is
no doubt, either over the pretext of Amada or some other, since Shabaka
has heard as much from his own lips. Now choose."

Then, after a little whispering together, every man of them voted for
rebellion, though some of them I could see with heavy hearts, and bound
themselves by a great oath to cling together to the last.

The matter being thus settled such a letter was written to Idernes as
I had suggested on the night before, and sealed with the Signet of
signets. Of the yielding up of Amada it said nothing, but commanded
Idernes, under the private White Seal that none dared disobey, to wait
upon the Prince Peroa at Memphis forthwith, and there learn from him,
the Holder of the Seal, what was the will of the Great King. Then
the Council was adjourned till one hour after noon, and most of them
departed to send messengers bearing secret word to the various cities
and nomes of Egypt.

Before they went, however, I was directed to wait upon my relative,
the holy Tanofir, whom all acknowledged to be the greatest magician in
Egypt, and to ask of him to seek wisdom and an oracle from his Spirit
as to the future and whether in it we should fare well or ill. This I
promised to do.

When most of the Council were gone the messengers of Idernes were
summoned, and came proudly, and with them, or rather before them, Bes
for whom I had sent as he was not present at the Council.

"Master," he whispered to me, "the tallest of those messengers is the
man who captained the robbers last night. Wait and I will prove it."

Peroa gave the roll to the head messenger, bidding him bear it to the
Satrap in answer to the letter which he had delivered to him. The man
took it insolently and thrust it into his robe, as he did so revealing
a silver chain that had been broken and knotted together, and asked
whether there were words to bear besides those written in the roll.
Before Peroa could answer Bes sprang up saying,

"O Prince, a boon, the boon of justice on this man. Last night he and
others with him attacked my master and myself, seeking to rob us, but
finding nothing let us go."

"You lie, Abortion!" said the Eastern.

"Oh! I lie, do I?" mocked Bes. "Well, let us see," and shooting out his
long arm, he grasped the chain about the messenger's neck and broke it
with a jerk. "Look, O Prince," he said, "you may have noted last night,
when that man entered the hall, that there hung about his neck this
chain to which was tied a silver