[Illustration]
THE CAT OF BUBASTES
G.A. HENTY.
[Illustration: C. of B.
THE REBU PEOPLE LED INTO CAPTIVITY.--Page 55.]
THE CAT OF BUBASTES.
A TALE OF ANCIENT EGYPT.
BY G. A. HENTY,
_Author of “The Young Carthaginian,” “For the Temple,”
“In the Reign of Terror,” “Bonnie Prince Charlie,”
“In Freedom’s Cause,” etc., etc._
_FIVE PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS BY J. R. WEGUELIN._
NEW YORK:
THE F. M. LUPTON PUBLISHING COMPANY.
PREFACE.
My Dear Lads: Thanks to the care with which the Egyptians depicted
upon the walls of their sepulchers the minutest doings of their daily
life, to the dryness of the climate which has preserved these records
uninjured for so many thousand years, and to the indefatigable labor
of modern investigators, we know far more of the manners and customs
of the Egyptians, of their methods of work, their sports and
amusements, their public festivals, and domestic life, than we do of
those of peoples comparatively modern. My object in the present story
has been to give you as lively a picture as possible of that life,
drawn from the bulky pages of Sir J. Gardner Wilkinson and other
writers on the same subject. I have laid the scene in the time of
Thotmes III., one of the greatest of the Egyptian monarchs, being
surpassed only in glory and the extent of his conquests by Rameses the
Great. It is certain that Thotmes carried the arms of Egypt to the
shores of the Caspian, and a people named the Rebu, with fair hair and
blue eyes, were among those depicted in the Egyptian sculptures as
being conquered and made tributary. It is open to discussion whether
the Exodus of the Jews from Egypt took place in the reign of Thotmes
or many years subsequently, some authors assigning it to the time
of Rameses. Without attempting to enter into this much-discussed
question, I have assumed that the Israelites were still in Egypt at
the time of Thotmes, and by introducing Moses just at the time he
began to take up the cause of the people to whom he belonged, I leave
it to be inferred that the Exodus took place some forty years later. I
wish you to understand, however, that you are not to accept this date
as being absolutely correct. Opinions differ widely upon it; and as no
allusion whatever has been discovered either to the Exodus or to any
of the events which preceded it among the records of Egypt, there is
nothing to fix the date as occurring during the reign of any one among
the long line of Egyptian kings. The term Pharaoh used in the Bible
throws no light upon the subject, as Pharaoh simply means king, and
the name of no monarch bearing that appellation is to be found on the
Egyptian monuments. I have in no way exaggerated the consequences
arising from the slaying of the sacred cat, as the accidental killing
of any cat whatever was an offense punished by death throughout the
history of Egypt down to the time of the Roman connection with that
country.
Yours sincerely,
G. A. HENTY.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I. PAGE
The King of the Rebu 7
CHAPTER II.
The Siege of the City 26
CHAPTER III.
Captive 45
CHAPTER IV.
An Easy Servitude 64
CHAPTER V.
In Lower Egypt 83
CHAPTER VI.
Fowling and Fishing 105
CHAPTER VII.
Hippopotamus and Crocodile 125
CHAPTER VIII.
The Conspiracy in the Temple 147
CHAPTER IX.
A Startling Event 164
CHAPTER X.
The Cat of Bubastes 185
CHAPTER XI.
Dangers Thicken 206
CHAPTER XII.
The Death of Ameres 224
CHAPTER XIII.
The Search for Mysa 245
CHAPTER XIV.
A Prince of Egypt 265
CHAPTER XV.
Ameres is Revenged 284
CHAPTER XVI.
Up the Nile 308
CHAPTER XVII.
Out of Egypt 329
CHAPTER XVIII.
The Desert Journey 349
CHAPTER XIX.
Home at Last 365
CHAPTER XX.
The King of the Rebu 384
THE CAT OF BUBASTES.
CHAPTER I.
THE KING OF THE REBU.
The sun was blazing down upon a city on the western shore of the
Caspian. It was a primitive city, and yet its size and population
rendered it worthy of the term. It consisted of a vast aggregation of
buildings, which were for the most part mere huts. Among them rose,
however, a few of more solid build and of higher pretensions. These
were the abodes of the chiefs and great men, the temples, and places
of assembly. But although larger and more solidly built, these
buildings could lay no claim to architectural beauty of any kind, but
were little more than magnified huts, and even the king’s palace was
but a collection of such buildings closely adjoining each other.
