[34] G. Saint-Yves, _Les Chemins de fer françaises dans la Turquie d’Asie_ (Paris, 1914). [35] The French and Belgian banks principally interested were: the Imperial Ottoman Bank, the _Banque de l’Union Parisienne_, and the _Banque Internationale de Bruxelles_. _Cf._ article “Ou en est la question du chemin de fer de Bagdad,” in _Questions diplomatiques et coloniales_, Volume 24 (1907), pp. 167–171; E. Letailleur, _Les capitalistes français contre la France_ (Paris, 1916), pp. 72–110. M. Rouvier visited Turkey in 1901, at the request of the Ottoman Public Debt Administration, to suggest improvements in the fiscal system of the Empire. (_Corps de droit ottoman_, Volume IV, p. 110.) It was at this time, probably, that he learned enough of the Bagdad Railway to persuade him of the wisdom of investing in its securities. [36] Gervais-Courtellemont, _loc. cit._, p. 507; Imbert, _loc. cit._, p. 682. [37] Gervais-Courtellemont, _loc. cit._, p. 507; Bohler, _loc. cit._, p. 294. [38] Bohler, _loc. cit._, pp. 293–295. [39] Mazel, _op. cit._, pp. 315–322. [40] K. Helfferich, _Die deutsche Türkenpolitik_, p. 18. [41] “La politique extérieure de l’Allemagne,” in _Questions diplomatiques et coloniales_, Volume 23 (1907), pp. 340–341. [42] _Stenographische Berichte, XII Legislaturperiode, 1 Session_, Volume 231 (1908), pp. 4226 _et seq._ [43] Quoted by the _Annual Register_, 1913, p. 326. CHAPTER VIII GREAT BRITAIN BLOCKS THE WAY EARLY BRITISH OPINIONS ARE FAVORABLE The idea of a trans-Mesopotamian railway was not new to informed Englishmen. As early as 1831 a young British army officer, Francis R. Chesney, who had seen service in the Near East, became impressed with the desirability of constructing a railway from the Mediterranean to the Persian Gulf. From 1835 to 1837—while Moltke was in Turkey studying military topography—Chesney was engaged in exploring the Euphrates Valley and upon his return to England brought glowing tales of the latent wealth of ancient Babylonia. It was not until twenty years later, however, that his plan for a Mesopotamian railway was taken up as a practical business proposition. In 1856 Sir William Andrew incorporated the Euphrates Valley Railway Company, appointed General Chesney as chief consulting engineer, and opened offices at Constantinople to carry on negotiations for a concession from the Imperial Ottoman Government. The plans of the Company were supported enthusiastically by Lord Palmerston, by Lord Stratford de Redcliffe, British ambassador at Constantinople, and by the Turkish ambassador in London. The following year the Sultan granted the Euphrates Valley Company a concession for a railway from the Gulf of Alexandretta to the city of Basra, with the understanding that the Ottoman Treasury would guarantee a return of six per cent upon the capital invested in the enterprise. The promoters, however, experienced difficulty in raising funds for the construction of the line, and the project had to be