The Birth of Modem Egypt 43
economic revolution, which has only of late been paralleled
in Communist Russia, was effected under the authority
of the strictest interpretation of Islamic Law. Not that
Mehemet Ali allowed Islamic principle to hamper his
secular purpose. For example, he ousted the Ulema, the
clergy, from administration of the Wakf, the Charitable
Trusts, which thereafter became practically the private
property of the dynasty. Private property in land, on the
other hand, was attacked in principle, but was less
affected in practice. The immense Mameluke estates
were, of course, confiscated ; but other landed proprietors
had only to surrender their titles to the State and get in
return a fixed tenure at a small fixed ground-rent. Village
communal ownership was carefully preserved, and a new
general Land Survey allotted the area to be attached to
each village and to be allocated among its inhabitants by
the Omdeh or Mayor.
State control of produce was as carefully organised.
The choice of crop was prescribed, and the Omdeh
collected the whole produce of the fellah and deducted
the proportion equivalent to ground-rent taxes and cost
of collection. So far there was no drastic departure from
the fiscal system of the Islamic State; but under
Mehemet Ali the remaining produce was bought at a
periodically fixed rate by the State from the producer.
The State then resold it at a rather higher rate for home
consumption, or at a still higher rate for exportation.
These trading profits were intended to be used for
further agricultural or industrial development, but were
eventually mostly absorbed for military purposes. The
peasant, secured in his tenure and in a share of the return,
was better off than if he had had himself to market his
produce and pay in money.
The difficulty in making this sort of State Socialism