The question of the future of Palestine now arose. Was Palestine simply to be left to Turkey or was Great Britain to secure some important places? The prevalent tendency in English opinion was in favour of the annexation of Acre and Cyprus. Acre, in the hands of England, or of any other nation commanding the sea, could be made really impregnable, and Cyprus seemed also to be of great strategic importance, especially to England. The reasons for such an annexation were palpable. England and her Allies had not merely rescued Syria, they had absolutely saved the whole Ottoman Empire. After the battle of Nezib had given the defiles of Mount Taurus to Mehemet Ali, nothing could have obstructed the rebels’ triumphant march to Constantinople. The Allies had thus rendered to the Ottoman Empire the greatest possible service that one State can receive from another. Gratitude alone might have suggested a more valuable acknowledgment of this service than Acre and Cyprus; but as the service had been rendered at some risk, and at enormous expense, justice demanded that it should be paid for; and nobody could suggest that it would be paid for too dearly by a strip of territory which was of little value to Turkey, though useful to England, and which in British hands would assuredly supply the Porte with a fortress that could never be established in its own territory. Acre and Cyprus garrisoned by British troops would give Turkey the surest protection. Attention was also called to the fact that no spot in the world was associated with so many proud recollections as Acre, the theatre of British gallantry from the days of Richard _Cœur de Lion_ (1157‒1199) to those of Admiral Sir W. Sidney Smith and Admiral Sir Robert Stopford. Another consideration had great weight with English opinion. The possession of Acre would open a road for the return of Biblical truth to the land from which that truth had spread to the human race; and Englishmen would feel guilty of sin if they failed to impress upon their Government the need of seizing this glorious and blessed opportunity. To take, however, the more utilitarian view of the matter, Great Britain, occupying the impregnable position of Acre, would not be under the necessity of seeking the freedom of the overland route to India from any other Power. She would command it at all times. Acre in the hands of Great Britain would be a perfect guarantee against revolts in Egypt or in Syria, and would in fact ensure the Turkish Empire against the only danger that could threaten it on the side of Asia.