THE CHALDEE MANUSCRIPT. 3 And I looked, and behold a man | clothed in plain apparel stood in the door of his house: and I saw his name, and the number of his name; and his name was as it had been the color of ebony, and his number was the number of a maiden, when the days of the years of her virginity have expired.* 4 And I turned mine eyes, and behold two beastst came from the land of the borders of the South; and when I saw them I wondered with great admiration. 5 The one beast was like unto a lamb, and the other like unto a bear; and they had wings on their heads; their faces also were like the faces of men, the joints of their legs like the polished cedars of Lebanon, and their feet like the feet of horses preparing to go forth to battle; and they arose and they came onward over the face of the earth, and they touched not the ground as they went. 6 And they came unto the man who was clothed in plain apparel, and stood in the door of his house. 7 And they said unto him, Give us of thy wealth, that we may eat and live, and thou shalt enjoy the fruits of our labors for a time, times, or half a time. 8 And he answered and said unto them, What will you unto me whereunto I may employ you? 9 And the one said, I will teach the people of thy land to till and to sow; to reap the harvest, and gather the sheaves into the barn; to feed their flocks, and enrich themselves with the wool. 10 And the other said, I will teach the children of thy people to know and xix discern betwixt right and wrong, the good and the evil, and in all things that relate to learning, and knowledge, and understanding. 11 And they proffered unto him a Book; and they said unto him, Take thou this, and give us a piece of money, that we may eat and drink, that our souls may live. 12 And we will put words into the Book that shall astonish the children of thy people; and it shall be a light unto thy feet, and a lamp unto thy path; it shall also bring bread to thy household, and a portion to thy maidens. 13 And the man hearkened to their voice, and he took the Book and gave them a piece of money, and they went away rejoicing in heart. And I heard a great noise, as if it had been the noise of many chariots, and of horsemen passing upon their horses. 14 But after many days they put no words into the Book, and the man was astonied and waxed wroth, and he said unto them, What is that you have done unto me, and how shall I answer those to whom I am engaged? And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that. 15 And the man wist not what for to do: and he called together the friends of his youth, and all those whose heart was as his heart, and he entreated them, and they put words into the Book, and it went forth abroad, and all the world wondered after the Book, and after the two beasts that had put such amazing words into the Book. 16 Now in those days, there lived also a man who was crafty§ in counsel, aud cunning in all manner of working: * William Blackwood, (Ebony,) whose then place of business was at 17 Prince's street. In 1830 he removed to 45 George street, where Maga continues to be published.-M. Pringle and Cleghorn, the original editors of Blackwood's Magazine, were "the two beasts." Both were deformed in person. They had gone over to Constable, the publisher of the Edinburgh Review, and of the old Scots' Magazine, and the satire of the Chaldee MS. was elicited by this defection. In one of Scott's letters, in February, 1818, four months after the Chaldee appeared, he says: "Blackwood is in rather a bad pickle just now-sent to Coventry by the trade, as the booksellers call themselves, and all about the parody of the two beasts."-M. Blackwood's Magazine was "the Book.”—M. § Archibald Constable, the celebrated Edinburgh publisher, had obtained the sobriquet of 17 And I beheld the man, and he was comely and well-favoured, and he had a notable horn in his forehead wherewith he ruled the nations. 18 And I saw the horn,* that it had eyes, and a mouth speaking great things, and it magnified itself even to the Prince of the Host, and it cast down the truth to the ground, and it grew and prospered. 19 And when this man saw the Book, and beheld the things that were in the Book, he was troubled in spirit, and much cast down. 20 And he said unto himself, Why stand I idle here, and why do I not bestir myself? Lo! this Book shall become a devouring sword in the hand of mine adversary, and with it will he root up or loosen the horn that is in my forehead, and the hope of my gains shall perish from the face of the earth. 21 And he hated the Book, and the two beasts that had put words into the Book, for he judged according to the reports of men; nevertheless, the man was crafty in counsel, and more cunning than his fellows. 22 And he said unto the two beasts, Come ye and put your trust under the shadow of my wings, and I will destroy the man whose name is as ebony, and his Book. 25 And I will make of you a great name; and I will place you next to the horn that is in my forehead,† and it shall be a shelter to you in the day of great adversity; and it shall defend you from the horn of the unicorn and from the might of the Bulls of Ba| shan. 26 And you shall be watchers and guard unto it from the emmet and the spider, and the toad after his kind; 27 And from the mole that walketh in darkness, and from the blow-fly after his kind, and the canker-worm after his kind, and the maggot after his kind. 28 And by these means you shall wax very great, for the things that are low shall be exalted. 29 And the two beasts gave ear unto him; and they came over unto him, and bowed down before him with their faces to the earth. 30 But when the tidings of these things came to the man who was clothed in plain apparel, he was sore dismayed and his countenance fell. 31 And it repented him that he had taken the Book, or sent it forth abroad; and he said, I have been sore deceived and betrayed; but I will of myself yield up the Book, and burn it with fire, and give its ashes to the winds of heaven. 