Asiatic Breezes; Or, Students on The Wing

by Oliver Optic

  CHAPTER XXV

  A VISIT TO THE SPRINGS OF MOSES

  The utility of the Maud was fully demonstrated at Suez, if there hadbeen any doubt of it before, as a tender, and Captain Ringgoldrecognized it especially at this time; for the question of taking herout of the water, and giving her a place on the upper deck, had beenreferred to this point in the voyage, and it was yet to be settled.

  Port Ibrahim is the walled basin south-west of Port Tewfik, orTerreplein as the French call it, extending out to the deep water of theGulf of Suez. The shores are bordered with a shoal in every part. To apractical person the motive of De Lesseps in avoiding the city of Suezwas probably to strike the water at the deepest point, rather thanpolitical.

  The party took their places in the standing-room of the Maud, which hadbeen prepared for their reception. The "Big Four" were again in theirelement, though the pilot had everything his own way. A channeldescribes about a quarter of a circle from the deep water and the veryend of the canal to the north side of the city, in which there is depthenough for the smaller class of vessels engaged in its commerce.

  Most of these crafts were dhows, similar to the felucca with which theparty had become familiar in the Archipelago, and the boys observed onejust astern of them with great interest. They are used on the MalabarCoast in the East Indies as well as in the Red Sea, where it is called a_baggala_, though dhow is the more common name in the far East. They areover two hundred tons burden, and of all sizes below that. They havebeen used for commerce and piracy, which is also true of the felucca ofthe Mediterranean.

  "She sails like the wind," said Captain Scott, after they had looked thecraft over.

  "She is bigger than the Samothraki, whose acquaintance we made inPournea Bay," added Morris.

  "I have read something of the craft in stories about the Malays; and acraft of that sort suggests piracy to me every time, especially sinceour experience in the Archipelago," replied Scott.

  "There are no pirates up here," said the pilot with a laugh, for hespoke English and understood all that was said.

  "What do those dhows bring up here?" asked Louis.

  "Coffee from the ports of Arabia, spices, gums, senna, rose-leaves, andother drugs and perfumes," replied the pilot.

  "What becomes of these articles then?"

  "Some of them are used in Suez; but most of them go by the railroad toCairo, or other parts of Egypt, and I suppose some of them get toEurope and America."

  "They are all rather costly merchandise, and one of those dhows cancarry a big freight of them," added Louis, as he went aft, for MissBlanche was there.

  The pilot brought the Maud up to the custom-house quay; and the dhow,which was not far behind the little steamer, came alongside the piernear her. The company landed, and proceeded to do the town. The pilotappeared to be a Frenchman, and he volunteered to act as a guide for thestrangers. They found the streets very narrow, and not in the bestcondition. They passed over to the south side of the city, where theyobtained a fine view of the Gulf of Suez.

  "Across the water you see the Ataka Mountains, about 2,700 feet high;and sometimes they show the colors of the garnet and amethyst. A fineview is obtained from the top of them, but it would give you a hardclimb," said the guide. "On the other side of the bay it is Asia, ArabiaPetraea."

  "We shall go down to the Springs of Moses to-morrow," added thecommander. "Are you a pilot in that direction?"

  "In all directions, Captain," answered the pilot. "Here is the HotelSuez quite near us, if you wish to visit it."

  "We have no occasion to do so."

  "It is a first-class house, fitted up in English style, and kept by aGerman."

  "What is the price there by the day?" asked the captain from curiosity.

  "Sixteen shillings for the best fare."

  "Four dollars a day."

  "But they have two prices. I have been to New York, and over some ofAmerica, as I have over the rest of the world, and I know your money.For people like yourself, who want the best, breakfast or tiffin is onedollar."

  "Breakfast or what?" asked Mrs. Belgrave.

  "Tiffin," the commander explained. "It means luncheon, and is used byEnglish people in India."

  "Dinner a dollar and a half. The rooms are at different prices. For thesecond-class fare the prices are just half as much as the first."

  "There are a couple of the waiters," said Mrs. Woolridge. "They arenice-looking men, not very black."

  "They come from India, and make better servants than Arabs," added theguide.

  "How slender their forms, and what delicate features they have!"exclaimed the New York lady.

  "You are likely to see a good many of them in the course of the nextmonth or two," suggested the captain, as the walk was continued in thetown. "The houses are about the same as they were in other parts ofEgypt, and they have the same ornamented lattices behind which theladies inside can see you without being seen."

  The party looked into the quarters of the Arabian sailors, consistingof low hovels, but did not enter. The population of the town is nowabout 15,000. Before the time of the canal, it was an Arab village of1,500, with low mud shanties. It was like the desert around it; for nowater was there to brighten the foliage, if there was any, for not atree or a plant was to be seen. The water used was of poor quality,brought from the Springs of Moses by camels and donkeys. It was apoverty-stricken place. But the opening of the fresh-water canal fromthe Nile vivified everything, and vegetation has come into being sincethis event.

  The party examined this canal, to which the place is so much indebtedfor its present appearance, as well as no little of its prosperity. Itis six and a half feet above the level of the Red Sea, and its flow intothe conduits for the supply of the city, as well as the waste into thesea, is regulated by a large lock, with gates. Near this they found thecamel-camp, and not less than five hundred of these animals were thereat the time; and the pilot said he had seen as many as a thousand ofthem there at once. They form the caravans to and from Arabia and Egypt,as well as into Syria.

