Egrette

An ornament. See AIGRETTE. Eg'riot, n. [Fr. aigriote, from aigre, sour.] A species of acid cherry. Egypt, [the Mizraim of the Hebrews, and Aigyptos of the Greeks.] A country on both banks of the Nile, occupying the N.E. angle of the African continent; one of the earliest seats of art, science, and literature, and famous alike for the historical events of which it has been the theatre, its magnificent monuments, and physical characteristics. It is bounded N. by the Mediterranean, E. by the Red Sea and the Isthmus of Suez, S. by Nubia, and W. by the deserts to the E. of Fezzan, lying from Lat. 24° 6' to 31° 36′ N. From Cape Bourlos, on the coast, to Philæ, its S. limit, the distance is about 452 geographical, or 520 English miles. The breadth of the Egyptian coast is 160 m.; but in ascending to Cairo (104 m. from Cape Bourlos), the cultivated tract tapers off to a point, and the rest of the country is chiefly comprised in the narrow valley of the Nile; which, however, at Beni-touf, 85 m. higher, spreads to the W. to form the vale of Faïoum, a circular valley of great fertility and beauty, measuring about 40 m. from E. to W., and 30 m. from N. to S. Thence to Syene, the valley of the Nile is mostly confined within very narrow limits. The Nile, so important among the great rivers of the world, is also the most striking object in the general aspect of a country which not only is wholly comprised within the sphere of its influence, but is entirely indebted to it for existence. (See NILE.) The mountain system of E. is very peculiar. Two ranges, pre ing closely on each bank of the river, extend from Syene to Cairo, and form the valley of the Nile, protecting it from the ravages of the deserts on either side. That to the E. gives out an arm at Kennek (Lat. 26° 12′), and bisects the desert to the Red Sea at Co eir in nearly the same latitude; while the Libyan, or W. range, branches off from A ouan to the Great Oasis. The general components of the hills are chiefly granite, and a peculiar highly crystallized red formation called Syenite marble. This primitive rock is remarkable for durability, and the fine polish it is capable of receiving. From quarries of this stone the Pharaohs, Ptolemies, and An to nines drew materials not only for the stupendous monuments which still make Egypt a land of wonders, but also for many of the public buildings of Italy. - The most considerable of the Egyptian lakes are those of Menzaleh, Bourlos, Etko, and Maræotis, lying along the shore of the Delta. There is also a considerable lake occupying the N.W. part of the valley of Faïoum. The whole of the Delta is intersected with canals in every direction, in which the overflowings of the Nile are preserved after the inundations, to afford communication between the various towns, and to keep a constant supply for the irrigation of the cultivated lands. E. is naturally divided into1. The Delta , or Lower Egypt, which derived its name from the similarity of its figure with the Greek A, and is a triangular tract, formed by the bifurcation of the Nile. The soil consists of the mud of the river, resting upon desert sand. The greatest length of the Delta is at present about 85 m. from E. to W., and from the fork of the Nile to the sea about 90 m. intervene. It is covered with meadows, plantations, and orchards, and present a a more fertile aspect than any other part of the country. Tais district, from its comparatively low situation, is more influenced by the inundation than the upper lands; and when the river is at its greatest height, it presents the aspect of an extensive marsh. 2. The Valley of the Nile of Central and Upper Egypt . Ascending the river from its fork, the cultivatable land at the apex of the Delta is found to decrease. The space left between the two ridges, E. and W., seldom exceeds 10 m. in Central E., while in the Upper country they pre even more closely upon the sides of the river; thus that part of the valley of the Nile which belongs to E. has but a contracted breadth, and even that is not all available for the labors of the husbandman, a great por tion of it being, from the height of the banks, out of the reach of the overflowings and their beneficent deposits. Between the isle of Philæ and A ouan, the current of the Nile is interrupted by innumerable islands. Among them, the isle of Elephant iné, opposite to A ouan, wears so beautiful an aspect that it is called by the natives "the isle of flowers;" and most European travellers describe it as a sort of terrestrial paradise. The Egyptian valley is strewed with those Fig. 914.