A Greek, whom the travellers met at Thebes, informed them that, in pursuit of some predatory Arabs, of the village of Amabdi, not far from Manfalout, he had observed several of them disappear by descending into a mummy-pit. He and his Arnaut soldiers went down in search after them, but in vain. At the bottom they observed fragments of mummies of crocodiles, scattered about; and the pit appeared to communicate with lateral galleries of unknown extent, where were probably deposited the crocodile mummies from among which these fragments had been rifled. Our Author and his companions were determined to see what these caves did actually contain, and with considerable difficulty induced some Arabs of Amabdi to become their guides, to the pit, and within it. The descent was a circular hole, of ten feet diameter, and about eighteen deep. Our Author, Mr. Smelt, and the American, descended with three Arabs, leaving one at the top, with an Abyssinian merchant, and the sailors, who were to take care of the clothes; for the Arabs bad recommended them to strip, which they did but in part, keeping on their shirts and trowsers, in the latter of which Mr. L. concealed a brace of pocket pistols, as he by no means liked the manner, and a previous muttering consultation, of the Arabs. Each had a torch, and they found their way from the bottom of this hole into a large chamber, strewed, as the Greek had described, with fragments of crocodile mummies. From this they passed through the windings of a low gallery, and after proceeding for more than an hour, came out into a large apartment which they recognised as the same from which they had set out. The conductors at first denied this, but, on the travellers persisting, acknowledged that it was, and said they had lost their way; but assured the party of being led to the mummies if they would make another attempt. They next approached a chamber guarded by a trench of unknown depth, and wide enough to require a good leap.'

The

The first Arab jumped the ditch, and we all followed him. passage we entered was extremely small, and so low in some places as to oblige us to crawl flat on the ground, and almost always on our hands and knees. The intricacies of its windings resembled a labyrinth, and it terminated at length in a chamber much smaller than that we had left, but, like it, containing nothing to satisfy our curiosity. Our search hitherto had been fruitless, but the mum. mies might not be far distant; another effort and we might still be successful

The Arab whom I followed, and who led the way, now entered another gallery, and we all continued to move in the same manner as before, each preceded by a guide. We had not gone far before the heat became excessive;-for my own part, I found my breathing extremely difficult, my head began to ache most violently, and I had a most distressing sensation of fulness about the heart.

We felt we had got too far, and yet were almost deprived of the power of returning. At this moment, the torch of the first Arab went out: I was close to him, and saw him fall on his side; he uttered a groan-his legs were strongly convulsed, and I heard a rattling noise in his throat-he was dead. The Arab behind me, seeing the torch of his companion extinguished, and conceiving he had stumbled, past me, advanced to his assistance, and stopped. I observed him appear faint, totter, and fall in a moment-he also was dead. The third Arab came forward, and made an effort to approach the bodies, but stopped short. We looked at each other in silent horror. The danger increased every instant; our torches burnt faintly; our breathing become more difficult; our knees tottered under us, and we felt our strength nearly gone.

، There was no time to be lost-the American, Barthow, cried to us to "take courage," and we began to move back as fast as we could. We heard the remaining Arab shouting after us, calling us Caffres, imploring our assistance, and upbraiding us with deserting him. But we were obliged to leave him to his fate, expecting every moment to share it with him. The windings of the passages through which we had come increased the difficulty of our escape; we might take a wrong turn, and never reach the great chamber we had first entered. Even supposing we took the shortest road, it was but too probable our strength would fail us before we arrived. We had each of us separately, and unknown to one another, observed attentively the different shapes of the stones which projected into the galleries we had passed, so that each had an imperfect clue to the labyrinth we had now to retrace. We compared notes, and only on one occasion had a dispute, the American differing from my friend and myself; in this dilemma we were determined by the majority, and fortunately were right. Exhausted with fatigue and terror we reached the edge of the deep trench, which remained to be crossed before we got into the great chamber. Mustering all strength, I leaped, and was followed by the American. Smelt stood on the brink ready to drop with fatigue. He called out to us "for God's sake to help him over the fosse, or at least to stop, if only for five minutes, to allow him time to recover his strength." It was impossible-to stay was death, and we could not resist the desire to push on and reach the open air. We encouraged him to summon all his force, and he cleared the trench. When we reached the open air it was one o'clock, and the heat in the sun about 160°. Our sailors, who were waiting for us, had luckily a bardak full of water, which they sprinkled upon us; but though a little refreshed, it was not possible to climb the sides of the pit; they unfolded their turbans, and slinging them round our bodies, drew us to the top.' p. 113.

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The state of debility in which they emerged from this den of death, was stimulated to immediate effort by apprehensions of another kind. Not venturing to tell the plain truth of a fact of which they were aware it would be of little use to attempt to explain the cause to the barbarians of the place, they replied

to the inquiries of the astonished Arab who had remained at the mouth of the pit, that his three friends would soon appear, being employed in bringing out the mummies which had been

