Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1900-04-24
OAMMINo OF The NILE.
ONE OF THE GREATEST ENGINEERING
IMPORTS or THE WORLD.


Que possible result of the Boer war
that has generally been overlooked ID
that L may put an end to the greatest
engineering effort which has ever been
begun In the world-the dsmming Of the
Nile. The stoppage Of the work on the
Nile dams would be calamity involv-
ing the progress Of the entire Egytisu
people, Of whom there are over nine MIL
lion. It would affect directly over two
million peasants, who will DO put back
just ~ many years as the work Ii Inter
rupted. Its early completion means to
these two million the lifting Of burden
Of taxation under which they are strug-
Cling without hope Of relief from any
other source.
To the world ut large the successful
issue Of the Nile work will mean read
juument Of geography on scale never
before attempted by man. The reclama.
ton OF the Desert OF Sahara could alone
be put In the same category. 1t Is moi
alone that two and one. half million acre.
Of land will be brought under yield
that over "a, 000, 900 will be added to the
land values of the Egyptisn peol Z
that the population of the country will
be practically doubled In few years ; bu,
that a greater area Of the surface Of Il Z
earth will be changed, be made over, as
IL were, than has ever been effected be.
fore Ia the recorded history OF the hu'
man race since the time Of Noah.
There will be nothing like this change
except the conditions that resulted In
primeval times when the earth under.
went. one OF iis terrible commissions
Where barren, rocky, sandy waste Dos
exists, there will, on completion OF the
Nile dam, spring up vast inland sea
with a surface area Of over two hundred
square miles. The sea or lake will ex
tend back into Nubis from the Egyptian
frontier for distance OF about 100 miles
To the north the entire character OF the
Nile and Nile country will be changed
for distance Of six hundred miles, the
change reaching clear into Cairo, and
beyond into the delta, and to the Medi-
terranean coast. For IL ls one OF the
marvels OF this wonderful work that the
water imprisoned behind the dam ut the
little town of Assusn will bring about
reclamation and cultivation Of vast tract:
seven hundred miles away In the delts
to the north. At present only about
onc-third of the land lying between thu
two mouths Of the Nile IL under cultivs
ton. II Is by long odds the richest land
In Egypt, probably In the world. A com
paratively few years ago II WAS all
marshy waste.
While the English started their plan
ming for storing the Nile waters thai
now escape into the Mediterranean al
food time In 1888, IL WAS not until las
ycsr that the work was actually started
Now IL IL being pushed with ali possible
vigor, IN army Of 5000 workmen beinf
engaged on the task. Most OF these ART
peasant laborers who are paid not ovel
fifteen cents day. All sorts OF plsn'
for recovering the desired water supply
were submitted TO the government by
American, English and French engineers
What IL conceded even In England by
unprejudIced experts to have been tn
best plan was proposed nv an American
Cope whitehouse Of Newport. Mr.
wh,tehouse, who had spent many year
In Egypt, discovered great irregular
depress sion In the desert about sixty mile
from Cairo to the south. He proposed
that this depression, capable OF storing
a surface area Of $50 square miles o.
water, should be utilized as reservoir
Joseph's canal, the great irrigation ditcl
dug out OF the sand by that patriarch
leaves the Nile at the town OF Assault
lG0 miles south OF Cairo. II feeds ant
brings life TO the Fsynm, q low lyini
oasis to the southwest Of Cairo contain
ing hundreds Of thousands OF acres, nj
carefully cultivated. Mr.. whitehous'
proposed by means OF ditch ten mile
long, carried through soft soil, to tai
Joseph's canal, store the Nile water at
fiood In the depression he had discover
ed, and by means OF gates release IL Al
required for irrigsting the delta and tn
'one-crop" land. The plan was rejecte'
by the Englishmen In control OF affairs
for the reason, IL has been openly said
that they had no desire to divide honor'
with an outsider.
Instead the Assuan dam plan was uu
dertaken. The foundation stone WAS lsit
on Feb. IL, 1879. Ii Is TO be completet
under contract on July /, 1908. Tn
dam will be built OF granite sshlar
qusrrled from the same lodges out o
which the obelisk In Central Park, New
York. was cut thousands OF years ago
IL will be mile and quarter long
with the approaches seventy-six fee
high and thirty-five feet wide at the top
where there will be fine drive aud car
riageway. A thousand million gallon
OF water will be stored behind the mon
ster structure. To support this enor
nous weight, at level of forty-six fee
above the water on the other side OF tn,
dam, special means Of construction hat
to be planned. In consequence this dan
Is not only by far the greatest In tn
world, but II Is unique 10 other respects
The greatest difficulty that had to b
overcome arose out Of the fact that
solid masonry dam could not b
built. To confine the Nile st higl
food was impossible. Therefore the dan
hsd also to be waterway, so that the
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