that to their heads, cross themselves, and then pass on. The same
was done by the villagers, and they would often kiss the stones a
number of times. I witnessed a rite in this church that was new
to me. I had been informed by one of the leading men, that our
friend, the monk, would preach the next morning. I considered the
information as a kind of invitation to attend, which I did. His
sermon, as far as I could understand it, was not very instructive,
but rather of the spiritualizing kind. It was, however, delivered
with earnestness, and listened to with attention by a full house.
At its close, prayers were read, and some bread produced and broken
into very small pieces, and handed to the people in a plate. It was
sought for with great eagerness, and many of the little boys were
particularly pressing to receive it. I supposed at first that it was
the Lord's Supper, but was told afterwards that it was not, but a
representation of the body of the Virgin Mary.

I made a second very pleasant trip to Baalbec with Mrs. P. and
our two little girls. We had many opportunities of distributing
books and tracts along the road. In most instances, as soon as it
was known that we had books, our tent was surrounded by persons
importuning for them. As soon as one was supplied, he would withdraw
to a little distance, and set himself to reading in good earnest.
The success of some encouraged others, and each had some particular
reason to urge, why he should be supplied before the others. We were
absent five days, and on our return, were welcomed with great joy by
our good friends in the village.

Bhamdoon is surrounded with vineyards. The vines are, for the most
part, allowed to lie on the ground. In a few places peculiarly
situated, they are trained on supports, which raise them several
feet above it. The grapes are of various kinds, most of them
white and large. We are supplied with them most generously and
munificently by the people. There are several houses that seem to be
common property, where they express the juice of the grape. They
have, along one side of the house, a row of large vats, into which
the grapes are thrown; and beside these, stone troughs, into which
the juice flows. Men get in the vats, and tread the grapes with
their feet. It is hard work, and their clothes are often stained
with the grape. The figures found in Scripture, taken from this, are
true to the life. "I have trod the wine-press alone;" "I will stain
all my raiment;" "The wine-press was trodden without the city." The
juice that was extracted when I visited the press, was not made
into wine, but into what is called dibbs. It resembles molasses.
They take the juice from the troughs, put it into large boilers,
and reduce it to one-half, possibly one-third of the original
quantity. It is then removed to large earthen jars, and subjected to
a process, not unlike churning, which is repeated for a few days,
until it thickens. When properly churned, or beaten, but little
separation of the particles takes place. It forms a very pleasant
article for table use, and is decidedly preferable to molasses.

We witnessed the process of making raisins. The grapes are collected
and dipped in a weak ley, with which a small quantity of olive-oil
has been mixed. They are then spread out on the ground, and several
times a day this mixture is sprinkled over them. This is continued,
for six, eight, or ten days, according to the dryness of the
atmosphere, until the raisins are cured. They are then taken up, and
while warm from the sun, put into jars and pressed down hard, and
thus preserved for use or sale. There is, however, but little wine,
raisins, or dibbs exported. Most that is made is kept for family use.

The salutations of these people are very similar to those of
ancient times. In passing persons at work, as in cultivating
their vineyards, or thrashing out grain, the usual form is
"_Salam-a-laykoom_," Peace be unto you; and the answer is,
"_A-laykoom-issalum_," Upon you be peace. On entering a house, it
is Peace be upon you, or "_Olloh makoom_," God be with you. In
giving orders to servants, or requesting favours of friends, the
answer generally given is, "_A-lah-rass-ee_," On my head be it. The
women, in taking a quantity of flour from their store for a batch
of bread, will precede it with a "_Bismillee_," In the name of God.
As a general thing the Arabs may be said to be a polite people.
The morning and evening salutations are always passed among the
inmates of the same house; they will seldom pass you in the road
without some kind word. When lights are brought, the servants will
say, "Good evening to you," and the company will say the same to
one another. They have a great variety of salutations, forms of
expression, and compliments suited to all the various circumstances
of life, and these are familiar to all; to the youngest and the
poorest, as well as to the prince.

Several bands of gipsies at different times visited our village.
They came in companies of from ten to thirty, men, women,
and children, mostly mounted on donkeys. They encamped in a
thrashing-floor near by, which gave us an opportunity to observe
their motions and learn their habits. They carry with them a few
utensils for cooking, and a few articles with which they cover
themselves at night. They will occasionally put up a rude tent to
shelter them from the sun. Some of them manufacture a few things,
which they dispose of in their rambles. Attached to each company
are two or three who play on musical instruments, and amuse the
people with their feats of jugglery. They have a language of their
own, with which they converse among themselves, but are familiar
with Arabic. They are great beggars, and notorious thieves. The
people are careful to secure their chickens and donkeys when the
gipsies are in the neighbourhood. They do not remain long at one
place,--here to-day and gone to-morrow. They stroll over the
mountains in the summer, but remove farther south in winter.

April 18, 1838.--On the first Sabbath of the present year, a Druse
family was baptised by the missionaries at this place. They had for
two years been attentive to the instructions of the missionaries,
and both the parents gave evidence of piety. They, with their six
children, were baptized at the mission-house at the close of the
Arabic service. It was an interesting occasion, and excited a good
deal of interest among those who are in the habit of attending the
Arabic preaching. There are several other Druses, who are constant
in their attendance at the Sabbath school and Arabic preaching, and
profess a great desire to become Christians.

You are, no doubt, familiar with the account of Asaad Shidiak. I
have learned several things about him lately, which to me, at least,
had a considerable degree of painful interest. I have seen several
persons who, as they declare, saw him during his imprisonment, and
one who saw him after his death. He was of the Maronite church, and
from his intercourse with the missionaries he came to understand the
corruption of his church, and the nature of true spiritual religion.
This brought on him the displeasure of the dignitaries of that
church. He was a man of learning and talents, and, with the truth on
his side, he was too much in argument for any of them. After various
attempts to bring him back to their corrupt system in vain, he was
seized and imprisoned, and subjected to much cruel treatment. He
held fast to the truth which he had learned. His faith was built on
the Bible. One of the individuals from whom I gained information
about him said, he had a long conversation with him while in prison.
He was shut up in a small room only a few feet square, the door
walled up so as to leave but a small opening, like a window. He was
loaded with chains, and his food handed to him through this small
opening. He assured this person that his religious faith rested
alone on the Bible.

His confinement was so close that it had become, with people
generally, a matter of doubt whether he was dead or alive. Thus
it had been for some time before the Egyptian government took
possession of this country. Some of the Franks felt an intense
interest in his fate. Immediately after the fall of Acre, which
event secured to the Egyptian government the control of this part of
Syria, an English merchant of this place by the name of Todd, waited
on the Pasha, and made known the case of the imprisoned Asaad, and
asked and obtained authority to examine the convent where he was
confined, and have him set at liberty if he were alive.

Todd visited the convent, and made some search, but Asaad was not
found. He was informed that he was dead, and was shown what was
said to be his grave; this confirmed the opinion that he was dead.
This movement on the part of Todd was well meant; it may, however,
be doubted, whether it was well managed. The news got out that he
was about to visit the convent, and search for Asaad. It was known
on the mountains before he reached Cannobeen. It is now declared,
and pretty generally believed on the mountains, as I am told, that
Todd was over-reached in the matter, that Asaad was then alive, but
concealed when the examination was made. Todd spent but a few hours
in the convent, and that at night, and left the place with the full
impression that Asaad was dead.

After this, it is said that the high ecclesiastics, fearing that
the matter might be divulged that he was still living, had him
destroyed. A sheik, who lives near the place, and who has since had
a quarrel with the patriarch, has declared lately that Asaad was
destroyed not long after the search by Todd, and that he saw the
dead body before it was interred. How much truth there may be in
this I know not; for truth is a thing that does not abound among
this people. From the fact, however, that a wide-spread opinion on
the mountains places his death subsequent to the search by Todd, and
ascribes it to violence, there is much reason to believe that it is
correct.

His case has evidently made a great impression on the people of
the mountains. When I went to Bhamdoon, I was almost immediately
inquired of for the little book that told about Asaad Shidiak. I
sent to Beyroot, and procured some copies of a small Arabic tract,
written by Asaad himself, giving a short account of his change of
views, and discussions with the priests, up to near the time of his
imprisonment. These were sought for with more eagerness than almost
any book I had. The solicitations for it came principally from the
Maronites. It is, however, proscribed by their church; still I found
that some of them would read it. A good-looking young man, who was
evidently a pretty good scholar, would come to my room and read the
book by the hour. He would not take it away for fear of the priest.
And this reminds me of a case that was rather amusing, that took
place not long before we went to the mountains. Some of the Maronite
princes were down from the mountains, and one of them procured the
tract containing the account of Asaad Shidiak, and a priest saw
him reading it. This being strictly forbidden, the prince had a
penance assigned him, as did also the servants who were within
hearing at the time the book was read. He was directed to fast so
long; make so many prostrations; and pay such a sum of money. The
prince replied:--as to fasting, it made him sick, and he could not
do it; and as to the prostrations, they gave him the back-ache, and
he could not perform them; that the priest might, if he chose, make
the attendants do it--and there was some money, throwing down a part
of what was called for, which they might do what they pleased with.
There are a good many indications that the power of the priesthood
over the people is beginning to give way. The time, I hope, is near,
when more of the people will dare to think for themselves, and
follow the dictates of an enlightened conscience.

