CHAPTER XX.

VOYAGING UP THE NILE— EXAMINING TOMBS AND TEMPLES-PAINTINGS—
SCULPTURES.
IT seems very difi&cult to add anything further to that which has already been told about Egypt and the ancient Egyptians, their tombs, temples, monuments and mummies, as well as to give addi- tional information pertaining to their religion, arts, sciences and philoso- phies. I went into that country for the express purpose of examining for myself the most extraordinary ruins of those glorious temples which to-day lie scattered throughout the Avhole of Egypt, and to learn something pertaining to their ancient wisdom. In viewing these magnifi- cent ruins, the work of the mighty Pharaohs of the " Golden Age " of Egypt, I was so filled with awe and admiration, with what I saw and learned, that I concluded to write an account of my researches in the land of " Old Khemi," the cradle of ancient Masonry. The land of the ancient Mysteries. The land that gave to Greece her culture and to Rome her civilization. The land that gave intellectual power to all who drank from that fountain from which Moses drew his wondrous know- ledge and inspiration.
I shall therefore describe my journey up the river Nile, that I may give you a complete description of this most wonderful country, and that you may be enabled to trace from her tombs, temples, monuments and mummies the rise, progress, decline and fall of this most extraordinary Land of Egypt and her people.
This work is called " Egypt, The Cradle of Ancient Masonry," therefore I do not think that I should do you, or my subject justice, unless I gave you a thorough description of the valley of the Nile, her tombs, temples, monuments and mummies, while writing upon ancient Masonry and the profound philosophy that belongs to our most Illus- trious Fraternity. I do most earnestly desire to impress upon your minds that Masonry originated in the " Land of the Vedas " and that it
464 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
was cradled upon the banks of the Nile. I do not desire to give you a full account of what took place on our journey, but shall tell you of the various points of interest, giving descriptions of tombs, temples and monuments, interspersed with a few little incidents of our voyage, in order to vary the monotony of a trip of six hundred miles from Cairo to Philse, in a Dahabiyeh, upon the bosom of one of the most interesting rivers in the world — the Nile.
We are now approaching the former home of the crocodile, but we shall find them very scarce on our journey. It is strange, but neverthe- less true, that these saurians are never found below Minia, except on very rare occasions, although Herodotus speaks of them fighting with dolphins, at the mouth of the Nile ; but, of course, this is a " fish story " of our learned and celebrated historian. The liippopatanius is never or seldom found below the second cataract^ but occasionally there have been one or two found below it.
I arose early that morning at Roda, which is quite a large town, on the west bank of the Nile, containing post, telegraph offices and railway station, located close to the river. There is quite a large sugar factory here, and also several mosques and bazaars, and close to one of them Hassan purchased four hundred eggs for one dollar. Very nearly opposite this place, but a little to the northeast, on the east bank of the river, is the ruins of the celebrated city of Antinoe, which lies among the palm groves of ShekJi Abada.
The cit}^ of Antinoe was built by order of the Emperor Hadrian, and the cause of its erection was as follows : Antinous, a young man of Bithynia, who dearly loved the Emperor, accompanied him on his journey into Eg3'pt, where it appears that Hadrian was told by an oracle, that he could only secure happiness by sacrificing what he most dearly loved. The youth Antinous, hearing of this, cast himself into the bosom of old God Nilus, and was drowned. In commemoration of this event, Hadrian erected and dedicated this city, and instituted games and sacrifices to honor the young man who had died for love of him.
Shekh Abada is surrounded with a very fine palm grove, whose trees are noted for their size and beauty, among which lie a few pieces of stone and a corinthian capital scattered here and there, with some broken columns, etc. There are but very few ruins or relics to be found there
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 465
to-da}^ belonging to the ancient city tliat originally stood liere, for the reason that the Khedive burned all the stone that he could find for lime, to be used in the building of his sugar factory at Roda.
There are a great many Christian antiquities to be found in a little village called Dei' Abu Hoimes, " The Convent of St. John." A short dis- tance from here, there is a very ancient church located in a large quarry, in Avhich many of the chambers were decorated with paintings that represent subjects taken from the New Testament. A little further on we reach the village of Der en-Nakl^ " The convent of the Palms," near which is the tomb of Thoth-hetep, the son of Kai, wherein was found the celebrated picture of the transportation of a Colossus. It represents the method by which these people moved their immense stones, statues, monuments, etc., across the desert sands.
This figure shows a Colossus twenty feet in height upon a sled, fastened to it with ropes. There are little pads, or cushions, placed at different places around the statue, in order to prevent it from being chafed, or injured, in its removal or transportation. There are four very large ropes fastened to the sled, to each of which there are forty-three men stationed, making one hundred and seventy-two men in all, to pull the sled. Standing in the lap of the statue is the chanty man, clapping his hands and beating time, no doubt, to the song he sings, so that they maj' be enabled to pull in unison. There is a man pouring some kind of liquid upon the skids or planks so that it might slide along easier. It is a very instructive picture, and the only one that throws any light on tlie ancient methods of moving these immense monolithic stones, statues, etc., for the purpose of building and decorating their tombs and temples throughout the " Land of Egypt." There are mau}^ very interesting places to visit in this vicinity, on both sides of the river. We can find ruins of ancient cities with dilapidated tombs and temples in this Nome well worth seeing.
