| Show MODERN AND ANCIENT alexandria AiEX ANDRIA the rochester unon un on conta contains inq ins a letter from B F angel dated from cairo the fo low lowing 1 D is an extract illustrating illus lilus illustrato trat ing that something i is doing d 0 in n even in old oid olde egypt apt modern alexandria can scarcely scarce be said to have any distinct characteristic it is neither wholly european or oriental but an admixture of both its Us population is made up of turks Alaban ians lans syrians greeks jews cops copf s armenians Armen ians french beimans Gei mans italians and EnI english ish from people previous to the pashalia lasuie Pa shalie shalle of mohammed d ali it has increased to 13 OJO and is at this time rapidly improving in wealth aad nad importance the Europ european pan quarter has wide streets and elegant public and private buildings aad the trade is mostly controlled by europeans the business and language being french in its palmy days this city embraced a cir clr circuit cult euit of teen miles extending from the sea to lake Mar nar mareotis eolis and contained a population of six hundred thousand it was founded by alexander the great of after afler ter his conquest of syria years before the christian era and was laid out in the shape of a macedonian cloak with a bridge or causeway connecting with the island of pharos it attained to great consequence and splendor under the tile Ptole mies and as late as A D when cap captured tired by amer under the caliph omer was remarkable for tor its wealth and magnificence amer in in a letter to the caliph thus describes his conquest 91 1 I have taken tile the great city of the thel west jt s lm me to enumerate the tiie variety of Is lis its ri riches N es and beauty and I 1 shall content myself with observing that it contains palace baths theatres theartres the atres of amusements shops for the sale of vegetables and 40 tributary jews the great alexandrian library contained volumes including belonging to it b by y 1 marc antony |
