Jon+S

William Bixby, 1923

Bixby pp.9-13; Dec. 22nd- (Thursday) - Malwa;

Well, here we are in Suez Canal and have been all day. It is now 3:40 and we have been in the canal since 7:30. We arose at 8 and the boat was then in the canal the Nile has, of course, several outlets, a stream of fresh water has been water for employees, etc. On each side of this fresh water canal are trees that have ever never have large ones. This canal during WWI was a scene of constant attack and attempts to blow up boats. Where there was the greater danger, camels were driven along the sand, trailing boughs of trees to make sand smooth and where they found fresh footprints in the A.M. they knew the enemy had been there and it helped them to locate mines, etc. Most of the way the canal is through level ground. They are dredging all the time. Huge dredges every mile of two. There Are two types, one has along pipe attached and pumps the sand up on the knoll [raised land], others have long pipes running back a long distance. Boats along side have been filled with sand. There are three pipes, all large, leading to a boat, two pump water into the boat to mix with the sand, the other, and larger one, pumps this water and all the sand it will carry way back over a hill to lower levels where the sand is wanted or where it can be stored. Most of the way there are only natural banks, but occasionally there will be miles of cement walls, or stone walls, laid up. There is evidently a constant fight to keep sand out and as, generally speaking, you can see nothing but sand for miles on either side, low and flat places, mounds and hills of it in others, it is easy to see that will always be the one great problem. Sometimes one runs close to the shore and then crosses over. There are buoys everywhere. We have passes many camels, drawing dirt, some mules. Many reaches of team road and tram cars at work, evidently working to widen the canal in spots. We move at the rate of six miles per hour. The canal in places seems very narrow so that in those places you could hardly see how two boats would pass; in most of it three could move along side and have sea room. We came this morning to Kantara, which means bridge. This is the old highway to Mecca and Medina. During the late war [WW1], there was a bridge over the canal at this place, but it has been taken down. There are tremendous stores at Kantara left from war times.

Many of the supplies have been brought to the shore as if ready to load. There were many sail boats. We passed many signal stations and all had green trees about them. The whole barren desert would be green if they had fresh water. There many native houses where evidently workmen lived, they were usually of old iron roofing with some kind of cloth overhead covered with sandbags.

In the distance on one side I saw what I took for a cement plant and I think it was. Also saw a large ship way back from the shore resting on the sand. I do not see how it ever got there. Where there was anything growing on the sand, except along the fresh water way, it was kind of sagebrush. The camels seemed to eat it.

The sand was so white it looked like snow. The blue water and white sand was very beautiful. In one place we could look across these rows of white sand with the stretches of the blue water in between.

[ Note in Margin:] Turks don't fight Eng. Polo days Monday and Brit-[ish] don't fight on Holy Day

Bixby, pp. 10-13

Dec. 23rd- Red Sea

Why is the Red Sea so named? It is blue and white, deep blue and the white is the crest of the whitecaps. I remember giving Irene Catlin a small painting by John Lafarge called "Red Sea" and it was the same blue and white as nature. In the picture was a white island background and I saw the exact spot where the sketch must have been made. The air is delightful-a fine breeze in front. Sent cable to Will at home.

Dec. 26th - Red Sea:

Calm weather, quite warm. We are to reach Aden at about 3:30. Saw the red Sea for the first time, that is, the red part of it. We were fairly close to shore and looking in toward the sandy shore there was an unmistakable glare on the water and the name is, therefore, easily explained and if we have been close to the shore before, we would, doubtless, have seen this red all the way. We passed also islands and points all bare of vegetation, great black hulks with some sand in the ravines [steep gullies]. It is bald, rough coast with occasional stretches of sand between. Before we came to Aden we could see it and I took one film of pictures of the rocky bluff and of the deck.

[In Aden] walked back and rode to the boat, badgered on all sides for gifts of Arab manufacture and every conceivable form of curio, even ostrich eggs. The sunset was very fine - it went down behind huge rocks and it was the lemon colored sunset of Egypt. Boats loaded with baskets, cigars, cigarettes, skins of leopard, etc., etc, were all along of the side of the ship and sold by means of throwing up two decks above them a rope, then putting it into a basket that brought up the purchases the pay for them. They made many sales and were kept busy pulling up the ropes,. etc. I got in the town a dozen postcards -I paid for a dozen and got eleven. At 6:30 we pulled out with lights of the town and ship making a pretty sight. Its said to be hotter than hell in summer. I shall not move there soon.