The tetrarch turned his gaze from it to contemplate the palms of Jericho
on his right; and his thoughts dwelt upon other cities of his beloved
Galilee,--Capernaum, Endor, Nazareth, Tiberias--whither it might be he
would never return.

The Jordan wound its way through the arid plains that met his gaze;
white and glittering under the clear sky, it dazzled the eye like snow
in the rays of the sun.

The Dead Sea now looked like a sheet of lapis-lazuli; and at its
southern extremity, on the coast of Yemen, Antipas recognised clearly
what at first he had been able only dimly to perceive. Several tents
could now be plainly seen; men carrying spears were moving about among a
group of horses; and dying camp-fires shone faintly in the beams of the
rising sun.

This was a troop belonging to the sheikh of the Arabs, the daughter
of whom the tetrarch had repudiated in order to wed Herodias, already
married to one of his brothers, who lived in Italy but who had no
pretensions to power.

Antipas was waiting for assistance and reinforcements from the Romans,
but as Vitellius, the Governor of Syria, had not yet arrived, he was
consumed with impatience and anxiety. Perhaps Agrippa had ruined his
cause with the Emperor, he thought. Philip, his third brother, sovereign
of Batania, was arming himself clandestinely. The Jews were becoming
intolerant of the tetrarch's idolatries; he knew that many were weary of
his rule; and he hesitated now between adopting one of two projects: to
conciliate the Arabs and win back their allegiance, or to conclude
an alliance with the Parthians. Under the pretext of celebrating his
birthday, he had planned to bring together, at a grand banquet,
the chiefs of his troops, the stewards of his domains, and the most
important men from the region about Galilee.

Antipas threw a keen glance along all the roads leading to Machaerus.
They were deserted. Eagles were sweeping through the air high above his
head; the soldiers of the guard, placed at intervals along the ramparts,
slept or dozed, leaning against the walls; all was silent within the
castle.

Suddenly he heard the sound of a distant voice, seeming to come from
the very depths of the earth. His cheek paled. After an instant's
hesitation, he leaned far over the balcony railing, listening intently,
but the voice had died away. Presently it rose again upon the quiet air;
Antipas clapped his hands together loudly, crying: "Mannaeus! Mannaeus!"

Instantl