-STATUES OF MEMΝΟΝ. (In the plain of Thebes.) stupendous monuments of human labor, those beautiful remains of ancient art, which have excited the wonder and admiration of ages. 3. The Desert East of the Nile is broken by rugged mountains, and intersected by numerous wadys or ravines, sometimes thickly, but more frequently scantily, clothed with verdure. It has, however, the advantage of numerous springs; besides which are traced ancient caravan tracks, that are still traversed in exactly the same manner as when the "company of merchants" found Joseph in the pit. The leading characteristic of the Desert is its gradual ascent from the Nile to a certain distance E., where commences a plain nearly level, from which all the torrents running in a W. direction empty themselves into the Nile, and those to the E. into the Red Sea. The whole of the desert of E. is the resort of distinct tribes of Arabs, who confine themselves to particular localities; they consist of the Maazy, occupying the country to the east of Benisouef, Atouni, and Benihasel, S. of the Maazy and the Ababdie Arabs, who are scattered over the N. part of the desert, and breed camels for the market of Esneh. 4. The Desert West of Egypt presents a scene so formidable to travellers, that few have visited the Oases by which it is here and there interspersed. They, no doubt, owe their origin to the springs with which they abound, the decay of the vegetation thence arising having produced the soil by which they are now covered. Their fertility has been deservedly celebrated; but the glowing eulogiums of travellers on their surpa ing beauty are probably, in a great measure, to be ascribed to the striking contrast they present to the surrounding deserts of arid, burning Band. - Climate . Extremely hot, generally uniform, and remarkably dry. When a few drops of rain fall, they are viewed by the inhabitants almost as a miracle. In Lower Egypt, the latest observations give 13 days of rain in a year. Thunder and lightning are nearly equally unfrequent. The prevalent winds are from the N., and continue from May to September, and from November to February. At intervals during the spring, for about fifty days, E. is liable to the terrible wind of the desert, the simoom, which, from its intense heat and dryne , threatens, when long continued, almost the extinction of animal life; fortunately, however, it seldom lasts above three days. The heat of the climate, combined with the filthy habits of the people, is considered favorable to the ravages of the plague, which is supposed to be indigenous, whilst ophthalmia, another severe disease, is also peculiar to E. - Zool . The wild animals are tigers, hyenas, camels, antelopes, apes, dromedaries, horses, large a es, crocodiles, hippopotami, the chameleon, and a kind of rat, called ichneumon. The birds are ostriches, eagles, hawks, pelicans, waterfowls of all kinds, and the ibis, which resembles a duck, and was deified by the ancient Egyptians, on account of its destroying serpents and noxious insects. Among the reptiles is a serpent, called the cerastes, or horned viper, the bite of which is fatal to those who have not the secret of guarding against it. - Minerals . No metals; but marble, salt, natron, saltpetre, and red granite. Emeralds are found in the mountains on the shores of the Red Sea. Productive Industry. No soil can be better adapted for agriculture than that brought down by the Nile, and deposited on its banks. The earliest authentic records of the human race represent E. as the granary of the old world, to which le fortunate nations resorted in times of scarcity. The husbandry of E. is divided into 2 great cla es: the upper, or sharakee lands, where the banks are too high for the country beyond them to benefit by the inundation; and the rei , or low lands, which are watered by the natural overflowings of the river. About 4,000,000 of feddâns (a measure of 3,205,000 sq. yards) are now under cultivation in E. , of which about 300,000 are occupied with cotton; 100,000 with flax, indigo, sugar, dates, hemp, ., and the rest with millet, maize, wheat, and rice. The efforts of the present government have been principally directed to the culture of cotton, so that the crops of wheat have greatly fallen off, and Alexandria has almost ceased to be a port for shipment of this kind of grain. The cotton of E. is mixed staple, of good quality, and the soil is well suited to its growth. By far the largest amount of this product is exported to Great Britain. In 1861, the exportation amounted to 40,892,096 lbs.; it rose to 93,552,368 lbs. in 1863; to 125,493,648 lbs. in 1864; and to 176,838,144 lbs. in 1865. The shipments temporarily declined after 1866, owing to the restoration of peace in this country, but again increased, and now average nearly 500,000,000 lbs. annually.