cremation was almost always resorted to, and for this +reason we lack the tomb-finds, so elucidating in Egypt. The body was +made ready for burial, with some food and other necessities, then it was +partially burned, at least, and the remains entombed. The conditions of +the country in Babylonia made cremation almost a necessity. + +While some degree of purity was occasionally reached in Mesopotamian +conceptions of religion, and far-sighted and high-minded persons lived +in both countries, there was much that was degrading in connection with +the worship. All Babylonian classes were grossly superstitious and +believed always in the demons. The incantations used to drive these away +were not only countenanced by the priesthood, but were taught as a part +of the established worship. Demons were of various kinds and possessed +different degrees of power. They lurked in obscure places, ready to +inflict themselves upon unhappy mortals. All diseases, all misfortunes +were their doings. A sufferer exclaims: + + "They have used all kinds of charms + to entwine me as a rope, + to catch me as in a cage, + to tie me as with cords, + to overpower me as in a net, + to twist me as with a sling, + to tear me as a fabric, + to throw me down as a wall." + +To this the conjurer replies: + + "But I by command of Marduk, the lord of charms, + by Marduk, the master of bewitchment, + Both the male and female witch + as with ropes I will entwine, + as in a cage I will catch, + as with cords I will tie, + as in a net I will overpower, + as in a sling I will twist, + as a fabric I will tear, + as a wall throw them down." + +At this juncture, images of witches were burned by fire, having been +tortured first by these specified actions. + +The ritual set forth water as a purification for some bewitchment. + + "Glittering water, pure water, + Holy water, resplendent water, + The water twice seven times may he bring, + May he make pure, may he make resplendent. + May the evil spirit depart, + May he betake himself outside, + Spirit of heaven, be thou invoked! + Spirit of earth, be thou invoked! + +Another remedy was this: + + "White wool, which has been spun into thread, + To attach it to his couch in front and at the top, + Black wool which has been spun into thread + To bind at his left side."[3] + +In addition to long lists of formulæ for driving away the demons of +sickness, and famine and misfortune, a countless number of omens had to +be taken into account if one wished success to accompany his +undertakings. Some of these concerned the movement of heavenly bodies. + + "The moon and sun are balanced. + The subjects will be faithful + The king of the land will reign for a long time." + +Another brought a sense of danger in its day: + + "On the fifteenth day the sun and moon are seen together, + A powerful enemy raises his weapons against the land, + The enemy will smash the great gate of the city; + The star of Anu appears bright-- + The enemy will devastate." + +Or this: + + "The moon is seen out of season, + Crops will be small. + On the twelfth day the moon is seen together with the sun-- + A strong enemy will devastate the land." + +A numerous list of omens pertained to the doings of animals. Stray dogs +might bring disaster if they entered houses in unusual ways, and yet it +was necessary that they frequent the streets. By-ways that they left +were not thought lucky. The following omens have been translated from +old tablets: + + "If a yellow dog enters a palace, it is a sign of distress. + + If a speckled dog enters a palace, the palace will give peace to + the enemy. + + If a dog enters a palace and crouches on the couch, no one will + enjoy that palace in peace. + + If a dog enters a temple, the gods will not enlarge the land. + + If a raven enters a man's house, that man will secure whatever he + desires." + +All kinds of dreams were carefully tabulated, and were noted from time +to time in connection with events in the dreamers' lives: + + "If in a dream a fish appear on a man's head, that man will be + powerful." + + "If a mountain appear on a man's head, that man will be without a + rival."[4] + +While all these omens were not directly connected with worship, they +were consistent with the religious teaching of the time, and so are +perhaps rightly considered here. + +The Babylonians were more religious than the Assyrians and their +government was far more bound up in religious ceremonies. One fact alone +bears out this statement: In Babylonia the king must each year celebrate +anew the ceremony of taking his temporal power from the god Marduk by +taking the hands of the god's image. This service took place on New +Year's day, and no matter what might be the situation in other parts of +the empire, to Babylon the king must come and observe the ancient custom +would he remain possessor of the kingly crown. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] See the apocryphal story of Bel and the Dragon. + +[2] Johns: Baby. and Assy. Laws, Contracts and Letters, 211. + +[3] Jastrow: Babylonian Religion. + +[4] Jastrow: Babylonian Religion. + + + + +[Illustration: The name Nebuchadnezzar in two forms of writing--as found +on brick and in inscriptions.] + +CHAPTER XVI. + + +THE LABORING CLASSES. + +Both slave and free labor existed in Babylonia, but, as has been +previously said, there was no special prejudice felt towards the slave. +He was often of the same nationality as the owner, was trusted, and +often adopted into the family. Parents sold their children into slavery, +and in hard times men would even sell themselves to obtain food and +shelter. On the other hand, slaves might become free men and might rise +to positions of high importance in the state. Having been a slave left +no stigma to one who later became free. The slave might accumulate money +and so purchase his freedom; freedom might be secured to him because of +adoption into a family. While still in servitude he might appear as a +witness or party in a suit, and his testimony was valued as much as +though he were free. Nevertheless, while enjoying privileges unusual to +one in slavery, he was still but a chattel given as security for a debt, +offered as part of a dowry, or again, his services might be hired out +for a given period, his earnings to go to his owner. + +Various measures were taken to protect the slave, as the Code of +Hammurabi shows. Fines were imposed for any abuses suffered during a +period when he was hired out. This served as a check upon those who +otherwise might have caused him to overwork. + +Slaves made up quite a portion of the laborers, both in Babylonia and +Assyria, although in the latter country less friendly relations seem to +have existed between slave and owner, for the great mass of Assyrian +slaves had been taken captives in war, and were foreigners, unaccustomed +to the ways of the land, and less devoted, probably, to the interests of +those who owned them. + +Few slaves were bought and sold with the land, and these generally +belonged to temple lands. Private farms were worked by slaves privately +owned. + +Free labor was available, but as a consequence of slavery, wages were +low. The grazers were generally free men; they received large herds of +cattle and flocks of sheep from several owners, and these they pastured +for months together on the west slope of the Euphrates. Because the +herds required constant protection from nomadic tribes of the desert, +the grazers had to be men of responsibility. + +The oldest occupation of the Euphrates valley was agriculture. The soil +yielded heavily and early won tribes away from their roving state. Taxes +were always paid in kind, and grain was stored for times of scarcity in +royal granaries. + +For the Babylonian, the year opened in the fall--in Tisri (September), +the month of harvest. When his crops were harvested, the farmer paid his +tax; if the land was farmed out, the owner paid the tax and the tenant +paid his rent. New contracts for land were made at this time of the +year. + +The ordinary arrangement between landlord and tenant seems to have been +that he who rented should pay one-third of the year's produce for the +use of the farm, and that he should keep all buildings and ditches in +repair. This last stipulation was strongly enjoined, and a fine was +inflicted did he fail in this particular. + +During the portion of the year when the usual round of sowing and +reaping ceased, the canals and ditches needed attention. The entire +prosperity of the soil depended upon the maintenance of the irrigation +system. + +"Ploughing, harrowing, sowing, reaping, and threshing constituted the +chief events of the agricultural year. The winters were not cold, and +the Babylonian peasant was consequently not obliged to spend a part of +the year indoors shivering over a fire. In fact fuel was scarce in the +country; few trees were grown in it except the palm, and the fruit of +the palm was too valuable to allow it to be cut down. When the ordinary +occupations of the farmer had come to an end, he was expected to look +after his farm buildings and fences, to build walls and clean out the +ditches. + +"The ditches, indeed, were more important in Babylonia than in most +other parts of the world. Irrigation was as necessary as in Egypt, +though for a different reason. The Chaldean plain had originally been a +marsh, and it required constant supervision to prevent it from being +once more inundated by the waters and made uninhabitable. The +embankments which hindered the overflow of the Euphrates and Tigris and +kept them within carefully regulated channels, the canals which carried +off the surplus water and distributed it over the country, needed +continual attention. Each year, after the rains of the winter, the banks +had to be strengthened or re-made and the beds of the canals cleared +out. The irrigator, moreover, was perpetually at work; the rainy season +did not last long, and during the rest of the year the land was +dependent on the water supplied by the rivers and canals. Irrigation, +therefore, formed a large and important part of the farmers' work, and +the bucket of the irrigator must have been constantly swinging."[1] + +Large numbers of sheep were raised in these valleys, and the manufacture +of wool into dress-stuffs, carpets, and tapestries, made Babylonia +famous among the nations of her time. Her rugs and carpets were the +pride of her people and large sums were paid for them. Scenes sculptured +in bas-relief were seen in tapestries which lined the walls of wealthy +homes. Vegetable dyes were used, and gayly colored flowers, bright hues +and tints, made attractive decorations for interiors against dull +back-grounds of brick. A large proportion of the industrial population +was engaged in weaving, dyeing, and preparing these commodities for +shops and other places of sale. + +Because of the constantly growing demand for wool, many were induced to +raise sheep and to trade in the raw wool. Records show that Belshazzar, +son of the king and heir to the Babylonian throne, was a wool-merchant +on a large scale, his commercial interests being, of course, managed by +others. + +The price of wool varied greatly, being sometimes high, sometimes low. +It cost little in addition to the wages of the shepherd to pasture +flocks west of the river during the greater part of the year, for +pasturage there was free to all. For some months, to be sure, sheep had +to be sheltered and fed inside enclosures, within or near the city. This +was the costly part of sheep-raising. + +When the flocks were driven into town, toll per head was exacted at the +city gate. Lists of the various tolls collected and turned into the +general treasury show them altogether to have been considerable; not +only were they collected of all who passed through the gates but a +bridge toll was paid by whoever passed over the bridge connecting +Babylon and Borsippa, across the river; all ships and sailing crafts, +moreover, paid a toll to pass under the bridge. + +Enumerations of the trades of Babylonia have been found; these mention +the trades of carpenter, smith, metal-worker, weaver, leather-worker, +dyer, potter, brick-maker and vintner. The carpenter not only raised the +beams and scaffolding of houses, but as well made whatever articles of +furniture the times afforded. The brick-maker made tablets for +inscriptions as well as bricks for building purposes. The brickyards +were always on low land, near the river, where reeds, so useful in +brick-making, were abundant. Building bricks were made in different +sizes--some nearly a foot square by 2-1/2 inches thick; others about 15 +by 15 and three inches in thickness. Chopped reeds were frequently mixed +in the bricks themselves, and since the demand for them was constant, +they were cultivated and grown in large areas. In a secluded corner of +the brickyard, the fine tablets for literary purposes were produced; and +here too, dishes and vases of pottery were molded and baked. Thus we see +that great activity and divers interests attached to these yards given +over to the manufacture of clay articles. + +The leather worker found material in abundance, owing to the extensive +cattle raising. Harnesses, saddles, and shoes, beautifully decorated, +were chief among leather commodities. + +The smith excelled in fashioning articles from gold, silver, copper and +bronze. Ordinarily the metal was melted and run into molds of clay or +stone. The customer usually furnished the ore and paid for the work upon +it. Metal workers were held accountable for the excellence of their +work, as is shown by guaranties found, whereby they promised to pay +heavy fines if during a given term of years, their work should be found +imperfect. + +The people of Babylonia never succeeded in mastering the bas-relief +work, so effectively used in Assyrian palaces. Enamelled tiles took the +place of these, and they were either painted in some design and glazed, +or simply tinted. "Quite as old as the trade of the carver in ivory was +that of the porcelain-maker. The walls of the palaces and temples of +Babylonia and Assyria were adorned with glazed and enamelled tiles on +which figures and other designs were drawn in brilliant colors; they +were then covered with a metallic glaze and fired. Babylonia, in fact, +seems to have been the original home of the enamelled tile and therefore +with the manufacture of porcelain. It was a land of clay and not of +stone, and while it thus became necessary to ornament the plain mud wall +of the house, the clay brick itself, when painted and protected by a +glaze, was made into the very best and most enduring of ornaments. The +enamelled bricks of Chaldea and Assyria are among the most beautiful +relics of Babylonian civilization that have survived to us, and those +which are now in the Museum of the Louvre are unsurpassed by the most +elaborate productions of modern skill." + +The trade of the vintner was lucrative. Wines were made from dates and +grapes; beer was doubtless made from grain. It seems to have been the +custom to supply laborers with beer with their daily rations. + +Organizations among workmen corresponded to the guilds of later years. +Those who would learn a trade, whether freemen or slaves, had to serve +as apprentices a certain time and learn the work thoroughly. + +Wages were always so low that they amounted to little. It has been +estimated that the average wages of a workman was about 12s., or $3.00 a +year; unskilled laborers were contented if merely supplied with food. In +the reign of Cambyses a butcher is recorded to have been paid 75 cents +for a month's work--freemen had always to compete with slave labor, and +if only the employer furnished food and clothing, he could command any +amount of labor. + +Babylonia early exchanged her grain and dates for the products of other +lands. For example, teak-wood and cotton were brought from Arabia, cedar +from Lebanon, marble from the east, gold from the peninsula of Sinai. +Sometimes the raw materials were made up in Babylonia and returned to +the lands from whence they came together with grain, rugs and cloth of +wool. Because of her geographical position, Babylonia was able to +command an important commercial position, importing and exporting +constantly. + +"The mass of the people in Babylonia were employed in the two pursuits +of commerce and agriculture. The commerce was both foreign and domestic. +Great numbers of the Babylonians were engaged in the manufacture of +those fabrics, particularly carpets and muslins, which Babylonia +produced not only for her own use but also for the consumption of +foreign lands. The ordinary trades and handicrafts practised in the East +no doubt flourished in the country. A brisk import and export trade was +constantly kept up, and promoted a healthful activity throughout the +entire body politic. Babylonia is called 'a land of traffic' by Ezekiel, +and Babylon 'a city of merchants.' The monuments show that from the very +earliest times the people of the low country on the borders of the +Persian Gulf were addicted to maritime pursuits and navigated the gulf +freely, if they did not even venture on the open ocean.... + +"The products of the various countries of Western Asia flowed into +Babylonia down the courses of the rivers. From Armenia came wine, gems, +emery, and perhaps stone; from Phoenicia, tin, copper, musical +instruments; from Media, silk, gold and ivory."[2] + + +THE PROFESSIONS: THE BANKER. + +In ancient times, the money-lender was the banker, and lending money was +foremost in Babylonian professions. Even members of the royal families +were themselves heavy loaners and drew high rates of interest, although, +to be sure, their business transactions were carried on by agents. + +The rate of interest varied greatly, being generally higher in Assyria. +In Babylonia it might be 20%, or again 16%, and was rarely as low as +10%. Cases are on record in Assyria where 25% and 33-1/3% were exacted. +As is still customary in the East, interest was computed monthly, and +unless the borrower was well known and trusted, it was paid monthly. +Security for the full amount was always required. + +A great firm of Babylon held a position in that country corresponding to +that held by the Rothschilds in England, loaning to the state as well as +to private individuals. Personal deeds and documents belonging to +citizens were stored in the well-protected chambers of this firm as +they are today kept in safety boxes in bank vaults. Banking firms +continued for generations, and immense numbers of wills, deeds of sale, +business contracts, leases, tax certificates, loans and marriage +agreements accumulated within their chambers. + + +SCRIBES. + +While each one pleaded his own case ordinarily, in the courts of +Babylonia, pleas were frequently thrown into form beforehand by a +scribe. These scribes performed duties discharged in later times by +attorneys at law, as well as those which would of necessity fall to +their share. In Babylonia they acted as librarians, authors and +publishers, multiplying copies of books and selling them. In Assyria, +where the art of reading and writing was not so generally known, they +acted as private clerks and secretaries to a wide extent. + + +MEDICINE. + +We have noted early in our study that medicine had but a small part in +Babylonian life. Charms, magic and incantations in a large measure took +its place. However, with acquaintance with Egypt, came an impulse to +learn of a science which occupied a more important position in the +valley of the Nile. While physicians came into prominence in later +years, they were never wholly depended upon. The doctor was called to +act in unison with the magician and conjurer unless, as was often the +case, he himself united the two arts of healing. Herodotus and other +travellers have testified to cases similar to the following: "Pressing +forward and peeping over the heads of the people, we see a man stretched +upon a mattress, and apparently just about to die. A few weeping friends +kneel at his side, and we learn that he has been brought from his home, +and laid down in the public market place, in the vain hope that some one +may propose a remedy which will save his life. This custom, so strange +to us, is common in Babylon, they say. When all else has failed, when +doctors and sorcerers have done their best, the sick person is +transported to the open square, and advice is asked from the crowd which +is sure to gather. + +"Today, as ever, each has a different remedy to propose, though all are +agreed as to the cause of illness. A demon possesses the man, of that +there is no question. 'Come away, little one!' cries an old woman, +drawing back her grandson. 'Go not too near, lest the evil spirit leave +the man, and seize upon thee. Often have I seen it. Bel be praised that +I have his image!' And she draws forth a little clay image of Bel, and +hangs it carefully on the neck of her grandson. 'Hast thou tried the +wool of a young sheep?' asks a woman of the sick man's wife. 'Let a +sorcerer tie seven knots in it, on seven moonlight nights. Tie the +strands around thy husband's neck, around his limbs, around his head. So +shall his soul not leave his body.' + +"'Try the recipe of Asshurbanipal the Assyrian,' cries another. 'It is +well known and never fails. Six different kinds of wood, a bit of snake +skin, some wine, and a piece of ox flesh. Make a paste, and cause the +sick man to swallow it.'[3] + +"A man hurries up with a handful of clay, and molds a little figure +which he displays as the image of the sick man. We cannot see the +resemblance, but the crowd presses forward and watches his motions with +eager curiosity. He calls for a cup of wine, pours part of it over the +image, and after drinking the rest, mutters an incantation. All in vain, +while he is yet speaking, the family of the sick man raises a chorus of +wails, in which the crowd joins. The man is dead; no charm can avail him +more."[4] + + +THE SOLDIER. + +We cannot speak of the vocation of the soldier as we speak of the +regular professions of men, but any account of Assyria which failed to +give some idea of the army, the very support and strength of that great +empire, would be incomplete. + +At first, as in Babylonia, the soldiers when needed were recruited from +peasants in the field. When the war was over, they would return to their +usual tasks. However, Assyria with her many conquests felt the need of +trained soldiers, proficient in military tactics. To the standing army +which grew into a strong body, warriors taken captive in other lands +were added. In course of a few generations a formidable army was thus +brought into being, and the calling of a soldier became a regular +profession. Men were required to give evidences of skill before they +could take commands of regiments and even before they could command a +company of ten. Maspero has made an extended study of military affairs +in Assyria and we can do no better than follow the results he has +reached in his investigation: + +"The Assyrian army is the best organized war machine that the world has +yet seen.[5] It is superiority of weapons, not any superiority in +courage and discipline, that has secured to the Ninevite kings since +Sargon the priority over the Pharaohs of the Delta, of Thebes and Meroe. +Whilst the Egyptians, as a rule, still fight without any protection, +except the shield, the Assyrians are, so to speak, clothed in iron from +head to foot. Their heavy infantry is composed of spearmen and archers, +wearing a conical cap ornamented with two side pieces which protect the +ears, a leather shirt covered with overlapping metal scales which +protects the chest and the upper part of the arms, close fitting +breeches, and boots laced in front. The spearmen carry spears six feet +long, with an iron or bronze head, a short sword passed through their +belt, and an immense metal shield, sometimes round and convex, sometimes +rounded at the top and square at the bottom. The archers have no +shields; they replace the spear by a bow and quiver, which hang over +their back. Their light infantry also includes some spearmen, but they +wear a helmet with a curved crest, and are provided with a small round +wicker-work shield. The archers have no breastplate, and are associated +either with slingers or with soldiers armed with clubs and double-edged +axes. + +"The spearmen and archers of the line are usually of Assyrian origin or +levied in the territories that have been subject to Assyria for a long +time; the other troops are often recruited amongst tributary nations, +and they wear their national costumes. They are arranged in companies, +and manoeuvre with a regularity which foreigners themselves admire.... +They march with extraordinary rapidity, leaving no stragglers or lame +men behind them as they go, and their generals are not afraid to impose +fatigues upon them to which the soldiers of other lands would quickly +succumb. They either ford the rivers or swim across them upon inflated +skins. In wooded countries, each company sends forward a certain number +of pioneers, who fell the trees and clear a path. + +"The cavalry are divided into two corps, the chariot soldiers and the +regular cavalry. The Assyrian war-chariot is much heavier and more +massive than the Egyptian.... Like the Egyptian chariots, the Assyrians +always charge in a regular line, and there are few troops in the world +that can resist their first shock. When a battalion of the enemy sees +them coming, rapid and light, their darts pointed, their bows strung, +they usually disband immediately after the first volley of arrows, and +run away. The line is then broken, and the chariots disperse over the +plain, crushing the fugitives beneath their wheels, and trampling them +under their horses' feet.... + +"Formerly the chariots were very numerous in the Assyrian armies. They +are less used at the present day, but tradition gives them the post of +honour and the king or the chief general always reserves for himself the +privilege of leading them into the fight. It is the distinguished branch +of the service, the one in which the princes and great nobles prefer to +serve, and its weight often decides the fate of the battle. + +"Yet now the cavalry commences to rival it, if not in numbers, at least +in importance.... The horse was at first ridden bareback; now it is +covered with one cloth, or with a complete caparison similar to that of +the chariot horses. All the cavalry wear helmets and cuirasses like the +infantry of the line, but they have no shields; they replace the +floating petticoat by cotton drawers. One-half of them carries the sword +and lance, the other half is armed with a bow and sword. + +"The lance is eight or nine feet long, the bow is shorter than the bow +used by the infantry, and the arrows are scarcely three feet long. +Formerly each mounted archer was accompanied by a servant, mounted like +himself, who led his horse during the battle so as to leave both his +hands free. The art of riding has made such progress during the last few +years that the servant has become useless, and has disappeared from the +armies. Now lancers and bowmen are all trained to guide their steed by +the pressure of the knees, and they may be seen galloping with flying +reins, shooting their arrows as they go, or else halting suddenly, they +quietly discharge the arrow, then turn and gallop off again.... + +"The proportion of the different services is always about the same. +There are, on an average, one hundred foot soldiers to every ten cavalry +and every single chariot; the infantry is really the queen of the +Assyrian battles."[6] + +[Illustration: THRESHOLD--SLAB IN ASSHURBANIPAL'S PALACE.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Sayce: Baby. and Assy., 88. + +[2] Rawlinson: Babylonia. + +[3] This reminds one of the snails, etc., that were crushed and brewed +in small beer for rickets in New England. See Alice Morse Earle, +"Customs and Fashions in Old New England." + +[4] Arnold: Stories of Ancient Peoples, 123. + +[5] The narrative is set back in the days of Assyrian Empire. + +[6] Maspero: Ancient Egypt and Assyria, 320. + + + + +CHAPTER XVII. + + +THE MEDES. + +The Medes belonged to the Indo-European branch of the Aryan race. It is +supposed that they came into Europe from the far east, and thence +migrated to Asia, some time previous to 1000 B.C. They settled a +mountainous tract to the east of Assyria, occupying a district rather +larger than Babylonia and Assyria together. Because of its rugged +mountains, narrow passes, and inclement winter weather, their country +was easily defended against invaders. In the days of Assyrian dominance, +the people of Media maintained uniform independence, notwithstanding the +fact that military kings were annexing territories far and near with +almost irresistible force. And so today, those who live in this +district, remain comparatively free from the government which seeks to +rule them. + +For the history of this ancient nation we are thrown almost wholly upon +the writings of Herodotus, Xenophon and other Greek travellers, for as +yet no antiquarian has attempted to recover Median past from mounds of +buried ruins. Indeed the country has never been left desolate like +Babylonia, but its cities fell to the share of others, and later +generations, finding material for new buildings in the structures of +their predecessors, have left no mounds to allure the historian and +archæologist. Since rich finds in other lands have in recent years +thrown unexpected light upon the past, it has been surmised that beneath +the present cities, in this land of ancient Media, might be recovered +monuments of her early life. So far, however, other fields have proven +more inviting to the explorer and the excavator. + +In spite of the faults of credulence and exaggeration so characteristic +of Herodotus, we must nevertheless turn to his writings and to those of +Xenophon for Median history. + +We have noted that during the eighth century, Assyria made a raid into +Media. The independence of the people was not disturbed however. This +verifies the statement of Herodotus that the Medians made good soldiers, +hardy and well able to defend their land. They were trained to a life +of physical activity, inured to the hardships of a rigorous climate. +Charging on horseback at full speed, they made a formidable defense. + +In their early conflicts they seem to have displayed excessive cruelty +in war, showing no mercy to helpless women or innocent children. As for +plunder, they cared little for it, and Isaiah refers to them as "the +Medes who care not for silver, and as for gold, have no delight in +it."[1] + +By frequent plundering raids into their territory, the Assyrians +incurred the lasting hatred of the Medes, who, urged on by a spirit of +revenge, united in 606 B.C. under a Median prince to aid the king of +Babylonia against the Assyrian monarch. Having defeated the army, the +Medes pursued, and shut the Assyrian force within the walls of Nineveh. +Thereupon they made an assault upon the defenses of the city and carried +the day. The capital of Assyria and all the wealthy cities of the realm +were overrun, plundered and burned, while the surviving inhabitants were +so widely scattered that we hear no more about them. + +Before this the Medes had cared little for luxury and ease, although +they always delighted in a certain barbaric splendor. With the vast +treasure of Nineveh their king now built a palace of extensive +proportions. Its halls and pillars were of woods, its courts wide and +the whole structure magnificent. No wood was left visible, all being +concealed by a coating of silver tiles. Herodotus wrote thus of the +palace walls: + +"The walls enclose the palace, rising in circles, one within the other. +The plan of the place is that each of the walls should out-top the one +beyond it by the battlements. The nature of the ground, which is a +gentle slope, favors this arrangement in some degree, but it was mainly +effected by art. The number of the circles is seven, the royal palace +and the treasuries standing within the last. Of the outer wall, the +battlements are white; of the next, black; of the third, scarlet; of the +fourth, blue; of the fifth, orange; all these are covered with paint. +The last two have their battlements coated respectively with silver and +gold." + +We may gain some idea of the wealth represented by this building when +we learn that the king of Persia carried away the greater portion of the +gold and silver decorations for his palace; Alexander the Great removed +the silver tiling from the roof, and some seventy years later another +conqueror found about $5,000,000 worth of gold and silver plating +overlooked by his predecessors. While no former palace may have exceeded +this in actual outlay of wealth, others may have been more artistic, for +the Medes reached no special architectural skill. + +After the Assyrian conquest, the Median nation soon became weak and +degenerate. The people affected a life of luxury and idleness. The king +lived amidst pomp and ostentatious seclusion; his courtiers and nobles +gave themselves up to immoderate indulgences and amusements. While under +Cyaxares and his father, Media had become a power in Asia, upon the +death of this king, his son Astyages succeeded to the throne. He had +grown up during the later years of ease and had no greater ambition than +to rule the kingdom left him, no more animating impulses than to pass +his days amid the ceremony and studied formality of the Median court. +Astyages seems to have planned neither political activity nor personal +diversion. He never joined in the hunts which were popular with his +courtiers. Rather, he spent his leisure with such entertainment as his +palace afforded and for his administration, depended wholly upon the +reports of his officials. Such was Media when a Persian king, realizing +the real situation, led an army against the country. In connection with +our study of Persia we shall come again to the story of this conquest. + +Polygamy was always allowed by the code of Median laws and morals, while +women seem to have been treated with a certain chivalrous attention and +deference. The civilization of the land was similar to that of Persia, +which nation, it is supposed, sprang originally from the same stock. No +greater difference existed between the two peoples than might be found +between two modern Teutonic nations. + +Education and learning was not valued in either country. Boys were +taught to ride, to hunt, to shoot, and to become proficient in out of +door sports rather than the arts of reading and writing. + +The religion was akin to that of Persia, and the faith of the Persians +was singularly pure. They like the Hebrews, worshipped one God. No +degrading ceremonies and teachings attached to their forms of worship, +as was the case in Egypt and Babylonia. The most ancient writings of the +Zenda-Vesta appear to embody the faith of the Medes, and these will be +considered in connection with the religion of Persia. + +In conclusion, it may be said that the Medes were neither an inventive +nor an ingenious people, nor did they develop a great civilization, +culture, or literature. Indeed we are forced to the conclusion of +Rawlinson: they scarcely contributed an idea or invention to the great +store of knowledge transmitted by the past to the modern world. + +[Illustration: RUINS OF PERSEPOLIS.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Isa. 13, 17. The chapter is late, and, as Duhm says, the fact that +the redactor ascribed it to Isaiah is instructive as regards the want of +critical ability of the _diaskenasts_. Craig. + + + + +CHAPTER XVIII. + + +PERSIA BEFORE THE AGE OF CYRUS. + +The origin and early history of both Medes and Persians were similar. +When first the Persians are mentioned in Assyrian annals, they had +migrated to the region east of Assyria, inhabiting an indefinite +district which later became part of the Median state. At this +time--about the ninth century before the Christian era--they were not +united under one king, but each clan followed the leadership of a chosen +chieftain. As a result of an Assyrian attack, more than twenty of these +chiefs brought tribute and acknowledged the supremacy of the great king. + +Nothing of importance is again heard of them until shortly before the +fall of the Assyrian capital. They were then united into a kingdom, +serving one ruler, and living in what has been called "Persia Proper," +to distinguish the original state from the wide empire which was brought +at length under Persian rule. While free to manage their internal +affairs, they paid tribute to Media, now a vigorous and aggressive +nation. It is plain then, that previous to the fall of Nineveh, the +Persian state had taken no part in Asiatic affairs, and furthermore, was +not yet free and independent. However, in less than one hundred years +her people had gained control over the entire western portion of Asia, +extending their rule from the Indus to the valley of the Nile, while +only the little Greek nation held out against them on the west. + +Before entering upon a study of this rapid imperial expansion, it would +be well for us to get some general impressions of the comparatively +small territory in which the various Persian tribes became welded into a +united people, and of the conditions in the original kingdom wherein the +principles which were to temporarily dominate the ancient world were +developed. + +Persia Proper consisted of an area of about 450 miles in length, and +averaging 250 miles in width. It might have been roughly bounded on the +south and west by the gulf which came to bear its name, while a desert +reached off to the east and north, save where Persian territory touched +upon the Median kingdom. A narrow strip of arid land lay between the +gulf and a mountain range, making up perhaps one eighth of the entire +area. The climate here is hot and dry, the soil marshy, producing little +growth of any sort. The district east of this range was irregularly +divided into highlands and valleys, lofty rocks and winding chasms. +Wherever water was available, vegetation was luxuriant, making the wild +scenery fantastic and attractive. Generally water was scarce, and most +of the year the land lay parched and brown. + +"The region east of the range is of varied character. In places richly +fertile, picturesque, and romantic almost beyond imagination, with +lovely wooded dells, green mountain-sides, and broad plains suited for +the production of almost any crops, it has yet on the whole a +predominant character of sterility and barrenness, especially towards +its more northern and eastern portions. The supply of water is +everywhere scanty. Scarcely any of the streams are strong enough to +reach the sea. After short courses they are either absorbed by the sand +or end in small salt lakes, from which the superfluous water is +evaporated. Much of the country is absolutely without streams, and would +be uninhabitable were it not for the subterranean channels of +spring-water. + +"The most remarkable feature of the country consists in the +extraordinary gorges which pierce the great mountain-chain, and render +possible the establishment of routes across that tremendous barrier. +Scarped rocks rise almost perpendicularly on either side of the mountain +streams, which descend rapidly with frequent cascades and falls. Along +the slight irregularities of these rocks the roads are carried in +zigzags, often crossing the streams from side to side by bridges of a +single arch, which are thrown over profound chasms where the waters +chafe and roar many hundred feet below. The roads have for the most part +been artificially cut in the sides of the precipices, which rise from +the streams sometimes to the height of 2,000 feet. Thus the country +towards the edge of the plateau is peculiarly safe from attack, being +defended on the north and east by vast deserts, and on the south by a +mountain barrier of unusual strength and difficulty. + +"It is in these regions, which combine facility of defence with +pleasantness of climate, that the principal cities of the district have +at all times been placed."[1] + +It appears that nearly one-half of the kingdom was practically unsuited +for habitation, being dry and producing little to sustain life. In these +early times only two or three cities existed, small villages making up +the remaining social centers, while peasants farmed limited portions of +the outlying country where the water supply sufficed to maintain crops. + +Various fruits abounded in the mountainous regions. Peaches were native +to the soil. Grapes grew in profusion, and corn and vegetables were +plentiful. Along the coast fish might be found in large quantities and +constituted a staple article of food throughout the land. The natural +conditions were not sufficiently favorable to allow heavy yields of +grain or to make agriculture foremost among the nation's activities. + +The Persians were active, vivacious people, lacking wholly the repose +and dignified calm so characteristic of the English, for example. They +concealed neither joy nor sorrow, and were immoderate in their +expressions of both. + +Learning and education were given little attention. It has become a +trite and well-known saying that "Persian boys were taught to ride, to +shoot, and to speak the truth." The religion of the people placed truth +first among the virtues. Their steadfast fidelity to a promise excited +wonderment among the nations. Physical, rather than mental, development +was sought, and while in the nation's later life the people gave +themselves up to indolence, passing the hours with personal adornment +and feasting, these pastimes did not characterize their early years. + +Like the Medes, Persian nobles had several wives, and polygamy was the +rule rather than the exception. Women were kept in well-nigh complete +seclusion, and no mention is made of them, nor are they seen in pictures +adorning the palaces. + +The attitude assumed toward the sovereign influenced the very character +of the people. "The Persian king held the same rank and position in the +eyes of his subjects which the great monarch of Western Asia, whoever he +might be, had always occupied from time immemorial. He was the lord and +master, absolute disposer of their lives, liberties, and property; the +sole fountain of law and right, incapable himself of doing wrong, +irresponsible, irresistible--a sort of God on earth; one whose favor was +happiness, at whose frown men trembled, before whom all bowed themselves +down with the lowest and humblest obeisance. + +"The feeling of the Persian towards his king is one of which moderns can +with difficulty form a conception. In Persia the monarch was so much the +State, that patriotism itself was, as it were, swallowed up in loyalty; +and an unquestioning submission, not only to the deliberate will, but to +the merest caprice of the sovereign, was, by habit and education, so +ingrained into the nature of the people that a contrary spirit scarcely +ever manifested itself. In war the safety of the sovereign was the first +thought, and the principal care of all. If the king suffered, all was +lost; if the king escaped, the greatest calamities seemed light and +could be endured with patience. The same cheerful submission +characterized times of peace. It was here that their loyalty became a +defect rather than a virtue. The voice of remonstrance, of rebuke, of +warning, was unheard at Court. Tyranny was allowed to indulge unchecked +in the wildest caprices and extravagances. The father, whose innocent +son was shot before his eyes by the king in pure wantonness, instead of +raising an indignant protest against the crime, felicitated him upon the +excellence of his archery. Thus a tone of servility was engendered +which, sapping self-respect, tended fatally to lower and corrupt the +entire character of the people."