THE ORIGIN OF THE SUEZ CANAL. 5 



the brother-in-law of the Defterdar is about to take 

 me through. When he left Siout with his suite it 

 was arranged that I should rejoin him on the 18th 

 December at Korosko, between the first and second 

 cataract, but as my wounds were not entirely healed 

 he went on in advance, and arranged to meet me at 

 Berber, above the last cataracts of the Nile. 



IT. 



" Upon December 24th I was still unfit to walk, but 

 I got myself hoisted on to my dromedary, to cross in 

 six days this same desert of Korosko. We had to 

 guide us on our way the skeletons of the camels which 

 had long since been abandoned by passing caravans. 

 The entire bodies of the camels which had been left 

 behind during the passage of the Viceroy, though 

 quite dried up, still were in the same position as that 

 in which they fell beneath their burden. Birds of 

 prey were seen creeping out of their bodies, and jackals 

 were patiently waiting in the distance until the vul- 

 tures had done their meal to come and finish up 

 the remains. We halted for half a day near a well in 

 the middle of the desert. This point is the only one 

 from which, at this season of the year, the four stars 

 of the Southern Cross could be seen in the Southern 

 hemisphere, and the North Star in our hemisphere. 

 While waiting to observe these stars, which were not 

 to be visible till between two and three in the morn- 

 ing, I amused myself by getting the Arab chiefs to 