The town was surrounded by a lofty wall with battlements and
loopholes, and a similar but higher wall girt in the dwellings of the
king and of his principal captains. The streets were alive with the
busy multitude; and it was evident that although in the arts of peace
the nation had made but little progress, they had in every thing
appertaining to war made great advances. Most of the men wore helmets
closely fitting to the head and surmounted by a spike. These were
for the most part composed of hammered brass, although some of the
headpieces were made of tough hide studded with knobs of metal. All
carried round shields--those of the soldiers, of leather stiffened
with metal; those of the captains, of brass, worked with considerable
elaboration.
In their belts all wore daggers, while at their backs were slung
quivers of iron; painted bows hung over one shoulder, and some had at
their waist a pouch of smooth flat stones and leather slings. Their
chief garment was a sort of kilt falling to the knee. Above the waist
some wore only a thin vest of white linen, others a garment not unlike
the nightgown of modern times, but with short sleeves. The kilt was
worn over this. Some had breastpieces of thick leather confined by
straps behind; while in the case of the officers the leather was
covered with small pieces of metal, forming a cuirass.
All carried two or three javelins in the left hand and a spear some
ten feet long in the right. Horsemen galloped about at full speed
to and from the royal palace, while occasionally chariots, drawn
sometimes by one, sometimes by two horses, dashed along. These
chariots were small, the wheels not exceeding three feet in height.
Between them was placed the body of the vehicle, which was but just
large enough for two men to stand on. It consisted only of a small
platform, with a semicircular rail running round the front some
eighteen inches above it. A close observer would have perceived at
once that not only were the males of the city upon the point of
marching out on a military expedition, but that it was no mere foray
against a neighboring people, but a war on which the safety of the
city depended.
Women were standing in tearful groups as they watched the soldiers
making toward the gates. The men themselves had a resolute and
determined look, but there was none of the light-hearted gayety among
them which betokened the expectation of success and triumph. Inside
the palace the bustle of preparation was as marked as without. The
king and his principal councilors and leaders were assembled in the
great circular hut which formed the audience-room and council-chamber.
Messengers arrived in close succession with news of the progress and
strength of the enemy, or with messages from the neighboring towns and
tribes as to the contingents they had furnished, and the time at which
these had set out to join the army.
The king himself was a tall and warlike figure, in the prime of life.
He had led his warriors on many successful expeditions far to the
west, and had repulsed with great loss the attempts of the Persians to
encroach upon his territory. Standing behind him was his son, Amuba, a
lad of some fifteen years of age. The king and his councilors, as well
as all the wealthier inhabitants of the city, wore, in addition to the
kilt and linen jacket, a long robe highly colored and ornamented with
fanciful devices and having a broad rich border. It was fastened at
the neck with a large brooch, fell loosely from the shoulders to the
ankles, and was open in front. The girdles which retained the kilts
and in which the daggers were worn were highly ornamented, and the
ends fell down in front and terminated in large tassels.
All wore a profusion of necklaces, bracelets, and other ornaments of
gold; many of the chiefs wore feathers in their helmets, and the
greater portion of all ranks had figures tattooed on their arms and
legs. They were fair in complexion, with blue eyes; their hair was for
the most part golden or red, and they wore their beards short and
pointed. The young Prince Amuba was attired for the field; his helmet
was of gold and his cuirass covered with plates of the same metal. He
listened with suppressed impatience to the arguments of his elders,
for he was eager to be off, this being the first time that he had been
permitted to take part in the military expeditions of his country.
After listening for some time and perceiving that there was no
prospect of the council breaking up, he retired to the large hut
adjoining the council-chamber. This served as the dwelling place of
the ladies and their family. It was divided into several apartments by
screens formed of hide sewn together and hidden from sight by colored
hangings. In one of these a lady was seated on a low couch covered
with panthers’ skins.
