A land that has been annually overflowed, must in many places have fuffered a change, during an interval of fo many ages. Many of the antient canals have in process of time been choked up, and new ones formed; which has caused some variation: yet the external shape of the country, and original outlines, are nearly the fame now that they were of old. As Egypt was one of the most antient, fo was it one of the most extensive kingdoms, that for many ages subsisted in the world. Those of Affyria and Babylonia were for a long time confined within narrow limits, if compared with what they were afterwards. But Egypt seems to have been respectable from the beginning; and the most early accounts, that we can arrive at, bear witnefs of it's eminence and power. It is true, the first inhabitants seem to have settled in the upper parts, near the Thebais: but they foon got poffeffion of the whole. And though they might not be all under one head; yet they were of the fame family, and constituted a mighty nation. They were esteemed a very wise and learned people; fo that 'Mofes is faid to have been "learned in all the wisdom "of the Egyptians." They were likewise very powerful and populous: and there are said to have been in the days of Amafis thirty thousand cities in Egypt. The fruitfulness of the country is well known by the large impofts that were laid upon it in after times. Befides the tribute of corn, they paid to the Romans large taxes in fpecie: which, according to Cicero, as quoted by 2Strabo, amounted in the reign of Ptolemy Auletes to 3 12500 talents. But nothing can give one a greater notion 1 Acts. 7. v. 22. 2 2,421,875 £. See Arbuthnot's Tables. p. 192. 3 But this was esteemed trifling: for Auletes was a very indolent and weak prince. "If he raised so much," fays Strabo, "what must have "been the revenues of other kings? or what may we compute the advantages made from Egypt to amount to at this time, when the taxes are "col notion of their wealth, than the account of the treasure, that had been heaped up by the first Ptolemy, as it is defcribed by Appian; who affures us that, at the death of this prince, there were found in his treasury 4 feventy four myriads of talents. These circumstances, together with the coftly structures which they erected, the mighty works they were engaged in, and the œconomy and establishment of their government, must raise in us a high idea of the affluence and power which this knowing people were poffeffed of, while they were their own masters. Such were the Egyptians in their better days : Τα δε πολλα και ολβία ταυτα λελειπται all these happy circumstances have been a long time at an end: Egypt, in the midst of it's prosperity, was doomed to a fatal change. It was to become 5a bafe kingdom: and for above two thousand years has been the bafeft of kingdoms: neither in all that vast interval of time has there been once a prince of that nation. The antiquity of this kingdom may be seen by its founders Ham and Mizraim; by whofe names the country was of old called, nor are they obliterated at this day. Plutarch tells us that the priests of Egypt in the mysteries of Isis called their › country 6 Chemia. Hefychius terms it Hermochemia, and fays it was the antient name: Ἑρμοχημιος γη, ή Αιγυπτος το πρότερον έτως εκα "collected with fo much exactnefs, and there is the additional trade of «India and the Ethiopians to contribute?" Ows ouvi xaxısa xaι patuμoтala την βασιλειαν διοικων τοσαυτα προσωδεύετο, τι χρη νομίσαι τα νυν, δια τοσαύτης επιμέλειας οικονομημένα, και των Ινδίκων εμπορίων και των Τρωγλοδυτικών EwNVENμevWV E☎ɩ TOσTOV; Vol. 2. pag. 1149. 4 191,166,666£. 135. 4d. See Arbuthnot's Tables. p. 192. 5 Ezekiel. 29. v. 14, 15.-30. V. 13. 6 ETI THY AYUWTO-Xμsα xaw. De If. et Ofir. Herodotus fays, 15 de Κεμμις πολις μεγαλη νομο το Θηβαϊκ. Lib. 2. Cap. 9. He fpeaks of the people called Chemmita, ibid. of a nome of that name, ibid, and of an inland called Chemmis near the city Butus in lower Egypt. Cap. 156. All which is analogous to the land of Ham in the Scriptures. LXX. Interpretes-Cham tranftulerunt, pro eo quod eft Ham, a quo et Ægyptus ufque badie Egyptiorum linguâ Ham dicitur. Hieron. Quæft. in Genef. ανωτατη ExaλETO. Stephanus gives it the name of 7 Mifore or Myfo- It is obfervable that, from the confines of Ethiopia downward, Egypt is for a long way very narrow; being bounded on each fide with mountains, between which the river defcends: and, according to the determination of moft geographers of antiquity, it separates Africa from Afia; and more particularly Libya from Arabia. Here was the general boundary of the two great continents. This however is greatly disapproved of by Herodotus. He objects to the decifion of those people, who attribute part of Egypt to one country, and part to another. He 7 Zonaras. Vol. I. p. 21. Μεσρεμ δε Μέσραιων προπατωρ εγένετο. Ούτω δε καλονται Αιγυπτιοι, και ή της Αιγυπία χώρα Μετρην ονομάζεται. Urbs Foftat eft ipfamet Metzr, fic dicta a Mezram filio Cam, filii Noë, cui pax. Geograph. Nubienfis. p. 97. "Aujourd'huy les Juifs l'appellent encore "Mizraim: mais les Arabes et les Turcs luy donnent de Mitzir ou "Mitzri; combien que Leon affeure, que les Juifs l'appellent Mez❝raim, et les Arabes Mezré; et les habitans l' appellent El Quiber. "Les Syriens nomment les Egyptiens Ægophtes, et les Mahometans "d'Egypt les Chreftiens du mefme pays El Hibt, et El Kupti, ou "Kupti fans article, au lieu de Gupti ou Egupti; et les Ethiopiens ap"pellent les mefme Giptu ou Gibetu." Davity. p. 256. The fame author fays of Cairo; Les Arabes l' appellent aujourd'huy Mazar ou "Mezir; les Armeniens Maffar; les Chaldeens Al Chabir, et les He"breux Mithraim, de mefme que l' Egypte." p. 267. 