EGYPTIAN SEPOYS.
[To THE EDITOR OF THE " Spice reroil."]
will only trouble you with a very short note of explana- tion, in answer to your question about my remarks of last week. I do not wish the English troops to leave Egypt. My remarks under the head of " Mahommedan Self-Government" had regard to the political situation created by the scheme which Lord Granville was said to have adopted. This political situa- tion seemed to me a very happy compromise between absolute -annexation by England and absolute acceptance of Arabi's programme. We defeated and removed Arabi, yet we gave— or are about to give—nominal self-government to the Egyptians. My object was to show that the tremendous guarantees secured by England in her command of the Army and Gendarmerie, in her influence over finance and railways, &c., made the nominal or theoretical self-government accorded.to the Egyptians of no real consequence. Europe was fully protected, in law, in finance, rand in police administration, by the fact that all important offices were in European hands. The Khedive, our faithful ally during last summer's campaign, might well be left the control of purely native affairs, and the reward or punishment of purely native politicians. This is quite another matter to the question of withdrawing our troops. I am not prepared to give any opinion • -on such a point, without knowing the exact state of the new Egyptian Army, and the exact amount of Naval force that we may intend to keep in Egyptian waters. It has never been thought possible to trust India entirely to Sepoys, nor would it, I suppose, be possible to trust Egypt, for some time to come, -entirely to a native organisation. But there is a wide difference hetween withdrawing altogether from a country, and with- -drawing every unnecessary man. A few battalions, nay, even a few companies, of Englishmen, prudently left behind, might he quite enough to give confidence to the Khedivial Army. It must not be forgotten that the red-coat is greatly respected, just mow, in Egypt.—I am, Sir, &c.,
Temple, B.C., February 511s. J. HILARY SKINNER.
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