tory of the world, from the days of Cambyses down to the invasion of Napoleon Bonaparte, who withheld the tribute of his admiration from the genius of the place. The vanity of Alexander the Great was so piqued by the overwhelming impression of their majesty, that nothing less than being ranked among the Gods of Egypt could elevate him sufficiently above the pride of the monarchs by whom they were erected. When Germanicus had fubdued the Egyptian empire, and seated a Roman præfect upon the splendid throne of the Ptolemies," being unmindful of repose or of triumph, the antiquities of the country engaged all his attention. The humblest pilgrim, pacing the Libyan sands around them, while he is conscious that he walks in the footsteps of so many mighty and renowned men, imagines himself to be for an instant admitted into their illustrious conclave. Persian satraps, Macedonian heroes, Grecian bards, sages, and historians, Roman warriors, all of every age, nation, and religion, have participated, in common with him, the same feelings, and have trodden the same ground. Every spot that he beholds, every stone on which he rests his weary limbs, have witnessed the coming of men who were the fathers of law, of literature, and of the arts. Orpheus, Musæus, Homer, Lycurgus, Solon, Pythagoras, Plato, Plutarch, contributed by their presence to the dignity of the place. Desolate and melancholy as the scene appears, no traveller leaves it without regret, and many a retrospect of objects which call to his mind such numerous examples of wisdom, of bravery, and of virtue.

MODERN ISRAELITE PYRAMID.

Four miles to the south of Saccára stands a pyramid built of unburned bricks. This is in a very mouldering

state.

The bricks contain shells, gravel, and chopped straw; they are of the same nature as the unburned bricks in modern use in Egypt. Pococke concluded, from its present appearance, that this pyramid was built with five gradations only. It is of the same height as the other graduated pyramid of six degrees.

HORSES OF THE COUNTRY.

to stallions. The Mamalukes and Bedouin Arabs are perhaps better mounted than any people upon earth; and the Arab grooms were considered, by many of our officers, as superior to those of our own country. These grooms affirm that their horses never lie down, but sleep standing, when they are fastened by one leg to a post; and that the saddle is never taken off except for cleaning the animal.

PROSPECT ON THE NILE.

As we left Bulac we had one of the finest prospects in the world, presented by the wide surface of the Nile crowded with vessels, the whole city of Cairo, the busy throng of shipping at the quay, the citadel and heights of Mokatam, the distant Said, the Pyra mids of Djiza and Saccara, the Obelisk of Heliopolis, and the Tombs of the Sultans; all these were in view at the same time; the greater objects being tinged with the most brilliant effect of light it is possible to conceive; while the noise of the waters, the shouts of the boatmen, and the moving picture every where offered by the Nile, gave a cheerful contrast to the stillness of the Desert, and the steadfast majesty of monuments, beautifully described by a classic bard as "looking tranquil lity."

CHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF THE RIVER.

The only result we have been able to obtain, from the most careful chemical analysis of the Nile water, proves it to contain the carbonates of magne sia, lime, and iron, the muriat of soda, and a small portion of silex and alumine. But it is one of the purest waters known; remarkable for its easy digestion by the stomach, and for its salutary qualities in all the uses to which it is applied. The mud or slime left by this water is found to consist principally of alumine, in a state of great purity; it contains nearly half its weight of this substance; the rest is carbonate of lime, water, carbon, iron oxide, silex, and carbonate of magnesia. The persons concerned in agriculture in Egypt regard it as a sufficient manure, without any addition of dung; this they reserve for other purposes, and principally for fuel.

OVENS FOR HATCHING CHICKENS. We were conducted to one of the principal buildings constructed for this purpose; and entered by a nar row passage, on each side of which were two rows of chambers, in two

tiers

Clers, one above the other, with cylindrical holes, as passages, from the lower to the upper tier. The floor of the upper tier is grated and covered with mats, on which is laid camel's dung; somewhat resembling the manner of placing hops, for drying, in English oast-houses. We counted twenty chambers, and in each chamber had been placed three thousand eggs; so that the aggregate of the eggs then hatching amounted to the astonishing number of sixty thousand. Of these above half are destroyed in the process. The time of hatching continues from autumn until spring. At first all the eggs are put in the lower tier. The most important part of the business consists, of course, in a precise attention to the requisite temperature: this we would willingly have ascertained by the thermometer, but could not adjust it to the nice test adopted by the Arab superintendant of the ovens. His manner of ascertaining it is very curious. Having closed one of his eyes he applies an egg to the outside of his eyelid; and if the heat be not great enough to cause any uneasy sensation, all is safe; but if he cannot bear the heat of the egg thus applied to his eye, the temperature of the ovens must be quickly diminished, or the whole batch will be destroyed. During the first eight days of hatching the eggs are kept carefully turned. At the end of that time the culling begins. Every egg is then examined, being held between a lamp and the eye; and thus the good are distinguished from the bad, which are cast away. Two days after this culling the fire is extinguished; then half the eggs upon the lower are conveyed to the upper tier, through the cylindrical passages in the floor; and the ovens are closed. In about ten days more, and sometimes twelve, the chickens are hatched. At this time a very singular ceremony ensues. An Arab enters the ovens, stooping and treading upon stones placed so that he may walk among the eggs without injuring them, and begins clucking like a hen; continuing this curious mimicry until the whole are disclosed. We heard this noise, and were equally surprised and amused by the singular adroitness of the imita tion. The chickens thus hatched are then sold to persons employed in rearing them. Many are strangely deformed; and great numbers die, not nly in rearing, but even during the

