Egypt.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVII, Issue 108, 9 May 1896, Page 1 (Supplement)

Egypt.

A French View of England's Plans.

Britain Will Not Evacuate.

The Opinion of Rqchefort.

TJhe ' Now York Herald' prints the following from Paris, signed by Henry Rocheforb:—

' There are two things to which England will never conaenb—the construction of a bridge over the channel and bhe evacuation of Egypt;. Cavendish Benbinck, a member of her Britannic Majesty's Privy Council, once said to me in London : " We are perfectly witling to allow engineers to study moans of linking Great Britain with the oontinenb of Europe, but the straib which we call our " silver sbveak," is oar defence, und we shall never allow it to be bridged.' Much the same hold* good with regard to Egypt. The English will leb the powers continue to proteab against the continual delays ia evacuation, bub they are duly growing more determined nob to quit.. 'Her Majesty's Government professes for the diplomacy of Europe, particularly for the diplomacy of France, immense disdain. It believes, perhaps with good reason, thab it is equal to the task of playing off all the Talleyrands and Mebternichs of the Old World, and it is in this thorough confidence in itself ib finds its caiof strength. This British Government), for that matter, has jusb proved, by inducing the Commissioners of the Egyptian Department, those of France and Russia excopfced, to authorise a aymont, which is nothing' bub a loan in disguise, of 70,000,000 francs of the reserve fund.

' During the lasb two years of my exile in London I was the witness of Immense and incessant works, the objocb of which was the improvement of the fleeb of the United Kingdom. The most unimportant European complications served as the pretext for tho construction of now warships, for which purpose millions of money' were voted withoub counting bhecu. In reality, England was aware that) the insufficient reasons allowed for the maintenance of her troops in Egypt would nob long pass muster, and waa making preparations for possible war, to which, indeed, in my opinion, sb« bed quite rradeup her mind, notwithstanding Frince Bismarck's insulting prediction thao England will astonish the world by her cowardice.

The expedition to Dongola, perchance to Suakim, was invented only in order to justify the refusal to withdraw from Egypt the army: which Lord Salisbury, on the contrary, has decided upon re-enforcing. He ia not a libtlo pugnacious. He will evoke the spectre to fcho Soudanese invasion in the event) of defoab comparative to that of 1884, when of the 10,000 mon under General Hicks nob one returned to tell the story of the disaster. Ue will rack his imagination to invent grounds acceptable or not for the everlasting prolongation of British occupabon, but whatever happens, whatever response he receives or whatever objections may be made, he will not evacuate Egypt. That is my firm conviction based upon numerous conversations I had on the subject) with several members of the House of Commons, particularly with the Irish members, who, being opposed to the English policy, had no reason to conceal its undercurrents from mo.

' Bub although tho danger of European diplomatic action troubles but little tho English Ministry, which turns up its noso at Europe and its diplomacy, there is another peril rising up before British pride that causes terror to mou like Lord Cromer, tho mueb expert of all statesmen in Egyptian .matters —the possibility of dofeab beforo Uongola. With her fleot, England can, in our part of tho globe, hope to moob every movo and bold her own against all comers. In tho Soudan ehe can count only on tho endurance of her soldiers and the valour of her officers. In those regions one man is as good as another, and a good Soudanese has many times proved thab he is the equal to at least two other men.

'Tho Italian? mado a bitter mistake about tho solidity of Menelek's forces, and the English probably also deceive themselves wish regard to the etubborn righting quality of Osman Digna's troops. The English papers are pleased to state that the death of the Mahdi caused a disruption among the fanatics who made of him a new prophet. This is, I believe, a serious error, in which cross .channel Chauvinism.will do well to take stock. Tho question our diplomatißtß are vainly endaavouring to polve will, porhapß, bo settled by the Soudanese, and if Egypt is over ro be evacuated by the English ib will be th© battles waged before the walls of Dongo'a or botoro Suakim that will determine the evacuation question.'