- Commerce . Egypt is well situated for commerce. She forms the link that connects the Eastern and Western worlds; and it is to her admirable situation in this respect, and to the commerce of which she in consequence became the centre, that her ancient wealth and civilization are mainly to be ascribed. The ruin of commerce, in modern times, ought to be traced to the subjection of the country to the lawle and arbitrary dominion of the Mamelukes, who loaded all articles pa ing through E. with oppre ive exactions; and to the discovery of the route to India by the Cape of Good Hope. But a new æra has begun; the intercourse with the East has already in part reverted to its old channel, and the comparatively recent opening of the famous canal which now connects the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, may restore E. to its ancient state of prosperity and civilization. See ALEXANDRIA, and SUEZ (CANAL OF). - Govt . and Laws. E. , whose history commences with the history of civilized man and organized government, which gave laws to the old world and art to the Greeks, after being for many centuries subjected to foreign masters, became, at length, a prov. of the Ottoman empire. Under the Turkish sway it was long her fate to suffer that worst kind of despotism resulting from the delegation of arbitrary power by a carele tyrannical master to a scarcely responsible servant. The bold, innovating spirit of the first independent ruler of E. , the celebrated Mehemet Ali, has, however, introduced several reforms into the administrative constitution of the government, which have been upon the whole beneficial. The government of Egypt, as at present organized, consists of -1st, an hereditary khedive (the Arabic equivalent of king, subject to an annual tribute to the Sultan, of $3,426,540); 2d, his deputy, called kikhya ; 3d, seven councils of state; 4th, governors ( nazir ) appointed to each province. The country is divided into 3 great provinces, viz.: Saïd , or Upper E .; Vostani , or Middle E .; and Bahari , or Lower E. Those prov. are again divided into 7 intendancies, and subdivided, after the French system, into dep. and arrondi ements. In other respects, the succe ors of Mehemet Ali have tried to imitate the forms of government of Imperial France. The Khedive, or Pasha, was, with some few exceptions, proprietor of all the land of E .; and he, in fact, the only considerable agriculturist, manufacturer, and trader in the country. He specified the employment in which the bulk of the population should engage, the crops or produce they were to raise or furnish, and the price at which, when produced, they were to deliver them to his agents. It must be admitted, notwithstanding the grinding oppre ivene of this system, that it has materially improved the agriculture of the country. But the vice of the system is, that the fellahs (cultivators) reap no advantage whatever from increase of production. Their increased labor, instead of bringing with it an in. crease of comfort, brings only an increase of privation. This system could last to the present time only owing to the exceedingly primitive and scanty needs of the people, which explains the facility with which enormous taxes, exacted by the Khedive, have been paid. The food, clothing, and homes of the fellah cost next to nothing. Of late, however, a marked improvement has taken place in the homes and the whole standard of comfort of the fellah, and the general condition of the Egyptian people will, it is to be hoped, be materially benefited by the English, who became virtually masters of this country by their defeat of Arabi Pacha (who had headed a rebellion against the Khedive), at Tel-el-Kebir, Sept. 13, 1882, his subsequent capture and banishment. Alexandria was bombarded and taken by the English July 11, 1882, and Cairo, the capital, occupied by them in September following.- Inhabitants . These are composed of four different races, consisting of Copts, Arabs, Turks, and, till 1811, Mamelukes. The Copts are the original race, and appear to be descendants of the most ancient inhabitants of Egypt, mingled in some degree with Persians and Greeks. The Arabs are the descendants of the Saracen conquerors, and are now the most numerous inhabitants of Egypt. The Turks have always been established, to a considerable extent, in the great cities; and the Jews are also numerous in the commercial cities, and are oppre ed and persecuted, though never extirpated. The Mamelukes consisted of Georgians and Circa ian slaves, who, under the Fatimite khalifs, were brought into the country, and being intrusted with arms, rose against their masters, whom they ma acred or expelled, and thus a umed the dominion of Egypt, which they transmitted to new bands brought into the country. They were rather the plunderers than the rulers of Egypt. Their strength being broken by the defeats experienced during the invasion of the French, the Pasha, Mehemet Ali, conceived a plan for their destruction; and having invited their chiefs to a feast, treacherously ma acred the greater part of them, in 1811. Those who escaped fled IMG:content-0744.png:[merged small][graphic][subsumed] 1897, a population of about 7,000,000, and there wero over 1,250 miles of railway and 5,000 miles of telegraph. (Hist.) The early history of Egypt is involved in obscurity. The ancient kings governed it till Cambyses became master of it, 525 years B. c.; and in their time all those wonderful structures were raised, and works perfected, which we cannot behold without astonishment. These are the pyramids, the labyrinth, the immense grottos of the Thebais, the obleisks, temples, and pompous palaces; the lake Mæris, and the vast canals, which served both for trade and to render the land fruitful. The country continued under the Persian yoke till the time of Alexander