The Admiral, of course, expected that the enemy, with his
forts destroyed, would offer terms ; and, accordingly, seeing a flag of truce on board the Mahroussa,' the Khedive's yacht, sent an officer, to repeat that if the forts wore surrendered, the fire should cease. The terms were rejected, but another flag of truce was displayed, on the fort near Ras-el-Tiu Palace; and as no shots were fired, and the weather had also become bad, Admiral Seymour awaited communications from the shore. They never came. The flags of truce were intended only to gain time, which Arabi Pasha used to draw off his Army to a point on the railway seventeen miles from Cairo, and to release the convicts, whom Lieutenant Lambton saw moving away in crowds. They were either ordered or permitted to slaughter the Europeans, plunder and burn the town, and car- tried out their instructions to the letter. All Wednesday night and Thursday they attacked and murdered Europeans and wealthy Arabs indiscriminately, only one hundred of the former cutting their way to the boats, and fired every plundered building. It is believed that the massacre involved some 2,000 persons, chiefly Greeks and Levantines, and one or two officials ; but details as yet are most imperfect,
