RANDOLPH CHURCHILL AND THE FOURTH PARTY

“_14th April_, 1885.

“TO see Button. He tells me there will not now be war with Russia. Jemal-ed-Din told me the same thing yesterday and I believe it, for Russia is now in the position of a man who having had an altercation with another has boxed his ears. He can afford to apologize. Button tells me Randolph has returned from India quite in harmony with my ideas. Lord Ripon’s, Randolph thinks, was the only policy, though clumsily carried out, and if he had not made reforms when he did we should be now in the position of having them forced from us as the price of native loyalty. He is also wholly against the Soudan war. This accords with a letter from him I got last night.

“I asked Button his advice about my going into Parliament, and told him I was intending to ask Churchill to support me as a Fourth Party candidate. But he strongly advised me not to do so. He said, in the first place, it was doubtful whether I should get in; and, in the second, Churchill would be sure afterwards to throw it in my teeth. ‘Take his advice if you like,’ he said, ‘but don’t commit yourself as his supporter.’ I said: ‘Then there is nothing for me but to go to Parnell.’ This Button thought would be much better. He said: ‘As a Nationalist you will have a great position, and there will always be sixty or seventy members who will believe in you on Foreign affairs; I advise you to do this and have nothing to do with Randolph. Remember how O’Connell always threw it in Disraeli’s teeth that he had once applied to him to get him into Parliament. About my correspondence with Downing Street, he thought they would not give any written message to the Mahdi, but advised me to continue to treat their assurances as serious, and to express our readiness to send the messenger.

“At eleven I called on Randolph and found him very glad to see me, and I really like him better than any of them personally. He told me about India pretty much what Button had told me of his opinions, and he entirely took my view of the Hyderabad intrigue. He said if Lord Ripon had not appointed Salar Jung they would certainly have annexed the country, and there were still intrigues at work of the old sort. He also spoke strongly of the great intelligence and good sense of the ‘natives,’ especially of the Mohammedans and Mahrattas. He had seen Rajah Amir Hassan of Mahmudabad and shared my views about the Mohammedan university, and he had stayed with Lyall and talked about me with him.[112] The only thing he had disagreed with was my having said that Salar Jung had been poisoned; for he said that young Salar Jung had expressed his disbelief in anything of the sort, and he had talked to him very confidentially. He then asked me to write a poem for the Conservative party for Sir Arthur Sullivan to set to music. I asked: ‘With something about the primrose in it?’ He said: ‘Yes, if you like—but it does not matter so much what it is, so long as it is patriotic.’ I told him I would think about it, but feared I couldn’t manage the primrose.

“Then Wolff came in and we talked about Lepel Griffin. Churchill said that he, Griffin, had shown him his article against me in proof at Indore, and he had expostulated with him about publishing it, and Griffin would have stopped it if he could, but it was too late. We also talked about the Soudan. Churchill promised to write a letter to be read at the Birmingham meeting if I liked. Next about Zebehr’s arrest and Tewfik’s intrigues. ‘We must get Tewfik deposed,’ he said, ‘as soon as Abbas comes of age, and have Arabi back.’ Then I asked to talk with him in private and Wolff went away. I said I was going to consult him about getting into Parliament; I wanted to push my ideas, but hardly knew how to set about it. He said: ‘Oh! I can do that for you whenever you like. If you will come forward as my supporter you can’t do better, and I am asked almost every day to recommend candidates.’ I said: ‘What will this bind me to? You know my foreign politics, but at home I am a Catholic and a Tory as regards the land question and education, and in Ireland I am a Nationalist.’ He made a face at the word ‘Nationalist.’ He said: ‘You could not come forward as an avowed Nationalist, but you need not say much about that. If you say that you have wide opinions on the Irish question it will be enough, and when you are once in Parliament you can take your own line.’ ‘But what,’ I said, ‘is Tory democracy? Tell me in two words, for I don’t think I quite understand it.’ He said: ‘That is a question I am always in a fright lest some one should put it to me publicly. To tell the truth I don’t know myself what Tory democracy is. But I believe it is principally opportunism. But say you are a Tory democrat and that will do.’ I said: ‘You know me well enough to be sure that I would not be paid to be in Parliament if I was not free to take my own line. I had thought of standing as an Irish Home Ruler with Parnell, but I was in doubt, and thought I would consult you.’ He said: ‘You would lose your influence if you did this. Parnell would require you to join in his policy of obstruction and you would be discredited. You had better not commit yourself to that, though you might vote with him on purely Irish questions. But you should write me out a programme of your ideas, and I will see if there is a constituency that will accept them.’ I said: ‘I will think it over and let you know.’ Now I shall consult Mrs. Howard, who will advise me to go in as a Radical, but that I can’t and won’t do. I think perhaps, after all, I shall be freest with Randolph; and certainly his conversation to-day binds me to nothing.

“F. P. [a young lieutenant R.N. who had been serving with the Naval Brigade in the Nile campaign] gives me some good accounts of forced labourers courbashed and chained, under British officers. Four thousand forced labourers were supplied for the Nile Expedition, half from Dongola, half from Esneh. They were put to twelve and thirteen hours labour in the extreme heat of August, only allowed half an hour in the day to rest; they were small, weak men, and would work only under the whip. Colonel Grant, in command of the Dongolese, expostulated against their being so employed. F., who was with the naval contingent, did not have the men under his own command beaten by English sailors. His remark was: ‘They did not give it them so thoroughly, but they seemed to mind it more.’ Many ran away, but were brought back with chains round their necks. He had found five men one night lying flat with their mouths full of sand; they would have died if he had not kicked them up and made them eat. They were kept once five days without food. Colonel Inglefield, in command of the Esneh men, blew his brains out in a fever in the next tent to F. He says when Wolseley came up he was quite taken aback at sight of what the river was. Hammill had surveyed it all and told him of its being impracticable, and so had every one else who had seen it. He is very bitter against Wolseley.[113]

“_15th April._—Wrote draft letters to Mr. Gladstone and Eddy Hamilton in answer to Eddy’s last, and took them to Mrs. Howard, with whom and with whose daughter Mary I spent four hours talking. She thinks Gladstone is serious about negotiating with the Mahdi, and that it is paying me a great compliment to discuss affairs so delicate with me. I am not sure. She won’t hear of my having anything to do with Randolph, still less with Parnell, and says that I should be doing no good going into Parliament at all. If I should render some signal service to the Government by helping them to make peace or otherwise, they would give me a seat in the House of Lords; but I should only lose my influence by going into the House of Commons.

“_16th April._—There is a remarkable letter in to-day’s ‘Daily News,’ giving the account of an Egyptian soldier who had been with Gordon in Khartoum. According to this, the Mahdi distinctly offered Gordon to evacuate, and Gordon refused. There are also tales of the capture of women and children by General Graham, and of his having sent them prisoners to Massowa. F. P. tells me that, when he was at Suakin last June, rewards of £1 were offered for the right hands of Arabs brought by friendly ‘natives’ into the British camp.

“Went to see Stanley, and arranged with him to bring forward the case of the Massowa prisoners, and then to Labouchere about a series of questions to be put on Monday as to military barbarities, forced labour, etc. He tells me that Chamberlain has proposed to him, as representing the Radical opposition to the Soudan War, that the Radicals should not object to the Government’s making their railway as far as Sinkat on condition it goes no further. They would then hand it over to a company and retire, boasting that they had civilized Eastern Soudan. They want to be out of the thing, but must have something to show for the money they have spent.

“Hobart tells me that the arrangement being made with the Sultan is that there should be a joint English and Turkish occupation of Egypt; the Turkish general to be provided with an English staff.[114]

“F. tells me stories of how the English soldiers are insulted in the streets of Cairo. They all hate the Egyptians now, being hated by them. But the Egyptian soldiers are devoted to their English officers.

“_17th April._—A letter came last night from Downing Street which seems to ask for direct communication with the Mahdi’s agent. But Button assures me that an agreement was come to the day before yesterday with the Sultan of the kind spoken of by Hobart, and thinks the letter means that they want nothing more of me. It may very likely be so. George Howard thinks the whole correspondence merely humbug on Gladstone’s part, and that he has never had any really serious intentions. He has become an utter unbeliever in Gladstone, and speaks more bitterly against him than any one I know out of the Carlton Club. He was for annexation, but says I prevented it by stirring up the Radicals and I have not done any good to Egypt instead. Mrs. Howard is disgusted at the arrangement with the Sultan, and half agreed that I was justified now in making any arrangement I liked with Randolph. Button is angry with Buckle for not making full use of the news he brings him, and talks of leaving the ‘Times.’

“_19th April._—Had luncheon at the Carlton Club, where they were going through the absurdity of Primrose Day. I sat with Randolph, Wolff, and Borthwick; they wanted me to put one of these flowers in my buttonhole, but I said I must draw the line somewhere. This worship of an old Hebrew gentleman under the form of a primrose is certainly one of the most ridiculous ever imagined. Randolph talked about the arrangement just made with the Sultan for sending Turkish troops into Egypt, and was all for an attack on the Government. But I persuaded him not to make any move against the Sultan. He has made an excellent beginning with the Indian Mohammedans, and this would not be understood by them. He told me of his having taken up the cause of the native water carriers at Benares, who were being impressed for the Soudan campaign, an incident which shows he has a true instinct with Orientals. I am writing him a letter stating my political views, and asking him to what extent they are in harmony with Tory democracy. It will be the manifesto of my political opinions.

“Down to Crabbet.

“_21st April._—A telegram from Button in the evening saying that the Khartoum expedition is abandoned, and eleven millions asked for Russian and Soudan wars.

“_22nd April._—The eleven millions seem to have taken everybody’s breath away, and war with Russia is considered certain, the garrisons to be withdrawn from the Soudan.

“Finished a letter to Churchill, giving my political views, home and foreign, and proposing them as compatible with Tory democracy, and took it to London to show to Mrs. Howard. Of course she is much against my sending it; but as I left said: ‘Well, it will be amusing, anyhow, to see how you get on with him. But I call it an intrigue.’ Button, whom I saw afterwards, objected on other grounds. He said I could not count on Randolph that he would not throw me over, and he could not get me into Parliament. Nobody would believe me sincere in my Home Conservativism, and Conservatives would not support me. He strongly advised me again to join Parnell rather than Randolph, people would understand that; I should have more influence, and besides be quite certain of a seat in Parliament. He is to meet Randolph, however, on Friday, and will try to find out what he really means; and in the meanwhile I withhold my letter.

