canja to descend the river
as far as Berber, from whence he would proceed by the desert to Egypt.
Agreeably to the promise of the Pasha, I accompanied him. We arrived at
Nousreddin in Berber in five days and nights. Having the favor of the
current, and sixteen oarsmen on board, we descended with great rapidity.
The view of the country from the river is not pleasing, as the villages
lie almost invariably far off from the river; the country, therefore,
has the appearance of being almost uninhabited. We saw great numbers of
hippopotami, who, in the night, would lift their heads out of the water
at no great distance from the canja. They were sometimes fired at, but
without apparent effect. We stopped, during the night, for an hour at
Shendi, to leave orders from the Pasha to a small garrison of Turkish
troops stationed there.[66] The river Nile, below the point of junction
with the great Bahar el Abiud, presents a truly magnificent spectacle.[67]
Between Halfya and Shendi, the river is straitened and traverses a deep
and gloomy defile formed by high rocky hills, between which the Nile
runs dark, deep, and rapidly for about twelve or fifteen miles. On
emerging from this defile, the river again spreads itself majestically,
and flows between immense plains of herbage, bounded only by the
horizon: its banks nearly full, but not yet overflowed. About thirty
miles above Nousreddin, we passed the mouth of the Bahar el Iswood (on
the eastern shore); it is the last river that empties into the Nile. I
estimated it at about two-thirds of a mile broad at its embouchure.
The Nile, below the point of junction with this river, is more than two
miles from bank to bank, at this season. During the two first days of
our voyage, we had some severe squalls and very heavy rains; but after
passing the territory of Sennaar, we had a sky almost without a cloud.

On our arrival at Nousreddin, no more dromedaries could be immediately
obtained than were sufficient to mount the courier and his two guides. I
was, therefore, obliged to tarry five days in Nousreddin before I could
find a caravan journeying to Egypt.

On the 28th of Shawal, I quitted Nousreddin, along with a caravan on
its way to Egypt from Sennaar, conducted by a soldier attached to the
Cadilaskier of the army of Ismael Pasha, who was conducting to Egypt
twenty-two dromedaries and camels, and some slaves, belonging to the
Cadilaskier, and four fine horses belonging to the Pasha.

We st