Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1895-07-18
FLOOD OF THE NILE.
THE GREATEST EVENT OF ALL THE
YEAR AT CAIRO.

Impressive Ceremonies at the Cutting OF
the Bank to Allow the Water to Flow
! Into the CanaI-The Ancient NilometeI
on the Island of Roda.
The tourist who only comes to Egypt to
! shun winter and foul weather" knows
nothing OF the majestic glories of the
1 Nile flood. The ancient Nilometer at
( the south end of the island of Roda, just
/ above Cairo, is one of the most interest.
ing sights of the place. The water en-
tiers from tho river by culvert into
| well about 18 feet square, with a gradu-
ated stone pillar in the center. On each
side Of the well is a recess about feet
wide and feet Deep surmounted by
! pointed arch, over which is carved in
relief Kufic inscription, and similar
! inscription is carried all around tho
well, consisting of verses of the Koran.
A staircase goes down the well, from
the steps Of which the initiated may
read the height of the water on the pill
lar, but they are few in number, and the
hereditary sheikh of the Nilometer,
whose duty it is to keep the record, is
a person Of some Importance. The Nil
lieve in the archives of Cairo may be
found the daily record for / 200 years.
Ineed hardly tell you that when our
English engineers took the river i'll hand
we established number of gauges at
Wadi-Halia, Assuan, Cairo and many
other points on more scientific principles
than the venerable Nilometer of the
Roda island.
After the river has begun to rise it's
height is daily chanted through the
Cairo streets until it reaches 16 cubits
on the gauge. At this point the Khalig
ell Masri, the old canal that flows through
the heart of Cairo, is opened-up to this
point it is dry, and full or empty it is
little more than a sanitary abomination
at present, but in former days it occu-
pied an important place, and when the
Nile water was high enough to flow
down its bed it was looked ON that the
flood had fairly set in, and that the kind
ly fruits of the earth might be duly ex-
pected.
The head Of this canal is ON the right
bank of the river, just south of Cairo.
The water enters channel some 80 feet
wide, with a high wall ON it's left and
sloping bank on its right or southern
flank. The water then flows under the
pointed arch of an old stone bridge. The
bed of the canal is cleared SO that it
would flow in at a gauge of about ID =
cubits, but an earthen bank is thrown
across it about four feet higher.
There is no more interesting ceremony
in Egypt than the annual cutting of the
khalig, as the opening ceremony is
called. II takes place between Aug.
and Is. Days before preparations are
made for the festival Tents with innu-
merable lamps are placed along the wall
on the one side. Frames for all manner
of fireworks are erected on the sand bank
OH the other side. All the notables are
there in full uniform or in canonicals.
me IN kheoiIe n..4.ss.- " " MS I@9fesenta-
I've I've, me me sneikn vi Islam, the highest
dignitary of the Mohammedan faith;
the Sheikh ell Belri, the Sheikh el Sadatt,
all the learned scribes of the great uni
NSIolUy VI lIlO AZlICIy lllO
tiers and under secretaries, the sirder Of
the army and his staff, the judges and
the finapciers.
The Egyptian troops are turned out,
salutes are fired, and about s o'clock i'll
the YARN summer night the classes Sll
assemble under the gdyly lighted tents,
the masses crowd round the frames for
the fireworks, the street is lined with
harem carriages full of closely yelled
figures, though it is not much that they
can SEQ from their broughams. Out in
the river just opposite the canals mouth
is moored an old hulk of a certain sea-
going outline, which has been towed up
from Bulak during the day and is an
emblem of the time when the great re-
public of Venice sent an envoy to wit
ness the ceremony. This boat is full OF
lamps, and fireworks too AS the night
deepens the excitement increases. The
populace ON the bridge and opposite
bank are shouting, yelling and dancing
wildly round the fireworks.
On the other side are the gay uniforms
and lighted tents, from which we can
IOOh ON6I bu6 wall uONh O11 OLO uoAh "o-
ter, where you see brown figures plung-
ing in and, waist deep, digging with
their hoes at the embankment that
blocks the canals mouth. Long before
midnight the fireworks have gone out
and left the splendid stars to themselves;
the grandees have all gone to bed, but
the people keep up the revelry, and in
the morning, by 1880, every one has
come back Then but little Of the bank
is left uncut, and few more strokes of
the big hoes will do it, and the brown
skins and brown water reflect the bright
sunlight from above Then the Sheik hui
Islam solemnly thanks the Almighty,
Allah the all powerful, the all merciful.
He implores his blessing on the flood,
and at signal the bank is cut, the wa
tiers rush in, and with them crowd of
swimmers. A bag of silver piasters is
scattered among them, and the ceremony
is at an end.-Nature.
| Always on Time.
L 4. \ I,,o, - &,ros fe