“_23rd April._—George Wyndham has written home accounts of the enormous number of the Hadendowas who have been killed. Some of these Hadendowas had shaved their heads and wore the Mahdi’s uniform, ‘a wonderful instance of fanaticism.’ They (the English officers) are all sick, however, of the war.

“Rode in the Park with Sullivan (Sir Edward Sullivan), who tells me Mr. Gladstone dined with Bertram Currie on Tuesday after the announcement of the eleven millions war vote. He was in high spirits, and said the announcement of eleven millions was received by the House ‘with solemnity.’ He is to give a breakfast to Miss Mary Anderson to-day. Pembroke was also riding, and came and talked about the Soudan. He could wish, he said, that after having killed the Arabs ‘we could leave them some substantial benefit in the shape of a railway.’ What fools the best of them are.

“A letter has come from Eddy, giving a new opening, it seems, for correspondence. Consulted Ibrahim about it; he tells me the French are sending a secret mission to the Mahdi, _via_ Tripoli, and thinks I might hint this to Downing Street.[115]

“_24th April._—It appears that a dynamite explosion took place yesterday morning during Mr. Gladstone’s breakfast party with Mary Anderson. Everybody talks now of war as certain, but Button says it will only be a withdrawal of Ambassadors for the present. The Turkish arrangement has fallen through, if it ever existed, through Bismarck’s prohibition to the Sultan of opening the Dardanelles to our fleet. This, perhaps, accounts for Eddy’s renewal of correspondence.

“To the House of Commons and saw John Morley and Leonard Courtney, and urged on them to press the Government to withdraw _immediately_ from the Soudan, as otherwise the Mahdi may again advance. They said they understood the Government was intending certainly to do so, but they would endeavour to get some assurance from them during the debate. Morley, however, would have nothing to do with urging negotiations with the Mahdi, whom the Government intended to leave to ‘stew in his juice.’

“Bertram, whom I called on later, tells me that Mr. Gladstone told him at dinner on Tuesday that his idea was still to neutralize Egypt under a government of its own, and that he counted on the French to aid in doing this. Bertram, who doubtless repeats Mr. Gladstone’s tone on these matters, complained of the _unfair_ conduct of the French. ‘If they go on much longer,’ he said, ‘Mr. Gladstone will throw the whole thing on their hands and clear bodily out of Egypt.’ He also talked of perhaps handing it over to the Sultan, who after all was the legal owner; things were in a deadlock all round.

“_25th April._—Lady Wentworth came to luncheon, and took me to the Grosvenor Gallery, private view. The exhibition is not nearly as good as last year, but there is a fine portrait of Gladstone by Millais, one of his best, with his eye fixing you like some bird of prey.

“_26th April._—To Mark Napier’s at Fulham for lawn tennis. He showed me a letter he had received from Sir Charles Wilson, saying it was Awwam who betrayed Gordon at Khartoum. This is a fine piece of retributive justice, for it was Awwam whom Colvin persecuted because he had complained of the rogueries in the Cadastral service. Colvin had him arrested and put in irons after the bombardment of Alexandria, and tried by a mock tribunal and exiled to Khartoum. I wrote, when the amnesty was promised, to Dufferin to complain especially of Awwam’s treatment, and he referred my letter to Wilson, who did nothing. So Awwam remained at Khartoum, and now this very Wilson writes complaining that he betrayed Gordon. Thus is injustice sometimes requited.[116]

“At dinner last night at the Denbighs’ Hobart was very warlike, and talked of commanding the Turkish Fleet in the Black Sea; the Turks might at first pretend neutrality, and refuse a passage to English ships, but would join later. I sat next to Lady Dorothy Nevill, certainly the pleasantest old woman in London. She is a friend, she tells me, of Chamberlain’s, who tells her the electors care nothing for foreign politics; she has also seen Gladstone lately, who is in the highest spirits at the prospect of a new war. On my other side was Lady Brett, Reginald Brett’s mother, who says she hears from Berlin that Bismarck treats Malet like a little boy. Of course he does, he has always known him as such. Lord Salisbury was also there, but I had no opportunity of speaking to him.

“The Prince of Wales has written to Lady C., saying he is delighted with his Irish tour, and is to be back, I think, on Tuesday. I hear, however, from others, that it has been in reality a fiasco.

“_27th April._—Called on Justin McCarthy, who has a small lodging with his son in Ebury Street, but he was not up. The Irish girl who opened the door told me he never got up till the middle of the day, but I could see him between two and three. Then to Percy Wyndham in Belgrave Square, who deplores all that is going on in public affairs. He is an upright, honest man, with ideas too—but just short of the power to lead, so he has achieved nothing, and will retire after this Parliament. Back to McCarthy in the afternoon, whom I found with his son. My object in calling was to propose an alliance with Parnell, but we talked first about the Mahdi, and I asked to be put in communication with O’Kelly. This they promised to do, and, as I found them sensible and sympathetic, I broached the real subject with them. Young Huntley was most cordial; the elder, Justin, however, had had some experience of English alliances, and said they had several times been disappointed, as notably with Lord Robert Montagu. He also was cordial but more cautious; he said my connection with Arabi was well known; Arabi was a great hero in Ireland; so was the Mahdi. He thought Mr. Parnell would be very glad to talk the matter over with me, and he would arrange a meeting. They asked had I property in Ireland, and they were glad to hear I had none. What did I think about coercion? Could they count on me to turn out the Government? I told him that I was quite prepared to follow Parnell’s lead on all Irish questions short of dynamite; that in England I should expect to be free. I was a friend of Churchill’s, and should probably support him. On foreign politics they knew my opinions, and those of course I could not give up. As a Nationalist I could take up the cause of Ireland with my heart in it. Also I was a Catholic and opposed to the present Government. On all these matters they expressed themselves satisfied, saying that I had given too many proofs of having the courage of my opinions for them to have any doubt about me. But the first thing would be to see Parnell.

“I am sure these two are very honest fellows, whatever the others may be, and they said they had no quarrel with England if they got self- government. They did not want separation; they did not ask me to be unloyal to my country. But they were sure to succeed. They would have a great addition of strength in the next Parliament, and counted on several English constituencies. They counted, too, on Churchill, who was in favour of Home Rule, and my being a friend of his would be a recommendation in Irish eyes. On the whole I think the thing will work, and I am highly satisfied with my visit. I feel more at home with these people than in the Carlton Club.

“Down to the House of Commons to hear Mr. Gladstone’s statement about the war, and on the Vote of Credit. There was a previous debate connected with it, in which Arthur O’Connor proposed an amendment, speaking moderately and well. Arthur Balfour, too, spoke with some eloquence, and there was a division which the Government won by a small majority. Then Gladstone spoke, a really fine speech, the first fine one I have heard him make. At the beginning he was not felicitous, as he involved himself in one of his hair-splitting arguments about his own consistency, and Harcourt had to pull him vigorously by the coat tails to get him in hand again. But afterwards he was very clear, to the point, and impressive. His speech was generally taken in the House as a declaration of war against Russia; but I think he will try to arbitrate first. About the Soudan he admitted everything I had been urging for the past year, and condemned himself most emphatically; the people at Khartoum had been really against Gordon, they really liked the Mahdi, and the Mahdi was really establishing a Government; why should they be disturbed? Why indeed! I am glad to have heard this speech, as I am sure it is one of the best he ever made—perhaps his last great speech. The delivery was very remarkable and so dramatic as to suggest the impression that he must have got it up carefully beforehand with Irving and Mary Anderson. The effect on the House was decisive, so that the eleven millions were voted without a dissentient voice. It was a scene to be remembered. But as a matter of fact, the unanimity was due, I hear, to the accident of Labouchere and Randolph Churchill being away at dinner. Both had intended to move amendments. The effect of the speech, however, was very apparent, for at the beginning the sense of the House, both on his own and the other side, had been distinctly against Mr. Gladstone. The triumph was due solely to his eloquence.

“Dined at the Carlton Club.

“_28th April._—Rode early. Then to Mrs. Howard, to tell her my ideas about Ireland. She does not much approve.

“_29th April._—Button tells me that Wolseley is very angry at the idea of abandoning the Soudan campaign, says the Mahdi will be up again shortly and wants to finish him off. To a party at Mrs. T.’s, where I met Lessar, the Russian agent. He looks his character all over, being a little, inquisitive, dark, furtive man; but in conversation he talks frankly enough. I had a few words with him about the collision between East and West. ‘But what are we to do,’ he asked, ‘when the East won’t be quiet and we come into collision?’ I said, ‘The West should retire.’

“_30th April._—Things already look more like peace with Russia, and I am inclined to think the whole thing has been got up by Gladstone in order to get himself out of the Soudan. I met that great man this afternoon in Pall Mall; he was nearly run over by a cab crossing in front of the Athenaeum, and I followed him down the steps, past the Duke of York’s Column, and along Whitehall to Downing Street. He did not see me, but walked on, black and gloomy, in black, ill-fitting clothes, like a schoolmaster or an undertaker. He was followed at a distance of twenty yards by a detective in plain clothes, who eyed me suspiciously, especially when I crossed between him and his charge, who, taking out his latchkey, let himself in at the garden gate and disappeared.

“_1st May._—Button says it is all off with the Turks now, and Hassan Fehmy wants to be away back to Constantinople. Two days ago I wrote a violent letter to the ‘Times’ about the atrocities in the Soudan, and I have arranged with Labouchere that when it appears he shall follow it up in the House of Commons. I alluded in my letter to the story of the reward offered at Suakin for human hands. F. P. tells me it was C. who paid the money for them.

“Button tells me that Mr. Gladstone writes every day to Stead refuting his advocacy of Russia. But I am not sure the Government has not put Stead up to it, so as to prepare for a withdrawal from the quarrel.

“_4th May._—My letter was printed in the ‘Times’ this morning. To the House of Commons, and saw Morley walking with Brett. I had begged him to put a question to Government about a plan which has been announced for surrounding and capturing Osman Digna. He told me he had not put the question publicly, but had received a private assurance that no attack on Osman Digna was intended; so I hope we have put a spoke in Wolseley’s wheel. Brett told me the same thing.

“_5th May._—It is announced that Wolseley’s expedition is postponed, and so my letter seems to have succeeded. Mr. Gladstone made a statement last night entirely backing out of his quarrel with Russia, and during the debate that followed Randolph made a remarkable speech, the most important I have heard him make. It was well prepared and considered, and was very well received; but it was not oratory of the first water. As to the matter, it was a violent attack on Russia, with jingo talk about India. I did not wholly sympathize with this, but it will certainly have put him on a higher platform with his party.

