and priesthood to open rebellion by his predilection for the Greek
nation, and for intercourse with foreigners generally, (always an
abomination in the eyes of the Egyptians), men felt confident that Amasis
would return to the old ways, would rigorously exclude foreigners from
the country, dismiss the Greek mercenaries, and instead of taking counsel
from the Greeks, would hearken only to the commands of the priesthood.
But in this, as you must see yourself, the prudent Egyptians had guessed
wide of the mark in their choice of a ruler; they fell from Scylla into
Charybdis. If Hophra was called the Greeks' friend, Amasis must be named
our lover. The Egyptians, especially the priests and the army, breathe
fire and flame, and would fain strangle us one and all, off hand, This
feeling on the part of the soldiery does not disturb Amasis, for he knows
too well the comparative value of their and our services; but with the
priests it is another and more serious matter, for two reasons: first,
they possess an unbounded influence over the people; and secondly.
Amasis himself retains more affection than he likes to acknowledge to us,
for this absurd and insipid religion--a religion which appears doubly
sacred to its adherents simply because it has existed in this eccentric
land--unchanged for thousands of years. These priests make the king's
life burdensome to him; they persecute and injure us in every possible
way; and indeed, if it had not been for the king's protection, I should
long ago have been a dead man. But I am wandering from my tale! As I
said before, Rhodopis was received at Naukratis with open arms by all,
and loaded with marks of favor by Amasis, who formed her acquaintance.
Her daughter Kleis, as is the case with the little Sappho now--was never
allowed to appear in the society which assembled every evening at her
mother's house, and indeed was even more strictly brought up than the
other young girls in Naukratis. She married Glaucus, a rich Phocaean
merchant of noble family, who had defended his native town with great
bravery against the Persians, and with him departed to the newly-founded
Massalia, on the Celtic coast. There, however, the young couple both
fell victims to the climate, and died, leaving a little daughter, Sappho.
Rhodopis at once undertook the long journey westward, brought the orphan
child back to live with her, spent the utmost care on her education, and
now that she is grown up, forbids her the society of men, still feeling
the stains of her own youth so keenly that she would fain keep her
granddaughter (and this in Sappho's case is not difficult), at a greater
distance from contact with our sex than is rendered necessary, by the
customs of Egypt. To my friend herself society is as indispensable as
water to the fish or air to the bird. Her house is frequented by all the
strangers here, and whoever has once experienced her hospitality and has
the time at command will never after be found absent when the flag
announces an evening of reception. Every Greek of mark is to be found
here, as it is in this house that we consult on the wisest measures for
encountering the hatred of the priests and bringing the king round to our
own views. Here you can obtain not only the latest news from home, but
from the rest of the world, and this house is an inviolable sanctuary for
the persecuted, Rhodopis possessing a royal warrant which secures her
from every molestation on the part of the police.
[A very active and strict police-force existed in Egypt, the
organization of which is said to have owed much to Amasis' care. We
also read in inscriptions and papyrus rolls, that a body of mounted
police existed, the ranks of which were generally filled by
foreigners in preference to natives.]
Our own songs and our own language are to be heard here, and here we take
counsel on the best means for delivering Greece from the ever fresh
encroachments of her tyrants.
In a word, this house is the centre of attraction for all Hellenic
interests in Egypt, and of more importance to us politically, than our
temple, the Hellenion itself, and our hall of commerce.
In a few minutes you will see this remarkable grandmother, and, if we
should be here alone, perhaps the grandchild too; you will then at once
perceive that they owe everything to their own rare qualities and not to
the chances of good fortune. Ah! there they come! they are going
towards the house. Cannot you hear the slave-girls singing? Now they
are going in. First let them quietly be seated, then follow me, and when
the evening is over you shall say whether you repent of having come
hither, and whether Rhodopis resembles more nearly a queen or a freed
bond-woman."
The houses was built in the Grecian style. It was a rather long, one-
storied building, the outside of which would be called extremely plain in
the present day; within, it united the Egyptian brilliancy of coloring
with the Greek beauty of form. The principal door opened into the
entrance-hall. To the left of this lay a large dining-room, overlooking
the Nile, and, opposite to this last was the kitchen, an apartment only
to be found in the houses of the wealthier Greeks, the poorer families
being accustomed to prepare their food at the hearth in the front
apartment. The hall of reception lay at the other end of the entrance-
hall, and was in the form of a square, surrounded within by a colonnade,
into which various chambers opened. This was the apartment devoted to
the men, in the centre of which was the household fire, burning on an
altar-shaped hearth of rich AEginetan metal-work.
