EGYPT. 



251 



cent annual interest on the Khedive's 176,602 

 shares, two fifths of the original capital trans- 

 ferred to the British Government for the 

 4,000,000 in cash, which interest, amounting 

 to 198,829 a year, is paid in lieu of the profits 

 up to 1894, to which date the dividends were 

 already alienated by the Khedive to the Suez 

 Canal Company. 



Of the mercantile interests threatened or 

 said to be threatened by the Egyptian im- 

 broglio, the most important and the most de- 

 serving of being defended were those of British 

 commerce in the Suez Canal. Of the 17,207 

 ships with an aggregate tonnage of 33,244,452 

 tons which passed the canal from the time it 

 was opened in December, 1869, till the end of 

 1881, 12,960, with a total capacity of 25,779,- 

 664 tons, were British. The French came next 

 in the amount of tonnage, but it was only about 

 one twelfth as much as the British. The ag- 

 gregate amount of tolls collected in that period 

 was about $64,370,000, averaging $1.90 a ton 

 and $3,660 a ship, the average tonnage of the 

 ships passing through being 1,932 tons. In the 

 year ending in April, 1882, of the 3,006 ves- 

 sels, aggregating 4,257,000 tons, which passed 

 through the canal, 2,484, of 3,512,000 tons, were 

 British. About one fourth of the total capital 

 invested in British shipping is engaged in the 

 Suez Canal traffic. 



THE CAMPAIGN. The preparations for the 

 war of occupation were entirely secret up to 

 the time of the bombardment of Alexandria. 

 Then the British forces in the Mediterranean 



MAJOR-GENERAL SIR ARCHIBALD ALISON. 



[He commanded a division. He was born in 1826, and 

 served in the Crimea and in India, losing an arm 

 at the relief of Lucknow. He was chief of the intelli- 

 gence department at the War Office when he left for 

 Egypt.] * 



began to move forward, and preparations went 

 on more actively and openly in England and 

 India. A force of about 6,000 men, under 



General Sir Archibald Alison, was collected 

 gradually from the Mediterranean stations, 

 which held Alexandria while the first reserves 

 of the English army were being mobilized. 

 The army reform in England is not yet com- 

 plete, and although discipline and morale have 

 deteriorated through the short-service system, 

 mobilization is still sluggish. "While a thor- 

 oughly appointed corps was getting ready in 

 England and a body of Indian troops was 

 being equipped to meet it in Egypt, the gar- 

 rison at Alexandria made frequent reconnais- 

 sances, but did not venture to engage Arabi, 

 although they were strong enough to meet 

 the force which he then had. A sharp skir- 

 mish occurred on the 5th of August. The Egyp- 

 tians intrenched themselves at Kafr-Dowar 

 and strengthened the fortifications at Abou- 

 kir. New recruits flocked to Arabi's camp 

 by thousands. Before the arrival of the Eng- 

 lish expedition he organized a military govern- 

 ment which covered the whole country, had 

 every point guarded, and animated the mild 

 population of the Delta with the spirit of war. 

 It was over a month after the bombardment 

 before the English army arrived at Alex- 

 andria. 



Arabi erected strong fortifications at Kafr- 

 Dowar, a triple line of formidable earthworks. 

 With the railroads of the Delta at his command 

 he was able to concentrate at any point. All 

 along the line from Meks to Tel-el-Kebir his 

 garrisons confronted the invaders from behind 

 powerful intrench ments. He had altogether 

 about 70,000 men, with one hundred and fifty 

 cannon. They were aided by the Bedouins, who 

 might have proved formidable irregulars, and 

 did harass the English wherever they had an 

 opportunity. The Egyptian army was armed 

 with Eemington rifles and Krupp guns of all 

 calibers. They had an abundance of ammu- 

 nition, their commissariat was amply supplied, 

 their transport was unexceptionable. The bulk 

 of the forces were at first at Kafr-Dowar ; and 

 then, when the British established themselves 

 on the Suez Canal, they were massed at Tel-el- 

 Kebir. There were besides 3,000 men at Meks, 

 11,000 in the forts of Aboukir, 8,000 under 

 Abdelal in Damietta and the neighboring forts, 

 and a garrison of 11,000 at Cairo. 



The expeditionary force sent from England 

 consisted of 1,010 officers and 21,200 men, with 

 54 field-guns, 5,600 horses, and 500 pack-ani- 

 mals. The English authorities had sent orders 

 to America and other countries to have mules 

 ready to send on, but were precluded from 

 buying them before Parliament granted sup- 

 plies for the war. Their transport service was 

 therefore crippled throughout the campaign. 

 Ke- enforcements were sent on afterward of 

 10,800 men and 280 officers. The Indian aux- 

 iliaries numbered 170 officers and 7,100 men. 

 The British commander-in-chief, Sir Garnet 

 Wolseley, arrived at Alexandria on August 

 15th. He ordered the troops who had landed 

 to re-embark, and on the 19th the whole force 



