rincess of the Netherlands,
the Duke and Duchess of Aosta, and other distinguished Europeans, were
the guests of this enigmatic host, eating his sumptuous dinners and
attending his magnificent balls. The festivities in connection with the
opening of the canal are said to have cost Ismail twenty-one millions of
dollars. The sum seems large; but it included the furnishing of palaces,
lavish hospitality to an army of guests besides the sovereigns and their
suites, and an opera to order--namely, Verdi's _Aida_, which was given
with great brilliancy in Cairo, in an opera-house erected for the
occasion. Ismail, like Mehemet, had his splendid dream. He, too, wished
to free Egypt from the power of Turkey; but, unlike his grandfather, he
wished to take her bodily into the circle of the civilized nations, not
as a rival, but as an ally and friend. An Egyptian kingdom, under his
rule, was to extend from the Mediterranean to the equator; from the Red
Sea westward beyond Darfur. His bold ambition ended in disaster. His
railways, telegraphs, schools, harbors, and postal-service, together
with his personal extravagance, brought Egypt to the verge of
bankruptcy. All Europe now had a vital interest in the Suez Canal, and
the powers therefore united in a demand that the Sultan should stop the
career of his audacious Egyptian Viceroy. The Viceroy might perhaps have
resisted the Porte; he could not resist the united powers. In 1879 he
was deposed, and his son Tufik appointed in his place. Ismail left
Egypt. For several years he travelled, residing for a time in Naples; at
present he is living in a villa near Constantinople. There is a rumor in
Cairo that he is more of a prisoner there than he supposes. But this may
be only one of the legends that are always attached to Turkish
affairs. His dream has come true in one respect at least: Egypt has
indeed joined the circle of the European nations, but not in the manner
which Ismail intended; she is only a bondwoman--if the pun can be
permitted.

[Illustration: THE KHEDIVE. From a photograph by Sebah, Cairo]

THE HAUNTED PALACE

The Gezireh road is to-day the favorite afternoon drive of the Cairenes.
It is a broad avenue, raised above the plain, and overarched by trees
throughout its course. At many points it commands an uninterrupted view
of the pyramids. Two miles from town the Gezireh Palace rises on the
right, surrounded by gardens, which, unlike those of Choubra, are
carefully tended.