number of them, however, to preserve the Oriental character of this side
of the square.

Above the trees on the other side of the square, higher than the line of
the roofs, are seen four or five minarets, the shafts of which, built in
courses alternately blue and red, stand out against the azure sky. On
the right the scarps of Mokattam, of a rosy gray, show their bare sides,
on which no vegetation is apparent. The trees of the square conceal the
newer buildings, and thus my dream was not too much upset.

Being an invalid, I had to be somewhat careful, and required two or
three days of complete rest. If the reader is fond of travel, he will
understand how great was my desire to begin exploring that labyrinth of
picturesque streets in which swarms a vari-coloured crowd, but it was
out of the question for the time being. I thought that Cairo, more
complaisant in this respect than the mountain to the prophet, would come
to me if I could not go to it, and as a matter of fact, Cairo was polite
enough to do so.

While my luckier companions started to visit the city, I settled myself
on the veranda. It was the best place I could have chosen, for even
leaving out the people on the Square, the veranda roof sheltered many
curious characters. There were dragomans, most of them Greeks or Copts,
wearing the fez and a short, braided jacket and full trousers; cavasses
richly costumed in oriental fashion, scimetar on the hip, _kandjar_ in
the belt, and silver-topped cane in the hand; native servants in white
drawers and blue or pink gowns; little negroes, bare-armed and
bare-legged, dressed in short tunics striped with brilliant colours;
dealers selling kuffiyehs, gandouras, and oriental stuffs manufactured
in Lyons, photographic views of Egypt and of Cairo, or pictures of
national types,--to say nothing of the travellers themselves, who,
having come from all parts of the world, certainly deserved to be looked
at.

Opposite the hotel, on the other side of the road, stood in the shade of
the mimosas the carriages placed at the disposal of the invited guests
by the splendid hospitality of the Khedive. An inspector, blind in one
eye, with a turban rolled around his head and wearing a long blue
caftan, called them up and gave the drivers the orders of the
travellers. There also stood the battalion of donkey drivers with their
long-eared steeds. I am told that there are no less than eighty
thousand donkeys in Cairo. That number does no