Belshazzar's feast

“ Daniel put Ruth gently away, and taking Isaiah by the arm, led him beyond her hearing.
“I told you before, I had one last weapon against Belshazzar; but scruples of loyalty restrained me. After this,” with a weary smile, “all fealty truly ends. Hearken now to each word. You must be all resources to-night. You know the king gives a betrothal feast in the Hanging Gardens, in honour of the Persian princess. All the ministers and captains are invited saving myself—sure sign of the royal disfavour. ”

“ Chapter 5 1 Belshazzar the king has made a great feast to one thousand of his great men, and before the one thousand he is drinking wine; 2 Belshazzar has said—while tasting the wine—to bring in the vessels of gold and of silver that his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple that [is] in Jerusalem, that the king may drink with them, and his great men, his wives, and his concubines. ”

“ Ha! the waters are upon them—no hand can save;
They sink! they sink to death in one pent, dreadful grave!
Didst thou hear it, O Time, that swelling, joyful song
Of great deliverance from Israel’s grateful throng?
Art thou glad when ravening tyrants meet their fall,
And freedom’s cause is lifted up high over all?
CHAPTER III—BELSHAZZAR’S FEAST.
Stern Time, thou wast at proud Belshazzar’s sumptuous feast,
When the pomp and splendor of the sensuous East,
Robed in gold and crimson, graced the banquet hall,
And ’mid revelry saw the hand write on the wall ”

“ Wine, the true gift of the gods, is the crowning of the feast!”
The music crashed again. The nimble eunuchs cleared away the viands in a trice, and as quickly [381] brought in the great mixing-bowls of chased gold and silver. One huge tankard of perfumed Damascus they set beside the king; and Avil, taking a jewelled cup, stood pouring libation and praying loudly: “Grant, O Istar, O Nabu, O Bel, mighty deities whose power is over Babylon, that Belshazzar your servant may reign ten thousand years. Let his foes stumble, their weapons break, their bodies grow fruit for his sword. ”

“ Let the Jews go in peace, and to heal their hurts let the treasurer weigh to each a talent. The Jewess shall sleep safe as a goddess’s image in the temple. I swear it, on the word of a king of Babylon. Enough, and now to the palace.”
Darius was received with stately hospitality at the palace. He was told the arrangements made for Belshazzar’s bride. The king would give her a great betrothal feast at the Hanging Gardens, but could not wed her for one year; for before marriage she must be taught the religious duties of a queen of Babylon. Darius paced the open terrace of the palace that evening. ”

“ But Sirusur, the victor of the sortie, who next to Belshazzar’s self had won most glory in the defence, only observed, with the prudent wisdom of the all-knowing Ea:—
“Leave them alone, your Majesty; the barbarians are at strife among themselves: they will soon turn their swords on one another, and so fight for us. Our army is weary with the siege, grant it some reward before we take the field to conquer Cyrus’s provinces. Proclaim a great feast of thanksgiving throughout Babylon.” ”

“ Atossa shook her head impatiently.
“We are only women, made to trust and bear. We can only wait his will.”
[370]
CHAPTER XXIV
Nightfall again; and again a feast at the same hour when one year earlier Belshazzar had given a banquet to the daughter of Cyrus and proclaimed her his prospective bride. At early dawn all Babylonians had awakened to eat, drink, and make merry. Every beer-house had reëchoed with drunken revel. No business in the bazaars, no priests chanting their litanies on the temple-towers. ”

“ And, strange to say, men who daily overeat themselves at such dinners,—in comparison with which the feast of Belshazzar, which evoked the prophetic warning, was nothing,—are naïvely persuaded that they may at the same time lead a moral life. ”

“ The sail and pennons were covered with the rarest embroideries, the gunwale glittered with precious stones—agate, onyx, lapis-lazuli. The idol on the stern wore a robe that was one sheen of golden lace. But Belshazzar the king, who sat under his purple umbrella upon the prow, scowled at Avil, his prime counsellor, who stood beside him.
“The people give thrice as many cheers for Nabu as for Bel. The gods reward me if I do not make Imbi-Ilu pay the price for his mummery! ”

