P.S. You will be glad to hear that I have sent our friend the Kiashef, a little Arabic library, consisting of Robinson Crusoe, two or three books on history, the Arabic atlas I mentioned in my last letter from Cairo, a summary of the Old, and the whole of the New Testament. Adieu, once more. March 2. P. S. (bis.) We revisited the pyramids yesterday, and were most kindly received by Colonel Vyse, who is carrying on his researches there in person, Caviglia having quitted the field. He has attacked the three Pyramids and the Sphinx, all at once, with a troop of nearly two hundred Arabs. In Cheops'she is in hopes of discovering the chamber above Davison's, and an entrance on the western side, corresponding to that on the northern in its degree of distance from the centre, calculating that, the one being so many feet to the left, the other will be as many to the right of it. We saw an immense stone, that his workmen had dislodged, roll down the side of the pyramid; it was sad to see the sleep of four thousand years so rudely broken! Colonel Vyse is cutting right into the heart of the third pyramid, but as yet has found no chamber; when he reaches the centre, he intends boring right up and down. He has bored thirty feet into the sphinx, in expectation of finding the chamber said to exist inside it -as yet without effect. He has many other ideas experimenting, and I should not be surprised if he make some curious discoveries.* We dined with him, and returned to Cairo, much gratified with his kind attentions, the same afternoon. * Colonel Vyse's success subsequent to our visit to him at the Pyramids has indeed been most gratifying. EDOM AND THE HOLY LAND. LETTER VII. Journey to Mount Sinai. Desert of Suez Mara Route of the Israelites Wady Shellal - Wady Mokatteb-Wady Feiran-Ascent to the Sinaite Mountains Ascent of Mount St. Catherine- Of Gebel Mousa-Of Gebel Minnegia, possibly the real Sinai. My dear A Convent of St. Catherine, Mount Sinai, Finding a Polish pilgrim here, about to return to Cairo, I seize the opportunity of letting you and my dear mother know, a month sooner than otherwise I could, how well we have got on hitherto, and under what peculiarly favourable auspices we are likely to continue our journey by Petra to Jerusalem. On Monday, the sixth of March, we started on our voyage through the desert, (1) a caravan of ten camels, with two tents, one for our followers Missirie and Abdallah, the other (an Indian one, of bamboos) for ourselves. We arrived at Suez on the fourth day. The hot kamsin, or southerly wind, blew violently all Monday, bringing clouds of sand, and pelting us with small pebbles, which made our Arab gillie-comstrains skip, as they rattled against their naked legs — never was I in a heavier hail-storm; luckily, I had provided myself at Cairo with a Turkish scarf, which protected my eyes; my lips were parched and chapped for several days afterwards, and a book in my pocket was scorched as if it had been held to the fire. But we were fairly in the desert-delightful thought! pilgrims following the steps of the Israelites to the Promised Land. We halted a little before sunset, and pitched the smaller of our two tents, (the wind being too high for the other), in a hollow between two mounds, which afforded a few thorns and tufts of arid grass for the camels, and tolerable shelter for ourselves. I really felt ashamed when we were fairly established in the tent, seated on our iron bedsteads, with a table, our old ship-mate on the Nile, between us far too comfortable. first part of the night, and we thought the tent would have flown away, but it weathered it :-we were covered with sand when we woke on Tuesday morning; much rain succeeded, but it cleared up before we started, and the day turned out delightful; there was little sun, but the wind had changed to the west, a fresh exhilarating breeze. It blew quite a storm the The weather, indeed, has been charming ever since. I always commenced the day with a long walk; nothing can be more enjoyable ; —the desert, half gravel, half sand, crunches under the feet like snow ;-sometimes bounded |