THE SUEZ CANAL

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 149, 28 June 1929, Page 3

THE SUEZ CANAL

AN ANCIENT PROBLEM

WORK OF CONSTRUCTION

Seventy years ago, on 25th „ April, 1859; the first spadeful of -sand; \Tvas turned near the siSe of Port Said/and the work of constructing the Suez Canal was begun. This was not the first attempt to-unite East and West by a waterway. More, than 3000 years ago when* the civilisation and commerce of tho world centred about the Mediterranean Sea and the Egyptians thought it important to find, a market for their goods in the" East, they, too, built canals to • carry on commerce with Arabia, Persia, and India, says the New York "Times." , .. EABLY CONSTRUCTION N Seti.L, who reigned about 1380' B C is supposed to have built the first canal connecting the Nile with the Ked Sea. -He reigned but a few years, and it is probable that his son, Barneses II contributed to the building of the canal, which diverged from the Nile at .Bubastis, and continued to a port on a gulf which no -longer exists, but-is' known as the Bitter Lakes! through. But 3000 .years . agq Egyptians believed some, legend to the effect that the level .of. the .Red Sea was nine meters Xigher than that ot the Mediterranean. If' a canal were built to unite the two seas an inundation of Egypt would.folW, they thought; And so'they hollowed- tho canal from Bubastis and utilised that branch.of the Nile.know-as the Pelusaie to complete the passage to'the Bed aea, where merchandise was transferred to ships. ... PKA£tel f, time thY "Canal of th» Pharaohs" became clogged with silt, and Pharaoh Necho.built another one Herodotus tells us that in. this undertaking 120,000 ' men lost their . lives though the work was not completed until 520 B.C. when. Darius undertook it. The canal was abandoned durinir the- long wars and invasions to which igypt was subjected from. the death of Darius to the reign of Ptolemy II who repaired it. He made a continuous canal and. inserted locks at both ends During the Arabian period the canal was hollowed out again under EgySin^'l7!,:^ I'^ooo^- 4 FERDINAND DE LESSEPS. The Crusades gave a new impetus to trade with the.East and as far back as the thirteenth century France begaa to make definite, plans, at one. time and another, to open a route over theisthmus. "ft hen more is known pf the political motives of Napoleon it vi ill be realised that his thoughts centred about trade with the Orient. So that when Ferdinand, de Lesseps undertook to carry out his idea of the Suez: Canal he found- that other countries besides I ranee sought the key to trade with India, and they offered the greatest resistance to the accomplishment of his purpose. He laid his plans at the feet of Mohammed Said Pasha, then Viceroy ot Jigypt, who immediately ordered a survey at his own expense. .The engineers Linant Bey and Mougel BeY were engaged to draw up plans. Said wfth v; a; c ork.is consent *°>ahead At the head of the canal on the Mediterranean Sea stands the inoau, ment of Ferdinand de Lesseps. # c beckons to the ships ns they arrixe and with outstretched, hands he Hhcfa the way to the Orient.