A VISIT TO CAIRO. SOME IMPRESSIONS BY A WELL KNOWN DUNEDINITE.

Otago Witness, Issue 2661, 15 March 1905, Page 83

A VISIT TO CAIRO. SOME IMPRESSIONS BY A WELL KNOWN DUNEDINITE.

J We have received a chatty letter from Mr i T. W. Kempthorne, written on board the s.s. Ormtiz, in the Arabian Sea, and dated January 8 : — Since writing you last, on the- 19th December, 1904, from Naples, when I told you that I was just leaving for Messina, Sicily, and have since paid a visit to Cairo. Aftor a pleasant run of 16 hours from Naples I reached Messina. Like many other Italian towns, it nestles at ths foot of high ranges. A good esplanade runs along the shore for about two miles, which is the main street of the- place, and on which the largest commercial houses are built. Five other streets of good width run behind this up the ranges, with cross streets of similar dimensions. This gives the town, from the harbour, a very picturesque appearance. I went ashore at night and had a good look over the place. The streets are well paved, well lighted, and very clean. The cathedral and churches are the most prominent buildings. There are, however, some very good shops, well stocked, and with attractive windows. A large number of small steamers and sailers are moored alongside of the esplanade wharf ; but the larger boats anchor out aoout half .a mile- from the shore, and passengers have -to land in- boats, of which there is- -a great number. The fixed legal fare is one franc for taking you ashore and bringing 1 -yow back to your steamer ; in this respect it -is the ■ -cheapest place I have visited. • - It ■ was ' a -peTf ect moonlight night, the water i'n\rfee bay 'was' as smooth as a mirror's" " face, 'and " the whole appearance what oiie expects to see in" a fairyland. At night very "few" -women are seen in the streets. My guide told me that the youngwomen seldom ventured out -at night, and when they do are veiled, and are never without a male guardian. I saw a goodly number, however, who had passed the meridian of life-, who were not veiled, but had male protectors. I again went ashoro in the morning, when there was great activity ; and the morning's light confirmed the moonlight's appearance of its b?auty. The Sicilians are somewhat darker in complexion than other citizens of Italy, and pride themselves. I was informed, as a very select section of the Italian nation. The land here is closely cultivated, as in Italy itself. Sicily has the reputation of producing the finest fruit', oranges, and lemons, the production of essential oils therefrom being one of their chief industries and lines cf export. Left Messina at midday, on a calm sea, and hod a good departing 'view of this pleasant place. In a few hours it became cloudy, and unfortunately we got only a partial view of Mount Etna. The wind rose very suddenly, and we were soon in a very heavy sea, and got considerably knocked about, although no serious damage was sustained. This was the only rough weather I experienced since leaving New Zealand. By noon, next day we again got into com- - paratively smooth water, which continued to Port Said, which I reached on Christmas Eve at 4 p.m. I had a smart drive round through the place; found it by no means attractive, so left the same evening at 6.45 o'clock for Cairo, which I reached at midnight. The railway aV-irts the canal for a considerable distance. On reaching Cairo I drove for the Continental Hotel, and promptly retired. The Continental is a very fin© hotel, in the best position in Cairo. Across tho street, direetfy opposite, is the recreation ground and public garden Ezbekiyeh, a great resort and a veiy beautiful reserve. Sunday Morning (Christmas Day). — On going out on to the platform of the hotel. csp which hundreds of people can sit, and which is up a few bteps trom the street path, you can see everything that is going on, as it is the very busiest part of Cairo. t was L_'leed a stranee and extraordinary *cene. All the shops vr re open, carriages in great numbers passing, driven fast; carts, camels laden, and simply with riders : donkeys and mules by the hundreds, all with loads, or carrying men, women, of children. Lorries with wool, sugar cane, and other merchandise, vegetable and fruit carts. Arab platform waggons, crammed with Arabs to full carrying rapacity, shouting, chaffing, laughing ; they make a terrific noise. Women jugglers, snake chai-mers. and others performing amazing tricks of deception. Water and sherberfc men with demijohn and glasses. Street 1 awkers all calling at the top of their voices the things for salo. All that made a lively show. Then the variety in dresses and colour is indeed remarkable. The znarried women wear nose reels gilded, which looks somewhat like an ordinary small cotton reel, ll'i* they stick oji one side of tho nose attached 'to their black veils. The young wemen wear white ve-ls r.nd man'-les ot muslin. All hayo loose gowns, and the men all wear loose-flowing garments, in combination of every colour under the sun, but white and red combination is the mott piominent The children are carried by the women astride on tho left or right shouldc. You see here, as you cannot see anywhere che out of Cairo, nassing before your eyes, in full acth iiy. thp best and busiest representation of Arab and Bsyotian