the Great, who, having conquered Persia, built the city of Alexandria. He was succeeded by Ptolemy, the son of Lagos, 323 years в. С. Ten kings of that name succeeded each other, till Cleopatra, the sister of the last Ptolemy, ascended the throne; when Egypt became a Roman province, and continued so till the reign of Omar, the second caliph of the succe ors of Mahomet, who drove out the Romans, after it had been in their hands 700 years. When the power of the caliphs declined, Salad in, in 1171, set up the order of the Mamelukes, who usurped the sov٠ ereign power in 1260, and extended their dominions over a great part of Africa, Syria, and Arabia. At the commencement of the 16th century, Selim, a Turkish emperor, conquered it, and for many years it was distracted by the civil wars between the different contending beys by which its provinces were governed. The famous Ha an Ali, the Turkish admiral, gained several victories over them in 1786; but though he repre ed, he could not totally subdue them. The French invaded IMG:content-0745.png:[graphic][subsumed] Egypt in 1798, under General Bonaparte, and evacuated the country in 1802. In 1811, Mehemet Ali became master of Egypt by the ma acre of the Mamelukes; and under his sway, it progre ed rapidly in civilization. He considerably extended his boundaries, and by the treaty of London (1841) was made viceroy of Egypt, as a fief of the Ottoman empire. The independent position of the rulers of Egypt was much enlarged in 1867, by an imperial firman which established the succe ion of the descendants of Mehemet Ali, under the title of Khedive, or King. Still greater powers were granted in 1872, and in 1874-75 Is mail Pasha, the then ruler, greatly extended the Egyptian territory, annexing the Soudan to Darfur and finally to the shores of Victoria Nyanza. The finances of the country became so involved that they were placed under European manage Fig . 918. AVENUE IN THE GREAT HALL OF COLUMNS AT KARNAC, (Thebes.) form. They are built on a square base, with four tri an- gular sides, that meet in a common apex. They are supposed to be royal mausoleums, and were built be- tween 1500 and 1000 B. c. The obelisks are four-sided shafts of great size, terminating in a pyramidal top. They are hewn out of a solid block of stone, and are cover a great space of ground, and stand in a walled enclosure. Before the temple itself there is a large square court, surtounded on three sides by a colonnade. Acce is obtained to this court through a doorway of great height, flanked on each side by quadrilateral tow- ers, diminishing in size as they approach the top. The doorway and side-towers are adorned with colo al sculptured figures, and in some cases an avenue of fig- ures, generally sphinxes, was made, leading directly to the door we have mentioned. The temple itself was generally raised, the court between it and the grand en- trance being composed of a series of broad steps, rising in a gradual slope. These steps led to a magnificent hall or portico, occupying nearly the entire width of the court, in which there are generally six rows of pillars, which support the flat and ma ive roof. Pa ing through a series of chambers, each narrower than the one before it, we gain the innermost chamber, or shrine; in which the statue of the divinity was placed, to whose worship the temple was dedicated. Many of these ten i- ples were of immense size. The length of the temple at Karnac is about 1,200 feet, its breadth about 360 feet, and its great portico or hall is 338 ft. long by 170 broad. Excepting some varieties in the places of their temples, a samene of character and uniformity is observable in their fronts, their general forms, and the details of their decorations. Heavine seemed to be synonymous with strength, height with grandeur, and size or ma with power. Uniformity of plan is universal. The right line and square was never abandoned, and it is said there exists no circular monument in this style. The columns, entablatures, and mouldings are the great distinctive fea- tures of Egyptian architecture, in addition to the marked peculiarity that their doors and windows, and even the buildings themselves present; namely, the convergence of the sides; so that the breadth at the base is greatly diminished at the summit. The size of the columns is in proportion to the size of the building in which they are placed. At Karnac they are 9 and 11 feet in di- ameter. All are elaborately sculptured. The shaft stands generally on a circular base, and sometimes on a base that contracts in size as it approaches the floor of the building, instead of expanding from its junction with the shaft, as is usually the case. The capitals are sometimes bell-shaped, and adorned with lotus-leaves, while others are square in form, with a bum an face sculptured on each side. In some cases, as at Denderah, this capital is surmounted by another, also quadrilateral Eichstadt, ( ike's tat ,) a town of Bavaria, on the Alt- mühl, 30 m. from Augsburg. Manuf. Woollens, . Pop . 8,478. Ei'der, or Eider-duck, n . [Ger. eider.] (Zool.) Seo