ing is made by means of small boats, swarms of which surround every arriving steamer. The passenger having selected his hotel, has only to place himself and his luggage in charge of the commissionaire of the hotel selected, who attends to the details of landing, customs, &c. If passengers are travelling under the arrangements of Cook and Son, they will place themselves in charge of the Agent, who boards every steamer. ALEXANDRIA (Hotels, see HoTEL LIST). Population about 220,000.

There is very little of interest to the tourist in this city.

Modern Alexandria is chiefly built on the isthmus now connecting the mainland with what was once the Island of Pharos, and also on the island itself, where the principal public buildings are situated. The Frankish quarter is the handsomest portion of the city, and more nearly occupies the site of the ancient town. The Great Square (Place Méhémet Ali) is the head-quarters of European life and business. Here the chief banks, hotels, and merchants' offices are situated. There are two harbours. The New Port is much exposed, and was, in days of Mahomedan exclusiveness, the only harbour permitted to foreign vessels. The Old Port is well protected with breakwater, mole, jetty, lighthouses, and spacious quays, and is crowded with ships.

The general aspect of the city is a strange mingling of European and Oriental. The shops are much the same as in any European city, the names of the streets being affixed in French. The side streets, especially of the Arab Quarter, wear more of an Eastern aspect. A day will suffice for the tourist to see all that he wishes in Alexandria.

THE PRINCIPAL SIGHTS are:

POMPEY'S PILLAR.-The name of this celebrated column is really a misnomer. It stands on a high piece of ground, probably the loftiest site in the ancient city. The shaft is of polished red granite, the capital and pedestal are of inferior workmanship. The total height is nearly 100 feet. The shaft is considered to have formed part of an ancient temple, utilized in the erection of the present column in honour of Diocletian, after his eight months' siege of Alexandria in 296 a.d., and sanguinary suppression of the rebellion of Achilleus.

The MAHOMEDAN CEMETERY is very near Pompey's Pillar. It is a wilderness of stones, without fence or rail, or anything of the sort, to seclude it from the common roadway. Many of the stones have a turban roughly carved on the top; some are painted green, showing that the deceased in his day made the pilgrimage to Mecca, or was a descendant of the Prophet.

On the banks of the Mahmoodeah Canal are the residences of some of the grandees of Alexandria. This canal was formed by Mahomed Ali in 1819-20. A quarter of a million of men were forced to aid in its construction. It is cut from Alexandria to Atfeh, on the Rosetta branch of the Nile. On the right bank, near Alexandria, is the fashionable promenade of the city. Close at hand are the beautiful gardens of the Viceroy, which are open to the public. A band plays on Sundays and Fridays.

The Mosque of the 1001 Columns is said to occupy the site of the old Church of St Mark, which commemorated the scene of the Evangelist's martyrdom. In the Mosque of St Athanasius, so named from a pre-existent church, was found the sarcophagus now in the British Museum,

once known as "the Tomb of Iskander," but evidently of Pharaonic origen.

ROUTE 220.

ALEXANDRIA TO CAIRO AND THE PYRAMIDS.

B

seven

Y railway from Alexandria to Cairo is 131 miles; time, hours; by the express, once daily, time, five hours. The first-class carriages are good.

Soon after leaving Alexandria, Lake Mareotis is skirted to the right. Early in the year the waters are abundant, and the lake appears of vast extent, but it is very shallow. As the summer advances the waters diminish, and there is a broad expanse of swamp. Thousands of birds are seen on the shores of the lake-ducks, pelicans, and every description of water-fowl.

