V.

CAIRO, April 5, 1895.

The Congregational Oriental party is at this time nicely located at the D’Angleterre and new hotels that would do credit to any American city. Many of the clerks and waiters speak English, and are very polite and attentive. While we expect to remain here until the 13th, yet we are not anxious to have the hour of our departure arrive.

Cairo seems to be the Chicago of Egypt, a place of some four hundred thousand inhabitants, about twenty thousand of them English and Americans. The bulk of the residents are Mohammedans. This place was founded about A.D. 850. Touloun, a Moslem, was its first governor. In 1170 the famous Saladin usurped the throne; in 1250 the Mamelukes took possession; in 1517 it was stormed and captured by the sultan, Selim. To-day England has a powerful grip on Egypt. The khedive ran the country badly in debt. England took the bond until she stepped in, and said, “We must control the property.” The Egyptian army is officered by English. In fact, they keep many of their soldiers here, and Egypt feeds them; yet England can take them away any time she chooses. The khedive lives in Cairo, and rules some six millions of people; yet he is ready to take off his hat to Johnny Bull whenever he meets him. The six millions of people in Egypt are largely Mohammedans, some half million Coptics. Here and there you will find people from Nubia, Soudan, and India. The people are a copper color, excepting those from Soudan, they being black and shiny, but, unlike the negro, have not the thick lips and curly hair. The Egyptians are straight, fine forms, white teeth; and many of them, aside from color, are handsome. They are not vicious, and are easily managed by those in authority.

The condition of women in the country is deplorable. The laws of the Mohammedans give a man a right to have four wives if he wishes for them. He buys them, the usual price being twenty-five dollars, paid for in any kind of goods the man may happen to have. If he wishes to get rid of them, the law requires him to support them nine months; and the woman has to take care of and support the children until eight years old. So you see divorce is an easy matter; and they are sure to send the wives off when they get to be old, and take young wives in their place. The law in these matters is a mere letter, and many of the well-to-do Arabs have twenty wives instead of four; and many times they are sent off with a piastre (five cents) instead of nine months’ support. The man rides his camel or donkey, and the wife walks or runs behind. Sometimes they send them out on a two-wheel cart to air them.

The marriageable age for girls is twelve, boys eighteen. We have seen many a young wife about that age with her baby in her arms. They never educate the girls.

The laws of the Coptics are different. Only one wife is allowed.

When the prow of our steamer was headed northward on the Nile, we had but little to do upon our return but watch the scenery and the villages. There are a few towns that show thrift, with some modern-looking buildings; but the majority are the old mud houses, and the walls are built up some seven feet high, then poles thrown across and a covering of straw to keep the sun out. Not having rain up the Nile, the roof is of minor importance. We went through many of those villages, and into some of the houses, where you will find in one room donkeys, pigs, hens, and the natives all living together; and a good, nice Vermont hog-pen is a palace to some places we saw.

There seems to be a disease of the eyes among the children in Egypt, and the flies gather on them. We have seen children with their eyes so covered with flies you could hardly tell whether they had eyes or not; and they seem to make no effort to keep them off. This, I think, is the reason why there are so many blind people here. It is said that one in twenty is blind, either one eye or both. There are no hospitals or places for the poor, so all they can do is to sit and beg. It seems as though the condition of the people in Upper Egypt is worse than here in Cairo.

I have been wandering with you through the country. I will now try to give you a glimpse of Cairo. While there are camels and donkeys here, you will see some of the streets full of fine horses and carriages. The officers of the government and many of the wealthy have their fine turnouts. They have their sais, who are the most sylph-like beings imaginable. They can run hours without tiring. They wear a richly decorated garment, embroidered in gold arabesques, a wide silk sash with ends floating in the air, with loose gauze sleeves, white, falling to the waist, and a short skirt coming to the knees of same material. A wealthy man will have two of these men, who run abreast of each other. Sometimes you will see one alone. They carry a wand some five feet long, brought against the shoulder, when they run before the carriage. The coachman drives his team rapidly. The sais run with great speed, keeping about one hundred feet in advance, shouting to anything or anybody that is in the way to clear the track. I have never come in contact with them; but I enjoy watching them exceedingly, they look so fine and run so gracefully.

The new part of Cairo where we are located is modern in appearance, broad streets, fine public buildings, stores filled with fine-looking goods, etc.; and, if it was not for the Oriental toggery going through the streets, you would almost think you were the other side of the Atlantic.

When you leave your hotel, the first thing you meet is an Arab with a donkey. He knows a few words of English; and he says: “Fine donkey, nice donkey to ride. Donkey take you to bazaar. Fine donkey, ride easy, good donkey.” No matter how strong your assertions are that you do not wish to ride, he will follow you a long distance. Another conveyance is the pasta Baluak. This annoys no one. It looks like a small street-car, seats running crosswise, so you enter on the side. The car is much wider than the running gear. There are four small wheels underneath. They hitch on a pair of horses, and go where they please in the highway. The passengers get on and off at their pleasure, paying for their ride. Very convenient where there are no horse or electric cars, things we have not seen in Egypt.

Cairo is said to have a thousand mosques. It seems to be a city of domes and minarets, some of them very handsome. We have been in several of them. They differ from the Catholic cathedrals, being entirely free from statuary, figures, or pictures. The Mohammedans are decidedly opposed to anything of the kind. In one of the squares of Cairo is a statue, upon a horse, of Abram Pasha; but, when it was erected, it met with great opposition. The alabaster mosque is one of the finest, solid columns of pure alabaster. In every one of these buildings on the east side is a circular recess, beautifully inlaid; and in this mosque this was solid onyx of the finest quality. Toward this recess every one faces when he worships: this points him toward Mecca. In the front court of this alabaster mosque is a closed fountain, some fifteen feet in diameter, with a canopy top. Around the outside are round onyx stones, about twelve inches high and twenty inches in diameter. In front of each one of these stones is a faucet. Before the man is allowed to worship in the mosque, he kneels on one of those stones, opens the faucet and washes his feet, face, head, mouth, nose, and ears. Then he enters the mosque, and performs his devotions. The floor is covered with mattings or carpets. The building is profusely lighted, having more or less colored glass, and must look fine in the evening when lighted.

We visited the oldest church in Cairo, built over one thousand years ago. It is a Coptic church, still in use. We also visited a mosque built about the same time.

Our dragoman, Hasham, is a Mohammedan; and we have a chance to study theology with him. They believe that Christ was a prophet, but Mohammed was a greater and later one. Many of them are very devoted, but their religion does not seem to bring them upon a very high plane of moral living. Hasham says he is coming to America. I have the impression that he is beginning to think that there is a better religion than he is now acquainted with.

We visited to-day the Palace Hotel, being shown all through it. This was built by the khedive for a palace, and cost eleven millions; but he found out that he had more palaces than he could support, and sold this one to a French syndicate for a hotel. The grounds are extensive, finely laid out with flowers, fountains, statuary, many beautiful trees, and about one hundred electric lights, with large globes to light the grounds in the evening, which must make it a perfect fairyland when lighted. It is located on the banks of the Nile, and their prices are from three to five dollars per day. They can take care of some two hundred, and have not been able to accommodate half that wish to stop with them. One hundred more rooms are to be added this summer. If you wish for the finest thing in Cairo, send in your name. You will not get nearer paradise in this section of country than there. We saw one arrangement that was beautiful. On some of the mirrors were painted vines and flowers, and it made it appear as though you were looking into a conservatory. It is the cheapest conservatory one can have, no danger of frost, and you will always have vines in blossom.