The weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1869-18??, 1870-04-13

THE BITTER lakes, SUEz CANAL-rOne
OF the understandable features Of the Suez
Canal is the formation Of the Bitter Lakes,
of Which we give an illustration on page
1913. Al little more tqan a year ago a trav-
clcr pllssed over the very ground now lccu
piedby theso lakes, and then saw nothing
but "a vast expanse of desert. Travelled BY an
Arab Or tween ,camels. and fiockiof goats
But when he again visited Egypt in Noyenl-
Der last, all was changed. An inland sea
now extends as far as the eye can reach
large steamships are passing over il with
screws puf' paddles, or sailing.ycssels with
canvas spread to the breeze; the light
houses stand like wonderful lamps, "erected
there to guide the mariner, and iron beacons
are, PLACED in rows to- point out the channel
Of safety. 80 = - ~, 49, l q. ,,
What IS now called by the French "Les
Lacs Amcrs'' was, without doubt, at one
time The real northern extremity OF the Red
Sea-, Though changes in, the desert the
connection must ut some early period have
been closed, and the watars OF this island
lake would soon dry up under the hot sun
OF that regiun 7 Much of the ground twelve
months ngo was white, like snow, with the
salt leftiwlien tile water evaporated These
lakes, or this lake-for they may now be said
to form one body Of, water-cxtends about
twenty five miles in length; and, as the bot
tom was deeper than that OF the canal, it was
50, much labor saved in dredging to make
this portion of the line. All the engineers
had to do was tn let he water into the basin.
1t will give some idea Of the great extent of
this i,usinito state tl,at the engineers calcn-
lated THAT it would require about seven
months to fill up. The portion of the canal
works from the south end of the lake to
Suez was the least advanced; SO that, al
| though 1t was but short distance, in COM
| parison with the distance northward to the
| Mediterranean, they could not use the Red
Sea to let the water flow in, and were
| obliged, tn open up communication with
| the Mediterranean; and the water thus came
distance of about sixty or seventy miles
| from Port Said. The ceremony Of first let
ting in the water took place in March 1869.
| For months the water flowed in, and it was
not till August that the. Chalouf cutting was
| so far advanced that the opening to the Red
| Sea could be made. But, after that time,
| double supply from the two oceans c"ntin.
ucd I'd increase, and by the end OF October
the full level had been attained.
1t is impossible here to describe all the ar
rangemenis and precautions that were nee.
essary for the successful accomplishment Of
this portion of the canal. Many doubted
that it could be done at ALL some said that
the wafer as it ran in, would be absorbed
by the desert; others, that under the sum-
mcr sun, heating great cxpanse, it would
eyaporate as fast as it came. All that need
now be said is that the thing was done
Thousands ofpeople have sailed over the
waters of tho Bitter Lakes. Most of the
vessels put on full steam and set sail OIL
two when, they enter. The tide of the Red
Sea, which rises about six feet at Suez runs
up to the Bitter Lakes with considerable
force, In passing from the Bitter Lakes to
| Suez a thick crust of salt can be seen along
the bank of the canal; and it is worthy o.
note that the tide from the Red Sea rises
exactly to the level of this old saline strata
showing that the tide rose in former time
to this when it made the deposit.