Had the Convention been adopted by Sir Robert Stopford in the first instance the loss of life incurred in this retreat might have been saved, and the country would have suffered much less than it did. Nothing has been gained by its rejection; it stipulated for the delivery of the Turkish fleet, the evacuation of Syria, and the confirmation of Mehemet Ali in the hereditary government of Egypt, all of which have now been obtained, with the loss, it is true, of some thousands of human beings, who were not at all interested in the war. General Jochmus thinks that the military question has been decided, and that the Turks drove Ibrahim out of Syria; it is very certain that Ibrahim marched out of Syria, harassed by the different tribes, but the Turkish army might just as well have been at Constantinople; in fact, they were just where they ought to have been, and the only fault committed by the Turkish authorities was giving directions to the different tribes to harass Ibrahim’s retreat, which was quite improper after the unconditional submission Mehemet Ali sent to the Porte by Captain Fanshawe. This submission, too, was well known in Syria at the time they were thus acting, for we learn from Captain Stewart that on the 9th of January the Gorgon arrived at Jaffa, bringing the news that the Pacha’s submission had been accepted by the Porte[77]. The British Ambassador, I find, has not hesitated to take upon himself the responsibility of the attempts made by General Jochmus to destroy Ibrahim’s whole army. The following is his letter to Lord Palmerston, for he shall speak for himself:— “My Lord, “Therapia, February 23, 1841. “I transmit copy of one of General Jochmus’s despatches to Admiral Sir Robert Stopford[78], that I may insure its being known to your Lordship, as it affords information essential to a correct judgment of the affairs of this country. “It is shown in the despatch, that had it not been for the perseverance of General Jochmus in taking measures against Ibrahim Pacha, it would have been easy for Ibrahim to remain with his army in Damascus until, the arrangement with Mehemet Ali having been completed, he might have retreated with a great unbroken force to Egypt, instead of having his army defeated and nearly destroyed, and wholly demoralized. “Had Ibrahim remained at Damascus, the military question would have been undecided, and it would have been easy to assert that victory might still have been on the side of the Pasha, had Mehemet Ali thought it politic to continue the war.