How far depression and disappointment at the deteriora- tion in
Anglo-Egyptian relations may have been a con- tributory cause of Sir Cecil Campbell's tragic death in Cairo on Sunday can only be conjectured. Sir Cecil was one of a distinguished group of British citizens who made Egypt their home after their careers as officials (in his case at the Embassy) had come to an end. But more than most of them he continued to play a very active part in Anglo-Egyptian politics, and when the full history of the recent diplomatic relations between the two countries comes to be written, it will be found that Sir Cecil's part in them was not incon- siderable and always directed towards breaking down the barriers of misunderstanding. He loved Egypt and its inhabi- tants, and could get on equally well with Prime Ministers or policemen. When, last autumn, it had become almost impossible for official contacts to be maintained between Egyptians and the British Embassy, Sir Cecil's flat was one of the few clearing- houses for ideas. No one who heard the lecture which he gave at Chatham House in March could fail to realise how deeply he deplored the rift between Egypt and Britain.
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