bade her point out the man if she could see him, and she showed
us one of the bodyguard of the Count Amenmeses, whose face was scratched
as though by a woman's nails. On being questioned he said he could
remember little of the matter, but confessed that he had seen the maiden
by the canal at moonrise and jested with her.

The kin of this girl clamoured that he should be killed, because he had
offered insult to a high-born lady of Israel. This Seti refused, saying
that the offence was not one of death, but that he would order him to
be publicly beaten. Thereupon Amenmeses, who was fond of the soldier, a
good man enough when not in his cups, sprang up in a rage, saying that
no servant of his should be touched because he had offered to caress
some light Israelitish woman who had no business to be wandering about
alone at night. He added that if the man were flogged he and all those
under his command would leave the camp and march back to make report to
Pharaoh.

Now the Prince, having consulted with the councillors, told the woman
and her kin that as Pharaoh had been appealed to, he must judge of the
matter, and commanded them to appear at his court within a month and
state their case against the soldier. They went away very ill-satisfied,
saying that Amenmeses had insulted their daughter even more than his
servant had done. The end of this matter was that on the following night
this soldier was discovered dead, pierced through and through with knife
thrusts. The girl, her parents and brethren could not be found, having
fled away into the desert, nor was there any evidence to show by whom
the soldier had been murdered. Therefore nothing could be done in the
business except bury the victim.

On the following morning the Inquiry began with due ceremony, the Prince
Seti and the Count Amenmeses taking their seats at the head of a large
pavilion with the councillors behind them and the scribes, among whom I
was, seated at their feet. Then we learned that the two prophets whom I
had seen at Pharaoh's court were not in the land of Goshen, having left
before we arrived "to sacrifice to God in the wilderness," nor did any
know when they would return. Other elders and priests, however, appeared
and began to set out their case, which they did at great length and in
a fierce and turbulent fashion, speaking often all of them at once, thus
making it difficult for the interpreters to render their words, since
they pretended that they d