Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1882-09-06
The Nile Delta.

The Boston advertiser has an exception
ally interesting article descriptive Of the
scene of the military operations in Egypt.
No minor war of recent times has enlisted
greater popular interest, and the following
article will give our readers a clear concep-
ton of the ancient field where the English
and Arabian forces face each other in deadly
strife:
The nominal object Of the British invaders in
Egypt being the restoration Of Twe6k Khedive
to power, the objective point OF the forces under
Sir Garnet Wolseley IL Cairo. His English army
has been landed in Alexandria and Port Said,
while the Indian contingent has disembarked in
Suez The bulk Of the English navy in Egyptian
waters is distributed between Alexandria and
Port Said, their evident purpose being the block
AIDE of the coast and eventually the support Of the
landed forces. It may be taken for granted that
another detachment OF English ironclads Is cruising
in the Red Sea to prevent all communication be-
tween Egypt and Arabia, to watch the important
little town OF Kosseir, and to keep the Gulf Of
Suez out OF Arab Pacha's hands. Sir Garnet
Wolseley could reach Cairo In many ways, the
ordinary roads to the capital OF Egypt being rail-
ways and water routes. But Of several lines the
English commander seems to have preferred the
road from Ismailia through the ancient land of
Goshen. by way OF Tel-el-Kebir or the great
mound" and ancient Heliopois to Cairo, or the
| victorious"
This city, the full name OF which Ia Masr-el-
Cairo is probably the most interesting Of all east
ern cities although the English propose TO seize Il
because II Is the capital OF Egypt and poor Tew-
| fix Khedive. The word Masr Is the same az the
| Hebrew Mizraim, and has been from time imme-
mortal the Semitic name. Of Egypt. The full
name of Cairo, then, IL " victorious Egypt" An
cient Memphis stood just above Cairo on the Nile
| river. Cairo stands few miles south OF what
the Egyptians call the cow-belly OF the Nile-the
point where the great river bifurcates and forms
the southern end of the famous delta. This delta
| has length OF about 100 miles from Cairo to AL
exandria; also from Alexandria TO Dametta The
main branches of the Nile empty into the Med
| iterranean near Damietta and Rosetta which are
| about ninety miles apart The former mouths
used TO be many, the Kanopian and Pelusian be-
ing the extremes. The area OF the present delta
| Is supposed to be about 800 square miles, and Is
| certainly smaller than Massachusetts.
| This delta between Cairo, Alexandria and Port
| Said, the northern end Of the Suez canal, Is al
luvia the deposits of the Nile being from thirty to
fifty feet deep and very fertile when properly IT.
| rgated. The rainfall in Egypt Is Insignificant.
Irrigation is effected by collecting the water Of
| the rising Nile in great basins, and then letting
| the water gradually over the fields back into
the falling Nile The principal time for this in
the delta is about the autumnal equinox. This ir-
rgation is sufficient to support population OF
nearly four million people, or the whole OF New
| England, which Is ten times larger. The princi-
pal cities Of the delta, besides Alexandria with
160 600 people, and Cairo with 325 900 inhabitants,
are Damietta with 1900 souls, Rosetta with 16,
900, Suez with 1900, Port Said with 1000, Is
| MALTA with 1000, Tanta with 10000, Mansoora
with IL, 600, Zagazig with 10000, and Damanhoor
with $4,000 All these cities, except poor Port
Said, are connected with one another by railways,
| and draw their water supply from the Nile. The
| animal, mineral and floral Kingdoms OF Egypt are
relatively poor. But art, ancient and modern,
has made Egypt the home OF millions Of people,
and has attracted many immigrants from the
Persians, Romans and Arabs, down to Turks and
,anIA Dat hn tNatn EVnN fnn nj
| whom the Christian Copts represent the present
| type, are Semitic. And the modern fellaheen or
| plowmen, though physically degenerated and
morally degraded, still look very much like their
| ancient ancestors, whose pictures are preserved
| on the monuments.
Near lsmailia the present base OF General
| Woseley's operations, are the ruins OF Serapeum
| and many places mentioned in the Old Testament.
| The land of Goshen for instance, is the district
| between Ismailia and Zagazg although this is
not absolutely certain. Tel-el-Kebr, on this line,
| now an entrenched camp OF Arabi's, is supposed
| to be the ancient Pithom OF the lsraelites, who
| made it one OF Pharaoh's granares. Between
| this place and Ismailia is Raamseh, or Rameses,
built by the ancient lsraelites for similar pur-
pose (see Exodus |: ~. Just to the west and
not far from Zagazg is Pi-beseth or Pa-bast, the
| Greek Bubastus, mentioned in Ezekiel XXX; II.
| On the plan of ancient Bubastus stands a
| large railway restaurant in which the travellers
from Cairo, Alexandria and Suez meet Aven,
also mentioned by Ezekiel, Xxx II, means " moth
/
Between Zagazig and Heliopolis is Tel-el-Ye-
hoodeh, or "the mound Of the Iew," described
| by Josephus, book xiii, chapter 3. And just be-
| fore Cairo is reached, the invaders will occupy
Boolak, the river port of the capital, the seat Of
the greatest Oriental printing-ofice, and the home
OF the best museum devoted to Egyptian antique
| ties. This museum alone has made the name Of
Boolak illustrious throughout the world of schol-
ars. Cairo, finally, is the capital OF Egypt in
every respect and the most interesting Of all ORR
| entail cities. 1t contains the chief university Of
the Mohammedans. and the noblest examples OF
| Oriental architecture, especially In the way OF
mosques, one Of which, erected about 49, shows
the earliest example Of the pointed arch Cairo
| is also the scene OF the most miscellaneous popu-
lation to be seen in any Oriental city. Thus the
places now recorded in Sir Garnet Wolseleys dis
patches recall names mentioned in the Old Testa-
ment and in Herodotus, on the monuments Of
ancient Egypt and in the pages OF Arabian schol-
arship. The earliest records OF human learning
and human art point to Egypt the land Of mys-
terry and patience, the great station between the
| Asiatic world and modern Europe,-a land never
| free, yet always rich to him who studies the his
| tory of the human race, and always attractive to
| him who aspires to the empire Of the world,