ARRIVE AT ALEXANDRIA. 249 



peculiar costume, were walking the streets as we entered. 

 Women, shrouded in long loose robes, and masked, were 

 dodging their way through the dusky throng, casting vo- 

 luptuous glances as they passed. We found that many 

 of the edifices were well-built, and some of the mosques 

 were really grand ; that of Sultan Hassan being above 

 all others in Cairo. The next morning after our arrival, 

 we entered an omnibus, drawn by donkeys, and were 

 driven from Cairo to the port of Borlac, on the Nile, just 

 two miles distant. ' There we got aboard of a large, but 

 uncouth-looking" steamboat, and started for Atfee. This 

 voyage occupied about thirty hours. During the day, we 

 had splendid views of the classic scenery on both sides of 

 the Nile. Here and there upon the sand, or in the midst 

 of the verdure, were ruins of temples which must have 

 been magnificent when originally erected. Upon small 

 islands in the Nile, we saw portions of temples, in that 

 style of gloomy grandeur which was characteristic of the 

 genius of the ancient Egyptians. We reached Atfee, in 

 the middle of the night, and secured miserable lodgings 

 until morning. 



When day broke, we found ourselves at a dingy little 

 depot, at the 'mouth of the Mahmoudie canal. After 

 breakfast, we got aboard of the narrow, covered boats 

 provided for our accommodation, a steamboat was atached 

 and we were towed away towards Alexandria. This was 



