The hoe, called =mer= or =tore=, is equal to the phonetic _m_, and was one of the commonest implements used in agriculture. It is sometimes spoken of as a hand-plough, or pick or spade, and probably it answered all these purposes. In shape it somewhat resembled our capital letter A, as it consisted of two lines tied together about the centre with a twisted rope. One limb was of uniform thickness, and generally straight, and formed the head; while the other, curved inwards, and sometimes of considerable width, formed the handle. The hoe stands here for the phonetic sound of _m_, the first letter of the word =mai=, which means _beloved_. TWO REEDS. One reed is equal to _a_, the double reed equals phonetic _i_, and is generally a plural sign. Here the double reed is an intensive, so that the hoe and double reeds spell _mai_, which means "much beloved." These hieroglyphs, taken in the order in which they ought to be translated into English, consist of a hoe, two reeds, a hawk, two ovals, and a solar disk. The last group of hieroglyphs consists of a long serpent, a semicircle, and a straight line. The long serpent is equal to the phonetic _t_, or _th_, or _g_. The semicircle, which represents the upper grindstone for bruising corn, equals phonetic _t_. It is often called a muller or millstone. The straight line is a phonetic equal to _ta_. The three hieroglyphs therefore form the word _getta_ or _tetta_, a term which means everlasting. _Getta_ appears as the last group of hieroglyphs at the bottom of the central column on the third and fourth sides. They were probably at first at the end of the central column on the first and second sides also, although they have been obliterated on the two latter faces. [Illustration] CHAPTER IX. THE HIEROGLYPHICS OF THOTHMES III. _Translation of the Second Side._ "Horus, the powerful Bull, crowned by Truth, Lord of Upper and Lower Egypt, Ra-men-Kheper. The Lord of the Gods has multiplied Festivals to him upon the great Persea Tree within the Temple of the Phœnix; he is known as his son--a divine person, his limbs issuing in all places according to his wish. Son of the Sun, Thothmes, of Holy An, beloved of Haremakhu." [Illustration: "Horus, the powerful bull, crowned by Truth, lord of Upper and Lower Egypt, Ra-men-Kheper."] SEATED FIGURE (=Ma=) _goddess of Truth_. She was called Thmei or Ma, and was generally represented by a seated female, holding in one hand the ankh, the symbol of life, and on her head an ostrich feather. The ostrich feather alone is also the symbol of truth or justice, because of the equal length of the feathers. In courts of justice the chief judge wore a figure of Thmei suspended from his neck by a golden chain. Thmei or Ma is always represented as present at the dreadful balance in the hall of justice, where each soul was weighed against the symbol of divine truth.