Book I. 



AGRICULTURE IN AFRICA. 



ni 



circular direction over every part of the heap of rice, till the grain Is completely separated from the straw ; 

 the grain is then spread in the air to be dried. The dried rice is carried to the mill, where it is stripped 

 of its chaff or husk. This mill consists of a wheel turned by oxen, which sets several levers in motion ; 

 and at their extremity is an iron cylinder, about a foot long, and hollow imderneath ; these cylinders 

 bent in trougiis, which contain the grain ; and at the side of each trough there stands a man, whose business 

 it is to place the rice under the cylinders. The next oi^eration is to sift the rice in the oiK'n air, by fdling 

 a small sieve, which a man lifts over his head, and thus lets fall, with his face turned to the wind, which 

 blows away the small chaff or dust. This cleaned rice is put a second time into the mill, in order to 

 bleach it ; it is afterwards mixed up in troughs with some salt, which contributes very much to its white- 

 ness, and also to its preservation ; and in this state it is sold. Rice is furnished in great quantities in the 

 Delta ; and that which is grown in the environs of Rosalta is more esteemed on account of its preparation, 

 than that which is produced in the vicinity of Damietta. The produce of the one and the other is equally 

 wonderful. In a good season, that is, when the rise of the Nile occasions a great expansion of its wateis, 

 the profit of the proprietors of rice fields is estimated at fifty per cent, clear of all expenses. Savary says, 

 that it produces eighty bushels for one. 



1053. Wheat is sown as soon as the waters of the Nile have retired from the lands appropriated to it ; the 

 seed-time varies with the latitude, and also the harvest, which is earlier in Upper than in Lower Egypt. 

 Near to Syene they sow the barley and the com in October, and reap it in January. Towards Girge they 

 cut in February, and in the month of March in the vicinity of Cairo. This is the usual progress of the 

 harvest in the Said. There is also a number of partial harvests, as the lands are nearer or at a greater 

 <listance from the river, lower or more elevated. In the Lower Egypt they are sowing and reaping all the 

 year. Where the waters of the river can be procured, the earth is never idle, and furnishes three crops 

 annually. In descending from the cataracts in January, the com is seen almost ripe ; lower down it i in 

 ear, and advancing further, the plains are covered with verdure. The cultivator, in general, merely 

 casts the seed upon the moistened earth ; the com soon springs up from the mud ; its vegetation is rapid, 

 and four months after it is sown it is fit to be reaped. In performing this operation, the sickle not being 

 used, the stalks are pulled up by the roots, and carried to large floors, like those which are used for treading 

 out rice ; and by a similar ojieration the corn is separated from the ear. Unriix; ears of corn are dried 

 and slackly baked in an oven, and being afterwards bruised and boiled with meat, fcprm a common dish in 

 Lower Egypt, called "ferik." 



1054. Flax has been cultivated in Egypt from the most remote period, and is still 

 grovvn in considerable quantities. Indigo is also grovvn for dyeing it, the color of the 

 shirt in this country being universally blue. 



1055. Of the hemp, which is abundantly cultivated in this country, the inhabitants 

 prepare intoxicating liquors ; and also by pounding the fruits into thin membranous 



' capsules, they form a paste, which answers a similar purpose j and they also mix the 

 capsules with tobacco for smoking. 



1056. Tfie sugar-cane is also one of the valuable productions of Egypt. The common 

 people do not wait for the extraction of the sugar, but cut the canes green, which are 

 sold in bundles in all the towns. They begin to ripen in October, but are not in general fit 

 to be cut till November or December. The sugar-refiners are in a very imperfect state. 



1057. Fruit trees of various specks abound in this country. Among these we may reckon the olive-tree, 

 fig-trees which yield figs of an exquisite flavor, and the date-tree, which is to be found every where in the 

 Thebais and in the Delta, in the sands as well as in the cultivated districts, requiring little or no culture, 

 and yielding a very considerable profit, on account of the immense consumption of its fruit. The species 

 of palm-tree that furnishes dates produces also a bark ; which, together with its leaves and the rind of it 

 fruit, aflbrd filaments from which are manufactured roiws and sails for boats. The leaves are also use<l 

 for making baskets and other articles. The very long rib of the branches is employed, on account of its 

 lightness and solidity, by the mamelukes, in their miUtary exercises, as javelins, which they throw at each 

 other from their horses when at full speed. A species of cyperus, which produces a fruit resembling the 

 earth-nut, but of a much more agreeable flavor, is cultivated in the environs of Rosetta ; and the 

 small tubercles arc sent to Constantinople and other towns of the Levant, where they are much valued. 

 The Egyptians press from them a milky juice, which they deem pectoral and emollient; and give them to 

 nurses, in order to increase the quantity of their milk. The banana trees, though not natives of the 

 soil of Egypt, are nevertheless cultivated in the northern parts of that country. The papaw, or custard 

 apple-tree, {Anona), is also transplanted into the gardens of Egypt, and yields a fruit equally gratifying 

 to the taste and smell. In the shade of the orchards are cultivated various plants, the roots of which 

 are refreshed by the water that is conveyed to them by little trenches ; each enclosure having its well or 

 reservoir, from which the water is distributed by a wheel, tumed by oxen. The mallow {Malva rotun- 

 (lifolia) grows here in abundance : it is dressed with meat, and is one of those herbs that are most 

 generally consumed in the kitchens of Lower Egypt. Two other plants used as food, are the garden 

 Jew's mallow, and the esculent hibiscus. Another tree, which appears to be indigenous in this country, 

 is the "atle,"a species of larger tamarisk (TaTnarix orientalis, Forskal.) The wood of this tree serves for 



various purposes ; and among others, for charcoal. It is the 

 only wood that is common in Egypt, either for fuel or for 

 manufactures. Fenu-greek is cultivated for fodder, though 

 for this use a plant called barsim, is preferred. The plant 

 called " helbe," is cried about for sale in November in the 

 streets of the towns ; and it is purchased and eaten with 

 incredible avidity, without any kind of seasoning. It is pre- 

 tended, that it is an excellent stomachic, a sjxjcific against 

 worms and the dysentery, and, inshort, a preservation n 

 against a great number of disorders. Ix^ntils form a consider- 1^ 

 able article of food to the inhabitants of Upper Egypt, who ^ 

 rarely enjoy the luxury of rice. The Egyptian onions are 

 remarkably mild, more so than the Spanish, but not so large. 

 They are of the purest white, and the lamina are of a 

 softer and looser contexture than that of any other species. 

 They deteriorate by transplantation ; so that much must de- 

 pend on the soil and climate. They remain a favorite article 

 of fooil with all classes ; and it is usual to put a layer or two 

 of them, and of meat, on a spit or skewer, and thus roast 

 them over a charcoal fire. We need not wonder at the 

 desire of the Israelites for the onions of Egypt. Leeks are also 

 cultivated and eaten in this country ; and almost all the species 

 of European vegetables abound in the gardens of Rosetta. 

 Millet and Turkey corn, the vine, the henn^ or Egyirtian 

 privet, the water-melon (fig. 169.) are cultivated in Egyirt ; 



169 



