happy to say, it has not turned out to be of a serious nature. He has in consequence been recommended by the Seraskier to the Imperial Government for a Turkish order. I would also venture to mention to your Lordship, from my own personal observation, that during the pursuit (and the retreat was executed by the enemy in admirable order), British officers were with the most advanced troops, cheering on the irregular cavalry; and that on relinquishing the pursuit, having driven the enemy six or seven miles from our camp, our advance being then considerably inferior to the Egyptians, who had retired upon their reinforcements, the British officers were on the spot ready to assist in any further attack or pursuit. Major Wilbraham was present from the commencement of the affair, and we were joined by Lieutenant-Colonel Alderson of the Royal Engineers, and by Major Robe, and Mr. Crawford, a Midshipman of Her Majesty's ship "Benbow," who had for some time past been staying at our Head-Quarters with Captain Stewart. These officers having been sent to Ascalon to ascertain whether the steam-vessels were in sight, heard the firing on their return, and quickly joined the Turkish advanced troops. On the 16th instant, the Turkish infantry and artillery returned by the sea-coast from Meshdel to Jaffa. General Michell reached Jaffa the same day, and the "Vesuvius" and "Hecate" steamers also returned to their anchorage, and disembarked the marines, having found it impossible to communicate with, or even to approach, the Gaza coast, in consequence of the severity of the weather. On the following morning, the 17th, Lieutenant Loring, of Her Majesty's ship "Carysfort," accompanied by Hamid Bey, arrived at Jaffa, the bearers of the Convention concluded at Alexandria by Commodore Napier. A report of this is made to your Lordship in Lieutenant Aldrich's letter addressed to you on the 23d instant. For further explanation of the notification here of the ratification of this Convention, I forward a letter (Inclosure 2) from Commodore Napier, addressed to General Michell. Inclosure 3 is a letter consequently transmitted to Ibrahim Pasha by Brigadier-General Michell and Captain Houston Stewart, and despatched to the Head-Quarters of the Egyptian army by Major Wilbraham. Inclosure 4 is the copy of a letter addressed to the Commandant at Gaza. On the 20th inst. a Council of War was held, at which the absolute necessity of abstaining from all offensive measures against the Egyptian army was advocated and enforced. Inclosure 5 is a copy of LieutenantGeneral Jochmus's protest at the termination of the council, and Inclosure 6 is a letter also addressed to the Council by Mr. Wood. On the 21st, Lieutenant-General Jochmus left Jaffa for Jerusalem, and by perusing the inclosed letter (Inclosure 7) from him to the Seraskier, your Lordship will be made acquainted with his position in that City. The staff-officers being all variously employed, Lieutenant-Colonel Colquhoun of the Royal Artillery was requested to proceed with Captain Arbuthnot to Jerusalem, on the 21st, with the instructions contained in Inclosures 8 and 9; and on the 22nd, at the request of the Seraskier, another officer, Lieutenant-Colonel Alderson, Royal Engineers, proceeded to Gaza; his instructions are embodied in Inclosure 10. I have thus endeavoured to furnish your Lordship with as complete a summary of the occurrences which have taken place from the date of Brigadier-General Michell's last despatch to the day of his death, as my means will admit of. If I have trespassed too much upon your Lordship's time, I trust I shall be pardoned. (Signed) I have, &c., E. H. BRIDGEMAN, Colonel commanding the British Forces in Syria. P.S.-I have omitted to acquaint your Lordship that Zacharias Pasha, the new Seraskier Pasha, and the successor of Izzet Pasha, arrived at Beyrout on the 19th of December, from whence, as I have already mentioned in my letter, he reached Jaffa on the 9th of January. Sir, Inclosure 1 in No. 178. [See Sub-Inclosure 32 in No. 175.] Inclosure 2 in No. 178. Commodore Napier to General Michell. Her Majesty's Ship "Carysfort," THE bearer of this letter is charged by me (agreeably to the orders of Sir Robert Stopford, in consequence of directions from Lord Palmerston, to carry my Convention into effect) to proceed with Hamid Bey to the head-quarters of Ibrahim Pasha, and to deliver to him the order of Mehemet Ali, for the immediate evacuation of Syria. It is Sir Robert Stopford's directions that every facility is to be given for the embarkation of the sick, the wounded, the women, and children, and others of the Egyptian Army at Kaiffa. But it appears to me (if there is no objection, of which I cannot be a judge here) they may be permitted to embark at any other place, if more convenient. The officer charged with despatches to Ibrahim Pasha will necessarily consult with him and with you on this point as well as the officer who is charged to see the evacuation carried into effect. It is needless to observe, that as Mehemet Ali has made his submission to the Porte and is reinstated in the Pashalic of Egypt, it is of the utmost importance that Ibrahim should not only not be disturbed in his evacuation, but should be protected and assisted in every manner, so as to cause as little loss of life as possible. Inclosure 8 in No. 178. [See Sub-Inclosure 10 in No. 175.] Inclosure 9 in No. 178. [See Sub-Inclosure 11 in No. 175.] Inclosure 10 in No. 178. [See Sub-Inclosure 12 in No. 175.] No. 179. Colonel Bridgeman to Viscount Palmerston.