19 ¶ And when they were all ga- | is as ebony, the Philistines will come thered together, the man which was into my farm, and carry away all the clothed in plain apparel looked about, full sheaves which are ready. and his heart was right merry when he saw the mighty creatures which had come in unto him, and heard the tumult of their voices, and the noise of the flapping of their wings. 20 And he lifted up his voice, and shouted with a great shout, and said, Behold, I am increased greatly, and I will do terrible things to the man who is crafty and to his two beasts. 21 And he sent away a swift messenger for a physician, which healeth all manner of bruises, and wounds, and putrefying sores, lest that he should go forth to heal up the wounds of the man that is crafty, or of his two beasts. 22 (Now this physician was a mild man, neither was there any gall within him, yet he went near. A CHAPTER III. ND while these things were yet doing, I heard a great rushing, and the sound as of a mighty wind: and I looked over the valley into the old city, and there was a tumult over against the mount of Proclamation.* 2 For when tidings of these things came to the man which was crafty, his heart died within him, and he waxed sore afraid. 3 And he said unto himself, What is this? Behold mine adversary is very mighty, neither can I go forth to fight him: for whom have I save myself only, and my two beasts? 4 And while he was yet speaking, the two beasts stood before him. 5 And the beast which was like unto a bear said, Behold, it is yet harvest, and how can I leave my corn which is in the fields? If I go forth to make war upon the man whose name 6 And the beast which was like unto a lamb† answered and said, Lo! my legs are weary, and the Egyptians which were wont for to carry me are clean gone; and wherewithal shall I go forth to make war upon the man whose name is as ebony? 7 Nevertheless will I put a sweet song against him into thy Book. 8 But the man which was crafty answered and said, Unprofitable generation! ye have given unto me a horn which is empty, and a horse which hath no feet. If ye go not forth to fight with mine adversary, deliver me up the meat which I have given unto you, and the penny which ye have of me, that I inay hire others who will fight with the man whose name is as ebony. 9 And the beasts spake not at all, neither answered they him one word. 10 But as they sat before him, the beast which was like unto a bear took courage; and he opened his mouth and said, 11 O man, thou hast fed me heretofore, and whatever entereth into thy lips is thine. Why now should we fall out about this thing? 12 Call unto thee thy counsellors, the spirits, and the wise men, and the magicians, if haply they may advise thee touching the man whose name is as ebony, and the creatures which are within his gates. Whatsoever they say, that shall be done. 13 Yet the man was not pleased, neither was his countenance lightened: nevertheless, he did even as the beast said. 14 So he called unto him a familiar spirit, unto whom he had sold himself.‡ 15 But the spirit was a wicked spirit and a cruel so he answered and *The mount of Proclamation was a part of the Old Town of Edinburgh, on which, while the Stuarts reigned, heralds and criers used to read royal mandates and proclamations.-M. + Cleghorn was the bear, and Pringle the lamb.-M. Francis Jeffrey was Constable's "familiar spirit."-M. THE CHALDEE MANUSCRIPT. said, Lo, have I not put great might into the horn which is in thy forehead? What more said I ever that I would do unto thee? Thy soul is in my hands do as thou listest in this thing. 16 But the man entreated him sorely, yet he listened not: for he had great fear of the vision of the man who was clothed in dark garments, and who had a veil upon his head; 17 (For he was of the seed of those which have command over the devils.) 18 And while the beasts were yet looking, lo, he was not; 19 For even in the twinkling of an eye he was present in the courts of the palace, to tempt the souls of the chief priests, and the scribes, and all those which administer the law for the King, and to deliver some malefactors which he loved out of their hand. 20 Then the man called with a loud voice on some other spirits in whom he put his trust. 21 And the first was a cunning spirit, which hath its dwelling in the secret places of the earth, and hath command over the snow and the hail, and is as a pestilence to the poor man : for when he is hungry he lifteth up the lid of his meal-garnel, to take out meal, and lo! it is full of strong ice. 22 And the second was a little blind spirit, which hath a number upon his forehead; and he walketh to and fro continually, and is the chief of the heathen which are the worshippers of fire. He is also of the seed of the prophet, and ministered in the temple while he was yet young; but he went out, and became one of the scoffers. 23 But when these spirits heard the words of the man, and perceived his trouble, they gave no ear unto his outcry, neither listened they to the voice of his supplication. 24 And they laughed at the man with a loud laughter, and said unto him, Lo, shall we leave our digging into the bowels of the earth, or our ice, or our fire, with which we deceive the nations, and come down to be as it XXV were servants unto thee and these two beasts, which are lame beasts, and unprofitable? Go to, man, seek thou them which are thy fellows. 25 And they vanished from his sight: and he heard the voice of their laughter, both he and his two beasts. 26 But when the spirits were gone, he said unto himself, I will arise and go unto a magician which is of my friends: of a surety he will devise some remedy, and free me out of all my distresses. 27 So he arose and came unto that great magician which hath his dwelling in the old fastness, hard by the river Jordan, which is by the Border. 