lord was crossing the Nile all priests, generals, and
civil dignitaries were assembled in the great hall of audience.

Exactly at sunrise Ramses XIII, at the head of a small escort, rode
into the palace yard, where the servants fell on their faces before
him, and the guard presented arms to the sound of drums and trumpets.

His holiness saluted the army and went to the bathing chambers, where
he took a bath filled with perfumes. Then he gave permission to arrange
his divine hair; but when the barber asked most submissively if the
pharaoh commanded to shave his head and beard, the lord replied,

"There is no need. I am not a priest, but a warrior."

These words reached the audience-hall a moment later; in an hour they
had gone around the palace; about midday they had passed through every
part of the city of Memphis, and toward evening they were known in all
the temples of the state, from Tami-n-hor and Sabue-Chetam on the north
to Suunu and Pilak on the south.

At this intelligence the nomarchs, the nobility, the army, the people,
and the foreigners were wild with delight, but the sacred order of
priests mourned the more zealously the dead pharaoh.

When his holiness emerged from the bath he put on a warrior's short
shirt with black and yellow stripes, and a yellow breast-piece; on his
feet sandals fastened with thongs, and on his head a low helmet with a
circlet. Then he girded on that Assyrian sword which he had worn at the
battle of the Soda Lakes, and, surrounded by a great suite of generals,
he entered with a clatter and clinking the audience-hall.

There the high priest Herhor stood before him, having at his side Sem,
the holy high priest, Mefres, and others, and behind him the chief
judges of Thebes and Memphis, some of the nearer nomarchs, the chief
treasurer, also the overseers of the house of wheat, the house of
cattle, the house of garments, the house of slaves, the house of silver
and gold, and a multitude of other dignitaries.

Herhor bowed before Ramses, and said with emotion,

"Lord! it has pleased thy eternally living father to withdraw to the
gods where he is enjoying endless delight. To thee, then, has fallen
the duty of caring for the fate of the orphan kingdom.

"Be greeted, therefore, O lord and ruler of the world, and, holiness,
may Thou live through eternity Cham-Sam-mereramen-Ramses-Neter-haq-an."

Those present repeated this salutation with enthusiasm. They expected
the new ruler to sh