upon the throne, and after he had translated my words for the
twelve old men, he answered me,--

"I am Zaphnath, ruler over all the land of Kem, without whom the
Pharaoh doeth not, nor sayeth anything. These are his twelve wise men,
who do not believe what thou hast said, for there is no other world
large enough for the abode of two men, except the Day-Giver, whence they
think ye have come. The Pharaoh may believe them, but I will believe
what ye tell me. He hath given me full power to treat with you, and hath
taken refuge with all his women in his tomb, and will not come forth
until ye be appeased. Tell me in truth, then, are ye men, or gods? Ye
look not half so warlike as all the soldiers have described you."

I translated this to the doctor, but replied without waiting to consult
with him,--

"We know but one God, who hath made all the stars, and all who dwell
upon them. We are men to whom it hath been given to travel the infinite
distances which reach from one of His stars to another, and we are come
to this one, not to make war but to find peace. We would have sought
thee peacefully as friends, had not thine armies made war upon us on the
plateau yonder. But our means of warfare proved far more terrible and
dreadful here than on our proper star. Thus have we unwittingly slain
two of thy soldiers and frightened all the army. We have with us the
means to kill them all, but we seek a peaceable life here for a brief
time, that we may learn your ways and test your wisdom, when we shall be
gone again."

"The Pharaoh could have better spared a thousand men than the bird
which thy lightning hath killed. For are not his slaves as the plenteous
grain of a rich harvest, while his birds are but as the fingers of his
hands. If ye came but to learn, 'tis well ye know these wise men,
though, since I came to Kem, their profession hath fallen somewhat into
disrepute. I doubt not but they could learn far more from thee than thou
from them, but they will not do it. Whatever they do not know is not
true in Kem, but what they know continues true long after common men
know better. Now, wilt thou explain to me the mysteries the soldiers
have reported to us? But first tell us which of all the stars it is thou
comest from."

"Know then, O Zaphnath, that we call our star the Earth, and in her
wanderings she hath now approached so near to the great Orb of Day that
her rays are paled by his brighter light; she sets with him, and shines