“They have not done talking yet, mother. It has been a question as to
where we shall assemble to give battle. It does not seem to me to make
much difference where we fight, but they seem to think that it is most
important; and of course they know more about it than I do. They have
fixed upon a place at last--it is about fifteen miles from here. They
say that the ground in front is marshy and can hardly be traversed by
the enemy’s chariots; but if they cannot get at us, it seems to me
that we cannot get at them. Messengers have been sent off to order all
the contingents to assemble at that spot. Six thousand men are to
remain behind to guard the city, but as we mean to beat them I do not
think there can be much occasion for that; for you think we shall beat
them--don’t you, mother?”
“I hope so, Amuba, but I am very fearful.”
“But we have several times repulsed them when they have invaded our
country, mother; why should we not do so this time?”
“They are much stronger than they have ever been before when they have
come against us, my boy, and their king is a great warrior who has
been successful in almost every enterprise he has undertaken.”
“I cannot think why he wants to conquer us, mother. They say the
riches of Egypt are immense and the splendor of their temples and
buildings such as we have no idea of. We have no quarrel with them if
they will but let us alone.”
“No country is so rich that it does not desire more, my son. We
have gold and are skilled in the working of it, and no doubt they
anticipate that they will capture much treasure in the land; besides,
as you say, their expeditions against the Rebu have been several times
repulsed, and therefore their monarch will reap all the greater honor
if he should defeat us. As to their having no quarrel with us, have we
not made many expeditions to the west, returning with captives and
much booty? And yet the people had no quarrel with us--many of them,
indeed, could scarcely have known us by name when our army appeared
among them. Some day, my son, things may be managed differently; but
at present kings who have power make war upon people that are weaker
than themselves, spoil them of their goods, and make slaves of them.
“I hope, Amuba, you will not expose yourself too much in the conflict.
You have not come to man’s strength yet; and remember you are my only
child. See that your charioteer covers you with his shield when you
have entered the battle, for the Egyptians are terrible as archers.
Their bows carry much further than do ours, and the arrows will pierce
even the strongest armor. Our spearmen have always shown themselves as
good as theirs--nay, better, for they are stronger in body and full of
courage. It is in the goodness of her archers and the multitude of her
chariots that the strength of Egypt lies. Remember that although your
father, as king, must needs go into the thick of the battle to
encourage his soldiers, there is no occasion why you, who are yet a
boy, should so expose yourself.
“It will doubtless be a terrible battle. The Egyptians have the memory
of past defeats to wipe out, and they will be fighting under the eye
of their king. I am terrified, Amuba. Hitherto when your father has
gone out to battle I have never doubted as to the result. The Persians
were not foes whom brave men need dread; nor was it difficult to force
the hordes passing us from the eastward toward the setting sun to
respect our country, for we had the advantage in arms and discipline.
But the Egyptians are terrible foes, and the arms of their king have
been everywhere victorious. My heart is filled with dread at the
thought of the approaching conflict, though I try to keep up a brave
face when your father is with me, for I would not that he should deem
me cowardly.”
“I trust, mother, that your fears are groundless, and I cannot think
that our men will give way when fighting for their homes and country
upon ground chosen by themselves.”
“I hope not, Amuba. But there is the trumpet sounding; it is the
signal that the council have broken up and that your father is about
to start. Bless you, my dear boy, and may you return safe and sound
from the conflict!”
The queen fondly embraced her son, who left the apartment hastily as
his father entered in order that the latter might not see the traces
of tears on his cheeks. A few minutes later the king, with his
captains, started from the palace. Most of them rode in chariots,
the rest on horseback. The town was quiet now and the streets almost
deserted. With the exception of the garrison, all the men capable of
bearing arms had gone forth; the women with anxious faces stood in
groups at their doors and watched the royal party as it drove out.
The charioteer of Amuba was a tall and powerful man; he carried a
shield far larger than was ordinarily used, and had been specially
selected by the king for the service. His orders were that he was not
to allow Amuba to rush into the front line of fighters, and that he
was even to disobey the orders of the prince if he wished to charge
into the ranks of the enemy.
“My son must not shirk danger,” his father said, “and he must needs go
well in the fight; but he is still but a boy, not fit to enter upon a
hand-to-hand contest with the picked warriors of Egypt. In time I hope
he will fight abreast of me, but at present you must restrain his
ardor. I need not bid you shield him as well as you can from the
arrows of the Egyptians. He is my eldest son, and if aught happens
to me he will be the king of the Rebu; and his life is therefore a
precious one.”
