“I had the honour to receive your letter of the 12th of January only on the 17th, and active operations have prevented my answering this before. “It would be superfluous to enter now into any details on its varied contents, since fortune and victory have declared on all sides for me by the total rout of the Egyptians, thus consoling me, in a certain degree, for that want of confidence in my judgment which it is evident you entertain, with respect to my operations in the field. Unskilful as I may be deemed as a military commander, it must at least be confessed, from the recent march of events, that I am certainly a very fortunate one. I must, however, most distinctly advert to, and refute two points upon which a great part of the critical acumen, contained in the letter in question, appears to be erroneously based; stating first, that I am not aware of any person in Syria being in the secret of my operations, and cognizant of all my plans, until after their execution, since I consider secresy the mainspring of success; and secondly, that I do not admit the right of any naval officer, on a special station, to attempt to control those operations, in the way you have thought proper to assume, upon the same principle, as I suppose would guide you, were I to presume to give you a lesson on the best mode of managing your ship. At the same time I am, and have always been, most happy to receive any opinion or explanation, provided they be given with the courtesy and respect due to the General intrusted with the operations of the army.