SIR GEORGE CAMPBELL&c.) (Kirkcaldy,asked the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Whether any provision has been made in the 565 Estimates of the present financial year for the cost of Sir Henry Drummond Wolff's Mission to Egypt; and, if not, from what funds he and his staff are paid; whether it is the intention of Her Majesty's Government further to keep two diplomatic agents in Egypt, at £5,000 per annum each, besides staff and expenses; and, what are the functions of the two agents respectively, especially whether Sir Henry Drummond Wolff is confined to the Military and frontier questions, or whether he is inquiring into the Civil Administration as well?
§ THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE (Mr. BRYCE) (Aberdeen, S.)A sum of £11,900 has been inserted in the Diplomatic Estimates for "Unforeseen Missions and Expenses;" and the expenses of Sir H. Drummond Wolff's Mission will be defrayed from this Vote. It is not intended that Sir H. Drummond Wolff should remain in Egypt after he has completed his Reports and terminated his negotiations with the Turkish High Commissioner. The division of business between the Special Mission and the Permanent Agency was left to the discretion of Sir H. Drummond Wolff in consultation with Sir Evelyn Baring. In practice, while each has been in the habit of consulting the other, Sir Evelyn Baring deals with the greater part of the usual current business of the Agency, while Sir H. Drummond Wolff's attention has been principally directed to the question of the Soudan, of Military and Civil Re-organization, and certain special questions of internal administration.