form, were chofen for the body of the Pyramid, and the others hewn into iteps, to ferve for the fupertiructure, and the exterior parts of them.

Mr. Bruce, having now provided every thing necessary, and taken rather a melancholy leave of his very indulgent friends, who had great apprehenfious that he and his com panions would never return ; and fearing that their stay till the very exceffive heats were past, might involve them in another difficulty, that of miffing the Etefian winds, they fe cured a boat to carry them to Furhout, the refidence of Hamam, the Shekh of Upper Egypt.

This fort of veffel is called a Canja, and is one of the most commodious used on any river, being fafe, and expeditious at the fame time, though at first fight it has a strong appearance of danger. That on which they embarked was about 100 feet from stern to stem, with two masts, main and foremast, and two monftrous Latine fails, the main-fail yard being about 200 feet in length,

A certain kind of robber, peculiar to the Nile, is constantly on the watch to rob boats, in which they suppose the crew are off their gnard. They generally approach the boat when it is calm, either swimming under water, or when it is dark, upon goat fkins; after which they mount with the utmost filence, and take away whatever they can lay their hands on. They are not very fond, it seems, of meddling with veffels whereon they fee Franks or Europeans, because by them fome have been wounded with fire arms. The attempts are generally made when you are at anchor, or under weigh, at night, in very moderate weather; but ofteneft when you are falling down the ftream without mafts; for it requires ftrength, vigour, and skill, to get aboard a veffel going be fore a brifk wind; though indeed they are abundantly provided with all thefe requifites,

It was the 12th of December when they embarked on the Nile at Bulac, on board the Canja. At first they had the precaution to apply to their friend Risk concerning the captain Hagi Haffan Abou Cuffi, and they obliged him, tó give his fon Mahomet in fecurity for his behaviour towards them. There

Shekh Haman, to the governor of Syene, Ibrim, and Deir, in Upper Egypt. He procured also the fame from the janisfaries, to these three laft places, as their garrisons are from that body at Cairo which they call their Port. He had also letters from Ali Bey, to the Bey of Suez, to the Sherriffe of Mecca, to the Naybe (fo they call the Sovereign) of Mafuah, and to the King of Sennar, and his minifter for the time being.

Having obtained all his letters and difpatches, as well from the patriarch as from the Bey, he fet about preparing for his journey.

On the other fide of the Nile, from Cairo, is Geeza; and about eleven miles beyond this are the pyramids, called the Pyramids of Geeza*, the description of which is in every body's hands. Engravings of then had been published in England, with plans of them, upon a large fcale, two years before Mr. Bruce came into Egypt, and were fhewn him by Mr. Davidfon, conful of Nice, whofe drawings they were. He it was too that difcovered the fmall chamber above the landing place, after you afcend through the long gallery of the great pyramid on your left hand, and he left the ladder by which he ascended, for the fatisfaction of other travellers. But there is nothing in the chamber further worthy of notice, than its having escaped discovery so many ages.

It is very fingular, that for such a time as these Pyramids have been known, travellers were content rather to follow the report of the ancients, than to make use of their own eyes; yet it has been a conftant belief, that the ftones compoling thefe Pyramids have been brought from the Lybian mountains, though any one who will take the pains to remove the fand on the fouth fide, will find the folid rock there hewn into steps. In the roof of the large chamber, where the Sarcophagus ftands, as alfo in the top of the roof of the gallery, as you go up into that chamber, you see large fragments of the rock, affording an unaufwerable proof, that thofe Pyramids were once huge rocks, flanding where they now are; that fome of them, the most proper from their form,

*Jeeza is an ancient suburb of Old Cairo. A manufa&ory of fal amoniac is ef tablished there.

form, were chofen for the body of the Pyramid, and the others hewn into eps, to ferve for the fuperiructure, and the exterior parts of them.

Mr. Bruce, having now provided every thing necessary, and taken rather a melancholy leave of his very indulgent friends, who had great apprehenfions that he and his companions would never return; and fearing that their flay till the very exceffive heats were past, might involve them in another difficulty, that of miffing the Etefian winds, they secured a boat to carry them to Furfhout, the refidence of Hamam, the Shekh of Upper Egypt.

