For triumph. Nor there wanting a led train Of solemn entry. Round about the king, Of size and comeliness above their peers, Pride of their race. Radiant their armour: some All pliant to the litheness of the limb; Array'd; save on their shields of solid ore, And on their helm, the graver's toil had wrought Its subtlety in rich device of war: And o'er their mail, a robe, Punicean dye, Bright glow'd the sun, and bright the burnish'd mail Of thousands ranged, whose pace to song kept time; And bright the glare of spears, and gleam of crests, And flaunt of banners flashing to and fro The noon-day beam. Beneath their coming, earth Shone like a sunbeam. O'er his armour flow'd A robe, imperial mantle, thickly starr'd With blaze of orient gems; the clasp, that bound Sapphire; and o'er his casque, where rubies burnt, "The song of the virgins is also written with spirit and elegance.” “Daughters of Israel! praise the Lord of Hosts! Shout ye! and ye! make answer, Saul hath slain Shout ye! and ye! make answer, Saul hath slain His thousands; David his ten thousands slain. Thou heard'st, O God of battle! Thou, whose look Robes, gift of Saul, round their light limbs, in toss Floated like roseate clouds. Thus these came on In dance and song: then multitudes that swell'd Freely their offerings; and with one accord Sang, Glory, and praise, and worship, unto God.' Loud rang the exultation. 'Twas the voice Of a free people, from impending chains Redeem'd a people proud, whose bosom beat With fire of glory and renown in arms, Triumphant. Loud the exultation rang. There, many a wife, whose ardent gaze from far Singled the warrior, whose glad eye gave back Her look of love. There, many a grandsire held A blooming boy aloft, and midst th' array In triumph, pointing with his staff, exclaim'd, There, many a beauteous virgin, blushing deep, CHAP. XVII. AFRICAN SKETCHES. "I WISH," said Egeria, one evening after Benedict had come home to their chambers in the Paper Buildings, from his nightly potched egg and pint of Burton at Offley's," that some judicious editor would compile a volume of striking passages from the different numerous publications which we have recently had respecting Africa. It is impossible to read them all;-indeed it would be a task like that of crossing the deserts to attempt it, so many pages are filled with arid and uninteresting details; and yet I am not aware of any class of books which contain more new and curious matter concerning man, than the works of the African travellers. This evening I have been looking over Burckhardt's Travels in Nubia, which, though far from being an entertaining performance, would, nevertheless, furnish several agreeable and impressive sketches.Take, for example, his account of the distress of thirst in a caravan." "After five days march in the mountains, their stock of water was exhausted, nor did they know where they were. They resolved, therefore, to direct their course towards the setting sun, hoping thus to reach the Nile. After two days thirst, fifteen slaves and one of the merchants died. Another of them, an Ababde, who had ten camels with him, thinking that the camels might know better than their masters where water was to be found, desired his comrades to tie him fast upon the saddle of his strongest camel, that he might not fall down from weakness; and thus he parted from them, permitting his camels to take their own way; but neither the man nor his camels were ever heard of afterwards. On the eighth day after leaving Owareyk, the survivors came in sight of the mountains of Shigre, which they immediately recognized, but their strength was quite exhausted, and neither men nor beasts were able to move any farther. Lying down under a rock, they sent two of their servants, with the two strongest remaining camels, in search of water. Before these two men could reach the mountain, one of them dropped off his camel deprived of speech, and able only to wave his hands to his comrade as a signal that he desired to be left to his fate. The survivor then continued his route, but such was the effect of thirst upon him, that his eyes grew dim, and he lost the road, though he had often travelled over it before, and had been perfectly acquainted with it. Having wandered about for a long time, he alighted under the shade of a tree, and tied the camel to one of its branches; the beast, however, smelt the water, (as the Arabs express it,) and, wearied as it was, broke its halter, and set off galloping furiously in the direction of the spring, which, as it afterwards appeared, was at half an hour's distance. The man, well understanding the camel's action, endeavoured to follow its footsteps, but could only move a few yards; |