It was lighted by an opening in the roof, which formed at the same time,
an outlet for the smoke. From this room (at the opposite end to that on
which it opened into the entrance-hall), a passage, closed by a well-
fastened door, led into the chamber of the women. This was also
surrounded by a colonnade within, but only on three sides, and here the
female inhabitants were accustomed to pass their time, when not employed,
spinning or weaving, in the rooms lying near the back or garden-door as
it was termed. Between these latter and the domestic offices, which lay
on the right and left of the women's apartment, were the sleeping-rooms;
these served also as places of security for the valuables of the house.
The walls of the men's apartment were painted of a reddish-brown color,
against which the outlines of some white marble carvings, the gift of a
Chian sculptor, stood out in sharp relief. The floor was covered with
rich carpets from Sardis; low cushions of panthers' skins lay ranged
along the colonnade; around the artistically wrought hearth stood quaint
Egyptian settees, and small, delicately-carved tables of Thya wood, on
which lay all kinds of musical instruments, the flute, cithara and lyre.
Numerous lamps of various and singular shapes, filled with Kiki oil, hung
against the walls. Some represented fire-spouting dolphins; others,
strange winged monsters from whose jaws the flames issued; and these,
blending their light with that from the hearth, illumined the apartment.
In this room a group of men were assembled, whose appearance and dress
differed one from the other. A Syrian from Tyre, in a long crimson robe,
was talking animatedly to a man whose decided features and crisp, curly,
black hair proclaimed him an Israelite. The latter had come to Egypt to
buy chariots and horses for Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah--the
Egyptian equipages being the most sought after at that time. Close to
him stood three Greeks from Asia Minor, the rich folds of whose garments
(for they wore the costly dress of their native city Miletus), contrasted
strongly with the plain and unadorned robe of Phryxus, the deputy
commissioned to collect money for the temple of Apollo at Delphi, with
whom they were in earnest conversation. Ten years before, the ancient
temple had been consumed by fire; and at this time efforts were being
made to build another, and a more beautiful one.
Two of the Milesians, disciples of Anaximander and Anaximenes, were
staying then in Egypt, to study astronomy and the peculiar wisdom of the
Egyptians at Heliopolis, and the third was a wealthy merchant and ship-
owner, named Theopompus, who had settled at Naukratis.
[Anaximander of Miletus, born 611-546, was a celebrated
geometrician, astronomer, philosopher and geographer. He was the
author of a book on natural phenomena, drew the first map of the
world on metal, and introduced into Greece a kind of clock which he
seems to have borrowed from the Babylonians. He supposes a primary
and not easily definable Being, by which the whole world is
governed, and in which, though in himself infinite and without
limits, everything material and circumscribed has its foundation.
"Chaotic matter" represents in his theory the germ of all created
things, from which water, earth, animals, nereids or fish-men, human
beings &c. have had their origin.]
Rhodopis herself was engaged in a lively conversation with two Samian
Greeks: the celebrated worker in metals, sculptor and goldsmith
Theodorus, and the Iambic poet Ibykus of Rhegium, who had left the court
of Polykrates for a time in order to become acquainted with Egypt, and
were bearers of presents to Amasis from their ruler. Close to the fire
lay Philoinus of Sybaris, a corpulent man with strongly-marked features
and a sensual expression of face; he was stretched at full-length on a
couch covered with spotted furs, and amused himself by playing with his
scented curls wreathed with gold, and with the golden chains which fell
from his neck on to the long saffron-colored robe that clothed him down
to his feet.
[Sybaris was a town in Lower Italy notorious throughout the ancient
world for its luxury. According to Strabo it was founded by
Achaeans 262. About 510 it was conquered and destroyed by the
Crotoniates and then rebuilt under the name of Thurii.]
Rhodopis had a kind word for each of her guests, but at present she
occupied herself exclusively with the two celebrated Sarnians; their talk
was of art and poetry. The fire of youth still glowed in the eyes of the
Thracian woman, her tall figure was still full and unbent; her hair,
though grey, was wound round her beautifully formed head in luxuriant
waves, and laid together at the back in a golden net, and a sparkling
diadem shone above her lofty forehead.
