The Legacy Of Egypt

NOTE
A WORD of apology is due for the delay in the publication of
The Legacy of Egypt. Most of the chapters had been received
by September 1939, but the difficulties of communication under
war conditions and the preoccupation of those contributors,
whose chapters were outstanding, with national service in one
form or another resulted in prolonged interruptions to the
progress of the book. In this respect the Editor, though he
could not help himself, was the chief sinner.
We also regretfully record the sad dispersion which has over-
taken the group of colleagues whose original undertaking to
co-operate in the writing of the Legacy made its appearance
possible. Three have since died: Professor Hocart early in 1939,
Canon Creed in the Spring of 1940, and Brigadier-General
Sewell in August 1941. The last-named had already seen and
passed his chapter in print; to Mrs. Creed and Mrs. Hocart
the editor is indebted for their help in correcting the proofs of
chapters twelve and fifteen respectively. Professor Capart has
not been heard of since Belgium was overrun; Professor Seidl
is for the time being, unhappily, without the Law, Neither
therefore has seen proofs of his contribution to The Legacy of
Egypt* but both had warmly approved the English translations of
their respective texts, and in checking over these had made some
small revisions. Our thanks are due to Mr. H. St. L. B. Moss
for the care he bestowed <era Professor Capart's chapter, and to
Professor N. H. BayKs, D*. H. L Bell, and Professor H. M. Last
for help in rendering many of the technical phrases in that of
Professor Seidl.
It has not been possible to secure complete consistency in the
spelling of Ancient Egyptian proper names, though this has
been the broad aim. Since, however, Egyptologists themselves
are not willing to be entirely consistent, it is perhaps as well that