SOUTHERN AFRICA. 199 
the EngTifh, that the acqulfitlon of Egypt v/as the end of his 
defign, and that his intention was to return to Paris as foon as 
the neceflary arrangements could be made for its future govern- 
ment. His objedt, no doubt, as appears from his letters to the 
King of England and the Emperor of Germany, was to obtain 
a general peace, and by certain facrifices on the part of France 
or its allies, to retain pofleffion of this new colony, from 
whence, at fome diftant period, when he had aflembled a fufE- 
cient force, and prepared the necefTary quantity of fliipping in 
the Red Sea, he might have availed himfelf of a favourable 
opportunity of making a defcent on the Malabar coaft. In 
fuch an event he was well aware that England, at that time, 
would never have relinqulihed the Cape of Good Hope, which 
he might therefore have propofed as an equivalent for Egypt. 
The importance which the French have attached to this half- 
way ftation between Europe and India, appears from the con- 
ferences which took place between Lord Malmefbury and; 
Monfieur De la Croix^ wherein the latter perfifted that the Cape 
of Good Hope was of infinitely greater importance to England 
than the Netherlands were to France, and that if our demands 
for keeping it were acquiefced in, it fhould be confidered as a 
full and ample compenfation for them. " If," fays he, " you 
" are mafters of the Gape and Trincomalee, we fhall hold all 
" our fettlements in India, and the Ifles of France and Bourbon 
" entirely at the tenure of your will and pleafure; they will be 
" ours only as long as you choofe we fhould retain them ; you 
" will be fole mafters in India, and we lhall be entirely de- 
" pendent on you." On one occafion he vehemently ex- 
elaimed, " Your Indian empire alone has enabled you to fub- 
" fidize 
