ملف ١٩١٧/٨١ "الجزيرة العربية: الثورة العربية. الأسرى العرب" [و‎‎٨‎١] (٢٧٢/١٦٦)

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A Oonfidential note on Abdul Lajid Kamil.
I have examined the Arabic documents, books and pamphlets sent to
ne by Mr. Stewart, and after assiduous search have gleaned the
-..following facts from them.
z. Abdul 32ajid is a highly educated man. He was bom in Cairo in the
year 1294 Hijri (corresponding to about 1875) and so he is about 40
years old now. His father Hussain Sidgi was attached to the Khedival
Palace as a writer.
3. He knows Turkish, French and English, and he is a great scholar in
Arabic. He was very fond of geography and mathematics while at
school.
4. After obtaining literary education he joined the military school
where he distinguished himself so well that he soon obtained an
appointment in the Army. He was then appointed Superintendent of
Police at Haifa.
5. His heart, however, lay in a different direction. While in
Government service he used to contribute articles to Liberal and
Radical papers complaining of the Military Autocracy in Egypt and
sighing for more personal freedom and liberty in the land of the
Pharoahs.
6. He, therefore, left the Army "without pemission" and took to
public life as a journalist. In 1901 he started the magazine called
"A1 Nizarat"; in 1902 the illustrated weekly newspaper "Albaba
Ghilu-al-Misri"; in 1907 the illustrated daily newspaper "A1 Magsua";
and soon after the iagazine "A1 Ustaz". These journalistic aborts
did not succeed as all the papers with the exception ox
Ustaz" were short lived and had to be stopped either on account of
financial difficulties or pressure from Government
7. In addition to this work Abdul Majid founded two schools for the
better education of the boys and girls at x>airo and Banha. But
this work also he met with opposition from i s livALs ana
8. In 1910 he joined the Education Committee ana was appointed its
Secretary. He then quarrelled with the "Mudir (wlacn means eith
the District Officer or the President of the Committee) left Egypt
and started on his travels* 9.