Page:Ben-Hur a tale of the Christ.djvu/542

Rh &quot;Dear Lord!&quot; the old man cried, fervently. &quot;Once more, once more! Oh, it is a dreadful day for the world!&quot;

Shortly the whole party were in waiting under shelter of the house. They said but little, afraid, probably, to trust their thoughts to each other; everything was uncertain, and nothing so much so as opinions. Balthasar drew himself feebly from the litter, and stood supported by a servant; Esther and Ben-Hur kept Simonides company.

Meantime the flood poured along, if anything, more densely than before; and the shouting came nearer, shrill up in the air, hoarse along the earth, and cruel. At last the procession was up.

&quot;See!&quot; said Ben-Hur, bitterly; &quot;that which cometh now is Jerusalem.&quot;

The advance was in possession of an army of boys, hooting and screaming, &quot;The King of the Jews! Room, room for the King of the Jews!&quot;

Simonides watched them as they whirled and danced along, like a cloud of summer insects, and said, gravely, &quot;When these come to their inheritance, son of Hur, alas for the city of Solomon!&quot;

A band of legionaries fully armed followed next, marching in sturdy indifference, the glory of burnished brass about them the while.

Then came the ! He was nearly dead. Every few steps he staggered as if he would fall. A stained gown badly torn hung from his shoulders over a seamless undertunic. His bare feet left red splotches upon the stones. An inscription on a board was tied to his neck. A crown of thorns had been crushed hard down upon his head, making cruel wounds from which streams of blood, now dry and blackened, had run over his face and neck. The long hair, tangled in the thorns, was clotted thick. The skin, where it could be seen, was ghastly white. His hands were tied before him. Back somewhere in the city he had fallen exhausted under the transverse beam of his cross, which, as a condemned person, custom required him to bear to the place of execution; now a countryman carried the burden in his stead. Four soldiers