183 



bottom of the sea, which is often of great use in navi- 

 gation ; the low land of this country not being seen 

 afar off."* 



Dr. Shaw says, that at the distance of twenty leagues 

 from the coast of Egypt the bottom is mud " so far 

 at least, by sounding this mud is found to extend, j-" 



It is more than probable, that from ten to twenty 

 leagues from either shore throughout the Mediterra- 

 nean, a similar bottom will be found to prevail. But 

 whether or not, it is very much a matter of doubt, if 

 the mud, mentioned either by Herodotus or Dr. Shaw, 

 (which was about the same distance from land) was 

 ever carried there from the Nile. The sentiments 

 which Dr. Shaw has expressed, seem to indicate doubts 

 in his own mind on this point. ' Surely," says he, 

 " the soil in Ethiopia (provided the Nile reacheth no 

 further) must be of an extraordinary depth, in hav- 

 ing, not only bestowed upon Egypt so many thousand 

 annual strata, but laid the foundation likewise of a 

 future addition to it in the sea to the distance of twen- 

 ty leagues.'^ 



A similar inference is deducible from the expres- 

 sions of Mr. Bruce, on finding mud by soundings at 

 the distance of seventeen leagues west of Alexandria 

 and which are as follows : 



u From this I inferred, that part of the assertion, that 

 is the mud of the Nile, which is supposed to shew 

 seamen their approach to Egypt, is mere imagination ; 



* Pocock's Travels, t Shaw's Travels, page 432. \ do. do. 



