The true northerner., 1896-03-11

-
learned, mostly members OF the Institute.
lie would disseminate :ho civilization Of
the West In the effetc Orient En route,
he would conquer Malta, still; noniinally
under the dominion of the Knights. That
done, he would debark at Alexandria,
overthrow the dominion of the Mamcluke
Beys, and conquer and colonies the land
OF the Pharaohs.
Admiral Brucys was called to the com
mnnd of the fleet Napoleon ordered his
equipago TO be prepared as for conqueror,
a governor, q man of letters. He made up
an extensive list of books for his camp H.
brary, and In doing So spelled Du Guesclin
thus Ducecling, and Ossian thus-Ocedn!
Strange that this astounding cacography
was not coincident on his part with igno-
rance of the authors referred to!
The Egyptian expedition sailed from
Tonlon on the 18th of May. The Generals
ship was the Orient On the 10th of June.
the squadron came to Malta, and that
place, with it's strong defenses was-partly
by intrigue and partly by assault-taken
from the knights The French flag was
raised over the fortress, and many of the
knights joined the expedition. Mean
WHILE an English fleet, under command
Of Nelson, passed the French fiotilla with
out discovering it; sailed on to Alexan-
dria; paused there, and then turned to the
northeast, believing that Brueys had
made for the coast of Syria.
All this Injured to the advantage of the
French. Napoleon was able to reach Alex
andria without attack. On the lst of July
the column of Septimus Severus, rising In
the distance, caught the sight of the
French commander, and gave token of a
safe arrival. The army was hastily de-
barked; but not sufficient care was taken
to put the French fleet i'm defensible po-
sition. Without moments delay the
city was assailed by the invader, and after
some desultory fighting was captured.
The oonqueror of Italy easily made him
self master of the city which Alexander
had founded as the capital of the world.
But all Egypt was not to be so easily
taken. Bonaparte proclaimed his mission
as that of liberator and pacifoator. The
Turks and Mamelukes should he expelled;
but the people of Egypt should otherwise
have peace. The nation should be raised
from the dust New institutions should be
founded; but the old institutions, and in
particular the Mohammedan religion,
should be respected. Extend to the cere-
monies prescribed by the Koran, said the
General to his soldiers, land to the
mosques the same toleration which you
have shown to the synagogues-to the re-
ligion of Moses and of Jesus Christ.
For six days Bonaparte had his head
quarters in Alexandria. He then removed
to the house of the sheik of Damanhour,
and there organized his expedition up the
Nile. A flotila was ordered to ascend the
river, while the army marched up the left
bank. BY strong wind from the north
the boats were driven ahead, and the land
forces were obliged to advance without
naval support. On the 14th of July, the
Mamelukes, who, falling back from Alex
andria, had been organized into an army
under Murad Bey, made a stand at the
village of Chebreisse, and were forced from
that position by the French; but the ac-
tion was not decisive. Meanwhile, the
fotilla was assailed by the enemy from
both banks of the Nile The Mamelukes
mounted small cannon on cdmeIs and in
flicted not little loss on the Europeans.
The French boats, separated from the
army, were CALLED by these attacks. On
the 23rd of July, junction was effected,
but not until a great battle had decided
the campaign.
The conflict occurred on the plain with
in sight of the pyramids of GiZeh 1t was
perhaps the most picturesque battle of
modern times. The French army was
drawn up In squares, on the Egyptian
sands. The artillery was planted at tho
angles of the squares. The commanders
were Generals Desaix Kleber, Berthier,
and Menou-under the eye of the General
in-chief The plains round about were
covered with heavy masses of Mameluke
horsemen. Bonaparte addressed his SOL
diers after his manner, in a sort of Pin
daric apostrophe. He called their atten-
tion to the setting of the scene, and re-
minded them that from the summit Of
Khufu's pyramid forty centuries tcere
looking dOlcn upon them. The battle was
bloody and decisive. The Mamelukes were
overwhelmed by thousands. The officers
on the French fotilla, descending the river
on the next day, saw on the bank literal
heaps of the Mameluke dead which the
rising Nile was gathering and bearing out
to sea- Murad Bey fed to Upper Egypt,
and the French entered Cairo.
Without a moments delay Bonaparte
set to work at the herculean task of reor-
ganizing Egyptian society. He divided
the country into provinces, and over each
province appointed divan, or council. of
seven persons. To each he assigned body
-
was appointed to levy the taxes. A finance
department was organized, under direc-
tion of French officers Desaix was order
ed to pursue Murad Bey into Upper Egypt.
Bonaparte himself marched against Ibra-
ham Bey, and. falling upon him at Sa-
lehyeh, defeated him and drove him back
I on El -Arish. The French authority was
rapidly widened and confirmed through
! out the country.
Four days after the battle of the Pyra-
mids, Napoleon wrote to his brother Jo-
seph saying. Egypt Is richer than any
other country In the world In corn, rice,
vegetables and cattle. But tho people are
In state of utter barbarism. We can not
procure money. even to pay the troops.
may be IN France IN t,co months. En-
gage for me country house near Paris OF
In Burgundy, where 1 mean to pass the
winter" To this was added a list OF
things necessary to be sent out from
France, as follows: "A company Of actors;
a company of dancers; three or four deal.
ers In marionettes; hundred French
women; the wives of all the men en-
ployed in the corps; twenty surgeons;
thirty apothecaries; ten physicians; some
founders; some distillers and dealers In
liquor; fifty gardeners with their families
all kinds of vegetable seeds: each party tf