CHAPTER VII.

DESERT FARE—THE BAWAUB—NO. 4 STATION—A SIESTA—THE SOLITARY TREE—PESTILENTIAL BREEZES—A DRY WELL—SUEZ—WAGHORN’S HOTEL—THE “BERENICE”—RETURN TO CAIRO—A THIRSTY DRIVER—COOL RECEPTION AT A WARM BATH—THE PENDANT RAG.

But to return to our caravan, which we left on the margin of the desert. Our rate of travelling was about five miles in the hour, for the track, which in some places, lay over a smooth and tolerably hard gravel, was at others exchanged for a loose sand, in which our wheels became buried to the depth of a foot or more, causing a deal of labour to our horses. At such times, our Seis, or running-footman, one of whom accompanies each carriage, would apply his shoulder to the wheel and help us over the soft spot, whilst on occasions we found it necessary altogether to alight, and unite our efforts. We changed horses atNo.1 Station, which is nine miles from Cairo, and a mere stable, reachingNo.2, at about ten o’clock. This is a building containing a large saloon, with divans and a long table, three sleeping rooms, kitchen, &c., and here we found a good supper laid out,consisting of smoking dishes of Irish stew, cold turkeys and fowls, and eggsà discretion. During the meal, I was beckoned out of the room by the head driver,Mr.Hill,[8]to debate as to the length of time we should allow for resting. As there was a full change of horses for each carriage, I considered it would be as well to make the most of the cool night air, and secure a long halt the next day at the centre Station, and our passengers concurring in this idea, we were soon againen route.

No.3 Station is a repetition ofNo.1, being only a stable, tenanted by one old melancholy Arab, who, on our arrival, was found squatted over his little fire of camel’s dung, upon which he was baking his evening cake of Indian corn. This, with his pipe, and a drink of water, forms his only food. In the morning, in his scriptural little mill of two flat stones, he grinds sufficient flour to last him through the day, tasting nought else until his return to the city, which takes place when the transit season is over. Such, at least is the old fellow’s own account of himself; but as very few who cross the desert, pass by a Station without a call, it is more than probable, that he picks up something, more palatable than maise-bread, in return for the sundry half-pints of water andhandsful of corn, which he distributes, sub-rosâ, among his Bedouin friends.

A HALT IN THE DESERT

A HALT IN THE DESERT.

Early on the following morning, we came in sight ofNo.4, the centre Station, forty-one miles from Cairo, which, with the one solitary tree that stands near it, is visible nearly six miles before it is made. This is a resting-place of much more pretensions than the others, having an upper-story, with a ricketty flight of stone-steps, and a tolerably spacious court-yard below, where, at the time of our arrival, a queer-looking sheep, and some lean shrivelled fowls were sniffing and pecking about, and scraping up their last earthly meal, whilst a turkey-cock, perched on an emptycafassor hamper, was dismally sounding his death-rattle. The live stock, and eatables of all sorts are brought from Cairo in sufficient quantity to supply the larders of all the Stations for several weeks, but occasionally, when the number of passengers to and fro is very large, a sort of famine takes place, and we have been compelled to subsist for a time upon dates and other dried fruits, of which there is always a good store; the change of diet proving rather agreeable than otherwise. Chickens, very lean and tough, and roasted to dryness, are a standing dish in Egypt, and these with the larger sorts of fowl, and plenty of curries and Irish-stew, form theprincipal fare of the desert.[9]A second course generally makes its appearance at dinner in the shape of huge rice-puddings, or a sort of sweetmeat calledmish-mish, a favourite dish of the Arabs.

On arriving atNo.4, we found that the cool night air had given us considerable appetite, and our ablutions performed, there was a general rush to the long table in the common room, where sundry tea-pots and coffee-biggins were soon in rapid circulation, and boiled eggs disappeared by the score; bread there was none, as that becomes too much dried up by the heat when carried across the desert, but hard biscuits we found to be an excellent substitute, and the Egyptian butter is delicious. Breakfast over, I spread my carpet on the top of a long wooden sideboard, and soon fell fast asleep—my example being followed by the others who disposed themselves to rest, some in the bed-rooms, and others on the divans which extend round three sides of the room. In the middle of the day the heat was excessive—the thermometer standing at 100° of Fahrenheit—and the slight breath of air which was stirring outside was so very far preferable to the confined heat of the rooms,that I left my hard couch for a little patch of shade under one of the carts, where I was soon joined by one of my fellow-travellers, with whom I whiled away the hours in chat, until summoned by Ibraham the cook to another trial of his culinary art.

