destined to that royal lover of whom Amen had spoken to her mother in a
dream; not to a god, but to the Chosen of the god, and that when she saw
him, she felt sure she would know him at once and love him much.

After some months had gone by Pharaoh, quite weary of this play, asked
the advice of his Council. They suggested to him that he should journey
through the great cities of Egypt, both because the change might
completely re-establish his divine health, and in the hope that on her
travels the Queen Neter-Tua would meet someone of royal blood with whom
she could fall in love. For by now it was evident to all of them that
unless she did fall in love, she would not marry.

So that very night Pharaoh asked his daughter if she would undertake
such a journey.

She answered that nothing would please her better, as she wearied of
Thebes, and desired to see the other great cities of the land, to make
herself known to those who dwell in them, and in each to be proclaimed
as its future ruler. Also she wished to look upon the ocean whereof she
had heard that it was so big that all the waters of the Nile flowing
into it day and night made no difference to its volume.

Thus then began that pilgrimage which afterwards Tua recorded in the
history of her reign on the walls of the wonderful temples that she
built. Her own wish was that they should sail south to the frontiers of
Egypt, since there she hoped that she might hear some tidings of Rames
and his expedition, whereof latterly no certain word had come. This
project, however, was over-ruled because in the south there were
no great towns, also the inhabitants of the bordering desert were
turbulent, and might choose that moment to attack.