People of Africa | Page 3

who were wise and great. They built large cities and temples and houses. They knew how to write, and covered the walls of their houses with writing. Their letters were not like ours, but were pictures of the things they were writing about. They also built huge stone tombs for their kings to be buried in, and these were called "pyramids." The kings of Egypt were called "Pharaohs." When the old Egyptians wrote books, instead of paper they used the dried leaves of a reed called "papyrus," which grows in the Nile. Several leaves were fastened together to make a book. These old writings on reeds and on the walls have been found after lying buried in the sand, which has covered so much of old Egypt. The hot sand has kept them dry, and prevented them being destroyed during hundreds of years. By reading these writings we are able to find out how these people lived so long ago. They had also a wonderful way of taking the waters of the Nile in ditches over the whole land. There is hardly any rain in Egypt, and this Nile water prevented the country becoming so sandy and dry. In those days Egypt was well-known for its wonderful harvests and stores of food.
But though these people were wise in many ways, yet they were proud and cruel to their enemies. In the Bible we read how they treated the Children of Israel in the time of Moses. Perhaps this was because they did not know God our Father, but worshipped many gods, whose pictures and images were like animals. Many of the great temples they built for these gods are still standing, and when we see pictures of them, we wonder at the skill of these people who lived so long ago. Egypt was one of the first great countries to become Christian, and many of the old heathen temples were turned into churches. But at last the Arabs, who were Mohammedans, conquered Egypt, and forced most of the people to become Mohammedans too. But some remained faithful in spite of all, and these to-day are called "Copts," from the old name for Egypt. For hundreds of years these Copts have lived in a country ruled by Moslem Arabs, or Turks, who hated their religion, but they have been true to Christ through all.
There are people of all lands living in the towns of Egypt in these days, for there is a great deal of business to be done in them. But the people who work in the fields are the children of the old Egyptians, though they have forgotten their old wisdom and are now very ignorant.
3. The People of Egypt
The Egyptians are a race different both from the dark-skinned people of Africa and from Europeans. They have olive skins, very dark, almond-shaped eyes, and dark, straight hair. Most of the men shave their heads, and wear a turban or tarboosh as a covering. The women fasten a veil below their eyes, which falls over the lower part of their face. Both the men and the women wear several loose garments, which cover the whole body from the neck to the feet. All except the very poor wear shoes.
In the towns there are a great many people, some very rich and others very poor. Often a city looks very beautiful, because the houses are built of white or light-coloured stone or brick. But they are close together, and the streets are very narrow and dirty, and so the poor people are often ill. The houses are built in "storeys," one room on the top of another, with steps leading to the upper rooms. Often there is a courtyard in the middle of the house, so that all the rooms can have windows and light. One part of the house is separated from the rest for the women to use. This is called the "hareem," and no man, except the master of the house, is allowed to go into it. All rich Mohammedans have a separate part of their house for the women. A poor woman in all countries has plenty of work to do, but a rich lady in Egypt has many servants, or slaves, to do the work, and, as she is kept shut up in the "hareem" from the time she is ten or eleven years old, she can learn very little, except how to do beautiful needlework. She cannot help her husband and her sons to be wise and good, because she does not know enough about life and work outside the "hareem." So the Egyptian ladies have little to do and little to think about all the day while their husbands are away, and they are often very dull. But the town-people love their children very