The State Railways

This chapter focuses on Marcus Simaika's career in the Egyptian State Railways. When Simaika graduated in 1882, Egypt was under British occupation. Gross financial mismanagement, first by the viceroy, Said Pasha, and to a far greater extent by his nephew and successor, Ismaʻil Pasha, had put Egypt on its way to bankruptcy. After conducting an investigation, the British government implemented a number of measures that led to widespread nationalistic resentment in the country, particularly within the army. Simaika first worked at a hospital in Cairo before applying as a translator in the Engineering Department of the State Railways. He eventually transferred to the Purchasing and Contracts Office. In his memoirs, Simaika recounts several incidents in which he fell prey to machinations by colleagues and superiors who resented his accomplishments. In 1906, he resigned his position of chief auditor and retired from government service at the age of forty-two.