Europe? The interest for the tranquillity of the people, and a desire to spare the effusion of blood, say they. A lie!-an evident lie! In the war with Algiers, was it water or blood that flowed? At the taking of Constantine, was it water or blood that flowed? Whilst I am not independent, Turkey cannot be peaceable or tranquil, and the Sultan Himself will see, little by little, his States pass away from him under the power of one or the other, until He shall be completely dispossessed of his throne; and I shall remain an indifferent spectator of his total ruin ; —whilst, independent, I should be his Ally: we should be united and tranquil,—He and I—his people and mine. Independent,—my first care would be, to disarm the half of my army by sea and by land, to leave my soldiers at liberty for manufactures and agriculture. My first labours would be to suppress the duties which weigh upon the people, in consequence of my present position,-my example would be followed by the Sultan; and this is the true means to establish the well-being of the people in Turkey and Egypt. In any case, my resolution is, not to pay in future, an "obole" of tribute to the Sultan ; and let him come if He will, with arms in his hands to enforce it !"*

THE CORRESPONDENCE WHICH TOOK PLACE WITH
MOHAMMED ALI, AFTER THE DEATH OF
THE SULTAN MAHMOUD.

LETTER OF THE GRAND VIZIER KHOSREW PASCHA TO THE VICEROY OF EGYPT.

As was stated in the letter addressed to Your Excellency some days ago, His Highness the most magnificent, the most formidable, and the most powerful Sultan, Abd'ul Med'gid Khan, having ascended the Imperial throne, which Divine predestination had left vacant, the wisdom with which He is naturally gifted, dictated to Him, at the moment of his accession, the following language:

"The Governor of Egypt, Mohammed Ali Pascha, had committed some acts calculated to indispose my glorious father: various events came to pass, and preparations were made. Nevertheless, to preserve from all attempts the welfare of the people intrusted to me by Providence, with the sole view of sparing the effusion of Mussulmaun blood, I mean to forget all that is past; I will pardon that Governor; confer on him a

See Vol. I. p. 414. et seq.

decoration similar to that worn by my other Viziers, and concede to him the Province of Egypt, and the hereditary right thereto to his descendants, on condition that he fully conform to his duties of obedience and submission."

However unworthy I may be of the honour, having been raised to the post of Grand Vizier, and owing to the existence of former relations between Your Excellency and me, I heard, with lively satisfaction, the language of His Highness. I immediately wrote to the Seraskier of the East, Hafiz Pascha, to suspend the march of the Imperial army; and the fleet, which was to have left the Dardanelles, has been detained. The decoration conferred on you by the Sultan, and the firmaun which is to accompany it, are now preparing.

In the meanwhile, Akiff Effendi, Secretary of the Council, and one of the High Functionaries of the Sublime Porte, has been dispatched to acquaint you in detail with our Sovereign's desire.

If God deign to assist His Highness, all the Provinces of the Empire will enjoy perfect tranquillity under the protection of his sceptre. Now, as the accomplishment of that hope depends on the union of Mussulmauns, I specially address you this letter, in order that, guided by your natural prudence, and docile to the Supreme wish, you forget all the past, fully accomplish your duties as a Vassal, withdraw the troops which are found in your camp, and think no more hereafter but of accord and union.-Dated July, 1839.

LETTER OF MOHAMMED ALI, WRITTEN TO THE EUROPEAN CONSULS, IN REPLY TO THE COMMUNICATIONS MADE TO HIM BY THE AMBASSADORS OF THE GREAT POWERS IN CONSTANTINOPLE.

"In the course of two days, Akiff Effendi will set out for Constantinople. He will be the bearer of a letter of congratulation and submission, on my part, to the new Sultan Abd'ul Medg'id. I intend also addressing to Khosrew Pascha a letter, in which I will represent to him

"1. That the late Sultan Mahmoud had made me, at the time, through the medium of Sarim Effendi, propositions of a much more advantageous nature than those addressed to me now, by His Highness; for he then offered me the hereditary reversion of Egypt, as well as of Syria, Sayda, and the Sandjak of Tripoli.

"2. That, under existing circumstances, I demand the hereditary

right to Egypt, as well as to Syria and Candia; that is, to all the dominions I now possess, as I previously mentioned.

"3. That, on this condition, and if the Porte wishes to act with good faith towards me, I will be the most faithful of the servants and vassals of His Highness, and I will defend Him when, and against whomsoever, He pleases.

"I intend writing to Constantinople to the above effect.

"I will make no mention, in my letter to the Grand Vizier, of the fleet, from a sense of propriety; but I beg of you to tell the Representatives of the Great Courts at Constantinople, that I never had the intention of keeping or using it with a hostile object against the Sultan; I formally pledge myself, on the contrary, to restore it the moment that my propositions shall have been accepted; in which case, all the vessels composing the squadron of His Highness shall be sent back to Constantinople. As regards the Ottoman Admirals, those who should be afraid to return to Turkey, will be allowed to remain in Egypt, which is part of the same Monarchy.

"When the Sultan shall have acceded to my prayer, and that Khosrew Pascha shall have been removed from the direction of affairs, I will not hesitate, on the first invitation of His Highness, to proceed to Constantinople; but alone, and on board a steamer, and with the sole view of offering in person, my homage to my Sovereign, and of tendering to Him my services.

66

Finally, I declare to you, that if my propositions be not attended to, I shall not wage war, but merely maintain my present position, and wait."-Dated July 1839.