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sale; for, to add to the extraordinary nature of the whole undertaking, the proprietors of these ovens do not give themselves the trouble of counting the live chickens, in order to sell them by number, but dispose of them, as we should say, by the gallon; heaping them into a measure containing a certain quantity, for which they ask the low price of a parah, rather more than a farthing of our money.

INTERVIEW WITH MENOU.

In the forenoon of this day the au thor waited upon General Menou, requesting a passport, that might enable him to pass and repass the outer gate, to and from the British camp; and at the same time made application for permission to copy the inscriptions upon the Rosetta Tablet, which was still carefully concealed. One of the aidde-camps conducted him into a small tent, pitched in a spacious area or equare near the inner gates of Alexandria, where the parade of the garrison was daily held. This tent, small as it was, had been separated into two parts by a curtain, behind which Menou had his Charem; giving audience in the outer part, near to the entrance, where there was hardly room enough to stand upright. Having waited some time, during which women's voices were heard in conversation behind the partition, the curtain was suddenly raised, and Jaques Abd'allah made his appearance. A more grotesque figure can hardly be conceived. He wore a flowered embroidered waistcoat, with flaps almost to his knees, and a coat covered with broad lace. Elevating his whiskered face and double chin, in order to give all imaginable pomp and dignity to his squat corpulent gure, which, covered with finery, much resembled that of a mountebank, he demanded, in an imperious tone of voice, "Que souhaite-t-il, Monsieur Clarke?" Having explained the cause of the visit, as far as it related to the passport, and being directed to apply for this to Rene, general of brigade, `the author ventured to introduce the subject of the Rosetta Stone; stating that he was about to return to Lord Hutchinson, and wished to obey the orders he had received from his lordship for copying the inscription. At the very mention of this stone Menou gave vent to his rage; and, ready to burst with choler, exclaimed, "You may tell your commander-in-chief he has as much right to make this demand 4 L 2

as a highwayman has to ask for my purse! He has a cannon in each of my ears, and another in my mouth: let him take what pleases him. I have a few embroidered saddles, and a tolerable stock of shirts, perhaps he may fancy some of these!" The author assured him that he could be the bearer of no message of this kind; but whatever he might think proper to put in writing should be carefully conveyed, and as punctually delivered.

ACQUISITION OF ANTIQUITIES.

Saturday, September 12. This day the flesh of horses, asses, and camels, sold in the market at a price nearly equivalent to half a guinea of our money, for a single rotola, equal to about a pound and a quarter. Mr. Hamilton went with us to the French headquarters, and undertook to mention to Menou the result of our visit to Lord Hutchinson. We remained near the outside of the tent; and soon heard the French general's voice, elevated as usual, and in strong terms of indignation remonstrating against the injustice of the demands made upon him. The words "Jamais on n'a pillé le monde!" diverted us highly, as coming from a leader of plunder and devastation. He threatened to publish an account of the transaction in all the gazettes of Europe; and, as Mr. Hamilton withdrew, we heard him vociferate a menace of meeting Lord Hutchinson in single combat-"Nous nous verrons, de bien près-de bien près, je vous assure !" However Colonel (now General) Tur. ner, who had arrived also in Alexandria, with orders from our commander-inchief respecting the surrender of the Antiquities, soon brought this matter to a conclusion. The different forts were now occupied by our army; and the condition of the garrison was such that Menou did not deem it prudent to resist any longer; he reluctantly submitted to the loss of his literary trophies. The Rosetta Tablet was taken from a warehouse, covered with mats, where it had been deposited with Menou's baggage; and it was surrendered to us by a French officer and Member of the Institute, in the streets of Alex andria; Mr. Cripps, Mr. Hamilton, and the author, being the only persons present to take possession of it.

DESCENT INTO THE CRYPTE.

We will detain the reader no longer with such observations; but proceed to a survey of the surprising repositorica that have given rise to them, and

which received among the antients the appropriate appellation of the "City of the Dead." Nothing so marvellous ever fell within our observation; but in Upper Egypt, perhaps, works of a similar nature may have been found. The Cryptæ of Jerusalem, Tortosa, Jebilee, Laodicea, and Telmusses, are excavations of the same kind, but far less extensive. They enable us, how. ever, to trace the connection which anciently existed in the sepulchral cus toms of all the nations bordering the eastern coast of the Mediterranean; from the shores of Carthage and of Cyrene, to Egypt, to Palastine, to Phoenicia, and to Asia Minor. An inclination common to man in every period of his history, but particularly in the patriarchal ages, of being finally "gathered unto his fathers," may explain the prodigious labour bestowed in the construction of these primeval sepulchres. Wheresoever the roving Phoenicians extended their colonies, whether to the remotest parts of Africa, or of Europe, even to the most distant islands of their descendants the Celtæ in the Northern Ocean, the same rigid and religious adherence to this early practice may yet be noticed.

