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EXCURSIONS TO CAIRO, JERUSALEM, DAMASCUS AND BALBEC, FROM THE UNITED
STATES SHIP DELAWARE, DURING HER RECENT CRUISE.
With an Attempt to Discriminate between Truth and Error in Regard to
the Sacred Places of the Holy City.
by
GEORGE JONES, A. M.
Chaplain U. S. Navy; Author of Sketches of Naval Life.
New-York:
Van Nostrand and Dwight.
1836.
Entered according to the Act of Congress of the United States of
America, in the year 1836, by Van Nostrand and Dwight, in the Clerk’s
Office of the Southern District of New-York.
Scatcherd and Adams, Printers, 38 Gold Street.
* * * * *
TO COMMODORE D. T. PATTERSON, U. S. NAVY, THIS MEMORIAL OF SOME
INCIDENTS IN A VERY AGREEABLE CRUISE UNDER HIS COMMAND, IS INSCRIBED,
WITH THE RESPECTFUL AND GRATEFUL REGARDS OF THE AUTHOR.
PREFACE.
The Author had no intention during the cruise of writing such a book.
His reasons for now engaging in it are, in addition to those common
on such occasions, a belief that the public take a very deep interest
in the countries which he has visited, and would be pleased to have
further means of information respecting them. The circumstances under
which his excursions into Egypt and Syria were made, though limiting
his observations to a few cities, gave him some unusual advantages in
examining those to which he was allowed access.
The reader, he believes, will be surprised to see the changes which the
energetic government of Mohammed Ali has wrought in Egypt and Syria;
and these are only the beginning of changes. The whole East seems
destined before long to a wonderful revolution, if not political, at
least mental and moral. It is pleasing to see the present dawnings of
light upon two countries the most celebrated in the world; the one for
its ancient science, the other for its religion. The night appears to
be past, and the day-spring at hand.
The Author has given a chapter on Jerusalem, which may appear to some
of his readers better suited to a book of romance than of travels. His
object was to place vividly before the reader the ancient city, which
he believes to have had a splendor and a beauty of which few persons
are aware. Though the scene is supposed to be raised up by a spell of
fancy, yet there is nothing presented in the picture for which there
is not authority in ancient writers, with the single exception of the
arrangement of the hymns at the Paschal sacrifice.
The author, for reasons not necessary to be stated here, kept no
journal during this cruise; but the events and scenes occurring in
these visits made an impression so deep that the memory has kept a
record of them sufficiently faithful. At the commencement of his
attempt to put them on paper, he wrote to Commodore Patterson to
ascertain whether such a design would meet with his approbation; and
the Commodore, in a very kind letter in reply, was good enough to offer
him the use of his own private journal and of his official letters.
From these he has drawn much valuable statistical matter as well as
hints on other subjects; and he takes this mode of publicly making his
acknowledgments for the favor.
Through oversight, the year of these visits has not been mentioned in
the body of the work; they were made in the year 1834.
INDEX.
EGYPT.
CHAPTER I.
Approach to Egypt. Plague in Alexandria. Determination
to visit Cairo and the Pyramids. Boghaz Bey. Canal of
Mahmoudieh. Policy of Mohammed Ali. The abject state of his
subjects, and his apology for it. Night on the Canal. First
view of the Nile. Angelina’s opinion of it. Page 13
CHAPTER II.
Boats on the Nile. Our enjoyments on the river. Water of
the Nile. Villages. Ovens for hatching chickens. Egyptian
bricks, and case of the Israelites. Singular costume of
the females. Thievish boatmen. First view of the Pyramids.
Stupendous undertaking of Mohammed Ali at the Barage.
Approach to Cairo. Moonlight scene. 25
CHAPTER III.
Cross to Boulac. Splendid hospitality of the government. Our
cavalcade. Kindness of Mr. Gliddon. Description of his
house. The Baldac. 44
CHAPTER IV.
Visit to the Governor of Cairo. Court of the Mamelukes. Their
massacre. Schools in the Citadel. Court of Justice. Palace
of the Pasha. View from it. The “City of Tombs.” A human
monster. Plain of Memphis. Heliopolis. Mosque of the bloody
baptism. Joseph’s Well. Mint. Manufactory of Arms. The
Citadel. “The Lions.” 50
CHAPTER V.
