ELEPHANT HUNTING
Tuesday, Dec. 6.——Our steamer made a long stop at Edfou to-day, as is customary, to let passengers see its splendid temple. This is the most complete, and the best preserved in Egypt, and gives one the best idea of ancient Egyptian architecture. Its massive pylons had long been in sight as we steamed up the river. As soon as the steamer stopped we took donkeys and started toward them through the winding mud-walled streets of the little town. What a temple! A book would fail to do it justice! Every inch of it is covered with the most beautiful carving. I have not space nor time to tell of how we climbed the pylons and wandered through the dark mysterious chambers, and stood in admiration before those beautiful and ever varied pillars, and explored dark winding passages built in the walls themselves. One has an overwhelming sense of sublimity and awe as he stands under the shadow and in the profound hush of these sacred monuments of a departed glory. We tied up for the night at Gebel Silsileh, a narrow, rocky passage, through which the river seems to have burst its way. Here we went on shore and with the help of torches examined the tombs and chapels and noted quarries. The perfect silence here was almost painful. There was not even the usual gentle murmur of “backsheesh.” Returning to our steamer we took a moonlight row up the river, and over to the opposite shore. Ruins and moonlight, and a boat ride on the Nile! Could anything be more romantic? Here is a picture hung upon the walls of memory never to be forgotten.
Wednesday, Dec. 7.——We have run aground twice to-day. We passed the ruins of Comombo early this morning, and now we are at Assouan, with another stage of our journey accomplished. We have visited the bazaars, where all sorts of curiosities from Nubia and the Soudan are sold, and had crowds of wild-looking, long-haired, grease-smeared and more than half naked desert Arabs thronging around us, and have been besieged with strange looking people with stranger looking things to sell, of which we bought none. In fact, our novel experiences in and about the town would, if all told, be a tale too lengthy for these brief pages. We also visited the island of Elephantine, with its ruins of pottery, human skeletons, and interesting Nile meter. Ibrahim was dispatched the first thing on our arrival, to secure a dahabeyeh for us. He has returned, and reports that he has found one, such as it is, which will take us and our baggage from here to Korosko for £5. We have agreed to take two men, Mousa and Ibrahim Cohen, with us to Khartoum to lighten our expenses. Then we have Mongades, the Bible Society’s man with us, so that we shall really have to pay for the dahabeyeh only about £3. We have been invited to see a “fantasia,” but our taste not being cultivated in that direction we declined.
Thursday, Dec. 8.——Some one was sick in the night. Thinking it might be the Doctor I jumped out of bed to go to him, and landed in cold water! The ship had sprung a leak. All the rooms on one side were found to be flooded, and the engine-room was a pond. The pumps were put to work, but it was some hours before the water was where it belonged. Some things in my room were spoiled. We started early for Philæ, where our dahabeyeh lay, at the other end of the cataract. It was five miles, and we took camels so as to gain a little experience in riding preparatory to the long desert journey. Our route lay through the ancient bed of a river. On the way we visited the famous granite quarries, and saw the huge obelisk left partially cut out of its bed. We all went on board our dahabeyeh for lunch. The stars and stripes had been raised, and we also ordered up the English flag in honor of our guests. After lunch, while Ibrahim and Mourgan were getting our baggage on board, we, the party, took a small boat and rowed out to the interesting island of Philæ. First we rowed around it to get a comprehensive view of its beautiful temples. Then we landed, and examined them all in detail. We also visited the ruins of a little Christian church, which an American has discovered.