Half an hour later they came upon the tail of the stragglers making
their way to the front. The king stopped his chariot and sharply
reproved some of them for their delay in setting out, and urged them
to hasten on to the appointed place. In two hours the king arrived at
this spot, where already some forty thousand men were assembled. The
scouts who had been sent out reported that although the advance-guard
of the Egyptians might arrive in an hour’s time, the main body were
some distance behind and would not be up in time to attack before
dark.
This was welcome news, for before night the rest of the forces of the
Rebu, fully thirty thousand more, would have joined. The king at once
set out to examine the ground chosen by his general for the conflict.
It sloped gently down in front to a small stream which ran through
soft and marshy ground, and would oppose a formidable obstacle to the
passage of chariots. The right rested upon a dense wood, while a
village a mile and a half distant from the wood was held by the left
wing.
A causeway which led from this across the marsh had been broken up,
and heavy blocks of stone were scattered thickly upon it to impede the
passage of chariots. The archers were placed in front to harass the
enemy attempting to cross. Behind them were the spearmen in readiness
to advance and aid them if pressed. The chariots were on the higher
ground in the rear ready to dash in and join in the conflict should
the enemy succeed in forcing their way through the marsh.
The visit of inspection was scarcely finished when a cloud of dust was
seen rising over the plain. It approached rapidly. The flash of arms
could be seen in the sun, and presently a vast number of horses were
seen approaching in even line.
“Are they horsemen, father?” Amuba asked.
“No, they are chariots, Amuba. The Egyptians do not, like us, fight on
horseback, although there may be a few small bodies of horsemen with
the army; their strength lies in their chariots. See, they have
halted; they have perceived our ranks drawn up in order of battle.”
The chariots drew up in perfect line, and as the clouds of dust blew
away four lines of chariots could be made out ranged at a distance of
a hundred yards apart.
“There are about a thousand in each line,” the king said, “and this is
but their advance-guard. We have learned from fugitives that there are
fully fifteen thousand chariots with their army.”
“Is there no other place where they can pass this swamp, father?”
“Not so well as here, Amuba; the valley deepens further on, and the
passage would be far more difficult than here. Above, beyond the wood,
there is a lake of considerable extent, and beyond that the ground is
broken and unsuited for the action of chariots as far as the sea.
Besides, they have come to fight us, and the pride of their king
would not permit of their making a detour. See, there is some great
personage, probably the king himself, advancing beyond their ranks to
reconnoiter the ground.”
A chariot was indeed approaching the opposite brow of the depression;
there were two figures in it; by the side walked numerous figures,
who, although too far off to be distinguished, were judged to be the
attendants and courtiers of the king. The sun flashed from the side
of the chariot, which appeared at this distance to be composed of
burnished gold. Great fans carried on wands shaded the king from the
heat of the sun.
He drove slowly along the edge of the brow until he reached a point
opposite the wood, and then, turning, went the other way till he
reached the causeway which passed on through the village. After this
he rode back to the line of chariots and evidently gave a word of
command, for instantly the long line of figures seen above the horses
disappeared as the men stepped off the chariots to the ground. No
movement took place for an hour; then there was a sudden stir, and the
long lines broke up and wheeled round to the right and left, where
they took up their position in two solid masses.
“The main army are at hand,” the king said. “Do you see that great
cloud, ruddy in the setting sun? That is the dust raised by their
advance. In another hour they will be here, but by that time the sun
will have set, and assuredly they will not attack until morning.”
The front line were ordered to remain under arms for a time; the
others were told to fall out and prepare their food for the night. The
Egyptian army halted about a mile distant, and as soon as it was
evident that no further movement was intended, the whole of the
soldiers were ordered to fall out. A line of archers were placed along
the edge of the swamp, and ere long a party of Egyptian bowmen took up
their post along the opposite crest. Great fires were lighted, and a
number of oxen which had been driven forward in readiness were
slaughtered for food.
“If the Egyptians can see what is going on,” the king said to his son,
“they must be filled with fury, for they worship the oxen as among
their chief gods.”
“Is it possible, father, that they can believe that cattle are gods?”
Amuba asked in surprise.