32 But certain that were there present said unto him, Why art thou dismayed? and why is thy countenance fallen? Go to now; gird up thy loins like a man, and call unto thee thy friends, and the men of thy household, and thou shalt behold and see that they that are for thee are more "The Crafty," several years before it was given to him in the Chaldee MS. The title, which stuck to him, annoyed him very much-the more so, perhaps, as he was fond of conferring nicknames upon others. Murray, the London publisher, he called The Emperor of the West; he dubbed himself The Czar of Muscovy; facetious John Ballantyne was The Dey of Alljeers; and Longman & Co., of London, were The Divan, in his nomenclature. One of Longman's firm dined with him at his country-house, and noticed what appeared to be a group of swans in the pond. "Swans!" cried Constable: "they are only geese, man. There are just five of them, and their names are Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown." The Londoner did not relish the jest.-M. * By the horn, which ruled the nations, the Edinburgh Review was indicated.-M. + Constable spared no cost to make his Edinburgh Magazine superior to Blackwood's, but did not succeed.-M. THE CHALDEE MANUSCRIPT. and mightier than those that be against thee. 33 And when the man whose name was as ebony, and whose number was the number of a maiden, when the days of the years of her virginity have expired, heard this saying, he turned about; 34 And he took from under his girdle a gem of curious workmanship of silver, made by the hand of a cunning artificer, and overlaid within with pure gold; and he took from thence something in color like unto the dust of the earth, or the ashes that remain of a furnace, and he snuffed it up like the east wind, and returned the gem again into its place.* 35 Whereupon he opened his mouth, and he said unto them, As thou hast spoken, so shall it be done. 36 Woe unto all them that take part with the man who is crafty in counsel, and with the two beasts! 37 For I will arise and increase my strength, and come upon them like the locust of the desert, to abolish and overwhelm, and to destroy, and to pass over. 38 So he called together the wise men of the city, both from the Old City, and from the city which is on this side of the valley, even the New City, which looketh toward the north; and the wise men came. 39 And lo! there stood before him an aged man, whose hair was as white as snow, and in whose hand there was a mirror, wherein passed to and fro the images of the ancient days.t 40 And he said, Behold, I am stricken in years, mine eyes are dim. What will ye that I do unto you? Seek ye them that are young. 41 And all the young men that were xxi there lifted up their voice and said, We have sat at thy feet all the days of the years which we have lived upon the earth; and that which we know is thine, and our learning is thine; and as thou sayest, even so will we do. 42 And he said unto them, Do ye what is meet in this thing, and let not our friend be discomfited, neither let the man which is crafty rejoice, nor the two beasts. 43 And when he had said this, he arose and went away; and all the young men arose up, and humbled themselves before him when he went away. 44 Then spake the man clothed in plain apparel to the great magician who dwelleth in the old fastness, hard by the river Jordan, which is by the Border. And the magician opened + his mouth, and said, Lo! my heart wisheth thy good, and let the thing prosper which is in thy hands to do it. 45 But thou seest that my hands are full of working, and my labour is great. For, lo, I have to feed all the people of my land, and none knoweth whence his food cometh;§ but each man openeth his mouth, and my hand filleth it with pleasant things. 46 Moreover, thine adversary also is of my familiars. 47 The land is before thee: draw thou up thy hosts for the battle in the place of Princes, over against thine adversary, which hath his station near the mount of the Proclamation; quit ye as men, and let favour be shown unto him which is most valiant. 48 Yet be thou silent: peradventure will I help thee some little. 49 So he made request also unto a wise man which had come out of Joppa, where the ships are, one that *This description of a snuff-box is one of the best hits in the Chaldee MS., and was greatly admired by Scott, as orientalizing a common and familiar object.-M. + The aged man was Henry Mackenzie, and the mirror in his hand alluded to his periodical, "The Mirror,” formerly conducted by him with ability and spirit. He was one of the earliest contributors to Maga.-M. ‡ Sir Walter Scott, "the great Magician of the North," whose residence, Abbotsford, was situated in a border county, by the river Tweed.-M. At this time, the authorship of the Waverley Novels was unacknowledged.-M. had sojourned in far countries, whose wisdom is great above all the children of the east, one which teacheth the sons of the honourable men, and speaketh wonderful things in the schools of the learned men: 50 One which speaketh of trees and of beasts, and of fowl and of creeping things, and of fishes, from the great Leviathan that is in the deep sea even unto the small muscle which dwelleth in the shell of the rock; 51 Moreover, of all manner of precious stones, and of the ancient mountains, and the moving of the great waters: 52 One which had been led before the Chief Priests, and lauded of them for smiting a worshipper of Fire in the land, which being interpreted, signifieth bread. 53 And he said, Behold, here is a round stone, set thou that in a ring, and put the ring upon thy finger, and behold, while the ring is upon thy finger, thou shalt have no fear of the man which is crafty, neither of the two beasts. 