The silver star., 1899-02-23
TO HARNESS THE NILE
BRITISH GOVERNMENTS PRO-
JECT.
Planned 20 Construct Great Reservoirs
Isrigsts Egypt l~s RI Lands.

Ifrsgees Esyps'A Drs RI Lands.
A tremendous task is TO be undertak-
en by the English In Egypt-n0thing
less than the creation. for purposes OF
irrigation. Of a reservoir having two or
three times the superficial area of Lake
Geneva. Ex-Consul General i. g. Pen
field describes the proposed undertake
ing In the February Century, in an H.
Illustrated article appropriately entitled
"Harnessing the Nile" He says:
Engineering skill IL to rearrange ma
lures surface OH the Egyptian from
tier, and pond back into Nubia body
OF water 40 miles long. crossing the
tropic OF Cancer, and extending south
ward nearly to Korosko-a gootily step
on the journey to Abu-Simbei and
Wady-Halfa-by means Of great dam
across the Nile at Assuan. The Pyra-
mlds and the Sphinx have borne testi
mony through the centuries to the
grandeur and power OF execution
which dwelt within the Nile valley:
and what more fitting now than that the
same valley be the theater of n gigan-
tic engineering exploit, audaciOus per-
haps, but certain of success, and minis
tering to mans necessities. rather than
TO his vanity.
As building achievement the scheme
Is on a scale worthy Of a Rameses or IL
Pharaoh. To create In the heart of the
African desert u lake having from two
TO three times the superficial area of
Lake Geneva. in Switzerland. AMI con
troll 1t with scientific precision, 10 tlnt
the impounded flood may be turned into
Instant channels at will. is n stupentl-
GUS undertaking. But the engineers
claim that their plans can he carried
out 10 the letter; they have estimated
the exact cost Of the dam. cOmputate<l
almost to the gallan the volume of wat
er tnat Will be imprisoned, and figured
tne necessary resistance to he provided
at every point Of the masonry. In Cal
no, the experts of the ministries Of pub
nc works and finance, likewise. have
calculated to nicely the sum from
taxation that will come into the public.
treasury through the cOuntry's aug
mented pr0ductiveness.
SuDOrdinate to the great dam. "a
smaller one, not unlike the barrage at
the apex OF the delta, ten miles to the
north OF Cairo, is to he mnde at AssIut.
Its function will be to give sufficient
head to the river to force the water into
the system Of irrigation canals TINT
vein hundreds Of thousands OF acres be-
tween Assiut and Cairo. The compile.
ton Of the Cairo barrage 1t was begun
~ mcuehiet AL fuSnn. from the plans
Of q French engineer. but not made ef-
fective until England took the country
In hand) 80 developed cotton culture nv
to add to the public revenue OF the
country at least $1O.OOO.OOO annually. II
may safely be concluded that the AS
suan reservoir is but one OF a series
which will in time lm constructed
southward to the Victoria Nynnza, The
re-establlshment of the Khetliyal mn.
thorty at Khartoum will determine
this.
The Egypt OF the map shows more
than 100000 square miles. an expans4.
nearly seven times as great az New
england: but the practical Egypt-tl,at
which produces crops and sustains life
is barely as large as the states OF Yer
mont and Rhode Island taken together.
This is the ribbon-lIkc strip OF alluvial
land bordering the Nile, few miles
Wt0e on each side. aud measuring not
more than 1850 square miles. The ex-
tension planned, and 10 he completed
in the next six or eight years. wholly
By irrigation. Is no less magnificent In
conception than the resculng from the
Libyan and Arabian deserts Of $500
square miles. or twice the area OF
Rhode Island. This will he exploata-
ti0n In Its trliest sense. and It's accom-.
pliahment will Ike . verifcaiion Of the
ancient saying that Egypt Ii the Nile,
and the Nile u EgyDt."