That these laws were actual and
not formal only was proved by the instance that within the hundred years
before the birth of Elissa, a lady Baaltis had been executed for some
such offence, having been hurled indeed from the topmost pinnacle of the
fortress above the temple to the foot of the precipice beneath.
All these sacerdotal customs were familiar to Metem, who argued from
them that to procure the nomination of Elissa as the Baaltis would be to
build an impassable wall between her and the prince Aziel. Also, by way
of compensation, that office would confer upon her the highest dignity
and honour which could be attained by any woman in the city. Moreover,
her election would place her beyond the reach of the persecutions
of Ithobal, since as lady Baaltis she was entitled to choose her own
husband without hindrance or appeal, provided only that he was of pure
white blood, which Ithobal was not.
Having thought the matter out, and convinced himself that such a
course would not only benefit his own pocket, but prove to the lasting
advantage of all concerned, Metem, filled with a glow of righteous zeal,
set about his task with the promptitude and cunning of his race. It was
not an easy task, for although she had enemies and rivals, the daughter
of the dead Baaltis, Mesa by name, was considered to be certain of
election at the poll of the priests and priestesses.
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