My little boat was upset while three men in her were securing the anchor, and two of them were nearly drowned, though they swim like fish; all the dahabiehs were rattled and pounded awfully; and in the middle of the fracas, at noonday, a steamer ran into us quite deliberately.  I was rather frightened when the steamer bumped us, and carried away the iron supports of the awning; and they cursed our fathers into the bargain, which I thought needless.  The English have fallen into such contempt here that one no longer gets decent civility from anything in the Miri (Government).

Olagnier has lent us a lovely little skiff, and I have had her repaired and painted, so Maurice is set up for shooting and boating.  Darfour calls him the ‘son of a crocodile’ because he loves the water, and generally delights in him hugely, and all my men are enchanted with him.

December 20, 1867:  Sir Alexander Duff Gordon

To Sir Alexander Duff Gordon.  LUXOR, December 20, 1867.

Dearest Alick,

We arrived here all safe three days ago.  I think of starting for Nubia directly after Christmas Day, which we must keep here.  We have lovely weather.  Maurice is going with a friend of my friends, a Bedawee, to shoot, I hope among the Abab’deh he will get some gazelle shooting.  I shall stop at Syaleh to visit the Sheykh’s mother, and with them Maurice could go for some days into the desert.  As to crocodiles, Inshallah, we will eat their hearts, and not they ours.  You may rely on it that Maurice is ‘on the head and in the eye’ of all my crew, and will not be allowed to bathe in ‘unclean places.’  Reis Mohammed stopped him at Gebel Abu’l Foda.  You would be delighted to see how different he looks; all his clothes are too tight now.  He says he is thoroughly happy, and that he was never more amused than when with me, which I think very flattering.

Half of the old house at Luxor fell down into the temple beneath six days before I arrived; so there is an end of the Maison de France, I suppose.  It might be made very nice again at a small expense, but I suppose the Consul will not do it, and certainly I shall not unless I want it again.  Nothing now remains solid but the three small front rooms and the big hall with two rooms off it.  All the part I lived in is gone, and the steps, so one cannot get in.  Luckily Yussuf had told Mohammed to move my little furniture to the part which is solid, having a misgiving of the rest.  He has the most exquisite baby, an exact minature of himself.  He is in a manner my godson, being named Noor ed-Deen Hishan Abu-l-Hajjaj, to be called Noor like me.

January, 1868:  Sir Alexander Duff Gordon

To Sir Alexander Duff Gordon.  ON BOARD THE URANIA, January, 1868.

Dearest Alick,