The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1840-11-06
TYRANNY OF MEHEMET ALI.
ny ~ EYE WITNESS.


BY An EYE WITNESS.
The bossted civilization which Mehemet All mas
introduced into the countries under his sway u enure
ly superficial and has origin whatever IN any isa
Improvement ameloration IN the cohdi'ioh' VI W.
the benefit oftheir respective populations ;,
In ESyp the whole Of the land belongs 10 the
Pacha besides himself there is landed proprietor
and he has the absolute monopoly OF every 'lhs ua'
is grown in the country. The following ~ the man
ner in which il Is cultivated Portions Of land are di
vded out between the elahs ola village according "a
their numbers seed corn cotton, or other produce
given 10 them this they SOW and reap, and oil tne
produce rs per cent is Immediately taken 10 the pacha
depois The remaining % per cent Is eit with them
with however the power TO take it ut price liked by
the Pacha himself and then resold TO them at high
err rate This is generally done, and reduces the PIT
lance left them about five per cent more nom TINS
day they 10 pay the capItation TAX, wheh - ho
levied according 10 the real number OF the Inhabitants
OF village, but according TO numbers at which 1t u
rated ia the Government books; so that IN one m
stance with which was acquainted, village ongi'
naly rated 200 reduced by the conscption to 100
and by death flight TO 40, still Obliged to pay
the full capitaton and, when went there, 70 OF the
40 had been just basiinaoed to extor from themtheir
proportion of the sum claimed utter the capitaon
the tax the date trees raised from ~ 10 W
paras by the Pacha and that OF 300 asters year tor
permission 10 use their water-wheels, without
which the lands situated beyond the overflow OF the
Nile, or too high for il TO reach, would be barren
Then comes ininity of taxes, on every article OF
life even TO the cakes of camels' dung, which the
women and children collect and dry for fuel and which
pay % per cent in kind al the gate OF Caro- and TIE
other towns Next TO the taxes comes the eorree
in the worst form, and in continual action at any
moment the felahs liable be seized for public works,
for the transport of the baggage of the troops or TO
track the boats of the Government or ITS officers and
this without pay reference 10 the state OF their crops
When Mehemit Ali made his famous capal from
Alexandra to the Nile he did it by forciby marching
down $50 600 men from all parts Of the country, and
oblgng them to excayate with their hands, as tools
they had not, perhaps could not be provided. The
excavation was completed in three months but 10000
men died in the operation. Then comes the curse of
the conscripon which is exercised in most cruel and
arbitrary manner without any sort OF rule or law to
regulate it, An order is given to the chief OF dis
trict to furnish a certain number Of men these he
seizes like wild beasts wherever he can find them,
without distinction or exemption the weak as well as
the strong, the sick Welt those in health and,
as there is better road 10 the Pachas favor than
showing great zeal in this branch of the service he If
possible collects more even than were demanded.
These are chained, marched down TO the river, and
embarked amidst the tears and lamentations OF their
families who know that they shall probably never see
them again for change of climate, bad treatment,
and above all despair, mortality in the Pacha
army beyond belief mutation is not now considered
an exemption and the consequence of the system is,
that from Assouan at the first cataract to Aleppo you
literally speaking, never see young man IN village,
and such is the Jepopulation that if things continue
as they now are for two years more, and the Pacha
insists on keeping up his army to its present force It
will be utterly impossible for the crops to be got in,
for any of the operations of agriculture to be car
ried on.
The whole of this atrocious system is carried into
action by the cTuelest mcans-no justice of any sort
for the weak security for those who better Off
the bastnado and other torures applied every occa
sion at the arbitrary will of every servant Of the Co
yernment In addition to this, the natives of the coun-
try are rarely employednever in office of trust and
the whole Government is entrusted to Turks In short
the worst features of the Mameluke and Turkish rules
still in active operation but the method of apply
ing them is much ingenious, and the boosted CT
vilzaton of Mehemit Ali amounts to this-tha being
beyond doubt Of extraordinary talents, he knows
how to bring into play the resources of the country
better than his predecessors did but like them, entire
ly for his interest and without any reference
the well being OF the people; and that with the aid of
his European instruments he has, if may say SO, APP
piled the with master hand, and squeezed from
the wreches under his sway the very last drop of their
blood.
Such is the state of these two countries Syria is
perhaps the worst OF Of the two for the Egyptians
used to oppression bear il without struggle; whilst
the Syrans who had been less harshy treated in old
times, wri'he under and gnaw their chain. Mehemet
Ali is II years old.