stroy the power of these military barbarians, has, in most instances, compelled them to accept a settled income for life, in payment of their im mense estates, the management of which, through his numerous agents, he has assumed; and the products are taken by him of the cultivators, not only of these estates, but of many others, at a fixed price, stored in warehouses, and afterwards sold at a profit, or used for his army. Although some writers have condemned this system, as arbitrary and unreasonable, yet certain it is, that until these agencies for the purchase of agricultural commodities were established, the peasantry never cultivated more than the extortions of the Mamlouks, or their own necessities absolutely required, while since they have thus found a ready market for their produce, it has stimulated them to increased exertions.

Besides the ordinary crops usually raised for the consumption of man, cotton, which, in Egypt, owes its origin to mere accident, has long been extensively cultivated. In the garden of a Turk called Mako, M. Imuel, a Frenchman, first discovered a plant of this tree, which he afterwards propagated with great skill and success. This was not the coarse kind previously grown in that country, but was of a very superior quality, equal to the best grown in the United States; and as long since as 1823, so abundant was the crop, that 50,000 bales remained, after supplying the countries bordering on the Mediterranean.

Grounds which have been neglected for ages, the pasha has long been engaged in preparing for the cultivation of cotton, by digging out old canals and excavating new ones, for the purpose of irrigation; and as this crop is not exposed on the borders of the Nile to the frosts and heavy rains which often injure it in less temperate climates, should the same wise and mild rule continue in Egypt, which has distinguished the career of its present sovereign, the benefits of the cotton to its people, will, in a few years, be almost incalculable.

Besides this important branch of domestic wealth, great attention has been bestowed upon the cultivation of silk, and upon that of indigo, saf flower, and henneh, so useful in the process of dyeing and calico printing. In the ancient land of Goshen, now called the Valley of the Tumulant, the pasha, a number of years ago, planted a colony of five hundred Syrians, who have since cultivated the mulberry, and reared the silkworm on an immense scale; while in the beautiful province of Fayowm, the vine and olive are again cultivated in the same perfection, which, under the genial clime of Egypt, they anciently enjoyed.

If, under the reign of Mohammed Ali, agriculture has improved, manufactures have started into life, and increased to a degree. still more wonderful, particularly those for the creation of cotton fabrics. A number of years since, M. Imuel, whom we have before mentioned, erected at Boulake, near Cairo, a splendid establishment, equal in its structure to the finest European manufactory, for spinning, weaving, dyeing, and printing cotton goods; the machinery for which was modelled after that of Rouen or Manchester, and was propelled principally by steam, while for the purpose of artificial light, gas was employed. In the travels of Mr. Webster, another large cotton manufactory, established at Siout, is mentioned, of which he says, "It was established some six years ago, and gives employment to eight hundred men and boys, who earn ten, fifteen, twenty, or thirty paras, and sometimes three piasters. Little boys of seven or eight, were seen in all parts of the process. The Arab boys are singularly ac

tive and intelligent looking. They work with an air of sharpness which is quite remarkable-a sort of style and flourish which shows a full comprehension of what they are about. They appear much quicker than English boys of the same age. Young girls were once tried in the factory work, but were found to be of no service. The manager and submanager accompanied us round with great pleasure. Cotton factories are by no means uncommon in Egypt."

Mohammed Ali, having so vastly promoted agriculture and manufactures, it would have been strange indeed had he neglected so important an element of power, national prosperity, and greatness, as the commerce of his country; and we accordingly find him, for many years back, not only promoting it by his influence, but personally interested, and actually engaged in commercial enterprises; for besides the internal traffic carried on by him, of purchasing, through his agents, of the manufacturer and agriculturist the products of their labor, he has, even in the speculations of foreign trade, claimed, in many instances, the right of taking a share with the merchant, so far at least, as to advance funds and enjoy a portion of the profits; although it is said that he claims a sovereign's prerogative, of withdrawing from them if they prove unfortunate; or at most, that he will consider himself, in such case, merely a special or limited partner in the transactions, and liable only to the extent of the sum he ventures.

The recovery of the trade, which, previous to his reign, had been long withdrawn from Egypt, on account of the barbarism of its government, has for many years been the favorite object of the pasha, and of the politicians of Alexandria, and his efforts to recover the eastern trade, towards the accomplishment of which he has directed his powerful energies, have been crowned with great success. He has, for a number of years, supplied the states on the shores of the Mediterranean with ivory, coffee, hides, myrrh, rhinoceros-horn, ostrich-feathers, sal-ammoniac, senna, tamarinds, incense, balsam, Mecca gum-arabic, gum-copal, sulphur, musk, gold-dust, besides many other articles which we have not the space to enumerate.

