CHAPTER IX
THE SWEARING OF THE OATH
Two or three days after this conversation, I forget exactly which it
was, Maqueda held her council in the great hall of the palace. When we
entered the place in charge of a guard, as though we were prisoners,
we found some hundreds of Abati gathered there who were seated in
orderly rows upon benches. At the farther end, in an apse-shaped
space, sat the Child of Kings herself on a gilded or perhaps a golden
chair of which the arms terminated in lions' heads. She was dressed in
a robe of glittering silver, and wore a ceremonial veil embroidered
with stars, also of silver, and above it, set upon her dark hair, a
little circlet of gold, in which shone a single gem that looked like a
ruby. Thus attired, although her stature is small, her appearance was
very dignified and beautiful, especially as the gossamer veil added
mystery to her face.
Behind the throne stood soldiers armed with spears and swords, and at
its sides and in front of it were gathered her court to the number of
a hundred or more, including her waiting-ladies, who in two companies
were arranged to the right and left. Each member of this court was
gorgeously dressed according to his profession.
There were the generals and captains with Prince Joshua at the head of
them in their Norman-like chain armour. There were judges in black
robes and priests in gorgeous garments; there were territorial lords,
of whose attire I remember only that they wore high boots, and men who
were called Market-masters, whose business it was to regulate the rate
of exchange of products, and with them the representatives of other
trades.
In short, here was collected all the aristocracy of the little
population of the town and territory of Mur, every one of whom, as we
found afterwards, possessed some high-sounding title answering to
those of our dukes and lords and Right Honourables, and knights, to
say nothing of the Princes of the Blood, of whom Joshua was the first.
Really, although it looked so fine and gay, the spectacle was, in a
sense, piteous, being evidently but a poor mockery and survival of the
pageantry of a people that had once been great. The vast hall in which
they were assembled showed this, since, although the occasion was one
that excited public interest, it was after all but a quarter filled by
those who had a right to be present.
With much dignity and to the sound of music we were marched up the
broad nave, if I may describe it thus, for the building, with its apse
and supporting cedar columns, bore some resemblance to a cathedral,
till we reached the open space in front of the throne, where our
guards prostrated themselves in their Eastern fashion, and we saluted
its occupant in our own. Then, chairs having been given to us, after a
pause a trumpet blew, and from a side chamber was produced our late
guide, Shadrach, heavily manacled and looking extremely frightened.
The trial that followed I need not describe at length. It took a long
while, and the three of us were called upon to give evidence as to the
quarrel between our companion, the Professor, and the prisoner about
the dog Pharaoh and other matters. The testimony, however, that
proclaimed the guilt of Shadrach was that of his companion guides,
who, it appeared, had been threatened with floggings unless they told
the truth.
These men swore, one after the other, that the abandonment of Higgs
had been a preconceived plan. Several of them added that Shadrach was
in traitorous communication with the Fung, whom he had warned of our
advent by firing the reeds, and had even contrived to arrange that we
were to be taken while he and the other Abati, with the camels laden
with our rifles and goods which they hoped to steal, passed through in
safety.
In defence Shadrach boldly denied the whole story, and especially that
he had pushed the Gentile, Higgs, off his dromedary, as was alleged,
and mounted it himself because his own beast had broken down or been
injured.
However, his lies availed him little, since, after consultation with
the Child of Kings, presently one of the black-robed judges condemned
him to suffer death in a very cruel fashion which was reserved for
traitors. Further, his possessions were to be forfeited to the State,
and his wife and children and household to become public slaves, which
meant that the males would be condemned to serve as soldiers, and the
females allotted to certain officials in the order of their rank.
Several of those who had conspired with him to betray us to the Fung
were also deprived of their possessions and condemned to the army,
which was their form of penal servitude.
Thus amidst a mighty wailing of those concerned and of their friends
and relatives ended this remarkable trial, of which I give some
account because it throws light upon the social conditions of Abati.
