BRITAIN AND FRANCE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 10241, 25 December 1894, Page 3

BRITAIN AND FRANCE.

M. Heloncle, ons of tho principal leaders of the French colouial party, in tba course of a recent interview, sad:—"The Times stated the other day thi'.fc Brit-iin was not ready to evacuate Egypt, r-[id tint the advance of tlie FreDch towards tl:e Upper Nile wrs an additional reason for rsmaiuiup there. My reply to that is that the prescr.cn of the British troops in Egypt is the orly rr.asyn for the advance oi France towards the Upper Nile, as from thf;re phe will ba in * pnul-ion to defend the Suzerainty of Turkey over Egypt, Let Great Britain evacuate Kgypr, nnd wo shall give tha Dicst solemn pledge aud the most efficacious guarantee that we will not attempt to secura :my footing on ths Upper Nile, but, ou the contrary, will co-operate with Britain i'nr the ! neutralisation oi the whole Nile Valley. Otherwise, i give yon the taoat positive, assurance ttitit within six mouths we shall be on tho ! Upper Nile, whether Kjigliiud like 3it or nob. We have timt; rifcer time c-fft-rad. fco your coau- I try to settle the. question of evacuation at the I convenience ol your Government. ,1 repeat, vro do not object to see Turkish troops replace ] Biilisb. solnicrs; neither do we 'object; to the maintenance of the present; British officers j at their head, provided they be replaced on ] d'esith or retirement by Turkish officers. Tho ' British public laugh nt tKe idea of an fivscnatioii of Kgypli, or of the neceesitr that Great Britain shonld keep bei- word. ThoV believe, probably, that with the lr.',isa o£ t:m| France will Qnslly accept the fait accompln Plea3e dispel that notion. The longer wegoou j the more we shall insist upon the necessity of evacuation ; first, because it has b«en promised, and a great nation like France eaacot be trifled'with; seeamlly, beeauoe the Egyptian queatiou is tha root aud basis of all the difficulties we have had and continue to u:ivc with Great Britain. lam Bure thftt if Great Britain had evacuated Egypt, aa wss promised in 1383 and 1887, the Russian Alliance ivonld not have taken a concrete form, and, Djieakiiig ao one of the originators o£ the French Colonial movement in Africa, I dare ssy we I cl\culd not have had that scramble for tenitory. We, however, pnrticipated in it with ro:«,'ht end mai:), in order to show Great Britain that v/e had marie up our minds to have a colonial policy, such as would enable us, by mature combinations and far-reschiDg ideas ;md plans, ts be in a position to enforce an fivacuation." i