the flooring was inadequate. From 1867 to 1883 the barrage attracted attention by reason only of its imposing superstructure, but it failed to produce any impression by its performances, for it was weakest where strength was most needed." Following the British occupation, engineers decided if any good could be done, they must either repair the old barrage, or build a new one; it was absolutely necessary to get control of the Nile water and thus improve irrigation and exports. They resolved to see what the cracked dam was worth, quite literally. In 1884, with initial safety testing, immediate repairs, and controlled filling, the existing structure held a pool about seven feet above the natural level. The cost to this work, totaled £26,000; the increased water provided to canals produced 30,000 tons more cotton than the previous year, which was worth over £1 million. This was so encouraging that, the following year, Lord Cromer, despite the state of finances, provided £1 million to improve Egypt's irrigation works. Between 1885 and 1890, Sir Colin Scott-Moncrieff successfully completed repairs of the barrages at a cost of $2.5 million; it provided a maintainable and desired depth of eight feet of water on downstream parts of the Nile. Maintenance and continuing repair of the Delta Barrages for irrigation purposes would continue into the mid-1930s. Establishment of the Department Up until construction of the Nile Barrages, no formal single entity was responsible for the execution of all public works that were being constructed in many parts of the Nile valley and the Nile Delta. Muhammad Ali had invented a new position in 1818: Chief Engineer for Lower Egypt (Pascal Coste was the first ever to be chosen for this position). A similar title for Upper Egypt was created in 1831 after Muhammad Ali started to consider building irrigation improvements in Upper Egypt. Linant de Bellefonds (another French engineer) was appointed the first chief engineer for Upper Egypt. Pascal Coste quit his position and returned to France in 1829 and was replaced by his fellow countryman Mougel Bey. As the volume of public works increased, Muhammad Ali Pasha decided to establish one entity to handle all the projects. In 1836 the Department of Public Works was established and was presided over by Linant de Bellefonds (later known as Linant Pasha). His position would associate him in a long and fruitful career with most of the great works