About 'hermes clothes'|... to attest to this than a French tailor, a master in the selection of fine clothes. Georges de Paris compares the younger Bush to Ronald Reagan...
Lord Evandale, an English nobleman, and Dr. Rumphius, a German Egyptologist, approached the great necropolis in the valley of Biban el Moluk near the Egyptian city of Thebes. Lord Evandale was handsome and irreproachably dressed. Dr. Rumphius looked like a bird-headed god, and his garb showed that science concerned him more than personal appearances. They had come to do some excavating, and they were discussing the probability of finding a tomb that had not yet been plundered. Suddenly a man of Greek extraction appeared before them. His name was Argyropoulos. He had been stalking them for a considerable length of time in the hope of exploiting their curiosity and enriching himself at their expense. He approached them with a servile smile. Argyropoulos liked to gain money by directing the excavations of foreigners for a fee. He usually deceived them, directing them to dig in places where nothing was located. However, he correctly surmised that Lord Evandale was very rich, so he thought that he would get more money from him if he told him the truth. Two years before, his sharp eyes had noticed a spot where he believed an undiscovered tomb might be located. He decided to direct Lord Evandale to that spot. He hoped thereby to obtain enough money to give a good dowry to his daughter. Argyropoulos offered to help the two men with their excavations. He told them that he had a host of fellahs at his disposal who could dig to the center of the earth with their fingernails and could easily uncover a sphinx or a shrine or open up a hypogeum. When his extravagant words were greeted with skepticism, he became more serious. In exchange for a thousand guineas, he offered to show Lord Evandale a tomb that had never been opened. Lord Evandale agreed, provided that not even a single stone had been removed. He also insisted the he be allowed to remove everything from the tomb. (Since this story is set in the nineteenth century, this was legally possible.) The Greek led the two men up a steep slope to a sort of cornice projecting over a vertical cliff, on which some large rocks had apparently been placed in an orderly fashion. It was a difficult place to dig, but the fellahs managed to remove three large boulders and uncover the entrance to a tomb. Inside the entrance, they found funeral statuettes in the sand. They had been deposited as offerings by family and friends. A stone slab covered a passage that led to the hypogeum. It was sealed with a clay seal. After the workman had removed the stone slab, a few fellahs preceded Lord Evandale and Dr. Rumphius down the passageway. Torches dispelled the darkness. As they descended, the heat became increasingly intense. Since Lord Evandale and Dr. Rumphius had trouble breathing, one of the fellahs returned to the entrance to fetch moistened sponges. The Greek instructed Lord Evandale and Dr. Rumphius to put sponges in front of their mouths so that they could breathe fresher air through the humid pores. They encountered another sealed door which covered a descending staircase. When they reached the bottom of the staircase and saw that they had to descend even farther, Dr. Rumphius remarked that they must be traveling to the center of the earth. Because of the intense heat, he thought that they must be near the dwelling of the damned. After another steep descent, they arrived at what seemed to be a dead end. There was a well. The Greek descended into the well with a knotted rope. He tapped at various places, hoping to hear a hollow sound that revealed a hidden chamber or at least another passage. He found nothing. In the entrance and along the passageways, they had encountered numerous examples of Egyptian art: hieroglyphics, pictures of the gods, allegorical pictures, etc. In the upper chamber of the well, another adornment greeted them. Osiris, the judge, was seated on a throne with a crook in his hand, while the goddesses Justice and Truth were leading the spirit of the dead to the tribunal of Amenti. Because of his previous experience with Egyptian tombs, this drawing gave the Greek hope. Eager to earn his 1,000 guineas, he took a pickaxe and began to strike the wall vigorously here and there until he encountered a hollow sound. The fellahs excavated an opening large enough for a man to crawl through. They found themselves in a square hall with a blue vault that rested on four massive pillars. The vault displayed typical ancient Egyptian decorations. This hall led to another hall, the vault of which was higher and supported by only two pillars. On the vault, various scenes were depicted, such as, the bull Apis bearing the mummy toward the regions of the west and the weighing of the deeds of the dead