At the approach of evening, the horses were again attached to their respective carts or vans, and after some little jibbing on the part of the poor animals, who were evidently averse to moving, we were again upon the desert. The road near the centre Station is hard and gravelly, and affords most easy travelling for the first mile or two. We passed within a stone’s throw of the solitary tree before alluded to, with its sun-burnt branches all festooned with rags; the followers of the prophet who pass this object on their pilgrimages to Mecca, hang thereon an old shoe or some portion of a garment by way of peace-offering. If the wind is stirring, it is quite as well to take the weather-side of this hanging mass of old clothes, for as there are few devotees who care to part with anything really serviceable, the breezes which come athwart the tree are by no means of the most balmy.

About a quarter of a mile to the southward of this pestilential landmark, is a pit in the sand, of enormousdimensions, excavated by the French in the vain hope of obtaining water. Two or three of us went so far just to gratify our curiosity, but were obliged to use extreme caution in approaching the edge of the pit. Its diameter is so great that the well, although one hundred and fifty feet deep, appears rather shallow than otherwise, and the section of the ground exhibits a succession of layers of fine sand and gravel, but without the least appearance of water. Two or three dead animals, for which the well had served as a pitfall, lay at the bottom.

The road toNo.5 Station is scarcely to be distinguished, as the ground is so hard as to take no impress of wheels, and there would be great difficulty in making it out at all, were it not for the dead and dying camels and blanched skeletons, which strew the path and serve as finger-posts. Should a camel drop through exhaustion, and there be no means at hand of relieving it, the Bedouin removes its load, which is distributed among the others, and the poor beast is left to die, for to shorten its miseries by acoup de grace, would be at variance with the law of Mahomet. This is the more to be regretted as these animals are peculiarly tenacious of life, and when left in this manner, are sure to fall a prey to the jackal and vulture, who feastupon the body before life is extinct. A sly bullet from my carbine has often terminated the agonies of such as I have found thus abandoned in my frequent journeys, when I could use it without fear of detection, for the Arabs will not lightly pass over an infringement of their law in this particular; and as they have, if so inclined, the power of causing us much trouble, I have invariably sought to be on the best terms with them.

Passing the next Station, a mere stable, and still keeping between the two lines of hills, which increase in height as you approach Suez, we came suddenly uponNo.6, where, as it was now ten o’clock, we had to arouse the inmates. This Station is the counterpart ofNo.2, and was tenanted by an agreeable and pretty Englishwoman, who, having in haste, united herself to an Arab, was now in the solitude of the desert, repenting at her leisure. Under her good care we remained several hours, doing ample justice to a plentiful supper, and refreshing ourselves with a comfortable nap. It was therefore broad daylight when we reached the well of brackish water, and came in sight of the walls of Suez, a desolate and miserable town, where there is no water, save that of the Red Sea, and such as is afforded by a casual shower, and not the most remote appearance of vegetation in anyshape. The inhabitants, who appear to live exclusively upon fish, and dried fruits from the interior, consist principally of Jewish merchants and small Arab traders, for there is considerable traffic between Suez and the shores of the Red Sea, especially with Aden and Missouah, which latter, is the chief port of Abyssinia. The Indian steamers come up to within three or four miles of the town, and obtain a tolerably safe anchorage outside a perilous bar, which entirely prevents any nearer approach for vessels drawing more than five feet of water. Communication is effected, and merchandize shipped, by means of small lateen-rigged boats, which, if the wind be contrary, are also managed by oars; but in a high sea, I have sometimes been as long as six hours in getting out to the steamer.

