household utensils, and a Roman calendar on a square block of marble, each side embracing the period of three months.

Taking a conveyance with three horses, from Naples we drove a distance of 6 miles to Herculaneum. This town, which with Pompeii was overwhelmed by an eruption of Vesuvius, unlike the latter was buried under lava, to the depth of 80 feet, which in cooling acquired the consistency of stone, rendering excavations virtually impracticable; so far the principal building unearthed is the theatre which once seated 10,000 people.

From Herculaneum we commenced the ascent of Vesuvius, the road winding for five miles up the mountain in the midst of a vast stretch of lava in its various stages of induration. At the foot of the cone a chain-railway ascends almost perpendicularly a distance of one mile; from here we were borne in chairs on the shoulders of excited Neapolitans to the crater. At this point the ground was a mass of steaming, yellow sulphur; sulphurous clouds, with their asphyxiating fumes, hovered around, wavering and dispersing here and there before the violence of the ascending flame. Up from the seething cauldron of the crater, redhot stones and liquid lava were thrown with incredible force high in air; and far below, from the very bowels of the earth, issued low, rumbling, ominous sounds, all uniting in one vivid conception of hell.

Pompeii, which contained 40,000 inhabitants, was overwhelmed A. D. 79, by an eruption of Vesuvius, and remained buried under the ashes. for 1,700 years. Walking through this dead city, its silent streets, which are well paved, though worn in deep ruts by the wheels of chariots, its sidewalks bordered with straight lines of houses and shops in a surprising state of preservation, one almost expects to meet the inhabitants at every turn. Here are public buildings — the Forum with its temples and basilicas; theatres for tragedy and comedy; shops, with their fixtures and utensils; baths, fountains, the Temple of Isis, houses of pleasure with the frescoes still visible upon their walls; private residences from the cottage of the poor to the mansion of the patrician, including those of Arbaces the Egyptian, Glaucus the tragic poet, Ione, and Sallust, and the Villa of Diomedes the wealthy, an edifice twelve stories in height, in whose cellars 17 human bodies were found in various attitudes showing their efforts to escape.

Leading from the Herculaneum Gate is the Street of Tombs lined on either side by sepulchral monuments.

Castellamare occupies the site of Stabia, which was destroyed by an earthquake A. D. 79: from here we witnessed the strange and fearful sight of a river of red-hot lava rolling slowly down the sides of Vesuvius.

The drive from here to Sorrento is a delightful one, skirting the blue shores of the bay, winding along the base of the mountains, crossing ravines and passing picturesque villages.

Sorrento, with a fine view of Vesuvius and the Bay of Naples, is celebrated as the birthplace of Tasso 1544. Here the Tarantella is danced in all its original grace and vivacity by the peasants in their picturesque costumes.

The Island of Capri, ten miles from Sorrento, is 1980 feet above the level of the sea, and is chiefly noted for its Blue Grotto. This is an interior space 160x80 feet in extent, and 40 feet in height above the water, which is 8 fathoms deep. It is entered by an aperture only three feet highingress being impossible during high tide-and the visitor is compelled to recline in the boat as it passes under the low portal. The Grotto is lighted only from the opening, and the reflection from the deep-blue water gives a weird and indescribable effect to the scene.

Brindisi, once the great seaport town of the Romans on the Adriatic, is the terminus of the Via Appia, and is noted as the place where Cæsar beseiged Pompey, and where Virgil died 19 B. C.

Taking steamer of the Peninsular and Oriental Line, at Brindisi, we skirted the shores of Albania and Greece, passing the islands of Corfu, Kephalonia, and Crete, arriving, after a three days' sail, on the coast of Africa.

CHAPTER XIX.

ALEXANDRIA: CAIRO: HELIOPOLIS: PYRAMIDS OF GIZEH: THE NILE: TEL-EL-KEBIR: PORT SAID.

ALEXANDRIA, situated on a peninsula between Lake Mareotis and the sea, was founded by Alexander the Great, 332 B. C. It was once celebrated for its library of 700,000 volumes, which was established by Ptolemy Philadelphus, 284 B. C., and partly destroyed by Julius Cæsar; also for its lighthouse Pharos, the seventh wonder of the world.

It was in Alexandria the Christian religion first took root, and here St. Mark preached the Gospel.

One of the few relics of antiquity yet remaining is Pompey's Pillar a red granite column 100 feet high, on which is a Greek inscription showing that it was erected by Publius, prefect of Egypt, in honor of Diocletian who besieged and took Alexandria, 296 A. D.

Its population numbered at one time 500,000, but the present census shows only 212,000 inhabiThe city has many fine streets and buildings, but the heart of it is in ruins, having been burned by Arabi's soldiers on evacuating, and the

tants.

fortifications surrounding the city were dismantled by the English in the late bombardment.

The rail from Alexandria to Cairo-a distance of 131 miles-runs parallel with the canal and wagon road, and affords scenes of varied interest: here groups of natives scantily clothed; there caravans laden with merchandise; and frequently an immense camel, a buffalo, and a tiny donkey yoked together to a primitive wooden plough, or employed turning a sakieh-a wheel upon which are fastened earthen jugs to dip up water for irrigating purposes. Again at short distances is seen the shadoof,—a long pole balanced on an upright one, at one end of which is a weight, and on the other a vessel which is lowered into the water and raised filled; and a still more primitive mode of irrigation is that of men dipping up the water in mat baskets and pouring it over the earth, while others direct its course with their bare feet, as described in the Bible.

Cairo, founded by the Arabs, is situated near the right bank of the Nile, and has a population of 350,000. It is the largest city in Africa, and the residence of the Khedive, and next to Constantinople the most important city of the Mohammedan world.

Cairo is built on low ground, partly surrounded by low, rugged, and barren hills. Many of its streets are wide, well paved, and bordered with tropical trees, and its hundreds of mosques and