key in Egypt, me speak verry good Engleesh,
alla way gallop."

And so on in a continuous yell. The dragoman shouts out the numbers of
the donkeys, and helps the ladies of the party to mount. Some ride on
side-saddles, others, unused to any form of riding, prefer to get up
astride, which they find difficult in the tight modern skirts. One
German girl, after a frantic attempt, has to give it up, and sits
wobbling on her saddle with her arms round the donkey-boy's neck,
agonisingly appealing to him not to move! A very stout lady in black is
lifted on to her mount by the united efforts of the dragoman and two
donkey-boys, and, held in position by the boys, moves off, threatening a
convulsive landslide to one side or the other at every step.

We are lucky in securing two fine greyish-white animals, almost as large
as mules and very well fed and kept; yours is named "Sirdar" and has a
single blue bead slung on a string round his neck as a charm, while
mine, "Tommy Raffles," has a rattling chain of yellow and blue beads and
much scarlet wool in his harness. You won't have much difficulty, I
know, as you have been used to a pony since you could walk.

At first the soft powdery sand makes the going stiff, and we have much
difficulty in restraining our boys, who run behind, from smacking or
prodding the donkeys as they plough through. These boys are very proud
and fond of their donkeys and treat them well, but it is the ambition of
every donkey-boy to see his donkey head the cavalcade, and he is ready
to die of envy and mortification if any other boy's donkey gets in front
of him. We pass through clouds of dusty earth and then turn on to uneven
narrow ways between tall green stalks of growing dhurra, stuff which
looks like maize, except that it has a heavy head of grain which is
ground up for making rough bread for the poorest people.

Along by a canal, over a bridge and a railway line we gallop, our
animals going well. Their trot is impossible, as we soon find, but the
easy loping canter delightful. We pass many black-clad women working in
the fields, with crowds of bright-eyed friendly children who murmur
"'Shish" in the vain hope that we may throw them some money. Then we see
herds of black goats in among the cut stalks, and a tethered baby camel,
who looks at us with innocent wondering eyes.

Far off rise up from the plain two mighty seated statues, the Colossi,
set up by Amenhetep III. as part of a temple now vanished. P