After leaving the tomb of Thoth-hetep we did not return to Shekh Abada, but kept right on to Der el-Bersha, because we had told Hassan to take the Dahabiyeh on to that place and await us there. Long before we got to our floating home we could hear the songs of our crew, echoing in the quiet evening air, as the lengthening shadows of the palms crept down toward the bosom of old God Nilus. We returned to our boat just
466 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
about sun down, and liad time to refresh ourselves, with a bath, when dinner was served, to which we all did ample justice. If we ever appreciated a good comfortable home it was that night, for we had been riding, tramping and climbing around all day long, and were quite tired and weary. In fact so much so, that I sat down and arranged my notes, then went on deck, smoked a cigar, took a " brandy pawnee," and retired early, hoping that there would be a good favorable breeze in the morning, so that we might be enabled to reach Haggi Quandil the next day, as we were very desirous of visiting Tel el-Amarna.
I had a very refreshing night's rest and did not awake until the liarsh and discordant notes of the gong rang out in the early morning. After toast and coffee, we went on deck and found a lovely morning, but not a breath of air astir. The mist was vanishing in the rays of the morning sun, and the river shone like burnished silver as our sailors went out upon the tow path and harnessed themselves to the towline, and our boat began to creep along at a snail's pace. Our men went jumping, singing, pulling and shouting like a lot of school boys, as if tracking in the hot sun was a pleasure and a pastime, instead of labor. I really believe that, they liked to be out upon the tow path at times, and this appeared to be one of them, but, possibly, it was because we had told Hassan to tell our Reis Abdallah that we should give them a sheep, and what was needed for a grand fantasia, on our arrival at Asyttt, where they were going to bake bread and have a day to themselves, to which we had agreed, and very likely this was the cause of their capers and jollity.
We went down to an enjoyable breakfast, and as we sat at the table chatting and talking of the paintings in the grottos of Beni Hassan, comparing them with those in the tomb of Tih, the air resounded with the word " Timseach " crocodiles. We hurried on deck, and on look- ing around we saw three large crocodiles basking in the rays of the morning sun. The boat was sheered into the bank, as Abdallah our captain knew that we were very anxious to get one if possible. They did not seem to be disturbed at the approach of our boat, so we took our rifles and clambered up the river bank, walking carefully and quietly along, until we came opposite the small island where we had seen them. Then creeping very cautiously up the bank toward the river, until we could see them lying in plain view, upon a sandy spit, not over two hundred and
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 46T
fifty yards distant, we agreed to shoot what appeared to be the largest one, and to the right of the " covey." We took steady aim, with a good rest for our rifles, pulled the triggers, and the one that we fired at gave one tremendous plunge and dragged himself to the river and disappeared from our sight, coloring the water red with its blood. The other waddled off down to the river, plunged in and disappeared.
We were very soon in our little boat, and arrived at the Island, when we found that one of the party had shot at one of the other crocodiles, the ball entering its mouth, severing the spinal cord. The ball was lying flattened among the broken bones just beneath the skin, and had actually not made a mark upon it. I inquired how such a shot had been made,. and was informed that the crocodile was lying with its head and chest towards us, and that the shot had been aimed directly at its throat, but, just as the trigger was pulled, the crocodile lowered its head and the ball entered its mouth, broke and cut the spinal cord, and also the bones at the base of the brain, and laid him out quivering upon the sands.
It was quite a prize for us, and we were very glad to get it, and after taking it on board the dahabiyeh we measured it, and found that it was eight feet four inches from the end of its nose to the end of its tail. I have tried repeatedly to obtain another, but although I have shot a great many I was never able to capture a single one of them, for they all got away from me. On a previous trip I went far above the Khartum, when I secured over a dozen, besides some very fine Hippopotamus.
On arriving at the nearest point for us to visit the tombs of Tel-el Amariia, we saw a lot of donkeys, with Ali, one of our sailors, shouting" to our captain to come in to the bank, for Hassan had sent him on from Der-el-Bai'sha to engage donkeys for us, and to have them in readiness for us by the time our boat would get there. The dahabij^eh was soon alongside the bank, when we scrambled ashore and liiounted our little animals and were very soon scurrying off to the mountains with our guide iu the lead. Our boat went on to Haggi Qjiandil to await our coming.
In the seventeenth chapter I referred to the King Khu-n-Aten, who left the cit}^ and home of his fathers on account of his very peculiar religious belief, and built for himself a New City and capital that was located here between Tel-el-Ainarna and Haggi Qiimtdil. Between these two places he built himself a most magnificent palace, a stupendous affair,
468 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
whose interior apartments were decorated with gold and silver ornaments and inlaid with precious stones. He adorned it all with beautiful paint- ings, sculptures and magnificent specimens of ancient Egyptian works of art.
We were visiting the ruins of this palace and city for the purpose of examining for ourselves the site of the city and capital of KIiii-n-Aten. The rock tombs of Tcl-el-Aniarna are quite a distance from the river, and were the repositories of the courtiers and various officials of the court of this once celebrated Pharaoh, who belonged to the eighteenth dynasty. These tombs form three different groups, and it is in the center one that we found the resting place of this great King and a few others that belonged to his dynasty and court. The great majority of these tombs, in the various groups, are entered through a fore-court, and upon the walls of nearl\- all the tombs that we visited were pictured incidents and scenes of royal life, etc. Lepsius and Mr. F. Petrie made some very valuable discoveries among these ruins. It was here that they found the celebrated clay tablets inscribed with the cuneiform characters of Babylon, and many with other peculiar characters written or inscribed upon them, representing the foreign correspondence between Khu-n-Aten and the Kings of Babylon, Assj'ria and other countries.