[2] + +Such were the tendencies of the embryo state which under the leadership +of a great ruler was soon to burst into sudden and brilliant flower, +absorbing in a single campaign nations which had never before been +united. + + +CYRUS THE GREAT AND THE PERSIAN EMPIRE. + +In ages when monarchs were absolute in the foremost countries of the +world, the personal ability of the king was a matter of far greater +concern than we today realize. In modern times, political and social +changes have had their beginnings in the conditions and desires of the +people. In the remote years we are now studying, the people were less +considered, and their wishes seldom heard. The personal character of the +king determined the policy of the ancient state. We have already seen +how the welfare--the very fate of Egypt, Babylonia and Assyria depended +upon their rulers. Even more pronounced was this in Persia, where +subjects, including nobles and princes, acted in unthinking submission +to a degree unknown in other lands. + +In taking up the career of Cyrus the Great we are largely dependent upon +the writings of Herodotus and Xenophon. Of Herodotus we have learned +something, and concerning Xenophon we may note that besides being a +writer and a traveller, he was also an experienced and able general. +Herodotus lived some fifty years after the death of Cyrus, and Xenophon +was thirty years younger than Herodotus. Both Greeks wrote at length of +the great Persian King. + +When Astyages ascended the throne of Media, Persia was a mere +tribute-paying kingdom, insignificant not only in political strength, +but in social life, wealth, and culture. It is supposed that Cyrus was +sent to the Median court as a hostage from a tribute land. His father +ruled in Persia, and we are told that he was greatly impressed as a boy +by the difference between the two countries. The subjects over whom his +father ruled were many of them soldiers whose days were spent with +training and physical exercise. They ate and drank moderately, and while +they lacked the culture and refinement of the northern kingdom, they +were just coming into the strength and vigour which the Medians lost +upon their conquest of Assyria and subsequent abundance of wealth. + +Tradition pictures the youth clinging to the simple habits of his early +life, and caring little for the pomp and ceremony around him. He +delighted in riding and liked the hunt best of all amusements, while he +shortly became the companion of Astyages during the king's leisure +hours, bringing refreshing life and boyish candor into a degenerate +court. + +Some years later Cyrus returned home and, shortly after, a faction of +the Medes who had become devoted to the Persian prince and felt +dissatisfied with the tyranny of their king, informed Cyrus that if he +would bring an army against the Medes, they would cause the Median +forces to desert to him. Another account says that Cyrus himself planned +the conquest while at the Median court, and having feasted his +attendants and led them to drink heavily, escaped to Persia, where he +soon persuaded his father to march against the Medes. In either case, it +would seem that the prince had learned the true condition of degenerated +Media, and determined to free his own land from the hated tribute +service--establishing its independence. + +In the battle which was waged against the two people, Astyages was taken +captive, and when the majority of the soldiers went over to the Persian +side, the remaining soldiers fled. Cyrus allowed Astyages to retain his +own personal attendants, and permitted him to live in a style befitting +his recent position. Under guard of Persian soldiers, he was free to go +about at will. + +It is probable that Cyrus had at first no greater ambition than to free +Persia from tribute imposed by Media, but the desire for conquest once +awakened never ceases while lands remain unwon. In conquering Media, all +territories of Assyria fell to Cyrus' portion. The Medes had held lands +to the river Halys on the northwest. Beyond this boundary stream the +empire of Lydia had been growing under the rule of Croesus. + +Croesus has become proverbial for his wealth. As he extended the +boundaries of Lydia, he grew wealthier still, until his resources +exceeded all estimate. Having lost a favorite son, he lived in seclusion +until a sense of approaching danger roused him to defend his kingdom. +The river Halys was a narrow stream--too small by far to prove a lasting +barrier against an aggressive nation. To spare his land the ravages of +war, Croesus determined to invade the land of his rival. He thought best +to consult the oracle at Delphi before entering upon such a serious +campaign. Having sent costly presents to Delphi, Croesus inquired +whether or not it would be safe for him to proceed against Persia. The +reply was that if Croesus crossed the Halys and carried war into Persia, +a mighty kingdom would be overthrown, and that he would do well to form +an alliance with the strongest Greek state. + +Regarding the answer as favorable, he sent word to Sparta that, since +he was advised by the Delphian oracle to seek the strongest Greek state +as an ally, he solicitated their assistance. These Spartans were unlike +any soldiers we have yet met; they fought for glory, not for plunder. +They were glad, of course, to be considered the strongest Grecian state, +and sent the assistance asked. With such re-enforcements, Croesus +crossed the Halys and met Cyrus who had known of the Lydian movement and +was ready for an attack. The battle was fought near Pterie; both sides +lost heavily, and Croesus thought Cyrus was too crippled to longer +advance, so he himself returned to Sardis, his capital, to make plans +for a new campaign the following year. Cyrus waited until the Lydian +troops were largely disbanded, and then suddenly appeared before Sardis. +Consternation swept over the Lydians, but they trusted to their cavalry +which was numerous and well disciplined. Cyrus had also taken the Lydian +cavalry into account, and had ordered his camels which carried the +equipment of war, to face the horse, and if possible, to put them to +flight. In the battle fought such was the result--the horses turned in +confusion upon the charge of the camels, and the Lydian army withdrew +into Sardis to undergo a siege. They expected to win in the long run, +for they had sufficient stores of all kinds, and they hoped that outside +aid would come sooner or later. Cyrus understood the danger of delay, +and determined to carry the city by assault. By scaling a nearly +perpendicular embankment, entrance to Sardis was gained, and Croesus +fell into the hands of the great Persian conqueror. He was given +considerate treatment. Few cruelties disfigure the pages of Persian +history, and never were severe punishments meted out wholesale to +captives in war. Those who betrayed confidence were harshly dealt with, +and rebels seldom escaped, but the Persians were generally fair-minded. +Cyrus was uniformly mild and generous, lacking the inordinate pride of +most Oriental monarchs, treating his subjects with kindness. Croesus +became one of his trusted companions, and accompanied him upon his later +campaigns. The story of the funeral pyre is probably an invention of the +Greeks, or, if it had any foundation whatever, it may be that Croesus +requested such an honorable end in preference to swearing allegiance to +an unknown conqueror. + +When measures had been taken for the government of Lydia, attention +turned to Babylonia. There, as we have seen, the crown was worn by a +king who was more interested in the temples of the gods than in the +immediate welfare of his nation. His son Belshazzar made some defense +outside the capital, but a faction within the city, out of sympathy with +the existing government, allowed the Persians to take possession. Cyrus +now allowed the Jews to return to Jerusalem and there to rebuild their +temple and to make their homes in the land of their fathers. For this +reason the Hebrews had only words of praise for Cyrus. To the number of +49,697, with their property and possessions, they set upon their long +march--a peaceful band which encountered no opposition throughout its +course. The event stands unparalleled in history. + +Had Cyrus lived, he would doubtless have added Egypt to his empire. This +was left for his son to accomplish. The great king fell fighting for +territories in the north. + +In conclusion, it may be said that Cyrus is the first great conqueror we +have so far met who was kind and humane. His policy towards the +conquered stands out in marked relief to the butcheries and punishments +which characterized Assyria. Notwithstanding, all charges of selfish +motives which have belonged to those who have sought to become +world-conquerors, attach to Cyrus. Urged on by personal vanity and hope +of becoming supreme, he considered only the final issue and allowed his +ambition to triumph over his nobler nature. Some years later Alexander +emulated his example, and one hundred years ago Napoleon undertook the +same gigantic task--greater in his day--of building up a world-empire. +The motives prompting all three were the same, and in each case the +empires, so quickly brought into being, vanished as quickly as they +arose. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Rawlinson: Persia. + +[2] Rawlinson: Persia. + + + + +CHAPTER XIX. + + +WAR WITH GREECE. + +Upon the death of Cyrus, in 529 B.C., his son Cambyses succeeded to the +throne, while a younger brother Smerdis, was left to supervise certain +provinces, according to his father's wishes. The conquest of Egypt had +been planned by Cyrus and would undoubtedly have been undertaken by him +had he lived. Cambyses at once began preparations to this end and these +occupied some considerable period. + +This young prince who had just come into absolute power, apparently +inherited all his father's failings and few of his virtues. He had never +learned to control himself and that omened ill for those who became his +subjects. His jealousy, suspicion, cruelty, and arrogant pride +contrasted strikingly with the generous, kindly temperament of Cyrus. +Before setting out for Egypt, he had his brother secretly murdered. No +rumor of this crime reached his subjects, however. + +Egypt at this time was not able to defend herself against an army that +had become experienced and confident under the command of Cyrus; +consequently, the country fell rapidly into the hands of the new Persian +king. Far from showing the leniency of his father toward the vanquished, +he marked his victories with needless cruelty. + +The two great powers of Africa besides Egypt were the states of Ethiopia +in the south, and Carthage in the northwest. Of the former we learned +something in The Story of Egypt; of the latter we shall learn later on. +Suffice it to say here that the Carthaginians were colonists of the +Phoenicians, and, like them, were traders whose commerce penetrated to +all lands washed by the Mediterranean Sea. + +When Egypt lay at his feet, Cambyses resolved to make himself supreme in +the whole continent of Africa--only the northern portion of the +continent was then known. Accordingly, he directed troops to advance +against these two powers which he thought alone worthy of his notice. +Now Carthage could only be taken by sea, and the king was limited to +Phoenician vessels, manned by Phoenician sailors. These men promptly +refused to make war on their own colony, whose interests were so closely +interwoven with those of their country. Their stand must have been +united and firm, for Cambyses found himself obliged to abandon his +project. The expedition to the south was disheartening. The Persian +soldiers were unused to the hot sands and intense sun of Nubia and great +loss and discouragement overtook the army. Those who withstood the heat +were too exhausted by the march to accomplish anything. The king +remained in Egypt. He was constantly haunted by his crime against his +brother. He realized his unpopularity with his subjects, and feared that +disaster would at any time overtake him. His fears were shortly +reflected in his soldiers, who having learned that they were no longer +led by one who could bring victory in the face of opposing obstacles, +lost heart and fought indifferently. + +Herodotus wrote at length concerning the conduct of Cambyses in Egypt +and his stories were long credited. Tales were told of Cambyses' +profaning Egyptian temples, desecrating the tombs of the dead, stabbing +the apis-bull with his own sword, outraging the priests and inflicting +such injury upon the nobles as only the madness which they attribute to +him, could explain. In recent years these statements have been modified +by investigation. An Egyptologist of first rank claims that the tale +regarding the apis-bull was not well founded. Unquestionably Cambyses +was brutal in his treatment of a mild and gentle people, and he may have +easily incurred the wrath of the priesthood by his contempt for their +religion, certain features of which he regarded as mere folly. It is +also probable that his deeds have been greatly exaggerated by those who +had cause to hate him for his interference with a land to which he had +no just claim. Instead of being insane, he no doubt displayed his +ungovernable temper and in moments of rage, gave orders which he would +gladly have recalled in another mood. + +While Cambyses loitered in Egypt, a report spread through the empire +that Smerdis had been crowned, and that Cambyses need no longer be +regarded as king. One of the Magians, a priesthood of Persia which +represented a more material form of worship than the teachings of +Zoroaster allowed, had attempted to usurp the throne in Cambyses' +absence. The real king, feeling depressed with his partial victory, +doubting the fidelity of his army, confessed the murder of his brother +to his ministers. Having thus disclosed the presumption of the +pretender, Cambyses committed suicide. + +Darius, a prince of the house of Cyrus, was chosen to succeed. This was +a choice likely to prove acceptable to the people, for he was the only +legitimate heir to the throne. Herodotus explained with all gravity that +the counsellors of state, of whose number Darius was one, agreed to +determine the succession after this fashion: they would each go on +horseback at sunrise to the city gate, and he whose horse neighed first +should be proclaimed king! + + +THE MAGIAN WAS KILLED. + +When the people finally learned the truth and realized how great a +deception had been practised, they turned against his priesthood and +instigated a general massacre. The worship they had established was cast +aside and the purer faith of ancient Persia was restored. The pretender +had compelled the Jews to cease labor on the new temple they were +building in Jerusalem. Darius gave them permission to continue. So +similar were the religions of the Hebrews and Persians, that there could +be no friction between the two nations on that ground in an age when +nearly all religions were polytheistic. + +Darius was long occupied with internal disturbances. Revolts were put +down with severity. When the government of the empire was firmly +established, it was superior to any before known in Asia. The whole +empire was divided into satrapies, or provinces--each under a resident +governor; these governors made frequent reports to the capital and the +opportunity for revolts was slight. + +Internal concerns thus settled, Darius turned to conquest. He conducted +a campaign in the east, pushing Persia's possessions to the banks of the +Indus. + +It was natural that the king should have cast longing eyes westward, +toward the beautiful isles and states of Greece. Long before the age of +Cyrus, Greek colonists had settled in Asia Minor. They had fallen to the +share of Persia when Lydia was conquered, and Darius had organized their +local government so completely that the freedom-loving Greeks were +oppressed by it and in 500 B.C. revolted. These Greek cities appealed to +Athens for aid in their struggle for liberty. A few soldiers were sent, +and with such aid they displaced the Persian government and destroyed +Sardis. Darius sent an army to put down the revolt, and the city which +had led the struggle was destroyed. The king of Persia now determined to +punish Athens for having given help to the revolting Greek cities of +Asia Minor. Accordingly, he fitted out an expedition to conquer Greece. +The naval forces were wrecked in a storm and the land forces were routed +by hostile tribes en route. A second expedition was prepared, more +numerous and better equipped than the first. Before dispatching it, +however, Darius sent heralds to the various Greek states to inquire if +they would submit peacefully. They replied with great scorn. In 490 B.C. +the Persian king sent 300,000 soldiers to conquer Greece. The battle of +Marathon was fought, and owing to the skill of Miltiades, the Greeks +won. Four years later Darius died and Xerxes ruled in his stead. To him +was left the duty of wiping out the inglorious defeat of the Persian +arms. Not until 480 B.C. were the armies ready for what was expected to +be a great conquest. + +It has been said that never in the history of the world has such a +motley array of soldiers been gathered together under one commander. All +nations subservient to Persia were represented, and while Herodotus may +have overstated their number, we may accept his statement that it was +the largest force ever thus far marshalled together. At the defense of +Thermopylæ the Persians learned the character of their opponents. A +little band of three hundred Spartans under command of Leonidas held the +entire Persian army at bay in a narrow pass for two days. When the army +spread out over the land, the Greeks realized their inability to cope +with it and decided to hazard all on a naval engagement. The famous +battle of Salamis followed, in which 1,000 men-of-war belonging to the +Persians were destroyed or put to flight by 300 Greek vessels. Xerxes +watched the fight from a throne hastily constructed for him on the +shore. When at night his naval forces withdrew to Asia, he could +scarcely credit the outcome. Byron has immortalized the occasion in a +stanza: + + "A king sate on the rocky brow + Which looks o'er sea-born Salamis; + And ships, by thousands, lay below, + And men in nations--all were his! + He counted them at break of day-- + And when the sun set where were they?" + +Leaving a strong land force to conquer the Greeks the next year, Xerxes +returned to Persia. By the following spring the Greeks had gathered +their forces, and inspired by their glorious victory at Salamis, they +defeated the Persian army in the battle of Platæa. Thereupon the Greek +cities in Asia Minor asserted their freedom, and Greek independence +shone forth triumphantly before the world. + +"But this glorious struggle and triumph of the few lifted to superhuman +heroism by an ennobling moral principle, as against the merely brutal +force of numbers, does not properly belong any more to the history of +the East, nor to that of remote antiquity; it is the dawn of a new star +in the West, and of times which, from their spirit, actors, and +achievements, may almost be called modern. At the bottom of the new +departure lies the difference between the ideals--the conceptions of +beauty and dignity of the political and social life--set up by the +Oriental and Western man: 'A good master!' is the prayer and ideal of +the Asiatic. 'No master! Liberty at any price, as the highest good in +itself!' is that of the Greek. And the Greek wins the day, for his own +time, and for his own race, and for future times and races to come."[1] + +The following period, embracing nearly 150 years, was a time of decay +and degeneracy. With Xerxes began the corruption of the Persian +court--the licentiousness, assassinations, murders, and accompanying +crimes which soon undermined the entire social order. Conditions were +such that rulers were no longer strong, vigorous men, full of life and +ambition--save indeed those usurpers who occasionally appropriated the +reins of government. The days of Persian greatness were over, and under +guidance of one or another of the princes, the state plunged on to +ruin. In 336 B.C., Alexander, the young king of Macedonia, embarked upon +his world conquests, and the Persian Empire merged into the Empire of +Greece. + +[Illustration: THE PERSIAN KING (WITH ATTENDANTS).] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Ragozin: Persia. + + + + +CHAPTER XX. + + +MANNERS AND CUSTOMS AMONG THE PERSIANS. + +There were wide differences between the civilization of the Persians and +of the dwellers in the Tigris-Euphrates valleys. The Persian despised +trade. His religion taught him to speak the truth, and he regarded +commercial dealings as incompatible with this requirement. No shops made +the principal streets in his country the scenes of hot disputes +concerning prices and wares. The few shops which existed at all were +tucked into obscure places on unfrequented by-ways. It naturally +followed that there was an absence of those industrial centers which in +Babylonia produced rare stuffs, delicate fabrics and ornaments. Swarms +of slaves provided whatever was required by the wealthy, and it was the +Persian's boast that his sword brought him the luxury of the world in +tribute. + +It has been estimated that the total population of Persia did not exceed +2,000,000. A small proportion of these were peasants who tilled the +arable soil. Agriculture was held honorable and was encouraged by the +national religion. The great majority of men were soldiers. + +Since the soldier's life was thought to be worthy of a Persian, we may +do well to consider whatever features characterized the service in this +empire. Probably because of the mountainous country in which they dwelt, +chariots were never popular with these people. Ordinarily they were +impractical, being suited to plains and accessible places. Nevertheless +a few were used and these were furnished with scythes attached to the +axle. Chariots formed the front line of defense. Behind them the foot +soldiers were arranged in squares, with cavalry on the wings. One +commander--the king, if he were present,--gave commands to all from his +position in the center. This was an evident fault, for, were he killed +or in any way disabled, the entire army sometimes took fright and fled. +When the charge was made, the chariots dashed ahead, hewing right and +left. They seldom failed to break the solid line drawn up before them, +whereupon the infantry and horse followed, taking advantage of the +confusion thus wrought. If the regular line of Persian soldiery was +broken or in any way disturbed, since they had no reinforcements in a +second division, the battle was almost always lost. To prevent such an +occurrence was their aim. It has been said that the Orientals of this +time could not be trusted to fight unless they were well supported at +the rear--hence the custom of forming one deep line. The native Persians +were brave soldiers, but their ranks were generally composed largely of +subjects levied throughout the empire. Scantily clothed Nubians fought +with clubs and stones in the same army with well-equipped natives. Drawn +up by nation, in native custom, it is not surprising that they presented +a sight marvellous indeed to the foreigner. + +The contrast between Greek and Persian military tactics was marked. The +Greeks trusted to their solid, heavily-armed phalanx; the Persians tried +to equip themselves as lightly as possible, and trusted to their agility +and swiftness of motion. Their leniency toward captives has been +mentioned before. They found no delight in mere slaughter. + +Literature and learning had little part in the life of the average +citizen. The boy was left with his mother until five years of age. Then +his education began. He rose before dawn and was trained in running, +throwing stones, and shooting with an arrow. At seven he was taught to +ride, and in Persia this implied much. He must be able to spring on a +horse running at full speed, to shoot accurately when under rapid +motion. In course of a few years' practice it was not strange that a +Persian was never so at ease as on his horse. Furthermore, he was +compelled to endure severe hardships--sleeping under the open sky, +eating only one meal in two days, making long marches, and swimming +streams burdened with his weapons. At fifteen years of age he was +considered a man and was enlisted in the army, where he ordinarily +served until fifty. + +During the period of the Persian empire, a numerous body of officials +made up the king's retinue. Besides the farmers, soldiers and officials, +there were many slaves, who completed the social body. They performed +all kinds of labor, built the palaces and made fine roads throughout the +realm. + +The Persian court has probably never been excelled in ceremony and pomp. +Ceremony surrounded the monarch during hours of retirement and seclusion +as well as when before the public eye. + +"The officers in most close attendance on the monarch's person were, in +war, his charioteer, his stool-bearer, his bow-bearer, and his +quiver-bearer; in peace, his parasol-bearer, and his fan-bearer, who was +also privileged to carry what has been termed the 'royal-handkerchief.' +Among the officers of the Court, less closely attached to the person of +the monarch than these, may be mentioned the steward of the household; +the groom or master of the horse; the keeper of the women's department, +the king's 'eyes' and 'ears'--persons whose business it was to keep him +informed on all matters of importance; his scribes, who wrote his +letters, his messengers who went his errands, his ushers, his tasters, +who tried the various dishes set before him lest they should be +poisoned; his cup-bearers, who handed him wine and tasted of it; his +chamberlains who assisted him to bed; and his musicians, who amused him +with song and harp. Besides these, the Court comprised various classes +of guards, doorkeepers, huntsmen, grooms, cooks, and other domestic +servants in abundance, together with a vast multitude of visitors, +guests, princes, captives of rank, foreign refugees, ambassadors, and +travellers. We are assured that the king fed daily within the precincts +of his palace as many as 15,000 persons, and that the cost of each day's +food was 400 talents. A thousand beasts were slaughtered for each +repast, besides abundance of feathered game and poultry.... On all +occasions the guests, if they liked, carried away any portion of the +food set before them, conveying it to their homes where it served to +support their families."[1] + +Prescribed etiquette governed everyone, from the king to his meanest +subject. The august king must dine alone, or at best have with him the +queen and her son. He could be approached only with certain ceremony. +Ceremony and form were by no means confined to royalty and the court. +Men of different rank met each other with established form and +salutation; certain tasks could be performed only by persons who could +perform no other tasks. This led to a large body of idlers around the +court, ready to take part in any intrigue or conspiracy. They gathered +around the homes of the wealthy as well as the palace of the +king--water-bearers, adorners, awakers, and each rigidly confined +himself to his single duty. + +[Illustration: DAMASCUS SWORD-MAKER. +Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y.] + +In early times the Persians indulged in a single meal each day. The +custom continued later, but now the feast began with the morning and +ceased only with night. The amount of wine a man could drink became his +boast. In place of the regular habits, frugal fare and constant exercise +of early times, were substituted the prolonged feast, all kinds of +indulgencies, and idleness. + +The royal harem provided apartments for the king's several wives in +early years. Towards the close of the empire, provision had to be made +for some three hundred and sixty--if we may trust one writer. The +jealousies, differences and intrigues which arose from this quarter can +scarcely be imagined. Each wished her son to be given preference, and +this ambition, together with the restlessness accompanying enforced +seclusion, stimulated crime and fostered conspiracies. The favorite of +the king might toy with the lives of his subjects--even with the lives +of those dear to him, at will. No subject in the land had reason to +think his life secure--least of all, he who was today powerful. + +For diversions--other than Court intrigues--the king turned to the hunt. +Dice throwing was the national game, and the carving of wood was a +frequent pastime. Since little was known of books, men were forced to +find some means of passing hours unoccupied with national affairs or +private concerns. + +Dress had been simple in early years. As time went on, it became more +complex; even matters of cosmetics and perfumes were later deemed of +weighty importance. + +There is more to attract us in the Persian state during years of its +earlier simplicity, while yet the soldier found his deepest satisfaction +in military skill, bodily exercise and great endurance, than in the +period of imperial greatness, when the court of Persia exceeded in +splendor anything since known. + + +THE RELIGION OF PERSIA. + +Some time between 1000-650 B.C., it is supposed there lived a religious +reformer by the name of Zarathushtra, or Zoroaster. Both his birth-place +and birth-date are alike unknown, but it is supposed that he lived in +Bactria, a country which reached indefinitely along the Caspian Sea. + +Little has come down to us concerning the great teacher himself. He +early felt called to his religious mission. Retiring from the world, +tradition says he lived for some years upon a remote mountain, and here +a divine vision came to him. He communed with Ormuzd, the spirit of +Good, and knew that his work was to reclaim man, who in blindness had +wandered away from truth and light, and to bring him into new +relationship with the divine spirit which was ever ready to win mankind +to himself. + +At the age of thirty, Zoroaster was prepared to preach the new law. For +ten years he wandered about, but found few to listen to him. His family +and friends were gradually won to the faith he taught, and returning to +the Caspian Sea region, he found more willing hearers. + +The conceptions from which he had evolved his faith were already +accepted to some extent by those among whom he came. He taught that +there were two spirits--Ormuzd or Good, embodying all truth, life, +beauty, order, light; and Ahriman, or Evil, including all darkness, +death, falsity and disorder. Life was a struggle between these two +contending forces. "He laid before his people their own thoughts in all +the pure transparency of crystal waters cleared from muddiness and +unwholesome admixtures in the filter of his own transcendent and +searching mind. He guided their groping hands, and made them grasp the +truth for which they were blindly reaching. Such is the mission of every +true prophet. Had the people not been ripe for his teaching, he could +not have secured a hearing, or made himself understood; the people, on +the other hand, could never have worked out unaided the ideal to which +they were vaguely and only half-consciously drawn. They listened and +understood, and were won, because, to use the expression of a great +writer, they had in themselves the seed of the thoughts which the +prophet expounded to them."[2] + +Seven times divine beings brought messages to Zoroaster. "They inculcate +the doctrine of purity of body as well as of soul; they enjoin the care +of useful animals, especially the cow and the dog; they emphasize the +necessity of keeping the earth, the fire and the water undefiled; and +from several of their ordinances we can see that Zoroaster was a civil +reformer as well as a spiritual guide. Foremost among the commandments +is the abhorrence of falsehood, the universal obligation to speak the +truth. This is one of the most fundamental of the ethical tenets which +form the basis of the entire ancient Persian religious system."[3] + +The writings which contained the teachings of Zoroaster are commonly +known as the Zenda-Vesta. The name is misleading however, and should +read Avesta-u-Zend, which translated means: "Law and Commentary." Among +students the compilation is generally called the Avesta. Even a casual +reading of the Old Testament reveals the fact that the various books +composing it were written by different writers, writing under radically +different circumstances, and at widely distant periods. The same is true +of the Avesta. One of its books was probably written either by Zoroaster +himself or under his supervision. This is the Gathas, or book of songs, +and is the most ancient portion of the entire collection. Sermons, +prayers, and sayings are therein contained, some of which possess poetic +beauty and rare purity. Other books were added from time to time, until +the Avesta is said to have been made up of twenty-one books, and to have +covered 1,200 cowhides. + +When Alexander the Great conquered Persia in 332 B.C., elated by his +victory, and having drunk heavily of wine, he allowed his soldiers to +burn the capital, and with it perished much of greatest value. Most of +the Persian literature was then destroyed, together with the noblest +specimens of Persian architecture and decoration. While cities were few, +it seems remarkable that the only copies of the Avesta were burned. For +several centuries following, the teachings of this sacred book lived +only in the memories of priests. Finally in 325 A.D., a council was +called to take measures to have these ancient doctrines committed to +writing. Naturally the result was fragmentary and incomplete. Only +those portions of the original text which had been in daily use proved +to be well remembered. These were mainly prayers and invocations. The +priests in all probability, seized the opportunity to insert whatever +forms of worship and modified beliefs they desired to emphasize. Their +final effort, while far from satisfactory, embraces all which now +remains of the religion of Zoroaster and his followers. + +In 636 A.D. the Mohammedan Arabs made a religious crusade and undertook +to blot out the old Persian religion. Most of the descendants of the +early nation yielded to the fire and sword. A small portion of them took +refuge in India, where they were allowed to worship as they chose. Only +with them was the Avesta preserved. These Parsis have been called "the +ruins of a people, as their sacred books are the ruins of a religion." +Of them Justi writes: "There is no religious body in the world whose +practice is so completely in harmony with their moral code." + +The collection of Zend Fragments, commonly known as the Zend-Avesta, +falls into two parts: The Avesta, properly so-called, which contains +(1) compilations of religious laws and mythical tales; (2) collections +of litanies for the sacrifice; (3) litanies and hymns written in a +language older than the rest of the Avesta. Secondly, these writings +contain the Small Avesta, made up of short prayers, recited by all the +faithful. It was fitting that these collections of fragments be +preserved, so far as possible, in their original dialect, but since +these were no longer intelligible even to the educated, the Zend, or +explanation--commentary--was attached in the prevailing tongue. +Otherwise the greater portion of the work could not have been +understood. Some of the creation stories were not included in the +Avesta, but were gathered together with other myths in the Bundehesh. + +All worshippers are classified by the Avesta as followers of +Ormuzd--Good,--or Ahriman--Evil. One could either stand for good or +against it. "Now shall I proclaim unto you, O ye all that here approach +me, what the wise should lay to their hearts; the songs of praise and +the sacrificial rites which pious men pay the Lord, and the sacred +truths and ordinances, that what was secret until now may appear in the +light 'Hear with your ears that which is best, and test it with a clear +understanding, before each man decides for himself between the two +teachings.' + +"The two Spirits, the Twins, skilfully created, in the beginning, Good +and Evil, in thought, in speech, in deed. And, between these two, the +wise have made the right choice; not so the senseless. If, O men, you +lay to your hearts these ordinances which Ormuzd instituted, and the +good and evil, and the long torments which await the followers of +falsehood, and the bliss that must come to the holders of the true +faith, it will go well with you." + +Followers of Zoroaster abhorred idolatry. No image of their God +corrupted their conceptions. In early times they built no temples, +having only altars whereupon sacrifices were made. Darius often mentions +Ahuramazda (Hormuzd) in his inscriptions as the highest god of the +Persians, and it is highly probable that Cyrus was also a worshipper, a +fact which made him sympathetic toward the religion of the Jews and +accounts for his willingness that they rebuild a temple in Jerusalem for +the worship of Yahweh. + +In later years, forms and symbols crept into the service, for abstract +teachings did not hold the masses of the people. Fire was conceived to +be a symbol of the God of Light, and even today there seems to be a +certain charm in the conception that "a pure and undefiled flame is +certainly the most sublime natural representation of Him who is in +Himself Eternal Light." There must have been a sublimity in the sight of +the pure flames, rising to heaven from the mountain-tops, while prayers +and hymns of praise were poured out to the one great Spirit, by whatever +name known. + +As days of degeneracy overtook Persia, the religion was affected by the +general lassitude and decay. A modernized form of the early faith is +found today among some 100,000 worshippers in Arabia and India. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Rawlinson: Persia. + +[2] Ragozin: Media and Persia. + +[3] Jackson: Persia, the Land and Its History. + + +A HYMN. + + "We worship Ahura Mazda (Ormuzd), the pure, the master of purity. + + "We praise all good thoughts, all good words, all good deeds which + are or shall be; and we likewise keep clean, and pure all that is + good. + + "O Ormuzd, thou true, happy being! We strive to think, to speak, and + to do only such actions as may be best fitted to promote the two + lives (the life of the body and of the soul). + + "We beseech the spirit of earth for the sake of these our best works + to grant us beautiful and fertile fields, to the believer as well as + to the unbeliever, to him who has riches as well as to him who has + no possessions." + + +FROM THE AVESTA. PART I. + + "O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Which is the first + place where the Earth feels most happy?" + + Ahura Mazda, the Good Principle, answered: "It is the place whereon + one of the faithful steps forward, O Zoroaster, with the holy wood + in his hand,[1] the baresma in his hand,[2] the holy meat in his + hand,[3] the holy mortar in his hand,[4] fulfilling the law with + love, and beseeching aloud Mithra.[5]" + + "O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Which is the second + place where the Earth feels most happy?" + + Ahura Mazda answered: "It is the place whereon one of the faithful + erects a house with a priest therein, with cattle, with a wife, with + children, and good herds within; and wherein afterwards the cattle + go on thriving, holiness is thriving, fodder is thriving, the dog is + thriving, the wife is thriving, the child is thriving, the fire is + thriving, and every blessing of life is thriving." + + "O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Which is the third + place where the Earth feels most happy?" + + Ahura Mazda answered: "It is the place where one of the faithful + cultivates most corn, grass and fruit, O Zoroaster! where he waters + ground that is too dry, and dries ground that is too wet." + + "O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Which is the fourth + place where the Earth feels most happy?" + + Ahura Mazda answered: "It is the place where there is most increase + of flocks and herds." + + "O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Which is the first + place where the Earth feels sorest grief?" + + Ahura Mazda answered: "It is the neck of Arezura,[6] whereon the + hosts of fiends rush forth to the burrow of the Drug.[7]" + + "O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Which is the second + place where the Earth feels sorest grief?" + + Ahura Mazda answered: "It is the place where most corpses of dogs + and of men lie buried." + + "O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Which is the fifth + place where the Earth feels sorest grief?" + + Ahura Mazda answered: "It is the place whereon the wife and children + of the faithful, O Zoroaster, are driven along the way of captivity, + the dry, the dusty way, and lift up a voice of wailing." + + "O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! Who is the first that + rejoices the Earth with greatest joy?" + + Ahura Mazda answered: "It is he who digs out of it most corpses of + dogs and men." + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Food for the altar fire. + +[2] Sacred twigs held by the priest while reciting prayers. + +[3] Meat for sacrifice. + +[4] Used for crushing the Haoma, an intoxicating plant, whose juice is +used by the faithful. + +[5] God of good fields and pastures. + +[6] Mount at the gate of hell whence demons rush forth. + +[7] Hell. + + +ANCIENT HYMN FROM THE AVESTA. + + "I am the Keeper; I am the Creator and the Maintainer; I am the + Discerner; I am the most beneficent Spirit. + + My name is the bestower of health; my name is the best bestower of + health. + + My name is the Holy; my name is the most Holy. + + My name is the Glorious; my name is the most Glorious. + + My name is the far-seeing; my name is the Farthest-seeing. + + My name is Holiness; my name is the Great one; my name is the good + Sovereign; my name is the best of Sovereigns. + + My name is the Wise One; my name is the Wisest of the Wise; my name + is He who does good for a long time. + + These are my names. + + And he who in this material world, O Zoroaster! shall recite and + pronounce these names of mine either by day or by night; + + He who shall pronounce them when he rises up or when he lays him + down; when he lays him down or when he rises up; when he binds on + the sacred girdle, or when he unbinds the sacred girdle; when he + goes out of his dwelling-place, or when he goes out of his town, or + when he goes out of his country and comes into another country; + + _That_ man, neither in that day nor in that night shall be wounded + by the weapons of the foe...; not the knife, not the cross-bow, not + the arrow, not the sword, not the club, not the sling-stone shall + reach him and wound him. + + But these names shall come in to keep him from behind and to keep + him in front ... from the evil ones, bent on mischief, and from that + fiend which is all death--Angra Mainyu. + + It will be as if there were a thousand men watching over one man." + + --_Trans. Zend-Avesta: Sacred Books of the East. + Max Muller, ed. V._ 4, 23, 31. + +[Illustration: PART OF ARCHER'S FRIEZE IN AN ANCIENT PERSIAN PALACE.] + + + + +CHAPTER XXI. + + +CONTRIBUTIONS OF BABYLONIA, ASSYRIA AND PERSIA TO MODERN CIVILIZATION. + +It is often difficult to correctly estimate the power exerted by a +statesman upon his country. The movements he has espoused, the reforms +he may have championed, the institutions he helped to call into being, +all stand as monuments to his memory. But the subtle effects of his +influence, his personality and character upon his own generation and +others still to come, are seldom understood or adequately judged. In the +case of a nation the task becomes still more complicated, and we cannot +today know how many of our ideas, inventions, and attainments have been +shaped by nations whose light went out long centuries ago. Nevertheless, +our inability to estimate these various inheritances aright need not +deter us from an attempt to classify such bequeathments as are +universally acknowledged, and we may be sure that the present world owes +much to the earliest nations of Western Asia. Their contributions, +however, have not come down to us directly, but have been passed along, +like legends, from one people to another, until their present form +scarcely suggests their origins. + +Let us consider first our indebtedness to Babylonia. In recent years +discoveries in the Euphrates valley and the mastery of the cuneiform +style of writing have given us masses of material wherefrom to +reconstruct the past. Not only has light thus been thrown upon the early +history of Babylonia and Assyria, but aid has been rendered biblical +study. The tribal life of the Hebrews, and the civilization of other +contemporary peoples has been better understood because of these +revelations. However, acquisitions of the last century have had no part +in molding modern civilization, and we pass on to matters of earlier +significance. + +No people could have worked as diligently in the field of science as the +Babylonians did and failed to leave important results of their +investigations. "In _Geometry_ the Chaldeans made about the same +progress as the Egyptians; in _Arithmetic_ more. Their notation +combined the decimal and duodecimal systems. Sixty was a favorite unit, +used as the hundred is by us. Scientific _Medicine_ was hindered by the +belief in charms and amulets; and even _Astronomy_ was studied chiefly +as a means of fortune-telling by the stars,--so that in Europe through +the Middle Ages an astrologer was known as a Chaldean. However, the +level plains and clear skies, as in Egypt, invited to an early study of +the constellations, and some important progress was made. As we get from +the Egyptians our year and months, so from the Chaldeans we get the +week, with its 'day of rest for the heart,' as they called the seventh +day, and the division of day and night into twelve hours each, with the +subdivisions into minutes. They also invented the water clock and the +sundial. They foretold eclipses, made star maps, and marked out on the +heavens the apparent yearly path of the sun. The zodiacal 'signs' of our +almanacs commemorate these early astronomers. Every great city had its +lofty observatory and its royal astronomer; and in Babylon, in 331 B.C., +Alexander the Great found a continuous series of observations running +back nineteen hundred and three years. + +"To a degree peculiar among the ancients, the men of the Euphrates made +practical use of their science. They understood the lever and pulley, +and used the arch in vaulted drains and aqueducts. They invented the +potter's wheel, and an excellent system of weights and measures. Their +treatises on agriculture passed on their knowledge in that subject to +the later Greeks and Arabs. They had surpassing skill in cutting gems, +and in enameling and inlaying; and their looms produced the finest of +muslins and of fleecy woolens, to which the dyer gave the most brilliant +colors. In many such industries little advance has been made since, so +far as results are concerned."