autiful of men, built it for his most beautiful
beloved, and there they lived in perfect beauty and happiness all alone.
If the weather had not been so cold while I was there I should have lived
in the temple, in a chamber sculptured with the mystery of Osiris' burial
and resurrection. Omar cleaned it out and meant to move my things there
for a few days, but it was too cold to sleep in a room without a door.
The winds have been extraordinarily cold this year, and are so still. We
have had very little of the fine warm weather, and really been pinched
with cold most of the time. On the shore away from the river would be
much better for invalids.

Mustapha Aga, the consular agent at Thebes, has offered me a house of
his, up among the tombs in the finest air, if ever I want it. He was
very kind and hospitable indeed to all the English there. I went into
his hareem, and liked his wife's manners very much. It was charming to
see that she henpecked her handsome old husband completely. They had
fine children and his boy, about thirteen or so, rode and played Jereed
one day when Abdallah Pasha had ordered the people of the neighbourhood
to do it for General Parker. I never saw so beautiful a performance.
The old General and I were quite excited, and he tried it to the great
amusement of the Sheykh el Beled. Some young Englishmen were rather
grand about it, but declined mounting the horses and trying a throw. The
Sheykh and young Hassan and then old Mustapha wheeled round and round
like beautiful hawks, and caught the palm-sticks thrown at them as they
dashed round. It was superb, and the horses were good, though the
saddles and bridles were rags and ends of rope, and the men mere
tatterdemalions. A little below Thebes I stopped, and walked inland to
Koos to see a noble old mosque falling to ruin. No English had ever been
there and we were surrounded by a crowd in the bazaar. Instantly five or
six tall fellows with long sticks improvised themselves our body-guard
and kept the people off, who _du reste_ were perfectly civil and only
curious to see such strange 'Hareem,' and after seeing us well out of the
town evaporated as quietly as they came without a word. I gave about
ten-pence to buy oil, as it is Ramadan and the mosque ought to be
lighted, and the old servant of the mosque kindly promised me full
justice at the Day of Judgment, as I was one of those Nasranee of whom
the Lord Mohammed said that they are not pro