The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1895-09-07

COlIet DdE, - as much III pace III tIll> |
motley throng as the fat digniied official
in turban and silken gown. asrride his
small but gaily capariSoned donkey The
streets are full of life. color and motion;
women in voluminous mantles and faces
covered with long wells suspended from a
gilt ornament. resembling aS much a. any
thing row of thimbles placed one over
the other and hung between ;he ewes:
bare legged water carriers rullin" along
under the ancient goat skin. filed with the
waters of the Nile; cuniuraFs. Iiugglers and
snake charmerS. performing their feats in
the open air. and surrounded by a merry
crowd of iilerS; carriages belonging to the
harems. with outrider>. eunuchs and care
fully veiIed Circassiau beauties; long lines
of uncouth. heavily laden camels little
shops, hardly bigger than a good-sized
trunk. filled with c;lshmeres, India laees.
sy.arfs and antique brass. every trade and
calling represented in the open street. and
! each miniature shop presided over by Il fat
Oriental in loose garb Of silk or linen, who
sits croS,-legged and placidly pufis his
hubble bubble or nargileh during
the entire day: the braying OF donkeys and
camels. a confused babel Of foreign tongues
and shifting scene of picturesque groups
all combine to give a faint idea of street
life in Cairo and recall vividly some Of the
almost forgotten scenes Of the Arahain
/ Ni.ht>
DONKEY RIDING ~ CAIRO.
The principal mode Of locomotion in
. Cairu l. by means If the donkey. who Is
( gotten up in q style REGARDLESS, oi expense:
decorated with bells and ornaments: with
his hide shaved and colored up in spots,
and ou top uf all huge saddle giving him
r,kiSh aud Sportive appearance entirely
Al variance with his general character ot
I dull patien, obs,inacy Each donkey Is
accompanied by an attendant donkey boy.
I whose function + 10 run behind and with
lou,i cric> keep the path clear ahead and
prod and beat the donkey from the rear.
The>e donkey boys are characters in
/ themselves, bright, sharp and elearwitted.
with . smIticring ot the principal languages
{ If the world their knowledge Of human
nature !, wonderful The moment tray-
I eller steps frUm the door Of the hotel
I they Immediately surround him, each ae-
I c,,mpanied by his donkey and crowd upon
I the pavement al yelling. in frantic chorus.
Z the merits ot their useful animals. while
( the pocr victim j. iostled about IN the most
. b,.wilderiug aud unpleasant manner im-
I aginahle To further increase the popu-
Z larity Of their See,ls and TO make the
I stranger feel more At home. they an, named
by their enthusiastic owners after the lead
ing lights ot America England and France.
the nsme being instantly altered to salt
the nationality af the visitor In the
midst of this pandemouium. occasionally
enliyened by a scrap between two rival
Z prspretors aud the sympathcsic braying of
. their respective donkeys the traveller i
hemmcd in, and periorce must stand by
hslple>sly and listen To the relative merits
u and make a ehoire between Parnell. I
F Gladstone. General Grant. Mrs. langtry,
. Iaakee D,odle and numerous other eele- Z
hri,ies af both hcmisphers. until he h. I
finally relieved by the dragoman Of the
hotcl who sclccts Tor him, and then with
a club ~ stick son driyeS the rest to the f.
middle of the street when. they cheer.
{ fuliy sucyumb to circumstances after
I s.,lsc,iou has been made Having secured
and mounted the donkey. life moves along
{ placidly. unieS, hy s,mc accident ~ map
7 perfume grading by the bay in the r,ar.
the patient dunkey breaks into > mad gal
E hop beyond cuntrp then the sight # a
ma<lrTn Samson a>triie ct his miniature
T gaadrlpei. with his fe-, alu.Jet touching
the ground wildly plunging. 6rst into
/ camel train. then into an,dher donkey
7 laden With bricks. tcls,sUping iwu " thrrc
E rs,ldler, stands. together with the yuciftT-
/ a,i,.,r, and crie. or the attendant and the
Z ievrs of the opposition donkey bays, Is
sight alm,s~t alSurl enough t. bring tears
20 the ryt> "f hronze monkey.
A. \ WINTER gE>nHr-
~ a winter r,-ort and >anitarium Cairo
and the Nile rnjuy quite 4 reputation the
climate i, dry free fum coli wiuds aud
bleak weather. and With sunshine in abun
lancr Then. l. neither f,,.. nor mist ~
that with these advantages the Egyptian
climate l. said to offer many Inducements
To- T-rSpu- If glil-rmptite tendency. Al
th"neh Egypt has during the winter an
ideal climate. a. . summer p~urt u e,iunut
he counted i Succt~s and this i, cmpha
sized after mid dsummer Trip through the
Red Sea where some experience ], gained
OF the amount al heat that an average
man can stand and vet live Sometime
/ previous 4" nur arrival 10 the Red Sea We
had been entertained with tales % the dis
comforts endured in It's navigation: how
ships gning with the wind would occasion
ally have to change their olurso and 20
/ back for >ome distance Ia revive the droop
/ ing crew and passengers. deaths from heat.
/ apnplcxy and similar uncomfortable tales
. bnt although We did not have Ia expert
ence these IN, 10 such an extent a, mar
t rated. vet it was found hot enough to
/ place some credence in them. and To dress
in the .auzie,t of garments by day and
( sleep on the deck at night The people,
however. to whom the passage was veri-
table purgatory were the hremen and coal
/ heavers. Almost naked covered with
SCOT caal dust aud sweat, with blistered
hands aud parched throats they kept up
i for four hours at a stretch the trundling of
+ coal buckets from the bunkers to the fires,
,hoyeling coal into the roaring mouths of
the furnaces until almo>t exhausted they
] rush out Of the tireroom TO the hatchwayS
/ to get such air as rolls over the baked de
serts in midsummer In addition to its
heat the Red Sea enjoys an unenviable
/ reputation among mariners as the naviga-
tion requires considerable care and expe
rence, while the shores ON either side are
not remarkably healthy for shipwrecked
crews. since they are very liable TO sue
cumb either to the murderous tribes who
infeSt the country or to the equality un-
pleasant fate of slow starvation in 4 land Of
desert sand aud rock
Shortly after leaving Suez the mountains
of Sinai and Horeb loom up in the dim
distance. and couple of days further
travel brings us opposite Jeddah, the sea-
port of Mecca, and. consequently, the
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