[1] + +Certain unfortunate bequests were left by them. Babylonian belief in +demons was handed down through the Hebrews, and in the Middle Ages took +the form of the devil, with horns and a cloven foot. Their faith in +magic and incantations also descended to Mediæval times, and as +scientific interest superseded religious fervor, inspired men to search +for the "philosopher's stone." + +The intensely practical turn of mind in Mesopotamia revealed itself in +the literature, which was bare of imagery. Material beauty--artistic +carpets, tapestries, and rugs, was developed, but for beauty of +conceptions, we must turn to the Greeks. + +What did the war-loving, blood-thirsting Assyrians leave for future +ages? At first the question seems not to be easily answered. One calls +to mind their ravaging raids and unparalleled carnage, and remembering +that their palaces and stores of inscribed tablets were recovered only +within the last fifty years, their contributions are not so apparent. +Yet, having studied the government enforced by Darius upon his empire, +we are compelled to admit that he but improved upon the system evolved +by the Assyrian kings, unknown before their time in Asia. Again, the +very conquests themselves were helpful, in spite of their cruelty, for +they brought the best civilization of their day to half-barbarous tribes +who otherwise might have passed century after century before reaching +the degree of progress so rudely thrust upon them. These conquests +opened up routes of commerce, and trade has always exceeded all other +factors as a civilizing force. + +To science the Assyrians appear to have made no contributions whatever. + +Coming to ancient Persia, we find a wholly different culture. The people +of this country lacked the practical turn of mind so characteristic of +the Babylonian, and his mercenary point of view was quite unknown to +them. Persian literature, while scanty, embodied poetical conceptions, +and several of the ancient poems possess much art. "The Persians had +fancy and imagination, a relish for poetry and art, and they were not +without a certain power of political combination. Yet we cannot justly +ascribe to them any high degree of intellectual excellence. If the great +work of Firdausi represents to us, as it probably does, the true spirit +of their ancient poetry, their efforts were but of moderate merit. A +tone of exaggeration, an imagination exuberant and unrestrained, a +preference for glitter over solid excellence, a love of far-fetched +conceits, characterize the Shahnameh; and, though we may ascribe +something of this to the individuality of the poet, still the conviction +presses upon us that there was a childish and grotesque character in +the mass of old Persian poetry, which marked it as the creation of +moderate rather than of high intellectual power, and prevents us from +regarding it with the respect with which we view the labors of the +Greeks and Romans, or again, of the Hebrews, in this department. A want +of seriousness, a want of reality, and, again, a want of depth, +characterize the poetry of Iran, whose bards do not touch the chords +which rouse what is noblest and highest in our nature. They give us +sparkle, prettiness, quaint and ingenious fancies, grotesque marvels, an +inflated kind of human heroism; but they have none of the higher +excellences of the poetic art, none of the divine fire which renders the +true poet, and the true prophet, one."[2] + +The Persian religion was both noble and sublime, and its teaching +concerning the two opposing forces of good and evil, affected the +philosophy of the Greeks, and indirectly, the thought of the later +Christian world. + +By carrying the plan of Assyrian conquest further, the Persians opened +districts remote from social centers and helped the course of +civilization. Their systematic government improved upon the one +developed by Assyria in this particular: each governor was made supreme +in his province under Assyrian administration, none other being +accountable to the king for conditions in his territory. An opportunity +thus offered for the governor to seize any favorable moment to shake off +allegiance to the state and attempt to establish his own supremacy. +Darius, on the other hand, posted troops in each satrapy, and both the +commander of these troops and the governor were required to submit +reports, and to act jointly in certain matters. In this way, one served +as a check upon the other. + +Fine roads were built to allow rapid communication between the capital +and distant provinces; these naturally facilitated commerce, and made +travel safe--as one has graphically expressed it, "helped set the world +a-mixing." + +A new day was dawning for humanity, and an age coming when one might +look back to the infancy of the world, likening its progress to that of +a man who has gained some perceptions, some ideas and experiences in +childhood days which unconsciously but surely, influence his later life, +illuminated by wider experiences and deeper truths. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] West: Ancient History. + +[2] Rawlinson: Persia. + + + + +THE BOOK-STAMP OF SARDANAPALUS. + + +Assurbanipal, or, as the Greeks called him, Sardanapalus, is supposed to +have stored in his palace at Nineveh not less than 30,000 tablets. Upon +every work in his library his ownership was stamped as follows: + + THE PALACE OF ASSURBANIPAL, KING OF REGIONS, KING OF MULTITUDES, + KING OF ASSYRIA, TO WHOM THE GOD NEBO AND THE GODDESS TASMETI HAVE + GRANTED ATTENTIVE EARS AND OPEN EYES TO DISCOVER THE WRITINGS OF + THE SCRIBES OF MY KINGDOM, WHOM THE KINGS MY PREDECESSORS HAVE + EMPLOYED. IN MY RESPECT FOR NEBO, THE GOD OF INTELLIGENCE, I HAVE + COLLECTED THESE TABLETS; I HAVE HAD THEM COPIED; I HAVE MARKED THEM + WITH MY NAME; AND I HAVE DEPOSITED THEM IN MY PALACE. + + +THE CHALDEAN ACCOUNT OF THE DELUGE. + +This account was first translated by George Smith from the eleventh of a +series of tablets describing the adventures of the mythical hero, +Izdubar (or Gilgamish), supposed to be the same as Nimrod. The whole +series of tablets relates his early life and exploits in hunting, his +friendship with the faun Iabani, his victory over the tyrant Humbaba, +the love of the Goddess Ishtar, his illness, the death of Iabani, his +wanderings to find his ancestor, Hasisadra (or Pir-napishtim), who for +his piety had been translated to the fellowship of the gods. This +ancestor relates to Gilgamish the story of a great flood resembling in +general outline the narrative in Genesis, but stamped with the impress +of the Chaldean religion. Shamas was the Sun-god. + +The early literature of many nations contains stories of a universal +flood, from which a favored family or individual alone escapes. None is +more striking than the one deciphered from the clay tablets of Chaldea, +or more nearly parallel to that of the Hebrew Scriptures. + +TABLET XI. OF THE GILGAMISH EPIC. + +The following translation is from Professor Craig: + +THE BABYLONIAN STORY OF THE DELUGE. + + Pir-napishtim saith to him, even to Gilgamish; + I will relate to thee, Gilgamish, a secret story, + And the decision of the gods I will tell thee. + The city Shurippak, which thou knowest, + Is situated on the shore of the Euphrates. + This city was old when the gods within it + Were moved to produce a flood, even the great gods. + They were Anu, their father, + The warrior Bel, their counsellor, + Their throne-bearer, Ninib, + Their leader, Ennugi, + Ninigiazag (the god Ea) had spoken with them + And their decree he repeated to the reed-house (saying): + "Reed-house! reed-house! house-wall! house-wall![1] + Reed-house, hear! and house-wall, consider! + O man of Shurippak, son of Ubar-Tutu! + Construct a house, build a ship, + Abandon possessions, seek life, + Property despise, and life save, + Put seed of life of every kind into the ship. + The ship which thou shalt build, even thou, + Let be measured her dimensions: + Let her breadth and length be equal, + Upon the ocean launch her." + + I understood, and said to Ea, my lord: + "Behold, my lord, what thou hast commanded + I hold in reverence, I shall do. + (But what) shall I answer the city, the people, and the elders?" + + Ea opened his mouth and speaketh, + Saith unto his servant, unto me: + "O man! Thus shalt thou say unto them: + Bel has rejected me and cursed me. + I shall dwell no more in your city, + And upon Bel's ground I shall not set my face. + But to the ocean shall I descend; with Ea, my lord, I shall dwell. + Upon you he shall cause to pour out abundance, + Game of birds and game of fishes, + (Animals of all kinds); field-fruits in plenty, + When in the evening the ruler of the darkness (?) + Shall cause to rain upon you a heavy rain." + + As soon as dawn began to appear, + (Five or six lines wanting) + The weak (?) . . . . . . . . . . . + The strong brought to (the building-place) what was necessary. + On the fifth day I laid down her form. + _Ina Kar-Hi-Sa_ one hundred and twenty cubits high were her walls, + One hundred and twenty cubits likewise was the extent of her roof. + Its outer frame I constructed, enclosed it.[2] + I . . . . . . her six times. + I divided . . . . . seven times. + Its interior I divided nine times. + Water plugs I beat into it on its inside. + I provided a rudder (?) and what was needed I added. + Six _sars_ of bitumen I spread on the outside (?). + Three _sars_ of pitch (I spread) on the inside. + Three _sars_ of basket-bearers brought oil. + I left one _sar_ of oil which the offering consumed, + Two _sars_ of oil the shipman stowed away. + For the people I slaughtered oxen, + I killed . . . . . every day. + New w(ine, sesame) wine, oil and wine, + Like the waters of the river (I gave the people to drink) + And (held) a religious feast like unto the New-Year's Feast. + I opened (?) . . . of anointing oil, my hand applied (it). + (In the month) of Shamash, the great god, the ship was completed. + Because . . . . . were difficult + (Untranslatable) they brought above and below. + . . . . . . two-thirds of it. + + All that I had I put on board of it. + All that I had of silver I put on board of it. + All that I had of gold I put on board of it. + All that I had of seed of life of every kind I put on board of it. + I caused to go up into the ship all my family and relatives. + Cattle of the field, beasts of the field, all the craftsmen, I caused + to go up. + + A definite time the god Shamash had appointed: + The ruler of the darkness (?) at even-tide shall cause to rain a heavy + rain, + Enter thou (then) within the ship and close thy door." + That appointed time came. + The ruler of the darkness (?) at eventide rained a heavy rain. + The appearance of that day I (fore)saw. + To behold the day I had fear. + I entered into the ship and closed my door. + For the control of the ship to Puzur-Bel + The great-house I gave over together with its store. + With the first appearing of dawn + There rises from the foundation of the heavens a black cloud, + Ramman within it thunders. + Nebo and Marduk march in front; + Over mountain and plain march the throne-bearers. + The _tar-kul-li_ the great Dibbarra tore away. + Ninib advances, ruin he pours out. + The Anunnaki bear aloft torches, + With their brightness they set the land aflame. + The dread of Ramman reaches to heaven. + Everything bright he turneth to darkness. + . . . the land like . . . he covered (?) + One day the hurricane (raged), + Violently it blew, the waters (covered?) the mountains. + Like the (onslaught of) battle over mankind (they) came. + Brother sees not (his) brother. + Men are not discerned in heaven (_i. e._, by the gods). + The gods were terrified by the flood, and + Withdrew and ascended to the heaven of Anu. + The gods dog-like cower, crouch on the wall (of heaven). + Ishtar screams like a woman in travail. + She cries aloud the lady of the gods, the sweet-voiced: + "Verily the former race is turned to clay. + Just as I in the assembly of the gods proclaimed evil, + As I proclaimed in the assembly of the gods evil + For the destruction of my people war I foretold, + So, verily, will I bring forth my people + Tho' like the fry of fishes they fill the sea." + The gods, the highest of the Anunnaki weep with her. + + The gods are downcast, sit, and weep, + Covered were their lips ... + Six days and nights + The wind prevailed, flood and storm overwhelmed the land. + When the seventh day came the storm abated, the flood was overcome, + Which had battled like a warring host; + The sea calmed, the hurricane ceased, the flood was restrained, + I beheld the sea, uttering a lamentation, + Seeing that all mankind was turned to clay. + When the light had fully dawned I prayed. + I opened an airhole and light fell upon my cheeks. + I bowed myself, I sat down, I wept. + Over my cheeks ran my tears. + I looked upon the far-spread waters of the sea. + After twelve double-hours a peak arose, + Towards the mountain of Nitsir the ship took its course. + The mountain of Nitsir held the ship and let it not rise. + One day, a second day, the mountain of Nitsir, _ditto_ + A third day, a fourth day the " " " " + A fifth day, a sixth day " " " " " + When the seventh day arrived + I brought forth a _dove_ and let it go. + The dove went forth, flew to and fro, but + A resting-place there was not, so it returned. + Then I brought forth a _swallow_ and let it go, + The swallow went forth, flew to and fro, but + A resting-place there was not so it returned. + (Then) I brought forth a _raven_ and let it go. + The raven went forth, the disappearance of the waters he saw, + He eats, caws, flies to and fro, and returns not. + (Then) I brought forth to the four winds, I offered a sacrifice. + I made an incense-offering on the top-most peak of the mountain. + Seven and seven _adagur_-vessels I placed. + Into them I cast reeds, cedar-wood, and + The gods inhaled the good odour. + The gods like flies swarmed about the offerer. + As soon as the mistress of the gods arrived + She lifted up the great jewels (?) that the god Anu had devised and + made for her (and said) + "These gods, by my _lapis lazuli_ necklace I shall not forget. + These days, verily I shall reflect upon and never forget. + The gods, let them go to the incense-offering. + (But) let not Bel go to the incense-offering, + Seeing that he did not reflect but caused the flood. + And my people he counted for destruction. + As soon as Bel arrived + He saw the ship and Bel was sore angry, + He waxed wroth against the gods, the Igigi. + "Some soul has escaped" (he said), + "Let no man survive the destruction." + Ninib openeth his mouth and speaketh, + He speaks to the warrior Bel: + "Who but Ea doeth (this) thing? + But Ea is wise in every undertaking." + Ea openeth his mouth and speaketh, + Saith to the warrior Bel: + "Thou sage of the gods, warrior! + Verily, verily, thou didst not reflect, and didst make a flood: + Upon the sinner lay his sins, + Upon the impious his impiety.[3] + Spare, let him not be cut off, have mercy, let him (not be utterly + destroyed). + Instead of bringing on a flood, + Let the lion come and reduce mankind. + Instead of bringing on a flood, + Let the hyaena come and reduce mankind. + Instead of bringing on a flood, + Let famine be sent and the land (reduced). + Instead of bringing on a flood, + Let the Pest-god come and destroy the land. + As for me, I have not revealed the secret of the gods. + I caused Atrahasis to see a vision and thus he learned the secret of + the gods." + Thereupon his counsel was taken + And Bel ascended within the ship. Seized me by the hands and brought + me up (to a point still higher). + + He brought up and made to bow beside me my wife, + Turned us face to face, stood between us and blessed us: + "In former times Pir-napishtim was human + But henceforth Pir-napishtim and his wife shall be like us gods + And Pir-napishtim shall dwell afar off at the mouth of the rivers." + Then they took me and afar off at the mouth of the rivers they caused + me to dwell. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] The house for its inhabitants. Compare Isaiah 1, 2: Hear, O heavens, +and give ear, O earth. + +[2] The meaning here and in the next four lines is not clear. + +[3] This is evidence that the deluge, as in the Old Testament, was a +punishment for sin, which some writers (not Assyriologists) have denied +in the interest of an outgrown view of the Bible. + + +THE DESCENT OF ISHTAR TO HADES. + +Ishtar was the Babylonian Venus or goddess of love. The story of her +descent to Hades and return to the world of the living is found on a +tablet now in the British Museum, and is perhaps the most poetical +legend of the recovered Assyrian literature. It has been suggested +that the story is the text of a religious drama, resembling the +miracle-plays of mediaeval Europe. The legend shows no reason for +Ishtar's desire to enter Hades, but it is easy to suppose that she +went thither to rescue some beloved person. This supplies a connection +with the familiar story of Venus and Adonis (or Tammuz), which the +Greek writers declare to be of Syrian origin. The drama, if such it +were, was probably part of the annual celebration of the return of +Spring. Ninkigal, the Queen of Hades, corresponds to the Greek +Persephone, and Latin Proserpina, the wife of Pluto. In like manner, +Ea, the king of the gods, corresponds to Zeus or Jupiter, and the +divine messenger to Hermes or Mercury. + +A BABYLONIAN EPIC--ISHTAR'S DESCENT TO HADES. + +(Translation by Professor Craig.) + + On the land without regress, the land (that thou knowest), + Ishtar, Sin's daughter, did fix her attention, + The daughter of Sin did fix her attention, + On the dwelling of darkness, the abode of Irkalla, + On the dwelling whose inhabitant comes no more out, + On the road whose advancing knows no returning, + On the house whose inhabitants removed from the light, + Where they're nourished with dust and clay is their food, + Where they see not the light, but in darkness are dwelling, + And are clad like the birds with a covering of wings; + On door and on bars lies the dust thickly gathered. + + Arrived at the door of the land without regress, + To the porter in keeping, this order she giveth: + Thou watcher of waters, throw open thy portal! + Throw open thy portal, within will I enter! + If the door be not opened that I may pass through it, + The door will I shatter, its bolt break in pieces, + Its sills will I burst, its doors tear asunder, + The dead will I raise up, devourers and living, + Even more than the living the dead will I raise up. + + The porter then opened his mouth and made answer, + To the great goddess Ishtar, made answer the porter: + "Withhold! O my lady, do not break it away, + I go to Allatu, thy name to announce." + The porter announced to the queen, to Allatu: + "Thy sister, Ishtar, is come over these waters + . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ." + + When Allatu these tidings received (from the porter), + Like a tamarisk cut she (bowed herself down) (?). + Like a reed that is broken she (bent to the ground) (?). + "What bringeth her heart to me, pray? What trouble? + With this one forsooth (shall I share my dwelling?) + As food eat the clay and as wine drink the water, + Weep over men who their wives have abandoned, + O'er maidens who mourn the embrace of their lovers, + Weep o'er the infants destroyed e'er their day? + Go! porter, throw open thy door--open to her! + And treat her according to olden-time law." + The porter departed, threw open his door; + "O enter, my lady, a welcome in Hades! + Palace of the land, that knows no returning, + O let it rejoice in thy presence." + + The first door he caused her to enter, and halting, + Removed the great crown from her head. + "Why tak'st thou the great crown from my head, O porter?" + "O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu." + The next door he caused her to enter, and halting, + The rings were removed from her ears. + "Why tak'st thou the rings from my ears, O porter?" + "O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu." + The third door he caused her to enter, and halting, + The necklace removed from her neck. + "Why tak'st thou from my neck the necklace, O porter?" + "O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu." + The fourth door he caused her to enter, and halting, + Her jewels removed from her breast. + "Why tak'st thou from my breast the jewels, O porter?" + "O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu." + The fifth door he caused her to enter, and halting, + The bearing-stone girdle he took off from her waist. + "Why tak'st thou from my waist my gemmed-girdle, O porter?" + "O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu." + The sixth door he caused her to enter, and halting, + Took the rings from her hands and her feet. + "Why from hands and from feet take the rings, pray, O porter?" + "O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu." + The seventh door he caused her to enter, and halting, + From her body her cincture removed. + "Why take from my body my cincture, O porter?" + "O enter, my lady, 'tis the law of Allatu." + To the land without regress when Ishtar descended, + Allatu beheld her and raged in her presence; + Imprudently, boldly, did Ishtar attack her. + Then opened Allatu her mouth and commanded, + To Namtar, her servant, the order was given: + "Go Namtar, confine her.... + With disease of the eye, and the hip, and the foot, + With disease of the heart, and the scalp, go smite Ishtar, + Afflict her whole person!" + + After Ishtar, the goddess, had (been thus afflicted) (?) + The bull no more covered the cow, nor ass gendered; + No more in the street lay the man with the maiden; + The man went asleep in his place, + In her place slept the maiden. + + The god's-servant, Pap-su-kal, face down and sad-visaged, + Was clothed in the garb of deep mourning. + Shamash went, sorely wept before Sin, his father, + His tears ran down before the king, Ea, + Saying: "Ishtar's gone down to the land, and returns not. + Since Ishtar's descent to the land without regress + The bull no more covers the cow, nor ass genders; + No more in the street lies the man with the maiden. + The man falls asleep in his place, + In her place sleeps the maiden." + + Then Ea created a male in his wisdom, + The god's-servant, Uddushu-namir, created. + "Go! Uddushu-namir, to land without regress, + Seven doors of the land without regress be opened! + Allatu behold thee, rejoice in thy presence! + Her heart when at ease, and her spirit when joyful; + In name of the great gods do thou adjure her: + 'Thy head raise, to Hal-skin direct thy attention, + O lady, I pray thee, Halziqu-skin give me; + I desire to drink of the waters within it.'" + + This hearing, Allatu her sides smote, her nails bit. + "Of me thou hast asked an impossible favor. + Hence! Uddushu-namir, with curse will I curse thee; + Thy food it shall be the foul mud of the city, + From drains of the city shalt thou drink the water, + The shade of the wall shall be thy dwelling, + Thy place of abiding a stone-block shall build it. + Confinement, privation, thy strength let them shatter." + + Allatu then opened her mouth and commanded, + To Namtar, her servant, the order was given: + "Go! Namtar, beat on the palace eternal! + Go! rap on the stone slabs, those made out of _pa_-stone. + Go! lead forth the spirits, on golden thrones set them, + With water-of-life sprinkle Ishtar, the goddess, + Lead her forth from my presence." + + Then went Namtar, beat on the palace eternal, + And shook the stone slabs those made out of _pa_-stone; + He led forth the spirits, on golden thrones set them, + With water-of-life sprinkled Ishtar the goddess. + Led her forth from her presence. + Through first door he led her, gave to her her cincture. + Through second door he led her, her rings he gave to her. + Through third door he led her, gave back her gemmed-girdle. + Through fourth door he led her, gave back her breast-jewels. + Through fifth door he led her, gave to her her necklace. + Through sixth door he led her, gave to her her ear-rings. + Through seventh door he led her, the great crown gave to her. + +Here ends the descent of Ishtar. The priest continues: + + "If free she'll not free her, return with her to her + And for Tammuz, her bridegroom in years that were youthful, + Pour water e'en purest, with sweet balm (anoint him) + And clothe him with garments, a flute (give unto him), + Companions of Ishtar, let them wail with loud (wailing), + The goddess, Belili, her treasure completed, + High heaped are the eye-stones, her knees now supporteth, + Her brother's complaint she then understanding, + The great goddess Belili her treasures outpouring, + She fills with the eye-stones the floor round about her (saying) + 'My only one, brother mine, do me no evil.' + When Tammuz with flute of fine lapiz discourseth, + Then play with him joyfully flute of fine beryl, + And play with him joyfully men mourners and women, + The dead may arise the sweet incense inhaling." + +NOTE.--See Jastoon, "Religion of Babylonia and Assyria," page 563 ff., +for a full discussion of this epic. + + +[Illustration] + +GYGES AND ASSURBANIPAL. + + Gyges, king of Lydia, reigned B.C. 716-678. The Greek historian + Herodotus has given an interesting account of him, but still more + interesting is the following extract showing how he was regarded by + the great king of Assyria, Assurbanipal (Sardanapalus). + +Gyges was the king of Lydia, a country beyond the seas, a distant land, +of which the kings, my fathers, had never even heard the name. Assur, my +divine generator, revealed my name to him in a dream, saying: +"Assurbanipal, the king of Assyria; place thyself at his feet, and thou +shalt conquer thy enemies in his name." The same day that he dreamed +this dream, Gyges sent horsemen to salute me, and related to me the +dream which he had had, by the mouth of his messengers. When the latter +reached the frontiers of my empire and encountered the people of my +empire, they said to him, "Who then art thou, stranger, whose land has +never yet been visited by one of our couriers?" + +They sent him to Nineveh, the seat of my royalty, and brought him before +me. The languages of the East and of the West, which Assur had given +into my hand, none of those who spoke them could understand his +language, and none of those who surrounded me had ever heard speech like +unto it. In the space of my empire at last I found one who understood +it, and he told me the dream. The same day that he placed himself at the +feet of me, the king Assurbanipal, he defeated the Cimmerians, who +oppressed the people of his land, who had not feared the kings, my +fathers, and had not placed themselves at my feet. By the grace of +Assur and Ishtar, the gods my masters, they took amidst the chiefs of +the Cimmerians, whom he had defeated, two chiefs whom he chained heavily +with manacles and fetters of iron, and he sent them to me with a rich +present. + +Nevertheless the horsemen that he at first sent regularly to pay homage +to me, he soon ceased to send. He would not obey the commands of Assur, +my divine generator, but foolishly trusted in his own strength, and in +the wishes of his heart. He sent his troops to the assistance of +Psammetichus, king of Egypt, who had contemptuously thrown off my yoke. +I heard this, and prayed to Assur and Ishtar: "May his body be thrown +down before his enemies, and may his bones be dispersed." The +Cimmerians, whom he had crushed in my name, reappeared and subjugated +his whole land, and his son succeeded him upon the throne. The +punishment which the gods, who are my strength, had drawn upon his +father at my request, he told me by his messengers, and he placed +himself at my feet, saying: "Thou art a king acknowledged by the gods. +Thou cursedst my father, and misfortune fell upon him. Send me thy +blessing, for I am thy servant, who fears thee, and will wear thy yoke." + +[Illustration] + + +PURITY. + +"Purity is the best of all things; purity is the fairest of all things, +even as thou hast said, O righteous Zarathustra." With these words the +holy Ahura-Mazda rejoiced the holy Zarathustra: "Purity is for man, next +to life, the greatest good; that purity which is procured by the law of +Mazda to him who cleanses his own self with good thoughts, words and +deeds." + +O Maker of the material world, thou Holy One! This law, this +fiend-destroying law of Zarathustra, by what greatness, goodness, and +fairness is it great, good, and fair above all other utterances? + +Ahura-Mazda answered: "As much above all other floods as is the sea, so +much above all other utterances in greatness, goodness, and fairness is +this law, this fiend-destroying law of Zarathustra. As much as a great +stream flows swifter than a slender rivulet, so much above all other +utterances in greatness, goodness, and fairness is this law, this +fiend-destroying law of Zarathustra. As high as the great cypress tree +stands above the small plants it overshadows, so high above all other +utterances in greatness, goodness, and fairness is this law, this +fiend-destroying law of Zarathustra. As high as heaven is above the +earth that it compasses around, so high above all other utterances is +this law, this fiend-destroying law of Zarathustra. + +"Therefore when the high priest has been applied to by a penitent, when +any of the Magi has been applied to, whether for draona-service[A] that +has been undertaken or that has not been undertaken, the priest has +power to remit one-third of the penalty he had to pay: if he has +committed any other evil deed, it is remitted by his repentance; if he +has committed no other evil deed, he is absolved by his repentance +forever and ever." + + [A] A service in honor of spirits or deceased persons in which + small cakes (_draona_) are blessed in their name and eaten + by those present. + + +ZOROASTER'S PRAYER. + + This Gatha or hymn is supposed to be a prayer prescribed by + Zoroaster for the teachers of his religion. The first verse is the + prelude always used before reciting or chanting any of the Gathas in + the Parsi religious service. + +A strengthening blessing is the thought, a blessing is the word, a +blessing is the deed of the righteous Zarathustra. May the Bountiful +Immortals accept and help on the chants. Homage to you, O sacred Gathas! + +With venerating desire for this gift of gracious help, O Mazda, and +stretching forth my hands to Thee I pray for the first blessing of Thy +bountiful Spirit; that is, I beseech of Thee that my actions toward all +may be performed in Righteousness; and with this I implore from Thee the +understanding of Thy Good Spirit, in order that I may propitiate the +Soul of the Kine. + +And therefore, O Great Creator, the Living Lord! inspired by Thy Good +Spirit, I approach You, and beseech of Thee to grant me as a bountiful +gift for both the worlds, that of the body and that of mind, those +attainments which are to be derived from the Divine Righteousness, and +by means of which those who receive it may enter into beatitude and +glory! + +O thou Divine Righteousness, and thou Good Spirit of Deity! I will +worship you, and Ahura Mazda the first, for all of whom the pious ready +mind within us is causing the imperishable Kingdom to advance. And while +I thus utter my supplications to You, come Ye to my calls to help! + +Yea, I will approach You with my supplications, I who am delivering up +my mind and soul to that heavenly Mount whither all the redeemed at last +must pass, knowing full well the holy characteristics and rewards of the +actions prescribed by Ahura Mazda. And so long as I am able and may have +the power, so long will I teach Your people concerning these holy deeds +to be done by them with faith toward God, and in the desire for the +coming of the Divine Righteousness within their souls. + +And, thou Righteousness! when shall I see thee, knowing the Good Mind of +God, and above all the Obedience of our lives which constitutes the way +to the most beneficent Ahura Mazda? Asking this, I thus beseech thee, +for with this holy word of supplication we best keep off with tongue the +flesh-devouring fiends, the very sign and power of all spiritual +foulness! + + + * * * * * + + + + +THE HEBREWS AND THEIR NEIGHBORS. + + + + +CHAPTER I. + + +SYRIA. + +Syria is the northern extremity of the Arabian peninsula. The word +_Syria_ is a shortened form of _Assyria_, and was given by the Greeks, +at first to the whole Assyrian empire, and later restricted to the strip +of land between the Mediterranean Sea and the Euphrates valley. Today +the name is applied to the region east of Palestine, reaching to the +Taurus mountains on the north and on the south and west bounded by +deserts. + +Its very location determined that this should never become the home of a +united, homogeneous people. It has always been a highway connecting Asia +and Africa and trade routes have extended through it since the earliest +recorded ages. Egyptian armies pressing into Asia in an early day +traversed its midst and so did those of somewhat later times pushing +westward from Mesopotamia, bound upon foreign conquest. + +"Syria lies between two continents--Asia and Africa; between two +primeval homes of men--the valleys of the Euphrates and the Nile; +between two great centers of empire--Western Asia and Egypt; between all +these, representing the Eastern and ancient world, and the +Mediterranean, which is the gateway to the Western and modern world. +Syria has been likened to a bridge between Asia and Africa--a bridge +with the desert on one side and the sea upon the other; and, in truth, +all the great invasions of Syria, with two exceptions, have been +delivered across her northern and southern ends.... Syria is not only +the bridge between Asia and Africa: she is the refuge of the drifting +populations of Arabia. She has not only been the highroad of +civilizations and the battle-field of empires, but the pasture and the +school of innumerable little tribes. She has been not merely an open +channel of war and commerce for nearly the whole world, but the +vantage-ground and opportunity of the world's highest religions. In this +strange mingling of bridge and harbour, of highroad and field, of +battle-ground and sanctuary, of seclusion and opportunity--rendered +possible through the striking division of her surface into mountain and +plain--lies all the secret of Syria's history, under the religion which +has lifted her fame to glory."[1] + +The country falls naturally into many small districts in which petty +states have arisen but which never developed into strong kingdoms. These +have left but scanty remains of their civilizations. + +We know nothing of Syria prior to 3500 B.C. There are evidences that +this region, like Chaldea, was occupied first by a primitive people, +probably belonging to the Turanian race. When a great Semitic outpouring +from Arabia caused the ancient Chaldean nation to be engulfed by a +vigorous people, Syria as well suffered an invasion. + +During years of Babylonian dominance, Syria fell to the share of +Babylonian kings. "The land of the setting sun," as they called it, was +named with their possessions. + +When Thutmose III. led his armies into Asia to avenge the insult done +Egyptian honor when the Hyksos kings ruled the valley of the Nile, he +established a certain supremacy over Syria which lasted for perhaps two +centuries. He established several royal cities, or "halting places"--so +called because his majesty tarried in them and directed the construction +of fortifications. Tribute was exacted and was paid with some regularity +until the time of Amenhotep IV. He was too occupied with religious +reformation and the exaltation of the Solar Disk faith to give attention +to his foreign possessions. The Tell-el-Amarna letters in many instances +portray the condition of Syria when Egypt's name was no longer a +protection and incoming tribes were plundering right and left.[2] + +The spirit of unrest was again abroad among the nations and the Hittites +now invaded Western Asia. Who they were and from whence they came has +never been satisfactorily settled. Certain it is they were not Semitic. +They belonged to the great white race, but their history is still to be +written. Part of the natives sided with them; part remained loyal to +Egypt, and the rest attempted to establish their own independence. +Commerce was interrupted, caravans were plundered, and civil strife was +general throughout the land. In a brief time the Hittites made +themselves supreme in Syria, which became known as the Land of the +Hittites. + +About 1200 B.C. a fresh invasion brought several new tribes, among +others, the Philistines. They again were probably not Semitics but of +the Aryan race. The Hittite nation was now broken up into several small +states, none of which became as powerful as the original nation. With +the weakening of Hittite strength, opportunity arose for petty states to +develop. The great powers left the country in peace for three or four +hundred years, and Syrian states prospered and grew strong. + +The era of the Judges in Israel fell into this period, and between the +Hebrews and certain Syrian tribes there was intermittent war. + +With the reign of Tiglath-Pileser I. Assyria launched forth on her +career of conquest. In a westward march made by this conqueror, northern +Syria yielded to Assyrian arms and offered tribute. Damascus alone was +left undisturbed, for opposition was sure to be strong on the part of +this ancient city. With some intervening years during which tribute +could not be collected and when allegiance to Nineveh was denied, +Assyrian influence dominated Syria, and frequently vigorous rule was +enforced. When Assyria fell, the New Babylonian empire kept guard over +the west. With the end of Babylonian rule, and the ascendency of Persia, +Semitic dominance came to an end. Under Persia, and later under Greece, +new states came into existence and Aryan rule began. + +In the ages with which we are at present concerned, however, Syria +remained to the portion of Semitic tribes. We have found Arabia the +original home of this race. Providing at best but a scanty living for +her children, when tribes multiplied rapidly Arabia seems to have cast +out a portion of her inhabitants to make room for the rest. +Chaldea--later Babylonia--was peopled by such an outpouring, while at +the same time tribes spread into Syria and settled spots which promised +adequate food and pasturage. Later comers were compelled to journey past +these occupied lands and seek lands farther west, or to overcome the +natives and supplant them. Some one has aptly said that different tribes +fitted themselves into the "shelves and corners of Syria," and that is +just what they did. It would have been as impossible for Syria, with its +irregular surfaces, to have produced one united nation as for Greece or +Switzerland to have contained a people whose national concerns +outweighed their local interests. Highland and lowland, plateau and +plain, mountain range and valley--these at length were occupied by +little clans or more numerous tribes, while the more exposed regions +were open to the nomads who came like birds for a season, or tarried a +few brief years and penetrated farther west, or who perhaps merely +loitered on their way to Egypt--the land of water and abundant grain. + +"Syria is the northern and most fertile end of the great Semitic +home--the peninsula of Arabia. But the Semitic home is distinguished by +its central position in geography--between Asia and Africa, and between +the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean, which is Europe; and the _role_ +in history of the Semitic race has been also intermediary. The Semitics +have been the great middlemen of the world. Not second-rate in war, they +have risen to the first rank in commerce and religion. They have been +the carriers between East and West, they have stood between the great +ancient civilizations and those which go to make up the modern world; +while by a higher gift, for which their conditions neither in place nor +in time fully account, they have been mediary between God and man, and +proved the religious teachers of the world, through whom have come its +three highest faiths, its only universal religions. Syria's history is +her share in this great function of intermedium, which has endured from +the earliest times to the present day."[3] + +"The head of Syria is Damascus," wrote Isaiah two thousand years ago. So +it has since continued to be, with short periods of change. The +venerable city, made possible and beautiful by the waters of the Abana, +has survived many sacks and slaughters. It is sometimes called the +oldest city in the world, meaning of course, the one of greatest age +yet standing. Still it has few relics of antiquity. Old material has +constantly been utilized in the construction of new buildings and +monuments. Its position has often been commented upon. "It is an +astonishing site for what is said to be the oldest, and is certainly the +most enduring, city of the world. For it is utterly incapable of +defence; it is remote from the sea and the great natural lines of +commerce. From the coast of Syria it is double barred by those ranges of +snow-capped mountains whose populations enjoy more tempting prospects to +the north and west. But look east and you understand Damascus. + +"You would as soon think of questioning the site of New York or of San +Francisco. Damascus is a great harbour of refuge upon the earliest sea +man ever learned to navigate. It is because there is nothing but desert +beyond, or immediately behind this site; because this river, the Abana, +instead of wasting her waters on a slight extension of the fringe of +fertile Syria, saves them in her narrow gorge till she can fling them +well out upon the desert, and there, instead of slowly expending them on +the doubtful possibilities of a province, lavishes all her life at once +in the creation of a single great city, and straightway dies in face of +the desert--it is because of all this that Damascus, so remote and so +defenceless, has endured throughout human history, and must endure. +Nineveh, Babylon and Memphis easily conquered her--she probably preceded +them, and she has outlived them. She has been twice supplanted--by +Antioch, and she has seen Antioch decay, by Baghdad, and Baghdad is +forgotten. She has been many times sacked, and twice at least the +effective classes of her population have been swept into captivity, but +this has not broken the chain of her history. She was once capital of +the world from the Atlantic to the Bay of Bengal, but the vast empire +went from her and the city continued to flourish as before. Standing on +the utmost edge of fertility, on the shore of the much-voyaged desert, +Damascus is indispensable alike to civilization and to the nomads. +Moreover, she is the city of the Mediterranean world which lies nearest +to the far East, and Islam has made her the western port of Mecca."