| tion by that of St. Paul's in London. Everyone we found in the
mosque was kneeling, and going through the numerous prayers and
prostrations with his face turned to the east. The ignorant Mussulmans here insist that no worship is acceptable which is not offered
with the face turned to the rising sun; while, in Syria, professors in the same faith contend that the worshipper is disdained who does
not in his devotions turn his face towards the south. I suppose
that the pious of the sect in Persia would insist upon a westward
aspiration; while those in Mozambique would believe in a divine
afflatus from the north. And so it goes. I wonder what would be
the result of a comparison of notes by earnest and bigoted devotees
from directly opposite points of the compass. Of course, the intelligent among the Mohammedans know that the principle is that the
face of the worshipper, wherever he is, must be turned towards
Mecca, their holy city, as of old the Jews prayed towards Jerusalem.
After looking around the interior of the building, and at the
tomb of Mohammed Ali, we went out and had a view of Cairo from
the citadel, said to be one of the finest views in the world. From
this elevation, through the dry, clear atmosphere of Egypt, the
greater portion of the city is distinctly seen. The numerous large
and striking buildings, patches of beautiful green, with clusters of
palm trees and sycamore, white domes of mosques and shining
minarets in every direction, present an appearance not to be
described. The view to the west is very extensive and grand, giving,
beyond the limits of the present city, the site and remains of old
Cairo, of Fostat; then the broad, placid Nile, flowing through a
wide verdant plain, fertilized by its waters. Further off, at a distance
of six miles, are seen the great pyramids of Gizeh, and the smaller
pyramids of Abusir and Sakarah, all lying in the Libyan desert,
and bounded by the range of the Libyan hills, sloping gradually
down to the Delta of the Nile. Thus the greatest structure of ancient
Egypt, and one of the finest and most costly of modern Egypt, face
each other.
From the citadel we visited "Joseph's Well", said to have been
dug by Joseph during his rule in Egypt. It is remarkable for its
great depth and the abundance of good water which it constantly
supplies. There is a passage at the side by which visitors may go
down to the bottom. We ventured about a hundred feet down, and
as we were told that we were not then half way to the bottom, we
looked through an opening in the side at the heights above and the
depths beneath, and we thought it best to retrace our steps. From
the "Well of Joseph" we visited the mosque of Sultan Hassan,
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