Father Abraham, and the whole scene was _so_ pastoral and Biblical that I
felt quite as if my wish was fulfilled to live a little a few thousands
of years ago. They wanted me to stay many days, and then Girgis said I
must stop at Feshn where he had a fine house and garden, and he would go
on horseback and meet me there, and would give me a whole troop of
Fellaheen to pull the boat up quick. Omar's eyes twinkled with fun as he
translated this, and said he knew the Sitt would cry out, as she always
did about the Fellaheen, as if she were hurt herself. He told Girgis
that the English customs did not allow people to work without pay, which
evidently seemed very absurd to the whole party.

GEBEL SHEYK EMBARAK,
_Thursday_.

I stopped last night at Feshn, but finding this morning that my Coptic
friends were not expected till the afternoon, I would not spend the whole
day, and came on still against wind and stream. If I could speak Arabic
I should have enjoyed a few days with Girgis and his family immensely, to
learn their _Ansichten_ a little; but Omar's English is too imperfect to
get beyond elementary subjects. The thing that strikes me most is the
tolerant spirit that I see everywhere. They say 'Ah! it is your custom,'
and express no sort of condemnation, and Muslims and Christians appear
perfectly good friends, as my story of Bibbeh goes to prove. I have yet
to see the much-talked-of fanaticism, at present I have not met with a
symptom of it. There were thirteen Copt families at Bibbeh and a
considerable Muslim population, who had elected Girgis their headman and
kissed his hand very heartily as our procession moved through the
streets. Omar said he was a very good man and much liked.

The villages look like slight elevations in the mud banks cut into square