What hope is there for a people when its criminals are sent, not to
jail, but to serve as soldiers, and their womenfolk however innocent,
are doomed to become the slaves of the judges or whoever these may
appoint. Be it added, however, that in this instance Shadrach and his
friends deserved all they got, since, even allowing for a certain
amount of false evidence, undoubtedly, for the purposes of robbery and
private hate, they did betray those whom their ruler had sent them to
guide and protect.
When this trial was finished and Shadrach had been removed, howling
for mercy and attempting to kiss our feet like the cur he was, the
audience who had collected to hear it and to see us, the Gentile
strangers, dispersed, and the members of the Privy Council, if I may
call it so, were summoned by name to attend to their duties. When all
had gathered, we three were requested to advance and take seats which
had been placed for us among the councillors.
Then came a pause, and, as I had been instructed that I should do, I
advanced and laid Sheba's ring upon a cushion held by one of the court
officers, who carried it to Maqueda.
"Child of Kings," I said, "take back this ancient token which you lent
to me to be a proof of your good faith and mine. Know that by means of
it I persuaded our brother who is captive, a man learned in all that
has to do with the past, to undertake this mission, and through him
the Captain Orme who stands before you, and his servant, the soldier."
She took it and, after examination, showed it to several of the
priests, by whom it was identified.
"Though I parted from it with fear and doubt, the holy ring has served
its purpose well," she said, "and I thank you, Physician, for
returning it to my people and to me in safety."
Then she replaced it on the finger from which it had been withdrawn
when she gave it to me many months before.
There, then, that matter ended.
Now an officer cried:
"Walda Nagasta speaks!" whereon every one repeated, "Walda Nagasta
speaks," and was silent.
Then Maqueda began to address us in her soft and pleasant voice.
"Strangers from the Western country called England," she said, "be
pleased to hear me. You know our case with the Fung--that they
surround us and would destroy us. You know that in our extremity I
took advantage of the wandering hither of one of you a year ago to beg
him to go to his own land and there obtain firestuffs and those who
understand them, with which to destroy the great and ancient idol of
the Fung. For that people declare that if this idol is destroyed they
will leave the land they dwell in for another, such being their
ancient prophecy."
"Pardon, O Child of Kings," interrupted Orme, "but you will remember
that only the other day Barung, Sultan of the Fung, said that in this
event his nation would still live on to avenge their god, Harmac. Also
he said that of all the Abati he would leave you alive alone."
Now at these ill-omened words a shiver and a murmur went through the
Council. But Maqueda only shrugged her shoulders, causing the silver
trimmings on her dress to tinkle.
"I have told you the ancient prophecy," she answered, "and for the
rest words are not deeds. If the foul fiend, Harmac, goes I think that
the Fung will follow him. Otherwise, why do they make sacrifice to
Earthquake as the evil god they have to fear? And when some five
centuries ago, such an earthquake shook down part of the secret city
in the bowels of the mountains that I will show to you afterwards, why
did they fly from Mur and take up their abode in the plain, as they
said, to protect the god?"
"I do not know," answered Oliver. "If our brother were here, he whom
the Fung have captured, he might know, being learned in the ways of
idol-worshipping, savage peoples."
"Alas! O Son of Orme," she said, "thanks to that traitor whom but now
we have condemned, he is not here and, perhaps, could tell us nothing
if he were. At least, the saying runs as I have spoken it, and for
many generations, because of it, we Abati have desired to destroy the
idol of the Fung to which so many of us have been offered in sacrifice
through the jaws of their sacred lions. Now I ask," and she leaned
forward, looking at Oliver, "will you do this for me?"
"Speak of the reward, my niece," broke in Joshua in his thick voice
when he saw that we hesitated what to answer, "I have heard that these
Western Gentiles are a very greedy people, who live and die for the
gold which we despise."
"Ask him, Captain," exclaimed Quick, "if they despise land also, since
yesterday afternoon I saw one of them try to cut the throat of another
over a piece not bigger than a large dog-kennel."
