chamber where Bruce made the drawing of the harp which he gave to Mr. Burney (for his History of Music), we saw that traveller's name scratched over the very harp. This is, we think, strong presumptive evidence that he made the sketch upon the spot, though he has been accused of drawing it afterwards from memory: he is, however, in error as to the number of strings. In other respects, he has given the form of the instrument correctly, but the musician is very indifferently copied. This evening, we found some scorpions, which our guide took up in his hand with great indifference: we remarked, however, that he took good care always to seize the reptiles by the tail.

We returned on foot, by the way of Memnonium, ascending to the top of the Lybian chain, which on one side gave us a fine view of the valley and Tombs of the Kings, while on the other side we looked down on the plain, which contains the whole of the ancient Thebes, together with the Nile, both seen to great advantage, and forming a splendid specimen of Egyptian scenery. As we descended, we counted on one spot upwards of fifty mummypits, discernible by their open mouths or entrances, on the sides of the hills, exclusive of an innumerable quantity of doors of grottoes, sepulchral chambers, &c., &c., cut out of the sides of the mountains. We now returned to Luxor, and having seen everything, began to think of returning. I cannot, however, quit Thebes without adverting to Homer's description of it. He says

or gates, unless the term is applied to the pylons, and other buildings, which constituted the approaches to the sacred edifices. Now, if Thebes had been a city with a hundred gates, there must surely have been a wall through which to construct them; and it is not unreasonable to suppose that the wall of so extensive and magnificent a city would have been built with stone, or at least that the frames or portals of the gates would have been of that material. Still no vestige of either gate or wall is to be seen; and as so many ruins of temples and their porticoes remain to this day, how is it that not one solitary gate, nor even fragment of the wall, is left? Under these circumstances, I do not think it an improbable conjecture, that it was the numerous porticos, pylons, &c., of the Theban temples, that obtained for her the boasted reputation of a hundred gates. That she vanquished and subdued many states, and that her inhabitants were proud of their warlike achievements, appears from the battles so frequently traced on the walls; but we nowhere observed Egyptian horsemen, the horsemen being always of the enemy's party in the act of flight, and looking_back with dismay on the conquering Egyptians, who are invariably in chariots. Numerous as have been the researches amongst the ruins of Thebes, I suspect that many treasures of art still remain concealed: and if the English party are not prevented from digging, it is probable we shall be continually hearing of some new discoveries.

Friday, August 21.-We started early this morning for Cairo, having bargained with the reis to take us down for thirty piastres-fifteen shillings. The boat was laden with lentils for the pasha. We placed a few mats over-head for a shade, and found the cargo a good soft foundation whereon to put our beds; the sailors, in the boat, helping us in our cooking operations, we found we did as well without as with a servant.

Saturday, August 22.-This morning we stopped at Tentyra, and, as our reis said he should not start for an hour, we determined to revisit the

temple of Isis.* started on foot for that purpose. When we had got two-thirds of our way, we found the canal was filled, and that we must either swim over it or return. As we were dressed in our Arab costume, the former alternative was not difficult; we therefore threw our clothes over and plunged in. We examined the temple, and did not forget the little chamber, in which we had before noticed the circular astronomical table on the cieling as being a monument of the same kind as the Isiac table which we had seen at Turin. It was in the ceiling of the other half of this chamber that Mr. Ruppell discovered a complete lunar system, which had totally escaped Denon and all the other French savans. Mr. Ruppell took an exact copy of this interesting tablet. It clearly contains twelve moons and a bit of another, which no doubt was meant for the odd five days, as the twelve make 360. As this throws an additional light on the Egyptian mode of calculating the year, it is a matter of no small interest, and reflects the more credit on Mr. Ruppell, as so many travellers have examined this chamber, without the circumstance having occurred to them. In the great French work they have put down fourteen or fifteen

The inscription on the listel of the cornice, in front of this temple, speaks of it as dedicated to Venus, which agrees with Strabo, who says "The Tentirites worship Venus. Behind the temple of Venus is a sanctuary (iegèv) of Isis." The latter still exists; it is a small temple without columns. It is curious that the French savans did not copy this

inscription: either they did not see it, or, stranger still, none of them knew Greek enough to be able to copy the letters, which are considerably broken and erased. It was first copied by Colonel Leake and Mr. Hamilton. It is not surprising that the French, having failed as to the inscription of Tentyra, should have omitted others more difficult, or that they should have occupied Alexandria for three years without having been able to decipher a single word of the inscription on the column of Diocletian. Colonel Leake was the first to discover the legibility of this inscription, by making out the words ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΕΙΑΣ and ΕΠΑΡΧΟΣ ΑΙΓΥΠΤΟΥ. The joint efforts of himself and Mr. Hamilton, and Colonel Squires during several days after wards, deciphered all that is at all legible of the remainder. See Classical Journal.