found;' and they hastened away to reach their cangia, moored at Manfalout, in order to be gone before there should be time for the rage of the Arabs to be brought upon them by the belief that they had murdered their guides. The stupidity, however, of the master of the vessel, detained it many hours from getting it into the stream; and when that was effected, the wind was so contrary that they had only proceeded a few miles when Turks on horseback and Arabs on foot came to the bank, and, within pistol shot, summoned them, in the name of the cacheff of the town, to answer for the murder. On a stipulation with the Turks for their protection while walking back to the town, and an allowance to carry their arms, they returned, and were • received with a shout of revengeful joy by a large assemblage of armed Arabs of Amabdi, waiting at the house of the cacheff; and he himself, notwithstanding their explanation, and the firman of the Pasha of Egypt, affected to treat them in an angry and menacing manner. Retiring however, and summoning them into a private apartment, he quite changed his tone, admitted the truth of their story, but told them the best service he could render them, was to assist them to escape secretly, while he amused their enemies; for that he had no sufficient force to protect them if the numerous armed population of Amabdi should rise on the occasion. It was so managed therefore that they got again on board their boat, which they rowed with all their might; but they were soon again arrested by the appearance of a number of Arabs who threatened to fire upon them if they did not return. On reaching the town, they met, among their vociferous assailants, the wives and children of the men who had perished, naked and smeared with mud, according to their accustomed fashion of mourning. Among the crowd at the cacheff's house, they recognised the Arab whom they had left alive, but with no doubt of his inevitable fate, in the cavern. 'His appearance was most wretched, he was unable to stand, and was supported by two of his friends.' This man, on being appealed to, confirmed the charge of murder, and being interrogated as to the mode, said it was by magic. The incredulity, excited in some of the auditors, by this allegation, combined with the force of some of the circumstances proved in defence, produced a kind of pause of the indignant violence, of which the culprits availed themselves to demand, with a peremptory air, and with threatening references to the alliance of their king with the despot of Egypt, to be instantly sent, together with their accusers, to Ibrahim Bey, the son of that despot, and governor of Upper Egypt, whose reputation for

cruelty made his very name terrible to the company. At length, a moderate sum of money was suggested in the way of compromise, to which, after a short politic affectation of haughtily refusing it, the captives gladly agreed; and they were soon again making the best of their way down the Nile.

At Miniet, they were arrested by full and positive information of the prevalence of the plague in Lower Egypt, to which therefore they concluded it prudent not to approach, for some time, any nearer than their present distance of more than a hundred miles. They had at the same time descended a great way below those magnificent localities, (of Thebes, Dendera, &c.) where days and weeks of detention might have been passed away in the deep and prolonged interest of research and contemplation. It is doubtless the duty of readers, sitting at their ease, to abstain from any expressions of wonder, that the adventurers, when they saw it probable they must not for a considerable time pursue their voyage to the end, should have had no thought of taking advantage of a north wind, to return to some of those memorable scenes which they had evidently passed too slightly; or, on the other hand, of venturing down in sight of some of the objects nearer the precincts of Cairo. But it does seem a very ill-starred appointment for men of taste and research, who did not, probably, expect to see Egypt any more, to have spent, on the edge of that stream which had come past the Memnonium, and Luxor, and Karnac, and was flowing on to pass near the Pyramids, more than a month at an insignificant spot, where there was confessedly great difficulty to find expedients to help on the dull course of time.--At length they descended to Cairo and Rosetta, just about the time that the mightiest of diseases was attaining its widest operation. There is a rather interesting detail of the system of precautions to which our Author attributes the impunity which he and a number of English and other friends in Rosetta enjoyed, while several weeks immediately surrounded by its ravages. He describes the effects of the fearless and practical fatalism of the Turks and Arabs; and he notices some facts favourable to the opinion, that the danger of infection would not be great were it possible to avoid every kind of contact.

Before quitting Rosetta, and Egypt itself, Mr. L. has occasion to mention another sample of the exemplary economy of his government, in a transaction for supplying the army in Spain with horses from Egypt.

The Appendix consists of a short account, and a partial interpretation, accompanied with an engraved fac-simile, of some fragments of Thebaic MSS. on leather, purchased at Elephantine, but confessedly of no material value; and a rapid Itinerary of Syria, which was furnished to the travellers by Shekh Ibra

him, and which they would no doubt have found of very great use, if the plague had permitted the execution of their project of such a journey.

In dismissing the book, we think that a description of the present state of the country on the banks of the Nile, to the distance of not very much less than two hundred miles south of Syene, is fairly an acquisition of some considerable value to geography. The publication is very elegant in point of paper and printing; but this will hardly account for such a price fixed on such a volume.

Art. II. A Course of Lectures; containing a Description and systematic Arrangement of the several Branches of Divinity: accompanied with an Account both of the principal Authors, and of the Progress which has been made at different Periods in Theological Learning. By Herbert Marsh, D. D. F. R. S. Margaret Professor of Divinity. (Now Bishop of Landaff.) Part IV. On the Interpretation of Prophecy. pp. 86. Price 2s. 6d. Deighton, Cambridge. Rivingtons, London. 1816.

THE First Part of this course of Lectures, was published

in 1809; the Second, in the following year; the Third was not published till 1813; and now, after an interval of three years, the Fourth Part has at length issued from the press. Should the publication of the remaining Parts of these Lectures be delayed in a similar manner, a long period must elapse before the Course can be completed, as a small proportion only of the design is yet executed.

From the learned Translator of Michaelis's Introduction we might justly be prepared to expect a masterly discussion of theological topics. A mind so much enriched with varied and extensive erudition, so little disposed to acquiesce in opinions which cannot endure the severest scrutiny, so accustomed to vigorous exertion, so trained to accuracy, and so highly matured, as is that of the Margaret Professor, excites our interest in its undertakings, and gives us the promise of amply rewarding our continued attention to its productions. On the present occasion, however, we feel disposed to complain of disappointment. We have carefully perused the pamphlet before us, and on pausing to reflect on the advantages gained by having accompanied the learned Author in his theological strictures, we are unable to perceive that any real acquisition has been made to our stock of knowledge, or that any of our difficulties are removed: what was previously unknown, remains still undiscovered, and what was obscure and perplexing, still needs illustration. This series of the Lectures comprises only four. It is we think, the least interesting and the least instructive of any portion of them. As we proceed in our remarks, we shall have to point