[4] + +Having traversed the desert wastes, the city of Damascus lies invitingly +before the wearied traveller. There is an old tradition that Mohammet +once approached the town and viewed it from neighboring hills. Before +him lay its grateful shade and restful streets, its tide of busy life, +its wealth, its diversions--behind him lay the monotonous sea of sand, +its parching heat and treeless plains. The great religious teacher was +apparently afraid to trust himself to the enticing influences of the +city. He turned away, saying: "Man can enter Paradise but once; if I +pass into Damascus I shall be excluded from the other Paradise reserved +for the faithful." + +Our word _damask_ stands today in memory of the age when damask or +Damascus silk, embroidered in richest colors, with threads of silver and +gold, stood forth unmatched by fabrics of other lands. Today the word is +ordinarily applied to round linen thread, woven in fruit, flower, or +conventional designs, as was the silk originally. + +The swords of Damascus also gained world-renown. They were so thin that +they could be tied into knots without injuring them in the least, and so +strong that they would cut through iron or wood without being marred. A +certain watery steel, more true and resistable than ordinary, made the +"trusty sword of Damascus" popular in many lands. + +It lies beyond our province to trace the comings and goings of tribes +within the land of Syria. At best Syrian history is fragmentary and is +suited for the student of the Semitic race rather than the general +reader. We shall happen upon facts connected with it as we study the +history of the Hebrews, and the empire age of the Mesopotamian states. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] George Adam Smith: Historical Geog. of the Holy Land, 6. + +[2] Tell-el-Amarna Letters described in The Story of Babylonia and +Assyria. + +[3] Smith: Hist. Geog. of Holy Land, 5. + +[4] Smith: Hist. Geog. of Holy Land, 642. + + + + +CHAPTER II. + + +THE LAND OF PHOENICIA. + +Geographically, Phoenicia was a small state. It lay between a spur of +the Taurus mountains--Mt. Casius--on the north and Carmel on the south; +washed by the Mediterranean Sea on the west, it was protected by a lofty +mountain range on the east. These natural boundaries were important, +since they shut in the land and sheltered it in a great measure from +invasions and plundering raids. + +About 200 miles in length, Phoenicia ranged from one to thirty-five +miles in width. A narrow sandy coast-belt skirted the western side and +was covered with date-palms, which gave the region its name. Greek +sailors, coasting along the eastern shore of the sea, saw the luxuriant +palms from afar, and called the whole eastern coast Phoenike--Land of +Palms. Later, learning more particularly of the various nations which +dwelt therein, they restricted the name to the country we are now +studying. + +East of the palm belt extend the fertile plains of Phoenicia. Here +grew gardens, orchards and fields of grain, which made the district a +veritable paradise. "'The cultivated tract presents for the most part an +unbroken mass of corn, out of which rise here and there slight eminences +in the midst of gardens and orchards--the sites of cities.' The gardens +are gay with scarlet blossoms of the pomegranate, the orchards famous +for the enormous oranges which diversify the green foliage of their +shady groves."[1] Here was grown the food supply which supported the +whole population of the country, generally speaking, while on the low +hills which bounded the plain on the east, the vine, olive and mulberry +were cultivated. At last, the high mountains arose, bare in spots and +elsewhere covered with forest trees--oaks, chestnuts and the mighty +cedars. + +Several streams, mountain-born, rushed down steep sides, furnished +moisture and added fertility to the plains, then found their way to the +sea. Chief of these in early times, as today, was the Litany. This river +rises 10,000 feet above the sea, and "forces its way through Lebanon by +a deep and narrow gorge, in which it frets and chafes many hundred feet +below the eye of the spectator, descending precipitously, and at last +debouching upon the plain by a ravine, about five miles northeast of +Tyre. It has been compared to a 'monster serpent chained in the yawning +gulf, where she writhes and struggles evermore to escape from her dark +and narrow prison, but always in vain, save only near the sea-shore, +where her windings reach a close.'"[2] + +Irregularities of the coast supplied harbors which would be quite +inadequate for modern ships, but sufficed for the vessels of antiquity. +Fringes of islets, near the shore, made refuge for sailors in time of +storm in an age when no boats drew deep water, and when even the largest +might be drawn up on the beach if necessary. + +The climate of Phoenicia varied according to the locality. That of the +plain was mild and pleasant, while snow lay most of the year upon the +mountain peaks rising easterly. The scenery of the narrow strip changes +constantly as one journeys east or west. Islands of the Mediterranean +invited the sailor to venture far out from his native shore, and at an +early period the sea was dotted over by the merchant-ships of the +Phoenicians. East, north and south high mountains offer a varied +aspect to the traveller. The Lebanon range has always been notably +beautiful. "The elevation rises gradually as we proceed north-ward, +until the range culminates in the peaks above the cedars, which are +estimated to attain a height of from nine thousand to ten thousand +feet.... Garden cultivation carpets the base of the mountain; above this +is, for the most part, a broad fringe of olive groves; higher up, the +hill sides are carefully terraced, not an inch of ground being wasted; +and among sharp cliffs and pointed rocks of a grey-white hue are strips +of cornfields, long rows of dwarf mulberries, figs, apricots, apples, +walnuts, and other fruit trees. Gorges, ravines, charming glens, deep +valleys, diversify the mountain sides; here and there are tremendous +chasms, with precipices that go sheer down for a thousand feet; tiny +rivulets bound and leap from rock to rock and from terrace to terrace, +forming chains of cascades, refreshing and fertilizing all around. In +the deep gorges flow copious streams, shaded by overhanging woods of +pines or cedars; and towards the summit are in several places +magnificent cedar groves, remnants of the primeval forest which once +clothed the greater part of the mountain. Above all towers the bare +limestone of the dorsal ridge, always white enough to justify the name +Lebanon (White Mountain), and for eight months of the year clothed with +a mantle of snow."[3] + +Semitic tribes, journeying out of Arabia at a remote period, crossed +into Chaldea, and after a sojourn which cannot now be estimated, worked +their way westward to the region just described. In all probability +Turanians held the territory. With these they intermingled and +inter-married, while kinsmen coming later from the old Arabian home, +kept the stock nearly pure Semitic. + +One of the oldest settlements was made at Sidon, the name of the town +commemorating the earliest occupation of its people. _Sidon_ signifies +_fishery_, and it is supposed that the first comers were fishermen. In +later years when Sidon was the wealthiest city in Western Asia, and when +her proud merchantmen had left nets to the portion of the humblest born, +the early name stood in memory of primitive days. + +Sidon was built on the shore, while her natural harbor consisted of a +little circlet of islands which afforded shelter for sailing crafts. An +excellent harbor was constructed with this breakwater, but it is +significant to note that Sidon's strongholds were on the shore. + +Some of her inhabitants at length departed from the mother-city and +settled at Tyre, near the southern part of the Phoenician coast. The +word _Tyre_ means _rock_, and while settlements were made on the shore +as well, the famous city of antiquity was built on an island, half a +mile from the mainland. This island was about two and one-half miles in +width and was completely surrounded by a wall, one hundred feet high. +With water around her and mighty walls as well, Tyre was wellnigh +impregnable in times of siege. + +The little town of Dora grew up where shell-fish abounded. These were +valued for a secretion they yielded which was made up into a dye of +royal purple, world-renowned in ancient times. Gebal became famous for +its shipyards. Tripolis gained celebrity as head of a league of cities +made up of Tyre, Aradus and Tripolis. + +The Phoenicians left no history of their country. No other ancient +people came in contact with so many nations and none had more material +at hand from which to formulate a record of their time, but they were a +nation of traders and appear to have been quite lacking in literature of +their own and in chroniclers of any sort. Not only is there utter dearth +of writings, but ruins and remains of Phoenician civilization are +comparatively few. The Phoenicians built well, but their structures +were either torn down by ruthless conquerors, or, like those of +Carthage, became quarries for other nations. We are consequently forced +to reconstruct their history from other sources--from writings of men of +other lands, often hostile to them and so prejudiced in their point of +view. The characteristic life of the Phoenicians led into the busy +marts of men--not to the library or cloister, and a study of their +history involves a study of the commerce of their time. + +It is doubtful whether the future can produce material for any complete +history of Phoenicia. We know practically nothing of the prehistoric +period in the country, and when reports of the nation begin, the people +had already reached a high proficiency on the sea and possessed wealthy +cities. The commercial spirit, so strong in the Semitic race seems to +have reached its extreme expression in the people of this little state. +If they possessed any aptitude for pursuits other than trading, we know +little of them. In the periods known to us there was no national life +nor government. Each city developed independently and appears to have +had only commercial ambitions. + +The natural contour of the land allowed the people to build up a mighty +system of trade which penetrated into every country known to antiquity, +while their sea-ports remained long protected from aggressive rulers of +Egypt and Mesopotamia. + +The Phoenician cities were mentioned as early as 1475 B.C., when +Thutmose III. made his strength felt in Western Asia. They united with +the Hittite nation against him, but were defeated and made gifts of +submission. + +Sidon was the older city, and tradition has it that about 1200 B.C. the +Philistines--earlier inhabitants of the country--fought a battle with +Sidon and defeated her, whereupon some of her citizens escaped and +founded Tyre. Quite as probable is a more recent supposition that Sidon, +wealthy and given over to ease and pleasure, gradually weakened, while +the younger and more vigorous town of Tyre became the leader. + +Hiram seems to have been the most renowned king of Tyre. He enlarged the +island upon which the city stood. Filling in the lagoon between two +islands, he joined them together, forming thus one large island. Being a +prolific builder, he erected huge structures of stone, which together +with wood, made up the building material of Phoenicia. + +For some time previous to his reign, Judah had been growing in strength. +She had held out against the Philistines, and was being welded into a +well organized state. Hiram considered it good policy to seek the +friendship of Judah's king, and he and King David remained good friends. +This same friendship was offered to Solomon when he succeeded his father +as ruler of the Hebrews, and aid was given the Hebrews in the +construction of their temple, Phoenician timber and skilled workmen +being supplied. An account of the matter has come to us from the +Hebrews: "And Hiram, king of Tyre, sent his servants unto Solomon; for +he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: +for Hiram was ever a lover of David. And Solomon sent to Hiram saying: +'Thou knowest how that David my father could not build an house unto the +name of the Lord his God for the wars which were about him on every +side, until the Lord put them under the soles of his feet. But now the +Lord my God hath given me rest on every side, so that there is neither +adversary nor evil occurrent. And behold, I purpose to build an house +unto the name of the Lord my God, as the Lord spake unto David, my +father, saying: 'Thy son whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he +shall build an house unto my name. Now therefore command thou that they +hew me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy +servants; and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to +all that thou shalt appoint: for thou knowest that there is not among us +any that can skill to hew timber like unto the Sidonians.' + +"And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he +rejoiced greatly, and said: 'Blessed be the Lord this day, which hath +given unto David a wise son over this great people.' And Hiram sent to +Solomon, saying: 'I have considered the things which thou sentest to me +for; and I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar and +concerning timber of fir. My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon +unto the sea: and I will convey them by sea in floats unto the place +that thou shalt appoint me, and I will cause them to be discharged +there, and thou shalt receive them: and thou shalt accomplish my desire, +in giving food for my household.' + +"So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his +desire. And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for +food to his household, and twenty measures of pure oil: thus gave +Solomon to Hiram year by year.... And there was peace between Hiram and +Solomon; and they two made a league together.... And the king commanded +and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay +the foundation of the house. And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders +did hew them, and the stonequarriers: so they prepared timber and stones +to build the house."[4] + +The temple stood at last a memorial to the skillful workmanship of +Phoenicia as well as a tribute of honor to Jehovah, God of Israel. + +After the death of Hiram, during whose reign the country had prospered, +the government soon passed from his family. A class of wealthy merchants +had arisen in Tyre and they demanded official positions for themselves. +The king they crowned became king of Sidon as well. Before 1000 B.C. +exiles from Tyre, driven out for political reasons, founded Carthage, +best known of all Phoenicia's colonies. + +As early as 880 B.C. danger threatened Phoenicia from Assyria. +Protected by the efficient barrier of a mountain range, the commercial +ports had been free to develop their trade without serious interruption. +They immediately offered to pay tribute rather than fight, and Assyrian +tablets recount products sent by them. + +By 727 B.C. the yoke of Assyria had become oppressive and Tyre revolted. +A siege of five years followed and was at length raised with no result, +for Tyre could not be cut off from the sea. About 680 B.C. Baal was +crowned king of Tyre with the consent of the Assyrian ruler. +Nevertheless, he shortly announced his independence and became a sturdy +opponent of Assyrian aggression. In 668 B.C. Asshurbanipal led an army +against the sea-coast cities, especially against the most powerful, +Tyre. + +"Against Baal, King of Tyre, dwelling in the midst of the sea, I went, +because my royal will he disregarded, and did not harken unto the words +of my mouth. Towers round about him I raised, and over his people I +strengthened the watch. On land and sea his forts I took; his going out +I stopped. Brackish water and sea water their mouths drank to preserve +their lives. With a strong blockade, which removed not, I besieged them; +their spirits I humbled and caused to melt away; to my yoke I made them +submissive." When Assyria was threatened by Median power, the cities on +the coast again shook themselves free from the hated tribute and at this +juncture Tyre rose to her greatest influence. About 600 B.C. Egypt tried +to bring Western Asia under her dominance and under her direction +Phoenician sailors circumnavigated Africa. + +Nebuchadnezzar determined to end rebellions in the west for all time and +to bring the coast under Babylonian rule. Tyre held out against him and +a siege of thirteen years ensued. The Hebrew prophet Ezekiel foretold +the result: + +"Behold I am against thee, O Tyre, and will cause many nations to come +up against thee, as the sea causeth his waves to come up. And they shall +destroy the walls of Tyre, and break down her towers: I will also scrape +her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock.... + +"Behold I will bring upon Tyre Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, a king +of kings, from the north with horses, and with chariots and with +horsemen, and companies, and much people. He shall slay with the sword +thy daughters in the field: and he shall make a fort against thee, and +cast a mount against thee, and lift up the buckler against thee. And he +shall set engines of war against thy walls, and with his axes he shall +break down thy towers. By reason of the abundance of his horses their +dust shall cover thee: thy walls shall shake at the noise of the +horsemen, and of the wheels and of the chariots, when he shall enter +into thy gates, as men enter into a city wherein is made a breach. With +the hoofs of his horses shall he tread down all thy streets: he shall +slay thy people by the sword, and thy strong garrisons shall go down to +the ground. And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey +of thy merchandise: and they shall break down thy walls, and destroy thy +pleasant houses: and they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy +dust in the midst of the water. + +"And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease; and the sound of thy +harps shall be no more heard. And I will make thee like the top of a +rock: thou shalt be a place to spread nets upon."[5] + +These prophecies were fulfilled, and having rallied again, and once more +sent forth their merchant vessels, these cities fell shortly to the +share of Persia. Cambyses depended wholly upon their navy, so that when +Phoenician sailors refused to sweep down upon Carthage, he was obliged +to abandon his idea of subduing that colony.[6] + +In 362 B.C. Sidon revolted against Persian oppression. When at last the +fall of their city was at hand, 40,000 Sidonians shut themselves in +their houses and set fire to them rather than become spoils for the +conqueror. + +Some years later, when the young Macedonia conqueror, Alexander the +Great, reached this district in course of his brief conquest, the +Phoenician cities, wearied of Persian taxes, hailed his coming with +joy. One after another, the towns sent presents until it was left for +Tyre alone to do homage to the young monarch. Her citizens sent an +embassy to meet him with a crown of gold and announced their willingness +to do his bidding. Alexander replied that he was pleased by their action +and would visit their city to offer sacrifices in their temple--for the +Greeks identified the god of the Phoenicians with their Hercules. The +reply being made known in the city, the people feared that some hidden +purpose prompted the Greek to seek their island home, and they sent to +him again saying that they would pay whatever tribute he exacted, but +that they did not wish the Greek army to march through their streets. +This angered Alexander and he announced that if the gates of Tyre did +not open to him, he would open them by force. Tyre had withstood many a +siege and she did not hesitate to take a firm stand. Carthaginians who +chanced to be within her walls advised that help would be forthcoming +were it needed, and it was supposed furthermore, that Persia would never +see her empire turned over to the Greeks without a struggle. Above all, +Tyre had faith in the strength of her walls and in her fleet. + +Sieges in the past had often failed because Tyre could not be approached +by battering rams and engines of war. As has already been said, the +island upon which the city stood lay one-half mile from the shore. Her +harbors were the best on the Phoenician coast. One lay on the north +side and was called the Sidonian harbor because it looked towards Sidon; +the other was on the south side, and was called the Egyptian harbor +since it faced the land of the pyramids. Stone piers ran out some +considerable distance in the sea and made safe refuge for vessels in +stormy weather. Rough winds might have made entrance to the port +impossible had the harbor extended on one side only, hence the two +harbors were early constructed and were connected by a canal, extending +through the city, making it thus possible for a ship to enter by one +harbor and clear port from the other. + +Now Alexander conceived the bold design of building a broad bridge or +mole from the continent to the island, that he might bring his war +engines up to the city walls. Forthwith, operations were started on the +shore, in shallow water. Two rows of piles were driven 200 feet from +each other and the intervening distance was filled in with earth and +stone. When the mole reached out where the force of the current was +felt, however, the earthwork was carried away as rapidly as it was +built. Moreover, the Tyrians grasped his plan and harried the laborers +continually. They brought their boats near enough to attack them and +compel them to abandon their undertaking. The Greeks met this obstacle +by preparing a curtain of hides to cover the workmen, and raised two +lofty wooden towers wherein soldiers were stationed to charge upon ships +interfering with the work. The citizens of Tyre thereupon equipped one +of their largest transports as a fire-ship, and filling it with all +sorts of combustible material, sent it floating against the Greek +towers, a mass of fire. This was effectual, and Alexander returned from +a temporary absence to find the work of weeks obliterated. This general +never allowed confronting obstacles to baffle him, and under his +personal supervision the labor began anew. The struggle had come to mean +more than the subjection of an independent city--it signified Greek +capacity and ingenuity against Asiatic opposition on the very threshold +of a coveted continent. + +Earth, trees and stones were hurled rapidly into the sea, but Tyrian +divers with grappling hooks dragged out whole trees and brush, +destroying the solidity of the mass. Then Alexander realized that he +could accomplish nothing without a navy. Without aid of a fleet he might +be detained indefinitely with one obstinate city. He immediately levied +vessels and crews from those towns which had already surrendered to him. +As fate would have it, the Persian fleet came voluntarily into his hands +and shortly 224 vessels were ready to move against Tyre. Under their +protection the construction of the mole went on rapidly. Tyre soon +understood that her only hope lay in chancing a sea battle. The number +of ships against her was overwhelming, and after a gallant start, she +was defeated. + +"The last chance was over--the last effort had failed--but the Tyrians +would not give in any the more. They still met every attack upon the +walls with a determined resistance, and with a fertility of resource +that was admirable. To deaden the blows of the battering-ram, and the +force of the stones hurled from the catapults, leather bags filled with +sea-weed were let down from the walls at the point assailed. Wheels set +in rapid motion intercepted the darts and javelins thrown into the town, +turning them aside, or blunting, or sometimes breaking them. When the +towers erected upon the mole were brought close up to the defences, and +an attempt was made to throw bridges from them to the battlements, and +thus to pass soldiers into the city, the Tyrians flung grappling-hooks +among the soldiers on the bridges, which caught in the bodies of some, +mangling them terribly, dragging their shields from others, and hauled +some bodily into the air, dashing them against the wall or upon the +ground. Masses of red-hot metal were prepared and hurled against the +towers and against the scaling parties. Sand was heated to a glow and +showered upon all who approached the foot of the walls: it penetrated +through the joints of the armour, and caused such intolerable pain, that +the coats of mail were torn off and flung aside, whereupon the sufferers +were soon put _hors de combat_ by lance thrusts and missiles. The +battering-rams were attacked by engines constructed for the purpose, +which brought sharp scythes, attached to long poles, into contact with +the ropes and thongs used in working them, and cut them through. +Further, wherever the wall showed signs of giving way, the defenders +began to construct an inner wall, to take the place of the outer one, +when it should be demolished."[7] + +When the walls at length gave way and soldiers made an entrance into the +town, they had to fight a battle in every house and win their ground in +street and building, foot by foot. Ten thousand were massacred and +thirty thousand women and children were sold into slavery. The city was +left in 332 B.C. in a half-ruined condition with few inhabitants. In a +few years Tyre rose again but the days of her greatness were gone. + +We have seen that during the first part of her history Phoenicia was +left practically alone and during the later portion suffered repeated +attacks. How can we account for the frequent despoiling of her proud +cities during her later years? Owing to their position and consequent +trade, the Phoenician cities became wealthy rapidly. They naturally +attracted the notice of kings who were trying to carry on extensive +projects at home. Those who conquered them, or who sought to do so, +coveted their riches for the adornment of their own capitals or for some +personal enterprise at home. So advantageous was the situation of these +cities that, left crippled and in ruins by the enemy, or under less +severe circumstances, forced to pay a heavy tribute, losses were quickly +made good, and the stricken towns would soon again be amassing wealth. +Having control of the greater portion of the commerce of their day, they +were able to exchange commodities of slight value with nations who +possessed gold or other precious wares and knew nothing of their value, +save that they were thereby enabled to procure articles they desired. +"Gold for brass, the worth of a hundred oxen for the value of nine,"--it +was this opportunity, recognized and seized upon, which made it possible +for this little strip of land to become the store-house of riches +coveted by nations on all sides. + +Concerning the political history of Phoenicia we know little, as has +already been said. When her wealthy cities were attacked by foreigners, +these strangers have sometimes told the story from their own point of +view, but so far as government in times of peace, local administration +and kindred matters, material has not survived to allow its course of +progress to be reconstructed. + +[Illustration: GROWTH OF THE ALPHABET.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Rawlinson: Phoenicia, 3. + +[2] Rawlinson: Phoenicia, 11. + +[3] Rawlinson: Phoenicia, 17. + +[4] I Kings, 5, 1-18. + +[5] Ezekiel 26, 3-14. + +[6] See The Story of the Persians. + +[7] Rawlinson; Phoenicia, 231. + + + + +CHAPTER III. + + +PHOENICIAN COLONIES AND COMMERCE. + +It is natural to consider Phoenicia's colonies in connection with her +commerce, for while many nations have colonized regions remote for the +purpose of extending their territory or perpetuating a faith, her +outposts were opened solely for the benefit of trade. Phoenicia's +colonies may be said to have been the outgrowth of her mercantile +concerns, although in some instances, dissatisfaction with political +conditions in the home city proved an additional incentive. + +Probably the first foreign settlement was made in Egypt. Desiring to +control routes of trade in the valley of the Nile, Tyrians obtained +permission to settle in Memphis. This settlement could hardly be called +a colony in the ordinary sense of the word, for the home city exercised +no political control over those of its subjects dwelling in Egypt--nor +did it seek to do so. Phoenicia excelled in trade--not government. +With this station at Memphis, Tyre was able to obtain not only products +of the valley but those also which were brought into Egypt from the +south. Ivory, ebony, skins, ostrich feathers, grain, pottery, +glass--these and other commodities here available were shipped away for +consumption in Italy, Greece and Asia Minor. The Egyptians, so resentful +of foreigners ordinarily, appear to have found the Phoenicians +unobjectionable and of actual service to them. The little colony was +allowed to maintain its own customs, and it is supposed that a temple +sacred to Astoreth was erected here as early as 1250 B.C. + +The islands west of Tyre were early peopled by Phoenicians, or, at +least, contained Phoenician settlements. Timber suitable for +ship-building was obtained in Cilicia, copper and precious stones in +Cyprus, pine lumber and figs in Rhodes. + +Utica, on the Gulf of Tunis, was an early colony on the African side of +the Mediterranean. Coasting alone this shore, the sea-farers came to +Spain, where they established important trading points. They penetrated +as far west as the Cornwall mines, which supplied an inexhaustible +amount of tin. The islands off the Cornish coast they called the +"Cassiterides" or Tin Islands. + +"Phoenician colonization--or colonization from Phoenicia Proper--was +in all probability limited within the extremes of the Dardanelles to the +north, Memphis to the south, and Gadeira and the Cassiterides to the +west. It was less widely diffused than the Greek, and less generally +spread over the coasts accessible to it. With a few exceptions, the +colonies fall into three groups--first, those of the Eastern +Mediterranean and Aegean, beginning with Cyprus and terminating with +Cythera; secondly those of the Central Mediterranean, in North Africa, +Sicily, and the adjacent islands; and thirdly, those of the Western +Mediterranean, chiefly on the south coast of Spain, with perhaps a few +on the opposite (African) shore. The other settlements, commonly called +Phoenician on the eastern coast of Spain, in the Balearic Islands, in +Corsica and Elba; and again those on the Western Africa coast, between +the Straits of Gibraltar and the Cape de Verde, were Punic or +Carthaginian, rather than Phoenician."[1] + +Finally something must be said of Carthage, for while her palmy days as +well as her decline, were closely related to Roman history, her +beginnings were inseparable with the mother-country. + +The word Carthage signifies _New City_, and the settlement was so named +in all probability to distinguish it from Utica, founded 300 years +before. 850 B.C. has been considered the latest possible date for the +founding of the town, while many hold that it was settled as early as +1000 B.C. It matters little which is accepted, since the place was +neither strong nor influential for many years after either date. Its +citizens came originally from Tyre. The "New City" was built on what is +now the Bay of Tunis, a little to the north-west of the present town of +Tunis. Nothing, practically, is known of its early history. Kings ruled +at first, but were later abolished. Polybius, a Greek historian, stated +that he had seen a treaty made between Rome and Carthage as early as 509 +B.C., by which the Carthaginians bound themselves not to injure any +Latin city while the Romans were pledged not to interfere with +Carthaginian markets in the western Mediterranean. Because of its +fortunate position the city became very prosperous. The Greeks tried to +divert some of its trade into their own channels, and later, Rome was +its hated rival and continued to struggle with the city until she +effected its downfall. + +"From the time when the first adventurers from the Syrian coast entered +the sheltered inlets of the African shore--a remote period, even before +Saul was made king of Israel and while Priam sat on the throne of +Troy--down to the seventh century of the Christian era, when the Arabs +passed over it like a whirlwind, this land has been the battlefield +where destinies of nations have been sealed, and where heroes and +warriors have sought their last resting place. The myths that surround +its earliest development and shed a halo of romance over the career of +its primitive races are somewhat obscured by the sterner facts of later +times--by wars innumerable, wars of invasion and local disturbances, +succeeded by a long period of piracy and power insured, and finally by +neglect, abandonment, and decay. The legend of Dido still hangs over +Carthage hill. The spirit of Hannibal haunts the fateful Zanca, and the +banks of the Midjerda hold in everlasting memory the story of Regulus +and his affrighted array. The air is full of myths and old-world stories +which faithfully represent the traditions of the country in its varying +fortunes; and slight as may be their connection with events in +prehistoric times, yet they serve as foundations for a historic +superstructure of never-failing interest. The earliest records are +fragmentary, but we learn that the library of the Carthaginians, written +in Phoenician characters, was presented by the Romans, after the fall +of Carthage, to one of the kings of Numidia; and that Sallust, as +pro-consul of that province in the time of Julius Cæsar, borrowed +largely from it while writing his history of the Jugarthine war.... +There is little doubt, however, that most of the earliest records passed +to Alexandria, which became the rival of Athens as a seat of learning. +With the burning of its library by the fanatical Arabs in the seventh +century many a link between the old world and the new was severed, and +reliable information concerning the laws and traditions, and the manners +and customs of a people, who were the fathers of navigation and the +founders of commerce, was swept away."[2] + +[Illustration: THE RIVER JORDAN.] + +Phoenician commerce was facilitated by the establishment of many +out-posts, and while none other reached such size and importance as +Carthage, several controlled routes which were almost as valuable. No +modern account of that vast commerce approaches the one written long ago +by the prophet Ezekiel, when Tyre was, or had just been, at the zenith +of her power. + +"O thou that dwellest at the entry of the sea, which art the merchant of +the people unto many isles, O Tyre, thou hast said: 'I am of perfect +beauty.' + +"Thy borders are in the midst of the seas, thy builders have perfected +thy beauty. They have made all thy ship boards of fir trees of Senir: +they have taken cedars from Lebanon to make masts for thee. Of the oaks +of Bashan have they made thine oars; the company of the Ashurites have +made thy benches of ivory, brought out of the isles of Chittim. Fine +linen with broidered work from Egypt was that which thou spreadest forth +to be thy sail; blue and purple from the isles of Elishah was that which +covered thee. + +"The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad were thy mariners: thy wise men, O +Tyre, that were in thee, were thy pilots. + +"The ancients of Gabal and the wise men thereof were in thee thy +calkers: all the ships of the sea with their mariners were in thee to +occupy thy merchandise. They of Persia and of Lud and of Phut were in +thine army, thy men of war: they hanged the shield and helmet in thee; +they set forth thy comeliness.... + +"Tarshish was thy merchant by reason of all kinds of riches; with +silver, iron, tin and lead, they traded in thy fairs. + +"Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were thy merchants: they traded the +persons of men and vessels of brass in thy market. They of the house of +Togarmah traded in thy fairs with horses and horsemen and mules. The men +of Dedan were thy merchants; many isles were the merchandise of thine +hand: they brought thee for a present horns of ivory and ebony. Syria +was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of the wares of thy making: +they occupied in thy fairs with emeralds, purple, and broidered work, +and fine linen, and coral, and agate. + +"Judah, and the land of Israel, they were thy merchants: they traded in +thy market wheat of Minnith, and Pannag, and honey, and oil, and balm. +Damascus was thy merchant in the multitude of the wares of thy making, +for the multitude of all riches; in the wine of Helbon, and white wool. +Dan also and Javan going to and fro occupied in thy fairs; bright iron, +cassia, and calamus, were in thy market. Dedan was thy merchant in +precious cloths for chariots. Arabia, and all the princes of Kedar, they +occupied with thee in lambs, and rams, and goats: in these were they thy +merchants. The merchants of Sheba and Raamah ... occupied in thy fairs +with chief of all spices, and with all precious stones, and gold. + +"Haran, and Canneh, and Eden, the merchants of Sheba, Asshur, and +Chilmad, were thy merchants. These were thy merchants in all sorts of +things, in blue clothes, and broidered work, and in chests of rich +apparel, bound with cords, and made of cedar, among thy merchandise. The +ships of Tarshish did sing of thee in thy market: and thou wast made +very glorious in the midst of the seas.... + +"When thy wares went forth out of the seas, thou filledst many people; +thou didst enrich the kings of the earth with the multitude of thy +riches and of thy merchandise."[3] + +The produce of the ancient world passed through routes controlled by +Phoenicia, and she acted as middleman in its distribution. Commerce +was of two kinds, overland, and by sea. Traffic by water greatly +exceeded that by land, yet both were necessary and were mutually +dependent upon one another. + +The products of interior Asia were brought, then as now, by caravans. +Even today it is possible to see trains of caravans similar to those in +the service of ancient Tyre, laden with costly wares, crossing the +desert. Not only were spices and wares of Western Asia taken to +Phoenician sea-ports for distribution, but Mesopotamia was supplied +with articles from Europe and Africa by the same overland travel. + +"Imagine the arrival of a Tyrian caravan at Babylon. The travellers have +been on the march for three or four months.... They have arrived weary, +dusty, travel-stained. Their tents are pitched outside the town, not far +from the banks of the river, or of a water-course derived from it, +under the pleasant shadow of a grove of palms, near the northern gate +of the great city. The tall necks of their camels are seen from a +distance by the keen-eyed watchers of the gate-towers, and reported by +them to the civic authorities, whence the secret soon oozes out and +creates a bustle in the town. All are anxious to obtain some object of +their desire from the long expected traders; but especially anxious are +the great storekeepers and shopkeepers, who look to the occasion for the +replenishing of their stock-in-trade for the next six months, or, it may +be, even for the next year. But the weary travellers must have a night's +rest ere they can be ready to open their market, must unload their +camels and their mules, dispose their bales of goods as seems most +convenient, and prepare themselves for the fatigues of commercial +dealing by a light supper and a sound sleep ensuing thereupon. How glad +are the camels to have the loads removed from their galled backs, to +repose their weary limbs upon the green grass of the yellow sand, and to +lay their tired necks along the ground! Not a moan is heard, scarcely a +grunt, unless it be one of satisfaction. The mules, and the camels, and +the horses of the wealthier sort, enjoy themselves equally. We hear the +tinkling of their bells, as they shake themselves, freed from all their +trappings but the head stall. Some are picketed about where the turf is +richest, others contentedly munch the barley that has been placed before +them in portable mangers, to reward them for the toils that they have +gone through. Many prefer sleeping to eating, and, leaving their food +untouched, stretch themselves upon the sward. Night falls--the stars +come out--the traders sleep in their tents, with a stone or a bale of +goods for their pillow--a profound hush sinks upon the camp, except for +the occasional squeal of a skittish pair of mules, which have exchanged +bites under cover of the darkness. + +"The camp, however, wakes up with the first gleam of dawn in the eastern +sky. Each man busily sets about his proper work. Mules and horses are +groomed and are arranged in rows, with their mangers in front, and their +pack-saddles and trappings near at hand. Bales of goods are opened, and +a display made of a portion of their contents. Meantime, the town gates +have been unclosed, and in holiday apparel a gay crowd streams forth +from them. Foremost come the loafers, hoping to make an honest penny by +'lending a hand,' or to make a dishonest one by filching some unguarded +article. Then follow the ordinary customers and the petty traders whose +arrangements have not been made beforehand. The last to appear are the +agents of the great merchants, whose correspondents at Tyre have made +them consignments of goods and sent the goods by the caravan to their +destination; these clamor for invoices and bills of lading. But the +noisiest and most pressing are the petty traders and the mere chance +customers, who have a special need to supply, or covet a good bargain. +With them what a chaffering there is! What a screaming and apparent +quarrelling! One buyer wants a purple robe for half its value, another a +Damascene blade for next to nothing, a third, a Greek statuette for half +a shekel of silver. The seller asks at least four times the sum that he +intends to take; the buyer exclaims, swears perhaps by the beard of his +grandfather that he will not give a farthing more than he has offered; +then relents, and doubtless doubles his bid; the seller comes down a +little, but they are still 'miles apart,' so to speak; it takes an hour +of talking, swearing, screaming, raving, before the _juste milieu_ is +hit off, an agreement come to, and buyer and seller alike made happy by +a conviction on the part of each that he has over-reached the other."[4] + +The companion picture to the caravan would be the merchant vessel on the +seas, together with the eager anticipation that attended its arrival in +port. The earliest portrayal of Phoenician boats show them to have +been provided with oars and sails. From small crafts, partially cabined, +built of unseasoned timber and poorly caulked, were gradually evolved +the stately biremes, perfect in construction and equipment. The +testimony of an eye-witness is vastly preferable to descriptions of +moderns, however scholarly. The following description of Xenophon, a +Greek general who often saw Phoenician vessels, contains valuable +information regarding the degree of skill reached by these sea-farers in +the equipment of their ships: + +"I think that the best and most perfect arrangement of things which I +ever saw was when I went to look at the great Phoenician sailing +vessel: for I saw the largest amount of naval tackling separately +disposed in the smallest stowage possible. For a ship, as you well know, +is brought to anchor, and again got under way, by a vast number of +wooden implements, and of ropes, and sails the sea by means of a +quantity of rigging, and is armed with a number of contrivances against +hostile vessels, and carries about with it a large supply of weapons for +the crew, and, besides, has all the utensils that a man keeps in his +dwelling-house, for each of the messes. In addition, it is loaded with a +quantity of merchandise, which the owner carries with him for his own +profit. Now all the things which I have mentioned lay in a space not +much bigger than a room that would conveniently hold ten beds. And I +remarked that they severally lay in such a way that they did not +obstruct one another, and did not require any one to look for them, and +yet they were neither placed at random, nor entangled one with another, +so as to consume time when they were suddenly wanted for use. Also I +found the captain's assistant, who is called the 'look-out-man,' so well +acquainted with the position of all the articles, and with the number of +them, that even when at a distance he would tell where everything lay, +and how many there were of each sort. Moreover, I saw this man, in his +leisure moments, examining and testing everything that a vessel needs +when at sea; so, as I was surprised, I asked him what he was about, +whereupon he replied, 'Stranger, I am looking to see, in case anything +should happen, how everything is arranged in the ship, and whether +anything is wanting or is inconveniently situated; for when a storm +arises at sea, it is not possible either to look for what is wanting, or +to put to rights what is arranged awkwardly.'"