A few months ago, a heavy conscription, as it may be called, was
raised over the most, if not the whole of Syria; and out of it
has arisen the present war in the Houran. This is the name now
used to designate an extensive district east of the Jordan. It
embraces the country occupied by the tribes that lived east of that
river--Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh; the country of
Bashan, Moab, and a district to the east, that is not much known
to Europeans. It is said to be a high country, and abounding with
remains of cities. The Egyptian government extends over this, but
how far to the east I do not know.

In raising soldiers, the Pasha sent a body of troops out among
these towns and villages, to take such as were fit for soldiers.
The people, who have much of the Arab character, did not like this,
rose on the soldiers, and destroyed several hundred of them. The
Pasha then sent a considerable body of troops to destroy the towns
and chastise the people. The people left their towns as the soldiers
approached, and joined the Arabs of the desert. They were joined
by many from other parts of the country, and in all made a pretty
imposing force. Taking advantage of the rough and mountainous
districts, they did not allow the troops of the Pasha to bring them
to a fair fight; and attacking his army in a situation that gave
them the advantage, they have twice beaten his army; and on the last
occasion, with a great loss to the Pasha, both of men and munitions
of war. The army of the Pasha had to retreat towards Damascus.
There is much discontent with the Pasha; and it need not cause much
surprise if other movements of a rebellious character should follow
the affair of the Houran, especially if it be not soon put down.
Some slight indications of the kind have appeared at Damascus; but
several, suspected of causing it, had their heads taken off with
little ceremony, and the matter seems to be stopped. Should the
Pasha subdue the Houran, it will produce a safer state of things
to the east of the Jordan than what has heretofore existed, and
throw open a vast region that must have peculiar interest to the
traveller, from the multitude of ruins that exist there, as well as
the connexion which it has with many of the events of ancient and
sacred history.

On the evening of the first of April, we witnessed a most wonderful
flight of locusts. They came like a dark cloud, filling the air for
a long distance. The greater part of them were above the tops of
the houses; but many flew lower, and passed through the tops of the
mulberry trees. There had been a strong south-east wind for about
twelve hours. They came from the east, and must, of course, have
crossed the Lebanon. Their course was west; but as they approached
the sea, I thought they varied, and passed more south-west, as if
not willing to go out of sight of land. For about half an hour the
air was full of them; afterwards their number decreased, but it
was a long time before the last straggler had passed. About three
days afterwards, we had them again from the south-west; the wind had
changed, and now came from that quarter. They now seemed disposed
to stop: the gardens and sands were full of them. They did not seem
to eat anything, but were employed in depositing their eggs, which
they place in the sands or earth. An acquaintance of mine, who has
just returned from Tripoli, states, that all the way from Ji-bail to
the river Beyroot, a distance of nearly twenty miles, the locusts
are thrown out on the shore in such numbers as to lie from eighteen
inches to two feet deep--they have been drowned in the sea. The old
locusts do not do much injury; it is the young ones, which will
come out in a month or six weeks after the eggs are deposited in
the sands, that eat so voraciously, and destroy all before them. I
understand the Emeer has issued an order for each person to collect
about a quart of their eggs, as a means of destroying them, and thus
preventing the destruction which the young locusts would make.

LETTER XX.

  _Jaffa, May 21st, 1838._

Having concluded to return during the ensuing summer to the United
States, and made my arrangements accordingly, I took passage from
Beyroot to this city, in a Greek vessel, April 20th. The families
of Rev. Messrs. Thomson and Hebard had preceded us, to attend the
annual meeting of the mission, which was to be held at Jerusalem.
It was not without feelings of sorrow that I left Beyroot. For
about two years I had considered it my home, and excepting while
making tours, which I occasionally did, I had remained there and on
the adjacent mountains. I had preached a good deal to the English
congregation at Beyroot, and aided, in all the ways I could, the
mission work. I had become acquainted with many of the natives,
more particularly with those who maintained a friendly intercourse
with the mission. I had enjoyed the acquaintance and friendship
of the consuls and English residents, and could not bid them a
final farewell without strong emotion. But circumstances made it
indispensable, and we parted, expecting to see each other no more.

We reached this place on the 22d, after a moderately short but
rough passage. To our great discomfort, we found that the plague
had broken out a few days before; the city was shut up, and we were
not allowed to enter. At first we were not permitted to land; but
after some entreaty we were permitted to land at the Lazaret, under
the watch of the health officers, who took us and our baggage into
that building. There were some cases of plague in the Lazaret, and
it was the last place we wished to be in; and, moreover, our room
had literally nothing in it. I wished to send word to the American
consul, whose hospitality we had more than once experienced; hoping
that he would be able to place us in a more comfortable situation,
and was told that he was at his country-house, about two miles from
town, and that we might go there if we chose; but that we must walk,
as all the animals had been used by the pilgrims, who were returning
in great numbers from Jerusalem, and might be infected. After a
most laborious walk through the sand, with our children--two of
whom we were obliged to carry--we reached the house of the consul,
but he was not there; his family being still in town and his house
shut up. It was too late to return to the Lazaret; and there was no
alternative, but to lodge, without bed or supper, on the floor of an
unfinished room that was designed for a kitchen.

In the morning, the consul came out with his family, and our
situation was made more comfortable. Through his aid we had our
baggage landed and conveyed to a place of safety, excepting what
we wished to take with us; and having procured animals, we set off
for Rumla about sunset, which we reached about ten in the night.
For once we resolved to make trial of the camel, and we all rode on
them; but before we arrived at Rumla, we were satisfied that the
horse, the mule, and the donkey, are each and all to be preferred
to the camel, as a riding animal. The motion of the camel is a long
swinging motion, with rather a sudden stop at each step; for a
little while it is pleasant, but soon becomes tiresome and at last
painful.

We were on our way at an early hour on the morning of the 25th,
and reached Jerusalem about five in the afternoon, where we were
kindly entertained by Mr. and Mrs. Nicolayson. We found the friends
well. The sessions of the missionary meeting were drawing to a
close. Professor Robinson, and the Rev. Messrs. Smith and Adger, had
arrived some days before from Egypt, _via_ Suez and Sinai.

One object I had in view in revisiting Jerusalem and its vicinity
before I returned to the United States, was to correct, as far
as I might be able, any errors that might exist in my former
descriptions, and supply any defects which a second visit might
suggest. I have not seen much that deserves special notice in the
way of correction or addition.

It struck me at the time that I visited the plain of Jordan and the
Dead Sea, that the descent from Jerusalem to them was greater than
that from Jerusalem to the Mediterranean. It is now a pretty well
ascertained fact that the Dead Sea is lower than the Mediterranean;
and as the water of the latter sea is above thirty feet lower than
the Red Sea, it must follow that the Jordan never flowed through the
El Ghor into the Elanetic Gulf. Count Barteau, who has just returned
from a visit to Petra Acaba, and an examination of the district
between the south end of the Dead Sea and Acaba, states that a high
district crosses the El Ghor, and causes the water to run north and
south from it. Dr. Wilson and Lord Lindsay gave me substantially the
same information. From some experiments it is estimated that the
level of the Dead Sea is several hundred feet lower than those of
the Mediterranean. If a passage then were made connecting the Red
with the Dead Sea, the waters would flow into it, so as to cover all
the plain of the Jordan, and even raise the level of the waters of
Lake Tiberias. The question will naturally be asked, where did the
waters of the Jordan flow to, before the destruction of the cities
of the plain? what outlet did they find? The more common opinion
heretofore has been, that before the overthrow of those cities there
was no lake on the south end of the plain of Jordan. The Bible does
not, however, say so, but rather intimates the reverse. The Salt
Sea is mentioned before the account of the overthrow of Sodom and
Gomorrah. It seems to me most likely that there was a lake at the
south end of the plain, and that those cities were situate near its
borders; their destruction was followed by the enlargement of the
lake, and the ruin of some part of the plain on which they stood. It
is indeed an almost universal opinion among the Arabs, that some of
the ruins of these cities may yet be seen. Costigen found ruins, as
his servant declared, which he took for the ruins of those cities;
and Count Barteau states, that he saw at the south end of the lake
old cisterns, and other things that indicated the former existence
of towns. There is now not much doubt that we shall in due time have
the facts so examined into and certified, as to add another proof to
the many which have lately been given, of the verity and accuracy of
the Scriptural account of things.

