sages made the final disposition in affairs which his
holiness was to settle.

But sometimes, when there were no dreams, or when the interpretation of
them seemed inappropriate to the pharaoh, his holiness smiled and
commanded kindly to act in this way or that in given cases. This
command was law which no one might change except in the execution
perhaps of details.

In hours after dinner his holiness, borne in a litter, showed himself
in the court to his faithful guard, and then he ascended to the roof
and looked toward the four quarters of the earth, to impart to them his
blessing. At that moment on the summits of pylons banners appeared, and
mighty sounds came from trumpets. Whoso heard these sounds in the city
or the country, an Egyptian or a stranger, fell on his face so that a
portion of supreme grace might descend on him.

At that moment it was not permitted to strike man, or beast: a stick
raised over a man's back dropped of itself. If a criminal sentenced to
death, declared that the sentence was read to him at the time when the
lord of earth and heaven had appeared, his punishment was lessened. For
before the pharaoh went might, and behind him followed mercy.

When he had made his people happy, the ruler of all things beneath the
sun entered his gardens among palms and sycamores, there he sat a
longer time than elsewhere, receiving homage from his women and looking
at the amusements of the children of his household. When one of them
arrested his attention by beauty or adroitness he called it up, and
made inquiry,

"Who art thou, my little child?"

"I am Prince Binotris, the son of his holiness," answered the little
boy.

"And what is thy mother's name?"

"My mother is the lady Ameses, a woman of his holiness."

"What dost Thou know?"

"I know how to count to ten and to write: 'May he live through eternity
our god and father, his holiness the pharaoh Ramses!"

The lord of eternity smiled benignly and touched with his delicate,
almost transparent, hand the curly head of the sprightly little boy.
Then the child became a prince really, though the smile of his holiness
was ever enigmatical. But whoso had been touched by the divine hand was
not to know misfortune in life and had to be raised above others.

The sovereign dined in another hall of refection and shared his meal
with the gods of all the divisions of Egypt, gods whose statues were
ranged along the walls there. Whatever the gods did not eat we