life. To see it for the first time is indeed a fascinating event. In the Arab, old Cairo section, most of the Artizans have their • workshops in arched or «ouare divisions Holes in the wall you mii>ht call them, as they aio very small, and e,o back from the inner edge* of the footpath. You sec them at their work — shoemakers, tailors, tinsmithir^bookbiniers, plumbers, and othe-'i. It is all hand labour. They do not appear to ha-^o any labour-saving maehmeiy. Possibly, if they had, many would be -;nemployed, and they appear to be werfecilv happy a« they are. They have ako thc-.r cookinc; fjhops or stalls along the margi is of the footpaths, where they bake tln.ir bread, and fry their fish and other animal food, their pastry and other necessaries of life. The appliances are very simple : fry-ing-pans and shallow ovens, covered and fired from above and below, the fuel being wood or coke. Their customeis come along, order or buy what they want, and met of them stand by the cooking stand and consume what they have ordered. If they hay bread only they take it in their hands and devour it as they inarch on. They do not appear to have any definite time for rest at their meals. There, is a- wonderfully marked difference between the old and- the new in the City of Cairo. The Cairo. of- to-day is forging ahead .with extraordinary rapidity. It is pimply , .jumping !-• Most of the miles of sandy deserts outside, of the old city, on which were scattered at long distances apart militarj- barracks, is novr being laid out in good, wide, straight streets and open squares, with splendid buildings going up in all directions. The people, have confidence and security under British Government, and the local capitalist is now investing his savings, and outsiders are rushing in. This eagerness is unduly advancing the price of land, which in most instances is 20 times the value it was even 10 years ago ; at all events it is fetching this advance. A large number of canals and water courses are now constructed and being extended, into which the overflow water of the Nile is directed, and from these new water-courses continuous irrigation is going on. Apart from this, water springs have been discovered by boring — in many instances at a depth of 50ft. You see hundreds of these wells. The water is raked from these springs by wooden cogged-wheel machinery and whims revolved by bullock, horse, or mule. They tie a piece of sacking over the animal's face and eyes, I suppose to relievo the monotony of the continuous daily round. On the revolving wheels the troug-hs or cisterns for drawing up the water are earthenware (small olive oil jars), which as the wheel revolve? upset the contents in a large cistern, and from this reservoir they send the water on the land wherever required. We know that where water flows there is life, and these old sandy wastes are now areas of amazing fertility, yielding i two, and sometimes three, crops in each ! year. There are still not far from Cairo and near the pyramids immense sandyareas and desert that may never b© cropped, j but th& improvements now manifest in large cultivated plains that wore formerly sandy wastes show the marvellous possibilities of improved piospects whore water is obtainable. , The Khedive, who is said to be the richest man in gypt, has an immense farm, his residence being on the property. I went to sec it. and drove over it for many miles. It is well roaded. The growing corn, vegetables, sugar cane, and fruit trees afford striking evidence of the land's fertility. Nothing coukT'excel it. About and around his residence he has large plantations of oranges and lemons. The oranges are ripe and the lemons soon will be — good crops, which will give a plenteous return. The Khedive's farm is representative of all the land within the range of vision in this part, and. in fact, from Cairo io near Ismailia you have the same rreh land, with abundance of water. The cultivated country is nearly a dead level. Beyond Ifmalia to Port Said you get into the sandy deseifc. The Arabs are to be seen at work everywhere, and thry appear to be very industrious. They are as straight as an arrow, strong as mules, and as active and supple as To go back to Cairo. The mosques and graceful minarets are the