"Yes," I added, for I confess that Joshua's remarks nettled me, "and
ask him whether the Jews did not despoil the Egyptians of their
ornaments of gold in the old days, and whether Solomon, whom he claims
as a forefather, did not trade in gold to Ophir, and lastly whether he
knows that most of his kindred in other lands make a very god of
gold."
So Orme, as our spokesman, put these questions with great gusto to
Joshua, whom he disliked intensely, whereat some of the Council, those
who were not of the party of the Prince, smiled or even laughed, and
the silvery ornaments upon Maqueda's dress began to shake again as
though she also were laughing behind her veil. Still, she did not seem
to think it wise to allow Joshua to answer--if he could--but did so
herself, saying:
"The truth is, O my friends, that here we set small store by gold
because, being shut in and unable to trade, it is of no use to us save
as an ornament. Were it otherwise, doubtless we should value it as
much as the rest of the world, Jew or Gentile, and shall do so when we
are freed from our foes who hem us in. Therefore, my uncle is wrong to
claim as a virtue that which is only a necessity, especially when, as
your servant says," and she pointed to the Sergeant, "our people make
land their gold and will spend their lives in gaining more of it, even
when they have enough."
"Then do the Gentiles seek no reward for their services?" sneered
Joshua.
"By no means, Prince," answered Oliver, "we are soldiers of fortune,
since otherwise why should we have come here to fight your quarrel
(laying an unpleasant emphasis on the "your") "against a chief who, if
half savage, to us seems to have some merits, those of honour and
courage, for instance? If we risk our lives and do our work, we are
not too proud to take whatever we can earn. Why should we be, seeing
that some of us need wealth, and that our brother, who is as good as
dead yonder, owing to the treachery of those who were sent to guard
him, has relatives in England who are poor and should be compensated
for his loss?"
"Why, indeed?" ejaculated Maqueda. "Listen, now, my friends. In my own
name and in that of the Abati people I promised to you as many camel-
loads of this gold as you can carry away from Mur, and before the day
is done I will show it to you if you dare follow me to where it lies
hid."
"First the work, then the pay," said Oliver. "Now tell us, Child of
Kings, what is that work?"
"This, O Son of Orme. You must swear--if this is not against your
consciences as Christians--that for the space of one year from to-day
you will serve me and fight for me and be subject to my laws, striving
all the while to destroy the idol Harmac by your Western skill and
weapons, after which you shall be free to go whither you will with
your reward."
"And if we swear, Lady," asked Oliver after reflection, "tell us what
rank shall we hold in your service?"
"You shall be my chief captain for this enterprise, O Son of Orme, and
those with you shall serve under you in such positions as you may
please."
At these words a murmur of dissatisfaction arose from the mail-clad
generals in the Council.
"Are we then, to obey this stranger, O Child of Kings?" queried Joshua
as their spokesman.
"Aye, my uncle, so far as this great enterprise is concerned, as I
have said. Can you handle the firestuffs of which they alone have the
secret? Could any three of you have held the gate of Harmac against
the armies of the Fung and sent it flying skyward?"
She paused and waited in the midst of a sullen silence.
"You do not answer because you cannot," continued Maqueda. "Then for
this purpose be content to serve awhile under the command of those who
have the skill and power which you lack."
Still there was no answer.
"Lady," said Orme in this ominous quiet, "you are so good as to make
me a general among your soldiers, but will they obey me? And who are
your soldiers? Does every man of the Abati bear arms?"
"Alas! no," she replied, fixing upon this latter question perhaps
because she could not answer the first. "Alas! no. In the old days it
was otherwise, when my great ancestresses ruled, and then we did not
fear the Fung. But now the people will not serve as soldiers. They say
it takes them from their trades and the games they love; they say they
cannot give the time in youth; they say that it degrades a man to obey
the orders of those set over him; they say that war is barbarous and
should be abolished, and all the while the brave Fung wait without to
massacre our men and make our women slaves. Only the very poor and the
desperate, and those who have offended against the laws will serve in
my army, except it be as officers. Oh! and therefore are the Abati
doomed," and, throwing back her veil, suddenly, she burst into tears
before us all.