Visit to the Cotton factories. Iron foundries. Palace of
Ibrahim Pasha. English garden on an island in the Nile.
Stables of Ibrahim Pasha. Arabian horses. Bazaars. Slave
market. Madhouse. The maniac butcher. 67
CHAPTER VI.
Preparations to visit the Pyramids. Audience of leave with the
Governor of Cairo. Visit of the ladies of our party to the
Sultana. Description of the Harem. 77
CHAPTER VII.
Visit to the Pyramids. Their diminutive appearance as we
approached. Effect when we reached the base. Pyramid of
Cheops. Visit to the interior. Pyramid of Cephrenes.
Belzoni’s forced passage. His successful researches. Large
stone enclosure east of this Pyramid. Tombs adjoining on
the west. Dine in one of them. 84
CHAPTER VIII.
Some interesting facts in our own country in connexion with
these Pyramids. Pyramids of Micocatl in Mexico, and of
Quanhuahuac and Cholula. Their history. Notices of a deluge,
and confusion of languages, in the picture writing of
Mexico. Pyramids in the Polynesian islands. “High Places”
of Scripture. Temple of Belus. Universality of this kind
of structure explained. Our western mounds. View from the
Pyramids of Ghizeh. The Sphinx. Visit to the plain of
Memphis, and to the Military and Naval School at Toura. 96
CHAPTER IX.
Rest on the Sabbath. Visit to the Pasha’s summer residence at
Shubra. Exceeding beauty of the ground. Lake, and sports of
the Pasha. Pic-nic in one of the Kiosks. Pear tree from the
Pasha’s place of nativity. Brief history of Mohammed Ali.
Departure from Cairo. Regret at parting with Mr. Gliddon. 112
CHAPTER X.
Return to Alexandria. Ruins about that city. Pompey’s pillar.
Cleopatra’s needles. Modern improvements in Alexandria.
Arsenal. Harbor of Alexandria. Rail road to Suez. New law
for protecting the people. Presentation to the Pasha.
Description of his person. 119
SYRIA.
CHAPTER XI.
First view of the coast of Judea. Anxieties as we approached.
State of the Country. Recent Rebellion. Investment of
Jerusalem. Character of the Natives. Earthquakes. Taking of
the City. English and American Missionaries. Death of Mrs.
Thompson. Defeat of Ibrahim Pasha. Re-capture of the City.
Conscription. Strange conduct of our Consul at Jaffa. He
is dismissed from Office. Jaffa. Large clusters of Grapes.
Eastern Story-tellers. Gardens and Watermelons of Jaffa.
The Cactus. 129
CHAPTER XII.
Start for Jerusalem. Appearance of our Cavalcade. Djerid
play near Jaffa. Plain of Sharon. Night ride. Ramla. The
Cadi’s theory about Earthquakes. Beth-Horon. Entrance to
the Hill-Country. Aboo Ghoosh. David’s Brook. First view
of Jerusalem. Difficulty in getting accommodations. Greek
Monastery. Distressful night. 146
CHAPTER XIII.
Morning view of the city. Glance at the localities. Question
with regard to the place of the Crucifixion. Its practical
nature. Scene usually sketched in the mind. The event
probably more humiliating in its attendant circumstances.
Traditions forced upon the visitor to Jerusalem. Their
effect on the mind. Danger of such visits to those who will
not separate truth from error. “El Devoto Peregrino.” Dr.
Clarke. 167
CHAPTER XIV.
Localities in Jerusalem that are certain. Valley of Kedron.
Mount Moriah. Valley of the Cheesemongers. Mount Zion, its
ancient limits. Present remains of its northern boundary.
Line of the “Old wall.” Acra. Gate of the Gardens. Limits
of the city at the time of the crucifixion. Bezetha and the
wall of Agrippa. Monument of John. Whither our judgment,
unassisted by tradition, leads us as regards the place of
the crucifixion. Rocky Knoll. Not called _Mount_ Calvary
in the Scriptures. Tradition. Conclusion to which all this
leads us. Circumstances and scene of the crucifixion. The
question with regard to the spot of our Saviour’s burial. 179
CHAPTER XV.
Commencement of our visits. Hospital of the knights of St.
