of equality. In the eyes of the law, there’s no difference in either age or status. This is exactly in accordance with the commands of the noble Shariah and applies in particular to members of the Khedive’s family and people in authority when one of them commits a crime indictable under the law. So you have suffered neither ignominy nor disgrace in standing up before the Judge. You merely stood before the representative of His Excellency the Khedive who holds the highest rank of all.
PĀSHĀ If that constitutes your opinion about the Judge, then what about the member of the Parquet who saw fit to reproach me for my noble rank?
5.11
INSPECTOR I haven’t studied the files on the case and the details of the defense yet. But the part of the Attorney’s speech which has been published in Miṣbāḥ al-sharq is not intended to convey any idea of reproach because of your rank. On the contrary, its aim is to make it clear that it is not the right of people of high rank, however important they may be, to completely override the rights of the weak and use it to claim precedence over other people before the law. The scope of rank is limited purely to its possessor, without giving him any advantages over those who do not have it. Thus you have no reason to complain about the things which the Attorney said on this point. That’s the way things normally happen in this age.
PĀSHĀ Well then, if the Judge and Attorney can both be excused, what’s the point of my coming to see you and submitting a petition of complaint? Wouldn’t it be proper to summon the Judge and Attorney, reprimand them both, then examine the case, verify the falsity of the accusation, and on that basis quash the sentence in their presence?
INSPECTOR That’s not within our sphere of jurisdiction. If a court official acts contrary to the dictates of his office, the investigation of the case is in the hands of the Disciplinary Committee. A senior person has no recourse against a subordinate except through a court decision. Thus, I’m extremely sorry to say that we can’t act in your case. The decision rests with the Court of Appeal alone since it is the entity charged with annulling verdicts.
5.12
ʿĪsā ibn Hishām said: As this conversation proceeded, I was watching another young inspector at our side. His bright red tarboosh was tilted to one side. His expression showed signs of authority, and he kept raising and lowering his hand to and from his glasses. His appearance confirmed the fact that he was well organized and astute. When our conversation reached a certain point, he hailed the orderly, signs of regret and sympathy imprinted on his expression:
SECOND INSPECTOR Bring me Dalloz and Garraud.
The Pāshā turned to me and asked: Are those the names of the Judge and Attorney? Has the time come for me to get fair treatment from them both?
ʿĪSĀ They’re the titles of two books on civil jurisprudence, instead of Ibn ʿĀbidīn and Al-Hidāyah on Shariah jurisprudence.
The librarian fetched the two books, but the Inspector gave one of them back to him. “Not Baudry,” he said. “I asked for Garraud.” When they brought him that book, he began to delve into the two works for a long time. He looked despairingly at the librarian. “Get me Faustin Hélie,” he said, whereupon the librarian brought him another book. After studying this book for a while, he began to argue with his colleague in French. Eventually, when they finished, they spoke to the Pāshā:
5.13
Your only recourse in this case is the Court of Appeal. As far as the Judge and Attorney are concerned, we will make a note of it and refer it to the Board when it meets. If they find the slightest fault in their conduct, they will send out a circular to all courts ordering this practice to be discontinued in future.
With that, they both bade us farewell with reverence and respect.
As we left, the Pāshā spoke to me:
PĀSHĀ Every time I’ve set foot in one of this government’s departments, I’ve found myself faced with young people conducting its business. Have Egyptians been created afresh, or are they living in heaven where all ages are equal? My heart is almost completely exhausted from the way these worries and anxieties keep piling up against me.
I have seen sorrows obscuring sorrows
just as one line is written over another on paper.45
5.14
ʿĪSĀ Don’t be surprised that young men are appointed to government positions; in this era the system requires it. They claim that men in middle and old age cannot bear the burdens of responsibility because they lack the necessary knowledge about modern sciences and the skills they demand.
Were God to see any good in old age,
The devout would abide near Him, old-aged for all eternity.46
PĀSHĀ How can they possibly claim that knowledge is the sole province of the young to the exclusion of older people? I’ve only encountered genuine learning in people whose backs have been bent by old age and whose hairline has been whitened by experience. It’s only then that reason and culture shine forth in all their brilliance.
ʿĪSĀ Knowledge and learning are not the exclusive province of one age group or one period of life. Young men are often more effective in the scientific sphere and can gather more information on various subjects because of the sharp intellect and quick comprehension which is characteristic of people of their age. As a result, when they apply their energies to learning with determination, they can take in materials that are no less abundant than those possessed by men in middle and old age. Indeed their swift comprehension of things may enable them to achieve the same as older men have done after lengthier experience. You should not deny young people the knowledge they acquire nor challenge their right to assume high office.
Youth is not something to prevent one from learning;
learning may exist in both young and old.47
5.15
PĀSHĀ So far I’ve followed your line of reasoning and taken your advice. We’ve presented our case to the Committee of Surveillance. But, as you can see, we’ve emerged without success. After going to all this trouble, we can only trust in despair. With today’s events behind us, you have no plausible reason for dragging me into making any further efforts to lodge a complaint before the judges.
ʿĪSĀ Don’t despair or lose heart. We still have the Court of Appeal before us. I’ve great faith in the fairness of its judgment. And, even supposing that our hopes were to be dashed there, the gate still remains open for us to try to obtain a pardon through the Minister of Justice.
PĀSHĀ From now on, don’t mention any ruler or minister. I’ve had enough of standing in front of these young men, however much you exaggerate and quote poetry to describe them.
5.16
ʿĪSĀ The Minister of Justice I’m describing is not at all like these young men. He prays devoutly, devotes all his attention to extra recitations and remembrances of God, and spends the night standing in prayer and the day fasting. There’s a pact of understanding between his fingers and the rosary, and a firm connection between his forehead and the prayer mat. All in all, in this modern age he reminds us more than anyone else of the old times you knew. His father was in fact one of the great men of your day, Ḥasan Pāshā al-Manāstirlī.
PĀSHĀ
