A pilgrimage to the temples and tombs of Egypt, Nubia, and ...

COURT OF THE MEMLOOKS. 53
nificent Pyramids looming largely upon the
transparent atmosphere ; the whole lighted up
by those richly glowing tints peculiar to East-
ern skies, and which every artist must despair
of imitating until he can dip his pencil in sun-
beams.
Contiguous to the palace is the Court of Jus-
tice, presided over by the Governor of Cairo.
As we passed through it we saw everything in
preparation for the approaching hour of business,
the scribes awaiting the coming of their chiefs,
the prisoners guarded by soldiers, and the dread-
ful bastinado apparatus lying upon a square mat,
in readiness to execute the sentences that are
there daily passed for minor offences. As the
day Avas drawing to a close, we hurried through
the magnificent mosque now building by order
of Mohammed Ali, close to the site of Saladin's
palace, and could only notice its noble outline
and costly materials (Egyptian alabaster), and
the commanding position it occupies, which will
render it, when completed, one of the most
striking features in Cairo; but its details were
lost upon us. The last object to which our
attention was directed in the citadel, and per-
haps the most interesting spot in it, was the
court where the Memlooks were massacred by