The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-05-19

! DlfuS ana fountains were. II Is a
small forest of trees of the orient, and
flowers and grottoes. and mountains
made to order. There were strange
looking trees that seemed to begin to
exist fifteen feet from the ground, their
roots running down from that point
just as their branches ran up. Around
one side of the grounds swept the dark
swift Nile, where a steam yacht was
always waiting for any of the Palace
guests who wished to go on the water
for pleasure, or to cross to the city.
without money, and without bacshees.
! How sweet it was to wander here
| away from the deformed beggars and
lying, thieving guides.
This is Ghezireh Palace, which has
been given up by the enterprising
young khedive to be opened as a hotel
for the public. 1t is probably the
most interesting and pleasant hotel on
the whole face of this great big earth
/ today. 1t is pleasant to add that it is
( almost perfectly managed and that
the rates are no higher than those of
the crowded, noisy, cook-smelling no.
! tells in the centre of the city, where
they still charge for candles, forget
ting, it would seem, that all the rooms
have electric lights. 1t is on the Nile,
| too, away from the beggars and
| guides, and that is everything.
/ The Road to the Pyramids.
/ The road from the Palace to the
pyramids. six or seven miles, is beau
/ tiful. The road across the valley is
raised high above the level of the
| country. and on either side there is
| line of trees whose tops meet over the
! drive, forming a continuous arch all
| the way.
! In the fields, the farmers are plough
| ing, or having finished, are beating up
c1n nd hoT
Now, as we near the pyramids, the
beggars become thicker and more dar-
! ing All kinds of cripp1es, some with
foot off. run alongside jabbing the
naked stub of the ankle down into the
sand. Women with one, sometimes
two babies in their arms. follow the
carriage, while from everyone, even
from the workers in the field, comes
the kissing cry of "Bacshees."
When we arrived at the pyramids,
! the beggars were driven back by the
army of dragomen and guides, who
were as bad as the beggars. The only
difference was that the beggars want
ed something for nothing, while the
guides were willing to lie to you for
a half hour for what one chose to
| give them.
Want seem run up the pyramids?"
said a yellow. long-legged negro, as
the carriage paused at the foot Of the
first great pile.
NO said L
"Give 'em franc and go up back IN
five min
"Oh-'' said I, "take your time. Don't
hurry on my account"
Just at that moment the army of
burro ana camel boys who were lying
in the shade of the largest pyramid
saw us and made a charge.
Long-legged camels, that start slow
1y like locomotive with a large
wheel, and little burros that seem al
ways to stop on the centre" and have
to be pinched off before you can get
an Arabian army. In a minute my old
shiek and I were surrounded by DON
keys and camels and boys. The bur-
ros were being switched round, and
the poor camels were moaning and
gurgling and crying as they were
forced TO bring their bones down on
the sharp stones. There were no less
than dozen donkeys, and half as
many camels, and I was asked to ride
all of them. The fight grew so Sot
and the press so great that I straddled
a large camel that had fallen at my
feet and the driver gave sign for him
TO rise. The brute threw his hind parts
up and the long stick, or post, that
stands where the tail of a saddle
that sent me forward just as the cam
ell got up at that end, and 1 got it
where the Arab wears his sash. OF
course, I leaned back a, little at that
stroke, but I should not. for the an
imal had only gotten half way up be-
hind, and now as he brought up the
rear, the hard oak post was driven
into my spine SO hard that l was
tempted to swear.
peace. wolves of the desert" cried
the shiek, my guide, dramatically.
"The prince is my friend; he is rich
rich as Solomon-and as generous as
he is rich He is from America, which
is in California, where the sun sets,
and the home of Mark Twain"
The Donkey Mark Twain Rode in
80 still in Service.
The mob had been awed to silence
by the story of my wealth, but at the
mention of their friend they set up a.
yell that would shut out a football
team.
had heard a great deal about Mark
Twain's pull at the pyramids, but
was not prepared for this. Once, when
an alderman was to be elected at
Greed. to fill a vacancy created by a
gunshos wound, 1 received 100 out Of
300 votes, with fourteen candidates
in the field. A passionate, almost con-
Stunning love, for the choir practice and
s'seven up had enabled me to control
both the Church and the saloon
vote" as it was called. That was
prestige" people said, but say now
II was nothing. Here is a man who
has been away from his people TWEEN
tv-seven years-many Of these boys
were then unborn, and yet at the mere
mention of his name they yell, laugh,
cry. Jump up, fall down, beat their
breasts and bite the dust
.HTNake my donk-is YER goods
young. Mark Twain ride he 81" yelled
q boy with one eye gone.
'rYou savie Mark Twain?' / asked.
wee, Vice. said the boy. Hes
ride same donkey ST.
They all know the date perfectly,
but have no notion Of how many
wears it takes TO bridge over the gap
from 81 to '95.
They are daring but not what you
would call careful, painstaking liars.
At wave of the shiekS hand, the
mob opened up, and the prince of
California and friend of Mark Twain"
on his high horse passed down the
trail to see the sphinx.
On the Great Pyramid.
When an hour later I stood on the
great pyramid-at my back the broad
and beautiful valley of the Nile; in
front an endless sea of sand-a feeling
of rest came over me. For the first
time the shiek was silent. From the
wild waste of this waveless sea great
sails appeared to rise, and as 1 con-
J