MISCELLANIES. 



603 



hatchets in the operation ; the 

 stones which had fallen down 

 along with the cement having 

 formed themselves into one solid 

 and almost impenetrable mass. I 

 succeeded, however, in making 

 an opening of fifteen feet wide, 

 and continued vvorlving downwards 

 in uncovering the face of the 

 pyramid ; the work took up several 

 days, without the least prospect 

 of meeting with any thing in- 

 teresting. Meantime, I began to 

 fear that some of the Europeans 

 residing at Cairo might pay a 

 visit to the pyramids, which they 

 do very often, and thus discover 

 my retreat, and interrupt my pro- 

 ceedings. 



" On the 17th of the same 

 month we had made a consider- 

 able advance downwards, when 

 an Arab workman called out, 

 making a great noise, and saying 

 that he had found the entrance. 

 He had discovered a hole in the 

 pyramid into which he could just 

 thrust his arm and a dejerid of six 

 feet long. Towards the evening 

 we discovered a larger aperture, 

 about three feet square, which 

 had been closed in irregularly, by 

 a hewn stone ; this stone I caused 

 to be removed, and then came to 

 an opening larger than the pre- 

 ceding, but filled up with loose 

 stones and sand. This satisfied 

 me that it was not the real but a 

 forced passage, which I found to 

 lead inwards and towards the 

 south; the next day we succeed- 

 ed in entering fifteen feet from 

 the outside, when we reached a 

 place where the sand and stones 

 began to fall from above. I 

 caused the rubbish to be taken 

 out, but it still continued to fall 

 In great quantities ; at last, after 



some days labour I discovered an 

 upper forced entrance, commu- 

 nicating with the outside from 

 above, and which had evidently 

 been cut by some one who was 

 in search of the true passage. 

 Having cleared this passage I 

 perceived another opening below, 

 which apparently ran towards the 

 centre of the pyramid. In a few 

 hours I was able to enter this 

 passage, and found it to be a 

 continuation of the lower forced 

 passage, which runs horizontally 

 towards the centre of the pyramid, 

 nearly all choked up with stones 

 and sand. These obstructions I 

 caused to be taken out; and at 

 half-way from the entrance I 

 found a descent, which also had 

 been forced, and which ended at 

 the distance of forty feet. I 

 afterwards continued the work in 

 the horizontal passage above, ia 

 hopes that it might kad to the 

 centre ; but I was disappointed, 

 and at last was convinced that it 

 ended there, and that to attempt 

 to advance in that way would 

 only incur the risk of sacrificing 

 some of my workmen ; as it was 

 really astonishing to see how the 

 stones hung suspended over their 

 heads, resting, perhaps, by a 

 single point. Indeed one of these 

 stones did fall, and had nearly 

 killed one of the men. I, there- 

 fore, retired from the forced 

 passage, with great regret and 

 disappointment. 



" Notwithstanding the dis- 

 couragements I met with, I re- 

 commenced my researches on the 

 following day, depending upon 

 my indications. I directed the 

 ground to be cleared away to the 

 eastward of the false entrance; 

 the stones incrusted and bound 



together 



