XVIII.

To M. ARLES DUFOUR, PARIS.

ALEXANDRIA, January 27, 1855.

THE Viceroy is sending me to Constantinople, where he thinks my presence necessary.

I embark to-day in the Pharamond, provided with the most excellent letters of introduction. That which was

not opportune at the very outset is opportune to-day.

In case there should be difficulties about the actual organisation of our company, it is good for people to know that Mohammed Said is ready to put his hand to the work whenever I like, with his own resources alone and those of his country and of my friends. As I was leaving him, he said to me, "When we have made the Canal fed by the Nile, and have led the waters of the Red Sea into the basins of the Bitter Lakes and of Lake Timsah, which will certainly not be beyond our power, we shall be able to wait for people to come to us."

I can now only repeat to you, what I have said from the first, that there is no definite step to be taken in Europe before my return.

I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 2nd of January, and of those from Enfantin of the 30th of December and the 6th of January. Our friend says:

The Times has already declared against us, and unfortunately it is right in treating the scheme as absolutely impossible, especially that part of it relating to the absurd idea of an entrance at Pelusium.

MM. Mougel and Linant entertain an opposite opinion. When their prospectus appears, it will undergo, in every way, the most searching examination. I will not dictate, but it seems to me that we ought to refrain from giving a formal opinion. Talabot's plan of a canal, seventy leagues long, between Alexandria and Suez, is, then, still dear to our friend's heart. You know that the Viceroy has declared for making a large maritime canal straight across the isthmus. He does not wish Lower Egypt to be cut through; and he asked me if Talabot had been to Egypt and studied the isthmus for himself before drawing

TALABOT AND STEPHENSON.

79

up his plan. On my replying in the negative and telling him of the eminent merit of this celebrated engineer, he added that so distinguished a man could not take amiss the adoption of a course different from that suggested by himself; that he had no doubt Talabot's plan was feasible, and would have been worthy of every consideration had not more urgent reasons made him decide irrevocably on a more direct route. So that there is nothing to wound Talabot's feelings in this declaration.

In any case, you must agree with me that it is necessary in our great enterprise to put aside considerations of persons, and to do only what will contribute to its

success.

With regard to Linant and Mougel, the Viceroy, in whose service they are, told them to make a preliminary survey; their scheme, therefore, is the result of an order from the Viceroy, and will be duly submitted to the approval of the company of competent men and the public of Europe.

Stephenson told you he would write to his agents in Egypt to do nothing to prejudice the interests of the Canal, but to declare in its favour. I can only conclude that he has done nothing, or that he has very untrustworthy agents, for all the English in Cairo and Alexandria, especially the railway people, have done everything in their power to injure us. It's not their fault if they have not succeeded.

For the time of my absence I have accredited M. Ruyssenaers, Consul-General for Holland, to the Viceroy. He has long been intimate with his Highness, and is in his confidence. I enclose a copy of my letter to him before leaving. The zealous and unanimous support given to me by my old friends here is entirely gratuitous.

XIX.

To M. ARLES DUFOUR, PARIS.

ALEXANDRETTA, Februdrý 2, 1855.

I HAVE just returned from making the round of all the towns on the Syrian coast, from Jaffa to Alexandretta,

whither the news has spread of the projected Canal through the Isthmus of Suez, and I have been enthusiastically received by both the Mussulman and Christian populations. It would be difficult for people in Europe to realise the way in which I have been publicly recognised by all the officials, even by the Cadis themselves, especially at Beirut, Tripoli, and Latakia. I may almost say that my journey through these towns, as promoter of the great scheme and a friend of the Viceroy, who is looked upon as the Sultan's right hand, was a triumphal progress. I hail this as a good omen for the conclusion of the business at Constantinople.

The Pharamond, on board which I am writing, will reach Tarsus to-morrow, and will then proceed to Rhodes, Smyrna, the Dardanelles, and Gallipoli, and drop me at Constantinople.

XX.

NOTE FOR THE VICEROY OF EGYPT AND COUNT Theodore de Lesseps, Minister of Foreign Affairs.

CONSTANTINOPLE, February 15, 1855.

WHEN I reached Constantinople I found the ground clear. If no one had declared in favour of the scheme, no one had been able to say anything against it. I employed the first few days in getting an accurate knowledge of the situation. I learnt that the Ministers generally, and Reschid Pacha in particular, entirely approved of the projected Canal through the isthmus, and were ready to assist the Viceroy in carrying out his plan if they could do so without compromising themselves too much. But I discovered that pressure, not to use a stronger word, was being put upon them by the English Ambassador, who is openly called Sultan Stratford, or Abdul Canning.