28 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: 29 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. of 30 Moreover, thine adversary also is my familiars. 31 The land is before thee: draw thou up thine hosts for the battle on the mount of Proclamation, and defy boldly thine enemy, which hath his camp in the place of Princes; quit ye as men, and let favour be shown unto him which is most valiant. 32 Yet be thou silent: peradventure will I help thee some little. 33 But the man which is crafty saw that the magician loved him not. For he knew him of old, and they had had many dealings; and he perceived that he would not assist him in the day of his adversity. 34 So he turned about, and went out of his fastness. And he shook the dust from his feet, and said, Behold, I have given this magician much money, yet see now, he hath utterly deserted me. * Verily, my fine gold hath perished. * Scott and Constable long had intimate relations, as author and publisher; but, taking VOL. I. B 35 But when he had come back unto his house, he found the two beasts which were yet there; and behold the beasts were gabbling together, and making much noise. And when he looked in, behold yet another beast; and they were all gabbling together. 36 Now the other beast was a beast which he loved not. A beast of burden which he hath in his courts to hew wood and carry water, and to do all manner of unclean things. His face was like unto the face of an ape, and he chattered continually, and his nether parts were uncomely. Nevertheless, his thighs were hairy, and the hair was as the shining of a satin raiment, and he skipped with the branch of a tree in his hand, and he chewed a snail between his teeth. 37 Then said the man, Verily this beast is altogether unprofitable, and whatsoever I have given unto him to do he has spoiled: he is a sinful thing, and speaketh abominably: his doings are impure, and all people are astonished that he abideth so long within my gates. 38 But if thou lookest upon him and observest his ways, behold he was born of his mother before yet the months were fulfilled, and the substance of a living thing is not in him, and his bones are like the potsherd which is broken against any stone. 39 Therefore my heart pitieth him, and I wish not that he utterly famished; and I give unto him a little bread and wine that his soul may not faint; and I send him messages unto the towns and villages which are round about; and I give him such work as is meet for him. 40 But if we go forth to the battle, let him not go with us. 41 For behold the griffin hath heretofore wounded him, and the scorpion 42 Moreover, the eagle of heaven also is his dread, and he is terrified for the flapping of his huge wings, and for his cry, which is like the voice of an unknown tongue, also his talons, which are sharper than any two-edged sword. 43 And if it cometh to pass that he seeth them in the battle, he will not stand, but surely turn black and flee. 44 Therefore let us not take him with us, lest he be for an ensample unto the simple ones. 45 And while he was yet speaking, behold he heard a knocking upon the stair, as if yet another beast had been stirring. 46 And lo, it was even so. 47 And another beast came in, whose disease was the murrain, who had eyes yet saw not, and whose laughter was like the laughter of them whose life is hidden, and which know not what they do. 48 And I heard a voice cry, Alas! alas! even as if it were Heu! heu! 46 Now the man was sick at heart when he perceived that he was there with the four beasts,* and he said, Wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from the weight of beasts which presseth sore upon me? 50 Then the four beasts waxed very wroth, and they all began for to cry out against the man which is crafty. 51 And he said, O race of beasts, be ye still, and keep silence until I consider what shall be done in this matter. 52 And while he spake, it seemed as if he trembled and were afraid of the four beasts and of the staves wherewith they skipped. CHAPTER IV. hath stung him sorely in the hips and BUT while he was yet trembling, lo, the thighs, and also in the face. came in one which was his offence at some expression of Constable's partner, Scott employed Blackwood as his publisher greatly to the annoyance and loss of "The Crafty." After a time, Constable resumed his relations with Scott, and they were continued, until the Panic of 1825 caused Constable's bankruptcy and Scott's ruin.—M. * I am unable to say who were the two other "beasts" here introduced.-M. THE CHALDEE MANUSCRIPT. familiar friend from his youth upwards, who keepeth the books of the scribes, and is hired to expound things which he knoweth not, and collecteth together the remains of the wise men. 2 And he opened his mouth and said, Lo, I have come even this hour from the camp of the enemy, and I have spoken with the man whose name is as ebony. 3 And while I was speaking with him kindly, lo, some of the creatures which are within his gates took notice of me, and they warned him. So he put no faith nor trust in me. 4 But take thou good heed to thyself, for they that are against thee are mighty, and I have seen their num bers. 5 Now when the man heard this, he waxed yet more fearful. 6 Then there came into his chamber another of his friends, one whose nose is like the beak of a bird of prey, whose mouth is foul, and his teeth reach from the right ear even unto the left; and he said, For why art thou so cast down? be of good cheer; behold I have an old breastplate which I will put on, and go forth with thee unto the battle. 