Book 2
22.1
The third opinion is by far the most plausible, yet the most erroneous of all. It has no more truth in it than the others. According to this, the Nahr an- Nil [31.1,30.166] (river), Africa Nile flows from where snows melt; but it flows from Libya [17,25] (nation), Africa Libya through the midst of Ethiopia [39,8] (nation), Africa Ethiopia , and comes out into Egypt [30,27] (nation), Africa Egypt .
22.2
How can it flow from snow, then, seeing that it comes from the hottest places to lands that are for the most part cooler? In fact, for a man who can reason about such things, the principal and strongest evidence that the river is unlikely to flow from snows is that the winds blowing from Libya [17,25] (nation), Africa Libya and Ethiopia [39,8] (nation), Africa Ethiopia are hot.
22.3
In the second place, the country is rainless and frostless; but after snow has fallen, it has to rain within five daysIt does not seem to be known what authority there is for this assertion. ; so that if it snowed, it would rain in these lands. And thirdly, the men of the country are black because of the heat.
22.4
Moreover, kites and swallows live there all year round, and cranes come every year to these places to winter there, flying from the wintry weather of Scythia (region (general)), Asia Scythia . Now, were there but the least fall of snow in this country through which the Nahr an- Nil [31.1,30.166] (river), Africa Nile flows and where it rises, none of these things would happen, as necessity proves.