“Lady C. sees old Lucan very frequently, and he tells her all the War Office secrets, and she told me they intended a _coup_ at Suakin. But I hope we have put a stop to that. The Prince of Wales has been to see her, and she asked him about my going to the Levee and what uniform I should wear. He said that, as I had been five years in diplomacy, I was entitled to wear the diplomatic. So I shall go to it, as I am coming out as a Home Ruler. It seems he is quite pacified about me now, but is only urgent that I should attend a levee. Old Lucan is very warlike, would like—‘By God!’—to go at the Russians again himself. He is the last at the Horse Guards who was a general in the Crimean War. He is eighty.

“_6th May._—General Graham has bungled the whole campaign at Suakin. Alan Charteris, who has come home from there, says all the troops are disgusted and want the thing to end. There have been letters in the same sense from up the Nile, where the men are living, or rather dying, in bell tents. George Wyndham is enthusiastic about the Arabs, I am glad to hear. Wolseley keeps on board ship at Suakin, pretending he is unwell.

“Saw Labouchere, who was starting to lay the foundation stone of a Primitive Methodist Chapel. ‘To such things,’ he said, ‘we are reduced at election time.’

“Met Parnell by appointment at the House of Commons, and walked up and down the central lobby with him. He told me that it would not do my standing for an Irish constituency; there were too many jealousies, and an Englishman would be looked upon as an interloper, whoever he was. Everybody was wanting to be in Parliament, and he was afraid of giving a cause of disunion. ‘My countrymen,’ he said, ‘have the weakness of quarrelling with each other; it is their national defect.’ ‘Like the Arabs,’ I remarked. Then he corrected himself, as if he had said too much. ‘Besides,’ he said, ‘we have always been betrayed by all the English who have gone with us—every one. Sometimes by our own people, but always by the English.’ I said: ‘I think you need not fear that in my case.’ ‘No,’ he said, ‘I do not doubt you; but it would be difficult to make the others understand. For this reason I do not propose that you should come forward in Ireland. But if you choose an English constituency I can promise you, wherever it is, the solid Irish vote. You would vote with us on all Irish questions, but we should not ask what you thought on other matters. Get Lord Randolph to nominate you where there are Irish, and I will do all I can for you.’ I was struck by Parnell’s frankness and straightforwardness in this conversation, and he has a special charm of manner which doubtless gives him his power.

“_7th May._—An inordinately busy day, caused by the announcement of a new ‘victory’ of Graham’s at Suakin. It is a very bad case, the worst that has happened, for they have surrounded a Bedouin camp, with women and children and cattle, and have fired into the lot, killing a hundred and fifty, and intending to exterminate. This has made me so angry I have not been able to eat all day, and have been galloping over the town getting up an agitation. My first act was to write to Morley. I reminded him of his share in the Alexandrian Bombardment, and called upon him to behave like an honest man and join me. I took the letter to Courtney and showed it to him and his wife, who took the matter up warmly. And they sent me on to Burt, the working-man member; he, too, promised me all assistance. Then I went to Randolph, who was delighted to join in the fray, and who arranged with Northbrook to support any motion for adjournment the Radicals might move. And then to Labouchere and the House of Commons, where I talked to O’Shea[117] and others, so that I got some of all parties to join me. The upshot of it was that at question time Morley asked for explanations, and a nice little discussion followed, and Hartington promised a definite statement of military policy for Monday. This is very satisfactory, but from all I hear we shall have to work hard to stop the war, for Wolseley and Baring[118] are moving heaven and earth to get the campaign renewed, and Hartington and Northbrook are with them. They fancy they can still make something commercially profitable out of the Berber railway, and, what is more important, save their own precious bacon. Gladstone in one of his answers made a quibble which looks specially ominous. He acknowledged his statement of policy made last Monday week, but qualified it by explaining that it was made in connection with the Russian imbroglio. They certainly have it in their minds to renew the war, but Button assures me nothing is yet absolutely decided.

“Randolph, when I saw him, talked over the matter of my going into Parliament. I told him of my conversation yesterday with Parnell, and showed him the paper I drew up a little while ago, headed ‘Am I a Tory Democrat?[119] of which he approved as a possible basis of my joining his party, though he said of course he did not pledge himself to go with me on all points. He objected a little to my using the word Home Rule. ‘I know, of course,’ he said, ‘it must come to this, but we haven’t educated the Party up to it yet, and it would have been better to use some vaguer expression.’ Also he thought the allusion to Midlothian was unnecessary, or I might have said: ‘If there was anything good in the Midlothian doctrines.’ Nevertheless he was pleased with the paper as a whole, and promised me all his support and gave me Middleton’s[120] address at St. Stephen’s Chambers, and authorized me to tell him that he had sent me to arrange for a constituency, and that I should be of very great value to the Conservative Party. This is, perhaps, the very best combination I could have, for it leaves me absolutely free, and I come in as an independent Member on all points on which I care to be independent. The only question is, ‘Shall I come in?’ Randolph also showed me a letter he had received from Sir Frederic Roberts[121] about the state of the army in India, which was interesting. It urged, of course, a large increase of forces if we were to fight the Russians; but it was a sensible letter. It said that the native army was less good than it looked; some regiments were very good, but not by any means all. I feel confident I shall get on with Randolph; all his instincts are right ones, and he has courage and is absolutely the reverse of a prig.

“_8th May._—Morley has written a line, saying he will bring on the question of Graham’s victory [over the women and children] again to- night, and has appointed to meet me at one on Monday. I have decided to go to the Levee that day, as it will be necessary if I am to stand as a Conservative, especially as a Home Rule Conservative.

“Had some conversation with Frederic Harrison in the Park. At two I went to the Peace Association, and arranged for a special meeting to-morrow to protest against a renewal of the Soudan War. There I learned that there was to be a great meeting at the Town Hall, Birmingham, and I made up my mind to go down there and move a resolution. This I did. The meeting was a fairly large one, perhaps 2,000 people, nearly all enthusiastic Gladstonians, and the object was to congratulate Mr. Gladstone on his adhering to principle in settling the Russian quarrel by arbitration. I asked the Chairman to let me move my resolution against the Soudan War, and with some difficulty he consented, for it was not in the order of the day, and he thought it might disturb the harmony of the occasion. But my speech was a great success, and I carried my resolution almost unanimously. It was as follows: ‘That this Meeting deplores the renewal by Lord Wolseley of the war in the Soudan, and calls upon Mr. Gladstone to fulfil his promise of peace by recalling Lord Wolseley without delay, and opening friendly negotiations with the Soudanese leaders.’ It was a bold move, but it succeeded, and I was much congratulated after it; and several persons expressed to me their sympathy with Arabi and their desire to have him back in Egypt. I came back to London by the night train.

“_9th May._—Rode in the park, where Frederic Harrison introduced me to Lord Dalhousie, with whom I talked about the possibility of negotiating with the Mahdi. It seems he has Mr. Gladstone’s ear, and it may do some good. I forgot to say that yesterday I called on Middleton, the Conservative agent, and arranged with him that I should stand for one of the Liverpool wards, if he could arrange it with the Conservatives there. I told him my ideas freely, and he seemed quite reasonable; Randolph had seen him and explained the whole position to him. So that thing is settled. I don’t know whether I shall gain most or lose most by being in Parliament, but I am determined, if I do get there, to lead the Party in their foreign politics and about India.

“_10th May._—Randolph at the Carlton Club talked again about my parliamentary prospects, and suggested Southwark as a likely constituency. I hear, through John Pollen and Ripon, that it is settled to evacuate the Soudan.

“_11th May._—A great and memorable Monday. The ‘Daily News’ gave a hint this morning that things stood as John said yesterday, and that the Government had resolved on a surrender. I went early to Wentworth to arrange with him to move an amendment to a motion Lord Wemyss is bringing on in the Lords about the Berber Railway, and then to the Courtneys’. They seemed ignorant of any pacific intention on the Government’s part; as also was, or pretended to be, Morley, whom I met at half past twelve by appointment at the House of Commons. I coached him in the speech he was intending to make against a continuation of the war. But I think now he must have been prepared for what was coming, though probably not for all. Then at half-past four I went again to the House, and was fortunate enough to find Edward Ponsonby, who gave me the very best seat in the distinguished strangers’ gallery. From this point of vantage I listened to every word. We were all prepared for a surrender, but nobody dreamed of its being so complete. Hartington had written his speech out beforehand and delivered it plainly, even baldly, and I don’t know but what the effect was better than if he had used eloquence. At any rate we believed him, as we should not have believed Mr. Gladstone. They are to clear out of the Soudan, bag and baggage, at the very first rising of the Nile; they are to abandon the Berber Railway and everything, except just Suakin, till such times as they can make other arrangements with a ‘civilized Power.’ Percy Wyndham asked a question about this, and whether Suakin was not part of the Ottoman Empire; and Gladstone gave him one of his roundabout answers: he thought that Suakin was generally ‘conceived’ to belong to Turkey. However, Hartington’s declaration was a great ministerial success, and I went home feeling that at last I had won a real victory.

“Dined with Lady C., who told me that Mr. Gladstone had been to see her on Saturday, and she had attacked him on his wickedness in killing the Arabs, and told him a number of home truths. He took it all in good part however. She asked him what he thought of me, saying we were friends. He answered that I was ‘personally a charming person, but on politics mad.’ Mad people think others mad.

“_12th May._—What Lady C. told me yesterday gave me the fortunate inspiration to write to Downing Street to congratulate Mr. Gladstone on the abandonment of the war, and to add a copy of the new edition of my sonnets; and two hours later I got a reply from Eddy, evidently in great good humour, saying that the gift was appreciated, and Mr. Gladstone ‘would turn with pleasure from the Soudan to Proteus.’ These little interchanges of courtesy in war time are agreeable, and the Old Man appreciates them, looking on all politics as he does in the light of a debating club.

“Went to the Levee to-day for the first time for fifteen or sixteen years. When it was over Staal ran out after me and warmly entreated me to come and see him. Down to Crabbet in high spirits.

“_13th May._—Ibrahim informed me yesterday that he had received an invitation from the Sultan, conveyed to him through Jowdat, to go to Constantinople and be one of his secretaries, and he asked my advice about accepting. He said he was afraid of what might happen, it was such a very risky thing, Court favour. I said that, if he looked to his own interest he had better go and take the chance, but that if he really had ideas of patriotism he had better stay and be ready to carry a message when required to the Mahdi. I could not advise him: he must judge for himself. He says for the present he will stay.

