Fish abound in the neighbouring sea, and are caught by moonlight, with a bell-shaped net only, draw-nets being not used here. In Harish itself there are not more than fifteen or twenty persons who follow fishery as a calling. There are, however, many fishermen engaged in the preparation of salt fish, who come over from Damietta and live behind the Berdovil. In the same way they fish the Melleha, referred to above, in which are a large number of mullet. The fishing-ground has been rented from the Government by an Arab, who is even thinking of setting up a boat. Hitherto the fishermen have always come here from Port Said, along the shore, on foot.
The palm trees of Harish, of which there are about 6000, are the principal basis of the local product. No impost whatever is paid for them to the Government, the concession being presumably accorded to the population, in consideration of their being inhabitants of a frontier station. No wine is made from the palms of Harish, the sap being principally used for the preparation of sugar. The black and red dates are retained for home consumption, while the yellow, as also the Agua dates (pounded date cakes), are exported in sacks. The fruit of the place consists principally of figs and grapes, the latter being chiefly grown in the western portion of the district. For the most part they are white table grapes, but we heard that the under health officer of Harish was attempting to make wine from some of them. Melons are also extensively cultivated here, more particularly in Wadi, and are preserved for some time by hanging. The vegetables include tomatoes, garlic, onions, and carrots; barley, wheat, maize, and small sweet vetches are also grown, more or less.
Industrial pursuits are almost entirely neglected. A few articles of clothing, etc., are made for actual home use, but nothing more. These comprise, for instance, winter jackets of sheepskins (made with the bare skin outside, the hair being worn next the body); camel's-hair sacks; close-fitting camel's-hair caps (a very warm and practical head-gear, and consequently worn by the military and officials under their fez); and black and striped cloaks of sheep's wool, such as are seen in Syria.
The commerce of the place is insignificant, and what there is consists chiefly of a transit trade, for, being really little more than a large station of camel-keepers, Harish has no trade of its own. It has, therefore, much suffered from the construction of the Suez Canal, since which, almost the entire trade between the south of Syria and Egypt goes by water, leaving but a small portion for the once famous caravan route. From Harish itself no goods whatever are exported by land, excepting, occasionally, dates for Gaza. There are no boats at Harish, as the shore is bad and full of reefs. Corn and fruit often come by ship from Jaffa, and sometimes timber for building purposes, but this does not happen very often, as most of the timber required at Harish is brought from Wadi. Altogether, ships do not come more than fifteen or sixteen times in the year, when they are either laden as described, or simply ballasted, and return with cargoes of melons, dates, and Agua dates. Sometimes shipwrecks occur on these inhospitable coasts. As has been already mentioned, the postal service between Harish and the outer world is provided for by a weekly mail to Kantara, by means of a dromedary.
I will now give some description of the place itself. Harish lies along the side of an undulating hill fronting the sea, at the foot of the large quadrangular castle, a substantial building of calcareous marlstone. The only entrance to the castle is by a great gate opening from the town, and, therefore, upon the side next the sea. On either side of the gate is a round tower, with a marble pillar—the capital of which is inverted—built into the stone. Above are five marble tablets with inscriptions. A sixth tablet stands below the loophole, from which the standard-bearer (whose grave will be mentioned presently) was killed by the French. From the lower inscription we learn that the castle is 327 years old, and was built by the Sultan Suleiman. The upper tablets bear the name of the Sultan Selim. A gate with iron mountings leads into the T-shaped entrance-hall, in the centre of which is an oval cupola, and on either side slightly pointed arches. At the entrance is a circular arch, and a similar one at the opposite end of the hall, in which a lamp is suspended, and where there are three marble steps leading up to the mosque. This is a very simple edifice, covered by a flat roof of palm-leaf stalks, and containing two rows of four pointed arches, with four ancient marble pillars built into the stone. To the left of the Mihrab, which has two marble pillars, and is also distinguished by simplicity, is a mural inscription. The Mem Ber is of the same character, and is constructed of red and green painted wood. Four men are set apart for the service of the mosque, one only of whom is a priest.
Passing out through a side-door to the left, we found, opposite to the Jama, an old Egyptian sarcophagus of black granite, now used as a water trough, covered within and without with very small hieroglyphics.
The interior of the fortress has a very deserted air. We found there dilapidated clay houses for the soldiers, and, somewhat to the side, the divan of the governor, which consists of a hall with two circular arches, the interior containing low sofas covered with rich carpets. There we waited upon the governor, who, according to invariable custom, ordered coffee to be served. He then took us over the armoury, in which was a small field-piece for mounting on camels, and afterwards conducted us over the fortress. The entire castle, as already mentioned, forms a quadrangle, and has four hexagonal towers, with embrasures, and a few bronze cannons. A gallery in a ruinous condition runs round the entire length of the walls, with a parapet of some six feet in height and embrasures. The towers of the castle command an extensive view of the desert, with the distant mountain chains of El Halal and El Magara in the south-east, the magnificent palm plantation towards the sea, and the town of Harish itself spread out below.
To the left hand of the castle gate, on passing out, is a small enclosure overgrown with shrubs, in which is the tomb, already referred to, of the Piraktar, or standard-bearer, who was killed by the French in the time of Napoleon. It is of simple clay, ornamented at the corners with ancient pillars.
Altogether, El Harish has a poverty-stricken appearance, with rugged uneven streets, formed merely of a sandy earth. Gray is the prevailing hue, relieved only in a few places by the green of one of the loftier palm trees projecting above the buildings. These are of clay and straw,—the clay tiles being cemented with sand and clay; the roofs are flat and very roughly finished. Most of the houses have small courtyards communicated with by rough sliding doors. It is very seldom that one sees curved arches over these; they are almost invariably quadrangular, with a wooden bar as head piece. To many of the doors camels' skulls have been attached by the occupiers, who for the most part are camel-keepers, as a protection against evil spirits. Over the entrance doors large branches of the tamarisk are frequently hung for a shade. These plain courtyards, which contain nothing but a few indispensable things, are, as it were, the private domain of the inhabitants, in which they often keep their cattle. They rarely communicate with each other, and of course are closed to strangers, unless accompanied by the proprietor. The chattels they usually contain are a few large clay water-pitchers, clay vessels in the form of casks, for the storage of grain, which, after being filled from the top, are closed and the grain afterwards drawn off as required from an opening in the bottom; a bell-shaped poultry-coop made of clay, with a lid, which is kept down by a stone when necessary; pigeon-holes either in the clay wall round the yard, or in the wall of the house itself; and small baking ovens with side-door and place under for fire. In the kitchens, too, which are as a rule wretched holes, there are small baking ovens with flat tops, such as are common throughout Egypt. The houses of the more prosperous inhabitants are not unfrequently provided with a raised space, railed on both sides, and sometimes latticed in front, which is fitted with receptacles for jars and other domestic articles.
Ancient columns and pedestals are sometimes built into the houses. There are usually several wooden doors between these and the courtyards, which also serve as windows. Light is also provided for in many rooms by small wood lattices or jalousies, firmly built into the wall, the lattices often consisting of nothing but palm-leaf stalks stuck into the clay wall. When there is an upper story, which is rarely the case, it is approached from the courtyard by a staircase, usually dilapidated, with stairs of shelly marlstone. The stairs and floors of the interior, when there are any, are of clay. The roofs are formed with cross beams connected by palm-leaf stalks and pegs, which are then covered with palm leaves, and clay finally thrown over the whole. Those provided with an upper story live there in the summer, as it usually contains several latticed windows, and is consequently cooler. Most of the houses have a partition for sheep and goats.