The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1877-12-29
Ghinos Sbroad.
Scenes in Cairo.

Scenes In Ualfo.
Although Cairo is, strictly speaking, in
Africa, it is the most intensely and typical
y Asiatic city in the world. Except, per-
haps, at Damascus, there is no other place
in which the characteristics Of Mohamme-
dan Semitic races can be 50 easily studied.
The people call themselves not Egyptians,
but Arabs They talk Arabic, and are of
the religion Of the Arabian Prophet, though
it would not be easy te say from what orig
inal stock they are really derived. Are
they, in the main, descendants of the
ancient inhabitants of Memphis? The
Copts, whose name would make them the
representatives of the old Egyptians, are
even now easily distinguished from the
ordinary "Arabs" by their superior appear
ance. But they may represent the gov.
erning classes, those who compelled tho
construction of the great monuments, and
whose features are found in the statues Of
the mighty mouarchs of thirty and forty
centuries ago The lower ranks are Mo.
hammedans. and possibly many of them
are Arabs; but they are a down-trodden
race, the servants of servants, the toilers
and cannot differ very much fIOm the peo.
pie of whom Herodotus says, truly or
falsely, that hundred thousand of them
at time were forced by Chcops to build
his pyramid. But Marshal Kahira, "thC
victorious city, is altogether Arab The
Roman fortress, erected to oyerawe Mem.
phis, and still known as Babylon, is toler
ably perfect; much more perfect, indeed
than any remnant of the Roman rule in
England; but it lies some miles south Of
Cairo, and was not even included in the
early Arab town, Fostat t, now called old
Cairo. As Egypt was one of the frs
conquests of Mohammed's disciples, one o
the earliest seats of the great Caliphs, and
long the centre of Arab civilization, it has
more features of purely Arab type thar
Constantinople, or indeed any other 0rien
tai city of its size either in Europe, Asia
or Africa. The traveller, therefore, who
desires to see the Mohammedau at home
cannot do'better than seek him in Cairo
and he finds in the narrow, picturesqu,
streets Of the old parts of the town scene,
Of interest which he may seek in vain else
where. When he emerges into the mod
ern quarters the change is remarkable
Though all the tyranny of the Turks ha
not sufhced to alter the indelible character
istics Of the place, and though the wild
squares, the fountains, the gardens, tn
arcades, the watered roads, the rows o
villas have half-French look, the peopl
who crowd every thoroughfare are as un
like anything European as they can be
Here, long string Of groaning camels, lie,
by Bedouin in white capote, carrie
loads of green clover or long fagots o
sugar-cane. There, half dozen blue
gowned women squat idly in the middle 0
the roadway. A brown skinned boy walk
about with no clothing on his long, lea
limbs, or lady smothered in voluminou
draperies rides by on a donkey with he
face covered with a transparent white veil
A bullock cart with small wheels, whicl
creak horribly at every turn, goes past wit
its cargo Of treacle jars. Hundreds o.
donkey boys lie in wait for fare, myriad
of half-clothed children play lazily in tn,
cutters, turbaned Arabs smoke long pipe
and converse energetically at the corner:
and every now and then pair of runnin
footmen, in white shirts aud wide, shor
trousers, shout to clear the way for car
riage in which, behind half-drawn blind.
some fine lady Of the Viceregal hareu
takes the air She is accompanied per
haps by little boy in European dress, an,
by governess or nurse, whose bonnet an
French costume contrast strangely wit
the veiled figure opposite. A still create
contrast is offered by the appearance of tn
women who stand by as the carriage pas
ses, whose babies are carried, astride on tn
shoulders. or sometimes in the basket s
carefully balanced upon the head. TIL
baskets hardly differ from those depicte
on the walls of the ancient tombs, an
probably the baby, entirely naked and il
eyes full of black flies, is much like wha
its ancestors were in the days of the Pha
raohs. In the older quarters Of the tow
the scenes are much the same, only tina
there is not so much room for obseryiu
them, for the streets are seldom wider tha
Paternoster row, and the traveller VIII
stops to look about him is roughly jostle
by Hinbad, the porter, with his heavy bal
of carpets, or the uncle of Aladdin, wit
his basket of copper lamps, or the waite
carrier, clanking his brazen cups, with al
immense skin slung round his stoopin
shoulders. Saturday Repieo.