I was assured of the co-operation of the Austrian Internuncio, Baron de Bruck; of the Spanish Minister, M. de Sarza; of Count de Zuylen de Nieyvelt, the Dutch Chargé d'Affairs, and of several other personages who would be able to help me in their respective positions.

I ascertained that Lord Stratford was personally most

CONVERSATION WITH RESCHID PACHA.

81

strongly opposed to the scheme, and that although he had no official instructions from his Government with reference to it, he was acting precisely as if he had, behaving in the matter with his usual arrogance, rooted jealousy, and inveterate antagonism of everything French, and with truly British egotism. There can be no doubt that Reschid Pacha will soon throw off a yoke which is becoming unbearable.

M. Benedetti, our Chargé d'Affaires, whose local knowledge, tact, and prudence would have been so useful to me, had received a hint not to put himself too forward in the matter; but he promises to act with me in doing everything to secure the success of the negotiation, to which he knows the Emperor's Government attaches great importance. He immediately sent M. Scheffer to Reschid Pacha, knowing that he would be a most fitting person to put things in train, and would follow all the details of the affair with intelligence. By his good offices a private interview with the Grand Vizier was obtained for me, at his house on the Bosphorus, on the morning of the 12th.

I gave Mohammed Said's letter, with which I was entrusted, to Reschid Pacha, together with a copy of my report on the junction of the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, translated into Turkish, and the Viceroy's Firman, approving the scheme for which we were now asking the Sultan's consent.

He read them attentively, and we had a conference of two hours' duration, in which a confidential footing was established between us. The following is an epitome of our conversation :

I need not point out to you the great advantages of this undertaking, to complete which we ask the Sultan's consent, for you have already appreciated them. The only obstacle you have to fear is, I know, not the opposition of England (whose alliance I, as a loyal Frenchman, quite appreciate), but only the personal antagonism of an official who, by his flagrantly overbearing conduct, is striking a severe blow at your sovereign's authority and dignity.

It is for you to consider whether you will be influenced more by such an obstacle, than by your wish to oblige an enlightened prince, who is performing an act of courtesy to his sovereign, and who is the right

hand of the Ottoman Empire, of which you are the head. Compare the interest you have in maintaining the friendly and confidential relations between you and Mohammed Said Pacha, whose honour is publicly involved in the undertaking, with the passing spleen of the representative of a foreign Court. And, further, if you consider the inclinations of such and such Powers with reference to a domestic question, in which no one can contest your right to act for yourself, do you not think that the wishes of the Emperor Napoleon, as already expressed, should also have their weight? If we are willing to wait for the Sultan's initiative, and have loyally endeavoured to prevent the smallest injury to the dignity and independence of the Ottoman Empire, we have given no cause for supposing that we have altogether abdicated our legitimate influence. I am thankful that the Emperor has never led Europe to suppose any such thing. In former times the English Government, with less delicacy than our own, first told the Porte that the Viceroy of Egypt had a right to construct a railway from Alexandria to Suez without the license of his sovereign, and, in spite of the opposition of the French Ambassador, imperatively compelled the Sultan to give his consent. There was no fear then of displeasing the French representative. We are now not only quite content that the railway favoured by England should be continued and completed, but we abstain from interfering officially in this scheme, so favourable to the development of the Ottoman Empire, and which would also promote our maritime and commercial interests, so that we may maintain the private character of the matter in hand and avoid wounding any susceptibilities. You surely will not reward such cautious conduct on our part by hindering the completion of a work applauded by all nations, and which offers so happy an opportunity of proving to the world that the Ottoman Empire is fairly embarked in the path of civilisation and progress, and retains within itself the elements of originality and vitality.

Finally, I added that I came merely as the friend of the Porte, that I was the agent of the Viceroy, and not of the French Government, from whom I had no credentials. I gathered from my own observations, and afterwards learnt indirectly, that what I said had produced considerable effect.

The next day, at a grand diplomatic dinner given by the Foreign Minister, Aali Pacha, as a farewell to Baron von Bruck, Reschid Pacha thought he might take the opportunity of telling Lord Stratford the reason of my coming to Constantinople, and met with just such opposition as we expected.

It was, therefore, necessary to act promptly and bring