The Adventures of Captain Mago

"No, nor yet of the Tin Islands; nor yet of Prydhayn; nor yet of the river of the Suomi; nor yet of the chariot of the gods," exclaimed Himilco. "Compared with us you are mere coasters, loafing about in cockle-shells."

Genuine Sidonian as he was, my cousin could not brook any insinuation against his seamanship, and colouring deeply at the slight which he conceived was offered to him, he said in a tone of anger:

"Out upon your insolence! do you call a man a coaster who has made the voyage to Ophir? do you call my gaoul a cockle-shell? Are you mad, or are you drunk, you one-eyed fool?"

Himilco, recalled to a sense of propriety, changed his banter into cajolery:

"Now then, my dear fellow, you can do a great deal better than bully me. Haven't you a little wine on board? It would be a great boon to give us a skin; we haven't tasted a drop this two months."

I interceded with Ethbaal, asking him to overlook what might seem to be rudeness on the part of Himilco, and assured him that our adventures had been so extraordinary that he must really pardon a little bragging. He not only took my mediation in a good spirit, but sent for a goat-skin of wine, which he himself handed to Himilco, in token of forgiveness. Saying that he should make an offering with it to the Cabiri, the pilot emptied so large a share of the contents down his throat that his companions began to wonder when his draught was coming to an end, and almost despaired of the wine lasting out till it should come to their turn to partake of it.

"Glorious wine! wine of Arvad, Hannibal," he said, smacking his lips as he removed the goat-skin from his mouth, and passed it to the rest.

Gisgo and Hannibal clutched at the bottle together.

"Nay, nay, my friends," cried Ethbaal; "do not be fighting for the wine. I have plenty more. My cargo is all wine which I am carrying to Ophir."

"Could you not take me with you?" asked Himilco eagerly; "my services are quite at your disposal."

CHAPTER XXI

THE QUEEN OF SHEBA

As soon as the wind dropped, we submitted ourselves to Ethbaal's instructions as to the direction in which we ought to steer, and taking his gaoul into tow, we proceeded on our course to Ophir.

When evening came we found that by Ethbaal's orders a true Phœnician banquet had been prepared on the stern of the Ashtoreth: cheese, olives, figs, raisins, and a double allowance of wine were served out to the men; and we ourselves took our seats upon brilliant carpets that had replaced the worn-out rags with which we had been so long familiar, and for the first time for months, nay, years, enjoyed the viands of Tyre and Sidon, and quaffed the wines of Byblos and Arvad.

Our spirits rose to the occasion, and I should hesitate to say how many times I filled and refilled my wine-cup before I began to recount the adventures which Ethbaal was anxious to hear.

My story lasted far on into the night.

When I had finished, Ethbaal, who had never flagged for one moment in his attention, raised his hands to the stars in the heavens above, and swore by all the gods that my chronicle ought to be registered in letters of gold. He went on to tell me that the cargo I had sent from Gades and all my messages had been duly received at Tyre; that everyone had come to the conclusion we must all have been drowned in the ocean; and that nothing had been heard about Bodmilcar, who, it was taken for granted, had been punished for his treachery by the direct visitation of the gods.

I offered Ethbaal a present of some very fine pearls; he at first refused to take any acknowledgment at all of his attention to us, but I induced him ultimately to accept the gift. The damages to his gaoul were only to the rigging, and did not affect the hull; and as we had taken it into tow, there was nothing to cause us any anxiety, or to prevent us from retiring to rest.

Next morning, in the course of conversation with Ethbaal, Himilco asked:

"Have you had any fighting, captain, since you have been out?"

"Fighting? no, why?" he replied.

"Because if you continue in our company you will soon find that fighting is our destiny. We are always fighting; if we are not fighting men, – and that we are doing pretty frequently, – we are fighting the beasts of the earth; and if we are not fighting beasts, we are fighting against wind and waves. Go where we will we attract the fightings, just like a headland attracts the storms. Fighting is our luck; so I just warn you, you had better be on the look-out."

Ethbaal laughed. He said he hoped that we had come to the end of our adventures in that way, and that we should have a prosperous voyage to Ophir; then turning to me, he asked what I expected to procure at Ophir, as I had already a large supply of gold, which was the commodity ordinarily obtained there.

I reminded him that I had a much larger quantity of amber than I really wanted, and that in return for a portion of it I intended to lay in a stock of sandal-wood and spices, peacocks and apes, and anything else that the country could offer.

The Arabian coast was rocky, but we sailed along it without difficulty for six days, at the end of which we arrived at Havilah, the principal city of the kingdom of Ophir and Sheba. Unlike the Phœnician seaports, it has no quays, fortresses, nor arsenals, but it is well-sheltered, and forms a commodious trade-harbour; the town rises like an amphitheatre upon the surrounding heights, and the white terraces, with their brown and red domes, broken by clusters of palm-trees, stand out in pleasing contrast to the deep-blue sky, while the domes of the temples are of gilded bronze, and glitter with dazzling brightness in the sunlight. Although the people are indifferent seamen, yet it is to the sea that they owe their prosperity, their city forming the mart between our own country and the distant Indies.

The Queen herself takes a keen interest in all matters connected with navigation, and her palace is situated close to the sea-shore. It is built of cedar, and ornamented with trellis-work and open balconies; the walls are all adorned with paintings, inlaid with precious stones, or hung with curtains of variegated stuffs.

