The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1914-07-24
THINGS AS THEY SEEMED TO BE
Oklawaha, Fla, July is, 1914

The OF THIS world SO VIDE.
1t is an old saying that Fools
names and fools faces are often seen
in public places" Wherever you go.
you find that travellers before you
have recorded their names in public
places. This custom seems to have
existed centuries ago. On the ruins
found in Egypt, many names and
dates, cut by mischievous travellers,
have been d~eciphered by the exca-
vators. Some important facts in his
tory have come to light through the
records made by ancient fools who
were determined to have their names
in public places.
November 10th vas much inter-
ested this morning in seeing the pro-
cession of country people coming into
Cairo. This is some sort of a feast
day, and the country people were COM
ing in to worship or to dance, I do
not know which. Usually they come
on camels. On either side of the IN
calmly, ugly animals was swung a big
box; on top of the load were women
and children. Every camel was led
by a man, and on every camel, there
was something to sell in town; chick
ems, eggs, wood, green clover-coun-
try produce of some kind. The camel
here is the farmers wagon
Most of the women here are Mo-
hammedans and veil their faces, mar
ried women wear black wells, but un-
married women veal white wells. The
Mohammedan old maids amuse me.
A woman of forty or fifty wearing a
white veil, always makes me laugh.
1t seems to be custom among Mo-
hammedans to visit the graves of
their dead once g year. Among other
places we visited an old cemetery.
Here even family burying lot is wall
ed, and driving through a cemetery
is like driving through the narrow,
crooked streets of a town. Above the
wall surrounding the family burying
ing members of the family spend the
night of February 3rd in the ceme-
terry, in the rooms spoken of. Then
the following day they perform five
religious ceremonies. Poor people
who cannot afford houses in the
cemetery spend the night of February
3rd in tents, and the cemetery on that
day is like a populous town. and mer-
ry-go-rounds, magicians, beggers and
etc., do business in every vacant
space.
November 18th. We have steamed
all day in the Red Sea, which looks
not one whit different from the blue
waters of the Mediterranean, but
those who have seen them after a
sand storm say they are as red as
blood, however, heresay evidence is
ships company that has nothing
much to do except to think the things
they think are true.
In the early night we passed Mt.
Sinai, but few among the passengers
saw where it should be. Near the
western entrance of the Suez is said
to be the place where the Children of
Israel crossed the Red Sea, but then
it is only unverified evidence as no
living witness is with us to verify
the place IN statement, circumstantial
evidence against the spot as
Pharoah with his horsemen might
have crossed the stretch of land that
has been cut through by the canal,
and headed them off. But some peo-
pie like to stand on the spot where
some celebrity has stood, so l will
not dig away any more of the sand
from their pinnacle. November 18th,
Sabbath-and still we are in the Red
Sea. Services were held in the morn
ing and a subject appropriate to the
locality was selected. The coasts of
Africa and Arabia are still in sight.
November 18th. We have reached
the western limits of the Red Sea,
and now three great oceans lie be-
tween us and the homeland, Dear old
U. S. A. the farther we go away into
foreign lands the more we love her
rocks and rills, her woods and tempt
ed hills" After 9 a. N. we began pass
ing little rocky islands and soon were
in the Straits of Babel Mandate. Eng
land always foresighted has secured
a small island, the Isalnd of Peri,
right in the entrance of the Straits,
which when necessary may be forti-
fed, and as formidable a menace to
an incoming foe as is the fortress of
Gibralter. The Straits of Babel
Maudah lead from the Red Sea into