“They do not exactly look upon them as gods, my son, but as sacred to
their gods. Similarly they reverence the cat, the ibis, and many other
creatures.”
“How strange!” Amuba said. “Do they not worship, as we and the
Persians do, the sun, which, as all must see, is the giver of light
and heat, which ripens our crops and gives fertility in abundance?”
“Not so far as I know, Amuba; but I know that they have many gods who
they believe give them victory over their enemies.”
“They don’t always give them victory,” Amuba said, “since four times
they have been repulsed in their endeavors to invade our land. Perhaps
our gods are more powerful than theirs.”
“It may be that, my son; but so far as I can see the gods give victory
to the bravest and most numerous armies.”
“That is to say, they do not interfere at all, father.”
“I do not say that, my son; we know little of the ways of the gods.
Each nation has its own, and as some nations overthrow others, it must
be that either some gods are more powerful than others or that they do
not interfere to save those who worship them from destruction. But
these things are all beyond our knowledge. We have but to do our part
bravely, and we need assuredly not fear the bulls and the cats and
other creatures in which the Egyptians trust.”
Some hours were spent by the king, his leaders, and his captains in
going about among the troops seeing that all the contingents had
arrived well armed and in good order, notifying to the leaders of each
the position they should take up in the morning, and doing all in
their power to animate and encourage the soldiers. When all was done
the king sat down on a pile of skins which had been prepared for him
and talked long and earnestly with his son, giving him advice as to
his conduct in future if aught should befall him in the coming fight.
“You are my heir,” he said, “and as is customary to the country the
throne goes down from father to son. Were I to survive for another
eight or ten years you would, of course, succeed me, but should I fall
to-morrow and should the Egyptians overrun the land, things may happen
otherwise. In that case the great need of the people would be a
military leader who would rouse them to prolonged resistance and lead
them again and again against the Egyptians until these, worn out by
the perpetual fighting, abandon the idea of subjecting us and turn
their attention to less stubborn-minded people.
“For such work you are far too young, and the people would look to
Amusis or one of my other captains as their leader. Should success
crown his efforts they may choose him as their king. In that case I
would say, Amuba, it will be far better for you to acquiesce in the
public choice than to struggle against it. A lad like you would have
no prospect of success against a victorious general, the choice of the
people, and you would only bring ruin and death upon yourself and your
mother by opposing him.
“I can assure you that there is nothing so very greatly to be envied
in the lot of a king, and as one of the nobles of the land your
position would be far more pleasant here than as king. A cheerful
acquiescence on your part to their wishes will earn you the good will
of the people, and at the death of him whom they may choose for their
king their next choice may fall upon you. Do all in your power to win
the good will of whoever may take the place of leader at my death by
setting an example of prompt and willing obedience to his orders. It
is easy for an ambitious man to remove a lad from his path, and your
safety absolutely demands that you shall give him no reason whatever
to regard you as a rival.
“I trust that all this advice may not be needed and that we may
conquer in to-morrow’s fight, but if we are beaten the probability
that I shall escape is very small, and it is therefore as well that
you should be prepared for whatever may happen. If you find that in
spite of following my advice the leader of the people, whoever he
may be, is ill-disposed toward you, withdraw to the borders of the
country, collect as large a band as you can--there are always plenty
of restless spirits ready to take part in any adventure--and journey
with them to the far west, as so many of our people have done before,
and establish yourself there and found a kingdom.
“None of those who have ever gone in that direction have returned, and
they must therefore have found space to establish themselves, for had
they met with people skilled in war and been defeated, some at least
would have found their way back; but so long as traditions have been
handed down to us tribes from the east have poured steadily westward
to the unknown land, and no band has ever returned.”
His father spoke so seriously that Amuba lay down that night on his
couch of skins in a very different mood to that in which he had ridden
out. He had thought little of his mother’s forebodings, and had looked
upon it as certain that the Rebu would beat the Egyptians as they had
done before, but his father’s tone showed him that he too felt by no
means confident of the issue of the day.
As soon as daylight broke the Rebu stood to their arms, and an hour
later dense masses of the Egyptians were seen advancing. As soon as
these reached the edge of the slope and began to descend toward the
stream, the king ordered his people to advance to the edge of the
swamp and to open fire with their arrows.
