Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1903-10-01

ON BOARD STEAMSHIP VALETTA, BE-
TWEEN coLUMBo, CYLoN AND sINGA-
PORE, JULY goth, 1908.
Editor Press
Perhaps few lines in the shape of letter
would be rather interesting to the readers OF the
Press We left Marseilles, France, on the after
noon of July 3rd and Immediately sailed out into
the blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea and
after sail of four days we arrived at Port Said,
Egypt, at the entrance of the Suez canal. This
port is the coaling station for nearly all the ships
going through the canal. The population is a
mixed one, chiefly Egyptian and Arabic, while
there are many Nubians and whites. To coal
steamer here, they bring lighters, or large boats
along side the ship and at once a swarm of Egyp-
tians and Arabians begin to carry baskets of
coal on board, each basket holding about fifty
pounds. The coal is very dry and dusty. SO we
leave the ship while loading and go ashore
knowing that in four or five hours these natives
will have carried at least one thousand tons on
board and that on our return the ship will be
coaled, clean and ready to 60 through the cana'
at a speed of not more than seven miles an hour
to Suez, eighty-seven miles across portion OF
the Sahara Desert and part way through waters
from the many mouths of the Nile. On arriving
at this port and it might be said while on the
Mediterranean we are pleasingly disappointed
as to the heat; developed very hot weather but
up to this time had not found the thermometer to
soar above 8S degrees fah., yet it was close and
hot something like our close sultry summer
days. To land we hired native boatman and
paid him six cents to land us on abeautiful stage
We were Immediately surrounded by natives, al
having something to sell or wanting to be en-
gagged as guides or beggars or somebody.
Finally engaged an Arabic guide who pre-
sented me with card stating he had been a
guide for Gov. Taft, etc, six months before.
We next hired q two horse carriage to take us
around the city. Il may say Port Said has pop
ulation of $1,000 and is built on the ground
taken from the canal when building) This took
us about an hour. For this ride paid fifty cents,
or really two English shillings AS soon as we
left our carriage our guide took charge of us, his
chief aim seeming to be to stear us into bazaars
or shops places of amusement. We were con
Quoted into several elegant bazaars where you
could buy almost anything -jewelry, post CARDS
or pictures, Egyptian drawn work. needle work
Japanese bric-a-brac, or anything else. Unfortu
nately for me the line of ships that travelled on
had a custom that all must dress for dinner, SO
had to purchase some full dress shirts in this
town--well made and good fit for $3.50 each. 1
they had plenty of everything for sale one
could wish for on a voyage, and thousand
things he did not need. We went all over the
city, think, everywhere beseiged by beggars
conjurers or people selling something. Feeling
hungry we went to the best hotel and had a nne
dinner as could be ordered for price-seventy-fve
cents. While eating some musicians would
come and play tune or two and them of course,
beg for money. AS soon as one left another
came, or some conjurers would spread mat and
do some slight of hand tricks or acrobatic feats.
All seemed bent an getting all they could out of
foreigners. At last go on board ship, feeling
glad to get away, ready to go on the journey. 1t
does not take long to make the start, but we
could not help wondering how the canal looked,
I'VE had some idea from reading about it and
from pictures bought in Port Said if it was wide
enough for two ships to pass and if was deep
enough for our ship, for we knew it would take
27 feet of water to float us in the canal. 1t turn
out that our fears were groundless, for we passed
through in sixteen hours. There is not much to
interest one while going through, for 1t is water
mostly on the Egyptian side and desert on the
Arabian. Once in while we would meet an
Arab band going over the desert or along the
canal with their canals; or see an image in the
sky the desert as If We were looking at beau
tliul trees or open sheets OF water
We not sorry when it is time to go to bed
In the morning early, awakened by
clanking chains, the monotonous refrain of the
quartermaster we hear him call 'deep fve,'
deep four" etc., we know we are in shallow
water and the ship is feeling her way along,
ready to drop anchor. We hasten on deck to see
Suez about three miles away; hope bright for a
sail to the shore, to learn we are not going to
OF NV nj TINA py "a no f;p,a tbar ora
natives in boats along side and you have the
latest kilograms brought on board here and for
the first time we learn of the Pope's illness We
buy some post cards, fine grapes and few other
things and then are ready for the Red Sea with
all its heat and our next port thirteen hundred
and eighty miles down the Red Sea. 1t is no
long until we are Informed that it is the only
clump of trees on shore any where, (for there il
no vegetation on the mountains along the Red
Sea- is the place were Moses crossed with the
children Of Israel and where even to-day is a
well called Moses we'll 1t seemed to us this was
the only place he could have crossed for it is the
only break in the chain of m ountains for many O
mile. We expected to Mt. Sinai inland
forty-fve miles but unfortunately the sky was
too hazy and we could. mot see it. The writer has
often seen pictures of the mountains around
Egypt, Red Sea and Holy Land and noticed the
peculiar colors of the mountains. We could not
understand but can do so the better now. The
mountains seemed almost all colors, caused by
the different strates of rock and the differen,
angles the rays strike them. After four and
half days sailing on a sea smooth as could be,
but as hot and close as it well could be. we drop
pei anchor in the beautiful land locked harbor
of fAden Arabia, not more than twelve degrees
notrh of the equator. Alden is supposed to be
one of the hottest and dryest places on the globe
no rain in two years. Here again we were dis
appointed at not landing but really it made no
difference because outside of the garrison for
British troops, the town is small-that is the for
eiEn quarters, but the native town is fairly large
The water usel there is condensed from the sea-
the plant being constructed by the British gov
ernment We had no sooner lowered our anchor
than many natives came on, board. Their chief
barter seemed TO be feathers AS Arabia ia the
home Of the ostrich, feathers are offered in every
variety-small ones and large ones, single or in