54 Then the man spake to a wise man which had a light in his hand and crown of pearls upon his head, and he said, Behold, I will brew a sharp poison for the man which is crafty, and the two beasts. Wait ye till I come. his way. So he arose also and went 55 Also to a wise young man, which is learned in the law, even as his father was learned, and who lifteth up his voice in the courts of the treasury of our Lord the King, with his fellow, who is one of the sons of the Prophets. 56 He spake also to a learned man who sendeth all the King's messengers to the four corners of the great city, each man clothed in scarlet, and bear 59 But he was now a dealer in wine and oil, and in the fishes which are taken in the nets of the people of the west; 60 Also in strong drink. 61 Then sent he for one cunning in sharp instruments and edged tools, even in razors; but he had taken unto himself a wife, and could not come. 62 But, behold, while they were yet speaking, they heard a voice of one screeching in the gate, and the voice was a sharp voice, even like the voice of the unclean bird which buildeth its nest in the corner of the temple, and defileth the holy places. 63 But they opened not the door, neither answered they a word to the voice of its screaming. So the unclean thing flew away, neither could they find any trace of its going. 64 And there was a silence in the assembly. And, behold, when they began to speak, they were too many, neither could the man know what was the meaning of their counsel, for they spake together, and the voice of their speaking was mingled. 65 So the man was sore perplexed, and he wist not what for to do. CHAPTER II. ing a bundle of letters, touching the NOW, behold, as soon as they were affairs of men, in his right hand. f gone, he sat down in his inner *John Hope, afterwards one of the Lords of Session, (or Supreme Judges of Scotland,) whose father, Charles Hope, was then Lord President of the Court of Session.-M. + The Postmaster-General of Scotland. The coachmen, guards, and letter-carriers then wore an uniform, of which a scarlet coat was the most remarkable portion.-M. THE CHALDEE MANUSCRIPT. chamber, which looketh toward the street of Oman, and the road of Gabriel, as thou goest up into the land of Ambrose,* and the man leaned with his face upon his hand. 2 And while he was yet musing, there stood before him a man clothed in dark garments, having a veil upon his head; and there was a rod in his hand. 3 And he said, Arise, let not thine heart be discouraged, neither let it be afraid. 4 Behold, if thou wilt listen unto me, I will deliver thee out of all thy distresses, neither shall any be able to touch a hair of thy head. 5 And when the man heard the voice of his speaking, behold, there was in his voice courage, and in his counsel boldness. And he said unto him, Do thou as it seemeth good unto thee; as thou sayest even so will I do. 6 And the man who had come in answered and said, Behold, I will call mighty creatures which will comfort thee, and destroy the power of thy adversary, and will devour the two beasts. 7 So he gave unto the man in plain apparel a tablet, containing the names of those upon whom he should call. And when he called, they came; and whomsoever he asked, he came. 8 And the man with the veil stood by, but there was a cloud about him, neither could they which came see him, nor tell who it was that compelled their coming. 9 And they came in the likeness of living things, but I knew not who were they which came. xxiii whose going forth was comely as the greyhound, and his eyes like the lightning of fiery flame. 11 And the second was the lynx that lurketh behind the white cottage in the mountains. 12 There came also, from a far country, the scorpion, which delighteth to sting the faces of men, that he might sting sorely the countenance of the man which is crafty, and of the two beasts. 13 Also the great wild boar from the forest of Lebanon, and he roused up his spirit, and I saw him whetting his dreadful tusks for the battle.‡ 14 And the griffin came with a roll of the names of those whose blood had been shed between his teeth; and I saw him standing over the body of one that had been buried long in the grave, defending it from all men; and behold there were none which durst come near him. 15 Also the black eagle of the desert, whose cry is as the sound of an | unknown tongue, which flieth over the ruins of the ancient cities, and hath his dwelling among the tombs of the wise men. 16 Also the stork which buildeth upon the house-top, and devoureth all manner of unclean things, and all beetles, and all manner of flies, and much worms. 17 And the hyæna which escheweth the light, and cometh forth at the evening tide to raise up and gnaw the bones of the dead, and is as a riddle unto the vain man. 18 And the beagle and the slow10 And the first which came was hound after their kind, and all the after the likeness of the beautiful leop-beasts of the field, more than could be ard, from the valley of the palm trees, numbered, they were so many. * Oman kept a hotel in Edinburgh. Ambrose's Tavern was situated at the back of Princes Street, in a place called Gabriel's Road, from a murder committed there by a tutor named Gabriel, on two of his pupils. He was caught in the act, ("red-handed,") and, by power of an ancient law, was hanged on the spot, with the bloody knife around his neck.-M. + This man, thus mysteriously veiled, was the unknown Editor of Blackwood. The personality of Christopher North was not invented until September, 1819.-M. Wilson was the leopard. Robert Sym (afterwards Timothy Tickler of "The Noctes was the hyæna. Lockhart was the scorpion. Hogg, of course, was "the great wild boar from the forest." Gillies lived at "the white cottage in the mountains."-M. |