After viewing these interesting tombs, etc., we rode on to Haggi Ouandil, where we soon found our boat and a couple of bottles of Bass' bitter beer which we took in order to get the fine sands out of our throats. There was a nice breeze blowing when we got on board, so the boat was punted off from the bank, the sails were loosed, and off we went again accompanied by the usual vocal music of our crew. After a bath and smoke the gong rang for dinner, and when we came on deck again we found our boat bowling along at a very rapid rate.
What a glorious night it was, the sky perfectly clear and cloudless, the stars shining down upon us with a sweet radiant light, the crescent moon setting in the west, the waters of the Nile shining with ^ a soft shimmering glow, and there was nought to be heard but the water of the river rippling under our counter, and the low hum of the voices of our sailors, who sang their last song for the night, and were seeking the drows}^ god. We retired to our cabin, put our notes in order and were soon off into the " Laud of Nod," only to awaken in the early morning to find our
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY, 4G9
boat tied up to the bank. Our sailors were getting their breakfast, aud our own co£fee and toast were banded to us, and as they were preparing for the tow-path we took our guns, intending to walk on ahead and shoot some quail, etc., but we had scarcely gone a hundred yards before a light air arose, when we turned back and got on board again. The boat was punted oif into the stream, our sails loosed and we were off again with our big sails swelling out full and round, Avhile our sailors squatted around and their songs rang out the same as usual.
The wind freshened a:id we went ploughing along through the water like a steamer, villages went drifting by and w-e saw the mountains and bluffs of Abu Feda away off to the south-east. We had been warned of the dangers of sudden squalls that apparently lurk in the cliffs of these mountains. Our captain, pilot, and in fact our whole crew, knew full well that this especial part of the river was very dangerous, and conse- quently every man was on the watch, but fortunately we had no trouble at all in passing these mountains, excepting a few sudden puffs from opposite quarters, and at one time we were caught flat aback, but just as suddenly our sails filled again and we continued on our journey before a good stiff breeze that sent us spinning along with terrific speed. The wind changed no more, and we very soon left the bluffs and mountains far behind us, and to tell the truth I was very glad of it. There are a great many strange stories told of accidents at that place, and it was not until we had left it far behind that our sailors seemed themselves again. We now saw Maiifa/iit, with its towers and domes, which is quite a large town, situated about two miles from the river. It has post, telegraph oflSces and a railway station, with a population of about thirteen thousand inhabitants. It is a town of importance which we would liked to have seen, but as the wind was still blowing good and strong, we kept on our course towards As3mt.
After passing Manfalnt, the valley widens out considerably, and we found both banks of the river extremely fertile and everything growing in luxuriant abundance ; the air was pure and fresh, the sun was shining brilliantly from an unclouded sky, and the mountains in the distance had a soft glow of crimson light thrown around them, continually changing to deeper and softer tones ; in fact, the whole scene was perfectly lovely. Every little turn in the river opened up a series of charming vistas that
470 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
delighted the eye. As we went sailing along, the minarets and domes of Asyut were plainly visible, first on one side, and then on the other. We continued winding along with the sinuosities of the river, and it seemed as if we should never get there, for at one point it appeared as if we were leaving it behind us, but at length we turned the last bend, when our sailors started up their songs, laughed and danced in the great- est glee, and in a ver}' little while we found our boat tied up at the port of Asyut " El-Hamra " — the town itself lying back in the plain and under the foot of a large mountain.
This place {Asyut) is the capital of middle Egypt. It has a number of hotels, post and telegraph offices located hear the depot. There is one thing that we noticed in this place that is different from the rest of the towns between here and Cairo, and that is, there are quite a large number of houses here that are built in the European style. Asyut has a popu- lation of at least thirty-two thousand inhabitants, and there is a very fine college located here, for the accommodation of both bo3'S and girls belonging to the American IMission. There are good baths and very fine bazaars to be found here ; also a cotton factor}^ and several mosques, one of which is noted for its tall minaret. There is a market held here every Saturday, when the villagers come in from the surrounding country in order to dispose of their goods, and buy what they need for their own use. During this time the bazaars are filled to repletion, for here one can find all kinds of commodities that have been brought, not only from all parts of Egypt and Arabia, but also from Europe and America as Avell. We saw here in these bazaars very fine linen goods, embroidered leather goods of all kinds, and some very fine ostrich feathers, with numberless articles from the Soudan, and very conspicuously exposed were all varieties of the beautiful pottery the}' manufacture here. Any one who visited the World's Fair at Chicago, or the Mid- Winter Fair in San Francisco, must most certainly have noticed the beautiful bottles, pipe bowls, black tazzas, paper weights of both black and red pottery, and those exquisite coffee services, etc., all of which came from this place {Asyut).
This town rises out from amidst a very fine belt of palm trees, and a canal carries the water from the river to the towm, whose banks are adorned with beautiful sycamore and fig trees. The canal reaches the Government Buildings and beyond it, and its banks form a very nice
f-
> I/)
Ll O
>-
O
LjJ
X
O UJ
>
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 471
promenade. We were very anxious to see about our letters, so we hurried off up town to the post office to enquire for our mail, and I was very glad indeed to receive two from home, three from friends in Cairo and Alexandria, and two from Lahore, India. Our sailors had this evening entirely to themselves, and as some of them belonged to this place, they asked for and received permission to go and visit some of their relations and friends. We spent the night ashore with some acquaint- ances whom we knew in Cairo, who were returning to the city, having been up as far as the second Cataract, and who were visiting the various points of interest on their way down the river. We arose early the next morning, having decided to visit some of the tombs, etc., that were located not far from here, and strolled down to the port of El-Hmnra and to our Dahabiyeh.