-(Received March 13.) My Lord, British Head-Quarters, Jaffa, IN my despatch dated the 26th of January, 1841, I had the honour to lay before your Lordship a summary of events to the date of Brigadier-General Michell's death, and I now resume the subject, and shall endeavour to place your Lordship in full possession of the several occurrences which have subsequently taken place. In the despatch of the 23rd of January, 1841, your Lordship was informed that, on the 17th of January, Major Wilbraham, accompanied by Lieutenant Loring, Royal Navy, Hamid Bey, and a StaffOfficer of the Seraskier Pasha's, left this place for Jerusalem, with orders to proceed thence to the head-quarters of Ibrahim Pasha. These officers, after a long and fruitless expedition by the southern extremity of the Dead Sea, turned westward to Gaza, hoping there to obtain some accurate information of Ibrahim Pasha's line of march. From thence Lieutenant Loring returned to this place on the 23rd, bringing us the news of the arrival there, on the 22nd, of the advanced guard of Ibrahim Pasha's army under the command of Ahmed Pasha. Major Wilbraham on the same day again left Gaza with Hamid Bey for El-Khalil, from whence on the 25th, in company with Hamid Bey, Omar Pasha the Turkish General, and Captain Arbuthnot, (with whom he had fallen in at ElKhalil,) he proceeded to the Pass of Suera, through which it was expected Ibrahim Pasha would retire to Gaza. In order to satisfy ourselves of the good faith of the Generals of the Egyptian army, and at the same time to afford them every possible assurance that the retreat of their army would be not only protected, but favoured and assisted to the utmost of our power, (they having expressed a slight distrust in consequence of some movements of the Turkish troops at El-Khalil,) Captain Stewart, accompanied by Rechid Pasha, Lieutenant Loring, Royal Navy, and Colonel Rose, embarked on the 25th on board Her Majesty's steam-vessel "Hecate," and landed early on that day at Gaza. They were at the same time to urge the speedy evacuation of that place, and the retirement to the Egyptian frontiers of the troops which were daily arriving. I also instructed Colonel Rose (so soon as he should be provided with a sufficient Turkish escort, taking with him an Egyptian officer of rank) to proceed on the route by which Ibrahim Pasha would most probably approach Gaza, and secure him, as far as possible, from any act of aggression on the part of the Bedouin Arabs, or other irregular troops. From the tenour of Lieutenant-General Jochmus's protest transmitted to your Lordship in my despatch of the 26th ultimo, and from the letter of Mr. Wood, addressed to the Seraskier Pasha and to the President of the Council, your Lordship will observe that there has been a manifest disposition to harass Ibrahim Pasha's retreat. On the 24th of January, (the day before Captain Stewart proceeded to Gaza,) a Council was held at the Seraskier Pasha's, at which Captain Stewart and Colonel Rose were present. On leaving the Council, they were under the full impression that all intention of offensive operations against Ibrahim Pasha was abandoned, and that the Convention would be acted up to with sincerity and good faith. With the greatest surprise, therefore, Captain Stewart ascertained subsequently, in the course of conversation with Rechid Pasha, that notwithstanding this supposed decision of the Council, orders had been sent to General Jochmus to act upon Ibrahim Pasha's line of retreat, and to throw every impedi ment in his way, but to abstain from any direct attack. These orders were given under the impression that Ibrahim Pasha's force was very considerably reduced as to numbers, and in a completely disorganized state. He The very large and comparatively effective force, however, which (so contrary to their general assumption of the almost entire disorganization of the Egyptian army in the desert) was concentrated at Gaza, had in the mean time considerably influenced Rechid Pasha, and convinced him that coercive measures against Ibrahim Pasha were hopeless. returned, therefore, forthwith to Jaffa, arriving here on the morning of the 26th. Captain Stewart having written me word of the discovery he had made from Rechid Pasha of the transmission of orders by the Council for the discomfiture of the Egyptian retiring force, I immediately proceeded to the Seraskier Pasha's, where Rechid Pasha placed in my hands the very letter, which, as he assured me, had been written by him with the consent of the Council to General Jochmus, but