§ MR. WILLIAM ABRAHAM (Limerick, W.)I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to a passage in the Overland Times, of Ceylon, which states that—
Mr. T. J. Lipton left to-day in the P. & O. s.s. 'Thames,' and said good-bye to Arabi Pasha before he went on board, but later on Arabi went out to the 'Thames.' We believe this is the first time Arabi has been afloat since he has been in the island";whether this was the first time on which Arabi Pasha, during his imprisonment, has been allowed to leave the island; and whether, considering that he has shown no inclination to abuse any extra privileges accorded to him, it would be possible to mitigate or to put an end to his imprisonment in Ceylon?
THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS (Mr. J. W. LOWTHER,) Cumberland, PenrithMy attention had not been previously directed to the passage in the newspaper referred to. I am not aware whether the occasion referred to is the first on which Arabi Pasha has been out in a boat since his detention in Ceylon. He has not, so far as I am aware, shown any inclination to abuse any extra privileges. The Egyptian Government have refused to consent to the return of the exiles to Egypt, and have pointed out that it was only on condition that they should remain at some place distant from Egypt that the exiles were pardoned and allowances granted to them.
§ MR. COX (Clare, E.)I beg to ask the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs whether he has seen a statement some time ago, appearing in the Pall Mall Gazette from a visitor to Arabi Pasha, in Colombo, to the effect that
since he saw Arabi Pasha at Colombo in 1884 he has undergone a painful physical deterioration. When he met him some years ago the Egyptian prisoner of war was a tall, well-proportioned, erect man. Now he is round-shouldered, and no longer stands erect; and at the age of fifty-one he presents the appearance of a worn-out old man of seventy";442 whether Arabi has frequently complained that the climate of his prison-home is slowly but surely killing him, whilst he suffers constantly from fever, asthma, and rheumatism; whether Dr. Vandhort has certified him to be in a "state of chronic invalidism"; whether he is aware that Arabi's eyesight is rapidly failing him in consequence of the dampness about Colombo, and that Dr. Brockman, an eminent oculist from Bombay, has certified that a continued residence in that climate would result in serious consequences to his eyesight, with a prospect of cataract; and whether, in view of the fact that, owing to the limited allowance of £600 per annum for himself, family, and servants, Arabi is unable to remove into the Central Provinces during the damp season at Colombo, Her Majesty's Government, if they cannot now allow his return to Egypt, will grant his Memorial to have him removed to the drier climate of Cyprus, and have his allowance increased from £50 to £75 per month?
MR. J. W. LOWTHERI have not seen the statement in the Pall Mall Gazette, nor can I find it in the copies of the paper which have appeared during the last two months. The complaints made by Arabi were investigated by a Medical Commission last year. They reported that no change had taken place in the health of Arabi. The full Report will be found at page 3 of Egypt No. 4, 1891. No information has been received as to the Reports of Drs. Vandhort and Brockman. The Medical Commission stated that Arabi suffered from dimness of vision of the right eye. Arabi receives a larger allowance than any of the other exiles. Applications for further increases in their allowances have on several occasions been referred to the Egyptian Government, who have, however, declined to accede to them, and Her Majesty's Government are not prepared to press the Egyptian Government to depart from that decision.
MR. LOWTHERIf the hon. Member will refer to the Papers which appeared last Session, and which have also been laid this Session in the matter, I think he will find that an application 443 was made to the Egyptian Government in that respect also, but the Egyptian Government did not see their way to accede to that demand.
§ MR. COXIs Her Majesty's Government not able to protect a defenceless prisoner? Is it not a fact that when Arabi Pasha was first ordered to be interned in the first instance Ceylon was not specially stated, but merely that he was sentenced to be imprisoned in some distant part like Ceylon; and, further, I wish to ask the right hon. Gentleman whether Lord Dufferin did not certify £2,000 a year as the allowance for Arabi Pasha?
MR. LOWTHERThese questions which the hon. Member has put contain new matter. Perhaps he will be good enough to put them down on the Paper.
§ SIR WILFRID LAWSON (Cumberland, Cockermouth)Can Her Majesty's Government not interfere in the matter? Is the imprisonment of Arabi Pasha to be permanent?
MR. LOWTHERThe imprisonment of Arabi Pasha is not a matter for Her Majesty's Government, but is one which was decided upon by the Egyptian Government.