CHAP. XI. THE SHEPHERDS. 3 



This inroad of the sliepherds was followed, after 

 a long interval, by the successive occupations of 

 Egypt by the Persians, the Macedonians, and the 

 Romans ; and Egypt, after having passed under 

 the dominion of the Arabs, and at length of the 

 Turks, still continues, in spite even of the injuries 

 it has received from the misrule of these last, to be 

 coveted for the richness and capabilities of its pro- 

 ductive soil. 



It is an old and true remark, that the inhabit- 

 ants of a rich country are ever exposed to the 

 aggressions of powerful neighbours, whose soil is 

 less productive, whilst the destiny of these last is 

 rather to be conquerors than conquered ; and this 

 has been fully proved by experience and the his- 

 tory of the world. We are therefore more surprised 

 at the great duration of the power of Egypt, which, 

 to calculate only from the reign of Osirtasen to the 

 Persian conquest, continued without interruption 

 through a period of twelve hundred years. 



So remarkable a circumstance can only be attri- 

 buted to the rigid discipline of the Egyptian consti- 

 tution, and the stern regulations of the priesthood, 

 which, by scrupulously watching over the actions 

 of the monarch, and obliging him to conform to 

 certain rules established for his conduct both in 

 public and in private, prevented the demoralising 

 effect of luxurious habits, with the baneful exam- 

 ple of a corrupt court, and by a similar attention 

 to the conduct of all classes, exercised a salutary 

 influence over the whole community. And the 

 successful promotion of industry, the skill of their 



B 2 