I do not know that I ever remember seeing a sight more pathetic in its
way than that of this beautiful and high-spirited young woman weeping
in the presence of her Council over the utter degeneracy of the race
she was called upon to rule. Being old and accustomed to these Eastern
expressions of emotion, I remained silent, however; but Oliver was so
deeply affected that I feared lest he should do something foolish. He
went red, he went white, and was rising from his seat to go to her,
had I not caught him by the arm and pulled him back. As for Quick, he
turned his eyes to the ceiling, as though engaged in prayer, and I
heard him muttering:
"The Lord help the poor thing, the Lord help her; the one pearl in the
snout of all these gilded swine! Well, I understand I am a bit of a
general now, and if I don't make 'em sit up for her sake my name ain't
Samuel Quick."
Meanwhile there was much consternation and indignant murmuring amongst
the Court, which felt that reflections had been thrown upon it
collectively and individually. At such a crisis, as usual, Prince
Joshua took the lead. Rising from his seat, he knelt, not without
difficulty, before the throne, and said:
"O Child of Kings, why do you distress us with such words? Have you
not the God of Solomon to protect you?"
"God protects those who protect themselves," sobbed Maqueda.
"And have you not many brave officers?"
"What are officers without an army?"
"And have you not me, your uncle, your affianced, your lover?" and he
laid his hand where he conceived his heart to be, and stared up at her
with his rolling, fish-like eyes. "Had it not been for the
interference of these Gentiles, in whom you seem to put such trust,"
he went on, "should I not have taken Barung captive the other day, and
left the Fung without a head?"
"And the Abati without such shreds of honour as still belong to them,
my uncle."
"Let us be wed, O Bud of the Rose, O Flower of Mur, and soon I will
free you from the Fung. We are helpless because we are separate, but
together we shall triumph. Say, O Maqueda, when shall we be wed?"
"When the idol Harmac is utterly destroyed, and the Fung have departed
for ever, my uncle," she answered impatiently. "But is this a time to
talk of marriage? I declare the Council closed. Let the priests bring
the rolls that these strangers from the West may take the oath, and
then pardon me if I leave you."
Now from behind the throne there appeared a gorgeous gentleman arrayed
in a head-dress that reminded me faintly of a bishop's mitre, and
wearing over his robes a breastplate of precious stones roughly
polished, which was half hidden by a very long white beard.
This person, who it seemed was the high priest, carried in his hand a
double roll of parchment written over with characters which we
afterwards discovered were bastard Hebrew, very ancient and only
decipherable by three or four of the Abati, if indeed any of them
could really read it. At least it was said to be the roll of the law
brought by their forefathers centuries ago from Abyssinia, together
with Sheba's ring and a few other relics, among them the cradle (a
palpable forgery), in which the child of Solomon and Maqueda, or
Belchis, the first known Queen of Sheba, was traditionally reported to
have been rocked. This roll of the law, which for generations had been
used at all important ceremonies among the Abati, such as the
swearing-in of their queens and chief officers, was now tendered to us
to hold and kiss while we took the oath of obedience and allegiance in
the names of Jehovah and of Solomon (a strange mixture, it struck us),
solemnly vowing to perform those things which I have already set out.
"This seems a pretty wide promise," said Oliver, after it had been
read to us and translated by me to Quick. "Do you think that we ought
to take it on?"
I answered "Yes," that was from my point of view, since otherwise I
saw no chance of achieving the object that had caused me to enter upon
this adventure. Then, being especially requested to do so, the
Sergeant, after reflecting awhile, gave his considered opinion.