John. Church of the Holy Sepulchre. Reputed tomb of the
Saviour. Marble sarcophagus. Effect of this visit on
us. Question whether this is the real tomb, or only a
representation of it. Removal of the floor two centuries
since. Greek chapel “the centre of the world.” Origin of the
various incredible traditions. Charity to be exercised. Cave
where the cross is said to have been discovered. Fissure
in the rock. Tradition about the head of Adam. Calvary.
Holes for the crosses. Another fissure in the rock. The
humiliation in the tomb, and resurrection. 202
CHAPTER XVI.
Dimensions of the Modern City. Ground within the city, and
in its environs. Its picturesque appearance. Continuation
of our visits. Via Dolorosa. Sentence of the Saviour from
Salignatius. House of Veronica and Picture of the Napkin.
House of “the Rich Man.” Arch of the Ecce Homo. Pilate’s
House. Mosque of Omar. The Locked-up Stone. Pool of
Bethesda. Place of Stephen’s Martyrdom. The Golden Gate.
The Emperor Heraclius in a dilemma. 222
CHAPTER XVII.
Valley of Hinnom. Potter’s field. Singular properties
attributed to its earth. Will not act on the citizens of
Rome. Gloomy character of the valley. Job’s well. Pool
of Siloam. Fountain of Siloam. Periodical in its flow.
Stones and columns belonging probably to the court of
the ancient temple. Monuments of Zachariah and Absalom.
Tomb of Jehoshaphat. Burial-place of the Jews. Valley of
Jehoshaphat. View of the Mount of Olives, Plain of Jordan,
and the Dead Sea. Garden of Gethsemane. Tomb of the Virgin.
Tradition about her death and ascension. 233
CHAPTER XVIII.
Visit to the Mount of Olives to procure olive root. Cabinet
work from it. Attempt, by a Fancy spell, to raise up
again the ancient city of Jerusalem. Its appearance.
Fortifications. Towers. Royal palace. Stupendous wall
supporting the Courts of the Temple. Outer Cloister.
Solomon’s Porch. Court of the Gentiles. Inner Cloister. Gate
called “Beautiful.” Court of the Jews. Court of the Priests.
Altar. The TEMPLE. Its dazzling façade. Noble entrance.
Skill of the Architect. Vestibule. Grape-vine of Gold. The
Sanctuary. Its furniture. Holy of Holies. Effect of this
place on Pompey. Walls of the edifice. Stones of amazing
size. Frame work of the city. Villages and gardens around.
Effect of the contrast between the Temple and Mount of
Olives. The millions coming up to the Passover. Their Hymns.
The Roman army. Titus takes a view of the city. Events
foretelling its doom. The horror-stricken prophet. 251
CHAPTER XIX.
Visit to Bethlehem. Well of the Star. Monastery of Elijah.
Rachael’s Tomb. Plain of the Shepherds. Town of Bethlehem.
Character of its inhabitants. Church and Cave of the
Nativity. Traditions. The Turpentine Tree, &c. Manufactures
of the Bethlehemites. Tattooing. Country northward from
Jerusalem. Cave of Jeremiah. Hill of Bezetha. Tombs of the
Kings. Dr. Clarke’s subterranean Chapels. Ancient quarries.
Tombs of the Judges. Thorn from which the Saviour’s crown is
supposed to have been made. Difficulty at the Gates. Yaoub
and the Soldiers. 279
CHAPTER XX.
Departure of the first party. Mohammed Ali’s firman,
and alarm of the Governor. Sickness of Mr. M. and Mr.
Nicholayson. Trials of Missionaries. Their general character
and qualifications. Moonlight view of Jerusalem, and
reflections. Arrival of the second party. Interview with
the Governor. Visit to Bethany. Departure from Jerusalem. 294
CHAPTER XXI.
Accident on our return. Visit to St. Jean D’Acre. Also to
Tyre. Prophecies respecting Tyre fulfilled. Visit to Sidon.
Lady Hester Stanhope. Her letter of invitation to us. Visit
to her residence at D’joun. Beirout. Missionary families
at Beirout. Striking feature in the Protestant Missionary
operations. Their schools and printing presses. 308
CHAPTER XXII.
Party to Damascus. Ascent of Mount Lebanon. The roads.
English carriage. Scenery of the mountain. Its inhabitants.
Maronites. The Druses. Aaleih. Horns worn by the women.
Princesses of the mountain. Beautiful night scene. Bhamdoon.