“ On the poop, where the polished teak and ivory glittered, stood a group of officers, in array glorious as the orb of Samas. Here stood Sirusur, the Tartan, commander of the host; here Bilsandan, the Rabsaki, grand vizier; here, proudest of all, Avil-Marduk, whose gray goatskin across his shoulders proclaimed him chief priest of Bel, [1] highest pontiff of the kingdom. Tall, handsome men were they all, worthy rulers of the city of cities. But at their centre was no less a person than Belshazzar himself, sovereign lord of “Sumer and Akkad,” as myriads hailed him. ”

“ Their way led along the Mûtaqutû, the smaller of Nebuchadrezzar's two boulevards; and it was lined with people that risked the possibility of being late at the opening sacrifice in their temples in order to see this imposing spectacle. For the first time in a year Belshazzar was cheered along his way. And there was something in the voices of the people that went home to the heart of the uncrowned king; so that, for the first time in his life, his eyes were wet with the tears of love that royalty should feel for its children. ”

“ In an instant Belshazzar uttered a hideous laugh.
“Good! By Istar, the Jew has me fairly on the hip! Clever jugglery, I swear, to contrive a trick that could chase the blood from the cheeks of the stoutest captains of the Chaldees! Show me the conjurer; I will pardon and reward. A clever jest, my princes, a clever jest.”
The shout died away in profound silence. The king grasped a goblet once more. “By Nabu, the jest is so well played, you still wander for wits. Daniel must have reward. Ho! Mermaza; the robe of honour and the chain of gold. Off with these rags and fetters. ”

“ Chorus of Babylonians Ye tutelar gods of our empire, look down, And see what rich trophies your victory crown. Let our bounteous gifts, which our gratitude raise, Wine, gold, merry notes, pay our tributes of praise. Sesach, this night is chiefly thine, Kind donor of the sparkling wine! 36. Air Belshazzar:
Let the deep bowl thy praise confess, Thy gifts the gracious giver bless! Thy gifts, of all the gods bestow, Improve by use, and sweeter grow. Another bowl! 'Tis gen'rous wine, Exalts the human to divine. 37. Accompagnato Belshazzar:
Where is the God of Judah's boasted pow'r? ”

“ Belshazzar drank deeply; Darius only touched his goblet; Atossa did not touch it at all.
“Ha, son of Hystaspes!” cried the king, his spirits rising with the wine that was flushing his [84] temples. “You Persians have a custom to take counsel when drunken. Strong wine is a gift from your god, yet they wait to fill your second goblet.”
Darius drained his cup, and handed it to the eunuch behind him.
“True, your Majesty; but the spirit of the wine is not to be invoked lightly. On what take counsel? War? We sealed the treaty of peace to-day.”
“Yet wine is a gift from Nabu, lord of the wise. ”

“ But I do not love his poor body more than his Aryan honour. To us death and life may be a very little thing; but outrage, insult, oath-breaking—Ahura may forgive such things, not we!”
“Out of my sight, woman!” thundered Belshazzar; and he had spurned her. The eunuchs took her away. The king drank alone, draining goblet after goblet of the most heady “Elamite”; but though he wished it, he could not grow drunken. His body eunuchs put him to bed. ”

“ But to-night you are become [382] Babylonish by becoming my wife. We strike hands in a truce. Peace is better than war. Bel-Marduk is your god now, not Ahura the helpless. Are you not ‘Queen of Sumer and Akkad’? Ask whatever you will, if in reason, and I will not refuse. But drink you with the rest,—drink to the triumphs yet to be won by Belshazzar your husband, whose glories are all yours.”
Mechanically Atossa tasted; put the goblet away. But Belshazzar still in his mood ran on: “Yes, you are a great king’s daughter, and worthy to be my wife, though Persian born. ”

“ Darius’s fingers itched to send one arrow through that royal mantle then, and let all Babylon do its worst. Suddenly it dawned on him that if he were tensely strung, the king was likewise. While he ever questioned, “How will the bolt fall?” Belshazzar’s one thought was, “How much does the envoy suspect?” They each would have given a hundred talents for one peep into the heart of the other. The thought appeared so comical to the prince that, to Belshazzar’s wonderment, he began to laugh; and that laugh refreshed him and strengthened him like a draught of new wine. ”

