210 Ali Sherif's Horses [ J 895 



origin of my calling on him and of his visit was a message I received 

 in the summer from Mile, de Lagrene, saying he wished to make my 

 acquaintance. Of current politics we talked little, except as to the 

 Khedive's character, which he praised highly. 



" 24th Dec. — Kitchener gives a final answer about the refugees, re- 

 fusing on the ground that he does not wish the district re-peopled, for 

 fear it should serve as a basis for Dervish raids. Rubbish! 



' There is a fine quarrel on between England and the United States 

 about Venezuela. Lord Salisbury is getting into nice hot water. He 

 has a war with Ashanti of the most causeless kind. His diplomacy 

 at Constantinople has entirely broken down, as the Turks are mas- 

 sacring the Armenians worse than ever — and now he will have to 

 fight or sing small — doubtless sing small — in America. I should 

 not be surprised 'to see the Egyptian question raised at any moment as 

 a European one. 



"29th Dec. — Went in to Cairo yesterday to see Ali Pasha Sherif's 

 horses. They showed us half-a-dozen which !were for sale. We shall 

 bid for two, a chestnut colt, two years old, very like Mesaoud, and a 

 grey filly, a Jellabieh, also a two-year-old,. We did not see the best 

 mares, but we saw the stallions. They have nothing left now but Aziz, 

 aged nineteen, Ibn Nadir, aged twenty-four, and Ibn Sherara, also an 

 old horse. They are terribly in want of new blood. 



" Ali Pasha Sherif has had a decree of interdiction passed on him 

 as incapable of the management of his affairs, and Shakir Pasha is 

 appointed Wakil. He has quarrelled with his seven sons and receives 

 an allowance of £500 a year. Such is the position of the man who a 

 year ago was President of 'the Legislative Council, by favour of the 

 late Khedive Tewfik and Lord Cromer. 



" Afterwards to call on Riaz, whom I found with Tigrane, showing 

 him his estate accounts at Melhallet el Roh. These bring him in £10 

 an acre, gross — expenses of cultivation £4 and tax £1. Net income £5 

 an acre. He reviewed the state of agricultural things since he had 

 first been in the Government service in 1850. He said that the wars 

 of Mohammed Ali had ruined the country, much of which had gone 

 out of cultivation, but that under Abbas and Said the population had 

 nearly doubled. The taxation was then one third what it is now. 

 Everyone was well off. Then Ismail ruined it again. The price of 

 land went up after his deposition and stood in 1880 at its highest. It 

 was going down now with the fall in prices of produce. On the other 

 hand the public expenditure had increased since the English occupa- 

 tion by two millions a year, and ten millions capital had been added 

 to the debt." 



