Sand and Canvas: Narrative of adventures in Egypt with a sojourn among the artists in Rome

by Samuel Bevan

With considerable difficulty we got past No. 2 Station, between which and No. 3, we came to a complete standstill, and no efforts on the part of either the driver, Seis, or myself, could induce our poor horses to move: they were completely done up, and as ours was the last van of the six, there was no chance of assistance from any of our own people. After waiting for about an hour, the doctor and the French gentleman decided upon attempting to reach No. 4 Station on foot, which they might easily accomplish, though being late at night, and quite dark, it required some presence of mind. Fearful, however, that they might wander from the track and get into difficulty, I dispatched the Seis with them as a guide.

The Portuguese declared he would stick by his carpet-bag which contained all his valuable property, and we two, therefore, made what service we could of the two seats of the van, and rolled up in our cloaks, slept till near day-break; the Arab driver curling himself up as close as possible to one of the horses which lay on the sand, almost incapable of motion. At dawn we awoke and tried anew to get the horses on, but with no better success than before, and at this fresh disappointment, my companion’s slender stock of patience entirely forsook him, and he showered upon me a volley of abuse in such curiously broken English, that despite our unpleasant predicament, I could not refrain from laughter. “I sal soot yous,” said he at length, as quivering with rage, he unlocked his carpet-bag to put his threat into execution; and I think it very possible that he would have let the dawning day-light into me, had I not assured him, through the medium of my equally broken Italian, that in putting me out of the way he could gain nothing, and lose all chance of saving himself; that should the Bedouins come down on him, they would be sure to appropriate his carpet-bag, and perhaps carry him off as well. By degrees I managed to convince him, that instead of blubbering like a child, it would be more expedient to aid me in devising some means of locomotion, by which we might reach the next Station. Making a bundle of all the cloaks which had been left in the van, I slung them and the carpet-bag across one of the leaders, flinging my prayer-carpet over the whole by way of a saddle. My ferocious Portuguese was thus tolerably mounted, and sending with him the Arab driver, on a second horse, to show him the way, I bade him “good speed,” and particularly enjoined him not to omit sending me some assistance on arriving at the Centre Station. This he promised faithfully to do, although I afterwards found, he had abused me like a pickpocket, on finding himself once more in safety.

I was now left to the quiet enjoyment of the empty carriage, and a bottle of the eau sucrèe, left behind by the Frenchman. Upon a portion of the latter, and one or two limes which I had in my pocket, I made a sort of breakfast, and was thinking of composing myself to sleep, by way of shortening the weary hours which must elapse before assistance could reach me, when I was startled by the sound of voices. Looking out, I saw two Bedouins approaching, on dromedaries, to whom, when they came up, I at once explained my unpleasant position, soliciting their aid to set me once more a-going. There was, fortunately at this time, a very good feeling existing between our people and such of the Bedouin tribes as frequented this portion of the desert, as it was to them we looked for the supply of camels to convey the mails and baggage between Cairo and Suez, paying them according to an established tariff, varying with the price of provision. I had, therefore, no sooner explained to them who and what I was, than the good fellows dismounted, and drawing from their saddle-bags a feed of chopped straw, which they saturated with water, I very soon had the satisfaction of seeing my two jaded horses on their legs again. To myself they administered a few hearty whiffs of a chibouque which wonderfully animated me, and then, putting our shoulders to the wheel, we succeeded in moving a turn or two ahead. Having fairly started me,—my two friends, stoutly refusing any offer of remuneration,—gave me a parting blessing, and sent me on my way rejoicing.

I did not reach No. 4 Station until near two in the afternoon, when I found the Seis coming to the rescue with a pair of fresh horses. Dr. T. and the Frenchman had arrived safely on foot, and had been taken on in another van, whilst the Portuguese was sleeping off the fatigues of his ride in one of the bedrooms above. I called him down to partake of some refreshment, and at three o’clock, we again pursued our journey, reaching Suez at midnight, and becoming on the way, the best friends imaginable.

Having some business of importance to transact for Mr. Raven, I had no time to take any rest in Suez, and therefore, set off almost immediately on my return to Cairo. It was Christmas eve, and the night proved unusually cold, whilst I found it impossible to keep off the wind, which blew steadily through the open cart, piercing the ample folds of my bernous. On we jogged through the dark, the weary Arab fast asleep on his driving seat, bobbing his head to the measured creak of the springs; that, and the jingle of the harness, being the only sounds which disturbed the silence of the desert. Warming my inner man with a spoonful of brandy, I threw myself into the bottom of the cart, and giving my slumbering jehu an apparently accidental poke in the ribs to recall him to his duty, courted some short repose. We had, however, reached a portion of the desert, which one would think ought more properly to have belonged to Arabia Petrea, so covered is it with large round stones. Every now and then a wheel would come in contact with one of these, giving us a shock sufficient to drive the breath out of us, and recalling me from pleasant dreams of roaring fires and Christmas cheer, to a chilly sense of my uncomfortable position at the bottom of the cart, with the wind whistling through every crevice. Being however considerably fatigued, I again relapsed into an unquiet slumber, which gradually subsided into a complete state of repose, as we exchanged the stoney track for the fine hard sand. I slept long and uninterruptedly, until I was suddenly aroused by a shock which had well nigh thrown me out of the vehicle. Raising myself, I looked out and missed my only companion, the driver. The shaft horse had fallen over the body of a dead camel, and had brought the other down with him, whilst poor Hassan had been pitched clean off his perch, and was picking himself up with many lamentations. I scrambled out in front as well as I could, to assist him in getting under weigh again, for our contiguity to the carcass was anything but agreeable. Fortunately nothing had been broken, and after a delay of ten minutes or so, we were jogging on as before, although both of us were now thoroughly awake. A good supper awaited us at No. 6 Station, and as I had to perform half the journey with the same horses, I turned for a few hours into bed.

THE DEAD DROMEDARY.

Christmas-day broke as brightly and almost as frosty as in old England, but where was I to look for the compliments of the season? Certainly not from the old cook who brought me my coffee in the morning. He didn’t know the day of the month, nor the month of the year, nor his own age, nor anything else, except that it wasn’t Rhamadān, nor high Nile, the only two epochs he had been taught to identify, so I wished myself a merry Christmas and a happy new year, and all sorts of things, and pre-pictured the odd sort of cheer I should find at No. 4 to make merry upon, when I should halt there for my dinner. I was destined, however, to be agreeably disappointed, for on my arrival at the outer gate, I was hailed with a shout of welcome by an old friend from Alexandria, one T——, of the Peninsular Company. Leading me in triumph to the kitchen, he pointed to a goose which was frizzing and spitting at the end of a cord suspended from above, whilst a Maltese cook was chopping onions at a side table. In honour of the day, we next rescued from a cobwebby corner, a dusty bottle or two of Champagne, and prevailed upon Mrs. S. to make us some pancakes, and thus provided, we sat down to what we considered an excellent dinner, and although the goose had been grubbing about in the sand only an hour before, and the Champagne was all “Walker,” we pronounced them both faultless.

CHAPTER XII.

INFLUX OF TRAVELLERS—PROVISION STORES—THE PRESERVED “ROUND”—NEW YEAR’S-DAY—MELANCHOLY OPENING OF NEW YEAR—VISIT TO THE PYRAMIDS—OLD SELIM—A MOONLIGHT WALK—THE SPHYNX AND GERMAN SAVANS—ASCENT OF CHEOPS—THE INTERIOR OF THE PYRAMIDS—UNCEREMONIOUS INTRUDERS—TRIAL OF SKILL—A CRACK SHOT.