have made arrangements
which will secure an easy conquest, and promises to place Tunis, Tripoli,
and Algiers under regular governments, nominally under the Sultan, whose
consent he reckons upon, and capable of preserving the relations of peace
with other Mediterranean Powers.

The Pasha's army is commanded by French officers, and the annexation of
these States to Egypt would be their practical annexation to France. When
his army is disseminated along the coast of Africa, I might realise my
dream of taking Egypt from India.

We considered the proposed order in Council relative to the slave
regulations of the King's own ceded colonies. The Duke was evidently not
well, and he was rather out of humour. We were three hours and a half in
Cabinet. He made various objections to the proposed regulations. He
impressed upon us the danger of tampering with the rights of property. We
were doing that with property of an _odious_ character, which we should not
do in England. He pressed the effect in the West Indies and the example
everywhere. He seemed to complain that the regulations were different from
those agreed to in the summer. Sir G. Murray was very quiet. He is a very
sensible man, but he is overawed by the Duke, having been under him so
long.

Poor old Tierney is dead, for which I am very sorry. He was a very good
friend of mine.

_January 27._

Cabinet at four. There can be no Council to-morrow, as Greville has the
gout and Buller is in Cornwall.

There is to be an intimation sent to the Pasha to the effect that we
_disapprove_ of the proposed attempt to conquer Tripoli, Tunis, and
Algiers. France is to be told the same. I wished conditional orders to be
given to the Fleet, and that the Pasha should be told orders had been
given. It being doubtful whether French vessels might not convoy the
Egyptian fleet and transports, I thought we had better now consider what we
should do in that event; that we had better not threaten without
determining to execute our threat, and that we should consider how we
should deal with the French ships if we stopped the Egyptian--in short not
take a first step which might make a second necessary, without knowing in
our own minds what that second step should be. The Duke thinks the French
will back out when they know our _disapprobation_, and that at any rate the
Pasha would. I rather doubt this of either of them.

The French say they have a sort of quarrel with Tripoli, but none with