New-York tribune., 1908-12-10
A NILE YELLOW PERIL
DIR. Douglas Sladen's AlarmIst Book
about Egypt.
London, November %.

England is safer and more powerful than al
| any time since the lowest eDb OF It's IoIluH0S
| during the Boer War. The Kings diplomacy
| the reconciliation effected with France ana Hus-
sia. the isolation of Germany, the alliance Win
| Jepan the exclusion of foreign questions from
the issues of partisan politics, the concentration
| Of national opinion upon strong naval pohcy
| end other causes have combined TO render the
| kingdom less defenceless and more Iornllo0oi0
| as a world power than Il has ever Deeh. AeI 'iio
| country is abnorrlaIly suspicious and dlstrusIuI
| Of friendly neutral or rival nations ana morOlu-
ly apprehensve Of impending disaster IN tlo
| en7nire This nervous tension Is eXhiOl'eu
whenever the German Emperor says OF ooe0
! anything unusual, or Lord Roberts Ihe saiies'
eoIdtsr considers it necessary to sound q warm
/ ing that the kingdom may DO easily llVaoeu IL
| spite of its naval defences and arlnaFilehIS anu
| that a system of universal military framing -
! indispensabIe The military clubs are hlleo win
lamentations over the "bonelessness' OF BI4tlsH
| administration in India, and with forecasts OF
another 1nutiny more dangerous than the Sepoy
| rebellion South Africa is discussed by veterans
and no1ittcians with a feeling Of utter hopeless
| ness since the Dutch seem destined to controI
! the future confederation and to obtain deliver
ance from the restraints of the Colonial OHlce'
| Even Lord Cromer's wonderful Work IN Esypt Is
not accepted as a guarantee of continuity OF poi
| lev and there is increased pessimism over the
guise OF a Nationalist movement A prolonged
| residence in the Nile countries has converted
! so exDerienced a traveller and so genial man
| as Mr. Douglas Sladen into an alarmist' who
| conjures with the nervousness and fears OF ex-
| ctabe readers.
Egypt can best be compared to coal mine
| full of fire damp with plenty Of fools about 10
| strike a match" That is an epitome OF MT
! Sladen's conclusions respecting existing condl-
0Ioip Egypt and the
| English" published by Messrs. Hurst & Blackett-
! So far as his interesting book has a distinct
political motive, It IS the creation Of pubic
| anxiety by the reflection Of British opinion IN
! Egypt He has found out what men are saying
| in Cairo clubs. military mess rooms. newspaper
| offices and Civil Service lounges, and has repro
| duced the gossip without the names of his IN
| formants This he considers a practical means
| Of warning EngIishmen at home that rioters are
often in the possession Of the streets Of the cap
| ttaI that populous sections of the Nile Valley
are swarming with bandits, that the native press
| is printing sediti0us indictments to revolution
and massacre without being effectively disci-
| plined, and that Nationaltsm IS Islamlsm and Is
| bent upon putting an end to British rule and
| Christian civilization in Egypt. These versions
Of current talk among the English on the Nile
would be more significant If John Bull were not
an inveterate grumbler, whether at home or
| abroad Probably there IS not a clubhouse or
commercial exchange in any quarter Of the
| worldwide empire where the Kings colonial
| subjects do not complain bitterly Of the igno-
rance creduity and Indifference of British
rulers, and forecast impending disaster and ruin.
| worrying is a fixed British habit.
| There is an interview with the Khedive in
the book, and there are estimates OF the value
| OF Lord Cromer's and Sir Eldon GOrse's ser
| vices to England and Egypt. but the most sig
| nIfcant political revelation is the frank con-
versation with an intelligent and sagacious bey.
| This influential Egyptian was not satisfied with
| England's attitude toward Egypt, condemned
| "shilIy- -shailying" with agitation and declared
that things were working up they were be
| fore the revolution of Arabi Pacha- According
to this discontented critic, there had been a
| sense Of security and permanency under Lord
Croner but this had gone since Sir Eldon
Gorst's appearance a dipIomatst, bent upon
| avoiding trouble, smoothing difficulties and
keeping up appearances. II the agitators thought
that they could trust the Khedive there would
be another revolution at once. While the Eng
Hsh administrators were wabbIing, intriguing
was going on. The NationaIists were Moslems,
who were unwilling to be ruled by Christians.
and the movement was conducted by pOt-hUnt-
ers dismissed officials belonging to the old,
rupt order, ambitious journalists and oldtime
rebels. For thirteen hundred years the Mahom-
etans had ruled Egypt. and they wanted to get
rid of the English because they could not
| dure being governed by Christians A MosIem
| himself the candid hey wanted TO keep the
| Fgyptian Moslem on a level with the Indian
Moslem; and he despised a government that
was allowing everything to drift and encourag-
ing the Egyptians TO believe that the English
were bent upon abandoning Egypt and handing
| It over to the Turks.
| Mr.. Sladen, who is ardent imperialist with
| little sympathy for Little Enganders and Big
| Socialists, quotes these remarks of the most
distinguished publicist In Alexandria: The
| Europeans IN Egypt standing on the thin
| crust Of a volcano We in Alexandria are not
so badly off as others; We are a sensible pro-
portion Of the population; we are organized
we are armed; but anywhere else in Egypt ex-
cept suez and Port Said the Europeans might
be murdered masse any day" Mr. Sladen
adopts the view Of the English in Egypt that
sade, and that the demand for a parliament is
simply a means TO the supreme end-the ex-
pulson of the foreigners. bag and baggage, and
reversion to backshish. He asserts that a
| socialistic British government has inspired the
| Egyptians with the idea that it is longing for
! an excuse to wriggle out of the country and
that generally is the withdrawal expected
| that II is almost difficult to induce hnanciers
| to make investments there as K te - Morocco
! He is not convinced that the Khedlve is con-
nected with the Nationalist agitation or will
ever put himself at the head OF the Pan-Isamic
| movement; but he looks upon the demand for
| parliament L conspiracy hatched bv the
| Senussi the great Mahometan secret organiza-
tion which rules the African deserts The only