While at Jerusalem, I had occasion to visit Jaffa. I rode down past
Rumla, and reached Jaffa in about ten hours. My horse was not a
good one; the day was warm, and I did not ride fast. I infer, from
the time spent on the road, that the distance must be at least
thirty-five miles, and possibly forty.

I returned by a road which separates from that of Rumla, a few miles
from Jaffa, and passes over the plain farther to the north. It led
us past several villages on the plain, among which was Lydd, the
ancient Lydda, where Peter healed Eneas. It is a small village, but
contains some better buildings than we usually meet with in such
small towns. It is surrounded by extensive gardens and orchards of
fruit-trees; and on the east side of the village is a good well,
much resorted to for water. The plain of Sharon on this road was
very fertile, and more of it had been cultivated than is usual. The
harvest was going on, and men, women, and children, were out in the
fields: some reaping with the common reap-hook--some pulling up the
grain with their hands--some binding up the grain in bundles--some
carrying it on their shoulders, or on donkeys, or mules, or camels,
to the thrashing-floor--and some thrashing out the grain by driving
the cattle over it. They use a thrashing instrument not unlike
a harrow. In its under side they have pieces of stone or iron
fastened which serve as teeth. These instruments are dragged by the
oxen over the grain, and thus separate it from the straw.

After leaving the plain, our road followed a ridge for a
considerable distance; a little west of the highest ground we passed
two ruined villages at some distance from each other, that were
called Beth-horon. They are, I doubt not, the upper and the nether
Beth-horon. This opinion is, I think, confirmed by the account given
of the defeat of the kings that were confederated against Gibeon.
It is said that Israel "chased them along the way that goeth up to
Beth-horon; and it came to pass that as they were in the going down
to Beth-horon, that the Lord threw down on them great hailstones
from heaven." Josh. x. 11, 12. Beth-horon lies on the west side of
the ridge, and Gibeon lies on the east side, and at the distance of
several miles from the top. The flight began from Gibeon, and was
first up to the top of the ridge on the road towards Beth-horon; and
from the top of the ridge it was down to Beth-horon, and on this
last part of the way, that the hailstones fell on them. Until I saw
the ground, I never understood the "_up_" and "_down_," as used
in the record of this flight and pursuit. Near Gibeon I saw some
sandstone, singularly mixed up with the limestone. It lay about in
large masses, but I saw no continuous rock of it. The ancient Gibeon
is now a small-village, inhabited by a few Mohammedan families. It
stands on the summit of a round hill, and from the steepness of its
sides is capable of being made very strong. There are various old
ruins and some arches of great size running into the sides of the
hill, forming rooms, in which various labours are now carried on. A
little out of town is a spring in a cave, and below it, on the side
of the hill, the remains of an old pool, which is probably the one
beside which Abner and Joab, with their men, sat down before the
battle in which Asahel fell.

The plague made its appearance in Jerusalem shortly after our
arrival. We did not pay much attention to it, excepting that we
were more careful in passing about the city not to come in contact
with the people. The monks from some of the religious houses left
the city, and took refuge in other places. We found the monks at
Bethlehem keeping quarantine, and there was plague in some of the
convents in the country.

A health officer from Jaffa visited the city on the 16th, and
declared his intention to shut up the gates and prevent egress or
ingress, until the plague abated. He gave us permission to leave,
provided we would do it early the next day. Having no wish to be
shut up even in Jerusalem, for a month or two, we made all possible
haste to get ready to leave town the next morning. We found some
difficulty in procuring animals, but at last succeeded, and bidding
farewell to all our kind friends, and the missionary brethren
resident there, we left the city and bent our course to Rumla. Our
animals proved miserable creatures, and one of our muleteers gave
us the slip and returned, leaving us to make our journey as best
we could. We had been informed at Jerusalem that we would not be
permitted to enter Rumla; but supposed that we should arrive in
season to consult with the consular agent, and obtain lodging in
the old tower, or some place in the vicinity. Our mules were so
intolerably bad, however, that it was dark when we approached Rumla.
To our frequent inquiries of the muleteer, as to where he was taking
us, we received the reply, "to the water," and supposing that we
would halt at some watering place near the town, we allowed him to
proceed. Finding from the length of the way that we must be taking
the road to Jaffa, we insisted on coming to an understanding of the
matter. He had no idea of stopping, but intended to land us safe
at Jaffa that night; after a great deal of noise on both sides we
prevailed on him to halt. He took us under an olive-tree near by,
saying, what he supposed was true, that if he took us to the town
they would cut his head off. Angelo set off immediately, to see if
he could gain admittance within the town. The children, worn out
with the fatigue of the journey, had lost all patience, and were
crying for their suppers. I seated them on the ground and began to
search about in the dark for the remains of our luncheon, which
there was much reason to fear the muleteer and his boy had eaten.
Presently Mrs. P. began to shake with an ague fit, and called out
to me that she should die with the cold if relief was not soon
obtained. I had procured some wine at Jerusalem, which I was taking
home as a sample of the wines of Palestine; and thinking this was
a time, if ever, when its use would be justifiable, I succeeded in
disengaging a bottle from our baggage and administered a quantity
of it to those "who were ready to perish." Drawing a small carpet
from the saddle of the mule on which I rode, I covered up my little
family, and with no enviable feelings waited the result. It was not
long before the well-known voice of Angelo hallooing in the distance
broke upon my ear. He came with one of the consul's sons, who
welcomed us to his father's house, assuring us there was no obstacle
in the way of our admittance. Thus our difficulties were removed,
and we were most hospitably lodged for the night. The next day we
arrived at the country-seat of our very kind consul at this place,
who has furnished us with a room, and is assiduous in his attentions
to promote our comfort and happiness.

LETTER XXI.

  _Alexandria, June 21st, 1838._

We left Jaffa on May the 24th for this place. It was not without
trouble and delay that we were able to obtain a passage. On our
arrival at Jaffa, in April, we found many vessels there. They were,
we were told, waiting for pilgrims, who were at that time returning
from Jerusalem, where many attend during the great feasts. They were
at that time coming down in crowds, and going off to the vessels:
but before our return from Jerusalem, in May, they were gone, and
hardly a vessel remained at Jaffa. Possibly the fear of the plague,
which prevailed at Jaffa, had driven some away, and at the same
time prevented others from coming. Our wish was to take passage to
Damietta, and ascend the Damietta branch of the Nile to Grand Cairo,
and come down the Rosetta branch to Alexandria. We found a vessel
that was willing to take us to Damietta, but before we had completed
our bargain, the Russian consul, whose family had lost many members
by the plague, made, in his great eagerness to get away, so large an
offer, as induced the captain to change his course, and immediately
sail with the consul for Smyrna. As we passed Damietta, about a week
afterwards, we spoke the same vessel, and learned that, soon after
sailing, the consul took the plague and died, and the vessel put in
at Damietta. The consul fled from Jaffa, but not from the plague
or death--both met him on the way--how little do we foresee what a
day may bring forth! After some delay a vessel came from Beyroot,
which offered to take us to this place, but asked about four times
the usual price--there was no help--no other suitable vessel
offered--and the captain said, which was true, that he would have to
perform a long quarantine. A letter came to the consul, from several
other travellers, to engage them a vessel, as they would be at Jaffa
in a few days; and it was agreed that I should pay one-half of the
required sum, and those travellers the other, and the engagement was
closed.

Through the kind attention of our consul, who spared no pains to
promote our comfort, our arrangements were made, our baggage put on
board, and our provisions and stores laid in. The plague added much
to the trouble of doing this. On going on board we found it was a
Turkish vessel, and a Turkish crew. The captain seemed to be much
of a gentleman for a Turk. He was polite, silent, and would sit
all day smoking his pipe, and watching the working of his vessel.
The crew also were sober, silent, and appeared to move about as if
they had no care but to mind their own business. We had stipulated
to have the sole use of the cabin, provided we should prefer it.
On examining the premises, however, we decided on taking up our
quarters on the deck, as plainly the cleanest and most comfortable
place. The captain readily yielded to our wishes, and fitted up the
long boat, which was on the deck, spreading a sail over it, and
making quite a tent--in this we took up our abode.

When the travellers referred to came on board, we recognised them
as a party we had met a few miles this side of Jerusalem. They had
come from Egypt to Palestine through the wilderness, and were on
their way to Jerusalem as we left it. Their cavalcade had attracted
our attention, being all mounted on camels; and what looked rather
oddly, two were on the same camel, in what are called baskets,
sitting back to back--one facing to the right and the other to the
left. The party consisted of two German officers, who belonged to
King Otho's army in Greece--a Frenchman and a Swiss. The fact that
we had no common language prevented our having as much intercourse
with them as we should otherwise have had. They also took up their
quarters on deck, the captain having put up an awning. As there
was no danger of rain, the deck was decidedly the most comfortable
place. While we could not fully understand the subject of their
discourse, we were not a little amused during our voyage with the
long and almost continual debates of our fellow-voyagers. It was
all in great good-humour, but a set of more everlasting talkers and
disputants I have seldom met with.

