9G DK. GRANT BEY, 



situated between Assiout and Luxor. At tliat time, even 

 as now, Abydos was on the border of an extensive fertile 

 plain that required no great skill for its irrigation. Mena 

 no doubt visited Silsilis and could see at a glance how 

 inuch was to be gained even by a partial restoration of the 

 cataract there ; but for some reason or other he did not 

 attempt it although he had no mean engineers in those 

 days, who had already built the Temple of the Sphinx, 

 and hewed the Sphinx itself in the native rock at Gizeh 

 (Maspero). No, iVlena's exploits were carried out in the 

 northern Egypt of that day. In the region between 

 Helioj^olis and the Templs of the Sphinx, he saw a battle 

 going on amongst the watery ele]nents — the sea and the 

 river — striving for the mastery. The river was throwing 

 its mud in the teeth of the sea, and Avherever there was a 

 sand island there the mud was thrown up, and rank vege- 

 tation with dense forests soon appeared. The sea, little by 

 little, had to retire leaving swampy morasses behind it, 

 where the crocodile and hippopotamus were at home ; but 

 making the whole of this region malarious and unhealthy 

 to man. Mena, who was his own minister of health, set 

 himself to remedy this state of matters. He caused a great 

 dyke to be raised, about 30 miles to the south of where 

 Cairo now is, and directed the channel of the river into the 

 centre of the valley, as it was then flowing by the foot of 

 the Libyan range on the west side of the valley. 



This he followed np by raising other dykes as he 

 required, so as to get the control of the river, and drain off 

 the marshes. This was evidently the beginning of reclaim- 

 ing the Delta from being a morass, which Avouid no doubt 

 change the climate considerably and make it much less 

 malarious. On part of this reclaimed land Memphis Avas 

 built, which continued to be a city of some considerable 

 importance doAvn to media3val times. While Mena was 

 directing his irrigation schemes he was attacked by a hippo- 

 potamns or crocodile and killed, after a reign of sixty-two 

 years. The presence of the hippopotamus or crocodile 

 would indicate a warm climate, but not necessarily much 

 different fr(?m what we have now, for Dr. Abd-el-Lateef 

 writing at the ])eginning of the 13th century of our era has 

 recounted that hippopotami were very common in the Dam- 

 ietta branch of the Nile at that time, and even so late as 

 Mohammed Aly's time (1811-48), a hippopotamus Avas killed 

 near Mansoura in the Delta.* 



