For something less than two and a half millions sterling active military
operations were carried on for nearly three years, involving the employment
- far from its base - of an army of 25,000 disciplined troops, including an
expensive British contingent of 8,000 men, and ending in the utter defeat
of an enemy whose armed forces numbered at the beginning of the war upwards
of 80,000 soldiers, and the reconquest and re-occupation of a territory
measuring sixteen hundred miles from north to south and twelve hundred
from east to west [Lieut.-Colonel Stewart's Report: Egypt, No.11, 1883],
which at one time supported at least twenty millions of inhabitants.
But this is not all. Of the total EP2,354,354 only EP996,223 can be
accounted as military expenditure. For the remaining EP1,358,131 Egypt
possesses 500 miles of railway, 900 miles of telegraph, and a flotilla of
steamers. The railway will not, indeed, pay a great return upon the capital
invested, but it will immediately pay something, and may ultimately
pay much. The telegraph is as necessary as the railway to the development
of the country; it costs far less, and, when the Egyptian system is
connected with the South African, it will be a sure source of revenue.
Lastly, there are the gunboats. The reader cannot have any doubts as to the
value of these vessels during the war. Never was money better spent on
military plant. Now that the river operations are over the gunboats
discharge the duties of ordinary steamers; and although they are,
of course, expensive machines for goods and passenger traffic, they are
by no means inefficient. The movement of the troops, their extra pay,
the supplies at the end of a long line of communications, the ammunition,
the loss by wear and tear of uniforms and accoutrements,
the correspondence, the rewards, all cost together less than a million
sterling; and for that million Egypt has recovered the Soudan.
The whole EP2,354,354 had, however, to be paid during the campaigns.
Towards this sum Great Britain advanced, as has been related, P800,000
as a loan; and this was subsequently converted into a gift. The cost to the
British taxpayer of the recovery and part acquisition of the Soudan,
of the military prestige, and of the indulgence of the sentiment known as
'the avenging of Gordon' has therefore been P800,000; and it may be stated
in all seriousness that English history does not record any instance of so
great a national satisfaction being more cheaply obtained. The rest of the
money has been provided by Egypt; and this strange country, seeming to
resemble the camel, on which so much of her wealth depends, has,
in default of the usual sources of supply, drawn upon some fifth stomach
for nourishment, and, to the perplexity even of those best acquainted with
her amazing financial constitution, has stood the strain.
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