in a scale. This second hall was apparently the end of the road. Because of the heat and the smoke, they had to retreat to the outer hall. Before giving up, they made one last attempt. The fellahs started tapping the ground and encountered a hollow sound not far from on of the four pillars in the outer hall. After the dust was cleared away, they found an oblong slab. After removing the slab, they had to descend a staircase and entered the vestibule of the hall that contained the sarcophagus. Rich ornamentation adorned the vestibule, and two small crypts contained funerary statuettes. As they entered the hall and approached the sarcophagus, Lord Evandale had qualms about disturbing the dead. In contrast, Dr. Rumphius was filled with enthusiasm, while Argyropoulos wished that he had asked for more money. Needless to say, the artwork was magnificent. When the cover was pried off the sarcophagus, Dr. Rumphius was shocked at what he saw, and even Argyropoulos was surprised. The mummy was a woman. Dr. Rumphius thought that the valley of Biban el Moluk contained kings only. The queens were buried elsewhere. Lord Evandale wanted to donate the sarcophagus and its contents to the British Museum, so it was carried to his ship. Argyropoulos received his pay and took his leave. The mummy was covered not only by the sarcophagus, but also three cases, one within the other. As Dr. Rumphius began to open the cases, Lord Evandale pitied the mummy. He wished that he could close the sarcophagus and allow her to rest in peace. When Dr. Rumphius opened the cases and took off the wrappings, the mummy proved to be a beautiful young woman, perfectly preserved. She was more comely than any Greek or Roman statue. Lord Evandale and Dr. Rumphius were filled with admiration. Normally, mummies were caked with bitumen to preserve them better. This detracted from their beauty. However, in this case, a more careful embalming process had preserved the elasticity of the flesh and the grain of the skin. Its color was almost natural. She seemed to be asleep rather than dead. Her jet black hair was plaited into a multitude of fine tresses, adorned and fastened by twenty golden pins. She wore two large earrings, a magnificent necklace, and a double bracelet of gold. On the index finger of her left hand was a signet ring in the form of a scarabaeus. Lord Evandale ordered that none of her adornments be disturbed. He gently touched her little hand and carefully fingered her hair. He felt that he would have loved her if he had lived at the same time as she. As Dr. Rumphius was taking inventory of the gems that he could not remove, he caught sight of a papyrus roll concealed between the side and the arm of the mummy. He thought that it was a copy of the funeral ritual; but when he opened it, he received a surprise. It was a noteworthy document. Its contents differ significantly from the hieratic formulae of other Egyptian papyri. After three years of diligent work, Dr. Rumphius succeeded in deciphering the papyrus roll. It contained the following story, which is aptly entitled "The Romance of a Mummy." A beautiful young lady named Tahoser lived in the city of Oph, better known as Thebes. She was listening to a plaintive song sung by Satou, who accompanied herself on a harp, while two other ladies offered further accompaniment on a guitar and a sort of tympanum. Tahoser abruptly interrupted the song. The music accorded with her melancholy mood, and she asked Satou how she had come to know her feelings. Satou tried to cheer up her mistress by a song praising the charms of wine, the intoxication of perfume, and the delights of the dance, but Tahoser become more melancholy. Nofre, the favorite maid of Tahoser, realized that her mistress wanted to converse with her, so she made a sign indicating that the musicians should leave. Tahoser apparently had very little reason to be unhappy. Her father, the high priest Petamounoph, had died, but otherwise her life was enviable. She was beautiful and rich. She lived in a splendid home and had a lovely garden. She had a rich array of jewelry and a host of servants at her beck and call. Tahoser told Nofre that an unfulfilled desire brought sadness to her heart. Nofre tried to guess what it was. Eventually she remembered that the Pharaoh had left on a military expedition to Upper Ethiopia and had taken a handsome general named Ahmosis with him. Ahmosis loved Tahoser, and Nofre thought that his absence was making her sad. Tahoser admitted that Ahmosis loved her, but she insisted that she did not love him. Nofre remained unconvinced. She thought that maidenly shyness prompted her to deny what her heart actually felt. Nofre herself loved Ahmosis, and she could not believe that her mistress was unmoved by his charms. Tahoser found it impossible to reveal the real source of her sadness. Because of Tahoser's