And now behold our friends safely on board the French steamer. The smoke pours from her funnels, the anchor is lifted, the engine throbs, the screw revolves, churning the water into foam—the entrance of the harbor is passed, the shore fades from sight, and Egypt is left behind.
Bon voyage!
[Chapter XXI.]
VOYAGE FROM EGYPT TO PALESTINE.—JOURNEY FROM JAFFA TO RAMLEH.
The steamer stopped a few hours at Port Said, the northern terminus of the Suez Canal, and the second morning after her departure from Alexandria she dropped anchor in front of Jaffa. The time at sea between Alexandria and Jaffa is from twenty to thirty hours, according to the speed of the steamer and the state of the weather. There are three companies—one carrying the French flag, one the Austrian, and one the Russian—each making a fortnightly service from Alexandria; and there are several irregular lines, so that a traveller may be reasonably sure of being able to go from Egypt to the Holy Land every four or five days. The French steamers are the best, the Austrian the next in order, and the Russian and the irregular steamers the worst of all.
The steamer that carried our friends anchored about a mile from land, and the Doctor explained to the youths that there is no harbor at Jaffa which a ship can enter. In a calm sea, or when the wind blows from the north or east, passengers may land or embark with safety; but if a westerly or southerly wind is blowing a landing is impossible. In winter the prevailing wind is from the west, and many a traveller who takes his ticket for Jaffa in that season has the vexation of being carried past the port, for the simple reason that he cannot be put on shore.
Fortunately for our friends the sea was perfectly calm when they came to anchor, and there was no hinderance to their going on shore. The steamer was quickly surrounded by boats, and a bargain was made with one of them for transportation to land. The strong arms of the Arab boatmen sent the little craft spinning over the water; the oars rose and fell together as the men kept time by a song that was a trifle monotonous to the ears of Frank and Fred. But never mind its monotony; it carried the travellers from ship to shore, and every moment the walls of Jaffa became more and more distinct through its measured cadence.
They seemed to be heading for some jagged rocks that jutted a little distance from the line of the shore. The sharp eyes of the boys discovered an opening in the rocks, and when the boat was within a few yards of it the men paused in obedience to a signal from the steersman. Then, watching the rise and fall of the waves, they dashed forward at the proper moment through the opening ten or twelve feet wide, and were borne into the smooth water of the little harbor. There is a wider entrance farther to the north, but it is rendered dangerous by several sunken rocks, and the narrow one is generally used by the boatmen.