Tuesday, August 25.-We stopped at Siout, and went up to pay our respects to the hospitable doctor, Marouky-found him as friendly as ever ;-stopped two hours, and then pushed on.

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Wednesday 26.-Visited Mr. Brine, grateful remembrance of whose kindess also induced us to pay our respects to him. We here took charge of the heads of two Egyptian mummycases, and other antiquities dug up for Mr. Salt from a spot supposed to be the burial place of Hermopolis, near the Lybian chain.

Thursday, August 27.-We stopped at Houarti. As this was the village where our crew live, we were obliged to reconcile our minds to stop for three days, while they made merry with their friends and relations. We had scarcely been here an hour, when our reis came to ask us to lend him the two mummy-cases which we had on board. He said he should like to have them up at the village for an hour. We lent them immediately; but it was not until the following day that we found out his reason for borrowing them. Numbers of women came down to us and asked permission to walk three times round them, crossing over them each time. This we found was to procure them families. The women were constantly arriving, young and old, and all going through the same ceremony. They were all very serious during the performance of this mystery, and seemed to think it odd that we laughed so much. Our

sailors informed us there were some antiquities at the foot of the Mockatem, about one hour and a half's distance. They mentioned temples and catacombs. We did not much believe them, but were glad of any excuse for a trip to pass away the time, and accordingly started with one of the reis's brothers as our guide. He took us to the site of a very extensive and finely-situated city, which, from the state of the rubbish, must have been of some consequence. It stands at the mouth of a valley in the Mock

by steps was meant to impress the beholder (after having first viewed the sphinx at a distance, on a level,) with a more imposing idea of its grandeur, when he views the breast in its full

magnitude from below. A wall of sun-burnt brick was on each side of the steps, to prevent the sand from filling up the space. We afterwards went all over the great pyramid, again descending to the lower chamber, which Captain Caviglia discovered, and also reinspected the well, &c. We could not go into Colonel Davidson's chamber, as the Arabs had stolen the rope ladder which was left there. We slept at the entrance of the great pyramid, and in the morning returned to Cairo; the excursion occupied us two days. When we were last at Cairo, a trip to the sphinx used to take two hours; we were now five hours going there, the inundation of the Nile forcing us to go more than double the distance round the edge of the canals. As we are now about to leave Egypt, I shall add a few remarks on Cairo. All Turkish towns impress Europeans with very unfavourable ideas; the streets are invariably narrow, and the fronts of the houses look like so many barn doors. Cairo is particularly ill-built, and a stranger, after having heard so much of "Grand Cairo," can scarcely believe his own eyes when he enters; and this is the more striking, as, at a short distance, the lofty minarets give it a grand appearance. Miserable narrow streets, the square bow-windows meeting over the head, and built with unpainted deal wood; no pavement to be seen; gratings substituted for panes of glass; a dirty ill-dressed populace, and women covered up like so many ghosts, all conspire to render it disagreeable in the extreme. The various classes of inhabitants, such as Turks, Arabs, Copts, Jews, Franks, &c., have their respective quarters where they reside in detached societies; each quarter has its gate and porter to attend it; all are shut at eight o'clock in the evening; after which time it is customary to fee the porter to get admittance. In case of tumults, when the troops go about robbing and

plundering all they meet with, these gates become of great service. The citadel of Cairo is built on a commanding eminence; here the pasha resides. Great merit is due to Mahomed Ali for the tranquillity which exists at present throughout Egypt, and could such an atrocious crime as the murder of the mamelukes be overlooked, he might be considered as a great man. This barbarous act was committed about six years ago: the unsuspecting victims, about two thousand in number, were invited to the castle to be present at the presentation of the Pelisse to the pasha's son, Toussein, and his investiture with the command of Jidda, including the government of the sacred city of Mecca. During the ceremony, the walls and tops of the houses, the castle, &c., were lined with troops, and, on a signal given, as the mamelukes were quitting the palace, the soldiers opened their fire on them, and nearly all of them were slain.

Egypt at present presents a very different appearance to what it did when we took our departure from Cairo, in March; the Nile having overflowed, all the villages are insulated, and the date palm-trees, which invariably surrounded them, partly conceal the mudhuts, and give a pleasing and lively appearance to the face of the country. The river, also, in some places, appears of prodigious width, the plains being overflowed for many miles. We have been fortunate, in having seen Egypt throughout, with the Nile at its lowest ebb, and also at its greatest elevation. There is no freehold property in this country, all the land being let out by the pasha, who afterwards forces the peasants to sell their property to him only, and at his own price. Soldiers are quartered in all the principal villages to enforce a due observance of this law. All the boats are likewise monopolised by him, and gun-boats are stationed at the narrow parts of the river, to prevent the passage of any barks unless laden for the pasha. The Arabs, Copts, and others, who become rich in spite of this oppressive system, are allowed but little enjoyment of their wealth. It is not at all