In January the Turkish Commissioner arrived, and the investiture was performed in the most public manner, although the Bey was uniformly described in the firman as “my Governor-General.” Independently of this circumstance, which had its signification, the “three tails,” which are the insignia of a Turkish Pacha of the highest rank, were displayed together with the Ottoman and Tunisian flags. The ever-watchful eye of Mr. Wood, however, observed that a regular throne had been introduced into the audience-chamber, and he hastened to request an explanation of the political significance of the change. The Bey replied as follows:—“We never imagined that the mere change of the shape of our state-chair could give rise to an idea of any change in the present state of the political affairs existing between us and the other Governments. We inform you that this chair is a substitute for the chair which we usually sit upon in our ceremonies, and on which our predecessors have sat for centuries. The change of shape can be of no consequence, for its importance consists in the rules on which it rests. We have not the least scope in the change, and so we inform you.” In spite of this little incident, there can be no doubt that the understanding between the Bey and the Porte from this time became one of the most satisfactory character. The Bey during the summer of 1860 submitted to Mr. Wood a project for the elaboration of the constitution already promulgated by Sidi Muhamed. It was now proposed to form a Chamber or Senate in great part of a representative character; the Bey was only to act henceforward with the advice of his Ministers, who in their turn were to be responsible to the Assembly. The financial administration was to be improved by the introduction of a budget and civil list, and a court of appeal and criminal tribunal were to be instituted. In September much excitement was occasioned in Tunis by the attempt of one Sheref El Hashem (“the Damascene”) to excite a _jehad_ or religious war against the French from the Tunisian frontier. El Hashem was one of the heads of the Kaderia confraternity at Baghdad,[32] but notwithstanding he ran the risk of deeply offending this all-powerful community, Muhamed es Sadek arrested him and condemned him to death, in order to faithfully carry out his obligations towards France. The last words spoken by El Hashem were these:—“You have sacrificed my life to please your Christian allies, who will themselves soon avenge my death, _for you will be the last of the line of Hussein Ben Ali_.” Two weeks later the Bey was received by Napoleon III. at Algiers. Decorations in brilliants were exchanged between the host and his guests. Muhamed es Sadek was profuse in his promises of cordial support to France and French interests, and even Mr. Wood was reluctantly obliged to report that “the influence of France is now in the ascendant.” Some of the remarks of the Emperor were not