"Sir," he said to Orme, "we are three white men here consorting with a
mob of quarter-bred African Jews and one real lady. It seems to me
that we had best swear anything they want us to, trusting to the lady
to see us through the mess, since otherwise we shall be mere
filibusters in the country without official rank, and liable therefore
to be shot on sight by the enemy, or any mutineers who get the upper
hand here. Also, we have the Professor and the Doctor's son to think
of. Therefore I say: Swear to anything in reason, reserving allegiance
to the Crown of Great Britain, and trust to luck. You see, Captain, we
are in their power anyway, and this oath may help, but can't hurt us,
while to refuse it must give offence to all these skunks, and perhaps
to the lady also, which is of more consequence."
"I think you are probably right, Sergeant," said Orme. "Anyway, in for
a penny, in for a pound."
Then he turned to Maqueda, who had been watching this conference in an
unknown tongue with some anxiety, or so it seemed to me, and added in
Arabic: "O Child of Kings, we will take your oath, although it is
wide, trusting to your honour to protect us from any pitfalls which it
may cover, for we would ask you to remember that we are strangers in
your land who do not understand its laws and customs. Only we
stipulate that we retain our allegiance to our own ruler far away,
remaining the subjects of that monarch with all rights thereto
appertaining. Also, we stipulate that before we enter on our duties,
or at any rate during those duties, we shall be at full liberty to
attempt the rescue of our friend and companion, now a prisoner in the
hands of the Fung, and of the son of one of us who is believed to be a
slave to them, and that we shall have all the assistance which you can
give us in this matter. Moreover, we demand that if we should be tried
for any offence under this oath, you to whom we swear allegiance shall
be our judge alone, none others intermeddling in the trial. If you
accept these terms we will swear the oath; otherwise we swear nothing,
but will act as occasion may arise."
Now we were requested to stand back while the Child of Kings consulted
with her advisers, which she did for a considerable time, since
evidently the questions raised involved differences of opinion. In the
end, however, she and those who supported her seemed to overrule the
objectors, and we were called up and told that our terms had been
accepted and engrossed upon the form of the oath, and that everything
there included would be faithfully observed by the Ruler and Council
of the Abati.
So we signed and swore, kissing the book, or rather the roll, in the
civilized fashion. Afterwards, very tired, for all this business had
been anxious, we were conducted back to our own quarters to lunch, or
rather to dine, for the Abati ate their heaviest meal at midday,
taking a siesta after it according to the common Eastern custom.
About four o'clock of that afternoon I was awakened from my nap by the
growls of Pharaoh, and looked up to see a man crouching against the
door, evidently in fear of the dog's fangs. He proved to be a
messenger from Maqueda, sent to ask us if we cared to accompany her to
a place that we had never seen. Of course we answered "Yes," and were
at once led by the messenger to a disused and dusty hall at the back
of the palace, where presently Maqueda and three of her ladies joined
us, and with them a number of men who carried lighted lamps, gourds of
oil, and bundles of torches.
"Doubtless, friends," said Maqueda, who was unveiled and appeared to
have quite recovered from our outburst of the morning, "you have seen
many wonderful places in this Africa and other lands, but now I am
about to show you one that, I think, is stranger than them all."
Following her, we came to a door at the end of the hall which the men
unbolted and shut again behind us, and thence passed into a long
passage cut in the rock, that sloped continuously downwards and at
length led through another doorway to the vastest cave that we had
ever heard of or seen. So vast was it, indeed, that the feeble light
of our lamps did not suffice to reach the roof, and only dimly showed
to right and left the outlines of what appeared to be shattered
buildings of rock.
"Behold the cave city of Mur," said Maqueda, waving the lamp she held.
"Here it was that the ancients whom we believe to have been the
forefathers of the Fung, had their secret stronghold. These walls were
those of their granaries, temples, and places of ceremonial, but, as I
have told you, centuries ago an earthquake shattered them, leaving
them as they are now. Also, it broke down much of the cave itself,
causing the roof to fall, so that there are many parts where it is not
safe to enter. Come now and see what is left."
