The question of where and what Lake Mœris was has been guessed at by many, and some of the guesses have been rather wild and regardless of the attributes which the lake of the theory must be demonstrated to have, before it can be recognised as Lake Mœris. In the time of the early Nile tourist and historian Herodotus, about 450 B.C., there existed in Egypt an extensive lake, known as Lake Mœris, of such dimensions, levels, and geographical position, that it absorbed the surplus waters of the overflowing Nile, and afterwards gave back to the dwindling river the water it had received from it, thus becoming a regulator to diminish the excesses of the Nile floods, and to supply the shortcomings of the shrunken summer flow. The benefits resulting to the land of Egypt from such a moderator of high and low Niles were supposed to have been great, and the idea of the possibility of restoring the boon to Egypt by the discovery of the true position of the ancient Lake Mœris has helped to increase the interest in the subject, which curiosity about one of the lost wonders of the world in the once glorious kingdom of the Pharaohs would alone have been sufficient to excite. At the end of a long letter to Mr. Paul Ascherson about a journey in the Fayûm, Dr. Schweinfurth writes:—“It must have already occurred to you, that I, in these already much too comprehensive remarks, have kept going round about the Mœris question, like a cat round hot broth. I must guard myself from pulling unripe fruit, which in a not far future will be ripe for judgment.” This was written in January 1886. Dr. Schweinfurth seemed to expect that discoveries of papyri in the ruins of Arsinoë would be made, and the riddle by them be solved. We are still waiting for the papyri. Though the fear of picking unripe fruit may produce an unfavourable state of mind for assisting to promote discussion, it is far preferable to M. Linant’s attitude with reference to this question, when he stated that “J’ai retrouvé la véritable situation de cet ancien lac ou réservoir d’eau,” and caused or allowed to be printed on the “Carte Hydrographique de la moyenne Égypte, par M. Linant de Bellefonds, Paris, 1854,” the following presumptuous and decidedly untrue statement: “Le mémoire publié par M. Linant, sur le lac Mœris, donne tous les éclaircissements désirables sur ce point de l’histoire ancienne de l’Égypte”! Though more illumination has been thrown on the subject since this unfounded claim to finality was made, there still remains much information to collect about doubtful points of levels, identification of old ruined towns, and so forth, but I do not on that account consider that the fear of “too hastily confusing” the question should forbid the publication of fresh facts and speculations thereon, so long as the door is not slammed in the face of those who prefer to give their support to other theories.