THE ORIGIN OF THE SUEZ CANAL. 229 



income which might be expected from the maritime 

 and the Sweet "Water Canals. 



" I do not for a moment wish to confine their re- 

 port within the limits indicated by this programme. 

 Though I have been a witness of the harmony of 

 their views and of the identity of their conviction as 

 to the possibility of communicating between the Eed 

 Sea and the Mediterranean by a canal accessible to 

 the largest vessels, I beg of them, in the event of 

 their entertaining opposite views on any subject, to 

 record the difference of their opinions, and give the 

 reasons for them. 



" Finally, this rough draft should be completed as 

 quickly as possible and accompanied by an explanatory 

 map." 



The next thing was to go to Constantinople, in 

 order to obtain the Sultan's assent to the scheme, 

 and having first appointed my old friend M. Euys- 

 senaers agent of the company at Alexandria, I found 

 that the ground was clear. 



Note for the Viceroy of Egypt and for Count Theodore 

 de Lesseps, Director of Foreign Affairs. 



11 CONSTANTINOPLE, February 15, 1855. 

 " Upon reaching Constantinople I found the ground 

 quite free. If no opinion had been expressed in 

 favour of the project, nothing had been said against 

 it. For the two first days I endeavoured to form an 

 exact opinion of the situation. I had learnt that the 



