MANAGEMENT 279 



that were used in the Nile expedition very soon died. 

 On the other hand the mules, which in some cases had 

 not been worked at all, and in others only to a very 

 limited extent, that were sold by contract after Tel-el- 

 Kebir, realised large prices not to Government, but to 

 contractors. A certain Baron de Stein purchased 1,000, 

 and sold most of them on the spot, in batches of from 

 five to fifty, to other people, clearing 100 per cent, on 

 the transaction. The transport officers could have done 

 the same thing, and put the money into the Government 

 coffers ; but this practice being strictly forbidden, we 

 were obliged to send away scores of would-be pur- 

 chasers, who were offering twice, and in some cases 

 three times, the contract price. 



Every sectional, divisional, and company commander 

 should keep a diary, especially on service. This ought 

 to be officially insisted on, as the importance of a well- 

 kept diary cannot be overrated. It should be inspected 

 on completion, and the writer judged impartially on its 

 practical merits, as well as on the amount of actual 

 work performed by him. 



