1893] Drink Shops in the Villages 121 



watering his land near the railway station, and had to construct a 

 raised channel for the water across the footpath and the Greek objected 

 to this, as hindering access to his shop, though the land did not belong 

 to him and the fellah had a right to the waterway. The Greek cut the 

 channel, the fellah protested, the Greek struck the fellah with a stick, 

 the fellah took the stick from the Greek, then the Greek ran into his 

 shop and got out a gun which he pointed at the fellah, and the fellah 

 ran away but came back ten minutes later to reconstruct his channel, 

 then the Greek fired at him, fired and struck him, the fellah showed 

 me his legs and I found twenty-two shot marks in them, he had been 

 three weeks in hospital and was still weak. The Greek, when arrested, 

 avowed the deed, but nevertheless, after four days' detention, was let 

 out on bail, and is back at his shop. 



" Nearly every day this month I have seen foxes in the garden when 

 I have ridden out before sunrise. There are three which I know by 

 sight, and old dog-fox, a vixen, and a year-old cub. THey are very 

 tame, and I have watched them sometimes within a few yards of me for 

 ten minutes at a time. It is pretty to see them play and roll each other 

 over. This month is the breeding season and they are barking very 

 constantly in the garden (it is a peculiarity of a fox's bark that 

 whereas nearly all other wild cries seem to be nearer than they really 

 are, that of the fox sounds at a distance even when close by). I have 

 also seen one of the large cats called by Hassan Hashem, kutt berri 

 (desert cat). It is exactly like a small lioness, but higher on the leg, 

 the ears tipped with black and the tail with three black rings, the quar- 

 ters rather drooping. It is very powerfully built. The Arabs eat these 

 cats when they can catch them and say they are very fat and good meat. 



" 2jth Dec. — To Cairo to see Riaz, who had asked me to come to 

 him. I found the old man very affectionate and pleased to see me. 

 He talked in just the same strain as last year about Cromer and the 

 ill faith of the English government and Mr. Gladstone. 



" About the Khedive's visit to Constantinople, he told me most posi- 

 tively first that it had been decided before His Highness went, between 

 him and his ministers, that he should not make any political proposals 

 to the Sultan — he said, 'I will swear this to you on the Koran.' 

 Secondly, that in fact His Highness had not made any, and that his 

 talk with the palace officials had been confined to his personal complaint 

 of Lord Cromer's rudeness. Lastly, that the Sultan had been more 

 than kind to him and had treated him more honourably than a Viceroy 

 of Egypt had ever been treated, so that the Khedive was perfectly sat- 

 isfied with all. I asked him whether the Sultan might not have been 

 won over to the English policy in Egypt, and his face put on the most 

 expressively incredulous smile. ' You know,' he said, ' as well as I 

 do that even if in his heart he had such a thought he would not dare 