reticence, Nofre was confirmed in her belief that the absence of Ahmosis made her mistress sad. The king was returning that very day, and Tahoser decided to view the procession. Her residence was situated near the east bank of the Nile. She and Nofre took a boat across the Nile to the west bank. They then rode in a chariot drawn by oxen. As they passed a house partly hidden by luxuriant vegetation, Tahoser seemed to be looking for something. She spotted a handsome young man who was leaning against a pillar and watching the crowd. He paid no attention as the chariot of Tahoser passed his house. Nofre did not notice the perturbation that her mistress felt. Tahoser and Nofre reached the place where the parade was about to take place. It was a vast enclosure designed for military displays. There was an opening in the wall of the enclosure at its southern end and a similar opening at the northern end. The road from Upper Egypt led up to the southern opening. Here the procession would enter the enclosed parade ground. Then it would leave the ground through the northern aperture and continue northward on the road that led to the palace of Rameses Maiamoun. Musicians led the procession, followed by barbarians whom the king had captured during his campaign. Then came the standard bearers, accompanied by a herald, who proclaimed the Pharaoh's mighty deeds with a sonorous voice. Soon thereafter, the Pharaoh appeared. He sat on a throne that rested on a sort of dais supported by twelve military chiefs. The litter of the Pharaoh was followed by war chariots bearing princes of the royal family Then the entire Egyptian army marched through the parade grounds. The war chariots of the Egyptian cavalry came first. There were twenty thousand chariots in all, each containing three men and drawn by two horses. Next came the large Egyptian infantry, followed by the troops of allied nations. The parade also featured slaves carrying the booty that the Pharaoh had won during the expedition. Observers also had the opportunity to see such exotic animals as panthers, ostriches, and giraffes. The Pharaoh had noticed Tahoser as he was passing her. Though his facial expression remained unchanged, he was filled with desire. He made a barely perceptible gesture with his hand. A servant named Timopht noticed it and immediately looked at Tahoser. The servant followed Tahoser as she returned to her residence. After learning her identity he went to the palace of the Pharaoh, where musicians, dancers, and other entertainers were unsuccessfully trying to divert their master. The servant announced to the sovereign that the girl he had noticed was Tahoser, the daughter of the priest Petamounoph. The women of the harem, suspecting that someone else had stolen their master's heart, expressed their anguish with extravagant signs of mourning. While the Pharaoh longed for Tahoser, Tahoser longed for Poeri, the young man who had moved her heart as she passed his residence on the left bank of the Nile. Though he was well-to-do and lived in a attractive villa, he was not a native Egyptian, but a Hebrew. Tahoser had often made herself as beautiful as possible, crossed the Nile, and rode past Poeri's residence, hoping to attract his attention. She never had any success. So now she put on common garments and left the house while Nofre was still sleeping. She crossed the Nile and approached the villa of Poeri. The sun had risen, and the gates of the villa were opening. She kneeled on the threshold and placed her hands above her head in a gesture of supplication. Poeri saw her and pitied her. He assured her that his house was hospitable and invited her to enter. Tahoser was encouraged by his kind words, but she was ashamed of the base action which love had driven her to do and hesitated to enter. Poeri considered her a timid, unfortunate woman and encouraged her with kind words. As Poeri was sitting down on a sofa and Tahoser was kneeling before him in her loveliest pose, Poeri introduced himself. He told Tahoser that he was the steward of the royal estates. Tahoser said that her name was Hora. She said that her parents had died and their creditors took nearly all their goods. She barely had enough to pay their funeral expenses. She offered to repay him for his hospitality. She had learned the work of women, even though she had not been required to do so because of the social status of her family. She could weave, spin linen, and entertain him with song, harp, or lute. Poeri observed that Hora was a delicate girl. He told her that she would find in his home occupation suitable for a maiden who has known better days. His maids were good girls and pleasant companions. Poeri expressed the hope that better days would eventually dawn for Hora. If not, she could grow old in his home in the midst of abundance and peace. The supposed Hora kissed his feet as