We followed her into the depth of the wonderful place, our lanterns
and torches making little stars of light in that great blackness. We
saw the ruins of granaries still filled with the dust of what I
suppose had once been corn, and came at length to a huge, roofless
building of which the area was strewn with shattered columns, and
among them overgrown statues, covered so thick by dust that we could
only discover that most of them seemed to be shaped like sphinxes.
"If only Higgs were here," said Oliver with a sigh, and passed on to
Maqueda, who was calling him to look at something else.
Leaving the temple in which it was unsafe to walk, she led us to where
a strong spring, the water supply of the place, bubbled up into a rock
basin, and overflowing thence through prepared openings, ran away we
knew not whither.
"Look, this fountain is very ancient," said Maqueda, pointing to the
lip of the basin that was worn away to the depth of several inches
where those who drew water had for many generations rested their hands
upon the hard rock.
"How did they light so vast a cavern?" asked Oliver.
"We do not know," she answered, "since lamps would scarcely have
served them. It is a secret of the past which none of the Abati have
cared to recover, and another is how the air is always kept fresh so
deep in the bowels of the mountain. We cannot even say whether this
place is natural, as I think, or hollowed out by men."
"Both, I expect," I answered. "But tell me, Lady, do the Abati make
any use of this great cave?"
"Some corn is still stored here in pits in case of siege," she
replied, adding sadly, "but it is not enough to be of real service,
since almost all of it comes from the estates of the Child of Kings.
In vain have I prayed the people to contribute, if only a hundredth
part of their harvest, but they will not. Each says that he would give
if his neighbour gave, and so none give. And yet a day may come when a
store of corn alone would stand between them and death by hunger--if
the Fung held the valley, for instance," and she turned impatiently
and walked forward to show us the stables where the ancients kept
their horses and the marks of their chariot wheels in the stone floor.
"Nice people, the Abati, sir," said Quick to me. "If it weren't for
the women and children, and, above all, for this little lady, whom I
am beginning to worship like my master, as in duty bound, I'd like to
see them do a bit of hungering."
"There is one more place to show you," said Maqueda, when we had
inspected the stables and argued as to what possible causes could have
induced the ancients to keep horses underground, "which perhaps you
will think worth a visit, since it holds the treasures that are, or
shall be, yours. Come!"
We started forward again along various passages, the last of which
suddenly widened into a broad and steep incline of rock, which we
followed for quite fifty paces till it ended in what seemed to be a
blank wall. Here Maqueda bade her ladies and attendants halt, which
indeed they seemed very anxious to do, though at the moment we did not
know why. Then she went to one end of the wall where it joined that of
the passage, and, showing us some loose stones, asked me to pull them
out, which I did, not without difficulty. When an aperture had been
made large enough for a man to creep through, she turned to her people
and said:
"You, I know, believe this place to be haunted, nor would the bravest
of you enter it save by express command. But I and these strangers
have no such fears. Therefore give us a gourd of oil and some torches
and bide where you are till we return, setting a lamp in the hole in
the wall to guide us in case our own should become extinguished. No,
do not reason but obey. There is no danger, for though hot, the air
within is pure, as I know who have breathed it more than once."
Then she gave her hand to Oliver, and with his assistance crept
through the hole. We followed, to find ourselves in another cavern,
where, as she had said, the temperature was much hotter than that
without.
"What is this place?" asked Orme in a low voice, for its aspect seemed
to awe him.
"The tomb of the old kings of Mur," she replied. "Presently you shall
see," and once more she took his hand, for the slope was sharp and
slippery.
On we went, always descending, for perhaps four hundred yards, our
footfalls echoing loudly in the intense silence, and our lamps, round
which the bats circled in hundreds, making four stars of light in the
utter blackness, till at length the passage widened out into what
appeared to be a vast circular arena, with a lofty dome-like roof of
rock. Maqueda turned to the right, and, halting before some objects
that glimmered whitely, held up her light, saying, "Look!"
