THE ORIGIN OF THE SUEZ CANAL. 167 



mated, and the chilly air announces the rising of the 

 sun, so I put on some warmer clothing and return 

 to my observations. A few rays of the sun begin to 

 illuminate the horizon, when suddenly there appears 

 in the west, where the sky is cloudy, a very brilliant 

 rainbow, running from east to west. I confess that 

 my heart beat violently, and that I was obliged to put 

 a rein upon my imagination, which was tempted to 

 see in this sign of alliance spoken of in the Scriptures, 

 the presage of the true union between the western 

 and the eastern world, and the dawning of the day for 

 the success of my project. 



" The Viceroy's presence served to draw me out of 

 my reverie, as he came to wish me the ' top of the 

 morning,' and to ask me to take him round the country 

 which I had ridden over the day before. Preceded 

 by two lancers, and followed by the staff, we reached 

 an eminence where the ground was strewn with stones 

 which had formed part of some ancient building. The 

 Viceroy deemed this a very suitable place to prepare 

 for the morrow's start, so he sent an aide-de-camp to 

 have his tent and carriage brought up, the latter being 

 a sort of omnibus drawn by six mules and fitted up 

 as a bedroom. We rest under the shade of the car- 

 riage, while the chasseurs build up a circular parapet 

 formed of stones which they had picked up, and in 

 this parapet they make an embrasure into which a 

 gun is placed to salute the troops from Alexandria 

 which are just coming in sight. "When I leave the 