a suppliant would when granted a favor. However, to Hora, her kisses were kisses of passionate love. After Poeri left, he sent Tahoser a goose leg, onions, wheat bread, and figs. Tahoser was not hungry, but she ate heartily because a true suppliant would necessarily have a hearty appetite. When Poeri returned, he asked Tahoser to take the lute and sing him a sweet melody. He believed that if he fell asleep to the sound of gentle music, he would have pleasant dreams. Poeri admired her singing. He said that she imparted to it a magical charm. He asked her to repeat the song till he fell asleep. When he fell asleep, she fanned him with a palm leaf for a while. Then she placed a furtive kiss on his brow. At that point, the sleeping man uttered the following words in a language that Tahoser could not understand: "Oh, Rachel, beloved Rachel!" When Nofre awoke, she was alarmed at the absence of her mistress. She looked in the garden and everywhere else, but Tahoser was not at home. A wise servant named Souhem looked for Tahoser's footprints in the sand. He noted that she had gone in the direction of the boats. However, no one had seen her cross the Nile. Someone had seen a woman of the lowest rank cross early in the morning, but Souhem and Nofre did not suspect that this woman might be Tahoser. Anguished lamentation filled the household. Even the slaves grieved over the loss of their gentle mistress. Only Souhem expressed hope. After giving the matter some thought, he concluded that Tahoser must be in love. Since Nofre loved Ahmosis, she thought that her mistress undoubtedly shared her feelings. So she went to the house of Ahmosis to look for Tahoser. When Ahmosis saw Nofre, he felt a thrill pass through his body. He thought she might be bearing a message from Tahoser. In the ensuing discussion, both were disappointed. Ahmosis learned that Nofre had come searching for Tahoser, and Nofre learned that Tahoser was not there. Later the Pharaoh sent Timopht to the residence of Tahoser with gifts. By this time, Nofre had come back home. She told Timopht that Tahoser had disappeared. Timopht told her to take the gifts and have them guarded until Tahoser returned. When Timopht told the Pharaoh that Tahoser had disappeared, the monarch was very angry. He hit the floor so vigorously with his scepter that a slab was split. The so-called Hora was spinning thread and admiring Poeri, who was sitting at a table and working. When he left the house, she timidly followed him. He invited her to sit in the shade and watch the agricultural activities that the men were performing. He could tell that she had lived in the city, and he thought that the novelty would cheer her up. Poeri was accustomed to leave the house in the evening, and one of the maids wondered where he always went. A tall slave named Harphre observed that Poeri was a barbarous Hebrew. She thought that he went out at night to join other Israelites as they killed some children as a bloody sacrifice in some desert place. Tahoser decided to follow Poeri when he went out that evening. She was driven by jealousy. She did not believe that Poeri was participating in nocturnal rites. She thought he was seeing some woman, and she wanted to know who her rival was. There was no moon, so she easily escaped the notice of Poeri. She followed him to the bank of the river. To her dismay, he got into a small boat and started to cross the river. Tahoser took off her dress and tied it on top of her head. Then she slid down the bank and started to follow Poeri across the river. As she was swimming across, she was frightened by a bundle of reeds, which she mistook for a crocodile. At one point, Poeri stopped and looked around uneasily. He thought that he had heard someone swimming behind him. Tahoser ducked beneath the water. Not seeing anything, Poeri continued to cross to the other side. Tahoser was tired and wet when she reached the other side of the river, but she continued to follow Poeri. He walked to a sinister-looking place that made Tahoser wonder whether Harphre had been telling the truth when she spoke about cruel rites performed in a desolate place. He finally entered a hut built of clay. Through a crack in the wall of the hut, Tahoser beheld a maiden who was more beautiful than any Egyptian girl. Poeri sat down beside her, and they conversed in a language that Tahoser did not understand. Tahoser hoped that the girl might be his sister. However, when he called her his beloved Rachel, she remembered what he had said in his sleep. She was forced to conclude that Rachel was her name and that Poeri loved her. When Poeri began to caress her in a timid fashion, Tahoser wished that she had witnessed a gruesome rite instead. She tried to rise twice. Then she swooned. Meanwhile, the Pharaoh continued to be troubled by the disappearance of Tahoser. Amense, Mont-Reche, and Twea