ملف من أوراق مطبوعة مصنفة تحت عنوان "التفاوض المصري" بين كرزون وعدلي باشا والوفد المصري [ظ‎‎٥‎٧] (١٧٨/١١٤)

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he would be quite ineffective if he did not go to the Minister and draw his attention
to it.
Rushdi Pasha enquired whether he would interfere with a law which the Minister
was preparing.
Mr. Lindsay enquired whether the delegation seriously wished the Judicial
Commissioner to keep silence over a law which was obviously going to be harmful.
Adly Pasha said that personally he did not see the necessity ol making
stipulations about someone who would only have to take action in a purely
hypothetical situation.
Mr. Lindsay said that he did see the necessity. For instance, if the local
authorities took a dislike to a foreigner they could very easily make his life a burden
to him.
Rushdi Pasha said that Mr. Lindsay returned to the question of abuses of
administrative power, and that these were either matters for diplomatic representations
or for the Mixed Courts. For instance, if a foreigner had been deprived of his water
supply he could bring an action for damage against the Egyptian Government.
Mr. Lindsay said yes, he might do so, but in the meantime he would have lost
his crop.
Adhy Pasha said that they must push matters to their logical conclusion, which
was that any Ministry, not merely the Ministry of Justice, might commit abuses, and
Mr. Lindsay wished to have a sort of superman who would interfere in everything.
Mr. Lindsay said this was not the case, and, indeed, he wished as far as was
practicable to limit the functions of the Judicial Commissioner.
Adly Pasha said that he feared he would inevitably interfere in all directions.
When it was merely a question of the reorganised Mixed Courts, the delegation was
convinced that the procureur general could do all that was necessary and would provide
all the protection which foreigners required. Now, however, it was a question of
abuses, not on the persons of foreigners, but on their interests, and in such cases the
person who would naturally intervene would be the diplomatic representative of the
foreigners concerned. The Egyptians were opposed to the idea of a superman who
would control the whole administration of the country.
Mr. Lindsay said that “control ” was not the right word. He would merely keep
an eye on the administration, and, with the authority and support of the Minister
behind him, he would be in a position effectively to protect foreign interests.
Adly Pasha said that other Ministries besides the Ministry of Justice were
concerned, such as the Ministry of Public Works, the Ministry of Agriculture, &c.
Mr. Lindsay said that this was a fair point, but the police were the most important
aspect of the administration for foreigners, and, as the police were under the Ministry
of the Interior, it was thought that the Judicial Commissioner should be able to
intervene in that quarter.
Rushdi Pasha reiterated that foreigners had the Mixed Courts and their diplomatic
representatives to protect them.
Mr. Lindsay said that this was not enough.
Sidky Pasha said that the point at issue concerned administrative abuses. How
could the Judicial (Commissioner interfere with the Ministry of Public Works or the
Ministry of Communications? Under Mr. Lindsay’s scheme he would have to deal
with each Ministry turn about.
Mr. Lindsay said that he was not impressed by these difficulties.
Rushdi Pasha maintained that the scheme would result in intervention in internal
affairs entirely incompatible with independence.
Mr. Lindsay said that these w'ere only words, and he did not mind what form the
stipulation took provided that it was of a nature to reassure foreigners. The
delegation knew well enough what foreign apprehensions were.
Adly Pasha said that their only fear was the loss of their capitulary privileges.