What We Saw in Egypt Part 6

"What a beautiful room!" Lucy exclaimed, as she went into the saloon.

And so indeed it was. Carpets, cushions, divans, book-shelves; nothing was wanting to make the dahabieh a most luxurious little home. There were easy-chairs of every kind on deck, and an awning was spread as a protection from the sun. The crew consisted of a captain, or reis, as he is called, a pilot, and fourteen Arab sailors.

We exchanged farewells, heartily wishing that we too were going, and they started. As we waved our last farewells from the sh.o.r.e, Hugh said, in a disconsolate voice, "Great fun for them, but no fun for us."

We were all a little dull that evening. But the travellers had promised to keep a journal, and we soon began to think when we should receive news of them.

The first instalment of the journal was brought by a gentleman with whose dahabieh they fell in off Benisooef. It was eagerly opened and read aloud, while we listened with all our ears and eyes.

JOURNAL ON THE NILE.

The wind was fair when we left Boulak. We pa.s.sed Roda, the Nilometer, and Old Cairo. Then a long reach of the river brought us to the village of E Deyr, which is inhabited by Copt Christians. We next pa.s.sed, on our left, El Masarah, where there are large stone quarries. The stone for the Great Pyramid was taken from these quarries.

At Bedreshyn we landed, Mohammed procured donkeys for us, and we set off to see the Pyramids of Sakkara.

We rode first to the village of Mitrahenny, where the ancient city of Memphis once stood. The country round it is very pretty. The village itself stands in a wood of palm-trees. We were told that at the time at which the Nile overflows its banks the people leave their houses and live in the palm-trees, where they put up a sort of scaffolding to sleep on. When the river falls again, they leave the trees, repair their mud huts, and live in them till the next overflow.

Memphis, formerly such a splendid city, is gone. There is scarcely a trace left of this once busy capital of Lower Egypt in which Moses lived, where the poor Jewish captives toiled to make up the tale of bricks for Pharaoh's taskmasters. Some few remains of foundation-walls are found in the sand. But nothing is left to tell of the temples and palaces of this ancient city, except only a part of a colossal statue of Rameses, called Sesostris. It is of a pure white, made of polished limestone, and must have been more than forty feet in height. The statue lay on its face, and we could not see the features. It has a scroll in its hands. Pieces of the legs and feet were lying about. All around are magnificent palm-trees.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BRICKMAKING _(from Egyptian Sculpture)_.]

The Pyramids of Sakkara are near the village of the same name. The largest of them is called by the Arabs "the Pyramid of Degrees." It has outside six stories or degrees, each smaller than the one below it.

Inside are pa.s.sages and chambers.

Near the pyramids are the famous pits, in which are ibis mummies. The ibis was a sacred bird among the Egyptians. We bought one of these mummies. It was enclosed in a round earthen jar, the top of which was shaped like a cone, and was fastened down strongly with cement.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BRICKMAKING _(from Egyptian Sculpture)_.]

The bird was rolled up in long bandages of linen. The head and neck were folded over the breast, the wings laid close to the sides, and the long legs were folded up and brought close to the beak. The bird was perfect.

We said we knew how delighted you all, and especially Hugh and Lucy, would be to see it. But our curiosity was selfish. As soon as the air played on it, it crumbled into dust.

[Ill.u.s.tration: THE SACRED IBIS.]

There are some fine tombs near the Pyramids of Sakkara. We went to the one which we were told was the best worth seeing. The roof was hollowed into the shape of an arch and covered with smoothly-cut stones cemented together. This led into a room in which is a deep well. We also saw some hieroglyphics, and some sculpture; most of these represented men carrying birds. It was not very interesting, and we did not stay long to look at it.

We had a delightful ride back to Bedreshyn, through fields and among clumps of th.o.r.n.y mimosa, on which the camels love to browse. The palm-trees looked beautiful in the clear sunlight. Nothing was wanting but the song of birds, and this is a want almost always felt by Europeans in the hot climates of Africa and Asia.

The next day we went to the Pyramids of Dashoor. Two are of stone and two of brick. The first was the largest. Colonel Howard Vyse gives its height as three hundred and twenty feet. The entrance was covered with stones and rubbish. The second pyramid is not so large. The ascent to the entrance is not very difficult, but the descent is exceedingly so, and there is not much to repay one for the trouble.

We returned to our boat in good time, and were much amused, after we had again started, by watching the peasants raising water from the river with poles and buckets, and with looking at the Arab boats, a number of which pa.s.sed us.

We next came to El Kafr el Jyat. It is only a small village, but in it is the residence of a wealthy chief whose hospitable house is the resort of travellers. He bears the t.i.tle of Khabeeree, or "the guide." We find from Sir G. Wilkinson's book[A] that this t.i.tle "has been hereditary in his family since the time of Sultan Selim, who gave it to his ancestor as a reward for his services in that capacity, when he took possession of the country after the defeat of the son of El Gh.o.r.ee."