A shower of missiles flew through the air and fell among the ranks of
the Egyptian footmen who had just arrived at the edge of the swamp. So
terrible was the discharge that the Egyptians recoiled and, retreating
halfway up the slope, where they would be beyond the reach of the
Rebu, in turn discharged their arrows. The superiority of the Egyptian
bowmen was at once manifest. They carried very powerful bows, and
standing sideways drew them to the ear, just as the English archers
did at Crecy, and therefore shot their arrows a vastly greater
distance than did their opponents, who were accustomed to draw their
bows only to the breast.
Scores of the Rebu fell at the first discharge, and as the storm of
arrows continued, they, finding themselves powerless to damage the
Egyptians at that distance, retired halfway up the side of the slope.
Now from behind the lines of the Egyptian archers a column of men
advanced a hundred abreast, each carrying a great fagot. Their object
was evident: they were about to prepare a wide causeway across the
marsh by which the chariots could pass. Again the Rebu advanced to the
edge of the swamp and poured in their showers of arrows; but the
Egyptians, covering themselves with the bundles of fagots they
carried, suffered but little harm, while the Rebu were mown down by
the arrows of the Egyptian archers shooting calmly and steadily beyond
the range of their missiles.
As soon as the front rank of the Egyptian column reached the edge of
the swampy ground the men of the front line laid down their fagots in
a close row and then retired in the intervals between their comrades
behind them. Each rank as it arrived at the edge did the same. Many
fell beneath the arrows of the Rebu, but the operation went on
steadily, the fagots being laid down two deep as the ground became
more marshy, and the Rebu saw, with a feeling approaching dismay, the
gradual but steady advance of a causeway two hundred yards wide across
the swamp.
The king himself and his bravest captains, alighting from their
chariots, went down among the footmen and urged them to stand firm,
pointing out that every yard the causeway advanced their arrows
inflicted more fatal damage among the men who were forming it. Their
entreaties, however, were vain; the ground facing the causeway was
already thickly incumbered with dead, and the hail of the Egyptian
arrows was so fast and deadly that even the bravest shrank from
withstanding it. At last even their leaders ceased to urge them, and
the king gave the order for all to fall back beyond the range of the
Egyptian arrows.
Some changes were made in the formation of the troops, and the best
and most disciplined bands were placed facing the causeway so as to
receive the charge of the Egyptian chariots. The two front lines were
of spearmen, while on the higher ground behind them were placed
archers whose orders were to shoot at the horses, and to pay no heed
to those in the chariots; then came the chariots, four hundred in
number. Behind these again was a deep line of spearmen; on the right
and left extending to the wood and village were the main body of the
army, who were to oppose the Egyptian footmen advancing across the
swamp.
The completion of the last portion of the causeway cost the Egyptians
heavily, for while they were exposed to the arrows of the Rebu archers
these were now beyond the range of the Egyptians on the opposite
crest. But at last the work was completed. Just as it was finished
and the workmen had retired, the king leaped from his chariot, and,
leading a body of a hundred men carrying blazing brands, dashed down
the slope. As soon as they were seen the Egyptian archers ran forward
and a storm of arrows was poured into the little band. Two-thirds of
them fell ere they reached the causeway; the others applied their
torches to the fagots.
The Egyptian footmen rushed across to extinguish the flames, while the
Rebu poured down to repel them. A desperate fight ensued, but the
bravery of the Rebu prevailed, and the Egyptians were driven back.
Their attack, however, had answered its purpose, for in the struggle
the fagots had been trodden deeper into the mire, and the fire was
extinguished. The Rebu now went back to their first position and
waited the attack which they were powerless to avert. It was upward
of an hour before it began, then the long line of Egyptian footmen
opened, and their chariots were seen fifty abreast, then with a mighty
shout the whole army advanced down the slope. The Rebu replied with
their warcry.
At full speed the Egyptian chariots dashed down the declivity to the
causeway. This was the signal for the Rebu archers to draw their bows,
and in an instant confusion was spread among the first line of
chariots. The horses wounded by the missiles plunged madly. Many,
stepping between the fagots, fell. For a moment the advance was
checked, but the Egyptian footmen, entering the swamp waist-deep,
opened such a terrible fire with their arrows that the front line of
the Rebu were forced to fall back, and the aim of their archers became
wild and uncertain.
