Hebrew Heroes, A Tale Founded on Jewish History

the olives, and the solitude of the secluded place where Pollux had left him, were refreshing to the young Greek's spirit. He threw himself on the gras

ving souls, spirits freed from the chains of matter, shining for ever in the firmament above? I must know more of that H

row into verse some of the ideas suggested to his mind by the martyrdom

ory," he murmured to himself; "who would carve flowers upon the

, his head drooped upon his arm, his eyeli

thered whisper, and the faint rustle of garments. The Athenian opened his eyes, and gazed from his

he faint gleam, apparently engaged in some work which needed concealment, for none of them carried a torch. Lycidas, himself silent as the grave, watched the movements of those before him with a curiosity which for a time so en

est. Not that his tunic and mantle were of richer materials than those of his comrades; plain and dusty with travel were the sandals upon his feet, and he wore the simple white turban which a field-labourer might have worn. But never had turban been folded around a

the branches of the very tree against the trunk of which, on the further side, the

The leader himself threw off his mantle, took a spade, and laboured with energy, bringing the whole force of his powerful muscles to bear on his hum

vidently chosen for its seclusion; one of them was clothed in dark garments, the other was shrouded in a large white linen veil. Other figures in white seemed to be stretched upon the ground in repose. Lycidas watched this silent group for hours, and all remained motionless as marble, save that ever and

rest or to speak save once. It was almost a relief to Lycidas to hear at last the sound of a human voice from one of those phantom-like toilers by night. He who spoke was the fiercest-

sing himself to him whom Lycidas had mentally named "the Hebrew prince," on account of his co

the remark, and the wild

charged with a mission from the tyrant to compel its inha

aybreak I set out for

tathias would rather have you abs

ther," said the princely Hebrew; and as he spoke he threw up a spadeful

risen above the trees before that silence was once

nd broad enough; go ye an

ave, went towards the group which has been previously mentioned. Interest chained Lycidas to the spot, though it

over the remains while the grave was being prepared. The first of these was a tall, stately woman, with hair which glistened in the moonbeams like silver, braided back from a face of which age had not destroyed the majestic beauty. Sternly sad stood the Hebrew matron by the gra

. Lycidas remarked that the eyes of the leader watched that veiled form, as it approached, with a softened and somewhat anxious expressi

d not that glimpse to feel certain that those whose remains were thus secretly interred by kinsmen or friends at the peril of their lives, were the same as those whose martyrdom he had so indignantly witnessed. The Athenian knew enough of the Syrian tyrant to estimate how daring and how difficult must have been the feat of rescuing so many of the bodies of his victims from the dishonour of being le

orm into his arms, the matron uttered a short sentence over it, in which words of the ancient Hebrew spoken by her fathers blended with the Chaldee, then the language commonly used by the Jews. Her thoughts, as she gave them utterance, clothed thems

pour dust upon our heads. He who hath bereaved thee of life, would bereave thee even of ou

ger Jerusalem trodden by the heathen, nor the abomina

r, so didst thou yield thy body to

which it had grown, yet blossomed and bare fruit; cut off a

with them was surely with thee; and the Angel of Death hath bidden thee come forth, nau

ouch thine is rather consecration; for it is a h

breathed her requiem over the seve

ring, thou shalt slumber in peace on her bosom. Ye were lovely

n had been placed in their quiet grave; but there was a bitterness of grief in the wail of the Hebrew woman ov

God. Thy diadem lacks no gem--thy circle of love is unbroken. Blessed she who, dying by her martyred sons, could say to her Lord: Lo, I and the children whom

d in the grave, the chief rose from it, and joined

ant of Aaron the high-priest of God, have you no word t

ived in that remote period must have seemed as full of mystery as of consolation,--"Thy dead shall live! My dead body shall

serene as before. Turning to the veiled woman near her, she said, "We may not burn perfumes over these our honoured dead, but you, Zarah,

an the poet had ever beheld even in his dreams, as the full stream of moonlight fell on the countenance of the fairest of all the daughters of Zion. Her long dark lashes drooped, moist with tears, as she performed her simple act of reverence towards her dead kinsmen; then Zarah raised

ll be observed that interp