THE COURIER.
MERICM EXGHM6E RATIOMI BAH
LINCOLN, NEB.
I.M.RAYMOND, A. J. SAWYER
President. Vica President
S.H.BURNHAM. D.G.WINO
Caihier. Ainitnt Caibiei
CAPITAL, 5250.000 SURPLUS $25 000
Directors -I. M. Raymond, 3. H. Barnhas
C. Q.Dawea. A. J. Sawyer, LewU Gregory
-NZSnelLOMLambertaon. D O Win. S
Saraham.
T
I
H
E
Is the BEST to reach the
NEW GOLD FIELDS in the
BLACK HILLS.
CallVat office for valuable
information.
A. S. Fielding,
City Ticket At,.
117 So. 10th St., Lincoln, Neb.
B'aBBBPaKftLv
R TIE HIT
ROUTE TO TIE
Come and Be Jb
L O. TowioaWD, F. D. Cobhsxw ,
O. P. 4 T. Act. C. P. A T. Agtv
vm
ftVLbais. Ma
1301
MN
I
I
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1215 M Street.
Excellent Meant and
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Chef Recently of Burlington Route
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THE HAWKS NURSERY COMPANY
Milwaukee. Wis.
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THE ASP Of ISIS.
Never had so beautiful a day dawned
in the Uper Kingdom. Never had the
sun shone so bright or the sky seemed
so blue. Never before had royal The
bes, with her temples and palaces and
gardens, looked half so fair.
Perhaps the day borrowed some of Its
glory from the joyousness of my spirits,
for never before ihad I been so happy
as now in my chariot I rode through
the streets toward the king's palace.
Yes I. Pent Ra, a man of the people,
was on my way to the high abode of
the lord of three kingdoms.
Though my race was sprung from
ancient kings, for many generations it
had lost power and influence It was
long, indeed, since one of my family
had been summoned as guest to the
roal palace. But today I was going at
the bidding or Ne-ne-hofra herself, "the
greatest and most beautiful of prin
cesses into the presence of her for
whose smile half the young lord3 of
Thebes would barter their birthright.
Well might I be proud and exultant!
It happened thus. Yesterday, as on
many days before, I stood watching the
train of the princess who was being
borne to her morning worship at the
great temple of Amon-Ra. In her
hand she held a bunch of fragrant
Lotos blcssoms and as she passed,
dropped one. I leaned forward and
seized it as it fell. Then, for one mo
ment, my eyes met hers shining like
stars beneath the swaying fans of the
attendants. And she, daughter of the
Lord of Kings, most beautiful of mor
tals, smiled smiled upon me, Pent
Ra, an humble man of. the common
people. In that moment I knew why all
Thebes was mad.ovef her beauty, why
scores of its nobles had ventured far
into the land of demons in the burning
south, or amongst the wild barbarians
of the north seeking jewels to win her
favor, why the meanest of them w.ould
brave the horors of the nether .world
did she command them.
Half dazed, half exultant, I stood
holding the Loto3 blossom while the
train of the princess swept by. Only
when it was quite .gone and I turned
to depart I saw that I was not alone.
A tall, daik man, clad in a gorgeous
yellow-striped robe was saluting me.
"The princess Ne-ne-hofra desires thy
presence at the palace tomorrow, O
Pent-Ra. Bring.this, her signet." He
slipped into my hand a golden ring
set with an emerald wrought into the
shape of aLotos blossom. His small
eyes glittered wickedly and a sinister
smile curled hid lips, as he- turned
away. I knew him to be Im-Hotep,
chier of the princess' household. Often
before I had seen him in her train.
Among the people it was rumored that
he was in league with Set and Apopbis,
for he was-known to be cruel and mer
ciless. But of all this I never thought
,then. I felt only the pride and joy
that his message gave.
I was grateful to the gods for this
great favor, and I reproached myself
for long neglect of them. For twenty
years I had not been to any temple.
Generous in my new gratitude I gath
ered together a great offering of cattle
and sheep and of gold and silver rings
for my house was a wealthy one. At
first I jnterided Itfor the great temple
of Amon-Ra, where the king and all
who wished to gain his special favor
worshipped and sacrificed; but I remem
bered a small and ancient shrine of
Isis across the river inra neglected part
of the Necropolis, whither I "had often
gone with my father' in former days.
But cne priest a very old man still
remained faithful toT.the little-temple,
which was almost in ruins from long
neglect. An offering here where noth
ing was to be gained in the esteem and
favor of men, would be doubly accept
able 'to the goddess, and -my offering
was to be purely and wholly to the im
mortals. When I came to the temple, followed
by slaves driving the beasts and bear
ing the gift of golden rings, the priest
came forth to meet me. He was tall
and still straight, though so old that
none could remember when he was not
in this temple, which his family had
served through four dynasties. His
face was marked with hundreds of fine
lines, but no deep furrows, and his
eyes were bright and flashing. In his
robe of white linen, adorned only with
the leopard skin of high priesthood,
he seemed a grander and nobler serv
ant of the Queen of Heaven than any
of his brethren In the great temple.
I saluted him revenrently. "I have
brought a gift for the Holy Mother. O
Het-Su," I said, "and I crave from her
a blessing." The old man's eyes soft
ened as he beheld my, offering. I well
knew the little temple. had not seen
such a one for many years. I was
proud of my generosity.
"Surely. Pent-Ra, shall Isis bless
thee." answered -he. "for this, her most
loved shrine, though men have long
neglected it. was builded by the mighty
Khufu, of whose family thou art.
