DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.4794#0246
70
street the European consuls and factors reside.
There are fifteen bridges over this canal, i.
Kantaret-fuem-el-chalidsg. 2. Kantaret-ed-
jeneine. 3. Kantaret-is-sabba, &c. &c.
The gates round the city on the east, are,
twenty in number. 1. Bab-el-masr. 2. North
east, Bab-el-fitueh, both fine structures ; from
the last, the procession of Emeer-harge to
Mecca, is always commenced. 3. On the
north, Bab-el-med-bab, &c. &c. The reader
must observe, that Bab signifies gate, and Kan-
taret, bridge.
The waters of the Nile begin to increase an-
nually on the 16th of June, old style, which
answers to our 27th. Opposite to Old Cairo,
is the key of the water, orNilometer, a house so
called, built upon pillars in the middle of the
river. In this house is a bason, with a column
in the centre, on which are cut figures of mea-
surement, and as these marks are covered by
the rising of the waters, the criers daily pro-
claim the height throughout the streets of the
city. The river rises gradually till it increases
to fifteen or sixteen spans, as they say, to which
height it usually attains on the sixteenth of
July, old stile. On that day the Pacha, at-
tended by all the Beys, goes in procession by
land to a Kiosk, or summer-house, built on
the banks of the river; and in the mouths of
the canal, multitudes of people assemble in
barges and boats. On a signal given by the
Pacha, the workmen directly open the mouth
of the canal, and as the water then rushes into
it, the Pacha throws handfuls of silver coins
street the European consuls and factors reside.
There are fifteen bridges over this canal, i.
Kantaret-fuem-el-chalidsg. 2. Kantaret-ed-
jeneine. 3. Kantaret-is-sabba, &c. &c.
The gates round the city on the east, are,
twenty in number. 1. Bab-el-masr. 2. North
east, Bab-el-fitueh, both fine structures ; from
the last, the procession of Emeer-harge to
Mecca, is always commenced. 3. On the
north, Bab-el-med-bab, &c. &c. The reader
must observe, that Bab signifies gate, and Kan-
taret, bridge.
The waters of the Nile begin to increase an-
nually on the 16th of June, old style, which
answers to our 27th. Opposite to Old Cairo,
is the key of the water, orNilometer, a house so
called, built upon pillars in the middle of the
river. In this house is a bason, with a column
in the centre, on which are cut figures of mea-
surement, and as these marks are covered by
the rising of the waters, the criers daily pro-
claim the height throughout the streets of the
city. The river rises gradually till it increases
to fifteen or sixteen spans, as they say, to which
height it usually attains on the sixteenth of
July, old stile. On that day the Pacha, at-
tended by all the Beys, goes in procession by
land to a Kiosk, or summer-house, built on
the banks of the river; and in the mouths of
the canal, multitudes of people assemble in
barges and boats. On a signal given by the
Pacha, the workmen directly open the mouth
of the canal, and as the water then rushes into
it, the Pacha throws handfuls of silver coins