An extensive intercourse is carried on with the countries south and west, by means of caravans. Those from Abyssinia travel a northern route, through the deserts on the eastern bank of the Nile as far as Esneh, bringing with them ivory, ostrich-feathers, gum, etc., and carrying away woollen dresses, cotton and linen stuffs, venetian glass manufactures, blue shawls, and other articles of use or luxury. The Alabde and Bicharis tribes visit the same place, where they purchase metals, utensils, and grain, in return for which they give camels, gum, and charcoal, the last of which they make from the acacia tree, together with vast quantities of senna, obtained by them in the mountains between the Red Sea and the Nile, where it grows spontaneously and in abundance.

The amount of goods imported from Europe into the dominions of the pasha, is considerable, and for a long period has been annually increasing. We have not room to mention even a few of the most important of these articles, which usually pay an impost duty, when brought directly from the place of manufacture, of three per cent, while Turkish commodities, entered at Alexandria, pay five per cent, and at Boulak are charged four per cent; and for all goods brought from the interior, the comparatively enormous duty of nine per cent is exacted.

To Europe, the export duty is three per cent; to Turkey, on either

side of the Hellespont, five per cent; while cargoes sent by the Red Sea, usually pay a duty of ten per cent.

In his commercial regulations, the pasha has generally been guided by the liberal and enlightened policy which has been pursued by maritime nations of modern times; and although he may have carried his system of monopoly beyond what would in all cases have been strictly justifiable, yet, as we are aware of no complaints against him on this score, except those preferred by the English newspapers, we do not feel disposed to give them much weight, particularly as the whole British press is now arrayed against him-not to mention that the "Bull family" are eternally grumbling about commercial restrictions, while of commercial privileges they never fail to get the lion's share.

To create facilities for internal communication between different parts of his dominions, the pasha has, by indefatigable exertions, opened many ancient canals which had been closed up by the accumulated rubbish of centuries, and has excavated a number of new ones, the most extensive and splendid of which, and the only one we have room to mention, is the cut connecting the harbor of Alexandria with the Nile, near Fouah, a magnificent and costly work, forty-eight miles long, ninety feet broad, and eighteen in depth; through which the whole produce of the country can at all times be transported, without interruption.

The grand inducement by which the pasha was first led to commence this undertaking, reflects upon him the highest praise. In the winter of 1817, a great scarcity of grain prevailed throughout Europe, while, as in the days of Pharaoh, the prolific soil of Egypt yielded abundance, and more than three hundred ships flocked there for supplies; but, owing to the bar at the mouth of the Nile, near Rosetta, and the tempestuous weather along the coast, the grain could not be conveyed to Alexandria, and the vessels were, in most instances, compelled to leave in ballast, or with half cargoes, which occasioned immense losses to the owners and merchants engaged in the unfortunate enterprise. It was then that the foreign merchants, and particularly the French, urged upon the pasha the importance of the canal we have mentioned, and he at once resolved upon its construction. For this purpose, all the laboring classes of Lower Egypt were ordered out, who received a month's pay in advance. Like the ancient Roman legions, each district and every village performed an allotted extent of work, and the inhabitants, under their respective chiefs, stretched along the entire line of the canal, numbering at one time more than two hundred and fifty thousand men. With this vast army of laborers, the whole excavation was completed in little more than six weeks, and they then returned to their homes. In the autumn, a few thousand were again employed during a short time, in facing parts of the banks, and in making the whole navigable for vessels of considerable burden; and, on the 17th of December, 1819, it was opened with great pomp, and has already been of incalculable benefit to Egypt, and to the merchants of Europe.

It has been asserted by some late writers, that twenty thousand laborers fell victims to the urgency of the pasha in completing this work; but this has been contradicted by others of at least equal authority, and in a great measure is unquestionably untrue, and particularly so far as it applies exclusively to the workmen, it is a gross exaggeration; for the principal mortality which prevailed must have fallen upon the women and

children, who, as in patriarchal times, followed the males; and to what extent may be inferred from the fact that when, several years ago, a military conscription of twelve thousand recruits was made, the number that appeared in the camp, including all ages and both sexes, exceeded seventy thousand, many of whom suffered the greatest privations before they could return to their homes.

The brief notice we have now completed, of the many truly wise changes, which, under the administration of Mohammed Ali, have been effected throughout Egypt, will, we trust, enable our readers to form a tolerable idea of the condition of its people. Peace and security have long prevailed there to a degree unsurpassed even in the most enlightened European nations, and this assertion is supported by Mr. Carne, who, at page 288 of " Recollections of the East," remarks, "that the firm and decisive character of Mohammed is in nothing more visible than in the perfect security and quietness that reign throughout his dominions. The traveller there dreams no more of violence than he would do in any town throughout Scotland or Wales; from the capital to the cataracts every man's hand is at peace with him, and he may ramble along the banks of the Nile with as entire an ease and abandon as on those of his native rivers, or in his own garden at home."