had been his favorites, but now their beauty did not satisfy him. He wanted to be alone, so he left his southern palace and crossed the Nile to his northern palace. There he paced the halls in ill humor. He was regarded as a god, but now he felt like a man. After a while, the Pharaoh sent for Timopht and asked him if he had asked the servants of Tahoser whether they knew where there mistress had gone. Timopht replied that two of her trusted servants had found evidence that she had gone to the river. However, from the boatmen, the two servants had learned that the only person who crossed the river early in the morning was a poorly dressed woman. In contrast to Notre, Souhem, and Timopht, the wise Pharaoh immediately suspected that Tahoser had disguised herself. He also figured that a love affair was at the bottom of the mystery. At the command of Pharaoh, Timopht and others scoured the land of Egypt in an effort to find Tahoser. They searched every palace, temple, house, villa, and garden. Boats traversed the Nile, and chariots investigated the roads. Even the tombs were searched. The Pharaoh sat motionless, like a god, waiting for the messengers to return. Late at night, a messenger reported that Tahoser could not be found. The Pharaoh killed him with his scepter. The next two messengers shared his fate. Timopht happened to come to the house of Poeri. Poeri told him that a suppliant woman named Hora had come to his house. He had given her hospitality, but she had left mysteriously during the night. Poeri described her as beautiful, sad, and dressed in common clothing. Timopht reported the words of Poeri to the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh did not think that Hora was Tahoser. If she came to Poeri in disguise because she loved him, he figured that she would not have fled in the night. In the meantime, Tahoser was lying in Rachel's hut. Soon after Poeri had left, Rachel heard a groan, found the sick young lady, and took her into her hut. Rachel treated her with compassion and cared for her, with the help of an old lady named Thamar. Thamar was suspicious. They were Israelites, and their race had been enslaved by the Egyptians. The Israelites believed that they would be delivered from bondage in the not too distant future. Thamar figured that the Egyptians may have heard something about it and sent the young woman as a spy. Rachel did not share her suspicions. To prove her point, Thamar pointed out that her poor clothing was a disguise. Her delicate hands betrayed the fact that she was a well-to-do lady who did not have to work. When Poeri came in the evening, he immediately recognized the sick lady. He informed Rachel that she had come to his house as a suppliant and received due hospitality. She said that her name was Hora. She disappeared during the night. Poeri also told Rachel that emissaries of the Pharaoh had come to his house looking for a lady named Tahoser, the daughter of a priest. The suspicious Thamar triumphantly declared that Hora was Tahoser. Poeri pointed out that there were several problems with Thamar's theory. Why would she disguise herself as a poor woman? Moreover, how did she happen to come to Rachel's hut? When he left, she was on the other bank of the Nile, and she had no way of knowing where he was going. Thamar replied that she must have followed Poeri. Her wet clothes showed that she must have swum across the Nile. Poeri admitted that he thought that he had seen a head in the water once while he was rowing across. Rachel added that her weak and feverish condition proved that she must have made the nocturnal swim. Poeri was convinced, but he was still puzzled. What motive could she have had for doing all these things? Rachel knew the answer. The nocturnal swimmer loved Poeri, so she disguised herself so that she could be with him. When Poeri left at night, she suspected that she had a rival and jealously followed to see who it was. When she saw their happiness through a crack in the wall, she swooned. After this explanation, she concluded with the words: "But I don't care, since you do not love her." Since the girls fever seemed to be serious, they decided to see whether Moses could help her. An elderly gentleman with a long beard came, stretched out his hands over her, and cured her in the name of the Mighty One. Then he withdrew, leaving a trail of light behind him. Tahoser was as good as new. Surveying the situation, she knew that she was beaten. She put her arms around Rachel and cried. Rachel told Tahoser to keep on loving him. He compared their situation to their forefather Jacob, who had two wives called Rachel and Leah. Jacob loved Rachel better, but Leah lived happily with him. She was willing to let Tahoser be Poeri's Leah. Tahoser was willing to play that role. When Poeri pointed out that she would have to give up her caste, she told