Observations placeholder
The Khedive prophesies an explosion
Identifier
004648
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
Heinrich Brugsch was a famous 19th century German philologist and Egyptologist. The account below comes from his memoirs ‘My Life and Wanderings’ and relates to an incident that occurred in 1875. The actual observer in this quote, however, is not Heinrich Brugsch but the Khedive.
The term Khedive is a title largely equivalent to the English word viceroy. It was first used by Muhammad Ali Pasha, the Governor of Egypt and Sudan, and an official of the Ottoman Empire. The initially self-declared title was officially recognized by the Ottoman government in 1867, and used subsequently by Ismail Pasha, and his dynastic successors until 1914. There is every reason to believe the abilities displayed here were inherited
A description of the experience
I was on my way to Goettingen to say good-by to my family which was living there, and after that, without delay, I was about to take passage on a ship from Bremen. On my way to the railway station to make an early train for Bremen, I received a telegram and opened it at once, to know the contents before I boarded the train. The message was short and peremptory:
'The Khedive requests you to return to Cairo immediately.'
By the next express train I set out in the direction of Trieste to take the first Lloyd steamer for Egypt. From the time I left, I had read no newspapers and I was certainly much surprised when the captain of my ship informed me that on the last steamer out of Bremen, the one I should have taken had I gone there, an infernal machine constructed by an American named Thomas had exploded prematurely and killed and wounded a number of passengers and others.
Silently I thanked God that my recall had probably saved my life and limb from danger and upon my arrival in Cairo I presented myself at once to the Khedive.
Expecting as I did to hear from him some especial communication which could be conveyed only by word of mouth, I was not a little astonished to receive his assurance that he was most happy to see me hale and hearty, but that otherwise he had nothing to say to me.
He had been moved to recall me by wire owing to a dream he had had one night to summon me at once, for otherwise a great misfortune awaited me.