CANAL.
Frank and Fred were impatient to see the Suez Canal, which enables ships to pass between the Red and Mediterranean Seas. In going from the anchorage to the town they passed near the southern end of the Canal, and from the veranda of the hotel they could see steamers passing apparently through the sandy desert, as the position where they stood concealed the water from sight. As soon as they had secured their rooms at the hotel, they started out with the Doctor to make a practical acquaintance with the great channel from sea to sea.
There was a swarm of guides and donkey-drivers at the door of the hotel, so that they had no difficulty in finding their way. At the suggestion of the Doctor they followed the pier, nearly two miles in length, which leads from the south part of the town to the harbor; the water is very shallow near Suez, and this pier was built so that the railway trains could be taken along side the steamers, and thus facilitate the transfer of passengers and freight. The pier is about fifty feet wide, and has a solid foundation of artificial stone sunk deep into the sand. At the end of the pier are several docks and quays belonging to the Canal and railway companies, and there is a large basin, called Port Ibrahim, capable of containing many ships at once. The Canal Company's repair-shops and warehouses stand on artificial ground, which was made by dredging the sand and piling it into the space between the pier and the land, and Frank thought that not less than fifty acres had thus been enclosed.
A line of stakes and buoys extended a considerable distance out into the head of the Gulf, and the Doctor explained that, in consequence of the shallowness near the land, the Suez Canal began more than a mile from the shore. The sand-bar is visible at low tide, and when the wind blows from the north a large area is quite uncovered. A channel was dredged for the passage of ships, and the dredging-machines are frequently in use to remove the sand which blows from the desert or is swept into the channel by the currents.
At the end of the long pier is a light-house; and while our friends stood there and contemplated the scene before them, the Doctor reminded the boys that in all probability they were in sight of the spot where the hosts of Pharaoh were drowned after the Israelites had crossed over in safety.
"That is very interesting," said Frank; "but is this really the place?"
"We cannot be absolutely certain of that," was the reply, "as there are different opinions on the subject. But it was in this neighborhood certainly, and some of those who have made a careful study of the matter say that the crossing was probably within a mile of this very spot."
The eyes of the boys opened to their fullest width at this announcement, and they listened intently to the Doctor's remarks on the passage of the Israelites through the Red Sea.
"You will remember," said the Doctor, "that the Bible account tells us how the Lord caused a strong wind to blow from the north, which swept away the waters and allowed the Israelites to pass over the bed of the sea. After they had crossed, and the hosts of Pharaoh pursued them, the wind changed, the waters returned, and the army of the Egyptian ruler was drowned in the waves. The rise of the tide at this place is from three to six feet, and the sand-bank is only slightly covered when the tide is out; now, when the wind blows from the north with great force the water is driven away, and parts of the sand-bank are exposed. On the other hand, when a strong wind blows from the south, the water is forced upon the sand-bank, and the tide, joined to this wind, will make a depth of six or seven feet where a few hours before the ground was dry. This is the testimony of many persons who have made careful observations of the Gulf of Suez, and the miracle described in the Bible is in exact accordance with the natural conditions that exist to-day.
"One modern writer on this subject says he has known a strong north-east wind to lay the ford dry, and be followed by a south-west wind that rendered the passage impossible even for camels. M. De Lesseps, the projector of the Suez Canal, says he has seen the northern end of the sea blown almost dry, while the next day the waters were driven far up on the land. In 1799 Napoleon Bonaparte and his staff came near being drowned here in a sudden change of wind, and fatal accidents occur once in a while from the same cause. On the map prepared by the officers of the maritime canal to show the difference between high and low water, you will see that the conditions are just as I have stated them.
"Some writers believe," the Doctor continued, "that the sea was farther inland three thousand years ago, and that the crossing was made about ten miles farther north than where we now stand. There is some difficulty in locating all the places named in the biblical story of the exodus, and it would be too much to expect all the critics to agree on the subject. The weight of opinion is in favor of Suez as the crossing-place of the Israelites, and so we will believe we are at the scene of the deliverance of the captives and the destruction of the hosts of Pharaoh. It is a mistake to suppose that Pharaoh was himself drowned in the Red Sea; it was only his army that suffered destruction."
From the point where this conversation took place they went to the Waghorn Quay, just beyond. It was named in honor of Lieutenant Waghorn, who devoted several years to the establishment of the so-called "overland route" between England and India. Through his exertions the line of the Peninsular and Oriental steamers was established, and the mails between England and India were regularly carried through Egypt, instead of taking the tedious voyage around the Cape of Good Hope. He died in London in poverty in 1850; since his death the importance of his services has been recognized, and a statue to his memory stands on the quay which bears his name. At his suggestion the name of "overland route" was given to this line of travel between England and India, though the land journey is only two hundred and fifty miles, to distinguish it from the "sea route" around the Cape of Good Hope.
From Waghorn Quay it was only a short distance to the Canal, and as they reached its bank a large steamer was just entering on its way to the Mediterranean. Frank observed that she was moving very slowly, and asked the Doctor why she did not put on full steam and go ahead.
"That would be against the rules of the Canal Company," was the reply. "If the steamers should go at full speed they would destroy the Canal in a short time; the 'wash' or wake they would create would break down the banks and bring the sand tumbling into the water. They must not steam above four miles an hour, except in places where the Canal widens into lakes, and even there they cannot go at full speed."
"Then there are lakes in the Canal, are there?" Fred inquired.
"I'll explain that by-and-by," the Doctor responded. "Meantime look across the head of the Gulf and see that spot of green which stands out so distinctly among the sands."
The boys looked in the direction indicated and saw an irregular patch of verdure, on which the white walls of several houses made a sharp contrast to the green of the grass and the palm-trees that waved above them.
"That spot," said the Doctor, "is known as 'Ayoon Moosa,' or 'The Wells of Moses.' It is an oasis, where several wells or springs have existed for thousands of years, and it is supposed that the Israelites halted there and made a camp after their deliverance from Egypt. As the pursuing army of Pharaoh had been destroyed before their eyes, they were out of danger and in no hurry to move on. The place has borne the name of 'The Wells of Moses' from time immemorial; there is a tradition that the largest of them was opened by the divining-rod of the great leader of
