1906] Grey's Ultimatum to Turkey 143 



Chester Guardian,' criticizing Cromer's political as contrasted with his 

 administrative policy in Egypt, explaining his relations with the Khedive 

 and blaming his quarrel with the Sultan. 



"6th May (Sunday). — The 'Manchester Guardian' has published 

 my article on Cromer in a prominent way with a leading article adopting 

 my view that the present troubles are largely caused by Cromer's hav- 

 ing failed to re-establish the Liberal National Party in 1883, and later 

 by his injudicious brow-beating of Abbas. It says that self-government 

 ought to be begun now in Egypt. On the other hand the ' Tribune ' has 

 gone right round, and is extravagantly jingo, denouncing the Sultan, and 

 printing an aggressive picture of John Bull threatening to demolish 

 him. The ' Daily News ' is preaching a crusade. It says, 'it is a 

 maxim of Liberal policy that no foot of land abandoned by the Turk 

 can ever belong to him again,' all this in consequence of the announce- 

 ment that an ultimatum has been addressed to Constantinople. 



" yth May. — I have decided to write a public letter to Grey expostu- 

 lating with him on the ultimatum, and have spent the whole day over 

 it, from half-past two in the earliest morning, but I feel it to be 

 necessary. As far as I can understand the case, our Government is 

 technically in the wrong in asserting a claim for Tabah as territory of 

 the Khediviate, or at any time within the ancient boundaries of Egypt, 

 or that it has ever been administered from Cairo, except in connection 

 with the Pilgrim Road. 



" gth May. — I left Clouds and came up to London. I have sent in 

 my letter to Grey, and Eddy Tennant (who is an intimate friend of 

 Grey's) has promised to speak to him about it. He is to give him a 

 message, too, from me, that my letter is written in no hostile sense to 

 the Government, but that if I receive no answer I shall consider myself 

 at liberty to publish. I have also sent a copy of it through Arthur 

 Ellis to the King. I fear, however, that it is too late to stop warlike 

 operations. [Note. For the text of my letter to Grey see Appendix.], 



" Meynell dined with me. He talked a good deal about the Educa- 

 tion Bill, which is now much discussed. Birrell, he says, repudiates 

 it as his own, saying that it is really Lloyd George's drafting forced on 

 Birrell by a Cabinet majority. 



"11 th May. — Percy Wyndham came to lunch with me, and immedi- 

 ately after John Redmond. They had not met before, but Percy 

 made a polite speech about their having sat together twenty years ago 

 in Parliament, and then left us to our talk. This was principally about 

 Akabah. The Radical members, Redmond says, are so furious against 

 the Sultan that they will none of them join in any protest against the 

 ultimatum, though not one of them understands in the least what 

 the quarrel is about. I explained the matter to him, and he said 

 there would be papers published on the case on Monday, and oppor- 