  The tourists climbed a little hill near the chateau of the Khedive, fromwhich they obtained a fine view of the surroundings, which includedparts of Asia and of Africa. This elevation is said to be the site ofthe ancient Clysma, a fortified place, built to protect the ancientcanal of Darius. The party, especially the "Cupids," were beginning tobe fatigued; and the guide conducted them to the pier, which is anotable feature of the locality.

  "This pier is a mile and three-quarters in length, and reaches over toPort Ibrahim, conveying there a conduit from the fresh-water canal,"said the pilot in a perfunctory manner, as though he had hadconsiderable experience as a guide. "It is forty-eight feet wide, and isbuilt of artificial stone, like the great piers at Fort Said. It iserected on a sand-bank, which curves around in the shape you see thepier. The land you observe at the end of it, about fifty acres of it,was made out of the earth dug out of the canal. The building you seenear the shore is a mosque; and there are several others. We will walkalong the shore to the little steamer."

  The travellers were occasionally assailed by a mob of donkey-boys; butno notice of them was taken, and they reached the Hotel Suez near thelanding-place. The guide pointed out an island near the shore on whichwas located the English Cemetery. There are at the west of the town anEnglish and a French hospital. The party embarked, and the guide went tothe pilot house. In a few minutes more they were on board of the ship.

  It was not yet dinner time, and the arrangements for the trip to theSprings of Moses were made. In the evening, attended by the pilot, Felixand Captain Scott went over to the town again, instructed to visit thehotels and ascertain, if they could, whether the veiled Arab waslodging at any of them. While they were absent the company in the cabinreviewed the pilgrimage of the Israelites, and the events which led tothe receiving of the Law by Moses on Mount Sinai, in which the commanderconducted the inquiry, and read many passages from Exodus and Numbers.

  About ten o'clock in the evening
Captain Scott and Felix reported theresult of their mission. The pilot was well acquainted with the keeperof the Hotel Suez, and the information desired had been readilyobtained. A person answering to the description, though he wore no veil,had come to the hotel. He was suffering much pain from a lame shoulder,and had gone to the French hospital for treatment. They had inquiredabout "Monsieur Abdelkhalik," as he had given his name at the hotel, andwere informed that he was "comfortable," which was all the attendantswould say.

  The commander sent for Dr. Hawkes, and told him about his formerpatient. Mazagan had been very imprudent and even reckless, and hispresent condition was simply what might have been expected, was thedoctor's reply. He might be out again in a week, not sooner, and mightnot for a month. The captain was satisfied there would be no furthermovement on the part of the pirate while he remained at Suez.

  After breakfast the party embarked again in the Maud. Four sailors incharge of Knott were sent on board, and the first cutter of the ship wastaken in tow, to be used in making the landing. The men remained on theforecastle, and the pilot and Knott were already good friends. But the"Big Four" were requested to stay with the party at the stern. Thelittle steamer went out of the basin and down the canal to the bay. Assoon as she came into the open water, the commander took the floor.

  "On your right is Africa; on your left is Asia. You have probably hadenough of Egypt, and now we will confine our attention to Asia; and wehave pleasant Asiatic breezes from the east this morning. The country onyour left is Arabia, and nearest to you is the Peninsula of Sinai. Ithas the Gulf of Suez on its west shore, and the Gulf of Akaba on itseast coast. I spoke to you of Brugsch's theory that the Israelitesjourneyed east, with some diversions by divine command, till they cameto the Sarbonic Lake, in which he said that Pharaoh and his hostperished.

  "Now you are on that portion of the Red Sea where it is more generallybelieved that the fugitives crossed and Pharaoh's army was ingulfed. Theking heard that the wanderers had not passed the fortifications on theisthmus, and he believed they were 'entangled in the land.' Then hebegan the pursuit, with 'the six hundred chosen chariots.' TheIsraelites fled before him, and crossed the waters in the mannerdescribed in the Scriptures.

  "Setting aside the miracle of the parted waves, there are still doubtingcritics who affirm that they crossed the gulf at low tide on thesesands where the pier is built, as was frequently done by caravans beforethe canal was built. The Egyptians continued the pursuit, reaching thegulf before the tide turned, and attempted to follow them; but a strongsouth-west gale sprang up, driving the waters furiously before it, tothe utter destruction of the whole army and its chariots.

  "But I accept the narrative as it is written (Exodus xiv.); and I shouldlike to argue the case with any one who takes the view of Brugsch, orother critics who try to explain the miracle on natural grounds."

  The pilot anchored the Maud as near the shore as the depth would permit,and the party were taken ashore by the sailors in the cutter. Thesprings are about a mile from the landing, and the walk through the sandof the desert was trying to the ladies and to the fat gentlemen. Thepilot acted as guide.

  "Ain Musa, as it is called, is an oasis a mile and a quarter incircumference. As you see, it is covered with date-palms, tamarisks, andacacias, and everything grows luxuriantly," the Frenchman began. "TheArabs who live in the mud hovels you see, raise fine vegetables here;and, like all Arabs, they will expect a bakshish."

  The springs were found to consist of several pools of rather muddywater. The largest of them, shut in by an old wall, is said to be theone called forth by the rod of Moses from the rock; but the traditionis accommodating, and, if you choose, it is the one whose bitter waterswere sweetened by the casting in of the tree.

  The party had brought a luncheon with them, and it was served by Sparksat the usual hour. They had a delightful time under the trees, andlistened to an explanation by the professor of the natural formation ofthe springs. In the middle of the afternoon they embarked, and returnedto the ship in the canal basin.