“Ay, in sore trouble, friend,” I answered; “ask me no more.”

“Then, being of the age thou art, there’s a woman in it—­that I swear—­and, perchance, though I am rough and foolish, I might make a guess.  Look thou, lad, what sayest thou?  I am weary of this service of Cleopatra and this hot land of deserts and of luxury, that sap a man’s strength and drain his pocket; and so are others whom I know of.  What sayest thou:  let’s take one of these unwieldy vessels and away to the North?  I’ll lead thee to a better land than Egypt—­a land of lake and mountain, and great forests of sweet-scented pine; ay, and find thee a girl fit to mate with—­my own niece—­a girl strong and tall, with wide blue eyes and long fair hair, and arms that could crack thy ribs were she of a mind to hug thee!  Come, what sayest thou?  Put away the past, and away for the bonny North, and be a son to me.”

For a moment I thought, and then sadly shook my head; for though I was sorely tempted to be gone, I knew that my fate lay in Egypt, and I might not fly my fate.

“It may not be, Brennus,” I answered.  “Fain would I that it might be, but I am bound by a chain of destiny which I cannot break, and in the land of Egypt I must live and die.”

“As thou wilt, lad,” said the old warrior.  “I should have dearly loved to marry thee among my people, and make a son of thee.  At the least, remember that while I am here thou hast Brennus for a friend.  And one thing more; beware of that beauteous Queen of thine, for, by Taranis, perhaps an hour may come when she will hold that thou knowest too much, and then——­” and he drew his hand across his throat.  “And now good night; a cup of wine, then to sleep, for to-morrow the foolery——­”

[Here several lengths of the second roll of papyrus are so broken as to be undecipherable.  They seem to have been descriptive of Cleopatra’s voyage up the Cydnus to the city of Tarsus.]

“And—­[the writing continues]—­to those who could take joy in such things, the sight must, indeed, have been a gallant one.  For the stern of our galley was covered with sheets of beaten gold, the sails were of the scarlet of Tyre, and the oars of silver touched the water to a measure of music.  And there, in the centre of the vessel, beneath an awning ablaze with gold embroidery, lay Cleopatra, attired as the Roman Venus (and surely Venus was not more fair!), in thin robes of whitest silk, bound in beneath her breast with a golden girdle delicately graven over with scenes of love.  All about her were little rosy boys, chosen for their beauty, and clad in naught save downy wings strapped upon their shoulders, and on their backs Cupid’s bow and quiver, who fanned her with fans of plumes.  Upon the vessel’s decks, handling the cordage, that was of silken web, and softly singing to the sound of harps and the beat of oars, were no rough sailors, but women lovely to behold, some robed as Graces and some as Nereids—­that is, scarce robed at all, except in their scented hair.  And behind the couch, with drawn sword, stood Brennus, in splendid armour and winged helm of gold; and by him others—­I among them—­in garments richly worked, and knew that I was indeed a slave!  On the high poop also burned censers filled with costliest incense, of which the fragrant steam hung in little clouds about our wake.”