Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1884-08-14
Inundatton 81 The SO.

what have often enjoyed, the glorious /
yleW-Whlch at the time of the inunda- /
ton is peculiarly fascinating the /
summit of the mountains which bound 4
the valley Of the Nile on the eastern side /
Let me try to lead you here, in fancy at /
least. 1t Is an excursion which amply /
repays any one who undertakes 1t.
At other times of the year the valley of /
the Nile, seen from this height, resembles /
a green and blooming garden. Waving /
corn fields, deeply green clover meadows, /
nigh grown Indian corn and beans, I
sugar cane and cotton plantations cover |
every inch Of cultivated ground, inter /
spersed with groups Of palm trees and /
groves of acaclas, In the midst of which /
the villages nestle. Far away to the /
westward the hills o. the Libyan desert !
frame the picture, and the Pyramids of |
Ghlzeh stand out in bold prolific against
the sky. If it so be that the sun is setting
behind them at the time that your eye
lsrestingOn this picture. you viii enjoy a
symphony of color such as once seen is
never forgotten. The blue-gTeen tints Of
thevalley meet and blend with the warm
browns and Ochres of the desert, and
through almost purple tints these again
are united with and attuned to the deep
blue of the sky.
The grand simplicity of subject, COM
bined with the-I might say classic
harmony of lines and the marvellous
blending Of cOlOrs which 90 to make uP
the Egyptian landscape, can not but fas-
cinate every artist: and all who have
once seen and studied it are drawn ire
sistibly again and again to the deeper
study Of these problems of art. At the
moment that 1 selected for introducing
this picture to my readers the waters of
the Nile, which at other times, hemmed
in by the high shores, only resemble a
silver ribbon winding in and out among
the green fields, and glancing here and
there as the sunlight falls upon it-these
waters cover all, and the vast plain re-
sembles and extensive lake. The villages,
built on more elevated ground, and pro-
tected by high dikes, peep out of the vast
eXpanse Of Waterlike inkstands in the sea.
The plains, whose blush green feathery
| crowns are already burdened with heavy
tassels of dates, red or brown or yellow.
are more than halfway up their graceful
stems In water. Numberless boats and
small craft, with their picturesque sateen
sails, looking like sea gulls on the wing,
skim the water, speeding before the
north wind, which at this season blows
steadily and strongly, and sends them
southwark heavily laden with produce
of the north, whence they return with
cargoes of ivory, ostrich feathers, gum
arabic, and, alas only too often with
slaves.
This is a time at which, in Cairo,
most curious and interesting fete is cele-
brated, one which has its origin in a
heather custom, namely, the so-called
"breaking through Of the Nile" and
takes place when the Nile has reached a
certain height.
A canal traverses Cairo from east to
west. The canal is closed, when the in
undatiOn begins, at its junction with the
Nile, by a solid and well-made dixie, and
remains thus closed until the water-mark
shall have reached a desired point. The
rupture of this dixie, which admits the
water into the city, is accompanied by
festivities in which all classes of the
population share.
Already in the afternoon, and still
more in the evening, of the day preced-
ing the feast, numbers Of dahabeeyahs-
a kind of vessel found only on the Nile,
and best described as a floating dwelling
combining great comfort with ship-like
compactness and regard for space-are
seen on the Nile approaching the spot
where the canaland river meet, and there
drop their anchors, while others continue
lacking about. Some of these dahabee-
/ yahs are the private property Of residents
of Cairo, who with their families spend
| this night on board; others are chartered
| for the occasion by party who disperse,
as best suits their taste, for the night
some retiring to the diVans in the airy
saloons. others preferring the deck, with
/ its bright spectacle of illumination on all
sides, for in the rigging Of all these boats
the cOlOred lamps are tWinkhng and re-
! flecting their light in the water.
One large boat, among the many,
catches the eye in particular. 1t is call
ed F'Akabeh" by the Arabs-painted in
all the Colors of the rainbow, its masts
and rigging decked with countless lamps
and flags This boat leaves the harbOr
of BoOlak, near Cairo, in the afternoon
! land by paying a small sum one can OBJ
tain a passage), and sails on till it reaches
the Isle of RhOdda, quite near to
/ which is the spot at which the festivi-
] ties of that night are to take place. Here
it is made fast by heavy cables, and pre-
pares to remain unit the morrow.
| On the deck Is an awning under which
/ the passengers can while away, with
] friendly cigarette and cooling sherbet
! heintervening hours. In the magma
/ ton OF the Egyptians Of to-day this boat
represents the splendid vessel on which,
in ancient times, the Pride of the Nile
! ('Arusen"), a maiden, beautiful and of
noble birth, was brought annually as a
! sacrifice to the god, and who, clothed in
! bridal array, was doomed TO Watery
grave.
All Orientals, and the Egyptian is no
exception to the rule, like to have their
merry-makings at night. And they are
right. The intense heat of the day is
over; the sun, with its rays and its glare,
no longer wearies eyes and nerves; the
/ glorious star-lit sky-such a sky as only
/ the far East can shOW-spreads its can
Opy over all; a soft, balmy breeze comes
gently through the valley and blows up
/ the stream, bringing the cool but never
cold atmosphere of the Mediterranean.
whose moisture and briny OdOrs have
/ been modified by the long journey it
! had to make before reaching the inland
capital. This is the time, above all 9TH
! ars II which the river and It's shoraa he