“To London, and called on Mrs. Howard, who is very angry at my arrangement with Randolph. ‘You must expect no more sympathy,’ she said, ‘in this house.’ However, we parted friends. George, whom I met yesterday at the Levee, had told her about it. George says I am right and rejoices, and says I shall ruin the Tory Party.

“_15th May._—Went down with Percy Wyndham to Hampton Court to see the last day of the great tennis match between Lambert and Petitt. It was worth any trouble to see, being quite a unique occasion, and I suppose the tennis court at Hampton Court has not for a hundred years seen such an assembly. Not only were the dedans and side galleries filled, but the other galleries over the pent houses had been fitted up with double rows of seats, all crammed. The play, too, was probably the strongest, if not the best, ever seen since tennis was invented. Curiously enough the young man’s play, which has been described as more Lambertish than Lambert’s, struck me as the less unclassic of the two. I have never admired Lambert’s style, and Petitt has a really splendid stroke on the floor when he chooses. In return Lambert was throughout over-matched, Petitt having an astonishing judgement and precision. The game, however, to eyes used to the French style, is spoilt by the perpetual underhand service, which gives no scope to the first stroke; it consisted in a succession of these with a boasted return—boasted from the gallery wall. This is and must be ugly, but no other return is possible. Arthur Balfour, Alfred Lyttelton, Heathcote, and all the players and amateurs were there, and we came back in the train with the little American who brought Petitt over, and who told us Petitt’s history. He was a Sussex boy, perhaps Kent, and had been merely engaged at fifteen to sweep out the court under one Hulse at Boston. Hulse would not even let him play, and he taught himself at odd moments. He never played with any one who could take less than thirty from him till he came to England. All which makes his success more miraculous. He is now twenty-four.

“Dined with Settna and some Indians and Indian sympathisers, Clark, Digby, Wood, Foggo, etc., at the National Liberal Club, where we indulged in some rather wild talk about Indian reform.

“_16th May._—Button has come back from Ireland, and I am glad of it, as I find it difficult to get on without him. He tells me the Russian difficulty is not yet over. Randolph Churchill’s violent letter, published yesterday in the ‘Times,’ was not a mere hasty ebullition, but Randolph showed it about to his friends before sending it in. These advised him to cut out the offensive passages, but he deliberately left them in as he considered they would tell with the electors.

“Harrison tells me that Gladstone explains his rejection of my offers of negotiation by saying he does not believe those who made them through me are really in communication with the Mahdi. Called on Staal and talked the whole situation over with him. He tells me his Government seems to be making new difficulties, more than he himself thinks justified.

“_17th May, Sunday._—In my conversation with Staal yesterday we discussed the Egyptian situation. He was very curious to know if Mr. Gladstone was serious at last about evacuating the Soudan; and I told him that he was,—as serious, that is, as he ever is. ‘He is a great comedian,’ Staal said, ‘but I was shocked, when he made his speech on Monday week, at his extraordinary statement of the position on the Afghan frontier. And I don’t know what to believe now about his intentions in Egypt. There are the three questions of the Soudan, Egypt, and the Suez Canal. About Egypt, I understand that it will eventually be neutralized; and so will the Canal. But what will become of the Soudan?’ I said: ‘They will certainly end by coming to terms with the Mahdi; there is no other course.’ ‘But will not the Mahdi invade Egypt?’ ‘No, if you will establish a popular government.’ He said he believed the European Governments would be quite willing. About the Canal, he remarked, the principal difficulty was who should garrison it. The Sultan insisted upon doing this. I said it required no garrison more than the Canal Company’s police; and as for the Sultan, ‘_On pourrait passer outre_.’ This, to which he agreed, is certainly how it will be arranged sooner or later.

“Luncheon at Lady Dorothy Nevill’s. Drummond Wolff, Lord Haddington, Jeune, and Ford, just named Minister at Madrid. Randolph came in late. Afterwards I looked in on Lothian,[122] and tried to get him to take an interest in negotiations with the Mahdi. His mind, however, is all in a muddle, though he is well disposed on the main points; and as he is rather a close friend of Lord Salisbury’s we may perhaps get something from him in the debate in the Lords to-morrow. It seems odd to me to be talking seriously with him on serious political questions after all these years.

“_18th May._—Anne went to the Drawing Room. In the afternoon Lord Wemyss brought on his Soudan motion in the House of Lords, and Wentworth opposed it. Wentworth’s speech was good in substance, but it rather unnecessarily jarred in tone upon the noble Lords it was addressed to, and called down a thunderbolt from the Duke of Argyll who followed. The Duke’s oration was splendid as a work of art, well reasoned, eloquent in every mood, and most impassioned. Though I did not agree with a word of the argument, I could not help admiring him; but the whole discussion was, as Wentworth said, academical, and will have no effect whatever on public opinion. There is no possibility now of a conquest of Africa, in the interests of civilization, being undertaken by England; the only danger is from a commercial company, to support which a promoter called upon me this afternoon. He thought I might use my influence with Osman Digna to get him to help a railway to Berber as a commercial speculation, but I of course declined to have anything at all to do with it.

“I dined after the debate, which we had listened to together, with Percy Wyndham at the Travellers. He encourages me much to go into Parliament in support of Randolph, of whom he has a high opinion. ‘You two,’ he said, ‘if you will stick to your principle of telling the truth at all cost, may yet save England.’ Only can I get into Parliament really on my own terms? Philip Currie was dining at another table, and I had some conversation with him about Egypt and the Afghan question. He is very polite to me now, and urges me also to go into Parliament. He is very scornful about the Government, but I believe a good deal of the trouble has been due to his own mismanagement at the Foreign Office.

“_19th May._—George Wyndham, I am glad to say, is ordered home again from Suakin, and there is every reason to believe nothing more will be done against the Arabs. Down to Crabbet and dined with Locker at Rowfant. Harrison advises me to write what I have to say about negotiation to Mr. Gladstone—and publish it.

“_20th May._—Dined at Francis Buxton’s, a Radical I like particularly. He was very urgent I should stand for Parliament; Cyril Flower said he could put me into a safe seat as a Radical. I am like a donkey between two bundles of hay—very like the donkey.

“_21st May._—Yesterday we had an Indian meeting in my house to present Mr. Settna with an address on his return to India, and it was turned into an address to myself by the Indians present. I made them a speech in reply which was well received, and advised them to agitate continually till they got their rights, as there was no party in England which would do anything for them from any other motive than fear. Some of them complained that Randolph Churchill, whom I had been extolling as a sympathiser, had not said a word yet of his desire to help them. And I wrote to him this morning, _à propos_ of a speech he made last night declaring for freedom in Egypt and Ireland, and begged him to take an opportunity soon of saying a word for India; and I met him this afternoon at the Carlton Club, and he promised me to second Slagg’s motion for an inquiry into the Indian Government. This is capital, and encourages me to go on with him in earnest. Sir Robert Peel was there, very amusing, both of them cutting their jokes at the old Tories. ‘There won’t be half a dozen of them,’ Randolph said, ‘in the next Parliament.’ He also declared he would contest Birmingham at all hazards, and expressed his certainty of turning the Government out at the elections. Now he is off to Paris for a run and to find out what the new French policy is. The House adjourns to-morrow. Wagram has arrived from Paris, looking for a house for the summer. We dined together at St. James’s Club.

“Mr. Egmont Hake called to-day to consult me on various points connected with the ‘Gordon Diaries’ he is publishing. He admits that Gordon made great mistakes at Khartoum, both as to men and things. I have promised him a narrative of my efforts at negotiation for his book.

“_22nd May, and later._—Spent the day with Wagram looking for houses at Ascot and Windsor. We drove through Windsor Park, which is certainly the finest thing of its sort in the world. Then down with him to Crabbet, where he spent Whitsuntide with us. During the week there was absolutely no move on the political chess-board except that the evacuation of Dongola is being hurried on, and the evacuation of Suakin stayed—both in accordance with my programme. Randolph has gone to Paris, where Victor Hugo is dead; and Hartington and Dilke to Ireland, where Healy is very much alive. There is an absolute calm after the storm, and the only rock ahead is a threat by Chamberlain of resignation on the Crimes Act.

“_31st May._—To London to get news. Button was away, and London nearly empty, but by great luck I hit upon Gregory just returned from Ireland, and Churchill just returned from Paris. I met Gregory in the street, and we sat together for half an hour in Hyde Park. He has seen Morley lately, and finds him quite ready to go against Tewfik, and has put him in favour of Halim and Arabi’s return. Morley quite admits now that it would have been possible to get on with Arabi three years ago, and regrets the part he took against him, which he excuses on the ground of wanting information.

“Churchill, whom I found at the Carlton Club, approves of a move now in favour of Arabi, and advises me to make war on Ismaïl, whom the ‘Pall Mall’ is working for. He also tells me Middleton, the Conservative agent, is very keen about my joining the Party, and promises to see that the matter of my candidature is settled soon. He will come to Crabbet for a symposium I am proposing for one of the Sundays of June or July. The persons to be invited are Staal, Churchill, Morley, Lothian, Harrison, George Howard, Burt, Parnell, Pembroke, Gregory, Stanley of Alderley, Percy Wyndham, Hobart, and Morris. [This imagined party never came to anything on account of the political upset which immediately afterwards happened. If I remember rightly I did not even issue all the invitations.]

“_2nd June._—To London again for the day, but it is like a city of the dead. The only person I saw was Mrs. Howard. She is half inclined now to forgive me my political errors, and has invited me to Castle Howard for next month. She has been seeing something lately of Chamberlain, whom she attacked about his orchid mania. But he defends himself by saying he has had an horticultural passion all his life; when he was a little boy he used to spend his pennies in the market buying pots of daisies.

“_4th June._—Randolph has made a capital speech, with a declaration of Conservative policy, including an inquiry into the Government of India and a sort of Home Rule for Ireland. As regards Egypt, he is for arranging matters with the Sultan, and retaining with his consent the protection of Egypt. He is educating the Tory Party, and I am educating him.

“_5th June._—Called on Middleton, the Conservative agent, and told him I could accept Randolph’s programme almost as it stood, and would write in that sense. He tells me there is a difficulty about finding me a Conservative seat with my views on Irish Home Rule. But he asked me to give him a little longer to make inquiries. He still thinks there may be an opening at Liverpool, or he might find me a place where I could stand as an independent candidate with a Tory vote.