[5] + +One mast and one sail seem to have been commonly used. The biremes and +triremes were so-called because of their two or three banks of oars. The +oarsmen sat in the hold, their oars passing through the vessel's side. + +Phoenician traffic was always most extensive by sea. Products of +Egypt, Greece, Cyprus, Carthage, Spain, Britain, besides those of +countless islands, were transported constantly by water. + + +THE APPROACH OF A CARAVAN. + + "When spring-time flushes the desert grass, + Our kafilas wind through the Khyber Pass. + Lean are the camels, but fat the frails, + Light are the purses but heavy the bales, + As the snow-bound trade of the North comes down + To the market-square of Peshawur town. + + In a turquoise twilight, crisp and chill, + A kafila camped at the foot of the hill. + Then blue smoke-haze of the cooking rose, + And tent-peg answered to hammer-nose. + And the picketed ponies shag and wild, + Strained at their ropes as the feed was piled; + And the bubbling camels beside the load + Sprawled for a furlong adown the road; + And Persian pussy-cats, brought for sale, + Spat at the dogs from the camel-bale; + And the tribesmen bellowed to hasten the food; + And the camp-fires twinkled by Fort Junrood; + And there fled on the wings of the gathering dusk + A savour of camels and carpets and musk, + A murmur of voices, a reek of smoke, + To tell us the trade of the Khyber woke." + + --_Kipling: Ballad of the King's Jest._ + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Rawlinson: Phoenicia, 71. + +[2] Graham: Roman Africa, preface. + +[3] Ezekiel, 27. + +[4] Rawlinson: Phoenicia, 157, ff. + +[5] Xenophon: Aeconom., VIII., 11 + + + + +CHAPTER IV. + + +OCCUPATIONS AND INDUSTRIES. + +Of first concern among the industries of Phoenicia were her maritime +activities. While many Phoenician voyages led from island to island, +and from one port to another almost in sight, nevertheless the sailors +frequently made trips that necessitated their steering away from the +shore, and venturing out into the open sea. They probably made charts of +the sea and acquired some elementary knowledge of nautical affairs. +Their greatest undertaking was the circumnavigation of Africa. This was +attempted when Neccho was pharaoh of Egypt and held Western Asia in +temporary tribute. Hoping to find a water communication between the Red +Sea and the Mediterranean, he engaged Phoenician seamen to sail around +Africa. Three years were consumed in the journey, since they had to land +each year and grow food sufficient for the continuance of their voyage. +When they returned, through the Straits of Gibraltar, they reported that +the sun had been upon their right hand throughout the trip, which, +Herodotus said: "others may perhaps believe, though I certainly do not." +Little attention was given the matter until scholars began to +investigate the possibility of the earth's rotundity, whereupon the +information so long cast aside was once more noted. + +For the most part it is probably true that the art of navigation was but +crudely developed, compared with the progress reached later by the +Greeks. Yet the Greeks themselves were indebted to some extent to the +earliest seamen of unquestioned courage and venturesome spirit. + +Of most vital importance were Phoenicia's activities in commerce and +trade, to quite a degree dependent upon her control of the sea. + +"Gather now an idea of Phoenicia in the days of her greatest power. +Station yourself upon the rocky island of Tyre, and turn your eyes +toward the west. Were your vision powerful enough, you might see the +towers of Phoenician settlements dotting the Grecian seas and lining +the coast of Africa. Meeting for a moment at the Strait of Gibraltar, +again the two lines would diverge to the north and to the south, +encompassing the known seas. Turn now to the east, and you behold the +caravans extending in long dark lines to the north and to the south. At +the extremities of the Lebanon mountains, crossing the ridge, the lines +divide and subdivide, like streams toward their sources, until they +penetrate and permeate the jungles of India and the valleys of the +Himalayas. Such was Phoenicia in her palmy days, garnering and +distributing the produce and riches of the world."[1] + +Farming was also important. Products raised within Phoenicia were used +chiefly for home consumption. Orchards, gardens, and grain-fields +yielded abundant returns and provided the food supply of the population, +save for fish, and such articles of luxury as were demanded by the +citizens of the wealthy ports. The country was too small and its arable +acreage too limited to admit of extensive agricultural pursuits. + +While the manufactories of the country were less important, they had an +important place. Phoenicia was widely famed for the production of four +distinct articles, in the making of which her people excelled. First of +these was a purple dye. Other nations attempted to provide the same +commodity but never equalled the perfection of the Tyrian dye. Large +quantities of shell-fish yielding the precious fluid from which it was +made, were found off the Tyrian coast. They were of two species. A +little _sac_ containing a creamy secretion was opened in one, and the +fluid carefully extracted. The other was ground up, shell and all. Both +were necessary to produce the beautiful tints peculiar to Phoenician +cloths. + +Their special processes of dyeing, exposing the materials to the +different degrees of light while drying, as well as the chemical +employed to make the colors fast, were secrets well guarded, so that no +imitation could deceive when compared to the splendid purples of Tyre. +Since dress fabrics and material for covering furniture were most +desired in rich and costly hues, raw wool was extensively imported and +woven to meet the ever increasing demand. Dress stuffs from Phoenicia +were prized as booty or as tribute by the several countries which at +different periods exacted homage from Tyre and Sidon. + +Sidon was famous for her glassware. Pliny the Elder, a Roman who wrote +on History and Science during the first century of the Christian era, +gave the tradition current in his day concerning the so-called +"discovery of glass." + +"It is said that some Phoenician merchants, having landed on the +shores of the river Belus, were preparing their meal, and not finding +suitable stones for raising their saucepans, they used lumps of natrum +contained in their cargo for the purpose. When the natrum was exposed to +the action of the fire, it melted into the sand lying on the banks of +the river, and they saw transparent streams of some unknown liquid +trickling over the ground; this was the origin of glass." At least the +tale is reasonable, and might have been the experience of people at +different times. At all events, the art becoming known to the +Phoenicians, they attained notable skill in imitating precious stones +in colored glass. It was their experience that trinkets, such as beads, +were in great favor among half-civilized tribes with whom they traded, +and the satisfaction was mutual when a few strings of glass beads had +been exchanged for skins, ivory and even gold. It is now believed that +some of the rare glass-ware, treasured as Grecian in museums today, was +really produced in Sidon. + +Articles fashioned of gold, silver and other metals were especially +attractive. Such bits of jewelry as have been discovered--necklaces, +bracelets, and rings, give evidence of a high degree of workmanship. +Bowls, goblets, and dishes were elaborately wrought from metals, and +while the decorative designs upon them were often borrowed from the +Greeks or the Egyptians, the original was frequently improved upon. The +following lines from the Iliad show how bits of Phoenician work were +treasured among the Hellenes: + + "And then the son of Peleus placed in sight + Prizes of swiftness,--a wrought silver cup + That held six measures, and in beauty far + Excelled all others known; the cunning hands + Of the Sidonian artisans have given + Its graceful shape, and over the dark sea + Men of Phoenicia brought it, with their wares, + To the Greek harbors; Achilles now + Brought it before the assembly as a prize, + For which, in honor of the friend he loved, + The swiftest runners of the host should strive." + +Hebrew chroniclers have described the decoration of Solomon's +temple--all wrought by Phoenician skill: + +"And King Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre. He was a widow's +son, ... and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was +filled with wisdom and understanding, and cunning to work all works in +brass. And he came to King Solomon, and wrought all his work. + +"For he cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high apiece: and a +line of twelve cubits did compass either of them about. And he made two +capitals of molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars: the +height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other +capital was five cubits. And nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain +work, for the capitals which were upon the top of the pillars, seven for +one capital and seven for the other capital. And he made the pillars, +and two rows round about upon the one network, to cover the capitals +that were upon the top, with pomegranates: and so did he for the other +capital. And the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars were of +lily work in the porch, four cubits.... And he set up the pillars in the +porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar and called the name +thereof Jachin: and he sat up the left pillar and called the name +thereof Boaz. And upon the top of the pillars was lily work: so was the +work of the pillars finished. + +"And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from one brim to the other: it was +round all about, and its height was five cubits: and a line of thirty +cubits did compass it round about. And under the brim of it round about +there were knobs compassing it.... It stood upon twelve oxen, three +looking toward the north, and three looking toward west, and three +looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea +was set above them, and all their hinder parts were inward. And it was +an hand breadth thick, and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of +a cup, with flowers of lilies: it contained two thousand baths.... So +Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he made King Solomon for +the house of the Lord."[2] + +The Phoenicians never developed an imposing architecture. Timber was +abundant on the mountain slopes, and was the principal building +material. The great lack of architectural ruins in the country today may +be largely accounted for by its perishability. Stone was also available, +and appears to have been used chiefly for foundations, which were laid +deep and skillfully constructed. City walls were built of stone, and a +few remnants of these may yet be found. Gigantic stones of prodigious +size were piled one upon another and often held in place by their own +tremendous weight. In places where the solid blocks were joined +together, they were united so evenly that the blade of a knife may not +now be placed in the seam. + +Tyre and Sidon were both beautiful cities, as abundant evidence goes to +testify. Carthage with her great structures of stone, became a quarry +for Italy, but the Phoenicians were imitators and never developed a +distinctive style of building. + +Their sculpture survives only in tombs. A few of these have been +recovered. Some of the figures adorning the interiors of tombs are said +to possess richness and beauty. Their artists made use of huge blocks, +and for this reason their carving was in low relief, or gave such +appearance. The Greeks, on the other hand, found gigantic blocks +unwieldy, and took smaller stones for their embellishment. Consequently +the grace and delicacy of Greek sculpture was not reached in +Phoenicia. + +"It seems strange that these Canaanites or Phoenicians, the scorn of +Israel, and the people against whom Joshua bent all his powers, should +have enjoyed such an uncheckered career, making themselves sole +navigators of every sea, and finally founding a city which stood +unrivalled for more than 700 years. Through their hands ... passed +grain, ivory, and skins from Libya; slaves from the Soudan, purple and +cedar from Tyre, frankincense from Arabia, copper from Cyprus, iron from +Elba, tin from Cornwall, wine from Greece, silver from Spain, and gold +and precious stones from Malabar. As a nation of traders and navigators +they established themselves on the coast, and wherever they settled, +depots and factories of various kinds were erected. We do not find them +in the interior of a country. Neither do we hear of alliances with the +people with whom they came in contact, nor of their impressing barbarian +tribes with any notions of the advantages of civilization. In the field +of intellectual acquirements the Carthaginian, as the descendant of the +Phoenician, has no place, and his skill in the gentler arts of life +has no recognition. We find no native architecture, nor do we hear of +any industrial art worth recording. Carthage, it is true, became the +metropolis of their widespread kingdom, and one of the wealthiest cities +of the world.... Temples and stately edifices adorned its streets, and +the remains of great constructional works still attest the solid +grandeur of the city. But the architecture was the work of Greek, not of +Punic, artists; and the few sculptures of note, which may be assigned to +a period anterior to the last Punic war, have nothing in common with the +rude carvings which bear the impress of Carthaginian origin. On the +other hand the art of navigation, the science of agriculture, the +principles of trading, and a system of water supply combined with the +construction of gigantic cisterns, which may still be seen at Carthage, +and in the outskirts of many towns in North Africa, became Rome's +heritage from Phoenicia."[3] + + +LITERATURE AND LEARNING. + +Among the bequests of Phoenicia to mankind, first will always stand +the giving of an alphabet to the world. It is true that other nations +possessed a written language, but their symbols were generally so +complicated and so numerous that they could hardly have become of +general service. It was earlier assumed that the Phoenicians invented +the alphabet which they spread among the nations around them, but now it +is believed that they simply shortened and simplified symbols already in +existence. Their alphabet was widely adopted, to be sure, not because it +was most convenient, but because it was the only one known to many +nations, who never came in direct contact with dwellers on the Nile or +Mesopotamians. + +In Phoenicia's palmy days literature and learning were neglected--at +least so far as can now be ascertained. It is not unlikely that scholars +lived sometimes in the larger cities, and schools were probably +maintained to some extent, but at all events, no remains of a +Phoenician literature has come down to us, and it has been commonly +surmised that no extensive literature ever existed. The nation was bent +upon its commercial life, and only such knowledge as would be essential +to traders was regarded as necessary. In later times, in the last +century before Christ and in the first century of the new era, literary +activity was more marked. We are told that there was a school of +philosophy at Sidon, and the city became a literary center, but this had +little to do with the period of Phoenician ascendency which +practically ended with Greek dominance. + + +RELIGION. + +Somewhat more is known of the religion of Phoenicia, but here again we +are not able to trace its development in any complete sense, and most +that has been recorded concerning it was written by foreigners whose +attitude was uniformly hostile. + +It is now supposed by some scholars that the Phoenician religion was +at first monotheistic, and that later the worship of many gods was +common. The third stage in its progress would be the greater portion of +the period known to us, when the gods of other peoples were allowed, by +the side of those native to the country. In Carthaginian tombs images of +Egyptian deities have been found side by side with those of ancient Tyre +and Sidon. In the beginning, the Phoenician worship was probably one +manifestation of the Sun-worship, common to Semitic peoples. The +religion of any people is a matter of growth, invariably undergoing +change, until it finally resembles but slightly what it was in the +beginning. Thus the faith of Phoenicia underwent many changes during +her 1500 years. It is agreed that the Phoenicians worshipped curiously +shaped stones at an early period, believing that deities had their abode +within them; plants also were importuned, to appease the spirit that +dwelt within them and cause each to yield food. Finally the heavenly +bodies became objects of worship, the sun being considered most +important. There must always be something appealing in the adoration +felt by primitive minds toward the sun. Most ancient people worshipped +it in one form or another, and the planet was surrounded by unfathomable +mystery in the infancy of the world. + +Baal was god of the sun, Astoreth, goddess of the moon. Baal symbolized +the life-giving power of the sun as well as its destructive forces. + +Maleck or Molock was the god of fire. He was a god of cruelty and +thirsted for blood. It was to satisfy some of his supposed cravings that +the human sacrifices took place. The first-born child, pure maidens, +favorite sons, were fed to the flames to appease his wrath. These +sacrifices seem strange to us today, and nations of antiquity, immuned +to cruelty and bloodshed, turned from these Phoenician customs in +horror. + +An annual spring festival of great antiquity was celebrated. Probably in +early times it lacked the feature of the human sacrifice which made it +most objectionable later. Great forest trees were brought into the +temple court and planted. From their branches were suspended animals, +birds and all else intended for the sacrifice. After the images of the +gods were marched around these trees, all was set on fire and consumed +in a mighty conflagration. To make the celebration more impressive, +human sacrifices were added, especially before some great undertaking, +or upon the occasion of some national calamity. + +Astoreth was the great virgin goddess. In the beginning she was +worshipped with simple rites. + + "Astoreth, whom the Phoenicians called + Astarte, queen of heaven, with crescent horns; + To whose bright image nightly by the moon + Sidonian virgins paid their vows and songs." + +In course of time the character of the goddess changed, and she was +worshipped by most licentious practices. + +In addition to their own gods, the Phoenicians readily incorporated +into their pantheon deities of those tribes and nations with whom they +opened trade. Some years after Phoenicia ceased to be a power, a +Carthaginian general made a treaty with the Emperor of Greece. The two +are reported to have sworn by numerous deities that they would preserve +it. "They swore by Zeus, Hera, and Apollo, by the tutelary deities of +the Carthaginians, by Hercules, by the moon, and the earth, by rivers, +meadows, and waters, by the gods of the allied armies, and the sun, by +all the gods who ruled over Carthage, by all the gods who ruled over +Macedon and the rest of Greece, and by all the gods of those who were +present to ratify the treaty." + +At first the Phoenicians worshipped in the open air, with merely an +altar of stone. Later they built elaborate and costly temples, but they +still celebrated certain ceremonies out of doors, in groves or under the +shade of trees. + +The religion of the Phoenicians was most innocent and attractive in +its earliest stages. As it developed, with its numerous priesthood +performing their bloody rites, and its necessary sacrifices, teaching +cruelty and blunting the sensibilities of its adherents, it became very +repulsive. Far from inculcating noble ideals, it made a virtue of +renouncing dear ones to agony and death; and a people who from infancy +grew accustomed to such scenes and such conceptions could never develop +finest qualities of character. Wherever Phoenician vessels landed with +their wares, there Phoenician gods and practices went also. The good +done in spreading the habits of civilization to regions remote was +mitigated by the harm done in spreading this abhorrent faith. + +Several Greek myths tell of maidens being sacrificed to some monster, +such, for example, as Theseus and The Minotaur. These are believed to +have had their origin in rumors of Phoenician sacrifices. The stories +reached the shores of Greece in various forms and with the aid of Greek +imaginations were woven into the tales as we know them. + +[Illustration: SHELLS OF THE SEA SNAIL FROM WHICH THE PURPLE DYE WAS +MADE.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Boughton: History of Ancient Peoples. + +[2] I. Kings. 7. + +[3] Graham: Roman Africa, 1, 2. + + + + +CHAPTER V. + + +THE PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF PALESTINE. + +It is essential that the student of Hebrew history understand the +topography of Palestine, wherein the nation developed. Names of rivers, +mountains, cities, in this historic land grow familiar from frequent +repetition in the Bible, but where each was located, and what was its +position relative to other oft-mentioned spots, are queries left +unsettled by the average reader. Still more necessary is a general idea +of the country as a whole, because the very formation of the land +determined in a large measure the destiny of those who dwelt within it. + +Palestine is bounded on the north by the base of the Lebanons, on the +east by the Arabian desert, on the south by the Wilderness of Judah--an +extension of this desert--, and on the west by the Mediterranean Sea +below Mount Carmel, while north of this mighty mountain the +Phoenicians held the coast, although the Hebrews occupied the province +of Galilee, east of the Phoenician shore. + +This celebrated land is scarcely more than 150 miles in length, and +approximates 100 miles in breadth, yet every known variety of climate +may be found within its confines. From regions lying 1300 feet below +sea-level, with heat of the tropics, mountains rise to 9000 feet above +the sea, with Alpine snows and cold. + +Palestine, like Greece or Switzerland, falls naturally into many small +divisions, each shut off in a measure from the rest. This explains how +it was possible for the Hebrews to occupy a considerable portion of the +land while the Canaanites, earlier inhabitants of the country, remained +undisturbed in other localities. It also explains the fact that for many +years some of the Hebrews dwelt in tents and clung to their nomadic +customs while no great distance away others of their kinsmen cultivated +the vine and tilled the soil. + +While the shore of the Mediterranean was broken by several harbors along +the Phoenician coast, south of Mount Carmel the shore reaches in a +nearly straight line to Egypt. No havens invite ships to safety; no +islands dot the rocky shore. To the Hebrew the sea was a frontier rather +than a means for outside communication. So inhospitable was this coast +that invasions of Palestine were made by land rather than sea. A rocky +line of cliffs varying from thirty to one hundred feet makes landing +impossible save at two or three artificially constructed modern ports. + +Six distinct land features are to be found in Palestine and deeply +affected the people who dwelt there in antiquity. First of these is the +Coast Plain, varying in width from two hundred yards to thirty miles. +The northern portion of it was known as the Plain of Sharon; the +southern portion, as the Plain of Philistia. The word _Sharon_ signifies +"forest," and in an early day a dense wood of oaks covered the region +and gave it this name. Only in the north has the forest been perpetuated +to our day. The plain was formerly, and is still, productive. It +contains gardens, orchards, and grain fields. Lacking the inspiring +beauty of the high tablelands, it possesses a quiet charm of its own. +Farther south, the Plain of Philistia stretches off in the direction of +Egypt. + +This Coast Plain, falling for the most part into these two smaller +plains, has been a continuation of the great highway between Egypt and +Syria, and a famous war-path. For Egypt particularly, it was a simple +matter to dispatch troops along the shore, to strike terror to less +inaccessible inland districts. Today it lies in peaceful cultivation or +in woodlands of low undergrowth. + +"The whole Maritime Plain possesses a quiet but rich beauty. If the +contours are gentle the colors are strong and varied. Along almost the +whole seaboard runs a strip of links and downs, sometimes of pure +drifting sand, sometimes of grass and sand together. Outside this border +of broken gold there is the blue sea, with its fringe of foam. Landward +the soil is a chocolate brown, with breaks and gullies, now bare to +their dirty white shingle and stagnant puddles, and now full of rich +green reeds and rushes that tell of ample water beneath. Over corn and +moorland a million flowers are scattered--poppies, pimpernels, anemones, +the convolvulus and the mallow, the narcissus and blue iris--_roses of +Sharon and lilies of the valley_. Lizards haunt all the sunny banks. +The shimmering air is filled with bees and butterflies, and with the +twittering of small birds, hushed now and then as the shadow of a great +hawk blots the haze. The soft night is sprinkled thick with glittering +fireflies."[1] + +Passing the sea and the Coast Plain, the Central Range rises high and +extends throughout the entire length of Palestine, with some variations. +In this great tableland lay the famous kingdom of the Hebrews--Judaea +and Samaria. Judaea lay farther to the south and was separated from the +Coast Plain by the Shephelah--a series of low foot-hills. The Hebrews +built their western cities on these low hills rather than along the +shore. In fact the frequent attacks of the Philistines left the Coast +Plain only now and then in the hands of the Hebrews. + +The word _Shephelah_ has been thought to signify _lowlands_, and may +have been applied in contrast to the highlands farther east. Ranging +from five to fifteen miles in width, this elevated strip was the scene +of constant warfare between the Hebrews and Philistines. Numerous +valleys led across it, Ajalon being perhaps most famous. + +"The prevailing scenery of the region is of short, steep hillsides and +narrow glens, with a very few great trees, and thickly covered by +brushwood and oak-scrub--crags and scalps of limestone breaking through, +and a rough grey torrent-bed at the bottom of each glen.... Caves, of +course, abound--near the villages, gaping black dens for men and cattle, +but up the unfrequented glens they are hidden by hanging bush, behind +which you disturb only the wild pigeon. Bees murmur everywhere, larks +are singing; and although in the maze of hills you may wander for hours +without meeting a man, or seeing a house, you are seldom out of sound of +the human voice, shepherds and ploughmen calling to their cattle and to +each other across the glens. Higher up you rise to moorlands, with rich +grass if there is a spring, but otherwise, heath, thorns, and rough +herbs that scent the wind. Bees abound here, too, and dragon-flies, +kites and crows; sometimes an eagle floats over the cliffs of Judaea. +The sun beats strong, but you see and feel the sea; the high mountains +are behind, at night they breathe upon these ridges gentle breezes, and +the dews are very heavy. + +"Altogether it is a rough, happy land, with its glens and moors, its +mingled brushwood and barley-fields; frequently under cultivation, but +for the most part broken and thirsty, with few wells and many hiding +places; just the home for strong border-men, like Samson, and just the +theatre for that guerilla warfare, varied occasionally by pitched +battles, which Israel and Philistia, the Maccabees and the Syrians, +waged with each other."[2] + +At last the foot-hills merge into lofty mountains and series of +plateaus, or table-lands, surrounded by high peaks, appear. Here was +Judaea, the true home of the Hebrews. Farther north, and rising directly +from the Coast Plain, without the intervening foot-hills, was Samaria. +The physical outlines of this long, narrow range determined in advance +that it would not permanently be politically united. + +Judaea was quite secure in her mountain heights. On the east her +mountains descend abruptly to the lower Jordan and the Dead Sea; on the +south lies the desert; on the east the low foot-hills, and on the north +the table-land ends in ten miles of wild, waste land. "A desolate, +fatiguing extent of rocky platforms and ridges, or moorland strewn with +boulders, and fields of shallow soil thickly mixed with stone, they are +a true border--more fit for the building of barriers than for the +cultivation of food." + +Some parts of this stony plateau were fit for cultivation, but for the +most part, Judaea was a pastoral land--a country of shepherds and +herdsmen. Flocks of sheep fed on the moorlands in ancient times, as they +do today. Water has always been scanty and is preserved in wells and +cisterns for the cattle during months of drouth. + +Samaria possesses softer outlines and is a land beautified by nature. As +Judaea was isolated and secure in her natural boundaries, so was Samaria +open to approach. The "openness" of the land is constantly dwelt upon by +those who picture its location. It was difficult to resist invasion and +Samaria was attacked much more often than her sister to the south. +Samaria was a fruitful land, yielding to cultivation; she lay open to +influences on every hand, and was the first to receive fresh impulses +and ideas. "Today, amid the peaceful beauty of the scene--the secluded +vale covered with corn fields, through which the winding streams flash +and glisten into the hazy distance, and the gentle hill rises without a +scarp to the olives waving on its summit--it is possible to appreciate +Isaiah's name for Samaria, _the crown of pride of Ephraim, the flower of +his glorious beauty which is on the head of the fat valley_."[3] + +East of both countries and the Central Range which contained them, flows +the Jordan. Geological ages ago it is supposed that a great sea occupied +the valley of the Jordan and the regions on either side. Beneath its +deep waters, layers of limestone accumulated. In course of time, mighty +convulsions within the earth hurled these layers of rock in twain and +threw them up on both sides, until the present mountain ranges were +formed. At the same time a series of rocks were cast up diagonally +across this region to the south, thus enclosing a portion of the salt +waters within the basin so formed. Ages of rain and of glaciers followed +and when these abated, the new surface was left to develop its system of +drainage. The situation at present is almost identical with that in +early Bible times. In the northern part of Palestine, at the base of the +Lebanons, a series of streams, mountain-born, take a southernly +direction and empty into a marshy pool known as Lake Huleh; from the +southern part of this lake the river Jordan flows on to the Lake of +Galilee, whence the stream once again issues forth, this time down a +steep incline, giving it rapid impetus of motion, from whence comes its +name: Jordan--the _Down-comer_. At last its valley widens and by several +estuaries the river finally empties into the Dead Sea. + +The beauty attending many rivers of the earth is lacking in the Jordan. +Cutting down its channels in a rift left already deep by eruption, this +valley lies deep below the sea-level and is exceedingly hot. Malaria +lurks in the jungles that border the river-sides, and at no time has the +region been thickly populated. The river is not suited to irrigation, +but certain portions of the valley are watered by its tributaries +sufficiently to make gardens possible. + +The Dead Sea occupies the lowest portion of the valley. Soundings have +shown it to be very deep. Not only are its waters heavily charged with +salt, but other chemicals make yet more uninhabitable its basin. No fish +or other form of life lives in its waters, which possess remarkable +clearness and are intensely blue. Having no outlets save evaporation, +and lying where heat is great, the sea is like a mighty caldron, above +which a column of steam rises constantly. 6,000,000 tons of water are +estimated to rise from it daily in the form of vapor. + +From its very nature, the Jordan was not a river to which a nation might +become devoted--as, for example, the Egyptians were to their Nile. +Nevertheless, no other stream has become so embodied into literature, or +so endeared to a great religious world. The Hebrews regarded the Jordan +as a boundary--a frontier. Significant is the fact that when it is +mentioned in the Bible it is generally accompanied by some word meaning +_over_ or _across_. _Over_ Jordan, _beyond_ the stream which because of +its fever-breeding, lion-populated jungles and its strange sea, +signified death, destruction, calamity, rather than life. _Beyond_ the +Jordan, then, lay the Promised Land, flowing with milk and honey. + +East of the Jordan valley, the Eastern Range rises similarly to the +Central Range on the west side. The plateaus of Moab and Gilead seem +higher than the others, for whereas the Central Range rises gradually +from a series of foothills to its exalted height, the Eastern Range +rises abruptly from the extremely low river-valley. + +The Eastern Range is blessed with a temperate climate. Heat is always +moderated by breezes which bring health and prosperity with them. The +soil is fertile, sufficiently watered and very productive. It is a +region where agriculture and grazing are followed, and natural +conditions are favorable to both occupations. In spite of these +advantages, the region lies exposed to the south and east. Desert tribes +make life and fortune uncertain for the inhabitants. Even today, when +conditions have been somewhat improved, those who grow crops in this +region must pay tribute to wandering tribes who demand it, or lose their +all. How much more precarious must life have been in those days when +even among the most enlightened nations the hand of the plunderer was +scarcely restrained at all. The Hebrew tribes which settled this plateau +were in the beginning as strong as those that located farther east, but +they could not maintain their individuality against the conditions that +beset them. Sooner or later, they drifted with the restless hordes and +lost their identity. + +One more natural division remains to be considered--the Plain of +Esdraelon. Triangular in shape, one point lies north of Mt. Carmel, +while the two long lines extend south-easterly, and meet the third near +the river Jordan. It was this famous plain that gave access to the +Central Range from the west--from the Coast Plain, approach to Samaria +was not difficult by this means. + +The region is rather made up of a series of plains, broken by scattered +mountains, yet permitting free passage from the sea to the river Jordan. +An ancient route lay along this way. It has been called the key to +Palestine, and over it came the enemies of Israel. Especially +interesting is the following description, with the added explanation of +a bit of ancient Hebrew poetry characterizing the region: + +"As you stand upon that last headland of Gilboa, 200 feet above the +plain, ... the great triangle is spread before you. Along the north of +it the steep brown wall of the Galilean hills, about 1000 feet high, +runs almost due west, till it breaks out and down to the feet of Carmel, +in the forest slopes just high enough to hide the Plain of Acre and sea. +But over and past these slopes Carmel's steady ridge, deepening in blue +the while, carries the eye out to its dark promontory above the +Mediterranean. From this end of Carmel the lower Samarian hills, green +with bush and dotted by white villages, run southeast to the main +Samarian range, and on their edge, due south, seven miles across the +bay, Jenin stands out with its minarets and palms.... But the rest of +the plain is before you--a great expanse of loam, red and black, which +in a more peaceful land would be one sea of waving wheat with island +villages; but here is what its modern name implies, a free, wild +prairie, upon which but one or two hamlets have ventured forth from the +cover of the hills and a timid and tardy cultivation is only now seeking +to overtake the waste of coarse grass and the thistly herbs that camels +love. There is no water visible. The Kishon itself flows in a muddy +trench, unseen five yards away. But here and there a clump of trees +shows where a deep well is worked to keep a little orchard green through +summer.... The roads have no limit to their breadth, but sprawl, as if +at most seasons one caravan could not follow for mud on the path of +another. But these details sink in a great sense of space, and of a +level made almost absolute by the rise of hills on every side of it. It +is a vast inland basin, and from it there breaks just at your feet, +between Jezreel and Shunem, the valley Jordanwards,--breaks as visibly +as river from lake, with a slope and almost the look of a current upon +it.... From Jezreel you can appreciate everything in the literature and +in the history of Esdraelon. + +"To begin with, you can enjoy that happiest sketch of a landscape and +its history that was ever drawn in half a dozen lines, _Issachar_--to +which the most of Esdraelon fell-- + + "Issachar is a large-limbed ass, + Stretching himself between the sheepfolds: + For he saw a resting-place that it was good, + And the land that it was pleasant." + +"Such exactly is Esdraelon--a land relaxed and sprawling up among the +hills to north, south and east, as you will see a loosened ass roll and +stretch his limbs any day in the sunshine of a Syrian village yard. To +the highlander looking down upon it, Esdraelon is room to stretch in and +lie happy. Yet the figure of the ass goes further--the room must be paid +for-- + + 'So he bowed his shoulder to bear + And became a servant under task-work.' + +"The inheritors of this plain never enjoyed the highland independent of +Manasseh or Naphtali. Open to east and west, Esdraelon was at distant +intervals the war-path or battle-field of great empires.... Even when +there has been no invasion to fear, Esdraelon has still suffered: when +she has not been the camp of the foreigner she has served as the estate +of her neighbors."[4] + + +CLIMATE AND PRODUCTIVITY OF PALESTINE. + +As we might expect in a land possessing such a varied topography, nearly +every known climate is represented in Palestine. Along the seashore the +salt breezes of ocean blow; the climate of the Coast Plain is mild and +pleasant, and favorable to the growth of gardens and orchards; within +the Central Range itself several varieties of climate prevail, and in +the low valley of the Jordan and in the region of the Dead Sea, the heat +of the tropics obtains. The plateaus of the Eastern Range are visited by +health-giving breezes, which moderate the atmosphere. Farther east and +south extends the desert, with its parched sands and sultry air, yet in +the very sight of these desert wastes rise snowy mountain peaks. + +"There are palms in Jericho and pine forests in Lebanon. In the Ghor, in +summer, you are under a temperature of more than 100 degrees Fahrenheit, +and yet you see glistening the snow-fields of Hermon. All the +intermediate steps between these extremes the eye can see at one sweep +from Carmel--the sands and palms of the coast; the wheat-fields of +Esdraelon, the oaks and sycamores of Galilee; the pines, the peaks, the +snows of Anti-Lebanon. How closely these differences lie to each other! +Take a section of the country across Judaea. With its palms and shadoofs +the Philistine Plain might be a part of the Egyptian Delta; but on the +hills of the Shephelah which overlook it, you are in the scenery of +Southern Europe; the Judaean moors which overlook them are like the +barer uplands of Central Germany; the shepherds wear sheep-skin cloaks +and live under stone roofs--sometimes the snow lies deep; a few miles +farther east and you are down on the desert among the Bedouin, with +their tents of hair and their cotton clothing; a few miles farther +still, and you drop to torrid heat in the Jordan Valley; a few miles +beyond that and you rise to the plateau of the Belka, where the Arabs +say 'the cold is always at home.' Yet from Philistia to the Belka is +scarcely seventy miles."[5] + +The year is divided into a wet and a dry season. The rains begin the +last of October and are over by the last of March. These are called the +"early" rains in the Old Testament. Showers which fall in the late +spring are called the "latter" rains. From May until October the summer +is dry. The vegetation is sustained in many places by the heavy dews. +Water is not abundant and the rain-water which falls during the winter +months is stored in wells and cisterns for use in the dry months. + +Flowers of many varieties are found through the land and range from +those common to tropical and desert lands to those native to high +altitudes. As in Egypt the fertile land borders upon the shifting desert +sands, so in Palestine the strong contrasts between the productive and +waste lands is the more marked because of their proximity. + +Palestine is not a land of heavy forests. To be sure, ages upon ages of +habitation have divested many slopes of native timber, but evidences go +to show that at no time since records began has the country been heavily +forested. Today the woodlands are frequently mere undergrowth. Orchards +are plentiful. The olive is most widely cultivated; apricots, figs, +oranges, almond and walnut trees are grown, and the vine is grown +extensively. Grain fields wave on the plains, in the valleys and +lowlands, wheat, barley and millet being most abundant. Vegetables of +many varieties are commonly raised. Beans, tomatoes, onions and melons +are produced in large quantities. Grass is grown only on small areas, +pasturage being for the most part found on the public land. During the +summer months pasturage exists only near the large fountains or the +carefully built cisterns. These are jealously guarded by their owners. +In earlier times and now, to some extent, wells and pools are provided +to preserve water falling during the winter, and these are for the use +of all who come to them with their flocks and herds. + +We find no such condition here as in Egypt, where crops grow abundantly +if the seeds be but once dropped into the ground. On the contrary, while +grains, fruits and garden produce are generally grown, care and constant +industry are required to bring forth good yields. Certain portions of +the country are adapted to the art of husbandry, while others have +always been better suited to cattle and sheep raising. So much of the +tablelands is rocky and stony and unsuited for cultivation that no +arable spots are allowed to go untended. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] George Adam Smith: Historical Geography of the Holy Land, 149. + +[2] George Adam Smith: Historical Geography of the Holy Land, 208. + +[3] George Adam Smith: Historical Geography of the Holy Land, 349. + +[4] George Adam Smith: Historical Geography of the Holy Land, 381. + +[5] George Adam Smith: Historical Geography of the Holy Land, 56. + + + + +CHAPTER VI. + + +EFFECTS OF GEOGRAPHICAL CONDITIONS UPON THE HEBREWS. + +Certain natural effects of the physical conditions upon the people in +Palestine have been apparent as we traced the general land formation. It +is evident that in an age when easy communication was essential to +union, there could be no political unity among a people dwelling in a +country so divided by mountains, plains, and valleys. Again, we would +expect tribes settling the plateaus of the Central Range to develop +differently from those peopling the fertile plain of Sharon. Indeed, +within this range itself we have found that the inhabitants of austere +Judaea led a life unlike that of more accessible Samaria. Other effects +of natural conditions upon the Hebrews are evident, as we shall see. + +The very climate of Palestine seems to have had its influence in molding +the religious thought of Israel. "The climate of Palestine is regular +enough to provoke men to methodical labour for its fruits, but the +regularity is often interrupted. The early rains or the latter rains +fail, drought comes occasionally for two years in succession, and that +means famine and pestilence. There are too, the visitations of the +locust, which are said to be bad every fifth or sixth year, and there +are earthquakes, also periodical in Syria. Thus a purely mechanical +conception of nature as something certain and inevitable, whose +processes are more or less under man's control, is impossible; and the +imagination is roused to feel the presence of a will behind nature, in +face of whose interruptions of the fruitfulness or stability of the land +man is absolutely helpless. To such a climate, then, is partly due +Israel's doctrine of Providence."