M. DE LESSEPS ON THE NILE CAMPAIGN.

Dunstan Times, Issue 1213, 29 May 1885, Page 3

M. DE LESSEPS ON THE NILE CAMPAIGN.

M. de Lesseps has recently had a conversation with the representative of a Paris journal, in which he expressed himself as follows Over and over again 1 have warned the English that to send an expedition to the Sou an would he sending their soldiers to death. The Soudan cannot he conquered ho more than Egypt can he, and the actual occurrences are no more than a direct and forced consequence of the bombardment of Alexandria and the occnpuion of Egypt. I arn also extremely happy that 1 have, within the measure of my humble powers, determine I the French Govern ment not to associate its If with England. And there is besides a very curious reason that Egypt, whose inhabitants are in general very pacifically loomed, may he invaded, but never brought under subjection. The nature of the people cannot be changed ; tor by a bizarre capiice of nature the Fellaheen woman can only conceive with Fellaheen men. This fact is authenticated by Clot Bey, the_eminent physician, and bv Manette Bey. ' I, myself, have acquired the absolute proof of this whilst engaged on the works of the canal. Never did a Fellaheen woman have a child by her European consort. As to the Soudan, that is another thing. Ancient Nubia and Ethiopia are countries where, as an immense ocean, all the armies of c. nqnerora have been swallowed up To c mquer the Soudan by force of arms is a pu.e dream, fo give laws and govern these intellige it populations of heroic courage is very possible. To reach Khartoum almost waterless deserts most be traversed. An army.either to go or return, will always fa’l an easy prey to the warlike people of Nubia, who can meet an enemy wT hj. nearly 100,00! combatants, for whom death is not even a subject of preoccupation, and who would be scorned by their worn n if they returned to their villages without having avenged their dea 1 comrades. In the end the longer the struggle endures in the Soudan, the less possible will remain the solution. It would have been easy to moke a treaty two years ago At present in is difficult, the hatred of those fanatic soldiers being more infr nsified."’

“Thu grand fmlt," concludes M. He Lesseps, “ has been in sending soldiers to the Soudan and not neg iti.iting with these populations. Gordon was very skilful, and he won d have easily extricate I himself from his position by persuasion ra'her (ha i force. It does not surprise me that he is dead. On the o her hand it would not have astonished me if he had turned Mahommedan, and thus obtained great infl ience ove- the Mahdi. Then as regards other expeditions to avenge the hero, it is dangerous, even impossible. Wolseley has stated that he is going into camp, lb is the best thing he can do ”