“Dined with Whittaker at the Salisbury Club in St. James’s Square. Hobart and his wife were there, and Villiers the correspondent of the ‘Illustrated London News,’ just back from the Nile campaign. Villiers gave me much interesting information. He considers the campaign redounds greatly to Wolseley’s credit, and the credit of all concerned. Like most correspondents he is more warlike than any soldier, would have eaten the Arabs’ livers if he could, and has been in all the battles. At the same time he says the power of the Mahdi is quite unbroken. The Mahdi is a man of genius and has never made a mistake, and his movement is the most important there has ever been in Africa. I asked him about the reported losses of Arabs in battle, and he said they had been absurdly exaggerated. He knew how generals liked to make big things out of small ones, and he was quite sure, from first to last and including both campaigns at Suakin and the Nile, the total Arab loss was under 5,000. This has consoled me much. He was at Tamaï last year when the British square was broken, and he is sure there were not above 600 Arabs who made the charge, nor more than 5,000 altogether opposed to Graham.

“About Sir Charles Wilson’s delay in reaching Khartoum, he said that Wilson’s fault, if any, was in not pushing home the attack on Metemmeh. He had attacked Metemmeh, meaning to take it, but found the place too strong, and after the repulse it would have been very imprudent to send the steamers away directly, as it would have invited attack on the camp. Metemmeh, therefore, and Shendi had to be shelled; Khartoum could have been taken by the Arabs at any time. The Intelligence Department had been wrong throughout. Villiers seems an intelligent fellow, and, as I have said, a fire-eating warrior. So his evidence goes for much. He told me it was certainly true that a reward of £50 had been offered for Olivier Pain, dead or alive. It was Wolseley issued it, ‘and quite right too, the man being a soldier of fortune.’ He himself would have been ‘delighted to put a bullet through him, and drag him into camp by the heels.’ Such are the amenities of ‘war which is not war.’

“_6th June._—Luncheon in Belgrave Square. George Wyndham has written from Suakin, very angry with me for saying in the ‘Times’ that money had been paid for dead Arabs’ hands. Only one hand had been brought in, and it was not of a dead but of a live Arab whom they had gone out and brought in alive to camp, and nothing was paid for the hand. But that does not prevent C. from having done the thing last year. Met Harry Brand in Piccadilly and walked with him up Bond Street. I told him I thought Randolph the only man who would push reform. But he said the Government would be in for ever, they would get a majority of fifty more than they had now after the elections. To a great party at the Foreign Office for the Queen’s birthday.

“_8th June._—Crabbet. I have finished my letter to Randolph (the one intended for publication as a manifesto of my opinions), and have written to him to say I will bring it him to-morrow. He has made another wonderful speech at Cambridge. I am convinced he will carry the Tory Party through at the elections.

“_9th June._—This morning the astonishing news came of the Government’s defeat on the Budget. Nobody at all expected it, and it looks very like a put-up business. People in London, however, say the reason is that the Whigs and Radicals have got rusty about voting, having been sent for so often to defend motions of censure, and now they did not believe in the danger. Anyhow, the Government are out, and the Carlton Club is agog with delight.

“I went up by the early train to London, and my first visit was to Randolph, the hero of the moment (whom I found still in bed). I must say there never was a man with his head turned less by success than he. We talked for half an hour, and he read me a very curious letter which arrived while I was with him from Lepel Griffin. It contained a scheme of policy for Afghanistan which was briefly this: The Amir’s reception at Rawal Pindi has been a failure and a mistake; too much fuss had been made with him, and it had offended the other native princes. Scindia had said it was ridiculous, and the Maharajah of Cashmere had refused to come. None of the princes of India were really loyal, except the Punjabis. The rest disliked us, ‘though,’ said Griffin, ‘I made the most of their loyalty in my article to encourage them.’ His article was one about the native army. His scheme for Afghanistan was this: he would come to an understanding with Russia for its partition, making over to her the Turcoman provinces and keeping Candahar and Kabul with the Hindoo Kush for a frontier. This was, I remember, exactly Lytton’s scheme of securing a ‘scientific frontier.’ Griffin, however, would give Constantinople to Russia. To this Randolph objected, but he approved of keeping Candahar, or rather of taking it. I dissuaded him, however, strongly from meddling with the Afghans, and offered to find out from Jemal-ed-Din in what way we could make friends with them, and who would be the most popular Amir to succeed Abd-el-Rahman, if, as Randolph said was likely soon, he should die.

“We then talked about the prospects of a change of Government, and he told me the Conservatives would take office and that all had been arranged. But they did not wish it known, and had sent word to the ‘Pall Mall’ that they did not mean to come in. Randolph counts on having a voice in Foreign Affairs, and he asked me whether I would go on a mission to the Mahdi. I said I would if sent as a regular envoy. Also there will be no coercion in Ireland. He read my letter, which I had brought with me, and approved of it all. ‘I agree with it all,’ he said; but he asked me to leave out the words ‘Home Rule’ in what I said about Ireland, and insert the words ‘than you _apparently_ are _yet_ prepared for.’ He also assured me he was keeping Middleton up to the mark about my candidature, and again recommended Southwark. We agreed that I should send my letter to the ‘Times’ to-night for publication.

“Then to Button in the City, and arranged about publishing the letter; and then to Mrs. Howard. She dined last night with Hartington and Granville and Bright, and assured me they had been all as merry and unconscious of danger as men could be. Bright told her he was at the Cabinet which decided on the bombardment of Alexandria; but Lord Granville had assured him that it would not really take place, and it had long ago been settled that he was to leave the Cabinet on the first shot fired in any war. It had been a cause of grief and tears with him to watch the slaughter which had since occurred, but he had not had the heart to stand up and denounce his former friends. He had, however, written to Mr. Gladstone after the war to say that if he allowed Arabi to be tried by the Egyptian Government it would be a ‘lasting infamy.’ I am asked to Castle Howard for 21st July.

“Back to Crabbet. We have arranged two parties: one for Staal on the 27th, the other for Randolph on the 4th. Staal did not fancy meeting Randolph, so we have asked them for separate days. Also a third for the Club on the 11th of July.

“_11th June._—Anniversary of the Alexandria riots. Arabi is very nearly now avenged. I shall send a copy of my letter to Randolph to Lothian, that he may show it to Lord Salisbury, who will probably have the Foreign Office. Barring accidents, we must win now; at least we have gained this—Granville will _never_ be in office again till time shall be no more.

“To London. Harry Brand professes himself in high delight at being out of office, and I fancy there was a little hocus-pocus in the Government defeat. To Coombe, where we saw ‘As You Like It’ acted in the open air. I cannot call it a success; I dislike Shakespeare on the stage, and especially his comedies. His long-winded Elizabethan jokes after these three hundred years are inexpressibly flat, and this ‘As You Like It’ is full of them. Then the open-air representation gave only the forest scenes, and was a bit monotonous. I doubt if anything is gained by its being out of doors. The _coup d’œil_ was pretty enough, but in no way reminded one of a forest, and the actors looked even less real than on a regular stage. The place chosen was no part of Coombe Wood, but a suburban garden with lime trees, pretty but tame. The ground, littered with dry fern, looked like a farmyard, and the actors, wading about in it, out of place and a trifle absurd. The acting was ordinary English acting, that is to say bad—mostly professional. Lady Archie’s[123] was certainly the best; she is a tall, graceful woman, with a good stage voice, and made herself well heard. These are my criticisms, but the day was perfect—chequered sunlight and shade, with birds singing, and I enjoyed it very much.

“Dined with Anne at the Russian Embassy. A pleasant family dinner, nobody there but ourselves, a secretary, and Monsieur de Lessar. We talked the political situation over freely, and my impression is that Lord Salisbury will have trouble in finishing the Afghan frontier dispute. Staal is evidently much roughed up, especially against Randolph; and when I asked him whether he would like to meet him at Crabbet he said he would rather not. He would, however, like to meet some Conservatives of position; so I have asked Lothian and Pembroke. We talked about Madame de Novikof, and he acknowledged that she had been very useful to Russian diplomacy. There was talk also about Ismaïl in a tone which convinces me that Ismaïl is the Russian candidate. There is a Christian conspiracy against Islam here in England, consisting of Madame de Novikof, Stead, and Ismaïl as the Sultan’s chief enemy. Staal said to me: ‘What they reproach you with is that having been against the Sultan you have now gone over to him.’ He must have got this from these three.

“_12th June._—My letter to Randolph is in the ‘Times.’ I have sent copies of it to Lucknow, Bombay, Colombo, and Constantinople; also to Sanua and Jemal-ed-Din.[124]

“_14th June, Sunday._—Crabbet. The ‘Observer’ has a list of the new Cabinet, which, if true, would suit me well. Randolph at the India Office, Northcote, Foreign Affairs; no mention of Pembroke, however, whom I met on Friday looking very mysterious, as people do who have been talked to about a place but are not sure of getting it.

“_16th June._—Randolph has made a new row, voting against Northcote with Beach and others. I suppose Lord Salisbury has not recognized the claims and policy of the Fourth Party; it is unfortunate, as it seems to jeopardize the Conservative chance. But I daresay Randolph is right; he is the only man capable of leading the Tories to victory. Lady C. writes that the Prince of Wales is highly pleased with my letter to Randolph.

“_17th June._—Randolph was right and he has won, and nothing he has done yet has given me so high an idea of his genius as a leader. He has brought Lord Salisbury to his own terms. Stafford Northcote is to go to the Lords, and Beach is to lead the Commons as Randolph’s lieutenant. All the old generals are to be put on the pension list, and the young fellows to command the battle. This will give the Tory Party a chance at the elections: it would have had none under Northcote. With Randolph at the India Office and, who knows, Drummond Wolff Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs, I ought to be able to pull through my programme. At the Radical meeting last night, at St. James’s Hall, Vernon Harcourt incautiously mentioned Arabi’s name, and it was received with vociferous cheering.

“_18th June._—In London. Just saw Randolph at the Carlton Club and congratulated him. But he said: ‘It is not a case for congratulations yet. Nothing is settled.’ The old fogies at the Carlton are in a great taking about Lord Salisbury having accepted office, and are putting pressure on him to back out of it. It seems there are negotiations going on with Gladstone to know whether he will support the Conservatives on the Budget and other matters, and it is doubtful which way it will go. I had a long talk with Leconfield, who expressed the usual idea—rather frightened at Randolph—would sooner not come into office. Pembroke the same. I am all for a bold course, the only one to win the elections.

“Back to Crabbet; I shall stay here till the crisis is over.