There were several others on board, who came in without paying
their part of the expense. This is almost always the case when
a Frank charters a vessel. I have heard of a captain, who had
especially engaged not to take any one on board except the Franks
who had chartered his vessel, stowing away privately in the hold
nearly a dozen who were never to be seen on deck. The captain of
course gets a fee from such--it is so much clear gain. He first
asks and gets a full price for his whole vessel, and then stows
away as many persons and things as he can, on such terms as may
be offered. We had a Greek sea captain as a passenger--he was one
of the most silent Greeks I recollect to have met with, for, as a
general thing, they are a talking, noisy people. He hardly ever
spoke a word, and had little intercourse with any one except a
Greek servant. There was another, "old Dominico," as we called him,
who, oddly enough, passed himself off as one of my party, and not
only went rent free, but ate of my bread. On reaching our consul's
from Jerusalem, we saw there a middle-aged man, who had much the
appearance of a domestic, but in a Frank dress. He seemed to turn
his hand to anything--at times he was in the garden directing the
water to the trees and plants--then again he was going with a mule
or donkey and bringing home loads of grass for the animals--at one
time called here and another there. On first seeing him, it struck
me he might be a Scotchman--but he knew no English--I then thought
he must be an Italian--he proved to be a Genoese. He had been at
Jerusalem, and was living on the consul until he could get a passage
from Jaffa--and the consul, very properly, to keep him from rusting
through mere idleness, was employing him in all sorts of ways, as
occasions offered. When on the point of starting, the consul, who
was probably willing to get clear of him, requested that Dominico
might so far be considered, as belonging to my party as to secure
him a free passage; and, according to his own rule for managing such
cases, advised that I should keep the old man in employ as far as I
had anything that he could do. Of course I assented. After getting
all on board, and under sail, and the time for eating had come,
Angelo reported old Dominico as minus all sorts of provisions for
the voyage. I was fairly in for it. He belonged to my party, and
must not be allowed to suffer. This however was an appendix to the
matter that I had not looked for; and in laying in stores, for each
party found themselves, (old Dominico excepted,) I had not counted
him--and no small eater was he. Angelo was directed to give the old
man his rations from my stores, and advised that he should give him
something to do--make him cut the wood, kindle the fire, watch the
coffee--do anything that would keep his hand in: for I hold that
perfect idleness is not good for man or beast. And finding that the
old man had a pretty good knack for pleasing children, many an hour
were they permitted to while away with him, to his own as well as
their amusement.

The Moslems are in their way a religious people. They are regular
in saying their prayers at the prescribed times. They usually pray,
wherever they may happen to be, when the proper time arrives.
They do not retire to a secret place, but spread a small mat, and
kneel and prostrate themselves on it--touch the ground with their
forehead, facing towards Mecca, and repeating at the same time, in
a low and almost unintelligible voice, their forms of prayer. The
fore-part of the deck was the place at which they performed their
devotions.

Our winds being light, we did not lose sight of Palestine for nearly
twenty-four hours after we embarked. We had a pretty good view of
the south part of the plain of Sharon and of the hill country that
rose behind it. Several villages were seen, surrounded with their
olive-trees, vineyards, and gardens. The land at last disappeared,
and nothing but water was seen on all sides. Our course brought us
within sight of Egypt, east of Damietta. The coast was low, and
seemed to be a bed of sand. To the south-east we saw some large
buildings that appeared to rise out of the water. We learned that
they were forts at the mouth of some inlet. As we passed to the
west, our course brought us nearer the shore, and gave us a better
view of it. The water had a greenish colour, and such a current set
to the east, that during a calm that took place we had to cast out
an anchor to prevent our being swept far to the east.

In passing Damietta, we saw several vessels lying off. The shallows
and bars at the mouth of the river are such as to prevent vessels
from entering, and cause much trouble and delay in loading and
unloading at that place. Large lighters are used in passing produce
and merchandise to and from the shore. We could not see much of
the town. It lies a little back, and the sand hills near the coast
tended to prevent a good view of it. From all I could learn, it is
a small place, and much on the decline. There are some strong forts
at the mouth of the river, and so placed as to command the entrance.
The implements of war are everywhere to be met with in the dominions
of Mohammed Ali.

Groves of date-trees began to be seen on the coast. This is the
tree of Egypt, and is everywhere in Egypt to be met with in greater
numbers than any other tree. It has a singular appearance, and
not unlike a spread umbrella. The stem is long, and of the same
thickness, and has no branches until you reach the top,--then a
large cluster of branches, which bend out and hang down their tops,
so as to look much like the top of an open umbrella. They often
are found together in groves or orchards, and make a very fine
appearance.

Along the coast, and near the water, are many sand-hills. They
almost line the coast--are of various shapes and sizes. Most of
them are composed of white, fine sand, and are utterly destitute
of vegetation. In a few places I could see some small bushes about
the base of some of them; and through the openings between the
sand-hills we could see groves of palms in the interior. In a few
places we saw villages; for the most part they appeared small. Some
of them had minarets, which indicated Moslem places of worship; and
in several places we saw the top of minarets where we could see
neither the village nor the mosque to which they belonged.

The minaret, I may here remark, is to the mosques what a steeple is
to the church. Instead of a bell to call to worship, the moolah
(the Mohammedan priest) mounts the minaret, proclaims the hour,
and calls his people to prayer. The minaret rises higher above
the mosque than the steeple usually does above the church. It is
always white, and has a stairway up in the inside, by which the
moolah ascends to the place from which he proclaims the hour and
its accompanying duty. Near the top is a door through which he
comes out. A little platform runs all round the minaret, fenced in
with a low railing. There is a cover over the top, which protects
them in time of rain. If I may compare a small thing with a great,
I would say that a minaret is much like a tall candlestick, with a
long spermaceti candle in it, and an extinguisher on the top of the
candle. They have a very pretty and tasteful appearance.

The whole coast from east of Damietta to the west of Rosetta, bends
like a bow, the convex part being next the Mediterranean. It is
caused, no doubt, in part at least, by the immense deposits which
the Nile makes of the mud, with which its waters are loaded. There
are, however, some very deep bays on the coast, as the bay of
Aboukir.

The coast about Rosetta did not differ much from that about
Damietta. The mouth of the river is obstructed with bars, which is
much in the way of its commerce. The town lies back, so that we had
not a good view of it, at the distance at which we passed. There
were once, I am told, many good houses here; the trade was much
concentrated here; but since the canal has been made from Atpi to
Alexandria, the trade has taken that direction, and Alexandria has
been built up at the expense of Rosetta. All along this coast the
current seemed to set eastward.

We reached Alexandria on the first of June. It stands on a point of
land that projects considerably into the sea, and has a part that
turns west like the upper part of a capital T. On this west point
stands a palace of the pasha, to which he resorts in summer. There
are two harbours, one on the east and the other on the west side of
the town; and in each harbour is a Lazaret.

We had hoped, that as we had kept quarantine at Jaffa--as our vessel
had little intercourse with the shore, having come from Beyroot,
and as the health-officer promised he would state this on our
papers, that we would have but little, if any, assigned us here.
But we found that all availed not. We had twenty-one days assigned
us, and all our entreaties availed not to lessen the number. The
Turks, for the most part, take things patiently, and in few things
is it more wise to imitate them than in this. We had our place
assigned us in the Lazaret of the eastern harbour, and early the
next morning the captain had us and all our baggage conveyed there.
Our fellow-passengers were all assigned to the same place, while
the captain and his crew were allowed to perform their quarantine
on board their vessel--one soldier being put with them to see that
none left the vessel, and none entered it; while another soldier was
assigned to us to have a similar watch over all our doings.

On reaching the Lazaret, we were a good deal disconcerted at finding
that all men, women, and children, masters and servants, were to be
put in one and the same room. Who ever heard the like! I protested
against it, but of what use to protest! We were told the rooms were
scarce, and that this was their mode, to put all who had come in the
same vessel in the same room. The room was large--about sixty by
twenty. Several years' experience had satisfied me that there was
more trouble than profit in trying to get Turks and Arabs to think
and reason as we do. I therefore set myself to make the best of the
case, and set off to examine the premises. At and about the door of
the room--for we were not in the open court before it--I met several
of our voyagers, who, with much earnestness, urged me not to go in.
Angelo, who had just come out, earnestly advised me not to enter,
and let me know that the place was literally overrun with fleas. I
found them there in great numbers truly. But after having it swept
again and again, and using other means to destroy them, we took
possession. I had a strong cord stretched across, so as to cut off
about one-third, and made a room about twenty feet square. On this
cord we hung sheets, and blankets, and bed-spreads, and thus made a
private and comfortable chamber. We procured a frame-work of palm
wood that was a very good substitute for bedsteads--and some other
articles of the first necessity, and did very well; for our room, as
we found it, had not an article in it.