him that she had already become his servant. When Poeri said that she would have to leave Egypt and follow him into the desert, she was willing to go. Poeri then told her that she would also have to give up her idols and worship Jehovah alone. This made her shudder a little. However, she finally said: "You will tell me of your God; I shall try to understand Him." Poeri agreed to marry her. However, he warned her that she would have to stay hidden in the hut, since Pharaoh, who was in love with her, was searching for her. Then, since the day was about to dawn, Poeri hurried home. While sleeping, Tahoser dreamed that she saw an assembly of all the Egyptian gods. Her deceased father told her to ask them whether they really were gods. They all replied that they were only numbers, laws, forces, attributes, effluvia, and thoughts of God, but none of them was the true God. Then Poeri came and led her to a brilliant light. In the center of the light were words inscribed in a triangle. She did not know what the words meant. Thamar disliked the proposed union. She went to the palace of the Pharaoh and told him that she knew where Tahoser was. The Pharaoh took her in his chariot and she guided him to the hut. The Pharaoh took the sleeping Tahoser in his arms and rode away with her. Tahoser wanted to scream, but she knew it was hopeless. As they approached the palace, Tahoser made a desperate effort to escape, but she struggled in vain. She tried to scream, but the Pharaoh sealed her mouth with a kiss. They entered the palace, and there was no hope of escape. The Pharaoh was a handsome man, and he spoke flattering words to Tahoser. Though Tahoser felt a little proud that her beauty had exercised such a profound effect on this mighty man, the thought of belonging to him filled her with horror and repulsion. She loved Poeri and wanted to go with him into the desert. Tahoser tried to reason with the Pharaoh. She asked: "What if I do not love you?" The Pharaoh told her that it only made her more attractive to him. He would enjoy overcoming any obstacle that hindered him from fulfilling his desires. Tahoser then asked: "But suppose I love another?" Rage filled the heart of the Pharaoh, but he managed to master it. He told her that the glories of the palace would soon make her forget her past life. In the meantime, Rachel was puzzled by the disappearance of Tahoser and asked Thamar if she knew what had happened to her. Thamar feigned ignorance. She tried to convince Rachel that the young woman was not really Tahoser, but a fiend from hell that had come to tempt a child of Israel. The Pharaoh had promised Thamar that she could have as much gold and precious stones as she could lift. Thamar went to the palace with a coarse bag, and the Pharaoh kept his promise. As Timopht watched, Thamar greedily put a huge amount of treasure into her bag. Timopht was amused. He thought that the skinny specter would never be able to lift such a great weight. However, Thamar surprised him. She staggered out of the palace, almost walking on all fours. After leaving the palace, she saw two Israelites passing by. He offered to give them a handsome reward if they would carry the sack to her house. They did so, and Thamar grudgingly gave them the promised reward. At the palace, Tahoser was installed in a magnificent apartment. When the Pharaoh came, she rose from her seat to prostrate herself. However, the Pharaoh raised her up. He told her that she would be his equal. He was tired of being alone in the universe. He promised not to possess her until she loved him. If ever he found favor in her eyes, he asked her to hold out to him the lotus flower in her hair as he entered the room. As they were conversing, Timopht informed the Pharaoh that a mysterious personage named Moses wished to speak with him. As the Pharaoh sat on his throne, Moses and Aaron appeared before him. Moses did not prostrate himself. He told Pharaoh that the Lord commanded him to let His people go, that they might hold a feast to Him in the wilderness. Pharaoh told them that they were lucky that he was in a good mood. Otherwise he would have them beaten or thrown to the crocodiles. The Pharaoh had no respect for the Israelite God. He extolled the Egyptian god Ammon Ra and commanded Moses and Aaron to leave. He also decided to increase the work load of the Israelites. When Moses and Aaron came to the palace a second time, Pharaoh demanded proof that the Lord had really sent them. Aaron threw down his rod, and it became a serpent. The Pharaoh called it a cheap trick. He called his wise men and asked them if they could change their rods into serpents. They were reluctant to do so because they considered it a waste of time. They preferred to continue their profound meditations. However, when the Pharaoh commanded them to perform the miracle, Ennana, their leader, commanded