by Oliver Optic
CHAPTER XXVI
THE VARIOUS ROUTES TO MOUNT SINAI
The next day was Sunday; and, in accordance with the custom from thebeginning of the voyage, no unnecessary work was required to be done byany person, and the business of sight-seeing was discontinued. But allwere at liberty to observe the day in their own way. Religious serviceswere conducted by the commander on the deck or in the cabin, which wereusually attended by all. Most of them went to church on shore when itwas convenient; but going to see the edifice or the pictures they didnot regard as a devotional exercise.
It was a warm and pleasant day for the seventeenth of January, inlatitude 30 deg., about the same as New Orleans or the northern part ofFlorida; and the service was held in Conference Hall, as the carpetedsection of the promenade deck had come to be called. The captain beganthe exercises by reading selections from Exodus xv.:--
"Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, andspake, saying, I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphedgloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. TheLord is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is myGod, and I will prepare him a habitation; my father's God, and I willexalt him.... Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea:his chosen captains also are drowned in the Red sea. The depths havecovered them: they sank into the bottom as a stone."
Several "Gospel Hymns" were sung, and the sermon read by the commanderwas as nearly fitted to the surroundings as any he could find in hiscollection. After the service Mrs. Blossom struck up "Turn backPharaoh's Army, Hallelu!" in which those who knew this Jubilee Singers'melody joined. The conversation that followed naturally turned in thedirection of the Peninsula of Sinai, which they could see from the deck.
"Are we going to Mount Sinai, Captain Ringgold?" asked Mrs. Belgrave, ina rather decided tone for her, as though she intended to have thequestion settled this time.
A great deal had been said by the ladies from Von Blonk Park in relationto this proposed excursion; but for some reason of his own the commanderhad not yet given a definite answer. They all attended the same churchat home, and the captain and the two ladies were members of it. Whilethe others of the party were deeply interested in the Biblical history,they were not so enthusiastic as the two ladies mentioned.
"Are we going to Mount Sinai?" replied the commander, repeating thequestion of the owner's mother, "No!"
It was a decided "no" this time, and the jaws of the two Von BlonkParkites suddenly dropped. Everybody in the company knew that thecommander would do anything, even to swimming across the gulf where thechildren of Israel had walked over, to oblige her, and they were verymuch surprised at the emphatic negative.
"I shall not finally decide this interesting question without giving myreasons," continued Captain Ringgold. "It would be an extremelyinteresting excursion to me, as well as to the others. Though I havebeen to Suez before, I have not made the trip, and I should be as gladto go as any person present. Many travellers go there, especiallyclergymen, to whom it is in a sense professional, aside from theinterest their studies would naturally create in the subject, and theexcursion finds a place in many excellent books of travel. I do notconsult my own personal desires so much as the situation andcircumstances in which we are placed.
"Although we call our voyage an All-Over-the-World affair, the title isconsiderably exaggerated in the truest and most literal sense; for if wedevoted the rest of our natural lives to the work, we could not goeverywhere. It is impossible to visit every country on the earth even,and we must use judgment and discretion in determining where we will go.We are travelling by sea, making only such excursions inland as thefacilities of the country we visit will conveniently permit. Such tripsas we make of this kind must be regulated or controlled by conditionsover which we have no influence.
"Times and seasons form an important consideration. We are going toIndia, and the season is advancing. The southern end of the Red Sea isin latitude 12 deg. north, where you are likely to see some hot weather;and the longer we delay, the hotter it will be. We shall sail from hereTuesday morning; and if we do not make a run up into the Persian Gulf,we shall probably be at Bombay by the first of next month. That city isin latitude 19 deg., or about that of the south side of Cuba, of which youknow something. We shall see plenty of extremely hot weather, but wewish to avoid it as much as possible.
"There are several routes to Mount Sinai, three from Suez, and two fromports south of it. It will take from two weeks by the shortest route tofour by the others. It is a very fatiguing journey if made with duediligence, and it would require a full month for us to see the countryproperly. My first objection is the time it would require.
"In the next place, the expense is from forty to fifty francs a day,eight to ten dollars, for each person, over a hundred dollars a day. Ifthe result justified it, I should not object to the expense, and I don'tthink Uncle Moses would. There are no hotels in this region, and youwould have to camp out, live in hovels, or at best in the monastery; andthe trip would involve a great deal of discomfort to persons notaccustomed to roughing it. The 'Big Four' might make a pleasant affairof it, but most of the others would not.
"All the preparations for the excursion have to be made at Cairo, wheredragomans who contract to supply tents, camels, food, and everythingrequired are to be found, and I was approached by three of them atShepheard's Hotel."
"Then the trip seems to be impossible now, and it is useless to talkabout it," suggested Mr. Woolridge; and the captain thought he couldperceive an expression of relief on his face.