In vain the king endeavored to steady them. While he was doing so, the
first of the Egyptian chariots had already made their way across the
causeway, and behind them the others poured on in an unbroken column.
Then through the broken lines of spearmen the Rebu chariots dashed
down upon them, followed by the host of spearmen. The king’s object
was to arrest the first onslaught of the Egyptians, to overwhelm the
leaders, and prevent the mass behind from emerging from the crowded
causeway.
The shock was terrible. Horses and chariots rolled over in wild
confusion, javelins were hurled, bows twanged, and the shouts of the
combatants and the cries of the wounded as they fell beneath the feet
of the struggling horses created a terrible din. Light and active, the
Rebu footmen mingled in the fray, diving under the bellies of the
Egyptian horses, and inflicting vital stabs with their long knives or
engaging in hand-to-hand conflicts with the dismounted Egyptians.
Amuba had charged down with the rest of the chariots. He was
stationed in the second line, immediately behind his father; and his
charioteer, mindful of the orders he had received, strove, in spite of
the angry orders of the lad, to keep the chariot stationary; but the
horses, accustomed to maneuver in line, were not to be restrained, and
in spite of their driver’s efforts charged down the slope with the
rest.
Amuba, who had hunted the lion and leopard, retained his coolness,
and discharged his arrows among the Egyptians with steady aim. For
a time the contest was doubtful. The Egyptian chariots crowded on
the causeway were unable to move forward, and in many places their
weight forced the fagots so deep in the mire that the vehicles were
immovable. Meanwhile, along the swamp on both sides a terrible contest
was going on. The Egyptians, covered by the fire of their arrows,
succeeded in making their way across the swamp, but here they were met
by the Rebu spearmen, and the fight raged along the whole line.
Then two thousand chosen men, the bodyguard of the Egyptian king, made
their way across the swamp close to the causeway, while at the same
time there was a movement among the densely packed vehicles. A
tremendous impulse was given to them from behind: some were pressed
off into the swamp, some were overthrown or trampled under foot, some
were swept forward on to the firm ground beyond, and thus a mass of
the heaviest chariots drawn by the most powerful horses forced their
way across the causeway over all obstacles.
In their midst was the King of Egypt himself, the great Thotmes.
The weight and impetus of the mass of horses and chariots pressed all
before it up the hill. This gave to the chariots which came on behind
room to open to the right and left. The king’s bodyguard shook the
solid formation of the Rebu spearmen with their thick flights of
arrows, and the chariots then dashed in among them. The Rebu fought
with the valor of their race. The Egyptians who first charged among
them fell pierced with their arrows, while their horses were stabbed
in innumerable places. But as the stream of chariots poured over
without a check, and charged in sections upon them, bursting their way
through the mass of footmen by the force and fury with which they
charged, the infantry became broken up into groups, each fighting
doggedly and desperately.
At this moment the officer in command of the Rebu horse, a thousand
strong, charged down upon the Egyptian chariots, drove them back
toward the swamp, and for a time restored the conflict; but the breaks
which had occurred between the Rebu center and its two flanks had
enabled the Egyptian bodyguard to thrust themselves through and to
fall upon the Rebu chariots and spearmen, who were still maintaining
the desperate conflict. The Rebu king had throughout fought in the
front line of his men, inspiriting them with his voice and valor. Many
times, when his chariot was so jammed in the mass that all movement
was impossible, he leaped to the ground, and, making his way through
the throng, slew many of the occupants of the Egyptian chariots.
But his efforts and those of his captains were unavailing. The
weight of the attack was irresistible. The solid phalanx of Egyptian
chariots pressed onward, and the Rebu were forced steadily back. Their
chariots, enormously outnumbered, were destroyed rather than defeated.
The horses fell pierced by the terrible rain of arrows, and the wave
of Egyptians passed over them. The king, looking round in his
chariot, saw that all was lost here, and that the only hope was to
gain one or other of the masses of his infantry on the flank, and to
lead them off the field in solid order. But as he turned to give
orders, a shaft sent by a bowman in a chariot a few yards away struck
him in the eye and he fell back dead in his chariot.