After seeing the pillar the three visitors wandered through the bazaars, which repeated, on a small scale, the sights of the bazaars of Cairo. They spent an hour or more in the great square in the centre of the city, where there are several rows of shade-trees and some bronze statues, and they visited two or three private gardens, which were very pretty, and contained rare varieties of plants. They went to the celebrated "Pharos," which is one of the earliest light-houses ever known to mariners, and was built by Ptolemy Philadelphus at enormous expense. It is said to have been a square building of white marble in several stories, each smaller than the one below it. A winding road led to the top, and, according to history, Cleopatra once drove a pair of horses to the summit, and then drove them down again. The name of the "Pharos" is perpetuated in the French word for light-house (_phare_), but very little of the ancient structure exists to-day. It is still maintained as a light-house, and is a welcome sight to ships seeking the harbor of Alexandria.
At an early hour the next morning a procession left the door of the hotel and proceeded in the direction of the harbor. It was composed as follows:
Frank Bassett and Fred Bronson mounted on donkeys, and attended by the drivers of the little beasts.
Doctor Bronson similarly mounted and escorted.
A servant from the hotel superintending the transportation of the baggage of the trio on the backs of a couple of Arab porters.
A miscellaneous array of beggars, peddlers, and their kindred, shouting for backsheesh.
There were at least twenty individuals in the party, not counting the donkeys; but a good many of the beggars dropped off after a few dozen yards. Their places were taken by others, so that there was no material loss of numbers on arrival at the landing, where the baggage was placed in a boat, after a gift of a couple of francs to a customs official, to save it from inspection. From the shore to the boat was a short journey, and any possible monotony was prevented by the boatmen. They had made a bargain to carry our three friends on board the steamer for five francs; about half-way they stopped rowing and demanded ten francs, which were refused.