This fort of veffel is called a Canja, and is one of the noft commodious used on any river, being fafe, and expeditious at the fame time, though at first fight it has a strong appearance of danger. That on which they embarked was about 100 feet from stern to ftem, with two masts, main and foremast, and two monftrous Latine fails, the main-fail yard being about 200 feet in length,

A certain kind of robber, peculiar to the Nile, is constantly on the watch to rob boats, in which they suppose the crew are off their gnard. They generally approach the boat when it is calm, either swimming under water, or when it is dark, upon goat skins; after which they mount with the utmost filence, and take away whatever they can lay their hands on. They are not very fond, it seems, of meddling with veffels whereon they fee Franks or Europeans, because by them fome have been wounded with fire arins. The attempts are generally made when you are at anchor, or under weigh, at night, in very moderate weather; but ofteneft when you are falling down the ftream without mafts; for it requires ftrength, vigour, and skill, to get aboard a veffel going before a brifk wind; though indeed they are abundantly provided with all these requisites.

It was the 12th of December when they embarked on the Nile at Bulac, on board the Canja. At first they had the precaution to apply to their friend Risk concerning the captain Hagi Haffan Abou Cuffi, and they obliged him to give his fon Mahomet in fecurity for his behaviour towards them. There

of Saccara ftill S. W. of them; feveral villages on both fides of the river, but very poor and miferable; part of the ground on the east side had been overflowed, yet was not fown ;a proof of the oppreffion and distress the husbandman suffers in the neighbourhood of Cairo, by the avarice and disagreement of the different officers of that motly incomprehensible government.

After failing about two miles, they faw three men fishing in a very extraordinary manner and fituation. They were on a raft of palm branches, fupported on a float of clay jars made faft together. The form was triangular, like the face of a Pyramid; two men, each provided with a casting net, ftood at the two corners, and threw their net into the ftream together; the third stood at the third corner, which was foremost, and threw his net the moment the other two drew theirs out of the water. And this they repeated, in perfect time, and with furprising regularity. The Rais thought our travellers wanted to buy fith, and letting go his mainfail, ordered them on board with a great tone of fuperiority.

¿ They were in a moment alongfide of them; and one of then came on board, lafhing his miferable raft to a rope at their ftern. In recompence for their trouble they gave them fome large pieces of tobacco, and this tranfported them fo much, that they brought them a basket of feveral different kinds of fish, all fmall, except one, laid on the top of the baf ket, which was a clear falinon coloured fish, filvered upon its fides, with a fhade of blue upon its back. It weighed about 10lb. and was most excellent, being perfectly firm, and white like a pirch. There are fome of this kind 70lb. weight. Mr. Bruce examined their nets. they were rather of a smaller circumference than our cafting nets in England; the weight, as far as he could guess, rather heavier in proportion than ours, the thread that compofed them being smaller. He could not sufficiently admire their success, in a violent stream: of deep water, fuch as the Nile; for the river was at leaft twelve feet deep where they were fishing, and the current very strong.

Thefe fifliers offered willingly to take, Mr. Bruce upon the raft to teach him, but his curiofity went not fo far. They

faid their fishing was merely accidental, and in course of their trade, which was felling these potter earthen jars, which they got near Aslimounein ; and after having carried the raft with them to Cairo, they untie, fell them at the market, and carry the produce home in money, or in neceffaries,' upon, their back. A very poor economical trade, but fufficient as they faid, from the carriage of crude materials, the moulding,`making,' and sending them to market, to Cairo, and to different places in the Delta, to afford occupation to two thousand men.

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About two o'clock in the afternoon, they came to the point of an ifland; there were feveral villages with date trees on both fides of them; the ground was overflowed by the Nile, and cultivated. The current was very strong here. They then came to Halouan, an island now divided into a number of small ones, by califhes being cut through it, and, under different Arabic names, they still reach very far up the stream, Mr. Bruce landed to fee if there were remains of the olive `tree which Strabo, says grew here, but without fuccefs. Our travellers imagined, however, that there had been fuch a tree; because oppofite to one of the divifions into which this large ifland is broken, there was a village called Zeitoon, or the Olive Tree.

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On the 15th of December, the weather being nearly calm, they left the north end of the island; their course was due fouth, the line of the river; and three miles farther they paffed Woodan, and a collection of villages, all going by that name, upon the east.

The ground is all cultivated about this village, to the foot of the mountains, which is not above four miles; but it is full eight on the weft, all overflowed and fown. The Nile is here but fhallow, and narrow, not exceeding a quarter of a "mile broad, and three feet deep, owing, as is supposed, to the refistance made by the island in the middle of the current, and by a bend it makes, thus intercepting the fand brought down by the ftream. The mountains here come down till within two miles of Suf el Woodan, for fo the village is called. They were told there were some ruins to the westward of this, but only rubbish, neither arch nor column ftanding.

The