230 Royal Influences in Diplomacy [1896 



' 1st June. — Went up to London to take Anne to a Geographical 

 meeting, where Theodore Bent gave some account of his travels south 

 of where we were last winter. Like all our geographers nowadays he 

 is an arch Jingo, and talked of opening up the country by gold digging 

 as if it would be a work of piety. The Geographical Society has lent 

 itself to this sort of thing in Africa for the last thirty years. 



" 2nd June. — To lunch with Judith at Margot's ; a great treat. 

 Margot was delightful and most amusing. We found her with Lady 

 Greville, who had come to interview her, on 'the subject of women 

 cross country riders, for some magazine. Margot was splendid in her 

 description of the various styles of riding, and of the falls and smashes 

 she had had and witnessed. ' There are only three women,' she said, 

 ' who really have the nerve to ride a line of their own, and I am one 

 of them.' Her baby of last year has in no way spoilt her nerve, and 

 she had seventy days' hunting during the past winter. Two of her 

 step-children were with her at luncheon, and the governess, which gave 

 her a somewhat matronly appearance, but she is otherwise unchanged 

 from the days of her hoyden maidenhood — affectionate, and nice, and 

 cleverer than any one else, with a pretty colour in her cheeks, but very 

 thin. ' I have lost two stone,' she said, ' since you were with me at the 

 Glen. I only weigh 7 stone 6, but I like to ride big horses. The best 

 I ever had was 16.2. 



" yrd June. — Newbuildings. I have sent the following to Morley : 



' As the debate on the Soudan campaign is coming on I write a line 

 to say that I think you will find the action of the Italian Government 

 explainable on the supposition put forward in my article in the " Nine- 

 teenth Century " of May, viz., that the arrangement made with the 

 German Emperor was due not to the Italian Government, but to the 

 King of Italy personally through his appealing to the Emperor. The 

 Italian Government, and especially the Duke of Sermoneta, whom I 

 know well, are or were when they came into office opposed altogether 

 to the Italian Colonial policy. The Duke's hobby (if one may call it 

 so) is financial economy, and he would have liked to see the whole of 

 Erythrya with Kassala, and even Massowah, given up. I am sure, 

 therefore, that it has been the King's influence that has been at work 

 overruling that of his Ministers. The Italian Government's object now, 

 I imagine, is to get their expenses in Erythrya, or at any rate at Kassala, 

 paid for by the Egyptian Government or ours, on the plea that they 

 have been pacifying the country in Egyptian interests. It is all non- 

 sense of course, but our Government, by inviting the Italians twelve 

 years ago to take Massowah, has put itself under some obligations to 

 Italy, which will be made the most of. 



