Page:The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, vol. 1.djvu/91

 to the captain. He reproved these pugilistic gentlemen, and ever since then we had no more rows.

Thus, dividing our time between eating and amusements, we moved onward.

After two days' voyage, the steamer passed by, but did not touch, Gibraltar. This caused much disappointment, mostly among smokers, who wanted to get tobacco, duty-free in Gibraltar, as some of us had entertained a hope the steamer would cast anchor.

The next place reached was Malta. It being a coaling station, the steamer stops there for about nine hours. Almost all the passengers went ashore.

Malta is a beautiful island without the London smoke. The construction of houses is different. We had a look round the Governor's palace. The armoury is well worth a visit. Napoleon's carriage is on view there. You see there some beautiful paintings too. The market is not bad. The fruit is cheap. The cathedral is magnificent.

We had a nice drive of about six miles to the orange garden. There you see some thousands of orange trees and some ponds with gold fish. The drive was very cheap, only 2s. 6d.

What a wretched place Malta is for beggars! You cannot go along the road quietly without being pestered by a crowd of dirty looking beggars. Some would offer to be your guides, others would offer to take you to shops where you could buy cigars or the famous Maltese sweet nougat.

From Malta we reached Brindisi. It is a good harbour and that is all. You cannot pass a single day in amusement. We had about nine hours or more at our disposal, but we could not utilize even four.

After Brindisi we reached Port Said. There we took final leave of Europe and the Mediterranean. Of course, there is nothing to be seen in Port Said, unless you want to see the dregs of society. It is full of rogues and rascals.

From Port Said the steamer moves along very slowly, for we enter the Suez Canal of M. de Lesseps. It is a distance of eighty-seven miles. The steamer took nearly twenty-four hours to travel that distance. We were close to the land on both sides. The strip of water is so narrow that two steamers cannot go abreast except at certain places. At night the sight is charming. All the ships are required to light electric lights in front and these are very powerful. The scene when two ships pass one another is very pleasant. The electric light you get from the opposite ship is simply dazzling.