Page:Great Men and Famous Women Volume 3.djvu/40

18 STATESMEN AND SAGES daughter of the Pharaoh of Northern Egypt, an alliance which pleased the peo- ple, for it showed that their king was a king among kings. The end of this po- litical alliance, however, was not as brilliant as its beginning promised ; because, although Egypt was at that time the most mighty nation of the world, because the most wealthy and civilized, yet it was divided into two kingdoms, and after the lapse of years, the Pharaoh of the united kingdom did not hesitate to be- come Solomon's foe because one of his wives had been an Egyptian princess. After removing the enemies of the throne, and marrying the daughter of Pharaoh, Solomon repaired to the heights of Gibeon, six miles north of Jerusa- lem, a spot far-famed as the home of the Tabernacle of the Congregation, which was the original Tent of the wanderings. On the brazen altar in front of the Tabernacle the young king offered to Jehovah a holocaust of a thousand victims. It was on the night after this magnificent sacrifice that the Lord offered to Solomon, dreaming, his heart's chief desire. The wise and as yet pious young king asking for wisdom, the Lord was so pleased that He promised him not only wisdom, but also wealth, honor, and long life. He had already been endowed with extreme personal beauty. Immediately following this vision the wisdom of the king was tested in a way which showed that his God was a faithful promiser. Into the royal pres- ence two women of bad character were ushered by the authorities, bringing two babes, the one living and the other cold in death. In the night the latter's mother had by accident smothered it, whereupon she had stolen the living babe from its mother's side. In the morning a bitter conflict was waged by the two women over the living child, each wildly claiming it as her own. When the officers of the law were appealed to they brought the case before their king, whose wisdom and fitness to judge a great kingdom were now to be tried. As the spectators of the dramatic scene looked on, it was with anxious curiosity, which in a moment was turned into horror as Solomon ordered a stalwart attend- ant to take a keen sword and cut the living little one into two parts and give to each mother a half. One of the women appeared stolidly satisfied with this arrangement, but the other sprang between the babe and its executioner, and, weeping, pleaded that its life might be spared and her rival be permitted to have the whole child. In this pity and tenderness Solomon discovered the true mother heart, and to her gave the babe, while the news of the marvellous wisdom of the new king spread like wild-fire through Jerusalem and all Israel. Solomon had now secured an assured place in the hearts of his subjects, and was firmly seated on a throne from which for forty years he governed Israel with a rule whose wisdom was surpassed only by its magnificence. As it is impossible at this date to get at the exact chronological order of the events of his life from the time that he ascended the throne, and as it was re- markable for the fruits of peace rather than war, we may best study it by con- sidering his government, household, buildings, riches, and writings. Solomon's rule extended over a wide territory and over many peoples, for it had been the glory of David that he fought successfully with and subdued the