Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1896-07-14

4 Feat That Eequires . Good Nerve and
Climber-Graphic Description Of Noun
tain Ride ON Q Camel.
The Troy IN " Times prints a let.
ter written 1T Cairo, Egypt, by Rev. DIR.
l. NJ. S. Haynes. pastor of the First
Baptist church of that city, to H. ID.
Sweet, parishioner. in which he SAYS:
Our conductor called US to an esrIy
breakfast at $780, Our party of five
were promptly ON hand. Our carriage
was an ordinary American hack. We
soon reached the bridge over the Nile
and entered the avenue of acacia trees
skirting the elevated pike which the
government has built clear to the pyra-
mids, o distance of about eight miles.
The road was literally crowded with
farmers 'fellahee, coming into market.
We passed hundreds of camels and don.
keys loaded down with every conceiya-
bic thing, especially fresh white clover,
great quantities of which are sold in the
city. Each camel carries about 400
pounds With all the animals there
then, walking, but they will ride back.
The men and boys seemed to be having
a good time: but, as usual, the women
and girls locked sad and miserable. The
donkeys were looking down to the
ground, but the camels locked up in the
air, as they always do. They are very
high minded. Their backs are also high.
as can testify, for had my first camel
ride today. In about an hour we rode
up to the very base of the great pile Of
stone and alighted from our carriage in
the sand, with the sun three hours high
and blazing hot. 1t was about 9 O'Clock
We We're immediately surrounded by
the Usual crowd of clamorous Arabs.
anxious to help US up the great climb.
But our conductor, Mr.. Solomon, and
cur superb dragoman, Abraham, who
had been with us up the Nile, cleared
them all away, and we selected three
men each, fine locking men in white.
I'VE went right away over n pile of
sand along the base and stood upon the
first tier of stone. Then / formally
looked up fer the first time. We had
seen the three pyramids. SO familiar in
picture, for more than an hour, but they
did rot seem to be SO very large, be-
cause there is nothing to compare them
with. But it is three fourths of a mile
around Cheops, and $50 feet to the top
The stones are about six feet square, and
project one beyond the other, Just like
going up many stairs. The place for
your feet Is about four feet, a very good
standing if you reached the floor or
were not going up $50 feet right up in
the air nearly three times as high as our
church steeple.
I'VE walked easily along one course
OF stone OH the west side, which were
worn smooth with passing feet, and
! came to the northwest corner, where
the ascent lis made. Two men tcck me
by the hand. and one pushed behind,
and l began going up stairs four feet at
a STEP After about 200 steps conclud-
ed to stop. We must have been about so
feet up at that corner I was not dizzy
nor very lame, but 1 felt very peculiar,
and felt more peculiar every minute
afterward until 1 got back OH to solid
and capacious footing But up we
went. hop, skip and jump. going all the
time and going up on the ragged corner
of nothing. The stones were smooth,
irregular and sometimes broken, but
none less than four feet. Heaven was
| above you and both sides of you, and
everlasting smashation beneath you if
you should fall just then one of the
Arabs tumbled little and gave me
shock like an electric battery.
Now we come to the half way place
where they have thrown off a few rocks,
| and where You can brace yourself
| against the breast stones of Cheops and
look of a little We were 24O feet up
in the desert air, standing or leaning on
the ragged corner and trying to behave
and say it was fun. But it was not.
| There was too much risk and danger.
Some people have to be blindfolded to
get them down. and many faint, and
not long since an English soldier fell
But on we go a little farther, and, think
ing the matter all over, l called halt
and deliberately decided that was
enough. The view was something grand,
/ suppose, and if l could have done the
climbing when was 20 years old
might have seen the grandeur. Going
down, as l was not dizzy, was easier.
But any step might have been my last,
and l did not enjoy it as much as did
my splendid reception, though that EN-.
barrassed me somewhat.
''Once at the bottom we mounted
camels to go to the sphinx. A very
large, white fellow fell to my lot. He
was fiat on the ground as l mounted.
When he began to get up, thought he
was going all to pieces. He rose in Sec
tionsss with four distinct motions, and
as each section assumed the horizontal
l was jerked backward and forward.
Cut foot log into four parts, joint them
together, get astride and have that log
begin to assume the shape Of a saw
horse. with you on top, and you have
the idea However, held on, and away
we went. estimated that from my
chin to the end of the camel's nose was
six feet at least. The motion, once up,
was not very disagreeable.
Would gentleman like to trot:'' in
quired the driver. The gentleman said