“ Here are still found the wild bulls—the aurochs—left nowhere in all Babylonia saving here. To kill one was the glory of the kings of old. The preserve is many furlongs on each side. The beasts run wild, and are fierce as in the virgin forest.”
“Ahura grant we meet them!”
The prince had spoken so naturally that Belshazzar darted one glance at him—arrow-swift. But it sped quickly as it came, and Darius added:—
“Yet must you hunt the bull with lions?”
“After you have once faced an auroch you will not marvel that only the king of beasts dare bay him.” ”

“ Happy the man so rich as to possess a little garden in the midst of the city. As you go south, you find vineyards and country houses inside the walls.”
“Verily,” declared Darius, “better a reed hut in the forest, and good hunting, than a thousand talents and life in Babylon!”
The frankness and good nature of the Persian [18] seemed contagious. Belshazzar laughed again, heartily.
“Now, by Marduk! you will never covet my kingdom. Tell me, do you love to follow the lion?” ”

“ But since thou, the king, knowest all and fearest naught, my fears are also laid at rest. The king my father is very great. May he live forever!" and Belshazzar smiled filially into his father's eyes.
"You do me honor to trust in me, Belshazzar," said the king, gently. "Yet do you well, also; for to whom save their king can a people look for their safety? I will tell you how the Great City is to be protected against the plots of her enemies. Priest and lord alike may prove false, and men and soldiers turn against me. I have put my strength and my trust in those that are above princes. ”

“ I pray all the gods he hear nothing of Mermaza’s rash blunder this day.”
“The envoy!” grunted Belshazzar. “What does he see and know while in Babylon? No bat is blinder to all save his sport.”
“The king is mistaken,” admonished Avil, smoothly, “if he thinks Darius utterly witless. I have watched him, and I boast to be a judge of men. When not in liquor, he is deep and crafty beyond appearance. Do nothing to offend him till the proper time; and as for the Jew’s daughter, let the king wait. Mermaza can find many another as likely maid, sold in the market for twenty shekels.” ”

“ Belshazzar's position is in the chair near the footlights; body inclined back, arms thrown up, eyes fixed on the writing, countenance expressing affright. His wife is seated in the second chair, one arm resting on the shoulder of her husband, [Pg 216] the other raised in front of the face, eyes directed to the writing. The wise men stand opposite to the throne, at the extreme end of the stage, near the footlights; their backs are to the audience; the heads of two are turned to the king, giving a side view of their faces. ”

“ But the dark-eyed Median prince, Harpagus, who sat at the king’s left hand, broke forth hotly: “Now as Mithra rains light from the heavens, I protest the Babylonian will never dare to make a hair of our prince to fall. Belshazzar and his pack of snivelling priests and paltering corn-merchants put to death a prince of our blood royal? The Chaldeans will love well to see our Aryan cavalrymen eating up all their dear farmlands like locusts! Belshazzar’s was a coward’s threat. He will make it good—never!” ”

“ They fed him with grass like oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till he knew that the Most High God ruleth in the kingdom of men, and that he appointeth over it whomsoever he will. And thou, O Belshazzar, hast not humbled thy heart, though thou knewest all this, but hast lifted up thyself against the Lord of heaven; and they have brought the vessels of his house before thee, and thou and thy lords, thy wives and thy concubines, have drunk wine in them; and thou hast praised the gods of silver and gold, of brass, iron, wood and stone, which see not, nor bear, nor know ”

“ The lion sank low upon the earth, and crept by little leaps nearer, nearer. The charming fire in the eyeballs Darius saw not, but he saw the red, lolling tongue, the bristling mane, the great tail undulating at the tip, the paws fit to crush an ox. Daniel was turning away his face.
“Arrows, O king! Shoot! My only one!” pleaded he; but Belshazzar flung back, “What is a maid beside a royal lion! Too far—no bow can carry!”
“Darius had proved his title, ‘King of the Bow.’”
Many an archer’s fingers tightened around his bow, but the king’s eye was on them. ”

“ Belshazzar!” Soldiers again: the chosen [375] sword-hands of the guard, the golden scales of the armour flashing: scarlet pennons trailing from every spear-head. Behind them on a lofty litter rode Belshazzar the king,—never more kingly than now, never arrayed before in costlier robes and tiara. And at sight of him a great shout rose spontaneously from the multitude.
“A god and not a man! Marduk appears on earth! Happy Babylon—your king was begotten in heaven!” ”