Chapter VII

Dr. Franklin’s kite.--Some sailors ascend Pompey’s Pillar
by means of a paper kite.--Removal of the obelisk from the
Island of Philoe.--It falls into the Nile.--Ingenious method
of raising it.--It is launched down the cataract.--Arrives in
safety in Rosetta.--Belzoni goes to Beban el Malook.--Completes
his drawings and models of the Tomb.--Bids final adieu to
Thebes.--Traverses the Western Desert in search of the Temple
of Jupiter Ammon.--Procures a donkey at Benisoeuf.--Reaches the
Lake Mœris.--Rose-trees in profusion.

“Mother!” exclaimed Bernard, running into the breakfast room where his mother was seated, and throwing his straw hat on the sofa, “Do you know what I have been thinking about?”

“Indeed, my dear,” said Mrs. A. “your employments are so various, and your thoughts are generally dependent upon them, I suppose, that I feel at a loss to imagine.”

“I have been thinking,” said he, “that when I am older I shall get Owen or father to teach me how to swim, and that I shall fly my kite whilst I am in the water, as Dr. Franklin did when he was a boy. How do you approve of my plan?”

MRS. A.--I own that I think some little danger would be attached to it, just at present however. Dr. Franklin was a native of Boston, and was taught the practice of swimming when very young, so that he was particularly expert and skilful in this as in almost every other respect. But what led you to think of him now?

BERNARD.--Owen and I are just come from the park, where we have been flying our new kite; and Owen has been telling me how much pleased Dr. Franklin was with his new method of swimming. Do you remember it, mother? He one day wished to amuse himself with his kite and to enjoy at the same time the pleasure of swimming, so he got into the water, and lying on his back, held the end of the string in his hands and went along in such a delightful manner. I wish I had been Dr. Franklin! He engaged a boy to carry his clothes round the pond, to a place which he pointed out to him on the other side, whilst he in the mean time crossed the pond with his kite flying high in the air. Was it not a clever idea?

MRS. A.--He managed to do two things at once, certainly. But I do not admire Dr. Franklin for his new mode of swimming only. He was clever whilst a boy, and when grown up became a very useful character, and rendered great services both to his own country and the world at large: however, I would advise you not to attempt to imitate him in the exploit that has pleased you so much, until you have acquired a little of his experience.

I can, if you please, tell you of another achievement performed by means of a kite.

You have perhaps heard of Pompey’s pillar. It is not far from Alexandria, the place at which Belzoni landed when he went to Egypt, and it is supposed that this column was erected to the memory of the great Roman warrior. Pompey was killed as he was going to that country, you know, soon after he had stepped into the little bark.

The column called Pompey’s Pillar is one hundred and ten feet high. It has suffered little or no injury from time. It is of the Corinthian order, which is at once simple and beautiful. Pompey was killed B.C. 48. The time of the erection of the pillar is scarcely known, but it was named after him in the fifteenth century, when learning began to revive from a torpid state in which it had long languished, and men of science bestowed names on all the monuments.

The pedestal has been somewhat damaged by the instruments of travellers, who are anxious to possess a relic of this antiquity; and one of the volutes of the column was immaturely brought down a few years ago by the ingenuity of some English captains. So I have heard; however, I cannot vouch for the truth of my story farther than the authority of Mr. Irwin, the traveller who relates it.

A strange fancy entered the thoughts of one of those seamen as they were coasting about in the harbour of Alexandria, and the eccentricity of the idea caused it to be immediately adopted, for its apparent impossibility only made them the more anxious to put it into execution.

They ordered out the boat and with proper implements pushed ashore, intending to drink a bowl of punch on the top of Pompey’s Pillar. They arrived at the spot, and many contrivances were proposed to accomplish the desired project.

But their labour was vain; and they began to despair of success, when the genius who struck out the frolic happily suggested the means of performing it.

A man was despatched to the city for a paper kite. The inhabitants were by this time apprised of what was going forward, and flocked in crowds to be witnesses of the address and boldness of the English. The governor of Alexandria was told that some sailors were about to pull down Pompey’s pillar; however, he politely left them to themselves, saying that the English were too great patriots to injure the remains of Pompey. The kite was brought, and the wind being in the right direction, it flew so directly over the pillar that when it fell on the other side the string lodged upon the capital.

The chief obstacle was now overcome. A thick rope was tied to one end of the string, and drawn over the column by the end to which the kite was fixed. By this rope one of the sailors ascended to the top (sailors are used to run up the shrouds, you know, and this was somewhat similar;) in less than an hour a kind of rope ladder was constructed, by which the whole company went up, amidst the shouts and claps of the astonished multitude.

