Year: 1875

covered With public buildings; there is a
fortson the top, as asdefense to the city,
but It is almost useless for this purpose as
it is overlooked by much loftier range
of%hills. In the winding passages lead
ing TO the summit, the massacre of the
Memlooks took place in 1911. There is a
palace or Mohammed Ali, and also a
mosque named after him in the enclosure;
but the great attraction IS the vie u from
the terrace, which takes in: the city, the
Nile Valley as far as the Delta. the Pyra-
mid Of Geezeh and Sakkarah, and vast
expanse of desert. The city, although
only containing about 100000 inhabi-
tants, covers an immense extent of ground,
and boasts large number Of fine mosques,
whose domes and minarets add greatly to
the appearance of the city. There is al
ways some haze here, and views are very
often interrupted by it, as was the case
then.


The next day, Tuesday, took an early
start to visit the Pyramids of Geezeh. 1t
is two-hours' ride by donkey, (al.
though, as there is an excellent road,
most people prefer carriages,l through
the city, crossing the Nile by the fine
new iron bridge, and throng gh avenues
shaded by "lebbekh" trees: In many
places the trees are so large as-to com.
pletely overshadow the the road, but on
the last stretch Of about four miles, in a
perfectly straight line, they are. quite
young. The trees are all very carefully
attended to, watered every day, and kept
we'll trimmed. really do not see how
the carriages can get along on these
roads, especially early in the morning, as
the road is almost completely blocked by
crowds Of dCnkeys and camels carrying
heavy loads of green fodder to the city. I
must have passed several hundred on my
way out. When we make our last turn.
ing we have the Pyramids directly before
us, and apparently quite near, but still
an hour distant. They are so immense
that they render distances very decep-
tive, and even when one is directly under
them, one does not realize their size, on
account Of their shape. said to myself,
"lt's all nonsense about the difficulty of
climbing that thing" Ipaid my regular
fee of four shillings to the Sheikh to save
me from being torn to pieces by crowd
Of would-be assistants, and resigned my
self to the tender mercies of three Arabs,
who started off by pulling me in three
different directions at once. I can say
with perfect truth that could have got
up much easier alone, but that was oAt
Of the question.


The ascent is not nearly as difficult as
[ had supposed, although it is rather
firing to the legs to 60 up flight of
steps two hundred in number, and aver.
aging two and half feet in height.
have been SO utterly disgusted with read.
ing in every book that take up on the
subject, and hear everybody ask the
question, "How can these things be-"
that will not say anything more about
them. There is good description of
them in "Arts and Industries of all Ma
tions."


AS may be imagined, the view from the
top of these artificial mountains is very
fine, although Cairo was so much covered
with cloud of smoke that little more
than the citadel was visible. We could
trace the Nile for long distance by it's
silver band, in the midst of broad belt
Of green, and this in turn bounded by the
trackless desert of yellow sand.


Close upon US was the second pyramid,
that Of Cephien, apparently as high. and
in reality but little inferior to the larger,
with the smooth outer casing still in posi-.
tion near the top.


The usual proposition was. made by an
Arab to run down one pyramid and up
the second in ten minutes, but we did not
consider it worth the while. The top
was covered with names cut in the stone,
and the Arabs tried to get me to let them
cut mine, too, but would not. I went
down the side at a run. and was nearly
jerked off the side, and sent rolling to the
bottom twice by my assistants.


The next thing, and really the most in.
teresting to me, wss the interior. We
first went down low passage at a steep
angle and with a smooth, polished floor
for short distance. and then up siMi-
lar passage, at an angle so steep that it
as I had kept my shoes on. By pressing
on the wall on either side, I worked my
way up until the passage became high,
when i: was easier.


There were little hollows at intervals
IN the hoor, which were OF great assist:
ance. The air within was intensely close
and hot, and the perspiration rolled from
my face, all the time was there. The guide
said that it was hot there in winter an
cool in summer. The only object to be
seen, when one reaches the end Of the
passage, is a large chamber containing
large sarcophagus of solid piece OF
granite, which rings like a bell when
struck. =.


If I were asking questions, might ask
how they moved this mass of stone down
and up through places where it was rather