"During the night of the 19th to 20th all the European population, the _personnel_ of the Company, and the principal Egyptian functionaries, were assembled at the house of M. Poilpré, Chief Agent of the Domain, at one of the gayest of balls, enlivened by the presence of the officers of the Spanish and Austrian ships of war. At two in the morning, every one went home, and commenced to sleep, when, towards 3 o'clock, in the middle of a very dark night, the streets resounded with warlike cries, mingled with the sound of musketry and of the rolling of gun-carriages dragged at a walking pace. "It is the English sailors who disembark without having warned the inhabitants that they might be exposed to be killed in the streets. On what are they firing?--on whom?--no enemy is before them. The camp of the Egyptians is at Nefiché, three kilometres from Ismailia. There are in the town only some soldiers of police, very peaceable people, inhabiting Ismailia for a long time, and who have never dreamed of anything but maintaining order. "Shortly after the embarkation, the cannon thunders. It is the _Orion_--it is the _Carysfort_--which are sending their shells on to Nefiché, or in the desert. "The musketry fire continues in the streets of Ismailia. At daybreak it ceases in the town, after having happily made only one victim. "It is a European, a Dutchman, M. Bröens, who, not answering clearly to the challenge of a seaman, received a rifle bullet, which, traversing his body, broke his left arm. M. Bröens lies between life and death. The doctors regard his condition as hopeless. "The English sailors direct their steps towards our Arab village, inhabited by our native workmen with their families, and where they find no enemies to reply. Nevertheless, they fire on the women and children,[46] who flee into the desert; heartrending cries from the terrified population reach even us. Some Police Agents are made prisoners without any of them having tried to defend themselves. "One of them is killed from behind, whilst trying to escape with his family. "Towards eight in the morning the musketry fire ceased. The cannon thunders still, and will thunder until the morning of the 21st. "On landing, the English have cut our telegraph wires to Suez and Port Saïd. Captain Fitz-Roy occupies the Port Office, and our boats are seized. Ismailia is blocked, and we know nothing of what is passing on the rest of the line. "In the afternoon we think of putting the families of our _personnel_ in safety. For 300 seamen only occupy the town, and during the night the Egyptians of Nefiché may attack. It is prudent to make the women and children sleep on the lake. As to the _personnel_ and M. Ferdinand de Lesseps, they have decided not to quit the town.