Our fellow-voyagers took possession of the other part of the room,
and renewed their discussions and debates, which for a little had
been suspended.

The Lazaret has a set of large rooms, formed into squares, and
surrounded with high walls. Attached to each room is a court, rather
larger than the room, and open to the heavens. There is a tank of
water in this court, and at one side, what is called a parletorio--a
place with a kind of wood grating, through which they may see and
converse with friends who call on them. Those in quarantine have,
during the day, free use of the court attached to their rooms, but
at night they are locked up in their rooms, their guardian with
them, and the key taken to the room of the head of the quarantine.

There is a kind of market in the Lazaret, or rather a shop is kept
there, at which most of the common necessaries may be had, and at
about a fair price. I engaged a man to send us bread and milk daily,
and was well supplied. Angelo as usual cooked for us and had the
general management of our table, and continued to have it nearly as
well furnished as when we were at Beyroot, and at about the same
expense.

We were a few times allowed to walk out as far as the sea-side,
but not without our guard. Nor were we allowed to go more than a
few rods from the walls. We much wished to take some walks in the
vicinity, but this was not allowed. There was, however, nothing rude
in their mode of denial.

The Lazaret is a new building, and not yet finished, and the work
is still in progress. It is made of a soft limestone, which is
brought in vessels and landed near the building. I observed that
females were almost wholly employed in unloading the stone from
these vessels, and the attendance on the workmen was chiefly, if
not wholly, done by females. There were small companies of girls,
from twelve to sixteen years of age, who carried stones and mortar.
They usually went together, and sung and kept a kind of time. Their
singing was in a kind of response to each other, and was evidently,
in part at least, extempore; as they often alluded to what they saw,
and to what was taking place about them. It reminded me of what is
called the corn-song, as sung by the slaves in the southern States.
They seemed cheerful, and are said to receive some wages for their
service.

Soon after we were in the Lazaret, Mr. Gliddon, U. S. consul, called
on us, and kindly tendered his aid in any way that might add to our
comfort while thus shut up in the Lazaret. To be twenty-one days
shut up in a room was tiresome, but not so much so to us as might
be expected. We had books--we read and wrote, and through the
kindness of our consul and others we received files of papers, which
let us know what was going on in that much-loved land, from which we
had been so long absent, and to think now we were about to return.

Alexandria stands on the site of the old town of that name. The
point of land which I have before mentioned, is pretty much covered
with houses. The houses of the older part of the town are very
inferior, but many of the buildings lately put up are in European
style, and very good, and some splendid buildings. These stand, at
least most of them, near the eastern harbour, and on a long street
that runs south-east across the town. Many of these new and elegant
houses are occupied by Europeans, of whom there are a considerable
number in Alexandria. There are many Frank shops, and stores, and
artists; and almost all kinds of European articles and goods may
here be obtained.

A little to the east of the Frank quarter, as it may be called,
stands Cleopatra's Needle. It is a granite obelisk--near it lies
another on the ground. There is a large space on the south-east
side of the city, that is not built on. It is a bed of ruins. In
many places excavations have been made, and curious antiques found.
The city is surrounded by a high and strong wall, with a deep
fosse on the outside. The gates are always guarded with soldiers.
The Navy-yard and Custom-house are on the western harbour; and in
that harbour ride some noble vessels, and others are being built.
The pasha and the sultan seem running a race in ship-building, and
certainly each has done a good deal within a few years past. A
little south of the town, and on a small elevation, stands Pompey's
Pillar. It has so often been described that I may well pass it
over, with the remark, that it is a large and beautiful shaft of
solid rock.

Alexandria has been much revived of late, and is now the chief
seaport of Egypt. Having selected it as the place for his navy-yard,
and through the canal of Mahmudieh opened a direct communication
between Alexandria and the Nile at Atpi, the trade has almost all
centred at Alexandria, to the ruin of Rosetta. The population of
Alexandria may be from 30 to 40,000.

The district about Alexandria has, with few exceptions, a dry and
burnt-up appearance. In a few places the date and the acacia trees
are seen, but a large part of the surface has almost nothing on it.

The pasha has shown a commendable degree of zeal for introducing
the arts and improvements of Europe into his dominions. He has
manufactories, and artists, and schools, at Alexandria and other
places. His leading object in the whole seems to be, to promote and
confirm his own power over the people that he now governs. He has
intelligence enough to see that arts and improvements have given
a decided advantage to those who possess them, and for the sake
of those advantages he desires to be possessed of them. This has
led him to employ many European artists and masters--has induced
him to send a number of youth to Europe to be educated there, and
instructed in the various departments of useful knowledge.

LETTER XXII.

  _Cairo, June 29th, 1838._

Wishing to make our tour up the Nile as soon as we were relieved
from quarantine, we had in part made our arrangements when that
took place. On the 21st, we were called down to be inspected
by the man of medical science, and were declared free from all
suspicious symptoms, and entitled to mingle with the good people of
the country, and travel where we pleased. It was farcical enough
to see the man stand at the distance of ten or fifteen feet, and
inspect our tongues, and make us move our arms, and then gravely
decide that we were free from infection. Our keepers, who, on the
whole, had been kind and attentive, but careful not to touch us,
now approached and gave us a cordial shake of the hand, and their
congratulations on our restoration to freedom. Each had to pay a
small rent for the room. We had also several small fees to pay--as
the board of our guardian. Through the aid of our consul a boat had
been engaged, and some other preparations made for our trip up the
Nile: deeming it best, after so long a delay, to lose no time in
making our visit to this place. We found the boat in readiness, with
such stores as were necessary; and the American flag floated in the
air at the mast-head. This was to make known to all whom it might
concern, that the boat was mine _pro tem._, and not to be searched
or molested while under my protection. We were soon in readiness to
leave. Several persons, however, whose animals we had used in riding
from the Lazaret to the boat, and some who had brought us various
articles, were to be paid. As I knew not what the usual prices
were, I requested a Janissary to give each what was right. He soon
settled the matter, and paid them about one-third of what they
demanded of me. Thus, almost perpetually, these people try to extort
from travellers more than is due, and especially if the traveller be
a stranger among them.

Alexandria does not stand on the Nile, but near thirty miles west of
the Rosetta branch of that river. A canal (the Mahmudieh) connects
the town on the western harbour with the river, not at its mouth,
but at Atfi. This place may be nearly sixty miles from Alexandria,
but not so far from the mouth of the river. This canal is the work
of the Pasha. Owing to the bars and shallows at the mouth of the
river, much difficulty was found in loading and unloading vessels;
and the trade of Egypt, which was carried on mainly through that
branch, was much impeded. Possibly a wish to build up Alexandria,
which was the best harbour for his navy, may have had its influence.
The Pasha resolved to open a canal from some point of the Rosetta
branch to Alexandria. Atfi was fixed on as the point. The course of
the canal marked out, and multitudes of people from all the adjacent
towns and villages, marched down to different parts of the line and
set to work. The greater part had nothing to work with but their
hands; but the soil was soft and no stone in it. In a few months
the work was done, but it is said, many lives were lost through the
hardships to which the people were subjected. Sail-boats are used
on the canal; but as the wind is not always fair, they at times use
the tow-line, but men, and not animals, pull it. The boats that are
on the canal do not pass into the river, nor those of the river into
the canal. There must of course be another boat taken at Atfi, and
the baggage changed from one to the other. This consumes time and
is attended with some expense.

The country through which the canal passes is nearly a dead level,
and, in some places, I should think, lower than the level of the
river. The banks of the canal were from eight to twelve feet above
the water. They were too high to allow us to have a good view of the
country over them. At some places, however, they were lower, and at
others, by stopping the boat, and ascending the bank, we had fine
views of the rich meadows of Egypt. For many miles after leaving
Alexandria, we passed a succession of houses and gardens, along the
canal, that had a very pleasant appearance. Several of them were
fitted up in Frank style, with glass windows, and other fixtures
indicating European society. They may have been occupied, possibly
owned, by Europeans. Connected with several of these houses, were
extensive gardens, and in a good state of keeping. In addition to
the palm tree, which is the tree of Egypt, there were several other
kinds along the canal, as the acacia. It is low, and not unlike the
olive in its shape and size, but its bark and leaf approach more to
the locust. It is pretty as a shady and ornamental tree, but I know
not its other uses.

