Chapter III.
FROM SUEZ TO CAIRO.—THROUGH THE LAND OF GOSHEN.
There is little to relieve the monotony of the desert between Suez and Ismailia beyond the view of the two canals, and the ships and boats moving on their waters. Occasionally a line of camels may be seen walking with a dignified pace, or halted for the adjustment of their loads, or for some other purpose. In every direction there is nothing but the desert, either stretching out into a plain or rising in mountains, on which not a particle of verdure is visible. Under the bright sun of the Egyptian sky the sands glittered and sparkled till the light they reflected became painful to the eyes of the observers. The prudent Doctor had bought some veils in the bazaar of Suez, and now brought them from the recesses of his satchel for the use of the delighted boys as well as for his own.
The color of the desert mountains on the southern horizon varied from white to yellow and purple, and from yellow and purple back again to white. Frank said that some of them seemed to be composed of amethysts and garnets, mixed and melted together in a gigantic crucible. The Doctor told him he was not the first to make such a description, as the idea had occurred to previous travellers, some of whom thought the mountains were composed of all kinds of precious stones mingled with glass. The dazzling appearance of these elevations had led many persons to explore them in search of gems; but of all these explorers none had ever found the fortune he sought.
As they approached Ismailia there were signs of vegetation on the banks of the Fresh-Water Canal, and near the town they came to some pretty gardens which have been created since the opening of the Canal. While the works of the Canal were in progress Ismailia was an active town, with a considerable population, but at present many of its buildings are unoccupied, and there is a general appearance of desolation. There are a few cottages near the banks of Lake Timsah, and of late years the town has obtained popularity with some of the European residents of Cairo, who go there for the sake of the salt-water bathing. The air is clear and dry, the water is of the deep blue of the united seas, and is generally of an agreeable temperature, while it has the smoothness of an inland lake, and is not popular with sharks or any other disagreeable inhabitants of tropical waters. The current created by the changes of the tide between the two seas is sufficient to keep the water from becoming stagnant, but is not strong enough to interfere with navigation or disturb the bather.
After a brief halt at the station the train moved off in the direction of Cairo, and for an hour or more the views from the windows of the railway-carriage were remarkable in their character. On one side of the train the naked desert filled the picture, with its endless stretch of sand; on the other the gardens on the banks of the Fresh-Water Canal were marvels of luxuriance. The richest soil in the world lay side by side with the most desolate, and our friends agreed that they had never seen so marked a contrast during a ride on a railway train. The Doctor explained that the abundant vegetation was due to the wonderful fertilizing power of the Nile water, and said it was no wonder that the ancient Egyptians worshipped the river, and attributed all their wealth and prosperity to its influence.
At Zagazig the train stopped an hour or more for dinner, and there was a change of carriages for the passengers destined for Cairo. Zagazig is the junction of the lines for Cairo and Alexandria, and since the opening of the railway the town has become of considerable importance. A great deal of cotton is raised in the vicinity, and in some years not less than fifty thousand tons of that article are sent from the station. The country around here is very fertile, and is said to be the Goshen of the Bible. The ruins of the ancient town of Bubastis are about a mile from Zagazig, but they are so slight as to be unworthy a visit. Bubastis was an important place two thousand years ago, and was famous for a festival to which more than half a million pilgrims went every year.
For the remaining fifty-two miles from Zagazig to Cairo the route lay through a fertile country, and only occasional glimpses were afforded of the desert. Boats and barges were moving on the Canal, some of them carrying the local products of the country to Cairo or Ismailia, while others were laden with coal and other foreign importations which find a market among the Egyptians. The boys were interested in the processes of irrigating the lands, and eagerly listened to the Doctor's explanation of the matter. Before reaching Zagazig they had seen some men at work dipping water by means of buckets suspended from poles, and emptying it into basins formed by excavations on the banks; they were told that this apparatus for hoisting water was called a "shadoof," and had been in use from the most ancient days of Egypt.
"The simplest form of shadoof," said the Doctor, "is the one you are looking at. It consists of two posts of wood or sun-dried mud, supporting a horizontal bar, on which the pole suspending the bucket is balanced in the centre. A lump of mud on one end of the pole balances the weight of the bucket on the other, and enables the man who operates it to lift his burden with ease. The bucket is made of rushes woven so tightly as to hold water, and at the same time be as light as possible, and it is dipped and raised with great rapidity. Water is lifted from six to eight feet by the shadoof. If a higher elevation is needed, a second and even a third or a fourth may be used; on the upper part of the Nile I have seen half a dozen of them in operation on a series of steps, one above the other.
"You will see representations of the shadoof on the walls of the temples and tombs of Egypt, and the conclusion is certain that the form has not changed in the least in three thousand years. When the Nile is at its height there is no need of anything of the sort, as the water flows all over the land, and the entire country is inundated. As soon as the river falls it is necessary to raise water by artificial means, as the growing plants in the fields would soon perish under the hot sun of Egypt without a supply of moisture. Then the shadoof comes in play, and the more the river descends the greater is the number demanded. In some parts of the country the sakkieh is used in place of the shadoof, and the result is the same."
Fred wished to know the difference between the shadoof and the sakkieh.
"The sakkieh," said the Doctor, "is a wheel operated by a beast of burden—a horse, camel, mule, donkey, or ox. The animal walks in a circle, and turns a horizontal wheel which has cogs connected with an upright wheel, bearing a circle of earthen buckets on its rim. These buckets dip in water as the wheel turns; their mouths are then brought uppermost, and they raise the water and pour it into a trough. Where the water must be raised to a great height from a well, or from the side of a perpendicular bank, two wheels are used, one at the spot where the animal walks, and the other at