[1] In Deuteronomy the contrast between +Egypt, the land just left, and Palestine, to which Israel was then +passing, is drawn, and the price of prosperity definitely given. + +"But the land, whither thou goest in to possess it, is not as the land +of Egypt, from whence ye came out, where thou sowedst thy seed, and +wateredst it with thy foot, as a garden of herbs: but the land, whither +ye go to possess it, is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water +of the rain of heaven. A land which Jehovah thy God careth for: the eyes +of Jehovah thy God are always upon it, from the beginning of the year +even unto the end of the year. + +"And it shall come to pass, if ye shall harken diligently unto my +commandments which I command you this day, to love Jehovah your God, and +to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul, that I will +give you the rain of your land in his due season, the first rain and the +latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy corn, and thy wine, and +thine oil. And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that thou +mayst eat and be full. Take heed to yourselves, that your heart be not +deceived, and ye turn aside, and serve other gods, and worship them; and +_then_ Jehovah's wrath be kindled against you and he shut up the heaven, +that the land yield not her fruit; and lest ye perish quickly from off +the good land which Jehovah giveth you."[2] + +The productivity of the soil had two important results in the +development of the Hebrews. The first affected the very nature of their +being, for it changed them from desert nomads into herders and small +farmers. In place of the tent, they adopted the house, the _fixed_ +habitation. Instead of wandering from pasture to pasture with their +cattle and families, as they had done for generation upon generation +before their sojourn in Egypt, they cultivated the land and found it +overflowing with "milk and honey." In the Song of Moses this great +transformation is pictured with vividness and beauty: + + "Remember the days of old, + Consider the years of generation on generation. + Ask thy father and he will show thee, + Thine elders and they will tell thee. + When the highest gave nations their heritage, + When he sundered the children of men. + He set the border of the tribes, + By the number of the children of Israel. + For the portion of Jehovah is his people, + Jacob the measure of his heritage. + He found him in a land of the desert, + In a waste, in a howling wilderness. + He encompassed him, He distinguished him, + He watched him as the apple of His eye. + As an eagle stirreth his nest, + Fluttereth over his young, + Spreadeth abroad his wings, taketh them, + Beareth them up on his pinions, + Jehovah alone led him + And no strange god was with him. + He made him to ride on the Land's high places, + And to eat of the growth of the field. + He gave him to suck honey from the cliff, + And oil from the flinty rock. + Cream of kine and milk of sheep, + With lambs' fat and rams' + Breed of Bashan and he-goats, + With fat of the kidneys of wheat; + And the blood of the grape thou drankest in foam!" + +While settlement in Palestine produced an advancement in civilization, +it brought at the same time a lower plane of religious life and thought. +With sudden plenty and no longer enforced abstinence of the desert, came +a certain confusion and riot. The desert tends to inspire monotheistic +ideas and conceptions; lands of varied aspect, such as Greece or +Palestine, inspire polytheistic conceptions--divided power rather than +unity. + +"The creed of the desert nomad is simple and austere--for nature about +him is monotonous, silent, and illiberal. But Syria is a land of lavish +gifts and oracles--where woods are full of mysterious speech, and rivers +burst suddenly from the ground, where the freedom of nature excites, and +seems to sanction, the passions of the human body, where food is rich, +and men drink wine. The spirit and the senses are equally taken by +surprise. _No one can tell how many voices a tree has who has not come +up to it from the silence of the great desert...._ + +"But with the awe comes the sense of indulgence, and the starved +instincts of the body break riotously forth.... All this is said to +have happened to Israel from almost their first encampment in Canaan." + + "They moved him to jealousy with strange gods, + With abominations provoked him to anger. + They sacrificed to monsters undivine, + Gods they had known not, + New things, lately come in, + Their fathers never had them in awe." + +One more effect of physical conditions may be noted here, leaving the +rest to appear in connection with Israel's story--namely, the effect of +the picturesqueness of the land upon these former desert nomads. For one +who has made himself familiar with the beautiful places of earth, +Palestine has its charm, but to people journeying thither from the +wastes of desert, the land possesses matchless beauty. Before calling +attention to the reflection of scenery to be found in ancient Hebrew +writings, let us read the description of certain aspects of the country, +as given by one who knows every foot of the land and has watched it in +and out of season. + +"There is the coast-line from the headland of Carmel--northwards the +Gulf of Haifa, with its yellow sands and palms, ... southwards Sharon +with her scattered forest, her coast of sand and grass: westwards the +green sea and the wonderful shadows of the clouds upon it--grey when you +look at them with your face to the sun, but, with the sun behind you, +purple, and more like Homer's 'wine-colored' water than anything I have +seen on the Mediterranean. There is the _excellency of Carmel_ itself: +wheat-fields climbing from Esdraelon to the first bare rocks, then thick +bush and scrub, young ilex, wild olives and pines, with undergrowth of +large purple thistles, mallows with blossoms like pelargoniums, stocks +of hollyhocks, golden broom, honeysuckle, and convolvulus--then, between +the shoulders of the mountain, olive-groves, their dull green mass +banked by the lighter forest trees, and on the flanks the broad lawns, +where in the shadow of great oaks you look far out to sea. There is the +Lake of Galilee as you see it from Gadara, with the hills of Naphtali +above it, and Hermon filling all the north. There, is the prospective +of the Jordan Valley as you look up from over Jericho, between the bare +ranges of Gilead and Ephraim, with the winding ribbon of the river's +jungle, and the top of Hermon like a white cloud in the infinite +distance. There is the forest of Gilead, where you ride, two thousand +feet high, under the boughs of great trees creaking and rustling in the +wind, with all Western Palestine before you. There is the moonlight view +out of the bush on the northern flank of Tabor, the leap of the sun over +the edge of Bashan, summer morning in the Shephelah, and sunset over the +Mediterranean, when you see it from the gateway of the ruins on Samaria +down the glistening Vale of Barley. Even in the barest provinces you get +many a little picture that lives with you for life--a chocolate-coloured +bank with red poppies against the green of the prickly pear hedge above +it, and a yellow lizard darting across; a river-bed of pink oleanders +flush with the plain; a gorge in Judaea, where you look up between +limestone walls picked out with tufts of grass and black-and-tan goats +cropping at them, the deep blue sky over all, and, on the edge of the +only shadow, a well, a trough, and a solitary herdsman. + +"And then there are those prospects in which no other country can match +Palestine, for no other has a valley like the Ghor, or a desert like +that which falls from Judaea to the Dead Sea. There is the view from the +Mount of Olives, down twenty miles of desert hill-tops to the deep blue +waters, with the wall of Moab glowing on the further side like burnished +copper, and staining the blue sea red with its light. There is the view +of the Dead Sea through the hazy afternoon, when across the yellow +foreground of Jeshimon the white Lisan rises like a pack of Greenland +ice from the blue waters, and beyond it the Moab range, misty, silent +and weird. There are the precipices of Masada and Engedi sheer from the +salt coast. And, above all, there is the view from Engedi under the full +moon, when the sea is bridged with gold, and the eastern mountains are +black with a border of opal."[3] + +The literature of no other people has more vividly reflected a landscape +than has that of the ancient Hebrews. Without some understanding of +Palestine, one would fail to appreciate much that is beautiful in Hebrew +poetry. While we shall touch upon this again in the consideration of +Hebrew literature, some examples will sufficiently illustrate this +point. Take, for example, a portion of the Hundred and Fourth Psalm: + + He sendeth forth springs into the valleys; + They run among the mountains: + They give drink to every beast of the field; + The wild asses quench their thirst. + By them the fowl of the heaven have their habitation, + They sing around the branches. + He watereth the mountains from his chambers: + The earth is satisfied with the fruits of thy work. + He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, + And herb for the service of man: + That he may bring forth food out of the earth, + And wine that maketh glad the heart of man, + And oil to make his face to shine, + And bread that strengtheneth man's heart. + The trees of Jehovah are satisfied; + The cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted; + Where the birds make their nests: + As for the stork, the fir trees are her house; + The high mountains are for the wild goats; + The rocks are a refuge for the conies. + + O Jehovah, how manifold are thy works! + In wisdom hast thou made them all: + The earth is full of thy riches. + Yonder is the sea, great and wide, + Wherein are things creeping innumerable, + Both small and great beasts. + There go the ships; + There is leviathan, whom thou hast formed to take his pastime therein. + These wait all upon thee, + That thou mayest give them their meat in due season. + +This poem reflects general characteristics of the land. The next is a +pastoral poem which could have been written only in Judaea. Its figures +are pastoral throughout, and lack of acquaintance with the land wherein +it was produced often causes one to miss the successive pictures it +portrays. Reference is made to the Twenty-third Psalm, wherein the +comparison of the shepherd with his sheep is maintained. + + "The Lord is my shepherd, + I shall not want." + +Only a good faithful shepherd could lead his sheep in Judaea so that at +no time would they want for care or food. + + "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:" + +Pasturage was often scanty, and to lie always in _green_ pastures was +the greatest boon that could befall the sheep. + + "He leadeth me beside the still waters." + +Not lakes, but cisterns or pools, constructed to hold the rains of +winter for use in the dry months of summer. Unless these were carefully +sought out in each new pasture, the sheep would suffer from thirst. + + "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, + I will fear no evil; + For thou art with me: + Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me." + +When one pasture was exhausted, it was necessary to journey to another. +Danger lurked on every side. Did the sheep wander away, they were sure +to be attacked by fierce animals, or stolen by other herders. The +shepherd led the way amid all dangers, and his rod and staff gave +assurance to the sheep some distance from him. + + "Thou preparest a table before me + In the presence of mine enemies: + Thou anointest my head with oil; + My cup runneth over." + +The figure is not changed here, as some have supposed, and a banquet +introduced. Quite on the contrary. In that land grew many poisonous +herbs, likely to be unnoticed by the sheep. The shepherd watched to see +that his flock found food free from these enemies. Then at last, when +the night fell, and the flock was gathered into the fold, the shepherd +stood by the door with a cup of oil in his hand ready to pour on the +heads of weary, exhausted lambs, thus to refresh and revive them. Only a +little could be spared for each one. To have a cup filled to overflowing +was a wonderful blessing. So is the figure carried on to the end of the +beautiful song, and only goodness and mercy could possibly attend one so +protected. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Smith: Historical Geography of Holy Land, 73. + +[2] Deuteronomy 11, 10. + +[3] Smith: Historical Geography, 94. + + + + +CHAPTER VII. + + +SOURCES OF HEBREW HISTORY. + +We may divide the sources of early Hebrew history into (1) Hebrew +sources, and (2) sources supplied by contemporaneous nations and by +archæology. The Hebrew sources are principally three: the historical +books of the Old Testament, the Talmud, the writings of Josephus. The +sources derived elsewhere are records and inscriptions throwing light +upon the events of this ancient nation as chronicled by the Egyptians, +Babylonians, and Assyrians, and statements of Greek travellers and +writers bearing upon their later development. Moreover, in late years +the spade of the excavator has unearthed ruins and remains which have +added materially to previous knowledge of the subject and have +established beyond any doubt facts previously unsettled. + +Before taking up a discussion of the historical books of the Old +Testament--the first of the Hebrew sources,--it is necessary that we +consider the compilation of the Bible, and understand how the many books +which compose it were made up, and gathered into the one volume with +which we are now familiar. + +Only in late years have people generally been ready to approach the +study of the Bible in the spirit of modern investigation long applied to +other fields of learning. While the reasons for this reluctance may not +be at once apparent, they are not difficult to discover. + +During the Middle Ages religious teaching was guarded and kept alive by +monks in the monasteries of Europe. Only with them was learning of any +sort fostered and saved from extinction during the period known as the +Dark Ages. The books which these monks studied, and the records and +productions they committed to paper or parchment, were invariably +written in Latin--a tongue unknown to the people at large. Since the +Bible existed only in Latin, Hebrew or Greek, it was a sealed book to +the masses, who knew it only through brief portions read and explained +to them by the priests. + +After a time, translations were made, first of portions only, then the +entire work was rendered in modern languages. Still it was not +considered fitting to allow its contents to be generally known. Copies +were chained to pulpits in the cathedrals and were opened by the priest +alone. Those who might have been able to procure the costly copies were +not permitted to do so. In the story of England we shall find that only +a few centuries ago, to possess a Bible and read it aloud in the family +was made an offense and was punishable if discovered. Thus a mystery +attached to the Scriptures, instilled into the masses by those who +guarded the ancient volume. The awe and reverence so aroused, clung to +the Bible generations after its contents had become familiar to the +Christian world. One scholar calls the Bible "literature smothered in +reverence." + +Again, no other event can be cited throughout history which has had so +great an effect upon the world as had the ministry of Christ, recorded +at length in the New Testament. The doctrines he taught have been held +sacred by his followers in all subsequent ages. + +The prophetic literature of the Old Testament had foretold the coming of +some one who should restore Israel, and the ancient Hebrew nation looked +with expectancy to the birth of one who should raise their kingdom to +the rank of powerful nations of the earth. By some, Christ was +identified with the one whose coming the prophets had proclaimed, and +thus a continuity was found throughout the Bible--from the epic of +creation in the beginning, to the birth and teaching of Christ, and the +added records of his apostles. For many years the entire work was spoken +of as the "Word of God," and equal reverence given the sixty-four books +which compose it. A verse would be quoted from one chapter with no +regard to its context quite as freely as from another. Sentences would +be extracted from primitive Hebrew law and put side by side with +portions of Christ's Sermon on the Mount, or Paul's letters to mission +churches. Finally scholars began to exclaim against such crude and +literal interpretation of the Scriptures. "Here," they exclaimed, "is a +book embodying legends current among a Semitic people twenty-five +hundred years before the birth of Christ; there are prayers and hymns +of praise composed at varying periods and finally brought together into +one collection; and once again, here is a series of letters written by +early preachers of the gospel to their outlying churches, and you are +culling a stanza here, a verse there, and a sentence in a third place, +as though they were of equal value and had been written under similar +circumstances!" Far from welcoming new light upon the subject of deep +importance, a cry of indignation arose, from the clergy as well as +laymen. It was argued that a scientific study of the Bible would be sure +to detract from the force and influence of its teachings, and was in +itself irreverent. But the spark of Promethean fire was not destined to +go out--the spirit of investigation was abroad. The more scholars +searched and studied, the more they were persuaded that a scientific +exposition of the Bible would enhance rather than lessen its value. They +saw that changing ideas in the book itself existed and had been passed +over by those who did not understand them and who thought it their duty +to blindly accept what they did not comprehend; while a broader +conception was destined to lead to the establishment of profound +religious truths, far more satisfying than the earlier blind belief. + +At last the facts these scholars derived, the methods they applied, the +conclusions they reached, largely overcame prejudices of long standing, +and it may safely be said that today only those people oppose a +scientific study of the Bible who are themselves unfamiliar with +scientific study in other fields of knowledge. + +With this explanation, the results of careful investigation of the Old +Testament will henceforth be cited and used freely with no further +comment, since by such study alone can we come into a true understanding +of a wonderful literature and a remarkable people. + +The word _Bible_ means _books_, or a _library_. A considerable portion +of Hebrew literature has herein been preserved to us. Originally these +productions were written in the ancient Hebrew tongue, and had no +connection with one another save that they treated of the same people at +different stages of their development, and further, treated in some +form--most of them, at least--of their faith. When these writings were +first collected and bound together, more books were included than at +present. Since then the collection has been edited and re-edited. +Compilers have introduced notes in the text and assigned authorship of +certain writings to those who were themselves mere compilers. Later +still, it became customary to write books in verses; into this form the +contents of the Scriptures were thrown. Instead of a narrative being +given at length it was divided into verses, as in our Bibles at present +used. Instead of a poem being reproduced in its original form, or a +drama being divided by the speeches of its participants, both were cast +into verses and numbered. Thus prose and poetry came to have the same +appearance. + +"More than fifty books, the production of a large number of different +authors representing periods of time extending over many centuries, are +all comprehended between the covers of a single volume. There is no +greater monument of the power of printing to diffuse thought than this +fact, that the whole classic literature of one of the world's greatest +peoples can be carried about in the hand or pocket. + +"But there is another side to the matter. A high price has been paid for +this feat of manufacturing a portable literature: no less a price than +the effacement from the books of the Bible of their whole literary +structure. Where the literature is dramatic there are no names of +speakers nor divisions of speeches; there are no titles to essays or +poems, nor anything to mark where one poem or discourse ends and another +begins. It is as if the whole were printed 'solid,' like a newspaper +without newspaper headings. The most familiar English literature treated +in this fashion would lose a great part of its literary interest; the +writings of the Hebrews suffer still more through our unfamiliarity with +many of the literary forms in which they were cast. Even this statement +does not fully represent the injury done to this literature of the Bible +by the traditional shape in which it is presented to us. Between the +Biblical writers and our own times have intervened ages in which all +interest in literary beauty was lost, and philosophic activity took the +form of protracted discussions of brief sayings or 'texts.' Accordingly +this solidified matter of Hebrew literature has been divided up into +single sentences or 'verses,' numbered mechanically one, two, three, +etc., and thus the original literary form has been further obscured. It +is not surprising that to most readers the Bible has become, not a +literature, but simply a store-house of pious 'texts.'"[1] + +We call certain books of the Old Testament _historical_, but this does +not mean, in this case, that they were written with the sole object of +chronicling the events of Hebrew progress. They were at the same time +books of devotion, showing God's dealing with them, His chosen people. + +Before the ninth or eighth century B.C., records of Israel's past +existed only in snatches of song and in traditions handed down by word +of mouth from one generation to another. The Song of Deborah, preserved +in the Book of Judges, belongs to a remote period; the legends of +creation, common to the Semitic race, as related in Genesis were current +from time immemorial. In the eighth century before Christ an effort was +made in the "Schools of the Prophets" to compile the history of Israel, +but the leading motive was rather to illustrate God's favor to them in +the past by citing instances familiar to them all, and to prove that +divine protection had been withdrawn from them when they had gone +astray--as exemplified in their past, rather than to leave for future +ages records of their heroic deeds and victories and civil +administration. The result was that the historical writings prepared +were based on ancient traditions, to be sure, but reflected the +religious beliefs and the normal ideas of the age in which they were +produced. + +The historical books include Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, +Joshua, Judges, I. and II. Samuel, I. and II. Kings, Chronicles, Ezra, +and Nehemiah. Other books, such as Isaiah, for example, include +historical matter. + +"The first portion of the history, the biblical _Genesis_, gives us what +that word implies--the Gradual Formation of the Chosen Nation. The next +section on the Exodus (the biblical _Exodus_, _Leviticus_, _Numbers_), +the Emigration of the Chosen People to the Land of Promise; with +migration goes the gradual evolution into an organized nation, and the +massing at this point of legal documents makes the Constitutional +History of Israel. Under the name of The Judges (the biblical _Joshua_, +_Judges_, part of _Samuel_) we next distinguish the Grand Transition: a +people starting with theocracy, the government of an invisible God, +comes to accept the rule of visible kings copied from nations around. +But precisely at the time these kings begin there is established a +regular order of 'prophets,' or interpreters for God, representing the +old idea of theocracy: the fourth period of the history may be named as +The Kings and The Prophets, a regular Government of Kings tempered by an +Opposition of Prophets. Then comes the Exile: the witnessing of Israel +for Jehovah has to be carried on in the land of strangers. There return +from exile, not the whole people, but only those who are devoted to the +service of God; not the Hebrew Nation, but the Jewish Church: and the +final section is thus the Ecclesiastical History of _The Chronicles_. +The spirit of the history is throughout made emphatic by story, or at +times by fable or song. But in addition to the formal historic books we +have to note two others: + +"_Deuteronomy_ gives us the Orations and Songs of Moses, emphasizing the +crisis of the leader's Farewell to Israel. And in Isaiah we find a +certain dramatic work, which, in connection with the deliverance from +exile, reads a meaning into events such as strikes a unity through the +whole career of the chosen people: it is an Epilogue to the History of +Israel." + +The _Talmud_ has been mentioned as a second source of Hebrew history. +The word itself means literally "learning," or "teaching." It is the +name given a collection of Hebrew writings which were written primarily +to explain and exemplify Jewish law. Two Talmuds were prepared, one in +Babylon--known as the Babylonian Talmud, or the Talmud of the Eastern +land; the other written in Jerusalem, known as the Talmud of the Western +land. They were kept in the temples and added to and continued by rabbis +through the first five centuries after the Christian era. The interest +in them for the historian today centers around the traditions and +legends introduced, these having been current among the Hebrews +generations earlier. The Talmud is rich in folklore, and so possesses +relative value from a historical standpoint. + +Third among Hebrew sources we have noted the Writings of Josephus. +Josephus was a Jewish priest who lived in the first century after +Christ. Not only was he himself a priest but for twenty-four generations +before him his forefathers had presided in the temple. During his life, +Palestine was held by the Romans, and he wrote the "Antiquities of the +Jews," and a history of the Jewish War, to acquaint the people of his +day with the story of his people. He claims to have found his material +in the sacred books of the temple and frequently explains at length +events merely mentioned in the Old Testament. His writings have been +valued both in early and recent times. + +Among the sources elsewhere obtained, the records of contemporaneous +nations are of first importance. The oppression of the Israelites under +the Egyptian pharaoh, for example, is believed to find confirmation in +scenes and inscriptions recently discovered in the valley of the Nile. +In our study of Assyrian conquest, we have noted tribute lists and +memorials celebrating victories over the Hebrew kingdoms, recovered +among other ruins in Mesopotamia. The king of Babylonia finally left +Jerusalem, the beautiful city of Palestine, demolished and well nigh +abandoned. Thousands of her noblest citizens were taken captives to +Babylon. This incident was naturally chronicled in Babylonian annals. +Similar instances might be cited, but these serve to show ways in which +material for Hebrew history may be gleaned from the records of nations +that flourished by her side. + +Lastly we may note the results of archaeological research as supplying +material for the reconstruction of Israel's past. In 1883 M. Naville +opened a mound wherein was discovered a portion of what is supposed to +have been Pithom--one of the two "store-cities," built by the Children +of Israel while in bondage. The bricks still remaining verified the +story as it has come down to us from the Hebrews themselves, in the Book +of Exodus. The lower rows of bricks were mixed with straw; those laid in +later were kneaded with stubble, and those last placed were formed +simply of sun-dried mud. + +Explorations have been carried on recently in Jerusalem and elsewhere in +Palestine, and some important discoveries have already been made. + +[Illustration: HARBOR OF JAPPA] + +In spite of these various means, we have scanty material at best for the +reconstruction of Hebrew history. The Hebrews were unhistorical and did +not appreciate, nor apparently care to preserve, their secular history. +Records of priceless value were allowed to perish and we have today +only extracts from them, or some simple phrase concerning them. It +was the portion of Israel to tell the world of her religion and to leave +to others the extolling of earthly successes and failures. The comments +of alien nations are unsatisfactory, for their attitude was generally +hostile, or at least, unsympathetic. Nevertheless, while questions +remain unanswered and certain points disputed by authorities, we are +able to follow with some degree of certainty the formation of the Hebrew +nation and its political development. + +[Illustration: HIGH PRIEST.] + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Biblical Masterpieces, Moulton, Intro. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII. + + +THE HEBREWS PRIOR TO THEIR OCCUPATION OF CANAAN. + +Regarding the earliest period of Israel's existence there has been wide +difference of opinion. Until recently there have been many who have +accepted literally the early books of the Old Testament, composed +hundreds of years after the events recorded took place, and the product +of several writers, all of whom were filled with a desire to show the +favor of God exemplified in every detail of Hebrew progress. If one +takes the position that the history of the Hebrews is different from +that of every other people in the world's history, if it be held that +their development cannot be traced as the unfolding of all other peoples +has been traced, then there is nothing more to be said--one can merely +chronicle the wonders and marvel. If, on the other hand, one accepts the +absolutely established historical fact that these people began as other +nations began, in a very crude and primitive state, and came slowly into +enlightenment as did nations contemporaneous with them, then the +progress of the early Hebrews can be similarly followed. The conclusions +which seem to be best substantiated are the ones we shall consider, +noting at the same time that among authorities and scholars many +differences of opinion still exist. + +It is generally conceded that about 1500 B.C. a company of Semitics, +originally inhabiting Arabia, but for some years settlers in +Mesopotamia, set out from the Euphrates valley--probably from Ur--and +journeyed westward. The name Abraham is the one tradition gives as the +leader of this company, which after the fashion of nomads, sought new +pastures in districts less crowded than those of Chaldea. Among those +who attached themselves to this migration appear to have been the +ancestors of the tribes later known as the Moabites, Ammonites and +Edomites. By slow stages this band of emigrants passed into Syria and +reached at length the country we know as Palestine. At that time it was +known as Canaan, and was the home of Semitics more or less closely +related to the people we know as Phoenicians. The Canaanites and +Phoenicians are often identified. As a matter of fact, the Canaanites +were Phoenicians who occupied the country districts and, save for a +common heritage, had little in common with those merchantmen who filled +the great sea-ports of Phoenicia. + +The Moabites and Ammonites immediately settled the most fertile places +in the plateaus of the Eastern Range, and continued the sheep-raising +and cattle grazing to which they had long been accustomed. The Edomites +also found homes for themselves. The few followers of Abraham appear to +have continued their life as tent-dwellers in the southern part of +Canaan. In course of time, they were re-enforced by a second company +from Mesopotamia,--a tribe bearing the name of Jacob. The word Jacob +means re-enforcement, and he is represented in the Old Testament as the +father of twelve children, later spoken of as the twelve tribes of +Israel. It was quite customary for Hebrew writers of a late period to +treat the names of tribes as individuals, and to attribute to the +individuals thus created characteristics peculiar to the patriarchal, or +heroic age. "However plastic and distinct the individualities of Ishmael +and Edom, Israel and Joseph may seem to us, they are all only +personifications and representations of the races of tribes whose names +they bear.... When Jacob and Laban together set up a boundary-stone upon +Mount Gilead and make a solemn and sworn covenant that neither of them +henceforth will pass this boundary with evil intent, it is perfectly +plain that this is not a private agreement between father-in-law and +son-in-law, but a legal regulation of tribal boundary rights between +Israel and Aram."[1] + +Leadership of the whole band of Israelites was desired by the tribe of +Joseph, which, failing to secure it, departed from the rest and +journeyed to Egypt. Here, after some time, the other tribes gathered and +settled a fertile district northeast of the Delta, and known by the name +of Goshen. + +When these Israelites first came into Egypt, a great Semitic upheaval +had taken place in the ancient world, and there seem to be reasons for +thinking that the welcome given them was due to the fact that a Semitic +pharaoh ruled in Egypt. In any event, they lived peaceably for two or +three generations--how much longer we do not know--when the aspect of +matters changed. The native rulers were restored and because Egypt was +having difficulty with tribes in Western Asia, foreigners within her +immediate borders were looked upon with suspicion. A large number of +laborers were needed to carry on gigantic building projects, and the +Israelites were suddenly impressed as public slaves, and set to work +under armed guards. + +It was against all nature that desert nomads, accustomed to the freedom +of the wide world, would long endure this servitude. The instincts of +their ancestors would live on for many generations, although temporarily +overpowered. After being ground down by the heel of the oppressor for a +considerable number of years, they were at length incited by Moses to +depart for the land still known to them by stories handed down from +father to son--the land of Canaan. + +Moses, by birth a Hebrew, had been educated in the family of an +Egyptian, but became an outlaw upon killing an Egyptian while defending +one of his own kinsmen. Escaping to the land of the Midianites, he had +drunk in the air of freedom and the instincts of his forefathers were +stimulated into activity. He took on the religion of the Midianites and +accepted Jahweh as his God. He grieved over the condition to which his +people had fallen, and brooding over it, experienced a divine commission +to restore them to freedom. Rallying them in the name of Jahweh, he led +them out of the land of bondage. According to the Hebrew account, Egypt +was at that particular time stricken by plagues, and the people, +naturally superstitious, attributed their afflictions to the foreigners +within their land. So incensed against them did they become that the +ruler, in a moment of weakness, consented to their exodus. No sooner had +they departed, however, than he bethought him of the laborers he had +lost, and dispatched the flower of his cavalry to compel their return. + +A wind, blowing fiercely, made a fording of the Sea possible for the +Israelites, but the cavalry, sent in pursuit, was engulfed and lost. +This incident was seized upon as a mark of divine favor by these +disheartened people, who saw direct intervention of Jahweh in their +behalf. Thus the power of a supreme God was impressed upon their minds +as long years of religious instruction could never have impressed it. + +For forty years the Children of Israel wandered in the desert, loitering +here and there, finding their way between hostile tribes. During these +years the figure of Moses stands forth with unfailing strength and +courage. The people he had led thither were mere children, rendered +dependent and unsteadfast by their long period of servitude. When +difficulties beset them, they did not hesitate to turn upon their +deliverer and reproach him, and to wish often to return to the land they +had recently left, where food was always forthcoming, even though at the +expense of liberty and self-respect. But Moses, with staunch heart and +great patience, slowly organized them into a religious body, finding +unity for them in the one God, Jahweh. Meanwhile a new generation was +growing up among them; sons and daughters who were born in the air of +freedom, assimilated new ideas more readily, were more steadfast in +their purpose, and grew into greater self-reliance than their fathers +knew. With this new spirit manifest, we see the possibilities of a +dawning nation, and a more promising future. + +Not long before the exodus, incoming Philistines pressed the Canaanites +farther east, and they in turn displaced the Moabites and Ammonites from +their fertile homes in the Eastern Range. These Semitics remembered +their old allies, now in the desert, and besought them for aid. The +Israelites helped them defeat the Canaanites and then appropriated the +fertile places for themselves. Soon, however, increasing numbers made it +necessary to seek wider room, and the tribe of Judah crossed the Jordan +and settled the tableland which afterwards bore its name. This +settlement was not made without great effort, for the earlier +inhabitants held tenaciously to the land. The tribes of Simeon and Levi +tried to do likewise, but their treachery made them victims to the +revenge of the Canaanites. The Levites disappeared as a tribe, but were +perpetuated as a priestly order. The Simeonites became absorbed with the +tribe of Judah. Reuben and Gad remained east of the Jordan, and the +remaining tribes united under Joshua and made an attack upon the central +part of Canaan. Jericho fell into their hands, also Ai and Bethel. When +these most exposed places fell to their portion, the inhabitants of +Gibeon, a Canaanite stronghold, grew alarmed for their own safety and +craftily sought a treaty with the invaders. This becoming known among +the league of Canaanite cities, banded together to drive out the +Israelites, the members of the league were so incensed that they marched +against the walls of Gibeon for thus deserting their common cause. The +citizens of Gibeon appealed to the Hebrews for aid, and according to +their treaty, Joshua led his army out to meet the forces of the +besiegers. + +The Hebrews were accustomed to hand-to-hand conflicts, and to the +heights; the Canaanites fought wherever possible with chariots, and +naturally preferred the plains. At first it seemed as though the +advantage belonged to the Canaanites, for they carried the battle into +the plain, and had strong cities behind them. Nevertheless, a sudden +rain made the earth so soft that their chariots availed them little, and +when the rain changed to hail, their ranks were thrown into confusion. + +The book of Jashar, an ancient Hebrew work, has not been preserved but +was apparently made up of old ballads and war songs. A fragment repeated +in the book of Joshua recounts that Joshua, the famous Hebrew warrior, +commanded the sun and moon to stand still until the battle ended. Some +infer that he wished daylight to remain until the battle could be fought +out; others hold that he wanted the darkness of the storm to continue, +to further discomfit the Canaanites. + + "Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; + And thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon. + And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, + Until the nation had avenged themselves of their enemies."[2] + +Victory belonged to the Israelites, and the seven tribes took possession +of trans-Jordan regions. + +"But this does not mean that Israel was in full possession of the land: +by far the best and most fertile portions of it, and especially the +majority of the cities, whose strong fortifications made them +impregnable to the primitive military skill of the Israelites, remained +in possession of the Canaanites; it was chiefly the woody mountain +chains of northern and middle Palestine that had come into the power of +Israel, and the Canaanites had partly to be subdued by force and partly +to be peacefully absorbed--a long and difficult task."