We found that nearly the whole of our crew were off baking bread, so I sent Salame to pick out some good donkeys for us, while we supplied ourselves with candles, etc., for the trip. In a very short time Salame returned to tell us the donkeys were all ready, so we went on shore, mounted our little animals, and were soon speeding out along a very nice road that led up to the foot of the mountain, where we left our donkeys and clambered up to the tombs on foot.
The first one at which we stopped was called Stabl Antar^ the entrance to which is fully thirty feet high and hewn out of the solid calcerous rock. We entered a vaulted corridor leading on to a great hall, with two side chambers, and a sanctuary, and found the ceilings of these tombs to be vaulted and ornamented with peculiar devices and designs which have been considered by a great man}' people who have visited these tombs to have originated from Greek patterns ; but we know that could not be so, because these patterns and tombs were in existence long cen- turies before Greek Art was known. On some of the ceilings we could plainly trace the five pointed stars on a groundwork of yellow and blue, but it was very difficult to trace the designs, for they had been so black- ened and discolored by smoke, disfigured and defaced by time, that it was very hard for one to trace the meaning of the devices, etc. Yet we could see upon some places, not completely disfigured and defaced, some very beautiful designs in light green, white and yellow, and on some of the walls we found traces of both male and female figures. On other parts of
472 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
lliis IcMub wo louiul sonic of the walls covered with hieroglyphic iiisi-riplious.
We visited another t(Miih called the " Soldiers' tomb," because of the rows of soldiers with inimeiise shields, pictured upon the south wall, but the tomb is truly the resting- place (or was"! of TcJ-ab the sim of Klicti ; and both Prof. Maspero and Mr. Griffith claimed that 7\[/-al> lived during the tenth dyiuisty, somewhere about u. o. 3000. // 'heir was Gink art thru f
Tiic \icw iVoni this luoniitain is magnilicent. Lcpsitis claimed that it is the linest in lvg\pt. l'\ir my part I admit that it is a lovely view, but at the same time 1 think that there is equally as fine a one, if not superior, near Aswan, and also in the vicinity of Thebes there is some very beautiful scenery. We spent the greater portion of the day viewing these tondis among the calccrons rocks of this monntaiti, and in rambling aronud from one to the other wc saw pieces ot the mummied dead scat- tered in all directions, with shreils (^i mummy cloth, whitened bones, etc. We came down to where we had lelt our donkeys, miuinted them, and inside of an hour we were on boaril our lloating home, where we took our usual bath, smokcil a cigar, and after dinner we strolled up town with our fricuils to see what wc could o{ Asynt.
Keturniug along the endiaukmcnt we passed a number of women slaves, perfectly nude, some washing, others filling their jars with water from the canal for household purposes. Some of these women were pos- sessed of very fine lignres, well developed, graeetul in their carriage, aiul did not .seem to notice our presence, but passed on their way with their jars posed tiinm their heads in a careless graceful uuinner. 0\\ our rctni-u to our boat wc tonud our crew ha\'iug a glorious time with their friends anil relatixes, whom they had in\ited to the " h^antasia." Their feast was o'er, their w^Mk was done, and lunv they were enjoviug them- selves to the fullest extent. \\'e st(^od and watched them tor quite awhile, then we all went into the cabin, and chatted with our friends. At last we parted tVom them, wishing them good night and " boii rorai^i-'^ amidst a blaze of light, for our sailors were burning fireworks, etc.
After having parted tVom them we retired and slept soundly, and awoke the next nuirning to iind Salame with our coffee and toast, of which we soon disposed. We sent tor Hassan, in order to find out when
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 473
lie would be able to leave, he informed us that he desired to lay in a good stock of provisions, etc., at this place, which would be impossible to obtain farther south, and I noticed that he was not particularly anxious to leave for a couple of days, and as the rest were agreeable to remain I was satisfied. I sat down all the morning writing letters, while our sailors were all busy cutting up their bread (which they had baked) into very thin slices, which they lay in the hot rays of the sun, until it was as dry as a crisp, after which they stored it away in their lockers for future use. You would scarce credit the amount of bread those fellows had baked, for their use, between here and Aswan. I asked Hassan how much he thought it would weigh ? He said that there was about two tons of it.
That night Hassan informed me that he had supplied himself with all that he would need for our trip to Aswan and asked me if he could have the next day to visit some friends. I told him certainly, so the next morning, he started off dressed up like some great Arabian potentate or plenipotentiary. I spent part of the day in writing, the other in sight seeing. At night Hassan returned and when he had arrayed himself in his every-day costume, he told me that everything was in readiness on board and that if the wind should spring up, at any time during the night, he would start again on our journey, but we did not care to travel by night if we could possibly avoid it, because v/e desired to see the country in the immediate vicinity, consequently we agreed to wait until the next morning before we started.
Ever since we came to this place there have been a persistent lot of fellows who were very desirous of selling us some of their pottery. Some of whom fairly took possession of our boat. They spread their wares all over the deck, as if it was their regular stall, or place for selling. We thought that if we bought a few things from them that they would pack up and leave ; but it seemed to have a contrary effect for they stayed until quite late. At length our sailors commenced talking to them and in very pronounced language ordered them off and they went, but I firmly believe that if their wares were not so fragile that they would have remained with us over night.
After dinner we went for a stroll along the embankment and watched the people and talked of the decadence of Egyptian civilization, etc. We chatted and talked until after the sun had set and the stars shone
474 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
forth from ou high, in refulgent glory, as we retraced our steps to our floating home, and long before our arrival, we heard our sailors singing their everlasting songs. We retired and slept through it all, and awoke the next morning to find a dead calm, so we waited until after breakfast before sending our men to the tow-line. Just as we were discussing that subject, a light air sprang up, our sails were loosed and we began to gather a little headway and found El-Hamra dropping astern.
