of protection, life,
and health, who watched day and night over the earth and the sky, over
the world both visible and invisible. But for the last half year his
eternally living soul had begun to be more and more wearied with
earthly questions, and with its bodily envelope. There were long days
when he ate nothing, and nights during which he had no sleep whatever.
Sometimes during an audience, there appeared on his mild face an
expression of deep pain, while oftener and oftener, he fainted.

The terrified Queen Niort's, the most worthy Herhor and the priests,
asked the sovereign repeatedly whether anything pained him. But the
lord shrugged his shoulders, and was silent, fulfilling always his
burdensome duties.

Then the court physicians began imperceptibly to give the most powerful
remedies to restore strength to him. They mixed in his wine and food at
first the ashes of a burnt horse and a bull; later of a lion, a
rhinoceros, and an elephant; but these strong remedies seemed to have
no effect whatever. His holiness fainted so frequently that they ceased
to read reports to him.

On a certain day the worthy Herhor with the queen and the priests, fell
on their faces; they implored the lord to permit them to examine his
divine body. He consented. The physicians examined and struck him, but
found no worse sign than great emaciation.

"What feelings dost Thou experience, holiness?" inquired at last the
wisest physician.

The pharaoh smiled.

"I feel," replied he, "that it is time for me to return to my radiant
father."

"Thou canst not do that, holiness, without the greatest harm to thy
people," said Herhor, hurriedly.

"I leave you my son, Ramses, who is a lion and an eagle in one person.
And in truth, if ye will obey him, he will prepare for Egypt such a
fate as the world has not heard of since the beginning of ages."

A chill passed through holy Herhor and the other priests at that
promise. They knew that the heir to the throne was a lion and an eagle
in one person, and that they must obey him. But they would have
preferred to have for long years that kindly lord, whose heart, filled
with compassion, was like the north wind which brings rain to the
fields and coolness to mankind. Therefore they fell down all of them as
one man to the pavement, groaning, and they lay prostrate till the
pharaoh consented to let himself be treated.

Then the physicians took him out for a whole day to the gardens, among
frequent