250 



PHYSICAL HISTORY OF MAN, 



change takes place in both Copt and Arab, and to all appearance, is 

 independent of mixture of physical race ; although individuals might 

 readily be selected, who in Europe and the United States, would not 

 be recognised as Whites. 



With the exception of the Copts, the modern Egyptians all rank 

 themselves as Arabs. I found, however, that the people living near 

 the Pyramids, on the western margin of the valley, equally claimed 

 Berber or Lybian descent. The circumstance, seems to favour the 

 suggestion of Hodgson, that the Lybian was once the spoken lan- 

 guage of Egypt. The coincidences between Lybian and Sanscrit 

 words, are numerous ; and the point might be worth ascertaining, 

 how far a Mahratta from the Dekkan and a Kabyle from Mount 

 Atlas, would be able to understand each other's language. 



On the 10th of March, 1844, 1 again reached Cairo. This city con- 

 tains a large proportion of strangers, and to European eyes, the popu- 

 lation presents great diversity of aspect. But in this respect, Cairo is 

 far from rivalling Singapore, or even the places around the Indian 

 Ocean : and if for a moment I had any doubt respecting the physical 

 race of individuals, it was only in the instance of a few of the fellahs, 

 or cultivating Arabs. 



I frequently met with Copts; a class of the population, noted for 

 having maintained their religion throughout the Muslim Conquest, 

 and for having preserved the sacred language of ancient Egypt. In 

 the upper country, where the Copts have monasteries and villages, 

 and where they cultivate the soil, the complexion is dark; and in the 

 absence of my interpreter, I should not have distinguished them from 

 the rest of the peasantry. The Copts of Cairo and Alexandria, have 

 the fair European complexion; accompanied frequently with a Greek 

 or an Italian cast of countenance, that suggested doubts as to their 

 exclusive Oriental descent. 



Although Egypt at present, may be regarded as politically indepen- 

 dent, it is not the less governed by Turks ; and these have appropri- 

 ated most of the offices of honour and profit. In appearance and man- 

 ners, the Turks of Egypt are not very distinguishable by strangers : 

 but they experience the same difficulty with Europeans, in rearing 

 their children in the climate of Egypt. 



The few Turks I saw in other parts of the Mediterranean, were 