We now entered and passed through the most fertile part of the Nile Valley. The land lies low and the river banks are high, and are cut here and there by various canals for irrigation purposes, the waters of which flow out upon the land and Cause all things to grow liixuri- antly and in abundance. We now passed through fertile fields and meadows stored with sweet scented flowers, wherein were to be seen large flocks of sheep, and herds of buffaloes. Farther on we passed between gardens of cucumbers and various other vegetables and saw large fields of waving corn wherein could be hidden a squad of Lancers and their horses. We sailed b}^ farms and villages and saw clover and lupins growing higher than a man's head, and immense fields of blossoming beans whose fragrant flowers filled the air with their delicious perfume. Again we passed through fields of waving corn, whose bright green color extended as far as the eye can reach, soon to be guarded by the slinger who will sit nodding at his post and sometimes use his sling to scare away the birds from the ripening ears. Continuing on we observed fields of cane and upon the banks of the river itself, we saw large quantities of pumpkin and squash shining like gold in the rays of the noon day sun.
This particular part of Egypt generally astonishes the tourist and traveller on account of the fertility of the soil and the wondrous growth of vegetation. Farms, towns, villages, Shadufs and Sakiyes, go drifting by and the changing scenery unfolds itself in one continuous panorama of charming vistas. The wind freshened and we went scudding along before a good stiff breeze and the scenery changed continuously. We passed high bluffs with here a farm and there a village, now a quarry, groves of palms, etc. Abu Tig fell astern, and was left behind as we went speeding along like a greyhound. Several Nile boats went lumbering along like an English collier heavily laden. Mishta was passed and now the Arabian hills began to draw closer to the river, and the strip of arable land upon
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 475
the east bank grew narrower, and we saw the mounds of Talita off the southwest. Shekh Heridi was soon observed on the east bank of the river and Tahta quite a distance inland on the west. With our glasses we could see very plainly the tombs that were cut into the face of the mountain of Shekh Heridi. Next we saw the square pigeon towers of Passalon where the arable land begins to widen out again upon the east bank, and we left Maragah behind us, passing quite a large cultivated island. Here we saw several hogs lying upon the bank of the river among a lot of sweet peas and vines loaded with squash, etc., but we soon stirred them up with a few fine bird shot just to see them run to cover. Unfortunately the wind that served us so well began to fail, and died out, so we tied up for the night in the bend of the river at a place called Shendawwil the ancient Aphroditopolis.
There is not much to be seen at this place, but after dinner we strolled up to the station and walked out along the track, and watched the glorious sunset and afterglow. How I wish, my dear brothers and read- ers, that 3'ou could have stood with me that evening and seen it as I did, for words cannot express the exquisite coloring of Nature's wardrobe, for she seemed to appear in her most charming hues in this wondrous valley of the Nile, the " Land of Egypt." As we sat under the awning that night, we noticed that the glorious stars seemed to have grown brighter. After a little while the golden moon came into view, and went sailing into grander heights from out the low refraction of the atmos- phere, near the horizon, when it shone with a truer, purer and more brilliant light, looking like a burnished silver orb in the unclouded starry vault above, and lighting up the earth below with sweet, soft tones of wondrous light. As we sat and pondered upon the sublimity and grandeur of nature, the hum of voices from the distance, and the lowing of cattle came to us ; the river was all aglow with a silver light, our sail- ors' songs were ended, and the wash of the river lingered with us, and as we retired it lulled us off to peaceful slumber.
Salame aroused us and presented our usual cup of coffee and toast, after which we went on deck to find a dead calm, owing to which we were compelled to tow and punt, for we were all anxious to reach " hundred- gated Thebes." Our sailors started out and harnessed themselves to the tow-line, and as they tugged upon the rope they sang their songs, chatted
476 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
and laughed at each other, and although the sun Avas high in the heavens, and burning hot, they capered along and sang and danced as if towing was a most delightful pastime. We strolled on ahead and made some sketches, and when the boat came up we went on board for our luncheon.
The town of Suhag, situated about three hundred and ten miles from Cairo, was the next point of interest. It has a population of about nine thousand inhabitants, and is located close to the river. It has post, tele- graph and railway ofl&ces, as well as Hotels, Bazaars, Mosques, etc. Here is where the irrigating canal begins, that carries the waters of the Nile to Asyut, irrigating that fertile plain and at the same time reclaiming as much of the Lybian desert as possible ; it is called Mohat Sitliag. A little over four miles inland from this place is located the celebrated " White Monastery " or convent of Dcr-el-Abiad^ which is a ver}' inter- esting place to visit ; but the town of Suhag itself claims but very little of interest, consequently we pushed on to the steamboat and mail station Ekhfiiin. After turning the bend of the river, we found the merest strip of arable land on the east bank and the town of Ekhniin^ which place we should never have been enabled to reach, if it had not been for a favora- ble wind that sprung up just before we reached Suhag, and pushed us on at a seven-mile gait, relieving our men from a very hard-day's work of towing and punting our boat. We dined as usual, and while we were enjoying our meal we were tied up to the bank of the river.
The town of Ekhniin is not far from the river, and it contains post and telegraph offices and a railway depot, etc. It is quite a town with a population of eighteen thousand inhabitants. It has a very fair bazaar and hotels, and a market-day is held here every Wednesday. At this place they manufacture those pretty check shawls that are worn so much by the "Sailors of the Nile." This town occupies the ancient site of KheJiimis or Panopolis, and Strabo informs that this place was once famous for its linen manufactories and workers in stone. Herodotus says the inhabitants of this town (Panopolis) were the only Egyptians who favored Greek customs. The dealers in antiquities here will furnish you, or in fact any one, all kinds of relics from a mummy to a handful of scarabs, and if they should not have what you require they will man- ufacture it for you, while you wait.