Her noble Greek features were pale, but still beautiful and without a
wrinkle, notwithstanding her great age; indeed her small mouth with its
full lips, her white teeth, her eyes so bright and yet so soft, and her
nobly-formed nose and forehead would have been beauty enough for a young
maiden.
Rhodopis looked younger than she really was, though she made no attempt
to disavow her age. Matronly dignity was visible in every movement, and
the charm of her manner lay, not in a youthful endeavor to be pleasing,
but in the effort of age to please others, considering their wishes, and
at the same time demanding consideration in return.
Our two friends now presenting themselves in the hall, every eye turned
upon them, and as Phanes entered leading his friend by the hand, the
heartiest welcome met him from all sides; one of the Milesians indeed
exclaimed: "Now I see what it is that was wanting to our assembly. There
can be no merriment without Phanes."
And Philoinus, the Sybarite, raising his deep voice, but not allowing
himself for a moment to be disturbed in his repose, remarked: "Mirth is a
good thing, and if you bring that with you, be welcome to me also,
Athenian."
"To me," said Rhodopis, turning to her new guests, "you are heartily
welcome, but not more in your joy than if borne down by sadness. I know
no greater pleasure than to remove the lines of care from a friend's
brow. Spartan, I venture to address you as a friend too, for the friends
of my friends are my own." Aristomachus bowed in silence, but Phanes,
addressing himself both to Rhodopis and to the Sybarite, answered: "Well
then, my friends, I can content you both. To you, Rhodopis, I must come
for comfort, for soon, too soon I must leave you and your pleasant house;
Philoinus however can still enjoy my mirth, as I cannot but rejoice in
the prospect of seeing my beloved Hellas once more, and of quitting, even
though involuntarily, this golden mouse-trap of a country."
"You are going away! you have been dismissed? Whither are you going?"
echoed on all sides.
"Patience, patience, my friends," cried Phanes. "I have a long story to
tell, but I will rather reserve it for the evening meal. And indeed,
dear friend, my hunger is nearly as great as my distress at being obliged
to leave you."
"Hunger is a good thing," philosophized the Sybarite once more, "when a
man has a good meal in prospect."
"On that point you may be at ease, Philoinus," answered Rhodopis.
"I told the cook to do his utmost, for the most celebrated epicure from
the most luxurious city in the world, no less a person than Philoinus of
Sybaris, would pass a stern judgment on his delicate dishes. Go,
Knakias, tell them to serve the supper. Are you content now, my
impatient guests? As for me, since I heard Phanes' mournful news, the
pleasure of the meal is gone." The Athenian bowed, and the Sybarite
returned to his philosophy. "Contentment is a good thing when every wish
can be satisfied. I owe you thanks, Rhodopis, for your appreciation of
my incomparable native city. What says Anakreon?
"To-day is ours--what do we fear?
To-day is ours--we have it here.
Let's treat it kindly, that it may
Wish at least with us to stay.
Let's banish business, banish sorrow;
To the gods belongs to-morrow."
"Eh! Ibykus, have I quoted your friend the poet correctly, who feasts
with you at Polykrates' banquets? Well, I think I may venture to say of
my own poor self that if Anakreon can make better verses, I understand
the art of living quite as well as he, though he writes so many poems
upon it. Why, in all his songs there is not one word about the pleasures
of the table! Surely they are as important as love and play! I confess
that the two last are clear to me also; still, I could exist without
them, though in a miserable fashion, but without food, where should we
be?"
The Sybarite broke into a loud laugh at his own joke; but the Spartan
turned away from this conversation, drew Phryxus into a corner, and quite
abandoning his usually quiet and deliberate manner, asked eagerly whether
he had at last brought him the long wished for answer from the Oracle.
The serious features of the Delphian relaxed, and thrusting his hand into
the folds of his chiton,--[An undergarment resembling a shirt.]--he drew
out a little roll of parchment-like sheepskin, on which a few lines were
written.
The hands of the brave, strong Spartan trembled as he seized the roll,
and his fixed gaze on its characters was as if it would pierce the skin
on which they were inscribed.
Then, recollecting himself, he shook his head sadly and said: "We
Spartans have to learn other arts than reading and writing; if thou
canst, read the what Pythia says."
The Delphian glanced over the writing and replied: "Rejoice! Loxias
(Apollo) promises thee a happy return home; hearken to the prediction of
the priestess."
"If once the warrior hosts from the snow-topped mountains descending
Come to the fields of the stream watering richly the plain,
Then shall the lingering boat to the beckoning meadows convey thee
Which to the wandering foot peace and a home will afford.