I was very anxious to secure the Queen's favour, and to make her an offering worthy of her acceptance. With this object, I placed some of my finest pieces of amber in a casket made of Tarshish silver, and carrying my gift in my hand, I presented myself with Ethbaal and most of my officers at the entrance of the palace, and sounded the great drum by which it is the custom to demand admittance to the royal presence.

Ordinarily the Queen occupies a tapestried tent that overlooks the sea; she had consequently been aware of our entrance into the harbour, and when we presented ourselves at the gateway of the palace she gave immediate orders that we should be conducted before her. We were taken to her pavilion across a garden of surpassing beauty. There were countless plants, wonderful alike in their blossoms and their foliage, grouped in exquisite order around sparkling fountains; there were sumptuous tents of every hue pitched amongst the rare and graceful trees, to the boughs of which monkeys were attached by golden chains; Indian birds with gayest plumage fluttered overhead; and peacocks, displaying their gorgeous tails, were strutting along the avenues. Every thing we saw seemed worthy of the stateliest empire in the world.

We prostrated ourselves before the Queen, who at once bade us rise. She was young and very fascinating; and although she was surrounded by ladies in waiting and maids of honour, she was conspicuous among them all for grace and beauty. Her attire, redolent of perfume, was alike sumptuous and elegant; in her hair and round her neck were jewels valuable enough not only to equip a fleet, but to maintain it as well; a long robe, embroidered in gold with figures of men, beasts, and birds, was thrown over her, but opened to display the richness of the dress below; her sleeves were loose to the elbows, and on her wrists were bracelets that must have been all but priceless.

We were dazzled into silence as we first gazed upon her beauty and magnificence; but Hanno almost immediately advanced, and ventured to recite some verses of an Arab ode:

"Fairer than moons are thy beaming eyes,
Nay, they are radiant suns:
Forth from the bow of thine arched brow
Shoot the arrows that pierce man's heart:
Be it thy justice prevails far and wide,
The universe yields to thy charms.
What are thy favours? Say I not true?
Fetters they are that bind the soul;
What are thy fingers? What do I kiss?
Keys of a heavenly joy."

The language spoken in Ophir is very similar to our own, and the Queen, who understands Phœnician well, expressed herself as being highly gratified at Hanno's courtier-like address. She then deigned to examine the presents I had brought, and requested me to give her a brief outline of my travels and adventures; then rising from her seat, and bidding us follow her, she went out, accompanied by her retinue, into the garden, and moving with all the grace and dignity of a goddess, herself conducted us to every point of interest in her paradise. Before we took leave of her she desired me to visit her again on the eve of our departure, that I might receive some instructions that she wished to give me.

The same evening the munificent lady sent us a store of provisions for our ships, and various presents for ourselves, amongst which I should especially note several embroidered robes for the women, and a scarlet tunic, a hyacinth-coloured girdle, and a gold-embroidered shoulder-belt for Hanno.

We remained a week at Havilah, making exchanges, and inspecting all that was worth seeing in the place. Representatives of nearly every nation seemed to be congregated in the town; men from India and Taprobane, from Ethiopia, and the mouth of the Euphrates. The people of Sheba themselves bear a strong resemblance to the Jews, Phœnicians, and Arabians, the principal difference being that they are of smaller stature and darker complexion. The queen, however, is remarkably fair. The gold and the tin that we procured here, as well as the peacocks, tortoise-shell, and ivory, are all imported from India; but the spices, stuffs, and vases of opaque glass, are brought through India from a still more distant land, to which hitherto no one has ever sailed, and which could not be reached in less than a two years' voyage.

On the day of my departure I presented myself again before the Queen.

"I have to inform you, Captain Mago," she said, "that the old King David who sent you to Tarshish died a year and a half ago, and has been succeeded by his son Solomon, of whose power, but especially of whose wisdom, I hear a wonderful report. His dominions extend as far as the Gulf of Elam on the Sea of Reeds, where he holds the port of Ezion-Geber. I am eager to enter into a treaty with him, and I commission you, on my behalf, to convey to this august monarch a present that shall be worthy of himself and me."

"Your will, O Queen, is my law," I replied, as I made my obeisance.

"But first of all, captain," she continued, "tell me whether you and your companions in toil are too worn out with the fatigues that you have already endured to undertake another voyage in my service. Information has reached me that the King of Babylon, Assur, and Accad is on his way, with a powerful army, to the mouth of the Euphrates to put down an insurrection. No one so well as yourself can fulfil what I desire. I want you, if you will, to convey him some messages from me, and to be the bearer of presents that I shall send."

I did not hesitate to comply; not only did I express my willingness to go, but assured her that the voyage would be neither difficult nor long.

"Go then, brave mariner," said the Queen, with a beaming smile, "and I shall not fail to recompense you royally."

I prostrated myself once again before her, and withdrew.

An hour later I had taken leave of Ethbaal, who was returning to Sidon by way of Ezion-Geber and the canal of Pharaoh, and, with all my people, I was embarking for yet another voyage.

CHAPTER XXII

BELESYS FINDS BICHRI SOMEWHAT HEAVY

It did not take us much more than a month to sail to the mouth of the Euphrates, although during the time we made one sojourn with the Arabians, and another with the fish-eating Gedrosians on the opposite coast.

On receiving the announcement from me of the aged King David's death, Chamai and his fellow-countrymen observed a week's mourning, fasted, rent their clothes, and combed neither their hair nor their beards; but at the end of the week they made plentiful ablutions, and held a festival in honour of Solomon, the King's son and successor.