EGYPT. 



I -.V.! -. 



n the province of Geesh, is known by that appellation, 

 it follows, of course, that tin- Nile dcrhcd its dcsigna- 

 tioii from the Abyssinian river, and not from tin- Hnhir 

 Alnbiad. though its streams are more copious ami their 

 course of greater extent. If these ideas be corrrrt. the 

 springs in the province of Gee-Ji are the source of the 

 Mut if it l>e asked, where the waters of the Egyp- 

 tian river take their first rise, we must, acconlii.g to 

 the presertt state of our knowledge, direct the enquirer 

 to the White River, which has its rise in the Mountain-. 

 of the Moon. The course of the Nile is about 



: but running, as it does in the whole of its track, 



through u arm country and over a parched soil, it en- 



\vith a less copious supply of water than 



might lie expected from its length. Its bre.-tdth seldom 



U the third part of a mile, or it^ waters the depth 

 of 1^ feet. 



Between the tropics, it rains incessantly every year 

 for several months in succession ; and to this we must 

 ascribe the annual overflowings of the Nile, as well as 

 of other rivers that have their source in tropical coun- 

 tries. The Ktisian winds may occasionally drive back 

 the streams of the Nile, and raise the waters higher at 

 the mouths of its brandies ; but it is to the periodical 

 rains toward the upper parts of the Nile, that we are 

 chiefly to ascribe these inundations which fertilize the 

 Delta. This lower part of Egypt is not wholly covered 

 by the inundations of the Nile, though the houses are 

 built on artificial mounds to raise them above the water, 

 and means are employed, by ductile streams, to render 

 the influence of its waters as extensive as possible, in 

 irrigating and enriching the land. It is justly supposa- 

 ble, that the cultivated parts of the Delta are not so ex- 

 tensive now as they were in early times, when the 

 kingdom of Egypt was flourishing under its native 

 kings. Several branches of the Nile have been wholly 

 or in part obstructed and filled up in the middle of the 

 Delta ; and those towards the extremities are more like- 

 ly to have suffered a similar fate. 



It has even been alleged, that the adjoining moun- 

 ' tains were covered with verdure, while the kingdom 

 flourished ; but of this we may be assured, that some 

 of its best lands have been neglected and permitted to 

 become desert. If, therefore, the Delta were cultivated 

 and well watered to the very root of the mountains, the 

 mountains themselves would be perfectly irrigated by 

 copious exhalations ; and, though not fertile, they might 

 produce verdure, and bear some kinds of fruit. To- 

 wards the end of April the Nile becomes muddy, and 

 about the middle of June it overflows the plains of the 

 Delta. 



Independent of canals, there are several lakes in the 

 Delta anil other places of Egypt. Menzalah is the most 

 considerable, reaching from Damietta to 1'elusium. The 

 lake Burlos was formed from the Sebennitic branch of 

 the Nile, when it ceased to become a regular channel 

 of water ; and the Edko, or Maadia Lake, made its ap- 

 pearance when the Canopic branch of the river was 

 tilled up. Meside these there is the Lake Sed or Abu- 

 kir ; and the Lake Mareotis, which had long been dry, 

 or at most a little marshy, till it was filled with water 

 by the British, who opened a communication, by the 

 canal of Alexandria, between it and Lake Abukir. 

 Thirty miles west from the river Nile, there is a valley 

 in the Lybinn desert, which contains six lakes of va- 

 rious descriptions, and tliese are supplied by springs of 

 water. The waters of these lakes deposit difl'erent salts, 

 the basis of which is soda, and the lakes themselves are 

 called die Natron Lakes. 



The Lake Sherun, supposed to be the so much ccle- Statistics. 



bratcd Moris of old, is now of small moment, and at- s T"* i ' 

 ford.-i Imt a scanty subsistence to a few miscr.ilile iMier- Lake*. 

 men. This lake is near 40 mile- in length, and si\ in 

 MMth; and come have supposed that the ii.ith.n. 

 which appears to have been artificial, .was the Mn-i is of 

 tlu' ancient*. As to the Bahir-Bela-Ma, or river with- 

 out water, it seems to have been originally a channel 

 for conveying water from the Nile to the adjoining 

 plains, which, in happier times, were well watered and 

 fruitful. The higher and unu atcrcd parts of Egypt arr 

 extremely barren ; but the banks of the river are capa- 

 ble of high cultivation, and the fruilfulncss of the Delta 

 has been long and justly celebrated. 



The appearance of the Delia is luxuriant ; but the Vc, 

 palm and the date tree, to be seen every where, is uni- produce ot" 

 tbrru and fatiguing. The orange groves al>out Kosetta thccountiw. 

 have been much celebrated ; and that perhaps is the 

 mo^t delightful scene upon the Nile. Wheat mid bar- 

 ley are p rex 1 need in profu-ion, with little agriculture, 

 and that of the simplest kinds. Oats are scarcely 

 known in the warmer countries; and the Delia abound- 

 with rice, lentils, and mai/.e. Dates and oranges, ci- 

 trons, and various kinds of pulse, are common produc- 

 tions, in the well cultivated pails of K^ypt. Two or 

 three different kinds of crops may be obtained an- 

 nually. 



The Egyptian sycamore was probably imported from u otanv 

 Arabia, and is much valued for its shade, as well as for 

 its fruit. It grows with little moisture, and flourishes 

 on the frontiers of the san>i-, tie , it The date, the 

 palm, the bread tree, the pittachia, and the Oriental 

 plane, are highly ornamental in tho vicinity of their 

 towns, and the Cyprus overshadows the lambs of the 

 dead. The caper-bush also grows profusely among the 

 ruins of Egyptian buildings; and the henna is abundant* 

 from which the women prepare the yellow dye for tin- 

 ging their nails. The papyrus, once so famous and 

 common in Egypt, is no longer found in its borders, 

 unless it be the Cyprus papyrus of Linna-us ; but tin- 

 lotus, sacred to their gods, is found in abundance in all 

 the canals and shallow pools, when the streams of the 

 Nile retire. In Egypt, too, are found the almond and 

 the apricot, the fig and the orange, the pomegranate 

 and the peach. Melons and gourds grow to perfection, 

 and are highly valuable for food. Cotton, and the su- 

 gar-cane, together with the plantain, and other produc- 

 tions of difl'erent countries and climates, have been im- 

 ported to Egypt: and as they thrive well with so little 

 care, they would be of great importance under difl'er- 

 ent tre*tment; and with proper cultivation, Egypt might 

 flourish with the most favoured climates. 



The situation of Egypt upon the globe makes it al- Climato. 

 ways warm ; and at certain seasons the heat is intolera- 

 ble. Eroni March till November, the mercury in Fali- 

 renheit's thermometer rises in the shade to SO' or 8S 

 degrees. This being the case in the- Delta, the heat is 

 more intense in Upper Egypt, where the earth has lit- 

 tle, and in some parts no vegetable clothing, but abounds 

 in arid sands and burning rocks. In this situation, tin? 

 thermometer never indicates a lower temperature than 

 50, and seldom less than 52, even in the coldest se*. 

 son of the year. This excessive heat is partly occasion- 

 ed by the distance of Egypt from the ocean, and by the 

 moderate height of its hills; for in places nearer the 

 line-, where the mountains are high, the cool air de- 

 bt-ending from tliese high regions refreshes the country, 

 and moderates the climate. And we may add, that 

 the. air is never cooled by copious rains ; for if we ex- 



