THE ORIGIN OF THE SUEZ CANAL. 133 



Count Walewski in Paris, according to which the 

 latter had promised England not to support the canal 

 scheme, and this subsequent to the Muktar Bey mission. 

 There cannot be a word of truth in this, which is a 

 very old dodge. The dragomans of the English 

 Embassy are instructed to alarm the ministers of the 

 Porte by telling them that their assent to the can:il 

 may give rise to a war between France and England, 

 which, whatever its result, would be fatal to Turkey. 

 I endeavour to make them see that, on the contrary, 

 if the Porte hesitated to come to a decision there 

 would be far more danger of France and England 

 being brought into conflict. 



" There is another point to which I would also fain 

 draw Count Walewski's attention. "When the French 

 ambassador here opens the attack, and is seconded, as 

 he will be, by the representatives of Austria, Eussia, 

 &c., it is essential that all our forces should be con- 

 centrated on the one point we are endeavouring to 

 attain, and that all other questions should be deferred. 



" The dragomans of the English Embassy tell the 

 Porte that Lord John EusselPs instructions betoken 

 quite as much hostility to the canal as those of pre- 

 ceding foreign secretaries." 



To the same. 



"CONSTANTINOPLE, November 30, 1859. 

 " I receive a letter from Paris in which I am told: 

 'Your enemies and you must not think that you have 