When those warriors come, from the snow-topped mountains descending,
Then will the powerful Five grant thee what long they refused."
To these words the Spartan listened with intense eagerness; he had them
read over to him twice, then repeated them from memory, thanked Phryxus,
and placed the roll within the folds of his garment.
The Delphian then took part in the general conversation, but Aristomachus
repeated the words of the Oracle unceasingly to himself in a low voice,
endeavoring to impress them on his memory, and to interpret their obscure
import.
CHAPTER II.
The doors of the supper-room now flew open. Two lovely, fair-haired
boys, holding myrtle-wreaths, stood on each side of the entrance, and in
the middle of the room was a large, low, brilliantly polished table,
surrounded by inviting purple cushions.
[It was most probably usual for each guest to have his own little
table; but we read even in Homer of large tables on which the meals
were served up. In the time of Homer people sat at table, but the
recumbent position became universal in later times.]
Rich nosegays adorned this table, and on it were placed large joints of
roast meat, glasses and dishes of various shapes filled with dates, figs,
pomegranates, melons and grapes, little silver beehives containing honey,
and plates of embossed copper, on which lay delicate cheese from the
island of Trinakria. In the midst was a silver table-ornament, something
similar to an altar, from which arose fragrant clouds of incense.
At the extreme end of the table stood the glittering silver cup in which
the wine was to be mixed.
[The Greeks were not accustomed to drink unmingled wine. Zaleukus
forbade to all citizens the pure juice of the grape under penalty of
death, and Solon under very severe penalties, unless required as
medicine. The usual mixture was composed of three-fifths water to
two-fifths wine.]
This was of beautiful AEginetan workmanship, its crooked handles
representing two giants, who appeared ready to sink under the weight of
the bowl which they sustained.
Like the altar, it was enwreathed with flowers, and a garland of roses or
myrtle had been twined around the goblet of each guest.
The entire floor was strewed with rose-leaves, and the room lighted by
many lamps which were hung against the smooth, white, stucco walls.
No sooner were the guests reclining on their cushions, than the fair-
haired boys reappeared, wound garlands of ivy and myrtle around the heads
and shoulders of the revellers, and washed their feet in silver basins.
The Sybarite, though already scented with all the perfumes of Arabia,
would not rest until he was completely enveloped in roses and myrtle, and
continued to occupy the two boys even after the carver had removed the
first joints from the table in order to cut them up; but as soon as the
first course, tunny-fish with mustard-sauce, had been served, he forgot
all subordinate matters, and became absorbed in the enjoyment of the
delicious viands.
Rhodopis, seated on a chair at the head of the table, near the wine-bowl,
not only led the conversation, but gave directions to the slaves in
waiting.
[The women took their meals sitting. The Greeks, like the
Egyptians, had chairs with backs and arms. The form of the solia or
throne has become familiar to us from the discoveries at Pompeii and
the representations of many gods and distinguished persons. It had
a high, almost straight back, and supports for the arms.]
She gazed on her cheerful guests with a kind of pride, and seemed to be
devoting her attention to each exclusively, now asking the Delphian how
he had succeeded in his mission, then the Sybarite whether he was content
with the performances of her cook, and then listening eagerly to Ibykus,
as he told how the Athenian, Phrynichus, had introduced the religious
dramas of Thespis of Ikaria into common life, and was now representing
entire histories from the past by means of choruses, recitative and
answer.
Then she turned to the Spartan, remarking, that to him alone of all her
guests, instead of an apology for the simplicity of the meal, she felt
she owed one for its luxury. The next time he came, her slave Knakias,
who, as an escaped Helot, boasted that he could cook a delicious blood-
soup (here the Sybarite shuddered), should prepare him a true
Lacedaemonian repast.
When the guests had eaten sufficiently they again washed their hands; the
plates and dishes were removed, the floor cleansed, and wine and water
poured into the bowl.
[The Symposium began after the real meal. Not till that was over
did the guests usually adorn themselves with wreaths, wash their
hands with Smegma or Smema (a kind of soap) and begin to drink.]
