CHAPTER V
It will be remembered that so far as the Australian troops were concerned, provision had been made for three convalescent hospitals or homes. The magnificent hotel of Al Hayat at Helouan was taken over on May 5, emptied of hotel furniture, fitted with palm beds and mattresses, and converted into a convalescent hospital. As there was no staff in Egypt available, it was placed under the direction of a military commandant and a principal medical officer who was a civilian practitioner resident at Helouan. A few non-commissioned officers and orderlies were transferred to it from the convalescent camp in the desert at Zeitoun, which was very properly terminated. The cooking was effected by arrangement with a professional caterer at a charge of 5s. a day for officers, and 3s. a day for men. These charges ultimately included the provision of cooking and eating utensils. This convalescent hospital both in its general character and with respect to the food supplied represents in all probability the most successful effort made in Egypt. In fact it has been suggested that the hospital was almost too attractive, and that there was consequently a good deal of disinclination to leave it. In favour of the principle involved in installing a military commandant to administer a convalescent hospital there is much to be said, as the administration is one man's work.
MONTHLY MEANS, WET BULB TEMPERATURE
| Jan. | Feb. | March. | April. | May. | June. | |
| Alexandria | 53.4 | 54 | 56.5 | 60 | 64.2 | 71.2 |
| Heliopolis | 51.8 | 52.7 | 57 | 59.7 | 64.9 | 72.3 |
| Helouan | 50 | 50 | 53.8 | 57.4 | 61 | 67.3 |
| July. | August. | Sept. | Oct. | Nov. | Dec. | |
| Alexandria | 73.4 | 73.8 | 69 | 66 | 61.2 | 56.9 |
| Heliopolis | 73 | 74 | 70.2 | 65.7 | 60.1 | 54.7 |
| Helouan | 68.9 | 69.2 | 68.2 | 62.4 | 57.6 | 52.7 |
| Maximum at Helouan, 77.3. | Minimum at Helouan, 36.7. | |||||
The Egyptian Climate
Those who know Helouan and the hotel will not be surprised at the success of the Hospital, but it may surprise even those who know Egypt to learn that Helouan is considerably cooler than Cairo, notwithstanding the fact that it is situated on the edge of the desert. Owing to dryness the Wet Bulb temperature is considerably lower than at Cairo in midsummer and the nights are always cool.