»fc
HALL OF COLUMNS, TEMPLE OF DENDERAH.
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 477
The next day we arose with the sun and found a dead calm, so after our men had partaken of their morning meal, they went oixt on the tow- path and we were soon crawling along southward up the stream towards Ba/iana, but about ten o'clock the wind came up fresh and fair, when our sails were loosed and away we went ploughing along like a steamboat.
It was a delightful sensation to sit on deck under the awning, and watch the ever-changing scenery as we went scudding along the river, watching the towns and villages come and go. We found but a very scant strip of vegetation on the East bank, while on the West it stretches off for miles, with all kinds of vegetation growing abundantly. We now passed some islands that were cultivated, and arrived at, and left behind us the town of Girga. It is located close to the river, and is exposed to the wash of its waters. It was formerly the principal point of departure for Abydos, and the capital of Upper Egypt, but now it is simpl}? the chief town of the province. Twenty-five years ago the town had not been touched by the river, but to-day it is being washed away by every passing steamer and the regular inundations of the river itself.
Passing more islands we verj^ soon run up under the bank at Baliana, where we stopped in order to visit Abydos. Baliana has both post and telegraph ofl&ces and a railway station. At this place we hired donkeys for our trip to Abydos, which we had looked forward to with a great deal of pleasure. It is located about eight miles off to the South- west of Baliana, and it would take full}- two hours to get there. Upon our arrival we sent Salame to engage donke\'-s for us as there was a " three- week " steamer due the following day, so we got our pick, and the next day arising, bright and early, we mcninted our little animals and rode off to visit Abydos and vicinity. The road led out through fertile fields and palm groves until we at length arrived at Abydos, which Mariette called " The cradle of the Egyptian Monarch." We rode directl}' to the great temple of (Seti, the father of Rameses II, j of the XIX dynasty which is the Memnomium of Strabo.
The plan of this building is peculiar and many people are in doubt as to the meaning and object of its various parts. Like our Masonic temples and Scottish Rite Cathedrals, it is very difficult for the profane to determine the meaning and object of the various parts. To the initiate all is plain, and the meaning and object of everything is thoroughly
478 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
understood, and the necessity of each part, in order to form the grand whole. We noticed on cntcriny this temple that the pjdon and walls, now in ruins, originally formed the oit/c/- court, which was to be plainly traced by the debris that clearly marked its ovitline.
The next court is in a far better condition for the simple reason that part of these walls have been preserved, and this court leads up to the facade of the temple proper and the entrance to the first Half which is decorated with a row of twelve columns. The first Half itself, has a double row of columns, twelve in each row ; the entrance is through two doors, one in the centre and tlie other on the extreme right, the middle one appears from its extreme width to have been the principal or main entrance, while the one on the right is quite narrow. The carvings on these columns are very peculiar, but more especiall}' that portion which represents a kind of bat with human liands, in front of each there is a star with the hieroglyph Neb (Lord). This hall is long and narrow, but it must have been ver}- imposing when magnificently draped, and the grand preliminarj^ procession took place, preceding the regular initiatory services which were afterwards performed upon the aspiring Neophyte by the Master of the Holy House. To-day the roof has fallen down in nian}^ places, and it is only a question of time, when the lotus bud capitals will lie prone upon the earth, and be covered from sight b}- the dust of the dead past.
The second Hall is very mucli larger in height, length, and breadth, three rows of colunnis adorn this place, the first two have lotus bud capitals, but the third row starts from a raised platform just bej-ond the others. Behind these, and on the same level, there is a series of seven vaulted chambers, with passages leading into them. Between the open- ing of each are seven niches " for statuary " (?) but. maj- not these seven niches have been for the Hierophant and officers to have sat in during the initiatory services? (I shall speak of this later on). Passing through the third chamber, from the north wall of the temple, we find otio-selves in a sniall hall, whose roof is supported b}' ten columns, on the north of this hall and to the right of the entrance are two sniall chambers, and on the south end is a smaller hall, whose roof is supported b}- four columns, the entrance to which is through an opening in the centre. At the end of this smaller hall on the south there are two smaller chambers.
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 479
From the second, and largest hall, with the three rows of columns, there are two openings, the first one that is nearest to the vaulted chambers, is a very interesting hall or room, whose roof is supported by- three columns, and on the west of this hall there are two oblong rooms whose vaulted ceilings are falling in to the room below. The other open- ing leads to a peristyle court that is adorned with six columns, and there are a great many other small halls and chambers off to the west of this court, but, it is here at the entrance to this hall, opposite the second and third row of tlie columns of the large hall, that is the most important part of the whole building because, on the right hand wall, on entering this ascending passage-way leading to the peristj-le hall or court, was discovered the celebrated " Tablet of Abydos ".
Let me quote you from " Monuments of Upper Egypt " by Mariette Be}^, page 147. " By way of information, we may add, that it was in the temple of Sethi, that we discovered a chronological table of kings, more complete and in a better state of preservation than that whicli has enriched the collection of the British Museum. Sethi as king and Rame- ses still as a prince, are there represented standing ; the one offering the sacrifice of fire, the other reciting the sacred hymn. Before them as a synoptical diagram, are the cartouches of seventy-six kings (Sethi has included himself among the number), to whom this homage is paid, and it is not without a certain emotion that one reads at the head of the proud list the name of Menes, the ancient and venerable founder of Egyptian monarchy ".
