The Great Pyramid is 730 feet square at the base, and is 460 feet high. “The usual process in Egyptian Pyramid building seems to have been to start with an upright column, or needle, of rock, and enclose it in a series of steps formed of huge blocks of stone. Fresh series of steps were added to the outside, till the requisite dimensions were obtained. Then the steps were filled up with smooth polished stones, covered with sculpture and inscriptions.” Deep down in the Pyramids were left open chambers and passages, as the burial places of the illustrious builder and his family. Of course, these interior chambers were closed and hermetically sealed. From the Great Pyramid, or the Pyramid of Cheops, the outer polished stones have been removed, so now there remains a series of colossal steps, up which some visitors climb to the top. To ascend the Pyramid, one must pay a fee to the Sheik, who furnishes him with two strong Arabs—some travelers require four—to assist him up. It would be both difficult and dangerous to attempt the ascent alone. The steps are often five feet high. There is no chance to catch a hand hold, and you have only twelve, and sometimes six, inches to stand on while you struggle to get up. We had two assistants each, yet Johnson came very near falling. I was amused, and excited, too, when I heard him cry out to the Arabs, “Hold me! _hold me!_” At the top of the Pyramid, there is a level platform, about thirty feet square, from which one gets a fine view of the surrounding country. Looking eastward, I can trace the majestic Nile, in its onward sweep toward the ocean, and its fertile valley, once the granary of the world. Turning toward the setting sun, I look out for miles and miles over the arid desert. Not a living thing do I see, but a caravan of camels, those ships of the desert, just starting out on their long journey. After descending almost to the ground, we have then to slide on our stomachs up an inclined plane, on the inside of the Pyramid in order to reach the interior chamber, which was long ago robbed of its mummied kings.