GOING UP TO THE TOP OF THE GREAT PYRAMID.
How fearful
And dizzy ’tis to cast one’s eyes so low:
The crows and choughs that wing the midway air
Show scarce so gross as beetles.—SHAKSPEARE.
Of course you listen to anything people have to say on a subject about
which you are at the moment interested. Here are some specimens of what
I heard about the Pyramids, when I was on the point of visiting them.
A gentleman, who had that day returned from making the ascent, was, as
he sat at the _table d’hôte_, overflowing with his impressions. His
complexion and voice were somewhat womanly. As might have been expected,
he strongly advised that everyone should attempt what he had himself
just accomplished. There was, however, some novelty in the advantage, he
thought, would result from the ascent, as well as in the logical process
by which it was to be attained. ‘Go up,’ his words were, ‘go up by all
means. The religious effects are very good. Elevated to so enormous a
height above the earth, on so vast and imperishable a structure, you feel
deeply and profitably the littleness, the feebleness of man.’
I asked the owner of a New York dry-goods store, who was rushing over
the world for the purpose of adding to the stock of his ideas—a very
creditable effort in a man of his antecedents and occupation, and who was
now half-gray—what he thought of the Pyramids? ‘Well,’ was his reply,
‘they are a matter biggish. But I don’t think them much, for we can
have just as good Pyramids in Central Park, New York, if we choose to
spend the money to have them. A Pyramid is nothing but dollars. How many
dollars do you say one would cost? Well, we have got all these, and many
more, to spare. We have got the Pyramids in our pockets, and can set them
up any day we please.’
These are specimens (and additional instances might be given) of the
ideas of people who are eminently estimable, and perfectly contented with
themselves and with the world. Indeed, in holding and expressing them,
they must think that their eyes are not quite as other men’s; that they
can penetrate a little further beyond the surface of things. Yet one
meets with many a man quite as estimable, though perhaps not quite so
contented with himself and with the world, who would be disposed to ask
what good would his life do him, if told that he must swop ideas with
them. The prospect would be as little attractive to him as that of the
exchange of his religion for the creed of an ancient Briton, or Cherokee
Indian. But variety is pleasant; and the world is a big place with plenty
of room for honest folk of all sorts.
An acquaintance (I trust he will allow me to quote him here), in whose
mind at the moment artistic must have preponderated over historical
associations, standing unawed, and even unmoved, in front of the Great
Pyramid, relieved his mind to me, by giving utterance to the following
piece of honest profanity:—
‘I can’t bring myself to take the slightest interest in these
Pyramids. They don’t possess one principle, one element, one feature of
architecture. They are nothing at all but heaps of stones.’
On my first visit to the Pyramids of Gizeh it was too windy for anyone
but an Arab to think of making the ascent. On my second visit the day was
all one could wish, and so four of our party went up to the top of the
Great Pyramid. It was my fifty-fourth birthday. This seemed to myself
rather a reason for not making the effort. My climbing-days were done.
But my young friend, late from Harrow, and great in athletics, thought
differently. ‘You mustn’t give in yet,’ he urged. ‘You must go up. It is
what everyone ought to do. What is the use of having come all this way
if you don’t go up? You will be sorry afterwards if you don’t. One would
come a long way to have a chance of doing it.’ As this was very much
like what one used to think oneself some thirty, or so, years since, the
exhortation seemed reasonable and good. We ought to endeavour to keep
ourselves young in body as well as in mind. We ought not to give in by
anticipation. It will be time enough when we can’t help ourselves. And so
I went to the top.
By the way a party for travel in Egypt, if pleasure, not work, is the
first object, may be a large one, and need not be composed entirely of
historians and philosophers. All liberal pursuits and reasonable ways of
looking at things may be represented advantageously. A naturalist and a
geologist are almost indispensable. A member of the Ethnological Society
might, at times, turn up worth his salt. A Liverpool, or Manchester,
man whose ideas are of commerce, manufactures, and machinery; of the
value of things, and how to do things, would often serviceably recall
speculation to the standard of present utility. But by all means have
a young fellow late from Harrow, and still great in athletics. He is
always to the front, like a cork to the surface of the water. He is never
afraid of work, or of roughing it. He is always good-tempered and merry.