To the eye below, the capital of the pillar does not appear capable of holding more than one man upon it; but our seamen found it could contain no less than eight persons very conveniently.

No accident happened during their ascent to this giddy height for they were sailors, and used to look down from the tall masts.

The only injury sustained by the pillar, was the loss of the volute I mentioned before, which descended with a thundering sound, and was brought to England by one of the captains. They reported that one foot and an ankle of a statue were still remaining upon the monument, probably of Pompey himself.

I cannot say that I am sure such a thing did really and actually happen. I can only depend on what I have heard from others. But the adventurers themselves have left a memento of the fact, by the initials of their names painted in large black letters just beneath the capital.

BERNARD.--Well, it is a very amusing anecdote, mother! Kites are very ingenious--as ingenious as the _somebody_ who thought of the plan. Without kites, they could never have got to the top of Pompey’s pillar. You know, mother, that Belzoni was at Alexandria. Did he see the pillar?

MRS. A.--I cannot tell, my dear; I do not recollect that he mentions it: but he was at Alexandria more than once, for he took the obelisk thither which he discovered in the island of Philoe.

EMILY.--Do, dear mother, tell us something about that obelisk: I was quite interested to know what became of it. Belzoni left it in the island of Philoe, on his return from Ybsambul, and gave the Aga four dollars to pay a guard for it, till he could procure a boat to convey it down the Nile.

OWEN.--The obelisk was lying among several blocks of stones; it was made of granite, and was twenty-two feet long. Go on, if you please, mother.

MRS. A.--I dare say you recollect that we left Belzoni at Gournou. He did not remain there very long, but went up the Nile to Assouan.

The old town of Assouan stands on a hill which overhangs the river, and is on the opposite side of the Nile to the first Cataract, and Philoe is in the Nile between them.

Belzoni went to this island, to take a view of the bank where he had to embark the obelisk. In a few days he set the men to work, and procured a boat to put it in. The greatest difficulty seemed to be to persuade the captain to have the boat launched down the Cataract, which it necessarily must be, with the obelisk on board. However, the promise of a handsome present procured an assurance that he would accomplish the undertaking. He had some little trouble to procure a few sticks or small poles from Assouan, as there is no wood in these places, except what they procure from Cairo. He had also some difficulty in removing the obelisk from its situation; but once put on its way, it soon came to the water side.

Belzoni gave orders for a sort of temporary pier to be made of large blocks of stone. When finished, no doubt arose of its being strong enough for the weight it had to support. But, alas! when the obelisk came gradually on from the sloping bank, and the heavy mass rested on it, the pier, with the obelisk and some of the men, took a slow movement, and, to Belzoni’s dismay, descended majestically into the river.

EMILY.--Now it is there, it is done for! But how much mortified poor Belzoni must have been! Why did he not make himself sure that the pier was quite secure?

MRS. A.--He had no reason to doubt but what it was. It is true he was not present during its erection, because he was gone to examine a passage in the Cataract, down which the boat would have to be launched; and now it was too late. When he fixed his eyes upon the spot where the pier set off into the Nile, he observed that the stones which were to serve as a foundation on a sloping back, had been only laid on the surface of it, so that it was almost impossible for the obelisk to do otherwise than press it down into the river.

OWEN.--Well, it was a very unfortunate thing; and all these reflections are now of no use! The obelisk from Philoe is there, and there it must stay!

MRS. A.--Belzoni was not quite so full of despair as you are, Owen. He was certainly extremely mortified at this unfortunate occurrence, and, being only three yards off when it happened, he stood for some minutes in confusion and astonishment. At length, the loss of such a piece of antiquity, and the blame that would be attached to him by other antiquaries, occurred to his recollection, and he resolved to try what could be done. He generally succeeded in whatever he undertook; and often proved the truth of our motto, “_Labour conquers all!_”

The obelisk was still peeping a little above the water. The labourers were of various humours: some were sorry, not for the obelisk, which was no loss to them, but for the loss of what they might have gained in future operations, by passing it down the Cataract: others were laughing, probably at the evident disappointment expressed in the countenance of our friend. Some went one way, and some another; and he remained alone, absorbed in thought, contemplating the little part that projected out of the water, and meditating upon the possibility of once more placing it upon the dry land.

He reflected, indeed, that he was as badly off as he had been with Young Memnon, in being destitute of any instruments; and that the palm-leaf ropes which he had with him were broken, and old, and of little use. However, he soon made up his mind to have the obelisk taken up at all events; and accordingly ordered the men to come the next morning, and sent to Assouan to procure some new ropes for the purpose.

