“I am Mesa, the daughter of her who was the lady Baaltis,” she answered, “and my rank is that of Mother of the priestesses of Baaltis.  I appear to give true evidence against her, who is the anointed Baaltis, against the Israelitish stranger named Aziel, and the priest of the Lord of the Jews.”

“Lay your hand upon the altar and speak, but beware what you speak,” said the Shadid.

Mesa bowed her head, took the oath of truth by touching the altar with her fingers, and began:—­

“From the time that she was appointed I have been suspicious of the lady Baaltis.”

“Why were you suspicious?” asked the Shadid.

The witness let her eyes wander towards Metem, then hesitated.  Evidently for some reason of her own she did not wish to implicate him.

“I was suspicious,” she answered, “because of certain words that came from the lips of the Baaltis, when she had been thrown into the holy trance before the fire of sacrifice.  As is my accustomed part, I bent over her to hear and to announce the message of the gods, but in place of the hallowed words there issued babblings about this Hebrew stranger and of a meeting to be held with him at one hour before moonrise by the pillar of El in the courtyard of the temple.  Thereafter for several nights as was my duty I hid myself in the pit of offerings in the courtyard and watched.  Last night at an hour before the moonrise the Lady Baaltis came disguised by the secret way and waited at the pillar, where presently she was joined by the Jew Aziel and the Levite, who spoke with her.

“What they said I could not hear, because they were too far from me, but at length they left the temple and I traced them to the chambers of the Jew Aziel, in the palace of Sakon.  Then, Shadid, I warned you, and the priests and you accompanied me and took them.  Now, as Mother of the priestesses, I demand that justice be done upon these wicked ones, according to the ancient custom, lest the curse of Baaltis should fall upon this city.”

When she had finished her evidence, with a cold stare of triumphant hate at her rival, Mesa stepped to one side.

“You have heard,” said the Shadid addressing his fellow-judges.  “Do you need further testimony?  If so, it must be brief, for the sun sinks.”

“Nay,” answered the spokesman, “for with you we took the three of them together in the chamber of the prince Aziel.  Set out the law of this matter, O Judge, and let justice be done according to the strict letter of the law—­justice without fear or favour.”

“Hearken,” said the Shadid.  “Last night this woman Elissa, the daughter of Sakon, being the lady Baaltis duly elected, met men secretly in the courts of the temple and accompanied them, or one of them, to the chamber of Aziel, a prince of Israel, the guest of Sakon.  Whether or no she was about to fly with him from the city which he should have left last night, we cannot tell, and it is needless