He Shall Thunder in the Sky - Elizabeth Peters [0]
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To my daughter, Beth, with love
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Then Re-Harakhte said:
Let Set be given unto me, to dwell with me and be my son. He shall thunder in the sky and be feared.
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—Chester Beatty Papyrus
The Judging of Horus and Set
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Editor’s Foreword
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The Editor is pleased to present the result of many months of arduous endeavor. Sorting through the motley collection that constitutes the Emerson Papers was no easy task. As before, the Editor has used the contemporary diary of Mrs. Emerson as the primary narrative, inserting letters and selections from Manuscript H at the appropriate points, and eliminating passages from the latter source that added no new information or insights to Mrs. Emerson’s account. It was a demanding project and the Editor, wearied by her labors and emotionally wrung out, trusts that it will be received with the proper appreciation.
Information concerning the Middle East theater in World War I before Gallipoli is sparse. Military historians have been concerned, primarily and understandably, with the ghastly campaigns on the Western Front. Being only too familiar with Mrs. Emerson’s prejudices and selective memory, the Editor was surprised to discover, after painstaking research, that her account agrees in all important particulars with the known facts. Facts hitherto unknown add, the Editor believes, a new and startling chapter to the history of the Great War. She sees no reason to suppress them now, since they explain, among other things, the curtailment of archaeological activity on the part of the Emersons during those years. As the Reader will discover, they had other things on their minds.
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Acknowledgments
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To George W. Johnson, who graciously supplied me with hard-to-find information about World War I weaponry, uniforms and other military details. If I put the wrong bullet in the wrong gun, it is my own fault.
And as always to Kristen, my invaluable and long-suffering assistant, who, in addition to innumerable other contributions, listens to me complain and encourages me to persevere.
The Suez Canal and the Eastern Desert, January 1915
Contents
Epigraph
Editor’s Forward
Acknowledgments
Map
Prologue
The wind flung the snow against the windows of the coach, where it stuck in icy curtains.
One
I found it lying on the floor of the corridor that led to our sleeping chambers.
Two
One might have supposed that with a war going on, people would have better things to do. . .
Three
“Music,” Ramses remarked, “is one of the most effective tools of the warmonger.”
Four
After I had extracted the last fragment of stone I handed it to Emerson. . .
Five
From Manuscript H
He’d been as rude as he could manage and rougher than he liked.
Six
Emerson had been less than truthful when he said he did not expect us to work. . .
Seven
Our return to the house resembled a triumphal procession.
Eight
After our exertions and our triumph the previous day, even Emerson was in no hurry. . .
Nine
When Nefret asked how long I meant to wait, I did not know the answer.
Ten
I had decided to admit Nefret to my confidence—up to a point.
Eleven
The flat was in the fashionable Ismailiaya district. Waiting in the cab I had hired. . .
Twelve
Over the years we had become accustomed to take Friday as our day of rest. . .
Thirteen
After seeing Nefret and the Vandergelts, and Fatima, who had insisted on waiting up. . .
Fourteen
The Vandergelts left us immediately after breakfast next morning.
Fifteen
His well-bred friends would have had some difficulty in recognizing him.
About the Author
Other Books by Elizabeth Peters
Copyright
About the Publisher
Prologue
The wind flung the snow against the windows of the coach, where it stuck in icy curtains. The boy’s breath formed pale clouds in the darkness of the interior. No foot warmer or lap robe had been supplied, and his threadbare, outgrown overcoat was not much protection against the cold. He felt sorry for the horses, slipping and laboring through the drifts. He