At last, when Rhodopis had convinced herself that the right moment was
come, she turned to Phanes, who was engaged in a discussion with the
Milesians, and thus addressed him:
"Noble friend, we have restrained our impatience so long that it must
surely now be your duty to tell us what evil chance is threatening to
snatch you from Egypt and from our circle. You may be able to leave us
and this country with a light heart, for the gods are wont to bless you
Ionians with that precious gift from your very birth, but we shall
remember you long and sadly. I know of no worse loss than that of a
friend tried through years, indeed some of us have lived too long on the
Nile not to have imbibed a little of the constant, unchanging Egyptian
temperament. You smile, and yet I feel sure that long as you have
desired to revisit your dear Hellas, you will not be able to leave us
quite without regret. Ah, you admit this? Well, I knew I had not been
deceived. But now tell us why you are obliged to leave Egypt, that we
may consider whether it may not be possible to get the king's decree
reversed, and so keep you with us."
Phanes smiled bitterly, and replied: "Many thanks, Rhodopis, for these
flattering words, and for the kind intention either to grieve over my
departure, or if possible, to prevent it. A hundred new faces will soon
help you to forget mine, for long as you have lived on the Nile, you are
still a Greek from the crown of the head to the sole of the foot, and may
thank the gods that you have remained so. I am a great friend of
constancy too, but quite as great an enemy of folly, and is there one
among you who would not call it folly to fret over what cannot be undone?
I cannot call the Egyptian constancy a virtue, it is a delusion. The men
who treasure their dead for thousands of years, and would rather lose
their last loaf than allow a single bone belonging to one of their
ancestors to be taken from them, are not constant, they are foolish. Can
it possibly make me happy to see my friends sad? Certainly not! You
must not imitate the Egyptians, who, when they lose a friend, spend
months in daily-repeated lamentations over him. On the contrary, if you
will sometimes think of the distant, I ought to say, of the departed,
friend, (for as long as I live I shall never be permitted to tread
Egyptian ground again), let it be with smiling faces; do not cry, 'Ah!
why was Phanes forced to leave us?' but rather, 'Let us be merry, as
Phanes used to be when he made one of our circle!' In this way you must
celebrate my departure, as Simonides enjoined when he sang:
"If we would only be more truly wise,
We should not waste on death our tears and sighs,
Nor stand and mourn o'er cold and lifeless clay
More than one day.
For Death, alas! we have no lack of time;
But Life is gone, when scarcely at its prime,
And is e'en, when not overfill'd with care
But short and bare!"
"If we are not to weep for the dead, how much less ought we to grieve for
absent friends! the former have left us for ever, but to the latter we
say at parting, 'Farewell, until we meet again'"
Here the Sybarite, who had been gradually becoming more and more
impatient, could not keep silent any longer, and called out in the most
woe begone tone: Will you never begin your story, you malicious fellow?
I cannot drink a single drop till you leave off talking about death. I
feel cold already, and I am always ill, if I only think of, nay, if I
only hear the subject mentioned, that this life cannot last forever."
The whole company burst into a laugh, and Phanes began to tell his story:
"You know that at Sais I always live in the new palace; but at Memphis,
as commander of the Greek body-guard which must accompany the king
everywhere, a lodging was assigned me in the left wing of the old palace.
"Since Psamtik the First, Sais has always been the royal residence, and
the other palaces have in consequence become somewhat neglected. My
dwelling was really splendidly situated, and beautifully furnished; it
would have been first-rate, if, from the first moment of my entrance, a
fearful annoyance had not made its appearance.
"In the day-time, when I was seldom at home, my rooms were all that could
be wished, but at night it was impossible to sleep for the tremendous
noise made by thousands of rats and mice under the old floors, and
couches, and behind the hangings.
"Even in the first night an impudent mouse ran over my face.
"I was quite at a loss what to do, till an Egyptian soldier sold me two
large cats, and these, in the course of many weeks, procured me some rest
from my tormentors.
"Now, you are probably all aware that one of the charming laws of this
most eccentric nation, (whose culture and wisdom, you, my Milesian
friends, cannot sufficiently praise), declares the cat to be a sacred
animal. Divine honors are paid to these fortunate quadrupeds as well as
to many other animals, and he who kills a cat is punished with the same
severity as the murderer of a human being."
Till now Rhodopis had been smiling, but when she perceived that Phanes'
banishment had to do with his contempt for the sacred animals, her face
became more serious. She knew how many victims, how many human lives,
had already been sacrificed to this Egyptian superstition, and how, only
a short time before, the king Amasis himself had endeavored in vain to
rescue an unfortunate Samian, who had killed a cat, from the vengeance of
the enraged populace.