Waghorn’s hotel is a quaint-looking low building close to the water’s edge, containing accommodation for thirty or forty people, and is managed by a clean bustling Englishwoman and her nephew. Two hundred yards or so nearer the gate, stands the old hotel, used only on extraordinary occasions, or when the steamer, not true to her time, causes a meeting at Suez between the India-bound passengers and those returning homewards. The little square before the door was filled as we drove up, with the baggage camels,which having disposed of their burdens in various heaps upon the ground, were now quietly chewing the cud, and resting themselves after their weary march, while their drivers were lolling near, either shrouded in their bernous cloaks and fast asleep, or lazily getting their morning meal. Portmanteaus, bullock-trunks, sword-cases, and three-cornered hat-boxes, with all the innumerable etceteras in the way of baggage, comprising an Indian outfit, lay scattered about in wild confusion, and it required no little skill on the part of our drivers to manage a four-in-hand through such a sea of valuables. Fortunately for myself, the boxes containing the mails lay all in one heap close to the door of the hotel, so that my task of counting and checking them was more easily accomplished than I had anticipated. Consigning them, therefore, into the hands ofMr.Manson, the agent at Suez, and obtaining from him a suitable receipt, I was left to discuss an excellent “dejeuner a-la-fourchette,” provided for me by the good-natured landlady, of whom I had contrived to get the blind side, by the opportune present of a few English needles which I happened to have in my valise.

I learned, on inquiry of the agent, that the “Berenice” Bombay steamer, which had the day before landed twoor three homeward-bound passengers, and was now lying smoking at her anchorage, was to start at five in the afternoon; and as the shipment of the mails and luggage is a work of time and labour, the sooner they were got off the better. I found this by no means an unpleasant part of my duty, for as there was a delightful breeze blowing, and the weather of the finest, the sail down the arm of the gulf into the open water, was extremely pleasant.

By six o’clock every one was on board, and the “Berenice” under weigh; and at midnight, I had turned my back upon Suez, with the now nearly empty carriages, for there were only three passengers, and as it so happened that neither of these contemplated reaching Alexandria in time for the English steamer, there was no occasion for any extraordinary dispatch. We therefore jogged along quietly enough, and for the first few stages, I found an amusing companion in my driver, a countryman of my own, who, having been long resident in Egypt, was able to afford me a good deal of information. He was, however, no follower of Father Mathew, and falling into the popular error that brandy is the best and safest restorative in a hot climate, he indulged in such repeated pulls at the black bottle, that on leavingNo.4 Station, he was compelled to resign the reins tothe attendantSeis, and sleep away the effect of his potations at the bottom of the cart.

Resting during the hottest part of the day, we reached Cairo at the close of the second afternoon, where having consigned my travelling companions to the attentions of the head waiter, I paid my respects toMr.Raven, whom I found entertaining a large party of his English friends, resident in Egypt. Pleading my travel-worn and dusty condition, for he was leading me in to present me to the ladies, as a late arrival from England, I begged him to direct me to some good bath, where I could indulge in the luxuries of soap and hot water. “There was a good one,” he said, “at the end of the first Bazaar,” whither accordingly I bent my steps, and passing under a narrow stone gateway, from whence thin clouds of steam were issuing into upper air, I was making my way through a damp passage, when I suddenly found myself arrested by the gripe of a fierce-looking Abyssinian slave, who luckily perceiving that I was a stranger, drew me back again into the street with much gesticulation, and pointing to a dirty rag which hung suspended over the door-way, like a paviour’s wisp, gave me a shove, which sent me reeling into the Bazaar, considerably surprised at the curious mode of reception practisedat a public Hammam. I had scarcely recovered my scattered senses, when a Frank tailor, who had seen the transaction, and evidently pitied my dilemma, emerged from his little shop, and explained to me that the pendant rag was exhibited as a sign, to show that the bath was at such times in the occupation of the ladies, and that in fact the hareem of some great man had but a short time before engaged the establishment. My forcible ejection was, therefore, no longer a matter of surprise, the only wonder being, that I had escaped so cheaply from the hands of the dusky Cerberus on guard.

My new friend, the tailor, now directed me to another bath at a little distance off, where I had no difficulty in effecting an entrance, as this time, and indeed always afterwards, I took especial care to look out for the rag! Although the Turkish bath has been so often described, as to have rendered its peculiarities familiar, I shall scarcely feel satisfied to give a casual glance only at this most gratifying of luxuries, and shall, therefore, simply relate my own experience, without venturing to hope that I may furnish anything very new upon the subject.

FOOTNOTES:[8]A brother of the lateMr.Hill, before alluded to.[9]I once met with a “loin of camel,” atNo.4 Station, apièce de resistance, I am not ambitious of tasting a second time.

[8]A brother of the lateMr.Hill, before alluded to.

[9]I once met with a “loin of camel,” atNo.4 Station, apièce de resistance, I am not ambitious of tasting a second time.

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