Plain of Coelo-Syria. Anti-Lebanon. Characteristic of
Americans. A dilemma. First view of Damascus. The great
plain. Gardens. The city. “Street that is called Straight.”
St. Paul. 324
CHAPTER XXIII.
Late fanaticism of the people of Damascus. Change. Mr.
Farrah’s house. Agreeable disappointment. Costume of the
natives. The Cobcob. Mr. Farran, the English Consul General.
Visit to the palaces. Palaces of Abdallah Bey, &c. Official
visit to the Governor, Sheriff Pasha. Handsome reception.
Promises of the Pasha with respect to Americans in Syria.
Mr. Farran’s beautiful country residence. Bazaars. Damascus
blades--not to be had. Departure from the city. Night at
Mr. Farran’s. 341
CHAPTER XXIV.
Sunrise on the plain of Damascus. Mountain Mosque.
Superstition of the natives of Damascus. Mountain course of
the Barrady. Tomb of Abel. Fountain of Rosalyn. Toils of
travel. Comforts on the road to Pompeii. Ruins of Balbec.
The great Temple and its courts. Stones of prodigious size.
A gem in Architecture. The circular Temple. Gleanings with
regard to their history. Pasha of Balbec. Marshal Bourmont.
Cedars of Lebanon. Town of Zahle. Night in our tents on
Lebanon. Attack by the natives. Return to the ship. 360
CHAPTER XXV.
Sensation produced by the Delaware. Effect of this visit on
the cause of Missions in Syria. Service on the Sabbath
on board, and the crowds attending. Crowds attracted by
this Ship during her whole Cruise. Appearance of the Ship.
Her effect on the Visitors. Progress of free principles
throughout the World. The cause of Humanity secure. Our
own Country, and its Prosperity. Adieu to the reader. 382
ERRATA.
The Reader is requested to make the following corrections:
Page 105, line 12, for “ten” substitute one hundred.
106, “ 14, “ “case” “ cause.
111, “ 13, “ “are” “ were.
114, “ 2, “ “water” “ lake.
153, “ 22, “ “extensive” extreme.
155, “ 26, strike out “thirty miles from Jerusalem.”
159, “ 27, for “whirling” read wheeling.
311, “ 29, “ “filled” read piled.
* * * * *
EGYPT.
* * * * *
EXCURSIONS TO CAIRO, JERUSALEM, &c.
CHAPTER I.
Approach to Egypt. Plague in Alexandria. Determination to visit Cairo
and the Pyramids. Boghaz Bey. Canal of Mahmoudieh. Policy of Mohammed
Ali. The abject state of his subjects, and his apology for it. Night
on the Canal. First view of the Nile. Angelina’s opinion of it.
Ex-Dey of Algiers.
“Land O!” was cried from our mast-head on the morning of the 13th
of July; and at the end of an hour, a dim yellow line, resting on
the southern horizon, might be discovered from our elevated decks.
When another hour had expired, a high misty object, that had drawn
our attention, had taken distinctness of outline, and was known
to be Pompey’s Pillar. By this time also the narrow strip of sand
forming the coast had begun to be ruffled, and soon after the city
of Alexandria, its domes, minarets, palaces, and shipping, came into
view. Notwithstanding the evidence of life and activity that had now
presented itself, the scene was a melancholy one. Far off on either
side stretched the low, sandy coast, its uniform outline unbroken
except by a few insignificant ruins; not a tree or shrub, not a speck
of verdure, was to be anywhere seen; while back from the coast the
atmosphere seemed to be on fire; a deep red glare, covering all the
land, and ascending far up towards the zenith.
This was our first impression with regard to Egypt, and the second
was by no means a more favorable one. Our ship was anchored about
three miles from the shore, and the schooner Shark, our consort on
this occasion, was directed to proceed into the harbor, with an
invitation to the U. S. consul, Mr. J. Gliddon, to come on board. When
he arrived, he informed us that two cases of what seemed to be the
plague had appeared eight days previously in the Greek convent, and
had excited some alarm: he added, however, that the building had been
put in strict quarantine, and as the disease had extended no further,
and the symptoms were not of a decided character, their fears had
subsided, and that they were in hopes of enjoying their usual health.
Their expectations were encouraged by the fact that the country had
for many years been exempted from this dreadful disease.[1] Mohammed
Ali was at this time in Syria, whither he had been called to assist
in putting down a rebellion, which had suddenly burst out there. Mr.