There are, all along the canal, water-wheels at work, raising water
for irrigating the adjacent gardens and fields. The mode of making
them is simple: a channel is cut into the bank, so deep that the
water will flow into it; a wheel is made to turn in this cut, being
suspended over it; a rope, with a set of jars, passes over this
wheel, and is turned by it. This is long enough to allow the jars
to pass through the water and come up full, and, in turning, the
water is poured into a cistern, and thence conveyed by small troughs
to the place where it is needed. The wheels are usually worked
by oxen. The number of wheels is very great, and most of them are
constantly in motion through the day.

We passed some villages near the canal, but none of much size. There
were some of a larger size at a distance, as we concluded, from
the minarets which we could see. In several places we saw water
at a distance that looked like a lake. In passing up the canal,
and the same was true after we entered the river, I could not but
notice how the people and the animals loved to be in the water. The
children and youth were seen in it, and the cattle seemed to have
a passion, not only for wading in the water, but for lying down in
it, so as often to cover their whole bodies, except a small part of
their heads. This may, in part, have been to keep off the flies,
but mainly, I judge, to enjoy the coolness which the water imparted
to them. I never before understood the force of the expression in
Pharaoh's dream, where it is said, he "saw seven kine coming up out
of the river." It is true to the life. They lie in the water until
satisfied, then come up and feed on the low grounds or meadows near
it.

We had often heard dismal accounts of the annoyances met with in the
boats of the Nile; we were now to have a proof of them. On entering
our boat we observed that it had recently been painted, and hoped
that this betokened a deliverance from those gentry that so annoy
Frank travellers. But in this we were mistaken. No sooner were our
lights put out, than they came upon us from their hiding-places
in such numbers, as to make it one of the most trying nights we
had ever passed. And especially did they assail our children. And
whether it was that they liked their young blood better, or that
the children, in their sound sleep, made less resistance, I know
not, but so it was, that in the morning their faces were disfigured
with bites, and their eyes so swollen that they could hardly see.
Fortunately, we were not doomed to spend another night in this
boat. We reached Atpi during the following day, in time to transfer
ourselves and baggage to a river boat, which was about leaving for
Cairo. This boat was happily less infested with the gentry above
referred to, and we made out pretty well as to sleeping.

Atpi is a small village at the place where the canal leaves the
river. It has grown up since the canal was made. There are some
stores and shops, and a number of persons who attend to the produce
and goods that pass and repass from the canal to the river. We here
procured a boat, and made other necessary arrangements. In all these
boats we had to provide for ourselves, from the beds we slept on to
the fuel with which we cooked our food. As necessary articles are
not to be had at all places, and especially as the boat may not stop
when you find yourself minus in some needful article, the only sure
way is to keep a good stock on hand. We had our flag, as before,
flying at the mast-head, and could not but feel a little national
pride at the notice which it attracted.

Near Atpi, on the eastern side of the river, is a considerable
town, with some pretty good buildings, and among them some occupied
as factories. There was also a large building on the western
side, where the red fez, now so much used throughout Turkey, are
made. These manufactories are, we were told, public property. The
government monopolizes all things in this land. The policy may
well be questioned. Possibly in no other way could they be so soon
introduced.

The average height of the banks of the Nile may be from twelve
to sixteen feet. Fields of corn and sugar-cane were seen on the
banks, but not in as great numbers as I had expected. This in part,
however, was accounted for by the fact, that the time of the rise
was at hand, and their crops were gathered off.

The productiveness of Egypt depends on the annual overflowing of the
Nile. The Nile is the river, and the only river of Egypt; and beside
it, it is said, there is not a brook, not a spring, of running water
in Egypt. There are wells; for by digging down to nearly the level
of the water in the Nile, water may be obtained at any place. There
is no rain in Egypt. Near the sea coast, as at Alexandria, light
showers may fall, but up in the country there are none. There may be
cloudy weather during the winter, but no rain. Once every year the
Nile rises so as to cover the greater part of the country. It begins
in the latter part of June, and gradually continues for nearly two
months, then gradually falls to its usual volume of water. The
rise has now begun, but it is perceivable only to those who are
acquainted with the river. The cause of this rise is supposed to be
the great rains, and possibly melting of snows, in the high country
in which its main stream rises; but the matter is not certain. As
the Nile falls, the grain is sown on the wet ground, and produces
most abundantly.

There are many canals, from four to six and eight feet deep, and
wide enough to convey a considerable body of water. These pass off
from the river, and from these, smaller channels pass in various
directions, so as to divide much of the surface into lots or small
fields. These were much more observable at some places than at
others. The design of these channels, probably, was to bring the
water more generally over the ground than it would otherwise come;
or when the Nile did not rise high enough to cover the field, the
water, by means of these small canals, would pass in so many
directions through the district, as, by percolation, to moisten the
ground more generally than it otherwise would do.

There were along the river a great many water-melons, cucumbers, and
other vegetables. It reminded me of the complaint of Israel, in the
wilderness, that they were deprived of the melons and cucumbers of
Egypt. Num. xi. 5.

The Nile winds a good deal. It has many of those long sweeps that
characterise the Ohio and Mississippi; and as the whole country is
alluvial, the water at those turns washes away the banks against
which it strikes, while, on the opposite side of the river, a shoal
or a sand bank is formed. In these places, and they increased as we
ascended, considerable districts lay along the edge of the water,
and only a few feet above it, and on them the vegetables above
named, with many others, were raised in great numbers. There was
usually a small place in these garden spots built to protect a
person from the rain, whose office it is to prevent pillage, and
sell the vegetables to boat-men and passengers; for almost all the
travelling from Alexandria to Cairo is done in boats on the Nile.
It reminded me of the "cottage in a vineyard,"--"a lodge in a
garden of cucumbers." A little more than half-way, from Alexandria
to Cairo, on the western side of the river, we saw the end of a
new and much larger canal, now being made in a more direct course
to Alexandria. It will probably intersect the Mahmudieh canal, at
some point south of Alexandria. The southern end is near where the
sands have almost covered the district west of the Nile. Whether
it will pass into the sandy district, and thus reclaim some of it,
and prevent the farther encroachments of the sand, I know not.
There is no doubt that tillage extended much farther to the west,
in some places, formerly, than at present. The canals and means
of irrigation have been neglected, and the sands have spread over
considerable districts; some of these might no doubt be reclaimed,
were a proper mode followed with respect to them. This will hardly
be done at present, as there are large parts of Egypt now irrigated,
that lie neglected; the population, with their idle habits, are not
sufficient to cultivate the whole. For a considerable distance on
the west of the river the sands from the desert covered the banks,
and ran down to the edge of the water; it was a very white, fine
sand, and easily moved by the wind.

A little below the junction of the Rosetta and Damietta branches of
the Nile, which takes place twelve or fifteen miles below Cairo,
the Pasha has begun a great work for the more perfect irrigation of
the Delta, or the district between the rivers which is thus called.
The plan is to make a strong dam across both branches of the Nile,
and throw the water into a new channel, the bed of which shall be
much more elevated, and thus bring the waters nearer the level of
the country, and of course greatly facilitate the irrigation of the
land at all seasons. The greater part of the most valuable land
of Egypt lies between the rivers. This part is called the Delta
from its likeness to the Greek letter of that name, which is of a
triangular form. A district of land on both sides of the triangle
was cultivated and productive as far as the waters of the Nile could
be made to reach it; but beyond that, the long burning suns scorch
up vegetation, and convert all into a waste of barren sand. At some
distance in the interior, both to the east and west, water is found,
and there vegetation exists, but these places are not in the valley
of the Nile.

Most of the villages we passed were poor and small; the houses for
the most part made of mud or unburnt brick; sometimes the brick had
straw in it. We saw several places where they had establishments
for hatching eggs. This practice has long prevailed in Egypt. They
spread the eggs in layers on the floor; and have a way of subjecting
them to such a degree and uniformity of heat as perfects the process
of incubation. Their fowls seemed to me to be inferior both as to
size and flavour.

The Nile seemed to me to be about as large as the Ohio at
Cincinnati. It was, however, at its lowest state when I saw it. The
rise began while I was at Cairo, but at first it is so slow, that
a person not acquainted with the river would probably not observe
it for several days. Our boat, which was not as large as a common
steam-boat, grounded several times in ascending the river. The
boatmen would readily get out in the water and push her off. This
was easily done, as there were no rocks in the river, but mud and
sand banks. The boatmen are a shameless set and were often, and
especially when in the water, in a state of perfect nudity, and this
was the common condition of the multitudes which we saw bathing in
the river.

We had a daily wind up the river, which at times blew pretty strong.
It usually began soon after sunrise, and increased as the day
advanced. Towards night it began to abate, and nearly ceased soon
after sundown. The causes which give it this regularity we leave to
be explained by those wise men in philosophy who feel bound to give
reasons for all the phenomena of nature. During one or two months in
the year it is said to change its direction, and blow the other way.

