Was the sacrifice worth it? The value of Philæ lies in its beauty more than in its antiquarian interest. No one who has witnessed night after night the glorious sunsets on the Nile, the mysterious charm of the changing waters, the dark belt of palms reflected in the river below and standing out in strong contrast against the sky, the limestone cliffs of the desert clear-cut in the dry air, and flushing pink in the radiance of the indescribable after-glow, no one who has seen the Temples of Karnak, could hesitate to make so small a sacrifice, in comparison, for the sake of the river-side people. Moreover, Egypt is rich in treasures of the past, as yet undiscovered, and wanting only money for their development, which the Reservoir would in time supply. And how few people visit Philæ at all! Surely, even in a country a thousand times poorer than Egypt in artistic and archæological interests, the well-being of the living and of the unborn should have prevailed. If all those who joined to swell the uproar had been really disinterested lovers of the beautiful, there would have been small reason to complain of their insistence. Enthusiasts can hardly be expected to listen to the voice of reason, and Philæ has charms to soften the heart of the most savage utilitarian. Its fate is a mournful necessity, but it is a necessity, for the question of the Reservoir had come to be a question of existence for Egypt. Even the advantage gained by the opposition in lowering the height of the Dam is only a delay. On the pylon of the Temple of Isis at Philæ is carved a huge representation of the Pharaoh of the day, one of the most degenerate of the Ptolemies, catching his defeated enemies by the hair of their heads with one hand, an uplifted sword in the other. The whole is a copy of the work of his warlike ancestors, and even as a copy it is a delusion and a sham; for he won no victories, defeated no enemies, and, indeed, scarcely ventured outside the walls of his harem. The apparent victory of these lovers of Philæ, to call them by their more honourable title, was not less delusive. Philæ is doomed. Between half drowned and wholly drowned there is not much difference in the case of an island, certainly not a difference worth fighting for, and the Dam will be raised to its full height, perhaps as soon as Egypt is ready for the extra water.