LIFE ON THE NILE 111 



great people, but it interested me most to hear 

 the story of how that wonderful mummy and 

 mummy-case came into the possession of the late 

 Lady Meux, for it was originally acquired by poor 

 young Ingram, who was later on killed by an 

 elephant. He opened that case, thinking that its 

 contents were of little value, but, finding his mis- 

 take, had it at once closed up again. The inscrip- 

 tion on the case, however, is to the efiect that 

 whoever opens it will die in a strange country, 

 being destroyed by wild beasts, and will have no 

 tomb, which was exactly the fate that befel. 

 How Lady Meux became possessed of that mummy 

 and sarcophagus I do not exactly know, but it is 

 of fabulous value. 



Harking back for a moment, I may here recall 

 that on our visit to the Pyramids, Mr. Gubbins — 



Mr. Allison and I had gone forward to 

 Nationality ^ 



of Mr. see the Sphinx — was asked by one of 

 the motley crowd who wished to sell 

 him scarabs : " Are you an EngHshman ? '' " No." 

 " Are you an American ? " " No.'' " Are you a 

 Scotchman ? " " No." " Are you a German ? " 

 " No " ; and by the time we got back Mr. Gubbins 

 was evidently regarded as a " bit of a liar " by 

 these people, who seemed to know no Ireland. 



To see some sort of sport, if possible, we took 

 on the ofler of a youth who engaged to get to the 