I had several times in the south-west a fine view of the whirlwinds
of the desert; several of them could often be seen at the same
time. A thick column of dust and sand seemed to run up to the
clouds, and then gradually disappear; at times they would pass with
considerable rapidity; and while thus in quick motion, had a pretty,
but rather singular appearance. While considerably below Grand
Cairo, we had a view of the pyramids. Their tapering points ran high
in the air, and broke the smooth outline of our southern horizon.

Grand Cairo stands on the western bank of the Nile, and at the
distance of above a mile from the river. One of its large suburbs,
called Bulack, is on the river, and may be considered its port.
There the boats lie, and there much of the business of the town
is transacted. For several miles before we reached Cairo, we were
passing gardens and country-houses, some of which are of a superior
kind. Cairo is rather an assemblage of towns than one great and
continuous city; its parts lie contiguous to each other, as chance
and caprice may have decided. Close to the south-east side of it a
range of hills rises, the first and almost the only hills that we
saw in Egypt--those back of the pyramids of Gheza excepted--on a
part of these hills the citadel is situate, which commands the city,
and is a place of considerable strength.

Between the town and the river there lies a large open
space--immense piles of rubbish disfigured some parts of it. The
Pasha is making improvements here that will add much to the beauty
of this open space--he is levelling it, and with the rubbish
filling up low places, and making wide, elevated roads across it
in various directions, and having it planted with trees. A large
canal crossed this place; many people were employed in cleaning it
out, and putting it in order to receive the waters from the Nile.
There is also within the city, and before the palace, an open space
of considerable size, which has lately had much labour bestowed
on it. Elevated roads or causeways are made round it and through
it, and their edges set with trees, which give the whole a pretty
appearance. The water from the Nile, when at its height, is let into
this square; but the elevated parts are designed to be above the
waters, and afford pleasant walks for the idlers and loungers, which
are found even in Egypt.

The pyramids, so much talked of, lie near Grand Cairo, and it would
have argued a great want of curiosity not to have visited them when
so near. A few days ago, we made a visit to those of Gheza, which
lie on the west side of the Nile, and in full view of the city. We
set off about six in the morning, and rode up the river to the upper
part of old Cairo; this took us about an hour. We then crossed the
Nile in boats, to a small old village called Gheza, which gives its
name to this cluster of pyramids. We then had the wide river bottom
of the Nile to cross; this took us about two hours. The river being
low, there was no water in the several deep and wide canals that
pass through this river bottom, and we were able to cross them. This
shortened our ride much. We passed several remains of villages on
this plain. As we drew near the last village, which seemed little
better than a pile of ruins, several Bedouin Arabs came out, with
nothing but a long shirt on, and ran as hard as they could until
they met us, and urged us to employ them as our guides. It now
appeared, that it was a race among themselves, on the plan that
those who first reached us, were considered as having the right to
be employed as a guide and get the pay. As we had a cawass with us,
whom we brought from Cairo to manage all such matters, and among
other things to save us from the annoyance which these Bedouins at
times give travellers, we left it for him to make such a bargain
with them as he thought best. He engaged one or two, and let the
remainder know that we did not need their aid. We saw, at a distance
on our right, a line of arches on the plain, and a bridge-like place
over them, the uses of which we could not ascertain.

The pyramids stand on the first rise after leaving the river flats.
The ridge of that place may be from one hundred and fifty to two
hundred feet. The ground on which the large one stands (the Cheops)
is nearly level. The pyramid is square, and stands to the four
cardinal points. Each side, its base is said to be seven hundred
feet, while its height is only six hundred. It seems to be a solid
mass of rock, excepting the small rooms which I shall presently
mention. The plan on which it is built is singular. A large platform
is laid down, seven hundred feet square--this is the first row;
the stone is nearly three feet in thickness. A second row is laid
on of a similar size. This row is not laid out to the edge of the
other, but falls back all round about eighteen inches. The third
and fourth and following rows are laid in the same manner--forming
stairs. There are about two hundred rows of stones, which average
nearly three feet in thickness, and terminate in a small flat at
the top of about thirty feet square. The ascent is usually made at
the north-east corner. About half-way up there is a small room,
which seems designed as a resting place. There have evidently been
some stones thrown from the top, a part of one row being left, and
possibly one stone of a second row at the south-east corner. It
took me not quite half an hour to ascend; this included the several
stops in order to rest. From the top I had a most splendid view,
as to space--Grand Cairo and all the villages and gardens about
it; the valley of the Nile far to the north; the several groups
of pyramids, and the palm trees that lay to the south, and in the
region of ancient Memphis. The descent required about as much time,
but was attended with less difficulty than the ascent. The whole,
with the time spent on the top, occupied about an hour, and did not
seem to have half the peril or labour that some have represented.
The entrance to the interior is on the north side. We went to the
mouth and examined it, but, on the whole, concluded we would not go
in; the descent is long, and nothing to be seen within, but one or
two empty rooms. While the rocks of which the pyramids are built,
are limestone of the secondary formation, as is manifest from the
shells in it, the passage is lined with polished Egyptian granite;
the same is said to be the case with the rooms. The entrance of the
passage may be fifty feet above the ground, but it descends as one
enters.

A little to the south-west is a second pyramid, nearly as large
as that of Cheops. It is sharp at the top, and cannot, with ease,
be ascended. To the south is a small one. There were in all
directions tombs, many of them of most enormous size. The pyramids
are in the midst of a large grave-yard. We went up the hill to the
north-west some distance, and visited several rooms that were full
of hieroglyphics. Passing round the southern side of the pyramids,
we examined several places where excavations had recently been
made. Some old monuments, that had been covered with sand, were
laid bare; and, from the bottom of some deep well-like places,
several most beautiful sarcophagi had been raised--two of black
porphyry, beautifully polished, and covered with hieroglyphics, lay
on the ground; others had probably been removed. We then visited
the Sphynx, and took our lunch under the shade of its head. It has
a lion's body, in a couching posture, with the head and face of a
Nubian female, and is of most enormous dimensions. The head about
ten feet in diameter. The height from the ground, and the length
of the body, in proportion. It is hewn out of a rock, which is
the soft limestone, and has much disintegrated; the features are
much injured. The back is almost wholly covered with sand, which
has blown in from the desert. As we crossed the low grounds to the
river, on our return, we had a fine specimen of that wonderful
phenomenon called the mirage. From some cause, the air near the
ground assumes the appearance of water; the similarity is such, that
persons are often deceived, and are confident that it is water,
when seen at a little distance. We had crossed the plain about
nine or ten o'clock A.M., and there was no appearance of water;
but now, between one and two P.M., there were many places, at some
distance, that had the precise appearance of water. In some cases,
the spots that had this appearance were but a few inches, or one or
two feet in width, and looked precisely like puddles of water after
a rain: at other places whole acres seemed covered with water, and
on several occasions, it was round the roots of trees; which seemed
growing out of it. I had, on one or two occasions, seen the same as
I came up the Nile. At a considerable village on the western side
of the river, just below where the sands come in so near the river,
our boat stopped, and while the captain and part of the crew went
into the village, I ascended the bank, and walked to a place at a
little distance that was more elevated than the other parts of the
plain. It gave me a fine view of the face of the country; but I was
surprised to see, towards the north-west, an extensive portion,
as far as the eye could reach, that appeared a lake of water. In
several places there were clusters of palms growing out of it. I had
not seen on any map a lake marked in that place, nor had I heard of
any such thing. I wondered if it could be the mirage; the appearance
was so perfectly like water, that it was hard to believe it could
be anything else. On returning to the bank, I inquired of some one
if it was water that I had seen, and was assured that there was no
water in that direction, but that it was a curious appearance in
the air. I will leave it to the philosopher to explain this matter.
The ruins of what is said to be ancient Heliopolis lie but a short
distance from Cairo; we did not, however, visit them; the remains
above ground are so few, as hardly to repay the trouble of a ride to
them. The sandy deserts are to the east and south of Cairo, and the
whole way from that city to Suez on the Red Sea, a distance of about
sixty miles, is a cheerless waste of barren sand. The remains of an
old canal can be traced, it is said, most of the way from the Nile,
a little south of Cairo, to Suez, and it is supposed that it might
be reopened. Much has lately been said about the Pasha's making a
railroad from Cairo to that point, and I was assured some materials
for that purpose were brought from England; but nothing as yet has
been done, and probably years will pass before the plan is carried
into effect.

We had several pleasant interviews with the mission families at
Cairo; less, however, than we had hoped, and would have had, but
for the sickness of some of their number. They are mostly Germans,
in the employ of the Church Missionary Society. Their attention is
principally, but not exclusively, directed to the Christian sects
in the country. Miss H. has lately, at the special invitation of
the Pasha, opened a school in the harem, and is giving instruction
to the females of the Pasha's family. Thus far it has been well
received; what may be its result, time alone will show. About the
time we reached Cairo, several of the missionaries of the Church
Missionary Society, who had for some years been labouring in
Abyssinia, returned from that country. Some difficulty had arisen,
growing out of the intrigues of persons unfriendly to them, which
made it advisable for them, for a time at least, to leave that
country. It was hoped that before long they would be able to return
and resume their labours.

