The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1882-08-31
ISNIAILIA.
Where the British are COncen-
trating For a Forward
Movement,

Ismailia is a mushroom city. Like
Jonah's gOurd, it sprang up, compare
lively speaking, in a night. When the
eanal was in course of construction, Nj.
de Iesseps saw the necessity of building
a town about half way between Port
Said and SueZ. Such a town would be
basis for stores; it would supply the
many thousands OF Workmen Win water
and other necessaTies, and, moreover, II
would be a place where the principal
officials could reside and direct opera
tions on every side. He chose sand
ridge opposite Lake Timsah for the site
and there built Ismailia.
M. de Lesseps fed his magic city with
a copiOus supply of water drawn from
the Nile at ZagaZig, and this source sup
piled not only his Workmen put the
thousands of shOpkeepers and others
who flOcked from the Leyant, SueZ, cairo
and Alexandria into Ismailia. The water
junction with Zagazig is named the
SweetwateT canal, and 1t is INFERIOR IN
length and utility only TO It's great
neighbOr, the Maritime canal. lsmallla
as arranged by NJ. de Lesseps, stands at
the junction of three canals-namely,
the SweetwatCr canal, from Zagazlg 10
Ismailia, the Sweetwater canal that
runs southwark from Ismailia to Suez,
and, of course, the Suez canal itself. The
water of the Maritime canal being pro-
nOunced fit neither for man nor beast,
Ismailia is entirely dependent upon the
SWeetwateT supply from SagaZlg. Gut
that off and it's inhabitants must either
perish or escape to the banks OF the
Nile. SueZ also would be lmperlIed, as
it depends almost wholly upon the
SWeetWater canal ISmailla. 1t Will be
evident, therefore, at glance, that If
Arab Bey threatens the water supply of
Ismailia he will at the same time be
threatening that of Suez. He will,
in fact, be rendering both cities totally
useless for occupation, either civil or
military.
The Ismailia-Zagazig fresh water
canal springs out of the Dam1etta branch
of the Nile at or near village named
Mir Bereh. 1t then meanders through
the celebrated Land of Goshen, passing
a hundred villages on the way and the
site of the ancient city of HeliOpOlis. 1t
spreads fertility as ii goes. On its banks
gardens of fruit and vegetables flourish.
and trees which give grateful shadow
to the traveller i'll weary land derive
nOurishment from its percOlatiOns. As
it approaches Ismailia it runs along a
sandy ridge Just few feet above the
grade on which the town is built, and
to every little plot fenced round runs
ditch containing a wealth of Nubian
soil and abundance of water, which is
let in by burrows through the whole ex-
tent of the plot. An observer of the
marvellous fertility created In sandy
desert by these streamlets OF water from
the canal remarks that the erect or the
nOurishing element on the slLd seems
almost spontaneous. Whatever plant
indigenous to Egypt Is put into the
ground this water causes to flourish at
once. Whatever depressiOns take place
in the irrigated plots around and in
Ismailia there small lakes are formed,
and on these the lotus floats with its
broad, green leaves and pure white
flowers, while the edges of the lakelets
are beautified by evergTeens, brilliant
towering plants and alOes that shoot
their broad, swOrd-bladed leaves aloft
side by side withsazaleas, roses and cac-
tus clumps.
The proudest day in the history of Is
mnilia was that on which, in November,
1869, the splendid fleet that celebrated
the opening of the Suez canal steamed
into Lake Timsah, headed by the be-
tagged and hammered imperial yacht of
France, the Aigle, bearing on board the
Empress Eugenie, and followed by the
fifty steamers which bore the Austrian
Emperor, the Prince Royal of Prussia,
Prince Henry of Holland, and host of
ambassadors and brilliant persOnages
of Europe. Then Ismailia wore her gala
dress. The Khedive entertained his
guests right royalty in magnificent
paVilions. Music and dancing sped the
flying hours, and wine flowed like water.
Then population hOcked to her by hun
dreds daily, until in few months from
the day when her form was scratched
upon the sands, she could count upon
some 10000 or 1900 residences. But
when the canal was completed and con-
tractors had fled and the labOreTs had |
returned to their homes, Ismailia's glory |
began to fade. She was visited only |
occasionally by the Khedive, the ships |
bound east and west passed her disdain- |
fully and her population dwindled down |
to less than two thousand. Few travel |
ers think of going to see Ismailia.