New-York tribune., 1908-09-17
EGYPT'S GREAT PERIL
c,;ro and Alexandria in Danger of
Destruction.
1905. by the Brentwood oompsny.l

-. ,oos ,v the Brentwood Conpany.l
-. e threatened Just at present by ter
- 5snssr. and il is possible that ere many
- ere mast the names OF Sir William Cars
y e., william Wilcox. Sir John Arid and Sir
-, -. cassell. which are now justly lauded TO
- skies in connection with the amazing IN
'ne - oF the area of arabic land. which they
-. aaded TO Egypt by means of their Nile
- the consequent augmentation OF irri-
-, nav become q subject Of execration
,be governor Of Khartoum and the Anglo
&c, authorities still further south up the
- 49, issued a most alarming warning to
49, that the Nile food this fall will be or
1.s ~ phenomenal proportions that there
:, sood. in fact such as has not been
.as in a quarter Of a century or more,
.. fs realized that despite the precautions
- are being taken in the form OF the con-
-, ef ernbankuents and levees all the
- mart of Khartoum will be submerged
ca has not yet reached Khartoum, yet
=, -sysr is already running so strong that IL
=. ca-ried away all the staging o the IRON
-. an course OF construction by Cleveland
,o,cs-n over the Nile there, the accident
10 ...s,sed bv the less of life of number
-. ,stives and of an American engineer
- of their bodies being recovered
7-.s eravest feature Of the entire affalr Is
- this The huge dam at Assuan ana
=. ha-rage now in process Of completion al
&c have never been exposed to the force OF
e., -,ver In fact, the Assuan dam has been
- ,,n-il now. both while in course OF con-
~N..tor and since its completion, by very low
,n.s Independent engineers have questioned
-.rec,tv 70 withstand the tremendous force
~ o-s,rar,- full Nile What its fate will be
=. N-ne Of altogether phenomenal flood is
.-~,on which fills people with misgivings
~ the most eminent English, French,
.s, and German engineers have al along
- 5orbts as 10 the strength Of the foun-
-, ~ the Assuan dam They admit that
-. foundations are built on rock, but they
-. ou- that at Assuan the rock is only hard
= che surface and that Immediately below the
,...er !, Is soft friable and rotten They insist
- ,he rock on which the foundations are
.,,, ts deteriorating and wasting away rapioIy
80 ,hat the level of the dam has been ALREADY
~a.+Ad thereby 10 the extent OF several 1eet-
7-.v ,,ree that instead Of relying upon TINS
- dam a number OF small ones should be
lii - hreak and hold the force of the water
a..,s-ins that with its weakened foundations
- Aseuau dam is quite incapable Of with
,+s,sing any such phenomenal food as the one
now about To come down the river
Sbould their fears be realized and should the
,rive wa in the face OF the etloEAAOUS PAO00-
=. oe vster which rolls along rocks Of tons IN
r-aiert as if they were mere pebbles, dashlne
-ran against the dam. a catastrophe would en-
sua which could only be described as caIa-
clvsnn For il would suddenly release not mere
u hundred Of millions. but hundreds OF mllliaros
~ ,uh;c metres Of water, which would over
,rhalrn the entire lower valley Of the Nile
browning all Egypt, whirling its cities and lts
villages away like straw and burying their sites
bsnes+h oceans Of mud Egypt as II exists To-
asv vrould. indeed, be swept out OF existence
as well as all the results of all the laoors OF
England 10 restore its prosperity
There are certain eminent scientists VINO as
crfhe the story Of the Biblical food 10 some
such eataclysnl on the part OF the waters OF the
Nile. thousands upon thousands OF years ago.
and certainly when one reflects that II IS posi-
HE IA dig down one hundred, two hundred 1eel
and still deeper and always find one layer De
meath the other Of traces Of former cities ana
,e+ earlier civilization, one is tempted TO ask
ones self whether the agency by Whlch theS
have been buried so deep beneath the present
surface OF the soil has not been some terrible
food Ike that which now menaces CAIRO Alex
ansria and. in fact the whole Of lower Egypt
MARQUIsE DE FCNTENOY-