here, following their old occupation--sheep-raising.

=Egyptian civilization.=--Egypt was in many ways like Babylonia. In
Egypt too a great civilization had sprung up many millenniums before
Christ. In some ways it was an even greater civilization than that of
Babylonia. Egyptian sculptors and architects erected stone temples
whose grandeur has never been surpassed. Many of them are still
standing and are among the world's treasures. It would seem that there
was somewhat more of love of beauty and somewhat less of greed for
money among the Egyptians than among the Babylonians.

THE ACCESSION OF RAMESES II

There came to the throne of Egypt about B.C. 1200 a man of
extraordinary vanity and selfish ambition known as Rameses II. He
wished to build more temples in Egypt than any other king had ever
built, so that wherever the traveler might turn people would point to
this or that great building and say Rameses II built that. To put up
these buildings he enslaved his people, compelling them to labor
without pay. To raise the funds for building materials he made war on
his neighbors, especially the Hittites in western Asia north of
Canaan. Again and again Hebrew children would see the dust of marching
armies over the roads past their pastures and men would say, "Rameses
is going to war again." And by and by, weeks or months later, the
soldiers would return with tales of bloody battles and sometimes laden
with spoils.

=Enslavement of the Hebrews.=--Now, wars usually breed more wars.
Rameses having attacked the Hittites was afraid they would attack him.
Egypt was indeed very well protected from attack. There was only one
gateway into the country, and that was by way of the narrow Isthmus of
Suez. And there were a wall and a row of fortresses across the
isthmus. But who were those shepherd tribes living just west of the
isthmus inside the gateway? They are Hebrews, Rameses was told. They
are immigrants from Canaan. "Look out for them," said Rameses. "If
they came from Canaan, they may favor the Hittites and help them to
get past my fortresses into Egypt. Let them be put at work so that
they will have no time for plots."

Rameses was planning just then to build two large granary cities near
the northeastern border to be a base of supplies for his armies on
their campaigns into Asia. One was to be called Pithom.[2]

So one day armed men came to the Hebrew tents and the order was given
to send such and such a number of m