Kafr Douar is the first station. At Aboo Hommoos the Mamoodeah Canal is left, and the railway proceeds to Damanhoor, a large town with cotton factories and a few good houses. Near Damanhoor, Napoleon narrowly escaped being taken prisoner by the Memlooks in 1798. After passing Tel-el Baroot, the Rosetta branch of the Nile is crossed by an iron bridge, which opens to allow large vessels to pass. Here the brother of the Khedive was drowned. He was returning to Cairo from Alexandria, and the ferry bridge being out of place, the train plunged into the river. At Kafr-ez Zyat the train halts for refreshments. We are now in the Delta of Egypt. The

country is very fertile, and cotton plantations, sugar fields, and grain of every kind abound. The soil is the rich mud deposited by the Nile, and the divisions of the land are not made, as in most places, by hedges and walls, but by small canals.

The tourist will be interested in watching the various industries of the people. Watering the land seems to be one of the chief, and this is done by the most oldfashioned appliances. The shadoof and the sakieh are both seen in frequent operation; and as these are notable Egyptian institutions, which will everywhere meet the traveller's eye, it would be better to describe them.

"The shadoof is the arrangement most in vogue. It consists of a long pole, made heavy at one end, and resting on a pivot, at the other end a bucket, or large water-tight basket, which is lowered to the water and filled; and, as the heavy end of the pole goes down turns out its contents into a little gutter, whence it is worked by the foot into the appointed channels. Sometimes this is superseded by the sakieh, which is a water-mill of cogged wheels, turned by a buffalo, or camel, each revolution of the wheel working up a series of earthen pitchers, which empty themselves into a trough or pool. primitive still is the practice, in frequent use, of raising the water without any mechanical contrivance. Two men stand in the stream or canal with a waterproof basket between them, which they swing as regularly as clockwork, and throw the water on to the bank, where another stands ready to divert it into its proper place. It was in contrast to this style of work that it was said in Scripture that the land which the Israelites should possess 'is not as the land of Egypt, where thou sowedst

More

thy seed, and wateredst it with thy foot; but is a land of hills and valleys, and drinketh water of the rain of heaven.'-(Deut. xi.)." Not less interesting is it to watch the ploughing with the quaint plough, which is familiar byillustrated scriptural books. Not unfrequently it is drawn by camel and buffalo "unequally yoked" together. Tantah, celebrated for its fêtes or festivals, is now passed. They are held in January, April and August, lasting eight days in each month. They are in honour of Seyyid Ahmed-el-Bedawee, a Moslem saint, to whom an invocation in time of sorrow is guaranteed to bring strength to the faithful. These fêtes, which are attended by two or three hundred thousand people, are the most interesting in Egypt. At Birket-es-Sab the Damietta branch of the Nile is crossed. The palace of Abbas Pasha is seen, and then Benka is reached, a junction for Mansoorah or Ismailia, both via Zagazig. Tookh station is passed and the first sight of the Pyramids is obtained. The next station is Kalioob.

Looking out on the left, the Mokattam Hills and the minarets of the city are seen; and after passing through some of the most charming scenery of the whole route, the terminus of the railway is reached at CAIRO.

Before the train stops at the platform it is surrounded by Arabs, clamorous for the passengers' luggage; but passengers are advised not to allow anybody to touch an article of luggage except the commissionaire from the hotel where he proposes stopping, or if he is travelling under their arrangements, the agent of Cook and Son.

CAIRO (Hotels: see "HOTEL LIST").

Post Offices.-Egyptian post

office (for all mails (except the French) in the Esbekeeyah.

French post-office, at the Messageries Office in the Esbekeeyah. Letters to England, via Marseilles. The American Consulate is near the post-office.

Carriages.-Two shillings an hour; but a bargain is necessary, as the tariff is not respected.

Donkeys.-Short rides, sixpence; by the day, two or three shillings, more if required to go some distance from the city. The donkey boys may be reckoned among the curiosities of Cairo. They are amusing and indefatigable in their exertions.

Cafes. The Cercle and others, chiefly in the Esbekeeyah. English Church, near the Esbekeeyah, on the road to Boulak. American Mission near the English Church.

THEATRES, &c.-Opera House, in the Esbekeeyah; French Theatre, in the Esbekeeyah; Hippodrome, near the road to Boulak-occasional circus performances.

