New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1857-07-06
The Crocodile Pits Of Egypt.

celebrated for the difficulty travellers have found in
entering the and the fatality that attended Legh's
attempt His account is quoted, and then Mr.. Prime
gives his own experience.
The descent into the cavern was by sitting on the
edge swinging off with one hand on each side of the
hole, and dropping into the depths below, where a
soft bed Of sand received u.s. in chamber just large
enough to hold the eight persons Of whom the party
conssted-all standing in stopping posture, while
we lighted our candles and arranged for progress.
tossed my tarbouche and talked up to AbdelAtti,
and left my head bare Then following the principal
guide, Hay down fat on my face, holding my candle
before me- and began to advance with as close q re-
semblance to q snakes motion as human vertebre
will admit Of. My own guide and Abdallah followed
me and the English gentleman next and the drago-
man and guide bringing up the rear. progressed
slowly and with great difficulty, constantly bruisng
my back on the sharp points Of the rock above me,
some five or six yards. Leigh calls it eight; but
think it is not 80 much We were not able to stand
up again in STOPPING posture the ceiling being little
over four feet high and thus advanced eight or ten
yards further until we reached the chamber Of which
Mr.. Leigh speaks.
] am Of opinion that we had now arrived Just un-
der the bed of the torrent have spoken Of and that
the entire cavern which l afterwards explored is
natural ssure in the rock running under this point of
meeting Of two hills, and following the line Of the
valley between them. This is, of course, conec-
ure, as did not take a compass with me to deter
mine the course.
This chamber was small, irregular, cavernous
room, the floor of which covered with sfapeless
masses of stone that had fallen from the roof Over
these we stepped with great difficulty. need not
remark that the darkness profound, and the air
already became so close that candles burned but
dmly, so that each man obliged to hold his own
at his feet to determine where to set them Crossing
the room, we stepped over chasm between mass
Of rock and the wall Of the chamber to point in the
wall which presented ragged edge, and from this
into narrow doorway about four feet high. call it
doorway, for it resemb'ed one, though could find
no signs of artificial origin about it. 1t was almost
square and opened into sort of gallery, the floor of
which was covered with broken rock and interrupted
by huge deep assures. ledge at the side afforded
toerable walking for some distance in STOPPING pos
ture; and then we again lay down on our faces and
crawled through passage twenty feet in length,
terng the largest chamber in the pit. It was vast
irregular chasm, perhaps seventy hundred feet in
diameter. Entrance to it was almost forbidden by
clouds of bats that met me in the narrow passage
through which was crawling, dashing into my face,
wounding my forehead and cheeks, clingng by
to my hair and beard, like many thousand devils
disputing the entrance to hell l can give no ade
quate idea of this chamber of horrors in which now
found myself. Profoundly silent, we had crawled
along each man having fast beating heart and list
ening to its throbs; and now, as emerged into this
room, the loud whr of the myriads of bats was like
the sounds OF another world into which had pene
trated. staggered forward to a rock and sat down.
when piercing yell startled me to my feet 1t rang
through the cavern if the arch iend himself were
one of my poor friends who were making their first
entrance to an Egyptian catacomb and had never be-
fore encountered the bats, with whom l was thor
Oughly familiar. The one who was in advance was
overwhelmed by the army that met him as he ap
preached the room.
what is it ?" shouted.
These bats; they are devouring me-"
Push on they'll not harm you"
my light is gone out and l can see nothing"
Here is my light; come toward it." had relit
my candle, which had been put out as his was, and
was now seated in the center of the cavern, on
black rock, holding it up before my face. As he
emerged into the room and canght sight OF me- he ut
tered howl of mingled astonishment and terror.
Pluto or Sathanas, by all the gods!n said his
friend, coming up behind him and looking at me-
My appearance must have been picturesque in my
primitive costume, now begrimmed with dirt, and
seven bats (they counted them) hanging on my
beard, and perfect network and Medusa-col Of
them in my hair. was very little disturbed by the
harmless little fellows although, before coming to
Egypt, I scarcely knew of an animal in the world so
disgusting to my mind.
but the atmosphere if it may be so called of this
chamber was beyond all description horrible 1t was
not an air to faint in there was too much ammonias
for that. confess that, as found myself painting
for breath and drawing long, deep inspirations, to
very choking, without reaching the right place in
my lungs, Il think every one understands that |
trembled for an instant at the thought of going
further It was but an instant however and the de.
sire to see the great repository of the sacred animals
overpowered the m0mentary terror.
"Abdallah!"
"Ya, Howaiji"
eff anything happens if fall down. give out OR
faint don't you run. Tell the guides that l have
ordered Abd-el-Atti to shoot them man by man as
they come out If one of them appears without me-
Do you pour this down my throat, and drag me out
to the entrance. You understand"
Aiowah, va Howajii. Fear not, will do it,
Recoect that if die you all die, that is arranged
for as surely as you, one ofyou attempt the entrance
without me- Abd-elAtti is ready for you''
The guides had listened attentively, and having
seen me hand my pistols to my trusty dragoman be-
fore coming down, they believed every word of it,
though it had never occurred to till this instant
The guides were all at fault here, precisely as they
were in Mr. Legh's time, and that of every traveller
since This chamber has been the end Of most at
tempts to explore the pits. The intense darkness is
some excuse for this, since our eight candles wholly
failed to show wall anywhere around or above u.s.
The men proposed that should sit still while they
tried various passages opening out of the room To
this objected much preferrng to trust myself at
juncture like this In that intense backness it was not
easy even to find the way we had come in at, for of
course there was no guide north SOUTH except my
recollection OF the shape of the rock on which was
seated, and its bearings as approached it, The
reader will bear in mind that the whole floor of this
room was covered with immense masses of rock,
among which we moved about in search of outlets,
leaving always one person on that rock to mark its
locality.
After trying three passages that led nowhere, hit
on that one which the guides pronounced correct and
the party advanced. For the benefit of future ex-
porers, If any such there be- may explain that it is
the first passage which goes ont of the chamber to
the right you enter it. That is to say keeping the
right hand wall will bring You to it, leaping chasm
at its entrance. This is the chasm of which Leigh
speaks. found it only about six feet deep.
The passage which we now entered ran so low
shat found it necessary to creep on my hands and
knees, and sometimes to crawl, snake fashion, full
length. 1t continued for distance that hesitate
to estimate 1t is wholly impossible to guess at the
progress one is making in such postures. Henniker
think makes it four hundred yards. ] should think
thousand feet was very large estimate, but it may
be as much. The air was now worse, lacking the
1t seemed to be pure nitrogen. The lungs
operated freely, but took no benefit or refreshment
from it, while the heat was awful ard perspiration
rolled down our faces and bodies, soaking our clothes
and making mud on our features and hands, with
the fine dust that filled the atmosphere. At length
the passage became so narrow that my progress was
entirely blocked. My broad shoulders would not go
through, and paused to consider the matter. The
hole was about eight inches wide and little more
than two feet high. Evidently Mr.. Leigh did not
pass beyond this | was obliged to lay over on my
right side, presenting my body to its narrow way up
and down, and pushing with all the strength of my
feet as well as pulling with my hands on the floor
and rocky projections forced myself along about
eight feet. In this struggle my brandy flask which
was in my trousers pocket, being under me, was
OF giving out of my faculties, was gone. At the
time thought little of it, laughing at the occurrence
as called out to those that followed me but after
ward remembered the accident with shudder The
only argument that had allowed me to persuade my
self to attempt this exploration was promise that
would take brandy with me, which no one else had
done, and, If necessary, secure artificial strength
nor ON II t,saS Than, a