most prominent erection? in the city. I visited five mo«ques, the chief being Mahommed Ali and Sultan Hasan, Mahommed Ali, unlike most of the others, has an internal building for worship. It is of great beauty, with a splendid roof and dome. Most of the other mosques are rectangular in shape, the upper portion of the building on the outer side of the squares projecting about 25ft into the pquare, the remainder being open court to the sky. and in these recess.es or corridors the. service is held. On entering these mosques you have not to take ofi' your shoes or boots as formerly, as the custodians of the mosque supply you with loose slippers or sandals, which they tie over boot or rhoe, and for which you pay from Is to 2s. The object of these protecting slippers, so far a3 I douid learn, was not strictly because you are travelling over holy ground, hulas a protection to keep the mosque floors clean, as the Mohommeclans in worship kneel, or prostrate themselves, their foreheads touching the floor, or ground, and to shield them from cMrt is the chief object of these nrotecting slippers. The mosque Mahommed Ali is mostly constructed of Egyptian alabaster, the interior all polished. It has a splendid dome and minarets. The pulpits in the open buildings are laised to a height close to the floor covering the prayer recesses, which gives the speakers a complete view of his audience. I found them all constructed in the same way. I saw a nunfner of worshippers prostrate and sitting on the carpets or mats. In one instance the speaker was sittinsr in the midst of his people, and my Arabic guide told me that he was a lecturer and teacher explaining the Koran to, his students. They all appeared to be very d-evout, and to be taking a keen interest in the Droce'ediugs. From the Citadel, close to Mahommed Ali, which is the highest point in the city of Cairo, you have an uninterrupted view not only of Cairo, but of the River Nile runningthrough this section, and the Pyramids of Gliiza and Memphis, and the whole country bounded by the horizon. Here your attention is al c o called to a pit or shaft close to fhe Citadel cajled Jacob's Well, and it is said to be the identical pft that Josenh was nut into by liis-brethren. Wonderful to relate, however, they do not show you i any portion of his garment of many colours. To the Pyramids, from Cairo is a oh armincr drive occupying about two hours. A splendid road — an avenue, in fact, — the whole way being planted with acacias, now of la-rce size, forming in many ijlaops a comr,\pte arch over the road line. The trams (eter-trical) also go to the Pyramids. On nrvtva?" a£ the Loio?, or accommodation

f house, near the Pyramids, which is a gre»t trybtiiig ground, you engage your guidf, camel or donkoj . The cost ot guide and animal you =elec(. is about 5s each. I v.a.s in company witli three other gCiitk'iren, and. ha\ mg secured oiu- animals and thi\cr», we mounted the as^e.>, and lovely pair* we looked. rhr dri\er follows immediately , behind, and often has the donkey's tail _m one hand and a switch in the other. The day wo went there were hundreds of people — men and women — mounted on donkeys or camels, and this march to the Pyramids over iho heavy, sandy desert \\ cis a curious and comical sight. The Arab drners make a grcai noi c evihcn talking to the animals, and bring the switch sharply down on the posterior of the beast at the same time to stimulate his movements. The donkeys are musical, .and occasionally sound a long bray. Whether this is answer to the dmer's anathemas, calling to another animal friend on the | march, or a personal appeal to the rider to get off I don't know : I do know, however, that it is immense fun to be in this Pyramid caialcade. Possibly the e'ever fellows who designed the Pyiamide had prophetic \i-jon and were struck with the idea that something: of this sort would happen, and that millions cf idiot?, out of sheer curiosity, from all parts of the earth, would in the I time to como bo pile rims to tbeso piles of j stones. What strikes one forcibly is the j change between the past and the present — j namely, the autocratic power held by thoae | monarch? of the past, to have been aMo to plunder their subjects and to control labour to the extent necessary to build up these prodigious landmarks for the storage of ' brains, bones, and treasure, and to gratify , a purely selfish ambition. Away with these rrScctions ! I doubtless feel as other mutitudes dcubiles-s have dono I and will do in future: retain on memory's impress delightful thoughts of the pleasure, given by the handiwork of those past monarchs in founding for posterity so attractive a rendezvous for rest and change from the turmoil of the world elsewhere. j To those who desire to visit the tomLs of the