Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1892-04-02

Mr.. c. 8. Noyes 1t Cairo.
PLEASANT EXPERIENCES OF HIS TRIP.


Mr.. c. 8. Noyes was in Cairo, Egypt, March 10,
taking aittle breathing spell after the long round
OF travel through Japan, China, Ceylon. India
and Egypt With the exception Of a slight Ill
turn In India he had gained all, and more than
all, the benefits he had hoped for in this round
the-worid health trip. He had Just returned
from trip up the Nile las far as the first
cataracD, which proved unexpectedly enjoy
able ana restful. Instead of the anticipated
monotony Of q voyage up . tame. muddy river
running through dreary sand wastes the jour
ney was found full of interest and incident
from the time the boat left the Cairo bridge
with its big British lions, indicating that John
Bull is in Egypt to stay until il reached Asso-
uan, way up on the borders of Nubia, at the
foot Of the first cataract The weather Was
perfect, the steamer accommoda tions every
thing that could be desired, and the&able fare
good, with the exception of the abominable,
sour, heavy, dingy English bread that is in
fioted upon travellers in every English steamer
or hotel throughout the world.
The scenery while having nothing Of the
grand was always attractive and had, especially
at morning and evening. An exquisite beauty
OF coloring most fascinating. The band Of
vivid green vegetation bordering the river
is always pleasing to the eye There is .
continued succession Of picturesque scenes Of
native life in the primitive cultivation Of the
fields with the wooden plough of 1000 years
ago, and the equally primitive mode of raising
the water from the river for irrigation; and the
swarming population of the mud-hut villages
seem to be in manners dress and mode Of lv-
ing very much what they were thousands of
ON Ayn H. = L. x..ll - e .--.sl
numberless native boats of curious rig. with
tall masts and wing and-wing sails that make
them look like enormous white-winged birds
These boats are loaded sometimes with great
piles OF water jars, or great squares of straw or
chaff in such sort that the bulls are wholly
concealed and nothing is to be seen Of the YES
sells but the tall masts. Then there is the
swarm OF pleasure-sailing dahabeahs that make
the Nile gay with their presence; and it is de-
lightful to see the American flag on many Of
them. For it is the fad now for rich Ameri-
cans to fit out dahabeah luxuriously and loaf
up and down the Nile all through the winter.
Luxor (Karnack). where the dahabeahs call a
good deal, is now quite a winter pleasure re-
sort, with three hotels, lawn tennis grounds,
races. &c. One of the droliest races possible
was that seen at Luxor, In which there was q
tremendously exciting camel race, lively race
with buffalo cows, and a tandem donkey race
with gentlemen riders, in which the teams got
tangled up in such confusion that there was no
telling who was the winner The Germans
are to be seen q good deal as tourists and
there was German-chartered dahabeah at
Luxor one night brilliant with co,ored Ian
terms strung all up and down its tall mast and
rigging, and the stout-lunged occupants were
singing THE Watch on the Rhine in way that
brought out all the echoes of ancient Karnack
and its stone Pharaohs, and also of the vocal
Memnon on the other side of the river, who
thus recovered his lost voice. The Nile trip is
now getting to be very much of pleasure ex-
cursion. The Nile steamers are fitted up for
dancing and various sorts of amusements, and
the land excursions to the antiquities make a
pleasant diversion from boat travel, both for
the Psychologists and to those who go just for
the fun of the harum-scarum donkey ride. The
travel up the Nile this year has been unprece-
dented, a fact partly due to the cholera qaaran-
tine on Palestine through the winter. that has
thrown good deal of the Holy Land travel in
this direction. Now that the quarantine is up
there is great rush to Palestine.
Cairo, and. indeed, all Egypt, is in a smiling
condition just now. There has been "a
good Nile" this past season-that is, water
enough for irrigation; the crops have been
abundant; the national income SO much ex-
ceeds the expenses that the government is able
to reduce the price of salt. which is govern
ment monopoly. In Cairo the forty days of
mourning for the late khedive have expired
and the gayeties of this most cheerful of cities
are again to the front The young khedive is
apparently applying himself to business in an
exemplary way. Early every morning he
| drives by the hotels to his Office to attend to
the affairs Of state. When he gets there prob
ably he finds some English advisers on hand to
tell him what to do