Chaldea's[154-3] seers are good, But here they have no skill; And the unknown letters stood Untold and awful still. And Babel's[154-4] men of age Are wise and deep in lore; But now they were not sage, They saw--but knew no more. [Illustration: THE WRITING ON THE WALL] A Captive in the land, A stranger and a youth, He heard the king's command, He saw that writing's truth; The lamps around were bright, The prophecy in view; He read it on that night,-- The morrow proved it true! "Belshazzar's grave is made, His kingdom pass'd away, He, in the balance weigh'd, Is light and worthless clay; The shroud, his robe of state; His canopy, the stone: The Mede is at his gate! The Persian on his throne!" [Illustration] FOOTNOTES: [153-1] The satraps were the governors of the provinces, who ruled under the king and were accountable to him. [154-2] These were the sacred "vessels that were taken out of the temple of the house of God which was at Jerusalem." [154-3] The terms _Chaldea_ and _Babylonia_ were used practically synonymously. [154-4] _Babel_ is a shortened form of _Babylon_. SOHRAB AND RUSTEM RUSTEM The Persians have a great epic which is to them about what the _Iliad_ and the _Odyssey_ were to the Greeks and the _AEneid_ was to the Romans. In character, however, the Persian epic is more like the English narrative _Morte d' Arthur_, from which readings will be found elsewhere in these volumes. This wonderful poem, the _Shah Nameh_, relates exploits of the Shahs of Persia for a period that is supposed to extend over more than three thousand years. It was written by Firdusi, a famous Persian poet, toward the close of the tenth century, and is filled with tales of the marvelous adventures and stirring achievements of national heroes. Fierce monsters like those that appear in the legendary tales of all nations stalk through its pages, and magicians, good and bad, work their enchantments for and against the devoted Persians. The imagination of Eastern writers is more vivid than that of the Europeans, and for that reason the stories are more full of thrilling episodes and supernatural occurrences.