Hi everyone, I'm reading up on imperialism and the 19th century and something reminded me of an anecdote that I'd like to fully remember and read more about, but it's like I'm trying to google a dream I had.

Does anyone recognize the following: A British official being caught talking to himself about resources in the middle east, specifically about how he need to secure oil reserves, practically drooling while lost in his thoughts about exploiting resources in Iraq and Syria. I think the context was a British representative at some conference either in the early 20th or late 19th century, so It could have been Versailles or Bretton Woods.

I'm losing my mind trying to find it or the context where I first encountered it, Search engines don't really work anymore.