als.

When they were in an immense chamber of Antefa's palace the sovereign
said before the whole retinue,

"I know, worthy Antefa, that as thy revered ancestors occupy the most
beautiful of tombs, thou, their descendant, art foremost among nomarchs
in Egypt. To thee it is known surely that in my court and army, as in
my heart, the first place is held by Tutmosis, chief of the guard, and
my favorite.

"According to the opinion of sages the rich man does ill who does not
put his most precious jewel into the most beautiful setting. And, since
thy family is most precious to me, and Tutmosis is most dear, I have
conceived the idea of connecting thee with myself, as Thou wilt be, if
thy daughter, the wise and beautiful Hebron, accepts Tutmosis as
husband."

To this the worthy Antefa replied,

"Holiness, sovereign of the western world, and of living men! As Egypt,
and all that is in it belongs to thee, so this house and all its
inhabitants are thy possession. Since it is thy desire that my daughter
should be the wife of thy favorite, let it be so."

Now the pharaoh declared to Antefa that Tutmosis had twenty talents of
yearly salary, and considerable estates in various provinces. Thereupon
the worthy Antefa declared that his daughter Hebron would have fifty
talents a year, also the right to make use of the estates of her father
in those provinces in which the pharaoh's court sojourned for a season.
And since he had no son, his immense property, which was free of debt,
would pass to Tutmosis some time, together with the office of nomarch
of Thebes, in so far as that transfer might coincide with the will of
the pharaoh.

After concluding the conditions Tutmosis entered the court, thanked
Antefa first for giving his daughter to one so unworthy, and second,
because he had reared her so beautifully.

It was arranged then that the ceremony of marriage would take place in
a few days, since Tutmosis, as leader of the guard, had no time for
protracted preliminaries.

"I wish thee happiness, my son," said Antefa, smiling, "and also great
patience, because my beloved daughter, now twenty years old, is the
first exquisite in Thebes, and has had her will always. By the gods, I
tell thee that my command over Thebes always ends at the gate of her
garden. And I fear that thy military command will go no farther."

Next the noble Antefa invited his guests to a splendid banquet, in the
course of which the beautiful Hebron showed he