The Alexandrian guides to the Catacombs will not be persuaded to enter them without using the precaution of a clue of thread, in order to secure their retreat. We were therefore provided with a ball of twine to answer this purpose; and also with a quantity of wax tapers, to light us in our pas sage through these dark chambers. They are situated about half a league along the shore, to the westward of the present city. The whole coast exhibits the remains of other sepulchres, that have been violated, and are now in ruins. The name of Cleopatra's Bath has been given to an artificial reservoir, into which the sea has now access; but for what reason it has been so called cannot be ascertained; it is a bason hewn out of the rock; and if it ever was intended for a bath, it was in all probability a place where they washed the bodies of the dead before they were embalmed. Shaw main tained that the Cryptæ of Necropolis were not intended for the reception of mummies, or embalmed bodies: in which he is decidedly contradicted by the text of Strabo. Perhaps he was one of those who had been induced to adopt an erroneous opinion that mum.

mies

the priests, who constantly officiated in the Serapeum. In the front is a kind of vestibulum, or porch: but it is exceedingly difficult to ascertain precisely the nature of the excavation towards the main entrance, from the manner in which it is now choked with earth and rubbish. If this part were Jaid open it is possible that something further would be known as to the design of the undertaking; and, at all events, one of the most curious of the antiquities of Egypt would then be exposed to the investigation it merits. Having passed about six hours in exploring, to the best of our ability, these gloomy mansions, we regained, by means of our clue, the aperture by which we had entered, and quitted them for ever.

DATE TREES.

The whole of this tract is a desert, interspersed here and there with a few plantations of palm-trees. The dates hung from these trees in such large and tempting clusters, although not quite ripe, that we climbed to the tops of some of them, and carried away with us large branches, with their fruit. In this manner dates are sometimes sent, with the branches, as presents to Constantinople. A ripe Egyptian date, although a delicious fruit, is never refreshing to the palate. It suits the Turks, who are fond of sweatmeats of all kinds: and its flavour is not unlike that of the conserved green citron which is brought from Madeira. The largest plantation occurred about half-way between Alexandria and Aboukir, whence our army marched to attack the French on the 13th of March; the trees here were very lofty, and, from the singular formation of their bark, we found it as easy to ascend to the tops of these trees as to climb the steps of a ladder. Wherever the datetree is found in these dreary deserts, it not only presents a supply of salutary food for men and camels, but Nature has so wonderfully contrived the plant that its first offering is accessible to man alone; and the mere circumstance of its presence, in all seasons of the year, is a never-failing indication of fresh water near its roots. Botanists describe the trunk of the date-tree as full of rugged knots; but the fact is that it is full of cavities, the vestiges of its decayed leaves, which have within them an horizontal surface, flat and even, exactly adapted to the reception of the human feet and hands; and

it is impossible to view them without believing that HE, who in the beginning fashioned every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed" as "meat for man," has here manifested one among the innumerable proofs of his beneficent design. The extensive importance of the date-tree is one of the most curious subjects to which a traveller can direct his attention. A considerable part of the inhabitants of Egypt, of Arabia, and Persia, subsist almost entirely upon its fruit. They boast also of its medicinal virtues. Their camels feed upon the date-stones. From the leaves they make couches, baskets, bags, mats, and brushes; from the branches, cages for their poultry, and fences for their gardens; from the fibres of the boughs, thread, ropes, and rigging; from the sap is prepared a spirituous liquor; and the body of the tree furnishes fuel; it is even said that from one variety of the palm-tree, the Phenix farinifera, meal has been extracted, which is found among the fibres of the trunk, and has been used for food.

MONASTERY OF ST. JOHN, PATMOS.

When we arrived at the monastery we were quite struck by its size and substantial appearance. It is a very powerful fortress, built upon a steep rock, with several towers and lofty thick walls; and, if duly mounted with guns, might be made impregnable.

THE LIBRARY AT PATMOS.

We entered a small oblong chamber having a vaulted stone roof, and found it to be nearly filled with books, of all sizes, in a most neglected state; some lying upon the floor, a prey to the damp and to worms; others standing upon shelves, but without any kind of order. The books upon the shelves were all printed volumes; for these, being more modern, were regarded as the more valuable, and had a better station assigned them than the rest, many of which were considered only as so much rubbish. Some of the printed books were tolerably well bound, and in good condition. The superior said they were his favourites, but when we took down one or two of them to examine their contents, we discovered that neither the superior nor his colleague were able to read. They had a confused traditionary recollection of the names of some of them, but knew no more of their con tents than the Grand Signior. We saw here the first edition of the Antho