No. 632.
Mr. Farman to Mr. Evarts.
Agency
and Consulate-General of the United States in
Egypt,
Cairo,
November 27, 1879. (Received December
17.)
No. 351.]
Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith
copies of a dispatch received from his excellency Mustapha Fehmi Pasha,
minister of foreign affairs, and of a decree made by His Highness the
Khedive, under date of the 15th instant, relating to the Rothschild
loan.
This decree does not ‘differ in principle nor in any important particular
from the draft or proposed decree which I inclosed to you with my
dispatch No. 310 of July 3, 1879, to which you replied by telegram under
date of October 12, 1879, as follows: “This government makes no
objection to the proposed decree respecting the domanial loan.”
[Page 996]
Article 3 only relates to the disposition to be made of the balance of
the proceeds of the loan, and article 4 simply makes more certain and
definite the evident intent of the first part of article 2.
After the conversation I had with you in New York and your subsequent
telegram above mentioned, I did not think any further correspondence on
the subject of the decree necessary. I knew you did not wish to enter
into any question of details such as those relating to the manner of
applying the proceeds of the loan, and that you had no objection to the
Egyptian Government’s making such regulations or laws as it thought
necessary or expedient in respect to such matters.
I therefore felt authorized, when Mustapha Fehmi Pasha came to this
consulate, as he did on the 13th instant, to confer with me on the
subject, to state to him verbally, and afterwards to confirm this in
writing, that the Government of the United States made no objection to
the proposed decree relating to the Rothschild loan.
The other great powers had, as he informed me, already assented, and he
wished to have the decree issued immediately for reasons that were
evidently very important.
I inclose a copy of my dispatch on this subject which I sent, accompanied
with its translation into French, to his excellency, on the 21st
instant.
I was careful to follow both in the verbal statement and its written
confirmation the words of your telegram, “this government makes no
objection,” &c. I thought perhaps you intended to make a distinction
between making no objection and consenting.
Hoping that what I have done will meet with your approval, I have,
&c.,
[Inclosure 1 in No.
351.—Translation.]
Mustapha Fehmi
Pasha to Mr. Farman
Ministry of Foreign Affairs,
Cairo, November 16,
1879.
No. 802.]
circular.
Sir: As a sequel to the circulars that this
ministry has had the honor to address you on the 2d of July and 20th
of September of this year, concerning the Rothschild loan, I hasten
to transmit you a copy of the decree issued by His Highness the
Khedive, under date of yesterday, after an understanding between the
powers and his government.
As you will not fail to observe yourself Mr. Agent and
Consul-General, the changes that have been made in the last drafting
of this decree consist in the addition of a fourth article and of
the word “exclusively” in the first sentence of Article III.
I also believe it my duty to call your attention, Mr. Agent and
Consul-General, to the fact that it remains well understood that the
employés and the pensioners of the government, to whom are due
arrears of pay, form a part of the creditors of the non-consolidated
debt, and will be treated in conformity with the principles
established by the commission of inquiry.
Be pleased to accept, &c.,
MUSTAPHA FEHMI,
Minister of
Foreign Affairs.
[Inclosure 2 in No.
351.—Translation.]
decree.
We Khedive of Egypt:
Whereas, upon the 31st day of October, 1878, a loan for the sum of
£8,500,000 was contracted, in the name of the state, through Messrs.
de Rothschild & Sons, at London, and Messrs. de Rothschild
Brothers, at Paris;
[Page 997]
Whereas, in order to carry out the decree of the 26th of October,
1878, and respond to the common intent of the parties, there is need
of making the necessary provisions with a view to reserving the
properties ceded by our family for the special and exclusive
guaranty of this loan;
Our council of ministers being heard;
Do hereby decree:
Article 1. Until the complete payment (amortissement in the French) of the domanial
loan the properties ceded by our family to the state shall be
unseizable, and shall not be alienated but by the commissioners of
the domains under the conditions fixed by the conventions executed
or to be executed between the government and Messrs. de
Rothschild.
Art. 2. After the satisfaction of the
judgment liens (inscriptions hypothécaires)
anterior to the liens taken by Messrs. de Rothschild on the 2d and
3d days of February last, these properties shall be and shall remain
released from every action, “résolutoire” or “en revindication,” and
from all real rights of what nature soever, except those conferred
upon the subscribers to the loan, to remain especially and
exclusively set apart for the guaranty of the interest and payment
(amortissement) of the said loan.
Art. 3. In order to give a guaranty that
the available balance of the domanial loan will be entirely and
exclusively used in paying the non-consolidated Egyptian debt, the
Egyptian Government delegates (intrusts) from the present time to
the special commissioners of the public debt all its right to the
sums that it may still dispose of out of the product of the domanial
loan, in execution of the conventions executed between itself and
the Rothschild houses.
Consequently, Messrs. de Rothschild shall accept (are authorized to
accept) as good and valid discharges the receipts that shall be
given them by the special commissioners of the public debt for any
payments that they shall make to them (the commissioners) in the
execution of their contract.
The special commissioners of the public debt shall hold the sums thus
paid by Messrs. de Rothschild as a sequester, not to be disposed of
save according to the instructions that shall be given them by the
commission of liquidation that shall be constituted by virtue of an
international understanding (accord); and in default of this
commission, according to the instructions that shall be given them
(the commissioners) by us with the concurrence of the powers.
Art. 4. The full exercise of the rights
appertaining to the creditors holding judgment liens registered
prior to the 2d and 3d days of February, 1879, namely, prior to the
dates of the record of the mortgages taken by Messrs. de Rothschild
is and remains expressly reserved.
Art. 5. Our minister of finance is
intrusted with the execution of the present decree.
Done at the palace of Abdin, the 15th November,
1879.
MEHEMET TEWFIK.
By the Khedive:
Riaz,
President of the Council of
Ministers,
Minister of Finance ad Interim.
[Inclosure 3 in No.
351.]
Mr. Farman to
Mr. Mustapha Fehmi
Pasha
Agency and Consulate of the United States,
Cairo, November 21, 1879.
No. 809.]
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the
receipt of your excellency’s dispatch No. 802, of the 16th instant,
inclosing a copy of a decree made by His Highness the Khedive, under
date of November 15, 1879, and relating to the Rothschild loan.
In an interview that I had the honor to have with your excellency on
the 13th instant, I stated that the Government of the United States
made no objection to the issuing of this decree, the draft of which,
in the form in which it now appears, had been presented to me.
Yesterday your excellency requested me to confirm in writing what I
had verbally stated in this interview. Incompliance with your
excellency’s request, I have the honor to hereby state that the
Government of the United States make no objection to the decree
above mentioned.
Accept, &c.,
E. E. FARMAN,
United States Agent
and Consul General.
