The Vienna correspondent of the Times also forwards a very
curious piece of information. He says that the leaders of the Pan-Islamic movement, who are closely linked with the Sultan, are circulating a strong attack on the Khedive of Egypt, whom they describe as a dangerous enemy of Islam, who ought to be at once deposed and replaced by some faithful follower of the Koran. The writers even accuse him of a design to break the unity of Islam, and of• perpetually intriguing in Constantinople, where he main- tains an army of spies. Considering the character of Abbas U. and the British position in Egypt, the accusa- tion seems a little dreamy, though it is possible that those who are devoted to the idea of an Arab Khalifate may have sought assistance from the Khedive. It is more probable, however, that intriguers are endeavouring to play upon the fears of the Sultan, who dreads a movement against his pre- tensions to be the orthodox Khalif almost as much as he dreads the Young Turkish party. The extraordinary thing is that with such fears ,perpetually preying on his mind, and with long fits of insomnia, Abd-ul-Hasmid still escapes a stroke of paralysis. He is, however, still a few months short of sixty.
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