all his wise men to whisper the magic words and throw down their rods. As a result, an interesting variety of snakes crawled across the floor. Tahoser was sitting next to the Pharaoh. She was frightened and pulled her feet back with terror. The Pharaoh bragged about the superior skill of his sages. Then Moses stretched forth his hand, and the serpent of Aaron approached the twenty-four serpents of the Egyptian wise men. After a brief struggle, it ate all the Egyptian serpents. Old Ennana was amazed. He said that he would have to reexamine the hieroglyphics to see why the spell went wrong. He then asked the Pharaoh whether they could withdraw. He thought that reading Hermes Trismegistus was more profitable than performing slight of hand tricks. The Pharaoh led the trembling Tahoser back to the Harem. Tahoser remembered the power of Poeri's god. She urged the Pharaoh not to defy His commands, but the Pharaoh considered himself more powerful than the God of the Israelites. The Pharaoh seemed to think that his divine kingship kept Tahoser from loving him. He wished that he were an ordinary man so that she would love him. Though the heart of Tahoser still belonged to Poeri, she spoke flattering words to the Pharaoh. She actually desired to love the Pharaoh, and she probably was not as far from doing so as she believed. A few days later, the Pharaoh met Moses and Aaron as he was riding in his chariot. When Moses and Aaron repeated God's command, the Pharaoh told them that he would grant their request if they could prove the power of their God. Aaron stretched forth his rod, and the waters of the Nile assumed the color of blood. The Pharaoh summoned Ennana and his wise men. Ennana told Moses and Aaron to restore the waters to their original condition, so that he could repeat the miracle. Aaron complied, and Ennana nodded respectfully to Aaron as he would to a skillful colleague. Ennana then repeated the miracle. When the Pharaoh asked if Moses and Aaron had no other proof of God's power, Moses told him that they would perform another wonder if the Pharaoh did not let Israel go in seven days. When the seven days had expired, Aaron, at the command of Moses, summoned a host of frogs to fill the land of Egypt. In the palace, the Pharaoh vainly killed frogs with his scepter and pushed them back with his curved sandals. In spite of his efforts, the palace was overrun. The king summoned the wise men. Ennana had trouble remembering the magic word, but finally he was able to make the frogs disappear. However, Ennana was not satisfied. He wanted to show the Pharaoh that he could produce just as many frogs as Moses and Aaron. So he summoned the frogs and they reappeared. However, when Ennana tried to get rid of them again, the magic no longer worked. The Pharaoh finally had to grant the request of Moses and Aaron, so that they would get rid of the pesky creatures. Nevertheless, when the land was free from frogs, he hardened his heart and did not keep his promise, even though Tahoser encouraged him to do so. More plagues followed. Lice filled the land. Later, the Egyptians were afflicted with boils, while the Israelites did not suffer this affliction. Ennana was able to produce lice. However, when the Pharaoh asked Ennana to reproduce the plague of boils, he said it was useless because the finger of the Unknown was behind all this. He suggested that they submit and return to their sanctuary to study this new powerful God. The Pharaoh refused to submit. So Egypt continued to suffer plagues. Their cattle died, while the children of Israel did not lose a single cow. Then a thick cloud of grasshoppers invaded the land of Egypt. They devoured the leaves of the trees, so that they became as skeletons. They ate the grass and other plants, leaving the ground bare. Since the Pharaoh remained obdurate, one plague followed another. Hail descended upon the land of Egypt. This plague was especially terrifying to the Egyptians, since they had never experienced it before. Then a thick darkness covered the land. The Egyptians thought that they were already in their graves and loudly lamented their fate. Finally, a specter passed through the land and killed the male firstborn in every house not marked with red. Even the Pharaoh lost his firstborn son. When Moses appeared, the Pharaoh said: "Go, and sacrifice to your God as you please." Tahoser embraced the Pharaoh and said: "Now I love you, for you are a man and not a god of granite." She had not forgotten Poeri, but she feared that the Pharaoh was plotting vengeance that would annihilate the Hebrews. So she tried to distract him with her caresses. During the burial of his son, the Pharaoh turned to Tahoser and said: "Now I no longer have a son, O Tahoser. If I die, you will be queen of Egypt." He seemed to think that his days were drawing to a close. Tahoser objected that he had