“Help may be given by the left wing!” cried Horus.  “I will run as fast as I can on foot, I know where to find them.  You will easily find the king if you follow the stream to the stone bridge.  In the cross-valley about a thousand paces farther north—­to the northwest of our stronghold —­the surprise is to be effected.  Try to get through, and warn Rameses; the Egyptian pass-word is ‘Bent-Anat,’ the name of the king’s favorite daughter.  But even if you had wings, and could fly straight to him, they would overpower him if I cannot succeed in turning the left wing on the rear of the enemy.”

Pentaur galloped onwards; but it was not long before his horse too gave way, and he ran forward like a man who runs a race, and shouted the pass-word “Bent-Anat”—­for the ring of her name seemed to give him vigor.  Presently he came upon a mounted messenger of the enemy; he struck him down from his horse, flung himself into the saddle, and rushed on towards the camp; as if he were riding to his wedding.

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

During the night which had proved so eventful to our friends, much had occurred in the king’s camp, for the troops were to advance to the long-anticipated battle before sunrise.

Paaker had given his false report of the enemy’s movements to the Pharaoh with his own hand; a council of war had been held, and each division had received instructions as to where it was to take up its position.  The corps, which bore the name of the Sungod Ra, advanced from the south towards Schabatun,

[Kadesh was the chief city of the Cheta, i. e.  Aramaans, round which the united forces of all the peoples of western Asia had collected.  There were several cities called Kadesh.  That which frequently checked the forces of Thotmes III. may have been situated farther to the south; but the Cheta city of Kadesh, where Rameses II. fought so hard a battle, was undoubtedly on the Orontes, for the river which is depicted on the pylon of the Ramesseum as parting into two streams which wash the walls of the fortress, is called Aruntha, and in the Epos of Pentaur it is stated that this battle took place at Kadesh by the Orontes.  The name of the city survives, at a spot just three miles north of the lake of Riblah.  The battle itself I have described from the Epos of Pentaur, the national epic of Egypt.  It ends with these words:  “This was written and made by the scribe Pentaur.”  It was so highly esteemed that it is engraved in stone twice at Luqsor, and once at Karnak.  Copies of it on papyrus are frequent; for instance, papyrus Sallier III. and papyrus Raifet—­unfortunately much injured—­in the Louvre.  The principal incident, the rescue of the king from the enemy, is repeated at the Ramessetun at Thebes, and at Abu Simbel.  It was translated into French by Vicomte E. de Rouge.  The camp of Rameses is depicted on the pylons of Luqsor and