7 And further, he began to speak of the north, and the great men of the north, even the giants, and the painted folk, but they stopped him, for of his speaking there is no end. 8 Then there came into his chamber a lean man, which hath his dwelling by the great pool to the north of the New City ;* 9 Which had been of the familiars of the man in plain apparel while they were yet youths, before he had been tempted of the man which is crafty; 10 Whose name had gone abroad among the nations on many books, even as his father's name had gone abroad: 11 One which delighteth in trees, and fruits, and flowers; the palm-tree and the olive, the pomegranate and the vine, the fig and the date, the tulip and the lily; * This "lean man " xxvii 12 Which had sojourned in far lands, gathering herbs for the chief position. 13 And he had a rotten melon on his head, after the fashion of an helmet. 14 And the man which is crafty began to take courage when his friends were gathered unto him, and he took his trumpet with boldness, and began to blow for them over which he had power. 15 But of them which listened to him, their limbs were weak, and their swords blunt, and the strings of their bows were moist. 16 Nevertheless he made an assemblage of them over against the mount of Proclamation: and these are the names of his host, and the number of his banners, whom he marshalled by the mount of Proclamation the day that he went forth to make war upon the man whose name is as ebony. 17 Now behold the four beasts were in the first band, yet they trembled, and desired not to be in the front of the host. 18 And in the second band was one which teacheth in the schools of the young men, and he was clad in gray garment whereof one-half his wife had weaved. 19 Also, Samuel, a vain young man, and a simple, which sitteth in the King's Courts, and is a tool without edge in the hands of the oppressors. 20 Also, John, the brother of James, which is a man of low stature, and giveth out merry things, and is a lover of fables from his youth up. 21 Also, James, the young man which cometh out of the west country, which feareth God, and hateth all manner of usury; who babbleth of many things, and nibbleth the shoe-latchets of the mighty; one which darkeneth counsel with the multiplying of vain words; 22 To whose sayings no man taketh heed. 23 And in the third band were a grave man, even George, the chief of the synagogue, a principal man, yea, the leader of the doctors, whose beard reacheth down unto his girdle; was Peter Hill, a bookseller in Edinburgh.-M. 24 And one David, which dwelleth | at the corner as thou goest up to the place of the old prison-house, which talketh touching all manner of pictures and graven images; and he came with a feather on his head.* 34 And John the brother of Francis,§ and the man which offered Consolation to the man which is crafty. 35 Also seven young men, whereof no man could tell by what name they were called. 36 But when I saw them all gath. 25 And Andrew the chief physician, and Andrew his son, who is a smoothered together, I said unto myself, Of a man, and one which handleth all wind instruments, and boweth himself down continually before the horn which is in the forehead of the man which is crafty, and worshippeth it. 26 With James, the baker of sweet breads, which weareth a green mantle, which inhabiteth the dwelling of the nobles, and delighteth in the tongue of the strange man. 27 And Peter, who raileth at his master. 28 And in the fourth band I saw the face of Samuel,‡ which is a mason, who is clothed in gorgeous apparel, and his face was as the face of the moon shining in the north-west. 29 The number of his bands was four; and in the first band there were the four beasts, 30 And in the second band there were nine men of war, and in the third six, and in the fourth ten. 31 And the number of the bands was four: and the number of them which were in the bands was twenty and nine; and the man which was crafty commanded them. 32 And the screaming bird sat upon his shoulder. truth the man which is crafty hath many in his host, yet think I that scarcely will these be found sufficient against them which are in the gates of the man who is clothed in plain apparel. 37 And I thought of the vision of the man which was clothed in dark garments, and of the leopard, and the lynx, and the scorpion, and the eagle, and the great boar of Lebanon, and the griffin; 38 The stork, and the hyena, and the beagle, and all the mighty creatures which are within the gates of the man in plain apparel. 39 Verily, the man which is crafty shall be defeated, and there shall not escape one to tell of his overthrow. 40 And while I was yet speaking, the hosts drew near, and the city was moved; and my spirit failed within me, and I was sore afraid, and I turned to escape away. & 41 And he that was like unto the messenger of a king, said unto me, Cry. And I said, What shall I cry for the day of vengeance is come upon all those that ruled the nations with a rod of iron. 33 And there followed him many 42 And I filed into an inner chamwomen which know not their right | ber to hide myself, and I heard a great hand from the left, also some cattle. tumult, but I wist not what it was. * Who was meant by Samuel, John, James, and George, I cannot say-the allusions are so entirely personal and local. David was Mr. Brydges, a cloth merchant in the Old Town, who was a very good judge of pictures, and had made a fine collection.-M. + The two Andrew Duncans, father and son, were eminent physicians in Edinburgh at this time. The younger was author or compiler of "The Edinburgh Dispensatory."-M. This was Samuel Anderson, high among the Freemasons of Scotland. He was a winemerchant, but, in Brougham's Chancellorship, received the lucrative appointment of Registrar of the English Court of Chancery. He figures in "The Nootes," as one of North's guests.-M. 3 John Jeffrey, younger brother of the critic.-M. Nobody knew who "the seven young men " were. They are often mentioned through the Magazine, and at "The Noctes," but there is no clue to their identity-if any.-M. |