- 26 - and the economy, and the demise of the experience they were exposed to by relying on their small holdings. The facts proved to be contrary to what one might expect, that the lack of abusive lending, contrary to the law of Fashna protection, leads small landowners to sell their lands and compels them to try to circumvent the law by fraud. It has been proven otherwise, which is that the lands to which that law applies have been sold less, and that the contracts concluded outside the law are very few and not at all initiated. It is advisable to re-enumerate the debts of small landowners after five years, and I hope that the result of the enumeration will prove the great benefit of this law by evidence. As for justice in all its branches, it continues to progress well in administering justice effectively, free from foolishness in all parts of the country of various kinds. The continuous increase in the amount of its work is met by a gradual increase in the number of judges and their salaries, as far as the budget allows. Perhaps the most distinctive thing that has been achieved in its work in the past year is the success of the experiment of reconciliation committees, in which men of standing from the country sit, not exceeding their rights and not experienced in judging. The evidence of this success is clear from the number of cases in which their judgments were fulfilled. Last year, they considered 25,000 cases, and among them were 14,000 cases subject to appeal. Only 200 were appealed. Nevertheless, the original judges overturned 80 percent of those judgments. As for public security, it is said that despite all the efforts made by those responsible for it from the government officials, the number of crimes increased last year. After the public security department in the Ministry of the Interior was reorganized, preventive measures against crime were taken, either by follow-up and precaution or by force. However, these measures did not have enough time to have an effect, but it is expected that the result this year will be better than last year. In early 1912, the directors held an important meeting in Cairo, where they discussed the issue of concentrated government officials regarding public security. The opinions of both parties confirmed that as long as the current prison system remains as it is, it will not be possible in the Egyptian territory, and the increase in the number of crimes committed by former convicts supports this. Last December, the Minister of the Interior sent a thousand convicts from the centralized prisons to Sudan, which was done with the authority and after agreement with the Governor-General of Sudan. Thus, the prisons were emptied by sending them, and security was spared the expense of expanding them, and this must be intimidating.