Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1890-08-08
CURIOUS CAIRO.
STREET SIGHTS AND SCENES In
AN ORIENTAL CITY.
Donkeys ana Donkey Boys The
Yelled Native Women-Camels
Instead of Carts The
Water Carriers.


here. The great museum presents, to us
statues of wonderful life aad real beauty
and artistic merit older than the pyra-
mids-not less than 5000 years old now
while we can see the same type of men
exactly, walking in the streets of Cairo.
Besides the great annual influx of winter
visitors, principally English and Ameri-
cans, there are some regular residents in
Cairo, of which 10000 or 80, 900 are
Europeans of all She nations of Europe.
The rest are Orientals from all parts of
Africa, with'a good many from Arabia
and other parts of Asia.
The first thing that struck my eve on
entering the city was the great charm and
novelty of seeing nearly all the men and
boys dressed in long white or pale blue.
garments. These hang quite loose and
look like long night shirts, coming down
to the feet. The feet are covered, when
covered at all, with bright yellow or
bright red slippers, and the head is ea,
vcloped in white turban, generally
wound round white cap, which shows
above it. This is either the well. known
red fez with its black tassel or the palc
brown felt cap Characteristic of the fella-
heen.
Next to the very picturesque effect of
these airy, pretty garments, perhaps the
most surprising thing was the great num-
Der of donkeys, carrying large bright
colored cloth saddles, that throngcd the
streets. Each of these is attended by
boy in the dress described above, who
runs behind it and shouts Mt it and whips
it. At first sight it looked as though
there were almost rs many donkeys us
people in the streets.
The native women constantly ride dom
keys and very curious figures they look
in the saddle. or course Il woman in
this country thinks it as great disgrace,
unless one of the very lowest class Of the
people, TO expose her face as to expose
any other part of her person. The eyes
only are visible, the mouth being kent
most scrupulously covered. Very large,
loose garments, generally of shiny, black
silk, are worn by ladies when out of
doors, and they ride cross legged, but
with stirrups so short that their limbs do
not hang down Mt all, but are in an al
most horizontal position. In fact, they
rather suggest trusscd chickens. In this
way they have hardly any hold ON the
saddle, and one OF often two men run be-
side them and support them. Some of
the donkcys are magnificent, proud look
ing white or gray animals, rs large rs
rather small mule, and carry gorgeous en-
broidcrcd saddles and saddle-cloths OF
red velvet OF blue cloth. Most of the
hack donkcys, on the other hand, are in.
signiiicant-looking little beasts, which
are most inappropriate when carrying
some great, fat Turkish merchant or a
lcng-lcggcd, relocated English soldier.
Wealthy Egyptians will often pay $500
for really good donkey, while excellent
ponies can be bought for quarter or
third of the money.
The most remarkable sight, perhaps, is
the number of camcls to be seen slowly
marching through the streets of Cairo
Camels in the deserts one expects to find,
but few people are prepared to sec so
many of them in the city The fact is
they largely supply the place of carts, of
which very few indeed are to be seen, and
nearly all the alfalfa used in Cairo is
brought in stacked on and around camels
Both donkeys and the numerous horses in
small hack carriages, which abound here,
seem to be fed almost entirely OH alfalfa
I'LL one is accustomed to the SIGHT il is
most strange to sec stream of large
stacks OF this bright green herb per
ambnlating the streets, with little bit of
four legs shown beneath each, weak,
foolish-looking head, rather like IN
ostrich's, ut the end of long neck, peer
Ing out in front and ceaselessly chewing
the cud, and the smallest possible piece
of the came's rather slight hindquarters
just visible behind The alfalfa is so
stacked ut either side of the animal in
nets of rope, and on his back, that no
more of the camel than what / have de-
scribed is visible on side view.
The camels may often be seen going
about singly, but very Often as many rs
SIX of them are tied together by slight
string and march along, always in single
ile, very silently, for their great soft pads
Of feet, intended for walking on sand,
make no noise, yet by their very size and
character clearing path for themselves
without difficulty through the swarms of
humanity, whose noise and excitement
contrast most unfavorably with the dig
pity and quiet of these great tall dcnizens
Of the desert
Often the camels are returning toward
the country after dcpositing their load
Of alfalfa, and then they are generally
being ridden by the fellaheen, or
farmers, who have brought them in.
The motion of the camel us it walks-and
these farm camels never seem to trot,
must be very trying one till the rider is
accustomed TO it, for the bodies of these
men rock backward and forward with
every step of the beast in way which
torcibly suggests dislocation of the hips,
and must at leas. infallibly produce in the
beginner frightfuly stiff back.
There are also to be seen light colorcd
and lightly built camels, which seem to
differ from the camels of the fcllaheen
IS much rs a thoroughbred racchorsc
from Clydesdale, and these are what
are used to mount the camel corps, an
important branch of the Egyptian army.
Members of this corps may often be seen
trotting through the less crowded streets,
rising springily to the long swinging trot
-.r a.