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CAIRO 
months, he had obtahied fewer shells than I had done in fifteen days. 
Alone, and without servants, it is impossible to accomplish much, for 
the Arabs will do nothing that gives them trouble, even for money. 
It rained very heavily last night. The houses are ill adapted for 
wet weather. Mr. Macgie was driven from his bed, and my room 
was deluged with rain. The thermometer was at 55°. 
February 25. — We had hitherto intended to visit the Pyramids 
on the 27 th, but at present we are afraid of a disappointment. Elfi 
Bey has appeared in the neighbourhood, and his advanced guard 
is said to be within an hour's march of Gheza, and he himself 
within four. He has a force of ten thousand men, and may mean 
to march into Lower Egypt and spread devastation, as he did once 
before. If so, we may be able in a day or two to go thither ; if not, 
it will be impossible, although we have nothing to fear from him, 
who is attached to the English, and ever speaks with gratitude and 
delight of his reception in England. Yet, mixed as his army is with 
Arabs and Albanians, it might be dangerous to fall in with them ; 
besides, Mohammed Ali would have fair grounds of suspicion 
that I had some political intention in meeting him. That he has 
already taken the alarm at Elfi's approach, was hinted to me to 
day by Malum Gali, the Coptic receiver general of the revenue of 
Egypt, here called the Bas Kateb, a respectable and able young 
man. He excused himself from not having called before, by assur- 
ing me that he had not heard of my arrival, which is very possible, 
as he is occupied from morning till night. He said, laughing, that 
he felt himself quite comfortable at escaping for a few minutes 
from incessant persecution ; but at that very moment a fellow, who 
had chased him to the British House, entered with a paper, on 