Gliddon strongly urged the Commodore to await his return; and informed
us, that in the mean time we could visit Cairo and the Pyramids with
perfect safety, as that city and the intermediate country were free
from sickness, and our route would not carry us through Alexandria or
expose us to contact with its inhabitants.
It was with the most sincere pleasure that we learned that Commodore
Patterson had decided in favor of this excursion. Dim land of embalmed
and faded greatness, that, from the searments of the tomb, dost murmur
to us in solemn and mystic language, we should see thee then! we
should stand on the banks of the Nile, where even Nature herself is
shrouded in unusual obscurity: we should look down from the summits
of the Pyramids, those monuments on which all ages have gazed with
wonder, and where they have speculated in vain. I had myself just been
living in a squatter’s cabin in Indiana, and anticipated with keen
relish the strong contrast that would here be presented. I had come
from witnessing the first elements of society forming into order, to
see the monuments of a people ancient even in the most ancient times;
from watching the conflicts of separate individual interests, to
behold the “vast expanse of ages and nations;” from wandering amid the
primeval solitudes of nature, to wander amid the solitudes of deserted
cities; and from witnessing the first efforts for human greatness to
contemplate its end.
Mohammed Ali had left as his representative, Boghaz Bey, an Armenian
of talent and energy, who enjoys his highest confidence; and while
preparations were making for our journey, the Commodore, with Capt.
Nicolson and Mr. Gliddon, went to pay him a visit of ceremony. On
application being made to him for passports to Cairo, he replied, that
they would be unnecessary; that he would consider Com. Patterson as
the guest of the Pasha, and, as soon as we should start, would forward
orders by telegraph to the river, to have boats provided, and to Cairo
to have the party treated with every attention.
On the 16th we transferred ourselves, together with conveniences for
cooking and sleeping, to the decks of the schooner, and were landed
towards evening near the mouth of the great canal of Mahmoudieh. This
canal was the first of the many proofs which our journey led us to
witness of the wonderful enterprize and energy of Mohammed Ali, whom
the reader, when he has followed us further, will, I think, agree with
us in considering one of the greatest sovereigns of the age. In some
respects we must also allow his government to be marked by singular
short-sightedness and weakness; but on this point it is only fair to
let him speak for himself, which we shall presently allow him to do.
The traveller through Egypt is constantly struck with two things: one,
the high state of improvement in all public institutions, and the
energy with which they are conducted; and the other, the vassalage, the
extremely abject state of the people. No subjects in the world are in
such a wretched condition as those of the Egyptian Pasha. They have the
appearance of freedom, but throughout the whole country every man is a
slave to the royal master. They till the land and may call the produce
theirs; but when it is gathered in, he compels them to carry it to
his store-houses, and there he purchases it at his own prices, which
are just sufficient to keep them from a miserable death. The stores
thus accumulated he sells all over Europe, wherever a good market can
be procured; the money is laid out chiefly in the support of his army
and navy, and thus the avails of their labor are returned to the poor
wretches in the shape of the “nezzam,” or soldiers to keep them in
subjection. Of course they hate both the Pasha and all his armed forces
most cordially; but for this he cares nought, and thus we have the
spectacle of a nation apparently prosperous, but in reality extremely
miserable. He is so severe in his exactions, that if a cultivator
wishes to plant a tree, he must provide an equivalent for the ground
it may occupy, and in one village up the Nile, where we stopped to get
vegetables, they informed us that they had none for themselves. The
last season their grounds, they said, had not yielded the quantity of
grain required, and this year they had been compelled to convert their
gardens into wheat fields, in order to make up the deficiency.
