AND LOWER EGYPT. 225 



and which puts in motion many levers, at the ex- 

 tremity of which is a cylinder of iron near a foot 

 long, and hollowed below. They beat into the 

 troughs which contain the grain. By the side of 

 each trough a man is stationed, whose assiduous 

 employment it is to bring forward the rice to the 

 action of the cylinders. His attention to this bu- 

 siness must be undistracted : for he would run the 

 risk of having his hand crushed off, if he failed to 

 draw it back at the instant. This part of the pro- 

 cess being executed, the rice is withdrawn from 

 the mill, and sifted in the open air, which is per- 

 formed in a very simple manner, by filling a small 

 sieve with as much grain as a man can easily carry ; 

 he raises this sieve-full above his head, and gently 

 pours the rice out of it, with his face from the 

 wind, which carries off the chaff and dust. The 

 rice thus cleaned is put a second time to the mill 

 to be whitened. They mix salt with it in the 

 troughs, which contributes greatly towards giving 

 it a fair colour, and, above all, towards its pre- 

 servation. It has now passed through the whole 

 preparatory process, and is ready to go to market. 



It is only on the low lands of Lower Egypt that 

 rice is cultivated. Farther to the south, the soil, 

 too elevated, could not admit of being soaked by 

 the sheet of water which, in order to the success of 

 this branch of agriculture, must be diffused over 



vol. 1. a the 