Wherefore thy fathers have always wor
shipped here, and even so have pros
pered." Then Het-Sa prayed and sac
rificed In the sanctuary of the goddess,
and besought me her blessing, and
when I was ready to depart he touched
a golden asp which he wore upon his
arm. and thereupon it uncoiled as of
.itself.-having neither.clasp norspring.
On my wrist he. pressed it. and like a
live thing, it coiled itself again. "This
Is, ajrwwerlul talisman. Pent-Ra." he
said." "Wear it alwaysrand the goddess
who has "blessed it will keep guard over
thee." Thus I came by the A3p of
Isis.
II.
A slave received the signet and con
ducted me into the presence of Ne-ne-hofra.
She reclined on an ivory couch
In the midst of an apartment which on
one side opened upon an inner court
where was a basin of water covered
with Lotos plants, the fragrance of
whose blossrms filled the air. The
walls of the room were of cedar, carved
and painted, and the floor was strewn
with skins of lions, many of which the
princess had slain with her own hand,
for she often went with her royal father
to the chase and no archer wa3 more
skillful than she.
Ne-ne-hofra's mother was a princess
captured by her father in his northern
wars. Her beauty was not as -the
beauty of the daughters of Chemi. and
Ne-ne-hofra was like her mother. Her
skin was white and fair, and her ryes
blue like the northern skies, while
her hair was of the color of the golden
band that held It. In her robe of spot
less ribbon, woven with threads of gold,
she was more beautiful than anything
I had ever beheld before. Some have
ventured to say that Hathor. the god
dess of love herself. Is not so fair.
This much I know, that when first I
saw her ithere, wonder and awe at the
beauty of which before I ha'r' had but a
glimpse, overcame me wholly. If I
saluted her I cannot say I might well
have knelt- wcrshlpplngat her feet. I
saw her smile: I 'heard hervoice. soft
and clear, and her low, musical laugh
terall as though dreaming.
Thrre" was a feast and red wine, there
was music-of harps and the rhythmic
swaying of the dancing girls. I leaned
on a couch by the side of the princess
and saw and heard only her. They
crowned us .with wreaths of fresh flow
ers Hathor's crowns, the princess
said, and smiled upon me. I remem
bered that. Incense was burned and
the air became dense and heavy. The
music and the dancers and the smoke
of the lnc2nse intermingled In a vague
fautasma. Only the princess was real
to me. She drew from her bosom a
Lotos blossom and held it to her nos
trils. Dnamlly I breathed In Its frag
rance. Then I lay as one half sleeping
even Ne-ne-hofra had grown vague
to me.
Presently. I seemed to see her clasp
her hands together, to see Im-Hotep
enter with slaves, who raised me up and
bore me away through the city, now
grown dark, over the Nile to the far
hills beyond the Necropolis. I felt
neither power nor desire of movetneat:
all was dreamy and unreal. Then came
blackness as of entering a cavern.
Torches flashed vaguely to and fro as
halt In a vast, dim hall pervaded by aa
"odor "sickening "though"ta8weeL I was
laid upon a great stone block, and a
slave brought a basket of Lotos blos
soms and threw them over me. In the
gloom I could see other stone blocks
and over all were great piles of Lotas
blossoms. Slaves were piling fresh
ones upon them. In the glare of a
torch gleamed-the cruel eyes and sinis
ter smile of Im-Hotep directing them.
Another basketful was thrown upoa
me: then another. I could not breathe
the dense, musky atmosphere; its
strange sweetness was stealing say
senses. Vainly I "sought to rise a
great weight pressed me down. Then
all was dark and silent.
In infinite gloom, in infinite silence.
In the Infinite horror of the. tomb, long
ages passed away. I had lost all sens
save that of the passing of time, which
was measured only by the slow slow
dying and turning to du3t of the Lotos
blossoms that co-ered me. Motionless
I lay. a3 my fathers alone In the eternal
night by their pyramids; and as the
years were summed into centuries, the
slow settling dust wrapped me about
as in mummy clothes.
III.
I knew I had lain there for centuries.
I.ong since the last hard Lotos stew
had turned to powder, and only ths
inftnitely slower accumulation of cavern
dust recorded the passing years. I had
forgotten all things; I knew nothing:
I felt nothing save that time still was.
What, aroused me I knew noL Sen
sation, life, consciousness, were born
afresh in me. and as from a long sleep.
I awoke and sat up on the stone couch
that had held me for ages. A pale
light filled the chamber, disclosing
the inscriptions on the walls and the
stone benches below them. There were
nine of these and on each laid a dried
and withered mummy. Their skia.
clinging tight to the bones, was shriv
eled and brown like ancient papyrus,
and the lips shrunk back from the yel
low teeth left on every fact a hideous
grin. Over each was spread a thin
shroud of dust the dust of Lotos bloa
saras. Shuddering. I covered my eyes.
Then from the stillness came a voice:
"Arise, Pent-Ra. follow me. Thy ven
geance shall be mine." I looked up.
At my feet, glowing like a flame. wa3
the golden asp which had encircled my
wrist. It began to glide away and I
followed it. Through long passages,
up and down, right and left, we passed,
until at last the light of day burst upon
my eyes, and I gazed down into the.
Nile Valley. But where" was" Th?b3.
her temples and palaces? Gone. Only
ruins and desert sands now covereJ
the site of the proud city of a hundred
gates.
Now I knew not which way to go.
and sought for the shining asp to follow
it. It was gone, but en my wrist one
again was the golden bracelet coiled.
