"We went to the bazaar; a strange scene of filth and wretchedness. The shops were poorly supplied,except in the article of cucumbers; but the miserable objects that were crawling about,-sore-eyed children perched on their mothers' shoulders, with faces half devoured by flies,— old men half-blind,—and all filthy in the extreme, presented a scene that cannot be described. At twelve o'clock, the muzzein, who were standing on the minaret of the mosque, called the people to prayer, for it was noon. The deep-toned and prolonged cry of these watchmen is heard over the whole city; and if it were a call to the worship of the true God, would have a solemn effect. . . As it was Friday, the mosques were all open. Looking into one of them, we observed a row of turbaned worshippers, all kneeling at the same time. On approaching too near the door, we were warned to withdraw. Looking into another, we observed a man in a kind of pulpit addressing the worshippers, who were seated in a row upon a marble floor, with their eyes directed towards the preacher."—Mission to the Jews.

VOYAGE BY CANAL TO CAIRO.

CAIRO-DESCRIPTIONS OF THE CITY-BOULAC.

HAVING secured a passage by the canal boat, we embarked for Cairo. The boat or barge is narrow, dirty, and uncomfortable; but proceeds at great speed, drawn by horses at full gallop on the bank; the palmtree ropes now and then breaking, and the steeds bolting, pursued by well-mounted Arabs, yelling with all their might. This canal is considered a great wonder; but is little better than a broad ditch, rudely dug through a level country requiring no locks. In 1819, the pasha commenced the undertaking by seizing a hundred thousand peasants, and set them to work under military discipline, the wages principally paid by the bastinado,

Those who had not spades wherewith to dig, had fingers and nails to scoop and scratch withal; and so, at the end of one year, the canal was opened, with little expense beyond the bread and onions consumed by a hundred thousand peasants; more than twenty thousand of whom left their bones in this grave of their own digging. NOZRANI in Egypt.

66 Cairo, Nov. 1845.-This morning I awoke in a new world! The sun, the bright sunshine of Egypt, streamed in golden rays through the curtains of the vast projecting window of my bedchamber; strange, unwonted noises were heard in the street below, and roused me from a dream of home. Throwing open the casement, my eyes were greeted with such oriental groupings as riveted me to the spot. Early as the hour was, the space before the hotel was already full of life, and movement, and noise, (for nothing here is done quietly.)

"Near the door were kneeling two camels laden with stones, and growling vehemently . . . here a group of old Arabs in huge white turbans, squatted under a wall, were waving their flyflappers over the heaps of flat cakes of bread and ripe dates that were spread upon the ground before them, for sale. There stood a serpent charmer, with a large living snake coiled twice round his neck, and a bag full of lively vipers in each hand, offering his services to whoever wished their premises to be cleared of such unwelcome guests. In the centre of the place were gathered together twenty or thirty donkeys, all ready caparisoned for hire, with high fronted saddles covered with red morocco, and carpets spread over them, fit to carry gentleman or lady; and their noisy drivers standing by, vociferating among themselves as Arabs only can do; their dark slender limbs covered merely with a blue cotton shirt, their swarthy faces surmounted by a white turban, scarcely one among them possessing two eyes, such are the ravages of ophthalmia in this clime. Immediately facing my window rises the tall minaret of a neighbour

ing mosque, and from its upper gallery sounded the deep-toned cry of the muezzin calling to prayer. And now rushed by a half-naked Arab, running at the top of his speed, and loudly cracking a long whip to clear the way for the Caireen gentleman in silken robes, who followed upon a richly caparisoned steed, all covered with velvet, and gold, and tassels; his pipe bearer riding close behind him. And hark! what shrieks are those? ... The Moristan (or public madhouse) of Cairo is close by, and the frantic merriment and wild yells of its wretched inmates mingle with the busy hum of every-day life.

"The approach to our house is by the usual narrow lane, where the projecting lattices of the upper story almost meet. These lanes issue from streets somewhat broader, constituting the great thoroughfares of the city, from which they are separated by large wooden gates, closed at night, and guarded by porters wrapped in the hooded white blanket Arab cloak; and before admission can be gained, the challenge of the warders must be answered: Proclaim that God is one.' Reply: 'There is no God but God.' The zealous Mussulman may add, Mohammed is the Prophet of God.'

"No one is allowed to walk after sunset without a lantern, usually made of transparent waxed cloth, which folds up flat between a top and bottom of thin copper or pasteboard.

"The streets of Cairo, if streets they may be called that are seldom more than six feet wide, are altogether unpaved; and to avoid intolerable dust, the water carriers are employed to sprinkle the contents of their dripping goatskins, right and left, through every thoroughfare. If the aspersion be at all too liberal, the dry mud becomes a slippery, slimy paste, upon which man and beast, i.e. rider and donkey, are very apt to measure their length. The first stories of the houses are usually built of stone, striped alternately red and white; the upper part of sun-dried bricks; the large

projecting windows are of wooden lattice-work, admitting sufficient air and light for those within, but effectually screening them from the observation of those without; glass panes are seldom found and little needed in a climate where it scarcely ever rains, and where the winter temperature averages nearly 60°. The street doors are often highly ornamented with arched stonework, the wood being painted red, green, and white. The entry to each house is usually guarded by a porter; (and a) zigzag passage, which baffles curious eyes from the street, (leads) into a court yard, upon which look the windows of the hareem, or women's apartments. The fair inmates often take up a position behind the lattices, where they see, unseen; while various entertainments of dancing, music, singing, and story-telling are frequently carried on below for their amusement. The great object of domestic architecture is, to keep the hareem sacred from all intrusion and observation."

"We were preceded to the hotel at Cairo by a running fellah, cracking a long whip to clear the way, and another carrying over his shoulder a long pole, upon the summit of which was affixed an iron cresset filled with blazing wood,—a magnificent description of link, and an indispensable night accompaniment in a city where street lamps are unknown.

"Cairo is purely an Arab city. . . the houses are most picturesque in their construction, with large prominent windows of wooden lattice-work elegantly carved, the upper stories projecting over the lower ones so as almost to exclude sunshine from the narrow streets, in many of which the opposite houses nearly touch each other. Mosques and public fountains are numerous and beautiful; the shops are small, and presenting no outward show of merchandize; the owner sits crosslegged upon a carpet spread over his shopboard, which contains just space enough to accommodate one customer on the cushion that occupies the other end. As to the costume of the people, you see flowing Caireen robes of

silk, or the elegant dress of cloth, richly braided. The dark face of the Copt looks more sombre, surmounted by his black turban; the wild eyes of the Mecca Arab flash

brightly beneath the voluminous folds of his snowy muslin turban :' the Mograbbyn moves majestically along, wrapped in his white burnoose; and the Egyptian lady, mounted on her 'high ass,' preceded by a black eunuch, and enveloped from head to foot in a vast wrapping mantle of black silk, which leaves nothing visible but her dark, elongated eyes peering forth from