ricaded their doors.

Gregory was in the harbour at the time and, jumping into his boat,
rowed to the stairs and hurried home. He found that his wife had
already disguised herself, and was in readiness to leave.

The street was full of excited people. He slipped on his own disguise,
darkened his face, and then, seizing a moment when the crowd had rushed
up the street at the sound of firearms at the other end, hurried down
to the boat, and rowed off to the Simoon.

"I must return now, dear," he said. "I can get in at the back gate--I
have the key, as the stores are brought in through that way. I do not
think that you need feel any uneasiness. The row is evidently still
going on, but only a few guns are being fired now. Certainly the
rascals cannot be attacking the stores, or you would hear a steady
musketry fire. By the sound, the riot is principally in the foreign
quarter, where the Maltese, Greeks, and Italians congregate. No doubt
the police will soon put it down."

The police, however, made no attempt to do so, and permitted the work
of massacre to take place under their eyes. Nearly two hundred
Europeans were killed. The majority of these dwelt in the foreign
quarter, but several merchants and others were set upon, while making
their way to their offices, and some seamen from the fleet were also
among the victims. The British consul was dragged out of his carriage,
and severely injured. The consulate was attacked, and several Frenchmen
were killed in the streets.

The Khedive hurried from Cairo, on hearing the news. Arabi was now
sending some of his best regiments to Alexandria, while pretending to
be preparing for a raid upon the Suez Canal. He was receiving the
assistance of Dervish Pasha, the Sultan's representative; and had been
recognized by the Sultan, who conferred upon him the highest order of
Medjidie.

In the meantime a conference had been held by the Powers, and it was
decided that the Sultan should be entrusted with the work of putting
down the insurrection, he being nominally lord paramount of Egypt. But
conditions were laid down, as to his army leaving the country
afterwards.

The Sultan sent an evasive reply. The Khedive was too overwhelmed at
the situation to take any decisive course. France hesitated, and
England determined that, with or without allies, she would take the
matter in hand.

Chapter 2: The Rising In Alexandria.

The harbour was full of merchant ships, as there were, a