From this cheering picture, which the measures of Mohammed Ali for the regeneration of the land of the Pharaohs have created, we must now turn and endeavor to portray, clearly and concisely, the origin and history of the fierce controversy now raging between him and the Sublime Porte. To the sovereignty of the latter he has never bowed, and the customary tribute demanded by the sultan, amounting to about ninety thousand pounds per annum, has often been withheld, and when paid, has seldom been forwarded to Constantinople with the least regard to punctuality. The superiority of the Porte, when acknowledged by Mohammed Ali, has been but in name, and even this nominal vassalship he has often repudiated.

For the commencement of open hostilities between them, we shall go back to 1832. It was then that Ibrahim Pasha, the son of the viceroy, who had determined upon extending his rule over Syria, then under the control of the sultan, was ordered by his father to march into that country, which he did at the head of a well-appointed force of forty battalions of infantry, eight regiments of horse, and four thousand Bedouin Arabs, to serve at the outposts, besides a train of artillery of sixty pieces; supported by five sail of the line, to attend them on the coast. This vast force was directed against the Turkish army, which, after several minor defeats, was routed at Konieh, in one grand engagement; and so effectually too, that, as is represented by the Duke of Ragusa, in his Travels, (better known as Marshal Marmont, one of Napoleon's generals,) hardly ten Turks remained throughout the entire country. The miserable inhabitants, long accustomed to the pillage of the Turkish soldiery, were gratified with the discipline of the Egyptian army; and counting the pasha as a liberator and protector, at once joined him against their former rapacious and cruel masters; and in 1833, he found himself absolute ruler of all Syria, and was almost on the point of openly declaring himself independent sovereign of Egypt, Syria, and the Arabian peninsula.

The Sultan, highly incensed at his presumption, threatened to commence hostilities against him; but the great strength of his enemy, and the in

terference of European powers, calmed the ire of the imperial Turk, and Mohammed Ali was, by treaty, suffered to enjoy the quiet possession of the land he had conquered.

In 1837, the latter, who, to carry on the war he was then prosecuting in Arabia, and to arm his own territories, was compelled to maintain an immense army, offered the sultan a large tribute if he would consent that the sovereignty of Egypt and Syria should continue hereditary in his family. This was refused, and the sway of Egypt alone offered, which at once broke off the negotiation. In 1838, the foreign consuls were informed by the pasha that in future he should pay no tribute to the Porte, and that he considered himself independent sovereign of Egypt, Arabia, and Syria. Both then prepared for war, but the foreign ambassadors interfered, and proceedings were delayed; and the former was, after much persuasion, induced to pay seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars, that being a portion of the tribute which had long been due. In 1839, the Turkish monarch again assumed a belligerent attitude, and resolved to head his army in person, and march into Egypt. The Russian, French, and English ambassadors endeavored to dissuade him, and he in answer assured them of his pacific intentions; in violation of which, he sent a heavy reinforcement of men into Asia, and stationed them near the confines of Syria, and a fleet of twenty-seven ships was ordered to prepare for sailing.

It was at this juncture that the French government offered its mediation to the Porte, which was rejected; and about the same period the foreign consuls, who waited on Mohammed Ali to urge upon him the importance of peace, were told by him, that he had conquered Egypt, Arabia, Sennaar, and Syria with the sword, and he would preserve them by the sword; and that if the fleet of the sultan attacked his own, he would take the command of it in person, and try the chances of war. Heavy levies of men were ordered by him, amounting to fifty thousand; besides which, the Egyptian army in Syria, under the command of his son Ibrahim, numbered eighty thousand men, thirty thousand of which were stationed at Aleppo, and a powerful reserve at Damascus.

In the early part of the spring of 1839, both parties appeared to be more pacifically disposed. On the 21st of April, however, all prospect of an amicable settlement of their difficulties was destroyed by the movement of a heavy column of the Turkish army, which crossed the Euphrates at Bir, and commenced skirmishing with the Egyptian force concentrated near Aleppo. This was followed in the summer by the publication of an imperial decree, made by the Sublime Porte, declaring the powers of Mohammed Ali and his son forever at an end, and appointing Hafiz Pasha in the place of the former, as viceroy of Egypt. This officer at once took the command of the Turkish army in Syria, and on the 23d of June the two armies met at Nezils, where a fierce engagement ensued, in which Ibrahim was victorious. On the 8th of July following, the news of this battle reached Constantinople, spreading additional gloom throughout the Turkish capital, the inhabitants of which were then mourning the death of their sultan, Mahmoud, who had expired on the 1st of July, in the fifty-fifth year of his age and the thirty-first of his reign.

The new sultan immediately ordered the army in Syria to suspend hostilities, and directed the fleet, which had not then left the Bosphorus, consisting ef twenty-seven vessels, and two steamboats, with twelve thousand