“_22nd June._—Had a talk with Ferid Bey, first secretary of the Turkish Embassy, who came down to Crabbet. He is very anxious to find out what Lord Salisbury’s policy is likely to be. I sketched to him my idea of a settlement for Egypt; but it is clear the Turks have but one notion, to get Egypt back ‘after the manner of Syria,’ which, Ferid says, is ‘so well governed.’ I explained to him, however, that, unless they could get rid of the debt, they could not get rid of European influence, and for that reason the Sultan must act in concert with some solvent Power, which could guarantee the interest of the loans, and so undertake a joint protection. This could only be England. Acting together, peace could easily be restored in Egypt by the Sultan’s appointment of a new Viceroy.

“Lord Salisbury is to come into office. Lothian, whom I met at the Carlton Club, told me it was settled this afternoon. I talked to him about Eastern policy and Lord Salisbury’s foreign policy. He tells me the great difficulty with Lord Salisbury is that he is a very shy man, and hardly ever mixes with people out of his own set, so that he does not know the real turn opinion is taking. Also, with regard to Egypt, it will be difficult to get him to go against his words. He was strongly against Arabi before the war, and has always taken the line that the Government’s fault was that it did not put him down soon enough. There will be the difficulty. Lothian is coming down to Crabbet next Sunday and we shall then know more about it. In the meanwhile I have written to Jemal-ed-Din, begging him to hold himself in readiness to come over here should he be wanted. The Wagrams have arrived in London.

“_23rd June._—Sure enough Lord Salisbury is in office. There is talk of Drummond Wolff going to Egypt in Evelyn Baring’s place. At the Carlton I found Middleton, who tells me the Conservatives of Southwark will probably ask me to stand for their division at the elections, and if I can make sure of the Irish vote I shall certainly be elected. This sounds well. To a party at Lady Ripon’s, where I met divers Radicals—Lyulph Stanley, the Courtneys, Sir George Campbell, and others, all very angry at Randolph’s success. There were Indians there too, but these were quite willing to take him as an acquisition; he would be better in any case than Kimberley. The great advantage Randolph has as a reformer is that he has no respect at all for any one older than himself; and I expect when he gets strong in his seat after the elections he will turn the old Indian Council into the street. They say now at the India Office that they know how to manage him, but we shall see. Amongst others at the party was the Duke of Argyll, to whom I was introduced. I began at once with him about his Soudan speech in the House of Lords, and we had a quarter of an hour’s argument, during the course of which I told him that the only civilization he was likely to bring to the Arabs was brandy and venereal diseases. It is difficult to keep one’s temper with the Duke of Argyll, he is so dictatorial and _cassant_ in his manner—the very rudest man I ever talked to. Forster joined us, and I went away without finishing the conversation.

“_25th June._—Robert Bourke is appointed Undersecretary for Foreign Affairs, and I have written to congratulate him. This is a very distinct gain. Also Drummond Wolff goes to Egypt, and Baring is to be recalled. Thus I have many friends in office, for Arthur Balfour also gets a place and Sidney Herbert.

“Called on Button in his new rooms in Northumberland Avenue. He is standing for Clapham. He tells me the Conservatives mean now to pay no attention at all to votes in the House, to be silent in face of resolutions, and if supply is refused to carry on the Government without it till the elections. They will keep quiet about their foreign policy till the recess, and then they will act vigorously. Drummond Wolff is being sent out as a stop-gap, ‘to report.’ Baring will certainly be recalled. Eventually the Egyptian question will be settled in accord with the Sultan. Bismarck will support England. They are talking of Lytton for Constantinople, but I advised his going to Vienna and sending Paget to Constantinople. Called also on Percy Wyndham, who is much interested in the way things are turning and my election prospects. I regret immensely that he should be leaving Parliament at the very moment when the outlook is brighter and he likely to be appreciated.

“Lunched at the Alfred Lytteltons—George Curzon, Godfrey Webb, and others there. Met Eddy Hamilton in fine feather coming out of Lord Granville’s. He has been made a C. B., which he acknowledges, and given Welby’s place at the Treasury, which he does not acknowledge.

“To Drummond Wolff’s daughter’s wedding; the bridesmaids in yellow, representing the Primrose League. Then to Fulham Palace, where Bee Lascelles, now Mrs. Bishop Temple, was holding a clerical levee, the garden ‘crawling alive’ with parsons like an ant’s nest. I escaped to a side alley, feeling out of my element, and ran up against Frederick Leveson, who had fled there from the same motive. We had not met since the bombardment of Alexandria, but he was glad to find any one to say ‘How do you do’ to. ‘You are the first layman I have met here,’ he said; ‘it is like a scene out of Trollope.’

“Dined at Frederic Harrison’s and sat next Lord Justice Bowen, and talked over Lord Randolph’s character. I think I can see the Radicals are getting a bit uneasy at Randolph’s leadership. If he can succeed in striking terror in the enemy, confidence will come to our people and we shall carry the day. Randolph has written, asking me to call on him at the India Office early next week, which is a sign of good things. They all say he will change now he is in office, but we shall see. His note was in answer to one of mine, telling him that Godley was a friend, and asking him to look up the cases of the Civil Service examinations and Holkar’s claim. Both these requests were suggested to me by Pollen on Lord Ripon’s behalf. Lord Ripon supported both cases, but was thrown over by Lord Kimberley.

“Gordon’s Diaries are out. They are excellent reading, and he pitches into Malet and Colvin and Dilke to my heart’s content.

“_27th June._—A party at Crabbet—the Staals and Wagrams, Harry Brand, Stanley of Alderley, and Lothian. I have had much talk with Lothian about the new Conservative policy in Egypt, and have urged him to press on Lord Salisbury the necessity of very careful dealing with the matter, as it is one which might very easily be bungled. It is curious having Lothian down here for the first time after so many years that we have known each other intimately. I find Staal much more peaceably inclined towards the present Ministry. He quite understands Churchill’s irresponsibility. He seems to distrust Salisbury the more of the two. ‘Now they are in office,’ he said, ‘I shall have to be friends with them.’

“_28th June, Sunday._—Button came down, riding from London, and we played lawn tennis. Button rather disquiets me in what he says of Lord Salisbury’s intention in Egypt. He has counter-ordered the evacuation of Dongola, and Harry Brand talks of an expedition to Khartoum as an easy matter. I am afraid they may be tempted to humour Wolseley.

“I have been reading Gordon’s journals, and find him perpetually calling for Turkish troops. To the last he seems to have underrated his enemy, both physically and morally. What strikes me most in these journals is Gordon’s inability to see the far higher moral standing ground of his opponents. I doubt if he understood the letters sent him; they were probably not translated to him fairly, and he never would see any of the Mahdi’s men himself. If he had gone to the Mahdi he could not have blinded himself to the elevation of the position the Mahdi claimed as socialistic reformer, and he is content to repeat tales, told him by Greeks and other scoundrels, of the Mahdi putting pepper under his nails to promote tears, and other like absurdities. If ever right triumphed in the world it was at the fall of Khartoum. At the same time the journals make out a far stronger case for Gordon as against the Government than I could have expected.

“_30th June._—To London, to see Randolph at the India Office. He had just been attending his first council and seemed a little oppressed at the weight of work before him. But he soon cheered up, and talked with his old frankness and fun about his plans: ‘I am doing all I can now,’ he said, ‘of course to humour the people in the Office and get them friendly. But they are very slow, and I can see will prove obstructive. The Secretary of State, however, can always insist, if he chooses, on having his own way; and I mean to have mine. We must do things by degrees. If I was to offer to re-open the question of the Civil Service examinations straight off there would be a howl all over the Office. But I mean to carry the Queen’s Proclamation into practice, and see that the natives get admitted into the services. I can tell them that through you, but can do no more for the present.’

“I asked him about Holkar’s claim. This he professed himself quite ready to support. ‘Dufferin has promised me,’ he said, ‘not to put the settlement of this matter into Durand’s hands. All my sympathies are with Holkar.’ I told him about Staal’s visit and the prospects of peace with Russia, and advised him to have as little to do with the Afghans as he could help. But we did not discuss the subject at length. Then we went on to Egypt, and he said: ‘I am very anxious you should see Drummond Wolff without delay. Drummond Wolff is very keen to work in the way we want, and I am beginning to get Lord Salisbury round to our ideas. Lord Salisbury and I are on the best possible terms; like father and son,’ he said with a queer smile. Also he went on: ‘I told Lord Salisbury we should have to get rid of Tewfik the other day, and it quite startled him. He never seems to have thought of it before, but I think he will come to it; we must do it little by little. My idea about Egypt is—only you must promise me you will not repeat it, for if it was to get about it would spoil everything—that Tewfik should be deposed by the Sultan, and his son put up under English guardianship. We would then recall Arabi, at first as a simple citizen,—afterwards, when we saw how it did, as Minister. But there must be a protectorate.’ I said: ‘Why not call it something else, an alliance?’ ‘No,’ he said, ‘I think it best to call a spade a spade. We will call it what it is, a protectorate.’ I said: ‘You will require very delicate handling to get the Sultan to do exactly what you want. He is difficult to deal with and a little mad; and whatever is done should be through his initiative.’ To this he entirely agreed.

“He then asked about Dongola and Suakin, whether it would not be best to get the Sultan to occupy them with his troops. With regard to Suakin, I said: ‘Certainly, yes; but not Dongola. Any troops left at Dongola would certainly be attacked.’ And I strongly advise him to accept Lord Granville’s line of Wady Halfa as the boundary of Egypt. If he did so there was very little chance of Egypt being invaded this year. A joint occupation with the Turks in Lower Egypt would be a smaller risk, but I would not advise it. The Sultan’s intervention should be a moral one. Randolph is keen also to make peace with the Mahdi, which he said would be a feather in their caps before the election. And he approved the idea of Ibrahim going as forerunner to prepare my way before me. I am to talk all this over, however, with Drummond Wolff when he returns from Woodstock on Saturday, and afterwards see Lord Salisbury. ‘You need not mind,’ he said, ‘putting yourself forward in this matter; you are an authority on Egypt and have a right to be heard.’ Nothing could have been more satisfactory than all this conversation. With regard to Ismaïl, Randolph spoke very strongly: ‘I will never consent,’ he said, ‘to his restoration. I should consider it a personal disgrace to be connected with the restoration of such a scoundrel. As to Halim I know nothing, and I prefer Tewfik’s boy with a Regency.’ I promised to be secret on all he had told me, and to act in concert with him and Drummond Wolff, and I have written to Wolff to propose seeing him Monday or Tuesday.

