The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1882-07-29
EGYPT.


The prompt manner in which England is now
dispatcbing troops to Alexandria and Port
Said and to vital points along the Suez Canal
shows that she is preparing to follow up the
advantages gained i'm the recent bomhardment
and that the IN stake committed ut Alexandria
will not be repeated. She has now aboutS,0Ol
| troops assembled at various points in Egypt,
and will need but few more unless the war
should assume the character of u religious up
rising against the Sultan, foreign Powers
should intervene. The first of these contin-
gencies is possible the second hardly probable.
Presuming that the contest is to be betw
Egypt and England it will he very short one;
should France second Englands operations,
still shorter. AS military power Egypt is
well-nigh contemplate Her army was reor-
ganzed in 1879, when it was reduced from 50,-
coo men to 1900, and in 1850 arbitrary recruit
ing was abolished, and neral military serv-
ice like that in Europs introduced, and the
budget for military service is only 1880 900 per
annum. The Paris Dcbdis estimates the forces
in Lower Egypt at 5000 infantry, 1000 cavalry,
and 900 artillery, with local troops in Upper
Egypt, composed of irregulars, of about the
same numerical strength. The infantry are
armed with Remingtons and trained on the
French system, while the artillery are armed
with Krupp guns and trained on the Prussan
system. As compared with the English forces
now in Egypt, the Egyptian army may be for
midable in numbers, but this advantage is
countcrhalanced by their cowardice. In no
instance in modern warfare have they shown
themselves possessed of s)ldiery qualities. In
the Cretan instruction 5000 of them were al.
most annihhdted by 1900 rebels, and before
the insurrection was over the Cretans took
crowds of prisoners whom they would allow
to go unframed. saying that they did not
want "to kill sheep" At the storming of
Arkadi the Turks placed the Egyptians in
front where they could not run away. In
the last war between Russia and Turkey Egypt
sent contingent of 900 mon, who broke and
ran the first time they were under IRE. Prior
to this time no less than three Egyptian armies
had been defeated and almost annhilated by
inferior forces of Abyssinians. 1t is difficult
indeed, to find any instance where the Egyp-
tians have displayed any courage in modern
times. The events which have happened since
! the bombardment of Alexandria confirm this.
Arab Bey fed out of the city with his troops
without firing q shot NJ. Gabriel Charmes the
correspondent of the Paris Debdts, who was in
Alexandria during the earlier riots, says that
but for the interference of the troops the Euro
peans would easily have quelled the mob of
Arabs. He says: "All the Arabs were armed
with long slaves tipped with iron points; but
their native cowardice placed them mt disad-
vantage. They almost exclusively attacked
| stray individuals, and invariably took to their
heels when encountered by a crowd. Their
! flight, however, was not easy. The Europeans
pursued them and knocked them over by hun
dreds showing how easily few men of cour-
age can dispose Of an Eastern mob" The
! troops put in an appearance and took the part
of the mob. He says in his letter that the
Egyptians are a mere flock of sheep, and he
imputes their boldness to the fact that
preparations were made against them as
though they were formidable enough to be
seriously attacked, and then the preparations
were not followed up An American officer
who recently led Egyptian soldiers in Abys-
sinia informed the correspondent of the Lon
don STANDARD that 1900 English soldiers and
sailors would scatter the whole Egyptian
army like chaff before the wind, and in our
own dispatches yesterday morning it was
stated that during the alarm Saturday night
I0 Bedouins at the Gabaniz gate fed before
the attack of a midshp man and twelve
sailors" 1t is possible should Arab Bey re-
treat into the citadel of Cairo he might give his
besiegers some trouble, and as this citadel may
yet figure conspcuously in the campaign We
give the following description of it from tho
London Globe.
1.-The citadel of Cairo-El-Kalah as the Cal
renes call twas erected by Sultan Saladin
in 1885, The stecpness of its situation, the
strength of its walls formed as tradition
says, out of blocks of stone brought from the
Smlller pyralDluS OF GlZen), anu the hrupp
guns with which they are now armed, would
render it an important position from which to
overawe the city, provided the Mokattam
hills, Immediately behind it, were occupied by
the same hands. This range completely COM
mands the citadel, and it was by erecting and
arming battery here that Mehemet Ali OBJ
tanned its surrender when it was in the pos
| session of Khoorshid Pasha. Arab has the
| luck to be in possession of both these points OF
vantage. Almost his first thought, when
complications arose, was to strengthen the
MOkattam fortifications."
| AS the citadel has not been impregnabe,
! however, in the past against forces much more
poorly armed than the English with siege ma
| tera its reduction would only be question
| of short tme especially now, as the French
! are about to cooperate with the English in
| their land operations So far as the military
| occupation Is concerned that will undoubted-
| ly be speedily accomplished. What may be in
| store politically remains to be seen.-Chfcd00
| Tribune, july 10.
| The situation in Egypt is interesting because
! It is out of the line of precedent, rather than
because there is danger of renewed conflict.
! The Khedive, the recognized head of the Gov
| ernment after being rescued from his own
army by the British, is sending orders to his
rebellious War Minister to quit his misbehav-
ing. Arab, having become tired of the tele-
! graphic scolding has cut the wires, and horse
men have been sent out after him. In some
way 1t has been learned that Arab has ap-
pointed Ali Feima to the command of the suez
! Canal. The Khcdive has the Government and
Arab has the army. Somebody mt Cairo is
! sending europeans north under guard, and Al
exandria is patroed by European and Ameri-
! can marines
Such a state of affairs could not exist except
in a country like Egypt, and in considering
membered there are at Cairo, Alexandria and
other trading points $4,000 Greeks, lLCOO