THE ORIGIN OF THE SUEZ CANAL. 103 



To M. de Negrellij Vienna. 



" CONSTANTINOPLE, April 24, 1858. 



"I have received yours of the 14th, and I have 

 read as usual with extreme care the particulars of 

 your recent conversation with Prince Metternich, 

 whose great ability and rectitude of judgment are 

 unimpaired. He is quite right ; our enterprise is 

 ripe, and we must not be any more disheartened by 

 what Mr. Disraeli says than we were by the utterances 

 of Lord Palmerston; while we must, at the same 

 time, calmly consider the position in its true light, 

 without being too sanguine, but also without hesi- 

 tating or taking a single step backwards. 



"You will see by my enclosures that I have 

 acted in accordance with these precepts, and have 

 taken the only course which in the circumstances 

 was open to me. This being so, it would be impru- 

 dent to thrust France into the foreground. To do so 

 would be almost an act of political antagonism. 



" Our affair is, to my mind, in the best possible 

 position. My agreement with the Turks enabled me 

 to go steadily forward, and you will see that eventually 

 every one will follow in our wake when it is found 

 that we are not to be intimidated. 



" When the time arrives for securing subscriptions 

 we shall be overwhelmed with applications, whatever 

 may be the case with other financial operations. In 

 France, the opposition, of England will be the chief 