We next pa.s.sed the False Pyramid. It takes its name from the base being of rock and not really part of the building.

The banks of the river and villages were enlivened with palm-trees. But we pa.s.sed no place of any size or interest till we came to Benisooef.

Benisooef is the capital of the province, the Fyoom, and has several manufactories of cotton and silk.

We are lounging idly on deck looking at the scene before us. A great many boats are tied to the sh.o.r.e, and a number of people are on the quay. The children are tolerably clad, and some of the old men are exceedingly picturesque in their white dresses, with their cloaks thrown over their shoulders and leaning on their staves; girls are coming down to fill their jars with water and carrying them away most gracefully on their heads. And as for animals! Hugh would find more than enough to satisfy him. Dogs, goats, poultry, cows, horses, camels, buffaloes! And _such_ a noise! we can scarcely hear ourselves speak for the clatter.

But a gentleman who is going down to Cairo, and will leave at daybreak, has just sent to know whether he can take any letters for us. So good-by for the present.

[Footnote A: "Modern Egypt," vol. ii.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: SCENE ON THE NILE.]

CHAPTER X.

STILL UP THE NILE.

It was some little time before we could expect the next part of our travellers' journal.

Hugh very much wished to go to the citadel again. Lucy wanted to pay another visit to the gardens at s...o...b..a. We gave an afternoon to each, and almost every morning we went to the Mission Schools; either to the girls' school or to the ragged school. The more we saw, the more we admired the energy and self-denial of Mr. and Mrs. Lieder, and the more zealous and anxious we grew to do what little we could to help in the great work of making known the love of Jesus Christ and the salvation he has bought for us with his blood. Those who have the love of Christ really in their hearts must always long to make others love him too.

Day by day went on and we began to watch anxiously for some more news.

The gentleman who had brought the first part of the journal told us that he knew there was another dahabieh which was not very far behind him. He had pa.s.sed it, not having time to stop and see all that its travellers were stopping to see.

At last this dahabieh arrived, and we had a large packet. Lucy had leave to open it. She and Hugh danced about in delight for the first few minutes. Their father was one of the party who had gone, which made the joy of news the greater.

The first great excitement of the arrival was soon over, and we all cl.u.s.tered together eagerly to hear the contents of the large letter.

JOURNAL ON THE NILE.

We finished our last letter just after we arrived at Benisooef. It is a large town, and was once famous for its manufacture of linen.

We started the next morning with a fair wind. We pa.s.sed Isment; and near it, the quarries from which the beautifully veined marble was obtained of which the mosque of Mohammed Ali at Cairo was built.

But what delighted us most was the high table-mountain, Sheikh Embarak.

This giant seemed standing to block our path. Its surface is broken; and as we neared it, we saw one large cliff which looked like a ruined castle. The Sheikh, like some other giants of olden times, is accustomed to give travellers rather a rough welcome, and we came in for one of his gusty greetings in a sudden gale of wind.

Tell Lucy that her father, who was lounging in a chair on castors, suddenly found his chair running away from him, and he narrowly escaped a ducking in the Nile. And tell both Hugh and Lucy that the dahabieh lay over so suddenly that every one else was nearly following me, and that if I had gone over into the Nile, I should only have been ready to welcome the others who were coming after.

After this unwilling prostration to the Sheikh, we went on without any further trouble.

A rock in the stream next attracted our attention. It is called the Hagar o' Salam, or Rock of Welfare, because the boatmen say that they cannot venture to call a voyage down the Nile prosperous until they have pa.s.sed it. We looked at it with interest. It seemed an emblem of our Saviour Jesus Christ; for, till we have come to him, there can be no safety for us in our voyage on the river of life.

Our journey was, after this, a little dull for a time. On both banks of the Nile we saw the sites of various ancient towns; and at Khom Amer, or "the Red Mound," there were some rough grottoes. We also saw the mounds of the ancient Cynopolis, the "City of the Dogs."

The mountain chain of Gebel e' Tayr was more interesting. Some of the mountains rise straight up from the water, and are enlivened with palm-trees; and on the opposite banks we saw some fine acacias. The top of Gebel e' Tayr is flat. On it stands a convent called Sitleh Mariam el Adea, or "Our Lady Mary the Virgin." It is a Copt convent. But I am afraid that religion has little effect there, for there seems to be more begging than industry among the monks. As soon as they see a boat full of travellers coming they hurry down the cliffs and swim out on inflated water-skins to ask for charity. Our Arab boatmen were inclined to treat them rather roughly, and we were heartily glad when we got beyond their beat, for they were very noisy and clamorous in their pet.i.tions for alms.

Gebel e' Tayr means "the mountain of the bird." There is a curious legend belonging to it. It is said that all the birds in the country a.s.semble here every year. They choose one of their number who is to stay on the mountain till the next year. Then all the rest fly away and leave the poor solitary bird by himself till the next year, when a fresh one is chosen to take his place.

We have now just arrived at Minieh, six days exactly since we left you all at Boulak. We are going to dinner, and then on sh.o.r.e.