FESTIVALS.-Departure of the Pilgrims for Mecca, 25th of Showal (10th month); return of the Pilgrims, 27th of Saffer (2nd month); Greater Festival, 10th, 11th and 12th of Zul-hag (12th month); Lesser Festival, early in the month of Showal (10th month); Festival of the Cutting of the Canal, August 10th (about); Birthday of Mahomed, beginning of Rebea-el-Owwal (3rd month); various other fêtes of Moslem saints, &c.

PRINCIPAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST.-Bazaars, Dancing Dervishes, Joseph's Well, Mosque of Mahomed Ali, Mosques, principal; Museum at Boulák, free, open daily, except on Fridays, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Palace of Gezeereh, order from the Khedive's Chamberlain, to be ob

tained through the Consulate; Public Library at Darb-el-Gamameez, free, open daily, except on Fridays; Schools, &c., Tombs and Cemeteries, University, Walls of the City, ascend at the Baben-Nasr.

OBJECTS OF INTEREST IN THE ENVIRONS.-The Barrage, Obelisk of Heliopolis, Baths of Helwan, Ruins of Memphis, Mosque of Amer, The Nilometer, Old Cairo, Palace and Gardens of Shoobra, order from the Khedive's Chamberlain through the Consulate; the Petrified Forest, Pyramids of Ghizeh, Pyramids of Sakkarah, Tombs of the Caliphs, the Virgin's Tree.

Cairo is a walled town with 71 gates. There are four large open spaces in the city where out-door life can be studied. The Esbekeeyah, the Birket-el-fil, the Rumeyleh, and the Place Mehemet Ali.

The Rumeyleh was formerly a very low place, but has been made quite respectable by recent improvements.

The Esbekeeyah is the most important public place, and is adjacent to several public buildings-the Opera House, the Palace, and the chief banks and hotels. There is a large garden in the centre, surrounded by a fine avenue, with alleys of trees radiating from the centre.

The Mooskee is a fine street running from the Esbekeeyah through the city. It forms the Frank quarter.

Near the Mooskee are numerous bazaars, which are amongst the chief curiosities of Cairo. Many of them have specialities; cloth, porcelain, and glass work should be sought for in the bazaar Kams-Awi; coffee and tobacco in the Gemanieh; arms, in the Soukel-Sélah. There is one curious bazaar, where boots, shoes, and slippers are almost the only arti

cles. At the Lerongèh, harness and embroidered leather are to be procured. The finest of all is the Bazaar Turc, filled with jewellery, gold work, and precious stones.

There are a few other important streets. The Boulevard Abdul Aziz, the Boulevard Méhémet Ali, the Boulevard Clot Bey, and the road to Boulák; but the old city mostly consists of an immense number of narrow lanes and passages, the houses frequently overhanging the way till they nearly meet overhead. The public baths are richly decorated brick edifices; they are very

numerous.

The Citadel or el Kalah, is said to occupy the site of the Acropolis of ancient Bablioun. The Boulevard Méhémet Ali leads direct from the Esbekeeyah to the Citadel. It is built on the flank of a hill overlooking the town. There are two entrances, one by the magnificent specimen of Saracenic architecture known as the Bab-el-Azab. This gate is in the form of an elliptical arch, with two enormous brickwork towers, built in alternate bands of red and white. Hence a narrow winding path leads to the highest part of the citadel. In this defile the slaughter of the Memlooks took place in 1811. Only one escaped by leaping his horse from the terrace on the eastern platform, called "La Saut du Mameluke." On this occasion 450 Memlooks, with their leader, Ibrahim Bey, were killed in the Citadel, and nearly 800 in the city.

The Palace of the Khedive presents nothing worthy of admiration. There are some handsome rooms, with good views from the windows. It is now used for State receptions.

The Mosque of Mahomed Ali, built in 1829, and although of