THE ORIGIN OF THE SUEZ CANAL. lot 



open the first section of the canal. A temporary 

 board of administration will then decide how much 

 capital is to be issued ; the shareholders will receive 

 intimation of when they are to pay their calls, and 

 every arrangement will be made, so that by the end 

 of the year the work may be put thoroughly into 

 hand, and carried on without interruption.' 



"I sent Aali Pasha a letter of the 15th, contain- 

 ing a copy of your capital answer to Mr. Disraeli. I 

 conferred with him yesterday, and read him a copy of 

 the above circular. He quite understands that I have no 

 other course open to me, and he prefers that I should 

 admit that Turkey does not oppose our enterprise, so 

 far as concerns her interests, than that I should be 

 constrained to record the fact that she submits, and 

 without any counteracting good, to foreign pressure. 



" We are, therefore, quite agreed, and I am glad, 

 taking everything into account, that I resolved not to 

 ask, for the present, of Turkey more than she can, as 

 she is situated, well agree to. 



" It is no use deceiving oneself as to the situation, 

 which I think that I can see very clearly. 



" When it is a question of despoiling others for the 

 common benefit, the English give each other a hint, 

 and leave the Government to do as it pleases. So 

 they will be banded together against us in this busi- 

 ness. Continental governments, which often struggle 

 with one another upon questions of existence a situa- 

 tion of which an island power like Great Britain 



