ginning
of his book, as a final solution of the problem, the declaration that
Egypt, with its high civilization in the time of Mena, with its races,
classes, institutions, arrangements, language, monuments--all indicating
an evolution through a vast previous history--was a sudden creation
which came fully made from the hands of the Creator. To use his own
words, "The Egyptians had no Stone age, and were born civilized."

There is an old story that once on a time a certain jovial King of
France, making a progress through his kingdom, was received at the gates
of a provincial town by the mayor's deputy, who began his speech on this
wise: "May it please your Majesty, there are just thirteen reasons why
His Honour the Mayor can not be present to welcome you this morning. The
first of these reasons is that he is dead." On this the king graciously
declared that this first reason was sufficient, and that he would not
trouble the mayor's deputy for the twelve others.

So with Mr. Southall's argument: one simple result of scientific
research out of many is all that it is needful to state, and this is,
that in these later years we have a new and convincing evidence of
the existence of prehistoric man in Egypt in his earliest, rudest
beginnings; the very same evidence which we find in all other parts of
the world which have been carefully examined. This evidence consists
of stone implements and weapons which have been found in Egypt in
such forms, at such points, and in such positions that when studied in
connection with those found in all other parts of the world, from New
Jersey to California, from France to India, and from England to the
Andaman Islands, they force upon us the conviction that civilization
in Egypt, as in all other parts of the world, was developed by the same
slow process of evolution from the rudest beginnings.

It is true that men learned in Egyptology had discouraged the idea of
an earlier Stone age in Egypt, and that among these were Lepsius and
Brugsch; but these men were not trained in prehistoric archaeology;
their devotion to the study of the monuments of Egyptian civilization
had evidently drawn them away from sympathy, and indeed from
acquaintance, with the work of men like Boucher de Perthes, Lartet,
Nilsson, Troyon, and Dawkins. But a new era was beginning. In 1867
Worsaae called attention to the prehistoric implements found on
the borders of Egypt; two years later Arcelin discussed such stone
im