The annual revenue of the Pasha from all these sources amounts in
ordinary seasons to twenty-five, and in very fruitful years to thirty
millions of dollars. In his own personal expenses he may be considered
very moderate; and nearly the whole of this immense income is expended
in public improvements, and in the pay and equipment of his army
and navy. The former consists of 80,000 men, well disciplined, and
efficient, and strongly attached to their duties and to the Pasha;
the navy at present consists of 11 one hundred gun ships and as many
frigates, afloat, and is to be increased to 40 vessels, chiefly of the
largest class. The public improvements throughout the country evince
an enlargement of mind and an energy of character that in an eastern
sovereign is wonderful, especially when we consider that in most of his
operations the Pasha has no one to second him, but devises and executes
by the force of his own individual energy; and very often has to give a
personal superintendence to his operations. With regard to the abject
state of his subjects, he says it is a necessary one, and is lamented
by himself as much as by any other person. His power is unstable; he
has lately gained a kind of slippery independence, is closely watched
by his former master, the Sultan, and, without a large army and navy,
his throne would soon slide from under him. His improvements, too, he
says, must be carried on with untiring assiduity, or they will result
in little good. His own life will probably not be continued much
longer, and if they are not well advanced towards completion before his
death, they will all be an abortion, and the country will retrograde
to its late state of inferiority, and be again behind the character
of the age. And in this he is correct; for his step-son, Ibrahim
Pasha, who will doubtless be his successor, is altogether devoted to
military affairs, and cares little for manufactories, unless they be
of arms and munitions of war. “Therefore,” argues the Pasha, (or thus
at least argued the governor of Cairo for him at our first interview,)
“therefore I must drive matters with the utmost speed, and to do this I
must have a large revenue, and to obtain this I must lay heavy burdens
on my subjects.” He says, however, that as soon as the cause of these
exactions is removed, and his power secured, and his improvements
sufficiently advanced to fear no relapse, he will make his people
comfortable; and that in the interval, by means of schools and his
own example, he is endeavoring to inform them, and to stimulate them
to higher views of things than they have hitherto had, and greatly to
increase the resources of the country. Thus speaks the new monarch of
Egypt, and I have thought it best to give the reader at once an insight
into his views, in order that he may be able the better to judge of
them as we proceed through the country.
We now return to the canal of Mahmoudieh. Fifteen years ago there was
a scarcity of grain in Europe, but a great abundance in Egypt, and
the merchant-sovereign had an opportunity of realizing an extremely
handsome profit on the products of his soil; but the Nile happened at
that season to be unusually low, and vessels found it so difficult to
load at the mouth of the river, that his harvest of gain was in a great
measure lost. He then conceived the idea of a canal to unite the river
with the secure and excellent harbor of Alexandria. With him there
is but a short interval between planning and executing. He sent his
soldiers into the country with requisitions on the various governors
for men, according to the size of their villages or districts. The
poor natives were hunted up, and being fastened to long poles by
iron collars around the neck, forty to a pole, were thus driven down
to the line marked out by his engineer, and there set to work. Mr.
Gliddon, who saw the work in progress, informed me that there were
150,000 men employed upon it at one time. In six months the canal was
completed, with the exception of a little masonry, and was opened for
use. It is sixty miles in length, ninety feet wide, and eighteen in
depth, including six feet of water. The workmen had no tools, except
a few hoes to break the hard upper crust: when this had been done,
they scraped the earth together with their fingers, formed it into
balls, and passed them by hand to the sides of the canal, a large
portion of the wet mass often escaping between their hands while
on the way. Exposed to the sun, and without shelter at night, and
probably without sufficient food, disease crept in among them; and I
was credibly informed that during the digging, 30,000 of the workmen
perished: their bodies, as soon as life was extinct, were tossed upon
the growing heaps of earth at the side, and this was their burial. The
canal follows the line of that dug by Alexander the Great, till near
Damanhour, when it unaccountably makes a great bend to the south. The
engineer has made another blunder in the grading, in consequence of
which it is too shallow to be navigable during the two months when the
river is at the lowest.
Mr. Gliddon, whose kindness on this and other occasions has placed us
under many obligations, had secured boats for us, and towards sunset
our arrangements for the inland voyage were completed. We then hoisted
the American ensign at the peaks of our little flotilla, and dropping
the large sails to a fresh and favorable breeze, the city and its
shipping soon glided from our sight. After passing near the elevated
ground on which stands Pompey’s Pillar, and then by a few country-seats
of the nobles of Alexandria, we entered upon an open, dreary waste,
and night began soon after to sink around us, and upon the still and
melancholy scene; for, except our rushing boats, not a sight nor a
sound met the senses, which soon became actually oppressed by the
solitude. A dim moon threw a flickering and uncertain light upon the
banks, and it required but little effort of the imagination, as we
watched them flitting by, to make out shadowy forms, and cover the
place with the phantoms of the many poor victims sacrificed and buried
there.
