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UARDA
Volume 3.
By Georg Ebers
CHAPTER IX.
It was noon: the rays of the sun found no way into the narrow shadystreets of the city of Thebes, but they blazed with scorching heat on thebroad dyke-road which led to the king's castle, and which at this hourwas usually almost deserted.
To-day it was thronged with foot-passengers and chariots, with riders andlitter-bearers.
Here and there negroes poured water on the road out of skins, but thedust was so deep, that, in spite of this, it shrouded the streets and thepassengers in a dry cloud, which extended not only over the city, butdown to the harbor where the boats of the inhabitants of the Necropolislanded their freight.
The city of the Pharaohs was in unwonted agitation, for the storm-swiftbreath of rumor had spread some news which excited both alarm and hope inthe huts of the poor as well as in the palaces of the great.
In the early morning three mounted messengers had arrived from the king'scamp with heavy letter-bags, and had dismounted at the Regent's palace.
[The Egyptians were great letter-writers, and many of their letters have come down to us, they also had established postmen, and had a word for them in their language "fai chat."]
As after a long drought the inhabitants of a village gaze up at the blackthunder-cloud that gathers above their heads promising the refreshingrain—but that may also send the kindling lightning-flash or thedestroying hail-storm—so the hopes and the fears of the citizens werecentred on the news which came but rarely and at irregular intervals fromthe scene of war; for there was scarcely a house in the huge city whichhad not sent a father, a son, or a relative to the fighting hosts of theking in the distant northeast.
And though the couriers from the camp were much oftener the heralds oftears than of joy; though the written rolls which they brought told moreoften of death and wounds than of promotion, royal favors, and conqueredspoil, yet they were expected with soul-felt longing and received withshouts of joy.
Great and small hurried after their arrival to the Regent's palace, andthe scribes—who distributed the letters and read the news which wasintended for public communication, and the lists of those who had fallenor perished—were closely besieged with enquirers.
Man has nothing harder to endure than uncertainty, and generally, when insuspense, looks forward to bad rather than to good news. And the bearersof ill ride faster than the messengers of weal.
The Regent Ani resided in a building adjoining the king's palace. Hisbusiness-quarters surrounded an immensely wide court, and consisted of agreat number of rooms opening on to this court, in which numerous scribesworked with their chief. On the farther side was a large, veranda-likehall open at the front, with a roof supported by pillars.
Here Ani was accustomed to hold courts of justice, and to receiveofficers, messengers, and petitioners. To-day he sat, visible to allcomers, on a costly throne in this hall, surrounded by his numerousfollowers, and overlooking the crowd of people whom the guardians of thepeace guided with long staves, admitting the