, 1888-06-15
THE PHYSICAL EFFECTS OF A DRY,
DUSTY ATMOSPHERE.

but in this wondrously dry atmosphere
most advantageously in many classes OF
complaints need state only three facts
90 show the rapidity OF evaporation In
Upper Egypt Water too warm to drink
Is put into a porous jar and placed In the
wind though in the sun, In a half hour 1t
Is IA cool as good spring water At night.
exposed to a breeze. even when the breeze
Is rather warm. before morning it becomes
almost ice cold The night Of my arrival
here | took a pouring bath on a balcony
The wind was balmy. but fresh The
rapid evaporation 80 chilled me that /
could not stay out long enough for my
bath At the foot Of the cataract we
took a swim in the Nile We wore our
underclothes for bathing suits We hung
them up before our staterooms TO dry In
ten minutes they were dry enough TO be
worn We ave all heard of the univer
sal habit of all Africans to anoint them
selves with oil. and travellers speak of II
as a nasty habit 1t is. however. neces
sary In very hot and very dry climates to
prevent the cracking of the skin An
English officer told me that during the
hot winds on the Upper Nile his hands
and face chapped worse thar they ever
lid In O cold climate-chapped even to
bleeding badly
II WINE AND THE FLIES
| have found fresh white butter quite rs
pleasant on my hands as on my toast The
boys have felt no Inconvenience from the
winds My hands are very sensitive to
the effect OF q dry. dusty atmosphere At
Assouun we were in the sun during two
days We did not use our umbrellas, our
pith hats being quite comfortable, and
yet we were just on the edge OF the
tropics 1t has been rather too chilly to
lie down on the top of our little steamer
for any considerable time at night. We
have had no musquito curtains on our
boat and have needed none, the breeze on
the water making them unnecessary Ii
takes a hard blow. however. to keep flies
away The p~ertinacity of an Egyptian fly
is beyond that of any other living crea
ture The natives never brush them
away They deem il bad luck to do so
Flies are never driven from a baby's face.
and ii does not seem annoyed by them
Its face Is rarely washed. and is so dirty
that II affords admirable forage ground
for hundreds of the little brutes
watched a child of about Q 1-2 years
enjoying n crust of bread There was
about 1t a swarm of flies. and | do not
exaggerate when | say two or three
dozens we're on its face Mt one time in
patches as big as a half dollar about the
eyes and mouth 1t would screw up its
eyes when they threatened to go in
thought some must nave gone into Its
mouth with the bread II did not seem
at all annoyed | saw a sleeping child on
the street whose face was almost black
with the Insects 1t smiled as II angels
we're whispering n its ears | have seen
men talking pleasantly together while
i dozen flies would be promenading about
their faces. apparently unnoticed by tho
owners of the faces asked a man how
be could stand 1t 'Mashallahl They
don't bother me" was his reply This
has made the fly bold and he seems ut
terly unable to understand what a for
eigner means when he tries to drive him
of He has, too. remarkably prehensjle
claws. and keeps them keen and sharp
when taking constitutional walks over
European countenRnces 1t was probably
the knowledge of this quality which made
these people pronounce it bad luck to
drive them away They found 1t best to
educate the masses to bear the lnfiction
and so get used to II.
THE DEMAND FOR BACKsHIsH
BY the way. travellers are shocked by
the lncessant demand for backshish
gifts throughout the mighty east. The
| thing Is not to be wondered at, for all the
beggars the world over knew there are
none equal to the gods of the east Their
hands are everywhere represented ex
tended for backshish Their favor was
won by otferings-their anger averted by
sacrifices Like the proboscis of a cele-
brated elephant. their hands could pick
up a pin OF carry off a cart load Of pota
toes They could make a lunch from a
few grains of rice. the widows mite. or
they could devoura hecGtomb of bullocks.
the gifts of a prince. The gods took gifts
and demanded them. The great and pow
nrfnl -n,GE-- - AI-E - -.
gifts and enforced the giving. The poor
took gifts and begged for them. The
well to do in the whole region of the early
sun reach out the hnnd for commission.
The poor clamor like hungry ours for
crumbs and bones, and are not ashamed
Of their clamor.
fear what | hage said about Upper
Egypt looks too much as IL I was seeing
it through rose glasses. Thirty-six years
ago, when Bayard Taylor and / travelled
in the east together, / suffered terribly
from e h only pun | remember
him to have made was anent tho little
tormentor He said Homer wrote tho
"Iliad. Virgil the "Eneid;" that II | aver
wrote IN epic 1t would be the ''Flead." /
had hoped we were about to escape this
Egyptian plague, but yesterday. after
lunching In one OF the old tombs Of tho
kings. we lay down for a nap on the sands;
but my donkey boy. desiring to please the
old man. whom he fatters by calling bis
father, spread the blanket and saddle for
me to have a nice siesta. Ahl moment of
mad forgetfulness, Islept an hour. but the
Nemesis came. This particular tomb Is
now called the lunch tomb" Hundreds
have lunched In 1t this season, though 1t
is where no living thing Is seen. and ap-
parently nothing can live. yet the sanded
floor was full Of my mortal enemies,
brought to 1t by the many donkey boys,
who In Its shade rest while their employ
eis are wandering among the mighty caves
of the dead have passed a good part of
my tim since then as q hen with one chick
does in an empty chicken ynrd-scratch-
ing. ! am like cey4Sin officials not far
from the old court house In Chlcago-only
moro SO. They have itching palms. l nm
all palm. | Itch all over and am raw In
patches, -Ex-Mayor Carter Fl. HarTisen's