But had they actually risen up, the whole 30,000, and pointed their
bony fingers and gibbered at us as we passed, they would scarcely
have exceeded in numbers or terror the blood-thirsty tormentors that
soon after this assailed us in the little cabins in our boats. We had
extinguished our lights and laid down for repose, but repose there
was none for us. The reader must excuse me if I draw such a nauseous
picture; it is not fair that he should travel without sharing some of
the pains of travelling, nor can he otherwise get a correct idea of
the country. We soon found ourselves literally covered with vermin,
whose bite, though dreadfully annoying, left us uncertain whether they
were the animal that sometimes chooses our beds for their residence,
or those that constituted the third plague of Egypt; and during the
long night, while stung almost to madness, we were left to weigh the
evidence in this agreeable query. The latter insects are, at certain
seasons, common in every part of Egypt; and Sir Sidney Smith, having
removed his tent to the desert, in order to escape from them, found
them even among its sands. It was really quite a relief to us, when
morning came, to find that our clothes were thickly sprinkled over
with only the former less terrible insect. It was a long and wearisome
night. I climbed the mast once or twice to cool my blood and seek for
relief by gazing around; but only a flat, and utterly deserted country
met the sight, and the ear could not detect a single sound; the hooting
of an owl would have been a pleasant relief.
Morning did come at last; and as the sun began to throw its welcome
beams over the landscape, if landscape it may be called, the banks of
mud bordering the canal grew higher, and receded on either side, until
presently we found ourselves in a kind of basin, and soon after amid
a multitude of boats. We had arrived at its termination. Casting our
eyes on the left bank, where there seemed to be something in motion,
we were able, by and by, to detect a village stuck into its side; the
houses, or rather the single small chamber forming each house, being
made partly by digging into the bank, and partly by building up a low
wall of mud, with an opening in its front for a door. They were covered
with reeds, and these again with mud. Creeping in and out, were a
swarm of natives, in soiled habiliments, as dark looking as the houses
themselves. This, together with some store-houses of the Pasha at the
gate of the canal, and a few more decent dwellings on the banks of the
river, form the village of Atf. On the right bank of the canal was a
well paved quay, lined with boats, and covered with heaps of grain.
We ascended the steep, high banks on the right of this quay,--and had
before us the Nile.
I believe we shall not soon forget the impression it made on us; for it
is, there, a beautiful river, and its effect was heightened by contrast
with the dull, monotonous scene presented by the black sides of the
canal and the deserted country around. The Nile is about as wide as
the Connecticut at Hartford or the Ohio at Cincinnati; it flowed here
at our feet in graceful and beautiful curves. In front of us was an
island, low and flat, but covered with millet, and with shrubs and
plants of the most intense verdure. A little higher up, on the opposite
bank, from amid a mass of houses, towered the domes and picturesque
minarets of Atfour, a city of 40,000 inhabitants, with a large building
like a palace at its upper edge. Just above this was another island
covered with trees, which were dipping their foliage into the waters,
and behind which the river was lost to our sight. On our own side the
view was less interesting. Only a few trees dotted the banks, and in
the interior, the dreary stretch of flat, waste land was interrupted
only by the deceitful _mirage_ or imitation of water.
While some of the party were looking down on the river in high
admiration of its modern beauties, or lost in meditations on its
ancient fame, old Catalina, the Mahonese woman who attended on the
Commodore’s family, approached. Catalina had never seen any thing
larger than the rivulet which flows near her native city, and is much
frequented by the Mahonese washerwomen. The company watched her in
order to enjoy her surprise. She was, indeed, surprised. When she had a
little recovered from her astonishment, one of the party said to her,
“Well, Catalina, what do you think of the Nile?” “Oh,” she replied,
with sincerity and earnestness, “it is very grand--if it was only at
Mahon, what a fine place it would be to wash clothes in!”
FOOTNOTE:
[1] They were too sanguine. Soon after our visit the plague broke out
at Alexandria, and raged with a violence that has scarcely ever had
a parallel. In the town of Atfour on the Nile, which, when we passed
it, had 40,000 inhabitants, in the course of a few months only 1500
remained. Some had fled, but far the greater part had been carried off
by the disease. It swept quite through the land from the sea-coast to
the interior, sparing neither city nor village, and was every where
unusually fatal.
* * * * *
EGYPT.