The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1909-06-13


the European or American physician
Wnom the invalid brings with him. IN
many instances, OF TO the Occidental Prac-
titioner established in Cairo. Until re-
Cehtiy, az any rate. foreign doctors mao
70 depend entirely upon foreign practice.
The native Egyptian would have none Of
ms medicine, preferring to pin his faith
70 remedies in use when the PYRAMIDS
were building, rather than trust TO dis
coveries Of the infidel and Outlander-
Until recently village BARRIERS and OLD
women constituted the medical ADVISERS
OF the natives MOhammedans cured their
ailments by texts from the Koran, and
Copts doctOred themselves by applying
excerpts from the Psalms or Gospels. An
operation warranted to cure all but Ia
tai diseases consisted in drinking Nile
water from a specially constructed brass
DoWl, Tor three consecutive Fridays. II
the patient did not live 10 the third FRI
DAY II was. manifestly, because the dis-
ease was fatal. A bone from the Dooy
Of Jew or an Egyptian mummy was
| considered a charm against feVers- a
sterile woman who wished to bear chii-
dreR stepped over the corpse OF an exc
cuted criminal. walked upon a human
skull or bathed In water previously used
TO wash a corpse. A headache was cured
| by driving a nail into one Of the gates
Of Cairo. An antidote for poison was 10
drink water in which texts rom the no
ran had been soaked. A dislocated joint
was bound TO a half-starved COW, ana
the animal fed that the swelling would
1t is quite true that the pure air OF the
desert Is a tonic of rare value 70 the De
bilitated, and of especial benefit to sur
ferers from various illnesses, but the Ilfst
discovery and establishment Of the IN
wary visitor is that it is easier to catch
cold IN Cairo than it is in Chicago, and
harder to get rid Of Cairottes know now
TO guard against colds. The late arrival
does not. The Egyptian who kneels by
I the roadside with his face toward Mecca
and says his prayers as the sun IS set
| ting, wraps his mantle about his mead
and throat. The American has been free
from cold in southern California, at the
Gulf coast winter resorts, or in Florida.
Believing that in Egypt, as i'm semi-troP-
ical America. colds are rare and hard 10
catch, he finds himself at sunset five
miles from his hotel withOut4his TOP coat
Chilled to the bone he arrives in due time
at an American bar. his fetch against the
cold germ.
But when ne awakens next morning lee
[ is in the grip Of an Egyptian cold lie
! tries everything from asperin to Assouan
/ in an effort to get rid of it. II lasts
week. despite his efforts. His physician
tells him gravely that cold caSght IN
Cairo sometimes results seriously. II IS
always serious i'm itself. notwithstanding
! the gravity of an Egyptian cold, which In
strict justice must be credited with con-
filming itself chiefly TO the head. the cOu =
try is sought by consumptves from Eu-
rope as Arizona is sought by Americans
similarly affected.
Although the French and English occu-
patton Of Egypt might be supposed 10
have taught Europeans that Egypt is noJ
altogether tropical, the fact is that It has
not. The tourist buys his sun helmet be-
/ fore he gets to Cairo. Perhaps he gets If
/ from his furnisher at home. Having firm
! " fixed in his mind the idea that he Is
I doing a hot country. he dOns his helmet
before he ventures on the street. The
mere fact that it is rather nipplng in the
early morning, Just comfortable in the
sun at midday and decidedly cold al sur
D set. does not eradicate the impression that
without a sun helmet he might suffer
death or great bodily harm in Africa. He
/ is forced to get his OvercOat out Of his
trunk, but the stately white helmet.
pierced by ventilating holes. towers abOV~
/ the necessary outer garment. Sometimes
the exercise Incidental to visiting the
pyramids on his bicycle does not suffi-
GENTLY heat his ,lood TO cause him to
leave off his OVerCOdt. but the sun cur
I tain reaching from the back of his hsi-
met 10 his shoulders does not strike him
as being an absurdity.
/ Rheumatism. bronchitis. asthma. the
after effects of grip and of pleurisy and
pneumonia. the effects of overwork or
mental strain, neuralgia. and many other
diseases and ailments, are said to give
way before Egyptian air and attention
l to medical advice. Horseback riding
I of exercise incident to seeing monuments
/ ana ruins of antiquity. give the muscles
of the rheumatic health-seeker a suita Die
kneading and doubtless form a good part
/ OF the beneficial effect to other persons
Egypt is not subject TO wide and vio
lent variations Of temperature. There is
/ an occasional sand storm Of a mild Va
riety called the ''khamsin. which brings
/ impalpable dust into the most tightly
closed room. but the "khamsin'' comes but
/ three OF four times in a season. blurring
! the landscape 50 that Cairo seems
wrapped in a yellow London fog. it gives
] far-Hr md
storm without imposing upon him the dis
/ comforts Of d real sirOccO. Nearly every
! one enjoys "knamsin' as an experience.
! There are sufferers from catarrhal affec-
| tons who insist that il is beneficial.
/ The mean temperature in Cairo in win
/ ter Is g. degrees Fahrenheit. as warm as
| the MADEIRA islands Because of the Creos
in Cairo IL rains two OF three times a
shower causes sensation among the ma
tives. A temperature Of q degrees has
been recorded in Cairo. but it is very rarr.
BY early forenoon on the coolest DAYS.
the sun always lifts the mercury many
degrees.
1t is much warmer i'm upper Egypt u
the traveller is not content with a tenn
{ perature in which an overcoat must be
/ worn after sunset ne NAV take a slow
[ bur- comfortable boat for the upper Nil
OF somewhat less slow and much less
comfortable train. In q day by land or
/ fe Wdays by water he reaches eli
mite where summer clothing may be worn
in January without discomfort. The sys-
TEN OF hotels from the Mediterranean
southwark to the cataracts Of the Nile is
gradually expanding and improving.
Every effort of Europeans in Egypt who
are interested I'm the volume Of tourist
travel is bent toward convincing the tray
eleT Of the folly Of seeking sun and
health on the Rivera while the noddinS
palms that fringe the Nile beckon the
I Wayfarer to rest and regeneration where
Ir0st IS unknown and where rain rarely
falls.
The American visitor. proud of the fact
I mat MS government came and saw and
oVercamc the mosquito in Havana and the
canal zone. is amazed to find a peculiarly
large ana ferocious type OF man-esting
mosquito IN one Of the drisst countries
III the world. Every bed in Cairo has its
MOSQUITO bar. Il is used the year round.
In the absence Of fly screens it is a
! necessity. The mosquitoes breed upon the
pools formed by irrigation bitches, and
infest the whole country.
/ Within convenient distance from Cairo
there are several health resorts. Helouan.
a oiJOu oasis. with its famous baths and
morse races. claims the attention of per
/ sons VINO are weary Of pyramid climbing
sou- polo ana dancing in Cairo. or whose
| state OF health does not permit them
/ TO dlsslpate while recuDerating. This
town with its sulphur springs that were
valued BY the Romans. is in the desert
! 1t affords a view of the Nile. a sky line
against the pyramids are etched and
a distant view Of the MOkattam hills be-
hind Cairo. 1t is within a half-hour OF