bel's[154-4] men of age
Are wise and deep in lore;
But now they were not sage,
They saw--but knew no more.

[Illustration: THE WRITING ON THE WALL]

A Captive in the land,
A stranger and a youth,
He heard the king's command,
He saw that writing's truth;
The lamps around were bright,
The prophecy in view;
He read it on that night,--
The morrow proved it true!

"Belshazzar's grave is made,
His kingdom pass'd away,
He, in the balance weigh'd,
Is light and worthless clay;
The shroud, his robe of state;
His canopy, the stone:
The Mede is at his gate!
The Persian on his throne!"

[Illustration]

FOOTNOTES:

[153-1] The satraps were the governors of the provinces, who ruled under
the king and were accountable to him.

[154-2] These were the sacred "vessels that were taken out of the temple
of the house of God which was at Jerusalem."

[154-3] The terms _Chaldea_ and _Babylonia_ were used practically
synonymously.

[154-4] _Babel_ is a shortened form of _Babylon_.

SOHRAB AND RUSTEM

RUSTEM

The Persians have a great epic which is to them about what the _Iliad_
and the _Odyssey_ were to the Greeks and the _AEneid_ was to the Romans.
In character, however, the Persian epic is more like the English
narrative _Morte d' Arthur_, from which readings will be found elsewhere
in these volumes. This wonderful poem, the _Shah Nameh_, relates
exploits of the Shahs of Persia for a period that is supposed to extend
over more than three thousand years. It was written by Firdusi, a famous
Persian poet, toward the close of the tenth century, and is filled with
tales of the marvelous adventures and stirring achievements of national
heroes. Fierce monsters like those that appear in the legendary tales of
all nations stalk through its pages, and magicians, good and bad, work
their enchantments for and against the devoted Persians. The imagination
of Eastern writers is more vivid than that of the Europeans, and for
that reason the stories are more full of thrilling episodes and
supernatural occurrences.

Chief among the heroes is Rustem, who seems to have lived through many
centuries, and to have been the one great defender of the Persian
throne. From the cradle he was marked for renown, for he was larger,
stronger and healthier than any other babe that was ever born. His
mother alone could not feed him, and ten nurs