The Pasha has a number of schools at this place, and various
manufactories and establishments, which no doubt are doing good.
Whether the good will equal what has been expected from them, may
be doubted. His improvements and innovations are certainly tending
to produce changes in the Moslem manners, habits, and modes of
thinking, which will in part remove the obstacles in the way of
introducing the gospel among them; "but he meaneth not so, neither
does his heart think so." While the great body of the Egyptians
are Moslems, there are a number of the Christian sects to be found
here--as the Armenians, Greeks, Copts, Latins, and perhaps some
others. The state of all these sects is much like what it is through
the East--the life and power of the gospel is not known. The Church
Missionary Society have for many years maintained a mission at
Grand Cairo; they have distributed the Scriptures and other books,
published at their mission press at Malta--conducted schools--talked
and preached to the people. Their success has been but moderate. At
present, their schools are in a pretty prosperous condition, and
their field of usefulness seems more encouraging.

Grand Cairo is much the largest town in Egypt, but its precise
population is not known. A fire broke out in the Frank quarter, (the
place where most of the Franks live,) a few days before we arrived,
and destroyed several hundred houses and much property.

The Copts have a curious custom about making their Patriarch. He is
always taken from a particular monastic establishment. When chosen,
he refuses to serve, and they literally beat him until he gives his
consent. The Abyssinians receive their Patriarch from Egypt; and
after having been chosen, and even gone into Abyssinia, he will
refuse to serve, and deny that he is the person sent to be their
Patriarch, until they give him a sound drubbing, when he will agree
to receive the office. There is a strange mixture of childish folly
and weakness in such a practice.

I was much struck with the immense numbers of water-carriers,
employed in bringing water from the Nile; some to deal out to
individuals by the cupful, some to sell to families by the load, and
others to water the streets before the houses of their employers.
There were hundreds, and possibly thousands, thus employed. The
common goat-skins, taken off nearly whole, and sewed up, excepting
a small place, was the usual vessel. This they generally carried
on their backs, but some used donkeys, and others had camels, with
enormous leather bags, made much like saddle-bags, that would carry
a barrel or more of water.

The range of the thermometer at Alexandria was from 74° to 76°.
There was great uniformity, except when a sherack prevailed, which
raised it several degrees. We had one while in the lazaretta,
which covered us with dust, and increased the heat six or eight
degrees; it did not last long. As we ascended the river, there was
a considerable rise of the thermometer; and at this place it stands
from 92° to 94°; and it is not so warm now, I am told, as is usual
at this season.

LETTER XXIII.

  _Alexandria, July 14._

A little before we left Cairo on our return, I had a disagreement
with the captain in whose boat I had gone up from Atfi. On reaching
Cairo, I was induced, in part owing to the fire which was raging
in the Frank quarter of the town, to think I had better not take
rooms in that quarter, as otherwise I might probably have done.
The captain, who had been wishing to engage to take me back to
Atfi, expressed his willingness that I should remain in his boat,
retain the use of his cabin, and he would take me back for what he
received for bringing me up; and engaged to be ready to start back
at the time I named. When the time drew near at which we were to
set off, I found that he was not likely to be ready to go, as he
had not discharged the loading which he brought up. It came also to
my knowledge, through Angelo, that he intended to make a special
charge for the use of the cabin, which I fully understood was a part
of the accommodation he was to find me. On inquiry, I found that
thus it was; and the prospect was that I would be detained, as well
as greatly overcharged. I told him, as we had misunderstood each
other, we must have a new bargain. I would agree to the bargain as
I understood it; but not as he now explained it. He declared he
would not agree to it but as he understood it. I let him know I
would leave his boat, paying him for the time I had used the cabin.
On inquiry I found another boat was about to start at the time that
I had fixed on, and made my arrangements to leave him. This took
place near night, and the captain changed his tone, and declared I
should not leave his boat. He would not allow his men to hand my
baggage; forbade the men of the other boat that was hard by to set
foot on his deck. The English consul was fully engaged with taking
care of the effects of the Franks who had been burned out; and,
moreover, night came on, and we had no way to get word to him. I
threatened the captain with a complaint through the consul; but he
let me know he cared not for the consul. Poor Angelo was in a great
fright. He always had a fear of the Turks, and now all his fears
came over him. I did not myself feel altogether comfortable. There
I was with my wife and three little children, in the cabin of a
boat, the captain and crew of which were Turks, and had not only
abused me, but positively refused to let me leave it. I had but
one servant, and he was much frightened. There was no alternative;
we had to stay and did stay that night, and that without any
molestation. At the dawn of day, the crew were at work unloading,
and getting ready to set off. I had no intention, however, of
remaining in the power of a captain who had shown me so little
respect. I found means to get word to a cawass of the consul's,
who was often employed near where our boat lay; and through his
interference had my baggage landed per force, paid the captain
what the cawass said was right, and went on board the other boat
with my family. When the captain found that leave him I would, he,
Turk-like, submitted to it with more quietness than I had expected.
We were all glad to get out of the boat, after the dispute, and none
of us more so than Angelo, who did not seem to think his head was
safe on his shoulders, until he was safely on board another boat.

The vessel in which we took passage to Atfi had two giraffes on
board, destined for the United States. We did not see them until
we went on board the boat. They are a mild and inoffensive animal,
and feed on dates, bread, and hay. They were under the special care
of a mustapha or janissary of the U. S. Consul, who had engaged to
accompany them to the United States. He had with him two Arabs, for
the twofold purpose of waiting on himself, and taking care of the
giraffes.

The wind up the river was so strong, that we found it much more
difficult to get down than we had found it to ascend; and but for
the energetic character of Mustapha, who had special orders to be
in Alexandria by such a day, we would, in all probability, have
had a long passage. He hurried, and scolded, and used his cowskin
freely on the crew, hardly sparing the captain, with whom he had
some terrible quarrels. The wind was much against us, and we had a
few days that were most oppressively hot. At times we were obliged
to lie by, and the wind covered us with dust and sand. We at last
reached this place, but it took us nearly half as long again as it
did to go up. We did not get back, however, without experiencing
some of the evils of travelling in Egypt. The hot winds and dust met
with on our return, had given sore eyes to all our children. Some
of them could hardly see; and Angelo, who had been our factotum in
all our travels, was entirely laid up with the same complaint; and
under this affliction his heart began to fail him as to the long
voyage on which we were about to enter; and he fairly intimated
that he felt like changing his purpose, and remaining in the East.
He had lived with me above two years. In all my journeys, and
travels, and residences, Angelo never left me. He knew enough of
English to understand the directions I gave him, and enough of
Arabic to have intercourse with the people. I always found him
honest, and faithful, and attentive to my wants and interest. I
tried again and again to teach him to read, but it really seemed
that his talents did not lie that way; after going over the same
lesson twenty times, he still could not make it out; and without
losing his book, he gradually fell into the way of not using it. He
was raised a Catholic, as most of the Maltese are, but had fallen
out with his priest before he left Smyrna, and seemed not inclined
to have much to do with his church. He generally attended family
worship, and either the English or Arabic preaching, but showed a
disposition to let little things keep him away. On the whole, he had
less religious feeling than his advantages ought to have produced.
He always showed much attachment to our children, was a good nurse,
and the children loved him. From the early part of our acquaintance,
he declared his wish to accompany me home; and up to the day of our
reaching Alexandria, I did not doubt that he would do so. I did not
indeed see how we could do without him. But now his heart seemed to
fail him; his eyes were grievously sore--and, possibly, as the time
drew near, he may have had an increase of fears as to how he could
live, where no one could understand his language. I am not sure,
indeed, that a more special cause existed. He had manifested much
kindness of feeling for a young female servant that had spent some
time in our family before we left Beyroot. I could not but think
that the thoughts of having so many thousand miles between them, had
an influence which he did not own, and possibly hardly admitted to
his own mind. However that may be, he expressed a desire to remain,
and we were able to make such arrangements as allowed of it. He
continued his attention to the last day we stayed, and carried with
him our best wishes and prayers, that he prove as good a servant of
Jesus Christ as he has been to us; and meet us again, where all is
love, and purity, and peace.

THE END.

Bradbury and Evans, Printers, Whitefriars

Transcriber's note:

Text enclosed by underscores is in italics (_italics_).

Small capital text has been replaced with all capitals.

Apparent minor typographical errors have been corrected without note.
Irregularities and inconsistencies in the text have been retained
as printed.

The cover for the eBook version of this book was created by the
transcriber and is placed in the public domain.