Always glad to hear what has anything in it; is impatient of twaddle,
and can’t stand assumption. Some day he will himself be an Egyptologer,
or geologist, or something of the kind. At present he is tolerant, and
allows these things to those who like them. What he likes is a rousing
gallop on the Sheik’s horse, a girl that has no nonsense in her, a
champagne luncheon, a good cigar. Some things, and some chaps he thinks
slow, but the general rule is ‘all right.’ A Nile party is the better for
this ingredient. We mediævalists must not be over-reasonable. He will
help us a little to keep this tendency in check. Besides, we were once
young ourselves, while our friend was never, though we all hope he may
live to be, an old fogie.
Four of us went to the top together. But _place aux dames_, and no young
lady, from the days of Cheops, better deserved the first place than she
who, on an early day in January, 1871, ascended his Pyramid with eye as
bright, and foot as sure, as a gazelle’s. If he still haunts the mighty
monument in which he was laid, after having bent his people to its
erection for fifty years, he must have thought, as the Lily of the North
stood on its summit, that he was well repaid.
For ne’er did Grecian chisel trace
A Nymph, a Naiad, or a Grace
Of finer form, or lovelier face.
A foot more light, a step more true,
Ne’er from the heath-flower dashed the dew;
E’en the light hare-bell raised its head
Elastic from her airy tread.
My young friend, late from Harrow, and great in athletics, was, of
course, one of the four.
And so was an older friend of mine, with whom and another lad, in the
year 1836, each of the three being then seventeen years old, I had gone,
I believe, the first open-boat cruise on our home rivers. We started from
Bedford and went to York and Hull, and back again, 700 miles in an open
boat, pulling it all the way ourselves, and lying down in it at night
to sleep, accoutred as we were in Jersey frock and canvas. During the
whole expedition we cooked our meals ourselves. From that boat we had
looked forward into the unknown world before us: I can still recall the
anticipations, visions, and resolves of that time. Now, from the top of
the Pyramid of Cheops, we looked back on our course, so far, through the
world. Well, just like other people, we had had each of us to make some
discoveries for himself, and to pay for his experience. But the fight had
not been always against either of us. On the whole we had not found it a
bad world. We were glad, after thirty years of the chanceful life-battle,
to meet again, on the summit of the Great Pyramid, if not quite
unscathed, yet not crippled. I suppose we each thought that the time to
come could not be as pleasant as the interval had been that separated our
two excursions.
The Great Pyramid is built of extremely hard and compact nummulitic
limestone. The third was cased, at all events, to half its height,
perhaps completely, with enormous blocks of granite. A few are still in
their places, but most of them have been thrown to the ground. A small
portion of the external casing at the top of the Second Pyramid is still
uninjured. It is of so pale and fine a limestone that it looks as if it
were of polished white marble.
I found the best way of getting an impressive idea of the enormous
magnitude of these Pyramids was to place myself in the centre of one
side, and to look up. The eye then travels over all the courses of stone
from the very bottom to the apex, which appears to pierce and penetrate
the blue arch above. This way of looking at the Great Pyramid—perhaps it
is a way which exaggerates to the eye its magnitude unfairly—makes it
look Alpine in height, while it produces the strange effect just noticed.
While making the ascent, the Hakem of the Arab tribe, which supplies
guides and assistance to travellers, took the opportunity of a pause for
breath to press upon me the purchase of some old coins. I told him I
would look at them when we had done with the Pyramid. ‘I am satisfied:’
he replied; ‘an Englishman’s word is as good as his money.’
Many people shrink from ascending the Pyramid from a fear of becoming
dizzy and confused on seeing, as they fancy they must, that they are up
so high without anything to hold on by. This sight need never be seen.
You are going up against the face of the mountain; attend then to what
you are doing. Look where you are putting your feet, which you must do,
each step being three feet high, more or less and you will never see
once, from the bottom to the top, how high you are above the earth, or
that you have no supports, except when you turn round on sitting down to
get breath, and when you reach the summit. The same is true to a great
extent even of the descent, although your back is then turned to the
mountain. Attend to what you are about—that is, to the place where you
are going to set your foot—and there will be nothing at all to make you
dizzy.
One of the exhibitions of the place is that of an Arab climbing from
the bottom to the top and coming down again, in what appears to the
spectators, an incredibly short space of time. The charge for the
performance is a few francs. As they are slim, long-legged, active
fellows, they are well-adapted for this kind of thing. One who was proud
of what he could do in this way was challenged by my young friend to a
foot-race for half-a-crown. There was not an Arab present but thought it
would be a hollow thing. It was not a hollow thing at all. But their man
it was who came in second, Harrow winning by a few yards.