Friday, Dec. 9.——For some reason I did not sleep well, and was up early and over the side of the dahabeyeh for a good swim in the Nile. A light breeze soon sprang up, the sail was set, and at 8.30 A.M. we were off, the Englishmen still in the cataract. We passed an island to the right of Philæ, stopped for a few moments at a little village where some of our sailors lived and then we were off again, slowly passing immense granite boulders, between narrow banks fringed with dom-palms and very black Nubians, creeping along pretty fast for the light wind that just fills our big sail. We pass Debod, and then towards evening the wind goes down, and we have to make the bank and tie up. We do not remain here long, however. Our Reis, who is a fine fellow, ever on the alert, hears a rustling in the trees, a gale is upon us; the big sail is quickly flung out, and we start almost with a bound and strike a rock! The captain reports “no leak,” and off we go again, fairly flying before the wind. After a while it dies down and once more we have to make the bank and tie up just this side of Gebel Kalabshe. Here we go ashore and wander about, but are quickly recalled by the Reis. A good steady breeze has followed the lull after the gale, and off we go. Now we enter scenery that in the deep shadows of the moonlight is grand and sublime in the extreme. The granite mountains tower up from the water’s edge close to us on either side. There are deep gorges and overhanging cliffs, and huge boulders around which the pent up river swirls and eddies. I have named this wild spot “The Gates of the Tropics,” for now we pass the invisible line and enter the tropics. The southern cross is clearly visible in the heavens near the horizon, and toward it we are flying on the wings of the wind. In the witchery of such an evening, in such a place, we sit on deck till long past the midnight hour.
Saturday, Dec. 10.——The captain has been up all night and we have made a good run of it. It is very hot, and the wind dying down. Over we go for a swim. We have passed a rock-temple, and another very good temple at Dakkeh. The flies are getting to be a perfect pest.
Sunday, Dec. 11.——The wind is lighter and our progress has been slower. However, we have gradually drawn away from the grand rocky mountains that rose up abruptly from the water’s edge on our left this morning, and now around us are the volcanic peaks that indicate the vicinity of Korosko. We reached Korosko at 4 P.M., having made remarkably good time from Assouan. We noticed a queer peak just before reaching the town. There is a sacred mountain with a tomb upon it just at the rear of the village. Soon after our arrival the governor and various other officials came on board. The old governor was delighted when he found that we could talk together in Turkish. The usual formality of salaams, and coffee, etc., were duly exchanged. Our camels were ready for us.
Monday, Dec, 12.——We had a pleasant visit this morning from a merchant who arrived by caravan during the night from Darfur. We talked together in Greek. We have moved our boat higher up stream. Have received a number of visits from officials and sore-eyed men. The Doctor is having quite a practice. We have climbed the road that weary pilgrims tread to the top of the sacred mountain Gebel Aboo-Gowenah, whence we have had a fine, extensive view of the winding river, and the billowing ocean of volcanic peaks, and our own desert route that winds in and out among them. We send off a batch of letters for home, pack and get ready for our long journey. The bread is all made and properly dried.
Tuesday, Dec, 13.——Up about 5 A.M., roused the crowd, and pushed things as fast as possible. We expected to find the camels waiting on the bank, but not a living being was in sight. Hours went by and nobody appeared; we sent two men in different directions after the sheik of the camel-drivers, but he was not! Finally patience was exhausted. We went to the Governor’s house to see if we couldn’t start things up a little. He was pretending to hold court, but dismissed the case when he saw us. Then it being the proper thing to do we raised a row with His Majesty over our delay. It had the desired effect. The sheik was speedily produced, and we rode back to the boat on donkeys, with the whole crowd at our heels. Here we soon discovered that the governor, the sheik, and every other man in the crowd was determined to have a finger in the pie, and make us pay double the proper prices for all our camels. We talked and reasoned till 1 P.M. without avail. Then we grew righteously indignant. We laid down our terms——refused to listen to another word——gave orders to have everything put back on board the boat if they were not accepted, and threatened to go on to Wady Halfa and denounce the whole crowd of them as miserable rascals. Our terms were then accepted, and they thought a good deal more of us for standing for our rights instead of yielding to their exorbitant demands. Part of the money was paid and part held in reserve; the papers were made out, the baggage weighed and loaded, and at 1.30 P.M. we started out. We went about a mile or two into the desert, and camped in a rocky ravine, and here we got everything into good shape, looked to everything connected with our water supply, and made ready for the real business of the long desert before us; and here begins our tent life.