[3] + +"Then sang Moses and the Children of Israel this song unto the Lord: + + "I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: + The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. + The Lord is my strength and song, + And he is become my salvation: + This is my God, and I will praise him; + My father's God, and I will exalt him. + +(1) _Sung by Men._ + + "The Lord is a man of war: + The Lord is his name. + Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea: + And his chosen captains are sunk in the Red Sea. + The deeps cover them: + They went down into the depths like a stone. + +_Sung by Women._ + + "Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: + The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. + +(2) _Men._ + + "Thy right hand, O Lord, is glorious in power, + Thy right hand, O Lord, dasheth in pieces the enemy. + And in the greatness of thine excellency thou overthrowest + Them that rise up against thee: + Thou sendest forth thy wrath, it consumeth them as stubble + And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were piled up, + The floods stood upright as an heap; + The deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea. + The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil: + My lust shall be satisfied upon them; + I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them + Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: + They sank as lead in the mighty waters. + +_Women._ + + "Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: + The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. + +(3) _Men._ + + "Who is like unto thee, O Lord, among the Gods? + Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, + Fearful in praises, doing wonders? + Thou stretchest out thy right hand, + The earth swallowed them. + Thou in thy mercy hast led the people which thou hast redeemed: + Thou hast guided them in thy strength to thy holy habitation. + The peoples have heard, they tremble: + Till thy people pass over, O Lord, + Till the people pass over which thou hast purchased. + Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine + inheritance, + The place, O Lord, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, + The sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established. + The Lord shall reign forever and ever. + +_Women._ + + "Sing ye to the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: + The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea." + + --_Modern Reader's Bible._ + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] History of the People of Israel; Cornill, 30. + +[2] Joshua, 10, 12. + +[3] History of People of Israel, 47. + + + + +CHAPTER IX. + + +THE ERA OF THE JUDGES. + +As we have seen, Joshua's victory left the conquest of Canaan but begun. +It so happened that the great powers were too absorbed with their own +affairs to expand by conquest, so the earlier inhabitants of Palestine +and the Hebrews were left to fight out their difficulties as best they +might. For some generations after the entrance of the Israelites into +Canaan, confusion and disorder ruled. The invaders would win the heights +in a given region, while around them in the plains and valleys, +flourished hostile clans, often harassing and threatening their +settlements. Years of peace would settle over the land, and the two +peoples--Israelites and Canaanites--would intermarry, when again the old +hatred would break out anew. + +The period following the death of Joshua has been called the "Era of the +Judges." The simple statement of the ancient Hebrew chronicler makes +clear the situation: "And there was no king in Israel; each man did that +which was right in his own eyes." Our knowledge of this age is derived +chiefly from the Book of Judges, which contains some of the earliest +records of the Israelites. However, the material herein contained has +not come down to us first hand. A prophet of later times selected such +material as suited his purpose from records which were accessible to +him. The writer or writers of the Book of Judges desired to inculcate +religious truths--not to recount historical events. Such pictures of the +life during those years which followed Hebrew occupation of Canaan as +seemed best were fitted into phrases like these: "And the people of +Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Jahweh, and Jahweh +delivered them into the hands of their enemies." "The people of Israel +cried unto Jahweh and He raised up to them a deliverer, and the land had +rest." It seems to have been fortunately the case that the older +material was incorporated into the phrases with little change, and from +it one is able to get a very fair idea of the stage of progress to +which the Hebrews had then arrived. + +Thirteen _Judges_ are mentioned in the Old Testament, and there were +surely many more whose names were not recorded. In times of emergency, +danger, attack or oppression, a clan, or several clans, one tribe or +possibly two or three tribes, would voluntarily unite under some chosen +chieftain, whose duties and powers were indefinite. If he were able to +deliver them in their distress, they acknowledged him as their leader so +long as he lived. When a similar occasion arose, it was met in a similar +way. Since differences between clans, disputes between individuals, and +various questions were referred to this chief for settlement, later +writers named these men from this duty of referees, _Judges_. Their +earliest title of "deliverer" was more expressive. The story of the +several recorded judges may be read in the biblical book bearing that +name. We shall consider the work of three--not necessarily the most +important in Israel's history. + +Matters had become most threatening in Canaan. The Canaanites had united +for a final reduction of Israel and were led by Sisera. This chief was +victorious and seemed about to overcome the Hebrew tribes. The very +existence of Israel was in gravest danger. The highways were unsafe, for +these were held by the Canaanites who were preparing for a final stand. +At this juncture Deborah, an inspired prophetess, called upon Barak, a +chieftain of the north, to deliver the people. Intermarriage between the +Israelites and Canaanites had become so common that it was useless to +attempt to rally the early tribes--early distinctions were no longer +closely drawn. So Deborah called on all who worshipped Jahweh to rally +in His cause. The old enthusiasm was rekindled, and the Canaanites +suffered a great defeat. Their king Sisera escaped and took refuge in +the tent of a peasant woman. Trusting to her hospitality, he partook of +refreshment she offered him. Asking simply for water, she gave him milk. +When he fell asleep for a brief rest, she drove a tent-pin through his +head, thus killing him. It has been fully observed that "only in an age +of tents could such a deed have been thus extolled." The Canaanites +never recovered the loss of that day's defeat, and their strength was +permanently broken. The Song of Deborah, recorded in the Book of +Judges, is one of the earliest writings in the Old Testament. It has +recently been thrown again into its original verse form, and rings clear +of an early age, echoing the spirit of a crude but vigorous race. + + +DEBORAH'S SONG. + + _Men._ For that the leaders took the lead in Israel-- + + _Women._ For that the people offered themselves willingly-- + + _All._ Bless ye the Lord! + +PRELUDE. + + _Men._ Hear, O ye kings-- + + _Women._ Give ear, O ye princes-- + + _Men._ I, even I, will sing unto the Lord-- + + _Women._ I will sing praises to the Lord, the God of Israel. + + _All._ Lord, when thou wentest forth out of Seir, + When thou marchedst out of the field of Edom, + The earth trembled, the heavens also dropped, + Yea, the clouds dropped water. + The mountain flowed down at the presence of the Lord. + Even yon Sinai at the presence of the Lord, the God of Israel. + +I. THE DESOLATION. + + _Men._ In the days of Shamgar, the son of Anath, + In the days of Jael, + The highways were unoccupied, + And the travellers walked through byways; + The rulers ceased in Israel, + They ceased-- + + _Women._ Until that I, Deborah, arose, + That I arose a mother in Israel. + They chose new gods; + Then was war in the gates: + Was there a shield or spear seen + Among forty thousand in Israel? + + _Men._ My heart is toward the governors of Israel-- + + _Women._ Ye that offered yourselves willingly among the people-- + + _All._ Bless ye the Lord! + + _Men._ Tell of it, ye that ride on white asses, + Ye that sit on rich carpets, + And ye that walk by the way:-- + + _Women._ Far from the noise of archers, + In the places of drawing water:-- + + _All._ There shall they rehearse the righteous acts of the Lord, + Even the righteous acts of his rule in Israel. + +II. THE MUSTER. + + _All._ The people of the Lord went down to the gates-- + + _Men._ Awake, awake, Deborah, + Awake, awake, utter a song:-- + + _Women._ Arise, Barak, + And lead thy captivity captive, thou son of Abinoan. + + _All._ Then came down a remnant of the nobles, + The people of the Lord came down for me against the Mighty. + + _Women._ Out of Ephraim came down they whose root is in Amalek-- + + _Men._ After thee, Benjamin, among thy peoples-- + + _Women._ Out of Machir came down the governors-- + + _Men._ And out of Zubulum they that handle the marshal's staff-- + + _Women._ And the princes of Issachar were with Deborah-- + + _Men._ So was Issachar, so was Barak: + + _All._ Into the valley they rushed forth at his feet. + + _Men._ By the water courses of Reuben + There were great resolves of heart. + + _Women._ Why satest thou among the sheepfolds, + To hear the pipings for the flocks? + + _Men._ At the watercourses of Reuben + There were great searchings of heart! + + _Women._ Gilead abode beyond Jordan-- + + _Men._ And Dan, why did he remain in ships? + + _Women._ Ashur sat still at the haven of the sea, + And abode by his creeks. + + _Men._ Zubulum was a people that jeoparded their lives unto the death, + And Naphtali upon the high places of the field. + +III. THE BATTLE AND THE ROUT. + + _Men._ The kings came and fought; + Then fought the kings of Canaan, + In Taanach by the waters of Megiddo:-- + They took no gain of money. + + _Women._ They fought from heaven, + The stars in their courses fought against Sisera. + The river Kishon swept them away,-- + That ancient river, the river Kishon! + + _Men._ O my soul, march on with strength! + Then did the horsehoofs stamp + By reason of the prancings, + The prancings of their strong ones. + + _Women._ Curse ye, Meroz, said the angel of the Lord, + Curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof; + Because they came not to the help of the Lord, + To the help of the Lord against the mighty! + +IV. THE RETRIBUTION. + + _Men._ Blessed above women shall Jael be the wife of Heber the + Kenite, + Blessed shall she be above women in the tent! + He asked water, and she gave him milk; + She brought him butter in a lordly dish. + She put her hand to the nail, + And her right hand to the workman's hammer; + And with the hammer she smote Sisera. + She smote through his head, + Yea, she pierced and struck through his temples. + At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay: + At her feet he bowed, he fell: + When he bowed, there he fell down dead! + + _Women._ Through the window she looked forth, and cried, + The mother of Sisera, through the lattice, + "Why is his chariot so long coming? + Why tarry the wheels of his chariots?" + Her wise ladies answered her, + Yea, she returned answer to herself, + "Have they not found, + Have they not divided the spoils? + A damsel, two damsels to every man; + To Sisera a spoil of divers colors, + A spoil of divers colors of embroidery, + Of divers colors of embroidery on both sides, on the necks + of the spoil!" + + _All._ So let all thine enemies perish, O Lord: + But let them that love him be as the sun when he goeth + forth in his might! + +Having overcome the Canaanites, the Israelites were not destined to long +enjoy peace. Their own kinsmen, the Ammonites and Moabites looked with +envy upon their good fortune in winning such desirable land and tried +now to rob them of it. Notwithstanding the fact that the Israelites, +Moabites and Ammonites had all a common ancestry, they were never on +that account restrained from plundering one another's territories. +Forced to take a definite stand against them, the Hebrews cast about for +a leader. Jephthah was named. He was an outlaw, a bold border man, who +belonged to the Hebrew race, and his bravery was unquestioned. When +besought, he agreed to drive out the Ammonites on one condition only: +that he be acknowledged chieftain after the battle. This being conceded, +he led the Hebrew forces. It was in keeping with his rough, reckless +nature that he should vow to sacrifice the first living thing he met +upon his return were he victorious. The Ammonites were defeated and to +Jephthah's utter consternation, his daughter, his only child, rushed +forth to meet him. We are told that his vow was kept, and thus we know +that human sacrifices were sometimes offered to Jahweh. + +During the era of the Judges, the Philistines on the southwest began to +expand, upon land already settled by the Israelites. They overran the +Plain of Sharon, and the Hebrews who had peopled the plain were driven +into the hills. This crisis brought forth Samson, one of the chiefs who +essayed to stay the power of these new enemies. He was a simple child of +nature--a giant in strength, a weakling in steadfast purpose. He lacked +the capacity to plan a campaign and execute it. The stories of his +prodigious power, his feats pf physical endurance, are too well known to +require repetition. They were lauded by his admirers and delighted in +by the Israelites when directed against their enemies, but his blows +were invariably given to avenge personal wrongs, and he left his people +no farther on their way against the Philistines than he found them. + +The great difficulty during this period was that there was no tendency +to hold long together. "Israel had within itself the worst of enemies +and a germ of destruction. This was the proud sense of independence and +the strongly-developed family feeling of the nomad, which did not +immediately vanish from the national character with the surrender of the +nomadic fashion of life. After the united effort under Joshua had but +barely laid the foundation, the people again broke up into tribes and +clans, which now aimlessly sought new places of settlement, each on its +own account and unmindful of its neighbors."[1] + +This tendency to fall apart was the most dangerous sign of Israel's +progress, and we shall see how it lasted through her history. +Nevertheless, for the time being the lesson was learned that only by +uniting against the enemy could victory be won. The era of the Judges so +far impressed this truth upon the minds of the Hebrews that we note the +beginnings of Hebrew unity. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Hist. of People of Israel, 47. + + + + +CHAPTER X. + + +THE MORALITY OF THE HEBREWS PRIOR TO THE KINGDOM. + +It is a mistake to suppose that the lofty conceptions of Israel's later +seers and prophets were manifest among the people from the earliest +times. Quite the reverse was true. Like all primitive people, the +Hebrews passed through the usual stages of development, religiously and +morally. Sufficient evidence goes to show that they worshipped many gods +in the beginning, as did other Semitics. Joshua once reminded them of +their earlier faith: + +"Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the flood in old time, even +Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor: and they served +other gods."[1] + +"In many respects doubtless their religion was closely akin to that of +neighboring Semitic people. They had their sacred pillars, trees, and +other emblems of the divine power and presence; they carried with them +_teraphim_, which were apparently images venerated as household gods. In +many of their beliefs and practices they did not rise above the general +level of their age."[2] + +During their long sojourn in Egypt, as might have been expected, they +grew to worship Egyptian gods. "Cast ye away every man the abominations +of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt."[3] + +The explanation which has seemed to make clear the unique development of +the Hebrew above other Semitics, is this one--only recently offered. It +is well-known that the Israelites were originally henotheists--that is, +they believed in many gods--believed that many divinities were powerful, +but they gave allegiance to one, the god of their tribe. This god +belonged to their tribe, and shared its successes and failures. Now when +Moses accepted Jahweh, God of the Midianites, he persuaded the +Israelites to forsake the gods they were worshipping and give their +homage to Jahweh. At the foot of Sinai he caused them to make a +covenant with Jahweh: the God was to give them protection, and they were +to worship him alone. Because he was an adopted God and not a member of +their tribe, he was bound to protect them only when they served him +faithfully. The adopted God could cast off his adopted people if they +failed to fulfill their part of the contract. The Hebrews always said +that they were a peculiar people. They repeatedly referred to the fact +that God could cast them off if they were unloyal to him. Such a thing +is unknown among other nations. No other God could cast off his people; +he was one of them. This explains also why the Hebrews were always so +ready to abandon their God and take on the gods of their neighbors. + +"In any case it is clear that Jahweh was not originally the god of +Israel, but only became such in consequence of the work of Moses and of +the events of the exodus.... + +"Israel's relation to Jahweh was unique.... He was not an ancestral god +who stood in a natural and necessary relation to his people, like the +gods of other Semitic tribes; but he was the god of Sinai and of Midian, +who had come into connection with Israel only through his own free, +moral choice. Israel belonged to him, not by birth, but by election. Its +existence and its continuance were dependent upon his sovereign good +pleasure, and he might cast it off as easily as he had adopted it. Under +these circumstances he had the right to make conditions upon which his +favour should depend such as other gods could not make. This fact does +not explain the ethical character of the Mosaic religion; it explains +only why an ethical religion was promulgated at this particular +time."[4] + +It is the custom of all primitive people to ascribe their early laws and +government to divine origin. This rule is seldom varied, and was adhered +to by the ancient Hebrews. Instead of conceiving the God-Spirit as +having endowed Moses with true insight, wise judgments, and high ideals, +the Israelites believed that their Covenant had been dictated, word by +word, by Jahweh, while it was further claimed that tablets with words +inscribed upon them were given Moses by God himself. As a matter of +fact, the earliest decalogue differed widely from the one best known. +The commandments first given the people after they were led forth from +Egypt were probably the ones recorded in the twenty-fourth chapter of +Exodus, and were something like these: + + 1. Thou shalt worship no other god. + 2. Thou shalt make thee no molten gods. + 3. The feast of unleaven bread shalt thou keep. + 4. Every firstling is mine. + 5. Thou shalt keep the feast of the weeks. + 6. Thou shalt keep the feast of the ingathering at the end of + the year. + 7. Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven. + 8. The fat of my feast shall not be left over until the morning. + 9. Thou shalt bring the best of the first fruits of thy land to + the house of Jehovah thy God. + 10. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk. + +Because Moses was known to the Israelites as a law-giver, laws passed +long after his death were attributed to him, quite as laws which came +into being years after the death of Hammurabit in Babylon were probably +attributed to this great national law-giver. + +A company of slaves, escaping from servitude after serving for two or +three generations, and having possessed but a crude civilization +previous to that experience, would require only the simplest laws, and +any one reading the various rules and regulations attributed to this +period will easily see how crude was the stage of development which made +such instruction necessary. As time went on, and the people advanced and +became more enlightened, new laws were possible. These continued to be +known as the "Laws of Moses," as laws in all early countries have been +attributed to some renowned personage, to give them added force. + +In these early periods which we have been studying, the religion of the +Hebrews possessed many features in common with those of surrounding +nations. We read that the "Children of Israel walked through the fire," +which means that they sacrificed their first-born in flames as offerings +to their God. Jahweh was believed to be a jealous God, vindictive, +demanding cruel treatment of captives, and fierce and relentless in +battle. A man cannot get a higher ideal of God than that of a perfect +human being, and this was an age when all ideas and ideals were crude. + +When the Hebrews settled Canaan, they learned much from the earlier +inhabitants of the land. Becoming farmers, they quite naturally fell +into the way of worshipping the god of harvests, and other agricultural +deities of the Canaanites. The "high places" are repeatedly spoken of, +these being places where other gods were worshipped. When roused by +danger, they renewed their covenant with Jahweh and returned to more +careful performance of their part of the early agreement. + +The system of polygamy was well established. Several of the patriarchs +took two or more wives. If a man died childless, it was not only +customary but a duty that the next in line should marry the widow and +raise up seed to his memory. This is expressly shown by the story of +Ruth, most attractive in its early simplicity. We learn more of the +every day life of the Israelites in the period following Hebrew +occupancy of Canaan from this little idyl than from any other source, or +from all other sources combined. + +So far as germs of government and judicial administration of the people +thus far discernible are concerned, they had seemingly not progressed +farther than the instruction of Moses led them. The years spent in the +wilderness after the exodus were very essential to the future welfare of +the Hebrew nation. Their government--to whatever extent they possessed +one--was closely allied to their religion. There were many experiences +met with in these forty years which seemed to prove Jahweh's care and +protection over them, and Moses was regarded as his representative on +earth, who received his instructions from Jahweh and delivered them to +his people. + +"His words were Jehovah's message to them. As he led them in their +wilderness wandering, they felt themselves under the direct guidance of +their God; he attended to the simple ritual of the desert sanctuary at +Kadesh; to him, as the representative of Jehovah, were referred the more +difficult cases of dispute which arose; his decisions had all the weight +of Jehovah's authority. _In this way he laid down by practical +illustration the principles of that civil and religious law which bears +his name._ As these cases multiplied, he was led to constitute a rude +patriarchal tribunal composed of the elders of the tribes. In this +simple organization is found the germ of the Hebrew judicial and +executive system. + +"Thus Moses was the man who under divine direction 'hewed Israel from +the rock.' Subsequent prophets and circumstances chiselled the rough +boulder into symmetrical form, but the glory of the creative act is +rightly attributed to the first great Hebrew prophet. As a leader, he +not only created a nation, but guided them through infinite vicissitudes +to a land where they might have a settled abode and develop into a +stable power; in so doing, he left upon his race the imprint of his own +personality. As a judge, he set in motion forces which ultimately led to +the incorporation of the principles of right in objective laws. As a +priest, he first gave form to the worship of Jehovah. As a prophet, _he +gathered together all that was best in the faith of his age and race_, +and, fusing them, gave to his people a living religion."[5] + +Before the time of the monarchy, their darkest years were those wherein +the Israelites departed from this Mosaic teaching; their best periods, +those in which they assimilated it and attempted to carry it out. To +whatever extent they developed strength and stability for their future +nation before the birth of their kingdom, such strength came as a result +of the Mosaic religious and moral teaching. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Joshua, 24, 2. + +[2] Short Hist. of the Hebrews: Ottley, 26. + +[3] Ezekiel, 20, 7. + +[4] Early Hist. of Syria and Palestine: Paton, 139, 141. + +[5] Hist. of the Hebrew People: Kent Vol. I 44. + + + + +CHAPTER XI. + + +CAUSES LEADING TO THE KINGDOM. + +1250 B.C. has been taken as an approximate date for the exodus of the +Israelites from Egypt, some placing the event still earlier. After the +wandering in the desert, considerable time was spent winning Canaan from +its earlier possessors before any settlement was possible. The twelfth +century and first part of the eleventh before Christ were years of +re-adjustment, the Israelites losing the habits of desert nomads and +becoming tillers of the soil. + +In rocky districts they still raised sheep and cattle but acquired fixed +homes. Warfare had been constant, but in later years had been carried on +wholly by individual tribes, there being no concerted action. The +tendency to divide and seek each its own peculiar interests had been +apparent from the first, and the beginning of the eleventh century B.C. +found the tribes prostrated as a result. The Canaanites no longer +threatened them but the Philistines constantly grew bolder. When they +pressed into the plain of Jezreel, the Israelites were forced to fight +them, but lacking an able leader and sufficient numbers, they lost the +day. Surviving instincts of earlier superstitious practices led them to +bring the ark containing their covenant with Jehovah from its sanctuary +at Shiloh, thinking this might aid them in a second struggle. "Let us +fetch the ark of the covenant of Jehovah out of Shiloh unto us, that it +may come among us, and save us out of the hand of our enemies." But +instead of leading to victory, 30,000 Israelites fell upon the battle +field and the sacred ark itself fell into the hands of the Philistines. + +"The Philistines burned and destroyed the temple at Shiloh, carried the +captured sacred ark to the temple of their chief god, Dagon, and +subjected the land, even to the Jordan; the people were disarmed and +held in check by Philistine prefects and strongholds. And from all +evidence this Philistine domination must have lasted a considerable +time. Israel seemed paralyzed and submitted, though with gnashing of +teeth."[1] + +When Israel lay stricken and at the mercy of her enemies on the west, +the Ammonites thought the time favorable to lead a new attack for the +purpose of recovering their earlier territories on the east. The town of +Jabesh was first afflicted, and when its inhabitants offered to +surrender, feeling helpless to overpower their ancient foes, the king of +the Ammonites insolently replied that he would cause the right eye of +each citizen of the town to be cast out, as a reproach to Israel. In the +quaint expression of Josephus: "The king of the Ammonites sent +ambassadors to them, commanding them either to deliver themselves up, on +condition to have their right eyes plucked out, or to undergo a siege, +and have their cities overthrown. He gave them their choice, whether +they would cut off a small number of their body, or universally perish." +Implored to grant them a few days respite, the king of the Ammonites +scornfully conceded it, sure of his ultimate triumph. + +In Ephraim dwelt a seer, Samuel by name. He was a godly man, having rare +purity of character and intense religious fervor. Dedicated when a child +to the service of Jehovah, the course of his life had led him to catch +the spirit of the great founder of the Hebrew nation and beyond him, to +gain a broader conception of the great God-Spirit. He understood why his +people were a prey to every neighbor, and knew better than most how much +a firm leadership was needed by them. With eyes that saw far into the +future, Samuel realized that the crying need was unity and concerted +action. Now in these ancient days, unity meant kingship. Under strong +kings, contemporary nations flourished, and a king was apparently +necessary in Canaan. + +Saul, of the tribe of Benjamin, seeking his father's asses, approached +the seer, whose prophetic powers were well known in his vicinity. The +youth thought simply to invoke his aid in his private interests, but +Samuel recognized in the broad-shouldered, well-proportioned Benjaminite +one who might come to the rescue of stricken Israel. With prophetic +vision, Samuel foretold coming events and anointed Saul as one chosen of +Jehovah to rule the nation of His special care. Since he was not called +immediately to action, Saul returned to his father's house, where he +went about his ordinary duties. But the words of the seer had sunk deep +into his heart. Indications of Israel's stricken condition were not +wanting on every hand, and Saul brooded over her helplessness and his +call to save his people. At length, when the citizens from mourning +Jabesh visited his vicinity, vainly trying to rouse their kinsmen to +action, Saul saw that his opportunity had come. Sympathy had been +everywhere expressed by the Israelites, but they had suffered too many +recent defeats to feel confidence in their ability to win. + +Saul hastily cut up a yoke of oxen, and sending these bloody tokens to +the various tribes, he notified them that such treatment would be meted +out to their flocks and herds unless they came to the relief of the +trans-Jordan cities. Recognizing a leader at last, men quickly gathered. +The desert tribe was surprised, defeated and pursued into its desert +strongholds. Thereupon Saul was popularly proclaimed king, as it was now +believed that he alone could save the Hebrews from the Philistines, who +were heavily oppressing them. + +A king is ordinarily one who rules a kingdom, but in the case of Saul, a +kingdom had first to be won. His encounters with the Philistines were +successful, but his reign proved to be a continual campaign against +them. Gradually Saul became estranged from Samuel, who represented the +best element in Israel. Priests of a later period assigned the +difference between them as having arisen over Saul's leniency toward his +captives, but it is believed that instead it came naturally between two +men whose ideals were wide apart. Saul was incapable of taking an +exalted view of his people's mission, as did his priest and prophet. + +Beset on all sides by the enemy, estranged from Samuel and in general +from the priesthood, Saul became moody and subject to fits of +melancholia. To dispel these, David, son of Jesse, was brought from his +father's flocks on the mountainside, to gladden the king's idle hours. +David was accomplished upon the harp, and his music had power to quiet +the restless king, who heaped favors and honors upon him--after the +nature of his impulsive disposition. As armour-bearer to the king, David +had frequent opportunities to distinguish himself, while he and the +king's son Jonathan became fast friends. However, as David grew in favor +with the people, Saul became intensely jealous of him. Where the +kingship was but an experiment, popularity was important to a ruler. In +his disordered brain, Saul conceived that a plot was being laid by his +son and David, and as a result, David was obliged to flee for his life. +He raised his standard as an outlaw chief, and all the dissatisfied +element of the land flocked to his side. Yet even here David favored the +people of Israel whenever he could; for protection he went into the +service of the Philistine king of Gath, but we are told that when he was +supposed to be fighting against the Hebrews, he was in reality fighting +off their desert enemies. + +The division within the ranks of Israel once more gave opportunity to +the watchful Philistines. They made ready for a final assault, and the +moody and disheartened Saul prepared to fight them back. He was no +longer able to rouse his kinsmen as at first. Many were discontented +with his rule, and many favored David. Before the battle, Saul, grown +more superstitious with the pressure of circumstance, visited the witch +of Endor to learn by her art the issue of the battle. Never does the +king, tall in stature and once confident, but now broken in spirit, +appear more tragic. When she predicted defeat--and small art was needed +to foretell such an apparent outcome--Saul felt that all was lost. One +feels as when the voice of Cæsar spake unto Brutus in the great play: +"Thou shalt see me at Philippi"--the battle is lost before it is begun. + +When all was lost, Saul gave his sword to his armour-bearer to stab him +lest he fall into the hands of the enemy. When he lacked courage, he +plunged it into his own breast. Both he and his noble son Jonathan went +down on that fateful field, and so ended the first reign in Israel. +David is believed to have composed his beautiful elegy "How are the +Mighty Fallen" upon this occasion. + + +DAVID'S LAMENT. + + Thy glory, O Israel, + Is slain upon thy high places! + How are the mighty-- + Fallen! + + Tell it not in Gath, + Publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon; + Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, + Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph. + + Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew nor rain upon you, + Neither fields of offerings: + For the shield of the mighty was vilely cast away, + The shield of Saul, as of one not anointed with oil. + + From the blood of the slain, + From the fat of the mighty, + The bow of Jonathan turned not back, + And the sword of Saul returned not empty. + + Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, + And in their death they were not divided; + They were swifter than eagles, + They were stronger than lions. + + Ye daughters of Israel, + Weep over Saul, + Who clothed you in scarlet, + Who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel. + + How are the mighty-- + Fallen in the midst of the battle! + O Jonathan, + Slain upon thy high places. + + I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: + Very pleasant hast thou been unto me: + Thy love to me was wonderful, + Passing the love of women. + + How are the mighty-- + Fallen! + And the weapons of war-- + Perished! + --_Modern Reader's Bible._ + +In the Old Testament itself are two contradictory estimates of the +character of Saul. One was written by those who favored and cared for +him; the other, by the faction which favored David. Later compilers have +thrown the two together, and the result is that we must once more +disentangle the two narratives and then judge between them. The +following characterizations of him differ considerably, and yet have +certain ideas in common: + +"Saul is one of the most tragic figures in history. A great and nobly +endowed nature, heroic and chivalrous, inspired with fiery zeal, he +finally accomplished nothing.... He lacked appreciation of the true +character of Israel; in this regard tradition has given a wholly correct +picture of him. He was exclusively a soldier, and was in a fair way to +exchange Israel into a secular military state and thus divert it from +its religious function in universal history. Saul may claim our deepest +compassion and our heartiest sympathy, but the fall of his power was a +blessing for Israel."[2] + +The second criticism upon the fallen king seems more fair and +sympathetic: + +"Saul was a simple-minded, impulsive, courageous warrior; he was a loyal +patriot who loved his people and was ready to give his life for them; +his physical pre-eminence, combined with energy and enthusiasm, fitted +him to lead a sudden attack and to awaken loyal support, while his +intrepid courage kindled the same in others. But Saul was a son of that +rude age whose roots were found in the period of the Judges. In a sense +he was a child grown big. The position which he occupied demanded +executive ability, tact, the power of organization, and, above all, +patience and persistency. In these maturer qualities he was deficient; +they are rarely the possession of fiery, impetuous natures. In addition, +Saul was unable to understand and appreciate the higher religious +experiences and ideals which were already becoming the possession of +the more enlightened souls of seers like Samuel. As is frequently true +with such a nature, Saul was superstitious. Circumstances tended to +develop the darker rather than the brighter side of his character. The +constant trials and cares of the court and battle-field daunted his +enthusiasm, and induced those attacks of melancholia which obscured the +nobler Saul and led him to commit acts which constantly increased the +density of the clouds that gathered about his latter days. + +"When he fell at Gilboa, and the Philistines again became masters of +northern and central Canaan, Saul's work seemed to be completely undone; +_but its foundations were laid too deeply to be undermined by political +changes_. Saul found the Hebrews ground down under Philistine dominance, +broken in spirit, undisciplined, and little more than cowards. He united +and aroused them to strike for independence. By his successes he +inspired in them confidence and courage. In the severe training-school +of Philistine warfare, he developed out of the cowards who had fled +before the Philistine army to hide themselves in caves and cisterns, the +hardy, brave warriors with whom David made his conquests. Above all, he +taught the Hebrews by practical illustration, more clearly than ever +before, that by union and union alone they could be free, and enjoy +peace and prosperity. As is often the case, _the pioneer perished amidst +seeming failure before he saw the ripe fruits of his labors; but his +work was absolutely necessary_. David reaped the fruits of Saul's +sowing, but the harvest would never have been so glorious without the +pioneer's toils."[3] + + +REIGN OF DAVID. + +Saul is supposed to have ruled not longer than eight or ten years. His +youngest son, Eshbaal, was recognized as his natural successor. Abner, +Saul's commander-in-chief, gave Eshbaal the support of whatever army +survived, and he was established on the east side of the Jordan, while +all the territory west of the river receded to the Philistines. + +David realized that he was in no position to assume control of the +Hebrews at this juncture, for he had but a few hundred followers and he +was sure to be welcomed by all the tribes only when his services were +required for the common safety. Judah was deeply attached to him at this +time, and he allowed himself to be made king of the tribe of Judah, and +established himself at Hebron. + +As soon as Eshbaal felt sufficiently secure on the east of Jordan Abner +was sent to overcome David and his followers, who had thus failed to +recognize the kingship of Eshbaal. They suffered defeat and had to +retreat across the river. The times were troublous and before eight +years had passed, both Eshbaal and Abner were murdered. This left the +way open for David, to whom the subjects of Eshbaal sent homage. + +The Philistines had considered the little kingdom of Saul's son unworthy +of attention, but a kingdom on the west side of the river might prove a +menace to their power, so they hastened to attack the newly crowned +king. David marched against them and broke forever their strength. They +retired into their earlier possessions and harassed Israel no more. + +One by one the old enemies of the Hebrews had to be reckoned with. The +Moabites attacked the territory of David and were overcome and made +vassals. On the north the Ammonites made a raid and were so completely +defeated that we hear of them no more. On the south the Edomites made +war, and their lands also became a Hebrew province. In all these wars, +David was the defender of his people--never the aggressor, yet he left +each tribe with no further desire to make war upon Israel. + +David was a statesman, and he saw at once that as king of the Hebrews, +he must no longer remain isolated with his native tribe, in the vicinity +to him most familiar. He saw that the site of Jerusalem was capable of +excellent defense, and this he made his capital. + +"Jerusalem is situated pretty near the central part of the entire +country, and belonging to none of the tribes it stood on neutral ground +above them and their rivalries. When it is called the City of David this +is no mere phrase, for Jerusalem is altogether the creation of David; +and when we consider what Jerusalem was to the people of Israel, and +through the people of Israel to all mankind, we shall recognize in the +foundation of this City of David an event of world-wide importance." + +Israel had reached the highest pinnacle of its political power. David's +kingdom was the most powerful one between the valley of the Euphrates +and the Nile. While disturbances extended throughout the reign until +within the last ten of David's forty years, yet the nation was saved +from impending danger and was placed on a sure basis. Now it was that +David allowed his personal desires to lead him into difficulties which +followed him many years and which darkened the reign which had promised +so much. An infatuation for Bath-sheba, wife of one of his officers, +took possession of him, and caused him to make way with her husband who +stood in his way. Like other Semitic and Oriental nations, the Hebrews +were accustomed to take more than one wife, but the religion of Jehovah +had been from the beginning a moral religion, and the more earnest among +Israel's people could but be shocked by this action on the part of the +king. Much has been made of David's remorse, but it was not so great but +that he allowed the unscrupulous woman who had aided him in his +wrongdoing to exercise a strong influence over him throughout his life. +His sons seemed to feel no restraint upon them and added crimes to their +house. Absalom, David's favorite son, took advantage of his father's +loss of popularity to raise a revolt against him. This was easily put +down, but the death of Absalom quite unnerved the king. Bath-sheba +rested not until she had settled the succession upon her son, Solomon. +Shortly after this decision was made known, David died, having reigned +forty years. In realizing what all these years meant for Israel, we can +never lose sight of the pioneer work of Saul which alone made possible +the more brilliant one of his successor. + +"It is not possible to overestimate what David did for Israel: Israel as +a people, as a representative of political life, as a concrete quantity +in the development of universal history, as a nation in the fullest +sense of the word, is exclusively his work. With this he completed what +Moses had begun in quiet and inconspicuous labors on Sinai and at +Kadesh. And all of this David created as it were out of nothing, under +the most difficult conditions conceivable, with no other means than his +own all-inspiring and all-compelling personality.... + +"David created Israel and at the same time raised it to its highest +eminence; what Israel was under and through David it never again became. +And so we can easily understand how the eyes of Israel rested in +grateful reverence upon this figure, and how a second David became the +dream of Israel's future. + +"True, the picture of David does not lack the traits of human frailty, +which Israelitish tradition, with a truly admirable sincerity has +neither suppressed nor palliated; but the charm which this personality +exercised over all contemporaries without exception has not yet faded +for us of later day; whoever devoted himself without prejudice to the +contemplation of David's history and character cannot fail to like him. +A saint and psalm-singer, as later tradition has represented him, he +certainly was not; but we find in him, a truly noble human figure, which, +in spite of all, preserved the tenderest and most fragrant bloom of its +nature, perfect directness and simplicity; nowhere any posing, nothing +theatrical, such as is always found in sham greatness; he always acts +out what he is, but his unspoiled nature, noble at heart, generally +comes very near to the right and good. At the same time the whole +personality is touched with a breath of genuine piety and childlike +trust in God, so that we can wholly comprehend how he appears to +tradition as the ideal ruler, the king after God's own heart. + +"This king, who did more for the worldly greatness and earthly power of +Israel than any one else, was a genuine Israelite in that he appreciated +also Israel's religious destiny: he was no soldier-king, no conqueror +and warrior of common stamp, no ruler like any one of a hundred others, +but he is the truest incorporation of the unique character of Israel, a +unique personality in the history of the world, and we understand how he +could become the impersonation of an idea--how the highest and holiest +that Israel hoped for and longed for appears at the Son of David."[4] + +We are shocked as we read of David's cruelty to captives, but in his +ferocious treatment he was but following an instinct common to the +Semitic race. It is to be remembered that he was but a brief time +removed from the era of the Judges, when even Samuel, the far-seeing +seer, and God-fearing man, hacked an enemy to pieces before the altar of +Jehovah, to the supposed gratification of his God. David's faults were +common to his age, and they were not looked upon by his contemporaries +as we look upon them today, but his virtues and redeeming +characteristics raised him far above the majority of Israel's people, +and his reign was harked back to as most worthy in Hebrew annals. + + +SOLOMON. + +Solomon was the son of David's fourth wife--Bathsheba. Selfish, devoid +of principle and fond of intrigue, she influenced David to recognize her +son as his successor, setting aside the right of an older son. It is not +unlikely that David believed Solomon the more capable of serving Israel. + +Solomon had inherited his mother's selfishness and love of display. He +soon caused the death of his brother, in order to make his crown secure. +Having neither aptitude nor ability for war, fortifications took the +place of active armies. The vassal-kingdoms which David had won were +soon lost. Forts were erected at important border places, and the city +of Jerusalem was strongly fortified. + +Oriental display and absolutism were emulated by the young king. He +desired to set his kingdom on a footing with other kingdoms of his time, +and, ignoring the early aims and mission of the Israelites, he made +everything else subordinate to the exaltation of the court and king. +Commercial alliances were made with neighboring peoples; wives were +taken from many states--petty and great. Most flattering was thought to +be the marriage alliance between the Hebrew king and a daughter of the +pharaoh of Egypt, and elaborate apartments were provided her. In early +times a king added materially to his property and prestige by making +numerous alliances of this sort. David had deemed it best to do so and +Solomon followed the principle on a much wider scale. + +Naturally ample funds were now required to meet the expenses of the +court, and various means were provided to secure the necessary income. +The whole kingdom was divided into twelve districts and each was +required to defray the court's expenses for one month. Moreover, +commercial enterprises were entered upon; toll was collected from the +overland trade, and the king himself dealt heavily in horses, which he +imported from Egypt and sold to the neighboring peoples at a good +profit. Suddenly the little nation of Israelites, so long isolated and +remote from the influences of wealth, was thrown open to outside contact +on every hand. + +"Hitherto struggles within and hostility without had rendered the Hebrew +peasants almost impervious to foreign influences; now, all at once, the +bars were thrown down, and these came rushing in like a tidal wave. The +horse took the place of the ass; metal weapons and tools supplanted the +rude ones of flint and wood; walled cities arose on the sites of the +primitive towns with their mud and stone hovels; the rude barracks of +David grew into a palace; the simple gathering of followers about Saul, +as he sat under his tamarisk-tree in Ramah, developed into a great +Oriental court; luxuries undreamed of before came to be regarded as +necessities; foreign spices, apes, peacocks, ivory, precious stones and +woods aroused the curiosity and delighted the senses of the inhabitants +of the gay capital."