The discovery of this tablet has been of very great value to us, because it is an actual record of a list of Egypt's earliest kings, and recorded by one of Egypt's greatest rulers, who lived over thirty-four centuries ago. Of all the temples in Eg3'pt, there is to-da}' no better specimens of Egyptian art and architecture, of the Middle Empire, than are to be found in the decorations of the temple itself of Seti at Abydos. There is no tomb or temple throughout the " Land of Egypt " that can show finer work than the exquisite carvings chiselled upon the walls in the celebrated temple of Seti at this place. The tombs of Tih and Phah- hotep at Sakkarah do not show any more beautiful workmanship than is to be found here. I will not attempt to describe or explain the exquisite chisellings and decorations that have been inscribed upon the walls of the
480 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
various halls, etc., of this most extraordinary temple of Seti, but, will refer my readers to Mariette, Rawlinson, Wilkinson and others for more information upon this famous mm.
The temple of Rameses II is located a short distance to the north across a very high mound, and it, like that one of his father's, was dedi- cated to Osiris. It is somewhere about the same size of that of Seti's but it is in a much more dilapidated condition. Originally this temple was a most magnificent building, but to-day one can scarcely trace its outlines, for it has suffered far more from the ruthless hands of the destroyers, than it has from the all devastating hand of Time. From what information we can gain, andfrom our own personal observa- tions, we find that there was a large open court surrounded by Osiride figures, which opened into the temple proper, the entrance to which was from the East through a gateway of sculptured red granite. We cannot gather very much information from these ruins to-day, but there is one thing that we are positive about, and that is, that the temple of Rameses was built of very much richer material than that which was used in the construction of his fathers ; for we can plainly see in the temple of Rameses II, red and black granite and oriental alabaster lying all around among the debris. But in that one of Seti we find nothing excepting lime, and sandstone with which it was built.
We visited the Necropolis of Abj'dos and found it especially inter- esting as it contained graves from the sixth dynast}^ down. We spent quite a time in examining these ancient relics of ancient Egyptian history.
We retired early as we were all pretty well fagged out, and slept comfortably all through the night, and when Salame aroused me the next morning I felt refreshed from my long night's rest. After break- fast we went on shore with our guns and walked down the track with Salame following behind with a rifle. Our crew started out tracking, and by the time we arrived at the bend of the river we had bagged quite a lot of game. Here the river turns off sharp to the North of East, where we waited for the boat and got on board.
From Bagura^ the Valley of the Nile and river runs nearly East and West as far as Keneh. We noticed now that the Dom-palm was more common and were to be seen in clusters, and were much finer
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 481
looking than those farther north. At last we come to the island of Denderah which we passed and a landing was made on the West bank, just before reaching Kench^ which is located on the East bank. We tied up here because we could very easily walk to the temple of Denderah^ and not be bothered with donkeys or boys. About an hour after he had tied up to the bank, a glorious breeze sprung up and in our favor, after we had been tracking and punting, for three long days, try- ing to reach this place, where we were then moored. Such is luck. We retired early that night so. as to get an early start the following morning to explore the temple of Denderah and its ruins.
In the morning, when Salame aroused us, the first rays of the sun had scattered the morning mist, and ushered in a glorious day and a pleasant breeze. We partook of our coffee and toast, and made preparations for an early start to the temple, so that after breakfast we were soon ready for our journey.
The foundation of this celebrated temple was laid by Ptolemy XI {Auletes) and it was not fully completed, so far as its decorations are concerned, until the time of Nero. It is a very fine specimen of Grseco Egyptian Architecture, and shows upon its ovals the names of Augustus, Caligula, Tiberius, Domitian, Claudius, and Nero the very latest. This temple originally stood, like all other ancient Egyptian temples, in the centre of a vast enclosure generall}^ made of rough bricks, whose walls were very high and extraordinary thick. These walls were pierced with regular openings, or entrance gates, into the inclosure and when they were closed, all that happened within the inclosure, or the interior of the temple, covild neither be seen nor heard by the profane upon the out- side. This temple of Denderah was dedicated to Hatlior^ the Egyptian Venus and it stands very nearly as perfect to-day as when it left the hands of the builders and decorators, excepting those carvings and paint- ings which have been so mutilated by the order of the early Christian fathers. These vandals destroyed and desecrated all the temples and sacred places of these ancient people by throwing down, and disfiguring their beautiful statues, robbing their sanctuaries and beating away the faces of every figure they could reach, both inside and outside, of not only this most magnificent structure, (with very few exceptions) but every other temple in the valley of the Nile. 31
482 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
Frank de Hess, D.D., iu "Explorations in Bible Lands," says in relation to the preservation of the beautiful and elaborate scenes pictured upon the walls, etc., of many of the temples in Egypt, etc. : " Nothing could be more beautiful than some of the scenes here pictured, and the preservation of the coloring after so many centuries is truly wonderful. This is partly due to the following circumstances : When Theodosius, Bishop of Alexandria, in his pious but mistaken zeal issued his cele- brated edict, A. D. 391, for the suppression of idolatry throughout Egypt, and ordered the temples to be divested of every vestige of idolatrous wor- ship, when many works of Art were destroyed, and it is painful to see how with pick and chisel many of these beautiful temples have been defaced.
