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第34节

egypt-第34节

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rooms for the use of the many amateur photographers; who make a point

of taking away with them photographs of their travelling companions

grouped tastefully before some celebrated hypogeum。



And then numerous cafes; where the whisky is of excellent quality。

And; I ought to add; in justice to the result of the /Entente

Cordiale/; you may see there; too; aligned in considerable quantities

on the shelves; the products of those great French philanthropists; to

whom indeed our generation does not render sufficient homage for all

the good they have done to its stomach and its head。 The reader will

guess that I have named Pernod; Picon and Cusenier。



It may be indeed that the honest fellahs and Nubians of the

neighbourhood; so sober a little while ago; are apt to abuse these

tonics a little。 But that is the effect of novelty; and will pass。 And

anyhow; amongst us Europeans; there is no need to conceal the fact

for we do not all make use of it involuntarily?that alcoholism is a

powerful auxiliary in the propagation of our ideas; and that the

dealer in wines and spirits constitutes a valuable vanguard pioneer

for our Western civilisation。 Races; insensibly depressed by the abuse

of our 〃appetisers;〃 become more supple; more easy to lead in the true

path of progress and liberty。



On this quay of Assouan; so carefully levelled; defiles briskly a

continual stream of fair travellers ravishingly dressed as only those

know how who have made a tour with Cook & Son (Egypt Ltd。)。 And along

the Nile; in the shade of the young trees; planted with the utmost

nicety and precision; the flower…beds and straight…cut turf are

protected efficaciously by means of wire…netting against certain acts

of forgetfulness to which dogs; alas; are only too much addicted。



Here; too; everything is ticketed; everything has its number: the

donkeys; the donkey…drivers; the stations even where they are allowed

to stand〃Stand for six donkeys; stand for ten; etc。〃 Some very

handsome camels; fitted with riding saddles; wait also in their

respective places and a number of Cook ladies; meticulous on the point

of local colour; even when it is merely a question of making some

purchases in the town; readily mount for some moments one or other of

these 〃ships of the desert。〃



And at every fifty yards a policeman; still Egyptian in his

countenance; but quite English in his bearing and costume; keeps a

vigilant eye on everythingwould never suffer; for example; that an

eleventh donkey should dare to take a place in a stand for ten; which

was already full。



Certain people; inclined to be critical; might consider; perhaps; that

these policemen were a little too ready to chide their fellow…

countrymen; whereas on the contrary they showed themselves very

respectful and obliging whenever they were addressed by a traveler in

a cork helmet。 But that is in virtue of an equitable and logical

principle; derived by them from the high places of the new

administrationnamely; that the Egypt of to…day belongs far less to

the Egyptians than to the noble foreigners who have come to brandish

there the torch of civilisation。



In the evening; after dark; the really respectable travellers do not

quit the brilliant dining saloons of the hotels; and the quay is left

quite solitary beneath the stars。 It is at such a time that one is

able to realise how extremely hospitable certain of the natives are

become。 If; in an hour of melancholy; you walk alone on the bank of

the Nile; smoking a cigarette; you will not fail to be accosted by one

of these good people; who misunderstanding the cause of the unrest in

your soul; offers eagerly; and with a touching frankness; to introduce

you to the gayest of the young ladies of the country。



In the other towns; which still remain purely Egyptian; the people

would never practise such an excess of affability and good manners;

which have been learnt; beyond all question from our beneficent

contact。



Assouan possesses also its little Oriental bazaara little

improvised; a little new perhaps; but then one; at least; was needed;

and that as quickly as possible; in order that nothing might be

wanting to the tourists。



The shopkeepers have contrived to provision themselves (in the leading

shops; under the arcades of the Rue de Rivoli) with as much tact as

good taste; and the Cook ladies have the innocent illusion of making

bargains every day。 One may even buy there; hung up by the tail;

stuffed with straw and looking extremely real; the last crocodiles of

Egypt; which; particularly at the end of the season; may be had at

very advantageous prices。



Even the old Nile has allowed itself to be fretted and brought up to

date in the progress of evolution。



First; the women; draped in black veils; who come daily to draw the

precious water; have forsaken the fragile amphorae of baked earth;

which had come to them from barbarous timesand which the

Orientalists grossly abused in their picture; and in their stead have

taken to old tin oil…cans; placed at their disposal by the kindness of

the big hotels。 But they carry them in the same easy graceful manner

as erstwhile the discarded pottery; and without losing in the least

the gracious tanagrine outline。



And then there are the great tourist boats of the Agencies; which are

here in abundance; for Assouan has the privilege of being the terminus

of the line; and their whistlings; their revolving motors; their

electric dynamos maintain from morning till night a captivating

symphony。 It might be urged perhaps against these structures that they

resemble a little the washhouses on the Seine; but the Agencies;

desirous of restoring to them a certain local colour; have given them

names so notoriously Egyptian that one is reduced to silence。 They are

called Sesostris; Amenophis or Ramses the Great。



And finally there are the rowing boats; which carry passengers

incessantly backwards and forwards between the river…banks。 So long as

the season remains at its height they are bedecked with a number of

little flags of red cotton…cloth; or even of simple paper。 The rowers;

moreover; have been instructed to sing all the time the native songs

which are accompanied by a derboucca player seated in the prow。 Nay;

they have even learnt to utter that rousing; stimulating cry which

Anglo…Saxons use to express their enthusiasm or their joy: 〃Hip! Hip!

Hurrah!〃 and you cannot conceive how well it sounds; coming between

the Arab songs; which otherwise might be apt to grow monotonous。



*****



But the triumph of Assouan is its desert。 It begins at once without

transition as soon as you pass the close…cropped turf of the last

square。 A desert which; except for the railroad and the telegraph

poles; has all the charm of the real thing: the sand; the chaos of

overthrown stones; the empty horizonseverything; in short; save the

immensity and infinite solitude; the horror; in a word which formerly

made it so little desirable。 It is a little astonishing; it must be

owned; to find; on arriving there; that the rocks have been carefully

numbered in white paint; and in some cases marked with a large cross

〃which catches the eye from a greater distance still〃(sic)。 But I

agree that the effect of the whole has lost nothing。



In the morning before the sun gets too hot; between breakfast and

luncheon to be precise; all the good ladies in cork helmets and blue

spectacles (dark…coloured spectacles are recommended on account of the

glare) spread themselves over these solitudes; domesticated as it were

to their use; with as much security as in Trafalgar Square or

Kensington Gardens。 Not seldom even you may see one of them making her

way alone; book in hand; towards one of the picturesque rocksNo。

363; for example; or No。 364; if you like it betterwhich seems to be

making signs to her with its white ticket; in a manner which; to the

uninitiated observer; might seem even a little improper。



But what a sense of safety families may feel here; to be sure! In

spite of the huge numbers; which at first sight look a little

equivocal; nothing in the least degree reprehensible can happen among

these granites; which are; moreover; in a single piece; without the

least crack or hole into which the straggler could contrive to crawl。

No。 The figures and the crosses denote simple blocks of stones;

covered with hieroglyphics; and correspond to a chaste catalogue where

each Pharaonic inscription may be found translated in the most

becoming language。



This ingenious ticketing of the stones of the desert is due to the

initiative of an English Egyptologist。







CHAPTER XX



THE PASSING OF PHILAE



Leaving Assouanas soon as we have passed the last housewe come at

once upon the desert。 And now the night is falling; a cold February

night; under a strange; copper…coloured sky。



Incontestably it is the desert; with its chaos of granite and

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