[5] + +Nations entering into commercial relations with Solomon expected as a +matter of course that their gods would be welcomed in the land of the +Hebrews. Many of the commercial treaties were cemented by marriage +alliances, and the princesses who came into the king's harem brought +their own forms of worship with them. Places of worship had to be +provided for them, and the idolatry of later years may be traced back in +a large measure to the laxity of this period. + +The adornment of Jerusalem demanded much of the king's attention. In +place of the simple quarters which had sufficed for David, a noble +palace arose. Apartments for the queens were needed. It has recently +been insisted that instead of the three hundred and sixty wives credited +to Solomon, he had but seventy, but a few more or less seem of little +moment. The harem rivaled that of Persia, and the cost of maintaining so +elaborate a court was out of all proportion to the resources of the +kingdom. The people were taxed to the utmost. The Canaanites, who had +long been permitted to live in peace by the side of the Hebrews, were +now reduced to slavery and put at forced labor, quite as the Hebrews had +been in Egypt. + +[Illustration: ROSES OF SHARON. Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, +N. Y.] + +Notwithstanding, many ties bound the people to their king. They took +great pride in the splendor of their capital, and especially were +they gratified by the erection of the temple in Jerusalem. Hither David +had brought the ark of the covenant, which had been recovered from the +Philistines, and here with due ceremony the center of the kingdom had +already been made the religious center as well. It seems probable that +to Solomon the temple was but a necessary adjunct to his court +buildings. Among most ancient peoples temples were erected in connection +with the king's palace. It gave added dignity and inspired wonder. To +the masses it probably meant much more. Certainly it grew later to be +the center for their religious enthusiasm and spirit. + +Nor was Solomon's popularity based alone upon his achievements. He had a +way of awakening personal popularity. He attained a wide reputation for +his so-called "wisdom." As we follow his reckless policy of plunging his +country on to ruin, this far-famed wisdom is not at once apparent. It +consisted in subtlety, quick wit, ready answers and apt sayings, so much +in favor among all oriental peoples. His wisdom is well exemplified by +the stories told of the visit of the Queen of Sheba to his court, and +her tests as to the truth of his famed gift. It is probable that this +Arabian queen came to negotiate commercial advantages-for her subjects, +but we are told only the ostensible reason for her coming: to test the +wisdom of Solomon, whose fame had reached her kingdom. The dusky queen +of renowned beauty brought costly presents to the Hebrew king, and +received high honor and attention at his court. Stories have survived of +questions put to his majesty by this queen. Two bouquets were held out +before him, apparently alike, yet one was just gathered from his garden, +and the other had been fashioned by the maidens of the queen. The simple +tale is told in a little poem entitled "King Solomon and the Bees," and +we leave the verses to complete it. + + +KING SOLOMON AND THE BEES. + +A TALE OF THE TALMUD. + + When Solomon was reigning in his glory, + Unto his throne the Queen of Sheba came, + (So in the Talmud you may read the story) + Drawn by the magic of the monarch's fame, + To see the splendors of his court, and bring + Some fitting tribute to the mighty king. + + Nor this alone; much had her Highness heard + What flowers of learning graced the royal speech; + What gems of wisdom dropped with every word; + What wholesome lessons he was wont to teach + In pleasing proverbs, and she wished, in sooth, + To know if Rumor spoke the simple truth. + + Besides, the queen had heard (which piqued her most) + How through the deepest riddles he could spy; + How all the curious arts that women boast + Were quite transparent to his piercing eye; + And so the queen had come--a royal guest-- + To put the sage's cunning to the test. + + And straight she held before the monarch's view, + In either hand, a radiant wreath of flowers; + The one, bedecked with every charming hue, + Was newly culled from Nature's choicest bowers; + The other, no less fair in every part, + Was the rare product of divinest art. + + "Which is the true, and which the false?" she said. + Great Solomon was silent. All-amazed, + Each wondering courtier shook his puzzled head, + While at the garlands long the monarch gazed, + As one who sees a miracle, and fain, + For very rapture, ne'er would speak again. + + "Which is the true?" once more the woman asked, + Pleased at the fond amazement of the king, + "So wise a head should not be hardly tasked, + Most learned liege, with such a trivial thing!" + But still the sage was silent; it was plain + A deepening doubt perplexed the royal brain. + + While thus he pondered, presently he sees, + Hard by the casement,--so the story goes,-- + A little band of busy, bustling bees, + Hunting for honey in a withered rose. + The monarch smiled, and raised his royal head; + "Open the window!"--that was all he said. + + The window opened, at the king's command; + Within the room the eager insects flew, + And sought the flowers in Sheba's dexter hand! + And so the king and all the courtiers knew + _That_ wreath was Nature's; and the baffled queen + Returned to tell the wonders she had seen. + + My story teaches (every tale should bear + A fitting moral) that the wise may find + In trifles light as atoms in the air, + Some useful lesson to enrich the mind, + Some truth designed to profit or to please,-- + As Israel's king learned wisdom from the bees! + --_Saxe._ + +Six little boys and six little girls, all dressed alike, with cropped +heads, were led into the king's presence, and he was asked to tell which +were girls and which boys. "Bring in basins of water," he commanded, +"and bid them wash their hands." Now in that land the girls wore short +sleeves and the boys long ones. Unthinking, the girls washed their arms +as well, but the boys washed their hands alone. So were the spectators +silently told which were which. + +Such ingenious answers as these established for Solomon his reputation +for wisdom, and many of the wise sayings imputed to him are known now to +have been the sayings of others. + +Before the king's death, murmurings were not uncommon because of the +oppressive administration, and the high-minded of the religious body +looked with grave misgivings upon the influx of foreign gods. Even to +them the whole danger was not apparent. That was left for a period more +remote to understand. + +When Solomon died, his son came forward as his successor. The usual +custom among Semitics was for the crown to descend to the eldest son, +but the kingship was a new institution in Israel and the people had held +to the right of electing their king. They now gathered around Rehoboam, +clamoring for promises. They recalled that his father had taxed them +heavily and asked that he deal with them more leniently. Instead of +answering such reasonable demands at once, the king told them he would +make reply three days later. Meanwhile he counselled with his +ministers--how should he meet the popular demand. The older men +immediately pointed out the safer policy, but the younger ones held that +he should resent the liberty the people had taken in making any demands +whatever, and should assure them that his demands would be even greater +than those of his father. Their folly prevailed. When the people heard +his reply, they were momentarily grieved. Then all the tribes save +two--Judah and Benjamin--withdrew and vowed they would no longer support +the house of David. Solomon's son received the support of two tribes, +and his kingdom was henceforth known by the name of Judaea, while the +northern kingdom was called by the name of Israel. + +Having seen the dangers assailing the united kingdom, we realize at once +the recklessness of the policy that divided it and set two kingdoms with +lessened strength to hold their own among their neighbors. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Hist. of the People of Israel: Cornill, 75. + +[2] Hist. of the People of Israel: Cornill, 83. + +[3] Hist. of the Hebrew People: Kent, Vol. I, 180. + +[4] Cornill: Hist. of People of Israel, 83. + +[5] Kent: Hist. of Hebrew People, 180. + + + + +CHAPTER XII. + + +AFTER THE DIVISION OF THE KINGDOM. + +While the arrogance of Rehoboam and the extravagances of Solomon were +the direct causes of the disunion, yet other agencies had long been at +work to bring it about. In the first place, natural land features +divided the ridge on the west side of the Jordan into two distinct +parts. Any permanent union was not probable. Again, the northern tribes +inhabited the more prosperous district. Their resources were greater; +and with the jealousies that always manifested themselves among the +tribes, it was hardly to have been expected that they would indefinitely +consent to be ruled by Judean kings. Moreover, during the reign of +Solomon, Judah had been exempt from taxation. Into a Judean city had +poured the wealth of the kingdom, while the hand of oppression, so heavy +elsewhere, was unfelt alone in this province. Indignation had apparently +reached a high pitch before Solomon's death, yet spokesmen for the +northern tribes met with the new king and made a simple and reasonable +demand for reduced taxes in turn for allegiance. A statesman might have +held the kingdom intact, yet it is scarcely probable that union would +have indefinitely endured. The royal messenger sent to reconcile the +northern tribes after their withdrawal was so speedily stoned to death +that the king fled for safety to Jerusalem. Jeroboam, an experienced +general, was elected king of Israel--the northern kingdom, and +hostilities between the two kingdoms were inevitable. + +Judah was somewhat protected--on the north by the new-formed state, on +the east by the river and Dead Sea, on the south by the desert. On the +other hand, Israel, with her traversable plains, lay open to approach +from every side, and she it was who had to bear the brunt of outside +attack for the next two centuries. + +A comparison of the two states at the outset shows Israel to have been +first in natural resources, size and population; to have been second in +unity and centralized government. Judah, with her limited area, scarcity +of water, absence of fertile soil and scanty population, had marked +advantage in her unity and hereditary kingship. There were ten tribes to +be pacified in the north--only two in the south. In Israel the +jealousies were so strong that it was the work of a moment for an +influential prince to assassinate the reigning king and usurp the crown. + +Judah was crippled shortly after the division by an invasion of Egyptian +forces. They penetrated into Israel as well, but treasure was greatest +in Jerusalem. Three hundred golden shields, made by Solomon for his +guards, were taken, together with the rich decoration of the temple. +Rehoboam soon after had the ornaments of gold replaced by others of +bronze, so the splendor of the temple was not greatly changed. + +For some time hostilities continued between the Hebrew kingdoms. Then +danger from Syria, a rising state with Damascus at its head, made an +alliance desirable to both kings. + +After the disunion, Jeroboam felt that it would be manifestly unsafe to +allow the people of Israel to go to Jerusalem to celebrate their +national festivals, lest they might be led to return to Judah's king. +Consequently he established two sanctuaries, one at Bethel and one at +Dan, instructing people to worship at the one nearest them. He caused a +golden bull to be placed before the altar of each, thus violating the +commandment forbidding graven images. Perhaps in so doing the king was +merely symbolizing the strength of Jehovah. At an earlier period this +would have been less objectionable, but the people had grown somewhat +accustomed to worship without symbols, and this was plainly a +retrogression. The imageless worship of Jehovah was one of its +distinctive features, lifting it above that of surrounding peoples. + +While prophets of a later day denounced the act of Jeroboam, the priests +of his own day were too near the change to discern its grave dangers. + +The kingdoms which centered at Damascus began to reach out for +territory, and harassed Israel until the imperial growth of Assyria +caused the withdrawal of Syrian troops to protect their own land. Left +alone, the northern kingdom developed her own resources and attained a +prosperity rivaling the time of Solomon. Meanwhile, Judah had been +sheltered from outside wars and less affected by religious orders. + +The period intervening between the fall of Damascus and the wars of +Tiglath-Pileser III. has been aptly called "Israel's Indian Summer." The +outlying territories of David came once more under Hebrew rule, divided +between the kingdoms of the north and south. Commerce, long abandoned, +sprang up and rivaled its tide in Solomon's reign. Unfortunately, the +social life of the people lacked its earlier simplicity, and there were +tendencies within the kingdom itself which pointed to the disintegration +of the state as surely as did the forces that were soon to approach its +walled cities. + +First, recent wars had fallen most heavily upon the middle class. Small +farmers, returning from campaigns of defense of Hebrew borders, found +their estates run down, sometimes dismantled. Having no means of +building them up again, they frequently sank into the peasantry. In +periods of reaction, when property and commercial activity returned, it +was the wealthy who were benefited, while the poor became poorer yet. In +this way the middle class had practically disappeared. Such a loss would +be serious enough to a state, but this was by no means all. The +simplicity of living which had characterized the early years of the +Hebrew nation had given way to extravagance and reckless waste on the +part of the rich, throwing into powerful contrast the condition of the +poor. The humbler classes were oppressed--not by foreign foes, but by +the wealthy of their own state, and abandonment of any sympathy between +social classes was one of the most alarming tendencies. + +The religious life of the country was at a low ebb. By the masses +Jehovah was still regarded as God of the Hebrews--a tribal God, quite as +Baal was god of the Phoenicians, or Asshur of the Assyrians. It was +taught by the priests that Jehovah would cause the Hebrews to win +against their enemies, since only by their triumphs was he honored. He +was worshipped much as were the gods of other nations. Licentious +customs borrowed from neighboring peoples, profaned the very temples, +and undermined earlier religious simplicity. + +It was such a state of affairs that called forth the utterances of Amos +and Hosea, from whose addresses we learn of social conditions in their +day. In some hearts the religious mission of the Hebrews still remained +the most sacred of all trusts. When evils of their age threatened to +engulf them, certain clear-sighted ones were moved to rouse the +people--to bring home to them the consequences sure to overtake their +kingdom unless these glaring wrongs were corrected. + +Such a spirit was Amos, a simple, clear-minded shepherd, dwelling on the +borderland between Israel and Judah, and closely observant of affairs in +both states. Inspired to voice his protest against the corruption of his +people, he left his flocks and journeyed to Bethel, the religious center +of Israel. Reaching the temple on a feast day, he was confronted by +riotous music and unseemly merriment, desecrating the temple itself. It +was then he created a sensation by his passionate address, fragments of +which are preserved to us in the biblical book which bears his name. +Instead of offending at once by quick reproof, and thus losing a chance +to be heard, he began by predicting misfortunes certain to overtake +neighboring peoples because of their misdoings. In this way he won the +attention and approval of an audience who liked to be told that they +were the Chosen People, and Jehovah was with them, and that--apparently +no matter what they did--he would not permit them to fail. Then Amos +launched into the iniquity of Israel, and prophesied disasters sure to +befall her. He uttered a new truth when he said that since the Hebrews +had received special blessings from Jehovah, even more strictly would +they be held to account for their shortcomings; that as their light had +been greater than that bestowed upon their neighbors, so would the +requirements be greater for them than for others. + +"Hear ye this word which I take up against you, even a lamentation, O +house of Israel. + +"The virgin of Israel is fallen; she shall no more rise up; she is +forsaken upon her land; there is none to raise her up. For thus saith +the Lord God: The city that went out by a thousand shall leave an +hundred, and that which went forth by an hundred shall leave ten, to the +house of Israel. + +"For thus saith the Lord unto the house of Israel: Seek ye me, and ye +shall live; but seek not Bethel nor enter into Gilgal; for Gilgal shall +surely go into captivity, and Bethel shall come to nought. + +"Seek the Lord and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the +house of Joseph, and devour it, and there be none to quench it. Ye who +turn judgment to wormwood, and leave off righteousness in the earth, +seek him that maketh the seven stars and Orion, and turneth the shadow +of death into morning and maketh the day dark with night; that calleth +for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the +earth: The Lord is his name.... + +"Forasmuch therefore as your treading is upon the poor, and ye take from +him burdens of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall +not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not +drink wine of them. + +"For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins; they +afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside the poor in the +gate from their right.... + +"Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountains of +Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of +Israel came! + +"Ye that put far away the evil day, and cause the seat of violence to +come near; that lie upon beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon +their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of +the midst of the stall; that chant to the sound of the viol, and invent +to themselves instruments of music like David; that drink wine in bowls, +and anoint themselves with the chief ointments; but they are not grieved +for the affliction of Joseph. + +"Therefore now shall they go captive with the first that go captive, and +the banquet of them that stretched themselves shall be removed."--_Amos +5 and 6._ + +Not long after, Hosea came forward with the startling and altogether +unpleasant message that Jehovah was not the God of the Hebrews alone, +but of the whole world. That he was a God of righteousness, and rewarded +it wherever found, and punished evil doing, regardless of the doer. He +touched a new chord when he taught that God was love, full of compassion +and plenteous in mercy. Heretofore _law_ had been the pivot around which +religion centered, and the ritual was observed and the sacrifice +provided. These attended to, Jehovah was supposed to be appeased. Hosea +taught that the sacrifice of burnt offerings availed nothing--that the +sacrifice demanded was "an humble and a contrite heart." + +A new era was dawning for the Hebrew faith, and truth-divining men +grasped at fundamental principles, applicable alike to the whole world. +It is not surprising that long years elapsed before such broad +conceptions sank deep into the hearts of the Hebrew race. One of their +kingdoms was scattered to the winds before these were comprehended, +save, indeed, by a few, far-sighted minds; the other kingdom passed +through the humiliation of captivity and exile and through these +vicissitudes learned the truths from actual experience. + +"Hear ye this, O priests; and harken, ye house of Israel; and give ear, +O house of the king; for judgment is toward you, because ye have been a +snare on Mizpah, and a net spread upon Tabor.... + +"The pride of Israel doth testify to his face: therefore shall Israel +and Ephraim fall in their iniquity; Judah also shall fall with them. +They shall go with their flocks and with their herds to seek the Lord +but they shall not find him; he hath withdrawn himself from them. They +have dealt treacherously against the Lord: for they have begotten +strange children: now shall a mouth devour them with their portions.... + +"O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do unto +thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it +goeth away.... + +"For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more +than burnt offerings. But they like men have transgressed the covenant: +there have they dealt treacherously against me.... + +"Israel hath cast off the thing that is good: the enemy shall pursue +him. They have set up kings, but not by me: they have made princes, and +I knew it not: of their silver and their gold have they made them idols, +that they may be cut off. For they have sown the wind, and they shall +reap the whirlwind: it hath no stalk: the bud shall yield no meal: if so +be it yield, the strangers shall swallow it up.... + +"They sacrifice flesh for the sacrifices of mine offerings, and eat it; +but the Lord accepteth them not; now will he remember their iniquity and +visit their sins: they shall return to Egypt. For Israel hath forgotten +his Maker, and buildeth temples; and Judah hath multiplied fenced +cities: but I will send a fire upon his cities, and it shall devour the +palaces thereof.... + +"Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have eaten the +fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the multitude of +thy mighty men.... + +"When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of +Egypt. As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed unto +Baalim, and burned incense to graven images. I taught Ephraim also to +go, taking them by the arms; but they knew not that I healed them. I +drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love: and I was to them as +they that take off the yoke on their jaws, and I laid meat unto them.... + +"O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help. + +"O Israel, return unto the Lord thy God, for thou hast fallen by thine +iniquity."--_Hosea, 5-14 chapters._ + + +END OF ISRAEL. + +About 745 B.C. Tiglath-Pileser III. began his westward conquest, +incorporating great areas into his already spacious empire. Heavy +tribute was exacted from provinces so annexed. The amount required of +the northern kingdom--now known by the name of its new capital, +Samaria--was so great that the state soon drooped under the load. Egypt, +desiring also a foothold in western Asia, employed agents to stir the +conquered countries against Assyria, promising aid in case they would +revolt, but meaning only to appropriate territory for the Nile kingdom +should confusion make it possible. + +Because the tribute was grievous in Samaria, the party opposed to paying +it desired an alliance with Egypt. Statesmen saw that such a movement +was ill-timed, but their voices were drowned in the multitude. In 735 +B.C. a coalition was formed by the sea-coast states against Assyria, and +the revolting states refused the yearly tribute. Before the allies could +rally, Tiglath-Pileser III. reached the west by forced marches, and +defeated each state separately. Much land was laid waste, captives were +taken, and Hosea, deemed loyal to the Assyrian government, was made king +of Samaria. For ten years the annual levy was paid, but upon the death +of the great Assyrian conqueror, Hosea yielded to the popular clamor +for a revolt. He himself was soon taken prisoner, but Samaria prepared +for a siege. It lasted nearly three years, during which time intense +suffering afflicted the city. At last the capital fell to Sargon, who +destroyed it, taking 27,290 of its noblest citizens captives, deporting +them to distant points. An Assyrian governor was placed over the +desolate land and Israel ceased to exist longer as a state. + +The Hebrew chronicler tells us that those taken into captivity took on +the religions of the people among whom they settled. Generally speaking +this was no doubt true. On the other hand, traditions have come down +from other sources concerning families who continued to worship Jehovah +as before. However, after a few generations, their descendants no doubt +drifted away from the faith of the Hebrews. + +Thus ends the story of the ten tribes who broke away from the kingdom of +Solomon's son and organized their own northern kingdom. While enduring +prophecies and messages have been contributed by members of these +tribes, their kingdom presented no such example as did the smaller state +of Judah during the closing years of her national life. More accessible +to outside influences, more ready to compromise, Israel's early +religious fervor gradually abated. Some explanation for her inglorious +end is to be found in the physical geography of her country. + +Before the fall of Samaria, Judah enjoyed years of material prosperity, +with varying fortune. Shortly before the siege of the northern capital, +Ahaz, a mere boy, succeeded to the Judah throne. Inexperienced in the +affairs of state, he was nevertheless reluctant to heed the counsels of +older advisers. Assyria was threatening like a huge monster on the +eastern horizon and the only possible way to check her approach lay in +organizing a strong coalition of the sea-coast states. Syria, instead of +taking the initiative, joined with Israel for the purpose of invading +Judea, and dividing the spoils between them. This fatal mistake led +ultimately to the destruction of both aggressive countries. King Ahaz of +Judaea, against the wise and urgent advice of Isaiah, offered allegiance +to the Assyrian emperor in turn for protection against his neighbors, +selling his countrymen into tribute slavery and despoiling the temple +of its treasure for gifts of submission. Thus it happened that while +Damascus and Samaria fell before the armies of Assyria, Jerusalem was +not approached, nor Judaea invaded, although her king became a vassal of +Tiglath-Pileser III. + +Under such trying conditions as these Isaiah came into national view and +evinced qualities which have given him rank with the great statesmen of +the world. Denouncing social wrongs, he was soon drawn into the affairs +of the state. Taking no part in the politics of his day, he stood +steadfastly for fidelity to the ideals of his race and faith. He +appreciated the position that his country ought to occupy, knowing well +that as a political power she could not hope to cope with even the +secondary nations around her. Only by holding herself aloof from +material considerations, and clinging tenaciously to the religious +principles earlier evolved, could she come safely through the critical +times encompassing her. Isaiah taught that it was for Judah to purge her +worship of idolatrous practices which had drifted into it and to go +forward with unfaltering faith in the ultimate dominance of right over +wrong, justice over injustice. However he spoke to deaf ears, for the +ideals for which he stood, the moderate measures for which he pleaded, +were unpopular with the people at this time. + +For some years Judaea paid her tribute, thankful to be left undisturbed. +Gradually a party sprang up which opposed the tribute payment, and +during the reign of Hezekiah its adherents became numerous enough to +control the policy of their nation. Babylonia was secretly planning a +revolt which she desired to make general; accordingly ambassadors were +dispatched to the court of Hezekiah--ostensibly to congratulate him on +his recent recovery, but really to win him to this revolt, and to +estimate the resources of his kingdom. About 702 B.C. all was ripe for +the planned revolt, and Assyrian officials were refused the tribute. +Sargon was dead and it was not expected that his son would prove so +successful a warrior as he had been. But no sooner had news of the +revolt reached Sennacherib than he pushed west, and reached the coast +before the allies were prepared. Meeting them separately, they quickly +melted away before his disciplined troops. Cities of Phoenicia and the +Philistines surrendered, and armies spread into the valleys of Judaea, +surrounding Jerusalem itself. Hezekiah was terrified into offering heavy +tribute, stripping the temple of its remaining ornaments to provide the +sum exacted by the emperor as the price of peace. Cities around about +were being laid waste and their inhabitants carried into captivity. + +In spite of the booty sent him, Sennacherib felt that his victory over +Jerusalem was incomplete, and turning to meet an Egyptian relief force +approaching Judaea from the south, Sennacherib sent word to Hezekiah +that, unless the city gates swung open to him on his return, he would +storm its walls. + +It had been a grievous matter to provide the treasure already required +by the Assyrian, and consternation filled Jerusalem, where little hope +of holding out against the veteran troops could longer be entertained. +With characteristic calm, Isaiah declared that deliverance for Zion +would be forth-coming, and he took occasion to bring home to the people +their deep corruption and idolatrous wanderings, while safety for them +lay in devotion to Jehovah. For once the terrified Hebrews were ready to +harken to any counsel that carried with it a promise of hope. + +The fate of Sennacherib's army is well known: how encamped in a +fever-breeding swamp, it was stricken in a night. The few who escaped +the plague, set out at once on a homeward march, and Jerusalem was left +unmolested. As was their custom, the Hebrews attributed their escape to +direct intervention of Jehovah in their behalf. The beautiful poem of +Byron touching the incident, expresses well their convictions: + + +DESTRUCTION OF SENNACHERIB. + + The Assyrian came down like the wolf on the fold, + And his cohorts were gleaming in purple and gold; + And the sheen of their spears was like stars on the sea, + When the blue waves roll nightly on deep Galilee. + + Like the leaves of the forest when summer is green, + That host with their banners at sun-set was seen; + Like the leaves of the forest when autumn hath blown, + That host on the morrow lay withered and strewn. + + For the angel of death spread his wings on the blast, + And breathed in the face of the foe as he passed; + And the eyes of the sleepers waxed deadly and chill, + And their hearts but once heaved--and forever grew still. + + And there lay the steed with his nostril all wide, + But through it there rolled not the breath of his pride; + And the foam of his gasping lay white on the turf, + And cold as the spray of the rock beating surf. + + And there lay the rider, distorted and pale, + With the dew on his brow and the rust on his mail; + And the tents were all silent, the banners alone, + The lances unlifted, the trumpet unblown. + + And the widows of Asshur are loud in their wail, + And the idols are broke in the temple of Baal; + And the might of the Gentile, unsmote by the sword, + Hath melted like snow in the glance of the Lord! + --_Byron._ + +Hezekiah was so affected by his marvellous deliverance, that he listened +to the voice of Isaiah throughout the remainder of his days, and +instigated both social and religious reforms. These were so radical that +ere long a reaction set in. All religious practices were again tolerated +and Isaiah and his followers were forbidden to preach to the people. +This forced the prophet to give permanency to his messages by writing +them down for future generations. It was now that the book of +Deuteronomy was produced, known later as the Book of Law. Many of the +rules therein laid down had cause for being in the conditions of the +times. For example, every locality had possessed its own peculiar form +of sacrifice and its own priesthood. To insure regularity of worship it +was now provided that religious festivals should be solemnized only at +the temple of Jerusalem, which city should be the religious center of +the land. When in the time of Josiah another period of religious reform +set in, this Book of Law, or Deuteronomy, was discovered in the temple +where it had lain unnoticed. This gave occasion for a complete +overturning of social and religious customs. As in previous periods of +prosperity, the Hebrews had sunk into reckless extravagances and +hopeless poverty; into idolatrous worship and gross immorality. The +reforms instituted by Josiah were designed to recall the masses to paths +outlined for them by their greatest teachers and prophets. + +"The full significance of this sweeping innovation can be appreciated +only by a comparison with the practices which it supplanted. Hitherto +sacrifices appear to have been offered anywhere and by any one; in fact, +every animal slain was regarded as shared with the deity. At every town +there was a _high place_ to which the people went, not only on feast +days, but whenever they wished, through the priest, to have a disputed +case settled, or to ascertain the divine will respecting their private +matter. Religion entered into all their life. The enactments of +Deuteronomy swept away the high places, placed a ban upon private +sacrifice, and restricted all offerings to the Temple. A sharp +distinction was thereby drawn between the laity and the priests, between +secular and holy things. Religion henceforth became something formal, +above and apart, rather than in all which concerned the nation or +individual. Conventionality took the place of the old freedom and +joyousness which had so often degenerated into laxness. The end desired +by the reformers was attained. The narrowing of religion saved it from +the shallowness of heathenism. The Jehovah who was worshipped in the +Temple with jealously guarded forms was not in danger of being degraded +to a level with the surrounding deities. That which henceforth +constituted the Jewish church was divorced from the state, and so +survived the downfall of the nation. Unfortunately the narrowing process +did not cease after the crisis was past, so that its later effects were +deplorable; but, measured in the light of existing circumstances, the +reformation of Josiah marks the beginning of that movement which +ultimately resulted in the complete elimination of the practical +heathenism which had long threatened the extinction of the pure worship +of Jehovah."[1] + +After the fall of Nineveh, Egyptian forces attempted to cross Palestine +on their way to the east. Their progress was forbidden by the Judean +king. In the battle which ensued Josiah was slain. This has been called +the "most tragic event in Hebrew history." In the crude judgment of his +day, the masses regarded his death as punishment for the destruction of +the high places throughout the land. These were re-established, and for +the moment it seemed that all the results of the late reformation were +swept away. + +Egypt held Judah in tribute for three or four years. Then Babylonia +defeated the Egyptian army and appropriated its conquests for the new +Chaldean empire. + +About 597 B.C., tribute having been refused Nebuchadnezzar, he marched +against Jerusalem and took the flower of her people into captivity. +Those who were left foolishly planned a second revolt. Jeremiah filled +the place once occupied by Isaiah, and he denounced the folly of the +popular party with great force, vividly picturing the ruin a revolt +would cause. His very life was in danger because of the boldness of his +counsel, and at times he was held prisoner. Shortly again the armies of +Babylonia stood before the walls of Jerusalem. The great king remembered +the history of centuries wherein the resources of Assyria and Babylonia +had been squandered in holding the western states. He resolved to settle +the matter for all time, and the city of Jerusalem was utterly laid +waste, while its inhabitants were for the most part deported to +Babylonia. Jeremiah was left free to go wherever he chose, and he +remained with the poor peasants who were left to till the soil. Shortly +after the stricken band migrated to Egypt where they soon lost their +identity. + +After the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C., the perpetuation of the Hebrew +faith was left solely to those thousands of captives who had been sent +to Babylon. Of all who had peopled the fair land of Israel and the hills +of Judah, they alone remained to hold fast the inheritances of their +fathers and to preserve the ancient faith. During the seventy years of +their captivity it was the remembrance of their once proud nation and +beloved Jerusalem, together with the hope of again returning to its +hills, that sustained those stricken hearts and gave them courage. +Living as much as possible to themselves, they held to their peculiar +customs and in some ways were not materially changed by the enforced +exile. However their religious conceptions underwent a marked change, +and the experiences of the exile itself brought them finally into a +fuller realization of the faith they had long followed blindly. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Hist. of the Hebrew People: Vol. II, 180. + + + * * * * * + + + + +DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIONS + +IN PART I. + + +DISTANT VIEW OF THE PYRAMIDS. + +This road leading from Cairo to the Pyramids is often spoken of as the +"high road." Were it not built up in this way, communication would be +cut off during the period of the inundation. + +Camels, "ships of the desert," are commonly used in Egypt. Arabs +populate the land and are clamorous in their demands for coins from +travelers. + + +GREAT PYRAMID, SPHINX AND TEMPLE OF ARMACHIS. + +The great Pyramids had stood approximately 800 years when Abraham first +came into the Delta; they had existed approximately 1500 years when +Moses led the Israelites out of the land of bondage. The largest of the +three is indeed stupendous, its base covering thirteen acres. In the +foreground of the picture is seen the ruins of the Temple of Armachis. + +Like the Pyramids, the Sphinx has stood wrapped in mysterious silence +these thousand years. The form of the Sphinx was very common in ancient +Egypt, it being a symbolic representation of the king. The body of the +lion symbolized his strength, or power; the human face was a portrait of +the monarch. Shifting sands have accumulated to the breast of the +body--said to be 140 feet long. Of the huge proportions one may judge +from the fact that should a man stand upon the ear of the Sphinx his +hand could not reach the top of the head. A little chapel of +comparatively recent date has been placed between the paws of the lion. + + +TOURISTS SCALING THE GREAT PYRAMID. + +The Great Pyramid was originally covered with blocks of the hardest +granite. This casing was removed by the Mohammedans for use in building +the mosque of Cairo. Thus removed, the blocks of building stone of which +the huge pile is for the most part composed, were left exposed. Laid +down in the form of steps, tourists today are able to climb to the very +top. To be sure, some of these steps are shoulder high, but with much +pulling by guides in front and some pushing from those behind, one may +ascend in about half an hour. The splendid view over the valley and +neighboring desert amply repay one for the discomforts of the climb. + + +DROMOS (COLUMNS) AND SECOND PYLON (GATEWAY) TEMPLE OF KARNAK. + +The great temple of Karnak was begun by Seti I., and was enlarged by +many succeeding Pharaohs. An avenue of rams led to the gateway, which +was the last portion to be completed. Crossing a court, one came at +length to the temple itself. + +The figures and letters carved on the stone may be plainly seen in this +picture. + + +BEAUTIFUL ISLAND OF PHILAE AND THE NILE. + +This templed island of Philae, known sometimes as "the pearl of Egypt," +lies uppermost of a group of islands forming the first cataract. Isis +was the local deity and to her a temple was built in remote times. +Recently a great dam has been constructed near Philae to insure a larger +supply of water for the valley. It has been estimated that $13,000,000 +will accrue to Egypt annually by this means, but the island of Philae, +with its beautiful temple, is thereby doomed. Indignant protests have +been made from lovers of the beautiful in many lands, but the English +government has shown itself more determined to insure the prompt payment +of interest upon its bonds than to preserve monuments of antiquity. + + +HAREM WINDOW AND COURT. + +As is well known, in all Mohammedan countries, women pass their lives in +closest seclusion. Their quarters are provided in the upper story of the +house, the windows being small indeed. Seldom going out, living their +years in idleness, it is small wonder that these unfortunate creatures +often resort to intrigues to absorb their interest. + + +WINGED LION. + +These symbolic animals in stone were stationed at the portals of the +royal palace and sometimes guarded the palaces of the wealthy in +Assyria. The lion's body symbolized strength, the wings of the eagle, +swiftness; the human head, human intelligence. It was believed that evil +spirits would pause before such emblems of majesty, nor dare to enter. + + +MUSICIANS AND ATTENDANTS IN THE GARDEN OF ASSHURBANIPAL. + +After the war was over, the king, satiated with booty and slaughter, +sought the quieter pleasures of the banquet. This was frequently served +in the royal garden, while musicians dispensed sweet strains of music. +To make more animated the joyous occasion, the head of the defeated king +or general was sometimes suspended from a nearby tree, so that the +Assyrian ruler might exult over his own triumph as he drank his wine. + + +DAMASCUS SWORD-MAKER. + +The swords of Damascus have always been famous. The ancient sword-makers +understood a secret process of tempering steel which rendered it very +pliable and at the same time imparted to it astonishing strength. + + +THE RIVER JORDAN. + +The word _Jordan_ means "the down-comer," and truly a river which drops +3,000 feet in a course of 150 miles is indeed a "descender." In the +spring the stream is brown and muddy, heavily charged as it is with +debris from the mountains. Ships never journey far up or down the river. +Below the level of the sea, the climate is hot and sultry and the region +full of malaria. + + +HARBOR OF JAPPA. + +Jappa is the old Joppa of Bible times. It is almost the only approach to +a seaport that Palestine can claim, yet even here large boats must +remain out in deep waters, and travelers for the Holy Land who enter in +this way must climb down the side of the steamer and be rowed to shore +in small boats. The sea is usually very rough at this point, adding to +the general discomfort of the situation for travelers. + + +ROSES OF SHARON. + +Palestine is beautiful with flowers in the spring. Narcissus, the "roses +of Sharon," and Iris, "the lilies of the valley," grow in profusion over +the foothills. + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The World's Progress, Vol. I (of X), by +Various and The Delphian Society + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 42224 *** |