7 o6 TRAVELS TO DISCOVER 



at laft the rivers, marfhes, and lakes, being refrefhed by 

 lhowers, (the rain becoming conftant) and parting through 

 the kingdom of Sennaar, the foil of which is a red bole ; 

 This mixture, and the moving fands of the deferts, fall in- 

 to the current, and precipitate all the vifcous and putrid 

 fubflances, which cohere and float in the river ; and thence 

 (as Pococke has well obferved) the fign of the Nile being 

 wholefome, is not when it is clear and green, but when 

 mingled with frefh water, and after precipitation it be- 

 comes red and turbid, and ftains the water of the Mediter- 

 ranean. 



The next remark of Mr Pococke * is equally true. It 

 has been obferved, fays he, that after the rainy feafon is 

 over, the Nile fallen, and the whole country drained from 

 inundation, it has begun again to rife ; and he gives an, 

 inflance of that in December 1 737, when it had a fudden in- 

 creafe, which alarmed all Egypt, where the received opinion 

 was that it prefaged calamities. This alfo is faid to have 

 happened in the time of Cleopatra, when their government 

 was fubverted, their ancient race of kings extinguifhed. 

 in the perfon of that princefs, and Egypt became a province 

 to the Romans. 



The reader will not expect, in thefe enlightened times, 

 that I fhould ufe arguments to convince him, that this ri- 

 ling of the Nile had nothing to do with the extinction of 

 the race of the Ptolemies, though popular preachers and 

 prophets have always made ufe of thefe fortunous events 

 to confirm the vulgar in their prejudices. 



The 



* Pococke, voJ. i.p. 201. 



