Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-01-16

books for taxation was 1000. 465 acres OF
this 2.692. S27, or So per cent of the total.
was held by III. 0E proprietors in farms of
less than fifty acres each. In 1901 the cul-
tivated area had increased to 1901, 431
acres. a gain of 136398 acres in six years.
Of which IS. T22 acres went to the small pro-
prietors. which gives them 1888 per cent
of the total, slight gain In ownership by
the peasantry class.
In 1898 573, S19 acres, or 11.4S per cent Of
the whole. were held by Europeans. In 1901
the assessments showed a falling off to
So, 400. or 1919 per cent of the total. The
actual number OF European proprietorS de-
creased from 6.529 to 6.126. of whom only
1,484 cultivated more than fifty acres.
1t will surprise American farmers to hear
that this five million acres of land is valued
at an average of $105 an acre and pays an
average of 81 an acre In taxes. This is due
to the marvellous productive capacity of the
soil. Cotton grows at the rate of 500 pounds
to the acre year after year, and sugar cane
produces equally well. There is seldom a
failure of the crops, and the product of the
100000 acres under cultivation In Egypt
will probably aggregate more than is de-
rived from any other 5000. 900 acres of land
in the world. 1t is estimated that the reve-
nues to the government from the additional
land which will be brought under cultiva.-
ton by the construction of the new darn
on the Nile will be not less than 100000
year from the sale of water and taxation,
without considering the proceeds from the
sale of the vast tract Of desert that will be
reclaimed. 5re 's* T.
The irrigation laws and regulations Of
Egypt are such that the smallest farmer
can enjoy the same privileges that belong
to the richest. The water is controlled by
the government and every acre that pays
its taxes has it's share of water and is flood
ed as regularly as the inundation comes
If the farmers could be induced to use
modern agricultural implements and ma
chinery they might perhaps increase their
profits, but there is plenty of labor and
most of the farms are so small that ma
chinery would not pay.
The regulations and methods OF handhnts
the water go back before history began to
be written. perhaps before the alphabet
was invented We have this information
from the hieroglyphics carved on the walls
of the temples and the tombs
The Corvee System.
Until the British came In the dykes and
causeways were kept up and the canals
were kept clear by forced labor "ths
corvee' system, as 1t was called, anc
in olden times every man had to serve Sc
MANY DAYS at work under cruel taskmas.
tiers. an average Of forty-f1ve days veal
for all citizens between the ages of eighteen
and forty-f1ve who did not pay for ex'
emption. There was a great deal OF black
mail and bribery. People could buy ex-
emption from corrupt officials cheaper thai
by paying the regular fees. and their SHARE
of the work had to be done by less fOrtu'
nate fellow creatures, whose time was ex'
tended unlawfully for that reason. One oil
the first things Sir Evelyn Barring, now
Lord Cromer, did when he came into con
troll was to abolish the corvee. and sine:
1885 all the labor upon the dykes and irri.
eating bitches has been performed by hired
labor at a cost of s.. 200. 600 during the veal
1902 certain number of men are called
out from every province, varying frori
5000 to 10000, who spend from week t.
a month engaged under government engin.
GERS. They are well fed and well paid and
regard IT as favor rather than a hardship
to be so employed.
Mehemet Ali, who was khedive early II
the last century, as wrote you the othei
day, introduced cotton and sugar into the
valley of the Nile, and both products hav,
proved to be very profitable. The Delta
is now a great cotton field. It's product hal
doubled during the last fifty years. Their
has been a similar increase in the produes
ton of sugar. An average crop Of cotton
is now about ]. 200, 900 bales of 500 pounds
each, which. having a fiber nearly an incl
and a half long. is more valuable than or.
binary cotton and sells for about cents a
pound more than our staple. 1t is used fol
the manufacture of balbriggans, stocking!
and other fine articles, and has become 4
necessity not only in Europe but in tht
United States. We consume in the mills Of
New England alone a hundred thousand
bales of Egyptian cotton, and line OIL
ships has been established to carry it from
Alexandria to Boston.