138 THE STORY OF THE KHEDIVATE.

determination to draw up a preliminary report, which might be supplemented afterwards by further investigations, if her Majesty's Government considered it advisable. He thereupon left Egypt after only a few weeks' sojourn.

The actual truth about this curious episode in Anglo- Egyptian history is probably contained in the private papers left by Lord Beaconsfield. But, judging from the facts, in as far as they are known, it is impossible, to my mind, to avoid the conclusion that Mr. Cave's mission, following, as it did, on the heels of our acquisition of an immense interest in the Suez Canal— on terms which, at the time, were not regarded, at home or abroad, as likely to prove remunerative to the purchaser — was intended by its author to lead up to the establishment of a British Protectorate over Egypt. The then Mr. Disraeli was a statesman singularly reticent, even with his own colleagues, and I think it more than probable that what I may call the inner meaning of the Cave Mission was not communicated to the other members of the Ministry at the time when the mission was appointed. When, however, an impression gained ground that the mission was intended to pave the way for the establishment of a British Protectorate over Egypt, the proposal met with vigorous opposition from the Liberal party, and with lukewarm support from the Conservatives. It is my aim in this narrative to -avoid party politics as much as possible. The plain truth is that, up to a very recent period, neither