Moses
A Drama (Classic Reprint)

Excerpt from Moses: A Drama<br><br>First Lord: The days of Rameses draw to their close,<br>And who shall follow him upon the throne<br>Becomes the question of most moment, - that<br>Which most concerns the state. Of all his sons,<br>Or all the scions of the royal stock,<br>Which is most worthy, which most capable,<br>To wield the sceptre he so gloriously<br>Has held for Egypt's honor, now becomes<br>The problem we must solve; which as we solve<br>Determines for the years to come the weal<br>Or woe of Egypt. Say, most noble priest,<br>Who'st had the training of the princely boys,<br>In which of all the royal neophytes,<br>Shows most the spirit of the radiant God<br>Whom we adore, the light and strength of Egypt<br><br>Seti: 'Tis well you ask that question; for the king<br>Of Egypt should be he who most reveals<br>The spirit of the God; above all he<br>Who has displayed the mind most teachable.<br><br>Second Lord: Perhaps you'd have a priest upon the throne<br><br>Seti: Priests have not made the worst of rulers.<br><br>Second Lord: Aye,<br>When splendid quiet is the state's chief aim.<br><br>Seti: Can any ruler grant a better boon<br>Than peace, so it be not inglorious<br><br>First Lord: Has any ruler done for Egypt more<br>Than Rameses, in whose long reign no year<br>Has been unmarked by battles, that have brought<br>Fame to the arms of Egypt, and renown<br>Throughout the earth, such as no previous king<br>But Thothmes has achieved<br><br>Seti: Doubtless the fame<br>Of Egypt never was more widely spread;<br>But war has not been under Rameses<br>The grand ebullience of the people's strength,<br>As under the great Thothmes; but the forced<br>Expression of a feverish vigor, that<br>Has brought exhaustion in its train, and ills<br>We shall be long recovering from. No state<br>Can spend its strength forever in vast wars<br>Of conquest, more than without sleep a man<br>Can labor with impunity to heap<br>Up hoards of treasure. Madness must result<br>Both to the individual and the state<br>From such immoderate ambition.<br><br>About the Publisher<br><br>Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com<br><br>This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.