32 Baring on Arabi [1890 



gave the Sheykh a high character, and said that nearly all the exiles 

 were now recalled. I told him that I hoped the amnesty would be 

 general and would include Arabi and the other exiles who are in 

 Ceylon. To this he demurred, and said that Arabi, having made an 

 unsuccessful revolution had to pay the penalty, ' not, however,' he 

 added, ' that I have ever accepted the theory that his was a military 

 revolt, but it was unsuccessful.' ' On the contrary,' I said, ' it was 

 altogether successful, except for the British Army.' ' That,' he said, 

 ' was one of the elements he should have reckoned with ' ; and I ' a 

 British army of 20,000 men is too strong an element for any Oriental 

 calculation.' 



' He then went on to talk of practical improvements and said he was 

 pleased that I had recognized these, but it would be necessary for 

 many years to come to have some European guidance, and he believed 

 English guidance to be better than French or any other. Lastly, we 

 discussed agricultural methods and a school of agriculture which was 

 being founded, and agreed that schools of this sort were a doubtful 

 benefit. [N.B. — The school in question which had been started under 

 a Scotchman proved a comical failure, the professors after several 

 years of experiments having had to call in their fellah neighbours to 

 show them how crops could be grown successfully.] We parted on 

 cordial terms, and he invited Anne and me to luncheon for to-day. I 

 declined as I do not wish to go into town again, but I accepted for 

 Anne, and so she and Judith are to go in there this morning. I trust 

 this may all be for the best. 



" I have been reading Gordon's ' Letters to his Sister,' and find 

 them very consoling in their resignation to Providence ; his doctrine is 

 entirely Mohammedan." 



This extract has its importance as showing in connection with other 

 extracts of a later date that the difficulty about recalling Arabi, which 

 was the essential condition of any true intention of restoring the National 

 Party in Egypt, resided not in the Khedive only but in Lord Cromer. 

 The following, too, will have its interest as indicating perhaps the 

 point of departure taken by him so markedly at a later date in Arabian 

 affairs. 



" 20th Feb. — Shahir Ibn Nassar, son of the chief Sheykh of the 

 Dhaheri Harb tribe of Hedjaz came to Sheykh Obeyd on the 25th of 

 January with his cousin Seyid and a friend, Ali, from Mecca. Shahir 

 is a pleasing young man and we invited him to stay with us, and he 

 has been ever since at Sheykh Obeyd. He came to Cairo to claim a 

 debt of £350 due to his tribe for the hire of camels supplied to the Haj 

 last year, and was very angry because Riaz and the Khedive had 

 refused to see him notwithstanding his having brought letters, also 

 the money had been refused him, and the Khedive had refused his gift 



