It is undeniable that the youth of this era are now forgetting the shortcomings of the past. Education and refinement have awakened innate inclinations, and it has become clear to the common man that he and the Pasha are equal before the law. A spirit of independence has arisen in their hearts, for which proverbs were once coined. It is therefore not surprising that the Egyptian youth are enthusiastically seeking a greater share in the governance and administration of their country. There is no one less noble than he who meets these legitimate and honorable aspirations with rejection and aversion. Likewise, there is no one less wise than he who refrains, at the outset of this movement, from guiding those who wish to be loyal to the dictates of reason, to the limits within which these aspirations should be confined and not exceeded at present. I am a friend to the Egyptians, too sincere to belittle or deceive them. Therefore, I ask myself, saying: What is it that the Egyptian youth desire, based on the views that the Nationalist Party represents for them?

First, they desire to ascend to the financial government positions currently held by Europeans. I have no objection to this aspiration, but I will elaborate on it elsewhere in this report. For now, you are speaking of something more general in the Nationalist Party's statement, which is purely political. Then, they demand, based on the assumption of a rational expansion of consultative bodies, an immediate and broad expansion. It seems that people, especially in England, are very fearful of knowing the extent to which consultative systems have been achieved. This will be discussed in another chapter of this report. I will suffice here with discussing the extent to which the authority of the Legislative Council and the General Assembly can and should be expanded.

I have not heard the Nationalist Party express its statement in explicit terms defining its demands, but I understand that it seeks the establishment of a council similar to the British House of Commons. I do not know if it seeks to confine all authority to one council or to establish a second council, like the Senate in France or the House of Lords in England. Nor do I know if it intends for this Egyptian parliamentary council to legislate laws, so that the Egyptian nation would be bound by them without distinction or preference, or if it is intended for the local government and its subjects to legislate, and not others. If it intends for them to legislate, then the entire nation would be involved, and it would be impossible to gain the acceptance of all nations, which they will not accept. However, if we set aside these matters, which are unknown, even though they are of great importance.