We passed with great velocity Nizelet Embarak, Cubabac, Nizelet Omar, Racca Kibeer, then Racca Seguier, and came in sight of Atsia, a large village at some distance from the Nile; all the valley here is green, the palm-groves beautiful, and the Nile deep.
Still it is not the prospect that pleases, for the whole ground that is sown to the sandy ascent of the mountains, is but a narrow stripe of three quarters of a mile broad, and the mountains themselves, which here begin to have a moderate degree of elevation, and which bound this narrow valley, are white, gritty, sandy, and uneven, and perfectly destitute of all manner of verdure.
At the small village of Racca Seguier there was this remarkable, that it was thick, surrounded with trees of a different nature and figure from palms; what they were I know not, I believe they were pomegranate-trees; I thought, that with my glass I discerned some reddish fruit upon them; and we had passed a village called Rhoda, a name they give in Egypt to pomegranates; Salcah is on the opposite, or east-side of the river. The Nile divides above the village; it fell very calm, and here we passed the night of the fifteenth.
Our Rais Abou Cuffi begged leave to go to Comadreedy, a small village on the west of the Nile, with a few palm-trees about it; he said that his wife was there. As I never heard any thing of this till now, I fancied he was going to divert himself in the manner he had done the night before he left Cairo; for he had put on his black surtout, or great coat, his scarlet turban, and a new scarlet shaul, both of which he said he had brought, to do me honour in my voyage.
I thanked him much for his consideration, but asked him why, as he was a Sherriffe, he did not wear the green turban of Mahomet? He answered, Poh! that was a trick put upon strangers; there were many men who wore green turbans, he said, that were very great rascals; but he was a Saint, which was better than a Sherriffe, and was known as such all over the world, whatever colour of a turban he wore, or whether a turban at all, and he only dressed for my honour; would be back early in the morning, and bring me a fair wind.
“Hassan, said I, I fancy it is much more likely that you bring me some aquavitæ, if you do not drink it all.” He promised that he would see and procure some, for mine was now at an end. He said, the Prophet never forbade aquavitæ, only the drinking of wine; and the prohibition could not be intended for Egypt, for there was no wine in it. But Bouza, says he, Bouza I will drink, as long as I can walk from stem to stern of a vessel, and away he went. I had indeed no doubt he would keep his resolution of drinking whether he returned or not.
We kept, as usual, a very good watch all night, which passed without disturbance. Next day, the 17th, was exceedingly hazy in the morning, though it cleared about ten o’clock. It was, however, sufficient to shew the falsity of the observation of the author, who says that the Nile[104] emits no fogs, and in course of the voyage we often saw other examples, of the fallacy of this assertion.
In the afternoon, the people went ashore to shoot pigeons; they were very bad, and black, as it was not the season of grain. I remained arranging my journal, when, with some surprize, I saw the Howadat Arab come in, and sit down close to me; however, I was not afraid of any evil intention, having a crooked knife at my girdle, and two pistols lying by me.
What’s this? How now, friend? said I; Who sent for you? He would have kissed my hand, saying Fiarduc, I am under your protection: he then pulled out a rag from within his girdle, and said he was going to Mecca, and had taken that with him; that he was afraid my boatmen would rob him, and throw him into the Nile, or get somebody to rob and murder him by the way; and that one of the Moors, Hassan’s servant, had been feeling for his money the night before, when he thought him asleep.
I made him count his sum, which amounted to 7½ sequins, and a piece of silver, value about half-a-crown, which in Syria they call Abou Kelb, Father Dog. It is the Dutch Lion rampant, which the Arabs, who never call a thing by its right name, term a dog.—In short, this treasure amounted to something more than three guineas; and this he desired me to keep till we separated. Do not you tell them, said he, and I will throw off my cloaths and girdle, and leave them on board, while I go to swim, and when they find I have nothing upon me they will not hurt me.