The voice of freedom. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1839-1848, 1847-06-03
From the [Londonl Peoples Journal.
Survey from the Pyramid.
BY HARRIET MARTINEAU.


three months that | am not qualified to COM
ment on the events which have been passing
I in it. | have been sailing up the Nile, far in
to Nubla, some hundreds of miles beyond
post offices and newspapers so that on my
return to Cairo, have to learn and think
over the news of the world, instead of remark
ing upon it. But l have been taking another
kind of Survey, full as interesting to me as
that of the busy living raCe-a survey Of lime
instead Of Circumstance and it may be well
for once, to speak of this,-not only because
my own mind is full Of it, but because it is
good for us all to have our thoughts now and
then called off from present affairs and fixed
on point of view which commands wider
prospect.
We are all apt to overratc the Importance
of our own times, our own work, our own ex-
perience. do not speak of this as fault in
us. 1t is natural to the human mind and a
good in its effects for we should hardly put
our full strength into our work, or our hearty
interest into the events of every day, if we
saw how small a proportion anything present
;, bears to the history Of our race. This struck
me powerfully, the other day, when | was
standing on the highest stone of the Great
Pyramid of Egypt The present famine in
Ireland and trying Winter in England seem,
naturally enough, TO those in full view or eX-
perience Of them, the most important events
that ever happened in the world but it is
worth while to look back to famines which &C.
CURED in this Eastern part Of the world sew
cral thousands of years ago, and see if any
thing could be more important than their
causes and their consequences. During sew
eral months past, there have been floods in
various parts of Europe, sweeping away dwell
ings and products and causing the loss OF
some lives. To those on the spot, this event
appears like the end of the world--the great
est calamity in the experience Of man. But,
looking over from where | stood, there was Il
place almost within view where great flood
rose, and destroyed mighty monarch and all
his host, and affected the destiny Of the hu-
man race to the end of time. Again, we are
vain of the cnlightment of our age We think
that our knowledge is almost all new, and
that we are able to do things by steam, water
power electricity, the telescope, the printing
press, &c, which were never before dreamed
of by man. A survey Of the past from the
heart of Egypt may show us whether this Is
true, and perhaps sober our views in regard
to our own atta!nments and the prospects OF
the race.
1t was for some time taken for granted, on
the assertion of scholars who Judged too hastl-
~ JlldU our 8lODC HIS Decn Cltlcu uDOuI WV
years-thaJ is, about 1900 years before
Christ: and also that Man was created at the
same time. The science Of geology has prov
ed that the world is much older than had
been supposed; and that it had lasted a
long time, inhabited by curious beasts and
fishes, of kinds that we never see now, before
Man was created. And now, the more we
look into Egyptian history, the more clear it
becomes that we have been mistaken in our
Judgment of the lapse of centuries, and that
5000 years ago, some nations were as busy
about their works Of art, their farming, man
ufactures, literature and philosophy as we are
now. " hen any one speaks to rs Of 5000
years ago, we think of Adam and Eve gar
dening in ParadiSe-no such thing having
been thought of as human abodes, or clothing
or any of the arts of life, or transactions Of
men living in society but it is now believed
with good reason, that the Pyramid on which
stood the other day was there in its place
5000 years ago and it is certain that the
building of that Pyramid is a thing which
could not be done now, with all our boasts of
our modern resources. We cannot even I'M
derstand how it was done.
This mighty mass of building covers eleven
acres of ground, and is built of blocks ofStone
so enormous that it is uncomfortable how, with
any length of time, or number of men, they
could have been brought from the quarry and
raised to their proper places. 1t was once
smooth and polished on the outside and its
history was engraved upon it in hleroglyphic
characters. So the old historians tell U.S.
But now the smooth outside is all gone; taken
probably, to build other ediices; and the
next range of stone blocks forms a set ofstcps
by which means / got to the top rough
nj l0i.ult uto of A 90 foot biuh
the steps being chiefly from four to three
feet high Each, of our party had three Arabs
for assstants-dark brown men, in turbans or
little white caps, and loose shirts and drawers
and who never dream of being silent for a
moment, or of leaving of asking for pres
ent. These Arabs arc OF different race
from the people who built the Pyramids and
they know nothing whatever about them, nor
can conceive why we 90 and examine such
monuments. They can only suppose that we
90 in search oftreasure. But they are kind
to strangers and faithful to their trust; and
| felt in very good hands while they were
helping me up and down the outside of this
the largest building in the world. They
drew and lifted me up the high steps so as to
spare me any great fatigue, encouraging me
with the few words of English they had pick
ed up" very good !" and halfway p Af
ter one particularly difficult step, they were
in great delight and patted me on the back,
all three crying out" All ali! good morn
ing-good morning. They were ordered to
be quiet while we were at the top, where we
wished to look about us undisturbcd and to
date and begin some letters to our friends;
but, with all my interest in the scene which
spread abroad, could not but look on these
men with wonder and sorrowthat they should
be inhabitants of country Astounding in such
monuments
The landscape which we overlooked was
this: From near the foot of the Pyramid to
the Northern horizon stretched the line which
divides the sandy desert from the fertile plain
which extends to the Nile. The line of sep