This was what we saw: A great stone chair and, piled upon its seat and
upon its base, human bones. Amongst these was a skull, and on it,
grotesquely tilted, a crown of gold, while other ornaments--sceptres,
rings, necklaces, weapons and armour--were mingled with the bones. Nor
was this all, for in a wide circle round the chair were other
skeletons, fifty or more of them, and amongst them the ornaments that
their owners had worn.
Also, in front of each stood a tray of some metal, which we afterwards
discovered to be silver or copper, and heaped upon it every kind of
valuable, such as golden cups and vases, toilet utensils, necklaces,
pectorals, bracelets, leglets, earrings and beads that seemed to be
cut from precious stones, piles of ring money, and a hundred other
things such as have been prized by mankind since the beginning of
civilization.
"You understand," said Maqueda, as we stared, open-mouthed at this
awful and marvellous sight, "he in the chair was the king. Those about
him were his officers, guards, and women. When he was buried they
brought his household here, bearing his wealth, sat them down about
him, and killed them. Blow away the dust, and you will see that the
rock beneath is still stained with their blood; also, there are the
sword-marks on their skulls, and neckbones."
Quick, who was of an inquiring mind, stepped forward and verified
these statements.
"Golly!" he said, throwing down the skull of a man over whom the tired
executioners had evidently bungled badly, "I'm glad I didn't serve the
old kings of Mur. But the same game goes on in a small way to-day in
Africa, for when I was campaigning on the West Coast I came across it
not a fortnight old, only there they had buried the poor beggars
living."
"Perhaps," said Maqueda, when the Sergeant's remarks had been
translated to her. "Yet I do not think the custom is one that my
people would love," and she laughed a little, then added, "forward,
friends, there are many more of these kings and oil does not burn for
ever."
So we moved on, and at a distance of some twenty paces found another
chair with scattered bones on and about the seat, lying where each had
fallen as the dead man decayed. Round it were the skeletons of the
unfortunates who had been doomed to accompany him upon his last
journey, every one of them behind his tray of golden objects, or of
simple treasure. In front of this king's chair also were the bones of
a dog with a jewelled collar.
Again we proceeded to a third mortuary, if it may so be called, and
here Maqueda pointed out the skeleton of a man, in front of which
stood a tray piled up with what evidently had been the medicine
bottles of the period and among them a number of rude surgical
instruments.
"Say, O Physician Adams," she remarked with a smile, "would you have
wished to be court doctor to the kings of Mur, if indeed that was then
their city's name?"
"No, Lady," I answered; "but I do wish to examine his instruments if I
have your leave," and while she hurried forward I stooped down and
filled my pockets. Here I may remark, that upon subsequent inspection
I found among these instruments, manufactured I know not what number
of thousands of years ago--for on that point controversy rages among
the learned--many that with modifications are still in use to-day.
Of that strange and dreadful sepulchre there is little more to tell.
From monarch to monarch we marched on till at length we grew weary of
staring at bones and gold. Even Quick grew weary, who had passed his
early youth in assisting his father, the parish sexton, and therefore,
like myself, regarded these relics with professional interest, though
of a different degree. At any rate, he remarked that this family vault
was uncommonly hot, and perhaps, if it pleased her Majesty, as he
called Maqueda, we might take the rest of the deceased gentlemen as
read, like a recruit's attestation questions.
But just then we came to No. 25, according to my counting, and were
obliged to stop to wonder, for clearly this king had been the greatest
of them all, since round him lay about two or three times the average
number of dead, and an enormous quantity of wealth, some of it in the
form of little statues of men and women, or perhaps of gods. Yet,
oddly enough, he was hunchback with a huge skull, almost a monstrosity
indeed. Perhaps his mind partook of the abnormal qualities of his
body, since no less than eleven little children had been sacrificed at
his obsequies, two of whom, judging from their crooked bones, must
have been his own.
One wonders what chanced in Mur and the surrounding territories which
then acknowledged its sway when King Hunchback ruled. Alas! history
writes no record.
