ointed high admiral, arrived at Alexandria on
the 1st of July 1806 with 3000 regular troops and a successor to Mehemet
Ali, who was to receive the pashalik of Salonica. This wily chief
professed his willingness to obey the commands of the Porte, but stated
that his troops, to whom he owed a vast sum of money, opposed his
departure. He induced the ulema to sign a letter, praying the sultan to
revoke the command for reinstating the beys, persuaded the chiefs of the
Albanian troops to swear allegiance to him, and sent 2000 purses
contributed by them to Constantinople. Al-Alfi was at that time
besieging Damanhur, and he gained a signal victory over the pasha's
troops; but the dissensions of the beys destroyed their last chance of a
return to power. Al-Alfi and his partisans were unable to pay the sum
promised to the Porte; Salih Pasha received plenipotentiary powers from
Constantinople, in consequence of the letter from the ulema; and, on the
condition of Mehemet Ali's paying 4000 purses to the Porte, it was
decided that he should continue in his post, and the reinstatement of
the beys was abandoned. Fortune continued to favour the pasha. In the
following month al-Bardisi died, aged forty-eight years; and soon after,
a scarcity of provisions excited the troops of al-Alfi to revolt. That
bey very reluctantly raised the siege of Damanhur, being in daily
expectation of the arrival of an English army; and at the village of
Shubra-ment he was attacked by a sudden illness, and died on the 30th of
January 1807, at the age of fifty-five. Thus was the pasha relieved of
his two most formidable enemies; and shortly after he defeated Shahin
Bey, with the loss to the latter of his artillery and baggage and 300
men killed or taken prisoners.

The British expedition of 1807.

On the 17th of March 1807 a British fleet appeared off Alexandria,
having on board nearly 5000 troops, under the command of General A.
Mackenzie Fraser; and the place, being disaffected towards Mehemet Ali,
opened its gates to them. Here they first heard of the death of al-Alfi,
upon whose co-operation they had founded their chief hopes of success;
and they immediately despatched messengers to his successor and to the
other beys, inviting them to Alexandria. The British resident, Major
Missett, having represented the importance of taking Rosetta and
Rahmanieh, to secure supplies for Alexandria, General Fraser, with the
concurrence of the admiral, Sir John Duckwo