Khalifs and Mamelukes, and have- a , liking- for sarcophagi, or to enter the stuffy | interior of the Pyramids, every opportunity is given. It is purely a question of inclinaj tion, payment of fees, and remuneration of your quide — and the smelling of something unusual. The big Sphinx near the pyramid Cheops is getting to look the worse for exposure, gradually crumbling away. The outline now | is very imperfect, and from the decay now i going on it is evident that the time- is not I far distant when it will be merely a huge , block of stone, resembling nothing but what your imagination is pleased to picttire. So, if any other New Zealander is anxious for an interview, he had better hurry up. j I went to Heliopolis to see the Obelisk, said to be the oldest in Egypt, dating some 4500 B.C. It is a solid piece of granite 66ft high, over sft square at the base and about ' 2ft 9in at the top, and was conveyed, record ', says, 500 miles to its present position. It bears numerous inscriptions. How was the transit made? They must have had appliances more powerful for handling such weights tnan we- have to-day. In the same district is the- " Virgin tree,"' which they call a sycamore, but it bears no resemblance whatever to our sycamore. If it was ever of large dimensions, and is the age represented, then old age has so shrunken its trunk and branches that it now looks a miserable specimen of emaciated de-cay. It is said that the Virgin and Child were concea^d in this tree during their persecution in Egypt. The narrative is impressive : the treo lodes a fraud. They have it carefully fenced round, and will continue to collect backslush from visitors.^ In this neighbouhood there is an ostrich farm w r cll worth going to sec. It belongs ro a French coinoany, whoso present stock consist? of 1400 birdo. ranging in age from six months to 40 odd years. I learned from the keeper that the birds commence to yield payable feathers when two years old, the plucking season being annual in the month of May. The birds when hatched are all gray in colour, and do not change till two years old, when the male birds' feathers turn black, the female, irrespective of age. always remaining gray. Thov commence to lay eggs at five years old. the number laid during a season being from 15 to 20 eggs from each layer. They sit on the ea^ six weeks, the egR-s being on the sand." The male and female bird each takes the same interest in sitting' on the ca-gs, three hours oach alternately till hatched out. Two of the old birds, now 40 years each, wore taught in I'neir youthful days to imitate howlinsr dervishes, and still perform with great vigour. Ths keeper onlls the birds, then parses a command, and this starts them off to extend every feather in their bodies, arkl lash their head and neck about ove«. - each of their sides that you can only suppose they are goin^- mad or int°nd suicide. Then the keeper calls, •'Hold, enough," and immediately they raise their majestic heads and recks, and march off with the 'coolest dignibr. as if nothing- had happened. The Zoological Gardens in Cairo should also be visited. They have a splendid collection of wild and tame animals and rare birds, such as jou do not find elsewhere. The sroun'ls are indeed lovely. The paths are about 6ft wide, and' are laid with small pebbles about lin long by |in thick, every pebble being hand-laid in cement in a floral or other desian (Mosaic work on footpaths). All these pebbles were brought irom the Uppei* Nile — eo'ours black, brown, and white, the border of the paths being white polished marble. This work was one of thp extraordinary extravangancies of Ishmail Pacha — possibly you could not find anj--thing' to match this waste in our planets. The cost mu<it have been fabulous. No visitor to Cairo should miss seeing the Zoological Garden*. I should say that December and January are the best months to visit Egypt — mornings and ovei'ings somewhat cold, but by no moans, unpleasant, and the middle of the day, from half-past 10 a.m. till 4 p.m. is quite hot enough to bo pleasant. Visitors flow in till the end of April, I was informed, but then it i« too hot for enjoyment. After this Egypt is deserted, tourist tiavelling ending for the season. In coming through the Canal one is struck by the unprotected condition of the sices. Where they have protected the slopes by stone pitchers' they are not carried high enough, and the wash of each steamer as she passes through gets behind the protective pitcher 13 , and down they go into the Canal, and much pand. nec3';sitating constant and costly dredging. Had a fairly good trip through the Red Sea, but too hot for comfort, even though it is the beginning of January. I expect in a few days to land at Ceylon, and have a run through this Island and India.