"But, Brother, he is within reach of an avenging hand! Commission us,
I pray thee, to protect the mysteries after any manner that to us
seemeth good.
"Despatch is urgent. He may fly again. Give us thine answer as we
have sent this to thee--by a nobleman--a swift and trusty one, and the
blessings of the Radiant Three be upon thy head.
"Thy servant, the Servant of Ra,
"Snofru."
When the priest finished, the king was sitting upright, his face
flushed with feeling.
"Sedition!" he exclaimed; "organized rebellion in the very heart of my
realm!"
He paused for a space and thrust back the heavy fringes of his cowl
with a gesture of peevish impatience.
"What evil humor possesses Egypt?" he burst forth irritably. "Hardly
have I overthrown an invader before my people break out. I quiet them
in one place and they revolt in another. Must I turn a spear upon mine
own?"
"Well," he cried, stamping his foot, when the three before him kept
silence, "have ye no word to say?"
His eyes rested on Har-hat, with an imperious expectation in them. The
fan-bearer bent low before he answered.
"With thy gracious permission, O Son of Ptah," he said, "I would
suggest that it were wise to cool an insurrection in the simmering.
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