Page:Travels to Discover the Source of the Nile - In the Years 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and 1773 volume 1.djvu/110

10 other port is the Eunostus of the ancients, and is to the westward of the Pharos. It was called also the Port of Africa; is much larger than the former, and lies immediately under part of the town of Alexandria. It has much deeper water, though a multitude of ships have every day, for ages, been throwing a quantity of ballast into it; and there is no doubt, but in time it will be filled up, and joined to the continent by this means. And posterity may, probably, following the system of Herodotus (if it should be still fashionable) call this as they have done the rest of Egypt, the Gift of the Nile.

vessels are not suffered to enter this port; the only reason is, least the Moorish women should be seen taking the air in the evening at open windows; and this has been thought to be of weight enough for Christian powers to submit to it, and to over-balance the constant loss of ships, property, and men.

, returning to Egypt from the Libyan side, was struck with the beauty and situation of these two ports. Dinochares, an architect who accompanied him, traced out the plan, and Ptolemy I. built the city.

healthy, though desolate and bare country round it, part of the Desert of Libya, was another inducement to prefer this situation to the unwholesome black mud of Egypt; but it had no water; this Ptolemy was obliged to bring far