The labourers were excellent watermen, and could bear the water the whole day without difficulty; so Belzoni had the advantage in this respect. The following morning the work commenced. Several men entered the river, and made a great heap of stones on the side of the obelisk opposite to the shore, so as to form a bed for the levers to rest upon.

He then placed the levers under the obelisk, so that by their pressure it was forced to turn round upon its axis, or, to be more particular, one end of the long poles, called the levers, passed under the obelisk, and a short distance from that end, they rested upon the rock of stones which thus formed a fulcrum for the levers to turn upon; the men seated themselves on the other extremity, and their weight caused the obelisk to turn gently round and round, until it reached the dry ground.

Two ropes were also passed under it, and the men on shore pulled the two ends of these ropes with all their might. At the side where the levers were, some good divers were stationed, who were ready to put large stones under the obelisk as it rose, that it might not return to its former situation.

You can fancy how busy they all looked. The men at the ropes were pulling with all their strength; those on the rocks were rising and sitting, to make the levers act; and the divers were placing stone after stone, whilst the obelisk was gradually rising and moving round at each turn by its own weight. So they go on, until, to Belzoni’s great joy, he beholds it once more on _terra firma_. Where it was in the course of two days; but another difficulty awaits it before it reaches Alexandria, and that is descending the Cataract.

It was yet to be embarked, and this time the operation was performed by means of a bridge of palm-trees, thrown from across the boat to the land under the obelisk, which was then turned on the bridge, and placed on board; when in the centre of the boat the trees were moved from under it; and no sooner was this done than the party set off with the obelisk, to have it ready to be launched down the Cataract the next morning.

It had to descend the greatest fall of water in the Cataract. When the inundation is half high in the Nile, it is a column of water about three hundred yards in length, which falls among rocks and stones projecting in various directions. The boat was brought to the margin of the cascade; a strong rope, or rather a small cable, was fastened to a large tree, the end of which was passed through the beams of the boat, so as to be slackened or stopped at pleasure. In the boat there were only five men; and on the rocks on each side of the cascade a number of others in various places, with ropes attached to the boat, so as to put it either to one side or other, as it required, to prevent its running against the stones; for you know if it had been touched ever so slightly, with such a weight on board, and in such a rapid stream, the boat would probably have been dashed to pieces.

The rope Belzoni had got from Assouan was only sufficient to check its course, and when the boat was moving so rapidly, any attempt to _stop_ its progress would have made the water run in and sink it in a moment. Under these circumstances, all depended upon the dexterity of the men who were posted in various parts to pull or slacken as necessity required. Belzoni did not fail to use all the persuasion possible, and the wild people, as he calls them, were upon this occasion as careful as so many pilots.

The Reis, or owner of the boat, was in great distress, thinking it would certainly be lost. He had engaged his vessel merely because it happened that his trade failed; but when he saw the danger it was in, he cried like a child, and begged Belzoni would relinquish his project and return his boat to him in safety.

Tears were certainly useless and not very manly, but we must remember that his livelihood, poor fellow, depended on his boat. When he saw it on the point of being launched, he threw himself with his face to the ground, and did not rise till it was out of danger. When all was ready, Belzoni gave the signal to slacken the cable.

The boat moved forwards with great rapidity. The men on land slackened the rope, and it continued its course till it reached the end of the Cataract.

The poor Reis was delighted; he did not lie on the ground any longer, but went full of joy to congratulate himself and Belzoni. The workmen altogether seemed pleased at the good success of the attempt, even independently of the interest they might derive from it. This was gratifying to our antiquary, for it is not very often that such feelings enter the bosoms of the Arabs.

Having only two or three places of little danger to pass, they arrived safely at Assouan on the same day. Belzoni immediately prepared to depart from thence to Thebes; he quitted the boat, travelled by land, and took up his old residence at the tombs in Beban el Malook.

The obelisk proceeded to Luxor, and from thence to Rosetta, where it remained some time.

Belzoni had written to Mrs. Belzoni, to tell her that he could not go into Syria, and she had in consequence returned from Jerusalem, and now waited to welcome his arrival in the valley.

