into a meaningless ceremony, as by the drainage of the Khalig its raison d'être will be destroyed, for, as already mentioned, the intention is to convert the ancient water-way-in the early summer virtually an open sewer-into a tramway.

Aqueduct. The ruined aqueduct near the mouth of the Khalig is a very picturesque feature, and though the guide-books are inclined to ignore it, it is quite worth a visit. The local guides ascribe it to Saladin, but it was actually built by the Sultan Ghuri.

It was intended to supply the citadel with water from the Nile, and though now in a ruinous condition, traces of the grand workmanship can still be recognised. The length is about two and a quarter miles, and the water was conducted by seven stages, being raised from one level to the other by Sakyehs. The southern end terminates in a massive square tower over two hundred feet high. The summit can be conveniently reached by a gently inclined pathway, similar to the one at Joseph's well in the Citadel. The view from the top is very striking. Those who intend visiting the Coptic churches, will find it a convenient way of making acquaintance with the puzzling topography of the Coptic quarter.

XII. MINOR SIGHTS

THE principal places of interest in Cairo have now, it is hoped, been described in sufficient detail, but when the visitor has exhausted the regulation sights, he will find that there is still plenty to be seen, and that to know Cairo properly means even more than a winter's study. The Government and other public buildings of Cairo are, with the exception of the Public Library, scarcely worth visiting. It is true that some of the numerous Khedivial Palaces-and the Khedive Ismail, who is responsible for some half a dozen, seems to have had almost as pronounced a mania for building costly and unnecessary palaces, as the late King Ludwig of Bavaria-are on the programme of most of the guides, but these are only worth visiting on account of the beautiful gardens attached to them, notably in the case of Ghezireh (now an hotel) and Shubra Palaces.

The Public Library.

This has recently been

removed to the building of the Arabic Museum

(see page 84) in the Place Bab el Khalk. There

is a fine collection of illuminated copies of the Koran, probably the best collection in existence. One of these, which is written in Kufic characters, is said to be the work of scribes of 1200 years ago. The most valuable books and MSS. in many of the Mosque libraries have been removed to this national library, which contains some 25,000 volumes. The books can be consulted by students if furnished with a consular letter of recommendation.

Port of Cairo. — The artist as well as the ordinary tourist should not omit a stroll along the Boulaq quays. This emporium of all the commerce of Upper Egypt and Nubia is a particularly lively scene, and a colourist would revel in the pictures of native life and the variety of form and colour. Strangers hardly realise that Cairo has an important trading-port at its gates, and certainly no guide would think of suggesting the inclusion of Boulaq in the traveller's daily round of sight-seeing.

Montbard's graphic description in The Land of the Sphinx gives a good idea of what the observant visitor will see; and since the reopening of the Soudan to traders trading dahabeahs from Khartoum and Upper Nubia are frequently

seen.

"Dahabeahs with elevated poops advance: they hail from Esneh with ivory and ostrich feathers;

coffee and incense from Arabia; spice, pearls, precious stones, cashmeres and silk from India arriving by the deserts of Kosseir. Edfu sends its pipes, its charming vases in red and black clay, elegant in form, with gracefully modelled ornaments. And there are heavy barges from Fayyoum, the land of roses, filled to the top with rye, barley, cotton, indigo; dahabiyehs full of carpets, woollen stuffs, flagons of rose-water, and mats made with the reeds of Birketel-Keroun."

Mohammedan Festivals.If the visitor is anxious to get some insight into the life of the people, he should make a point of attending some of the public festivals. These religious fêtes offer a better field for the study of Cairene native life than continuous visits to the region of the bazaars.

The year being lunar, the dates of the festivals vary annually, any particular fête running through all the seasons in the course of thirty-three years. The principal are the Anniversary of the Death of Hassein, Deparature of the Pilgrims for Mecca, Birthday (Molid) of Mahomet, the Night of the Record, and the Great Beiram.

If the date of the commencement of the Moslem year is known, the exact date of any particular festival is easily arrived at, for each month consists of twenty-eight days. For instance, the Moham

medan year 1321, corresponding to 1904 A.D., began on 19th January. During the season 1904-05 strangers will be able to see something of the national fêtes described below.

The most characteristic of all is the Molid (birthday) of Mohammed, a national holiday. But, unfortunately, for the next few years this will fall in September or October, when Egypt is, of course, deserted by tourists.

Night of the Ascension to Paradise. This is celebrated outside the Bab el Edawi. Many of the mosques are lit up with coloured lamps, and special performances of the dancing dervishes take place in the Place Abdin, which is brilliantly illuminated in the evening.

The Night of Honour (Lelet el Kadr).—This commemorates the revelation of the Koran to Mohammed in 609. This is the most solemn night in the whole Mohammedan year, when, according to immemorial custom, the Khedive pays his devotions in the Mosque of Mehemet Ali. The belief is that on this night the Sidr, the lotus-tree which bears as many leaves as there are human beings, is shaken by an angel in Paradise, and on each leaf that falls is inscribed the name of some person who will infallibly die before the end of the year. Naturally, a strong personal interest is behind the prayers and