8 Ptol. Geogr. Edit. Bertii. Lib. 4. He therefore varies in fome degree from this difpofition; and makes Egypt itself the boundary between the regions that it borders upon. The country by this means is intermediate, and afcribed to neither. 9 Ου γαρ δη ὁ Νείλος γε εςι κατα τέτον τον λογον ὁ την Ασίην ερίζων τη Λιβύη.—ερισμα δε Ασίη και δε Ασίη και Λιβυη οιδαμεν εδεν εον ορθῳ λόγῳ, ει μη τες Αιγυπτιων ερες. Whether Herodotus was aware that any ill confequences would arife from the other way of proceeding, I know not; but it is certain some obfcurity has enfued. As long as the river was fingle, it might well ferve to determine the countries on each side: but, when it was branched out into many ftreams, it becamedifficult to say to which part of the world the intermediate provinces were to be affigned. Therefore fome have referred them to Lybia, others to Arabia, without any just reason to determine them: which has induced many people to alter their true pofition; and to transfer them in their maps to those countries, imagining that fuch was their fituation. But this, being only a matter of reference, should not have affected the real order and difpofition of those states. How Egypt was fituated and bounded, we are very clearly informed by Leo Africanus: Egyptus, clariffima regio, ab occidente defertis Barca, Libya, ac Numidia clauditur; ab oriente defertis, qua Egypto et Mari Rubro interjacent. The account of Strabo is agreeable to the foregoing: ' Αίγυπτος- απο μεν των αρκτων αλιμενῳ παραλία και πελάγει τῳ Αιγυπτιῳ Φρερεμενη" απο δε της έω και της ἑσπερας, ερημοις (και) ορεσι, τοις τε Λιβυκοις και τοις Αραβίοις, ώσπερ εφαμεν. The 9 Lib. 2. Cap. 17. This is the opinion of Herodotus; but he is not followed in it: επερχεται δε ὁ Νείλος, επεαν πληθυῃ, ου μόνον το Δελτα, αλλα και το Λιβυκα τε λεγομενα χωριό είναι, και το Αραβία ενισχη. Herod. Lib. 2. Cap. 19. Aiutos oμrgos y Abun. Lib. 2. Cap. 65. ■ Vol 2. p. 1174. Kai is certainly wanting" with deferts and with "mountains." The lower parts were bounded with defarts, the upper with mountains. Without this the force and precision of the writer is loft. The whole extent of this country from north to fouth was computed to be about fix hundred miles: and confifted, as I before obferved, of three principal divifions; and those subdivided into smaller provinces, called by the Greeks Nopo, but by Νομοι, the natives Tabir. The number of them has been computed to have been thirty fix ; 2 δεκα μεν ἡ Θηβαῖς, δεκα δ ̓ ἡ εν τῳ Δελτα, Exxαidena d' μeтažu. 3 Diodorus makes the fame distribution. ἑκκαιδεκα ἡ μεταξυ. But of this we can have no certainty, on account of the difagreement that is found among writers upon this subject, who add and diminish too arbitrarily. Pliny takes notice of this inconsistency, and mentions fome particulars. 4Quidam ex his aliqua nomina permutant, et fubftituunt alios nomos, ut Heroopoliten, Crocodilopoliten. In fhort, wherever there was a city, the Grecians added a nome; 5 which very much confufed and encumbered the geography of those parts. Hence Epiphanius, speaking of the word vouos, does not hesitate to define it in this manner; την περίχωρον της τυχεσης πολιος σημαίνει :6 "it was the environs of every city." At which rate, as Egypt is faid to have once had 7 thirty thousand cities; it should follow, that there were fo many nomes. The river that waters the whole country is the Nile; which is fingle for fome hundreds of miles downwards, running in one direction: or, if it be at any time separated by the interpofition of an island, the streams unite again soon; and it proceeds in its usual channel. But when it arrives at the extremity of lower Egypt, called by the Greeks Delta, where ftood 2 Strabo. Vol. 2. p. 1135. 3 Την δε χωραν άπασαν εις ἕξ και τριακοντα μερη διελών [Σεσοωσις.] Lib. 1. pag. 35. 4 Nat. Hift. Lib. 5. Cap. 9. 5 Strabo mentions nomes that never existed. He has one near the Red Sea called the Phagroriopolitan, which was quite imaginary. 6 In like manner Cyrill. Alexandr. tells us, that among the Egyptians a nome was a city, and the country about it, with the dependent villages. Νόμος έκαςη πολις και οι περιοικίδες αυτής, και αι ὑπ' αυτή κωμαι. Efaiam. Cap. 19. 7 See Theocritus. Idyll. 17. In |