Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-07-25
LAND OF THE PHAROAHS.
AN INTERESTING DESCRIPTION
OF EGYPT.
some Of the PecuIiarItIes OF Its
People and Climate.
Rochester Uni0n and Ad,ertiqsy

lication, but the Union and Advertiser ha
been kindly permitted to reproduce It TO
the benefit OF our readers, who will find /
most interesting at this iuncture, when tn,
iand OF the Pharaohs is once again Jude
ene seourge OF desolating war. The gentle
man says:
Egypt, away from the Nile, is pretty
Inucn desert, desolation and ruins III
OVeLnoW ' curing the rainy season (summer)
so !ertlHzes a narrow strip of country OF
eacn elue that production of that limited
quShelCy OF arabic land exceeds ANYTHING |
nave seen elsewhere. Wheat and COTTON
are the most important of the product of
the country. Besides the overflow of the
Nile, further irrigation is secured bv mannai
labor of the natives. The land that is farmed
is divided into small squares separated by
bitches, banked up higher than the surface
OF each square. At the river bank men have
q well sweep, such as we see in the country
with us In America over the wells of olden
times, and with bucket which is dropped
into the river, water is drawn up and poured
into trench or reservoir on shore, from
which 1t runs through the bitches that di-
vide the squares above described, and from
these bitches is scattered over the land.
The Nile, for hundreds of miles above Cairo,
is lined with negroes employed constantly
in that species OF irrigation. Sometimes
oxen (buffaloes) turn a combination of
|
or buckets attached to an endless chain,
which revolves. So much for the agricul-
ture of Egypt.
"The Egyptians have well formed features
and swarthy or bronze complexion, quite
unlike the negro of our country, or the
Nubians, whose tribe inbabits some four
hundred miles up the river, south. The
country people of whatever tribe. are
| thorough barbarians, aud neither from the
requirements OF temperature, taste, fashion
nor self respect, deem it important to wear
much clothing. A few hundred miles south
| the dress OF a lady consists of q fringe of
| leather strings foot long, and tied around
the waist and dropping to the hips. The
| gentlemen wear less.
"The Nile for hundreds of miles, so far as
l went, is bordered at intervals with the
most interesting and remarkable ruins
ruins whose hieroglyphics give, so far as is
known, the history of themselves, and the
| country, reaching back to the earliest record
| OF prim@val times. OF late years these have
been successfully deciphered by which the
darkness of thousands of past centuries has
been greatly illumined. The ruins to which
refer are those of tombs, temples monu-
ments, obelisks and pyramids. Many of
these are structures which nothing of mod
ern times equals In grandeur and magnif-
cence, architectural beauty uneQualed in
our day and of stupendous proportions
For instance, in one hall in the Temple of
karnak are "a columns, % of which are Ga
feet in length and IL feet in diameter, 80
feet circumference; IL columns are % feet
In length and 9 feet diameter, % feet cir
cumference, with exquisitely carved capi-
tails and completely covered with hero
glyphics. This constitutes but a small
portion OF this great struc-
ture, the ruins of which cover
many acres. They are supposed to have
been constructed 5000 or more years before
Christ. There are many other such ruins
but little inferior to these at different places
along the Nile. The country is filed with
tombs, affording space for a population in
fnitely greater than that now inhabiting
Egypt. Some OF these tombs were con-
structed with great elegance and still re-
main elegant. Doubtless these structures
were the productions of forced labor from
population far exceeding the present. To
me 1t Is mystery how such armies OF
laborers were subsisted, while the present
productions of the country are too limited
to give decent support to the very limited
population OF the present time. The
heiroglyphics upon the ruins, from
which the history of the past cen
turtles OF that country is deduced, tell
little else than of wars, TYRANNY.
Fagan idolatry and the inhumsnitY of man
to man, for ages, centuries and thousands of
centuries. How can all this be reconciled
to that doctrine OF special Providence of
God, which we are taught to accept, while
we have indubitable evidence frC On nature
and science that Gods attributes are wis
dom, power. love, benevolence, mercy and
compassion? There is something wrong
somewhere. Is God at fault9 All the
misery, wretchedpess and anguish of man
kind are the natural outcome from mans
wickedness and ignorance
"The climate OF Egypt | deem less salu-
brious than that Of Florida or parts OF Geor-
gia and South Carolina. Living is poor and
malaria abounds largely at Cairo and along
the Nile; more than that cannot be said
against the most uninviting portions of our
Southern States, while In Florida, Georgia
and Akin, South Carolina, one can be sure
of good food.
AFTER sojourn Of three months 10 Egypt
and on the Nile, / went to Palestine, land
ing at Jsffs (ancient Joppa) From this
place Jonah embarked on bis whale fishery
expedition. The rocks are promfr ent in the
harbor OF Jaffa to which Andromeda was
chained while devoured by the sea monsters.
1 visited the reputed house of Simon. the
tanner; stood upon the roof where Peter
dreamed, seeing the great sheet let down bv
four corners, containing all manner of
beasts, etc., also the place on which stood
the house Of Tabitha, who organized the
first Dorcas Society. Well, Jonah is there
no more, Simon, the tanner, and Simon
Peter, Cornelius, Tabitha and the rest are
gone-where cannot say. The old clothes
Tabitha made are still worn Cudgiug from
the prevailing fashions OF Jaffa), by the
present generations at Joppa. it is well
they have them or they would probably
have none.
"From Jatfa to Jerusalem, our course Law
over the plains Of Sharon, and through the
valley of Ajalon. Along the route are MANY
places Of scriptural historic interest. We
were two DAYS from Jaffa to Jerusalem by
very bad road.
Jerusalem cannot be easily described
The streets are very narrow and very dirty,
and the houses show adaptation only to the
most abject wretchedness. The population
consists almost entirely of Mohammedans,
Jews and Roman Catholics. should Judge
either ct the worst possible specimen of
the races to which they belong. The Roman
Catholics and Creek Christians worship
alternately in the church of the Holv
Sepulchre. These Christians so love one |
another that they have attempted the |
slaughter OF each other while engaged in |
worship, and now a Gordon of Turkish
soldiers are daily marshaled in and around
the church to keep peace among the |
worshipers. 1t is claimed for this church
that 1t contains the sepulchre of our Lord:
spot is marked In the pavement where the
body OF Christ was laid when removed from
the cross. Another spot where stood the
angel viewing the cruciixion. Another
spot where stood the Virgin Mary
looking upon the crucifxion. The stone to
which Christ was bound for the fagellation
is shown in a dark cOrner-so dark nothing
whatever can be distinguished | believe
this last the most honest exhibit of all
shown in the church. There is no end of
kneeliDg over and kissing of all these spots
designated by inlaid marble. The traditional
place OF the crucifxion is In another part
OF this church. Solomon's Temple has in
great measure given place to a mosque Of |
great renown. The traces, however, OF the |
temple remain In some structures upon and
beneath the site Of this Mosque of Omer,
very considerable wall of the temple yet
stands, and to this, on days Of each week
on set periods, the Jews resort, and with
much kissing of the stones and piteous
moaning, bewail for hours the destruction
of their beautiful temple and the overthrow
of their hierarchy.
"Outside the city are many places of
great interest. The Mount of Olives, Beth
any, Valley Of Jehosephat, Pool Of Sloan.
Garden Of Gethsemane, Bethlehem and
many others, are veritable places, hallowed
by Christ and His followers during His life
on earth, and which, 1t is said, can be au-
thenticated by indisputable history. One can
approach and contemplate these sacred
spots with profit, approaching through an