nd to
refer to. Near to the ruins of Saladin's palace, the Pasha is now
constructing a mosque, which, when finished, will be one of the most
splendid temples of the kind in all the Moslem land. It is to be lined
and faced with marble, very elegantly carved, but it will take three
years to complete it, and should any circumstances occur to delay the
work during the lifetime of the present ruler of Egypt, the chances
seem much in favour of its never being completed at all. Mounting on
the embrasure of one of the guns, I feasted my eyes upon one of the
finest and most interesting views I had ever beheld. The city, with
its minarets, towers, kiosks, and stately palm-trees, lay at my feet,
displaying, by its extent, the solidity, loftiness, and magnificence
of its buildings, its title to the proud name of "Grand Cairo."
Beyond, in one wide flood of silver, flowed the Nile, extending far as
the eye could reach along a plain verdant with its fertilizing waters.
To the left, the tombs of the caliphs spread themselves over a desert
waste, looking, indeed, like a city of the dead. These monuments,
though not equalling in size and grandeur the tombs which we find in
India, are very striking; they are for the most part surmounted by
cupolas, raised upon lofty pillars, with the spaces open between. Upon
one of these buildings we were shown a vessel in the form of a boat,
which upon a certain festival is filled with grain and water, for the
service of the birds.

The Pyramids, which rise beyond the City of Tombs, are not seen to
advantage from this point, an intervening ridge of sand cutting off
the bases, and presenting the pinnacles only to view; but the whole of
the landscape, under the clear bright atmosphere of an Egyptian sky,
is of so exquisite a nature, that the eye can never tire of it, and
had I been detained as a prisoner in the Pasha's dominions, I might
have become reconciled to my fate, had I been confined in a situation
which commanded this splendid prospect.

About the middle of the day we again sallied forth, the streets of
Cairo being so narrow that the sun is completely shut out, and shade
thus afforded at noon. The air was not unpleasantly warm, and we
suffered no inconvenience, excepting from the crowd. Mounted upon
donkeys, we pushed our way through a dense throng, thrusting aside
loaded camels, which scarcely allowed us room to pass, and coming
into the closest contact with all sorts of people. The perusal of