132 RECOLLECTIONS OF FORTY YEARS. 



annoyance, and in connection with which you have 

 given so many proofs of your tact and devotion to the 

 interests of the company." 



To Count Th. de Lesseps, Paris. 



11 CONSTANTINOPLE, November 23, 1859. 

 " Our minister was well advised in sending me 

 here, for though at first Thouvenel was rather alarmed, 

 for fear that some complication should arise in the 

 midst of his Montenegrin negotiations, I regard my 

 stay at Constantinople as being most opportune just 

 now. I should add that, owing to bad weather, the 

 letters which ought to have arrived a week before had 

 only just been delivered when I came, so that Thou- 

 venel had scarcely had time to read them, and feared 

 that it would be very difficult to bring about a sudden 

 change of front. But this also I regard as a fortunate 

 circumstance, and, moreover, we soon got on capitally. 

 But he must be well backed up from Paris. Don't let 

 them be afraid of the struggle with Sir Henry Bul- 

 wer, who, though a personal friend of mine, thinks it 

 his duty as a good Englishman to serve his govern- 

 ment, right or wrong, for which I cannot blame him. 

 He was confined to his bed with fever when I arrived, 

 but my presence had the effect of a good dose of 

 quinine on him, for he was busy at work the next 

 morning. His method of proceeding is to show the 

 Turks letters from London, in which are described 

 imaginary conversations between Lord Cowley and 