REMONSTRANCE OF THE ALLIES WITH MOHAMMED ALI IN 1839.

On the 18th of October, the Consuls of the Four Great Powers (the Prussian Consul being absent) had an audience with the Viceroy, and by an order, dated Constantinople, the 7th instant, from the Ambassadors, they addressed him in nearly the following words:

"The Grand Vizier has communicated your Highness's last letter to the Ambassadors of the Great Powers. Mohammed Ali still appears to flatter himself that he will be able to bring the Porte to an arrangement to which the Great Powers of Europe, under whose protection the Porte has placed itself, shall remain strangers. Is it possible that a man, who through a long career, has given proofs of uncommon sagacity, can so blind himself, when his own interest is concerned? The faults of

the Porte, of which Your Highness has so dexterously taken advantage, have given you superior strength, which Your Highness can abuse. You can at the present moment, deprive the Porte of still greater territories, for there is no one to offer opposition. Your Highness may keep the Ottoman fleet, and the Allies of the Sultan will not employ force to regain it ; for its destruction would be the probable result of the conflict. Your Highness may then, if you will, feel satisfied with the conviction, and in the abuse, of your material force. But if Europe is hostile to you, whither will that lead? For even supposing that Europe did nothing to combat Your Highness, still she holds against the Pascha a formidable weapon-that of his future prospects.

"What does Your Highness desire? You cease not to repeat that all your actions have no other end but that of establishing the future fortunes of your family. Do you then believe that the personal hatred with which you have been animated, up to the present time, against Khosrew Pascha, can be a good foundation for the establishment of your family? Have you ever seen anything durable based on a sentiment of this nature? Your Highness has endeavoured to approximate Egypt to Europe by your Administration, by Arts, and by Commerce. Hence you should have learned, and you will learn, more clearly, that the situation of Egypt is necessary to the regular existence and duration of some political position. Do not, then, deceive yourself with the superiority of your strength; for it is insufficient to give Your Highness that future influence which you would establish. Even if the Sultan were to grant Your Highness all the concessions you demand, they would be insufficient to secure your position; for they will not be sanctioned by Europe.

"Had Your Highness, as Chief of the revolted Mussulmauns, founded a new Empire an age ago, it might have existed in that state of separation and isolation which then rendered Europe but little attentive to events of such a nature; but Your Highness has devoted even your own life to the establishment of another order of things; and you have need, under pain of vanishing like a meteor, of the sanction of Europe, who will not sanction anything that does not leave untouched the principle of the Sultan's Sovereignty.

"If Mohammed Ali rests the hope of a successful resistance on the conviction, which he seems to entertain, of the difficulty that the Powers would have in adopting in concert active measures against him, he should perceive that they would easily agree to refuse their sanction to an order of things that they found too onerous for the Porte. It is never difficult to take a negative measure."

The Consuls of Russia and Austria were together during this declaration; and those of England and France were separate. The Viceroy replied, that he referred the decision of his affairs to the High Powers, in whose justice he had implicit confidence, and that this declaration

had been probably caused by a correspondence between himself and Khosrew Pascha, who was the first to solicit him to bring their affairs to a termination between themselves, and without foreign mediation. He then ordered that the Turkish copy of this correspondence should be given to the above mentioned Consuls. The first is Khosrew Pascha's, and is dated the 5th of September, and the last sentence of this must be the one by which, as the Viceroy said, the Grand Vizier solicited him to terminate their differences without mediation. The second letter is his answer, dated the 15th of September, by which he demands of Khosrew one or two Ulemas, Dignitaries of the Empire, to be their judges. The following are the documents referred to in the above:—

1.—TRANSLATION OF A DISPATCH WRITTEN BY KHOSREW PASCHA TO MOHAMMED ALI PASCHA, DATED THE 27th GEMAZIULAHIR, 1255, (5th of September, 1839.)

"I have had the honour of receiving Your Highness's dispatch, and of making myself acquainted with its contents. It is filled with reproaches; Your Highness's bidding us to retire from affairs, and advise you accordingly, I write this to Your Highness to testify the sincerity of our friendship towards you; of this God is our witness, as also that we do not entertain any feeling of animosity against you. The opinion you hold of me is not just, and although the complaints and reproaches of Your Highness, which have been directed against me, have filled the whole earth, I feel no anger towards you;-that is rather the Emperor's concern. All these words have, among both Mussulmauns and Europeans, done injury to the name of the wise Mohammed Ali Pascha, and as 'every individual should be devoted to the cause of his own,' that has greatly astonished me in Your Highness, and has even angered me. Since the Capoudan Pascha is guilty, it is not reasonable to wish to retain the fleet, and we did not think that it was. You have heard the words of the Capoudan Pascha, and if you had sent the Imperial fleet it would have been a suitable and benignant act. As for what regards my removal from affairs, Your Highness knows very well that, for many years, I kept retired in my own house. Providence, notwithstanding my own unwillingness, desired that I should become Grand Vizier. This, then, is the effect of Divine Grace, and opposing it, would have been opposing the will of God, whom I feared, and accepted the Viziriate accordingly, in the persuasion that God would be my aid. Now, my Lord, I earnestly entreat you to pardon this fault of the Grand Viziriate, since for me it was a destiny of God, by the very reason that I was one of the first of Islam. I thank the Almighty, that with my last breath, I shall find myself in the favour of the Prophet, and in the service of our Benefactor the Emperor, who is His Successor, and whom I will serve with zeal. All this is perfectly well known to Your Highness, and you may feel displeased at the repe