The King of Egypt.

When from his distant journey Malik approached Egypt,

The news was spread abroad amongst the Egyptians,

“Malik arriveth to-day home from his journey,

Accompanied by a slave of Hebrew race,

A refulgent moon in the zenith of beauty,

A perpetual monarch in the kingdom of attractiveness.

Never hath heaven with its thousand eyes

Looked on a portrait like him in the picture gallery of the world.”

When the King of Egypt heard this report, he was greatly disturbed, and refused to believe it.

“The land of Egypt is the garden of beauty!

Whoever saw lovelier than the roses of this garden?

A rose which hath grown in the garden of Paradise

Would sink to the earth in shame before them!”

Then he exclaimed to the Vizier of Egypt,

“Up, and go meet this caravan on the way!

See with thine own eyes this moon of beauty,

And bring him to our court with all expedition.”

The Grand-Vizier set his face towards the caravan,

But hardly had he cast eyes on that heart-lulling countenance,

Than it so nearly robbed him of himself,

That in his ecstasy he almost bent down in adoration.

But Joseph raised up his head from the ground,

And permitteth not such an act of worship in his presence:

“Let not thine head be bowed down before any one,

Save Him who set thine head on the neck of supplication.”

Then the Grand-Vizier delivers his message to Malik; but Malik entreats him to suffer them to repose a few days from the toils of their journey, that Joseph may not appear before the King under any disadvantage. The Vizier returns, and reports this request to the King, who immediately issues his command, that all the beauty of Egypt should be selected and brought together to depreciate the boasted pre-eminence of Joseph.

Meanwhile Malik takes every care to enhance the value of Joseph, and amongst other means sends him to refresh and purify himself in the waters of the river; and under the title of

The Bathing in the Nile

follows a lively description, but somewhat too figurative to be quite intelligible to those who are not familiar with Oriental imagery, of the bathing and its effects.