" Here, however {Medinet Habii)^ the bass-reliefs were so deeply cut in the hard granite, that instead of erasing the sculptures they merely plastered them over. This temple was afterwards converted into a Christian Church, as the frescoing clearly proves, and occasionally very ludicrous scenes are met with, where the stucco has partly fallen off. In one of the halls where the plastering has scaled off, may be seen a long procession of priests and princes, with Rameses III at their head, presenting their offerings and burning incense before Hatlior, under the symbol of a cow, and just above, where the frescoing still adheres to the wall, may be seen St. Peter with the key and crosier, raising his hand, as if in the act of pronouncing a benediction on the pagan worshippers."
The entrance to the temple proper is from the east, and through a beautiful hypost3de hall fully fifty feet high, and one hundred and thirty- nine feet wide, adorned by twenty-four very fine columns, each of which has a capital of four Hathor heads, with cow's ears, surmounted by a house. The first or outer row of columns are connected by a series of balustrades, excepting between the two centre columns. Here was the gateway or entrance for the King and Hierophants who officiated in the ceremonies of initiation. While on each of the side walls there was a small door that was used no doubt by the priests and ofl&cials who assisted in the various ceremonies that took place within the Sancttnn Sanctortim.
On entering into this beautiful temple, that is, coming in from out the bright sunlight outside, it will be some time before your eyes will become accustomed to the more subdued light of the interior, but by
ENTRANCE TO TEMPLE OF MEDINET HABU.
EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY, 483
degrees you will be enabled to dimly see here and there the outlines of hieroglyphic inscriptions, royal ovals and fantastic forms of all kinds, such as scarabei, winged globes, hawk-headed, cow-headed and Ibis-headed figures all around you, and a feeling of awe will steal over you, as you stand in darkness visible, and recognize the symbolism of the hoary civil- ization of a prehistoric age.
All through this extraordinary temple are to be seen zodiacal emblems figures seated on thrones, kings and divinities performing their mystic rites and ceremonies. In passing from one hall to another, and examin- ing the various chambers, we get bewildered, as it were, in wandering around in the interior of this most extraordinary temple. Carvings of all kinds are to be seen all around us, the columns themselves are covered with divinities, in fact it would take me too long to describe them, conse- quently I will not attempt a description of these most extraordinary hiero- glyphic carvings, paintings, etc., but rather refer you to Mariette, Lepsius^ Maspero and others for their elucidation.
These sculptures are as perfect in detail and they look as beautiful to-day as when first the artist completed his work, and the designer saw his thoughts expressed in the decorations upon the walls, columns and ceilings of this magnificent temple. The hand of time has not injured them a particle, and what injury they have received has been from the early Christians, who, as I have herein above stated, beat and battered down all the statues, and disfigured the faces of all the carvings they could reach, otherwise this temple would have been as perfect to-day as when its halls resounded to the voices of the Hierophant and officers performing their mystic rites and ceremonies in the early days of the Christian era.
This is a most magnificent temple, its portico is majestic and impressive, with its massive columns, ponderous cornice and exquisitely carved frieze of kings, priests and warriors, in regular Egyptian Pana- thenaic procession, some of whom carry musical instruments and stand- ards, and above all, as if o'ershadowing with its Divine essence, an enormous, winged &^g, brooding as it were over the main entrance above the frieze. The decorations of the exterior and interior may seem very strange to many people who visit this temple, but each, and every one must admit that they are carved with masterly skill, and if you will
484 EGYPT, THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY.
examine the celebrated astronomical paintings upon the ceiling, the peculiar serpents in every variety of form, the massive columns or any- thing else, you will find them perfect specimens of what they were intended to represent. I especially desire to impress upon you this fact in relation to this temple. Although it is a most magnificent building, it does not represent the beauty of the early age of Ancient Egyptian Architectural design and beauty, and to the Art critics it only demon- strates the decadence of the Art under the Lagadi.
We came away charmed and delighted with our trip and walked back to our home the Dahabiyeh, and as they were taking her across to Keneh, we took our bath and refreshed ourselves with a good cigar, up under the awning. Soon after we moored the boat at Keneh we strolled up town, looked through the bazaars, came back again and found dinner awaiting us, after which we all went up town to see the gawazi (dancing girls). These dances were disgusting, but I do not need to describe them here, for since the " World's Fair " in Chicago these dances are well known.
The next morning we were fortunate enough to find a light air in our favor, so the sails were loosed, and we started off for Thebes, but only managed to get as far as Neqada, a small town on the West bank. The river scenery here was very fine, and the old town with its lofty pigeon towers, presented quite a quaint and picturesque appearance. Our whole talk was Thebes, and we talked of it until quite late.
The next morning our sailors were towing and punting, and after breakfast Ave went on deck and talked of the grandeur of Thebes, her ancient tombs, temples and monuments, that we soon were to explore, fully realizing the stupendous glory that belonged to Egypt in her Golden Age. As we turned the bend of the river, and saw Qaviula a light breeze sprung up and we soon went spinning along over the waters. Very soon Hassan gave a shout and our whole crew burst forth in echo- ing yells Karnak! Luxor! etc. The pylons of Karnak came in sight and other points of interest. Our sailors struck up their songs, accompanied by drums, etc. The houses of the Consulates came in view with their flags fluttering in the breeze, the pigeon-towers of the village, Nile boats and Dahabi3^ehs dipping their flags, and firing their guns as we passed them. Our sails were furled and here we were at last, at the threshold of "Hundred-gated Thebes."
JHasottic Ccacj)in(is— Hintitt Beggar— liio matt
Catfjolirism.
Slave to no sect, who takes no private road, But loohs through JSature up to Nature's God; pursues that chain which Hnhs th' immense design, Ofoins heaven and earth, and mortal and divine.
— Pope.
i!^6
EGYPT. THE CRADLE OF ANCIENT MASONRY. 487