THE EOUTE OP THE EXODUS. 23 



Epiphi, it was said to me, they spoke of the south, saying, 



let us cross over (to the desert) on Epiphi. When I 



arrived at the stronghold (khetem) it was said to me, the 

 two grooms going towards the mountain have crossed the 

 wall north of the tower (Migdol) of Seti Merenphthah." 



We do not know exactly the place where the scribe started 

 from. The great hall of the royal palace is rather a vague 

 expression ; however, if we compare this letter with the 

 others which are contained in the Anastasi papyri, we see 

 that the city of Rameses is often mentioned. Several of the 

 officers who write belong to the palace in the city of Rameses, 

 so that we may fairly suppose that the same city was the 

 starting point of our scribe. He starts in the evening, 

 and after having probably travelled all the night, he reaches 

 the next day the enclosure, the wall which protected 

 Succoth on the east. His errand consists in getting 

 information about two grooms, who have fled to the 

 desert. At Succoth he is told that the fugitives have been 

 heard to say that they were going to the south. Whether 

 the report is true or not, it is natural that he should try to 

 catch them in following the same direction. No doubt he 

 goes south ; and when he reaches the stronghold or block 

 house, he hears that the two grooms have passed over the 

 wall which is north of the tower, the Migdol of Seti 

 Merenphthah. Evidently the tower and the wall must have 

 been in the immediate vicinity, otherwise the people of the 

 stronghold would not have been able to give him this piece 

 of information. Their testimony is like that of eye-witnesses, 

 therefore the fugitives could not have travelled a long 

 distance before crossing the wall. 



This blockhouse or stronghold we know already from the 

 other text quoted before ; it was the stronghold of King 

 Menephthah which belonged to Succoth, and which closed the 

 way to the lakes of Pithom and to the pastures of the royal 

 farm. But the second text adds to our information two very 

 important points — the stronghold was south of Pithom, which 

 was first reached in coming from Egypt, and besides it con- 

 tained a tower or migdol. South of Succoth there was a 

 stronghold which, judging from analogy with the other of 

 which we have a picture, closed a passage over the water. 

 This stronghold had a tower, called in Egyptian by the same 



word as in Hebrew \K \\\ ^ 1 F n Maktar or Mcdtal, 



Migdol. From the aspect of the country, I should place 

 Migdol on the height called by the French the Serapeum, and 