I once told you, as you perhaps recollect, that the entrance into the newly-discovered tomb was situated under a small torrent of water, which, when it rains, runs into it. This is not often the case in Egypt, but it so happened that whilst Belzoni was absent up the Nile it did rain, and consequently the water ran into the tomb, carrying with it a great deal of mud, and damaging some of the figures. However, this disaster could not be remedied. Belzoni completed his models and drawings, and with some difficulty removed the great sarcophagus and put it into a strong case. The place it had to pass to reach the Nile was rather uneven for more than two miles, but it was conveyed on rollers, and put safely on board. Under this sarcophagus there was a staircase communicating with a subterraneous passage leading downwards, three hundred feet in length; at the end of which a quantity of rubbish had fallen in and choked up the passage. Belzoni conjectured that this formed another entrance to the tomb, though it must have been closed after the sarcophagus was placed there, as there was a wall built just under the sarcophagus, and large blocks of stone were placed on a level with the floor which completely cut off all communication between the chamber and the subterraneous passage.

Our traveller was now about to bid a final adieu to Thebes. Before he embarked he retraced the scenes which had yielded him so much delight; he paid a melancholy visit to the magnificent remains of ancient grandeur; gazed for the last time upon the temples and columns which have triumphed over the corroding influence of the universal ravager; and beheld the valley, the place in which his labours had been crowned with so much success, with painful feelings and mingled emotions of pleasure and regret. He left the spot so long known, and so long endeared to him, in January 1819, and arrived in Cairo the following month. At this place they stopped only a few days, and continued their voyage to Rosetta, where, taking the obelisk with them, they re-embarked on board a djerm, and arrived in the course of a short time at Alexandria, whence they intended to take passage for Europe.

They did not quit Alexandria immediately, and if you please we may yet accompany our friend in another journey that he took to visit a temple in the western Desert: we have not yet been on that side of the Nile.

The temple of Jupiter Ammon had been an object of search for a long time, and by more than one traveller, but the true spot where it existed had not yet been fixed upon, and to discover this, as well as to visit some pyramids, and search for the famous Labyrinth, presented grand attractions to Belzoni.

Jupiter Ammon was one of the gods in the Egyptian Mythology. He was worshipped under the figure of a ram, and this temple was dedicated to him.

Having left Mrs. Belzoni in Rosetta, our traveller took a small boat and proceeded to Benisoeuf, where he arrived in nine days. You will find this place on the map a long way south of Cairo.

Belzoni was accompanied by a servant and a Moorish Hajji, which is a title given to those Mohamedans who have made the pilgrimage to Mecca. This one was just returned from Mecca and begged to be allowed to join him. At Benisoeuf they procured donkeys to take them as far as the Lake Mœris. They set off on the same day, and directed their course through a large plain of cultivated land, of corn and other products of the country. This plain was all under water at the time of the inundation, excepting the scattered villages which appeared like little islands as I have before described. A few miles from the Nile the mountains on the west are but low. They open and form a valley into a province called the Paioum; and it was at this entrance our party arrived on the first night of their journey.

They took their station under some date trees near a canal that passes through the valley about two miles from the first pyramid. Here, after a little repast Belzoni went to sleep on his usual bed, a mattress thin enough to serve as a saddle when folded up, but forming, when laid on the soft ground, as comfortable a bed as he could desire. The servant, the Hajji, and the donkey drivers kept watch in their turn, and this plan was pursued during the whole of the journey.

The next morning Belzoni again set off, and soon arrived at the pyramid. He found it was composed of burnt bricks, and about sixty feet in height, affording a fine prospect from the top. Our party then continued along the hills till they were opposite another pyramid of about the same size, surrounded by smaller tombs, and the remains of a magnificent Egyptian temple. The whole country was very fertile, and interspersed with plantations of fruit trees and roses.

This place is celebrated for the making of rose-water, which is sold in Cairo, and all over the country, for the use of the great people, who continually keep their apartments sprinkled with it, and present it also to any stranger who visits them.

You remember that when we were talking of the customs of the Egyptians, I told you that a slave generally carries a silver plate in which essences are burning to perfume the beard and sprinkle the visiters with them. For this purpose they use rose-water procured from the roses that grow in the valley around the Faioum.

Next morning a soldier joined the party as guide, and they advanced towards the lake Mœris, but arrived only at Senures that night, a village ten miles from it.

EMILY.--How very convenient maps are, mother; I can trace their route so well. Here is Benisoeuf on the Nile, where they hired the donkeys; and here is the chain of mountains, and a space left for the entrance between them into the Faioum: they have only just to cross this province to reach Birket Keroum, as the lake is called on the map; the pyramids themselves are marked, and I believe I know the very spot where the rose-trees grow, and the roses blow, but not to

“_Waste_ their sweetness on the desert air.”