to put them in motion without loss of time, having assured himself of their being well provisioned, not only from Kossier but from the depôts which he had established on the Desert; by having concentrated an adequate supply of camels for the carriage of water, by having had the mussacks repaired, and by having opened more wells in various places along the route. By thus taking advantage of the experience he had painfully acquired, he provided the means of saving his followers much of the toil and fatigue which he had himself undergone, and at the same time accelerated their progress in a manner most conducive to his own views, for the good of the service, and most in accordance with the wishes of General Hutchinson.

CHAPTER XVIII.

GENERAL BAIRD'S ANXIETY-FRIENDLY DISPOSITION OF THE INHABITANTS OF UPPER EGYPT-THEIR SINCERITY-RISING OF THE NILE -CHANGE OF PLAN-COLONEL CHAMPAGNE PROMOTED COLONEL QUARRILL ORDERED TO MARCH TO GIRJEE-IMPRESSMENT OF BOATS -PROPOSITION OF COLONEL MURRAY WITH RESPECT TO THE ULTEDESTINATION OF THE ARMY FRUSTRATED DESPATCHES FROM GENERAL HUTCHINSON-DISPOSAL OF THE TROOPS-TONNAGE OF VESSELS-GENERAL BAIRD EMBARKS FOR LOWER EGYPT NOTICE OF GHENNAH-REGNIER-BRUCE.

RIOR

GENERAL BAIRD'S mind being now freed from all anxiety, but that of proceeding, and all responsibility, except such as attached to the expeditious accomplishment of General Hutchinson's wishes, it might be supposed that he was destined to carry on the preparations for doing so, without any new accession of annoyances; but the difficulty of communication with General Hutchinson, the uncertainty of the conveyance and receipt of his letters, kept him in a continued state of anxiety.

On the other hand, it must be confessed, that in addition to the advantages so surely derivable from the system he had adopted, founded upon experience 2 B

VOL. I.

and practical knowledge, he received great encouragement in his enterprise from the friendly disposition of the principal inhabitants of Upper Egypt, who exhibited every inclination to assist the army in its progress; but this apparent friendship was greatly deteriorated by an instability and carelessness of obligations quite natural, perhaps, in narrow minds, ignorant of the world, and under the domination of a Government corrupt in itself, and either unwilling or unable to correct corruption in its subjects. In promises, these people were as liberal as Portuguese politicians, but the just fulfilment of those promises, it was soon ascertained, depended very considerably upon the effect it would have upon their personal interests; and not unfrequently upon the possibility of their being able to do, what in fact, and in spite of their large professions, they never had it in their power to effect.*

*The liberality of profession on the part of the natives may be tolerably well appreciated by the following letter, addressed to General Baird on his arrival at Ghennah, by the Capidan Pacha.

"His Highness Hussein Capidan Pacha, &c. &c. &c. to his friend General Baird, commanding a Corps of British Troops.

Having learnt that you are happily arrived at Ghennah with the troops under your command, and desiring nothing so much as to provide for the repose and welfare of British troops, we have selected Osman Bey Perdicci, (a Prince of Cairo, and who will join you with all expedition,) and have charged him with firmans, and orders written in Arabic, to facilitate the requisition and procuring of provisions and other necessaries, of

But although affairs looked thus prosperously, and the greater part of General Baird's army had succeeded in struggling across the burning sands of the Desert, with the loss of only three men, between Kossier and Ghennah, there were difficulties of another kind now threatening them in their front. The Nile had, during the last few days, risen so considerably, that the intention of marching by its bank, (a circumstance which, it must be evident, was of the greatest importance, inasmuch as upon

which you may be in want during your march, and when you halt. We therefore hope, that on his joining you, you will begin your march and proceed to us with as little delay as possible.

"With respect to us, having in concert with the English troops, our companions, and our dear friend General Hutchinson, and his Highness the Grand Vizier, laid siege to the City of Cairo, to Barlak and Gizeh, and having had some actions, the besieged, convinced that they ought not to resist our combined force, have offered to evacuate Cairo and its dependencies at the end of twelve days, on condition of being sent back to France with their arms and baggage, and they have begun by giving us possession of a fort, and one of the fortresses of Gizeh.

"As we proceed in fulfilling the terms agreed on, the French are employed in transporting their effects from Cairo to Gizeh, and on the Wednesday next of this present month, we shall take possession, God being willing, of the city and the different works that surround it.

"This letter is written in great haste, and hurried off for the purpose of communicating the above intelligence to you. "Head Quarters of His Highness Hussein Capidan Pacha, "Before Gizeh, 28th Saphar, 1216." (Corresponding to 9th July, 1801.)

that route the essential difficulty of carrying water for the army would have been entirely obviated,) was necessarily abandoned.

This interruption to the arrangements of the General had been, as it will be seen, anticipated by General Hutchinson, who appears by his letter to have considered a march by the inland route out of the question; although dreadful as it appeared to him, and would appear to any one acquainted with the dreary waste of sand which it presented, that course was, in many respects, infinitely preferable to the trials which the same brave troops had already over

come.

General Baird, however, decided upon trying every possible means of conveying the army to Cairo by water; and besides forwarding a despatch to General Hutchinson, begging him to send him as many boats as he could procure, he adopted the General's plan of taking by force all those, which, notwithstanding their protestations of friendship, the natives would not voluntarily grant the use of, and sent out parties in various directions to press whatever vessels they could meet with. This measure was rendered absolutely necessary, not only by the importance of the object in view, but by the great demand for boats at this particular season of the year.

But with all his exertions, General Baird never, from the first, anticipated that he should be able to convey the whole army by the river. On the contrary, he was fully convinced that the means upon which, at the very best, he could calculate, would be