which he found had not been sent. I strongly protested against the course they had adopted, by which the honour of the British name and of the Turkish cause would so assuredly have been compromised, as being so directly at variance with the assurances which Captain Stewart and Colonel Rose had made to Ahmed Pasha, and I received the most positive declaration that no hostile movements of any nature should be made, and that every possible assistance should be given to the Egyptians. To reiterate these assurances personally to Ahmed Pasha, Rechid Pasha returned on the 28th of January to Gaza. The Seraskier Pasha and Rechid Pasha also proposed the removal of 17 battalions of infantry from Jerusalem to Ramla, of 2,000 irregular cavalry to Ashdod, and of two regiments of irregular cavalry to reinforce a small advanced post of Lancers at Meshdel. To the removal of the 17 battalions from Jerusalem to Ramla as purely a defensive measure, and consequent upon the parallel movement of Ibrahim Pasha's troops upon Gaza, I did not object, nor did I to the addition of the two regiments of regular cavalry, merely suggesting that they should be stationed at Ashdod instead of Meshdel, as being a connecting link with Jaffa and Ramla, and further removed from the Egyptian cantonments at Gaza; but I did object, and was obliged strongly to protest, before I gained my point, against the advance to Ashdod of any irregular troops. These forces are under little or no control, and would, in all probability, have taken the first opportunity of placing themselves upon the line of march of any isolated Egyptian column, and of committing the same excesses as the Bedouin Arabs, from whose attacks (and they pay but little respect to either Turkish or Egyptian flag) we were doing all in our power to secure the Egyptian force. On the 29th of January I received from Lieutenant-Colonel Alderson, who still remained at Gaza in communication with Ahmed Pasha, the Note of which a copy is inclosed (Inclosure 1), and which he and Captain Stewart had obtained from Ahmed Pasha and the other Egyptian Generals, exchanging with them all possible assurance of good faith in the execution of the Convention. Inclosure 2 is the partial affirmation of this document by the Seraskier Pasha, Lieutenant-General Jochmus, and the Moustechar Effendi; and Inclosure 3 is the copy of my letter to LieutenantColonel Alderson, in which it is transmitted. Major Wilbraham and his companions ceased not, in the mean time, to prosecute their search, and were twenty-four hours in the desert without water; all their exertions were, however, fruitless, and it was not until the 31st of January, that Colonel Rose (in consequence of information obtained from some deserters of Ibrahim Pasha's column) was enabled to ascertain his exact line of march. On the morning of that day he came up with Ibrahim Pasha about twenty miles from Gaza, on the route from the southern extremity of the Dead Sea; and having delivered to him a copy of Mehemet Ali's instructions for the evacuation of Syria, accompanied him to Gaza. This morning Colonel Rose and Captain Stewart returned from thence, and the former officer has placed in my hands the inclosed translated copy of a Note addressed to the Seraskier Pasha by Ibrahim Pasha, with which the Seraskier has expressed himself as satisfied. From the reports I have received, it would appear that the Egyptian force which has reached Gaza, amounted to about 15,000 infantry and 6,000 or 7,000 cavalry. Of the former, 2,000 men are stated to have been sent to El-Arish before the arrival at Gaza of Lieutenant-Colonel Alderson: subsequently, six regiments of regular cavalry, amounting to about 2,400 men, and 1,200 irregular cavalry, have also retired; and Captain Stewart is decidedly of opinion, that the evacuation will be performed without any unnecessary delay, and that within a fortnight not an armed Egyptian will remain in Syria. But whilst the wind remains in its present quarter, it is impossible either to land the biscuit for the troops, which they must carry with them on their homeward march, or to embark the women, the sick, and the wounded. Colonel Rose having had some personal communication with Ibrahim Pasha, and being enabled to afford further information, I have ventured to direct him to proceed in Her Majesty's steam-vessel "Vesuvius," to carry my despatches to Admiral Sir Robert Stopford and to Lord Ponsonby, returning, so soon as he has delivered them, to the headquarters of our force. I purpose proceeding to Gaza on the 5th instant. I have, &c., (Signed) E. H. BRIDGEMAN, Colonel Commanding the British Forces in Syria. P.S.-Probable Turkish force in Southern Syria:-regular infantry 18,000; regular cavalry 3,500; rregular cavalry 3,000; irregular infantry of the Lebanon and Naplouse, 10,000. Inclosure 1 in No. 179. [See Sub-Inclosure 18 in No. 175.] Inclosure 2 in No. 179. [See Sub-Inclosure 19 in No. 175.] Inclosure 3 in No. 179. [See Sub-Inclosure 20 in No. 175.] Inclosure 4 in No. 179. [See Sub-Inclosure 21 in No. 175.] |