The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1868-08-19
THE SUEZ CANAL.
WON OF THE MEDITEREANEAN
AND TEE RED SEA.

luminous history in the columns Of the
New York Herald, written by its corre-
.ronJcnt recently attached to the Abyssi-
man expedition:
Thirteen hundred years before Christ the
first canal was opened between the waters
cc the Mediterranean and the Red sen by
Gamcsis H., the Egyptian King. 1t was
one hundred feet wide by four deep. Seyen
hundred years afterwards it was nearly ex-
;nct, when Nccho Il. determined to restore
it: but, yielding to the warnings of magii
and sagcs that he was merely inviting bar
Iarians TO his shores, he gave up the work
after sacrificing twenty thousand men, from
the priyations and exposures Of the work.
i century later Egypt was satrapy of Per-
sin. under the reign Of Darius Hystaspes.
This ngsrch completed what Necho begun.
Two htfnnidrel years later the sands had al
mos, chokcd it, when Ptolemy Phiadel-
Inns reraircd il. lie changed the termini
.amewhat, and built n town at that on the
rcl Sea, which he named, after his daugh-
ter, Arsino..
Cleopatra repeated in her day the ever
rcrprrinr work Of reUpening the canal, and
H. navigation became important, rs she
had great maritime commerce. TraJan,
the Roman Emperor, subsequently con-
.rrnctci canal nearly parallel to this.
In the seventh century Of the Christian
era Amrous. the Calitf Omar's victorious
General, at the cost of $4,000 lives, again
connected the two seas-thc preceding con-
duits having become choked. Many years
afterwards Mustapha III. restored it again.
But there is no record Of any subsequent
effort to maintain a canal against the chok-
ing from the shifting sands. r.
The first Bonaparte fixed the attention OF
Europe upon Egypt by the remark made
while his army held the peninsula " that
whatever European Power held Egypt per-
muucutly would in the end become posses
sor Of Iulia.'
PROJECT or 4 SHIP CANAL.
B0nararte's remark led, no doubt, to the
conception in the brain OF Frcnchman IN
IN45-M. Linant Bcy, he having become n
naturalized Egyptian-of ship canal from
the Mediterranean to the Red sea. He
formed IN association with the President OF
the Peninsula and Oriental Company
(Arthur Anderson) TO carry out the scheme.
The project was examined by Il committee,
AZ the head Of which was the great English
engineer Stephenson, and they reported
that the levels of the two seas were the
same, but the obstacles to be encountered
in navigating the roadstead at each end Of
the canal were insurmountable.
THE PRESENT PLAN.
The scheme Of Linant Bey was abandon
"a, and in 1854 NJ. Lcsscps, French gen
tlcmau of wealth and talent, espoused the
scheme, examined the route, and suggest
ed such torciblc arguments to Said Pacba
that he nj once issued to the Consuls-Gen-
cral of Foreign Powers frmau, which re-
ceiyed the sanction of the Sublime Porte,
granting to any company composed of capl-
ta!ists, Of any nation, the right to connect
the two seas by a ship canal. A second
expedition examined the locality, and re-
ported the scheme practicable. II ,oas esti-
7aut,d that q C01eul direct from the Gulf OF
Prt,lyi,un to Sue2, on the Red sea, 80 miles
lpuy 800 feet ride, and 2G feet deep, erte'ad-
ing sufficiently far into the t'co seas, by
means Of jcttieS, to obtain the depths neces-
&ry to enable ships to enter aoithout diff
caiy, and hauing an, inland port IN the
nat,Udi basin Of Like TamSch, half opay
batreeR the t,co seas, could be completed
1othm the tame Of sir gears for The sam Of
So 900, 900.
NJ. de Lcsseps was empowered to organ
lZc q cosmopolitan company, composed OF ali
nations, to build the canal for the benefit Of
all. .r
\ third commission, of the best engineers
Of Europe, was formed, and after patient
investigation reported that the work Of the
above dimensions could be completed for q
sum not exceeding 100000.
CONCESSIONS OF THE yICER0Y.
The Egyptian Government made import
ant concessions TO the company-among
them the labor Of lOur-htths OF the wOrkmen
employed upon the work, (without which
the gigantic enterprise could hardly have
gotten along,) all the lands that might be
needed upon it without charge-the rent OF
al the lands for ten years irrigated and
cultivated by the cOmpany-the possession
Of private lands needed by the company
after compensation by the owners-all the
material from the quarries without charge,
and 10 levy entrance fees Of not more than
ten francs per ton from all vessels naviga-
ting the canal and for these concessions
p1 n
hltecn per cent. Of the net profits OF the
cana! per annum.
FORMATION OF THE COMPANY. ~
The utility Of the canal being establish
ta, company WAS soon formed with Nj. de
iAsseFs at its head, and with capital of
$to,o00,O00 divided in 100, GOO shares OF
SiOV each. These were soon taken up-said
iAcha subscribing for onc-half, and paying
NoNh his $500, 900 advance quota. The
company has had plenty Of money to go on
with the enterprise to this day. An import
ant source of revenue has been the Wadee
'''ate, of 10000 acres, fertile tract on
'ae line Of the canal, which they purchased
oi the Pacha for S420,OO0. Fifteen months
%''er the purchase the company realized
ron thc sale Of cotton alone from this estate
S;oVO'OOO. There was also a large produc-
:I uon OF cereals. II had $20, ,000, ,OO0to start
THE WORK TO DE DONE.
FIRST, a canal, navigable by large vessels,
1e"een huez, on the Red sea, and Port Said,
~ The Gulf Of Pelusium, on the Mediterra-
atah Sea. Second, canal Of irrigation,
,auaped to the river traffic Of the Nile,
soTe so commence in the vicinity of Cairo, and
,pi'o" ,I the Tomilat valley to Lake Tunsch,
,~s mere opening into the grand canal Third,