“_1st July._—The ‘Times’ opens fire at Drummond Wolff, and I fear may spoil our sport, so I have written a short letter about the charges against the Khedive, and have sent it to Churchill to know whether he approves its publication. I am for attacking Tewfik now; if they commit themselves with him they will never get rid of him. The ‘Morning Post’ has an article in favour of Ismaïl. Randolph has sent back word, through Hope (my private secretary), that if I had written my letter a fortnight ago he would have approved it; now he cannot approve it. So I have kept back the letter; it is useless fighting the battle by myself.

“To Argyll Lodge, where I had another talk with the Duke, but in more amicable terms. All the same, it is an uncomfortable house to visit, through the absurd pride of its inhabitants.

“_3rd July._—Wrote to Robert Bourke giving an account of my correspondence with Downing Street about the Mahdi.

“_4th and 5th July, Sunday._—Our annual Lawn Tennis meeting; those present were Eddy Hamilton, Wentworth, Frederic Harrison, Elcho, Jack Napier, Mark Napier, Kingscote, Sandys, Seymour, Mallock, Farquhar, Button, and George Dallas.

“Button tells me Randolph has been a great success at the India Office; he has also won his election at Woodstock most triumphantly, and the party prospects are good. Not so I fear those of Egypt. Button talks of their keeping on Tewfik there ‘for a year.’ If so, he will be kept on altogether.

“_6th July._—Saw Drummond Wolff at the Carlton Club. He tells me he is going to Constantinople before he goes to Cairo, which is as it should be. He is annoyed at the set made at him in the ‘Times,’ and I explained to him that ‘a Twenty Years’ Resident’ was none other than our friend Moberly Bell. He asked me about the possibility of treating with the Mahdi, and I have agreed to bring Jemal-ed-Din from Paris to talk things over with him. We are to have another and more serious discussion of the Egyptian business as soon as he has seen Lord Salisbury.

“Saw Middleton, the Tory agent, who tells me my name is the only one before the Conservatives of Southwark, and they will probably choose me as their candidate. But there are certain ‘fossilized Tories’ who are suspicious of me.

“Down to Coombe Wood to see Mrs. Batten act Amaryllis in ‘The Faithful Shepherdess.’ As a _féerie_ it was pretty, much prettier than ‘As You Like It.’ Mrs. Batten looked very well, but the best was a little Indian lady, calling herself the Princess Helen of Kappartalla, very pretty, very graceful, and clever. The piece, like the other, was spoilt by the professionals. When it was over I stopped to dine with Bertram Currie [N.B.—He was member of the Indian Council], whose house was close by. Bertram gave me an account of Randolph’s first council at the India Office, which took place on Tuesday just before I saw him. Bertram’s account was that he was much frightened and said nothing, absolutely nothing. To him, Bertram, he was very humble in a private interview afterwards: ‘There is one thing,’ Randolph had said, ‘of which I am profoundly ignorant, and that is finance.’ And so he will be humble till the day he feels his legs and can strike them. According to Button, he has held the same language with Ashley Eden and Rawlinson and all of them.

“_7th July._—Lord Salisbury has made his statement about Egypt, which is far from satisfactory, inasmuch as he engages himself to support Tewfik. It makes a true settlement once more impossible. Nothing, however, can be done but to accept the position, and I shall not move further in the matter till I am in Parliament. There are difficulties at Southwark, which wants a ‘fossilized Tory’; still, Middleton thinks it all right. If I don’t get in this time I shall leave English politics alone, as I am too old to wait for another chance. Perhaps it will be better so, and in any case I leave it to God’s providence for good or for evil.

“_8th July._—To a political meeting at East Grinstead, where I made my maiden speech as a Conservative. This commits me to party politics, a thing I have avoided all my life.

“_9th July._—Ibrahim has received a letter from Jemal-ed-Din hinting that, if nothing is done in Egypt in the sense we hope for from Randolph, he will go off to Afghanistan to raise up trouble against England. I have consequently written to Wolff, urging him to get Lord Salisbury to commence negotiations with the Mahdi and sending him my correspondence with Downing Street.[125]

“Dined at the Gaskells with Anne, and took in Lady Iddesleigh, late Lady Northcote,[126] and she questioned me closely about the Mahdi and the Sultan and Arabi; and afterwards I had some conversation, and Anne had more, with her husband, who is now Foreign Secretary. Lady Iddesleigh professed great sympathy with Arabi, and with my ideas generally of a settlement. She also said she thought it would be a good thing to get Tewfik to retire on an honourable pension. She is a chatty old woman of the old-fashioned sort, and talked nicely and simply of her pleasure in Sir Stafford’s being made an earl. His relations had always looked for a peerage for him, and an earldom of Iddesleigh had long been an extreme ambition. His lordship seems to have talked in much the same strain to Anne about Egypt, and I augur well of their willingness to converse. My taking Lady Iddesleigh in to dinner was evidently pre-arranged, as it was not properly my place.

“The Mahdi’s death is reported, and the arrival of Huseyn Khalifa at Alexandria to tender submission to Tewfik. But Ibrahim says he must have brought a summons to the Khedive to become a Moslem.

“_13th July._—Went to see Wolseley arrive from Egypt at Victoria Station. There was no great crowd, perhaps two hundred persons on the platform and three hundred outside. There was a feeble attempt at cheering from his friends, and I heard a few hoots, certainly no enthusiasm. Wolseley looked older than when he went away, and rather careworn. Last time he came back from Egypt it was for a ridiculous triumph down Pall Mall, with the Grand Old Man waving his handkerchief like a madman from a window, fresh from Tel-el-Kebir. Now he drives away from the station with half a dozen little boys running after his carriage. I like him better as he is. I should like best of all to see him hanged.

“_14th July._—To Middleton’s at twelve o’clock to hear my fate at Southwark. I don’t think it has been Middleton’s fault, but the Southwark electors at a meeting last night were told I was an out and out Home Ruler, and that frightened them out of their wits, and they have selected another candidate. I see nothing for it but to put up with the disappointment. My failure to get into Parliament will put an end to my political career, as I have pretty well exhausted the good I can do with letter writing in the ‘Times,’ and require a new weapon.

“_16th July._—A deputation has come to me from Camberwell, which has been offered to me instead of Southwark. I told them very frankly what my position and views were: that I was a Roman Catholic and Home Ruler in Ireland, but a devout believer in Randolph and Church and State in England. They asked me whether I was in favour of Fair Trade and duties on imported manufactures. And I said that if the Conservative Government proposed such duties I would support them; but I was not clear how Fair Trade would work. They asked next about Sir Wilfrid Lawson’s Local Option. I said I had no intention of voting for it. This is the only point on which I have had a doubt, but I think I am not called upon to vote for this particular Bill. After all, England is a Christian country and must have its beer.

“On Ireland they were at first a little staggered by my using the word ‘Home Rule,’ but I said I preferred to call a spade a spade; and I believed the Irish were right in asking a separate Parliament; they did not wish for a complete separation. But I was an advocate for the right of nations to govern themselves, and I could make no exception about Ireland. On the School Board quarrel I was entirely with them; and I think it a real good fortune for me to have this particular cause to defend of religious education, for it is one I wholly sympathize with, and it is of a piece with my Mohammedan teaching in India. Finally, after an hour and a half’s talk, we parted mutually satisfied, and I am to attend a local meeting this day week and give my final answer. I am to pay my own expenses, but they have promised me an easy time of it in the way of work.

“This settled, I went at once to Randolph at the India Office and told him all, and agreed with him that he should write a letter to the Camberwell Committee congratulating them on their choice of me as candidate. I found Randolph very cheerful: ‘They will never make an official of _me_,’ he said, with a funny smile. We talked about Egypt: ‘Tewfik,’ I said, ‘will be a terrible handicap to Lord Salisbury’s programme; but I suppose you are obliged to keep him.’ ‘We shall see about that,’ he answered; ‘only we must have patience. Drummond Wolff is the man to get it done through.’ Then he asked about Arabi, whether I would answer for him as honest, and he would work with us in an honest way; and I said ‘he would for the good of the country, but not to prepare the way for annexation.’ About his own department he told me he was in great trouble to know what sort of game the Amir was playing in Afghanistan, and he asked me to try and get him information. And I offered to bring Jemal-ed-Din from Paris, and talk that matter and Egypt over with him. He was much pleased at this, and said he would see him at my house. I expect the India Office people are a bit frightened at my coming to see Randolph, but they are extremely polite to me.

“Later I met Wolff at the Carlton Club. He wanted to know whether Arabi would come back to serve under Tewfik, and whether he would serve with Sherif or Nubar. I said I would find out, and I have written to Arabi asking him, and begging him to telegraph ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’ Wolff also wanted to hear about the Mahdi. ‘Lord Salisbury will hear what Wolseley and Baring have to say,’ he said, ‘but he won’t necessarily do what they advise; and if he wishes, he will make peace with the Mahdi in spite of them.’ I promised Wolff to introduce some people at Constantinople who could be of use there. All this sounds well. Then I saw Huntley McCarthy and arranged with him about the Camberwell Irish, of whom there seem to be a thousand or so. [N.B.—This was a great exaggeration.] And then to Cardinal Manning, who gave me his best wishes and promised to write to the Camberwell priest.

“_18th July._—To Castle Howard, travelling in company with Mrs. Morris. In the carriage with us were the Speaker, his wife, and daughter. We arrived at Castle Howard in floods of rain, which made it look gloomy enough. But the site of the house is good, the chief block quite perfect, and the inside a gem. Since the house has been built, however, I suppose it has never been treated in such a way as it is now; everything is cut down to the barest necessity of existence: no one to open the gates at the lodges, not a servant to be seen except at meals, and no footman with the carriage. The gardens are neglected—they look the better for it; and the park has been railed off and is being mown for hay. On the other hand, I doubt if the house ever was cheerfuller. There were some twenty children and young persons under twenty in it, and there was a deal of boating on the large pond and tennis on the lawns. The only person to receive us at the door was Mrs. Howard. She has made up some rooms for herself in one of the wings, but the whole house is occupied from one end to the other. The men staying here are tutors or undergraduates, friends of Charley’s, and all is essentially _bourgeois_ and communistic. I like it the better.

“_19th July, Sunday._—George took me round the house and showed me the pictures. They are an admirable collection, good specimens of every school. The Velasquez of two children, an Infanta and a Dwarf, is, I think, the most remarkable; and there is a very interesting picture of Newmarket in the reign of Queen Anne, which shows the horses of the day to have been big sixteen hand horses, with heads of the Spanish type. There are some good marbles too, and the rooms are finely decorated. Mrs. Howard talks of doing away with the formal parterres in front of the house, but I have persuaded her that this would be sacrilege. She is very angry with me for having put on Tory armour for the election, or rather Radical armour for the Tory cause, and especially for going against the School Board, of which she and her mother and brother Lyulph are fierce champions.