many years to live, but the Pharaoh said that he had been vanquished. The gods of Egypt could not protect him against this unknown God of a low race. As a result, his prestige was gone. Nevertheless, the Pharaoh said that it did not matter, since Tahoser loved him. He would marry her as soon as the funeral rites were completed. Fearing that the Pharaoh would change his mind, the Hebrews quickly left. The wise men of Egypt had set up an enchanted statue that for centuries had prevented any of the slaves from escaping. However, the Lord had destroyed its magic, and the Hebrews paraded past it without hindrance. Led by a cloud of smoke by day and a pillar of fire by night, they journeyed from the Nile to the Sea of Weeds. The sacrifice to the Lord had been a pretext. Israel was leaving Egypt for good. They carried the mummy of Joseph with them. So the Pharaoh became angry and decided to pursue the fleeing Israelites with six hundred war chariots, as well as foot soldiers. Pharaoh and his army caught up with the Israelites as they were encamped by the sea. The Israelites were terrified, and many began to curse Moses for leading them to destruction. The braver souls prepared to defend themselves. Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and a mighty east wind arose. It divided the waters, creating a path on which the Israelites could cross the sea. It was the breath of the Lord that was dividing the waters. When the Egyptians saw the miracle, they hesitated to follow. However, the Pharaoh urged them on. After some delay, the pursuit began. The Israelite rear guard was alarmed; but when Moses gave the signal, the wheels of the chariots fell off. Confusion prevailed. Then the mountains of water suddenly fell, and the sea closed in. The Egyptian army was engulfed by the waves. The chariot of Pharaoh somehow rose to the surface. He shot all his arrows at the Israelites. Finally, he futilely threw his javelin against the unknown God before sinking beneath the waves. Led by Miriam, the sister of Aaron, the Israelites celebrated their deliverance with song. Tahoser waited in vain for the Pharaoh. She reigned briefly as queen, but soon died. Since the body of the Pharaoh was never found, she was buried in the tomb prepared for him. A scribe named Kakevou wrote her biography and placed it by her side. The tomb remained undiscovered till the expedition of Lord Evandale. Although Lord Evandale was the last of his line, he remained a bachelor all his life. He was in love with a young lady who had been dead for three thousand five hundred years. Since I do not have access to the original French, this summary is based on an English translation by Professor F. C. de Sumichrast, presented by Project Gutenberg. Reference: Project Gutenberg: The Romance of a Mummy http://archive.org/stream/theworksoftheoph27724gut/27724.txt |
Image of hermes clothes
hermes clothes Image 1
hermes clothes Image 2
hermes clothes Image 3
hermes clothes Image 4
hermes clothes Image 5
Related blog with hermes clothes
- getlippie.blogspot.com/.... If you are not reading this post at Get Lippie, then this content has been stolen by a scraper Dear Evans Clothing & Hermes ...
- foryoureyesonly-.blogspot.com/...her failed million dollar birthday party at the Ritz, in France, and her 15th Hermes birkin and now only lusting for the ring on top's finger, just cause he's choi...
- innocentsabroad.blogspot.com/... to attest to this than a French tailor, a master in the selection of fine clothes. Georges de Paris compares the younger Bush to Ronald Reagan...
- shanghaiedtyson.blogspot.com/... it. He tried it on. He was set to buy it. I then saw a white Hermes belt that was quite nice. I gave it a closer look. It ...
- dspoke.wordpress.com/French luxury clothing designer Hermes and Monaco based yacht maker Wally have collaborated to create the ultimate...
- robinchapmannews.blogspot.com/.... Those Georgetown girls wouldn't feel fully clothed without a Hermes! The title of each scarf is generally a French one. But as in this case...
- madisonavespy.blogspot.com/...Hermes sample sale. Photo credit: NY Times Hermes VIPs were invited to shop... of undesirable gloves, clothing and shoes. Shoes and ready...
- shine.yahoo.com/blogs/author/ycn-1205291/...be a very important aspect in clothing and expensive accessories. Hermes birkin replica handbags...stay away from it. Authentic Hermes birkin replica has metal...
- thebluekimono.blogspot.com/...friend Yseult, who’s over 50 and a former Hermes’ employee, told me “vintage... nicer, older clothes with an actual pedigree. On my Marais...
- fashionjar.blogspot.com/.... I admit I have a tendency to look at Hermes scarves as individual pieces... scarf with patterned clothing takes a little more thought...
Related Video with hermes clothes
hermes clothes Video 1
hermes clothes Video 2
hermes clothes Video 3