The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1906-03-11

CAIRO-Tnerc has never been
parallel &c the lsolitieaT and financial
complications that arose in Egypt as
a result of the buiiding Of the Suez
caral, and the Nile country is still
weighted down win the crushing
burden of debt fastened upon it by
that great enterprise. The growing
OF hungry dogs over a bone is polite
argument compared TO The dispute
that came up between the powers
when the land Of the Pharaohs was
forced into. insolvency.
We sheer at the Chinese for their
abnormal suspicion of each other.
finding much humor in the story
about the nine members OF a firm who
secured the c0TnpaDys funds in a
safe fastened by as many locks but
the distrust of the Oriental partners
was exaggerated a hundredfOld when
the European loondholders scrambled
for seats on the lid of EgyDt's strong
box The patient was bed-ridden
with financial cramp, bat the volun-
teer nurses were afraid 70 trust each
other alone with the sufferer over
night for fear the bed-clothes and
furniture would be missing in the
morning
John Bull to the Rescue.
Among the first on the scene was
our old friend, John Bull, ESQUIRE.
who makes a speciality of mixing in
any kind-ef land deal fer what he-eaa
/ get out of il, and who IS really an. ex-
lpert in resuscitating faint and ex-
A2usted governments Seeing that
some one had to administer to stTicK-
en- Egypt. IL was dollars to doughnuts
that the rotund Doctor John would get
the job, even is he had TO force his
services. on the - needy-which he
promptly did.
When this willing physician to sore
and langmshing nations takes a case
by his peculiar method of insistence,
the patient is almost certain to show
just enough signs of Improvement to
ofIer encoura cement. but the worst of
it is that he never quite RECEIVERS.
Great Britain's colonial hospital is full
of convalescents, but a complete cure
is never effected. Furthermore, the
possessions of the sufferer are grad
ually diverted to the maintenance of
the large and competent corps of Brit
ish experts who devote their lives to
his case. 1 think no one viii take ex-
ception te-the statement that a sick
government that once becomes a pa
tient of England never dies and never
gets Welt -
Egypt TOOK Financial Cramp.
New for the rau,c of Egypts indis-
position. When Ferdinand de Lesseps, +
that magnetic but disappointing
Frenchman. was youthful attache at
the French consulate In Cairo he be-
came impressed with the possibility OF I
winning fame and fortune by building
a ship canal from the Mediterranean T
TO the Red sea He pondeTed on the /
scheme for twenty years, and when he /
finally attempted il. easily secured a I
concession froul=Said -Pasha who was
in power at that time IT is not sur
prising that the Oriental was induced /.
TO favor the project. because. accord /
ing to the original proposition. il prom /
ised much for Egypt. At this time the /
Nile country had no debt a. all. and il .
was proposed that the construction of (
the canal should be accomplished with 4
out costing IL a penny. 1t was fur \
Their agreed that fifteen per cent of the I
gross revenue should be turned over 4
TO the Khedive's treasury, and that !
after ninety-nine years the big ditch /
was to become the property of the +
Egyptian government.
This was. indeed. a fair prospect 1
but in the end it cost Egypt dear.
From the first the financial world /
looked askance at the bold plan Of the \
Frenchman, and would take no stock /
in it, In order to launch the enterprise (
and insure confidence in il, Said Pasha /
subscribed for seventeen million dol /
lars Of the stock. He died soon after
work was commenced, and was sue
ceeded by Ismail. that prince of spend !
ers, who, in order to be more liberal I
than his predecessor, bought twenty 1
million dollars worth of shares. This
sum was soon exhausted. and funds !
being obtainable in no other quarter.
the Egyptian treasury was tapped .
again and again, until the great under
taking finally cost the struggling
farmers Of the Nile the round sum OF
eighty-five million dollars. In addition
TO this vast outlay of cash. many
Egyptian labOrers lost their lives while
working in the expensive trench.
Left Out in the Cold.
But isn't the canal a paying propo-
sition? 1t pays very handsomely in
iced. but Egypt (who practically
paid for IT'D doesn't own a dollar OF
the stock and derives not penny
of direct income from it. When the
project was preached English capt.
taiists would have nothing to do with
it. because they fancied it would men
ace their eastern interests by giving