“_20th July._—Mary Howard’s birthday, and I wrote her a sonnet. She is a wonderful child with her philanthropies, and has been founding a society of girls in the neighbouring villages for their mutual good and the furtherance of virtue. She preaches to them for an hour and an hour and a half at the time, and has got together about a hundred of them. She has genius and beauty and a blameless heart, and is of the sort which might convert a world. The sonnet has pleased the child, who is ready for all martyrdom. In the afternoon she entertained her village friends with a concert, and made them a little speech afterwards, very simply and nicely. I know nobody else who could do this without ridicule.

“I have been avenging myself for the political anger I have aroused in the house by writing my Tory democratic electoral address, and by threatening to date it from Castle Howard.

“_21st July._—A bright day at last, and the place has changed as if by magic, for it is dependent on the sun for its charms. Mrs. Howard took me for a drive of four hours, visiting village parsons, in pursuance of a scheme she has for giving holidays in the country to three or four hundred girls from Leeds. While in the carriage I read her my address, and she was so angry I thought she would have stopped the carriage and put me down to walk home. Old Lady Stanley, her mother, came in the evening; she is a valiant old lady, and fought the cause of the School Board at dinner and the cause of Gladstone and her party, which she loves above principle.

“_22nd July._—Back to London. Sheykh Jemal-ed-Din is expected in James Street, and I went down at once to the India Office where I was fortunate enough to find Randolph just coming from the House. I met him at the door of the Office and walked with him up to his room. He looked fagged and ill and complained of the stairs, though in truth it was only one flight and not a steep one. He promised to meet Jemal-ed-Din at my house to-morrow at half-past ten, and I explained to him exactly who he was, with the history of his doings in Egypt and India. ‘He is in the black book,’ I said, ‘of every one here, and an enemy of England. But if he was not he would be of no use to us.’ I asked him about the Civil Service examinations for India in reference to a report in yesterday’s ‘Pall Mall’ of his having decided to take the matter up. But he told me this was not true; he intended to meddle very little with details, but to push on a general inquiry into the state of the Indian Government. ‘Everything here,’ he said, ‘is at a deadlock, owing to the uncertainty of Afghanistan and Egypt.’ I did not stay with him for more than a few minutes for he seemed quite exhausted.

“_23rd July._—Jemal-ed-Din arrived in the night, and at half-past ten punctually Randolph came to James Street; he was all right again and in his usual spirits. Before introducing the Afghan I read Randolph over my Electoral Address, of which he highly approved, correcting only a few words, that is to say, making me leave out the qualifications about the _South_ of England in speaking of my belief in Tory popularity, and the allusion to Lord Salisbury having made ‘an alliance with the Irish leaders.’ He was also doubtful about my saying anything regarding an Irish Parliament. All the rest he approved, and said it was original and good. He said he was in favour of import duties on manufactured goods. I asked him whether he had any special scheme himself for ameliorating the condition of the poor, and he said ‘No, but Lord Salisbury has.’

“Then I showed him Pollen’s letter, communicating Lord Ripon’s message about agricultural banks in India and the Oxford examinations. He said that I might tell Lord Ripon that he was favourable about both matters, and especially about the agricultural banks, and that if he would draw him up a scheme on paper he would support it. But he had not the necessary knowledge on either subject to push it without assistance, nor the time to get the questions up. He seemed pleased at Lord Ripon’s having communicated with him. I also mentioned the case of Suchait Singh and the Pundit of Vizianagram, and he told me to send the details to Moore, his secretary. About Lepel Griffin he said he could not quarrel with him, but he was writing to him by this mail, and would suggest to him that he should make me some apology.

“Then we sent for Jemal-ed-Din, whom Randolph received with great politeness and made him sit by him on the sofa. They talked in French, but I soon perceived that Randolph knew very little of the language, and I had to translate for them. Randolph first asked about the Mahdi’s death, whether it was true, and Jemal-ed-Din said he thought not, but even if true it would make little difference, as the Soudanese would choose a successor. Randolph asked who that would be. _Jemal-ed-Din_: ‘It would not be Osman Digna, but one of the Mahdi’s companions, a man of religion; Osman Digna would be the General but not the Khalifa. All would be done as on the occasion of Mohammed’s death, when the most religious man was chosen.’ Randolph then asked about Afghanistan, what the Amir’s position was. And Jemal-ed-Din’s account was briefly this: Abd-el-Rahman, he said, was a good general but he was not a great politician, though neither was he a fool. He had the majority of the Afghans with him, but nothing would be easier than to get up revolts against him. The Afghans were simple-minded people—_peuple naïf_—ignorant of politics and always ready to fight. The Russians might make a revolt through Ishak Khan or a dozen others of the sons of Shere Ali and the princely house. Nothing would be easier. The Russians had no intention of fighting the Afghans this year, but would make friends with some of these princes and raise disturbances. They would represent themselves as allies against the English and would promise the provinces of Cashmere and Peshawar if India revolted. The Afghans would believe them. _Randolph_: ‘Do the Afghans hate us more than the Russians?’ _Jemal-ed-Din_: ‘The Russians have done no harm to the Afghans. The English have made three wars on them.’ _Randolph_: ‘But do not you consider that the Russians have done more harm to Islam than we have done?’ _Jemal-ed-Din_: ‘The Russians have swallowed up a few principalities, the Crimea, Circassia, and among the Turcomans, but England has destroyed the great empire at Delhi, it has invaded Egypt, the Soudan.’ _Randolph_: ‘It was the Mahrattas that destroyed the Mogul Empire.’ _Jemal-ed-Din_: ‘The Mahrattas came and went. Nadir Shah invaded India, but he was a Moslem. You remained and you destroyed the Empire. There are three reasons why the Mohammedans of India have hated you more than the Russians: Firstly, because you destroyed the Empire of Delhi; secondly, because you give no salaries to the _imams_ and _muezzins_ and keepers of the mosques, which the Russians are careful to do; and you have resigned the Wakaf property and do not repair the sacred buildings.’ _Randolph_: ‘We repair some of the mosques.’ _Jemal- ed-Din_: ‘Only when they are works of art, not for the sake of religion. And, thirdly, because you give no high offices of rank in the army to Mohammedans. The Russians do this.’ _Randolph_: ‘There are many Mohammedans in the highest offices in the Native States of India.’ _Jemal-ed-Din_: ‘The Native States are not British India. What the belly has not swallowed it does not digest.’ (Here we laughed.) _Randolph_: ‘Then you think England a greater danger to Mohammedans than Russia?’ _Jemal-ed-Din_: ‘I do not say so; I have spoken of the past. England has done more harm to us than Russia, but Russia is now more dangerous. If the Russians remain, I do not say at Penjdeh or Tulfikar or Merushak, but at Merv still five years, there will be no more Afghanistan and no more Persia and no more Anatolia and no more India. All will have been swallowed. They will leave Penjdeh and the rest, but it will matter nothing; they will remain in Merv.’ _Randolph_: ‘This is true. But what would you have us do?’ _Jemal-ed-Din_: ‘You must make an alliance with Islam, with the Afghans, the Persians, the Turks, the Egyptians, the Arabs; you must drive the Russians back out of Merv to the Caspian Sea. To make friends with the Mohammedans you must leave Egypt. There is no danger for Egypt from foreign nations. You hold Cyprus, you hold Aden, what do you fear? Nor from the Mahdi. With a Mohammedan government in Egypt the Mahdi is not a danger. Then you must make alliance with the Mohammedans, who would believe you their friend.’ _Randolph_: ‘Could we send troops or officers to Afghanistan to help the Afghans against Russia?’ _Jemal-ed-Din_: ‘If you send troops, as for instance to Candahar, even with the Amir’s consent, it will be the right of any Moslem to go to the top of a hill and raise a revolt against you. He would say you were come under pretence of a friendship to take possession; and all would believe him. You might, however, send officers, a few officers, for these could not take possession. They would be servants of the Amir. But remember, if the Russians stay five years at Merv it will be too late; you should attack them not through Afghanistan but by the other side; then the Mollahs would preach a _jehad_ to join you against the Russians.’

“The conversation lasted about three-quarters of an hour, and Randolph then went away. He did not say much to Jemal-ed-Din, but to me he expressed himself, as I went with him to the door, much pleased with the Seyyid’s frankness and the justness of his views. He promised to send Wolff to see him. Also he recommended me to write to Lord Salisbury, asking to be supported in my claim to return to Egypt this autumn. I am cited to appear before a Court there (in connection with my property) in October, and this gives me a good excuse.

“I then saw Justin McCarthy at the House of Commons, and asked him about that portion of my Electoral Address which related to Ireland. He approved. Thence I went to Cardinal Manning, who warmly approved my address which I read to him. But he objected to my declaration in favour of an Irish Parliament, assuring me that the Irish did not want one. He had just seen six Irish bishops, who all declared this to be the case; he, the Cardinal, had written to Rome in this sense. He wanted local self government for Ireland,—not a Parliament which he considered would be a prelude to separation. He has given me a card of introduction to Canon McGrath of Camberwell, who will tell me what it is the Irish of Camberwell want.

“Partly on this account, partly through what Mr. Palmer, the secretary of the Camberwell Association told me, I altered this part of my programme, making it more vague and leaving out the word ‘parliament.’ Palmer came while we were at dinner, and frightened us by announcing that two new Conservative candidates had been started, and complaining that Randolph had not sent the letter he promised. It was almost time for the meeting, but I sent Hope to Randolph’s house and then to the House of Commons, where he saw him but could not get the letter from him, as he said my allusion to the Irish Parliament would be a Cabinet question. This very nearly upset our coach, but fortunately I had made my speech before Hope arrived at the meeting, and had won the confidence of the delegates. There was some close questioning about my Irish ideas, and I reduced my policy to one of ascertaining Irish wishes and giving Home Rule as far as possible in accordance with them. Also one old gentleman declared he could not be party to selecting a Roman Catholic. But the rest were strongly for me. We, that is the two other candidates, local people, and myself were turned out into the street for twenty minutes while the voting was going on (a rather ridiculous proceeding, during which we compared notes as to our chances), and at the end of it I was called back and was declared selected by sixteen to one. Three had not voted, having gone round the corner to allay thirst, but they were also held to be my supporters. So I may consider it a considerable triumph.”