Foot-prints of travel; or, Journeyings in many lands . e keener sighted or more expert inthe water. The general aspect of Aden from the sea, though pic-turesque, is not inviting, giving one an idea of great barren-ness. The mountains and rocks have a peaked appearance,like a spear pointed at one, as much as to say, betterkeep off. People who land, however, for the first time,are agreeably disappointed by finding that every oppor-tunity for encouraging the growth of vegetation and im-parting its cheerful effect to the hard rocky soil has beencarefully improved. Our course after leaving Aden is
Foot-prints of travel; or, Journeyings in many lands . e keener sighted or more expert inthe water. The general aspect of Aden from the sea, though pic-turesque, is not inviting, giving one an idea of great barren-ness. The mountains and rocks have a peaked appearance,like a spear pointed at one, as much as to say, betterkeep off. People who land, however, for the first time,are agreeably disappointed by finding that every oppor-tunity for encouraging the growth of vegetation and im-parting its cheerful effect to the hard rocky soil has beencarefully improved. Our course after leaving Aden is nearly north; theheadlands of Abyssinia are long visible on our port side,while on the other we have a distant view of , the seaport of Mecca, with its bright minarets, isto be seen in the distance. In coasting along the shores ofNubia, the dense air from off the land is like a sirocco,suffocatingly hot. Suez is reached at last, a place which isall waste and barrenness, so we hasten on by railway toCairo, a distance of two hundred Page 129. A WELL IN THE DESERT BETWEEN SUEZ AND CAIRO. yOURNEYINGS IN MANY LANDS. 129 Long after leaving Suez we see only a sandy desert, theyellow soil quivering in the heated atmosphere. It is a pic-ture of desolation. Not a blade of grass, not a shrub or tree,until by and by we come upon gently undulating and fertilesoil, enriched by the annual deposits from the Nile, whereintelligent cultivation produces its natural results. Smallherds of brown buffaloes or Eastern oxen are seen, andpeasants plying the irrigating-buckets. The pastures be-come alive with sheep and goats and dromedaries. Whilewe are approaching Cairo, and are yet two or three leaguesaway, the dim outlines of the everlasting pyramids are seenthrough the shimmering haze, softly outlined against theevening sky. It is impossible not to recall the words ofthe Humpback, in the Thousand and One Nights, as wesee the pyramids and glistening minarets of the Orientalcity c
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade188, booksubjectvoyagesaroundtheworld