"It is not impossible," added the commander with a smile. "We can go toTur, 140 miles south of Suez, and there we shall find camels and acontractor, though perhaps not for so large a company. I do not thinkour party would enjoy the trip whichever way we might go. It is a roughcountry, a group of mountains. The Monastery is 5,014 feet high, and itmust be cold weather up there in January. The Jebel Musa, which isusually regarded as the Holy Mountain, is 7,363 feet high; but evenMount Sinai itself is disputed ground, and the question 'Is Mount Serbalthe Sinai of Scripture?' is discussed by the critics. Serbal is 8,712feet high, the loftiest, I believe, on the peninsula, and is nearer tothe gulf than the others.
"I believe the discomfort and exposure of the trip render itimpracticable at the present time and at the present season. Theguide-books indicate the months of March and April as the best for theexcursion; and it is too early to go now with comfort, not to sayenjoyment. Of course I do not know what Mr. Belgrave, under the adviceof his guardian and trustee, will do with the Guardian-Mother when ourpresent voyage shall be completed; but if he should retain the steamer,I should recommend him to make a trip across the ocean at the righttime, and up the Mediterranean, by the Gulf of Iskanderun toAlexandretta, which is near the head waters of the Euphrates River, aproposed route to India by the Persian Gulf, of which I may havesomething to say another day.
"From this city the steamer could take in the ports of the Holy Land, orher passengers could journey through Syria by land, with tents anddragoman. The ship could then be left at Port Said, the party could comethrough the canal to Suez in the Maud, or by some other conveyance, andthen make a business of exploring the Peninsula of Sinai," said thecommander in conclusion.
"That arrangement would suit me much better," added Mrs. Belgrave. "Ihave been groaning at the necessity of going home without seeing theHoly Land. I shall keep this plan in my mind as one to be carried out ina couple of years if my son does not object to it."
"The Guardian-Mother shall not go out of commission until this voyage iscompleted," replied Louis promptly. "Captain Ringgold is engaged ascommander for life, and he will attend to the accomplishment of mymother's wishes."
"I thank you, Mr. Belgrave, for the confidence thus reposed in me, and Ishall be most happy to command the steamer on such a voyage," repliedthe captain. "We cannot calculate on events of the future with too muchassurance."
The day passed away quietly with reading
and singing, and very early inthe morning the passengers heard an unusual sound of activity on thepart of the ship's company. The captain had given orders the nightbefore to have everything made ready for hoisting on deck the Maud. Hehad announced his intention to the "Big Four" in his cabin, and givenhis reasons for his decision. Scott and Felix regretted this change inthe programme of the voyage more than the other two.
"The Red Sea is sometimes a very stormy place," said the commander. "Ihave feared more than anything else when you have been sailing in theMaud that she might get separated from the ship in a fog, or in someother manner, and that the little steamer might come to grief, howeverwell she might be handled; for she certainly is not large enough for anindependent voyage.
"In the very last paper I received from New York, I read of a newsteam-yacht to be built by a millionaire for the voyage around the worldwhich has lately become the fad of millionaires. One item struck myattention; that she was to be armed with four cannon whose calibre wasnot given, as well as with a supply of small arms. The wealthy voyagerwas afraid of pirates, or some other freebooters on the Malabar andMalay coasts, as well as among the islands of the Indian Ocean and thoseof the Pacific.
"As you are aware, I took the same precautions myself; and I only regretnow that I did not take on board more guns and small arms. We have hadoccasion to use our twelve-pounders on one occasion, and perhaps, if theship had reached the coast of Cyprus at the time I expected, I mighthave found them useful. I do not anticipate any trouble from nativepirates wherever we may go; but I think the Maud is a temptation toArabs and other natives.
"In 1882 Edward Henry Palmer, an Englishman, while on a peaceful missionwith two officers of the British service, was murdered by the natives,with his two companions, near Suez, but on the other side of the gulf.If I were sure that the ship could always be near enough to defend thelittle steamer if attacked, I should feel different about it. Then weare liable to encounter fearful storms, cyclones, in the Indian Ocean,and I think it is more prudent to have the little craft on our deck,rather than in the water."
Neither Captain Scott nor Felix was disposed to argue the question, andthey said nothing. Early in the morning the work of preparation beganwith the removal of everything heavy from the Maud that was not afixture. She was a large steam-launch to be hoisted on the deck of asteamer no larger than the Guardian-Mother; but the task wassatisfactorily accomplished by lunch-time. The afternoon was used inbracing the craft in her position, and putting everything around her inship-shape condition.
The space occupied by Conference Hall had been taken; but the captainhad set the carpenter at work to extend the promenade six feet aft, andthe work was completed before night. The carpet was laid, and thearm-chairs removed to the new Conference Hall. The awning overhead wasto be lengthened out by the sailmakers among the crew.
Mr. Shafter had always insisted that his force was too small, and thecaptain admitted the truth of his position. Felipe Garcias had stood onthe books of the ship as third engineer for several months; and JohnDonald was made fourth engineer. The chief was entirely satisfied withthe appointments. Pitts returned to his place on the forecastle as aseaman. The "Big Four" had staterooms in the cabin. After all, thechange was only the restoration of the old order of things before theship arrived at Gibraltar.
At daylight the next morning the Guardian-Mother hauled out of thebasin, and started on her voyage for the other extremity of the RedSea.