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Article THE BUILDER'S OATH. ← Page 4 of 5 →
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The Builder's Oath.
presented to the monarch ' s view the signet upon his finger , the possession of which was the proof of his just claim to the honor decreed . " Accept , " said the king , " the wreath thy skill hath merited . The council will confer with thee upon the expenditure and necessary labour of the work , which shall be rewarded in proportion to the excellence of the design . " Clitus was about to place the wreath upon his brow , when Tyrrius , flushed with anger and disappointment , advanced from the crowd of citizens .
" Pardon , oh , king ! he cried ; " but pause ere you proceed to honor thus aii unknown man . What proof have we of his capability to complete the design he hath produced ?—nay , what proof have we that it is his ? It may have been stolen . Thou knowest , " he added , " that , as an Etruscan , he is not of our order . " " Question me ! " answered Orbanes , " thou wilt find , proud man , my knowledge not inferior unto thine . The restrictive jealousy of thine orderso opposed to the princiles which it founded
, pure p on was , are o ' erleaped . In Egypt , the land of wonders and of science , in her caverned pyramids and stately temples , I have sought and gained the wisdom vainly denied me here . Assemble , then , your chiefs—from the banded seven to the sacred three , —Orbanes can prove his title , and maintain his place . " As he finished , a shout of triumph from the Etruscans rent the air , the hitherto impregnable barrier between the two nations was past , the long ht secret The their silent
soug won . Tyrrheni , on part , were ; whether the speaker had convinced them by his eloquence , or whether some occult sign had escaped him , which justified his words , certain it is that all opposition ended , and the wreath was placed upon his brow amid the acclamations of his countrymen , and the silence of the hitherto superior Tyrrheni . As the throng were dispersing , Lenos , who had hitherto been the most successful architect of the people , and to whom the opinion of the public had pre-assigned the prize , advanced towards his successful
competitor , and publicly embraced him , an act which again rent the air with the shouts of applause that followed it—the assembled citizens crying with one voice— " Success to the Etruscan Orbanes ! honour to the Tyrrhenian Lenos ! " Shortly afterwards the crowd dispersed . That night Clitus and the elders were seated in council , in which it was debated whether for the future the last distinction which existed betiveen the two nations should not be abolished , and the Etrusci admitted to ci
a partipation of those secret arts and sciences which had hitherto been confined solely to the conquerors . The question was warmly disputed on either side ; the politic were for still continuing the restriction , as the means of perpetuating an unjust and mortifying superiority . The more philosophic of the party were for admitting them to an immediate and full equality . How long the dispute might have lasted cannot now be said , as it was suddenly interrupted by the arrival of a messenger with
the alarming intelligence that Orbanes had been found assassinated in a wood leading front the city , —that Tyrrius had been arrested near the spot , with his garments stained with blood , that the Etrusci had assembled in arms , and infuriated to madness by the death of their countryman , demanded instant justice on the assassin . Intelligence of such a character quickly put an end to the debate , and the king , attended by the elders , proceeded to the forum , where the insurgents were assembled . It was night—the light of a thousand torches displayed the enraged countenances of the Etruscans , who , armed with every variety of weapon , sur ^ rounded the bier on which was laid the body of the unfortunate Orbanes .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
The Builder's Oath.
presented to the monarch ' s view the signet upon his finger , the possession of which was the proof of his just claim to the honor decreed . " Accept , " said the king , " the wreath thy skill hath merited . The council will confer with thee upon the expenditure and necessary labour of the work , which shall be rewarded in proportion to the excellence of the design . " Clitus was about to place the wreath upon his brow , when Tyrrius , flushed with anger and disappointment , advanced from the crowd of citizens .
" Pardon , oh , king ! he cried ; " but pause ere you proceed to honor thus aii unknown man . What proof have we of his capability to complete the design he hath produced ?—nay , what proof have we that it is his ? It may have been stolen . Thou knowest , " he added , " that , as an Etruscan , he is not of our order . " " Question me ! " answered Orbanes , " thou wilt find , proud man , my knowledge not inferior unto thine . The restrictive jealousy of thine orderso opposed to the princiles which it founded
, pure p on was , are o ' erleaped . In Egypt , the land of wonders and of science , in her caverned pyramids and stately temples , I have sought and gained the wisdom vainly denied me here . Assemble , then , your chiefs—from the banded seven to the sacred three , —Orbanes can prove his title , and maintain his place . " As he finished , a shout of triumph from the Etruscans rent the air , the hitherto impregnable barrier between the two nations was past , the long ht secret The their silent
soug won . Tyrrheni , on part , were ; whether the speaker had convinced them by his eloquence , or whether some occult sign had escaped him , which justified his words , certain it is that all opposition ended , and the wreath was placed upon his brow amid the acclamations of his countrymen , and the silence of the hitherto superior Tyrrheni . As the throng were dispersing , Lenos , who had hitherto been the most successful architect of the people , and to whom the opinion of the public had pre-assigned the prize , advanced towards his successful
competitor , and publicly embraced him , an act which again rent the air with the shouts of applause that followed it—the assembled citizens crying with one voice— " Success to the Etruscan Orbanes ! honour to the Tyrrhenian Lenos ! " Shortly afterwards the crowd dispersed . That night Clitus and the elders were seated in council , in which it was debated whether for the future the last distinction which existed betiveen the two nations should not be abolished , and the Etrusci admitted to ci
a partipation of those secret arts and sciences which had hitherto been confined solely to the conquerors . The question was warmly disputed on either side ; the politic were for still continuing the restriction , as the means of perpetuating an unjust and mortifying superiority . The more philosophic of the party were for admitting them to an immediate and full equality . How long the dispute might have lasted cannot now be said , as it was suddenly interrupted by the arrival of a messenger with
the alarming intelligence that Orbanes had been found assassinated in a wood leading front the city , —that Tyrrius had been arrested near the spot , with his garments stained with blood , that the Etrusci had assembled in arms , and infuriated to madness by the death of their countryman , demanded instant justice on the assassin . Intelligence of such a character quickly put an end to the debate , and the king , attended by the elders , proceeded to the forum , where the insurgents were assembled . It was night—the light of a thousand torches displayed the enraged countenances of the Etruscans , who , armed with every variety of weapon , sur ^ rounded the bier on which was laid the body of the unfortunate Orbanes .