The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-06-10

sphinx, interruption By these persists-.
grafters Is nuisance
Dancing is the chief feature Of social
life in Cairo. The stranger within M.
gates who stops at the right hotel MAJ
so TO a ball almost every night in ~
week. Next moFning as he takes his 90
fee and eggs he may read that he Vas
among those present At an affair Ar
which. Judging from the list Of titles. hsiiss
the aristOCracy Of Europe disported RI
self But unless he finds friend WHO
has been properly introduced he meets
no one, and is lucky If he can even find
out who's who" as he occupies a scar
In q corner.
If the tourist wishes to avoid the ultra.
fashionable hotels he may go 70 nodes
pension. where the proprietor bids fl-
he pstrouaEe Of a shirt sleeves" nation
By announcing that evening clothes At
dinner are optional He finds that tFs
obliEing host who suspends a conventio7
OF cairo TO allow him to dine In his 'ss--
suit speaks seven or eight languages h.
addressing his guests, his servants and
his tradespeCple. Perhaps mine host
could not write a good letter in Italian
or Spanish but the Italian or Spsnisri
will be understood when he complains
that his chop is undeTdCne So viii he
Greek whose fOrefathers have resided EN-
the southern shore Of the Mediterranes-
since the days of Cleopatra, or the zen
tleman in baggy trousers and red tar
bOosh just arrived from Constantinopls or
Smyrna
THE Duke and Duchess Of Connausf.
brother and sisteT-in-law Of his majesty
King Edward VII. make occasional visits
TO Egypt Sometimes they, with Prince
Arthur and the Princess Patricia, i1n
Mr.. and Mrs. lddings- Of the American
consulate, as sponsors for an Anglo
American ball for the benefit Of charity
Tourists in Cairo who are willing To- r.
vest in ticket 70 the ball may have
glimpse OF the royal party. Princes and
princesses from the various European
countries, and persons and personages O.
varying importance from east of suez
form a part of the thrOng. There are
more Americans among Cairo winter
population than persons from any c0lr-
try save England ana each year finds
The terraces OF the fashionable hotels more
and more like Broadway, where, it IS
often said. TO American fails 10 meet
an acquaintance.
Not the least interesting segment OF Co.
CietV in Cairo is that composed Of clever
adventures who live by their wits. some
times most luXuTiously. An American
meets q titled European who speaks q
half-dOzen languages, and IS Tar more
affabis and generally agreeable than
other persons Of title whom our AmsH-
can has met OF failed to meet. The Amer
lean may show signs or being as we'll
to-dO as Europeans suppose all people
from the United States 10 BE-, fin which
case the intimacy develops rapidly. Over
the card table or at the races 10 develops
that the ''aTistocrat' is a card sharp %
a tout Not a few American girls Ein-
ta ring in Cairo have discovered the
f'VicOmte" or the Baron or even the
prince" 20 be spurious. ChauffeuE
Wallets. coachmen-clever imitatoTs Of ths
manners and manneTisms OF their mas
teTs-have exploited themselves IN Cairo
IN the hope Of sWindling an American
millionaire or marrying or blackmailing
an American heiress.
Golf with Arab boys for caddies- races
at HelOuan and Ghizireh, with real Ara
49,
oughbred would have any respect.
horse show, and other outdoor amuss-
ments, keep social Cairo upon the move
from morning till evening. When there
is not a ball or confetti battle al one
Of the large hotels in the evening 10
Sunday. and upon Sunday there is often
a carnival or battle Of flowers in the
Ezbekieh gardens 20 fill the gap between
the regular weekday festivities.
Unequaled, Tn point OF spectacular bril-
liancy, by any other Cairo social affair
and hardly approached by any entertain
ment in any other capital. Is a state bal
given at Abdin palace by his highnes
the khedive- The governor generals bal
at Algiers is the only function west Of
Suez which approaches its magnlflcenCs
II brings together nOtables from -four
continents. officers of the Egyptian army
and the British army Of occupation, and
diplomatic representatives Of all Of the
important countries Of the civilized world
Not the least numerous and not the least
picturesque Of the guests are mudirs and
omdehs from upper Egypt and Bedouin
sheikhs from the desert provinces. For
merly the khedive gave a ball every year
but recently he has given official enter
tainments too iufrequently 10 meet the
demands Of persons who spend their win
tiers in his capital and who would sP-
preciate invitations under the khediTd
crest.
Copyright, 1909 by Frederic J. Hasznl
Tomorrow. Twentieth Century Egypt
XII. The Romance Of the Suez Canal