Hill's caravans
arrived--a tilted cart upon springs, and drawn by a pair of horses;
it contained a family, passengers by the _Berenice,_ consisting of a
gentleman and his wife, two children and a servant. We conversed with
them for a few minutes, and learned that they had not found the
road very rough, and that where it was heavy they added a camel as a
leader.
At this place we found some difficulty in purchasing, water for
the donkeys; competition in the desert is not, as in other places,
beneficial to the traveller. By some understanding with the Steam
Committee, Mr. Hill has put his people into the bungalows; and they,
it appears, have orders not to sell water to persons who travel under
Mr. Waghorn's agency. If the original purpose of these houses was to
afford general accommodation, the shelter which cannot be refused
is rendered nugatory by withholding the supplies necessary for the
subsistence of men and cattle. We procured water at last; but every
thing attainable at these places is dear and bad.
We arrived, at rather an early hour, at our halting place for the
night; and as we considered it to be desirable to get into Suez as
speedily as possible, we agreed to start by three o'clock on the
following morning.
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