"It is not impossible," added the commander with a smile. "We can go to Tur, 140 miles south of Suez, and there we shall find camels and a contractor, though perhaps not for so large a company. I do not think our party would enjoy the trip whichever way we might go. It is a rough country, a group of mountains. The Monastery is 5,014 feet high, and it must be cold weather up there in January. The Jebel Musa, which is usually regarded as the Holy Mountain, is 7,363 feet high; but even Mount Sinai itself is disputed ground, and the question 'Is Mount Serbal the Sinai of Scripture?' is discussed by the critics. Serbal is 8,712 feet high, the loftiest, I believe, on the peninsula, and is nearer to the gulf than the others.
"I believe the discomfort and exposure of the trip render it impracticable at the present time and at the present season. The guide-books indicate the months of March and April as the best for the excursion; and it is too early to go now with comfort, not to say enjoyment. Of course I do not know what Mr. Belgrave, under the advice of his guardian and trustee, will do with the Guardian-Mother when our present voyage shall be completed; but if he should retain the steamer, I should recommend him to make a trip across the ocean at the right time, and up the Mediterranean, by the Gulf of Iskanderun to Alexandretta, which is near the head waters of the Euphrates River, a proposed route to India by the Persian Gulf, of which I may have something to say another day.
"From this city the steamer could take in the ports of the Holy Land, or her passengers could journey through Syria by land, with tents and dragoman. The ship could then be left at Port Said, the party could come through the canal to Suez in the Maud, or by some other conveyance, and then make a business of exploring the Peninsula of Sinai," said the commander in conclusion.
"That arrangement would suit me much better," added Mrs. Belgrave. "I have been groaning at the necessity of going home without seeing the Holy Land. I shall keep this plan in my mind as one to be carried out in a couple of years if my son does not object to it."
"The Guardian-Mother shall not go out of commission until this voyage is completed," replied Louis promptly. "Captain Ringgold is engaged as commander for life, and he will attend to the accomplishment of my mother's wishes."
"I thank you, Mr. Belgrave, for the confidence thus reposed in me, and I shall be most happy to command the steamer on such a voyage," replied the captain. "We cannot calculate on events of the future with too much assurance."
The day passed away quietly with reading and singing, and very early in the morning the passengers heard an unusual sound of activity on the part of the ship's company. The captain had given orders the night before to have everything made ready for hoisting on deck the Maud. He had announced his intention to the "Big Four" in his cabin, and given his reasons for his decision. Scott and Felix regretted this change in the programme of the voyage more than the other two.
"The Red Sea is sometimes a very stormy place," said the commander. "I have feared more than anything else when you have been sailing in the Maud that she might get separated from the ship in a fog, or in some other manner, and that the little steamer might come to grief, however well she might be handled; for she certainly is not large enough for an independent voyage.
"In the very last paper I received from New York, I read of a new steam-yacht to be built by a millionaire for the voyage around the world which has lately become the fad of millionaires. One item struck my attention; that she was to be armed with four cannon whose calibre was not given, as well as with a supply of small arms. The wealthy voyager was afraid of pirates, or some other freebooters on the Malabar and Malay coasts, as well as among the islands of the Indian Ocean and those of the Pacific.
"As you are aware, I took the same precautions myself; and I only regret now that I did not take on board more guns and small arms. We have had occasion to use our twelve-pounders on one occasion, and perhaps, if the ship had reached the coast of Cyprus at the time I expected, I might have found them useful. I do not anticipate any trouble from native pirates wherever we may go; but I think the Maud is a temptation to Arabs and other natives.